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P&O Cruises |
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| P&O Cruises was originally a part of the Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company. However, since 2003, this cruise line has been a part of the Carnival Corporation & plc. P&O is the largest cruise line that markets itself mostly towards the British market. Not surprisingly, they are quite a popular choice among UK vacationers. When P&O introduced Oriana back in 1995, she was the first modern cruise ship designed specifically with the British market in mind. Although P&O is a British cruise line that operates its ships out of the UK, all of their ships are flagged out of Bermuda. Doing this allows P&O to offer weddings at sea onboard their ships. Today, the ships in the P&O Cruises fleet are quite diverse. Some of them are rather modern and offer the latest innovations at sea, while others are smaller and offer a more traditional cruising experience. Arcadia and Artemis are actually adults-only vessels, a rarity in today's cruising world. The rest of the P&O fleet welcome guests of all ages. Arcadia, once the largest ship in P&O's fleet, was originally supposed to become Queen Victoria as a part of Cunard Line's fleet. Artemis was once known as Royal Princess, as she was a part of the Princess Cruises fleet of ships until 2005. Another former Princess ship is Oceana, which used to be named Ocean Princess (until she joined P&O's fleet in 2002). At 113,000-tons, Ventura is currently the largest ship in P&O's fleet and is a popular (feature-filled) option among families with children. Expected to debut during April 2010, Azura (similar to Ventura) will be the largest and most feature-packed ship to ever grace the P&O family of ships. Princess Cruises, a sister company of P&O Cruises, has announced that Royal Princess will be transferred to P&O Cruises in the Spring of 2011. At that point in time she'll be renamed Adonia. The ship will enter drydock in May 2011 to change its livery. |
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| P&O offers cruises all around the world. In fact, they even offer long World Voyages. Specific destinations featured by P&O Cruises include Africa, Asia, Australia, the Baltics, Canada & New England, the Canary Islands, the Caribbean, Central America, the Mediterranean, the Norwegian Fjords & Iceland, the Indian Ocean, Panama Canal, South America, the South Pacific and Middle East. As far as duration goes, P&O Cruises offers cruises from just 2-nights in length (called "City & Short Breaks"), all the way up to 100+ night cruises (called "World Voyages"). Most of the P&O cruises depart from P&O's main homeport of Southampton, in the United Kingdom. However, there are other departure cities available on select cruises (such as P&O's Caribbean cruises). |
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| The younger P&O cruise ships (Arcadia and Ventura) feature far more onboard amenities than the older ones. For instance, the fitness center and spa onboard each of these ships far surpasses that of the more senior fleet members. There's a nice selection of entertainment options available on each of the P&O ships, including show lounges, cinemas and casinos. Each ship also features a variety of bars and lounges, including English-style pubs, deck bars, piano bars, Spanish wine & tapas bars, champagne bars and nightclubs. As far as dining onboard P&O's ships goes, Arcadia, Oceana and Ventura all feature both assigned (called Club Dining) or open (called Freedom Dining). Artemis, Aurora and Oriana only offer Club Dining. The only P&O ships that feature specialty restaurants are Aurora and Oceana. Not surprisingly, the majority of the passengers on P&O's cruises are British. However, guests from all nations are more than welcome onboard these ships. |
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| The Portunus Club is the past passenger program of P&O Cruises. Membership benefits include discounts, special onboard amenities, gifts, priority embarkation and more (depending on the particular tier of this club that has been reached). View our Portunas Club page for additional details. | |||||||||||||||||
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There are currently six ships in P&O's fleet, as well as the upcoming Azura and Adonia.
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