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Ventura

7 of 9 P & O ships

At 115,000 tons and some 290 meters long, Ventura is the largest superliner ever built for the British market. Her vast scale and acres of deck space have allowed her designers a remarkable opportunity in which to introduce new features, new additions and new experiences, which will appeal to all the family.

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193 Reviews

Traveller Rating

  • Excellent
    71
  • Very Good
    64
  • Good
    38
  • Average
    14
  • Poor
    6

Review Overview

  • Cleanliness
  • Entertainment
  • Food
  • Service
SCRIVENER
Pricing of drinks
5 years 8 months ago
Just back from Cruise be aware where you order you drinks on the ship

The red bar a Smirnoff and tonic was £4.60

The Taaamarind club for the same drink was £7.50
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Travel operator: Bar head travel

Needs a make over and unreliable
5 years 10 months ago
Left Southampton with engine fault which developed to ago slow missed a port and the ship is tired and dated and unreliable very poor and very expensive
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Travel operator: Thomas cook

Tim Worrall
Needs a make over and unreliable
5 years 10 months ago
This ship is looking tired now especially my cabin on deck A it needs a tidy up also we had an engine /drive fault which I understand they new about before leaving Southampton which we sailed away with 1engine so missed out on going to Oporto and stayed in lisbon for repairs over night 4 days at sea and 3ports on a 7 day cruise don't expect this unreliability from p&0 very poor c ruise 2 dissapointed customers booked on the Britania in August but won't be going with p&0 . again these cruises as not cheap so I expect reliability and cabin as nice as my front room.
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Travel operator: Thomas cook

Rose Mclauchlan
A bit disappointed
5 years 11 months ago
This was our first time on Ventura although we have cruised twice before with P&O and twice with different companies.

As usual embarkation was efficient and trouble free.

We found some areas of the ship looked a little tired and badly in need of some TCL.
our cabin was clean and looked after by our steward who was cheerful and as always extremely helpful.

The Saffron dining room staff were wonderful and the food was really great but not as exceptional as previous experiences.

We didn't get to the theatre too often as the timings clashed with meal times. The shows we did see were good and the Headliners always give their best.
We had the most wonderful experience in Sinduh where the attention to detail and food quality was outstanding.

Sadly didn't find the entertainment staff overly helpful and lacked information.
We will cruise again but unlikely to chose Ventura.

MR Mcl
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KTB
Fantastic first cruise
7 years 6 months ago
A wonderful holiday. Gave our luggage to our coach driver and next time we saw it was in our cabin. Inside cabin adequate for our needs to sleep n shower. Clean well replenished with tea coffee biscuits, clean towels, spent most of time on deck. Sunloungers were a bit close together, I like a bit if space when I'm about to unvale my pale flesh!

All crew work tirelessly to look after you, are polite not over familiar. We weren't hassled at all to buy drinks or use the specialist restaurants . No pressure to go on excursions. The ship was clean tidy with a great emphasis on hygiene, gel dispensers outside restaurants and on returning on board in ports.

Food was excellent, you could eat morning noon afternoon evening and think there was late buffet if you were greedy enough. Apparently you gain average of 7-10lb, well if you eat at every opportunity its possible. We were sensible ate when hungry only gained couple of lbs. Spa on board, bit pricey but if you are into all that, and its something to do maybe first and last day at sea when the sun doesn't shine.

Entertainment overall very good, different acts singers, groups comedian's, good range to suit different tastes. Cash free environment. You have a card to purchase everything on board and can keep a check on interactive TV on how much your accumulative bill is.

Loved the atmosphere of the sail away as we left each port, and were fortunate enough to see Brittania leaving Lisbon on her way home as we left for the canaries'.

Will definitely cruise again. You can do as much or as little as you want!

Lessons learnt...warmer clothes for first and last days at sea.
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Travel operator: Co-op

Recommended
7 years 10 months ago
Food was good, drinks service was bad and we waited 15 minutes for a drink most of the time. The entertainment very poor but, Jimmy James was the only good entertainment. Also, our cabin toilet got blocked!
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Travel operator: Thomas cook

Dave E
FIrst and Last!
8 years 2 months ago
First time with p&o and the last.
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David Bird
Poor entertainment
9 years 3 months ago
We have been on many cruises with a number of companies, this was our first, and last with P&O.

We have found cruise entertainment to be generally of high quality but this is clearly where P&O cut costs. Very little entertainment during the day and the quality and choice in the evening was not much better. On one evening the entertainment was a film, yes that's correct, a film. On another day it was a Dusty Springfield tribute who later in the week returned as a Lulu tribute. She bore no comparison to either. To set a comparison the entertainment was at a level that would expect from a local town talent show.
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Patricia Graham
Wonderful
9 years 3 months ago
My friend and I both agree that this was a wonderful holiday. It was our first time cruising. The ship was first class as was the service, food and entertainment. The Carribean was lovely with so much to see and do. It was fantastic that suitcases were taken from the airport and we did not see them until they arrived on the ship - outside our cabin door and the same on the journey back home.

I have been raving about the holiday since getting back home and have told friends and family and whoever else would listen that cruising is the life. Thank you P&O.
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Recommended
Stephen Cassidy
Standards Have Plumetted
9 years 3 months ago
There is absolutely nothing special about a P&O Cruise anymore. The standards have plummeted to a low that it is unacceptable in view of the claims made in P&O Cruise Brochures. For a company that sells its cruises on The Fine Dining experience. Silver Service has gone, but they won't tell you. Wine waiters have an impossible work load, not leaving their previous duty until they are already required for Dinner Service and then too many tables. It's blatantly obvious then that most tables are not even going to get their wine order taken until after they have started eating and most will not get their wine until they have started main course. This is far from Fine Dining and nothing like the claims made in the brochure about attention to detail to the whole food and beverage experience.

Dress Codes are now ignored with people without shirts regularly ignored by Crew in Self Service Restaurants. Has anybody considered that a dress code requiring a shirt in a restaurant might actually have something to do with hygiene? I don't suppose for a minute that chefs are excused whites in the kitchens and are therefore allowed to drip sweat over food. Why then should a customer be allowed to visit the buffets without a shirt?

Claims in the brochure about Ventura having places where you can find peace and relaxation are simply untrue unless you retreat to your cabin. Firstly Agadoo type music is played all day on the top decks at such a high volume that it is difficult to talk and impossible to ignore. Secondly, you are hounded by up selling as soon as you sit down. Previously, the restaurants that require a supplement to be paid, were only sold by crew outside of these restaurants, now crew are patrolling the decks all day approaching customers that are attempting to relax quietly. On top of this drinks stewards are noticeably more pro-active sometimes approaching you before your empty glass even touches the table, and photographers approaching you three times as you leave the ship in port, within hearing of when you politely refused their colleague. Yes, you could simply say no but we go on holiday to relax and the brochure does claim that this is possible.

This is just a small part of a lengthy complaint that has been sent to P&O.
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