Cruise_lover11

We're on C deck and have been given 15.30 as our time. As Dai said, it doesn't necessarily start at the top.

We were told by P&O that boarding times are strictly by deck and we do have the same time as someone else on the same deck on a different cruise. I'm not sure if this is the only criteria though. We go in a couple of weeks so will see how it goes, as it will be our first time under the new system.

Depends how good your knowledge of local conditions is. Can you advise me how long it will take to get from the M3/M27 junction to the port on 27th July? I need to know what time to leave home, and I'm not well enough up on Southampton traffic to know the answer.

How long is a piece of string? It really varies so much and I would personally rather leave at a time that suits me and does not cause me undue stress. If you arrive early, you can always go elsewhere to eat etc. I have previously got on the M3 at around lunchtime on a Saturday and been faced with back to back traffic and other times went straight through. It varies so much so do what you are comfortable with.

We're on a cruise in April and have been allocated 15.30 as our check in time. We plan to arrive early and drop off our luggage and then go and park somewhere and have something to eat/look around and then arrive nearer to the time. We have experienced terrible traffic on a previous cruise that meant we were cutting it very fine, so won't do that again and would rather be in the area so that we don't have the stress of it. I'm sure there is plenty to do in Southampton and it's just a different way of doing things.

I have to say it's not for me, each to their own and if there was a separate designated area it would be fine but I certainly wouldn't want to be sat next to someone sunbathing topless! I agree that it's not a fair comparison with breastfeeding though as women tend to do so discreetly. I have to say that I'm not a fan of seeing some men topless either, especially with moobs, speedos and a beer gut! Maybe I'm just odd or prudish but it's not just offensive to the older generation either as I'm 29!

The white space is likely to be a crew area and hopefully will not be too noisy. We have stayed in cabin A635 on Azura and it was a great location and we didn't have any problems with noise. You will have a wonderful time [emoji4]

There is also the option of self disembarking, which we now prefer as it saves waiting and trying to find the luggage etc :)

They definitely have an end time for self disembark as we were near this time due to struggling to get in the lift with our bags as everyone was using them. When we left, they were talking about closing it in 10 mins time. I think it runs until about 8-8.30am.

I think it would be classed as an upgrade yes, as you have been located a midships location. Have a look at the deckplans :)

I have been tracking the cost of a cruise that I have since gone on to book, while the price has stayed the same, the OBC has changed a few times since I first looked at it. I'm glad we booked as our grade has now sold out and the OBC has since gone now so we're happy with the price we paid. I have found it interesting watching the changes and I will be watching to see what happens in March. :)

I would suggest that if you are happy with the price and you need a specific cabin, that I would book now. At the moment P&O are doing double on board spend, does this apply to your cruise? If you wait, you may not get the cabin that you want, which could be an issue if you need to be near the lifts etc. I booked a cruise recently and had been watching it and one other cruise for a couple of weeks. It was interesting to see how things were changing price wise so regularly. In the end, we decided to book the cruise and the onboard spend has now gone down, therefore we're glad we did. I think that if you are happy with the price, go for it, even if it does go down you have to think that you may not have got the room etc and if you were happy to pay the price, then it is not worth worrying too much. Enjoy your cruise :)

Here is a photo of Azura (sister ship to Ventura) going through the lock towards Amsterdam. It was tight but it got through :D:cool:

Surely this is only comparable by knowing the cabin type as well? Someone in a suite will obviously get more than in an inside.

Overall, complaints against the cabin steward and waiting staff are rare.

 

In all likelihood you will receive an excellent service from them.

 

Also, if you are on freedom dining you can have different waiters every night. How would you propose rewarding them at the end of the cruise?

 

The auto gratuity really is the simplest method.

Well said. I would never consider removing the auto gratuities, particularly when seeing how hard the staff work.

We went to Amsterdam on Azura and it definitely fits. We docked right in the city :)

We have been on Azura twice, Ventura and Oceana once. We like Azura the most. In fact, Azura was our first cruise with p&o after RCI and I couldn't fault it. The food is the same quality across the ships we have been on and we have never had a problem. You will find that as above some people will find fault with everything and people probably feel inspired to write a review if they don't like something. I'm sure you will have a wonderful honeymoon and try to keep an open mind by ignoring the reviews and see what you think yourself. :)

We often get breakfast to the room and usually tip them with a couple of euros. If the £2 was going to the staff preparing and delivering the breakfast, we wouldn't mind. It would depend where the £2 is going! I feel the tips are so low when spread across the staff that a few euros here and there doesn't break the bank and shows appreciation of their hard work.

You will have a great time on Ventura. I am late 20s and my hubby is early 30s, and since our honeymoon we are addicted to cruising. We have been on Ventura, Azura and Oceana with p&o and enjoyed them all. I would love to go to Guernsey and we were meant to on one cruise but unfortunately the weather stopped us so we went to Cherbourg instead. One day we hope to get there! Where in Spain and Portugal are you going? What cabin type have you gone for? :)

We normally wear lanyards and we're late 20s, early 30s. My hubby got them to punch a hole in his card last time for using it, which they did with no problems. It was easier than having to reactivate the card several times,which has happened before when it's in my bag and near my phone.

We have been on both RCI and P&O and have thoroughly enjoyed both. Our first cruise was our honeymoon on RCI and then we tried P&O. I can't comment on things for children/teens to do but they have the kids' clubs which seemed to go down well and obviously the pools etc. I would definitely go on the larger ships Ventura, Azura or Brittania. We found that most people dressed up for the formal nights on RCI and we can't really fault either company. I think RCI has more activities for children and it has the wow factor for them but I al think P&O is certainly worth a try especially with the money saved. :)

How late is late? How close to the cruise are you likely to get the best deal when booking late?

We always arrive early as we like to leave in plenty of time in case of bad traffic. We have been on board as early as 12 or 12.30 in the past and just head straight to the buffet, which is quiet at that time. It's much nicer not having to queue for so long which we did originally when we got there a bit later.

I didn't know there was such a thing as jigsaw etiquette. It's in a public place so surely anyone can add pieces to it. You're on holiday to enjoy yourself not to get into a fight over a jigsaw. It does seem a bit over the top getting angry over that. I would have just walked away.

Thank you both for the information, that is good to hear :) we have been on other p&o cruises and have enjoyed them all, so hopefully this would be the same :)

Hi all,

I am looking for some advice/feedback on anyone that has been on Adonia previously. My husband and I are considering the cruise above mainly due to the destinations as we have not been to any of them and have wanted to see them for a while. We have read through reviews which seem mixed. One reservation we have is that we have not sailed on adult only before and we are not sure what to expect. We are in our early 30s so not sure if it would be suitable, however we're not ones to want to party/club all night. We just want a relaxing holiday as things are hectic in our lives at the moment so will just be chilling out, reading, exploring the ports etc. but don't want to be totally out of place.

We have also looked at a cruise on the royal princess going to the British Isles, however we would prefer 7 nights to 12 nights and that one is 12.

Any feedback would be welcome.

Thank you :)