Northern Europe Cruise on P&O Iona
We stayed in a 4 berth ocean view cabin on deck 5. This was a great location, mid-ship and low down, for a winter cruise. We were conveniently close to the mid-ship stairs and lifts and it was just one deck up to the atrium on deck 6. The cabin had a lovely window seat for chilling out and watching the movement of the sea.
Our port highlights included the Dutch Pinball Museum in Rotterdam and the sandy beaches of Blankenberge, Belgium. Our children played happily on the sand for ages, despite it being December and us all being wrapped up in winter clothes. The beach was vast with fine, pale sand.
The Christmas decorations on board the ship were absolutely beautiful, tailored to each area of the ship, and made Iona look stunning. The extra little touches on board for Christmas took this voyage a notch or two above a regular family cruise. For example, we enjoyed a pantomime on board plus full Christmas dinner one evening in the main dining room. There were also festive films on every day in the cinema.
Iona hosts one formal night per week and this was an elevated event on this cruise as everyone dressed up even more than usual in sparkly Christmas outfits. Our second sea day was then designated “Christmas Day” where passengers were all encouraged to dress up in festive outfits and the crew wore Santa hats. This created a really fun and festive atmosphere on board and this felt like a bonus gala night.
We dined in Coral, one of the four main dining rooms onboard, most evenings and were very impressed. Service was friendly, professional and efficient and the food choices were very good. We also really enjoyed our other dining experiences on board, especially at the Olive Grove. We loved this Italian themed venue for both its food and atmosphere. We also had a very good meal at Sindhu which is a beautiful and exclusive feeling venue.
The Reef kids club was really popular with our children who chose to spend some time there every day joining in with the various games, competitions and activities on offer. Our children really warmed to the staff on board who were fun, enthusiastic and took time to get to know the children and engage them with varied activities. Staff took the children out and about around the ship on treasure hunts, and to festive cinema and theatre shows.
We also very much liked the Sky Dome area on Iona for its indoor pool, which we used most days, and the evening shows. The shows were very dramatic and eye-catching with dance, acrobatics and impressive light shows.
We attended the theatre most evenings as there was so much family friendly entertainment on offer. We enjoyed Digital and Sky’s the Limit with the Headliners cast, a Cinderella pantomime, a Christmas show called Deck the Halls and the Greatest Days Take That production. We watched Rise, Spark and Triboo in the Sky Dome.
Our favourite bar on board was the Crow’s Nest for the fantastic views, great service and exclusive atmosphere. Although not the weather for sitting outside we also loved the wrap-around promenade deck on Iona which we walked most days, and all the top deck outdoor areas. We really liked the Beachcomber pool area, the giant outdoor chess board and the kids splash area. We hope to come back on Iona on a summertime cruise soon to make the most of these facilities.
