I'm going on an Island Cruise for 2 weeks from 25th May with my new husband - we're getting married on 22nd!

We will be able to visit every port but we're still trying to figure out which are our main priorities as there is no way we'd cope with 12 of them!
The pool is a 10 metre "splash pool" so swimming won't be much of an option.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
goodlop

Posts: 23
(14/12/03 19:37)
Reply | Edit | Del Re: Island Escape
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
REVIEW. Putting the review here too in case you don't find it in the "Re-positioning cruise" section - hope that's OK!

Well, here we are, back from our mammoth journey cruising on the Island Escape from Lisbon to Brazil, via Madeira, Tenerife, and Cape Verde (lots of little islands in the middle of the Atlantic, off the coast of Africa). We visited Recife, Salvador, Buzios and Rio de Janeiro, before flying home from Sao Paulo. We met up with our fellow "Holiday Truths" correspondents in the Bounty Lounge on the second night, and shared many more social events during the cruise.
The ship itself had just been into dry dock for a refit, and all was very smart and clean, but despite this, the crew were often spotted "touching up" bits of paintwork around the ship. Overall, the ship's company were very efficient, polite and friendly, greeting you in all parts of the ship, and the Captain in particular was very approachable and a real "people person" - always out and about and visible. We had an outside cabin on Coral Deck, midships, a very good position, we experienced hardly any engine noise or and very little rolling.
The food was excellent; we ate in all the various different venues and enjoyed it all! The Beachcomber had food available 24 hours a day, self-service style, but it could be tricky to find a suitable table at busy times. Tea & coffee always available free of charge, but other drinks had to be paid for. The Island Restaurant was a very relaxed affair, passengers were shown to a table by the very attentive waiters, and then invited to proceed to the buffet to help yourself to as much, or as little as you wanted. There was a small waiter service section, dependant on availability. The variety, quantity, and quality of food could not be faulted, and if you chose something that you didn't like, you could go back for something different. The Oasis Restaurant was a regular restaurant, full waiter service bookings were taken during the day for that evening, or the next day, and you could chose whether to eat on a table for two, or share with friends or other passengers. The menu was excellent; always around 4 choices at each course at no extra charge, plus a number of choices that carried a supplement if you wanted something really special. A comprehensive wine list was also available.
The entertainment in the Ocean Theatre was very mixed in content and quality! Some evenings were excellent, with lively singers and dancers, but a couple (the illusionist and flamenco to name a couple!) left much to be desired! The British entertainment team were somewhat subdued in their efforts by the Cruise Director, who seemed to favour the Portugese and Brazilians on board, but there were a number of "special moments" in the smaller lounges that drew large numbers of Brits, and the standard of their entertainment was excellent, their enthusiasm earned a place in everyone's hearts. There were also a number of guest artists, whose acts were enjoyed by the Brits on board. On the subject of passenger nationality, the Brits were in a minority, the majority being Portugese and Brazilian, about 60/40. This meant that all announcements, and much of the entertainment, had to be conducted in two languages, which was somewhat tedious at times, especially when we found information being given by a Portugese individual speaking in English when there was an English member of staff present! Most people were critical of the lack of "things to do" during the long days at sea (we were 5 days from Cape Verde to Recife) - much more should have been available - not everyone wanted to sunbathe or read. A couple of quizzes in late afternoon, plus a couple of lectures (these were very interesting) and Latin American dance classes were not really enough! Drinks prices in the many bars were pretty reasonable, on a par with most pub prices.
The ceremony of "Crossing the Equator" was a memorable affair, with volunteer representatives of the passengers, and also many of the crew and staff, being duly christened with eggs and foam by "King Neptune", and then pushed into the swimming pool! The highlight of the whole occasion was when the Cruise Director and the Captain also ended up in the pool, fully dressed! Fortunately the Captain was eventually granted permission to enter the Kingdom of the Deep. After a number of days with no sight of land, ship, or living creature, we were thrilled to have a seabird circling the ship during the proceedings!
There were organised trips available at every port, but the information given was not comprehensive. We were not told how accessible the various places were from the dock, and often found that we could have done the sightseeing cheaper under our own steam without taking the trip.
Madeira and Tenerife were nothing special, but Cape Verde was an experience! A step back in time, the people and surroundings very poor, but the fish market was great, huge fish being carried in baskets on the heads of the women!
Recife was very bustling and noisy, the old town of Olinda was interesting, but the day was very hot and tiring. Salvador was lovely, we could have spent lots more time there, the old part Pelourinho was especially lovely, very quaint. Buzios was delightful, a beach resort still being developed, but lots of attractive restaurants and shops, and very friendly people.
The sea crossing was very smooth, except for the last couple of nights along the coast of Brazil, for which the Captain duly apologised! We sailed from Salvador in grand style, to bagpipe music played very loudly over the P.A.system (Captain John McNeill is a Scot!) and many vibrant soundings of the ship's hooter! The highlight of the cruise, for us, was the visit to Rio de Janeiro, sailing into the harbour between Sugar Loaf and Corcovado with the statue of Christ the Redeemer, will stay in our memories for ever. We did the tour, hectic, but we saw the lot, going up Sugar Loaf in two cable cars, lunch (fantastic!) in a huge buffet restaurant with so much food to choose from, then up Corcovado to stand in awe at the base of that magnificent statue and look around at the whole of Rio.
We left Rio to sail to Santos, the Brazilian home port of the Island Escape, but the protracted officialdom meant that it was quite late in the morning before we were given permission to go ashore, and as we were leaving for the airport just after lunch, we tried to stay cool on board. The arrangements for departure were as disorganised as some of those encountered on the trips - too much hanging around after us arriving at the designated meeting place in plenty of time - the staff seemed to have problems marshalling large numbers of people in an efficient manner. The coach left for the airport an hour later that scheduled, which resulted in being held up in heavy traffic in Santos and Sao Paulo (the drive passed through some impressive scenery, mountains and rain forests) - we were still on the road with no sign of the airport an hour before departure, and were getting worried about missing the flight. Fortunately we made it and boarded our British Airways 777 for a very bumpy 10 hour flight home.
In conclusion, we enjoyed our cruise very much, lots of relaxation and sunshine, but not a cruise to be recommended to first time cruisers, due to the long periods at sea, all too easy to become bored if you are not interested in "people-watching" !

