P&O Cruises Reviews 11,520

Just returned from a 7 day cruise on the Iona to the Fjords our first cruise, really enjoyed it the whole ship runs like a well oiled machine, the staff are fantastic as is the food , unfortunately the weather was rough so couldn’t get into two of the four ports but we still had a great time , Norway is stunning

Overall exceptionall. Great Experience on a first time cruise.

We have just enjoyed a week on Iona on the Norwegian Fiords holiday. We had a great time with good friends. Unfortunately due to the high winds we missed two ports which was a great shame but we can’t argue with the weather… The ship was very clean, modern and very spacious. The staff were lovely with the bar staff and dining room staff happy to discuss their family set up with many leaving family at home for 6 months whilst they work on the ship. We met all sorts of nationalities. The food was always excellent but I feel some were too large and I do wonder if maybe there could be a small and large option. From start to finish embarkation and disembarkation was worked like a well oiled cog. The public areas where the W/C’s are were often blocked in the evening but there are loo’s everywhere and were always immaculate with cleanliness!

P&O Iona Norwegian cruise was a total waste of money , no wonder they were rated 2nd from bottom of all the cruise lines by Which...

2 cancelled ports out of 4 planned stops for what turned out to be against very dubious weather forecasts.
With only the 2 stops P&O sailed us around for 5 solid days then back to Southampton basically on a very overcrowded ship.
Conveniently P&O have no liability for missed ports as detailed in their small print , but benefited from large savings on port costs no doubts.?
Shocking communication and couldn't care less attitude demonstrated by P&O, if you were in your cabin or sleeping at 7.30 am you would have missed at least one of the port cancellations!!.

Don't bank on visiting all the advertised ports if you book with P&O cruises, what a set of Cowboys!
Avoid them if you have any sense , we will be.

We took our first ever cruise on Iona, from Southampton to the Norwegian Fjords and had a brilliant time time. A few thoughts:

The ship IS your holiday - Before the cruise, I saw Iona simply as the mode of transport to take us on the holiday. As it turned out, the weather gods were against us and we only made 2 of the 4 ports, so the overwhelming sense of feeling shortchanged started to set in. Of course there is LOADS to do onboard so it wasn't an issue. But, my advice is to flip your approach to Iona being the star of the show and the ports are a bonus.

Don't worry about the lingo - Cruise cards, booking restaurants, MDRs, packages for this and that... what seems like a mindfield soon becomes second nature and the staff are incredibly helpful.

Everyone becomes the Captain - in the event of port cancelations, a large proportion of your fellow passengers miraculously acquire 30 years of maritime experience overnight and are willing to share across breakast tables how they would run the rest of the itinerary.

Mid-cruise guilt - This is a personal one and difficult to put across in words, but I couldn't help feeling just how much food, drink and general indulgence there is going on - a sense that a lot of very fortunate people are having an amazing time whilst waited on by a crew, 90%+ I imagine are on minimum wage. Be respectful and don't waste food.

You set the mood - The whole cruise thing is a shared experience, and the general vibe of the boat is palpable. You have the power to make someone's holiday. Keep smiling and give people time (Particularly at Breakfast)

Other observations in headine form:
The toilets are great - with a very powerful flush.
The laundrettes are worth a visit - less to do at home.
The duck thing becomes ridiculously addictive.
You will become an expert at opening teabag sachets.
You will never quite know which way your room is.

Happy sailing!

We are just back from a week on Iona. We went with friends and had a great time. The staff were amazing, the food was good. The ship was clean and was lovely to be in.

Love the Ventura, plenty of bars and entertainment venues

Lovely ship, good food and entertainment. The staff are excellent. They are very friendly and helpful. The flight with Tui was good and the cruise on Azura was great. The ship is easy to get around.

I love the ship Britannia as it has dance lessons on board and I have even done in the past a strictly come dancing cruise. I would love to try aurora as it is a smaller ship. There is a very good choice of food on board for me as a ceoliac and they do this very well for me preordering my food the day before.The stops in the Carribean are fabulous, and we sailed back to Southampton which avoided one ling flight. P&O also do a coach back to Gatwick to collect our car ! One fabulous holiday

This was our first cruise experience ever. It was on Azura with P&O Cruises and I must say, it was a very enjoyable experience. The staff were amazing as was the food, entertainment and general atmosphere. The shore experiences were amazing and were conducted by very knowledgeable tour guides. The other passengers were all very friendly as well. These all contributed to making a most memorable experience for us.

This was my first cruise as a wheelchair user. The adapted cabin was very well designed, everywhere on board was accessible including the public disabled toilets. Excellent standard of food and service. Really good value for money.

DO NOT BOOK! USE OTHER FIRMS.

We booked a cruise for 8 people with P&O Cruises 2 years in advance. They have completely taken a country out of our itinerary. They have not replaced it with like for like. And just said it is in there terms and conditions. They said it was due to no availability at the port. You would think they booked this prior to advertising. They will not give full refund we will lose our deposits. So basically you book a cruise and don't have a clue where you're going. Customer service is awful. Called many times to see if there was another cruise I could change to and we told someone will call me back and they never do. Or they will just send a copy and paste email. Don't waste your money.

