Ventura N325 to the Canaries

[Suekersh]

Hi all, I kept a diary on our recent cruise using the Day One App for the I pad. Report follows for anyone interested.


We travelled down as far as Oxford yesterday to give Garry a break during the long drive. This turned out to be an excellent idea as he was absolutely shattered by the time we reached the hotel. The room was basic but large, and clean with excellent bathroom/ shower facilities. This morning the breakfast was plentiful. It could have been hotter but the staff were very friendly and couldn't do enough for us. We would stay at the Premier inn at Didcot again in the future.

We left the hotel at 10 am this morning and it took us exactly 1 hour to reach the docks. It was fairly busy when we got to the Ocean Terminal and we were directed to the holding area. We had only been there 2 minutes when we were directed to the CPS check in lane. Our luggage was taken by the handlers and our car photographed and keys handed over.

More to follow

As we went up the escalator the priority desk check in opened and by 11:30 we were on board in East enjoying the champagne and a delicious buffet lunch. A waiter came round to inform us that Atul was on board for 2 nights and would be hosting a table for 10 people. The cost was very reasonable at £30 which included canapés, a martini and ½ carafe of wine per person. If Garry was feeling 100% we would not have hesitated to book this but we reluctantly declined. We did book 2 nights in East for menu 1 and menu 2. Menu 2 on 3 rd October is to celebrate Garry's birthday and the fact that he is now entitled to some money from the state instead of giving it to them for a change, although no doubt we will still be giving more than we are receiving.

Cabins for the top tiers were announced as ready by the restaurant manager. Just after 1pm No announcement over the tannoy system.

Our cabin is a mid ships superior deluxe balcony cabin. Wow will he ever get me back in an ordinary balcony cabin again. More Champagne and chocolates waiting for us, luxury bathrobes and 2 pairs of slippers each. One White and one blue lol. No Baltic pins as yet but if they have run out I could sell them some.

I think Ventura must have come through a storm as the balcony door frame is covered in salt. The interior of the cabin is spotlessly clean and looks brand new although Ventura is now over 5 years old.

Roda our cabin steward introduced herself and asked a young man to find our luggage. Loads of storage space and well before muster drill time we were all unpacked and settled in with a drink and the Horizon Newspaper.

As we had to book this cruise late because of medical problems freedom dining was wait listed. We asked for a table for 2, 1st sitting in the Saffron restaurant and are very pleased to find the card in our cabin confirming this.

All bodes well so far for a fabulous cruise. Another bonus is that Paul Brown is the Captain.

We had an excellent meal in the Saffron restaurant served by Senthil and Bruhwain. Very friendly experienced waiters. Our table for two is on its own not in the bank of 2 tables with the sofa type seating.

After dinner we went to the Atrium to check out the new dance floor. It is much better than Azura as it does not have the lip on the floor and there is at least twice as much seating. The floor size is probably the same but as we were the only ones dancing at the early session it was plenty big enough.

Day 2 sailing through the BOB.

We woke early to clear sky but that soon changed and became misty as the morning progressed.

I breakfasted in the MDR as it it was Eggs Benedict day, where I was served by the friendly Senthil who was concerned that Garry was not with me. I explained he was fine and was walking round the deck.

Later I went to a spa talk and had my colours done. I didn't learn anything new but the hairdresser did want to cut my hair. I am still debating on whether to let her. They were also pushing the Californian Bronzer but the sales pitch was not too intense. I am not sure how much they sold as I left at 11am to meet up with Garry in the Metropolis bar and some pax who post on cruise critic. It was good to put names to faces and swap info on previous cruises and ports of call.

We lunched in the main dining room and the sun was trying hard to burn the clouds off. There was plenty going on round the ship but we decided to have a lazy afternoon reading in the cabin. Roda had delivered a new batch of magazines today and I had the crossword and Sudoku to finish.

It was our 1st formal night and the Captains welcome on board party. We decided to give this a miss and enjoyed the canapés and champagne in the cabin pre dinner. We timed it well and as we were going down to dinner we saw Captain Paul and had a chat and photo taken with him. I passed on Flora's best wishes, and we chatted about the new ship. Paul is very proud to have been named as the Captain of Britannia. Keith de la Mare is also on Ventura at present with his family. He has been named as the purser of the new ship.

