Live from 35 nights on Ventura, what have I done?

[lincslady]

Well, it really shows that we don't all agree - and why should we?  Life would be very boring if we did.

[mrsgoggins]

My holiday itinerary tells me that this is day 25 and we are in beautiful Tortola, British Virgin Islands.  It might have been a good idea to insert the itinerary back at the start, but it’s only now, thanks to @grapau27 and @TigerB that I have the ability to do such things without fretting!

 

 

Tortola is one of the few places on this itinerary that we have not visited previously.  However, the fact that none of the P&O tours offered showed them using proper buses, I decided to check out the vehicles on offer at the port for leg room and accessibility - some of them have very high steps up.

 

We found what we were looking for in the form of a $25 pp, 2 hour tour of the island on the bus below. We were happy with the legroom and I managed to haul myself in - although a few did require a bit of gentle ‘hands on backside’ shove from partners/companions.  That is me on the back seat btw, and you can see there is plenty of room, and we were not packed in.  They only collected money towards the end of the tour and had they attempted to do so, we would have got off before it started.  Something you can’t really do with a pre-paid ship’s tour.  I am going into detail here, because it’s the sort of information I would have wanted, so it may be of some use to someone else.

 

 

The tour did a couple of photo stops, a stop at the place in the photo immediately below, where some of us bought drinks before taking in the views.  Additionally there was a rum tasting stop - $1 a shot I understand - and also those who wanted it to be a 3 hour tour were dropped off at a pretty beach, with the driver arranging to pick them up again at 2 pm, so they had an hour by the beach and an additional amount to pay when he returned for them, which I think was $5 pp.

 

 

Finally a couple more photos from this most scenic island (with a few scary hairpin bends it must be noted!).  I will not add the photos mrgoggins took of missing bus front wheel nuts or rust holes, which he said would be useful to the Coroner when they were found 😂).

 

 

This final one shows Ventura in the distance

 

 

We keep being reminded that we must visit our Muster stations this afternoon, so I shall wrap up now and do my duty.
 

 

 

 

[grapau27]

23 minutes ago, mrsgoggins said:

My holiday itinerary tells me that this is day 25 and we are in beautiful Tortola, British Virgin Islands.  It might have been a good idea to insert the itinerary back at the start, but it’s only now, thanks to @grapau27 and @TigerB that I have the ability to do such things without fretting!

 

 

Tortola is one of the few places on this itinerary that we have not visited previously.  However, the fact that none of the P&O tours offered showed them using proper buses, I decided to check out the vehicles on offer at the port for leg room and accessibility - some of them have very high steps up.

 

We found what we were looking for in the form of a $25 pp, 2 hour tour of the island on the bus below. We were happy with the legroom and I managed to haul myself in - although a few did require a bit of gentle ‘hands on backside’ shove from partners/companions.  That is me on the back seat btw, and you can see there is plenty of room, and we were not packed in.  They only collected money towards the end of the tour and had they attempted to do so, we would have got off before it started.  Something you can’t really do with a pre-paid ship’s tour.  I am going into detail here, because it’s the sort of information I would have wanted, so it may be of some use to someone else.

 

 

The tour did a couple of photo stops, a stop at the place in the photo immediately below, where some of us bought drinks before taking in the views.  Additionally there was a rum tasting stop - $1 a shot I understand - and also those who wanted it to be a 3 hour tour were dropped off at a pretty beach, with the driver arranging to pick them up again at 2 pm, so they had an hour by the beach and an additional amount to pay when he returned for them, which I think was $5 pp.

 

 

Finally a couple more photos from this most scenic island (with a few scary hairpin bends it must be noted!).  I will not add the photos mrgoggins took of missing bus front wheel nuts or rust holes, which he said would be useful to the Coroner when they were found 😂).

 

 

This final one shows Ventura in the distance

 

 

We keep being reminded that we must visit our Muster stations this afternoon, so I shall wrap up now and do my duty.
 

 

 

 

I'm pleased you are having a wonderful time and posting fantastic photos @mrsgoggins.

Hopefully you will also get a Rare badge for your superb Live From.

[TigerB]

I'm glad you had a great day. The colour of the sea from so high up is fantastic.

Enjoy St Maarten tomorrow.

