Discovery 2 Compared to Other Cruise Lines

[tring]

We are thinking we may do one or more sections of the translocation from Singapore to the Med next April (not sure which ports will be a start/finish as yet), but do not know anything about Marella Cruise Lines or Discovery 2, though have done many cruises, mainly with Fred and P&O, but odd ones with a lot of other cruise lines as well.  Can I ask how Discovery 2 compares to P&O's Aurora or Arcadia or Fred's ships, I know it is a similar size, but thinking about atmosphere?  I think I read that Marella is all inclusive, does that mean drinks and tips, if so are the included drinks OK (we are not big drinkers)?  Is speciality dining an extra charge and can anyone tell me what the dining experience is like, along with what sort of specialty restaurants are available?

 

We will be looking to be away for at least a month and up to about 6 weeks, including a land stay or two, in Singapore, Colombo, Aquaba or Limassol, which we would hope to arrange through our TUI shop, but probably as a tailor made stay using scheduled airlines so we can stop off and not have to fly overnight, rather than do a set Tui package.

 

Sorry to ask so many questions, we will pop into our local Tui shop, but an overview of what to expect of the cruise line would be useful,

 

Barbara

 

[dronnygirl]

We sailed on D2 in October and had a lovely cruise. The ship was refurbished a few years ago so is not by any means new but it is well kept and we found everywhere clean. We love the layout of the ship with a nice atrium in the centre.  The staff are fabulous and always friendly and courteous. 

The ship is similar to P&O ships (not tried Fred) but we always preferred the entertainment on Marella,  however the show team has changed and we didn't find the shows so good this time, but there were some very good musicians on board.

We find the atmosphere very good, I've read lots of bad reviews about Marella but we always travel away from school holidays when it's quieter and have never seen any trouble. You can choose a table for 2 or share a table in the MDR, we always share and have only a couple of times sat with people who have been disagreeable.  Almost always we have sat with very interesting people.  The food is good, always find something we like but we are not fussy eaters.

Dress is not as strict as P&O but smart casual in the evenings and most people onboard make an effort.  There are occasional 'dress to impress' evenings but these days only the minority wear tux, the ladies dress up though.

Drinks and tips are included and, as we aren't big drinkers, we always find the drink selection perfectly ok without upgrading . We did find service slow in a couple of bars but that doesn't worry us.  We do however tip the steward and anyone who goes the extra mile but that is our choice.  Speciality dining is extra and I've been told it's very good but we've never felt the need to try it.

Your itinerary sounds wonderful, I'm turning a shade of green! 

I'm sure you would have a lovely time but, of course,  you would need to go with an open mind.  Please let us know what you decide.

 

[tring]

13 minutes ago, dronnygirl said:

We sailed on D2 in October and had a lovely cruise. The ship was refurbished a few years ago so is not by any means new but it is well kept and we found everywhere clean. We love the layout of the ship with a nice atrium in the centre.  The staff are fabulous and always friendly and courteous. 

The ship is similar to P&O ships (not tried Fred) but we always preferred the entertainment on Marella,  however the show team has changed and we didn't find the shows so good this time, but there were some very good musicians on board.

We find the atmosphere very good, I've read lots of bad reviews about Marella but we always travel away from school holidays when it's quieter and have never seen any trouble. You can choose a table for 2 or share a table in the MDR, we always share and have only a couple of times sat with people who have been disagreeable.  Almost always we have sat with very interesting people.  The food is good, always find something we like but we are not fussy eaters.

Dress is not as strict as P&O but smart casual in the evenings and most people onboard make an effort.  There are occasional 'dress to impress' evenings but these days only the minority wear tux, the ladies dress up though.

Drinks and tips are included and, as we aren't big drinkers, we always find the drink selection perfectly ok without upgrading . We did find service slow in a couple of bars but that doesn't worry us.  We do however tip the steward and anyone who goes the extra mile but that is our choice.  Speciality dining is extra and I've been told it's very good but we've never felt the need to try it.

Your itinerary sounds wonderful, I'm turning a shade of green! 

I'm sure you would have a lovely time but, of course,  you would need to go with an open mind.  Please let us know what you decide.

 

 

Thanks a lot for your excellent report, it sounds pretty good to me.  We do not usually go to the shows though do like a bar with some good music anything from piano to the discos at times.  The one thing I am a little wary about is that we normally choose freedom dining, which you do not mention, so will miss that, but Fred does not give that option either, though we are happy to go to the self service in the evenings if our dining time is not convenient some nights.

 

We are not likely to book until the autumn as medical issues seem to keep popping up at present, but just want to have an idea of what we may be planning and something like that is not going to be a last minute decision, since things like flights/hotels will need to be co-ordinated.  Being retired does help, but we have done a few holidays like that and find the mix works well.  It is a big anniversary for us next year, so time to do something a bit different - the last few years have been so constraining as going East was not really viable. TBH it is mainly the itineraries we go for, so are not too fussy about other things.  We will call into our local shop soon and see how viable a tailor made itinerary can be provided for us, if we decide what we want.

 

Thanks again,

 

Barbara

 

 

 

[dronnygirl]

Sorry I wasn't clear,  all freedom dining except for speciality restaurants which you have to book. We prefer to eat around 7ish and it's not busy but I think it gets busy around 8pm. The MDR known as 47 is on one deck and the Italian known as Gallery 47 on the above deck .  Menus are shown outside so we usually check before we decide.  Otherwise the buffet is similar to other cruise lines. Lunch time the Snack Shack offers burgers, fish n chips, sandwiches and salads.