During dinner Captain Paul made a weather announcement. We were in for a rough night and more rough weather tomorrow. The BOB had been kind to us but it looks like the Atlantic sea is determined to make its presence felt.

After a delicious dinner of lobster and the port marinated Stilton cheese we went to the theatre to see the Chapman brothers. We have seen them previously, they are excellent Soul and Motown singers and put lots of energy into the show.

The dress code on Ventura is very mixed. Lots of pax deciding not to adhere to it although it was enforced in the dining room. I would guesstimate that probably only 75% of pax in the theatre were in formal wear. There were a lot of men in short sleeved shirts but the ladies had made an effort.

After the theatre we went to the atrium for the Ball. We didn't stay long as the group Summer Breeze were truly dreadful. We have been spoilt by Peters Band on Azura who keep strict tempo for dancing. The reason for stopping Peters contract was to cut costs but this group has 4 members so can't see how much they could save. Summer Breeze also play disco music in Havanna so maybe that is where their talents lie.

The cocktail of day was Blue Lagoon. This is no longer advertised in the Horizon newspaper and so far we have not received a Cruise Overview.

When we returned to the cabin our invite to the Baltic lunch on 2 October had been delivered. Nice to get it early in the cruise.

[Suekersh]

Days 3 and 4

Day 3 sailing down the Portugese Coast
If it was rough during the night I managed to sleep through it. Probably the bottle of champagne, ½ Carafe of wine with dinner and the cocktail of the day helped.

We woke early and yes we were hitting the Atlantic pot holes just as Captain Paul had announced. I realised once in the shower that I needed to take a sea sickness tablet and to go back to bed. I slept for another hour and felt well enough to go and get breakfast in the MDR. Special today was Gammon and Eggs. Delicious. Senthil was concerned again about where Garry was and I am sure if we hadn't been in dinner last night he would have thought I had pushed him overboard.

We pottered around the shops and had a walk on deck. The sun was shining but the wind was blowing making it feel quite chilly. The covered pool was getting some use but I wasn't tempted. We continued up to the retreat area to inspect the changes there. It appears at first sight to be better laid out than Azura with easy access for all adults to the pool. Unlike on Azura where you need to access via the spa area. I thought there must be less beds than on Azura but I actually think that they are smaller beds and not as spaced out to make up for the loss of space. There was no one using the retreat and the Oasis pool did not even have water in it. I was told yesterday that the cost of the retreat for the whole cruise is £300 per person. Not sure how many takers there would be for that.

We lunched in the MDR as even though the sun was getting stronger the breeze was still cooling it down too much for me to want to eat pizza on deck and the waterside buffet fondly known as the piggery does not appeal.

We had another lazy afternoon in the cabin and the sun came round onto our starboard balcony just before 3pm. It was very warm when it was out as the balcony was shielded from some of the wind.

The evening entertainment choice was a comedian in the Arena, a John Denver tribute act in the Havana, , Summer Breeze group in the Tamarind Club, and a duo in the Atrium. We opted for the John Denver tribute act. He was very good and he packed the Havana out. We are looking forward to seeing more later in the cruise. We finished the evening in the atrium listening to the duo. They were very good but it does seem a bit pointless spending all that money on a wooden dance floor in the atrium to put on a duo who sing easily listening music rather than music to dance to.

Day 4 Last Sea Day before Madeira.
Another very bumpy night. The sea appeared to calm down during the evening but it was certainly rough throughout the night.

No sun this morning at all, but the temperature was into the 20's. It was Ventura uncovered in the Atrium which was very popular.

Baltic Lunch was excellent. Only 40 pax. We were on a table with 2 other couples and the Security officer called Bruce. (Definitely not Australian although he did have a twang). He was very entertaining and had worked for PO for 5 years and before that Ocean Village and Cunard. He will also be Security officer on Arcadia's World Cruise next year so we look forward to meeting him again. It was a new menu for the lunch with new wines very enjoyable. I had the smoked salmon and crab starter and the plaice and prawns main followed by the peanut butter chocolate torte with coconut ice cream.

