Cruises From

Southampton
All UK Ports
Barcelona
Venice
Malaga
Rome
New York

Destinations

Caribbean Cruises
Cheap Med Cruises
Baltic Cruises
Norwegian Fjords
One off Specials
Transatlantic Cruise
Cruises to Alaska
Exotic Cruises
River Cruises

Cruise Lines

P&O Cruises
Cunard Cruises
Celebrity Cruises
Royal Caribbean Cruises
Princess Cruises
MSC Cruises
Fred. Olsen Cruises
NCL Cruises
Thomson
Carnival Cruises
Holland America
Oceania Cruises
Seabourn
Regent
Azamara Club Cruises
Crystal
Hurtigruten Cruises
Swan Hellenic
Voyages of Discovery Cruises
Cruise & Maritime Voyages
Costa
Island Cruises
Disney Cruises
Luxury Cruise Collection
Silversea
Star Clipper Cruises
Voyages To Antiquity
SeaDream Yacht Club
Windstar Cruises
River Cruises
Viking River Cruises
Ama Waterways
Uniworld River Cruises
Avalon River Cruises
The River Cruise Line
APT River Cruises
Shearings River Cruises

Latest Photos

View from Oriana
Posted on 23 May 2012
By Shanko, Budapest

Posted on 22 May 2012
By grace, Warrington
Santorini sunset
Posted on 20 May 2012
By Forster, Sherborne
Cork Uni
Posted on 10 May 2012
By Jones, Glossop
See all photos

Back

Cheap and cheerful!!
1 of 1 people found this review informative
 
Reviewed By: smith, cardiff on 18th Mar 2010
Cruise Line: Cruise & Maritime Voyages Times cruised before: 6-10
Cruise Ship: Marco Polo Sailed: January, 2010
Destination: Caribbean Age: 46-55
Cabin: Inside Occasion: Annual/regular holiday
We only booked this cruise a matter of weeks before, so we didn't read the itinerary very carefully and therefore didn't notice how many 'relaxing days at sea' there were or how short the time in port we'd have. Some days we visited one port in the morning and one port in the afternoon which left little time to explore at all.
But first things first, we were pleasantly surprised at the efficiency of the embarkation process and our first impression of the ship and it's public areas was good. The decor was quite elegant and quite a change to the larger ships we've previously sailed on. We were very surprised to find that half of the main lounge was designated a smoking area, which in effect made the whole lounge smell of cigarette and cigar smoke, very unpleasant!!!! Obviously this cruise appealed to smokers and they soon congregated in every outside area of the ship as well.
Our cabin was the smallest I've ever seen and I'm sure it's size contravened 'European Convention on Human Rights' on minimum size of prison cells. It was located aft of the ship and was terribly noisy. Despite notices informing passengers that no cabin changes were possible because of full occupancy, we complained and were offered another one straight way, which was larger but just as noisy.
Mealtimes were very short and there were never sufficient tables and chairs in the self-service bistro. The food served there was the same as in the main dining room, giving no choice at all. Outside of mealtimes the water/soft drinks dispenser were not in-use, the only place to get 'free' water was in the gym. Bottled water in the cabin was charged to the on-board account. No ice provided in the cabin unless asked for.
The drinks on board were expensive £4.20 per glass of wine, there was very little choice and the bars soon ran-out of 'French red' and the less expensive beer, the spirit measures were miniscule. Many passengers 'smuggled' bottles on board, the staff seemd to turn a 'blind-eye' to this. Empty gin and whiskey bottles in waste bins outside cabin doors as cabin staff cleaned attested to just how widespread this practice was!! In fact we got the impression that CMV didn't realise that they were in the 'hospitality' sector. In 4 weeks there was 1 'gala' party where we met the captain and were served complimenty 'cahampagne', there were 3 other formal evenings but no 'complimentary drinks were offered.
I never expect 'fine-dining' on a cruise but the best way to describe the food was 'school meals'. You could ask for alternative dishes but the 'kitchen' couldn't cope if too many diners did so.
The service was excellent, waiters made extra effort to please. In fact all the staff went 'above-and-beyond-the-call-of-duty'. The Cruise Director Richard Sykes was terrific and the small number of entertainers on board gave their all at evening performances.
We like to use the gym, especially on a long cruise but on the M.P it was woefully under equiped and some of the machines were out of order. The floor covering on the upper-decks, the sun loungers and mattrasses were dirty and insufficient for the number of passengers , the jaccuzi leaked into the gym. It all needed renewing and liberal a dose of T.L.C.
We've now been home for a couple of weeks and after weighing up the pluses and minuses of the cruise, we've decided that athough we felt the package was good value for money (we paid minimum cost) we wouldn't use this cruise line in the future.

Quality of Food1
Mostly in the dining room because of too few tables and chairs in the self service bistro.
Entertainment2
Ventrilaquist, too blue.
Shore Excursionsn/a
Staff5
Viktor, waiter
Children's Facilitiesn/a
Onboard Activities2
little choice.
Cabins1
Overall Rating2
1 of 1 people found this review informative
Was this review informative to you?
Report this review

Opinion: Disagree Comment by Robinson, Willaston (22 Mar 10 21:06) about this REVIEW
Disagree with the whole tone of this whinging review. Marco Polo provided us with excellent service, meals were fantastic and food perfectly served. Cabins were comfortable as long as you didn't want to spend all your time in there. Service throughout was superb and the itinerary we had was just what we wanted. Perhaps these people need to research available cruises for what they want rather than booking last minute and hoping for the best.
Report this comment
Comment by G, Alloa (22 Mar 10 23:40) about a COMMENT by Robinson (22 Mar 10 21:06)
I found this review to be quite clear and concise. The areas where the reviewers were not satisfied were food, (we all have different taste and each is entitled to their own opinion), the size of the cabin (I do agree that a little research would have established that the smallest cabin is 100 Sq.ft (approx 12ft x 8.5ft) which is a little smaller than cabins on more recently built ships, and the condition and lack of gym equipment. These are valid points of view and certainly couldn't be classed as whinging! Great praise was given to staff and the reviewer made no complaint about service! I just wish that more people approached reviews with such a clear concise no nonsense attitude. My only real comment would be that the writers carry out more research in future!
Report this comment
Comment by Burton, Anlaby (22 Mar 10 23:00) about a COMMENT by Robinson (22 Mar 10 21:06)
Whinge - 1. to cry in a fretful way. 2. to complain (O.E.D.) Where was the whinging? This was a balanced, methodical review which expressed both opinion and fact. If all reviews were written in such a clear manner it would make the choice of ship/cruise line so much easier.
Report this comment
Comment by Woods, Ashford (19 Mar 10 10:50) about this REVIEW
My congratulations on a well written and comprehensive review of this ship and your cruise. It is a pity that not all reviews are written in such an informative way.
Report this comment

Write a Cruise Review
Receive a FREE copy
of Fodor's
Complete
Guide to
European
Cruises


Live Prices

(95250)
(34163)
(34039)
(14371)
(1645)

Useful Links
Cruise & Maritime Voyages Offers Cruise & Maritime Voyages Answers
Marco Polo Cruise Reviews Marco Polo Deck Plans
Cruise & Maritime Voyages Photos Cruise & Maritime Voyages Videos