Thomson Destiny Cruise Ship

Had a wonderful week on board this ship which is definitely NOT like Butlins! Great food in both restaurants, friendly staff and relatively cheap drinks (pint £2.60, glass of wine £2.20, cocktail of the day £2.40). More space than Thomson Spirit. When you read bad reviews bear in mind the writer chose to cruise in the Atlantic in Winter, not the med in summer
Destinations are more of a mixed bag than the Med Renaissance cruise we did a few years back
Trapani - Did our own thing. nice beach, cheap cable car up to Erice but a bit pricy getting to it (15E taxi each way or 10E each if you share with another couple) Still cheaper than Thomson trip(£29) although beware buying beer in Italian cafes - 12E for two small bottles in Erice
Naples - I wanted to go on the Circumvesuviana train but we decided to avoid the awful town after walking through rubbish for 5 minutes - went to Sorrento by hydrofoil ferry instead (23E each and shortchanged for a 50E note - but its Naples!) but get to ticket office early (ferry at 9 am - we missed it and had to go at 11 am) Why don't they anchor at Sorrento? its a different world to the dump that is Naples
Corsica -2nd visit we paid for Corsica's Natural Beauty trip (£29 each) as no public transport/ trains at convenient times. It was good but we had had a week of stunning scenery in Austria in July. Lovely beach/marina in Ajaccio for free
Toulon - nice town, convenient shopping centre. We did the trip to Cassis(£29), driving first to Europe's (allegedly) highest sea cliffs for birds eye view. After a quick glass of vin blanc we hopped on a boat for a trip around the Calanques - fjord like inlets - absolutely stunning. Well worth the money
Barcelona - here Thomsons royally ripped us off, charging us £26 each for a 'City Highlights and Shopping' tour. Just over an hour rushing past the olympic sites on Montjuc and a couple of Gaudi houses (only got decent pictures when we stopped at traffic lights) before a single 10 minute stop- at the Gaudi Cathedral -then back on to be dumped in Catalunya square for 21/2 hours shopping. We walked back to the ship down Las Ramblas rather than hang about that long. Should have used the open top hop on/off bus which has 3 routes for 1 ticket and comes to the harbour. Good cheap public transport and Cable car from port to beach/ Montjuic
We would certainly cruise on Destiny again but not to Trapani or Naples

1 reader found this review helpful

What a cruise. We spent two weeks being pampered by the staff on board this ship. Every time we came back on board after a day of sight seeing they were there with a smile.
We decided to take our second trip, this time to Ajaccio, Corsica. Thank god it was only half a day as my husband went on a white knuckle ride due to being scared of heights. (But I found this breathtaking), we did mention to the Thomson Rep that people who are scared of heights should be warned as my husband was not the only one.
The food, the company, everything about the advertising of this cruise lived up to it's expectations.
May I thank you from Wendy and Nigel Norton, what a wonderfull holiday. (Room 7002).

Thanks to all the staff aboard the Thomson Destiny.

we were on tomsons ship destany for 2 weeks in august must say cant fault it the food was great service was also first class dont be put off by other comments that say it is not so good roome are small but clean and believe me you dont spend much time in there too much to do on ship or on shore cant wait to go again the entertainment is very well done with lots of varity for everyone the captains night is a great night everyone looks great dressed to kill with champagne and cocktails flowing all night it is best if you get the drinks package your wine glass will never be empty

