"Open Seating" should really read "Single Seating" as one has an assigned table but can arrive anytime from 7:00 to 9:00pm. In reality the vast majority are seated by 7:30.

From my review of Vistafjord's last cruise: "The Dining Room is mid-ships and is the 'classiest' dining room that I have seen. Large windows along both sides. The walls are a soft white with gold detailing and wall lights, recessed ceiling lights along the outer sections with large chandeliers in the centre areas - due to the lack of height these are tight up against the ceiling and don't look as impressive as the huge chandeliers hanging from the double-height ceiling on Sagafjord. The waiter's access to the galley is in the middle at the forward end and is hidden behind glass fronted wine racks and lots of dark wood panelling. There's lots of wood panelling on this ship, public rooms, stairwells, even the corridors, all of it original and seemingly polished continuously. All the chairs are wooden framed with arms and the upholstery, and the carpet, are a pale 'sea green'.

There are a few tables for one, something I haven't seen anywhere else but I guess if you are travelling alone and don't like to talk while you eat then this is for you. Lots of tables for two - according to one reference book it has more tables for two than any other cruise ship. The rest are fours, sixes and eights. We were at a round table for six, right in a corner, which didn’t look too inviting on the dining room plan but turned out better than I thought. With the wall along one side being completely mirrored and windows along the other, even those with their backs to the room had something to look at.

The dining room is large enough to seat everyone at a single sitting and while I certainly wouldn't describe it as cramped, it's not as spacious as it might be.

The food seemed to have improved a little since our last visit - not that there was much wrong with it then - perhaps due to the new chef who has moved over from QE2. Although we never took them up on the offer, we were encouraged to order off-menu whenever we felt like it. There was always something on the menu that took our fancy but one couple at a table near us never ordered from the menu. Doris Adler, who has been the very popular maitre d’ for a number of years has been promoted to food and beverage manager."

We're about the same age as yourselves and, although it's a few years since we've been the youngest on board, we're still at the bottom end of the age range.

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Originally posted by hallsuk2:
Hello again Colin and thanks very much for your information.Much appreciated.Looking at the schedule for Caronia it looks like you are doing the Viking's Crossing.The itinery looks very interesting,certainly not the usual way of crossing to New York.Once again many thanks and enjoy your cruise.Maybe when you get back you would like to tell us what you thought of your cruise aboard Caronia and this unusual itinery.I for one would be very interested.

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We had a great time.

It was magical, sailing up the Firth of Forth and under the bridges. We have seen Edinburgh many times before (and for a Glaswegian, once is enough ) so while in Rosyth my parents came aboard to have lunch and view the ship.

We were in Bergen at the same time as the Tall Ships Race. It meant a move to a less convenient berth but still within walking distance of the town centre. A small price to pay for a great spectacle. They say Bergen has 300 days of rain each year, but I've been four times now and had brilliant sunshine each time.

The Faeroes are... ... different. Nothing much to see or do but a pleasant enough place to spend the day and a chance to see a different culture. Actually the best scenery was several hours after we left port. We were having dinner in the Tivoli Restaurant that night and we watched the setting sun light up amazing cliffs and islands through the two deck high rear windows as we sailed past.

Iceland - Beautiful, stunning, breathtaking, and that's just the women! I had been to Iceland before but this was Sandra's first visit. I got to show her around all the places that I have told her about over the years. Boy, has Reykjavik grown!

One of the advantages of cruising frequently on the same line is that you get to know the staff, and they get to know you. In the queue for the Captain's cocktail party, as we all moved forward, the hostess would ask your name and then introduce you to the Captain. But as we reached the front of the queue Melanie just turned and said, "Captain, this is ..." and the Captain said, "That's OK. I know."

The attention to detail is still there. On our first night we were out on the rear deck, enjoying being at sea again, looking upwards. A crew member saw us and told us that it would be much better for looking at the stars up towards the bow where there were no lights to interfere with the view. We explained that we weren't looking at the stars. We were looking for bulbs that were out in the string of lights from mast to funnel to jackstaff (sad, aren't we?). One bulb, in the most inaccessible location, high above the swimming pool, was out and we said we were curious to see when it got fixed. He said something to the effect of 'I wouldn't hold my breath.' And we said 'It wasn't like that in the days as Vistafjord.' 'Oh!' was the only response. We were only joking, and I'm sure he knew it, but the next night when the lights were switched on they were all lit. And when we next saw the crewman he had a huge grin from ear to ear. Over the course of the cruise we saw several lights out and all were fixed by the next day. I don't think our comment had anything to do with it. It's always been like that on this ship.

We had a couple of rough days, leaving Norway and then crossing the Labrador Sea. It got so bad at one point that some people were camped out in the Ballroom because it was more stable there than in their cabins. Surprisingly there was almost no rolling, but boy! were we pitching. The waves frequently broke over the bow, onto the windows of the Garden Lounge. No matter how long I stood with the video camera running, the next wave would only come over the bow after I switched it off!

