Cruise Report - Marco Polo 3-9 June 2017

[Jan Rosser]

Here goes folks - 1st part of my report.

Day 1
Embarkation

Biggest attraction of this cruise was sailing from Cardiff - only 40 minutes from home although with the European cup final on the same day we were a bit worried about the road closures etc. I travelled with my friend and her husband - parked at her home which is nearer to the docks and we travelled in by taxi - it was trouble free - a lot of passengers arrived early and there was no problem with checking in before time. The checking in was done in a marquee - all very efficient - cases taken away - cruise cards issued and onto the ship. We were guided to the Marco Polo buffet restaurant and had some lunch and an announcement said our cabins were ready. I had a single outside cabin with shower - the cabin actually had two beds with a chest sandwiched in between and a wardrobe fitted into the corner next to the bathroom - so far so good. Only criticism - no tea making facilities but the buffet was just one deck down and it was easy to pop down and make a cuppa.

The departure from the dock was through a lock out into the bay - very little room either side of the ship - bit like going through the Panama Canal on a much much smaller scale!!! I have a friend who lives on Cardiff bay and sent me a photo of the ship as we were sailing past - there was a lot of interest in the departure as quite a few people lived along the route - my friends live in an apartment in Sully so were interested to see their home from the ship. We had amazing views of Cardiff bay and beyond to the Millennium stadium.

The lifeboat drill was in my opinion a bit of a fiasco - nearly everyone turned up wearing their life jackets. They did a roll call to check everyone attended then gave the usual talk and demonstration of how to put the life jacket on. They told us as the wind had picked up and as it had started raining we wouldn't be taken to our lifeboats so I presume this is the normal routine in good weather actually being taken out on deck to your designated life boat.

We were on second sitting dinner and had a table for six - a couple and their friend shared with us - they were from Penarth and the friend had booked last minute - his cabin was very small - he referred to it as a “closet” but as he said he didn’t intend spending much time in it. They were very pleasant company - the meal was good - food perfectly ok and served very quickly - bit Americanised in that there was a starter/soup/salad then main and lastly dessert. They asked you to choose all your courses and were very quick and efficient with the service. The wine waiter soon got to know us and again she was very pleasant and always had the wine delivered to the table before the food arrived.

We went to the "theatre" the first evening which is actually a show lounge similar to those on most P&O ships and it was a sort of introductory show - they had an orchestra accompanying them at all their shows.

Day 2
Scilly isles

Early breakfast then off on tender to St Mary's for a tour of the island. The ships have to use the island boats to ferry people to the island - they are open boats and we were moored quite a way out because of the swell - thank goodness it wasn’t raining. The tour was on a mini bus and the driver was from Yorkshire - he'd lived on the island for many years and was full of stories - beautiful views across to the other islands - very interesting hour. As it was a Sunday we didn’t expect to see any shops/cafes open and indeed this proved to be the case although a few opened by the time we returned from the tour. We returned to the ship had lunch and then another boat trip this time to Tresco to visit the gardens. Unfortunately our time was limited - such a shame we didn't really have time to see all the grounds but a fascinating place well worth the visit. Lots of unusual plants from all over the world - the climate on Tresco is mild all year around - very rarely have a frost. They have a minimal staff there who seem to do a bit of everything and are so knowledgeable about the gardens. Back to the ship and then departure for Rouen.

Formal night and although people made an effort it was nothing like as formal as P&O/Princess/Celebrity although I dressed up as usual. Meal again was good and the house Rose went down a treat - only £14 a bottle!! Watched a show mostly songs from the 60's so knew them all.

Clocks went on an hour.

Day 3
Rouen - Paris

We arrived at the mouth of the Seine mid morning and what a lovely journey - a lot of the houses are built along the river bank often with gardens going down to the water and I was amazed at some of them - they were mini chateaux, often timbered and with beautifully tended gardens. I guess sailing along at such a slow pace is sort of like a river cruise. We arrived at Rouen mid afternoon and had some tea before boarding the coach to Paris. The journey was about 2 and half hours with a break at a services so not too bad. We were then taken around the city to see the most famous sites and then dropped off at the Opera House and told to return within two hours. There wasn't a meal included in the trip so we needed to find somewhere to eat quickly and wandered into a restaurant where we had a snack - Croque Monsieur and a glass of wine filled the gap. We returned to the bus only to find a couple missing and the ship's rep had gone looking for them - it took three quarters of an hour before they returned - they were completely lost and had contemplated returning to the ship by taxi but luckily the rep found them. I felt so sorry for her - this was her first posting with Cruise & Maritime - she had only been with them since Cardiff and had been in contact with her boss on the ship to explain the situation and was very anxious not to leave the couple behind. Well after that we proceeded to the river to board the Bateaux Mouche - the boat was huge - it was docked just at the side of the Eiffel Tower - fab views of it all lit up. There was a commentary as we went down the river and as it was getting dark the sites were lit up - quite a magical experience. After the ride we got back on the coach and returned to the ship just after 1 am.

[GillD46]

What an amazing day in Paris.

[oldbluefox]

Thanks for posting, Jan. I do enjoy reading reviews about different places but especially other cruise lines. Nice to hear what else there is on offer.