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We have enjoyed all sizes of ships with different cruise lines and our first P&O cruise was on Aurora on one of her maiden cruises lol and it wasfantastic not just the ship and its newness but the atmosphere with the staff. Over the years we have progressed to bigger ships so havent sailed regularly on smaller ships except for once on Oriana and hated the ship even though the cruise was fantastic and we picked it for the itinerary (Northern Lights) and not the ship. Of all the P&O ships we prefer Britannia because there is a lot more to do and more facilities so for this reason I think that if we returned to Aurora we wouldnt enjoy it so much and be bored.

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We have enjoyed all sizes of ships with different cruise lines and our first P&O cruise was on Aurora on one of her maiden cruises lol and it wasfantastic not just the ship and its newness but the atmosphere with the staff. Over the years we have progressed to bigger ships so havent sailed regularly on smaller ships except for once on Oriana and hated the ship even though the cruise was fantastic and we picked it for the itinerary (Northern Lights) and not the ship. Of all the P&O ships we prefer Britannia because there is a lot more to do and more facilities so for this reason I think that if we returned to Aurora we wouldnt enjoy it so much and be bored.

We quite like to relax on our cruises, so hopefully we won’t be bored on Aurora...

Over indulgence on cruises is my thing, so as long as the food & cocktails are good, coupled with efficient staff and friendly passengers, all will be fine...

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Yes, and that Ventura really is the least popular - at least amongst those of us who posted on here. Of course we may not be representative of the passenger demographic as a whole - in fact I'd guess we're not. But still interesting so get a feel of how people rate them.

 

We went against the trend as we prefer the big ships but not Ventura after a couple of not so good cruises on her.

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We quite like to relax on our cruises, so hopefully we won’t be bored on Aurora...

Over indulgence on cruises is my thing, so as long as the food & cocktails are good, coupled with efficient staff and friendly passengers, all will be fine...

 

Of course it all depends on what you want from your holiday but we like to relax too and especially like the fact that there are a variety of really pleasant, comfortable areas/lounges to chill and we've never had problems finding seats either. So a big plus for us.

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One reason why I put Ventura and Aurora at the top is an indoor pool.The other 2 ships we've sailed on didn't have that, and we had cold, uncomfortable cruises on them. Azura, especially, can be a washout if it's too cold to swim or watch the sea screen.

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Of course it all depends on what you want from your holiday but we like to relax too and especially like the fact that there are a variety of really pleasant, comfortable areas/lounges to chill and we've never had problems finding seats either. So a big plus for us.

Very true. All that some people (myself included) want from a cruise is good food and drink, service and company, comfortable accomodation and interesting ports of call. We are not at all bothered about entertainment and rarely watch it. We can live without multiple dining options. We tend to prefer the greater camaraderie of a smaller ship, less queueing and easier disembarcation at ports - did I mention tendering? Others see the ship as a destination in her own right - a floating resort hotel - and expect to be entertained and kept busy with other diversions whilst onboard. They tend to prefer the bigger ships where there is "more to do" and fear that they would be bored on a smaller ship. P&O increasingly caters for the latter group whilst the results of this survey seem to indicate that their established customers tend to fall in the former.

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Very true. All that some people (myself included) want from a cruise is good food and drink, service and company, comfortable accomodation and interesting ports of call. We are not at all bothered about entertainment and rarely watch it. We can live without multiple dining options. We tend to prefer the greater camaraderie of a smaller ship, less queueing and easier disembarcation at ports - did I mention tendering? Others see the ship as a destination in her own right - a floating resort hotel - and expect to be entertained and kept busy with other diversions whilst onboard. They tend to prefer the bigger ships where there is "more to do" and fear that they would be bored on a smaller ship. P&O increasingly caters for the latter group whilst the results of this survey seem to indicate that their established customers tend to fall in the former.

 

Couldn't agree more!

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Very true. All that some people (myself included) want from a cruise is good food and drink, service and company, comfortable accomodation and interesting ports of call. We are not at all bothered about entertainment and rarely watch it. We can live without multiple dining options. We tend to prefer the greater camaraderie of a smaller ship, less queueing and easier disembarcation at ports - did I mention tendering? Others see the ship as a destination in her own right - a floating resort hotel - and expect to be entertained and kept busy with other diversions whilst onboard. They tend to prefer the bigger ships where there is "more to do" and fear that they would be bored on a smaller ship. P&O increasingly caters for the latter group whilst the results of this survey seem to indicate that their established customers tend to fall in the former.

 

100% agree with all of this (y)

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We've booked Azura for a 7 night cruise next year have only sailed on Aurora and Arcadia, like Arcadia best lots o places to sit outside without being too busy.

Wanted to try a larger ship so booked Azura in term time hoping I won't regret it but there's only 2 sea days so should be fine.

