Pacific Eden Easter - food & wine cruise.

Hi, I posted the following review but thought I would also post here for anyone else that has concerns about up their coming Pacific Eden cruises.

We had a great time and enjoyed the ship. No complaints at all from me.

Review:

I loved every minute of our cruise and want to thank P&O for allowing Adelaide passengers to embark and disembark in our home port!

Checkin was painless and fast. Loads of volunteers to point you in the right direction and then plenty of P&O staff to check you in fast. We dropped our bags at the cabin, met our cabin steward (both were excellent and friendly) and then headed straight down to book the speciality restaurants. This was a full sailing. On the walk to the monkey bar, I keep taking photos and commenting on how beautiful the ship was. There were loads of different bars each with its own theme and all newly renovated. Loads of comfy chairs in all the bars to suit any size group. Lots of natural light with large windows.

We managed to get a table for 4 at Angelos & Salt but couldn't get into Dragon Lady.

There were lots of people lining up to register for the various food and wine events and am sure most would have been a sell out.

From here we headed up to the pool to grab some lunch. We walked through the pantry and I am a fan! We found a spot by the pool, again beautiful decor and did a bit of people watching, everyone seemed happy, as we waited for our hamburgers to be made at The Grill. Burgers were great ($3 each) and I was happy to see Carona beer available.

Muster was painless and out on the open deck. Then it was off to Oasis Pool (adults only area) for sail away. Loved this area and spent a lot of time here. Beautiful thick padded lounges, large cushions, private cabanas, relaxing/chill out music, no problems getting towels, a bar and also walk around bar tenders. From here you can watch the ships wake and also kids on "the edge" .

I'd like to thank the captain also for giving us such a smooth and scenic sailing. At night were were close to the Adelaide coast line so you could see lights the whole time and then during the days we were up and down the Yorke Peninsular with great views of land on either side of the ship all day and always changing. It was really nice to track backwards and forward along Kangaroo Island coast line. Bring banoculars!

There were loads of activities on all day and night and the ship never felt crowded. We attended one cooking demo which was very good, walked past trivia which was packed, played a bit of tennis (the court is now a volleyball court, but we could still hit over the net) this was a bnus for cruising from homeport we could bring our racquets. Attended one show, went to bianco party which was well attended, walked the open decks and spent loads of time at The Oasis Pool.

No complaints at all about our cabin, oceanvie on deck 5. Large, loads of hangers and draw space, big picture window and normal bathroom (shower over bath). No fridge but no big deal for a 3 night cruise.

Dining - we ate at Angelos the first night. Georgous looking restaurant, beautifully renovated. Food was all good, no problems with service. (No cover charge)

Salt was an absolute highlight for our entire party of four. Great service, nice restaurant, never felt rushed, waitress happy to chat and seem proud to be working there. She was very helpful with suggestions on food and explaining the menu. Large wine list and Salt felt private and quiet with a door at the enterance to stop outside noise.

Would highly recommend.

Waterfront restaurant was dinner on our last night. We went down at 7pm to get a buzzer for 8pm and it worked perfect. Not sure on why people complain about getting a buzzer. Went to a pre dinner show and then chilled at a bar listening to a guitar player. We were buzzed at 8.01pm and when we arrived we were shown straight to a table of four. Not made to share with strangers which was nice. Food was all good and hot, plenty of options including steak, another newly renovated restaurant with modern decor and various size tables and plenty of tables by the windows.

Pantry - ate here twice. No complaints from me. Maximum I ever saw in a line was 5-6 people and always moved fast. Loved the concept of staff serving you. I didn't find serving sizes small, loved the idea of sandwich and salad bars. I've read complaints about lack of seating at the pantry. I never saw this and we would take out meals out the back and sit in Oasis Pool area.

All in all I had a great time and I would cruise on Pacific Eden again. I'm looking forward to welcoming her back to Adelaide in 2017.