Just off VENTURA

[Bin man]

A quick account of Ventura  to the cannaries. 

Arrived at 11.30 am Mayflower car booked in cps 

Retook photo no good the ones I took at home

Onboard for 12.00 pm  boarding time was 12.15

Scanned in at muster, then onto welcome onboard meal full meal

Cabins ready 2pm C deck forward balcony 

We had table for 2 club dinning in the Baytree window position 

Meals in the MDR were very good veg was cooked very well, and never hard

Breakfast in the Baytree most days straight in table for 2 

App never used the whole cruise for entertainment in theatre infact the icon was taken off the app

Entertainment not to bad 

No turndown service

No biscuits mentioned the fact to steward who kindly gave us some while stocks last

Missed lanzorroti due to bus strike stayed overnight in Grand cannaria

Seas fairly calm and temp 30 deg 

Work was going on revamping the Liguna burger bar round the pool very noisy 

Round the middle pool furniture had been changed no more loungers on the upper level

Last night onboard waiter and chef parade were back nice to see

Disembarkation time confirmed with reception 8am when letter arrived stated 9.15am 

Queried this was told to ignore as we were baltic just scribbled on letter 8.am to 8.15 glasshouse

We got off at 8am found bags altogether no customs out of cps by 8.20am and home by 1pm 240 miles with one stop 

Overall rating 8 out of 10 .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Gettingwarmer]

6 hours ago, Bin man said:

Round the middle pool furniture had been changed no more loungers on the upper level

Was this left empty or were they replaced with upright chairs?

[Selbourne]

10 hours ago, Bin man said:

Missed lanzorroti due to bus strike stayed overnight in Grand cannaria

Glad to hear that you had a good cruise and, in particular, that the Bay Tree restaurant was good, as we are on this cruise in a few weeks time and reverting to Club dining for the first time in many years after problems with Freedom dining on Britannia. 
 

Interesting about Lanzarote. I suspect that those who don’t do excursions (and therefore wouldn’t need a bus) would have been a bit miffed about that. However, relatives of ours did this cruise recently and said that Lanzarote had been a waste of time, as it was a Sunday and everything was closed. We are due in Lanzarote on a Sunday as well!

[gsmt47471015]

Thanks for a very concise review, interesting about the upper level sunbeds as its usually where we sit to avoid the "scrum "around the pool, Agree with Selbourne about the reason for missing Lanzarote ( not needing a bus) ,interesting also that some of his relatives found most of it closed on a Sunday as its a year round holiday destination ?

[kalos]

53 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Interesting about Lanzarote. I suspect that those who don’t do excursions (and therefore wouldn’t need a bus) would have been a bit miffed about that. However, relatives of ours did this cruise recently and said that Lanzarote had been a waste of time, as it was a Sunday and everything was closed. We are due in Lanzarote on a Sunday as well!

 

We used to holiday a lot in this area ,so when their was not a lot doing we would head for the airport beach at Matagorda.

Not everyone's cup of tea but if you like getting up close to flying aircraft ,Sunday is a good day to do this. 

https://youtu.be/93K815IA4Vo?si=9DSXzdYe6q_4CfOQ

 

[Selbourne]

15 minutes ago, kalos said:

 

We used to holiday a lot in this area ,so when their was not a lot doing we would head for the airport beach at Matagorda.

Not everyone's cup of tea but if you like getting up close to flying aircraft ,Sunday is a good day to do this. 

https://youtu.be/93K815IA4Vo?si=9DSXzdYe6q_4CfOQ

 

That looks fun. It definitely appeals to me, but I don’t think that Lady Selbourne would enjoy it, as I would want to stand directly underneath 😂 

 

We’ve only done one Canaries cruise before and that was when the kids were young, so we did tours everywhere (water park, camel rides, whale and dolphin watching, volcanic landscapes etc). This time, as it’s just the two of us, we intend to just wander independently. Our relatives said that two of the ports were naff - Lanzarote being one, but they couldn’t remember which the other one was. They thought it might have been La Palma?

[Josy1953]

21 minutes ago, gsmt47471015 said:

interesting also that some of his relatives found most of it closed on a Sunday as its a year round holiday destination ?

