Ardennais

We love Iona! Our favourite for years was Aurora but we would really miss the additional features now. Having said that, we would still sail on any ship if we fancied a particular itinerary. We can easily dodge the formals! Have to say, there were far fewer elderly guests on Iona. On Queen Vic in January there were so many walking sticks and walkers (including my mother). Just shows how important it is to do your research before booking. There’s something for everyone! 

We did the Chef’s Table on Iona last Sunday. Don’t be put off by the disparaging ‘works canteen’ comments. Our meal was lovely - the food is exactly the same. Great atmosphere there - fun, relaxed, unstuffy.  Light and airy - we were right by the window and it was lovely. I don’t drink alcohol either so not a problem. 

Pleased to say that there was only one formal night on Iona this past week. Photographers present. 

Our youngest was 10 when we started cruising but ours weren’t interested in the clubs or the pools. They loved Aurora when it was a family ship. Used to read and play board games for hours. We did a few Royal Caribbean cruises but they were dearer and apart from the ice rink, the children weren’t bothered with the other facilities. 
 

We are also faving a fabulous time on Iona. Food has been really good - so much better than what we had on Britannia last year! Very clean everywhere. Last time on Iona it was half term and full plus about 1000 children - far fewer children this time and service is much quicker. We’ve been able to walk in and get a table for the eight of us without any problem - around 8.30. We really love Iona! 

Playhouse on Aurora.

Ripples on Iona. 

14 minutes ago, Fionboard said:

Oh stop it!

To be honest, it’s not that different to our view at home!! 

Embarked Iona on Saturday. 4 cabins, different loyalty tiers. The two insides - Atlantic tier/first cruise had 13.30 and the two balconies - Med tier - had 14.45! So we jigged things around in the morning when leaving the hotel so that the 4 couples arrived at the correct time in the two cars. Mooched around West Quays, left there 30 minutes before embarkation time, waited about 10 mins in CPS queue and we were all aboard by the allotted time. Why do people make such a fuss I honestly don’t know. 

27 minutes ago, P&O SUE said:

Lovely! What ship are you on?

Iona - Olden today

This is my view today!

4 hours ago, Traderboy said:

TRLD,

I think you are right about the P&O split personality.

 

Those hankering after the good old days prefer Aurora, Arcadia .

Azura, Ventura (once described as the 'Butlins' cruise ship) and the Britannia  heralded the move to much larger ships such as Iona and Arvia.

I'm assuming that the change in ship size allows them to be very competitive on price.

 

As others have said  the drink prices and the ship excursions are more reasonably priced than the American cruises ships.  However, on Princess and Celebrity,  we find that the basic drink package/ basic WiFi /tips paid is an excellent way of avoiding the extra costs.

 

How did P& O get away with the tips included pricing?  This seems a complete anathema when you consider the low pay of the excellent cruise staff.

Perhaps people have generally returned to the old notion of tipping for good service.  I hope so.

 

Anyway those P & O old days are gone now.  We loved it while it lasted : Arcadia,  Adonia, Oceana, Canberra, Oriana, etc... 

 

What do others think?

 

I love the fact that tips are included. 

I think that Olive Grove is only pre-bookable on Arvia. 

5 hours ago, DamianG said:

We are looking at various itineraries during the main school holidays in 2026. Yet again some of the Mediterranean cruises have very few days in port, such as this one with just five and a half days:

B618 Mediterranean (pocruises.com)

 

At least there are some new ports (for us anyway) on certain cruises, such as Gijon, El Ferrol, Santander and Cherbourg (somehow we've never been there). It's also good to see Cagliari again on some itineraries from Southampton.

 

Finally, I don't recall seeing an itinerary like this one before, with a combination of the Mediterranean plus a call to Madeira:

N619 Spain And Portugal (pocruises.com)

 

At first glance the cruises all looked a bit "same old" but after some research I think there are some more interesting itineraries (for us) than we've seen for a while.

 

Best regards

 

Damian

 

 

From my quick look this morning, you’re right about some cruises having few days in port. Seems to be mainly Iona and Arvia which is a shame. 

Two of my daughters took the chocolate class back in 2016 and worked as a pair. They made truffles and some other chocolate concoction and they said it was great fun. We were eating them for days afterwards! 

We never take a photo beforehand. It’s not mandatory. 

I get regular emails from FO. We would love to go from Liverpool but the prices are eye-watering! 

Thanks Sue, really enjoyed your review and the great photos. We walked about 7 miles in Rotterdam last year too! 

2 hours ago, delgirl said:

Wasn't in the school holidays got back day before easter, departed 16 march. There were children onboard but only about 400.

Your second week would have been school holidays in Wales. Easter weekend is always the middle weekend of the fortnight break here. 

1 hour ago, delgirl said:

Got back from Iona on saturday. Never again. Food hit and miss. Couldn't get a seat anywhere, spent most of our fortnight in our cabin. Disembarkation absolute chaos. When we were going down the ramps to collect our luggage I looked over the side was like a cattle market. Took us an hour to find our luggage (and we kept to our timed disembarkation). Alot of people were not happy when we got our keys for the car we both said the experience had put us off cruising. I never thought we would say that. If we do cruise again it will be with another line. Have sailed various lines over the years, mostly cunard, and never had this problem. It seems p&o want to pack as many in as possible and then forget about them once you have paid your money.

Sorry to hear that. I know from experience that Iona can be choc-a-block during school holidays so that probably meant that your cruise too was crowded. However it didn’t put me off as I quite liked Iona and our next cruise is on her, but during term time!  

I agree, very reckless and irresponsible. What does the law say in Norway?

18 hours ago, mrsgoggins said:

I have seen, and enjoyed Mrs Caldecott’s Cabbage War 👍 and also the 2 Mamma Mia films and the Bridget Jones ones.  I too only enjoy happy films!  There is plenty to depress me in real life events and so for entertainment I generally want ‘light’. Do try Seaside Hotel, I’m sure you would love it.

Does Seaside Hotel have subtitles? I don’t like subtitles but it sounds good!

edit - just read your answer to this question! 

1 hour ago, zap99 said:

A bit like cheese wheels. Banished to ancient history. We have a table cloth. It comes out at Christmas in case any elderly relatives pop round for an advocat.

I’ve never owned a tablecloth and never will! 

4 hours ago, AlanCruise said:

It's just a styling decision.  The other has tables with place mats.  They both serve the same food.

Exactly! I think tablecloths are very old fashioned. 

5 hours ago, Beckett said:

It is St.Colmans John. I went there in 2018 with my granddaughter. It's a fairly steep climb up to the cathedral but so worth it. The views from the top are lovely. Our ship looked tiny in the distance. There was a wedding happening when we visited but the two ushers outside kindly let us in, so we attended the service itself, then watched the bride and and groom and all the more able guests running down the steep slopes into the town afterwards. It was a very happy day.

 

We also went into the Titanic Museum that Ardennais mentioned. It was fab. Very intimate with re-created cabins as per the cost level of the Titanic passengers' bookings. Your entry ticket gives you the name of an actual passenger and at the end of your tour you look up your name on a printed list and find out whether you survived or not! Well worth a visit. Jane x

You witnessed a wedding there and we witnessed mourners leaving a funeral!