P&O Cruises, Ventura Baltic Reviews
Latest Reviews
★★☆☆☆
“Having been on 6 criuses before food not up to...”
Written on: 12/01/2011
Having been on 6 criuses before food not up to previous standards very bland. The ventura nice ship but the lay out of the ship not very good.Please P&O do not stop of in America until they sort out the immigration policy as we wasted a day of our holiday trying to get into New Orleans waiting to get through immigration. (read more)
★★★★★
“This was our 12th cruise (Cunard, Fred Olsen, P&O,...”
Written on: 06/11/2010
This was our 12th cruise (Cunard, Fred Olsen, P&O, RCI, MSC and others) - Not P&O as we have previously experienced - but we knew that it is a different market that the ship is aimed at. It is family friendly and if you do not want that do not go on the ship! The food was (with one exception one night) some of the best we have had on any ship, QE2 grill included. Much much better than the RCI ship we went on for a similar transatlantic positioning cruise. The shows in the extremely... (read more)
★★★★☆
“Returned from Ventura's Norway cruise. Excellent...”
Written on: 11/10/2010 by yorkshire man (1 review written)
Returned from Ventura's Norway cruise. Excellent transfers of luggage straight off the coach and to your cabin. Long queues to register and get on the ship, but the queues moved quickly well organized. Cabins cosy and of contemporary design. Plenty of storage space- large open wardrobe. Bathroom was standard cruise ship size, small but adequate. Loved the interactive TV from which you could order room service; view shore excursions; check your on-board account; watch films; check your... (read more)
★★★☆☆
“the anytime dining was a joke 35 minutes to wait for a...”
Written on: 02/09/2010
the anytime dining was a joke 35 minutes to wait for a table for 4 the queue was nightmare every night no matter what time you went....service onboard not a patch on royal carribean sorry no more p and o for us back to royal carribean (read more)
★★★☆☆
“Lovely ship staff great could not help you enough only...”
Written on: 21/07/2010
Lovely ship staff great could not help you enough only 3 poor quality meals returned,dinner table guest exclent Ronnie& Ann from Edinbrugh Morris & Jean from Worcester & Bill from Darlington all great company,only thing wrong is no quiet areas on board,and too many children some as young as 6 Months old and 12/16 yr olds running through the cabin areas after midnight who wants that when on holiday this is slowly becoming a floating Butlins Arcadia here I come (read more)
★★★★☆
“Before we left I read a few reviews of the Ventura...”
Written on: 13/06/2010 by Ann Waine (1 review written)
Before we left I read a few reviews of the Ventura which quite frankly, had me worried! I have cruised aboard 2 large ships before and this compared favourably. Our cabin was excellent and our steward friendly and helpful. Choices at dinner were good and the portions the correct size for us. We tried the self-service restaurant twice and hated it - I re-christened it the 'bun-fight restaurant' - nothing to do with the staff, it was other diners saving places at empty tables while their... (read more)
★★★★★
“We have cruised with P&O before and this was our first...”
Written on: 20/02/2010
We have cruised with P&O before and this was our first trip on Ventura. It was also our first fly cruise, but the flight and transfer arrangements were trouble free.
We loved the ship, beautifully set out, with attractive public areas and lots of space on deck for relaxing.
Our cabin was smart, practical and very quiet, and we slept very well each night on the large, comfortable bed.
We enjoyed eating breakfast and lunch in the Waterfront self service restaurant. It offered a wide choice...
(read more)
★★★☆☆
“It was nice to read so many complimentary reviews...”
Written on: 08/02/2010
It was nice to read so many complimentary reviews regarding the P&O Ventura Caribbean cruise, many of which I agree with, but not all. Unfortunately, my wife and I were two of 250 souls who had to remain an additional 27 hours in Barbados due to aircraft failure for our Thomson flight back to London, Gatwick.
The arrangements during this very long period were left to P&O as agents and with responsibility for our well being. Rather surprisingly, this was a first time experience for P&O and...
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★★☆☆☆
“This was our first cruise with P&O but our second...”