For us the itinerary is the most important but Marella does suit our needs. Unfortunately they no longer sail from the UK so we may be tempted with Fred in the future as they have flexible departures. 

Good luck and enjoy your planning!

[AlanCruise]

RE 'Freedom Dining' - Marella don't have fixed time dining in the main dining room, so all Freedom dining. If you go at a busy time and it is full you will be given a pager. Lots of tables for 2 and a selection of bigger ones.

[tring]

Sorry I should not have made that assumption re dining, but going news for us.

 

Fly cruises are what Fred is missing now, we enjoyed some unusual itineraries in the winter months with hotel stays as we wanted.  I think it is easier for TUI and P&O to operate them as they are providing a lot of flights and TUI have their own airline of course.  Just a few charters for Fred will mean they cannot get the best deal and makes the fly cruises expensive for those who want His flights.

 

 

[Izzywiz]

We have cruised a couple of times on Marella ships and will be on Discovery 2 again this summer. 

The ship’s previous incarnation was as Royal Caribbean Legend of the Seas and has, probably, my favourite layout of any of the many ships on which we have sailed. I particularly like the solarium area and the spacious feel which comes from a relatively large square footage compared to passenger numbers. 

I find the basic included drinks to be adequate for our tastes but you can upgrade to premium brands. 

We also find the food and entertainment to be ok but of slightly lower quality than the offerings on FO and P&O. I was, however, very disappointed with the quality of food in the specialty restaurants. We are huge fans of Fred Olsen’s specialty restaurants, Vascos and Colours and Tastes, which we feel offer excellent food at a very reasonable price. 

Personally, I would happily sail on Discovery 2 if the itinerary interested me and it was out of school holidays. The big advantage for us is the included flights and now that Marella is back doing cruises in the Far East we will be looking at their offerings again. 

 

 

 

 

[Dinglebert]

We were on Discovery 2 last October and have booked again for this October.  Its our ideal size of ship.  Not tiny but small enough that it feels more like a community onboard where you meet a lot of the same people.

 

We did upgrade the drinks package.  I'm sure the basic is absolutely fine but I couldn't be bothered trying to work out if I could have a particular cocktail or not and so for a relatively small amount of money just upgraded.

 

Our first cruise was Rhapsody which is also a sister ship to Discovery 2.  We really like the layout.

[Britboys]

On 5/13/2023 at 12:21 AM, tring said:

We are thinking we may do one or more sections of the translocation from Singapore to the Med next April (not sure which ports will be a start/finish as yet), but do not know anything about Marella Cruise Lines or Discovery 2, though have done many cruises, mainly with Fred and P&O, but odd ones with a lot of other cruise lines as well.  Can I ask how Discovery 2 compares to P&O's Aurora or Arcadia or Fred's ships, I know it is a similar size, but thinking about atmosphere?  I think I read that Marella is all inclusive, does that mean drinks and tips, if so are the included drinks OK (we are not big drinkers)?  Is speciality dining an extra charge and can anyone tell me what the dining experience is like, along with what sort of specialty restaurants are available?

 

We will be looking to be away for at least a month and up to about 6 weeks, including a land stay or two, in Singapore, Colombo, Aquaba or Limassol, which we would hope to arrange through our TUI shop, but probably as a tailor made stay using scheduled airlines so we can stop off and not have to fly overnight, rather than do a set Tui package.

 

Sorry to ask so many questions, we will pop into our local Tui shop, but an overview of what to expect of the cruise line would be useful,

 

Barbara

 

Hi Barbara,

I have sailed on Discovery 2 once but I have to point out it was 5 years ago and only for a week, so my experience is limited. As you know, I have also sailed on P&O ships. On D2, I went to the Caribbean and Havana - that being the main reason I did the cruise.

At that time, I felt that D2 as a ship really doesn't compare to Arcadia and Aurora in terms of layout, facilities and style. It felt to me as though Marella had carried out the refurbishments 'on the cheap'. Whether or not you like the decor of the two smaller P&O ships, the fittings and furniture on them look and feel good quality (to me anyway) but the equivalents on D2 didn't. I didn't find many comfy seats in D2's bars. 

I found that there was only one nice, quiet bar - Bar 11, which is up high and located with the 2 speciality restaurants. The Atrium Bar was very nice but I found it suffered from loud noise coming from the adjacent Live Room which features live music every evening.

The quality issue followed through to my cabin. The bathroom had obviously been refitted and whilst a little dark and basic, everything functioned well. The cabinetry was obviously original, looking and feeling very 70's/80's melamine. It was chipped in places and had limited storage space with wire-rack drawers in the wardrobe. I suspect that the cabins were originally designed for relatively short cruises. It was only a standard inside that I had. The larger, higher grade cabins may of course be very different. The bed was very comfortable and despite being under the Live Room, was very quiet. I think I have seen on here that the cabins are being gradually refurbished, so perhaps someone who has been on recently can give you an update on that.

Whilst I was somewhat unimpressed with my Marella experience, I would give them another try on a different ship. I think I'd only risk a week though and certainly not a longer itinerary.

Only my personal experience of course and I know many others have thoroughly enjoyed their cruises with Marella on D2.