Cannot understand the negatives about Britannia

good review even though that size ship wouldn't tempt me. Tried Azura, didn't like it. One thing I hate (and we are all different) is flaming piped music! I don't need music to be playing everywhere I go. Don;t get me wrong, I love music, but I don't need it in the atrium, at the pool etc.

good review even though that size ship wouldn't tempt me. Tried Azura, didn't like it. One thing I hate (and we are all different) is flaming piped music! I don't need music to be playing everywhere I go. Don;t get me wrong, I love music, but I don't need it in the atrium, at the pool etc.

Agree with all you say except we tried Ventura & didn't like it.

Also have to say at my wife's "suggestion" we went round Britain on Brittania, I appreciate all the decor but titchy balcony and bathroom and no promanade deck I could go on but not again thank you

Thanks for review. Like others , still doesnt tempt me. Been on Azura, enjoyed but still a bit big for me.

Re the issue about deck space.....it doesnt take a maths wiz to work out that these new big ships have less outside space per passenger ...there is only a very similar area of outside deck space at the top of the ship however many decks are below it. And with no promenade deck, that reduces the outside space again. Tiny balconies mean more people want to go up on deck...

I know why am so looking forward to my upcoming cruise on Oriana - rust or no rust, there will be more than sufficient deck space!

We are just home from our Britannia cruise and have had a great fun cruise with our pals.

We were trying P&O yet again as we were cruising with many friends and wanted to see the new ship to see if it was gearing to a different market.

 

This is just our opinion and we all seek different things as priority for our cruises.

 

Well, in our opinion, the service was overall better than others in the fleet but we still had some serious service issues.

 

It was the most expensive cruise we have taken to date on the smallest balcony and the smallest bathroom so no we did not like the HC grade.

 

The food was much improved over Azura and Ventura but still needs attention in some areas.

 

The best dining experience by far was Sindhu

Limelight was fab for dining and content - worth the charge

Epicurian was disappointing

 

Crows Nest was lovely

Crystal room lovely

 

Music over the ship generally we felt was insufficient, the public rooms are great and the wide spaces are lovely but it lacked atrium music which would have filtered up the decks.

 

A lot of wasted seating space in the atrium

 

Too many passengers for the sun beds on the sea days. I didn't like getting up at 6.30 to get a bed!!!

 

Our pet hate is the casino/Brodies on all the ships. I simply cannot accept the casino on a formal night and sharing the karaoke at the same time!! - in our opinion the two areas should be quite separate. I would love to visit Brodies in my jeans and have a good laugh but not when I am in formal attire visiting the casino! Please could they just shut the door!

 

Well the positives are - great transfer into Barbados, new ship, great itinerary and much better food and service than the rest of the fleet. Lovely public areas.

 

All in all we have had a great time and this is just being picky and delivering our opinion. There are many cruise lines to choose from to try and get a suitable one for our tastes and needs.

You are right, it is opinions on your experiences.

Interesting, that on our sailing in October to the med our opinion was!!

The best dining experience by far was Epicurian

Limelight was poor for dining and content - not worth the charge

Sindhu was very good.

Was it down to our choices against yours, or is it all inconsistent??

I would like to resolve that question before we sail on her again in November.

I don't believe either of us are wrong or right, but clearly different opinions.

I have been of the impression that she would be too big of a ship for me however i find myself being swayed by this thread. She is sounding more and more attractive to be honest.

Jimmy I find that new ship with P&O tend to have this effect. A large number try them and say, not for us, this was wrong that was wrong.

Happened with Arcadia, Ventura and Azura. Now Britannia. Although she may have now got over that first wave of dislike.

I always advise that there is only one person who can tell if they like a ship and that is the person themselves.

I my opinion, and of course when I give one I say so, she is a wonderful ship. Clearly she has been designed with a theme and it runs all through the ship.

But do not take my word go and try her.

