I've been on Britannia and Iona. I looked forward to Iona's promenade, but most of its behind bullet proof glass so you're not as connected to the sea as a traditional promenade like Ventura. Iona also had paper thin cabin walls, so Britannia gets the nod on those. They both have more of a shopping centre vibe than a ship, but we have no desire to set foot on Iona again, we'd happily sail on Britannia, even though she's not our favourite in the fleet.
I know what you mean about the glass on the promenade, it’s a shame as I had to go higher to get a clear view to take pictures and as it’s so high so you don’t get the noise of the sea. I really liked Britannia and preferred it to Iona but hoping to go on Aurora later in the year so looking forward to that.
We just come back from Britannia and we had a whale of a time. I can honestly say it’s my favourite cruise ship. Brilliant idea to design it as a 5* hotel as it still looks posh and not at all dated. P&O are clearly very proud of this ship. I think 140k tons and 3500 passengers is a perfect balance between being big enough to get into most ports and have enough choice on board, and not be overwhelming, but thats just my opinion. Crew were incredible and to the standard of a more premium cruise line imo, the shortages have been resolved so service was frankly exceptional and P&O have fixed they holiday app now so it worked perfectly for us. Food was generally very good except a couple of misses in the MDR. I’m not bothered about the cutbacks as they still offer fantastic value for what we paid, we definitely paid a budget price but felt we got a lot more than that in return! 🤩 I’m a lot more hesitant to try Iona though, that really does look like a ship purely designed to cram in as many people as possible.
So glad you had a great cruise, I have to agree it’s a great ship and my favourite P&O ship. The size is that nice sweet spot of plenty of choice of venues without being so big it’s impersonal. Great to hear the staff shortages seem to be resolved.
A lot of great detail and insight Steve. Really enjoyed watching this about a ship we know little about. And frankly the overexposure of Iona and Arvia just now, and the feedback about their packed crowded capacity would certainly drive us towards Britannia, as well as price factor as you mentioned. We don't travel with kids, but totally think you're right on suggesting MSC as an option for families. Having been on Seaview, Bellissima, and Virtuosa, the waterparks are unparalleled to any other ship we've sailed on, and the arcades with F1 simulators, bowling alleys and more are incredible.
Thank you. I really need to try MSC, I have booked and cancelled twice now due to dates changing and the shutdown, the prices look great so need to get one in the diary.
Great video! A very interesting and informative review 👍 We have never been on Britannia, but it looks amazing and sounds like it is good value for money.
Did the transatlantic repositioning cruise last October. Like all things you get out what you put in. We found areas we loved and others that were not for us but there are plenty of options to suit all tastes. I loved the crows nest and the choice of dining. We found the staff to all be very pleasant. I would definitely cruise in her again. As mentioned it’s good value for money
Yes I loved the Crows Nest too, perfect place to end the night for me. Glad you enjoyed it, there are ships that offer more but value for money I think it’s hard to beat.
Totally agree with everything you said about Britannia, I love her. The Spa is the one place I wouldn't go back to, it is all upselling but staff looking terrified when you don't want to book or buy what is being suggested. It is too stressy which a spa shouldn't be. Loved the video.
@@iloveanimals1662 Thank you, I did find the MDR food a bit hit and miss, certainly not as good as it used to be but I think this is common across most lines now not just P&O. I guess they really want to push you to speciality dining now.
I found that with P and O, was cruising as a kid since 89 and loved the kids clubs, but by the time of my last one in 2003 on the Aurora, I was 19 and did get a bit bored on board ocassionally. Still fondly remember the trips though. Turning 40 this year and we're going on the Britannia in 2024 as a big multiple family getaway and I'm really looking forward to it after all this time.
I'm sure you will have a great time, we do big multi generation family cruises and they are perfect for that. My oldest daughter is 16 and she gets a bit bored sometimes on sea days as shes too old for kids club and her friends are at home but loves port days and I'm sure she will still be wanting to come with us for quite some time to come. Hope you have a great cruise on Britannia.