We returned to the cabin hoping for some sun on the balcony but it was still cloudy. Great forecast for Madeira tomorrow though.
The sun arrived on the balcony just before 3pm so had a couple of hours soaking it up.

MDR for dinner even though neither of us felt like eating much. The seafood brochettes was excellent.

It was the first of the headliners show and a new troupe of dancers. They did an excellent show called Stage Door which is a new one for us.

We finished the night with a few dances in the Atrium but unfortunately is was the same group who are clueless to the tempo for ballroom dancing. The lead singer was so unprofessional when her colleague made a mistake in the tango music she just burst out laughing and turned her back on the dancers.

I hope this group stay on Ventura and are not moved to Azura. Please PO bring back Peters Band.

[Suekersh]

Days 5 and 6
Day 5 Madeira and Garry's 65 th birthday.
It is a very sunny warm start to the day. Captain Paul did us a huge favour this morning and reversed the ship into port which means we will have sun on our balcony all day, Garry also received a birthday card from him.

We caught the shuttle into Madeira and wandered around the shops. We have been here many times so the priority was some Wi Fi to get in touch with home and arrange a back up plan to book our Xmas flight seats if the Internet strength on board is not good. We did some shopping for essentials then took a taxi back to the ship where as the sun was full on the balcony we enjoyed lunch and the birthday bottle of pink champagne.

We had booked a window table in East and the new menu by Atul did not disappoint. It had changed to menu 2. It was exceptionally quiet in there but as our lovely waitress told us that once Atul gets on board they are packed full every night. To start I had the Cambodian Hot and Sweet Prawns and Garry chose Garlic and Ginger Chicken, this was served wrapped in a banana leaf. For the main course I went for the Peking Duck and Gary opted for Atuls signature dish which was actually 3 different dishes of pork, chicken and salmon. Then the sweets. These are amazing and totally different than any other sweets I have seen before. If I have a sweet it is usually a fruit salad and ice cream but the waitresses were explaining the delights if 2 of the sweets. One was the Chocolate surprise and the other Spiced chocolate fondant. We tried one each and yes if you are a chocolate lover they were delicious and worth saving the room for. The only slight disappointment was the after dinner biscuits served with the coffee. Previously in East, Sindhu and the Orchid we were served little chocolate gingers but nothing like that appeared just small shortbread biscuits. We were so full anyway that we really did not need any more.

Our plan had been to see the Chapman Brothers second show in the theatre but we just needed to walk around to let the food settle. The other option of the 60s and 70s party on deck did not appeal at all and in Havana they were showing a film.

When we returned to the cabin still stuffed to bursting there was a huge birthday cake waiting for us. I am sure it would feed 20 people. There was no card with the cake so we have no idea where this has come from. It is a beautiful cake and I am sure we will enjoy it with our mid morning coffee tomorrow.

Day 6 La Palma
Another glorious day. The sail in was very calm and once again Captain Paul reversed the ship into dock ensuring that the sun would be on our balcony by lunch time. We caught the first shuttle into town which despite the Horizon newspaper stating a 15 minute journey it was actually less than 5 minutes.

There was a German ship in port which was very colourfully decorated.

We wandered into town and looked at the local craft shops and market area. It is quite expensive for non local goods and the perfume on the ship cost much less. The sun was hot and we finally plonked down in a friendly cafe bar. I ordered a San Miguel and Garry a coke. The bar man who brought our order was amused that the beer was for me. He put the Wi Fi password into my I pad and we enjoyed fast speed wifi for an hour or so whilst sat in the sun. We had a couple more rounds and was pleasantly surprised that the total for 6 drinks was less than 8 euros. The waiters were very happy when we gave them our change from a 10 euro note.

We meandered our way back to the ship and once on board ordered a bucket of ice to really chill the rosé which was already in the fridge. We had a light lunch on the balcony followed by the surprise birthday cake which was so light and moist. Absolutely delicious. We need to give some away before it dries up. We still do not know where this came from and even after reading our e mails from friends and relatives wishing Garry a happy birthday we are non the wiser.

