p&o arvia caribbean cruise reviews

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Arvia Deck Plans & Reviews

Activities & entertainment

• Grand Atrium
• Oasis Spa *
• Thermal Suite *
• Art Gallery *
• The Photo Gallery *
• Shore Experiences *
• Loyalty and Cruise Sales *
• The Avenue Shopping *
• Whirlpools (20)
• The Crow's Nest - Observation Lounge
• Ivory Suite
• The Reef - Kids Club
• Scene - Teens Club
• Jogging Track
• Sports Court
• Altitude Skywalk - Ropes Course
• Splash Valley - Aqua Zone
• The Retreat *
• Dance Classes
• Cooking Demonstrations
• Self-Service Laundry
• Medical Center
• Headliners Theatre
• Amber Lounge
• The Limelight Club - Supper Club *
• The 710 Club
• Mission Control - Escape Room *
• Ocean Studios - Cinema
• The Club House
• Film Screenings
• Aerial Artists
• Cabaret Acts
• Production Shows
• Meridian Restaurant - Main
• Zenith Restaurant - Main
• Amber Lounge - Popular Bar *
• The Glass House - Wine Bar *
• Vistas Cafe Bar - Coffee Bar *
• Anderson's Bar - Rum Distillery *
• 6th Street Diner - American *
• The Olive Grove - Mediterranean *
• Brodie's - Pub *
• The Keel & Cow - Steakhouse Gastropub *
• Ripples - Gelateria *
• Sindhu - Indian *
• Sindhu Bar - Indian Bar *
• The Quays - Worldwide Snacks
• Green & Co Feat. Mizuhana - Seafood and Plant-Based *
• The Beach House - Caribbean and South American *
• Sunset Bar - Scenic Bar *
• Infinity Bar - Pool Bar *
• Grab & Go - Snacks
• Horizon Restaurant - Buffet
• Crystal Bar - Pool Bar *
• Sky Bar - Scenic Bar *
• Panorama Bar - Pool Bar *
• Beachcomber Bar - Pool Bar *
• Taste 360 - Pool Grill and Pizzeria
• Laguna Bar - Pool Bar *
• Sundaes - Ice Cream *
• Epicurean - British *
• The Chef's Table - Gourmet *
• The 710 Club - Piano Bar *
• Afternoon Tea
• Room Service *

Reviews We perform checks on reviews. Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines , the review is not published. When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site. Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines . Learn more about our review moderation.

• Excellent 54
• Very Good 40
• Terrible 59
• All languages ( 268 )
• English ( 268 )

Upcoming itineraries

• Holiday Rentals
• Restaurants
• Things to do
• Things to Do
• Travel Stories
• Add a Place
• Travel Forum
• Travellers' Choice
• Help Centre

Arvia Deck Plans & Reviews

Activities & entertainment

• Grand Atrium
• Oasis Spa *
• Thermal Suite *
• Art Gallery *
• The Photo Gallery *
• Shore Experiences *
• Loyalty and Cruise Sales *
• The Avenue Shopping *
• Whirlpools (20)
• The Crow's Nest - Observation Lounge
• Ivory Suite
• The Reef - Kids Club
• Scene - Teens Club
• Jogging Track
• Sports Court
• Altitude Skywalk - Ropes Course
• Splash Valley - Aqua Zone
• The Retreat *
• Dance Classes
• Cooking Demonstrations
• Self-Service Laundry
• Medical Center
• Headliners Theatre
• Amber Lounge
• The Limelight Club - Supper Club *
• The 710 Club
• Mission Control - Escape Room *
• Ocean Studios - Cinema
• The Club House
• Film Screenings
• Aerial Artists
• Cabaret Acts
• Production Shows
• Meridian Restaurant - Main
• Zenith Restaurant - Main
• Amber Lounge - Popular Bar *
• The Glass House - Wine Bar *
• Vistas Cafe Bar - Coffee Bar *
• Anderson's Bar - Rum Distillery *
• 6th Street Diner - American *
• The Olive Grove - Mediterranean *
• Brodie's - Pub *
• The Keel & Cow - Steakhouse Gastropub *
• Ripples - Gelateria *
• Sindhu - Indian *
• Sindhu Bar - Indian Bar *
• The Quays - Worldwide Snacks
• Green & Co Feat. Mizuhana - Seafood and Plant-Based *
• The Beach House - Caribbean and South American *
• Sunset Bar - Scenic Bar *
• Infinity Bar - Pool Bar *
• Grab & Go - Snacks
• Horizon Restaurant - Buffet
• Crystal Bar - Pool Bar *
• Sky Bar - Scenic Bar *
• Panorama Bar - Pool Bar *
• Beachcomber Bar - Pool Bar *
• Taste 360 - Pool Grill and Pizzeria
• Laguna Bar - Pool Bar *
• Sundaes - Ice Cream *
• Epicurean - British *
• The Chef's Table - Gourmet *
• The 710 Club - Piano Bar *
• Afternoon Tea
• Room Service *

Reviews We perform checks on reviews. Tripadvisor’s approach to reviews Before posting, each Tripadvisor review goes through an automated tracking system, which collects information, answering the following questions: how, what, where and when. If the system detects something that potentially contradicts our community guidelines , the review is not published. When the system detects a problem, a review may be automatically rejected, sent to the reviewer for validation, or manually reviewed by our team of content specialists, who work 24/7 to maintain the quality of the reviews on our site. Our team checks each review posted on the site disputed by our community as not meeting our community guidelines . Learn more about our review moderation.

