P&O Cruises
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Norwegian Fjords onboard the beautiful Aurora
We have just returned from an amazing 12 day Norwegian Fjords cruise on the Aurora. We loved the size and style of the ship with it being not too big as to be constantly getting lost, but not too small to feel claustrophobic. Considering we were almost full capacity most areas of the ship felt nice and relaxed and sparsely crowded which we loved. Only at meal times and after shows did we encounter a larger number of people but this is to be expected and was a nice vibe to see everyone enjoying themselves, and was well controlled by crew. Aurora herself had just benefitted from a refit, and was looking well presented with fresh paint, carpets and furnishings. And considering she is the eldest ship in the fleet Aurora is very well maintained, looked smart throughout and was a beautiful ship to be on with a lot of character. We booked a basic inside room and it had ample room for our needs with plenty of storage space and a decent shower. But we didn’t spend a ton of time in our room and enjoyed plenty of time admiring the view. We especially enjoyed the proper promenade onboard which was a great spot for relaxing on sea days and sitting on when cruising the Fjords. And the Crows nest bar was a nice spot to see what was going on while enjoying a quiet book or drinks during the day. The crew onboard we found were always very polite and helpful to us, especially with specific dietary requirements (being vegan & gluten free). They went above and beyond to make sure we always had something available, along with new and exciting dishes every night in the main dining room. Once we did have an issue finding some cakes one day but just talking to the head waiter sorted that out, and every day we had something set aside for us from then on. We also enjoyed the creativity of the chefs who were able to adapt some dishes specially, and it puts the land based restaurants and pubs we’ve been to to shame. We’ve never had so much variety of food in a restaurant before and it was an absolute treat. Entertainment wise there was a good mix in the main theatre that we enjoyed. There were several independent performers who most of we enjoyed (but a couple just weren’t our taste but you can’t please everyone). But our overall favourite was the Headliners theatre company, where we looked forward to every performance they did as did many others onboard with a packed out theatre. The ship was spotless and there was always staff around making sure the ship was immaculate. Everywhere you could glance someone wiping handrails etc making me feel safer on board which was one of my reservations for cruising. There was also a large number of sanitiser stations throughout and encouragement at meal times for hand washing or sanitising. We found the itinerary very interesting and there was a good mix of towns, cities and natural beauty spots to explore picturesque fjords and mountains. We did hear a few grumbles from people who said that they found some ports “boring” with not a lot to do on land, but you need to do your research ahead of time or book an excursion to get the best out of each place. And the highlight for us was going further up north than other cruises and exploring the Lofoten islands, where we had pre booked a coach tour to see the village of Rheine and some beautiful panoramas which were stunning. Trondheim and Haugesund were nice towns and cities with plenty to do and see a short walk from the ship. Our only critique of the excursions was that there could be a little more signage or explanation for where to meet up, as The only thing to see was a clipboard someone was holding which wasn’t easily visible amongst other people disembarking, and the excursions team could have been more vocal and obvious about directing people. Overall we loved our trip and can’t wait for another cruise on Aurora again.