Semi Live Britannia B210 Blog

[Harry Peterson]

Vamps, your detailed, illustrated, informative and enjoyable reports have been absolutely brilliant!  The wife and I have both loved them - the next best thing to actually being there.

 

The menus were very helpful too - thought the MDR menus looked good, but maybe, judging by your comments, they didn’t quite match the descriptions? I’d have been happy, on the face of things, with any of those menus, but there’s quite a lot of fish, and I love all fishy options.

 

Hope you’re soon feeling better.

[Josy1953]

I really enjoyed reading your posts it seems you had a lovely time.

The photos of your girls are beautiful. And a credit to you and Scott.  You now have start planning your next voyage.  I will be looking forward to your next blog.

[zap99]

What a nice thread. Vamps. It sounds like Scott and the girls enjoyed it more than you. As they grow up and go away those memories will be priceless to you. When you go on Iona try and relax a bit more.👯

Edited April 30, 2022 by zap99

[Eddie99]

It’s not easy holidaying with kids, is it?  I take my hat off to you.  One day your girls will have flown the nest and you’ll be able to have one of those relaxing holidays you’ve always dreamed of!
Thanks so much for your blog.  Your family are a credit to you

[lincslady]

Specially like the photos of your daughters, gorgeous.  I bet when they are grown up they will remember wearing the ones with butterflies on.  So pretty.  My daughter still remembers one I made for her, when she was about 4, with little sums and letters on - she wore it when she first went to school, and loved it so much.  I am sorry you did not feel well all the time, or enjoy the food  so much, but |I bet overall you will have good memories of this trip.

[Angel57]

Your daughters look like delightful girls and I loved seeing them all dressed up for dinner.

Its a shame you didn’t enjoy the food as the menu choices looked good most of the time and I’m sure infinitely better than doing the cooking yourself at home!.

Hope you have recovered and are all now looking forward to the next cruise.

Thanks for taking the time to Blog.

[Purdey16]

Thank you for your blog vamps your daughters are beautiful and you dress them up each night in their lovely dresses, a credit to you both , sorry to hear that some of the food wasn’t quite hitting the mark with you and your return home Chinese meal disappointing for you too , I hope your feeling better now and can start planning your next voyage, I’ve enjoyed reading your blog I know it takes a lot of time up but we have all enjoyed reading along and listening to your thoughts about things . Look forward to your next blog on Iona if you do one , ( no pressure) 😉

[wowzz]

Vamps - thanks for all your posts. 

Your girls are are a credit to you and Scott.

And I would also like to say,  as an old codger, that the way you wrote your posts was great. I do love paragraphs! 

 

 

[Vampiress88]

I think with the food in the mdr that it’s not our type maybe because of our age. Also seems to be a lot more vegetarian options too. And I like to moan my hubby says. 
 

I get poorly often unfortunately so it’s quite normal for us. Just means slower days sometimes. 
 

Thank you for all the comments on the girls, they both are really fantastic even if the do drive me up the wall sometimes. 
 

Back to work for me now. Hate coming home from holidays 😂 

[terrierjohn]

1 hour ago, Vampiress88 said:

I think with the food in the mdr that it’s not our type maybe because of our age. Also seems to be a lot more vegetarian options too. And I like to moan my hubby says. 
 

I get poorly often unfortunately so it’s quite normal for us. Just means slower days sometimes. 
 

Thank you for all the comments on the girls, they both are really fantastic even if the do drive me up the wall sometimes. 
 

Back to work for me now. Hate coming home from holidays 😂 

Thank you again for your very interesting blog, your girls looked lovely in all their different dresses. As for the MDR food, I seem to remember similar comments about Azura in your last cruise blog, so maybe it's just not for you. Hopefully Iona might have better options for you.

 

[Harry Peterson]

9 hours ago, wowzz said:

Vamps - thanks for all your posts. 

Your girls are are a credit to you and Scott.

And I would also like to say,  as an old codger, that the way you wrote your posts was great. I do love paragraphs! 

 

 

I agree - and another vote from me for paragraphs. So much more digestible than turgid, unbroken verbiage.