• Excellent 54
• Very Good 40
• Terrible 59
• All languages ( 268 )
• English ( 268 )

Upcoming itineraries

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Review: Sailing the Caribbean onboard P&O Cruises’ Arvia

Posted by Samantha Mayling on 3 August 2023

Fine dining, spa treatments and island excursions wow Samantha Mayling 

“Now, I've had the time of my life…” As the Dirty Dancing hit blasted out from the speedboat’s speakers, we all sang in unison and toasted each other with bottles of Piton Beer. Brewed in Saint Lucia, its logo features the iconic volcanic twin peaks of Gros Piton and Petit Piton, the duo that formed the dramatic backdrop for one of many memorable experiences during a week-long cruise on P&O Cruises’ newest ship, Arvia. 

Just over halfway through my island-hopping Caribbean holiday, I was indeed having the time of my life. I’d joined the ship in Antigua and quickly embraced the West Indian vibe, thanks to speedy immigration and boarding processes. Despite hosting up to 5,200 guests and 1,800 crew, Arvia doesn't feel overcrowded. 

About the Boat There are more than 30 eateries and bars offering a huge variety of dining options, from fish and chips in The Quays and wild mushroom and black truffle arancini and pavé of line-caught sea bass in the Limelight Club to juicy steaks in the Keel and Cow gastropub and stylish Indian cuisine in Sindhu.

Entertainment ranges from silent discos in the atrium to jazz vibes in the 710 Club (created by Gary Barlow), drag act La Voix, music and comedy in the Headliners Theatre and song-and-dance show Play in the SkyDome, and Arvia features several P&O Cruises firsts, such as the high-ropes in the Altitude activity zone, a rum distillery and retractable SkyDome roof.

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Gleaning tips from fellow passengers, I'm told to try people-watching in the Grand Atrium and getting a free breakfast on room service.  Main restaurants Zenith and Meridian , plus others such as the US-themed 6th Street Diner  are all included in the fare, while speciality options are available for a supplement.

I was keen to experience some of the dining spaces and give my tastebuds some TLC so I started at fine-dining restaurant The Glass House . Here, I sipped wine chosen by TV wine expert Olly Smith and nibbled cheese from Blur bassist-turned-cheesemaker Alex James – both 'Food Heroes' for the British cruise line.

All Aboard: Days at Sea The following day was a full day at sea, so I indulged in a Swedish massage, chatting to Polish masseuse Anna while gazing at the Caribbean gliding by the spa window. I then headed to the Retreat , where passengers can pay extra to access a premium VIP open-air deck area. 

Later, at Brodie’s bar, I chatted to footie fans watching Premier League matches in their shorts and flip-flops. There’s so much to do on board that time at sea passes quickly, and new activities are added regularly. 

In the new Mission Control escape game (fees apply), I tried out fictional submarine roles, such as navigator and oceanologist, to solve a mystery. This activity would be ideal for families with kids. But excursions and the chance to explore a range of Caribbean islands were my main focus. 

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At our first port of call, St Kitts , I joined a catamaran excursion to Peninsula Cove and Shitten Bay for snorkelling and the chance to see parrotfish and sergeant major fish darting about the coral and sponges. Lunch at the Chrishi Beach Club on sister island Nevis offered eye-catching views of the Love Shack bar and a deserted beach.

I opted for more leisurely snorkelling – adding cuttlefish to my tally of marine life spotted – then lunch at Dasheene restaurant at Ladera Resort, where red-throated lesser Antillean bullfinches foraged for crumbs, while we gazed at the Pitons. 

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Back on the speedboat, our crew gave us a thrill ride punctuated by some laid-back pootling past pretty pastel houses clinging to the clifftops and tranquil beaches framed by lush rainforest. We spotted the Love Arch, featured in Pirates of the Caribbean, before arriving in Marigot Bay – the location for more movies such as Doctor Doolittle and Blue Lagoon.

The mega yachts moored here were evidence of the bay’s appeal to not just location scouts but millionaires and stars such as Kevin Hart and Serena Williams. Our final port of call was Bridgetown , Barbados, where an island tour took us past the famous cricket ground, the Kensington Oval, and Rihanna Drive – named after the pop star to mark the location of her childhood home. 

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P&O Arvia Cruise Ship Review – Should you book?

Arvia is P&O Cruises’ newest ship and we recently took a 14-night Mediterranean cruise to find out what this cruise ship has to offer. This P&O Arvia cruise ship review will talk you through the best and worst of Arvia so continue reading to find out what we really thought.