[mrsgoggins]

Apart from posting the occasional Horizon, I don’t expect to post much as we head back in the direction of the UK from this evening, so I’ll do an update of today in St Maarten, which was another warm 26C day with some cloud.

 

We docked at the side of Mein Schiff 3, which was a 5-10 minute walk to the port’s shopping area, although there were elongated golf buggies for people with mobility problems.  Although we had been here before, many years ago, nothing about the port was familiar and so I’m assuming it has been built since our visit.

 

 

We had pre-booked a shore excursion here, similar to one we had done many years ago - A glimpse of St Maarten and Margot Bay, which on that occasion was in a full-sized modern coach.  I see from my notes that, after discount (5%) today’s trip cost £34.20 each.  My current thinking is I would pay that much not to endure one of those small buses, with feeble air conditioning, common in the Caribbean, with 2 seats on one side, 1 on the other, and the potential to fold down another seat across the aisle.
 

Again we managed to get the back seat so that DH could stretch his legs a little.  If we had got on and discovered that the only seats available were those over the wheel arch, we would have got off pretty sharp.  Rant over, I do realise that there are many much smaller people who would not even register this as an issue. 

 

The tour itself lasted 2.5 hours including a 45 minute stop at Marigot Bay.  It being a Sunday, shops were closed but the colourful market was doing a good trade.

 

 

 

The tour was just okay and we had a singing tour guide who treated us to a rendition of God Save the King!  She herself was actually from St Kitts, a former British colony (where Ventura failed to make it into port a few days ago) and told us that she had to sing God Save the Queen every day in school as a child.  

We have booked the Beach House this evening for 6 pm so that we can have a table outside for our last Caribbean port sail away.  The Caribbean band who have been on board, Blue Flames, and played by the pool, have now left the ship, and so a late afternoon sitting on our balcony is relatively peaceful again, although I do appreciate that it added to the Caribbean vibe all around the ship - last night people were encouraged to wear their Caribbean shirts, dresses, etc.

 

I’ll try to remember to take food photos this evening, but actually what we really like about the Beach House most of all is the guaranteed table for 2.  I’m happy enough sharing tables some of the time but you can have too much of a good thing.  I’ve reached that point!

 

 

 

Edited January 28 by mrsgoggins

[mrsgoggins]

Still Sunday night here in the Caribbean.  It’s 9.15 pm as I write and we should have sailed at 6 pm.  Around 6.15 pm the Captain announced the delay was due to ‘paperwork’ and that he would update us; since then not a peep.  Speculation has ranged from ‘medical emergency’ to lots of loud banging taking place on the port side - we are starboard and have heard nothing.

 

Anyhow, my meal outside at the Beach House was for nothing as we plainly didn’t get the final outside Caribbean sail away experience that a few of us were hoping for.  I’ve eaten in the Beach House on a few occasions and have never been especially thrilled with the food but quite like the venue itself.  Here’s tonight’s offerings:

 

I had the double burger and maybe ate a third of it.  To be frank, the size of it puts me off.  DH had the brisket and managed two-thirds plus most of my fries.  When I ate outside at the Beach House last week I had the Lava rock steak - again too much.  You could share one meal at this venue and still leave feeling full.

 

The dessert of fudge cake for me and Key lime whatsit for himself was quantity over quality IMO, and we had about a half of our respective desserts.

 

A bit of a disappointing dining experience saved by the attention of Mark, our server, who remembered our conversation with him last week and showed interest. In turn, we were interested in him and will be filling out one of those ‘made a difference’ forms for him tomorrow.

 

[Eddie99]

I hope you’ve cast off and are making good progress back to Blighty

 

Beach House isn’t my favourite.  If we hadn’t enjoyed the “beer can chicken” so much last visit I’d have said I wouldn’t care if we never went again.  I agree about the portion sizes and food quality, in general.

If you do go again, the crab tostadas are a nice starter - just 3 canapé sized nibbles, and we enjoyed the roasted pineapple with mojito sorbet pudding

 

Smooth seas.  Enjoy the brown boobies and the flying fish

[TigerB]

Same with us about Beach House, it can be a bit hit and miss.  And yes, it can sometimes be a struggle to manage three courses but, having been brought up in a household in the seventies where you couldn't leave the table until you had finished what was on your plate, and also the fact that we're from Yorkshire and have paid for three courses, I feel guilty about wasting anything.🙄

[TigerB]

3 hours ago, Eddie99 said:

and we enjoyed the roasted pineapple with mojito sorbet pudding

 

I like the roasted pineapple but I really don't get that polenta cake doodah.

