P&O Cruises is offering its largest ever cruise programme next year, including fly-cruise holidays to the Mediterranean on new small ship Adonia joining the fleet in May 2011 and the first full year of cruising for 3,100 passenger ship Azura.
For the first time, family friendly ship Oceana will offer cruises from Southampton throughout the winter (October to April), to the Western and Eastern Mediterranean, Atlantic Islands and the Caribbean and USA.
Holidays in the P&O Cruises 2011/12 brochure can be booked from Tuesday April 27, 2010.
P&O Cruises, managing director, Carol Marlow, said: “P&O Cruises offers the British cruiser the greatest amount of choice tailored to their needs, with more departures, more ports of call, more choice of ships and more holiday durations suited to them than any other line. This is our biggest ever programme launch, with 156 cruise holidays to 270 destinations in 90 countries. More people will spend more time with us next year than ever before.”
“The introduction of Mediterranean fly-cruising is an exciting step forward for P&O Cruises, and one that we know will make many of our existing passengers very happy. We listen to our customers and always try to give them what they want.
“At the same time, we hope this will attract new customers who have previously chosen a holiday in a Mediterranean resort.”
Adonia will join the P&O Cruises fleet in May 2011, and will offer ex- Southampton cruises between May and October , from seven to 26 nights in duration to the Mediterranean and Northern Europe featuring some smaller and off the beaten track ports of call as well as the must see destinations. These itineraries will also feature overnight calls in Athens and St. Petersburg, as well as a round Britain cruise.
In October, Adonia will reposition to the Mediterranean and offer six open-jaw Central and Eastern Mediterranean fly-cruises, departing from Savona, Athens, Trieste and Naples. Itinerary highlights include a Christmas and New Year cruise to the Holy Land.
Prices on Adonia start from £1,924* for the 16 night Western Mediterranean maiden cruise from Southampton in May 2011, and £1,399 cruise only, for a 14 night Central Mediterranean holiday from Trieste to Athens in December 2011. A holiday package add-on including flights is available for £99.
“We are also thrilled to be introducing a number of new ports of call to our itineraries this year, as well as a number not visited since the days of P&O Cruises Victoria. Our cruise holidays combine an eclectic mix of destinations and on shore experiences to offer passengers the chance to get to know the places they visit,” continued Marlow.
New ports of call featured in the 2011/12 brochure are:
* Bourgas, Bulgaria (Adonia)
* Flekkefjord, Norway (Adonia)
* Foynes, Ireland (Adonia)
* Jersey, UK (Adonia)
* Koper, Slovenia (Adonia, Oriana)
* Liverpool, UK (Arcadia)
* Sassnitz, Germany (Adonia)
* Savona, Italy (Adonia)
* Zadar, Croatia (Adonia)
There are also 20 ports of call featured that have not been visited for several years, including Oporto in Portugal, being visited by Oceana, Arcadia, Aurora and Oriana; Patmos and Samos in Greece, Tangiers in Morocco and Trieste in Italy, all featuring on Adonia’s itineraries.
Cruises will also feature ‘Spotlight’ – a new programme of daytime events for passengers wanting to learn a skill, develop their knowledge or find hobbies. Talks and interactive workshops will be offered on subjects as such as history, current affairs, the natural world, dance, art and gastronomy. All are delivered by experts in their field, some including familiar TV personalities.
Early bird savings are available for bookings made by 30 June 2010, subject to availability. Double savings are offered on balcony cabins and above, with savings up to £800 per couple for a 14 night cruise, and also on all cabin grades on 20 ‘Seasonal Savers’ cruise holidays.
Free car parking is available on all cruises from Southampton of seven nights or more, and on board spending money of between £50 and £250 per cabin is available on cruises of four nights or more.
