P&O Mediterranean Cruise

To celebrate my mum’s 50th birthday, we decided to book a summer cruise! We were travelling with a 6 month old baby so we opted for a 17 night Mediterranean cruise aboard P&O’s Ventura departing from Southampton. We parked at Southampton port, which was a quick and straightforward process. Your luggage is taken from the car and the next time you see it is in your cabin. We checked-in and boarded Ventura without any problems or delays and then made our way to our lovely cabin. We booked a deluxe ocean view with a balcony and we were very impressed. It was spacious, comfy and home for the next 17 days. Our first four days were spent at sea which gave us the perfect opportunity to explore the colossus that is Ventura. There is plenty to do for everyone and a full entertainment programme every day. If relaxing is high on your agenda, you can laze around one of the 4 swimming pools, be pampered in the Oasis Spa or just chill out on the many deck areas with your favourite book. For those who wish to fill their days with a bit more fun and excitement you can visit the on-board cinema, test your knowledge with a fun quiz, don your dancing shoes for a spot of ballroom dancing, or for the sporty types, there’s golf, football and tennis. Evenings on Ventura begin at 6pm with the first dinner sitting; however, we opted for the 8.30 sitting as we prefer to eat later. As part of the club dining option, we were allocated a table at the Bay Tree restaurant, this table was then ours for the duration of the cruise. I really cannot fault the food or the service, every meal we had was exceptional and each night was a different menu. I challenge anyone to complete 5 courses each evening (although I did give it a good go myself!). In fact on Ventura you will never go hungry, with 11 different restaurants including Marco Pierre White’s ‘White Room’ and ‘East’ oriental restaurant, there is something for every taste and at any time of the day. Evening entertainment is just as vast as the daytime with a choice of cabaret shows, tribute acts, the on-board casino or just a quiet drink in one of the many bars. During our cruise we visited 8 different ports; Valencia, Messina, Cephalonia, Dubrovnik, Venice, Korcula, Corfu & Gibraltar. Each destination was very different and in some places we opted for one of P&O’s organised excursions and in other ports we decided to do our own thing. My particular favourites from the areas we visited were Venice with its narrow, cobbled streets and iconic canals, Dubrovnik for the beautiful architecture of the walled city and Korcula with its stunning scenery and quaint seafront restaurants. Having never cruised before, I really didn’t know what to expect from this trip, however, I was more than pleasantly surprised and I really would recommend cruising to anybody. It was ideal for us as a family with excellent kid’s facilities and babysitting service, but is equally as suited to couples of any age and also groups. We could not fault anything about our cruise, the food was excellent, facilities plentiful and service outstanding. I will definitely be cruising again in the future and I hope to help many of my clients experience this wonderful way to travel too.