Britannia – My honest review part 2

Hopefully you will have read Britannia – My honest Review part 1 but if you haven’t then here it is , Britannia My Honest Review Part 1   even though I was only on board for 24 hours there is so much to cover that I wanted to share with you. Again this is my own personal opinion .

I spent the first few hours on board viewing the cabins  before finally making my way to Brodie’s bar for a well earned drink. I was surprised when I first encountered Brodie’s Bar as I was expecting  a more traditional English Pub like I had experienced on other ships,  it seemed to lack a little atmosphere and the decor was a little lack lustre I guess,  how wrong I was though as when I visited Brodie’s after dinner, it was a full to bursting. A band was playing on stage and it seemed to be ‘the’ meeting place after dinner for those who didn’t necessarily want to visit the nightclub or casino. I genuinely enjoyed myself and when the band finished at around 11.30 I was rather disappointed as I could quite happily have stayed there for longer. Brodie’s offers a menu of British Beers which have been sourced from 56 counties in the Uk.  53 British Ales, 4 British Ciders and 7 speciality beers, Britannia is hoping you try something different from your usual. Not a beer drinker myself I had the house wine, I compared this to drinking  a bottle of Sarson’s Vinegar so I kept to my Gin and Tonic after that. I have to say though apart from the wine I had a great night here.

It was formal night on board so after changing for dinner we all congregated in the Atrium, the social heart of the ship.  Again with music playing, champagne in hand, the Atrium really is stunning. You will have seen many of the photos of the Star Burst sculpture that forms the centre piece covering three decks and the pictures really do not do it justice. The Atrium is a bustle of activity at all times of day or night and was the perfect venue for a pre dinner drink. Fresh and fabulous in decor it certainly is. After a long day dinner was finally served.

We were invited to eat in the Oriental restaurant , the Main Dining Room where you sit at the same table every night either on first or second sitting. Due to how busy it was we were finally seated at the back of the restaurant , probably not the best spot as also under the air conditioning so was quite cold . A choice of red or white so we opted for both and I have to say the red was much nicer than the white, another vinegar moment, maybe it was because we were agents they offered the wine they did, not acceptable in my book but the red was lovely. The menu arrived and we could choose from Marco Pierre White’s menu or standard menu or you could quite happily choose from both . The food choice was great . I had the Asparagus, Soup and Strawberries from Marco’s menu and the steak from the standard menu. The steak wasn’t the best I have had to be truthful but everything else was absolutely delicious. A really lovely elegant dining room.

Fresh Asparagus Spears

Cream of Mushroom and White Wine Soup, tastes nicer than it looks. Was delicious

Prime Roast Forib of Beef, was ok put I probably wouldn’t order this again. The lobster my colleague had looked and tasted fabulous.

My colleague sampling the desserts, for work purposes you understand.  I had the strawberries in Prosecco. Mmmm

Unfortunately though I regret to say that the service in the Oriental took alot to be desired. The staff were unhelpful and sometimes rude . We had no salt on the table and after asking three times it was virtually thrown at us in the end. Their were no smiles from the waiters ,  overall the dining experience was not great. Was it because gratuities had been paid upfront so nobody was tipping them or was it because three days of Travel Agents had taken its toll. Possibly the latter but whatever the reason it didn’t justify the service.

After dinner and a fabulous visit to Brodie’s Bar as mentioned above we decided to put our dancing shoes on and visit the Live Lounge. Fantastic music of the 80’s to start with followed by more recent pop music. If you like to dance the night away, I would definitely recommend it here. The place was really busy and drinks were served to your table in record time. No queuing at the bar which was a definite plus. A fantastic end to an incredible day,  time to head back to the cabin. Beds all ready with a chocolate on the pillow :-).  a blissful nights sleep was had.

An early start in the morning and a trip to Horizon restaurant for a much needed cuppa. Hand basins on the left to wash your hands before entering the restaurant with a waiter also on hand to sanitize your hands before you go on. Great to see! Fresh clean and spacious with plenty of seating areas and plenty of choice of breakfast. I had to disembark for my flight so a quick coffee and a look around and I was on my way to the airport. I should have gone to Grab and Go, an amazing concept on Britannia and on other ships eg Aurora too, where you can just grab a selection of hot and cold food and drink and take it to a place of your choice, which in my case the back of a cab to the airport. Great idea!

Britannia Overview

So what were my overall thoughts on Britannia. She really is a stunningly beautiful ship. I would definitely recommend her if you like the British Classic that P&O stand for. You can see how much time and effort has been given to every intricate detail to make this ship stand out from the crowd. I congratulate P&O as they really seem to have pulled it out of the bag and I can already envisage her success in Southampton. The classic feel and finishing touches can somewhat give you a feeling of a Celebrity ship. For me the Cookery Club is a huge huge bonus and personally would definitely entice me on Britannia again, but being honest I think this would be the only reason . You could argue the fact that 24 hours on board wasn’t enough time to get a real feel of Britannia and this could possibly be the case, so much more to see and do and experience although my colleagues also on board did. I have many customers on the Maiden Voyage so I will be the first to call them on their return to see how they got on, from what I hear so far everyone is having the most amazing time on board.

I think we all have our favourites and although nothing personal against the Beautiful Britannia, for me and after sailing on the Queen Mary in December she was rather special. I absolutely loved every minute of my time on her as I did Quantum of the Seas and I know the Anthem will be just as special. I guess after cruising for all these years you start to realise what you prefer and like I have said it is all about personal preferences and having a great time with family and friends

I would like to personally thank P&O cruises for inviting me on board . Britannia is a stunning ship with impressive features and I know will do amazingly well in Southampton.

Cheers Holly