We enjoyed our stay here, but I’m not sure we would recommend it to others.

The ship looks magnificent. She is a beauty. We were impressed with the ample parking but not the additional parking fee. There are many handicap stalls and a row or two of EV charging stations. Staff at the front were helpful at directing us to where we needed to go for check in, but the website isn’t very user friendly.

I booked a “harbor view deluxe stateroom with king size bed.” Our room was smaller than expected, looks dated and cheap, and nothing like the advertised rooms. I know the website said they could not guarantee a state room like what is pictured on their website but I expected something close to it. I felt ripped off. It was great to get a feel of what the room could have looked like in its prime, but at the same time, you’ll need to use your imagination be sure it’s been remodeled and renovated in all the wrong ways. It is nice that they left some original furniture but you can’t really use much of it.

In our room, half of the lightbulbs were burned out. The shower head reached only halfway up my back - you basically have to sit down or kneel on the tub floor to wash your hair. There is one outlet in our room.

The walls are thin and you do hear a lot, especially if a tour is walking by or a neighbor is drunk. We could hear our neighbors talking but couldn’t make out what they were saying. One neighbor was having an argument into his phone, but he stopped when we pounded on the wall, and I think he realized we could hear it all.

Our windows did open and that was a HUGE bonus, because they let in cooler air during the night and the noise from outside (light traffic, city noise, and birds) was dim enough to not be bothersome, and blocked out some of the noise from people walking and talking in the halls or in their rooms. It also offered some better views of Long Beach, and a different perspective as someone who might be crossing the Atlantic.

Part of our experience was trying to imagine what it would have been like 60-85 years ago when the ship was in its prime - when it was beautifully decorated and people could only dream to set foot on this majestic creation. There are exhibits throughout the ship to learn and explore, but it’s also quite faded, and doors are shut to keep the public out.

We did take a guided tour of the ship and got into many areas that aren’t open to the public, which I think is an absolute travesty. What’s worse is I had a friend go on the same ship tour but saw different parts of the ship. These areas are not open to the public, and for $70 a pop, they are banking off of these tours. I would have loved to have gotten a glimpse at more of the ballrooms, event halls, the old wedding chapel, the engine rooms, and war rooms - but those are 3-4 separate tours - again, at $70 each. The areas we saw on the tour were beautiful and elegant. This is what I came to see; I just didn’t expect to have to dish out another $150 for both of us - on top of the hotel fee. There should be a discount for those whom are staying on board.

There’s not a lot to do on the ship. Many of the shops are not open all day, nor is the bar, nor are the restaurants. There is a restaurant on the Promenade deck, and a small coffee shop as well (with grab and go snack options), but I felt there really should be more options. It is touted that Wednesday thru Sunday there are events or singers or karaoke, and the top dinner restaurant is “open” as well, but we also heard it was closed for renovations and we didn’t get to see for ourselves.

So is it worth it? Unless you have a boat load of money to dish out (pun intended), I would say no. Take a guided tour but there’s no need to stay here overnight - I would have just asked housekeeping or the front desk to preview a room to see what they looked like. After your tour, you can walk around the ship, eat in the restaurant or have a drink at the bar, so really the majority of the things you can do if you were staying on board.