The MDR was very noisy last night. Not sure what was going on in the Tamarind club but the music was so loud that everyone was shouting to be heard above it. We spoke to the restaurant manager but he just shrugged his shoulders and started explaining where the Tamarind club was on the ship. He eventually realised that it was the noise we were interested in and he just shrugged his shoulders again and said the band would be practising. The food was once again very good.

After dinner we danced the night away in the Atrium. No band just CDs and the dance instructors. There were plenty of dancers around and a really good night. A tip for PO to cut costs further. No need to pay for bands who can't play dance music, to entertain in the atrium, stick to the dance instructors and CDs.

[Suekersh]

Days 7 and 8

Day 7 Tenerife
Another scorching day. We generally head either South to Playa Las Americas or North to Puerta de la Cruz. Today we made the mistake of deciding to take a look at the Capital Santa Cruz. Bad Decision and one we won't repeat. A MSC ship followed us into port and alarm bells should have rung then after our experience with Italians in Dubrovnik earlier this year.

The port put on a shuttle bus to the end of the port and it was a short walk into the city from there. It is nothing like a city. A few nice shops but mainly very tacky. Nothing is cheap here anymore even the tack is expensive tack.

We had a coffee and then decided to make our way back to the ship. We got to the shuttle bus area and as a bus backed in there was a sudden surge of MSC passengers and MSC crew. We recognised some PO pax getting off the coach having to fight their way through MSC pax and crew trying to board it.
It was a nightmare and eventually one couple from PO blocked the door from the MSC crew boarding until the passengers had embarked. The Italians really do not know what manners are and the crew were worse than the passengers.

Once again Captain Paul had reversed into the dock and we had lunch in the sun on the balcony and Rhoda our lovely cabin steward brought us an ice bucket to chill our bottle of Rosé wine to perfection.

Another very lazy relaxing day. There was an unfortunate incident on the very busy dock side. We did not witness it but heard the squeal of brakes. When we looked over a coach had hit someone. We couldn't see who but there was blood around. After quite a few minutes the coach driver managed to get the casualty on board the coach and took him down to the MSC ship. It turned out that it was an MSC crew member who had been hit. About an hour later the ambulance arrived.

I had a mid afternoon swim in the Oasis pool which was very cool and refreshing. Unfortunately the endless bit was not working but it was a good excuse to just cool off rather than exercise.

Dinner in the MDR and the waiters were in tropical shirts and there were garlands for pax at the table. The headliners were performing Destination Dance in the theatre and the Tropical party was on deck. We decided to have a drink in Metropolis and met the bar manager Sunhil who remembered us from the beach in St Maarten last March.

There are only 2 shows a night in the theatre so no where near enough seating for the amount of pax on the ship. The restaurant emptied early with pax rushing for seats to see the headliners show. The theme of this cruise is West End Men. They get on board in Lisbon and are performing 2 shows on 9 October and an early show on 10 October. This only gives 2250 seats to see the show when there are 3200 pax on board. Someone cannot do their maths.

Typical of the organisation on this ship it has been decided that any pax who want to see the show have to queue up in Havana on Monday morning from 8am to collect their ticket. Only one per person so I can only imagine the queues round the ship. It is a free for all on a first come first served basis only. They have allocated 3 hours for this exercise and the horrors of the American Immigration on board Azura are coming back to haunt me and that was at least staggered all day.

Day 8 Lanzarote
I had breakfast in the MDR as it is Sunday and that means it is smoked salmon and scrambled egg day. I mentioned yesterday about the farce of queuing for tickets for the West End Men show. Some pax had gone to queue this morning instead of tomorrow morning. After waiting for over half an hour and the queue growing all the time they phoned reception to be told they had the wrong day. We checked with reception that they expected every pax who wanted a ticket to queue up rather than one person per cabin and they were adamant one ticket only per person. Why can't they use the interactive TV system which should be ideal for this type of situation.

