Good flights with Thompson and the transfer to the ship from Palma airport was very quick and professional. Embarkation was well organised, and we were having a drink and snack long before our suitcases arrived.
This is a decent cruise holiday at a good price. We chose an o/s cabin on deck 4/5, any lower I heard can get noisy and uncomfortable. Cabins small but do the job, would not like to be in a 'box' with more that 2 bodies though.
Entertainment was pretty good. Shows and the Showteam were good and well worth a visit. Guest comedian was also good, and everyone was in a good mood, relaxed and ready for a laugh. I don't know what the trio in the Clipper were playing (neither did they) I think it might have been modern jazz? The pianist in the other bar was tuneful and laid back. The only reason for 3* was because the 'Redcoats' troupe employed to jollify the 'campers' are a little behind the times. But my main gripe is that you had no choice other than attend as they 'perform' on the sunbathing decks. The quizzes aint so bad except for the tuneless singing of pop song answers, but the rest of the stuff was like a bad day at Butlins. When the 'team' 'entertain' from one of the lounges -fine -at least one may be elswhere. Gripe over.

Food good, plenty of choice, Staff very good, although in the evenings I preferred to get my drinks at the bar as the waiters were overun and you could wait a bit for your sherbets. Drink prices were very reasonable about 2.50 for most alcoholic drinks. All in all a very decent holiday and you get the chance to disembark and visit some great destinations.
Other posters have given some great tips to save money on the excursions and how to have a better experience onshore so I won't duplicate. I shall certainly be taking up some of their suggestions in the future.
This holiday can be very good value indeed, and if deals are available even better. Remember that the ship is (40 years?) old and the price you pay reflects this. But she is a pretty good looking ship -built before the floating block of flats cruiseship era (I enjoy these too). For me the size of the ship was very good, I have been on much bigger vessels and was still finding my way around after a week.
But here there was enough to keep one's interest for the whole voyage and it also had a bit of 'soul'. I certainly took pleasure in the look of the ship, her lines and so enjoyed sailing on her.
Ps Find your way to the Mast Bar. Ask someon the way as its dificult to find.It will be worth it I assure you. The views from here at the highest point of the ship are stupendous, particularly when docked. Budget cruise? Maybe but when you sip your drink in the Mast Bar and survey the 360 degree panorama of Palma, with the millionairs yachts, take in the view along the port to the Cathedral, all bathed in sunshine, its worth every penny and more.

Just got home from Moorish Delights. Can of coke cost £1.05, cocktail of the day £2.25. Gibraltar. Cost £1 per person for shared minibus (6 persons) from quay to town (5 minute drive, 20 minute walk). Driver was happy to accept 1 Euro. Cigarettes are VERY cheap (£10 for carton of 200) and we were NOT checked when we got back on board. Tour of "The Rock" cost 12 Euros per person from Quay, and the benefit of a minibus is that it can go to the top of the rock, the tour from Thomson uses a coach which can only go half way up. Casablanca. Tour to Marrakech was cancelled. Ceuta. Free coach transfer from ship to town (2 minute drive, 10 minute walk). Ceuta is not used to English tourists, but everyone was very friendly and a word or two of Spanish was much appreciated by them. There is a Spar (shop) halfway up the main shopping street. Almeria. Ship is virtually parked in the town. Valencia. Port provided free transfers into town, so don’t be fooled into signing up for Thomson overpriced tours. City is easy to navigate, although I don’t know how transfer from ship to town will work in the future, cos we drove on part of the new Grand Prix circuit. New City of Arts and Sciences is between port and city, so easy to reach by taxi. Food on Lido deck is generally poor, canteen quality. Food in Seven Seas is variable, at best it is comparable to Wetherspoons pub chain, even the staff seemed embarrassed to serve some of the dishes (avoid the Black Bean soup). Veggie options are poor, the same potato and veg paste is served up as rissoles, cutlets, en croute, etc. Chef kindly made me Greek salad (which was delicious). Generally, I felt that Thomson had cut costs to the bone, and the food really suffered.

we enjoyed the experience a lot . would do it again but must lose half a stone.

sports were disappointing on board - no basketball , no soccer you need something to burn up the many calories taken.

