PACIFIC MISADVENTURE? Maiden Cruise Vlog and Review
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- Опубліковано 25 жов 2022
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Pacific Adventure’s maiden voyage was a 3 night cruise to nowhere departing Sydney’s White Bay cruise terminal on October 22nd, and I had planned to be onboard for months. To mark the occasion, I booked a Vista Suite, knowing that the room would provide access to the brand new Byron Beach experience which I was very much looking forward to trying.
After just a little bit of filming, it was time to enjoy lunch and I always recommend the Waterfront on boarding day. After the excitement of the morning, it’s nice to take a load off and let it sink in that you’re on a cruise.
Everything I ordered was fresh and tasty, the baked berry crumble in particular was a stand out.
At check in, guests were informed that Luke’s Bar and Grill and 400 Gradi would be closed on this sailing. As well, The Pantry would only be open for breakfast and lunch, and an early children’s dinner.
Angelo’s remains my favourite of the included dining venues. The menu has changed a little, with some of the pasta options swapped out with alternatives. The risotto starter was well cooked and delicious. The flounder likewise was tasty and the sides were the perfect accompaniment.
Before bed last night, I placed an order for room service breakfast which is an included perk for P&O’s suites. It was scheduled to arrive between 8 and 8:30 but arrived at 9am. Unfortunately, the food was cold, the bread seemed stale, and the eggs were basically hard boiled.
Unfortunately, I saw that the pool was closed. I had noticed the hot tubs were closed yesterday, but at that time, the pool was very much open. We made our way over to the comfortable lounges to soak in the Club vibe. The space is really beautiful, with plush furniture and branded cushions, plus shade sails and private gazebos that are available on a first come, first serve basis. I noticed how quiet it was, and when I asked about music, the crew told me that the stereo system in this section was awaiting repairs.
The twin racing waterslide entry is located behind the big screen, with a stairway for the slides and also for the Flying Fox. The structure itself is enormous, and the slides extend out over the side of the ship. The slide exit is conveniently located near the entrance to the upper level of the indoor family pool zone. There’s also a timer so you can even keep track of your fastest time. The Flying Fox sees people zip right over the top of the pool deck.
One of the Byron Beach Club perks is that the crew will take your order for food from the poolside Gradi Pronto and Luke’s Burger Bar, and they’ll deliver it to you. As has become the norm, the paid food options on P&O are really exceptional.
There’s no doubt that Dragon Lady is a beautiful venue. The menu looked much the same as what we recently experienced onboard Pacific Encounter, and as a group of 4 we decided to try everything on it. Honestly, at this point I stopped filming, and I didn’t even realise until I went back to look at my footage. The food was not up to par. I like to think that I’m fair and I always try to be diplomatic and constructive in terms of my feedback and reviews, but in this case, it was simply not good. I was disappointed.
One thing that lay ahead was the realisation that the shower had one temperature, scalding hot. I had noticed there was an issue the day prior and reported it to reception, but it hadn’t been fixed.
As I hope most of you know, I’m a passionate proponent for the local cruise industry and in particular, I’ve come to really enjoy the unique Australian twist that P&O continue to bring to local cruising. From beautifully designed public spaces, to incredibly friendly crew, P&O offer a very solid cruise holiday experience for new and seasoned cruisers. From the bar and wait staff, and the room stewards to the entertainment crew, the people onboard really made the experience. Still, I just can’t overlook some of the issues - a scalding hot shower, a toilet that wouldn’t flush, a leak in the bathroom, generally disappointing complimentary food and food options as well as the non-functioning pool and hot tubs in the Byron Beach Club. I know that many of these issues were experienced by others onboard, so it wasn’t a unique situation but I also know that for everyone of us that had a problem, there were probably 10 that didn’t. Ultimately, my view is that Pacific Adventure was not ready for service. Though I have no doubt that P&O will iron out these kinks, my view is they should have given themselves more time.
Thanks for watching!
WOOHOO! Very excited to be watching this vlog. Followed you both on IG stories so good to watch it in its entirity.
A fair and balanced review Adrian - let's home the issues are sorted in time. Encounter it seems had a similar start and has improved greatly.
Thanks for your honest review, Adrian. Hopefully those problems are rectified for future cruisers. Some reimbursement would be expected for all your disappointments you encountered. Keep up the good work. 👏
Excellent and well balanced review thanks Adrian. Your objectivity is why we watch. I know maiden voyages are usually problematic but we still pay full price for the experience.
Thank you for that review, Adam. We are sailing on Nov 11 and its my birthday, fingers crossed that some of these hiccups will be resolved.
Thank you for been honest in your review.
two weeks Thursday and I'll be on board the Splendor sailing out of Sydney...seeing how blustery it was on deck in this vid you've brought home how much one still needs to pack the winter woolies...I'll start my sorting/packing this weekend, and repack god knows how many times in between...chuckle...been looking forward to this trip since 2020...
Thanks for the fair and honest review.I would be annoyed and all those things you mentioned that were not operating or broken.Hopefully they get those poached eggs right next time!
"A bad day on a cruise is much better than a good day on land". Totally agree. It's a shame it wasn't quite up to par...I'll be boarding Pacific Encounter in a little over two weeks. I hope we have better weather.
Thanks for such a honest review!. New subscriber here 😃
Great video..never sail on the first cruise of a new ship it's always haven't got all things running at %100..but saying that they had loads of time to get everything up and running
Wouldn’t be an Aussie cruise without Aussie weather
Thanks for the video..Lets only hope all the issues get ironed out and fixed..😏
Hey Adrian another awesome video by you mate, ill have to ring you to get you to book me a a nice cruise very soon, keep up the good work mate
We sailed on the Golden Princess (Pacific Adventure) in 2011. I think she was built in 2001. I saw the bones of the ship I remember from my time on her in your video. I hope they get all of the issues ironed out.
We gave the Pacific Encounter ago, first time cruising with P&O I've got to say we will be sticking with Princess.
I think you are being very kind in your review. It is what it is....but on viewing your vid I would have been as disappointed as you were. Very sad to see.
I’ve always been skeptical about how P&O pull off recycling ships that are my age or older (I’m 24) by giving them a new spot of paint and a new interior. Only for it to as Adrian said “not ready for service”. This honest and unbiased review has shown that I will not be sailing on P&O Australia anytime soon. Maybe if they got a new ship newly built from a shipyard that would be a step in the right direction. One new, high quality ship would outdo three below average vessels. Just my thoughts.
Sailing under the Harbour Bridge is such a bucket list for me. A shame we didn’t on my Coral cruise, but gives me an excuse to come back again, I guess…!
I’m on this ship now. Got a suite as all the other cheaper rooms were booked out. In room 15703 absolutely loving it so far, it’s my first cruise.