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We have sailed on Britannia twice once on the maiden and once since and we thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of the ship on both occasions. We like the varying choice of entertainment and restaurants that you get on the larger ships as compared to smaller ships but that is only our opinion.

We've got two sets of friends we cruise with regularly and neither of them will go back on Britannia. They find it very hard to describe what it is they don't like and all they can say is they find the atmosphere too 'cold' and impersonal compared to other ships. Funnily enough, they both say exactly the same....... and don't know each other. They're all very regular P&O cruisers and love all the ships - except Britannia.

Me? My next cruise is on Britannia in 4 weeks :D

We were on the Britannia Christmas cruise and enjoyed every part of it, we have sailed on Ventura, Azura and Adonia as well in the past and do not recognise many of the poor comments on here.

We like the newer ships because we need an accessible cabin and want good wheelchair facilities, but for us Britannia ranks 3rd below Azura and Ventura, the main reasons are:-

The minuscule balconies, we like to use them on sea days when the sun bathing decks can be crowded, but they are just too small.

The lifts, I have not measured them but going on how difficult it is to spin the wheelchair around, I think they are quite a bit smaller than Az/Vent, and there are no more to cope with the 600 extra passengers and no central staircase on the passenger decks.

Very limited sitting space on the prom deck and only in the stern area.

Dull and drab Atrium with soulless seating area,, for comparison check out any Royal , Regal or Majestic Princess you tube videos to see just what could have been done with it.

Crows nest forward window frames are way too large and restrict anything but your view directly ahead, again check out Celebrity's Solstice class Sky Lounge on you tube, much smaller frames giving a far airier view.

It does have some good points, bigger and better planned buffet serveries, pleasant MDR's which are quieter because of the hidden serving areas, Serenity pool, lots of garden style lounge furniture, but not enough good points to put it ahead of the Azura and Ventura.

I think that we are learning that each ship has its own personality! I can see why they call them 'she'!

We look back on each cruise listed below fondly.

Each ship is special in some way - each one has something we loved ... and something that annoyed us! Then again, I imagine that every ship is like Marmite - you love it or hate it.

Having said that, we really don't fancy the new P&O 5,000 passenger ship and know that it is too big for us. Rather than go and moan, we will avoid it.

PS Britannia --- loved our aft cabin with large balcony so much that we are going back :)

We are due to sail on Britannia in February and the reason we chose P&O was the easy travel to Barbados as I was put off the other cruises as they sail from USA for the Caribbean and you don't get as many port stops .

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No ship is perfect. I dislike the lack of a prom deck on Britannia, the lack of a Crows Nest on Azura and Ventura, the lack of modern facilities and choices (particularly Select Dining restaurants) on the smaller ships. But I don't dislike any. As others have said, it's personal choice. For what it's worth, of the P&O ships we have cruised on so far my pecking order would be;

1) Britannia

2) Oriana

3) Oceana

4) Ventura

5) Azura

We are on Aurora for the first time on Saturday and have a cruise booked on Arcadia for next year, so will see where they slot in to the pecking order.

Britannia is currently in top spot due to cabin facilities (fresh and modern, excellent interactive large screen TV's with HD quality, glass shower doors), space (plenty to explore and feels no busier than the smaller ships) and Select Dining Restaurants (we have found Epicurean, Sindhu and Beach House to be better than the versions on other P&O ships). She is a true flagship and those who dismiss her without trying her are missing a treat.

No ship is perfect. I dislike the lack of a prom deck on Britannia, the lack of a Crows Nest on Azura and Ventura, the lack of modern facilities and choices (particularly Select Dining restaurants) on the smaller ships. But I don't dislike any. As others have said, it's personal choice. For what it's worth, of the P&O ships we have cruised on so far my pecking order would be;

 

1) Britannia

2) Oriana

3) Oceana

4) Ventura

5) Azura

 

We are on Aurora for the first time on Saturday and have a cruise booked on Arcadia for next year, so will see where they slot in to the pecking order.

