The cruise line P&O Cruises is a British cruise line, a constituent of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company. P&O Cruises claim to be the oldest cruise line in the world. Its predecessor company operated pleasure trips since 1844, and the world's first dedicated cruise ship in 1881. It is the sister company of, and retains strong links with, P&O Cruises Australia. P&O Cruises was de-merged from the P&O group in 2000, becoming a subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises plc, which subsequently merged with Carnival Corporation in 2003, to form Carnival Corporation & plc. P&O Cruises currently operate seven cruise ships and tailor their cruises to the British market. Why we chose P&O We have sailed with P&O on a number of occasions as they sail from Southampton. They offer much more of a British feel and use pound Stirling for currency. Having 3 pin plugs in all cabins is always good as it saves carrying all those extra travel adapters for those essential electronics. We chose this cruise primarily for the itinerary as it stopped in Israel, and the fact that Arcadia is an adult only ship. We boarded the ship in Dubai and sailed home via the Suez Canal to Southampton on the ship as part of her 2019 world cruise. The ship Arcadia was ordered by Holland America Line in 2000 as their fifth Vista class vessel. In 2003 she was allocated to the Cunard Line to become their Queen Victoria. Shortly before her launch the decision was made to transfer the ship to the P&O Cruises fleet. As a result, Arcadia has a Cunard style mast similar to those found on the RMS Queen Mary 2. She also sports a modified QE2 style funnel, with cowling removed instead of the traditional P&O style funnel found on the other purpose built ships. Arcadia has a gross tonnage of 84,000tones with a passenger capacity of just over 2000 and is an adult only ship. Arcadia’s biggest disappointment is her lack of a usable atrium in the centre of the ship, although P&O have tried to lighten the space with coloured lighting etc in her last refit in 2017. Arcadia has been plagued with problems with her cabin waste system with blockages and leaks again something P&O have been working to resolve all of her working life. Arcadia’s signature features are her midship glass lifts and the retracting roof over the main swimming pool both of which are features from her being built for Holland America Line. She also boasts over 3000 pieces of art through the ship creating a sophisticated feel on board. Dining Options on Board Dining on Arcadia is as you would expect very well taken care of, from buffet dinning to several specialty restaurants. The main dining room is on 2 levels at the rear of the ship, on the lower level it is set dining times 18:30 and 21:00. The upper level is freedom dining where you can turn up for a table any time fro 18:00 to 21:30. This option has to be pre booked when booking the cruise as there are only a certain amount of spaces. Even then at peak times you will have to wait for a table for 2 or get to the restaurant when it opens. We had freedom dining on our cruise and would certainly have this style of dining again. The buffet restaurant ( The Lido) is open from 06:00 to 01:00 serving breakfast, lunch, afternoon Tea, dinner and evening light meals. The food is of good quality, complementary fruit juices are only available at breakfast in the buffet area. The 2 specialty restaurants, Sindhu and Ocean Grill both have an additional cover charge. They are both very good and they change menus several times during the voyages. While we were on Arcadia P&O were trailing a glass house style menu in intermezzo outside of ocean grill, this worked well and we hope that it becomes a permanent feature on board Arcadia. Eric lanyards afternoon tea is another specialty offer, it is served in ocean grill on selected sea days and is worth trying. During the day by the midship pool (Neptune’s) there is a grill serving burgers, fish and chips ,jacket potatoes etc there is also a small sandwich bar just to the side of this grill. This area can get busy during the day, especially when the sliding roof is open in warm climates. The Cabins Arcadia’s cabins come is 5 basic categories with a number of sub categories. The categories are inside, ocean view, balcony, mini suite and suite. There are also a number of single occupancy cabins both inside and ocean view. Most of the mini suites are midships. All cabins are well appointed as you would expect with all the normal cabin features. All cabins have UK 3 pin plugs as standard, also tea/coffee making facilities replenished throughout your stay. The cabins have a mini bar(chargeable to your on board account ) and fridge. Most of the mini suites and suites have a bath and shower. A few of the Balcony and Ocean View cabins have combined showers and baths. All grades of cabins have complementary shower gel, shampoo and body lotion. There is