momolino

just did my first mini-cruise on Aida which they offer out of Palma as one night cruises to nowhere.

I have previously been on RCCL, Holland America, Costa, NCL.

I am glad i did the mini cruise so now i know that i wont book Aida again.

My mini-review:

Pro:

- Reasonable prices at the bar

- free style cruising

- good shops with quality goods

- very friendly and approachable european crew

- free beer / wine / coffee in the restaurants

Contra:

- didnt like the interior design, some areas appeared very plasticky to me (however, this is really subjective)

- No traditional restaurant, only buffet (i dont mind a buffet except for dinners where i really like to be served)

- Buffet food variety was a bit limited, and the 'italian' style restaurant really didnt have much italian choices except for a pizza and some pasta.

- In all fairness, the dishes at the buffet were prepared well, however they were luke-warm at best, which is a shame

- pools were really the smallest i've ever seen on a cruise ship

- asian crew was not trained well, they were not attentive, didnt greet and you could tell some didnt enjoy their work - we were astonished as normally these guys are the nicest people amongst the crew

everything kinda reminded me of a european 3 star hotel, it was not a feeling of luxary but reminded me more of what they usually call 'value'.

Again, your milage may vary, as they say ...

the drive from the port to Porto Cristo (Caves de Drac) is about 1hr by car, by coach probably a bit longer. I don't think this is a very interesting drive.

I'm not a huge fan of caves ... so can't really say how they compare to other caves. If i remember correctly the whole visit took around 45mins. They have a little lake at the bottom, where they put on a light show while some musicians in a boat played music. A bit cheesy to be honest.

Honestly, i'd rather go to Port de Soller. The drive is through the mountains, and therefore much more picturesque.

If you have enough time, go via the ferrocaril which is a over 100 years old electric train with historic cars, instead of taking a coach. You can find the train station in the city center (Placa d' Espanya - 10 min ride via taxi), and the ride on the train is about 1hr each way. I really enjoyed it because the trains are slow, the landscape is stunning and you can stand on the little platforms on each car's end on the outside ...

Once you reach Soller, you should take the tram to 'Port de Soller' which is a beautiful small harbour. The tram is also historic and drives along the seafront.

Lots of little shops and eateries along the Port de Soller seafront, and the views are superb - i'm sure you'll enjoy.

Here are some links:

http://www.trendesoller.com/en/cms.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tranv%C3%ADa_de_Sóller