We were docked by 8am and though Captain Paul reversed into the berth we realised that the sun would not reach our balcony until around lunch time. That works perfectly for us so thank you again Captain.

We caught a taxi into Peurto Del Carmen for 23 euros. The most unfriendly taxi driver we have ever met. I tried my pigeon Spanish out but all I got in return was a grunt. It took approx 15 minutes and Mr personality bypass pointed us in the direction of the beach and the shops.

It is over 10 years since were in this town and it has changed beyond all recognition. It used to have some lovely shoe shops but it now all appears to have been taken over by the Chinese selling touristy tack. We bought some souvenirs and also a tankini from a lovely lady who assured us that she was the cheapest in town for the La Rocha swimwear. I have to admit I didn't see it cheaper at any of the other shops. We stopped at a bar and met the most unfriendly barman. I asked him if there was Wi Fi. He grunted at me and brought the password which didn't work. He just shrugged his shoulders. No tip for him then.
We moved further up the street where they were selling Crabbies and the Wi Fi was perfect and the service friendly.

Then for the duty free shopping and the third unfriendly person. Perhaps all these men lacking in people skills have emigrated to Lanzarote. We bought tobacco, Gin, Malibu and stocked up on Rosé wine for cabin drinking. On the way out we spotted cans of Coke and I asked him if he also sold tonic.
He said 'No we only sell poison. Drink alcohol and you die.' Then he walked off. Charming.

Loaded up, hot and sticky we flagged down a taxi to take us back to the ship.
The landscape is very barren. No greenery other than the occasional cactus type plant. Lots of rubbish around it looks very uncared for and certainly deserves the slang term of Lanzagrotty. The roads are very new and still being built, no doubt with EU money.

It was an earlier departure time of 4pm as it is a long way back across the Atlantic to Lisbon.

The evening entertainment was the comedian we missed on the first night called Ray Turner. He was in the Tamarind Club and was quite amusing but half an hour would have been long enough. We followed this by dancing to CDs in the Atrium.

When we arrived back to the cabin our Peninsular Party tickets had arrived and the lack of organisation on this ship is apparent yet again. The party is on the night of the West End Men Show. Only one party for all sittings at 8pm -8:30 pm. The show starts at 8:30 pm. Well done whoever organised this.

[Suekersh]

Days 9 and 10

Day 9 Sea day to Lisbon.

Quite cloudy but the sun keeps trying to burn them off. We decided not to queue for tickets but to take our chance later on. This turned out to be a good decision and after breakfast in the MDR we walked straight into Havana and collected tickets for the 5:30 show on the last day. There were still tickets left for all the performances but the 8:30 one had the least left.

Today is the day the booking for our flight seats for Xmas opened. We had tried in the cabin just after midnight and then again at 06:30 and they were still showing as not available. At 9am We went to the cyber study and managed to book them. It was very slow and we kept expecting it to time us out but it went through fine. The very helpful librarian printed out the confirmation for us.

All sorted and now for another lazy relaxing day on the balcony. The sun has now managed to burn off the majority of the cloud and the temperature is in the mid 20s. It's a great life.

Black and White night tonight and third formal night of the cruise. In the restaurant the majority of the pax looked splendid. Not all in Black and White and probably more different colours than on previous cruises. It was different when we left the restaurant. Many pax must have decided to eat in the buffet as there were lots of short sleeved checked shirts around. It is a much more casual ship than Azura.

The entertainment options were Gary T Thomson comedian in the theatre and a Tom Jones tribute act in Havana. We opted for Tom Jones who was absolutely brilliant. He had performed on the Voice but I just can't remember his real name.

The reports on the act in the theatre were very good but it sounded like it was the same act we have seen many times before.

There was a Black and White Ball in the Atrium but again it was with the dreadful group Summer Breeze. I feel so sorry for the dance instructors having to host these dances and trying to persuade pax to get up and dance to out of time music.


Day 10 Lisbon
We woke to another beautiful day and had breakfast in the cabin. We sailed under the 23rd April bridge as the sun was rising. We were very selfishly keeping our fingers crossed that the Captain didn't reverse in today and he must have been listening to us. I don't think I have ever known them to reverse in here but there is always a first time. So once again sun on our balcony all day. I do feel for the pax in the port side balconies as they have been short changed this cruise as far as the sun is concerned.

