Disappointing Ventura

[Ilovecake]

I quite agree Gixxer. I used to contribute to this board on a regular basis (and have also made a few posts on the OV board as well, particularly about Capt. Hutley:D) but to be completely honest this constant narking at each other is tiresome in the extreme.

 

I recently came back from Azura, well 2 weeks ago to be exact, and for the first time we did this as a purely casual only cruise. I did a 'live from' blog on the P&O website and was going to reproduce it here as I thought it might be useful for people to read.

 

Having read the ongoing slanging match that this board has now become I've decided against it as I don't want it to turn into yet another battlegro

 

und:mad:.

 

Debbie

 

Hi Debbie

I've read your blog on the P&O site and found it very interesting. Why did you decide to do non-formal out of interest? I just wonder how this works in practice with being told you are banned from areas of the ship if you don't conform! :mad: I didn't find it controversial in the slightest.......Pity you weren't on with Ian Hutley though, I'd have wanted a few pics :o

[Rum Rat]

""Pity you weren't on with Ian Hutley though, I'd have wanted a few pics :o""

 

Why ?? :rolleyes:

 

Mike

[Ilovecake]

""Pity :oyou weren't on with Ian Hutley though, I'd have wanted a few pics ""

 

Why ?? :rolleyes:

 

Mike

 

WHY? Only a man could ask that! :D

 

Might not be every female's cup of tea either but I think he's divine!:o

[lancashire_cruisers]

Hi ILC

 

After doing the 35 nighter earlier this year (with Capt Hutley onboard;)) we've had a bit of a rough time with various things that have happened and just decided to have a low key cruise on Azura to put it all behind us.

 

We were quite happy going to the Venezia buffet of an evening and maybe watching a film on the Seascreen afterwards or going to the theatre and showlounges on smart casual nights.

 

Whilst we had a great time, barring one or two mishaps:o, we did actually miss taking part in the formal nights as we wouldn't go to the theatre etc. out of respect for our fellow passengers. The semi-formal nights, however, I can take or leave and would be quite happy if P&O dropped this dress code completely.

 

Debbie:)

[Ilovecake]

Girl talk Mike;)! You probably wouldn't be interested.

 

Debbie

 

Agrees Debbie;)

[lancashire_cruisers]

WHY? Only a man could ask that! :D

 

Might not be every female's cup of tea either but I think he's divine!:o

 

Ooh forgot to mention but we're back on Oriana next Summer!!:D

 

Debbie:)

[Rum Rat]

WHY? Only a man could ask that! :D

 

Might not be every female's cup of tea either but I think he's divine!:o

 

and in the OV Uniform earlier in the thread? :rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

Mike

.

[lancashire_cruisers]

and in the OV Uniform earlier in the thread? :rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

Mike

.

 

Put your wooden spoon away Mike:cool:!

 

Debbie:)

[Rum Rat]

Put your wooden spoon away Mike:cool:!

 

Debbie:)

 

No wooden spoon :)

 

Mike

[Ilovecake]

and in the OV Uniform earlier in the thread? :rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

Mike

.[/quote

 

Twice on OV! :D:D

[blitznbobs]

You know what makes me laugh about this thread... is those that think that cruising is five star... if you want five star you go to The Four Seasons, or at a push Claridges or the Sofitel if you want to cruise then take your pick -- They're all a bit of a holiday camp where everyone gets the same service-- Don't get me wrong I love cruising (on any line) but 5 star it is not....

 

Bx

[Rum Rat]

You know what makes me laugh about this thread... is those that think that cruising is five star... if you want five star you go to The Four Seasons, or at a push Claridges or the Sofitel if you want to cruise then take your pick -- They're all a bit of a holiday camp where everyone gets the same service-- Don't get me wrong I love cruising (on any line) but 5 star it is not....