plenty of wardrobe space in all cabins. This is a feature on all Vista Class ships that make them great for longer cruises or round the world trips. All of the cabins following the refit in 2017 now have flat screen TVs with pay for view films but as yet, like other ships in the P&O fleet, you can not view your cabin bill or order room service / interactive services via the tv. Things to do on Board As with any UK main stream cruise company the daily entertainment is varied from guest speakers to deck quoits. There is always something going, and the good thing about the ship is that you can always find a quiet spot to read the book you have taken from the library onboard. On this cruise because it was the last leg of the world cruise there was daily art classes in one of the meeting rooms. There is a small onboard cinema seating around 30 in leather recliner chairs, they show current films that are on at the cinema at home, due to space restrictions it’s always best to book a seat. The gym also has a full daily program of both free and chargeable fitness classes all of which are good quality and the instructors know what they’re doing Swimming pools, sun decks and Spa There are 3 pools on board, the main one being in the centre of the ship. It is known as Neptune’s pool, this is where the sliding roof covers the pool in less favourable conditions. There are sun loungers around the pool. The pool has a bar area and a take way food place serving burgers and chips etc The second pool is on the aft deck behind the lido buffet, again there is a lot of space for loungers and has a large bar, this area is fully open to the elements all the time The 3rd pool in located in the spa area and is a pay for use pool, it is always heated to around 34’ and has whirlpool jets that can be turned on and off. You can pay a one off fee for the entire cruise or choose to pay daily providing there is space available, they only have 30 spaces per cruise for this area The sun decks through the ship are spacious even at peak times so you are always able to get a bed with space round it. The large well appointed gym and spa are right at the top and front of the ship above the navigation bridge. It has it’s own sauna in each changing room . If you want to use the steam room hot bed or sensual sauna then again they are chargeable with the use of the thermal suite. The gym offer daily fitness classes and talks. The spa has a full list of wellbeing and wellness courses / treatments again all as additional costs. Would we Recommend P&O We have sailed with P&O on a number of their ships, this is what lead us to book this cruise. If you are looking for a cruise that looks after the UK cruiser then P&O is definitely for you. Would we book another leg of a world cruise, definitely yes but there are a number of things to consider with this type of cruise. • Large amounts of sea days back to back, we had a 6 and 5 day run of sea days • Average age of the customers is generally higher than on normal cruises • Entertainment tailored to type of cruise and age of customers • Customer familiarity with the crew most noticeable in the buffet and main restaurants as they have been together for the last 3 months or so, it can make you feel left out. • Numerous special event for world cruisers only, so parts of the ship often restricted (bars and restaurants etc) This aside we did enjoy the trip home from Dubai especially sailing through the Suez canal and the trips in Israel ( the reason for booking the trip) We like the smaller ships ( around 2000 passengers) as they are usually more friendly. Our biggest dislike is P&Os Great British Sail Away, complete with Union Jack waving, but majority of the ship joins in so we go with the flow with it. So if you live in the UK and want a great British cruise with a main stream cruise line then P&O certainly deliver no matter what ship you travel on. Read Less

Embarkation and disembarkation was relatively smooth. Don’t expect much hospitality. Employees are not excited about their jobs so don’t expect many smiles either. We spent much extra to stay in a (PHS) Penthouse Suite and was advertised our own personal Butler, (which was shared by many other suites so personalized is the farthest from the truth.) He is given too many rooms to service. We also understood we would have preferred tendering, (which we were first to get tickets, but told we would be last. Yep, last to tender.) We almosted missed our excursion. Does the ship care? Nope! If you book through them then you are first to tender. *Know b4 you go! Next the food. Why does everyone rave about the food? Ugg! My wife got sick on the fish. It was not cooked though enough. The Caesar salad is soaked in dressing every time! It was gross! Our friends lobster was over cooked. The buffet breakfast is pretty good but basic. We ordered room service breakfast. The scrambled eggs were runny, boiled eggs inconsistent. The fruit was mushy & over ripe most of the time. If you wear a hat to dinner, be prepared to be kicked out!! We were late for almost every port with little time anyway. Then paying extra to be in a PHS and having to be last to tender. What a slap in the face. Bottom line: a PHS gives you nothing extra really! The laundry service is terrible it took four days to get 20 items back! Four tiny washer & dryers for the whole boat so get ready to stand in line!! Now Entertainment: (———.) that describes it. VERY limited, basically nothing. The butler &/or staff is always pressuring you to buy something like an excursion or wine tasting or martini tasting (they must be getting a commission!) It just sucks!!! The rooms are small and closets are too. We have sailed other cruise lines and not had such a terrible experience. Oceania is not for me. Read Less

I chose this cruise for the worldwide destinations. However, the whole four month experience was life changing. The reception staff were great, especially Mimi. The ship was very clean. I liked the hot tub and the loungers were comfortable and there were plenty available. The entertainment team were very talented. Especially Alex Kemp, Joshua Marlow and Freya Brown, who jelled very well on and off stage. I especially liked being in the choir, meeting fellow singers and benefitting from choir leader, Josh Marlows fast knowledge and talent. It was great fun and I learnt new skills. Joining the quilting club was a good move. I made a quilt to hang on the wall and also, several memory cushions. I liked the choice of buffet meals or restaurant service. Waiters Ewhyan and Simon were attentive and prompt with serving. All activities were well subscribed to, including pilates, art classes, creative writing, choir, and dance classes. Shore excursions to India and China were memorable. The hotels used were top quality. I loved climbing the Great Wall of China and visiting the Taj Mahal. Miss Pam Read Less

Booked this cruise for two reasons, the itinerary and to see for ourselves if Cunard is what they say they are. The itinerary was great, Cochin excepted but we expected that. We had three complaints about this cruise, first of which was the visas for India. We had no plans to go ashore in Cochin but was told that we must have full tourist visas otherwise we would not be able to embark the ship in Singapore. Due to a lack of time we had no choice other than to use Cunards intermediary CIBT visas, at a significant cost to us. Due to a lack of communication it turned out the visas were not required pre cruise. We watched people board the ship who had no visas. Cunard have since agreed to reimburse us, but only because we complained. If you were on this ship and had a similar experience then complain, they won't contact you! Secondly the stateroom------ We were in 13024 which is a club balcony cabin. The room itself was very nice with a roomy balcony and was well maintained by the steward, thanks Salvi.There is tea making facilities in the room which is always a bonus. Further to the stateroom there is significant vibration most of the time which is apparent to both port and starboard. Theses staterooms were a recent addition made during the last refurbishment. Cunard of course are aware of this and I'm told by a guest services executive that they are looking at ways of factoring it into the brochure stateroom descriptions. Too little to late for us, Cunard got our money, my wife got no decent sleep. As a matter of interest the vibration has nothing to do with sea conditions as it was present when the ship was on its mooring lines. Finally, the food--------I was served raw ( yes you read it right, raw) chicken with bloody juices running from it! As you can imagine there was mayhem, the servers, maitre d, chef and executive chef all arguing amongst themselves as to who was at fault, with fellow diners looking on in disbelief. I left the dining room and went for a meal. The outcome of this was that I was not allowed to make a formal complaint at the pursers desk,I wanted a case number so that I could take the matter up when I got home but was refused and told to drop the matter.I was given a complimentary meal in the Italian specialty restaurant, special it wasn't. Since being home Cunard agree that we have had a shocking experience with the three complaints and have offered us 20% of the cost of the cruise plus reimbursement of the cost of the visas. Is this commensurate with the cruise experience ? The service in the dining room was, we found, fine. The food in general in the dining room was adequate, but no more. A bit hit and miss. The service in the bars was, at times dreadful. Gone are the days of being escorted to seat and waited on for a drink, like it used to be. More often than not I got my own drinks at the bar and carried them back to where we were sitting. Staff work hard enough but there just isn't enough of them. The experience made me that I was at home