MINI-CRUISE WITH CMV

MARCO POLO

Marco Polo is a mid sized cruise ship owned and operated by Cruise & Maritime Voyages (CMV). With a passenger capacity of around 800, accommodated in 425 cabins, the ship has a very homely, almost country house feel. Sporting a dark blue hull, this cruise ship looks every inch your classic ocean liner.

CMV are Britain's newest privately owned cruise line, specialising in small ship, no fly cruises from the UK. Home based in Tilbury London, CMV operate out of 11 UK ports. With a fleet of 5 ships to their name, CMV have a high guest satisfaction record of 95%, and 40% repeat passengers. To read my review of Astoria and its fascinating history, another of Cruise Maritime Voyages cruise ships, please click on the following link:
 https://independentworldtravelreviews.blogspot.com/2017/04/cruise-maritime-voyages.html

 

Originally built in 1966, Marco Polo benefited from a £3 million refit in 2009. This is evident in the stylish and comfortable public areas that await guests to this ship. Most public areas are conveniently located on the same deck, making navigating the ships facilities an easy task. There is everything that one would expect from a ship of this size, from bars and lounges, to Library, card room, and the obligatory photo shop, and shopping arcade. There is also a reception desk, information desk and booking desk for future cruises. Entertainment is altogether a much more subtle, but none the less entertaining, affair than on a lot of the bigger cruise ships, with a show lounge for live performances as well as live music in the ship's bar areas.

There is a spa which includes a sauna and provides various massages and treatments, along with a reasonably equipped gym. There is one outdoor swimming pool and three hot tubs. For anyone wishing to jog or walk away their cruise, the deck above the Promenade deck does allow for a complete circumnavigation of the ship.

There are two large forward facing viewing areas, as well as a fair amount of seating around the pool. The ship is equipped with ten zodiac landing craft which are used for shore excursions in eco-sensitive areas. Although, now some 42 years old, Marco Polo has all the latest navigational aids and benefits from biological waste treatment.

There are 425 cabins, of which 292 have a porthole or window. There are no cabins with balconies, and only 2 cabins are wheelchair accessible. There are 4 lifts onboard, although if you are able, it is usually quicker to use the stairs. With some 15 cabin price grades there should be one to suit all budgets, from a standard inside cabin all the way up to the 2 junior suites or the 2 large suites. The largest of these suites (Dynasty and Mandarin) are spacious, well equipped cabins with a separate living area, large bedroom and marble bathroom with full size bath tub.







All your culinary needs are taken care of in The Waldorf Restaurant, where waiter service is the norm and smart attire is required, here they operate a two sitting dinner service. Alternatively, you may choose to dine in Marco's Restaurant where the atmosphere is less formal and all meals are self service.





 



Having never cruised with CMV before, although no stranger to cruising, I booked a one night mini-cruise for my wife and myself on Marco Polo. The cruise would take us from the Essex port of Harwich to the London port of Tilbury. These short weekend mini-cruises are a great way to try out new cruise lines and ships, and is also a perfect introduction to cruising for those who have never cruised before. Usually very keenly priced, this one night mini-cruise had prices starting from just £59 per person.

My wife and I were booked into a Premier Outside cabin and had been given an embarkation time of 3pm, embarkation and disembarkation times are based on your cabin grade and deck position. We arrived at the port of Harwich at approximately 2:30pm and parked in the designated car park, we had pre-booked the car park at a cost of £11. Along with other passengers, we were then taken by bus to the cruise terminal. Check-in was very quick and we were onboard by our allocated time of 3pm.

As we stepped onboard we were greeted by a member of staff who then showed us the way to our cabin, carrying our overnight bag for us. The cabin was of a reasonable size with two large windows which afforded us good views of the port. The shower room was very small, with very little space to put your toiletries etc. There were two single beds which had been pushed together, with a bedside cabinet either side, there was a dressing table and a reasonably sized wardrobe. It was nice to see that there were power points to enable us to charge our phones, and also tea and coffee making facilities.

 

Once our luggage was stowed away we made our way to Marco's Restaurant where a good range of hot and cold food was being served. After having something light to eat and drink, we returned to our cabin in order to get our life jackets as it was time for the compulsory safety drill.



Having been briefed in what to do in an emergency, we set about exploring the ship. For a small ship there is a surprisingly good amount of public areas, and nowhere seemed crowded at anytime. We were due to depart Harwich at 6:30pm but an announcement informed passengers this had been put back to 9:30pm, so our plans to watch the sail away prior to dinner at 8pm were dashed!

Dinner in the Waldorf Restaurant was a very pleasant, stylish affair, we shared a table with another couple, and, as you tend to do, swapped cruise stories whilst enjoying a five course meal. After dinner we strolled around the ship and took in some of the live entertainment in the Captain's Club, a very relaxing bar lounge area.

 



 

 

We then retired for the evening, first having set the alarm for an early call. Cabins had to be vacated early, by 7am the next morning and disembarkation would commence at 8am, breakfast would be served from 6:30am.

The next morning, as instructed, we vacated our cabin by 7am and had breakfast in the Waldorf Restaurant, breakfast can also be taken in Marco's Restaurant. We kept our small overnight bags with us, although passengers were allowed to store baggage in the show lounge prior to disembarkation. We disembarked at 8:30am and made our way to the car park to take up our places on the coach for the return trip to Harwich, this had been pre-booked at a cost of £20 per person. We arrived back in Harwich just after 10am.

For more information on CMV and Marco Polo, please visit the cruise lines own website at: www.cruiseandmaritime.com