Just back from Italy on Azura
What a wonderful week loved it all from the food to the scenery to the well organised trips couldn’t fault it well done p &o

We were a group of 26 people , the food was terrible , they were mixing veg and non veg food all the time
They have no idea of vegetarian food
We requested them to provide us with at least couple of veg dishes for dinner but there was no choice , you had to have one veg dish they had on their menu ,didn’t matter if you like it or not
No choice
Same food for 7 days
So No No will not go again

Recently sailed the Norwegian Fjords on the Arvia with P&O and would not recommend it.

The ship was far too overcrowded, there was no space and no peace to be found anywhere, unless you sat out on deck in the cold - which we did because this was preferable to the uncomfortable chairs around the lounges and bars in the ship.

We had daily difficulty in getting tables for meals and the entertainment, although this wasn't really an issue because the food in the included restaurants/buffet was definitely subpar and the entertainment was just awful, except the 710 club. All leftovers were regurgitated into new meals, which is good for reducing waste, yet there appeared to be a heavy indian influence with all the food, even the shepherds pie had spices in it! The meat was always dry and sandwiches stale. A good range of food on offer daily, but it quickly got tiresome when it all tasted the same. The supplement restaurants were also constantly fully-booked. Whenever we got the chance to eat off of the ship, we took it.

The hot tubs were all cold, the pools were either crammed with people or just closed. Yes, we went in school holidays, but have done so before with other cruise companies with no issue.

There was no peace in our room either, situated as we were close to the Theatre and Limelight Club. We were subjected to loud thumping music from 3pm until midnight, daily, for rehearsals and shows. Towards the end this had caused sleep deprivation that was starting to impact our mental health. I felt very sorry for the families on our floor.

This was the Arvia's first trip to the Norwegian Fjords, however it is clear the ship is too big and more suited to warmer climes. Absolutely do cruise on the Fjords, but on a different ship or with a different company. When talking to others on board it was clear the Iona is a well-respected ship, and smaller. This is evident too as the Arvia was unable to dock at Olden and therefore missed a port due to it's size and bad weather.

We saved for a very long time for this trip and it was a first week away together for 4 years, so we were bitterly disappointed that we had the experience we did. Luckily, the destinations more than made up for the let-down of the ship.

We’ve just returned from our cruise with P&O and overall it was a fantastic experience.
From the very beginning, everything felt well organised and easy, but what truly made the difference was the crew. Their professionalism, kindness, and attention to detail were outstanding. Special thanks to our cabin steward Richell, who kept everything spotless and perfectly arranged every single day.
We also had a great experience with a member of the reception team (Filipino gentleman) who went out of his way to personally check on us when there was a small system issue on the first evening. That level of care really stood out.
The food was excellent, especially the buffet - one of the best we’ve ever experienced, with a great variety and different dishes every day. The only minor downside was that finding a table at busy times could sometimes take a while.
Evening entertainment was another highlight - great variety and high quality. We especially enjoyed the pianist, Pulse band, juggler Jon Udry, the musicals, Remixed band, and a solo guitarist/singer - all fantastic.
Celebration Night was truly special - we felt appreciated and well looked after, and it created a memorable atmosphere.
Overall, a wonderful holiday that we will remember for a long time. We would definitely consider cruising with P&O again.

Had a brilliant 5 week cruise on Ventura.

My very first cruise which was definitely an experience. Would love to do more. Would highly recommend the Azura

Brilliant cruise , staff great and brilliant food. We didn't want to come home.

1st time on a curise and I choose britannia with it being the flag ship of the fleet, what a massive mistake!!
What was meant to be a holiday of a life time was a complete and utter disaster. I am a lady with mobility issues so I made sure assist was in place and excursions were all accessible. However my 1st excursion says it all. I was left on the dockside in the rain while the p&o tour manager shouted for all the ABLE BODIED people to follow him as he did not want to get wet, and ran into the shops. He then took the boat excursion out without me!! Obviously I complained and the staff on p&o thought a refund, £100 on board spend and a bunch of flowers was acceptable as an apology. However ever excursion had to be cancelled due to not being accessible which p&o said they were. So I travelled all the way over to Caribbean and saw nothing. I will never be able to afford this trip again.
On board brittania things were not better from carpet plates being raised so kept tripping on them, being served raw topside beef, being served strawberries which the staff knew I was allergic to as staff were told at the beginning of the meal, pool leaked into atrim so was closed for whole day, child was sick in the pool on wk 1 so staff told me to go to my cabin have a hot shower and wait for medical to come and see me. You guessed it, no medical staff turned up, so I could of been sat in my cabin for over a week waiting!! Several elderly people fell onboard breaking bones, some required stitches and several had black eyes and bruises. The entertainment was absolutely shocking, people either falling asleep or walking out during performances. Food in the buffet area was disgusting, completely undercooked and cold. There is rust all over the ship and she is dirty. There was also a few deaths on board and 4 people arrested for fighting, smoking in cabin and drugs. When it was disembarking, the night before p&o staff took my walking aid as assist was in place, again what a mess. Nobody came to collect me from the cabin, I rang reception several times and spoke to the manager who kept saying I had to walk to the other end of the ship. How?? They had taken my walking aid from me so this was not possible!! I was told they dont do assist.... funny that when it was all p&o paperwork that I filled in for assist and they brought me to the cabin on arrival. They left me in the cabin for hours before they sent up a wheelchair to assist me!!!! The whole set up is definitely not disabled friendly.
I'm so upset with my whole experience and will NEVER go with p&o again as my 1st experience of curising was completely ruined. I will never be able to afford to go again and if it hadn't of been for the lovely people I met and the wonderful cabin boy I would of come back with no positives at all