 

Bx

 

How many stars is 'Butlins afloat'? :rolleyes:

 

Mike

[marylizcat]

You know what makes me laugh about this thread... is those that think that cruising is five star... if you want five star you go to The Four Seasons, or at a push Claridges or the Sofitel if you want to cruise then take your pick -- They're all a bit of a holiday camp where everyone gets the same service-- Don't get me wrong I love cruising (on any line) but 5 star it is not....

 

Bx

 

You are so right! I always laugh when I read reviews complaining their cruise was like a floating holiday camp. Of course it was, they always have been. Why does every ship have bingo, after all! The point is that both holiday camps and cruise ships have lots of activities going on all day and evening. In both cases, nobody forces you to join in. It is partly because of the activities that we enjoy cruising.

[1160451]

You are so right! I always laugh when I read reviews complaining their cruise was like a floating holiday camp. Of course it was, they always have been. Why does every ship have bingo, after all! The point is that both holiday camps and cruise ships have lots of activities going on all day and evening. In both cases, nobody forces you to join in. It is partly because of the activities that we enjoy cruising.

 

 

Quite right, but one has to shout correctly when one has won.

 

From "Over ere" thro "Housey Housey" to "Bingo" then onto "oh I say I think i seem to have won"

 

Lets all match which lines match each call:D

 

By the way I shout "Aaaaaaagh e by gum i'm up"

 

Take it easy from a bingo lover from Fred Olsen:eek:

[Rum Rat]

Quite right, but one has to shout correctly when one has won.

 

From "Over ere" thro "Housey Housey" to "Bingo" then onto "oh I say I think i seem to have won"

 

Lets all match which lines match each call:D

 

By the way I shout "Aaaaaaagh e by gum i'm up"

 

Take it easy from a bingo lover from Fred Olsen:eek:

 

Of course in the Senior Service the call is ....

 

"Here you are ................... then",

 

but don't tell anybody that I told you.

 

When I was on Britain's last Battleship, H.M.S.Vanguard, I doubled my "investment" on Tombola thank you :rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

Mike

Senior Service

[land ahoy!]

makes me smile,some of the rants on here!!! been on OV and 3 P&O ships to date plus other liners,,,,,LOL...lack of sunbeds,,,,LOL...wrong dress code,,,LOL...chavvs v toffs,,,........dont think there will ever be the perfect ship for some because of other FELLOW passengers onboard,atleast they are gauranteed to have something to moan about,,,they could always charter there own yaght!!!! LOL...a few grumpy old buggers they are the ones to watch out for,so inconsiderate and ignorant to other passengers,cant wait to go on ventura 31st DECEMBER to see some oldies jumping the queues and looking down there noses at someone under 75!!!!LOL

[cruisebore]

You know what makes me laugh about this thread... is those that think that cruising is five star... if you want five star you go to The Four Seasons, or at a push Claridges or the Sofitel if you want to cruise then take your pick -- They're all a bit of a holiday camp where everyone gets the same service-- Don't get me wrong I love cruising (on any line) but 5 star it is not....

 

Bx

 

 

What worries me is those who want to downgrade it to two star.

 

Cb

[1160451]

makes me smile,some of the rants on here!!! been on OV and 3 P&O ships to date plus other liners,,,,,LOL...lack of sunbeds,,,,LOL...wrong dress code,,,LOL...chavvs v toffs,,,........dont think there will ever be the perfect ship for some because of other FELLOW passengers onboard,atleast they are gauranteed to have something to moan about,,,they could always charter there own yaght!!!! LOL...a few grumpy old buggers they are the ones to watch out for,so inconsiderate and ignorant to other passengers,cant wait to go on ventura 31st DECEMBER to see some oldies jumping the queues and looking down there noses at someone under 75!!!!LOL

 

 

Wow, gulp....

 

Shall I put you down as a "don't know" on the Bingo call then?;)

 

Joking aside I agree with you 100%.

 

Take it easy.

[blitznbobs]

Wow, gulp....

 

Shall I put you down as a "don't know" on the Bingo call then?;)

 

Joking aside I agree with you 100%.

 

Take it easy.

