Cloudyrain

We were on the Iona the other week with different boarding times as a group, but they allowed us all to board at the same (earlier) time: there was never any suggestion of those who were early waiting. I also didn’t see any passengers get their times checked, or see them send anyone off to a naughty corner to wait who had arrived early. However this was around 2pm so I think they just wanted everyone on and out of the way by that point 😂 I would recommend anyone with standing issues on the Iona book assistance so they can have a chair while they wait to get off as the queues to leave can be long!

I don’t think that P&O is stricter, and I think much of it depends on who is on the door on the day. We went on a Marella the other year and my Dad was refused entry twice on the same night for his attire not meeting standards: he was furious and barely spoke all night, we were trying not to laugh. Then we went on P&O and he purposely wore a full suit, shirt and tie and on the table next to us sat a couple both wearing hoodies, trainers and jeans. After that he stuck to the buffet 😂😂

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I love a good show, but now we cruise with our son I prefer a more relaxed atmosphere where we can’t get tutted at for him asking a question: so Skydome rather than Headliners. I think there needs to be a good mix of evening entertainment to spread people out a bit and also to allow people to go to things they like, rather than sitting in shows moaning about it. I always remember our first Ventura trip when a group of 4 women sat behind us and complained about “all this modern rubbish” for the whole 45 minutes of the performance - which considering it was 70s and 80s pop I would hardly think it classed as “modern” 😂

There was at Southampton last year but not the previous year during the Covid-cruises (due to Covid probably).

Getting off the ship to get the buses to the Glacier/Skylift, after the first hour or so they passed.

There aren’t lockers, we just take a back pack and put electronics in them and leave them on a chair with the towels if we are all in the pool. Yes you can download books. You can also download certain games that don’t need the internet to work: don’t discount the use of electronics on a cruise, especially in the dining room - the meals can be long (especially if you do the full 3 or 4 courses, and have coffee etc after) and it’s a long time for children to be sat. We take all the electronics and it allows our son time to chill out and relax while we enjoy our meal after a busy day.

If the parents are hoping the children fall asleep in the strollers then maybe they would be better getting two cheap umbrella type ones that collapse for storage but are narrow and can get in the cabin and around the furniture. If they have children who sleep well, or they aren’t worried about sleeping in it, then they would be fine to use the dual buggy in the public areas and then transfer the children from the corridor to their beds and then collapse the buggy and store it under the bed.

Prosecco, water, juice and nibbles await you in the glorious white tent - so even if you are too early to board at least you won’t go hungry or thirsty 😉

I didn’t think much to the shops, but they did have a good book selection which weren’t massively overpriced (more WHSmith prices than The Works!) and the perfume/make-up/skincare shop had a decent collection (not the cheapest, but not that much different to the prices in John Lewis etc). They also had a shop that changed daily, a souvenir type shop, and one selling Jellycat teddies etc which might be good for Christmas presents etc.

We were on during the Easter cruise and there was some queuing for drinks (especially the first few days) but it got easier and it became easier to avoid the queues and getting the timing right! For dining, the app queuing was great: we needed a table for 6 and never waited long - even when it said there were 20/30 in front of us in the queue we never waited more than 10/20 minutes. There were queues in the Quays at peak times, but they move really fast and there were always tables (especially a little further away, more towards Sindhu). The only queue of note was at Olden, and to leave the ship at disembarkation - but it was Easter and there were large family groups.