Marco Polo Reviews

I came home from my exercise class feeling a bit down, I don't know why. As I walked in the door my OH was just on his way out, he said... do you fancy a cruise? Did I ever! Where to? Was my relpy. Ultimately St Petersburg... details on the desk I'll leave it to you. I have always wanted to visit St Petersburg but as OH won't fly it seemed out of the question. My first call was to James at Iglu, we have used Iglu twice in the past so I knew I could rely on him to organise everything. I have been on Marco Polo twice before so knew what to expect. I booked an inside cabin but got an up grade to a deluxe outside, very nice. This happened on our last cruise and we ended up sailing off up the Thames estuary with our luggage nowhere to be seen, once again I am left pondering whether I am going to have to wash my undies every night, but it was quickly resolved. Our cabin was lovely, plenty of storage space and I spent many happy hours leaning on my huge window ledge watching the world go by. Our cabin steward, an eastern European lad was absolutely brilliant, nothing was too much trouble. We ate in the Waldorf for formal dining and in Marco's bistro at other times. At this price I know I am not going to get gourmet dining i.e lobster thermidor but what we did get was well cooked and plentiful, varied chioces and well presented. Excursions, on this trip we only booked two, one in Russia because if you don't travel on the ships visa you need to get one of your own, and that can be tricky. The Border Guards are a hard faced lot, he kept looking at my passport, looking at a screen, then back at my passport, all the time eyeing me up, I began to wonder what he knew about me that I didn't. Eventually he let me in!! I must point out that Cruise and Maritime use guides who really know thier subject and our guide for Petersburg and the Catherine Palace was fantastic. In Rostock we had a student who really knew his city and made the visit so enjoyable. on our last cruise we even had a guide who was an engineer on the ship when she was known as the Alexander Pushkin. We visited most of the Baltic capitals, after Petersburg, Tallinn was the best. Entertainment, the entertainers on board are all classically trained musicians and dancers and with the limited facilities available on board present wonderful entertainments. The cruise director Richard Sykes is one in a million, I have seen quotes on other cruise sites that P&O or Cunard ought to poach him, keep your mitts off!! He is brilliant and the staff entertainers i.e Cait and James are fantastic. The classical duo Carmen are great, Olga on violin and Tetyana on piano, for one so young Tetyana is a brilliant pianist and will go far. I must mention that on our last cruise we went to the Arctic Circle to see the Northern Lights, which we saw in spades, but got caugt in the worst storm seen in the Norwegian Sea for a decade, windows were crashing in all around us but the theatre company played on and in the Captains Bar Olga gamefully played the piano, eventhough her first intsrument is the violin, her stool kept sliding and when her hand needed to be at one end of the keyboard her stool was at the other, true Titanic spirit. I must comment about hygiene, the staff are demons with the gel sprays all over the ship. The crew are a happy, cheerful crowd who will do what they can to make your trip as pleasant as possible, look out for Elvis and Sindi in the Captains Bar (I will never forget Sindi's face when a Scotsman in full rig walked past and I commented... I hope it isn't windy on deck, they don't wear anything under the kilt, her eyes were like saucers!!) And I must mention a deck hand, I don't know his name, but he has been there on all three cruises, polishing and scrubbing anything and everything in sight. Whatever ungodly hour I got up in the morning and went on deck for a ciggie he was there...good morning madam, did you have a good night? To which I replied... yes thank you and ran like hell, I remembered the old army adage... if it moves salute it if it stands still polish it. I have enjoyed my cruises on Marco Polo, consider them great value and wouldn't hesitate to sail with them again, using Iglu to do all the organising because they are great.

Have just returned from a Canaries/Madera cruise aboard the Marco Polo. Having read other reviews of this ship I was a little apprehensive but have to say that I was very pleasantly surprised. Compared to many other more modern cruise ships, the Marco Polo is quite small, I think there were 700 or so passengers on board, and this has the advantage of getting to know fellow passengers relatively easily. It was very good value for money, with good selection of food, four meals per day and endless tea and coffee. The serving and housekeeping staff were really very helpful and caring. The wardrobe in our cabin was a little smaller than we would have preferred, and the temperature control on the shower was a quite sensitive (very hot or very cold), but otherwise the facilities and activities on board were fine. Unfortunately at the time of our cruise a storm was heading in our direction across the Atlantic, as a result of which the Captain, wisely as it turns out, chose change the route of the cruise to delay the stop in Lisbon until the end rather than the start of the cruise, which meant we were four days at sea before reaching Lanzerote. Some passengers were annoyed about this at first, but hearing of the very unpleasant journey made by other much larger ships which did go to Lisbon, indicates that the Captain made a wise decision. All in all very pleased with my first ocean cruise, with I’m happy to recommend to others.

