Review of a 7-day cruise on the Marco Polo in the Greek isles - Istanbul to Athens - taken in May 1996.
SHIP:Exterior:Although this ship is quite old it is being maintained exceptionally well. I could detect very little rust anywhere. The paint on the dark hull and white decks is superbly kept. The wooden handrails and teak decks are in good repair. The deck furniture is relatively new and it also is being maintained in good order.
 Interior:The interior of this ship was completely redesigned and decorated three years ago. For the most part it is being maintained quite well. The crew keeps it spotless, by keeping the woods well polished and the brass and glass gleaming. I understand the carpet in all public spaces was replaced a little over a year ago; it is in great shape as well as being very attractive. The only negative things I found about the interior was the lack of fresh flowers. There were no floral displays anywhere on the ship. Also, the ceiling lights in the Polo Lounge, the main cocktail lounge, are too bright. I was told these light can't be dimmed because they are on an emergency circuit. This needs to be changed. The ambiance of this room would be greatly enhanced if it was considerably dimmer, especially at night.
Stateroom: All the rooms, except the suites are quite small. However, the closet and
storage space was very generous. There were no flowers in the room even
though there was an empty bud vase. The bathroom was small, but adequate.
There was a notice in the bath to throw soiled towels in the shower and rehang
any other towels you don't need replaced. I find this somewhat offensive
since I expect the Cabin Steward to replace, renew, and rehang the towels as
is done in every hotel or cruise ship I've visited. Lastly, there was
constant odor of sewer gas in the bathroom. I corrected this by covering the
floor drains in the room when not in use.
FOOD:Dining Room:The Seven Seas Restaurant is attractive and comfortable, albeit quite noisy when full. The menus used during this cruise were fairly diverse, and somewhat interesting, with something for most anyone. Only the first night had a salad course listed, some of the other nights there would be a salad listed as an appetizer. I also question the menu planning. Tournedos of beef was served three times on this 7 day cruise, in fact, they were served two nights in a row. Overall, the food was not up to the standard one expects on a cruise in this price range. If Wolfgang Puck was instrumental in preparing some of the dishes served here, as advertised by Orient Cruises, he needs to return to retrain the cooks that are presently preparing the food on the ship.This cruise was held in the center of the worlds greatest olive producing area yet the kitchen used California black olives instead of local olives in salads and other dishes calling for olives. Most fish and shellfish was served unappetizingly overcooked or held too long in a steam table or food warmer. Although appetizers and especially desserts were well presented most entrees were not garnished.
Raffles:The food preparation and presentation in this "Lido" type self service restaurant leaves much to be desired. The buffet breakfasts and lunches served here seem to be prepared and served for the ease of the crew rather than for the benefit of the passengers. At breakfast scrambled eggs are the only thing not overdone, bacon is either overcooked and all stuck together or undercooked with a greasy rancid taste. Fried, soft boiled and poached eggs were not available, pancakes and French toast were tough since they were cooked far in advance and held in warming pans.At lunch all hot items were held too long and served from warming pans which ensured all these items would be severely overdone unless they were braised, stewed or served in a sauce. The cold items both at breakfast and lunch were better than most hot items. Even though the food in this restaurant is not the best, Raffles still is very popular with the passengers and long queues sometimes form causing crowding in the room because the buffet lines are improperly designed; running in the opposite direction to the traffic flow of the room.
Bakery:Most dessert items produced by the bakery and the Pastry Chef were very good. The rolls served in the dining room were essentially the same at every meal. Other breads and rolls served on board were of poor quality. The Danish pastries produced here are nondescript as well as tasteless, much like those purchased in a supermarket bakery.
BEVERAGE:The bar prices are a little higher than those on most cruise ships. Although they use a two ounce pour, there is no standardization in this area. Some bartenders measure while others free pour. For most people two ounces makes too strong of a drink. It would be better if they served 11/2 ounces and reduced the price somewhat.
SERVICE:Seven Seas Restaurant:The Filipino service staff is professional, polished, and proficient. Even though this cruise was nearly full, the service was rapid and accurate. I encountered some small language problems with a couple of waiters during open seating meals. Because there is not a separate dessert menu, most of the waiters try to get you to order dessert while taking the rest of the order. It would be much more proper to return the menu to the passenger to order dessert after finishing the main course. Finally, during open seating meals some waiters have the unappetizing habit of bussing plates off the table then scraping the contents of one plate on to another in front of the seated passenger. Additionally, I twice observed the same passenger eating lunch attired in a tank top (muscle shirt) contrary to the cruise line's policy. Obviously the supervisory personnel in the dining room were not doing their job.
 Raffles Restaurant:The service personnel assigned to this restaurant were very helpful and courteous. Because this dining facility is very busy during breakfast and lunch it requires a rapid turn over of tables, which they do with alacrity. There also needs to be a supervisor at the end of the buffet lines to direct service personnel to carry the food trays of the very elderly or partially handicapped.
Room Service:Other than Continental breakfast there is no room service on this ship.
Bars and Lounges:Without exception the entire Bar Department was friendly and went to great lengths to please and amuse the passengers. The service was excellent in all areas and probably could not be improved upon.
Cabin Steward:The Steward assigned to our cabin was friendly and professional. The room was kept spotlessly clean throughout the cruise.
Front Office:I ordered a bottle of wine through the home office reservations department to be placed in my cabin at embarkation. Since it wasn't in my room when I boarded I waited until the next day and reported it to the Pursers desk. I was told they would check it out and let me know what happened. I questioned the same Purser the next day, and she told me the Beverage Department was checking on it. I tried one more time a couple of days later and was told they had no record of wine being ordered. (When I returned home I noticed my credit card account had been billed for this wine by the home office.) The only other contact I had with the front office was to correct a $120.00 overcharge on my final statement. They admitted they misposted a $13.20 charge as $133.20.
ENTERTAINMENT:The Cruise Director, David Lawton, and his entire staff were friendly, entertaining, and truly did their best to ensure the passengers enjoyed the cruise. However, Mr Lawton would do Orient Lines a large favor to limit his duties to that of a Cruise Director rather than taking on the additional task of being a vocalist.The "professional" entertainment package was one of the poorest I have experienced in the many years I have been cruising. The evening shows are performed in the ship's showroom, the Ambassador Lounge. Unfortunately this room does not have a raised stage, requiring the entertainers to perform off of a dance floor, which allows only the first couple of rows of seats to have an unrestricted view. In addition, there are numerous poles throughout the room further restricting sight lines. On this seven day cruise there were two musical revues done by the six member song and dance team. Both of these shows were poorly staged, costumed, and choreographed. The rest of the entertainers were a mixed bag; some mediocre, some awful. The best of the bunch was Australian vocalist Kirri Adams. All in all, the evening entertainment was not one of the better aspects of this cruise.
SHORE EXCURSIONS:The shore excursions were briefed by the Shore Excursion Manager both live and on video. The price of most excursions was not out of line from what shoreside companies were charging. I know the cruise line is at the mercy of tour operators for the operation of these tours, however, I think Orient needs to use a little pressure on these companies to provide better English speaking guides. I heard a number of passenger complaints plus my own experience concerning this matter.
GENERAL:The Marco Polo is a handsome vessel that is presently sailing in one of the most beautiful areas of the world during the best part of the year. With all this going for it you would expect it to be a smashing success. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Because of inconsistent food quality and poor entertainment this cruise was not all that it could have been. For the price paid for this cruise these passengers certainly did not get top value for their dollar.
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