 

I'm happy to join in with all the activities (I've appeared on that video they make more times than I care to remember) I just get a little tired of the snobbery when it's totally unnecessary and misplaced... I travel with a young child, making me (apparently) undesirable but as a professional with many years of travelling all over the world behind me, I find this attitude of 'we're better than them' somewhat peturbing...

 

Bx

[geecee1]

I quite agree Gixxer. I used to contribute to this board on a regular basis (and have also made a few posts on the OV board as well, particularly about Capt. Hutley:D) but to be completely honest this constant narking at each other is tiresome in the extreme.

 

I recently came back from Azura, well 2 weeks ago to be exact, and for the first time we did this as a purely casual only cruise. I did a 'live from' blog on the P&O website and was going to reproduce it here as I thought it might be useful for people to read.

 

Having read the ongoing slanging match that this board has now become I've decided against it as I don't want it to turn into yet another battleground:mad:.

 

Debbie

 

Debbie,

 

Please post your blog on this site. We are doing casual only on Ventura in December and would welcome your comments.

With the demise of the OV ships, we are all P&O pax now and I am sure we would all get along fine if we met up on ship.

We also love the Caribbean having done 3 OV cruises and one land based(Barbados) since 2007.

We chose Ventura because she is visiting 4 islands that we have not been to before and because of the positive reviews by ex-OV passengers.

I only wish P&O would do fly cruises to the Eastern Med a la OV ships as sailing from Southampton with all those sea days is not really for us.

[gazmo]

WE were also on the recent transatlantic to the Carribean on Ventura which was superb. Brilliant food, wonderful service, gorgeous cabins and excellent entertainment.

 

Yes we noticed that sunbeds were full very early on and overheard people discussing "sunbed wars" but what we couldn't understand is why people dont take more advantage of their balconies. We were lucky in having a portside one and had the sun most of the time.

 

It was heaven the total peace of lying on your own balcony for hours on end . A quick call to room service brought a delicious lunch for no extra charge. What we couldnt understand is why all the cabins on the balconies below were nearly all empty and they were bigger than ours.

 

Having paid extra why not use them and leave the sunbeds to those without balconies or those on the shady side? We always got a sunbed later in the afternoon when those on early dinner went to get ready but enjoyed the peace and quiet earlier on- much better than getting worked up on your holiday.

[charliepay]

We too found Ventura to have attracted an element that we otherwise have not encountered whilst cruising but there have also been many good reviews - it is so very personal. We have booked Azura and hope that this will be a better experience otherwise its back to American cruise lines as the standards overall have been higher in our experience to date. Fortunately there is a cruise line to suit all.

Hi just got off azura and im afraid its just as bad if not worse i will be sticking to royal caribbean from now on much better value for money better cabins and more space, i will say though that the food on P&O is much better

[CASPALL]

Hi just got off azura and im afraid its just as bad if not worse i will be sticking to royal caribbean from now on

 

 

After being on Azura I am now looking at other cruise companies.

4 weeks on Ventura already booked though. Fingers crossed it'll be no worse than Azura!:confused:

 

Caryl

[CRUMB]

Just returned from ventura and can understand the 'element' of passengers that people are refering to. It really isnt the end of the world. The majority of the people who made comments were making comparisons to other ships or cruise lines and admit they tend to be picky when experiencing a new ship. There were a few families removed from our ship but that's only the equivalent of making someone leave a hotel. The sunbed issue is a problem during sea days but the only answer is to get out there early if you want a good spot for the day. Don't expect to get on deck after 10am and get 2 beds together. We met some fantastic people onboard and the only reason for me not to book Ventura again would be purely based on the fact that I like to try new things and am not one for repeating the same holidays.

[mikejt26]

Debbie,

 

Please post your blog on this site. We are doing casual only on Ventura in December and would welcome your comments.

 

 

Casual only? Does this mean you can dodge the formal nights and dress code altogether. the SO would like to attend a formal night to experience it . unfortunatly my normal formal is full kilt which is just to heavy to take to the caribbean . so it looks like a purchase of the full penguin is on the cards:(:D