Edited by: Blue Eyes 2002 at: 14/12/03 20:27

madasharley

Community Supporter

Posts: 114
(16/12/03 18:42)
Reply | Edit | Del

Re: Island Escape Repositioning Cruise Reviews
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
hello all,
arrived home very tired this afternoon after travelling more than 20 hours and saying never again longhaul....
ok here's the welsh view of the island escape.
started off great, a nice short flight to lisbon where we met the ship.
the check-in at the port left allot to be desired as we were queuing for almost 45 mins(we felt sorry for any pensioners who had to queue).
first impressions of ship was wow, she certainly was a fine piece of work.
plenty of bars,sunbeds and dining places, although a serious lack of ashtrays on the open decks and corridors.
the daytime entertainment was almost non existent and the evening shows was quite bad almost amateurish
most things were done in two languages even the captains daily talk to the passengers!!!!
the english artists were good though, even though the ignorant Portuguese guests left half way through the show which we thought was quite embarrassing for the artist.
but if you only wanted to lie in the sun all day then it was great.
the excursion desk was a little helpful with maps but did not tell you what was in the ports or how far it was to travel from the ship to the towns or beach.
the crew was excelent,looking after us and always cleaning the deck+lobby areas.

ok so first stop MADEIRA......
a great island which in summer is full of flowers and at xmas is full of decorations and lights.
its well worth doing the island tour off the ship to get a full feel of the island, but if not the town is only a 10 minute walk (all flat) from the dock.