This was our first cruise through Iglu and we thoroughly enjoyed it, the cruise was to St. Petersburgh from the middle of September for 11 nights. The staff were wonderful and so efficient, the food was excellent and plenty of it. The entertainment was also excellent and very varied for all of the passengers. We met a lot of lovely passengers of all ages, and would certainly consider another cruise with Cruise and Maritime on the Marco Polo. Our cabin was great, and the cabin steward kept it spotless and it was a pleasure to return to it every evening. Though it was an inside cabin for two we had plenty of room and loads of wardrobe and drawer space for our clothes. We were very impressed with the staff in the bars, restaurants, etc. Everyone was so polite and it was nice to be treated so well.

We travelled on the Marco Polo last May on their Baltic Cruise, it was a last minute booking owing to being let down by another cruise line. We hadn't used Cruise Maritime before (Preferring a larger ship) and were a bit apprehensive, however from the moment we got on board we knew that this ship was just right for us. Check in was very smooth and the staff were very welcoming, entertainment on board was second to none and being such a small ship we all got to know each other quite quickly both passengers and crew. We had chosen an outside cabin and although not large had plenty of storage and was very clean, towels were replaced everytime you used them and the toiletries were of good quality. We only went on 3 of the organised excursions but found these were very well executed with crew members comming along too. All in all I would rate this ship and will hopefully be boarding her again in the near future.

This year we have taken two cruises on the Marco Polo. Round Britain in May and the Baltic at the end of September. We booked through Iglu Cruise which was friendly and efficient. Inspite of Marco Polo arriving late at Tilbury embarkation was well organized. The Inside cabin was clean and well serviced at all times. Food was varied and plentiful. It was beautifully cooked and presented. The waiters were polite, attentive and helpful. The afternoon deck party was first rate in glorious sunshine. What we elected to see in the evening was thoroughly entertaining. The violinist and pianist were exceptional. We chose not to attend any lectures. One of the aerobics classes was at my level but another was far too strenuous. We enjoyed all the ports of call. Our only organised trips were at St. Petersburg. The daytime tour was delightful. The evening ballet performance had some problems for which we were part refunded. This was fair. The Stockholm visit was too short and general transport was poor. We must say we would have much preferred to travel the Kiel Canal during the day. The public rooms were comfortable and staff attentive. We enjoyed walking on deck and to sail down the Thames in a hot tub was quite an experience.  Overall we had a memorable cruise helped by the staff and hope to sail again on Marco Polo.

This was my first cruise experience and a birthday present for my Grandmother and we were both very pleased with our trip. Our cabin (although an upgrade from the standard available) was a highlight, it was clean and spacious, with lovely large windows to look out at the sea - perfect! The staff could not have been more helpful, we were always greeted with smiles and spoken to with courtesy. The staff at the Reception were particuarly helpful and and happy to answer our questions. As it was only a short sail, we were keen to take in as much of the cities as we could, however, when choosing to stay on the ship, there were plenty of available activities to partake in and some delightful places to sit comfortably and have a drink. This really was a splendid trip, with good food, new cities to visit and the wonderful company of my Granny to top it all off!

Very pleasantly surprised about the Marco Polo. We were testing it as we would like to do a longer cruise on it and did not want to commit to this if we did not like it. However it was very good, we had a superior outside cabin and could not fault it. Entertainment was great, especially the cruise director Richard Sykes who is the best cruise director we have come across and we have cruised many times. Food was just ok but maybe that is a good thing! We will definitely be going on the Marco Polo again. Ports of call were interesting and the free shuttle very much appreciated.

Excellent Mediterranean Odyssey cruise on 10th October for 17 days. The ship was bright, friendly and clean. Our cabin steward Yuryi was always cheerful and left the cabin tidy and spotless. Our waiter for dinner, Priston,was most helpful. Richard Sykes was the best cruise director we have ever encountered. We would go again just to be with him for all the entertainment. Our table for dinner of 8 was excellent. The people sitting with us had many similar interests and we have had contact with four of them since our return. Our cabin, although inside was adequate. However next time we book with you we will go for an exterior cabin. All in all this was a very good cruise.

Went on Fjords and Fairytales on the Marco Polo recently. The staff on board were very attentative and really did their best to serve every body well. The cabin was very comfortable with everything you need. The food was very good on the whole with the exception of the 'portable' water which is heavily chlorinated, just take bottled water. The entertainment was good on the whole, the cruise director Richard was brilliant. The Fjords are amazing but the trips are overpriced, Norway although expensive is clean, serene and with the bonus of lovely people. Going from Tilbury ie NO FLY was marvellous!!!

We have just returned from our second cruise on board the Marco Polo and enjoyed every minute. It is an old ship but has so much character. We had a lovely cabin for a reasonable price. The food was very good, if maybe a little unimaginative at times (especially the afternoon tea). The itinerary was excellent - The Baltic Cities and St Petersburg. On board entertainment was plentiful and varied. We will travel on this ship again. I would add that we have also cruised on the Ocean Countess but will not sail on that one again.