My day on board the Pullmantur Empress

Earlier this week I was fortunate enough to go down to Dover to visit the Pullmantur Empress for the day.  Not really knowing anything about Pullmantur I was interested to find out what they were like.

Pullmantur are a Spanish cruise line, they are owned by Royal Caribbean and their fleet of 4 ships is made up by two ex-Royal Caribbean and two ex-Celebrity ships.  The Empress is a mid-sized 1877 passenger ship.

Pullmantur are a 3* plus all-inclusive cruise line and they are definately Spanish, they are not trying to be English or American, imagine Pullmantur as a “floating Spain”, there will however be English speaking crew and annoucements (second to Spanish) on board.  Entertainment will be visually based so that it will appeal to everyone on board.

The above does not bother me in the slightest, in fact I like the Spanish people and I like the relaxed Spanish atmosphere on board the ship.  Of course I also enjoy British and American cruises but I also quite like the idea of being surrounded by Spanish people for a change, I can be surrounded by Brits at home whenever I like.

Pullmantur have a family friendly cruise line and they have an excellent family pricing policy, children (3rd and 4th cabin occupants up to and including the age of 16) will only pay for the flights and taxes and not be charged a cruise tariff.

There is just one formal night a week on board, the rest are smart casual.  The 2 main dinner seatings are either 715pm or 915pm.

The all-inclusive drinks are soft drinks, draught beer, house wine and house spirits.  If you want to drink something a bit more “up-market” then you can pay a little extra per drink.

Smoking is allowed on open deck but is not allowed on private balconies.

Gratuities are added on-board and are mandatory at 72 euros per adult per week, although these must be paid I think this is quite fair as with drinks being all inclusive there won’t be 15% charges added when you drink so these tips will cover cabin stewards, waiters and the bar staff.

I didn’t get chance to dine in the main restaurant, we just had lunch in the Panorama buffet.  I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by selection of food on offer, there was lots to choose from and a good variation of dishes.  There were plasic plates and cups/glasses but this wouldn’t bother me in a buffet restaurant.

I did also manage to see the alternative dining restaurant on the ship which is called “Wu” this is an Asian fusion and tapas venue.  There is a 20 euro per person supplement to eat here but what I had was of good quality and the restaurant is nicely done out.

All of the above is all well and good but it really boils down to what it costs, I was pleasantly surprised about this as I just got some late deal offers through.  There are 7nt Med sailings from Barcelona in October 2012 including flights and transfers from just £599 per person including a free upgrade to an outside cabin.  Now that is a bargain !!!

I took loads of pictures whilst I was on board the Empress and now that you have read what I have to say about Pullmantur you can have a look at what the ship is like to be on…..

Please click the pictures below to go to our Facebook album and you can view the full size pictures/