[mrsgoggins]

Apparently the ship left St Maarten at around 1 am, so 7 hours later than planned.  According to other guests, the Jamaican band, the Blue Jays did not have the correct paperwork to disembark.  They are no longer on board so a solution was obviously found - do you think the Captain is provided with ‘slush’ money? 😄

 

Here’s today’s Horizon for the first of our 5 sea days.  We heard the actor, Robert Daws’ first presentation and I found it very interesting.  I will definitely attend each one he does, despite the temptation of our balcony on this warm, but breezy day.

 

 

 

 

 

[TigerB]

Hopefully the sun will shine all the way to Portugal, and with you being on the starboard side you will get the benefit of it.🙂

[P&O SUE]

On 1/27/2024 at 4:08 PM, smokey01 said:

And me, my impression was mrsgroggins was the better presentation

I agree!

[P&O SUE]

Thanks again for your reports Mrs goggins! I feel the same about the Beach House and haven’t been for a while because of it.

[mrsgoggins]

 

Today’s post will largely be a rant, so feel free to pass by, as it’s definitely a first world moan 😉

 

It began last night when we were at the dining room on deck 5, Cinnamon, a few minutes before opening and so joined the queue, which does move fast once they open.

 

I requested a table for 2, but as usual in the evening, was told they had all gone and so accepted to join a table for 6 with good grace - first come first served and all that.  After all, it is freedom dining and not fixed.

 

And then I noticed a few prime tables for 2 still awaiting their occupants!  I took this up with the podium attendant who said they had all gone, on the way out. This was followed by waffle, some of which was plainly untrue. 

 

Tonight we didn’t go down until 10 minutes after opening and when I requested to join a 6-top (assuming the 2s would definitely be gone) I was told, with a smile, there was a 2 available!  It was one of the banquette tables, but still better for us. As a reminder, DH is quite deaf even with hearing aids. We would still choose to share rather than take a pager and hang around (and that is why I preferred the booking system).

 

When we reached the table, who should be on the 4-top table immediately behind me, but our 2 cabin neighbours. We swapped information and it turns out they had complained about exactly the same thing and had been given their own table for 4 to themselves. We both agreed that the situation was ridiculous for freedom dining, and especially for the coveted 2-tops. They reported seeing one of the ‘better’ tables already set up with wine before the guests arrived. Magic or what? I can understand why large parties are accommodated in this way, or those with special needs, but what is going on here?

 

My neighbours also pointed out the tables nearby which were occupied by the same people nightly.  Why not just do fixed dining?

 

I believe I said earlier when comparing P&O with Celebrity, having to share is never an issue, because we dine early with them also (shortly after opening) and more often than not end up with the same table (on Anytime dining, their version of Freedom) and if it has been taken (it happens) will be seated nearby with the same servers.

 

I will be writing to complain, but would anyone care to defend P&O in this? I would be genuinely interested. 
 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 30 by mrsgoggins

[TigerB]

Am I understanding it correctly, you cannot book on My Holiday, and neither is there an opportunity to join a virtual queue for freedom dining? It's a case of get there sharpish for a decent table, or take a pager, or take what they have?

 

I'm with you on the apparent inequity when it comes to them dishing out two-seaters.  Sometimes, I think they make it up as they go along.

 

As for the two-seaters you have seen empty or with wine on, when you have been told there were none available, I wouldn't be surprised if they were blocked out by the waiters on those sections for their repeat guests; something that will benefit both sides: a regular 'reserved' table for the guests, and the high likelihood of a decent tip for the waiting team.

[mrsgoggins]

25 minutes ago, TigerB said:

Am I understanding it correctly, you cannot book on My Holiday, and neither is there an opportunity to join a virtual queue for freedom dining? It's a case of get there sharpish for a decent table, or take a pager, or take what they have?

 

I'm with you on the apparent inequity when it comes to them dishing out two-seaters.  Sometimes, I think they make it up as they go along.