Thompson Destiny Cruise Ship

Myself, Wife Mary and Daughter Natasha. Before I start I would like to thank all the staff and friends we met for making our holiday a memorable one. So thank you for that.
Just back from a Stay and Cruise. The first week was a stay in the Talayot and the second week was on board the Destiny. See report for Talayot on Hotel Reviews. We were booked for the western Med Cruise. Stopping at Villefranche, (France), Marinea Di Carrara, ( Italy), Civitavecchia, (Italy) Olbia, (Sardinia), Mahon, (Menorca) I will explain how we got about the shore later at the end of this report.
We did pay extra for the All Inclusive Package which includes drinks. Take my advise and take this deal as the drink can be expensive and it will not be long in adding up when you get you final bill.
Arrived on the Destiny on the 17th July. Not as big as the cruise ship we were on in the Caribbean but big for a Cruise Liner in the med. Bags were left a the quayside and delivered to your room. We were met by guest relations who escorted us to our cabin. Number was 3001 inside at the front of the ship. First impression was my god its very small. But once we unpacked and stored the suitcases away the room was acceptable for the 3 of us. The bathroom and shower was very small. I knew that the time spent in the cabin was not worth making a big issue of the size of the room. After all the room was spotless. We had a chamber lad called Frady from the Philippines. Nice lad who kept our room spotless with the fine touches of a chocolate on your pillow and animals made from your towels when he turned your bed down for the evening. There was 7 bars on this ship. Entertainment in them to suit all tastes. There was food served 24 hours a day at the Lido Café. There was also a grill bar by the pool serving food from 9am to 6pm. The Seven Seas Restaurant was the place to eat. Breakfast, Dinner and Evening Meals. The service and foods was excellent. The captains night (Friday Night) was a night to remember. Approximately 99% of the men and boys were dressed in either a Tux or Black tie Dinner Jacket. Some chose to wear a shirt and tie with trousers. The ladies and their daughters were all dressed in frocks and appropriate dresses. I have to say that the effort to get dressed up for this occasion was well worth it. I would attend black tie events during the course of the year for various functions but this was fantastic. Meeting the captain and then being escorted into the Can Can lounge for Cocktails and then into the Seven Seas for Dinner. A wonderful occasion. My advise would be to make the effort. At least, wear a shirt and tie. You will appreciate the whole atmosphere better for this. Some chose not too and they looked out of place. My 9 year old daughter had a great time in the kids club. They looked after her well. Infact given what has been happening around Europe with Madeline and other incidents I have to say that I felt very secure and had no worries letting my daughter do her own thing on the ship. The pool was not good. There was a paddling pool for toddlers and then the other pool was 5ft 9in with no life guards. I think Thompson’s should take a good look at this before there is an unfortunate incident.
My daughter is not a good swimmer so she could not get a swim during our week on board.. Staff are brilliant. Every time I raised my arm to scratch my nose a waiter was there wondering if I needed a drink.
Entertainment Staff are very good with various games and competitions around the pool area and the show at night in the Can Can lounge.
Destination Services on the ship are there to flog you shore excursions despite what they say. When you ask them about a DIY shore trip they are not too helpful with the information. The best way is to ask the other passengers.
Villefranca, France- Nice resort. We got the train to Monaco for 20euro p/p return. Only 20 minutes. Step out of the station and look up to your right. You can see the Palace. Walk up the steps to the Palace. Once you have done that get the Noddy Train from there to the Casino in Monte Carlo. A lovely trip along the sea front past the Fast Cars and Lovely Yachts. This costs you 9 Euro. A taxi would cost you 12 Euro. Ship was charging £35 p/p.
Marina Di Carrara, Italy - Industrial Port - Not very nice - Got the ships half day excursion to Pisa for £30 p/p. No other choice. Could not get a train there. Still it was very nice. A very dirty city. Lots of Pick Pocketers - Beware.
Civitavecchia, Italy - Ship was looking for £90 p/p for a full day trip. We had planned to get the train. 22euro p/p return . Stepped off the gangplank at 9am and there was loads of people with the same idea. Spoke to one of the taxi drivers of which there was loads. Spoke to Maximillion. He said if I get 8 people together he will take us around Rome for 45euro each. I managed to get 8 people and Max took us to all the top spots of Rome waited for us and brought us back to the ship at 4pm. Good thing was only taxis and cars are aloud in the centre of Rome. Max dropped us off beside all the top spots - no walking. The bus tours from the ship had to walk 3 to 4 hours around Rome as the buses were not aloud into the centre. Lots of Pick Pocketers - Beware.
Olbia, Sardinia - We did our own thing. A very small town with not a lot happening. Most of the shops were closed
Mahon, Minorca - Lovely town in Menorca - We did our own thing. Bought our Ciggies from here to take home. 29 Euro for 200 L&B.
Had a fantastic week on board the Destiny. Going to book here for next year for the Eastern Med trip. Take my advise and treat yourself. Once you have done a stay an cruise you will not go back to sitting around a resort for 2 weeks.

