First timer cruise review - Ventura N515 Mediterranean

[Big Stevie]

Royal Caribbean Anthem of the Seas was docked next to us at Vigo Spain. They were on there way home from the Canaries where they had sadly had bad weather.

 

 

 

At Vigo there was an extremely long queue to get back on board, probably because the Anthem was docked also...

 

Edited June 14, 2015 by Big Stevie

[Big Stevie]

One of my many greedy moments. at the self serve buffet...

 

After putting meat pie & chips on my plate I then discovered they were also serving curry & rice, so piled some of that on my plate as well...

 

Edited June 14, 2015 by Big Stevie

[Big Stevie]

Another photo of our cabin dressing table with tea/coffee making facilities, replaced each day, together with the 6 x bottles of water provided by P&O. They cost €1.5 if you had one..

 

[Big Stevie]

Lisbon answer to the Golden Gate Bridge of San Fransisco (design by the same people). Does the Ventura actually fit underneath?....

 

[Big Stevie]

Monaco

 

The Royal Palace

 

 

 

The famous F1 hairpin...

 

 

 

 

Casino

 

 

 

 

 

Cafe Paris opposite the casino where a bowl of chips cost €21

 

 

 

Some folk will do anything to get onboard the top deck of the 'Hop on Hopp off bus' without paying...

 

Edited June 14, 2015 by Big Stevie

[Presto2]

Crew - The visible crew is almost 100% foreign and they provided faultless service. They were extremely polite and nothing was too much trouble, referring to us as sir/madam all the time and constantly stopping to allow us toppers in front of them if we met in a walkway etc. Now heres where I have a bit of a problem, and this isn't a criticism of the staff….

 

Whilst they were incredibly polite to passengers, I did get the feeling that they were frightened of putting a foot wrong, as if there are perhaps hundreds of other people ready to fill their position if they did something wrong and got sacked. This made me a little uncomfortable to be honest, especially being called Sir all the time. Im a working class bloke and the staff tended to view passengers as being above them, no doubt they are told to do so? I told our cabin steward he needn't refer to me as Sir as I'm just an ordinary bloke, just like him. I always insisted on allowing the crew in front of me if we met in a walkway, seeing as they have work to do whereas I am at leisure. As I say, not a criticism of the crew, more of P&O’s policy?

 

 

A fantastic review - thank you so much for taking the time. It was great to read and see the photos of the ship.

 

Above all we loved this quote ----- you can cruise with us anytime. How I wish all passengers would associate with this and treat the crew the same.

 

Would love to cruise with you one day. :)

[Big Stevie]

Would love to cruise with you one day. :)

 

If your paying then I'm happy to come along with you anytime :D. But I do snore and I eat a lot!

[Andy110885]

If your referring to the one below then I think it was pork & veg, treacle pudding with custard & ice cream and then a chocolate mousse with ice cream...

 

Looks good, I'll shall be looking out for this during our cruise in two weeks on Ventura. Great Photos and write up!

[Presto2]

If your paying then I'm happy to come along with you anytime :D. But I do snore and I eat a lot!

 

Mmmmm sounds just like hubby -------- he may have something to say about an extra passenger though :D:D:D

[bigtoe105]

Fantastic review can't wait for our cruise now ....thanks

[Big Stevie]

If theres one tip id give myself on my next cruise it would be this..

 

If theres a port destination that really means something to you, then don't risk missing out an seeing the landmarks by trying to save money (like I did at Gibraltar). If only I had paid to do the tour bus taxi up the rock when the touts approached me upon disembarkation then I would have got to see the apes etc.

 

Instead I assumed they would be overcharging the tourists and so I walked into town to get a better price (which was the same). Then we decided to get the cable car instead but on arrival our son refused to go on it. By this time we only had 2hrs before needing to return to the ship so missed out on it completely.

 

That'll teach me for being a tight fisted Yorkshireman :)

[AstyPasty]

Thanks so much for a very informative review and great photos. :)

 

We are having our first cruise on the Ventura at the end of August and your post was full or interesting information and gave us a great insight into some things we were unsure of. My other half was only asking me at the weekend how we will manage carrying all of our bags once we have been dropped off at the start of the cruise and you've answered that question for us!

 

We are thinking of doing the same as you tips wise - reducing the tips and then paying individuals like our cabin steward. However, that's something we're still contemplating.

 

I'm pleased you enjoyed your first cruise and many thanks again

[Henrietta30]

Great review and lovely to see some great balanced comments. We have just come off Azura and we did have a time for disembarkation and everything worked well.

If you want more kids then obviously holiday time means there will be a lot more. Also I suggest Royal Caribbean has more to do if you have children. WE had quite a lot of children on Azura even though it is term time so I suspect it just depends on the cruise.

In terms of calling you Sir I suspect the staff do it because they cant remember everyones names as they have so many to look after and its easier than causing offence by getting it wrong.............

So glad you enjoyed the trip

[wobblybob74]

Great review Stevie, seems you almost exactly had the same experience as we did on the following cruise.

[Andy110885]

Was there any themed nights on your cruise? eg, Tropical nights or 60s/70s nights?

[john watson]

Fantastic review Big Stevie, very comprehensive and without any politics as you are a newcomer to cruising.