next stop TENERIFE
another island i thought you need too do excursion as there's not much except shopping at the port.
favourite place here for me is lorre park (little like a zoo) good value for money.

next stop CAPE VERDE
allot of the people did not like this place as its very poor and dusty looking place.
similar to places like morocco and egypt.
don't bother with a tour, get out amongst the locals for a feel of how the other half lives.
15 min walk to town

next stop RECCIFFE
we did the beach + fort excursion which was good if we had a little more time there!!!!
1 hour drive there, 1 hour on beach + 1 hour drive back.
not good value for money.

next stop SALVADOR
easy 20 min walk into town, with lots of shopping.
we were lucky as we arrived on carnival day and it was great although a little daunting because of the volume of people there.

next stop BUZIOUS
we did the schooner trip to see the beech's although i think this was a waste of money.
there's a nice beach and good town a short walk from the tender drop off point.

last stop RIO
great site sailing into rio seeing the statue of christ on the mountain, has to be the highlight of the cruise.........

it was also great to meet up with the english freinds from the site mr+mrs goodlop and mr+mrs ipf

we left the ship in rio for our hotel luxor regente.
20 minute bus ride through chaotic traffic and we were at the hotel, which was overlooking the beach (and what a beach) about 10 miles of golden sand.
the only trouble was between the hotels and the beach is a double duel carriageway and you have to take your life in your hands to get there.
loads of shops, bars and restaurants near hotels and the prices was very cheep.
beer =£0.70p , t-shits=£4.00 , steak meal with drinks around £7.00 each..
be warned when out there are muggers around so don't wear jewellery and don't take all your money with you.
we had no trouble but two people from our hotel were mugged.
we did excursion to the statue of christ, bus then tram up mountain through small rain forest with great views of all rio.
this is a must see tour DON'T MISS IT..
well that's about it , was not my best holiday but it was good.
ship = 7/10
rio = 5/10

oh and good flight home except for landing in heathrow @ 06.50 and not being able to get off plane until 07.45 because they could not get a parking place.
B.A = 6/10



Blue Eyes 2002
Senior moderator
Posts: 664
(16/12/03 22:17)
Reply | Edit | Del
ezSupporter

Re: Island Escape Repositioning Cruise Reviews
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thanks Madasharley.....

Another great report :cclap

Sandi
x


goodlop

Posts: 24
(16/12/03 22:46)
Reply | Edit | Del Island Escape repositioning cruise reviews
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Good to hear you got back safely Madasharley, and enjoyed your days in Rio! I have to add to my review that our check-in at the port was a very different experience from yours (we arrived on an earlier flight) -we were processed and photographed (for our I.D.swipe cards and also by the ship's photographer!) very quickly and were soon installed in our comfortable cabin.

IPF100

Posts: 12
(18/12/03 15:10)
Reply | Edit | Del Re: Island Escape repositioning cruise reviews
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18 December 2003

Hi all,

Glad our fellow travellers have made in back home.

Arrived back in the UK safe and sound after the trans Atlantic / Brazilian adventure - although the BA in flight meal appears to have given me an upset stomach !

Having done the same cruise last year we had a good idea of what to expect from the ship and found things generally of a high standard.

The booking in procedures at Lisbon were efficient and speedy and we were dispatched to our cabin without delay. Our luggage was delivered to the cabin within half an hour of boarding the ship.

Our cabin ( outside cabin on Golden Deck ) was very good and the service from the Steward was excellent.

The impression of the ship was good in that the public areas were very clean and the crew were attentive and obliging.

The quality of food was good and there was always a wide range of different meals offered. The Oasis Restaurant was very good and offered food of an excellent standard, with the additional supplements being reasonable.

The on board drinks were significantly more expensive than last year and towards the end of the cruise the prices were increased !!! No draught beer was available - only cans and the bars ran out of Boddingtons.