2 readers found this review helpful

On boarding the ship, my parner (Shaun) and I were greeted very warmly. There was plenty of staff at hand to show us to our cabins, so we did not have to wait around. After pprox 45 mins Shaun's luggage arrived, however I went to look for my case 20 mins later and found it outside some other cabin!
The cabins were of a decent size, noting like the hotel we had stayed in the previous week, it still had remains of nicotine stains over walls and ceilings but it was clean and comfortable. The bathroom was outdated but then again, you dont have to live in there do you! The shower was very nice, constant supply of hot water but watch out for the shower curtain, it seems to be drawn to you physically!
The deck areas felt out dated and tired, occasionally you would see some workers repairing areas or touching up paint. The seating areas on decks 8/9 where not at all modern like I expected, the word tired pops to mind again. There were plenty of staff mooching around just in case you needed anything and the communal areas were always kept to a very high standard of cleanliness. If you smoke, deck 9 or 5 are the most comfy of places with excellent vies. On other random decks there are spots available to smoke.
Food - I may need a full page for this if I was to go into more detail! The food was out of this world! Breakfast was served in waiter style or buffet style, depending on how sociable you felt! If you choose the waiter/buffet style in the Seven Seas resteraunt, then you may have to sit with other people you dont know and try and converse (scary for those sat with me in the morning). The waiters allocate you a seat, where the average table had 6 seats so potentially if there is 2 of you, you will be sharing your space with 4 strangers. You do get used to this arrangement but by the end of the week, we opted for the Lido cafe, where you grab your food and sit where ever you want - the drawback of this is that you have to get your own drinks, unlike the resteraunt where the coffee and juices are served to you.
Lunch is served at the poolside grill (buffet style), where pizza, burgers, hot dogs await you. The Lido serve salads, meats, pasta, soups and other aray of foods to tempt you (including a huge cake selection).
Afternoon tea is served from aroun 1530, with a very nice selection of sandwiches and cakes!
Dinner can be eaten at the Lido with a self service, or at the Seven Seas resteraunt where nouvelle quisine is on the menu! You can potentially have around 6 courses, with very high standard of cooking. Service is A* class, we was unable to fault at all, something that this ship has a very good rep for. You will be allocated a table that you sit down at every night, if you are lucky the others allocated to your table will be pleasent and chatty! You can change arrangements though if needed, we had a very nice company and had a laugh every night!
There are passarounds in all lounges and bars around midnight, thats just in case you havnt eaten enough already! At times it feels like the chef's cook so much just to tempt us even more! Its very safe to say that there is food on the go here 24/7. Remember to take a suit/tux and cocktail dress for captains dinner! ( we opted out of this though!).
Entertainment - we did not particpate in the entertainment except maybe once or twice, both times we enjoyed a great deal! To be brutally hoest, by the time you have had a full day on shore sight seeing, getting showered and ready for dinner, the thought of cabaret doesnt seem that appealing. Around evey 6 hours the cruise director comes on the tannoy system, (which even intrudes into your cabin and you cannot turn him off!) he gives you a full rundown of the evenings entertainment - probably in case you didnt read it in the "cruise news" magazine that is delivered to your cabin every night. Very of nice of him, but drives you bonkers by the end of the trip!
Drinks - we opted out for the AI drinks package, currently £249 pp, at the end of our cruise we had topped around £200 for us both. We had cocktails, beers, and spirits everynight! The prices were very reasonable and they had most brands. If you do choose the AI package, then there are suppliments you have to pay of you choose main brands of spirits.
Staff - In no way or form can the staff be faulted, they clearly work very hard and aim to please. You do not have to tip, but we found that our service was second to none and tipped certain staff at the end of the week. Our maid cleaned our cabin twice daily, and on an evening when we got back from dinner and drinks, the beds were pulled down and ready to dive in!
Trips - for the not so confident of travelers, I would recommend the organised trips, just because some of the places that you dock seem a little undesirable. Otherwise, go independantly and save yourself a absolute fortune and get right into the belly of the country you are visiting!
Trapani, Sicily is a very strange and smelly place with little to see. Most of the attractions are closed during the day for some reason. I would recomend going so see Mt Etna and the long road with great cloths shops.
Naples, Italy - GO VERY CAREFUL HERE! youths on motor bikes ride past and can swipe your bag- which happened to a fellow passenger on board! I would advise to keep your money in a secret pocket on your person, and nothing of great value in your bag. We visited Pompeii on the traid, xost 3.75 return each compared to the 30-40 euros Thomson was charging. Trains run every 30 mins back and forth. This is a must see!
Ajaccio, Corsica - this is a very beautiful town! There is a petit train the runs from near the marina, it costs 10 euros pp and it takes you all around the town, taking you to see many of the statues of Napoleon. Many tried to walk to the attractions, but it is uphill, and takes ages to walk. The run took around 1h45 mins.
Toulon, France - its a run down city with nothing much to see, other than Mt Faron, the bustling markets and cafes. There is a strain station with links to many other places, the drawbacks are that the trains are irregular and the average trip time is over 1.5 hrs, which we did not want to risk with us being on a tight schedule!
Barcelona, Spain - This is a very cosmopolitan city, with tonnes of history! Everywhere you go is evidence of what the Olympics did for the city. As you disembark, there is a small hut selling tickets for the Barcelona Bus Turstic. This is the local tourist boards official tour and is not to be missed if you would like to see a lot of the city! It costs 20 euros each, and you get your moneys worth. During peak season, you may get a long queue or two but with busses every 5 mins, they go down quickly. You get to see most of the city this way, which you wouldnt by foot. The La Sagrada Familia is a must see, but we paid 10 Euros to get in, just to see a building site, there is more to see from the outside than on the inside, trust me! On a negative note, Barcelona is such a huge city where you need a lot of energy to engage with it, this being the last stop on the jewels cruise, you are most likey to be exhausted. We loved sittting on the bus, but when we came to the palace or some other interesting place, we did not have the energy to get of!