One of the things that surprised me this time was number of whales and dolphins that we saw. There were some spotted every day and I saw them, probably, about half the days. On one occasion Sandra and I were watching the dolphins swimming along side QE2. The water was so clear that we could see them swimming beneath the surface. As you may guess, this was on a day when I didn't have the camera with me. One day, on Caronia, they stopped the ship and let her drift so we could get a good view as seven or eight whales played alongside.

Having said in my review of the last Vistafjord cruise that most of the staff were staying, we got a bit of a shock when we found that we didn't know a single bar steward or waiter. However, when we asked about some of them it turned out that a lot of them were on leave. And a lot of the staff on this cruise had been around in the past, we just hadn't met them. A number of cruise staff have moved over from QE2.

Around the ship, she is very much the same as before. The new computer centre is quite good. I like the way they don't have games available on all the machines since the games players tended to be there for hours and it meant that you could usually find a free machine for e-mail or whatever. The new shop is possibly a little smaller than the old one but in a higher traffic area so they may do more business.

We were back in our usual cabin - 153 (and have it booked again for this year). It's an inside but it's 216 sq. ft. so there's plenty of room. We've had outside cabins twice before on Vistafjord but you have to go a long way up the scale before you find one this size.

What else can I tell you about Caronia? Possibly due to more British / Irish staff, she's more like QE2 now than when she was Vistafjord. She's obviously smaller than QE2 but that gives you a chance to meet more people, or at least to meet the same people more often. During cocktail hour, they bring hot and cold hors d'oeuvres in the lounges and when we're on QE2 we find that we miss the pre-dinner dancing. There are lots of minor differences as well: QE2 has a frozen yoghurt machine, Caronia has an ice cream bar. On QE2 the fruit juice machines are behind the bar in the Lido and so only available when the there is someone there to serve, on Caronia they are self service and available 24hours. On QE2 they had paper hand towels in the public toilets, on Caronia they are real cotton towels - use them once and deposit them in the laundry basket. QE2's toilets are the ship-standard, vacuum flush and Caronia's are more like normal domestic ones. And without a cistern to refill - much quieter.

We couldn't believe it when we arrived to board QE2 in New York. One of the assistant maitre d's (Osman) was waiting to assign stewards to take your hand luggage and show you to your cabin. As we approached he said, "Welcome back." We were busy trying to work out how he knew we had been on before when he completely stunned us. "It's Mr. and Mrs. Cameron, isn't it?" We just stood with our mouths open. It had been three years since we had met him and he wasn't even in charge of our area of the restaurant then. If it's true that they keep records of past passengers then our cards must be well and truly marked!

Our first experience of the Mauretania restaurant was very positive. The service was, perhaps, a little less personal than in the Caronia restaurant - there seemed to be four waiters attending to us - but still very good. There were more meals served 'silver-service' than I remember from previous cruises. We've known the maitre d' here for a number of years, first on Cunard Princess then Crown Dynasty and two previous visits to QE2. On the second day he asked if we would mind moving to the Chief Engineer's table. The Chief Engineer only came to the table on our 'gala' night. On the first formal night we had the company of the Staff Chief Engineer, on the second, the Chief, and on the third and fourth formal nights they threw a couple of young cadets in 'at the deep end'. Far from being daunted by the experience, they both had a great time. We were the last table out of the restaurant both nights and one of them came back again on the last night, saying that we hadn't spent enough of the Chief's budget the night before - I suspect the real draw was Danielle, a very attractive young lady travelling alone.

It's difficult to compare QE2 to any other ship. Most of us are familiar with the usual industry classifications of, 'budget', 'mainstream', 'premium' and 'luxury' but QE2 defies these definitions and serves all these markets. Because of her huge range of cabins, and in some part due to the different restaurants, she had a much wider range of passengers than any other ship I've known.

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Originally posted by hallsuk2:
Better late than never Colin,Thanks.
Hallsuk2

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Complaints to the President produced a large credit note, the only good thing about that trip, which we used for an Alaska cruise on the Sagafjord. WHAT a difference, just like night & day. A happy ship with a good crew, good food and very good service just like it is supposed to be...a pleasure to be on.
They got rid of the wrong ship and btw...the dining room was much superior on the Saga.

Let's remember that the Vistfjord as GoHaze is describing is as she once was and was definitely a contrast to the wonderful Sagafjord.

The Caronia of today is defintely a different ship and catering to a different market than when she was Vistafjord. I think we have a winner - and I am glad that Colin had such a wonderful experience. She truely is one of the best kept secrets in the industry!

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They got rid of the wrong ship and btw...the dining room was much superior on the Saga.

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posted 07-07-2001 02:02 PM                   
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Has anybody any recent experience of Caronia and in particular its open seating dining policy.What did you think of the dining and in your opinion did it work well.