Two other things I meant to mention in my review... firstly being charged £14 for use of the safe. We didn't request it until about to go off to Rome (day 4) and still paid the full amount.
Secondly the gym. Don't get me wrong - we were really impressed with the amount of equipment and its quality but there is no supervision and although there is one small notice asking for suitable sportswear to be worn and no under 16s it was completely disregarded. We saw children as young as 8 using the equipment including weights, elderly people in outdoor shoes on cross trainers and extremely overweight adults going bright red on the tredmills. I would be interested to know how the ship's insurers would deal with someone injuring themselves, having a heart attack or stroke - or worse. There was no disclaimer anywhere I could see.

Finally - there were a number of children on board and we thought they were all extremely well behaved and absolutely no trouble at all.

well this was our first cruse and will be the last!!

This cruise was shocking and couldnt wait to get off!
The weather was shocking only two days but that couldnt be helped. We had thunder storms day in day out the ship was rocking side to side people was falling ill. sick bags were placed around the ship on stairways. we was on the 5 deck at night was like a drum beating by the waves hitting against the front of the ship, we had a outside cabin with a window which we could see waves gushing past our window.
The cabins where really small and not very clean.
No disraspec but it was full of old ones so if you are a young couple or have older children this is not a cruise for you.
ive got to say the ship cleanliness was good but did notice a few times the bed sheets was sometimes not changed but wasnt a big deal.
On our cruse the food was fantastic always a different varity through out the day and night and through the week we stayed.i think the food was the best thing on the cruse haha!!we liked how the food was kept on 24hrs.
the cruse staff were very friendly and you always felt comfatble they always speaked really plesent and always had a big smile on there face.
well well what can i say about the entertainment it was shocking it was always the same entertainment every night bingo bingo bingo and the band playing the same songs every night. They are so sly aswel on the last day while we was waitin to go home we noticed all the advertisin posters getting changed to more entertaining entertainment that we havent even seen throughtout our holiday.There wasnt any entertainment for any children so i wouldnt even attend if you have older children as my daughter was 16 and was bored through the holiday.

I can sympathise with comments made by the previous reviewer, because although we experienced no trouble with teenagers on board, their presence was noticeable as they congregated in stairwells. However, the atmosphere on board was generally happy and welcoming, the food is of a certain standard in the buffet restaurant where it tends to be every man for himself! I enjoyed the Island restaurant which was generally a little more sedate, however my wife preferred the top deck buffet where its possible to sit outside in good weather. The captain's talk made mention of a major refit later this year, tho' I doubt that this extends to the cabin showering facilities which were less than hospitable.The waiters work very hard and do push the bar service quite a bit, but whatever they're paid, its not enough!

The excursions are expensive, we went to Rome alone which for a family of 4 cost over £100 and didnt even include a packed lunch! Apparently a couple didnt make the coach back to port, but the captain's log stated that all paasengers were aboard when ship left harbour. We didnt sample the entertainment so cant comment on this. The pool is simply too small for the numbers on board - end of! I think a cruise probably more than most holidays depends on the calibre of your fellow passengers and we enjoyed this cruise more than a similar cruise with Airtours a few years ago. And we'd probably go again, once our kids have become teenagers!