Written on: 04/11/2009
This was our first cruise with P&O but our second cruise overall. We booked on this due to availability and the fact we though a bigger newer ship would be better.
embarkation took around 30 minutes which in fairness to get 3400 people on board to wait 30 mins is quite good. We had a disabled passenger with us and the ship was set out fantasically for the disabled with the exception of tender ports. You can even take full sized mobility scooters on board but allocation is limited. There are...
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★★★☆☆
“classical music being the cruise theme was quite good...”
Written on: 03/08/2009
classical music being the cruise theme was quite good from the somewhat aloof performers and host. Disadvantaged passangers eg. those in whelchairs and electric wheeled buggies were for the most part thouroughly rude and obnoxious, there was only them on board after all, (I thought the cruise was only for them and that we had booked eroneously),presumably all of ther other passengers who had also paid to have equal rights to an enjoyable holiday were expected to be second class... (read more)
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Showing 1 - 10 of 46 Reviews
★★☆☆☆
“We recently returned from a Norwegian fjords cruise...”
Written on: 09/07/2009 by floridaglen (1 review written)
We recently returned from a Norwegian fjords cruise aboard Ventura. Unfortunately, the ship did not live up to our expectations. If you have never cruised before you will probably think that all cruise ships are the same believe me, they are not! We have cruised 3 times with RCI aboard Freedom, Liberty and Independence of the Seas (the 3 largest cruise ships in the world) and Ventura comes no where near in comparison.
The food is very average, except in East where we ate on the first...
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★★★★★
“Just got back from Baltic cruise. First timers so...”
Written on: 14/06/2009 by cruisiero (1 review written)
Just got back from Baltic cruise. First timers so judged cruise on its own merits. Absolutely fantastic. We were freedom diners and food was very good and we had no problems getting into the Cinnamon when we fancied being waited on.
Service was fantastic throughout. Easily up to top restaurant standards. Please remember that the staff are away from home for 10 months of the year and I suspect get paid very little (minimum wage not apply?) so don't be mean with the tips.
Room excellent and...
(read more)
★★☆☆☆
“On our way back to Southampton from May/June Baltic...”
Written on: 12/06/2009
On our way back to Southampton from May/June Baltic Cruise. We inherited NOVA VIRUS from previous cruise to the Norway Fjords, they had we are told 400 cases. The ventura has throughout our cruise been under severe restrictions with Captains welcome night cancelled, Portunis Night cancelled. All condiments removed from restraunts. Beach House Restraunt Closed for entire 14 day Cruise only One half of Waterside restraunt open for entire cruise resulting in very long queues at meal times as... (read more)
New Cruiser's Comment
Written on: 21/06/2009
I found this review unhelpful because... we have booked to go on ventura june 2010 ,and have read several reviews about nova virus.Ihope we will have a chance to change cruise if it happens next year .This will be our first cruise and has taken a lot of thought about cruising.
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★★★★☆
“Cruise to Norway May 22-29th on P&O Ventura. Over 400...”
Written on: 06/06/2009 by jaykaycad (1 review written)
Cruise to Norway May 22-29th on P&O Ventura. Over 400 children on board and hardly saw them. Staff and crew very efficient, friendly and helpful. Prices on board were great. Only heard of one complaint by an other passenger. Did not like music being played in the public areas!!! Even though the weather was not great in port we have had a great experience. This is our fifth cruise and rates one of the best. (read more)
★★☆☆☆
“Went on the P&O Cruises, Ventura in May 2008 was...”
Written on: 01/06/2009 by roland406 (1 review written)
Went on the P&O Cruises, Ventura in May 2008 was excellent, back on Ventura May 2009 to the Baltics and how the ship has declined is unbelievable. Only one service side of the Waterfront restraunt is in Use The Beach house restraunt has never been open, This means ques as long as the ship, Shuttle coaches to Copenhagan a joke ques and over one hour wait to get on a coach at the ship. Their seems to be no organisation. The carpets require a good deep clean. No one seems happy on board. P&O... (read more)
★★★★★
“Just back from our first ever cruise - 7 days on...”
