Eglesbrech

I always check hygiene standards using the 'scores on the doors' page for restaurants and takeaways. The difference on a ship is that having made your choice to cruise, you have to put your trust in the onboard standards and the duty of care they should provide. Also let's not forget that quite a large percentage of passengers are elderly and therefore more vulnerable if they fall victim to food poisoning. I can honestly say that prior to reading the hygiene results I really did believe that P&O would be extremely strict, it seems not. I no longer believe that all of the illness is due to Norovirus, I never have really.

I use the food hygiene scores as well and would not go into a restaurant that does not have a good pass. Here in this area they have to display them in the window so there is no doubt that they have a pass and what level. I agree with you that having booked a cruise you should expect decent standards.

Cruise lines in general are very quick to blame passengers for "bringing on" norovirus (which will sometimes of course be the case) but I have never ever heard one admit to food poisoning.

On a more positive note if P&O are like most large organisations then this type of thing is a wake up call and standards will probably rise very quickly to sort out any issues.

Not a programme I have seen before but I tuned in to see the ship. It was all a bit puerile for my personal taste but it is obviously a very popular show so great free advertising.

I think that this will have attracted people to P&O but have repelled just as many. Who knows though.

Reading posts on here over the last few weeks we have had reports of norovirus, allegations of food poisoning on another thread where the poster said that they were contacting the authorities, failed test, cockroaches and a video posted about Britannia where there was no soap in the dispensers and the food on the video looked pretty poor. It is all a bit worrying.

This is not people unhappy with the size of the cabin, the saver v select fares, a missed port or entertainment they don't like. It is pretty basic and potentially affects all passengers.

You would think that P&O would want to provide some reassurance.

Fred Staff do come on from time to time to give information. Perhaps P&O should do the same where there is a level of concern about something so fundamental.

E deck you have the best of both worlds, an area of shade and an area of sun. The balcony is massive, you could have a party out there.

 

Found this video, gives a really good overview, both good and bad points. Pretty much agree with everything said!

Really interesting, detailed video. Thanks for posting it.

Drink a good malt whisky. It may not cure the sea sickness but you will feel better anyway.

I find ginger helpful and we a also use electronic pulsing wrist bands which are really good.

"here are the real facts from the cruise itself and gleaned from various crew members at the Baltic lunch today including the captain"

That's not what was stated above Dai.

I hope everyone is indeed having a really good cruise. A holiday is sometimes what you make of it.

I would say for balance however that it will be interesting to hear the views of people who paid for their cruise as opposed to those who are being paid by P&O. The crew and the Captain are hardly likely to be critical now are they.

I'm envious, I used to love to get booked up well in advance and then look forward and count down to the next cruise. Can't do that for the moment.

Great that you have what you want.:)

Interesting review, thanks for taking the time to post it.

There do appear to be a lot of adverse comments about food at the moment. Hopefully P&O take note.

I do like the sound of the itinery, may try it some day.

I can't comment on OV but can on RCI. Thomson and RCI are completely different but they both have their good points.

Rci ships are bigger, have much more choice of restaurants (and food in general), a better choice of cabins which are much bigger comparing like for like and much more modern. The public areas lack the RCI wow factor and the outside decks are much much smaller with no running track etc On Thomson for example you don't get ice rinks, ice bars, climbing walls, Royal Promenade, parades, dodgem cars and We Will Rock You as the main show!

What you do get is a very friendly small ship feel with great service which is genuine, rather than the "have a nice day" variety. If you can see past the smaller,slightly shabbier ship with a lot less choice then you will find a holiday that has all the elements you need.

You will get into much more interesting ports than the large RCI bohemoths cant travel to. With less passengers embarcation & disembarkation are much quicker. You also get to know other passengers much better as you tend to bump into the same people and we have always found the passengers and staff to be really friendly - more so than on RCI.

Re your specific points food on Thomson is much more basic than RCI, no "always available" options but you will not starve and there are some high points eg the currys. The buffet also has much less choice but it is perfectly sufficient.

Drinks cost much less than on RCI and there is no exorbitant autotip. The range available on Thomson is less eg choice of wines but perfectly adequate.

The entertainment on Thomson lacks the razzmatazz and staging you get on RCI but it is enjoyable and it is more engaging on some levels, passengers get involved and there is a homely feel to it. Hard to describe but Thomson regulars will know what I mean, you feel like part of a large house party. Thomson do something I have never seen on any other ship, they do plays - usually farces and they are excellent. We have seen some well acted and very funny plays over the years.