 

Britannia is currently in top spot due to cabin facilities (fresh and modern, excellent interactive large screen TV's with HD quality, glass shower doors), space (plenty to explore and feels no busier than the smaller ships) and Select Dining Restaurants (we have found Epicurean, Sindhu and Beach House to be better than the versions on other P&O ships). She is a true flagship and those who dismiss her without trying her are missing a treat.

Up to a point agree with you but the bathrooms are so small, I am 6ft and had to stand outside the bathroom to get properly dried but as stated previously tiny balconies no Prom deck and no Crows Nest far outweigh the better tvs etc.

Another point when we were on 2/3 evenings if we went to the theatre for the early show we would miss something that started halfway through at the other end of the ship.

FWIW the only pando ships we have not been on are Adonia and Oceana

1 Acardia

2 Azura

3 Oriana

4 Aurora

5 Ventura

No good asking me which one I like best as I like them all.

Azura = 1

Arcadia = 1

Aurora = 1

Britannia = 1

Oceana = 1

Oriana = 1

Ventura =1

Each ship has its own + points. As my OH likes the entertainment we tend to go for the bigger ones as there is more venues available. We always say we love the one we are on so for a short while that will be Crown Princess.

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I agree with daiB and when we join Britannia in a few weeks for the first time, we'll take her as we find her and enjoy our cruise day by day. Lots to see and do on board and in the ports and hopefully by the end of the first week, we'll be finding our way around and have the timing down to a T for dinner to theatre to live lounge or crows nest and still manage a seat...! We both need to relax and recharge our batteries so will enjoy our hols and just smile!

From our past cruises with P&O our preference would be as follows:-

1) Britannia

2) Azura

3) Arcadia

4) Aurora

5) Oceana

6) Ventura

7) Oriana

We've got two sets of friends we cruise with regularly and neither of them will go back on Britannia. They find it very hard to describe what it is they don't like and all they can say is they find the atmosphere too 'cold' and impersonal compared to other ships. Funnily enough, they both say exactly the same....... and don't know each other.

That's interesting tartanexile, that was my overriding impression too. I was very excited to be going on P&O's new ship in her maiden Caribbean season, not bothered about the larger size because she's not that much bigger that Azura, which I like, but...

Don't get me wrong, we had a fab holiday and if the price and itinerary were right I'd sail on her again, but she wouldn't be my first choice. Overall the entertainment was fab, the buffet layout a big improvement, MDR food OK but that was all, Beach House lovely, Glasshouse a big disappointment compared to Azura, but I just thought the ship and particularly the Atrium, was soulless. Interestingly teenage son loved her, daughter not so keen, prefers Azura. It's good the CC community are all different and like different things - life would be very boring otherwise!

From our past cruises with P&O our preference would be as follows:-

 

1) Britannia

2) Azura

3) Arcadia

4) Aurora

5) Oceana

6) Ventura

7) Oriana

Tom, your rating of Azura and Ventura I find somewhat perverse. I accept that Azura is newer and therefore probably in better shape, but apart from the seascreen on one and the covered pool on the other they are almost identical.

I can only assume that you were unlucky with the staff on Ventura, otherwise the experience should have been much closer.

We have sailed on both and are happy to cruise on either of them if the itinerary and price is right.

Up to a point agree with you but the bathrooms are so small, I am 6ft and had to stand outside the bathroom to get properly dried but as stated previously tiny balconies no Prom deck and no Crows Nest far outweigh the better tvs etc.

Another point when we were on 2/3 evenings if we went to the theatre for the early show we would miss something that started halfway through at the other end of the ship.