Colin B - Northern Ireland

This is our first time we have been on a cruise and we were not dissapointed.When we arrived we were shown to our cabin by one of the staff and our suitcases were outside the cabin door about half an hour later,the cabin's are small we were in an outside cabin deck 3 near the front of the ship so no engine noise but you only sleep and get changed in it and the steward that cleaned it was marvelous chocs on the pillows everynight and animals made out of the towels.As for the entertainment it was fantastic all the team were true profesionals on one night we had a bad crossing from Italy to Corsica all the passengers were swaying from side to side but the dance team carried on without a slip.We dinned in the seven seas resturant couldn't fault it, the food was lovely we shared a table with four other passengers and after the second evening became good friends,during the day we ate either in the lido cafe or the pool snack bar both were fine.The waiters that came around the pool for drinks worked very hard always asking if you wanted a fresh drink.All the staff on board were fantastic they just couldn't do enough for you.What I liked was the chance to see differant places in such a short time ,we went to scilly,italy,corsica,france and spain all in seven days.It wouldn't be a world if everybody felt the same this is why you get good and bad reviews I can only say how much me and my husband enjoyed this cruise

Having read some ov these negative reviews i feel it only right that i voice my views the thomson destiny simply does what it says it does it caters for familys couples oldrer cruisers the lot. The food is top notch ,the staff are fantastic the ports of call are amazing yes the ship has its faults but so do many things in life. If you want a fantastic holiday at an affordable price then the destiny is the way forward.Me my wife and my two boys had one of the best holidays ever and did not have one gripe period. We are booked to go back july 2010 and cant wait.Sure some people winge but your holiday is what you make it so make it a good one because i will see ya soon thomson destiny {FIRST CLASS HOLIDAY}

Never again , I had never previously travelled on a cruise before , and having had previous misconceptions , decided to go with an open mind.
Firstly the cabin was tiny considering two adults wih two children were supposedto use it , it had hardley any storage space , and whenyou were in the bunk beds , your face was litrally inches from the ceiling , and if some one next door to us got in the top bunk , and happened to over 18 stone (like our noisy neighbours)you were physically catapulted in to the air , the bathroom sink did not drain properly and stank of stagnant water and the chiped seventies blue suite had seen better days .
as for the on board entertainment I saw a couple of shows but the standard was that of a working mans club on a saturday night , more gered towards the older customer , most of the staff however were exellent , polite , and attentitive , however , the ber was watered down , and the consistancy of the spirit based drinks varied from bar to bar , as for the lido cafe , the food wasn't so bad , however every time i tried to the scrambled in the moring , it had been made with gone off milk , EUGGHHH!
My last gripe though has to be the pool, enter at your own risk as it is sea water that is drained and changed every day , which is just as well , because it generally has a layer of scum floating on top of it from every body spitting in it after they have got in , not realising it is filled with sea water.
I am generally gobsmaked at the fantastick reviews made by other customers , and can only summise that the staff have written their own reviews , or people have been drugged before boarding the dated and tired tompson destiny