The ship was pretty much full which lead to some problems around the pool and getting sun loungers early morning - you had to be up very early to secure any prime locations, but after lunch there were more sun loungers available as a lot of people tended to take an afternoon siesta.

Entertainment on board ranged from very good to extremely poor and tended to be Portuguese / Brazilian biased. The British entertainment party tried very hard but seemed to have a struggle with the Brazilian Cruise Director. As for the British entertainment, Mia Carla made a return visit ( from last year ) with exactly the same act and dated jokes - her second performance was very poor in that she appeared to be suffering from the effects of drink - I know that part of her routing is alcohol based but if she wasn't drunk the she deserves an Oscar for the performance !!!! In addition a further comedian, George King, did a couple of shows and was very good.

We took a couple of the organised tours, but found them to be mixed in quality - there was a tendency for them to be exaggerated in the publicity leaflets. The Catamaran trip in Tenerife was advertised as a 7 hour ( including 1 hour coach transfer each way ) on Freebird 1 - a new, state of the art 38m catamaran - for $ 70 each; the trip turned out to be 1 hour coach transfer each way and a 3 hour sail on a much smaller and not new catamaran - after a bit of complaining we were offered $ 20 each credited to our account.

In Cape Verdi, we went ashore independently as the only tour offered was identical to last years. Mindelo has very limited tourist potential and I think that quite a lot of people were disappointed and intimidated by the town. However, we hired a local taxi driver to take us to a beach - we agreed a fee and arranged for him to pick us up a couple of hours later - this worked out very well as we were dropped off at a beautiful beach, with safe and shallow waters for bathing and picked up later as arranged.

The Atlantic crossing was OK - we were able to completely unwind and take things easy without having to get up to early in the mornings.

The Brazil cities were much as expected - very lively and exciting. In Salvador there was a carnival which we caught the back end of, following a trip to a turtle reserve.

On problem we found with the Brazilian side of things was that the ship did not offer any local currency - we docked in Recife on the Saturday and we on an organised trip without any local currency - there was not time to find an exchange place and the banks were closed; the next port of call was Salvador, but due to the carnival it was a bank holiday and very limited exchange facilities were available - we took a taxi and had to call at a large hotel to get local currency.

Buzios was very nice and picturesque. The tender service from the ship was very efficient.

Due to us staying the additional nights in Rio, we disembarked on the Thursday morning and transferred to the Copacabana Excelsior Hotel.

Our hotel was very good, overlooking Copacabana Beach. We found Rio very exciting and lively and were able to explore the city at our own pace. We didn't feel threatened, but generally stayed to the tourist routes - some of the inner city and run down areas were much less inviting and may have caused us problems.

From our hotel room window on the Thursday, we watch the Island Escape do a sail past along Copacabana beach ( the ship appeared to come in very close to shore ), with a tear in our eyes, before she sailed off into the distance.

On the beach outside our hotel there has been a stage erected for a series of free concerts for the New Year - on the Saturday night a band called Jorge Ben Jor played for about 3 hours - this band was very popular as the large crowd danced and sung along to all the songs.

On the Sunday we went to a football match at the Maracana Stadium to see local team Fluminense narrowly avoid relegation - stadium fantastic, fans fanatical, standard of football poor.

The four days we spend in Rio were not enough - we were only able to scratch the surface of this fantastic city. We would love to return and explore some more, but whether 3 times on the Island Escape would be too much is hard to say - although for value for money in getting to Brazil and giving us the opportunity it's a hard act to beat !!

Regards,

ipf

Have just booked on the Island Escape 8 June for one week, during which
England will be playing their first Euro 2004 match. Does anyone know
if they will show the match in one of the bars on board? Both me and my husband are football fans and it would be great to watch the match on the ship with other fans. Won't spoil our cruise if not but would be a bonus. As first time cruisers does anyone have any tips? Have been told once we hand our luggage in at the airport we won't see it again until we get to our cabin - is this right?

