Jill B
The roaming Aussie
We sailed on Pacific Eden in 2016 as she was home ported in our closest city, Cairns, for a while. Just a 40km drive down the hill, no flights.
Having already sailed on HAL Volendam back in 2008, we found a few similarities, but P&O Australia had re-furbished most of the public areas. Our cabin on deck 6, with a window overlooking the promenade, was spacious and basically the same as on Volendam.
The original 2 level Rotterdam dining room was completely changed; the lower level became the Waterfront Restaurant, the upper level divided into 2 restaurants; Angelo's (Italian) and Dragon Lady (Asian). These 3 restaurants were no extra charge. (There were a couple of specialty venues which required extra payment).
We had dinner at all 3. Angelo's was the better one, Dragon Lady was next, but the servings were tiny. Waterfront was not very good; it was anytime dining, food mediocre and trying to get a bottle of wine to actually drink with dinner was a challenge. We prefer Traditional Dining, but this wasn't available.
The Lido buffet was completely changed as well. It became The Pantry. It was like a series of small food outlets in a shopping centre, and not very efficient; again the food was mediocre.
I know everyone's food tastes are different, and these are just my opinions, but some fellow cruisers felt the same.
The show room was re-named The Marquee and also had a make-over. We watched some shows from the upper level, and had to get there early to get a seat at the front with a view. (through the glass balcony). The seats behind had poor views to the stage. I think the floor didn't have enough slope.
Explorations became The Blue Room, where they had some good live music at night.
I won't get into the debacle with the smoking areas, as I know a lot of people don't approve of smoking on ships.
To sum up, comparing P&O Australia's Pacific Eden experience with HAL Volendam isn't really fair as they cater to different people. Volendam was very elegant and traditional, while Pacific Eden was modern and aimed at younger passengers.
We had a good time anyway, as we always do.
Our cabin.
Angelo's Italian Restaurant.
Dragon Lady Asian Restaurant.
Waterfront Restaurant.
The Pantry seating area. You get your food from the other side of the partitions on the right of the photo.
The Pantry. Food "kiosks"
The Blue Room.
The midship pool area.
The Marquee.
Having already sailed on HAL Volendam back in 2008, we found a few similarities, but P&O Australia had re-furbished most of the public areas. Our cabin on deck 6, with a window overlooking the promenade, was spacious and basically the same as on Volendam.
The original 2 level Rotterdam dining room was completely changed; the lower level became the Waterfront Restaurant, the upper level divided into 2 restaurants; Angelo's (Italian) and Dragon Lady (Asian). These 3 restaurants were no extra charge. (There were a couple of specialty venues which required extra payment).
We had dinner at all 3. Angelo's was the better one, Dragon Lady was next, but the servings were tiny. Waterfront was not very good; it was anytime dining, food mediocre and trying to get a bottle of wine to actually drink with dinner was a challenge. We prefer Traditional Dining, but this wasn't available.
The Lido buffet was completely changed as well. It became The Pantry. It was like a series of small food outlets in a shopping centre, and not very efficient; again the food was mediocre.
I know everyone's food tastes are different, and these are just my opinions, but some fellow cruisers felt the same.
The show room was re-named The Marquee and also had a make-over. We watched some shows from the upper level, and had to get there early to get a seat at the front with a view. (through the glass balcony). The seats behind had poor views to the stage. I think the floor didn't have enough slope.
Explorations became The Blue Room, where they had some good live music at night.
I won't get into the debacle with the smoking areas, as I know a lot of people don't approve of smoking on ships.
To sum up, comparing P&O Australia's Pacific Eden experience with HAL Volendam isn't really fair as they cater to different people. Volendam was very elegant and traditional, while Pacific Eden was modern and aimed at younger passengers.
We had a good time anyway, as we always do.
Our cabin.
Angelo's Italian Restaurant.
Dragon Lady Asian Restaurant.
Waterfront Restaurant.
The Pantry seating area. You get your food from the other side of the partitions on the right of the photo.
The Pantry. Food "kiosks"
The Blue Room.
The midship pool area.
The Marquee.