Emerald Princess to Europe

Emerald Princess combined the fun and facilities of a big ship with lots of smart, showy touches that made simply lingering about a pleasure in itself. Chief among these was the central, Italian styled piazza in the main atrium. It served speciality coffees and wine, plus snacks, through most of the day and night, and was so popular that it was often hard to get a seat at all.

Up top there is a shaded, extra charge per day Sanctuary, complete with padded loungers and ceiling fans. It would be lovely on a sunny sea day but, alas, we hit a pair of not so nice sea days heading down to Portugal and back.

That said, it was a real thrill to watch The Force Awakens outside on the big movie screen while wrapped in a blanket, and with popcorn, too.  These films were also shown in the cabin, but outside on an outsize screen was so much better.

Ideal, too, was the fact that you could dine on either of two fixed sittings at night, or separately at a time that suited you. Food on board the Emerald Princess was fine, served with flair, and catered to a certain degree toward the predominantly British passengers on board. I have to say that the upper deck Crown Grill steak house offered some stunning cuts of beef.

Special, too, was the captain's cocktail party, which took place in the multi level atrium. Watching them pour the beautiful champagne waterfall was a kind of cabaret in itself.

Emerald Princess was able to dock in all of the ports we visited save for Guernsey, where we had to tender ashore. This is an often tedious process, but Emerald Princess had the whole thing superbly arranged. Big kudos is due to those carrying the tender operation through.

Emerald Princess herself feels lively and welcoming. She is a happy ship, and that comes from a happy crew who genuinely seemed to enjoy looking after passengers. Despite calling at four different places, I came home feeling relaxed at the end of the week.