Dear Fred, Pat, Wendy and David - Welcome back! I am so sorry the size of the group made for the two-class system on the second week of the cruise.

I've had two Radisson cruises with large groups on board: one on the Diamond and one on the Voyager. My observation is they are a lot tougher to deal with on the smaller ships than on the larger ships. Cruiseluv, m'ellen and Ngaire were all on the Baltics itinerary that had a group of approximately 360 folks from one company. On that trip, I remember minor inconvenience (a closed bar for a private party on deck that was more of a reserved section of deck space for the last night's sail=away). The Diamond cruise was a wholly different matter and much as you describe on the PG - no ability to get into Don Vito's outside of the first night because the group had booked it; no seating in the main section of the Diamond's dining room as it was reserved for the group THE ENTIRE CRUISE, etc. It was our second cruise and only one on the Diamond; but it was such a letdown from the Mariner that I consciously decided to not sail the Diamond again. It just can't accommodate a big group and non-affiliated passengers, too, without affecting what's available for all to enjoy. Anyway, that was my experience of it. I am happy to report the Diamond cruise was a one-off and all of our other cruises have been great. I do try to remember to ask, though, about group bookings so I go forewarned. The best are when I'm part of the group (a/k/a PIP!!) Even so, if I book far enough ahead, there's no way of knowing if a group books after-the-fact. The trade-off is sometimes a great deal on a cruise we will enjoy vs. the lack of bookings leading to space for a larger group. Cheers, Anne