If you are considering a cruise on P&O Arvia, we hope this will help you decide if this ship is right for you.

Where is P&O Arvia today?

Arvia is known as the ‘sunshine ship’ so cruises in the Caribbean during the winter and the Mediterranean during the summer.

In the Caribbean, it’s embarkation ports are Barbados and Antigua. For Mediterranean cruise, Arvia sails from Southampton.

P&O Arvia is currently here .

Is Arvia the biggest cruise ship?

P&O Arvia is the largest ship ever commissioned for the British cruise market and although she’s a sister ship to Iona, Arvia is heavier by 611 gross tonnes. This Excel Class ship has many other sisters within the Carnival Corporation such as Carnival Celebration , Costa Smerelda and AIDANova.

P&O Arvia can accommodate 5,200 passengers and up to 6,264 if all 3rd and 4th berths are occupied. You may be concerned (like we were) that this cruise ship is just too big with too many people onboard but surprisingly, Arvia was able to cope really well with the amount of passengers .

The current cruise price for P&O Arvia is very reasonable for a brand new ship and therefore, it’s likely that cruises on Arvia are going to be fairly full for the foreseeable future.

Listen to my review of Arvia on the Magically Cruising Cruise Podcast

P&O Arvia Cabins

P&O Arvia offers a wide range of different cabins to suit all preferences and price points. You can choose from an inside cabin right up to a huge suite.

The main types of cabins on P&O Arvia are:

• Conservatory Mini-suite

The most popular type of cabin on Arvia is a balcony cabin but it’s worth knowing that not all balcony cabins are the same. Location is key when deciding on a cabin and some are best avoided if you value your privacy!

The forward-facing balconies on Deck 8 offer no privacy and no view, which kind of defeats the object of paying for a balcony.

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With that said, there are plenty of good cabins to choose from on Arvia so it’s worth doing some research on where you’d like to be situated before booking.

If you’re interested in treating yourself to a suite on P&O Arvia , there are some beautiful ones in great locations.

Take a look at one of the best suites on Arvia that Cruise With Amber enjoyed on the inaugural cruise.

P&O Arvia Inside Cabin Review

We booked an inside cabin on the Saver Rate, which didn’t allow us to choose our inside cabin location.

Overall, we found the cabin to be small but manageable for two people sharing. It had everything we needed.

We were apprehensive about how much storage space this cabin type would have but we managed to find somewhere to put everything – and we’re not light packers!

The plug sockets on P&O Arvia include UK, European and USB sockets, which is really useful. I created this handy guide to plug sockets on P&O Cruises to help with your next cruise.

Deck 4 is a really good location for getting on and off the ship in port, plus there’s very little movement, even in rough seas. Our cabin (4655) was in a unique location, which posed a bit of different a problem. Watch our cabin tour and review of an inside cabin on Deck 4 to find out what the issue was.

Dining on Arvia

P&O Cruises has stepped up its options in the dining department on Arvia, with a good selection of complimentary and specialty restaurants.

There are four restaurants that are categorised as main dining rooms:

• Zenith (Deck 7)
• Meridian (Deck 6)
• The Olive Grove (Deck 6)
• 6th Street Diner (Deck 6) – see the menu and our review

Across the ship there are 8 food venues that are included in your cruise fare and you can eat in all of these places with no extra charge. In addition to the main dining rooms mentioned above, you also have the choice of:

Horizon Buffet

• The Chef’s Table (available on celebration nights only)

We ate in all complimentary dining venues during our cruise and really enjoyed the variety that they offered.

Read my guide to complimentary dining on P&O Arvia

Zenith and meridian dining rooms.

Both of these dining rooms are almost identical in terms of decor and table arrangements. Zenith benefits from windows on either side and overlooks the Meridian restaurant, whereas Meridian has huge windows looking out over the wake.

The menu is the same in both restaurants so it doesn’t really matter which you choose to dine in. The menu changes daily but you will always find steak, a vegetarian option, a curry option, ice cream and a cheese board.

The food is good in the Meridian and Zenith for dinner, with recommendations from the chef and for wines.

The menus features gluten free, vegan and vegetarians options for each course.

Portion sizes were more than adequate for us and the service was friendly and attentive. During peak times it was a little slower but we were never in any rush to hurry through our dinner.

Here’s what we ate for dinner on one evening in the Zenith Restaurant.

It’s certainly worth dining in the Meridian or Zenith on at least one of the celebration nights to enjoy an elevated menu. The Baked Blueberry Souffle is particularly worth ordering.

Breakfast in the Meridian and Zenith is not to be missed because it’s a much calmer start to the day than the Horizon Buffet. This cruise was the most we’ve ever eaten breakfast in the main dining room.

There are healthy options as well as the traditional ‘Full English’ so everyone is catered for.

The Olive Grove

The Olive Grove is very popular on Iona and it’s worth dining here at least once during a cruise on Arvia. The menu is inspired by Mediterranean cuisine , which is particularly apt for a Mediterranean cruise.

