Summary:
Please note when I went on this cruise I was 9! When I first got to the port and saw the ship I was like 'WOW', but when I got on to the ship I realised wow didn't cover it. We first got into the atrium and from there were shown to our cabins by friendly staff. When we had got settled in we went up to the 24-hour buffet, where we bought a drinks package, which were good value because you could have as many refills as you wanted throughout the duration of the cruise. We soon got used to life onboard, there was so much to do! I did a calligraphy crash course, which I really enjoyed, and also joined in with some crafts. The staff running the crafts were really good at explaining what we had to do. There was also some really interesting demos, like the towel-folding demo. Making an elephant out of a towel couldn't have looked easier. Sometimes I went to the kids clubs, when you could tear me away from the pool. I enjoyed these but was happy to spend time with my parents. The shows in the evenings were amazing, I think half of the evenings were shows and half of them were other things, one night there was a magician. He was actually amazing and called me on to stage so I could pick a card but not show it to him. He then drew a box of cards on a piece of paper and made the card that I chose appear out of the box. After that he gave me the paper and it was genuinely just a bit of paper with a drawing on. I still wonder how he did it! The dining options for children were really good, even in the main restaurant they had things like beefburgers and other things that children would like. In the 24-hour buffet they had some really nice food and amazing puddings. When we stopped in Italy, they had Italian themed puddings and an ice sculpture of the leaning tower of Pisa, which I thought was a nice touch. I really enjoyed all of the excursions we went on, and I found them really interesting. At some places we just went and found a beach and spent the day there, which was fun too. The excursions were all really good, except the one in Rome was a bit long. We had chosen a nine hour excursion (including traveling to and from the port) and it was really hot, nonetheless, it was really interesting learning all about the Colosseum. After most days, we went swimming. The pools were really nice and spacious. There were plenty of sun loungers to go around, and lots in the shade as well. There was the ice cream shop on the top deck, so after you had been swimming you could go and get a really nice ice cream! When we went on the cruise, Wimbledon was going on and they played it on the big screen that is used for Movies Under The Stars, which kept mum happy and was nice because you didn't have to go in to your stateroom if you wanted to see it. Staterooms were spacious and very nice, I liked staying in it. Your steward would come and put chocolate on your pillow every night, which I loved :) Overall, I loved it all and would highly recommend it.