It's all Greek to me!

Ventura Cruise Review to Europe

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 50

Overall rating:

5 out of 5
Ventura

Spain, Greece and Turkey

Sail date: May 14, 2017

Ship: Ventura

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: C215

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 7 years ago

Review summary

This was our 8th cruise on board Ventura so it's pretty obvious we like the ship! As we were Baltic tier, we had priority check in which was smooth and painless.  Our luggage was at the cabin door by the time we'd had our lunch so we were unpacked well before muster time. No problems with the cabin (C215 balcony), everything was how it should be. Decided to treat ourselves to our first drink of the cruise after muster so we went to The Exchange,  one of our regular watering holes, only to find the bar menus have changed! No more Magners cider! I was distraught!  Thatchers Gold or Aspalls now. Anyhow that was the only bad point of the whole cruise. Apart from the 1st and last days at sea, the weather was gorgeous though it was a bit weird on the 2nd day when we were sunbathing on Sky deck with the foghorn blaring every couple of minutes - we were higher than the fog bank ahead of us! Ports of call were great. We particularly liked Rhodes. This was a change of port to the original itinerary which included Kusadasi  (changed due to the recent troubles). It was our first visit but hope it won't be the last. Had one tour to Knossos from Heraklion which was good, did our own thing in the other ports. With regards to food, breakfast was in the cabin everyday bar the last which made for a leisurely start to the day. We had lunch in the buffet which was ok but the cold meat section was a bit limited. We were on Freedom dining which we prefer as we like a table for 2. Food in the MDR was good and plentiful.  Service was excellent at every table we had. Had one meal in the Beach House and one in The Glass House,  both of which were excellent.  Only went to one show as we aren't bothered about evening entertainment.  It was the Brit Tones who were very good and had a very polished act. We had THREE captins during the cruise. Our first was Simon Terry who unfortunately had to go home at short notice due to personal circumstances which meant the deputy Captain, Max Rossi took the helm to see us into Piraeus then Capt. Marcin Banach took over from there. So my overall view of the cruise was that yet again, P&O didn't let us down. We had a fabulous time and can't wait to sail away with them once more. 

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Onboard Activities

Didn't use

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Children's Programs

Didn't use

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
Love C deck balconies as they are huge. The cabin was fine though the carpet was a bit stained but not enough to worry us. The friendly cabin steward kept it clean and tidy. It was a forward cabin so a bit of a trek to the buffet but otherwise a good location.

Ship tip

Don't forget to try the Beach House in the evening. Well worth the cover charge.

Ports of call

Southampton (London), England

3 out of 5

Ibiza, Balearic Islands

3 out of 5

Heraklion

3 out of 5

Piraeus (Athens), Greece

3 out of 5
Use the HO HO bus to get around.

Ephesus Did not visit port

Didn't go due to troubles in Turkey. Went to Rhodes instead which was lovely

Santorini, Greece

3 out of 5

Katakolon (Olympia), Greece

3 out of 5

Gibraltar (U.K.)

3 out of 5
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