in my local Wetherspoons. The entertainment for us was a mixed bag with no hint of a wow factor. The two productions shows were very poor and most certainly the entertainment was geared toward classical recitals and ballroom dancers with some jazz thrown in. The resident orchestra was very good as was the dance band. All in all we found the entertainment to be low key and not to our taste. Some of the sea day lectures were good though, as was the planetarium. Shore excursions were robbery but they are everywhere. The price of drinks was also robbery but we have seen worse, can't remember where. In the end we were glad to get home. Would we cruise Cunard again? Highly unlikely. For the life of me I can't see any evidence of a White Star experience, perhaps it's reserved for the grills? As for us we will continue cruising but methinks we will body swerve Cunard in the future. Read Less

We have done 4 world cruises previously and wanted to try their first World Cruise 141 days.The ship is lovely the food was like most ships we did not as a whole enjoy the specialty restaurants the food was not the higher quality we expected. The portions were small and usually too salty or strange to our taste that even though they were offered to the world cruise set free we canceled our reservations after the 5th try! The Italian restaurant was good but did not offer spaghetti or angel hair pasta without previous arrangement. The room was lovely we had a Deluxe Veranda and the heated floors and large flat screen TV was the best we had seen, even in some of the ships highest end rooms! The service was excellent the restaurant staff and bar service was top notch. Because the ship was financed by the largest Chinese Bank the serving staff had to be a large portion of the staff was Chinese and they were well trained and excellent at their jobs! They went overboard with their on board cultural experiences! Entertainment was often local and the ship usually did only one show unfortunately there was no way to display the talent properly. Their theater seating could not seat everyone on board so many had to stand or dodge the person in front or get there early to get the front row. For some reason the ship refused to do 2 shows a night even though they know neither the pool area or theater could seat everyone on board. This was something we had never run into before so if you are going for entertainment you might pick another ship. All entertainment except for 1 night a week at the disco (the dance floor will only accommodate 6 or 8 couples) the bar was the only place they had real rock and role to dance to everything else was very cultural high brow. Guitar, Chamber Music,Opera ,Piano and Violinist were the order of the day every day!!!! If this is what you like this is your ship but if you were raised on Rock and Roll like most Americans seek another ship! A once in awhile comedian or magician was a treat. Believe me this can make a lonnnnnggg World cruise! If you like musical theater and dance this is not your ship. The ports of call were standard fare and as they were new at this some mistakes were made they did not have the money to pay for us to cruise Hulong Bay as we were promised we were not happy! One of the best things on board was the large outdoor seating for meals on the stern. When the weather was good they threw all the sliding doors back and it was wonderful. The Spa is spacious and the extras they offer are great fun. The Gym is well thought out and works very well. Only it does not open early so if you want to exercise early or late you will find that it is closed to the guests and opened for the crew only! Beware we were told Cruise insurance was included of 150% when my husband became ill but they paid us less than 100%. There was no asterisk or foot note to say up to etc. even on the contract but the insurance company refused to live up to the promises that Viking made to us in their brochures so you might want to get additional insurance. In essence she is a lovely ship but would be better on a shorter cruise. Also beware the promises that Viking makes they will not pay 150% they lied! When I booked the cruise they said they had Zumba on board and they did not! Read Less

We have always enjoyed cruising with Viking. First with their river cruises and then Ocean cruise. We initially were skeptical about a 120 day ocean cruise but we were. very happy that we chose to take this cruise. I had some food allergy issues but the staff were very good to make sure my needs were accommodated. The staff of the ship were excellent. From the Barista who made us Capuchinos, to the bartenders and all the dining staff in the various restaurants. The Captain had a good sense of humour and kept us informed of what was going on. The Cruise Director was outstanding in all aspects and readily available to talk to anyone. The entertainment throughout the cruise was excellent. The enrichment lectures were very good for the most part. The shore excursions surprised as and were very good. Overall, no complaints at all. I would gladly recommend this cruise and Viking to anyone. Read Less