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I think on here we are pretty much the same. I want to be on a ship that feels like a ship and not a floating resort. By the way Arcadia also has a closing roof. I loved Adonia, Oriana. I did not like Black Watch, they had let her go badly. Enjoyed Balmoral and Braemar, but I digress!

 

 

We are only a small section of cruisers. It seems to me that the midsize ships will all go and for me cruising will be over.

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I think on here we are pretty much the same. I want to be on a ship that feels like a ship and not a floating resort. By the way Arcadia also has a closing roof. I loved Adonia, Oriana. I did not like Black Watch, they had let her go badly. Enjoyed Balmoral and Braemar, but I digress!

 

 

We are only a small section of cruisers. It seems to me that the midsize ships will all go and for me cruising will be over.

 

Totally agree, I can cope with Azura and Ventura but anything bigger is too much. Can’t see me trying Iona. Am dipping toe in the water with Marella soon as their ships are about the right size. We’ll have to see how that works out. Time will tell !!!

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Well Ventura's fan club certainly does seem to have quite an exclusive membership! I'd like to mention that we don't actually dislike any of the ships, I compiled my list in the order that we've personally enjoyed them. We certainly won't be put off returning to any of them and have cruises booked next year on Ventura (top of our list) and Oceana (second bottom).

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I think on here we are pretty much the same. I want to be on a ship that feels like a ship and not a floating resort. By the way Arcadia also has a closing roof. I loved Adonia, Oriana. I did not like Black Watch, they had let her go badly. Enjoyed Balmoral and Braemar, but I digress!

 

 

We are only a small section of cruisers. It seems to me that the midsize ships will all go and for me cruising will be over.

 

They may go from the P&O fleet, but I can't see them disappearing entirely, as there are still plenty of people like us who prefer midsize and smaller ships. So I'm sure that there will always be a number of companies operating them. And if the worst comes to the worst, there is always river cruising, where only small ships are possible.

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Of the P&O ships that we have sailed on we would rate them in the following order of preference;

 

Oriana - was our favourite but only by a very slight margin over Aurora. We sailed on Oriana three times. Oriana was taken out of the equation when she became adult only.

 

Aurora - Again taken out of play when she became adult only and P&O cancelled our 2019 booked cruise.

We sailed on Aurora four times and were very much looking forward to sailing on her again.

 

 

Oceana - We had a great holiday on this ship but wouldn't rush back. Decoration tacky and fed up of tripping over buckets that were placed to catch the leaks from the ceilings.

 

Azura - Much nicer ambience and decoration to Ventura but certainly wouldn't want to travel on her again. The design of the ship is simply dreadful.

 

Ventura - Very disappointing. Most definitely won't be cruising on this ship again.

 

Arcadia - Never got to sail on her. P&O cancelled the cruise at short notice and we only got to find out about the cancellation by chance when surfing the internet.

 

Britannia - Have absolutely no desire to sail on this ship and never have had. Totally unappealing in appearance and in all probability with all the poor attributes of Ventura and Azura but on a larger scale.

It's all irrelevant any way as due to the way that P&O have let us down badly now on two occasions we have resolved never to travel with any Carnival company ever again.

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We have just come off the three nighter on Ventura and it was our first time on her. Not for me: dull, depressing decor and an old fashioned Glass House. We are not pool people, we like a mix of relaxing, and venues to enjoy good food and nice drinks, plus a browse round the shops. Last month we were on Arcadia and experienced for the first time the new shop products after the change of suppliers. Disappointing. We have sailed three times on Britannia who gets my vote for first place. Did a four night cruise on Aurora but don’t recall any outstanding features. Azura three times, another favourite. Oceana next Year. We like large cabins which is why I prefer the newer, bigger ships with the exception of Iona where the cabins are small, even the conservatory mini suites are only 274 sq ft compared to 317 in a superior de luxe. I will await reviews of her and do a ship’s visit before booking.

1. Britannia

2. Azura

3. Arcadia

4. Aurora

5. Ventura

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

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They may go from the P&O fleet, but I can't see them disappearing entirely, as there are still plenty of people like us who prefer midsize and smaller ships. So I'm sure that there will always be a number of companies operating them. And if the worst comes to the worst, there is always river cruising, where only small ships are possible.

 

Absolutely.

 

As a lover of the smaller ships, I have been on two other cruise lines this year. In January I sailed on Marella's Discovery 2, very similar in size to Oriana & Aurora. Not impressed with the ship or the overall product so unlikely to sail with them again. In May, I was on the little Marco Polo of CMV. Lovely characterful older ship. The CMV product delivered more than I expected and whilst it is not (imho) up to the standards of P&O, I would happily sail with them again and would certainly choose one of their ships over & above any of P&O's larger ships.

 

It is a number of years since I sailed on Fred Olsen's Black Watch but would also happily consider them again too.

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