[lincslady]

I normally use paragraphs, and a fair bit of commas, etc.  I thought that, like the pronunciation of 'h', they had gone out of fashion.

 

They certainly make things easier to read.

 

Don't they?

[Angel57]

29 minutes ago, lincslady said:

I normally use paragraphs, and a fair bit of commas, etc.  I thought that, like the pronunciation of 'h', they had gone out of fashion.

 

They certainly make things easier to read.

 

Don't they?

Totally agree.

 

I also try to make sure my punctuation is correct on texts too.

[Vampiress88]

1 hour ago, terrierjohn said:

Thank you again for your very interesting blog, your girls looked lovely in all their different dresses. As for the MDR food, I seem to remember similar comments about Azura in your last cruise blog, so maybe it's just not for you. Hopefully Iona might have better options for you.

 

yes I would agree with that. It’s just not the food type that we normally eat really but for the amount of money we paid for the cruise then it’s worth it. Probably why we ended up at the grill or the buffet. I think olive grove and that boardwalk on the iona will end up better for us. 
 

does anyone remember what the Italian was called on azura back in 2011? Having a debate with hubby 😂 

[Pink-belle]

28 minutes ago, Vampiress88 said:

yes I would agree with that. It’s just not the food type that we normally eat really but for the amount of money we paid for the cruise then it’s worth it. Probably why we ended up at the grill or the buffet. I think olive grove and that boardwalk on the iona will end up better for us. 
 

does anyone remember what the Italian was called on azura back in 2011? Having a debate with hubby 😂 

Do you mean Epicurean when it was called 17? 

[Edith1950]

4 hours ago, Vampiress88 said:

yes I would agree with that. It’s just not the food type that we normally eat really but for the amount of money we paid for the cruise then it’s worth it. Probably why we ended up at the grill or the buffet. I think olive grove and that boardwalk on the iona will end up better for us. 
 

does anyone remember what the Italian was called on azura back in 2011? Having a debate with hubby 😂 

Verona.

[Mardymadam]

Have to say I agree totally with you about the food, we found it to be very second rate in the MDR's.

If you found Britannia tricky to get around you will have more problems and have to walk even further on Iona, but maybe you won't have the same issues regarding the isolation cabins, it was a pain having to go up the stairs then down again just to go from one end to the other. The launderettes are open on Iona, and despite P&O laudering our 10 items free, the laundering standard was not good.

[Vampiress88]

1 hour ago, Edith1950 said:

Verona.

I remember the buffet was Verona and Venezia. 
 

it’s what the beach house used to be. Thought it was trattoria or something 

[Edith1950]

6 minutes ago, Vampiress88 said:

I remember the buffet was Verona and Venezia. 
 

it’s what the beach house used to be. Thought it was trattoria or something 

Yes you’re right they were and I think still are the names for the buffet, but then I could be wrong. Now it’s bugging me as to what is was called especially as we went there quite a lot. 

[annarack]

Have just been catching up on your blog and really enjoyed hearing how you found everything.  We were also on board, with the same age children, and we definitely saw you guys around.  We also attended the magic shows and family discos etc.  We thought the family entertainment provided, such as these events and the craft activities etc, were nice additions as the kids club hours were more restricted than we had been used to previously.  However 3 hours per day was fine for us and the children attended most of the sessions they were allocated, apart from those when we were exploring ashore as a family.

 

We thought the MDR menu was a little shorter than usual with the "always available" items having been mixed in with the daily specials.  We always found something we fancied on the menu and the children tended to pick a combination of foods from the main and kids menus.  The buffet was fine, although a little repetitive but we used it for breakfast and lunch most days, along with the pizza and burger stations poolside.

 

We had a balcony cabin, different to the photos above, but the layout wasn't great either.  The single sofa bed blocked the fridge and coffee making area when laid out.  Both this bed and the bunk above opened right across the balcony making it pretty inaccessible.  In the end the children shared the sofa bed and we asked the cabin steward to leave the bunk closed up each night.  The launderettes being closed was a shock but the cabin steward took our laundry daily and arranged to have it done free for us, so no issues.  We have however now upgraded our upcoming cruises on Azura and Ventura to the deluxe cabins with the double sofa bed and bath.  We thought the standard balcony cabins would be big enough now our children are a little older, but we found it cramped so are returning to the deluxe balcony cabins we we always used to book when our children were babies/toddlers.