We have visited Lanzarote, Tenerife and Grand Canaria on Sundays and found that many shops etc are closed.  I think that it could be because they are Catholic.  My experience is that it is the same in many Catholic countries.

[Bin man]

The upper deck had a few soft chairs in groups of 4 and tables 3 tabletennis tables as usual and on the sides were  chairs with foot stools but looked sparse compared to having all loungers as they used to although with the chair and footstools it was easier to walk around 

[SarahHben]

2 hours ago, Selbourne said:

Glad to hear that you had a good cruise and, in particular, that the Bay Tree restaurant was good, as we are on this cruise in a few weeks time and reverting to Club dining for the first time in many years after problems with Freedom dining on Britannia. 
 

Interesting about Lanzarote. I suspect that those who don’t do excursions (and therefore wouldn’t need a bus) would have been a bit miffed about that. However, relatives of ours did this cruise recently and said that Lanzarote had been a waste of time, as it was a Sunday and everything was closed. We are due in Lanzarote on a Sunday as well!

We were in Lanzarote on a Sunday and did the excursion that went to Teguise & the volcanic garden, can’t remember the name. We really enjoyed both stops 

[Selbourne]

10 minutes ago, SarahHben said:

We were in Lanzarote on a Sunday and did the excursion that went to Teguise & the volcanic garden, can’t remember the name. We really enjoyed both stops 

Thanks Sarah. I’m sure that there are plenty of excursions of interest, but unfortunately my wife can’t get on to a coach so we are restricted to the very few (and very expensive) accessible tours. As a result we tend to just DIY these days. 

[SarahHben]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

Thanks Sarah. I’m sure that there are plenty of excursions of interest, but unfortunately my wife can’t get on to a coach so we are restricted to the very few (and very expensive) accessible tours. As a result we tend to just DIY these days. 

Ah ok, sorry I forgot that.

[Selbourne]

33 minutes ago, SarahHben said:

Ah ok, sorry I forgot that.

No need to apologise. I appreciated the advice none the less. 

[Ilovemygarden]

3 hours ago, Selbourne said:

That looks fun. It definitely appeals to me, but I don’t think that Lady Selbourne would enjoy it, as I would want to stand directly underneath 😂 

 

We’ve only done one Canaries cruise before and that was when the kids were young, so we did tours everywhere (water park, camel rides, whale and dolphin watching, volcanic landscapes etc). This time, as it’s just the two of us, we intend to just wander independently. Our relatives said that two of the ports were naff - Lanzarote being one, but they couldn’t remember which the other one was. They thought it might have been La Palma?

As posted on another thread I’ve just come back from the Canaries and have been another couple of times during the past year.  Arrecife is pretty dismal anyway so I’d just stay on board and enjoy the sunshine.  I found La Palma quite pretty with lots of small individual shops and pretty balconied buildings (it is a bit steep in places though.   I don’t know if you are stopping in Fuertaventura 

but if you are and head to the Main Street running parallel to the promenade, the locals put on a lovely wee dance show - at least they did on the days Azura stopped.

[Selbourne]

11 minutes ago, Ilovemygarden said:

As posted on another thread I’ve just come back from the Canaries and have been another couple of times during the past year.  Arrecife is pretty dismal anyway so I’d just stay on board and enjoy the sunshine.  I found La Palma quite pretty with lots of small individual shops and pretty balconied buildings (it is a bit steep in places though.   I don’t know if you are stopping in Fuertaventura 

but if you are and head to the Main Street running parallel to the promenade, the locals put on a lovely wee dance show - at least they did on the days Azura stopped.

Many thanks. We aren’t calling at Fuertaventura. We are doing Madeira, La Palma, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Arrecife de Lanzarote, Cadiz and Lisbon. Any other tips for DIY in the canary ports (with a wheelchair) much appreciated!

[zap99]

4 hours ago, kalos said:

 

We used to holiday a lot in this area ,so when their was not a lot doing we would head for the airport beach at Matagorda.

Not everyone's cup of tea but if you like getting up close to flying aircraft ,Sunday is a good day to do this. 

https://youtu.be/93K815IA4Vo?si=9DSXzdYe6q_4CfOQ

 

Wowzz recommended a bar out that way. Harry's bar?. Or perhaps that was his Venice watering hole. Where are you Wowzz ?, we miss you. Last sighting was from our hotel room window in Lanzarote.