Service is fairly quick in this restaurant so it’s a good option if you have plans to watch a show. This restaurant is only open for dinner and reservations are recommended.

We were particularly impressed with the quality of the dishes , given that this was included in the cruise fare. There were choices of Italian, Spanish, Greek, Portugese, Sardinian and Turkish dishes on the menu. There are two menus that alternate every few days so if you have the time, we’d advise returning so you can try both.

Here’s what we ate for dinner in the Olive Grove.

6th Street Diner on P&O Arvia

This American-style diner is exclusive to P&O Arvia and is open for brunch and dinner. It’s a perfect option if you’re looking for casual dining with table service.

The brunch menu serves breakfast and lunch options from 10.00am, so is worth remembering if you choose to sleep in on a sea day.

There’s certainly a fun element to this restaurant with the crew dressed accordingly and 50s rock and roll music playing on the jukebox.

Read my full review of brunch and dinner at the 6th Street Diner .

Situated on Deck 8, The Quays offers quick, hot food options with a choice of three stations:

• Hook, Line and Vinegar – Fish and chips
• Asian Fusion – Asian dishes with noodles and rice
• Roast Carvery – roast dinners and Yorkshire pudding wraps

The Quays is a really quick and easy place to get something to eat at pretty much any time of the day. There’s plenty of table seating inside but we also enjoyed taking our food to the outside dining area on port side.

We ate at all three stations during our cruise but our particular favourites were the Katsu Curry from Asian Fusion and the Fish and Chips from Hook, Line and Vinegar. We had these more than once because they were so tasty.

We’re not huge fans of eating roast dinner on holiday but this was also a popular choice with passengers. In our opinion, the Yorkshire pudding wraps sounded better than they were.

You can head to The Quays for breakfast as the stations serve breakfast items from 6.30am to 10.00am.

• Hook, Line and Vinegar serves pancakes and waffles
• Asian Fusion becomes an egg station with omlettes
• Roast Carvery serves cooked breakfast items

We had breakfast in The Quays once during our cruise. The pancakes with bacon we had were very tasty and is a much quicker option than the 6th Street Diner if that’s what you are planning to order. It’s worth noting that the hot breakfast at the Roast Carvery was very popular and so you must be prepared to queue.

In the SkyDome is a pool-side grill option serving pizza, burgers, hotdogs and salads. The menu changes slightly each day to rotate through different variations of these items.

Don’t be put off by a queue, it moves fairly steadily because the food is being made constantly so you can grab what you want without having to place an order. We thought this was a very clever system to keep the waiting time to a minimum.

Chef’s Table

To cope with the inevitable demand for formal dining on celebration nights, P&O Cruises has introduced the Chef’s Table. We dined here on the first Celebration Night of our cruise.

The four-course menu is chosen by Marco Pierre White with wine pairings from Olly Smith but we felt it definitely deserved to be served in a better setting than the Horizon Buffet.

The menu caters for most passengers with vegetarian and gluten-free options and some vegan-friendly choices.

Here are two of the dishes we enjoyed the most from the Chef’s Table.

The buffet on P&O Arvia is on Deck 16 and is fairly substantial in size. There’s food available almost all day for you to grab a snack or dine in a casual setting.

Even though the buffet is large, there are still times during the day that are particularly busy: breakfast and late at night.

The choice for breakfast is extremely good and has an assortment of hot and cold options from cereals and pastries to a cooked breakfast items. Breakfast is also when you can get complimentary fruit juices from the drinks machines, which is a nice little extra.

It did surprise us how busy the ‘midnight buffet’ was on our cruise . We did go a couple of nights for a little snack when we’d had a lighter dinner and it was queued with people filling their plates with noodles and all sorts! We’d heard the hot chocolate was worth trying, but for us, it didn’t live up to the hype.

Overall, we were very impressed with the range of complimentary dining options on Arvia . There are formal and casual venues with table service as well as places you can grab a meal or snack without any fuss.

P&O Arvia Dining and the Virtual Queue

You can make reservations for all of the main dining rooms two weeks before your cruise on your P&O Cruises online account if you’re happy to eat early (5.00pm – 6.30pm). We would recommend doing this on days you really want to eat in a particular venue e.g. Meridian on Celebration Night.

After 6.30pm, the four main dining rooms require you to join a virtual queue on the My Holiday webpage but we found that going to the restaurant and collecting a buzzer was much quicker .

Don’t worry if you don’t book your dining in advance, there is always somewhere to eat on Arvia!

Entertainment on P&O Arvia

There’s a vast choice of entertainment on Arvia, which I’ve summarised in the table below. Each entertainment venue offers something slightly different so there’s lots to choose from.

The only entertainment you need to pay extra for is the dinner and show in the Limelight Club but after that has finished, it’s open for anyone to enjoy the live music that starts at 10.30pm.

To find out more about the Limelight Club, read our useful guide .

Booking some of the entertainment takes the spontaneity out of your evenings but we can understand the need to do this, given the amount of passengers onboard.

