Back again after 2 years attracted by intinerary which included Panama and Colombia. First mistake was not to book cruise only and fly out BA. The Monarch charter was poor to say the least even in the premium cabin. Old, scruffy planes, poor food, no movies ...... no surprise that they are retiring the A330s and focussing on short haul. Cabin ok although a/c was tempremental. Probably the oldest fellow passengers yet and as they were determined to enjoy at all costs Fred was able to get away with reduced standards in all areas except dinner in the Grampian. We had second sitting, the food was very good and nothing too much for our waiters. Thankfully they let us mix the choices and on the nights where the standard options were limited stil managed to get a good result. Breakfast ok although buffet was the same every day - including tinned peaches (why?) Hey Fred we are in the Caribbean so where were the local fruits that grow in abundance on every island we visited? Very English menu most nights with the occasional Indian or Cajun option. I guess this caters for the over 75s who predominate.

New Venus Coffee Shop - excellent

Observatory Bar and Coral Club good service and atmosphere but forget the pub and Neptune Lounge (apart from Crew Show). Featured acts apart from the violin man were very poor especially the out dated comedian Bob Taylor who had the same routine as 4 years ago. We gave him the benefit if the doubt but to no avail - again the old folks must really like him. Read more