This weekend, I stayed onboard Ambassador Cruise Line’s Ambition, using the ‘Festive Event’ that the cruise line arranges across its fleet throughout December, to see more of this cruise ship, it was also my first time on an Ambassador ship.

Ambition was built in 1999 at Chantiers de l’Atlantique, it was originally ordered for Rennaisance Cruises in 1996 however plans quickly changed and they withdrew, the shipyard and the financiers of the build decided to continue and she was completed for Festival Cruises as their first new build. You can read about Festival Cruises here – The Rise & Fall of Festival Cruises.

In 2004 Festival Cruises went bankrupt and the ship was sold to Ibero Cruises operating as Grand Mistral, in 2007 this became a joint venture with Carnival Corp & PLC and in 2013 the Grand Mistral was transferred to Costa Cruises as Costa NeoRiveria. The ‘neo’ sub-brand at Costa was a focus on smaller ships and longer journeys. In 2019 she was again transferred to another Carnival Corp brand – this time Aida as AidaMira. Again, she joined a sub-fleet of smaller ships offering more unusual cruises, for Aida she was based out of Cape Town entering service in December 2019.

Within a few months, the world had changed significantly and the pandemic led to a cessation of cruises across the globe and AidaMira was no exception. In January 2022 she was sold to Ambassador having only completed a few cruises for Aida. Before joining active service for Ambassador, she was chartered by the Scottish Government to house Ukrainians who had fled the war in Ukraine. Following a full refurbishment she joined active service for Ambassador in May 2023 offering a series of no-fly cruises from around the UK.

Mistral actually led to a series of lengthened versions, Firstly European Vision in 2001 and European Stars in 2002 which also joined Festival Cruises and are now MSC Sinfonia and MSC Armonia. An additional two ships were completed for MSC Cruises as their first newbuilds MSC Lirica in 2003 and MSC Opera in 2004. I undertook a tour of MSC Opera in 2011 which is covered here – https://cruiseoctopus.com/2011/06/29/msc-opera-ship-visit/.

Ambassador Cruise Line is a new entrant into the cruise industry, seeing the space in the marketplace left following the collapse of CMV during the pandemic this cruise line has acquired two ships, Ambience and Ambition and is positioning itself as a premium value cruise line. These two ships are both midsize and slightly older ships however they are offering an array of interesting cruises with Ambience sailing a World Cruise in the New Year and Ambition offering a variety of no-fly cruises from ports across the UK, including Liverpool!

Prior to the pandemic, CMV used to operate Festive Experiences across their fleet and this is something that Ambassador has thankfully picked up on, the night was really popular with lots of people onboard to have a great time. I checked in and headed up to my Cabin on Deck 10 to get ready, I picked an inside Cabin as it would be dark most of the time I was onboard and I found it to be well-designed and spacious, the bathroom particularly nice.

The meal was brilliant, it was a four-course meal included two glasses of wine and was delicious. For starter I had Roasted Beatroof Carpaccio, Soup/Salad course I had Quinoa, Kale, Tomato and Avocado Salad. Main I had Roast Beef and for Dessert I had the Christmas Yule log. Of course there was the baked Alaska parade to get everyone cheering at dessert. The food was really delicious and there was a good variety on the menu, the others on my table were also happy with the food and service.

After the meal there was a ‘One Night in Nashville’ performance in the main theatre. This was well done and a cut above what I was expecting, speaking to other passengers on the night they also thought the entertainment was really good.

I was nervous about the dress code as the request was formal, however you can never be sure and I didn’t want to look out of place. I asked the question on the facebook group ‘Cruising with Ambassador’ and everyone was really helpful. If you have any questions about cruising with them I would recommend this group. Link here – https://www.facebook.com/groups/cruisingwithambassador/

My only real criticism is with the ship itself, the cabins and public spaces were all really smart and well looked after but I feel the bars were all very similar, it would be nice to see any future refurbishments make these venues more unique. However, this is nothing significant and I think Ambition would be a great ship to take a cruise on.

Overall I thought the festive event was really well done, the ship was decorated nicely for the festive season, with great food and entertainment and friendly welcoming staff. Hopefully, this is a tradition that Ambassador expand across the UK.

Have you been on an Ambassador Cruise or are you taking part in one of the festive nights?

Thanks,

Liam

Other posts which may interest you –
The Rise & Fall of Festival Cruises
MSC Opera Ship Visit