Overall Score

BERLITZ'S RATING
	Possible	Achieved
Ship	500	259
Accommodation	200	114
Food	400	215
Service	400	242
Entertainment	100	50
Cruise	400	222

How this score is created

This solid, American-built, former ocean liner (originally built for Grace Line) underwent a great amount of reconstruction (costing a whopping $72 million) in Greece in 1992 after being laid-up for 10 years. Louis Cruise Lines spent more money on another refit in 1997, when the company bought the ship from its former operators, the now defunct Regency Cruises. With new upper decks added, the ship’s profile is not exactly handsome, al­though, unlike new cruise ships, this does have a decent sheer along its waistline (“sheer” is a nautical term for a sweep that sags in the middle, intentionally, being a ship with a proper keel). The ship also benefits from a strong, riveted hull, while all new ships are seam-welded.

The open deck and sunbathing space is quite limited when the ship is full, although there are a good number of sunloungers. There is, however, a good wrap-around promenade deck outdoors, with plenty of chairs.

The ship’s interiors are quite pleasant and surprisingly comfortable, and have a warm decor that is contemporary without being at all brash. Many of the public rooms have high ceilings, and the ship has a spacious ocean-liner feel. There are some fine wrought-iron railings on the stairways. The artwork, unfortunately, is low-budget stuff.

For short cruises, this ship provides a range of public spaces that, in turn, promote a good party ambiance and a number of bars for drinking in (five, actually). The casino is quite large, and has a high ceiling.

The ship, based in Corfu for the summer, operates Adriatic and Greek Isles cruises. Thomson’s wholly owned airline, Thomson Airways, will probably fly you to your port of embarkation from a choice of almost a score of UK airports. Despite the minor criticisms, Thomson provides quite a decent cruise experience, but the high density of this vessel means that there is little room to move about when full (some operators call this “ambiance”). All gratuities are included in the cruise fare. The onboard currency is the British pound.

Berlitz Guide © Apa Publishing 2008