We have just returned from our 3rd trip on the Island Escape, this time on the Discovery itinerary and have to say it only gets better! The cleanliness has been improved by the use of hygine washers before entry to restaurants and as always, the ship is immaculate with the cabins done 3 times a day, and the crew always willing to please. The food is lovely, whichever restaurant you choose and labelling improved this time showing gluten free (for all you coeliacs out there). Lots of salads and fresh fruit and always a fresh carvery joint each night as well as the normal dishes. Vegetarians well catered for too. If you are lucky the waiters even have a seranade for each table at the end of the evening it's worth staying and eating late! The entertainment has improved (not that it was bad before), they now ship in caberet acts as well as doing shows. We have had a few captains over our last few trips and although this one (Captain Bathgate) has a good sense of humour, unfortuneately he is not a patch on the other 2 - you don't see a lot of him whereas the other 2 were always around the ship. As for excursions, we did our own thing, apart from Sardinia(Olbia) where we paid to go to La Cinta Beach - very nice, but gets tremendously packed very quickly. Apparently there is a beach near town that people found. At Civitavecchia, we caught the free shuttle bus (belonging to the port) to the gates and then turned right and continued walking to the station and caught a train to Rome - the ticket was called a metrebus (covers train/metro/bus) all for the price of 9 euros each!- Fill in the front of the ticket with your name and date of birth and validate it in the yellow machines to start it and when you return from Rome. Make sure you allow time to get back. From La Spezia we caught a train to Santa Margarita for 8.40euros for the 2 of us and outside that station we caught a bus for 1Euro each to Portofino(tickets from coffee bar) Although you do not get much time there at least you can say you did it! At Nice we went on the beach (huge pebbles - take some flip flops etc) and the shops/market - definately going back there! Finally, at Mahon we went to Cala Galdana beach you can get a bus from the bus station and change at Ferreries, otherwise the harbour/shops in Mahon are a nice day's stroll and there are beaches closer (Son Bou is also a bus ride away)
We hope this has given you a taste of what you can achieve without spending so much for an excursion, but we will leave you with 1 thought - they will wait for excursion coaches but not for independent travellers! As for children, there were 370 on board this time but they were mainly 12-16yrs and we didn't see a lot of them, they were really good.
Only 1 downside to the ship is that there were never enough deckchairs so you end up laying on the deck (which is covered in carpet)but if you are like us and are out each day, it doesn't really cause a problem.
The ship is being refurbished on it's route back from Brazil this year and we understand they are looking at a sports bar (TV etc.) and updating other areas for the coming year and we for one(two) will certainly be joining them again!

Hi just returned yesterday and can only describe Island Cruises as being completely faultless!

The staff where excellent the food was fabulous and the cabins where adequate (we stayed in a 4 berth, 2 bunk bed cabin and had enough space).

Jaya the cabin attendant on Coral deck 5 is fantastic, and would also like to say Kumar from the look out sailaway lounge is spot on also.

We found every detail from boarding to disembarking organised very well, they really do think of every way to make your holiday ease free and comfortable.

We loved this ship, it was are first cruise and would definitely travel with Island Cruises again.

So if you have booked this you are in for a lovely time and by the way girls the GHD straighteners do work the same as the UK if you take an American 2 prong adapter instead of the 3 pin.(they have fittings for both)

Have fun and ignore all negative reviews as this ship is faultless!!

OUr first cruise. It was our best holiday ever. Staff very friendly, could not do enough for you. Food exellent in all resturants. Excursions quite expensive, but we did our own thing. Trains very cheap.Rooms cleaned 3 times a day, with different animal made out of the towels presented on the beds each day.Check in at airports both ends very easy. Will deffinently be going again. Spoke to a lot of people who have done lots of cruise, one had done 54, they siad this was one of the best, very informal, which we wanted.

Hi There

We have just come back from Med. Discovery 3rd-10th July. Won't duplicate everything that's already been said - I really just want to endorse the previous reviewer's report. This was my first cruise and it ticked every box - and more. The staff team from Captain Bathgate(lovely voice to waken up to in the morning ) right through to our cabin attendant Alejandro, everyone pulled out the stops to make it a special trip.
Food - to die for. Fresh, tasty, great variety, quantity and quality. eating areas SO clean.
Entertainment - wonderful. Each and every night.

I know we all have different expectations of a holiday but I'd be really hard pressed to find anything (other than my hair straighteners not working)to complain about. Yup, the Island Cruises brochure is already out for next year. Gonna try and sweet talk my hubby for a balcony this time.

I can only say what others have. Try it for yourself. And do go All Inc. the value is just great.

We traveled 10th - 24th July. This was our first cruise and a pretty good place to start.

We arrived and were quite surprised about how tired the ship looked inside, you could tell that it was probably really nicely decorated but is now battered and neglected.

The cabin was ok but my other half pointed out straight away the mould in the bathroom and cracked panel in the shower unit. She also would not walk on the carpet in bare foot as it looked filthy and worn. We also paid extra for a window which could barely see out of!.