Fantastic holiday. Our first experience of cruising and we are hooked!
Destinations were excellent as was entertainment and food.Seven Seas restaurant made every evening a special occasion,especially the singing waiters. The shows which followed in the Can Can continued the celebrations, and there was plenty choice of other evening shows and activities. Cabin was small for family of three but we were seldom in it. Deck party as we left Palma was brilliant as was relaxing on deck and variety of activities during our day at sea.Cruise News kept us up to date with all that was going on.Guests and staff were all extremely friendly and helpful and we hope to be back soon!

Our first cruise,won't be the last. We were happy with most aspects of our time aboard, the cabin was small and the shower requires careful thought to use but these are mere details. The food was very good and varied in all of the restaurants.Hassam the wine waiter kept us all pleasantly merry in the Seven Seas Restaurant (had to be physically restrained from getting us sloshed lol). Gambit, one of the waiters on deck, kept us entertained with his magic tricks (brilliant) and Olivia, our cabin maid, kept us clean and cosy in our deck 5 cabin. We received an all inclusive drinks package as part of our deal and we believe this would be an essential requirement for any cruising we will do in the future ( no worries on the bar bill front ). We went on several of the excursions and enjoyed them and although we wouldn't say they were value for money they were an essential part of the holiday.
No need to repeat everything said by others but we leave you with one thought.The second half of our holiday was in an excellent Palmanova hotel with great accomodation and food, brilliant location and we had great weather and we all wished we were back on the Destiny!

Hi
We returned yesterday from our first cruise on the Thomson Destiny. We were travelling with our two children aged 11 and 15, along with our friends with children of the same age.
I have to admit I was a little apprehensive prior to the cruise, a friend had travelled on the ship earlier in the year, they had sung the praises but when we watched their cruise video we did feel it looked a little 'working men's club'....how wrong we were!
Yes the room's were snug but actually bigger than we were expecting, the beds were very comfortable and everything was very clean. Be warned hair straighteners did not work in the dressing table socket!!! something to do with voltage?? but it did work in the tv socket :-). We were on deck 2 and experienced no noise,
The ship was spotlessly clean, and the main bars and restaurants definitely did not have that 'working men's club' feel.
The food on the ship was of a good standard and there was always something for everyone....it's difficult to choose!
It's definitely worth making the effort to dress up a little and have dinner in the Seven Seas restaurant. The food was of an excellent standard and if travelling with children they do offer a children's menu.... our 11 year old took the opportunity to try new things (There's always the back up of the Lido buffet).
The entertainment in the Can Can Lounge was fabulous, I've paid good money for theatre tickets and the standard has not been as good as on the ship.
The excursions are pricey but we all felt that Rome and the Colleseum was good value, be warned it's a lot of walking and you do feel relieved to see the bus at the end of the day.
If you fancy visiting Nice from Villefranche we caught the local train up the steps at the back of the beach, it was only a 15 minute journey and cost very little. The train also goes to Monaco/monte carlo and Eze. However Villefrance is a beautiful setting and nothing will feel better than going up on deck in the morning to what is a beautiful vista.
Finally, dress code.... What to wear and what to take. Girls you dont need to splash out on lots of dresses. Im not a girly girl and felt perfectly fine in smart linen type trousers and strappy tops. Take some heels though, I was glad I did. If you want to wear dresses plenty will be (I did wear a dress for the captains dinner.. I think everyone did??)
For the boys....I did see some of the younger men wearing smart jeans for dinner.
All men wore jackets for captain's dinner.
At the end of our week we all wished that we had booked a 2 week cruise, the second week at the beach in Majorca was a definite anti-climax.
The normal beach holiday will never be the same again and to be honest I feel we might now become serial cruisers!! Ive already been pricing up for 2009.