The Mighty Amazon River has long been on our bucket list, & the newly refurbished Sirena's 34-day sailing from Miami to Buenos Aires sounded like the way to go!! The first week at sea was uneventful & unexciting, as we bypassed devastated Puerto Rico, & visited St Kitts, Antigua, & Barbados! We enjoyed the day we spent exploring the ruins of Devil's Island, the former penal colony off the coast of French Guyana. Unfortunately, we were totally taken by surprise as it was announced that almost all purchases aboard ship for the next 3.5 weeks (as we sailed thru Brazilian waters) would be subject to an extra 25% tax. (We solved this problem quite simply, by halting all unnecessary shipboard spending!!) Almost everything was included in our ticket price: air, gratuities, 7 shore excursions per person, internet package. There were no art auctions & no pushy shipboard photogs to contend with. We were not nickled and dimed over soft drinks, specialty coffee, & bottled water. Since the Sirena drew only 20 feet of water, We were able to travel 900 miles upriver to Manaus in the heart of the triple canopy Amazon rainforest. While the destination speakers for the Amazon region were well chosen, the Oceania home office staff of millennials let us down when it came to providing suitable movies that might have dovetailed with our journey!! As we entered the River Platte, it would have presented a great opportunity to view "The Battle of the River Platte". It would have also been timely to have watched "Evita" again, as we neared Argentina. Instead we were subjected to current, inane films, such as one depicting Breaking Bad actor Cranston hiding out in his garage for several months!!! We manged to dine in Sirena's Specialty restaurants on numerous occasions - especially in their magnificent Red Ginger Asian Fusion spot. Afternoons the main dining room was converted into Jacques - a specialty French Bistro - with mixed results. The Waves grill by the pool closed way too early @4PM. Read Less

We booked an excursion to Paphos in Cyprus. The description of the tour which appealed to us was 1. Taken to Paphos and have three hours free time to explore independently or 2. Visit the Villa and see the mosaics and the tombs of the kings and lastly 3. Take a stroll along the harbour. However, we were given no choices at all! We were dropped off at the harbour and left there. There was only a few restaurant and tacky gift shops. I was in a wheelchair and on 24/7 oxygen. We tried to find some shops but it was a long trek and we only found a very small mall and went back to the harbour and waited there for a coach to return. We put in an official complaint at this persons desk when we returned and received 10% refund which was an absolute joke we had wasted our money and our day in Cyprus. The literature is completely misleading and if we had known what was in store we still could of taken the free shuttle bus or gone to Limassol where apparently the guests had a fantastic time which made us even more fed up ..... I keep trying to get in touch with the excursions specialist team as we was advised to do once we got back to UK but I have had no luck getting through so needed to vent my feelings somewhere. As for the cleanliness of the newly refurbished Kings Court, we found it dirty, especially the walls next to the tables, the skirting, the windows. Infact, a lot of the communal areas needed TLC. They were cleaned but the staff were very lethargic and did everything at a snail's pace and didn't seem to take any pride in the fact that they were on a Cunard ship, although they cleaned they didn't clean the edges or the corners. This is where germs lie ......... Read Less

I have always liked the Whisper but will never take a segment of a world cruise again. In this segment, the majority of the passengers had been on this cruise since January and had established little groups to dine, drink and socialize thus the new passengers had to find other new passengers in order to have a good time. This segment from Dubai to Athens had fewer new passengers due to the possible danger passing Yemen and other countries in the news but the tours to Luxor, Petra and Gisa were very worthwhile and Silversea takes precautions and has never had a threatening incident. The familiar crew on the Whisper helped make the trip more enjoyable. On the next segment from Athens to Monte Carlo, it was reported that 160 new passengers would board so I'm sure they outnumbered the tired world cruisers but we have cruised the Mediterranean many times and had seen many portsand we departed the Whisper in Athens. The food was wonderful in all dining venues and tasted better than I had remembered. The evening entertainment was professional and entertaining, Day lectures were educational and worthwhile and included a travel professional who highlighted the upcoming tours with a visual presentation describing history and cultural advice and additional sights. On days at sea, two speakers entertained passengers, one on British spies during World War 1 and two The other speaker told us his fascinating experience in Africa with camels. He actually rode by camel across the Gobi desert. Also on the British experience in Africa. The swimming pool was active with sun worshippers throughout the day as well as the hot tubs. Underwater exercises took place at 2 pm followed by water volleyball at 3. Read Less