On most cruise ships comms will screen the big matches but you can ask when you get on and you wont see your baggage till you embark the ship.

we did the med spirit last year and are doin it again in 6wks. you will be re-united with your luggage at palma airport (as normal hols) from where you head to the waiting coaches, once you reach the ship your luggage goes from the coach and will arrive at your cabin door, ours was there before we were !

On Airtours cruises, if it's a My Travel flight you don't see your luggage until it arrives at your cabin. If the flight is operated by someone like ir Europe you have to reclaim it at Palma and transfer it to the coach.

HTH

hi there we did island escape last june and it as the best holiday ever thats correct regarding the luggage;its at the cabin door before you are. when you are disembarking on the last night you have to have your luggage all packed and outside your cabin by 2am , the ship docks at 7 and you have your breakfast , disembark then you collect the luggage again which has been taken off the ship and is waiting outside for you . you will certainnly enjoy island as the ship , food , entertainment and staff are second to none

OK it is going to take a while to find the time for the full review(away for the weekend) so I will start with the boring bit.
Getting there
We were happy with the early 6:55 departure from gatwick. It is 70miles round the M25 so can be done in just over an hour missing traffic at 5:00am. We chose courtlands for parking at £45.36 and arrived at about 5:30 having left a bit later than expected. You get to the parking without going near the airport but the shuttle bus is only a short ride running every 20min so we were in the north terminal building by about 5:50 to be met by hoards of queues. On picking up the TOD. we were told the computers were down and to listen for flight anouncements. I ask one of the reps if they had called our flight and was put to the front of a queue so we checked in and headed to departure for a coffee IT took ages for the gate to appear on the screens and it came up as boarding so off we head to the gate. A bus ride later and we are on our way to Palma slighly late, BUT having left the UK in sunshine we were met by RAIN. We like Palma airport since we have always got through pretty quickly and it was the same this time it is a bit of treck to baggage claim so be warned if you are a bit frail.
There was a temporary crush getting through the exit with people trying to work out where to go next but once at the Island escape cruise desk a pack was handed to us and of we went to the transfer coach, 20mins later at the dock. The info pack already had our swipe cards so checkin was just a passport check and a picture for the secruity system and there we go onto the ship and into our cabin before 11:30( 6hrs door to door). Thats why we like the early flight you get tothe ship for lunch and have plenty of time to find your way around. Bags were there by the time we had lunch.

and back.
As usual put the bags out the night before but late enough to pack the evening clothes even if you stayed up till 2.00am(If you are on a late flight they want £30 for a day cabin) we were sheduled for a 9:45 coach which gave us plenty of time for breakfast. left pretty much on time and the flights were quite spread out throughout the day so no stampeed or crush to get off the ship to collect the bags. Tuesdays seem to be pretty busy at palma airport but as usual there is plenty of time and no drama so departure was uneventfull. Landing at Gatwick we ended up at the furthest gate you could be from the baggage hall so by the time we got there the bags were on the carousel. Usual gatwick stuff and it took about 15mins for the Courtlands bus to turn up but once on board 10 mins to get the car and heading home(well to work actually) arriving at about 3pm which is not too bad again about 6hours even with a bit more traffic on the M25.

All in all this part of the operation was well executed so well done to First Choice and Island cruises. More to come NEXT the ship.

