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The lowest passenger deck is named after the French capital Paris (5). The two-deck high marble La Concorde reception area is the first introduction to the Mistral for most passengers. A black grand piano is placed in front of a black marble waterfall, and colorful murals lend a bright, festive touch to the large reception desk.

The port and starboard seating areas with comfortable couches and oversized coffee tables make this area almost home-like. Very well done. Moving aft, we walk through the attractive starboard St. Honoré shopping alley, with gift shops galore before coming to the amidships stairwell and the entrance to the L'Etoile Dining Room. With a seating capacity of 610, this is the main dining room, where breakfast, lunch and dinner are served in two seatings. Tables are mostly for 6 or 8, with a few smaller tables sprinkled in. The oversized round portholes create a somewhat cavernous room, although the designers made clever use of colors (predominantly beige and terra) to create a warm ambiance. As in all dining areas on this ship, chairs do not have armrests.

Looping through the L'Etoile Dining Room, we move forward again, taking the port side route this time. We stumble into the Chez Georges Bar. We didn't meet Georges, but his somewhat nervous colleague requested us to "sit down and you will be served". Being good boys we sat down, but were not served.... You can't have it all ! A small dance floor and bandstand amidships make Chez Georges a perfect late-night spot though, very comfortable and intimate.

All the way forward on Paris Deck is the Richelieu Library, the Diplomat Cigar Room and the nice trendy "Bar des Artistes" - a trendy drinking hole like you see them in theaters, with standing room only. Twin flights of stairs lead up to the aft section of Salon Carousel, Mistral's main show lounge.Spread over two decks, the 575-seat Salon Carousel is done in rich colors, with lots of chrome railings and unfortunately some bad sightlines from the uppermost seats.

The room slopes down in one go - there's no balcony as such. We had the pleasure of seeing the "Mistral Show" here, which featured a very talented ballet couple from the Lido in Paris, a Canadian clown, a magician and the never-to-be-missed dance troupe, complete with extravagant costumes. Obviously, Festival is trying hard to create an entertainment program that appeals to their broad passenger mix. That means hardly a word is spoken. Or sung for that matter. Incidentally, all public announcements were made in French and English when we were on board. Daily Programs and menus come in all kind of languages, so most Europeans will feel at home. We're now on Rome Deck (6), another level with just public rooms. Doors lead out to the open Astroturf deck; the Mistral does not have a wraparound promenade deck. Lining the upper level of the reception area is the Caffé El Greco, the ship's coffee bar. Done in a beautiful shade of green with one wall completely taken over by framed pictures, this is a very pleasant area to do some serious people watching, and listen to the sounds of the piano in the reception area. The bar here is home to the rudest waiter on the seven seas, which can grow into some sort of attraction in itself I guess...