 

We enjoyed all the ports and found plenty to do.  We had visited them all on previous cruises so did some activities we had done before and explored some new places.  We took the bus to the Oceanarium in Lisbon which was excellent.  We visited the Museum of Imagination in Malaga which was small but fun, then slowly walked back to the ship via the tropical gardens and beach.  In Cadiz we spent a couple of hours at the beach (La Caleta) which was lovely.  Looks like we visited many of the same places Vampiress, as we have very similar photos!  Every port stop included playgrounds and ice cream.  Gibraltar was our biggest day out, we walked to the cable car and went up to see the monkeys, then explored the Botanical Gardens where we went to the zoo and excellent playground.  We had lunch at a pizzeria then walked back via the Trafalgar Cemetery and Main Street to Casemates for an ice cream and cold drinks.

 

Our children liked the small playground and water splash area onboard although it was really aimed at toddlers.  We swam in the pool several times despite it being pretty chilly.  One evening whilst the children were at kids club we enjoyed a meal for two in Sindhu.  We really enjoyed it and with the a la carte pricing we could just order what we wanted rather than have to have a full blow out feast.  The lobster biryani was delicious.  We also made it to the Crow's Nest that night which was lovely.  Overall our onboard spend was low though, a couple of drinks each for us and maybe a mocktail for the children to share some evenings.  We bought a couple of toys in the shop but that was about it.  On sea days we played cards etc as a family in the atrium.

 

The ship seemed well staffed and service was good.  The quarantine areas on every deck (mid aft) were a pain though.  We were mid ship so only lifts, no stairs, and we couldn't walk to the back of the ship on any accommodation deck.  We could have walked forward and used those stairs but weren't usually heading for the Spa/Theatre/Epicurian but instead wanted the buffet, kids areas and Live Lounge at the back so an aft cabin would have suited us better in hindsight.  We didn't hear of anyone with covid on board or see anyone disembarked.  Mask wearing dropped off a bit as the cruise progressed but we felt safe and comfortable on board as the ship was not full.  A totally different experience to MSC Virtuosa last summer, something we discussed with other families on board who had also sailed with MSC last year when P&O were not accepting children.  Our next cruise will be with Princess this summer, a line we haven't tried yet, so we are really excited.

[Vampiress88]

14 minutes ago, annarack said:

Have just been catching up on your blog and really enjoyed hearing how you found everything.  We were also on board, with the same age children, and we definitely saw you guys around.  We also attended the magic shows and family discos etc.  We thought the family entertainment provided, such as these events and the craft activities etc, were nice additions as the kids club hours were more restricted than we had been used to previously.  However 3 hours per day was fine for us and the children attended most of the sessions they were allocated, apart from those when we were exploring ashore as a family.

 

We thought the MDR menu was a little shorter than usual with the "always available" items having been mixed in with the daily specials.  We always found something we fancied on the menu and the children tended to pick a combination of foods from the main and kids menus.  The buffet was fine, although a little repetitive but we used it for breakfast and lunch most days, along with the pizza and burger stations poolside.

 

We had a balcony cabin, different to the photos above, but the layout wasn't great either.  The single sofa bed blocked the fridge and coffee making area when laid out.  Both this bed and the bunk above opened right across the balcony making it pretty inaccessible.  In the end the children shared the sofa bed and we asked the cabin steward to leave the bunk closed up each night.  The launderettes being closed was a shock but the cabin steward took our laundry daily and arranged to have it done free for us, so no issues.  We have however now upgraded our upcoming cruises on Azura and Ventura to the deluxe cabins with the double sofa bed and bath.  We thought the standard balcony cabins would be big enough now our children are a little older, but we found it cramped so are returning to the deluxe balcony cabins we we always used to book when our children were babies/toddlers.

