rmjb

Hello 

Live from the Oceana

This is great to hear, we’re not stressed by it. It’s a bit of a pain but getting uptight isn’t going to speed anything along x

Hello from the departure lounge at Gatwick, our flight to Malta to pick up Oceana this afternoon has been delayed by 2 hours 50 mins . Can someone reassure me the ship will wait for us? 

We booked direct through P and O

cant get anywhere near the customer service desk due to grumpy people.

what happens if we miss the ship? Will they get us to the next port, arrival in Valletta was expected at 5.40pm now looking arrival 19.45pm

Hello all we are on our first fly cruise on Thursday and very excited, we don’t land in Malta until 5.40pm local time. What happens regarding muster drill and first nights dinner? Our previous cruises have all been out of Southampton and we have normally been onboard in time for lunch.

also do you get fed on flights to Malta? It’s a TUI charter flight not bothered either way but just wondering x

Hello all were on our first fly cruise next week and on our last day our flight back from Malta isn’t until early evening. What time can we expect to be kicked off the ship? Will we be able to spend the morning on board or is it early morning kick off so they can prepare for next cruise?

TIA

We have gone twice with our son with a 3pm boarding and have turned up to our check in a bit early ( only 30 mins) we have always expected to wait until our check in slot but both times been put on sooner. If you go with a 'we will just wait patiently and see what happens' it always makes it easIer. There is a cinema that do a kids fiml on a Saturday/Sunday morning for £2.50 per person near the west quay premier inn so we have gone to that then grabbed some lunch and boarded. it fills the morning and early afternoon nicely. This time we have a 1pm embarkation time and again will just turn up and wait patiently. Its not the easiest occupying a little one but we tend to make it the start of our holiday and look at the ship out of the window and play eye spy with our son.

We have been on Britannia twice, once with a 2 year old and once with a 3 year old. Both time we took a blow up kids bed we got from Amazon and as the room was set in a twin we put him on the floor in between us, however last time we pushed our 2 twins together and had him on the side. Our cabin steward then set it up as a double. If there would of been any problems we would of just moved the furniture ourselves when we got into our room on a night and moved it back in the morning.

Regarding the kids club they are amazing. they were quite keen on adults not staying too long as the other kids then start asking for their mum and dad but I was really worried our little boy would be clingy but they just distracted him and said we could go. We also phoned the kids club from the phones around the ships or in the restaurants to check on him which was a great help.

The night nursery the little people have to be happy to stay in the cot to stay really lat.e but we would pick ours up about 10pm and the kids were all snuggled up under blankets watching a Disney film.

hope that helps x

We are on Guarantee on Azura 29th April and we have been allocated. We have P236 I think its fairly straight forward for us as we have our 4 year old son with us. Not the cabin I would of chosen but we are hardly in ours and guarantee was worth the price saving for us x

We are booked on the Azura in April for the fjords. We have previously done the Fjords on Arcadia and Oriana and have been on Britannia twice Im afraid I'm not much help because I have liked all of the ships for their different quirks. Britannia felt very modern and sleek I really liked the glass house as I could be nosey when having aPpre dinner cocktails and I loved the cookery school. Which ever you choose the fjords are amazing. If you go to Geirengerfjord the little chocolate shop there does the best Hot Chocolate although their Blue Cheese chocolate was definitely in the interesting pile. x

We have always used CPS yes not the cheapest but we have always been pleased with what we have paid for. Pull up, get out enjoy holiday no problem

hello were are recently back off Britannia and while we were onboard we booked a select fair for a cruise in October on Oceania. We paid £150 deposit on board. Now we are back home we have seen a fly cruise im October we would prefer and there is a saver price available. Has anyone transferred a select booking to a saver booking. Do you think we will be able to do it? I've checked availability and they have space for the 3 of us? Thanks x

I just spoke to P&O as advised and was told its normal practise for them to oversell which is why this can happen. Nothing they can do. If we wanted to guarantee a specific cabin we could of chosen a higher priced cabin type. But she said if upgrades available then we may be more likely to get one. Said it can be anything from a couple of weeks out to a few days. so we shall wait and see. wherever we end up we are still very much lucking forward to the trip. Thanks for your advice.