Just another thought, Thomson provide the flights from local airports and transfers as well as the cruise so you will get to the ship with much less hassle.

Hope this helps a bit.

It never fails to surprise me that people with the virus still wander around the ship. I think that P&O are wrong to offer them money to stay in their cabin, I think that a "fine" for coming out of their cabin would be more effective as they would not want to pay for their inconsiderate behaviour.

While I can empathise with your point of view to an extent and surely responsible people should not want to spread "bugs" and so should voluntarily stay away from others - some of the problem is that they may not know they have it, it takes 2 days or more to show symptoms so carriers could be walking around happily unaware before they are actually physically unwell.

Also, how may of us go to work with a bug because we have work to finish or pop out to the gp / chemist to get medication when ill?

Add to that instances of sea sickness, migraine, overindulgence in booze, certain allergies, menstral cramps etc etc etc all of which cause the same types of symptoms and you could end up locking down / fining half the ship!

P&O are probably dammed if they do and dammed if they don't. There are laws about restricting individual liberty and while it is different outwith the UK on a ship, the press would still have a field day if they gave a fine to someone who is sick with a (documnted) migraine or silly enough to get sick with drink and can show their bar bill in evidence!

Anyone tried the Epicurean afternoon tea version on Ventura? We have pre booked but may not be a good idea from what I am reading.

Just back from the next cruise... we sailed from Southampton on 20/3 and returned yesterday 27/3

 

The ship was still on high sanitisation all week so ...

• hand gels were enforced throughout which I think is good (quite funny when you go between shops and have to use it everytime we laughed about this but some were complaining)
  
• we werent allowed salt and pepper on the MDR tables (2 meals were ruined as too much was put on by the waiters)
  
• as soon as you get up from the table in a bar someone comes over with a bucket and cleans the chairs and table with soapy water
  
• Not allowed to touch the photo units (was told off for touching it by a very rude photographer)
  
• Not allowed to enter the tea and coffee area in buffet which worked very well as it created an organised delivery of drinks (although they always put the tea bag and milk in the cup which is always a bug bear of mine)
  
• Between acts in Havana on the last night we were told to leave the club as it needed to be sanitised (seemed a bit ott)
  

 

All of this didn't spoil the cruise at all, still saw people (older men) not washing their hands in the loos though.

Thanks for the update. Sounds as if it is still not contained if they are cleaning to that extent?

I am slightly concerned about all the chair washing as we were on another cruise line and got clothes ruined as they did not dilute the cleaning agent and clothes ended up bleached! Lot of very unhappy people with bleached, very expensive formal wear, as I say another cruise line so hopefully P &O more clued up.

Hope it is all under control but it doesn't sound good.

Thanks for all the suggestions, very much appreciated.

Pete thanks for the info re flybe, hopefully we are safe as much closer to fly date.

Part of the reason we have not travelled with P&O in a while was our (perceived) deterioration in the food in the MDR. It is sometimes down to personal taste but I found the offering bland, the quality deteriorating and the choice limited, particularly in the buffet.

We are now more used to extensive choice and "always availabe" alternatives in the MDR and buffets that have a huge range on US ships. We went on a cruise with Fred Olsen last year an even it was not too bad food wise.

We thought we would give P&O another go and so far I am a bit apprehensive between the poor food reviews here and comments about embarkation issues etc. Food is a big part of a holiday, we have booked into the select venues for 4 nights so that will at least be a change of pace.

That I said I will go with a very open mind and one bright point..... I like green beans which appears to be fairly essential!:)

If it is cost cutting then they perhaps need to think again because they will lose all but the most loyal passengers. We have come back to give it another go but would not do so again if this next cruise is poor food wise.

We booked a saver rate for this cruise but have still paid a more than adequate price to expect a reasonable quality of food, when compared to what we would have got for the same cost on other lines or land based hotels.

I am only guessing but the issue might be the very low rates that they now sell saver inside cabins for, when we were looking there was a 14 day cruise where the inside cost was just £649 per person. The food budget based in this price must be extremely low, (even taking account of the double, triple or quadruple prices paid by outsides, balconies, delux and suite customers and perhaps more for select).

We'll be looking to kill time when we disembark Azura before heading to the airport for our flight home.

