ventura port change!

[charben]

Going to med in march with Ventura,have just received tickets and find that La Rochelle France has been changed to Le Verdon France. Have rang P&O asking for info on this port as there is nothing on the P&O site or in brochure. Needless to say P&O where NO USE:mad:, was told to search internet! Has anyone been there and are the trips any good, have done some searching and it looks awful.:cool:

[caranc]

It has also been changed on the oceana cruise in April. I looked at the excursions and some were still the same as for la Rochelle such as Cognac, You can also go into Bordeaux but a 1 1/2 hour drive. They mentioned a town called sadoc or sedoc??? for shopping sightseeing but not sure how far away that is?

I can let you know in April depending when you are going, I assume it will not be as good as La Rochelle which is obviouslythe first choice for cruise ships although someone pointed me in the direction of a fred olson site which features Le Verdon.

[chirpy007]

I must be on the same cruise, l havent had my tickets yet :confused::confused:. They wrote to me a couple of weeks ago about the changes. There are a few posts on here about Le Verdon but the excursions dont appeal to us with a 14 year old. Im hoping that buses are laid on in all ports (where needed). There doesnt seem to be much going on at Le Verdon.

[MattyBarlow]

If you get the chance, pop over to Royan. Lovely rivieria type town. Im wondering if the change in ports is something to do with the strikes that seem to hit La Palice (spelling wrong), the port for La Rochelle. We went there last April. They didnt want to let Oceana in, we eventually docked but left a few hours later as they didnt want to let anyone of the ship. Its a real dive there as well.

[Britboys]

I expect that you are right about the reason Matty. P&O have had a lot of Port Calls to La Pallice disrupted due to French Strikes - they must be fed up with it all and I heard on the radio this morning that there are more port strikes happening now.

[charben]

thank you all for your posts, the information is much appreciated. chirpy hope to see you on ventura .

[chirpy007]

thank you all for your posts, the information is much appreciated. chirpy hope to see you on ventura .

Indeed :D:D My tickets still havent come but l have had a personalised brochure and questionare on excursions.:confused:

[charben]

hi chirpy have not received tickets just a letter of confirmation. looking forward to receiving brochure and questionnaire. is Le Verdon as boring as I think it is? my husband said that he is staying on the boat as he cant face another trip to a wine merchant.

[chirpy007]

hi chirpy have not received tickets just a letter of confirmation. looking forward to receiving brochure and questionnaire. is Le Verdon as boring as I think it is? my husband said that he is staying on the boat as he cant face another trip to a wine merchant.

 

 

I think it is :( l dont fancy wine tasting at all so l'll have to see if there is anything else to do :D

[chirpy007]

Charben...hijacked from the P&O fourms, hopefully there will be a bus so might be worth a ramble :D

 

When I was there on QE2 there was a free shuttle bus to Soulac sur Mer which is a pretty French seaside resort with a fabulous beach. A lovely place to just sit and enjoy a coffee outdoors and lap up the atmosphere. Le Verdon itself is a container port.

 

 

Bit disappointed about La Rochelle as it's so pretty and atmospheric, but new experiences are always good to have and Le Verdon and Soulac sur Mer will be something different for us. Looking at various maps, it seems that Royan is only a 30 minute ferry ride away - is it worth it? I'm told it is similar to La Rochelle???

 

 

Jules, the shops at Soulac are mostly souvenir type shops, although there was a wonderful second hand book shop - in French of course! We were there in late October, so many were shut of course. In summer it could be better. If you can get a guide book (I bought one at the second hand book shop) the town is famous for its Art Nouveau summer villas which were lovely. Also the church was beautiful. It is very old, was part of a monastery complex and when I visited, a plainsong chant was being played in the background - magic.

 

 

[lostinvegas]

The inevitable has happened we got our letter this morning. 2 weeks to go and they have told us were not going to Aruba anymore and were going to Antigua instead. I cannot say it bothers me too much as I have never been to the Carribean before. I am a little disapointed because Aruba was one of the destinations i was looking forward to but its no major drama.

 

Its a bit annoying that they have given us such late notice. The reason given in the letter is as follows:

 

"P&O cruises have recently been made aware of a large number of other ships now confirmed in port that day. This will inevitably impact your experience ashore and, as a result, P&O cruises have been advised not to call into Aruba as originally scheduled"

 

Seems a bit strange this letter has come so late as I was aware of a number of other ships in ports months ago reading various websites.

 

It will be interesting to see if Antigua is nice a quiet.

 

Chris

[The Mommy]

Hi Chris

We haven't got a letter on this subject but I am delighted if we do. We have only been to Antigua once and we thought it was fantastic. Aruba is lovely as well but I will be thrilled at this change. We have been 5 times to the Caribbean and all the islands have something to offer so I know you will have a great time.

Gail

[tom_uk]

If you get the chance, pop over to Royan. Lovely rivieria type town.

 

I visited Royan briefly about 15 years or more ago: we were on a family holiday at a Haven caravan park at La Palmyre, just a bit further up the coast. We went to Royan one morning, and (as I recall) enjoyed it. But I don't have very clear memories.

 

However, and of interest to this group, it turns out that there are fast, frequent & cheap ferries from Le Verdon over to Royan. Here's a link to a webpage about them.

http://www.bernezac.com/passages_eau_royan_verdon_uk.htm

 

Follow links from this page to more information about Royan.

[snikrup]

With Regards to the cancellation of La Rochelle, I can't say I am surprised that it was cancelled. I worked on Ventura last year for six months and I think on four of the cruises we were due to dock in La Rochelle. The first time, we docked but they wouldn't let us off the ship (crew or passengers). We left at lunchtime. The other times we found out in the morning that we had been refused entry - again it was due to French Strikes. We had a couple of problems docking at Brest too for the same reason. It is frustrating I grant you but it is more frustrating when you are on board as a passenger. I remember one cruise where we had four ports, three out of the four were cancelled - needless to say passengers were not amused!

[kaokilodge]

Hello to you all,

I have been reading all your posts about la Rochelle cancellations and I am sorry to say very few cruises will stop there this year. I am french scottish and live in le verdon sur mer . I think we have 12 liners plannedthis years!! Due to technical reasons the boat has to arrive in our freight terminal and throughout the years it will not even be possible to go to Bordeaux by boat.:o BUT believe me!!! there are lots to do from here . Indeed Soulac is a wonderful little seaside resort with shops,and great architectural background. Bordeaux is 1 1/2 drive away LAcanau golf and surf resort is one hour away and of course there are wonderful wineyards and chateaux to visit not far from here at all ( MEDOC)! But if you wish to stay local why not help us and tell us what you'de like to do. We've been thinking of lots of things. Why not visit our lighthouses : do you know we host the "versailles of the sea" in the VErdon, why not visit the Estuary and called in the little harbours with a much smaller boat eating out in small quaint french restaurants and visit the vineyards? or how would you like to just step off the boat walk on the beach and stroll around the area ? we could also organize a mix bitween le verdon and crossing over to Royan which is good for shopping and eating out. LE VErdon is proud to have more than 11km sandy beaches, and wonderful forest so why not just take a bike and enjoy we'd be glad to help with any idea if you'd let us know !!! best regards to you all and keep me informed !!