Cloudyrain

We were on the Iona last April and last June and the beds were put away every day. They asked us if we wanted them putting away and we did due to having restricted space with the bed out. In 2022 on the Britannia they left the bed out due to the extra issues witn Covid cleaning etc. There was no choice in it that time.

I think it seems really variable: I found that the Sky Princess was £200 (total) more than the same week on the Iona, but that was with Princess Plus and a better balcony cabin. In effect it made the Princess cruise cheaper for more. But, other times I have priced it up and P&O are noteably cheaper. It seems to be that Princess are cheaper than P&O during the school holiday weeks, and then at othet times it's roles reversed 😂

Thank you for sharing: I love the Ventura and always like to read a report 😊

I'm looking forward to your opinions as we are going on our first Princess soon (albeit on a different ship).

I think everytime I've seen a George Michael or Robbie Williams on a cruise I've never lasted more than 5 minutes. People seem to really over-perform them, and George Michael music especially is destroyed by the characature style. I think in general I mostly prefer people just singing songs as themselves, rather than the whole tribute style.

Oh, different one - same star. Yzzy was very good and personable too. We had Ariana Grande on Ventura last and she was brilliant and great with the kids and did a brilliant One Last Time performance, quite emotional actually.

We saw Paloma (well, Yzzy as Paloma) on the Ventura a few yeara ago and thought she was incredible. I wish they would do a few more modern tributes, just to add a bit of variety. I agree, there seemed to be no variety when we were on Britannia: it was all older, despite it being a very multi-generational vibe on the ship. They need a good mix to get the party going so to speak. Having said that, the first time we went on Ventura 10+ years ago it was very "old" music, but the last few times I have found it much more diverse in music years and genre.

It was pretty bad the whole cruise to be honest. Even the tributes were uninspiring (Rod Stewart or someone like that), and the newest lively music they played was awful 70s disco. No-one really danced and the bars were pretty quiet: there was a great woman singing ballads, but there's only so much romance/heartbreak I can cope with 😂 There was one formal night when it was a bit more lively, but it was like a ghost town by 10pm most nights. It's funny because on the Ventura and Iona we've always been quite lucky with them having some diversity in their entertainment and music choices, so maybe we just had a bad lull on Britannia: it was a covid-cruise so maybe they didn't want everyone bopping and breathing germs all over each other 😂

Picture exchange cards which are sometimes used by those with communication difficulties, and sometimes for those with difficulties with reading or learning difficulties. In the instance I saw them used it was just icons for family members, and open and shut doors, and a image of a key.

As a Brit, I find the whole door decorating thing mind-blowing 😂 On P&O (which is mainly British passengers) I have seen the odd “Happy Birthday” banner, and once saw a PECs sign on the door, but that’s about it. When we cruised out of NYC with NCL I felt like I was in a modern art gallery walking down the corridor to our cabin with some of the elaborate designs and decorations.

I like new music (rap, EDM, a bit of a part-time Swiftie etc) but when we last went on the Britannia it was Elvis and Doris Day 😂 It wasn’t even decent old “retro” - just old. I think my exact phrase was “even my Nan would have thought the music was old fashioned, and she’d be 120 if she was alive now”. Maybe they took my feedback too far 😂

I agree with you: we had a great trip on the Ventura last year and are going again this year. My son chose it above any other ship 😊

Kids club is great: it’s my son’s favourite 😊 He prefers it to the Iona and Britannia - in fact it’s his favourite ship. He’s been on from being 2 and now 7. There is an arcade, which I can’t remember being there when I first went on it 10+ years ago. It’s quite reasonably priced as arcades go and has a good selection of games. The entertainment is relatively family-friendly too, and the indoor pool is usually open and useable a bit later in to the evening (which can be handy if you have children if there isn’t anything on in the evening that you want to do: there is also a bar in there and it’s near the buffet so you can have a drink and some food while the children swim (depending on their ages and abilities etc) 😊

I don’t really think it’s all that much different: we booked last May for a June cruise and it was a bargain. If I book now for the same week it’s about £300 more on the mock booking I’ve done, but per person that’s £100 each so relatively low for a week. I have noticed land-based holidays have gone up a lot. Our last one for the same time of year, booked around the same time, at the same hotel, is now coming up at £5,500 for bed and breakfast with coach transfers - it was £3000 two years ago for half board and private transfers.