I am looking forward to the rest of your reveiw try not to leave it to long before continuing with it
Lind@

Does anyone know if there is a laundry service on board and if so how much it costs as we are thinking of travelling light also do you have an ice bucket soft drinks and snacks in the cabin

Jac

The Ship, cabin and food
We all know this tub is an old ferry and doesn't have the sleek lines of the newer ships but the truth is you only have to look at the ship a couple of times a day it is the inside that matters.
Since you always get to your cabin before your checked bags(unless there is a bad queue to check in at the port) we now carry a change of clothes in the carry on. On the early flights you get time to change, check out the ship and go for lunch. You also get a chance to meet a few of the passengers that may be leaving that day or have been on a week already and get some inside information.
The cabin
Inside cabin rear section on golden deck. The cabin size was fine for a week. Parallel twin with small bedside table with ice bucket and 3 soft drink cans,pringles and a bottle of water with payment slip for signing if used, Drawer unit with TV on top, small robe, and a second double robe,with safe(extra charge £10perweek). Dressing table with light and power. (no hair dryer) Bathroom basic tiny bar of soap and dispencer with jell no other goodies so as the girl says take you own lotions and potions . The shower is a rectangle so you don't get the shower curtain problem common with a lot of ships.
TV had 3 film, 2 adult, 1 kids all changed daily repeated every 3 hours, news,navigation map, bridgecam and 4 channels dishing out information.
Info pack include, Island chat the daily and port info also delivered each evening(standard cruise stuff) for the following day, deck plan, and shore excursion info.
The cabins in this area are very noisy you will get woken up every morning by the thrusters shaking the cabin as the ship docks. This may be a general problem with all cabins on this ship. The cabins are above the bounty lounge which does have music on till at least 12:30 later some nights and you will hear it, not loud but it is there. The cabin is below the beachcomers and I am sure there was some noise from there but it was difficult to tell since even when strapped to land there were rattle and shakes all the time. You do get used to it and having been on lower decks on other ships where engine noise is much worse we were not too bothered after we got used to it.
moving on to the food
We alway read daily schedules very carefully and on the first day it is the first chance to find out really important things like what is on when and what time each of the bars and restaurants are open. There are three restaurants.
Oasis open 7pm-10pm Resevations required and you need to check the Island Chat when the booking times are for that day. We did not eat here but most reports were good. Allthough you can eat for free many items come with extra charge £2-£3 on a starter up to £10+ on a main(eg Fillet), if you like Steak shrimp etc you will have to eat here. some of the extra charge items were also available in the Island so check the menues very carefully.
Island open(typicaly) 7-10,12:30-14:30,18:30-21:30 having spotted that there was a limited Waiter service in this restaurant we headed there for lunch on day 1. Looking at the menus for the buffet and waiter service the waiter service had some extra items and this was true for the rest of the week and so we ate most of our meals here including some breakfasts and had great service from the regular wait staff in that area. You could always partake in the buffet in the island if there was something not included on the waiter menu so it was the best of both worlds often including the same items that were on the Oasis menu without the extra charge. The nice thing about the service is the food came with presentation something which you don't get making selections from a buffet. Please keep this secret since there were only seats for about 80 in this area and it will get too busy if everyone finds out.
The buffet area had hot station with plenty of choice, salad, cold station, soup, deserts, fruit, cheese. The fare was international/themed and there was always a what I would consider a good Veggy option. The beef was not good but the lamb was excellent and did feature quite a lot. We were never stuck for choice and when I could not make up my mind would have more than one item of the menu. The cold soups available on the waiter menu at lunch are worth looking out for and even if you are buffet ask if you can try them. Sushi and graflax featured some nights. One lunch on asking if there was any blue cheese was informed it was only available in the evening but they went and got me some anyway. I think by relegating the high cost items to the Oasis(at extra charge) they can make the food budget go further and in my opinion overall the food we had was better than that we have had on the sun cruises(mytravel/airtours). Just to finish of the Island the breakfast buffet was standard uk/continental selections with the benifit that the bacon was cooked properly something that suncruises and american ships cannot do.
Beachcombers open 24hours with inside and outside seating. Only had a bit of breakfast and the odd snack/coffee in this restaurant, the main meal choices seemed to overlap with the Island. I think there was a pasta station most nights, I think if we hadn't discovered the waiter service in the Island we would have eaten here a few times in the week. It was very popular with a steady stream of people whenever I checked in. The food did seem to be OK and dishes were getting changed if they started looking a bit tired. In addition to the main meals there was a open sandwich section with 5 or 6 choices throuout the afternoon.
One thing that was impresive was the speed at which used stuff was cleared away, I would walk through at 3 or 4 different times each day and never once remember seeing a table with plates or mugs and no people sitting at it.
In summary, apart from the beef, food was excellent, when we sail again we will probably try the oasis and if we had been on for 2 weeks we would have too move out of the Island some nights since the menu is on a weekly rotation not 2 weekly and we would have been looking for a change. Remember the primary eating arangements on this ship are buffet so if you are looking for full service you will need to use the Oasis or try the limited waiter service in the Island. We never had to wait for a table but some times a small queue would form for tables in the Island I didn't check times but probably a post show rush.