Lovely ports of call made us choose this itinerary and adult medium ship. Dining was excellent, lectures varied and interesting, the evening entertainment was on the whole very good but the Headliners on ship singers and dancers were absolutely excellent. All very talented and ranked as good as any west end show. The cabin was the problem A86 mid aft four down from midships on port side. See cabin review and beware! Not worth the money. Excursions were varied and we took advantage of many in countries as Australia, New Zealand, Papa New Guinea, Japan, South Korea and China all well organised on time and educational. The dining area was well laid out although our table 48 was over the top of the propellor shafts and not only noisy but juddered from the vibrations. Most ships seem to think that rear ship for dining front for theatre and entertaining all at low level. Better if higher up, less shaking and stick the night club and gyms down the rear. Conversation had to be raised when ship moving above 17 knots, obviously designers never take a holiday on cruise ships. Still did not spoil a wonderful holiday (except cabin) see below. Read Less

We sailed from San Francisco (February 4, 2017), with final destination in Sydney. It sure beat having to fly from Orlando, to Sydney. There were stops in Oahu, Maui, Western Samoa, Tonga, Auckland, and Bay of Islands. I highly recommend this ship; the best way to some up the ship, would be elegant. Karen (Activities Staff) made the time fly by and extremely fun!! My wife and I are Elite Plus with Celebrity, so we know what fine cruising should be!! When we crossed the Equator, the ship had a big ceremony for all the Pollywogs to trans form into Shellbacks. All the passengers and crew had to lineup to "Kiss the Fish." Some received more attention then others. Ha Ha We sailed on the Azamara Quest, in November, this is the type of ship we expected. The only thing some cruiser might not like, is you have to dress up for dinner, we enjoyed it. Read Less

Aurora. Jan 17. 21 nights Our first time on Aurora, we booked not realising that this was the first leg of a world cruise (not that it made a huge amount of difference to us) and celebrating 180 years of the P and O company/cruise line Another very competitively priced cruise Embarkation at Southampton was slightly better than 12 months ago, however we arrived at our given time and still had to wait two hours in the terminal building, boarding just after 4pm. At least this time we managed to find a seat and weren’t sat on the floor. We boarded quickly and found our cabin decided to get a cup of tea then immediately had to attend the safety drill. On the way down the stairs to the cabin to get the life jackets a muster steward told us to go straight to the muster station and wouldn’t allow us to get our life jackets from the cabin. This meant they had to find life jackets for us and this was a little embarrassing as I know what everyone was thinking and it would have taken one minute to have fetched our own The sail away was lovely with fireworks being let off as we left Southampton. A couple of bumpy but fine days crossing Biscay I liked Aurora, there seemed to be a lot of space with plenty of rooms over several decks where people dissipated. The outside space was great and we could always easily find a sun lounger even on sea days. There are three main pools, the front pool at times had some music and occasionally a singer for an hour or so at lunchtime. I thought this could have been improved on with some background music at least. The middle pool was the quiet one with a retractable glass roof (by the buffet restaurant). The rear pool had great views but was very cold and had the kiddies pool and play area incorporated We had afternoon tea several times in the Medina restaurant (deck 6) 4-4.45pm, lovely but always seemed rushed as they wanted to clear the tables for the evening service that starts at 6pm. I would have thought the Alexandria restaurant would have been better as service didn’t start until 6.30pm Overall good ports of call. However a shame the two hot ports in Egypt were replaced with cold ones in the Med but if security was an issue then it’s for the best I guess. We took on security at Suez and they were still with us when we disembarked