 

As for the two-seaters you have seen empty or with wine on, when you have been told there were none available, I wouldn't be surprised if they were blocked out by the waiters on those sections for their repeat guests; something that will benefit both sides: a regular 'reserved' table for the guests, and the high likelihood of a decent tip for the waiting team.

Yes, your summing up in your first paragraph is spot on.

 

To be clear, it was my cabin neighbours who saw a nearby empty 2-top table set up with wine in place. I only witnessed empty 2-tops (good ones with 2 chairs) tables after being told there were none available.

 

We now just have 1 week left of our 5 week cruise, but it may be useful to someone else in future to challenge this at the start. Last night I did ask ‘ …. What would you do if I had just taken the empty table?’ and was told that would be okay if you came back to the podium to give us the table number!

 

I fully understand the tipping scenario you mention, and of course that will be why on Celebrity, they try to seat you with the same servers, if not the same tables. They appear to have more tables for 2 however.

 

Tomorrow I’m reverting to ‘chill’ mode, and will post more about the actual cruise rather than my personal gripes 🤞

[TigerB]

29 minutes ago, mrsgoggins said:

Last night I did ask ‘ …. What would you do if I had just taken the empty table?’ and was told that would be okay if you came back to the podium to give us the table number!

 

That certainly is a tactic that can be used, and would likely prove successful almost all of the time. I suppose it's no different to what we have done before: been shown to a table that doesn't suit us, and then pointing to and asking to sit at a more suitable empty one; we never been refused, and all the escort has to do is go back to the podium to change the table assignment.

 

We have always refused a sharer when offered one, and will continue to do so. In doing so, we have seldom been made to wait more than a few minutes; I think the restaurant hosts, seeing a woman in a wheelchair, may have felt uncomfortable about sending us away.

 

On our Iona cruise last October I hatched a plan to try and get a a two-seater that was not in a bank of others for every night we dined in the MDR.  For all but one night that worked perfectly, and I shall try the same again in a few weeks.

 

Enjoy your chill time!🙂

Edited January 31 by TigerB

[Selbourne]

Just now, mrsgoggins said:

 

Today’s post will largely be a rant, so feel free to pass by, as it’s definitely a first world moan 😉

 

It began last night when we were at the dining room on deck 5, Cinnamon, a few minutes before opening and so joined the queue, which does move fast once they open.

 

I requested a table for 2, but as usual in the evening, was told they had all gone and so accepted to join a table for 6 with good grace - first come first served and all that.  After all, it is freedom dining and not fixed.

 

And then I noticed a few prime tables for 2 still awaiting their occupants!  I took this up with the podium attendant who said they had all gone, on the way out. This was followed by waffle, some of which was plainly untrue. 

 

Tonight we didn’t go down until 10 minutes after opening and when I requested to join a 6-top (assuming the 2s would definitely be gone) I was told, with a smile, there was a 2 available!  It was one of the banquette tables, but still better for us. As a reminder, DH is quite deaf even with hearing aids. We would still choose to share rather than take a pager and hang around (and that is why I preferred the booking system).

 

When we reached the table, who should be on the 4-top table immediately behind me, but our 2 cabin neighbours. We swapped information and it turns out they had complained about exactly the same thing and had been given their own table for 4 to themselves. We both agreed that the situation was ridiculous for freedom dining, and especially for the coveted 2-tops. They reported seeing one of the ‘better’ tables already set up with wine before the guests arrived. Magic or what? I can understand why large parties are accommodated in this way, or those with special needs, but what is going on here?

 

My neighbours also pointed out the tables nearby which were occupied by the same people nightly.  Why not just do fixed dining?

 

I believe I said earlier when comparing P&O with Celebrity, having to share is never an issue, because we dine early with them also (shortly after opening) and more often than not end up with the same table (on Anytime dining, their version of Freedom) and if it has been taken (it happens) will be seated nearby with the same servers.

 

I will be writing to complain, but would anyone care to defend P&O in this? I would be genuinely interested. 
 

 

 

 

 

We really embraced Freedom Dining when it first came out and for many years used it without problem. However, we’ve gone right off it now as a result of it no longer operating as originally intended (i.e. first come, first served).
 

