Richard, thanks for sharing your perspective. You have touched on one big reason I would think hard about trying Windstar, and that is that we are so spoiled by Radisson's great service -- and never having cruised any other line except a small 25-passenger sailing ship through the Greek Islands -- that trying another line gives me pause. For us it is not quite so much about the cabin size and amenities (remember, we were big Song of Flower devotees) as about Radisson's general attitude about service before, during and after a cruise. We have a good level of confidence that Radisson will do the right thing, whatever comes up.

That said, aaanthony and BettyK and others have had good experiences on Windstar, and I take that into account as a positive. We love smaller ships, so that too is a big plus. I don't like what Ngaire and Sheri say about smells, etc. though. That would be very unpleasant. All in all, who knows? Not me, at this point. Right now our 2005 RSSC cruise is the only one on the horizon.

Aaanthony, I used your "horses for courses" phrase already! New to me, but now in my lexicon.