The Fred Olsen ship Balmoral was also in Port further down the docks.

This morning we made the mistake of catching the shuttle into the city. What would have been a 10 minute walk turned into a half hour plus drive through Lisbon rush hour made worse because of the metro strike. We had a wander round and bought a few bits and pieces. We found a shop selling Croft Rosé Port. We first sampled this in Oporto a couple of years ago. We purchased a couple of bottles and although we normally drink it just with ice the lady in the shop suggested ice and tonic water. We tried it both ways this afternoon and the tonic certainly made it a refreshing drink.

The ship is just about to sail away from Lisbon and the sun is only just disappearing over the top of the ship. The Great British sailaway is in full swing up on deck but we are just enjoying a G & T and listening to the music. The reception has been calling for passengers for the last 20 minutes but the Captain has just announced that we cannot sail away as Lee Meade has only just landed at the airport. Not sure how long it will be before we depart as it is rush hour again and the metro is still on strike. It could be that Lee Meade has done these pax a huge favour or they may well have been flying home.
We finally departed about 1 hour late with all pax accounted for. As soon as the ship turned round we were in the sun once again.

Tonight is casual and we are eating in East to sample menu 1. I have perused the menu and already decided that my main will be Lobster and scallops.

East was very busy as Atul Kochhar was in residence. I had warm duck salad to start which was excellent, followed by the lobster and scallops also delicious. Garry's choices were Thai fish cakes followed by the Fillet of beef. The sweets were equally as good, I had the tropical fruit salad and Garry the Creme Caramel. Both sound very boring but they were excellent.

Atul went round all of the tables to speak to pax. He told us that the Orchid on Arcadia would become another East in December with the same menu as on Ventura. Azura would stay as Sindhu with some changes to the menu (I begged him not to take the griddled Prawns off the menu) and Britannia would also have a Sindhu on board.

Having tried both menus in both restaurants we both agree that we prefer the food choices in Sindhu.

We finished the evening in the Havana where Jayne Middleton was a very plausible Annie Lennox. Great show.

Back at the cabin Roda had left us a towel animal wearing my sunglasses.

[Suekersh]

Final 2 days

Day 11 Sea Day sailing up the coast of Spain.
A bonus day today as far as the sun is concerned. Clear skies and sun on the starboard sided until 13:30. Decidedly cooler out of the sun and very windy. The balcony was sheltered from the wind and we wrapped up and enjoyed it.

This afternoon it is chocoholics buffet but we will give that a miss as we only have 9 weeks before our Xmas cruise and the scales are looming when we get home.

Tonight is our last formal night followed by the Peninsular cocktail party in the Tamarind Bar. We are hoping to get seats in the Havana as soon as this finishes to see Gary T Thomson. We are thinking that the majority of 1st sitting diners and early freedom diners will have gone to the West End Men show.

The parade of the chefs followed another excellent meal. The food and service have been one of the best we have experienced in recent cruises.

We joined a huge queue to get into the Tamarind for the party. Garry realised that the queue at the other side was very short. We nipped round and there was Captain Paul. We thanked him for thinking about us every day when he was docking the ship to ensure I had my fix of the sun.
I can now confirm that Hughie Taylor is indeed on board as Cruise Director. Other than at the beginning of the cruise when he introduced the Chapman brothers we have not seen him until tonight. We had started to wonder if he had disembarked in Madeira and just a tape recording of his voice played to announce the daily entertainment. Not sure if his wife Dee is on board as we have not seen her at all so probably not.

We watched Gary T Thomson in the Havana. He did not appear to go down too well. Not sure if this was because of the venue or the material. He was funny and his impressions of many different singers were very good.

Good reports coming back from the pax who saw the West End Men show. We were told that the first person in the queue was a lady on her own who started queuing at 6:50 even though the doors didn't open until 7:50. That's keen. I hope she got the seat she wanted.