Hello we are booked on the select price the B707 Britannia cruise in March but our cabin is on a guarantee basis has anyone had this before? I thought on select we could choose our cabin? is this a good sign? We have got our free car parking and dining preference confirmed and double checked the booking confirmation says select booking? TIA

Hello we are booked on the select price the B707 Britannia cruise in March but our cabin is on a guarantee basis has anyone had this before? I thought on select we could choose our cabin? is this a good sign? We have got our free car parking and dining preference confirmed and double checked the booking confirmation says select booking? TIA

Morning,

We are having a vow renewal on P&O Britania in March and Im stressing about what to wear. We are having the renewal as we have come through a very stressful period as a family and we want to celebrate the love that has got us through. there will only be myself,husbannd and 3 yo son The question is what to wear. My husband is sorted with a smart new suit. I have found a beautiful dress but it is obviously a wedding dress is this too over the top? My original dress was chosen quickly and was not what I had dreamed off. I just dont want people to think im being silly putting on a wedding dress for a renewal of vows. Any advice appreciated. This is the dress.

Thanks in advance

http://www.vividress.uk.com/plus-size-dresses/plus-size-wedding-dresses/plus-size-wedding-dresses-wd610602004zy.html

Sorry should of said in the 2-4 year group

Hi we are thinking of doing the 4 night N616 on Ventura in June. Does anyone know if the kids clubs run during these shorter cruises? Also are the facilities in the kids club the same as on Britannia? Thanks in advance.

Thanks for the replies, we took him into the Lido pool it was warmer than we thought it would be but was a very warm day but it was still quite chilly for him so played around to keep him warm. Most guests seemed happy to see him on the ship and we kept him occupied so he wasnt running around and disrupting others but there were the odd few that we heard complaining about there being children on the ship but as this was advertised as a family friendly ship we chose to just get on with our holiday.The staff in the buffet always said hello to him and made a bit of a fuss of him which he seemed to really enjoy.

Britannia B612 – Iberia 2nd May – 9th May 2016

We booked on the select fare around 10 weeks before departure. We had our 2-year-old son with us and booked a twin room with pull down bunk beds. We knew these wouldn’t be suitable so took a blow up ready bed with us.

Embarkation

We stayed in Southampton the night before so killed some time in the West Quay and went to the cinema before heading to the terminal. We got to the terminal about 2pm (we were scheduled for 3pm but we ran out of things to do). We queued with CPS parking for about 20 minutes before dropping of the car and having the bags whisked away. We went into the terminal, took a number and proceeded to wait around 40 more minutes before boarding the ship. All in all fairly painless and not a particularly long wait. Once on the ship we proceeded to our cabin…

Cabin

We had an inside twin cabin which was at the back of the ship on D deck. This was ideal for us as the lifts at the back weren’t too busy and it was easy to get to kids club. The cabin was a good size for the 3 of us. We liked the lay out with the walk in wardrobe and found the on demand TV system to be good. The TV also included information on the cruise, current location and weather all of which we found useful.

Kids club

Our son loved the kids club. There were lots of activities for him to do and the staff kept them entertained. In the evenings we were able to drop him off and go for dinner and then pick him up later in the evening. They were generally cuddled up on bean bags and watching a film after 8. He did lots of artwork through the week which we got to take home at the end of the week

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Dining – Buffet

We used the buffet for breakfast, lunch and the kids tea (between 5 and 6). We found the food to be hot and generally never had an issue finding a table. Some mornings were pretty busy but we were still able to find somewhere to sit and getting food didn’t take long. Lunches were good but we sometimes would have a poolside snack (either a burger or some fries) from the Lido Grill. Overall the food was good, not an amazing standard but good enough for all of us and we could all find something we liked to eat.

Dining – Main Dining Room – Meridian Restaurant

We ate here twice we were on freedom dining as requested. The first night was very good and we sat at a lovely table with two other couples. The food was good, nice and hot and tasty. We ate here another night and again requested a table of 6 but upon turning up at a table, a lady at the table declared that we could not sit there as they were expecting some friends. That is fair enough but the tone and the manner she came across with was not welcoming (not P & O’s fault but more of a general observation of the rudeness of some of the guests). We ended up getting a table for two very quickly and an awkward few minutes and the staff were quick to resolve the issue for us. Both times we ate here we found the food nice but we didn’t eat here more often as we found the menu a bit repetitive and not particularly inspiring.

Dining – Epicurean Restaurant

We really enjoyed our meal in the Epicurean. The standard was very good and there was very little to fault to be honest. The desserts were delicious.

Dining – Sindhu

This was our favourite meal of the cruise. The food was delicious and the we enjoyed the atmosphere in the restaurant. Atuls signature dish was delicious.

