How our Bliss Filters work
In the lobby/atrium, a magnificent Murano chandelier captures the attention as a glass elevator moves up and down alongside a glittering waterfall. A long expanse of mirrors and white marble is complemented by original and antique artworks.
Public areas, named for renowned French artists, include the Van Gogh Lounge, with velvet love seats for gatherings and enjoying entertainment; the top deck’s Matisse Terrace, for soaking up a drifting gallery of soft-edged scenes that have inspired countless paintings; and the Cezanne Restaurant.
Cézanne Restaurant on the Avignon deck, is the main dining venue for breakfast, lunch and dinner. There are two options: A lavish buffet with stations for hot food and cold salads (breakfast is Continental or English) and also a menu for a la carte fare. At dinner, the restaurant is menu service only. The cuisine on board is continental, with a contemporary flair. The restaurant is home to culinary specialties featuring fresh ingredients from local farmers’ markets and signature recipes that come straight from Beatrice Tollman’s own perfected collection, such as tasty chicken pot pie and honeycomb ice cream.
Bar du Leopard has a full-service bar. The lounge serves as the ship's secondary eatery, dance venue and main gathering spot. It is clubby and yet also funky, thanks to the leopard-print fabrics, elephant-head bar rails and other safari-themed fixtures. The room’s most striking feature is an indoor pool, accented by a wall-art recreation of a whimsical and wildly colorful jungle.
Van Gogh Lounge has a full-service bar.
Excursions are varied and include Van Gogh's Arles, Lyon’s Les Halles food market and a fairytale kayak trip under the arches of the 2,000-year-old Pont du Gard outside of Avignon.
Uniworld's Go Active program emphasizes use of the ship's bicycles and Nordic walking sticks (which are also available to all passengers, free of charge, when not in use for tours) as well as hiking and kayaking. For passengers who prefer to move more slowly, there are also complimentary Gentle Walking Tours. All tours are led by knowledgeable local guides.
The ship features 61 staterooms designated Categories 1-3 (194 square feet) and 13 staterooms designated Categories 4-5 (162 sq. ft.). Category 1 staterooms and suites have full open-air balconies; Categories 2 and 3 have French balconies. (Category 5 rates begin at $3,349 per person.) Five suites are available at 305 square feet, and the Royal Suite measures 410 sq. ft.; they all come with your own butler.
All staterooms and suites have handcrafted Savoir of England beds, 100% Egyptian cotton linens and a choice of pillows. Other amenities include built-in closets, hair dryer, individual thermostat, flat-screen TV with infotainment center and satellite, bottled water and a safe. Marble bathrooms feature L’Occitane en Provence bath and body products, plush towels, towel warmers, heated mirrors, and bathrobes and slippers.
All suites are uniquely decorated and have additional amenities and services, including full breakfast menu, daily fruit and cookie plate, elegant evening snack, robes and slippers, iPod docking station, Nespresso coffee machine and fine teas, fully stocked mini bar, free laundry and shoe shine service, bottle of wine upon arrival, Hermés bath products, one-per-person in-suite well-being treatment, and a special dinner in Bar du Leopard.
The Royal Suite offers additional benefits, including a separate and spacious living room, and a bathroom with a separate rain shower and tub, as well as a secluded toilet and bidet area.
How about you? Have you sailed on S.S. Catherine? Did you find it magnifique or meh? We'd like to hear about your experience.
Recommend magazine contributed to this review. Help improve this article. See anything wrong? What did we overlook? Be a co-creator!
Interested in a cruise on S.S. Catherine? Contact a Cruiseable travel expert who'll go to work for you at no cost. Call 1-877-322-3883 or email us.