 

FWIW the only pando ships we have not been on are Adonia and Oceana

 

1 Acardia

2 Azura

3 Oriana

4 Aurora

5 Ventura

But Britannia DOES have a Crows Nest! I agree, however, that the balconies are poor and the lack of a promenade deck is a major design flaw as far as the British market is concerned. Even with those major flaws, I still think she provides the best overall cruise experience. As for bathrooms, I don't believe that they are smaller on Britannia. The bathroom in our suite on Britannia was much bigger than in the Penthouse Suite we had on Ventura. And the bathroom and shower in our daughters adjoining standard balcony cabin seemed as big, if not slightly bigger, than in similar cabins throughout the rest of the fleet (all of which are pretty small). The glass door certainly makes the shower more useable. We are quite influenced by the superb Select Dining restaurants on Britannia, which we have found to be better than their counterparts on other ships. We are back on her for two weeks in the summer, so will provide a full review afterwards when we establish whether standards are being maintained or falling.

Tom, your rating of Azura and Ventura I find somewhat perverse. I accept that Azura is newer and therefore probably in better shape, but apart from the seascreen on one and the covered pool on the other they are almost identical.

I can only assume that you were unlucky with the staff on Ventura, otherwise the experience should have been much closer.

We have sailed on both and are happy to cruise on either of them if the itinerary and price is right.

We did Ventura maiden cruise and although we enjoyed the cruise we have not sailed on her since. We did Azura maiden cruise and then sailed on her 4 more times as we used to love Sindhu, Glass House and XV11 which at the time were not available on any other ship and don't ask me why just preferred the ship and the atmosphere.

They might be very similar now but other than the build Azura and Ventura were very different when they were first launched.

With reference to your comment and the use of the word "perverse" I find it a very insulting and offensive comment to make.

We did Ventura maiden cruise and although we enjoyed the cruise we have not sailed on her since. We did Azura maiden cruise and then sailed on her 4 more times as we used to love Sindhu, Glass House and XV11 which at the time were not available on any other ship and don't ask me why just preferred the ship and the atmosphere.

 

They might be very similar now but other than the build Azura and Ventura were very different when they were first launched.

I can quite understand why people come to conclusions such as this. We didn't particularly like Azura, but went on Ventura the year after and preferred the latter. We struggled to articulate why. The lack of a Crows Nest on both is a major negative for me though as it is our favourite bar on any ship that has one - which includes Britannia!

We did Ventura maiden cruise and although we enjoyed the cruise we have not sailed on her since. We did Azura maiden cruise and then sailed on her 4 more times as we used to love Sindhu, Glass House and XV11 which at the time were not available on any other ship and don't ask me why just preferred the ship and the atmosphere.

 

They might be very similar now but other than the build Azura and Ventura were very different when they were first launched.

 

With reference to your comment and the use of the word "perverse" I find it a very insulting and offensive comment to make.

My sincere apologies MT, I was only intending to convey that I felt your rating was illogical in my opinion because of their many similarities. But my comment was in no way intended to be insulting.

My sincere apologies MT, I was only intending to convey that I felt your rating was illogical in my opinion because of their many similarities. But my comment was in no way intended to be insulting.

Thank you for your apology and accept it gratefully with no intentions on your part.

Our main reason why we cruise is the food and perhaps to put a bit more understanding on our ratings on Ventura they had White Room (Marco Pierre White) restaurant which we didn't enjoy and much preferred XV11 which in our opinion is the nicest restaurant setting and best food we have ever had on a P&O cruise. Glass House on Azura which at the time they didn't have on Ventura as it was a Tapas bar and there was not a Sindhu on Ventura and Indian is our favourite type of food

We did Ventura maiden cruise and although we enjoyed the cruise we have not sailed on her since. We did Azura maiden cruise and then sailed on her 4 more times as we used to love Sindhu, Glass House and XV11 which at the time were not available on any other ship and don't ask me why just preferred the ship and the atmosphere.

 

They might be very similar now but other than the build Azura and Ventura were very different when they were first launched.

 

With reference to your comment and the use of the word "perverse" I find it a very insulting and offensive comment to make.

Don't be insulted; I think he meant 'inverse'.

Don't be insulted; I think he meant 'inverse'.

Never really enjoyed poetry, but I don't want to be seen as too contrary.:)