Dining – The Glass House

We ate here twice. We tried the rib eye steak, slider trio, tempura prawns, chicken and caprese salad. All were delicious and worth the additional supplement. We enjoyed eating here when we weren’t looking for a three course meal and could sit over the Atrium watching the world go by.

Dining – Beach House

This was another good meal. The portions were huge and we left rather stuffed. It also had the best view of any of the restaurants looking out onto the Ocean and Spanish coast. The ribs and lava rock steak were fab.

Dining – Market Café

This isn’t where we ate a main meal but we had some snacks here. This was also the only place where we encountered a grumpy staff member but we never saw him again on the cruise! The cakes were delicious (apart from the Red Velvet which was not the best). The crepes were also very good and good value for money (would cost £5 or £6 in the UK as a dessert somewhere).

Activities

As our son settled in the kids club we were able to do a cookery course together. The teacher was very good and we really enjoyed the experience and actually made something quite nice (Thai Food). The only issue was the timings. The course went on longer than the kids club was open so my husband had to leave early. We knew this before we booked so it wasn’t an issue but seems silly when they could start the cooking courses a bit earlier to avoid this clash. In general we found the activities on the ship a bit lacking compared to previous cruises. There were lots of film showings but again these overran the kids club so it wasn’t worth us watching half a film. There were very few activities whereas on previous cruises with P & O we have been offered things such as jewelry making and flower arranging. It appears these no longer appeal. We didn’t really think the sail away parties were as good as on previous ships which we think was down to the venue being in the centre of the ship rather than being able to look over the port you are sailing away from as on previous ships. I went to the Spa for a massage deal but found them very heavy on selling items rather than allowing me to relax and enjoy the experience.

Bars

We drank in most of the bars at one stage or another. We particularly enjoyed the wines in the Glass House and the Crows Nest for the views.

Other facilities

The pools are good and weren’t too busy on our cruise. We didn’t have a big issue with getting around but did see some queues for lifts and a lot of rude people not allowing people in wheel chairs to use lifts when they could have walked down the one floor they were actually planning to travel. People also rushed to get in the lifts in front of other people who weren’t as quick. Again this isn’t P & O’s fault but reflect poorly on the population of the cruise ship in general. We didn’t make it too any shows as we liked to pick up our son fairly early and go back to the cabin with him to watch a film and let him fall asleep.

Ports

We enjoyed La Rochelle and made it the Aquariam which was very good. We also went on the Ferris wheel which the little guy enjoyed. P & O laid on plenty of shuttle buses and we only waited about 20 minutes at most to get into the town centre. We didn’t get of the ship in Bilbao as the complimentary shuttle buses took about 30 minutes to get into town. We didn’t think this would be fun with a 2 year old in the heat so made the most of the ship being quiet and played in the pool with him. It was raining when we got to La Coruna which dampened the day a bit but got a taxi to another Aquariam (which wasn’t as good as the first) and then explored the town a bit. St Peter’s port was a very nice port. There was only a short wait for a tender to the shore and then we went to the Castle which the little guy enjoyed before wandering around the town.

Summary

We really enjoyed this holiday and feel we got great value for money. It was nice to not have to fly with a two year old and visit some different places but also get some time to ourselves. The ship was great and overall P & O seemed to try to combine the best bits of the other ships into one ship. There are a few faults but nothing that spoilt out holiday. We will no doubt be back again soon!

Thanks for the replies we go on Monday so we are looking forward to trying some of the suggested things to do x

Hi I have asked this on the destination board but no luck as yet. Does anyone have any suggestions of things to do in Bilbao and La Coruna with a 2 year old. Long coach trips are not an option. Thanks in advance we go on B612 on 2nd May 😀

Hello Has anyone got any suggestions of things we can do with a toddler in Bilbao and La Coruna? Things that don't involve long coach rides would be great. Thanks in advance

Hi This is our third P&O cruises the two previous have been on Arcadia and Oriana where we have had set dining which worked really well for us. This time we have requested flexible dining as our 2 year old son is coming with us. Has anyone got any experience of tables for 3. He is not the best at sitting still as he is only 2 but we want him to experience the evening dining in the MDR rather than just eat at the buffet, but think that rather than sitting on larger tables and potentially disrupting anyone else's evening meal we would try and get a table for 2 but then ask if they can add an extra seat do you think this will be ok?