first p&o cruise

[eightofninekev]

I've been on cruises mostly with Royal Caribbean  but seen this P&0 cruise for next January on Azura that is a bargain  .I'd just like some info on some things .On rc they are lax on dress code in the main dining room, what is it like on P&o do they turn people away? I don't take formal clothes with me any more . Also what kind of activities do they have on during the day ? I do love a quiz . do they have events for solo cruisers ?

thanks

Edited May 4, 2023 by eightofninekev

[wowzz]

7 minutes ago, eightofninekev said:

I've been on cruises mostly with Royal Caribbean  but seen this P&0 cruise for next January on Azura that is a bargain  .I'd just like some info on some things .On rc they are lax on dress code in the main dining room, what is it like on P&o do they turn people away? I don't take formal clothes with me any more . Also what kind of activities do they have on during the day ? I do love a quiz . do they have events for solo cruisers ?

thanks

P&O are pretty strict on dress code,  especially on formal nights. Jacket and tie as a bare minimum. And no shorts anywhere on the ship after 6pm on any night.

[david63]

10 minutes ago, eightofninekev said:

On rc they are lax on dress code in the main dining room, what is it like on P&o do they turn people away?

P&O is far more formal than RCL. On a formal night you should expect to be turned away from the MDR if you were to turn up in shorts a tee shirt, for example. Having said that there are alternative venues, such as the buffet, where the dress code is not enforced.

 

3 minutes ago, wowzz said:

I do love a quiz

Plenty of quizs on P&O - in fact there are more quizes than anything else.

5 minutes ago, wowzz said:

do they have events for solo cruisers

There are usually solo get togethers on most days

[eightofninekev]

 

Thanks ,I wouldn't turn up in shorts and t shirt I usually wear jeans and a polo shirt 

[Son of Anarchy]

26 minutes ago, wowzz said:

And no shorts anywhere on the ship after 6pm on any night.

Saw several blokes wearing shorts in the MDR and Club House after 1800 Arvia last month. At the risk of sounding like the dress code 👮‍♂️, although I was surprised that they had been let in to the MDR, I thought being a bit more relaxed about tailored shorts in Club House was okay.

 

 

[david63]

16 minutes ago, eightofninekev said:

 

Thanks ,I wouldn't turn up in shorts and t shirt I usually wear jeans and a polo shirt 

Even that would probably not be allowed on a formal night - casual nights would be no problem.

[eightofninekev]

51 minutes ago, david63 said:

Even that would probably not be allowed on a formal night - casual nights would be no problem.

 

Will just stick to the buffet on formal nights, what's the food like on p&o?

[Confused.com]

1 hour ago, eightofninekev said:

 

Thanks ,I wouldn't turn up in shorts and t shirt I usually wear jeans and a polo shirt 

Jeans ok in MDR's but only dark denim not blue.

[wowzz]

7 minutes ago, eightofninekev said:

 

Will just stick to the buffet on formal nights, what's the food like on p&o?

Standard middle of the road cuisine, but the speciality restaurants are pretty good.

[Denarius]

1 hour ago, Confused.com said:

Jeans ok in MDR's but only dark denim not blue.

Blue denim is fine as long as it is not "distressed".

Edited May 4, 2023 by Denarius

[davecttr]

I wear black jeans but not distressed. 

[Sheila127]

As a solo cruiser and recently been on the Azura they have solo meet ups arranged in the evenings in the Sindhu Bar, advertised in the Horizon Daily Information Sheet and every morning! On port days some solos meet up in the morning and get off the ship and explore together!

[zap99]

15 hours ago, davecttr said:

I wear black jeans but not distressed. 

All my jeans are blue 501's. I'm not distressed either.

[jomf]

We ate in either The Glass House or The Beach House on formal nights dressed in chinos and shirt. No issues at all, they are extra cost but around the £20 ish mark, depending on what you eat.

 

[zap99]

14 minutes ago, jomf said:

We ate in either The Glass House or The Beach House on formal nights dressed in chinos and shirt. No issues at all, they are extra cost but around the £20 ish mark, depending on what you eat.

 

We did the same on Azura and will do the same on Britannia.  I will wear slacks.

[davecttr]

According to the P&O site the Beach House and Glass house are now evening casual code on all ships. Despite old information elsewhere on their site saying the opposite. no idea why they don't delete the odd stuff.

 

For Azura the meet our ships page says dress code applies for Sindhu, however it was just reported on here that it is evening casual. 

Edited May 5, 2023 by davecttr

[Landon90]

I did Ventura twice and Iona once in the past year solo - they have solo meet ups if that’s your thing. I also don’t do full tie and blazer on formal nights - had no issues staying in the casino and sports bar then had food in the buffet. Buffet food is average but speciality restaurants are good. One formal night I has a few beers in the bar and then just ordered room service and watched a movie. 
 

From my experience the older smaller ships are more formal, the newer larger ones less formal. On Iona there were lots of people (mostly us 30-50 year old men) not in tie and jacket. 

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, Landon90 said:

From my experience the older smaller ships are more formal, the newer larger ones less formal. On Iona there were lots of people (mostly us 30-50 year old men) not in tie and jacket. 

Due, partly, to the fact that there is only one formal night a week on the two new ships.

It doesn't seem worth the bother packing formal wear for just one or two nights.

[terrierjohn]

31 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Due, partly, to the fact that there is only one formal night a week on the two new ships.

It doesn't seem worth the bother packing formal wear for just one or two nights.

Do you pack them for 3 nights on a 2 week Princess cruise?

[wowzz]

58 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

Do you pack them for 3 nights on a 2 week Princess cruise?

Yes, we do.

[majortom10]

The difference with Princess cruising from Southampton due to being mainly UK cruiser's is a lot more formal. If you go on a Princess cruise that sails not from Southampton but other ports with a more American/International mix then is a lot less formal and very few dinner suits and evena y don't even wear a jacket on formal nights.

Edited May 6, 2023 by majortom10

[wowzz]

Just now, majortom10 said:

Trouble with Princess cruising from Southampton due to being mainly UK cruiser's is a lot more formal.

What do you mean by "Trouble with" ?