Thanks for your video, I am booked to go on her next year to Norway, never done a cruise before and not sure what to expect, just hoping we enjoy it and we are not disappointed,,,
I'll be on Britannia next year which will also be my first time cruising, picked the 10 year Anniversary around Britain cruise in June 2025 so that I was near familiar territory then if I enjoy it I'll go for a Med cruise
I’m sure you will have a great cruise. I’m doing a round Britain cruise this year for the first time and really looking forward to it, you will end up also doing the med in future too, it’s quite addictive.
Hi Steve I just found out about your channel, going to binge all your reviews now haha! great video boss, but I would love it more if you include a brief explanation about the ships Crew! how where they like...? cheers.
Thank you, great point I didn't mention the crew but will do so in the future as its important. For the record the crew on this cruise were great, ship wasn't full so they were not as rushed and I think that certainly helped the service.
Thank you, I have only been on Queen Victoria, it’s a lovely ship. It was quiet quiet in the late evenings so depends if that’s for you. I am hoping to get on QM2 later this year so look out for a video.
I am due to sail on britannia early June 2023. I am looking forward as a first time cruiser. The only thing that I am concerned about is I hope you don't have to queue long especially in the buffet as that is a big thing I hate,hope there is plenty of choice not just the same food all the time.
Britannia handles queues pretty well, other than peak breakfast time around 9am you should have no problem getting a table or be stuck standing in line too long. Breakfast in the main dining room rather than the buffet is so much nicer so recommend trying that. There is lots of choice, for dinner and lunch the menu changes every day, themed nights etc. and for breakfast you can have traditional english breakfast, bacon etc, continental or cereal. They also have a fresh omelette station which is nice too. Enjoy your first cruise.
Don't be scared this ship is very stable. I've just got off it having sailed through a gale force 8. The ship hardly moved. Lovely staff, i would definitely sail on this ship again. Enjoy your holiday
Yes it is a good ship I've been on her three times the last Nov Dec 2022 .I've just come of iona yesterday with mixed feelings me and my wife are going on ativa 13 Jan 2024 let's see what that's 👍
I prefer it to Iona personally, I would take a few things from Iona to Britannia like the Quays area but overall Britannia for me. Hope you enjoy Arvia, I am hoping to try her next February. Thanks for watching.
Thanks great info I picked britania for out 30th wedding anniversary trip march 2023 Caribbean cruise not a big tecky I mean apps etc hoping we can manage the onboerd app any tips would be grateful also were on deck c cabin 705 hope it will be quiet ish has I am a light sleeper best vlog yet I have seen a few I was wondering if I picked the right ship hope so . Thamkyou
Congratulations on the 30th Anniversary, I'm sure you will have a great cruise. Honestly you wont need to use any tech if you don't want to, the paper version of the Horizon newspaper is still put in your cabin every evening and if you have your dining time allocated then thats all you need. If you are on anytime dining you can either use the app or go to one of the restaurants or guest services and book your dining times. Have a great cruise and thanks for your kind words.
I just come off the Britannia wasn't bad, the buffay meals were a bit boring. The bread and rolls were not good and the toast were too dried out. The dark decor make the ship look a lot older than it did. I had sailed on the Iona a few weeks before so because it's a newer ship I was comparing. The fine dining on p&o is very good the just need to do some more work on the buffay
Hi, Iona definitely has a much lighter decor I know what you mean and much more light due to the huge windows in the Atrium. Buffet I found OK but would like to see a bit more variety over a week. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
sorry to say but you must have been on a different ship to me...awful ship, awful food, awful service, awful entertainment...casino is small way too small...nothing to recommend this ship other than its usually cheap and that says it all
Thanks for the feedback, shame you didn’t enjoy it, I did but it was within the context of how cheap the fare was, had I paid a lot more I may have viewed it differently. Food and service were fine for us but agree the casino is way too small for the size of ship. This seems to be the case on all P&O ships unfortunately.
It a a while now since I was on so hope standards haven’t slipped further. Service was ok and pretty quick when I was on, food in the MDR was ok didn’t really use the buffett but just got off Ventura and buffett was really poor so maybe that’s across the fleet.
We cruised on Britannia last October and loved it. All the staff were very friendly and welcoming, food was lovely too. I'm not complaining but like you said, the central staircase, we were on deck 10, we had to walk down to deck 7 then across the ship to the atrium and down the stairs to deck 6 to the restaurant, we didn't mind, added to our steps. We would go on her again but depending on the itinerary.
