South Pacific Cruise on P&O

My 40th Birthday was coming up in a few months and my husband asked me how I wanted to celebrate it and I thought for a while then I said, let's go on a cruise. My husband and I have always spoken about going on a cruise even long before we were married, so as soon as I suggested the cruise, we were both really excited about the idea.

I started to look at where we could go, I didn't want to go on a long cruise 'cause we weren't sure if we could handle being inside a ship for a long period of time. We then made a decision to go for 8 days/7 nights and we thought the South Pacific was a good start.

We chose P&O Cruises for our first cruise, we booked a quad cabin for my husband, myself and our 2 girls. We were all so excited about this trip and we were counting down the days. Well the day came, we went through the normal check-in and customs procedure just like boarding a plane. We were finally cleared to board the ship and as we got up, we were greeted by so many of the ships crew. They all seemed to be really friendly and polite which I thought was a really great way to start our journey.

We were then taken to our cabin which had 2 bunk beds, toilet/shower, cabinets to put our clothes in and a little desk. We were then told to be on the top deck at 4:00pm to go through all the emergency drills and other rules and regulations.

Once all the drills regarding life vests and emergency meeting points were done, it was party time on the top deck.

After the welcome party and drinks, we went back to our cabin to prepare for our first dinner on board the ship. There are about 4 restaurants in the ship and because we love our food, we tried each and everyone of them. Here are some pictures of the kind of food you could get while in a cruise.

We didn't take a picture of all the dishes we ate, but at least you now have an idea of the kind of meals that they serve. The good thing with a cruise, all meals are included whether you eat at the buffet on the top deck or in  any one of their fancier restaurant, any food that you order is already included in your fare. The only thing you have to pay for is softdrinks and alcohol. All juices and water is also included. 

Our cruise included 3 stop overs, one was Noumea in New Caledonia, the other was the island of Lifou and last but not least the Isle of Pines. 

New Caledonia is what they call the dry dock. they call it that because it's not an island surrounded by water you can swim in, this is were you have your tour using the "Yellow Train".

We headed back to the ship after being in Noumea for the whole day. We sailed for another 2 days before going to our next stop, Lifou Island. We were welcomed by the locals of this Island, they fed us a rice and chicken dish wrapped and cooked in coconut leaves. It was delicious. They also performed their tribal dance and showed us how to use the coconut leaves to make baskets and other items which they sell in the island.

We headed to the Isle of Pines for our last stop during our 8 day cruise. Isle of Pines is truly a beautiful Island which everyone should see and explore.

Meanwhile, if we are not docked on this beautiful island, we are never ever bored inside the ship. They have activities for everyone almost 24/7. Every night when we return to our cabin from dinner, there is a Cruise news paper that they slip under the door. This newspaper lists all the activities within the cruise for the next day. My husband and I go through it and mark the activities we want to do the next day. The good thing though is, you can either do so much in one day or you can do very little or nothing at all. 

They don't only have activities for the older passengers, they also have what they call "kids club" which caters to kids from 4 and above. My older daughter was 4 when we went on the cruise so she was able to join the kids club which she really enjoyed very much. She made lots of new friends. She couldn't wait to go to the designated room as soon as we finished breakfast daily. They had disco nights, arts and crafts, cooking and lots more.

We went on some activities like, "Country Western" night, "Formal" night and "Hawaiian" night.

The ships head Chef showed us around the kitchen, were they cook thousand of meals a day. He also showed us how to fillet a Salmon during his Culinary class.

Here are some more pictures taken around the ship.

We also had great sunsets...

All I can say is, when you go on a cruise, you can truly say that you've had a holiday. It is the most relaxed we've been when on a holiday. Wake up when you want to, do as much or as little as you want to. The staff/crew were the best we've ever encountered. They really made our stay so special.

On the 8th day, we were sad and happy at the same time to end our cruise and to see the beautiful Sydney Harbour and the Opera House.

P&O, thank you for the most wonderful holiday and thank you for looking after us, we will definitely cruise with you again.

Pictures courtesy of RMV Photography.