The first week of entertainment can be booked 15 days before your cruise and the second week’s entertainment from a couple of days before the cruise and during the cruise.

Entertainment in the Grand Atrium and Amber Lounge

In the Grand Atrium there are nightly performances from aerial performers, which are very impressive. Each night is slightly different and it’s certainly worth catching some of these performances during a cruise.

The fact that the performers are doing it all without safety lines is even more impressive.

The nearby Amber Lounge has a mix of entertainment and activities during the day and night. On our cruise, there were lessons in playing the castanets and talks about Spain as well as Spanish music.

Brodie’s Entertainment

Brodie’s is the British pub onboard Arvia and it did remind me a little of a Weatherspoons! This where the avid quizzers will be found because there are so many quizzes held in this venue.

Brodie’s has a dart board and pool table in one corners and small stage in another, where live music is performed.

This is also the place onboard to watch football and sports on the various TV screens dotted around the venue.

We did stop by here on a couple of sea days to take part in a quiz but the evening quizzes were extremely popular and so it was probably the only venue on the entire ship we failed to find a spare seat.

The 710 Club is located near the Grand Atrium and is a small venue that opens nightly. There are three sessions each evening, with live musicians taking on a different theme each night, e.g. 90s, songwriters, American vinyl.

Gary Barlow has has direct input into creating this venue by choosing music for the club, guiding future performers and playlists and even shaping the interiors and signature cocktails.

If you enjoy listening to live music, this is a perfect venue but does require a booking in advance on My Holiday. We didn’t manage to secure a booking but we did hover outside the 710 Club about five minutes before the start of a session and were able to get a seat. This has worked for others too, so don’t give up if you don’t book in advance.

Another tip I have is to make sure you order a drink before the music starts because waiter service completely stops during the performances.

Headliners Theatre

The Headliners Theatre on Arvia has numerous shows to keep you entertained throughout your cruise. There’s a mix of performances from music to comedy and there was a good amount of guest performers who joined throughout the cruise to add to the variety.

In our opinion, The Greatest Days: Official Take That Musical in the Headliners Theatre was excellent. You don’t have to be a Take That fan to enjoy it and we thought it was the closest thing we’d seen to a proper musical on a cruise ship.

Entertainment in the Sky Dome

The Sky Dome is where you’ll find a lot of the family-friendly entertainment on Arvia. Once you get you’re head around the fact that it all takes place around a swimming pool, it does offer some completely different entertainment.

The space is bright and airy due to the glass roof.

You will find tribute acts here as well as some of the cruise ship performers’ shows that are weird and wacky.

Club House Entertainment on Arvia

We really enjoyed the Club House on Arvia for evening entertainment. Most nights, the house band would play three sets and it was the place where passengers would go for a dance. In effect, I’d say this is the onboard disco.

Throughout the cruise, there are themed nights such as Pure Pop, 70s, Motown and Floor Fillers. If you like to listen to upbeat music and have a dance, this is the best place to head.

Sunset Bar Entertainment

If you like the idea of looking out at the wake view with a cocktail and some background music, we’d recommend the Sunset Bar.

The entertainment is low key but definitely creates some Ibiza beach bar vibes , whilst you enjoy the warm evenings. There’s a DJ who plays music at the Sunset Bar from the late afternoon onwards so it’s a perfect spot to sit back and enjoy a chilled sail away.

Just remember, on Mediterranean cruises, the sunset can only be enjoyed at the Sunset Bar for the first half of the cruise (before the ship starts heading west again).

Entertainment in the Crow’s Nest

The Crow’s Nest offers some incredible views over the ship’s Bridge during the day and at night becomes a elegant spot to enjoy a drink.

Each evening there’s a pianist who plays and sings. The good thing about this venue is that you can still hold a conversation with people and enjoy the background music.

Things to do on P&O Arvia

There are many activities to choose from Arvia and if you want to make the most of your time onboard, the daily Horizon Newsletter will become your bible.

From 7.00am until past midnight, there are daily activities and entertainment to get involved in. From fitness classes and silent discos to talks about art and culture.

You can browse all of the Horizon Newsletters from a 14-night Mediterranean cruise on Arvia to give you an idea of what to expect. There’s even things to do on port days if you decide to have a fake sea day!

Being Active of Arvia

There are facilities and activities onboard to help to stay active during your cruise.

We enjoyed taking part in the daily Fitsteps classes in the Limelight Club. Fitsteps is a fitness class inspired by Strictly Come Dancing so you can enjoy a dance fitness class without needing to learn the technical steps.

The walking track is a fantastic way to exercise in the fresh air with sea views and there’s an area for table tennis and deck games like shuffleboard. We actually preferred the full wrap-around promenade on Deck 8, which allows you to walk right around the ship.

Unfortunately, if you like to swim, the pools on Arvia aren’t very big . The pool in the SkyDome is the longest pool and is quietest at the beginning or the end of the day.

The gym is located on Deck 5 forward and is very small, given the number of passengers onboard. It’s probably the first cruise ship gym without floor to ceiling windows but it was well used throughout the cruise.

