Diamond Princess, Princess Cruises

We are still on Cloud 9 after a fabulous South East Asian cruise on the Diamond Princess! Iglu organised everything for us - the flights (KLM _ brilliant) and pre and post hotels, as it seemed cheaper and easier to tie in with the transfers. The Marriott (Beijing) at the start of the cruise was very good, though let down by poor standard of food, and the Four Seasons in Bangkok at the end was excellent all-round. Our balcony cabin was absolutely fine - we thought it may be a bit snug as previous cruises we had booked mini suites - and spotlessly kept by our steward, Catherine. She made sure that we had a mattress topper when my husband complained his back hurt with the mattress being a bit hard. We think we have found our ideal cabin location - B deck, midships, starboard. Personally, I would not have chosen the 2 lower deck balcony cabins. as they are overlooked, and open to the elements, although I appreciate they make ideal sunbathing areas. Food was wonderful - original, fresh and plentiful - the bread selection was amazing -, and the staff very attentive. Entertainment was excellent, though geared towards the American and Australian guests, and the activities were varied and plentiful. Movies Under the Stars was a great experience - watching Mama Mia in a tropical thunderstorm was especially memorable! The only area that was crowded was the central pool area, but there were always plenty of sunbeds in quieter areas of the ship. We did all excursions through Princess, and most were brilliant, and highly recommended: BEJING - The Wall (sadly, very foggy that day), Summer Palace, Tianamin Square, Forbidden Palace, and an amazing Acrobatic Show - all highly recommended. BUSAN, South Korea - lovely city, but we chose the wrong excursion - we were given 5 minutes in each section of a wonderful market, totalling 25 minutes, then taken to a rest stop to queue for 30 mins for a toilet. We drove around the coastline, very pretty, but the guide rambled on and on about cherry trees as if we hadn't got them in the UK!. We then spent only 15 minutes in a very crowded monastery. Our only disappointing trip. NAGASAKI, Japan - again, a beautiful city. Drove through the countryside to a Samurai Castle, typical Japanese homes, and a village still half buried in lava from a volcanic eruption in the 1960s. SHANGHAI we didn't get to, as the weather was too rough to dock (the ship, however stayed very stable, hardly moving) HONG KONG - an extra day here, so we just took one tour around the island - Aberdeen, Stanley and the Point, all very interesting, and we were thrilled that when we sailed that evening, we came into Victoria Harbour just in time to see the Light show at 8pm. VIETNAM - chose the river cruise in Nha Trang which was delightful and we were given fabulous fruits and coconuts at each stop. Next day, we drove up to the ChuChi tunnels - fascinating - wear knee coverings to protect your skin when you crawl through! All our excursions included ethnic meals in genuine restaurants, but the Vietnamese one was especially lovely, in covered bungalows by the river. SINGAPORE - Botanical gardens, then we took ourselves off to Raffles. Not good value really, as we were delayed at immigration in endless queues, then given 2 and a half hours on our own, after a quick zip around the gardens! We should have done this one on our own. BANGKOK - Temples and river cruise, excellent meal, although a bit too Westernised. Men and Women: Wear LONG trousers/dresses and cover shoulders, otherwise you will be given some borrowed, smelly article to wear. In all, the Diamond Princess is a fabulous ship, elegant but not stuffy, comfortable yet classy, and spotlessly clean - no bugs as far as I know. Guests were a mixture - USA, UK, Australia mostly - we met some very nice people and some very rude and whining individuals, who treated the crew dreadfully. TOP TIPS: • Take toilet tissues with you, and expect to use mainly 'squatting' toilets - we saw very few western style on our excursions. They were all very clean though. • Please attempt to learn how to use chopsticks before you go – you’ll be using them on your excursions and it is poor form to ask for a fork, even though you will get one • Take your own washing powder for Laundramat - they sell it via a machine but it's not good stuff. You will need 8 quarters for the wash and dry • Have a few notes in each denomination for each country. Some take US dollars in port, but this does limit you, and the ship's change machine was expensive. • Avoid buying internet on boat hugely expensive - some of the ports had free access • Drink the tap water on board - it is safe and free and top up for excursions, although most offered water on coaches • Try not to get stressed by seat/lounger hoggers in the theatre and pool area - you have the good manners, they haven't. • Have a wonderful time! We will be back on Princess soon! Possibly South America next time

Every thing on this ship was of a high standard. The only complaint is the cinema screen at the swimming pool was on most of the day and the volume was far too loud, it spoilt any thought of relaxing by the pool. As we like to sit beside the pool it affected us, and although there was plenty of other places to sunbathe, they were not as nice as being beside the pool.