Sue,

Never been on Azura but all P&O ships all have the same rules.

With Freedom dining the Maitre d' allocates your table based on the number in your party. He has a computer which shows tables and current allocations and fills a few at a time.

When you arrive he asks how many there are of you and allocates a table until it is full and you may have a short wait whilst your table fills, but no longer than a couple of minutes. If you ask for a table for two and the dont have it they will give you a pager and you can wander off.

One thing freedom isn't is rushed. by that I mean you take as long as the meal takes, if you opt for club the 6:30 sitting needs to be finished eating and out of the dining room before the 8:30 sitting.

Another thing to bear in mind is that you cannot change between club and freedom once the decision is made.

Drinks are normally the same as you would pay in your local pub in UK, smoking is allowed on certain parts of the ship, ie balconies, some areas on deck but there is no smoking allowed inside.

thank you peter d sounds good to me glad i can smoke on the balcony

I know this a fairly old post, but for anyone reviewing P & O and asking about dining, one of the above posts is incorrect. If you book club dining, you can opt out once onboard and go to the freedom dining restaurants. All they ask is that you let your waiter in your club dining venue know that you won't be present that evening.