Next public areas and the entertainment.

Thankyou Windjammer
Looking forward to your next installment. There doesn't seem to be many recent reveiws on this ship (that I can find anyway) so yours is very much appreciated.
Lind@

There is a laundry service- didn't use it last year as we were only on for a week. Two weeks this year so might have to! A shirt was £2, but a blouse was £2.30, men's jeans £2, ladies trousers £2.30, dress £3.30. As it appears to be dearer to launder women's clothes, I would suggest packing LOTS of those and saving space on men's!!

Thanks for that Kate, it's a bit more expensive than I would have thought so maybe the cases will be a bit heavier than we intended. When are you going this year?

27th July- not long now! What about you?
By the way- there is an ice bucket in cabin, but no soft drinks except for bottled water which you pay for as you use it. Room service is available but only used it for an early morning cuppa.

We go on the 17 August so it's still a bit away. If you can give us any tips on the trips when you come back we would appreciate it especially which ports of call we should do on our own.

hi windjammer
I am going on the Island Escape 13th July. Hope you can finish your review by then. Also, do they serve draught lager on board as they only had cans on Sundream last year.

Public areas
Everywhere is kept really clean, but we did notice the cleaners as much as we have on other ships, As I have said the eating table were kept clear and the bar staff were generaly on top of things too. It looks like "the pub" and the bar stools/elbow rests in the bounty are new so there is some ongoing refurb. Outside there are 2 bars I serving the pool area and the other the stern deck areas/outside eating for the Beachcomer. We are not great sunbed worshippers but there did seem to be plenty around the decks(topless allowed Fwd on a high deck) again the deck areas were always clean. The pool area is a little small so did get busy at peak times but does benifit from a cover should the weather turn(rain/wind). It had been raining quiet heavily prior to our arrival on the ship and the roof did show signs of leaking in a number of places. For the evening events around the pool seating replaces the sunbeds. If you dont need access to the oasis, island or reception then you can access every where using the aft stairs which starting at the top you have the lookout lounge(bar opens at 4) this is a great place for a quiet time and watching sailaway. The disco starts around 12.00am most nights. A couple of decks down and you have the beachcomer, kids club,internet cafe,gys,salon,pool and mirage(pool)bar. so if you are happy to eat in the beachcomer you could spend all day on the one deck and if the weather is good I think they keep the bars open in the evening. Two more decks down and you have the shopping area and the bounty lounge which has a small section known as the Cafe Brazil where you can BUY coffe and pastries this also houses the library/games. The pastries did look nice and were not that expensive but why BUY food on a ship. Down again and we have the show lounge, pub/sundowners and the casino, One more flight down the midships stairs and you are at the island or another flight and at the oasis. Overall passenger flow is pretty good. Pre/post dinner/show drinks in the sundowner and it is a short walk to dine or watch the show.