 

We enjoyed all the ports and found plenty to do.  We had visited them all on previous cruises so did some activities we had done before and explored some new places.  We took the bus to the Oceanarium in Lisbon which was excellent.  We visited the Museum of Imagination in Malaga which was small but fun, then slowly walked back to the ship via the tropical gardens and beach.  In Cadiz we spent a couple of hours at the beach (La Caleta) which was lovely.  Looks like we visited many of the same places Vampiress, as we have very similar photos!  Every port stop included playgrounds and ice cream.  Gibraltar was our biggest day out, we walked to the cable car and went up to see the monkeys, then explored the Botanical Gardens where we went to the zoo and excellent playground.  We had lunch at a pizzeria then walked back via the Trafalgar Cemetery and Main Street to Casemates for an ice cream and cold drinks.

 

Our children liked the small playground and water splash area onboard although it was really aimed at toddlers.  We swam in the pool several times despite it being pretty chilly.  One evening whilst the children were at kids club we enjoyed a meal for two in Sindhu.  We really enjoyed it and with the a la carte pricing we could just order what we wanted rather than have to have a full blow out feast.  The lobster biryani was delicious.  We also made it to the Crow's Nest that night which was lovely.  Overall our onboard spend was low though, a couple of drinks each for us and maybe a mocktail for the children to share some evenings.  We bought a couple of toys in the shop but that was about it.  On sea days we played cards etc as a family in the atrium.

 

The ship seemed well staffed and service was good.  The quarantine areas on every deck (mid aft) were a pain though.  We were mid ship so only lifts, no stairs, and we couldn't walk to the back of the ship on any accommodation deck.  We could have walked forward and used those stairs but weren't usually heading for the Spa/Theatre/Epicurian but instead wanted the buffet, kids areas and Live Lounge at the back so an aft cabin would have suited us better in hindsight.  We didn't hear of anyone with covid on board or see anyone disembarked.  Mask wearing dropped off a bit as the cruise progressed but we felt safe and comfortable on board as the ship was not full.  A totally different experience to MSC Virtuosa last summer, something we discussed with other families on board who had also sailed with MSC last year when P&O were not accepting children.  Our next cruise will be with Princess this summer, a line we haven't tried yet, so we are really excited.

yes we definitely seemed to have the same experiences. 
the pool was cold. Kids were usually juddering after about 20mins so we’re in and out a lot. We kept walking to the front of the ship, walk down the stairs and all way across deck 7 to use the lifts at the back to get to most places. Definitely was a pain. 
 

we did notice that our kids would bump into their friends from kids club a lot and most of us with kids did end up at the same discos and also pool at same time etc on iona next and I don’t think it will feel as much like that with all the kids event which is a shame really as all the kids seems to enjoy it that way. 

Think with the food we are just picky 😂 

[Dermotsgirl]

5 hours ago, Edith1950 said:

Yes you’re right they were and I think still are the names for the buffet, but then I could be wrong. Now it’s bugging me as to what is was called especially as we went there quite a lot. 

I just had a look at some notes I made when I was on Azura in 2010. I wrote it down as Trattoria at Verona. I always enjoyed going there 

 

I used to like it when different ships had different restaurants. Like Ramblas on Ventura, Cafe Jardin on Oceana and Orchid on Arcadia. It gave individuality to each ship 

[JDB78]

Absolutely loved the blog as others have said it was almost like you'd took us with you.

 

Can I just ask 1 quick question (sorry if it's obvious) but what is "t-**** and tips" obviously underatand the tips but the 1st bit?

[wowzz]

8 minutes ago, JDB78 said:

Absolutely loved the blog as others have said it was almost like you'd took us with you.

 

Can I just ask 1 quick question (sorry if it's obvious) but what is "t-**** and tips" obviously underatand the tips but the 1st bit?

I wanted to ask that but was too embarrassed !

Edited May 1, 2022 by wowzz

[Vampiress88]

23 minutes ago, JDB78 said:

Absolutely loved the blog as others have said it was almost like you'd took us with you.

 

Can I just ask 1 quick question (sorry if it's obvious) but what is "t-**** and tips" obviously underatand the tips but the 1st bit?

oh gosh 😂 

its t-shirts. I’ve missed out the r somehow. 
 

I’ve gone back to edit and it won’t let me. 
 

we spent €25 euros on t-shirts, gave a street performer €2 and left €7 for the steward cos I felt bad for making him do the laundry.