[Harry Peterson]

32 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Many thanks. We aren’t calling at Fuertaventura. We are doing Madeira, La Palma, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Arrecife de Lanzarote, Cadiz and Lisbon. Any other tips for DIY in the canary ports (with a wheelchair) much appreciated!

Assuming good weather, all of them are delightful just to wander around in, with plenty of wheelchair-friendly walking.  Madeira has some incredible gardens, but wheelchair access might be problematic - it would need checking. Arrecife isn’t everyone’s first choice, but it’s still worth a bit of time, and there’s an excellent gelato and coffee place on the walk from the ship to the town if you’re into decent gelati! 

[Selbourne]

2 minutes ago, Harry Peterson said:

Assuming good weather, all of them are delightful just to wander around in, with plenty of wheelchair-friendly walking.  Madeira has some incredible gardens, but wheelchair access might be problematic - it would need checking. Arrecife isn’t everyone’s first choice, but it’s still worth a bit of time, and there’s an excellent gelato and coffee place on the walk from the ship to the town if you’re into decent gelati! 

I most certainly am! Thanks Harry. 

[Ilovemygarden]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

Many thanks. We aren’t calling at Fuertaventura. We are doing Madeira, La Palma, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Arrecife de Lanzarote, Cadiz and Lisbon. Any other tips for DIY in the canary ports (with a wheelchair) much appreciated!

That is exactly the itinerary Britannia had last week.   Make sure you get the lift at the port in Tenerife- it’s not really signposted but just go into the building (I think maybe used for ferry boarding) as you get to the end of the ship  Saves a very long trail round and round the walkway!  Gran Canaria is ok - once you’ve made your way across the main drag past the shopping centre go forward up the street, take a right and you should come to a nice promenade with a nice beach and lots of cafes etc.   Cadiz is very easy but there was a 40 minute shuttle last week into the centre of Lisbon.  There were other parts walkable from the port I think.   In Funchal it is a bit of a walk (but do-able) without the shuttle bus.   My favourite port of all with a walk to the market a must! 

[Eglesbrech]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

Many thanks. We aren’t calling at Fuertaventura. We are doing Madeira, La Palma, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Arrecife de Lanzarote, Cadiz and Lisbon. Any other tips for DIY in the canary ports (with a wheelchair) much appreciated!

 

Selbourne if you like Sherry there is a family run tavern about 10 minutes flat walk from the ship. All it serves is Sherry straight from the barrel and some small nibbles. The folks behind the bar are happy to tell you all about what you are having so it feels like a tasting experience. The name is below so you can look it up.
 

Taberna La Manzanilla Cadiz

Edited October 9, 2023 by Eglesbrech
Cadiz

[Snow Hill]

2 hours ago, Harry Peterson said:

Assuming good weather, all of them are delightful just to wander around in, with plenty of wheelchair-friendly walking.  Madeira has some incredible gardens, but wheelchair access might be problematic - it would need checking. Arrecife isn’t everyone’s first choice, but it’s still worth a bit of time, and there’s an excellent gelato and coffee place on the walk from the ship to the town if you’re into decent gelati! 

We found that place when we were in Arrecife a few years back, even though it was late December was still very warm, the gelato was very welcome. 

[zap99]

8 hours ago, Ilovemygarden said:

That is exactly the itinerary Britannia had last week.   Make sure you get the lift at the port in Tenerife- it’s not really signposted but just go into the building (I think maybe used for ferry boarding) as you get to the end of the ship  Saves a very long trail round and round the walkway!  Gran Canaria is ok - once you’ve made your way across the main drag past the shopping centre go forward up the street, take a right and you should come to a nice promenade with a nice beach and lots of cafes etc.   Cadiz is very easy but there was a 40 minute shuttle last week into the centre of Lisbon.  There were other parts walkable from the port I think.   In Funchal it is a bit of a walk (but do-able) without the shuttle bus.   My favourite port of all with a walk to the market a must! 

You promenade in GC sits above a beach that was voted one of the best in Europe. I can vouch for the coffee.