Just back from our A101 Azura Caribbean Cruise. As I had asked so many questions prior to this holiday I thought it only fair to share my thoughts on my return.

First off, a bit of background. I was celebrating my 40th whilst onboard, and although both myself and my partner have cruised before we have never been with P&O. Previous cruises have all been on Royal Caribbean out of USA to the Caribbean and Mexican Riviera. We have sailed on Freedom, Mariner and Oasis so Azura was going to be the smallest ship we had ever sailed. Undoubtedly, because of this, comparisons were made against RCI throughout. I also should say that we totally love RCI and were trying P&O just to see what an alternative line would offer. We knew there would be differences but we did book the holiday with an open mind.

Flights - we were flying from Manchester with Thomas Cook and had pre-booked our seats (1A & 1B) in Premium. I was a little concerned about the weight restrictions and size of cabin luggage but careful packing meant we were just about OK. Personally I do find the 23kg a little restrictive and the ability to purchase more would be a welcome addition. There were a few initial problems at check-in as the plane had been changed and so the booked seats had not been transferred over. This meant we now had people sat in the booked seats. It did get resolved, but there were a few irate customers at the airport who were now being moved to less desirable locations and being split up. There were also a few customers who did not realise you could pre-book seats and they were also less than happy. Not sure if the fault for that should lay with P&O directly or the TA's they had booked through. Read more