We finished the evening dancing in the Atrium to CDs. It was quite busy and whenever he played a waltz or a sequence dance the floor filled. There are lots of pax who just go to watch the dancers but it adds to the atmosphere.

Day 12 Final day of Cruise.
To finish the cruise off nicely the sun is once again shining for us. I did poke my nose onto the balcony but it is very cold. We will have to wait until December to feel the warmth of the sun again. We are just about through the Bob and it has treated us kindly once again.

The majority of the packing is done.

We had tickets to see the 5:30 West End Men show. What a real treat this was. They were fantastic. Lee Mead, Glen Carter and David Thaxton. Just brilliant. They sang together and solo and kept the audience enthralled for an hour. By far the best ever entertainment we have ever seen on P & O. A fantastic ending to the cruise.

Dinner in the MDR and another great meal. We said goodbye to our 2 lovely waiters then a final drink in Metropolis to say our goodbyes to Sunhil.

Some thoughts on Ventura.

The good.
The cabin was excellent as was our lovely Cabin Steward Roda. In over 30 cruises we would rate her as the best steward we have had. I do wonder if the more experienced friendly stewards are allocated to the more expensive cabins. The cabin was very roomy with a full sized bath with shower over. The balcony was a good size. Not quite as large as the C deck balconies but twice the size of A and B deck balconies. It was nice to have the living area as well but we didn't use it much as the weather was so good. Plenty of storage space and the open style wardrobes with large shelf over, and a double sized floor to ceiling shelving unit which also houses the safe.

The Food has generally been excellent and even though the menus are the same on all the ships the quality does differ. It is probably down to the influence of the Head Chef. Our restaurant waiters Senthil and Bhuwan have been very attentive and professional, whilst also having a bit of banter with us.

The crew have been very friendly but we find this on every PO cruise ship. We always try to speak to them using their name and because of this they do always greet us in return. Captain Paul and his management team obviously run a Happy Ship and this filters down to the crew.

The weather other than the 2nd and 3rd day has been hot and sunny. In the ports of call it was excellent holiday weather.

The Not so good.
The dress code of the night is only followed in the restaurant. An awful lot of passengers just didn't bother and decided to cruise very informally. Short sleeve checked shirts and worse could be seen every night in the clubs and theatre. Last night a formal night there was one man in the Havana with a vest and braces on. It is a much more laid back ship than Azura.

The entertainment team were only noticeable by their absence. This could be because the ship is so large that may be they were around but we just didn't see them. The bands on board were not to our taste and if PO are going to keep the Ballroom dancing on the ships then they need to either sort the bands out or just play CDs to dance to.

The pax profile was very mixed. Not a lot of very experienced cruisers but a lot of older passengers who didn't like the fact that there were children on board. Because we had a nice sunny cabin we rarely used the ships outside space so only saw the children in the restaurants. They all appeared to be very well behaved and enjoying themselves. We heard the grumblings from the older pax at breakfast and in the theatre. A few whingers on board who liked to grumble loudly if they had an audience.

We did miss a few things that are traditions on the other ships. Not sure which department is responsible for them but there was:

No cruise overview at all. Not a big thing and certainly new pax would not miss it. We like to plan our select dining nights according to which shows are on or which night is the Indian Buffet.

In the Horizon newspaper the cocktail of the day was never published. Again no big thing but something I missed. Likewise the coffee of the day.

In the restaurant the wine waiter did not come round with the liquors of the day. We certainly drank less because of this. It is when we see them wandering about with the port that we decide to order.

When it is windy we find Azura is a smoother sail than Ventura. This is probably because of the skirt at the back of Azura which is missing on Ventura.

We would sail on Ventura again if the itinerary was right. We won't be doing the fly cruises next year as they are not going to any new ports. Hopefully this will be a trial season and if it takes off they may venture further afield in 2015.

Disembarkation was very smooth. We had priority and were allocated the atrium seats. We left the ship at just after 8:30 and collected suitcases , stopped by customs for about 2 minutes must look honest and in the car on the way home by 8:50. Motorways busy as it was a Friday but home in Lancashire by 1:30 after 2 short comfort breaks.