in Dubai Our cabin F227 was incredibly noisy at night when sailing. Impossible to get a sound night’s sleep even with ear plugs I found myself falling asleep most days whenever I sat down. The cabin had double the storage space that we needed. It had a good shower that had good pressure and kept its temperature (until two days before we disembarked, then it played up and just didn’t get fixed!). The cabin was well laid out with good lighting. Deck 5 was fairly quiet overall (apart from inside our cabin!). The lifts were quick and because we were on the bottom passenger deck usually empty when we called them. We had the best cabin steward ever Lira, she always had a smile and a moment for a chat, and our cabin was kept spotless at all times The port lectures were very good and I like the overall information given, not just trying to flog P & O excursions. Thank you Krystal. In fact the excursion team as a whole were more than helpful ( as were the reception team) The port presentations were available to view on the cabin TV on a loop as were most of the lectures/presentations. I enjoyed several of the speakers and on sunny sea days when I didn’t want to spend time in the theatre during the day this is an ideal way of not missing out We were on freedom dining and used the Medina dining room several times for our evening meals. We never had to wait to be seated and enjoyed some lovely company. I couldn’t fault any of the food or menus, and the service was first class I found the Horizon buffet restaurant not as good as for instance on Oceana, where they have two separate serving areas and one is generally always open. Aurora has one in the center and when it’s closed..... It also closes at 9pm (Oceana 9.30pm). The food was good but I joined several very very long lines for the hot food and you could be in line and waiting for 15mins at times, they cordon off half the Horizon restaurant serving area in the evenings and use it exclusively for the Beach house service. Also they had a new type of milk in a tube and it’s very difficult to open, many people complained but were told it’s the company nothing we can do The Lido grill I found rather lacking as it’s now a “grab and go” and the hot food i.e. burgers hotdogs have been precooked and wrapped, then left in a heated cabinet. They weren’t pleasant with the bread being half toasted and hard no onions available etc. A member of staff is present behind the counter and I did ask a couple of times for fresh food but was referred to the pre cooked cabinet. There is a cold cabinet with sandwiches and they are very good The rear lounge Carmen’s seems a little underused for entertainment, we did see a couple entertainers here and one show from the headliners. Most of the time it’s used for themed discos and old time dancing, Aurora has many rooms and I thought one of them might be better used for the half a dozen people on the dance floor. The cinema was also used for other things i.e. guest speakers and classical concerts, when seeing a movie would have been just the thing to do at times. The entertainment was on the whole good and the Headliners group well above average Overall we had a really fantastic 21 nights aboard Aurora, everything ran like clockwork, fab crew and service. The niggles above are just that (apart from the noisy cabin) You can always pick holes in things if you want. I would defiantly cruise on Aurora again but only with a different cabin Read Less

I chose this as it was a Maiden World Cruise and as such had a certain amount of expectations, one being that we didn't limp out of Tilbury without a fanfare, band or drink. Embarkation at Tilbury had boxes overstuffed with xmas decorations in there corners and dead flowers on windowsills.The cabin was suitable except there were no fridges, no coffee or tea making facilities and no heating. My bathroom flooded umpteen times and my bed was the source of an ant infestation. You couldn't find a chair to eat lunch al fresco and the food was poor. Entertainment all round was poor, no expert speakers for Panama or Suez. Hardly any entertainment on deck despite the tropical weather and very few buffets. The speakers were few and far between as was the cabaret acts.The theme nights were mostly a miss. The Bollywood amounted to a buffet and a showing of a Bollywood film. The ship was subject to flooding and leaks from pipes everywhere with blows being used to dry the large areas. This caused capers to small and staining on ceiling panels. The shore excursions were expensive and the amount of container ports was a joke, there were no facilities and no taxis and dos shuttle buses laid on Over 200 people got together for a meeting but management would not come and address everyone's complaints. Those that wrote letters needn't have bothered as they were not answered. A cruise from hell and if anyone has similar complaints I would love to hear from you at michele@mattmonro.com Read Less