Thompson Flights 8 - on time and a very convenient flight duartion for a Med cruise from Palma to maximise the available cruise 'quality' time. Sorry if I sound a Yank on that sentence(cleaned it up),
FOOD - 8, Seven Seas started 8 deteriotated to 6-7 as the week progressed.
Lido 8-6 depending on which way the wind blows (go and you'll understand)
Buffets & Barbies 7 - Not bad especially the barbies!
OVERALL 8 for the variety, service and convenience for Cruisers.
ENTERTAINMENT 7.
Show team 8.5 Good routines, Excellent dancers, decent vocalists. Maybe
needs a 'star' vocalist to really be absolutely top bracket.
The vocalist performing occasionally in the Oklahoma could possibley be
that headliner.
Blakes Pianist 8 - very competent, tuneful, well worth his ticket - bravo!
Clipper Bar Trio 5 - I didn't know what they were playng, most of the time, I
don't think they did either. Bit unkind but they were way off.
Quizzes - 6. Not bad and is a diversion at times on deck.
Games (not rated, left the bar when if games were on) with Entertainment
team in the Oklahoma Lounge - fine, at
least those not interested can go elsewhere.
But why they are allowed to inflict forced, artificial jollity, with phony drama
with such gems as I'm an 'Entertainer' get me out of here is beyond pain.
TIP- if there is no audience in the Oklahoma lounge please don't annoy the
sunbathers with kids stuff out of school hols.
RATING 3
THERE WILL NOW BE 10/10 SUPPORT FOR THE ENT. TEAM
FROM friends / family with internet connections.
ENTERTAINMENT OVERALL 7.
EXCURSIONS 6. They get you there at a price. Try freestyle, much cheaper. but get
organised.
CABINS 3-9 depends what you pay for. I stayed in an outside 4/5 deck an thought it
was worth the bit of extra dosh - 6 for this deck.
SHIPMATES - Mixed crew - I think the ones that enjoyed it most made the effort
to add to the experience by being decently attired for dinner. I am
along way from a snob (inner city boy with IQ, is that snobbish?) but
seeing the ladies old and young showcased added so much to the
atmosphere. No scores on this one.
STAFF/SERVICE - 9 Certainly better than alot of land based hols.

PRICE OF THE HOLIDAY 8 - A good value holiday for the cash I paid. A deal is always
possible with the cruise hol, timing, as ever is everthing.
OVERALL RATING 7.3476ish/10, TRY IT ITS A DECENT WELL PRICED HOL.