Swimming Pools, Hot Tubs and a Swim-up Bar

There are four swimming pools on P&O Arvia that all offer something a little different:

• SkyDome Pool (Deck 16) is the largest pool, it has a retractable roof that opens on hot days and is where a lot of families base themselves
• The Panorama Pool on Deck 18 is an infitinity pool with views over the aft of the ship
• The Beachcomber Pool is adult-only and has it’s own area with bar
• The Infinity Pool offers gorgeous wake views and is next to the swim-up bar on Deck 16

A great feature of Arvia is the number of hot tubs that are available onboard – there are 18! Not only are they located next to each of the four pools, you’ll also find them dotted around the open decks on 8, 16 and 17.

There are so many hot tubs on Arvia, you can always find one to sit back and relax in, especially the ones located on Deck 16 and 17.

The infinity hot tubs allow you to look out to sea and we particularly enjoyed finding one of these as we left port.

The swim-up bar is a first for P&O Cruises and is a fun addition. There are stools in the water so you can sit and enjoy a cocktail whilst cooling off.

Altitude SkyWalk

Do you enjoy a challenge? The Altitude SkyWalk is a high ropes course at sea that can be booked for a small fee. Adults are £10.00 and Children are £7.50 (height restrictions apply).

We’re not afraid to say, it scared us!

Everyone is given a safety briefing before being let loose on the course and the staff are on hand if you need extra help and encouragement. The safety locking system is very clever and actually put our minds at ease (slightly) that there was no way of falling.

The course takes you around a series of different challenging routes with obstacles and things to climb. You can even choose to ‘walk the plank’!

If you really want to do this while on Arvia, we’d recommend booking early in the cruise because it cannot operate during certain wind conditions. Therefore book with enough time to re-schedule if you need to.

Altitude Minigolf

If you prefer to enjoy yourself with both feet firmly on the ground, the mini golf course is located under the Altitude SkyWalk and requires no booking or fee. It’s a fun activity to do together any time between 9.00am and 10.00pm.

Shopping on Arvia

The main shopping area on Arvia is found on Deck 7 and it feels like you’ve stepped into a boutique shopping centre. Despite shopping not really being a priority, we could appreciate how nice this area was for a spot of window shopping.

There’s men’s and women’s clothing, beauty, fragrances, handbags, jewellery and watches as well as a P&O Cruises merchandise shop to buy your souvenirs.

The most popular shop onboard had to be the duty-free. We noticed a slight glimmer of fear on the staff’s faces here, with boxes and boxes of duty-free being wheeled in on sack trolleys to meet demand!

Kids Clubs on P&O Arvia

The Reef children’s clubs on P&O Cruises cater for children from 6 months to 17 years old. There are five different age groups:

• Nursery (6 months to 2 years)
• Splashers (2 to 4 years)
• Surfers (5 to 8 years)
• Scubas (9 to 12 years)
• H2O/Scene (13 to 17 years)

P&O Cruises also offers a Night Nursery (6pm to midnight) for children aged 6 months to 4 years so that parents can enjoy an evening together, knowing their children are safe and being looked after. It’s important to be aware that it’s the parent’s responsibility to settle the child in the Night Nursery before leaving and this is not a drop-off service .

We were able to take a look around the kids club area on embarkation day and chat to staff about the activities. Everything is designed to be age-appropriate and there was plenty of things to keep the children busy.

For obvious reasons, there’s a limit on the number of children who can access the clubs each day and so it’s important to arrive early to avoid disappointment from the children and the adults. You can register children up to 14 days before your cruise and sessions can be booked once you get onboard.

It’s also important to know that P&O Arvia has a limit on the number of children who can cruise on each sailing (this is the case for other cruise lines too). Each sailing will have a maximum number so last-minute cruises may not be as easy to find for families.

Our Overall Thoughts on P&O Arvia

Arvia is a new cruise ship for the British market and marks a change in direction for P&O Cruises. This ship, along with her sister Iona, is designed much more with the ‘new to cruise’ and younger cruisers in mind.

Using technology to book dining and entertainment plays a much bigger role in the cruise experience. Although we are not averse to using technology, we felt that this did take away some of the spontaneity that we’ve enjoyed on cruises in the past.

We were impressed with the more casual approach that P&O Cruises has introduced on this ship. There are more casual dining options such as the 6th Street Diner and The Olive Grove. We also noticed that on celebration nights the full black attire we’d previously experienced on Britannia was not as strict.

Things we loved about P&O Arvia

• The full wrap-around promenade deck
• The Quays quick and easy food options
• The Headliners Theatre shows
• The ability to always find a sun bed
• The huge number of hot tubs
• The infinity pools and swim-up bar
• The Beachcombers adult-only pool area
• Water stations around the ship
• All doors opening contactless
• The variety of complimentary dining choices
• The cocktail menu in the Amber Lounge
• The Sunset Bar
• Dinner in the Meridian and Zenith MDR on Celebration Night
• The views from the Crow’s Nest

Things we disliked about P&O Arvia

• The queues for lifts, buffet and shuttle buses
• Our inside cabin
• The size of the gym
• The size of the swimming pools
• Having to plan all dining and entertainment in advance
• The Chef’s Table on Celebration Night
• Limited entertainment in the Grand Atrium
• Low crew to passenger ratio

As you can see, we enjoyed far more than we disliked about Arvia. This ship is an affordable choice to cruise the Mediterranean or Caribbean.