This was our second trip on the Destiny. In our view it is not excellent but it is good. However, there is no getting away from the fact that it does have faults. The ship is tired and in places really rather worn.The cabins are clean and adequate but if you are away from the engine noise you will hear the people in the next cabin very clearly for me that is a problem for other folks it would probably not matter. The staff we came into contact with were excellent as they were on the first trip with our waiter at Dinner actually remembering our names and what we drank which was a bit scary and it made us wonder what we had done to have been so memorable - probably too large a tip which is definitely unfair on him. The food in the Seven Seas is in our opinion very good even excellent. The Lido restaurant is what it is, a self service buffet and the food is generally fine. We did not really see much of the entertainment and so I cannot comment on the standard. However, and here comes the controversial bit, there were some problems with people being really aggressive especially when protecting their view of the stage. I witnessed one incident myself and it was really unpleasant the people involved were so aggressive. The people involved were not youngsters but middle aged, mainly women, and in someways there attitude buts the Destiny in context, if you follow what I mean. Overall we had a great time and we will probably go again.

We had some doubts after reading mixed reviews but LOVED our time on the Destiny. 4 of us shared a small cabin on dek 3. It was tight on space but spent very little time in it and managed well enough. The evening shows in the Can Can Lounge were spectacular. The other entertainment in the Oaklahoma Lounge was game show style. Daytime entertainment was a little lacking (except for the fab play put on in the Can Can Lounge on the day at sea) but many people were off the ship so I guess wouldn't notice. The staff are very polite, friendly and efficient and wonderful with children. The Kidzone reps were extremely good at arranging a variety of activities including breakfast clubs, chocolate party, autograph hunt, backstage tours etc and our boys thoroughly enjoyed joining in. Our cabin was kept spotless by Lina who made towel sculptures which the children loved and left a chocolate enach night on the pillow.
We ate mainly in the restaurant but the Lido served a constant variety of hot and cold buffets including a wonderful afternoon tea at 3.30pm and a hot pudding with custard at lunchtime! The Captain's Gala Dinner was a splendid affair and the Captain himself is charming and also lovely with children. The children did not want to come away and we are already planning our return!

We sailed on the Destiny on 1st May 2008 and have just arrived home after one week on the MOORISH DELIGHTS itinnary.We were very concerned after we had read some of the reports about this ship especially as we do not like formal dining and much has been written regarding the partially outside LIDO cafe.
Well as a starter we booked cabin 7000 and it was a real delight.Obviously cost a lot more money but in our opinion well worth it.
The ship was extremely clean and the staff could not do enough for you.
We ate in the LIDO 3 times a day and could not fault the food.You could have the odd quibble but overall there was plenty of choice and we only had one meal time where it was slightly cool to sit there,but we took light jackets and it was fine.
We watched the shows in the cancan lounge every evening and again the effort that the entertainment team put into the show was amazing.
As regards one of the criticisms about the ship rocking even when in port, we did not find this at all and indeed I do suffer with seasickness and I found no problem with this.
However if you really do suffer regular sea sickness as I do, then this time I asked the doctor to prescribe some of the patches that you can now get and I used these, and even one night when the seas were a bit choppy I had no effects.
One more note about the entertainment there were cabarets on every evening at 11.45 but it was a bit late for us so we didnt get to see them but we heard from others that they were very good.
We went on 2 trips in Morocco and these were very good but pricey. However whilst we do often venture on our own in some of the ports we felt that we wanted a guide with us in places like these.
In Gibraltar there was transport to and from the town at 1 euro per person, and also free transport in Valencia.
In Almeria the town was just a short walk.

What more can I say, after reading such scathing reports of the Destiny we wanted to reassure you cruisers out there that we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and will definately book again.