P&O Britannia

I felt lucky to be invited to visit Britannia in Southampton before her launch in April 2015. She is the latest edition to the P&O fleet and is the largest cruise ship built exclusively for the British market. It was exciting to be among the first to explore Britannia and sample her hospitality, dining and facilities. On entering the ship, the atrium is very eye catching and a lovely space to enjoy a speciality coffee or just sit, relax and people watch. After an introductory briefing in the theatre, we were treated to a glimpse of one of the fantastic shows which guests would be enjoying whilst on board. We then toured the ship to familiarise ourselves with its many facilities. As well as the main buffet dining areas, there are some lovely restaurants to enjoy including Asian and Indian dining. If you are in a hurry, there are also grab and go snack areas on the main pool deck 16. Any wine lovers on board will enjoy Olly Smiths Glasshouse restaurant where you can enjoy a dazzling selection of wines by the glass. During our tour we visited the Cookery Club which has state of the art facilities for anyone wishing to improve their culinary skills. Expert tuition is provided by well-known chefs including James Martin and Mary Berry. A wonderful black-tie Gala Dinner awaited us in the evening, with a cocktail reception beforehand in the beautiful atrium. Our fabulous menu was created by none other than Marco Pierre White, the youngest chef to ever achieve 3 Michelin stars. Needless to say, dinner was delicious! After dinner we headed to the nightclub and danced off a few calories. After a fantastic day and evening, we headed back to our balcony cabins and I must say it felt really special to be the first to sleep in the comfortable beds. The cabins themselves are elegantly furnished and in the morning it was nice to be able to sit out on our balcony. Britannia is an elegant ship with a distinctly British flavour and high levels of service and facilities to enjoy on your next cruise.