Written on: 26/04/2009 by Werthers
Just back from our first ever cruise - 7 days on Ventura P&O Cruises. It was fantastic from start to finish. Excellent continuing supply of food with hard working and dedicated staff. I have two children aged 2 and 5 and they were totally taken by the superb kids clubs offered that had countless activities going on for them from morning till late at night.
General entertainment in the evening is about what I had expected, enjoyable. Endless events and happenings going on throughout...
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★★★★★
“The Ventura is a credit to P&O, from take off to...”
Written on: 02/03/2009
The Ventura is a credit to P&O, from take off to landing home we had the best service you could ask for .The ship is large so if you dont like something you can move !!!! we had a lot of younger people on and they never caused any probs at all , For the size of the ship she is always very clean in all areas, the food was good in the upper decks for fast food, but we liked the lower decks to eat. The CABINS ARE GREAT ours was on c deck and kept clean and tidy at all times. For all the... (read more)
★★★★★
“I found the Ventura with P&O Cruises,fabulous modern...”
Written on: 26/02/2009
I found the Ventura with P&O Cruises,fabulous modern and magical. I loved it! anyone who says different is very wrong. its incredibly hard to run a ship and they do it brilliantly. (read more)
★★☆☆☆
“Saved up and spent a lot of money on Ventura's first...”
Written on: 18/01/2009 by shipmate (1 review written)
Saved up and spent a lot of money on Ventura's first Christmas and New Year Cruise. What a disappointment. This ship is an insult to the P&O brand. It is more like a poorly designed block of flats on water than a cruise liner. Poorly behaved passengers were not supervised or dealt with. Entertainment ranged from excellent (the minority) to absolutely dire (one comedian told the same jokes on two different nights - not very good ones either). Food lacked imagination and variety unless... (read more)
Cbeebee's Response to shipmate's Review
Written on: 23/01/2009
I found this review helpful because... it has put me off going on ventura
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★★★★★
“From the moment that we boarded Ventura in Southamton...”
Written on: 12/01/2009
From the moment that we boarded Ventura in Southamton until .the moment that we disembarked in Southampton we had a ball and were treated like royalty.
Friendly and caring staff and Officers.
Exceptionally helpful and cheerful P.& O. personnel on shore-based duties at all ports (in the vicinitity of the gangway.)
Very good entertainmen/events.
Great food with varied menus, we were not on-time when reserving "Fixed Sittings" we used "open diningsand buffet service". Both were excellent.
(read more)
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Showing 11 - 20 of 46 Reviews
★★☆☆☆
“On the Ventura, P&O Cruises, the balcony was a good...”
Written on: 09/01/2009 by rustylee1 (1 review written)
On the Ventura, P&O Cruises, the balcony was a good size, with sufficient storage space and a comfortable bed but I believe P&O have got this one wrong. Too many passengers. Not enough sunbeds which were packed in like sardines. Food not as good as expected. Insufficient staff ( who do work very hard). Average entertainment.It is a shame because I have cruised several times before with the same company. Hopefully they do get it right, but it should be right before the first sailing. People... (read more)
★★★☆☆
“P & O Ventura. Staff great, lovely bar areas. No deck...”
Written on: 07/01/2009 by anthony barrie duffy (1 review written)
P & O Ventura. Staff great, lovely bar areas. No deck games as other ships do have. Entertainment very poor, theatre company for the maiden season very disappointing. I think P&O have a lot to do i e. bringing the entertainment up to a better standard. (read more)
★☆☆☆☆
“If you want a 3* cruise then this is it. Very...”
Written on: 07/01/2009 by maryhelen (1 review written)
If you want a 3* cruise then this is it. Very mediocre. Evenings spoilt by drunk teenagers. Queues for freedom dining. I thought I was spending my well earned cash on a five star traditional cruise as that is what the prices indicated but I was very wrong. (read more)
★★★★★
“Food ok, golf pro on board was very good. To many...”