Food was simply quantity over quality, it was a bit like a budget pub menu shame really as I was looking forward to it. I think they can get the award for making sponge cake in various guises!. Others mentioned luke warm I have to agree.

Entertainment was a joke Think Knees Up Old Mother Brown and you are not far from the mark, lots of people doing line dancing and getting drunk. We are both in our 30’s and found this boring, not our idea of entertainment.

-------------------- THIS IS THE BEST BIT --------------------

A group of six people were left behind in Rome, the train platform had broken and delayed the train arrival.

The boat was in dock when three of them arrived and the captain said consider the boat gone!, some passengers had said let them aboard but the captain would not. We later found out that one of them had been mugged and had no shoes on and no money.

Apparently they were offered a hotel room and meal at silly prices over (200 euros) for a couple of hours - which they would have to of paid for... These people had no change of clothes, or ladies hygiene products.

We were shocked at this especially when they were told “put it behind you” and the crew laughed it off.

These people slept rough that night BEWARE!!!!!!.

I would never sail with this micky mouse, badly run tatty converted car ferry disguised as a cruise ship again.

If wild children running up and down shouting and screaming, while their drunken parents lie in a state comatose on sun loungers sounds good then this is for you.

b

this was our second cruise on this ship.we loved it last year and on the whole it was as good this year,trips excellent,rome express magic,food as good as last year,no complaints,staff great,very helpful,entertainment great,dont know what the last post was on about on that one as there was something for everyone,including great west end style shows.the only downside this year was the amount of wild kids running about causing havoc.our two kids were with us at all times,they are our responsibility.not so with a lot of other people sad to say.the guest relations manager told me they had had a lot of trouble this year with bullying,gangs of wild kids forming into packs and basically going abouth the ship beating up smaller kids.we had an incident on our fourth day when a child from ireland was beaten to the ground in the games room and had his face smacked off of a machine resulting in a cut and swelling.our two kids came runnin in crying and we went to help.we sat the child with us till his mother came back and the gang of kids kept harrassing us,we got security involved and when they started chasing the kids they went and got their drunken parents who then came down for a fight from whatever bar they had been sitting in all day,security sorted them out,but it was very unpleasent.these people should not be allowed to leave britain,thugs and drunks!!
guest relations said they were a victim of their own success this year with a different type of family booking on who just stay on the boat and drink and let their kids run riot.
great ship,great cruise being let down by lager lout british passengers who shoud stay at home and drink in the comfort of their own slummy lives

We sailed on the 3 July 2007 as a family of four. The cabin we were allocated on arrival was small, grubby and very tired! The miniature bathroom was filthy with missing sealant, cracked glass and a broken shower head.

It was only then that we discovered that this "luxury ship" was in fact a converted car ferry!
My wife and I used the top bunks as we considered them to dangerous for the children. The ladders had no fixings and slid about.
The food was generally luke warm and the tea and coffee was served in plastic cups and the water in plastic glasses. This was not supposed to be a camping holiday.

The public toilets were not terribly clean and we generally returned to our cabin. The swimming pool was more like a paddling pool and the children were asked to leave the pool on more than one occasion to leave room for adults? There was a lack of seating and sun loungers in the vicinity of the pool.

The staff were quite pleasant but wanted to become your friend, obviously for tips. It became quite tiresome when your luke warm meal became cold listening to staff rendering stories about families they had not seen for three months.
The ship consisted of entirely British passengers . No other nationality would put up with the poor standards on this ship. When ashore this ship stood out from the other cruise liners. It just looked so cheap and tacky.The rust was showing through in many places.

When we returned we submitted a letter of complaint, with photographs, via THOMAS COOK, receiving a letter from FIRST CHOICE on the 20 July 2007 confirming the same. After many telephone calls FIRST CHOICE wrote back explaining that cruise operators do not follow ABTA GUIDELINES. Basically tough luck, we have your money.

I would not wish this cruising experience on my worst enemy and will never book with First Choice again.
On a positive note at least it was only a week long cruise not two!