You might not need to, and that’s great, but some people do need modification’s making due to the nature and impact of their allergens (especially if they are multiple and also co-exist with other food or dietary restrictions). It’s also why I said some allergies are easier to avoid than others, and therefore the need to advance notify depends on the specific allergy, or type of allergy, in question. For our dairy allergy it requires more effort as they often put butter on the veggies/potatoes, so we do ask they provide some without butter as it’s an easy thing to amend if they know in advance as it isn’t easy to do on the night. Plus it’s an ige allergy and therefore we couldn’t risk just eating around food containing dairy. However, he also has a non-ige allergy to beef, and therefore it’s really easy to just take the beef off a plate, or order a non-beef product. Not everyone with an allergy needs to notify them if they can generally work around their allergies, but some people do need to pre-order and modify menus to be able to eat anything at all. Especially when on a ship, at sea, where medical help isn’t as readily available.

By advising them before you go they ensure that they have the resources to accommodate any specific requirements/replacements. Also they ensure that you can discuss your needs with someone who does know the ingredients etc. It’s different for land based restaurants: they tend to be smaller venues, not serving several thousand customers on one night in a closed-environment. So we go to restaurants which have generally the same menu every day, with a full book indicating all the allergens and which items can be modified etc. On a cruise ship they make a few hundred dishes, prepped in advance, and often the specific substitutions/alterations need advance notice as they can’t just quickly whip up a dish without risk of cross contamination etc. But I appreciate it varies depending on the severity and type of allergen: we have varying allergen requirements, and for one it’s very easy to avoid/substitute, for the other it’s very difficult and therefore we need to advise everyone and closely asses options.

We were on deck 9 directly above a hot tub and to be honest the noise didn’t bother us at all, and the reviews of this cabin don’t seem to reference it. It looks like the person who I responded to (who is not the OP of the thread) has booked Select Fare, but then chosen (possibly inadvertently) the “Let P&O choose” option - or it’s one of the quirks where they allow a Select booking but not room selection unless you “upgrade” (which happened to me last time I booked direct - hence I use a TA now). The person I am responding to has spoken to P&O and they have said they can’t change the cabin - they can only cancel it.

I have just read reviews of people who have been in the same cabin and they were happy with it and would stay in it again: there are photos which show it’s not obstructed in a traditional sense as the hot tub is on the prom outside the balcony of the cabin. I really wouldn’t let this ruin your holiday or be worried sick about it: it’s a great location for the amenities, and when you are in the Fjords and sailing you are generally looking upwards, not downwards. I would also suggest sitting in different areas of the ship to appreciate the views from different angles 😊

Honestly I wouldn’t worry, every time I’ve slaved for hours to get a photo where I don’t look like a complete state, they just replace it at port and take one where I look like a confused meerkat who’s been dragged through a hedge or 4.

Actually if they could just put a proper cinema on the Ventura, occasional entertainment in the covered pool, and a Keel and Cow somewhere, I would be happy 😂

I love a covered pool area and think the Skydome is amazing - but I know others really dislike it, but they can all go in to the atrium and I can have the skydome to myself 😂 Although I prefer the Ventura covered pool area size-wise, I do like that there is entertainment on the Iona Sky Dome. I also vote the Ventura Glasshouse. And I probably will be the only one voting for the Ventura arcade - but as a parent of a young child, it’s a great venue to use when bribery is required 😂

I feel similar about the Iona: love the ship, but I just can’t handle the prospect of watching the bloody birds again 😂

Totally agree: we were in the YC and there was a famous sports star in there, and his family very rarely went out of the ship with him because people just pestered him. He went in there for the privacy, and having bloggers there wouldn’t have been inappropriate and blown his kids cover. They were a lovely family and the children and his wife in particular just wanted to have a “normal” holiday. Plus like you say, the YC is relatively small, so filming would be more obvious and intrusive than it would have been in other sections of the ship. I get the feeling that the whole incident was over-dramaticised for likes and clicks to be honest, and I won’t be following them in future when there are plenty of other good bloggers out there who are a lot more respectful.

P&O do this route quite frequently, occasionally Royal Caribbean do too. It’s a great route 😊

I thought considering the OP has cruises before, and that other people have provided details about luggage drop, that they would be aware of how luggage drop works and didn’t need it spelling out 😉