P&O Cruises - Ventura Ship Cruises Reviews

Thursday 9th Feb 2012

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Pando Cruises

Ventura

Venture On Ventura For A Caribbean Adventure

Venture on Ventura for a caribbean adventure

Reviewed By: Chappell, Grimsby on 7th Mar 2010
Cruise Line: P&O Cruises	Times cruised before: 10+
Cruise Ship: Ventura	Sailed: January, 2010
Destination: Caribbean	Age: 65+
Cabin: Balcony	Occasion: Family holiday

VENTURA CRUISE - CARIBBEAN 29TH JANUARY, 2010 This was our second cruise aboard the Ventura having been at the same time in 2009 we booked whilst on board then for the same cabin and same time this year. We were not disappointed with our cruise. It was in fact just as good as the previous year. The best part of flying to Barbados is the arrival at the airport and being able to board the coaches to be taken straight to the ship without having to pick up your baggage. The check in also is quite straight forward and does not take up too much time before you are going up the gangway and in the lift to your designated cabin. Our cabin steward was Moses, a very nice polite young man who kept our cabin spotless and was always there in the background should you want anything but he was never in the way. We choose a balcony cabin because there is always so much to see from it and you do not have to keep going up on deck to see the sights as they are "on your doorstep". Well worth the extra money. Some of the balcony cabins are overlooked from the decks above, but having been on the ship previously, we knew which of the decks to avoid and we chose a higher deck for this reason. We were assigned a table in the Bay Tree restaurant. The tables were always very well laid out and our waiters were really excellent and attentive and nothing was too much trouble for them. The wine waitress was also very good and was well informed about the wines. The food served in the restaurant on the Ventura was excellent with lots of choice and there were always about 4 different menus for you to choose from if you did not fancy anything from the main menu. If you did not happen to like something which you had ordered, the waiter was always happy for you to choose something else. We used the buffet dining for breakfast and lunch and again the choice was very good, in fact I would say there was too much to choose from. Sometimes, it was a little difficult to get a table but usually one became free without too much waiting. From our point of view, the dining was excellent. Drinks were not expensive and similar to those in a pub or restaurant at home. There was no service charge added to the bill as there is on some other cruise lines.They have now stopped people taking their own drinks on board so of course if you want to have a drink you have to pay the prices asked. We booked excursions before leaving home on several of the outings as sometimes they get booked up. They are quite expensive but they do take you to the best areas and some of the trips you would not be able to do without going with the organised ones. We had some lovely excursions and great fun on them. On sea days, it is rather more difficult to get a sun bed but as we were happy to "shade bathe" we managed o.k. The problem of towels on sun beds still persists. I do not see how they can stop it really. When we went for breakfast, often before 8.00 a,m, there were towels, books sun cream etc. etc. on beds at the edge of the pool. You nearly always find the same people every day on the front beds. They must get up in the middle of the night to "reserve" them. There were plenty of activities to occupy yourself with on sea days but we did not think that there were as many staff "doing things" this year as there had been in the past. However, we managed to enjoy our sailing days very much. The entertainment was quite good. There were a couple of excellent comedians which we enjoyed. The theatre filled up very early when they were on so you need to be there early to get a seat. This year we did not feel that we were pestered as much with the ship's photographers and when you said "no thank you" they did not bother you any further. The company shows were the same as the previous year. They were very good mostly but I do think that they might have changed them for a new year. They work very hard to produce these shows and sometimes do three shows in a day. The ports of call were also varied but personally we do like the Eastern Caribbean because they tend to be the rainforest islands with the most spectacular scenery. The flatter islands are not as interesting in my opinion. The Ventura is run to P & O's very high standard and it is our favourite Cruise line, having tried 4 others we still come back to P & O. Next year we are trying the new ship AZURA which we are hoping will be as good as the other P & O ships. We had another wonderful holiday on a wonderful ship which was problem free. Roll on the next one!
Quality of Food

Entertainment

Shore Excursions
River tubing in Granada - great fun
Staff
Very attentive waiters in Bay Tree-nothing too much trouble.
Children's Facilities	n/a

Onboard Activities

Cabins

Overall Rating

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Question by O\'Dea, Worsley (17 Mar 10 23:15) about this REVIEW

We are planning to book a cruise on the Ventura in Nov 2010 to the Caribbean for my husband\'s 50th. Please could you tell us which deck to go on;we want a deluxe balcony room, as we need the sofa bed for our young child, but we dont want to be necessarily overlooked on our balcony. Which is the best deck? We were looking at D deck? As it will be our first time cruising have you any tips? We have heard that you have to book the White room restaurant asap? Thanks in anticipation Kathy

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Answer by Chappell, Grimsby (20 Mar 10 20:11) to a QUESTION by O\'Dea (17 Mar 10 23:15)

Hi, Decks A and B are not overlooked - we go on deck B,but the decks lower than these are bigger but are overlooked. It depends whether you want a larger balcony but of course you need a cabin with a sofa bed so you may not get one on the upper decks - I am unsure. Yes you have to book in the speciality restaurants but we did not use them as the food was very good in the normal restaurants we did not feel the need to use them. I see it will be your first cruise and I do hope you have a wonderful time. The trouble is once you have been on a cruise you are \"hooked\". The Caribbean is our favourite destination and the islands are really gorgeous and the scenery outstanding. The people are lovely and so friendly. The ship is very large but you will soon find your way around I am sure. Have a wonderful time and start saving up for the next cruise!!!!!

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Comment by Hill, Moffat (07 Mar 10 17:57) about this REVIEW

thank you for your informative review. we are booked on Azura in may to the mediterranean. because ventura is basically the same ship it was good to read your review. I hope that we enjoy it as much as you have. We usually travel with cunard but decided to take a chance and widen our horizons. I recently saw a menu for Seventeen restaurant on Azura on a forum and it looked really good. I will certainly write a review when we return which I hope will be as interesting as yours.

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Comment by Chappell, Grimsby (08 Mar 10 11:05) about a COMMENT by Hill (07 Mar 10 17:57)

Thank you for your comment on the Ventura cruise. We hope you will enjoy your cruise on Azura. As you say it is virtually the same design although from what I hear, they have sorted out a few minor details which people did not like on the Ventura so hopefully it should be o.k. You cannot please everybody but I do think that sometimes people grumble without cause.

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