 

At time of booking our flights we wouldn't have had too much time to kill, but thanks to Flybe who have just advised us today that they have cancelled our flight in the morning, the only alternative departs Southampton at 14:50!

 

Any suggestions for 2 people having to drag bags around the city?

Sorry to hear that, a real nuisance.

Can I ask how long before your cruise Flybe made the change? I am interested because we go to a different airport but the with the same kind of schedules so I hope they don't do the same thing with our flights home.

Interestingly, on the Fred Olsen website, if you click on a cabin description it sometimes says "cabin subject to noise" or some other things. P&O don't do that.

Yes. We did our homework in advance and I understand that two of the aft cabins in the deck below on "e" deck are subject to noise from the venue below. P&O don't mention this which is strange when they mention that the top decks are over shadowed, show which cabins have bunks etc.

I have never travelled with a baby however I can tell you a little bit about the ports.

La Palma - the ship docks almost in the middle of the town and a short walk takes you to the promenade where there are some authentic old houses and cafes to watch the views or back one street to the shops for a wander. Depending on the day you are in port there is a market to the left as you leave the port. There is also a small train that takes a tour along to the old ship, church etc ( you can actually walk it all as it is as,all place but stilnice to do).

Funchal- again you can walk from the port along to the town and ther is lots to do. You can visit the fruit and flower market, the shops,museum or my personal favourite Blandys to taste Madera wine (the tour is up and down stairs but you could do it with a baby carrier), book via the Internet in advance to secure a time, they are extremely helpful. Reids hotel does a beautiful afternoon tea, again you need to pre-book, it is up the hill to the left of the port (20 to 30 minutes walk) but worth the walk

Agadir- it is an interesting place however, only my opinion, but just stay on onboard the ship, it is hot, it is busy, you get hasseled all of which is fine with adults but may not be ideal with a baby. The port is out of the way so you need a taxi to get anywhere.

Areceffe- nice promenade to walk into the town or to the new port area. Lots of lovely restaurants and views in both. In the new port area there is a 5 d cinema which you could do one at a time while the other enjoys a coffee and the views. There is a good art gallery on the way into town as well. The Arreciffe Grand hotel at the far end of the town has a cafe on the 17th floor which gives views over the city.

Las Palmas- there is a shopping centre right next to the port or the main town 10 minutes walk away all on the flat. Plenty to see and do in the city.

Hope this helps a little, have a wonderful cruise.

Given the later check in times that P&O are now enforcing does anyone have any suggestions for interesting things to do in Southampton.

Any hidden gems to see or must do restaurants for lunch?

Might not suit everyone but we have a lovely cabin aft on D deck. Checked out pictures someone put on line and it looks good.

Really looking forward to the cruise. All we need is some decent weather now.

Cabin allocated today. Liking the algorithm:):):):)

Has anyone heard anything as yet from those travelling on the current Ventura cruise. Have P&O managed to contain the virus?

Been to Ibiza a few times and if I am honest it is not my favourite port. One of the ports is within minutes of the town and the other is much, much further out. Depending on the time of the year and the time of the day lots of people doing the "walk of shame" there!

Plenty to see and do I Gib and most of it just a short walk or taxi ride away. You can get a taxi to see the caves and the monkeys both of which are of interest if you like history.

The prices are duty free and yes you can get some brilliant bargains and some unusual items but remember you have to get them back into the UK so be aware of the limits. Some of the jewelry products are amazing value eg Alexandrite or Tanzanite would cost a considerably more anywhere else.

Others may not agree with us mysticalmother but I'm on your side. I was a teacher / head for 36 years and it annoys me when parents say the children will be getting an education about the world when they're cruising. Anyway the same experiences - waterparks and beaches included - are there during the school holidays AND the child will still have a full education.

 

As far as the OP is concerned, I'm sure every school send out a holiday list at the start of the academic year and it might be a good idea to check that - instead of P&O's website :)

With all due respect no I don't agree. No these opportunities are not available if the parents can't afford the price hike in peak holidays or they are on fixed holidays or work for an employer who can't let everyone with children off during the school holidays period or who has to restrict or cancel leave due to the nature of the work (police, forces etc)

Speaking as a manager who has to juggle holiday requests you sometimes have to decline a leave request due to operational need. This is not something that Headteachers/teaches have to face (though I appreciate that you are also restricted to an extent and have no chance to take an odd long weekend or day off) Do they then have to wait a full year for a family holiday?