The combination of allowing people to reserve tables (which now seems to happen on all ships, including currently on Aurora) and multiple ways to get a table (app, pager, walk ups) has made the whole thing, to use a technical expression, a buggers muddle! We have reverted to Club dining as a result. 

[mrsgoggins]

30 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

We really embraced Freedom Dining when it first came out and for many years used it without problem. However, we’ve gone right off it now as a result of it no longer operating as originally intended (i.e. first come, first served).
 

The combination of allowing people to reserve tables (which now seems to happen on all ships, including currently on Aurora) and multiple ways to get a table (app, pager, walk ups) has made the whole thing, to use a technical expression, a buggers muddle! We have reverted to Club dining as a result. 

I love the term ‘buggers muddle’ 😄.

 

We now have 35-night cruises booked for January ‘25 and ‘26 and I am going to request to change to Club dining, and just hope we are allocated a table for 2.  It’s taken me almost 4 weeks to cotton on to what was happening with ‘reserved’ tables, probably because we have dined in other venues, and the fact that I wasn’t prepared to queue for 20 minutes each night for the dining room doors to open, and so assumed I was being told the truth about ‘only shared available now’, until my eyes told me otherwise.

 

My next cabin neighbours being allocated a fixed table for 4 their personal use after complaining, shows that the squeaky wheel appears to get results.  The fact that we were offered a table for 2 this evening despite being 10 minutes after opening may not have been a coincidence either!

 

I have actually enjoyed the shared tables (with just one exception 🤐) but with the background noise of the MDR I really do need to be sitting opposite DH if he stands any chance of hearing me, let alone anyone else.

 

Thanks for your insight.

[Harry Peterson]

Is it a case of all diners being equal, but some diners more equal than others? Certainly looks that way. Orwell could have written a fascinating book about cruise ships!

[Angel57]

Tables for 2 being set aside in Freedom restaurants for various reasons (eg kindness, regular cruisers or monetary) wouldn't surprise me at all as heard of that happening last year on Aurora. I would add that the man I spoke to on board, said his table was only held for the first 15 mins of service …..

[Eddie99]

It is, indeed, Selbourne’s buggers muddle 🤣

 

(I wonder why the software is happy with what is, indisputably, a *rude* word?  Probably because it’s not commonly used in the US.  It’s everywhere, and multi-use, where I come from in Somerset.  Bit like in Alice in Wonderland it can mean whatever you want it to mean

Bad

Good

Bad person

Good person

Good thing

Bad thing

Bad situation

”I’ve hit my thumb with a hammer”

and many more, including the legal one, which only lawyers use)

 

”

[terrierjohn]

10 hours ago, mrsgoggins said:

 

Today’s post will largely be a rant, so feel free to pass by, as it’s definitely a first world moan 😉

 

It began last night when we were at the dining room on deck 5, Cinnamon, a few minutes before opening and so joined the queue, which does move fast once they open.

 

I requested a table for 2, but as usual in the evening, was told they had all gone and so accepted to join a table for 6 with good grace - first come first served and all that.  After all, it is freedom dining and not fixed.

 

And then I noticed a few prime tables for 2 still awaiting their occupants!  I took this up with the podium attendant who said they had all gone, on the way out. This was followed by waffle, some of which was plainly untrue. 

 

Tonight we didn’t go down until 10 minutes after opening and when I requested to join a 6-top (assuming the 2s would definitely be gone) I was told, with a smile, there was a 2 available!  It was one of the banquette tables, but still better for us. As a reminder, DH is quite deaf even with hearing aids. We would still choose to share rather than take a pager and hang around (and that is why I preferred the booking system).

 

When we reached the table, who should be on the 4-top table immediately behind me, but our 2 cabin neighbours. We swapped information and it turns out they had complained about exactly the same thing and had been given their own table for 4 to themselves. We both agreed that the situation was ridiculous for freedom dining, and especially for the coveted 2-tops. They reported seeing one of the ‘better’ tables already set up with wine before the guests arrived. Magic or what? I can understand why large parties are accommodated in this way, or those with special needs, but what is going on here?

 

My neighbours also pointed out the tables nearby which were occupied by the same people nightly.  Why not just do fixed dining?