 

When looking at your next cruise, if you want to change lines, consider Princess Cruise Line. Their "Grand Class" ships are of an identical basic design to Ventura and Azura for that matter and you get used to the layout much more quickly. The P&O loyalty scheme is recognised by P&O so you become a higher level straight away. The staff call you by name or sir depending on what you have registered as your preference on the website. On the other hand on a second voyage you will probably be quicker to get your bearings on a new ship and Britannia looks fabulous and the new ship premium price will reduce next year I am sure.

 

Regards John

[Big Stevie]

Was there any themed nights on your cruise? eg, Tropical nights or 60s/70s nights?

 

If I recall correctly there was a 70's/80's night and a tropical night. But we didn't get involved in those.

[groovechick]

Lovely review Big Stevie. I too get uncomfortable with all the sir-ing and madam-ing (but have got used to it) and like you I'm quite likely to tell a member of staff to go ahead of me in a corridor or to not rush to finish tidying our room when we come back from breakfast. I just treat them like I would anyone else and chat to them if they are happy to chat (some are not and I respect that). I have heard one or two fellow passengers talking to, or should I say "at" members of the crew in very insulting tones, including one elderly couple who called the waiters "boy" (think last days of the Indian Raj). Just no need for that IMHO.

[jeanlyon]

Oooo, I might have had to say something if I had heard that. Disgraceful.

[groovechick]

Oooo, I might have had to say something if I had heard that. Disgraceful.

 

Had to bite my tongue VERY hard, Jean, and walk away fast after dinner, but didn't want to cause a scene in front of the family and other diners.

[Big Stevie]

Was there any themed nights on your cruise? eg, Tropical nights or 60s/70s nights?

 

There was a Tropical night, and I recall there was a 70's or 80's night, but we didn't involve ourselves in these.

[whoops]

What a great review and great pictures as well.

 

We were on the same cruise; our first cruise also.

 

In fact I reckon we were sat close to Big Stevie in the Havanna as there was a very smart young boy in his tux and he was one of the very few children onboard probably because the cruise sailed in term time. My wife is an ex teacher and notices these things!

 

I was surprised the embarkation process at Southampton took Stevie so long as we were onboard within 30 minutes of our arrival at around 12.15pm. However the comments about overnighting at the Holiday Inn have been noted for our next cruise as we stayed in the Macdonalds Country Club and Resort about 20 minutes away which was not nearly so convenient. Thanks for the tip.

 

I was interested in Stevies comments on Rome. Unfortunately we didn't go as a couple of passengers persuaded us to opt out because of the distance and the fact on an earlier trip said they had spent most of their time stuck in traffic and therefore had very little time to see the sites. Instead we were bussed into Citiveccia and what a waste of time that was as the town is scruffy and unspectacular in every sense. And how did we go to Monte Carlo and miss Casino Square? Instead we walked through the tunnel on the F1 course and sat for a while in the Japanese garden and then walked along the footballers walk of fame to the nearby beach. Ryan Giggs and George Best were the only British footballers on display. Perhaps we should have taken the tour!

 

I agree with many of the comments about the entertainment except for the fact the cruise was billed as a Strictly cruise and as such attracted fans of the programme. I don't think this was necessarily the reason for there being so many elderly onboard as that programme appeals to people of all ages; even my 8 year old granddaughter is a fan. The Headliners theatre group were also good but they didn't get a mention in Stevies blog. However the point about the cinema is well made as the screen was virtually unwatchable. Overall the entertainment was excellent and far exceeded expectations.

 

I was interested in the comment about Norovirus. There was a cabin on D deck mid ships on the Port side just along from us being given a deep clean suggesting there were a few cases onboard although I have to say the ship was being cleaned constantly and thoroughly by the excellent staff. I had imagined the medical evacuation off the coast of Cartagena was something more serious but I suppose it must have been a bad case with complications.

 

Thanks again to Stevie for taking time to post this excellent review.

Edited July 22, 2015 by whoops

[jaceyar]

What a shame Whoops that you were persuaded not to go to Rome, one of the world's iconic cities. Having been to Rome many times, we choose to explore Civitavecchia and found it a lovely typically Italian town, a bit scruffy in places, a great market, delicious coffee and with a personality all of it's own.

We also experienced a Strictly cruise last year - a man swam up to us in the pool and asked if we recognised him! He said he'd come second in the competition, we said sorry, we hadn't seen it. Agree that the Headliners theatre group are always worth seeing but they're not a patch on the guys on Britannia who are extremely talented. A great review, thanks very much.

[c*r*u*I*s*e]

Very good review Stevie..... Very informative for us as we board Ventura on 31.October. 2015 to the Canaries, Portugal, Spain..... Our first P&O cruise (2 previous with Princess)

 

Steve n Wendy

[Holidayfun141]

Thank you Steve for a brilliant informative review, we had our first cruise on Azura in May and loved every minute so booked the Ventura for September.

Your review is so helpful.

So happy that you dressed up for the Black Tie Evening, and how lovely that your son had so many compliments. I loved the Black Tie evening on Azura, so many people dressed up and it made the evening so enjoyable.

I will never forget seeing a large family including 4 generations all in Black Tie and fabulous dresses all having their picture taken on the steps of the atrium .

I hope you enjoy your next cruise.