Written on: 22/11/2008 by Billy Clark (1 review written)
Food ok, golf pro on board was very good. To many uncontrollable children, crew and officers seemed not to bother with our complaint about the children. Do something about the children. (read more)
428333_Steve Barnes's Response to Billy Clark's Review
Written on: 30/12/2008
This has been designed for all ages most of all families, should have done your home work before you booked
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Pattyb's Response to Billy Clark's Review
Written on: 15/06/2010
There are other ships that are child free. If it states its a Family Ship then you have to expect Children. & No! I am not a young Parent but a 66 yr old Grandmother who likes the Family Cruises..NOT the stuffy adult ones!!!
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★★★★★
“There was all ways a lot of food at all times. The...”
Written on: 12/11/2008
There was all ways a lot of food at all times. The ship entertainment was unbelievable although it based on adults. The children facilitates where good. Smokers were on there balcony's and the smoke you could not get away from it. Overall its a fantastic ship with lots of sport stuff. (read more)
★★★★☆
“Modern, clean with excellent food and friendly staff. ...”
Written on: 12/11/2008
Modern, clean with excellent food and friendly staff. Entertainment was good i.e shows in the Arena. Vibration in aft cabin, and cabin doors banged - a lot! not enough sunbeds (to those who hogged the same beds/spots throughout the cruise i hope you are ashamed of yourselves). Enjoyed our first cruise! Ventura is a lovely ship (read more)
★★★★☆
“We went as a family of 4, at sea never saw the kids,...”
Written on: 01/11/2008 by phillj123 (1 review written)
We went as a family of 4, at sea never saw the kids, cabins ok considering the only time you will be in them is to sleep. The food range from very good to excellent, as well as the paying restaurants with a good choice of foods. Staff were helpful and pleasant, don't forget most will be doing 16+ hours a day to help you (directed at ignorant passengers). My only complaint (niggle) is looking around most parents were in their 30/40s, yet most of the entertainment seemed to be (as it is on... (read more)
★★★★★
“I have just come back off the Ventura and it is an...”
Written on: 10/10/2008 by MMC741 (2 reviews written)
I have just come back off the Ventura and it is an amazing ship. I have only have one thing to complain about which is you have to walk through a smoky bar to get to certain places, but P&O have now stopped it so it should be a lot better. We had an inside cabin and it was very spacious and clean. The food was always perfectly cooked. The entertainment was always up to a very high standard. Plenty of things for kids and teenagers to do. You could always find somewhere to eat and you could... (read more)
★★★☆☆
“We have travelled on quite few other P&O cruise ships...”
Written on: 03/09/2008 by wildmoor (1 review written)
We have travelled on quite few other P&O cruise ships but never ever will you get us back on Ventura after the terrible holiday we have just experienced. Far far too many teenagers on board with little or no control. P&O have tried to turn this ship into Butlins afloat! (read more)
★★★★☆
“All staff were happy to help. Ship was excellent,...”
Written on: 28/08/2008
All staff were happy to help. Ship was excellent, plenty to do never queued for any entertainment. We had set dinning and were looked after well. Rooms clean. We will definitely holiday on Ventura in the future. We cruise every year and as yet have never had a bad experience. (read more)
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Showing 21 - 30 of 46 Reviews
★★☆☆☆
“Freedom dining was the worst experience of the cruise,...”
Written on: 25/08/2008
Freedom dining was the worst experience of the cruise, in order to obtain a table for four we had to take turns getting up at 7am to book a table for the following evening, as the clocks went forward several time sometimes it was still dark. The line waiting behind us was of at least 30 people every morning, all with stories to tell, of no tables free at all when they came down for dinner. Having to go in Formal outfits to the self service dining room, some said if a table was free you would... (read more)
★★★★☆
“Wonderful ship spoilt by lack of attention to detail....”
Written on: 02/08/2008 by DRS (1 review written)
Wonderful ship spoilt by lack of attention to detail. The way youngsters are allowed to dictate the "state of play" my fear is give it two years and Ventura will become an expensive floating holiday camp!! (I have brought our children many times aboard various P & O ships!). Lacks the atmosphere of other P & O Ships. (read more)
★★★★★
“I could not believe that people were complaining about...”