Other highlights of the brochure are:
Azura
o Cruising to the Central and Western Mediterranean, Baltic, Norwegian Fjords, Iceland, Western Europe and Caribbean
o Sailing 17 ex-UK cruises from April 2011 to October 2011 and 11 Caribbean fly cruises from October 2011 to March 2012
o Cruises range from a four night cruise break to Azura’s inaugural 15 night Icelandic cruise
o Overnight calls in Venice and St. Petersburg
o Prices starting from £599 for a seven night cruise break in April 2011
Oceana
o Cruising to the Eastern and Western Mediterranean, Norwegian Fjords, Atlantic Islands, Western Europe, Caribbean and USA
o Sailing 31 ex-UK cruises from March 2011 to March 2012
o Cruises range from a two night party cruise to a 24 night Eastern Mediterranean cruise
o New ports of call – Ashdod and Haifa, Israel, and Oporto, Portugal
o First time offering year-round cruises from the UK
o Prices starting from £199 for a two night party cruise in May, September or October 2011 and £1,099 for a 14 night Mediterranean cruise in April or November 2011
Arcadia
o Cruising to the Eastern, Western and Central Mediterranean, round Britain, Baltic, Canada and USA, Alaska, Caribbean and Atlantic Islands
o Sailing 13 ex-UK cruises from March 2011 to January 2012
o Cruises range from a 13 night round Britain cruise to a 72 night Grand Alaska Adventure
o Eight new sectors available on the Grand Alaska Adventure, ranging from 10 to 28 nights
o New Ports of call – Liverpool and Oporto, Portugal
o Overnight calls in San Francisco, New York, Quebec and St. Petersburg
o Prices starting from £1,049 for a 12 night Atlantic Islands cruise in November 2011 and £1,149 for a 14 night Western Mediterranean cruise in April 2011
Oriana
o Cruising to the Western and Central Mediterranean, Baltic, Caribbean, Western Europe and Atlantic Islands
o Sailing 20 ex-UK cruises from March 2011 to January 2012
o Cruises range from a two night party cruise to 34 night Caribbean cruise, roundtrip from Southampton
o New ports of call – Koper, Slovenia, Oporto, Portugal, Ravenna and Salerno, Italy
o Overnight calls in New Orleans, Venice and St. Petersburg
o Prices starting from £199 for a two night party cruise in June or December 2011, and £3,049 for a 34 night ex-Southampton no-fly Caribbean cruise in September 2011
Aurora
o Cruising to the Western and Central Mediterranean, Atlantic Islands, Black Sea, Baltic, Norwegian Fjords, Greenland, Caribbean, Canada and USA
o Sailing 16 ex-UK cruises from April 2011 to January 2012
o Cruises range from a two night party cruise to a 24-night Canada & New England cruise, roundtrip from Southampton
o New Ports of call – Catania, Italy, and Oporto, Portugal
o Overnight calls in New York, Quebec and St. Petersburg
o Prices starting from £199 for a two night party cruise in November 2011 and £2,299 for a 21 night Black Sea cruise in August 2011
Ventura
o Cruising to the Western and Central Mediterranean, Norwegian Fjords, Atlantic Islands, Caribbean and Western Europe
o Sailing 21 ex-UK cruises from March 2011 to October 2011 and 11 Caribbean fly cruises from October 2011 to March 2012
o Cruises range from a two night party cruise to a 17 night Central Mediterranean cruise
o Overnight call in Venice
o Prices starting from £599 for a seven night cruise break in April 2011 and £1,199 for a 14 night Caribbean fly-cruise in December 2011
Marlow continued: “Our recent research shows us that our passengers particularly love the way we tailor everything to their British needs; the way we actually celebrate being on a ship, with the officers and crew making this a real nautical experience, as only we can due to our long heritage. They also love the way that a cruise with us is a special occasion that they will remember for a long time to come.
“And of course, this is the ‘P&O’ness’ that they will experience whichever of our fleet of seven modern and stylish ships they travel on – from small and elegant, Adonia, exclusively for adults, to vast, fun and family friendly superliner Ventura.”