This cruise is excellent value and we’d recommend you take a look at what is included on a P&O cruise next.

If you’ve cruised on P&O Arvia, we’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.

Laura is a UK cruise blogger based in Cornwall, UK. She founded Cruise Lifestyle in 2016 to share useful advice about cruising, destinations and food. Last port visited: Bridgetown, Barbados Next port of call: unknown, but she can’t wait for cruising to resume safely!

Find me on: Twitter

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• P&O Cruises

Cruise line P&O UK (P&O Cruises)

• Bridgetown (Barbados)
• Southampton (England)
• St Johns Antigua (RCI Royal Beach Club)

Arvia current position

Arvia current location is at North East Atlantic Ocean (coordinates 36.25948 N / -7.82831 W) cruising at speed of 18.7 kn (35 km/h | 22 mph) en route to ESLCG>ESPMI. The AIS position was reported 3 minutes ago.

Current itinerary of Arvia

Arvia current cruise is 14 days, round-trip Mediterranean . The itinerary starts on 28 Apr, 2024 and ends on 12 May, 2024 .

Specifications of Arvia

•   Itineraries
•   Review
•   Wiki

Arvia Itineraries

Arvia review, review of arvia.

The 2022-built MS Arvia cruise ship is P&O UK fleet's second Excellence-class boat, with sistership Iona . Both vessels are Germany-built (at Meyer Werft's yard in Papenburg ). P&O's Arvia and Iona are currently the newest and largest passenger liners designed and built for the UK source market.

Other Helios-Excellence-Class vessels (Arvia sisterships) include Carnival Mardi Gras (2021), Carnival Celebration (2022), Carnival Jubilee (2023), Costa Smeralda (2019), Costa Toscana (2021), AIDAnova (2018), AIDAcosma (2021).

The vessel (IMO number 9849693) is currently UK- flagged (MMSI 232040520) and registered in Southampton .

History - construction and ownership

P&O Cruises is a subsidiary company and two brands owned by Carnival Corporation - P&O UK and P&O Australia. In 2000, P&O Cruises became subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises, which in 2003 merged with Carnival Corporation. P and O is the world's oldest cruise company, starting passenger shipping operations in 1822 on the routes connecting England with Iberia (Portugal and Spain).

P&O Arvia and Iona ships are from the Carnival Corporation's Excellence Class (aka "Helios" and "Carnival XL"). The vessel design was developed in collaboration with renowned maritime companies and interior design firms, including Meyer Werft (German shipbuilder), Jestico+Whiles ( London -based hospitality design studio), Richmond International (London-based hotel architecture), Partner Ship Design ( Hamburg -based maritime architecture specialist with several Carnival Corporation projects - including AIDA, Costa, P&O, CCL-Carnival).

For cruise liner's hotel facilities and amenities were contracted the companies Richmond International (London UK), The Four Seasons Moscow, Langham Hotel, and Sandy Lane Hotel (Barbados). Passenger cabins were designed by Partner Ship Design (Hamburg Germany). The ship also introduces the fleet's first "Conservation Mini-Suite" cabin category. The stateroom features a separate, conservatory-style area as a cabin extension. Offering more flexibility, this lounge room is furnished with an L-shaped sofa and can be left open or closed off. The conservatory opens out fully and leads directly onto the suite's balcony. It also can be used for private parties and celebrations with an in-cabin beverage service by a dedicated butler.

Decks and Cabins

MS Arvia has 18 decks (16 passenger-accessible, 11 with cabins), a total of 2610 staterooms for 5204 passengers (lower berths/max capacity is 6264) served by 1762 staff-crew, 20 dining venues (12 restaurants plus 8 food bars, including 10 breakfast-serving, 8 coffee-serving, 5 Afternoon Tea-serving, 9 specialty restaurants, 4 MDRs/dining rooms), 12 bars and lounges, 13 entertainment venues (including adults-only), 4 swimming pools (1 indoor plus 3 outdoor/2 infinity), 18 outdoor Jacuzzis (large whirlpool hot tubs), kids-dedicated zones (indoor-outdoor facilities and sundecks/playgrounds), 22 elevators (passenger lifts located forward-midship-aft).

The boat has 8 laundrettes (self-service laundry rooms for passengers). The largest passenger accommodations are the 2-Room Sky Suites (400 ft2 / 37 m2 plus 110 ft2 / 11 m2 terrace/step-out balcony). Staterooms include 121 Suites, 1496 Balcony, 174 Oceanviews/Seaviews, 819 Interior. P&O Arvia has a total of 32 studios (single-occupancy cabins) and 55 wheelchair-accessible/handicap cabins (for disabled passengers). Most cabins are sized between 135-170 ft2 (13-16 m2). Excepting the Suites, all cabin balconies are very small - sized just 20 ft2 (2 m2).