Written on: 28/07/2008
I could not believe that people were complaining about the food what type of food do they eat at home. I was also surprised that people complained that the ship was too large we knew it was huge, did they not read about the ship before booking a holiday? I hope to be holidaying on board Ventura again (read more)
★☆☆☆☆
“Overall, a very disappointing experience. Felt like a...”
Written on: 23/07/2008 by bears
Overall, a very disappointing experience. Felt like a crowded ship with not enough facilities. Having only one theatre meant long queues for every performance. The dining areas were crowded and the food mediocre. An open plan smoking area meant that it was difficult to avoid smoke and smell. (read more)
★☆☆☆☆
“We have enjoyed 5 previous cruises with P&O on various...”
Written on: 19/07/2008 by jo main (1 review written)
We have enjoyed 5 previous cruises with P&O on various ships, but we found this cruise on Ventura in May 08 was terrible to say the least.
I would not recommend any one to sail on this ship until P&O get their act together and adopt the standards of their other cruise ships.
(read more)
★☆☆☆☆
“Would not advise anybody to spend 2 weeks of their...”
Written on: 19/07/2008 by Nolan Orford
Would not advise anybody to spend 2 weeks of their life and their money on this ship. I thought the only good point was coming home. I would not recommend. (read more)
★★☆☆☆
“Have now cruised with four different cruise lines, P &...”
Written on: 19/07/2008 by Harvester (1 review written)
Have now cruised with four different cruise lines, P & O do not make the top three. Overall view of Canaries Delight cruise (July 4-18, 2008) disappointing. (read more)
★★★★☆
“Theatre could not cope with 2nd sitting, standing room...”
Written on: 06/07/2008 by Melisbest (1 review written)
Theatre could not cope with 2nd sitting, standing room only.
Advertising Scalextrack, 3d cinema, Video walls (when I booked). The Scalextric was very small, no 3d cinema and table and chairs in front of the video walls so no one can see them anyway.
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Davpauline's Response to Melisbest's Review
Written on: 18/07/2008
I agree with this review because...A ship should offer excellence all round not just entertainment, and you expect and pay for 1st class food and service.
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★☆☆☆☆
“Our balcony stateroom was L259 and was on on the Lido...”
Written on: 04/07/2008 by missjasmine (1 review written)
Our balcony stateroom was L259 and was on on the Lido deck. It was small with and not quite finished, some areas had not had the final trim screwed on and there were some empty screw holes here and there. Although we had curtains, there were no sheers, although the track was in place for sheers.
Our room was right beneath the reception for the spa so once they opened at 8am, all we could hear was clip clop on the tiles above our heads, this noise also disturbed our afternoon nap and it took...
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Mcwestbrook's Response to missjasmine's Review
Written on: 10/07/2008
Oh my god, just read review, we have cabin l259 sounds horrendous not looking forward to cruise now at all
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Davpauline's Response to missjasmine's Review
Written on: 18/07/2008
I agree with this review because...it echoes everything we found on Ventura, well done for putting is so well. P&O really needs to review this ship and build some dance floors, there is plenty of space if you take some space out of marketing areas eg. the unacceptable huge area of flooring for photographs. I agree with the table for two, we waited 1 hour 15 minutes after our starter for a main course which we had ordered the night before being vegetarian we only got it after complaining, and the head waiter had the cheek to say you should have said you were in a hurry. I pointed out everyone else was on coffee, needless to say we walked out and never ate in the restaurant again.
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★★★☆☆
“Nice ship good childcare facilities. Food seems to be...”
Written on: 20/06/2008 by bobhogben
Nice ship good childcare facilities. Food seems to be rushed, do not recommend freedom dining as you can not get table when you want. Overall a good cruise and a nice ship excellent for the kids the Spa is very good too (read more)
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Showing 31 - 40 of 46 Reviews
★★☆☆☆
“Good if you like crowds and on tap entertianment. Bad...”