1 reader found this review helpful

We have just returned from the Thomson Destiny. This holiday was the 3rd year running on the Destiny for me (19) and mum, and the 2nd for dad and my sister (16). Didn’t think we’d get dad on another cruise after he was a bit sea sick last year on the 1st day and had to get an injection from the ships doctor, but with miracle tablets in hand from the home GP we returned, and had another thoroughly enjoyable week with no complaints.
Entertainment: It all depends on your personal preferences but we always love the entertainment. Kane Davies is a great Cruise Director who gets involved in activities and Drew and his entertainment team are friendly and willing to chat to you about anything and everything.
On deck they have quizzes with prizes to be won and our favourite, I’m an entertainer, get me out of here! returned! This ace game, where members of the entertainment team battle it out in silly games to be crowned King or Queen of the Destiny, always provides laughs and is great fun to watch during the afternoon.
The shows this year were amazing with great dance routines and singing. Personal favourite was the Andrew Llyod Webber show which had some great performances by the show-team from musicals such as Joseph and Phantom of the Opera. After show-time we moved into the Oklahoma Lounge where the entertainment team put on game shows where audience participation is a must. Again thoroughly enjoyed these and the enthusiasm of the staff is great.
The UK guest act, Paul Eastwood was hilarious in both his shows and all members of the family enjoyed his shows.
We also love the deck parties where you can listen to the show team sing good old party songs and have a good dance on the deck till 1 in the morning.
Food: We read numerous reviews complaining about the food before we went this year and wondered if Thomson’s standards had slipped because in previous years we found the food amazing. Once again it was lovely. There is so much choice and something for everyone, from afternoon tea serving scones, sandwiches and cakes, to the bbq that they serve up on deck. We always ate in the Lido café or the food bar on deck during the day as there was delicious snack food that was light and refreshing. On a night we ate in the Seven Seas Restaurant where the food and service is amazing. The waiters are on hand for anything you need and they provide entertainment regularly, singing and performing tricks.
Ship in general: No complaints about cabins. Yes they’re small but a cruise holiday is the kind where you only shower and sleep in them so they don’t need to be big. You need American adapters for electrical items in the plug socket and if you want a spare socket use the television plug.
The housekeeping staff are amazing! Everything is kept spotless and tidied and the talented maids regularly make animals out of your towels.
The ship is kept amazingly tidy and wherever you go there are always people polishing banisters, vacuuming or sweeping up.
Ports: We have done this itinerary on previous holidays on the Destiny but one or two of the ports has always differed slightly. One piece of advice is to not do the Thomson trips. They’re expensive for what they are and most of the places they take you to can be reached easily by train or bus and it’s much cheaper. Maybe wouldn’t advise going to Rome on your own as it’s quite a way from the port of Civitavecchia.
Villefranche, the 1st port of call, is a small sea-sidey town in Southern France and it’s easy to get the train to either Nice or Monte Carlo or you can just have a wander about the pretty town and laze about on the beach.
Marrina Di Carrara is a container port but 5 minutes walk down the road we found a small market selling local produce and items of clothing and jewellery at relatively cheap prices and ideal to take back as presents for friends and family. You can also easily visit Pisa from this port by getting a local train.
Civitavecchia is another container port and we just stayed on the ship this day as it’s nice and quiet because lots of people go on the trips to Rome. We’ve never fancied the Rome trips because we feel there’s too much to see in a day trip and think it would be a hectic and tiring day but each to their own.
Olbia in Sardinia is another small sea side resort. Not much to do but its pretty for a stroll or a laze on the beach. Can easily get a bus or walk to the nearest beach.
Mahon is an amazing port to watch the boat sail into and a pretty town to wander around. There are numerous shops in the town centre but you’ve to tackle climbing up all those stairs first.
All in all another great holiday on the Thomson Destiny and we are trying to persuade dad to let us go again either at Christmas or next summer!

We have just returned from a week's cruise on The Destiny. It was my first cruise and my mother's third. We found the ship to be clean, service by all of the staff excellent, food plentiful and of good quality. The weather was lovely - it was sometimes a problem finding a sunbed on any of the decks and when we did we soon got chatting to the person on the next sun bed as you are quite literally right next to them! I think there is more room and sun beds on the promenades if you don't mind sitting in the shade. The two pools are of a good size for a cruise ship (so I have been told). It can get a bit noisy on the pool deck during the day with entertainment taking place but that didn't bother us. The evening entertainment in the Can Can lounge was very enjoyable - I agree with another reviewer that the shows were of good quality-the dance routines excellent and the singing good but nothing to write home about (just my opinion). The Oklahoma Lounge wasn't for us as it was a bit too much like Butlins but if you enjoy quizzes etc or have children you might find it fun. Things I wish I'd known before going... we found it difficult to get advice and information regarding doing your own thing at the ports of call so wish I'd done more research beforehand regarding public transport etc.
The only serious negative was our cabin. We were on the second deck to the back (aft) of the ship. The cabin was small (which didn't bother us at all) but the noise and vibration of the engines during the night was almost unbearable and we did not have a full night's sleep during our entire holiday. We talked to passengers whose cabins were on higher decks and this didn't seem to be so much of a problem. Also if you like to use any electrical appliances
such as hair straighteners etc take an American adaptor with you as the one and only socket in the cabin only takes these (so we were told by another passenger). I and several other passengers I observed had to resort to using the sockets (European adaptors) in the passages outside the cabins (not nice). All in all we had a great holiday and met some lovely people. The ports of call were enjoyable particularly Rome (will definately go back there) , Mahon (Menorca harbour) is gorgeous, Villefranche also very pretty but more info needed for passengers who want to sight- see independently. The two excursions that we did go on - Pisa and Rome were very good with excellent tour guides. Drink prices surprisingly good (£2.25 for large glass of wine, £2.95 for cocktails), service excellent, entertainment good etc.