 

I believe I said earlier when comparing P&O with Celebrity, having to share is never an issue, because we dine early with them also (shortly after opening) and more often than not end up with the same table (on Anytime dining, their version of Freedom) and if it has been taken (it happens) will be seated nearby with the same servers.

 

I will be writing to complain, but would anyone care to defend P&O in this? I would be genuinely interested. 
 

 

 

 

 

I will join your rant as well, I have long complained that allowing the reservation of tables in Freedom dining, however beneficial that is to the recipients, just slows down dining for everyone else. There is nothing more frustrating then waiting in a queue for a shared table to become available, and then finding lots of empty laid tables scattered around the dining room, sitting empty for long periods.

If cruise lines want to introduce a fixed dining variant which allows people to choose their own time, then do it in a separate dining room, and leave the Freedom dining rooms alone.

[mrsgoggins]

 

The Captain has informed us that tomorrow the temperatures dip below 20C ‘reminding us we are on our way back home’.  We have had gloomy skies and some drizzle today, so looking out onto our balcony is also a reminder. It looks like yesterday, Tuesday, was our final hot day. We are now only 2 hours behind the UK.

 

This morning we attended 2 guest lectures, a fascinating one by Chris Martin on DNA forensics and the law - he qualified in medicine before training to be a lawyer and became a Medical Lawyer. I was impressed that after the talk he came to the front of the theatre and gave everyone who wanted to speak with him time, and from what I could tell, advice. We were sitting in the front row reading books on our phones, waiting for the next speaker, who I had mistakenly thought would be the excellent actor and raconteur, Robert Daws, but was instead the graphologist, David Bennett, who filled 45 minutes with examples of the handwriting of the famous and notorious and what their handwriting revealed.  I have my doubts - he claimed a colleague on seeing Gordon Brown’s handwriting said ‘this person is a bully’ and he personally did not believe that Boris Johnson was a liar from his handwriting. 

 

We had lunch in the MDR (we were given a table for 4 to ourselves following my request of ‘a table for 2 if you have one please’) and we both gave the food 10/10 for taste.  DH had soup and salad and I had a ‘bagel’ (which in P&O world is more like a bagel-shaped bread roll) with smoked salmon and cream cheese.  The great British pudding was warm Bakewell tart and custard; which neither of us could resist, despite our initial plan of ‘fruit salad, if we have anything at all’ 🙄. 

 

Our TV has been giving intermittent trouble for days now and finally after 4 visits from the electrician, a new one was provided. I like to keep up with the news but the screen is so small and the audio quality not great, so DH still gets his news from The Times which we download. We both enjoy the occasional episode of Shaun the Sheep however 😄.

 

This evening we ate again at The Beach House and despite the amount of food, (much of it left) we were satisfied what we did eat, although my salmon was overcooked. The carrot cake is in the fridge and may be eaten tomorrow. Tonight was formal night, which we decided we were ‘done with’ after 2 of them, hence our reason for choosing the Beach House, which is a relaxed venue that we like. I would say that about half of the people who dined were nevertheless formally dressed.

 

Potato skins with incinerated bacon pieces

Supercharged salad in a tortilla cup

Hickory glazed cedar plank salmon

Southern fried chicken tenders

Warm apple and pecan pie

Carrot cake

 

The theatre went to 3 performances a night from 2 nights ago and thank goodness for that!  On some nights it was virtually impossible to get a seat for the 8.30 pm performance after 8 pm.  Now performances are 7.15, 8.45 and 10.30 pm.  Last night we were treated to a very good soprano, Georgi Mottram and there were plenty of seats at the 8.45 pm show. Tonight was the Headliner’s show ‘Centre Stage’ and again, seats were still available at the start of the very lively performance . I imagine there would have been a lot of complaints about being unable to get seats prior to the changes.

 

I will post Thursday’s Horizon in the morning. I stuck to my guns and had a very chilled day; no MDR seating stress ☺️. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 1 by mrsgoggins

[TigerB]

Thanks for the report; I'm glad you found time to chill.

 

Was that salmon on a waffle? Is so, was it a sweet waffle or a potato waffle.  🎶Birdseye potato waffles, they're waffley versatile🎶  (Sorry, I couldn't resist, but you are welcome to that ear worm!🤭)

Anyway, they don't have that on Iona; nor do they have either of the desserts you both had.

 

Jumper tomorrow?🥶