Entertainment
Daytime activities are made up of the traditional cruise mix of film,quiz,demos,dance classes,fitness classes, 45mins live music at lunch poolside,and the bingo late afternoon/early evening after sailing.
Music was provided by Pink panthers(band),Sp3(duo),Lazlo(piano),Marcos (guitar) they played at various times mainly in the sundowners,Bounty. I cannot comment on quality/variety since we never actually sat and listened to them not sure why because we normally do find the time I guess it could be the open sitting for dinner you never find yourself with half hour to kill. The rest of the evening was filled out with the shows and other fillers such as quiz,Karaoke,Spotlights where each of the team did a solo act, and game shows. Looking back through the Island chats(daily program) we missed loads of stuff because we chose to eat when some of it was on and due to some luck in the Casino I spent more time in there. Some evening entertainment overlaps so you will need to plan if you want to see as much as possible and eat. All the entertainment is contracted out to the same company and there is a professional touch from the young enthusiastic team. The shows were good given the limited stage space but I did find the scripted chat that the team used for some of the other events a little tacky. A couple of passengers thought some of the entertainers thought they were better than they really were but a bit of confidence is not all bad. The guest act on this trip was comedian Lee Wilson, classic standup who did 2 shows one late night which was still not that blue. The show times vary throughout the week so check every day. For the later show the lounge will get very full and they have a standing room only sign. One tip is to use the entrance on the casino side of the lounge there are usually more free seats that side. There are a number of pillers which gives a few seats bad sight lines.

For the children there is a daily program which ran from 10.00am(ish) thru till 9:30 some nights ages 3-6, 7-11 Don't do kids so that is all I can say.

The casino opens after sailing and there was a free session on the day at sea for the new commers to try out the games. The casino staff were very friendly and a number of people were winning with a few of us managing to pay for most of our cruise fares which is rather nice. They shut at 2.00am .The other late night activity is the disco but the couple of time we went up it was not that busy.

All the bar staff and waiters were friendly allthough a couple did need the prompt to get the smile during the day and some looked a bit tired sometimes. We though the service was very slow on the first day but we either got used to it or it got better. Drinks were a little more expensive than some ships looking at the bar slips, draft Bodingtons 2.40 draft lager Stella 2.55, cocktail of the day 2.60,can soda 1.40,glass wine2.10,bailies 2.50, bottle of wine 10.50+.

One thing they do is a trip called Navigate with the captain for £25 which is a little steep but you get to sail in or out of a port while on the bridge. I decided to spash out and picked leaving Barcelona. Absolutly facinating seeing the ship getting manouvered away from the dock and spun round 360 and out of the harbour. You also get champers and a framed picky sitting in the captains chair so not that bad for a one off.

Having another look throught the programs there was a chocolate Feast Sunday afternoon from 3:30-4:30 in the Island resaurant.

Overall
I will not cover the ports on this review since this is about Island Escape.
At the budget end of the market this is a great operation. I think we had great value for money for the trip at £359pp allthough you will always meet those that paid less. There is none of the glam and glitz what you get is good, basic food prepared well, all round entertainment something for everone, clean friendly environment and a chance to see 5 ports in the med. This will make a great first cruise and is very competative when put along side the airtours offerings and probably thomsons as well. What was a bit more expensive was the onboard bill for extras of £120 for 10 bottles of wine and £165 for other drinks this would be lower on other ships Airtours, Fred Olsen not sure about Thomsons. There are a number of other revenue generators which are anoying but can be avoided. First timers on any ship should avoid the bingo until the last day when the rollover gets paid, never buy the wipeout type cards it is a ripoff.
Having done the med a few times I think they may need to vary the itineries to keep the punters coming back we would sail again as a cheapy filler for a week but if there was an eastern med itinery we would put it on the list for one of our main weeks. There are some great deals out there at the moment so watch prices at £50 or less a day this is worth while but for a little more you can find better although as we move into the school holidays I fear prices will rise and the deals become more difficult to find. Given the shakey start this ship had with the TV program they have definately turned it around and if they can keep up the standards will get a band of regulars.

Excellent review as always WJ, many thanks.