Overall impression is a good but confusing ship. By confusing I mean on the main entertainment decks 7 & 8 you have to weave from side to side to get anywhere. It’s also too easy to pick the wrong side! The announcements from the bridge were not easy to hear as the speaker system was very hit and miss. The cabin is the best place to hear as long as you either have the TV switched on or they decide to broadcast to the cabins. We had a balcony cabin which was clean and of a good size. Food is of a high quality with plenty of choice and locations. The Captain, Neil Turnbull, has a great sense of humour. I enjoyed his interview.
The ports visited were well chosen and the scenery was spectacular. Most locals spoke good English and were very welcoming. However, there were no port lectures. To find out more you had to watch the cabin TV – not good.
The big problem is the entertainment; it is the worst of any ship that I have been on. The days at sea have such events as “Arthritis pain solution” and “How to revitalize your legs”! No quiz until 5:30pm. However, the guest speaker, Nick Slope, gave informative and entertaining lectures. The port days, however, had many quizzes at various times during the day but most were cancelled due to lack of interest – I wonder why. The evenings had good quality shows in the Curzon Theatre however, the singing left something to desire, but that was it! The bars had some music but where were the members of the entertainment team? They did try their version of “Mr & Mrs” one night but it was poorly presented. P&O should talk to Thomson about entertainment.