Sue

[Quizzical Bob]

Thanks for the fascinating report Sue. Good to hear from you.

[Gill W]

Thank you for doing your reports, which I really enjoyed reading.

I was interested to read about East now it has the Atul treatment. When I'm on Ventura again, I'll certainly be eating there

A lot of the entertainers you had were also on Azura - they are obviously doing the rounds at the moment

Apart from the pre-maiden, I've been on Ventura twice, both in the Caribbean, and I think she is ideal for the laid back atmosphere over there.

Interesting about the take up for the formal nights. Maybe they will eventually make a ship like Ventura casual nights only - but SMART casual, I hope. Even though I'm happy with the idea of having all casual nights, I've no wish to have my dinner next to someone in his vest and braces !

Overall it sounds like you had a good time. Thanks for posting your review

[stocktonmackem]

Thanks for the report Sue, thoroughly enjoyed it. We did the same cruise at the beginning of Sept so it kept my memories alive. It sounds like you had some good entertainment whilst on board. I was a little disappointed on ours. We had Steve Tandy who was very good as a comedian but we went to his Johnny Cash tribute and he was not so good, plus the guy from the grumbleweeds who was dire. Another comedian started off quite well but ran off the stage suffering from seasickness. Thank goodness for the Headliners who were superb as usual. We have changed our choice of dining to freedom next year and after reading your report it seems like we have made a good choice. Thanks again for your lovely report.

[Gill W]

We had Steve Tandy who was very good as a comedian

We had Steve Tandy too, who I rather like.

I don't think our fellow cruisers liked him as much, as the general comments when we came out were along the lines of 'eh Doris, I couldn't understand a word he was saying' He DID do a lot of regional impressions, so I think that's what confused them!

His second show (which was comedy & Johnny Cash) was one of the few shows which had empty seats at the 8.30 show.

[stocktonmackem]

I enjoyed both of his shows in the theatre but I was a bit disappointed with his show in Havana, maybe it was just that Johnny Cash wasn't my cup of tea.

[greenfish187]

Hi Sue
Really enjoyed reading your report.
Last year i treated my husband to a deluxe balcony for a joint birthday fathers day it was lovely ,the only thing that i didn't like was that if you are using the sofa bed (for my daughter)in the morning you have to scramble over the bed to get out on the balcony .
Is it possible to buy wine downroute in the caribbean or is it not worth it?

[Jacknian]

Thanks for a very interesting report, the west end men sound amazing, I would love to do a cruise with them entertaining. Hope P&O book them again.

[Suekersh]

Hi Sue
Really enjoyed reading your report.
Last year i treated my husband to a deluxe balcony for a joint birthday fathers day it was lovely ,the only thing that i didn't like was that if you are using the sofa bed (for my daughter)in the morning you have to scramble over the bed to get out on the balcony .
Is it possible to buy wine downroute in the caribbean or is it not worth it?

We have never found a great selection except in a Barbados in the city centre. There is a huge store with quite a large wine selection. At the duty free in Barbados one year they had a supply of Yellow Tail an Oz wine which we find quite drinkable. There is another place in the port area in St Kitts which had some reasonable wine.

Not long now.

Sue

[greenfish187]

Hi Sue
Really enjoyed reading your report.
Last year i treated my husband to a deluxe balcony for a joint birthday fathers day it was lovely ,the only thing that i didn't like was that if you are using the sofa bed (for my daughter)in the morning you have to scramble over the bed to get out on the balcony .
Is it possible to buy wine downroute in the caribbean or is it not worth it?

We have never found a great selection except in a Barbados in the city centre. There is a huge store with quite a large wine selection. At the duty free in Barbados one year they had a supply of Yellow Tail an Oz wine which we find quite drinkable. There is another place in the port area in St Kitts which had some reasonable wine.

Not long now.

Sue

Thanks Sue,
I was just wondering if i could get the odd bottle of wine for my cabin as i don't think i will have any spare space in my case .
Terry

[Belle53]

Just catching up with your report Sue, very interesting to read about the differences in dress code between Ventura and Azura. I love the sound of the West end men show, I hope we'll see more of that from p& o.