Written on: 17/06/2008 by davpauline (1 review written)
Good if you like crowds and on tap entertianment. Bad if you want tradditional cruising and to feel like you are on a ship (read more)
★★☆☆☆
“The public areas tend to be open plan and very...”
Written on: 13/06/2008 by Wootton (1 review written)
The public areas tend to be open plan and very crowded. Noise and sometimes cigarette smoke spread around spoiling quieter areas. Found it nearly impossible to get a sun-bed as people reserved them and wandered off. We had an outside rear cabin with balcony on deck 14 but this was completely overshadowed by the deck above and the sun only touched it after 18:30 hours. Total lack of space in the swimming pools as all were filled with children ( even the pool that said no under 16s had four... (read more)
★★☆☆☆
“Our previous experience of cruising was with American...”
Written on: 27/05/2008 by J Paul Harris (1 review written)
Our previous experience of cruising was with American lines in the Caribbean, and we had looked forward to a cruise with P&O as an improvement: we were greatly disappointed. While our cabin was neat and clean, it was smaller than those on Dawn Princess (our last cruise) and the bathroom, while adequate, was tiny. Service from our cabin steward, however, was excellent; nothing was too much trouble. Space in the public areas was seldom adequate: long queues and insufficient seating for... (read more)
★☆☆☆☆
“The shops on board sold expensive tat. Tee shirts...”
Written on: 26/05/2008 by uncle geoff (1 review written)
The shops on board sold expensive tat. Tee shirts with Ventura logo for £19 !
Smoking in one of the central areas should not have been allowed, because everyone going from the front of the ship towards the rear on that deck had to walk through a smoke filled room. Disgusting. Also smoke wafts from one balcony to another as the ship moves, so it should be banned throughout the vessel. Why on earth contaminate a new expensive ship with smoke?
Many of the people that we spoke to were, (like...
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Drs's Response to uncle geoff's Review
Written on: 02/08/2008
I agree with this review because... In my opinion, all the observations of the writer are factual and without exageration! A great pity!
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406468_Matt61's Response to uncle geoff's Review
Written on: 02/10/2008
What was the entertainment on board like? Did they have production shows?
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★☆☆☆☆
“We were new to cruising and though it would be a...”
Written on: 23/05/2008 by qafire (1 review written)
We were new to cruising and though it would be a luxury experience - it is not.
Poor dining, much of the dining experience is similar to a motorway services - but at least you can get away! Cramped, boring and god the queuing - endless queuing. NEVER AGAIN!
(read more)
★☆☆☆☆
“We have just returned from a proper operational 'paid...”
Written on: 11/05/2008 by Bobbybass (1 review written)
We have just returned from a proper operational 'paid for' cruise that covered 7 nights (ie not travel promotional ). It was my 74th cruise since 1979 and I must say it was by far the worse. As soon as we arrived on board it was obvious that the ship was hugely overcrowded and none of the departments could cope. This was contrary to the experience of the 'trial cruisers' and travel agents reports that appear here before the ship 'did it for real'. A possible reason for this was outlined by... (read more)
overview
Top 5 Baltic Cruises
To calculate the top 5's we take the following factors into account:
• All the star ratings the company/product has received,
• The number of reviews
• How recent the reviews are
As rated by real users
-
1. P&O Cruises, Ventura Baltic
46 reviews read latest review -
2. Marco Polo www.cruiseandmaritime.com
9 reviews read latest review -
3. Fred Olsen Cruises, Braemar
12 reviews read latest review -
4. P&O Cruises, Aurora Baltic
3 reviews read latest review -
5. Celebrity Cruises, Constellation
14 reviews read latest review
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Guest's Comment
Written on: 04/08/2012
As a wheelchair user I object to your use of the term 'disadvantaged'. However you are forgiven given that it appears that English is a second language to you. In my experience of cruises it is the able bodied passengers who are inconsiderate. I have experienced ten minute waits for lifts because people are too lazy to walk one or two flights of stairs. Wheelchair use is not a lifestyle choice, being bone idle is.