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

With a choice of 30 venues, Arvia has many food and beverage bars open from early-morning until late-night. The destination-inspired (Caribbean and Mediterranean) dishes in the menus were created via a partnership with Shivi Ramoutar (Trinidad-born chef and TV personality) and Jose Pizzaro (owner of London's prestigious restaurants "Jose", "Pizarro" and "Jose Pizarro").

The new venues join P&O UK's favorites, such as The Glass House, Epicurean, Sindhu, and Brodie's, from the long list of restaurants, cafes, bars and lounges, self-service choices. Not traditionally for P&O UK, Arvia offers exclusively "Freedom Dining" (aka "Flexible Dining") in all main dining rooms. The policy allows passengers to choose where, when and with whom they prefer to eat.

Arvia ship offers P&O UK's newest "food market" dining concept. "The Quays" piazza (Deck 8) has a great number of takeaway and self-service food bars. The Quays restaurants and eateries offer international food, including American diner classics, Asian street food, Mediterranean sharing platters, fish & chips, Italian gelato, the new "Olive Grove", "Hook Line and Vinegar", "Boardwalk Diner", "Fusion".

• "The Olive Grove" is an intimate restaurant serving lunch and dinner, with a menu focusing on traditional Mediterranean dishes and sharing platters.
• "Hook Line and Vinegar" is a self-service, all-day restaurant for traditional British seafood specialties - battered fish, fish burgers, scampi, calamari, crab cakes.
• "The Boardwalk Diner" is a self-service, all-day food bar for classic American cuisine, which menu includes burgers, hot dogs, fried chicken, eggs over easy,
• "Fusion" is a takeaway, all-day Asian food bar.
• The cruise liner has four Main Dining Rooms (MDRs) named Meridian, 6th Street Diner, The Olive Grove, and Zenith. Located on decks 6-7, all main restaurants offer "Freedom Dining" (open-seating) breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea service, and dinner. Gala Nights (formal dinner events) are also hosted there, with a special dinner menu by celebrity chef Marco Pierre White. The largest MDRs (Meridian and Zenith) are located aft on decks 6-7 and interconnected, to make one large 2-level restaurant.
• "Horizon Restaurant" (Pool Deck 16) is the ship's Lido Buffet with all-day self-service. The Lido restaurant is casual (as dress code), with flexible dining and a wide range of dishes - from traditional British to world foods. It also caters to various dietary needs, including gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian and healthy food options.
• "The Beach House" is an informal Select Dining venue that in the evenings comprises Horizon buffet's forward section. The menu is inspired by British, American, and Caribbean cuisines, offering steaks, grills, ribs, hanging kebabs, burgers, sharable sides, and gourmet desserts.
• "The Limelight Club" (Deck 6) combines gourmet food with top-quality entertainment, exclusively for adults. The lounge offers live performances by popular guest entertainers, as well as by the ship's resident performers, accompanied by Arvia cruise ship's own music band. Here are also hosted daily dancing classes and music events. The club lounge is served by its own full-service Bar. After the evening show, Limelight Club transforms into Disco Nightclub.
• Deck 6 (Grand Atrium area) houses "The Vistas Cafe Bar" (patisserie with a menu by Eric Lanlard), "Amber Lounge" (living-room-like premium cocktail bar), live pop-up entertainment in mid-morning (musical performances, buskers) and early evening starting aerial acrobatics (circus performances).
• "The Glass House" (Deck 7, Atrium area) is via a partnership with Olly Smith. Premium wines are served here by the glass. The Cellar Door at the Glass House offers tastings, wine talks, and wine-pairing dinners. Passengers can relax and watch aerial and circus performances in the unique 3-story high space. Here guests can also enjoy Jose Pizarro's tapas.
• The all-day open "The Keel and Cow" (P&O's first-ever "gastropub") is on Deck 8, overlooking the Atrium and also with ocean views. The menu has traditional favorites, sharing platters, aged steaks.
• "Andersons" (gin bar lounge on Deck 6 ) doubles as Library/relaxation lounge. In the evening, Andersons serves with alcoholic drinks the nearby MDR restaurants. Lounge's focal point is the Marabelle Gin distillery (via partnership with Salcombe Distilling Co Ltd), gin tastings, and workshops (master classes).
• "Brodie's and Casino" (Deck 7) is a classic British pub bar with ship's largest selections of UK and international bottled beers, ales and ciders, drafts (draught beers), extensive wine menu, traditional British pub snacks (pork scratchings, crisps, peanuts). During the day, the pub offers live sports, bingo, quizzes. By night, here are offered live entertainment, quiz games, game shows, karaoke. The adjacent Casino features the latest gaming technologies and various gambling games, for novices and experts alike.
• "The Sunset Bar" (Deck 8, Promenade's aft) provides easy access to The Club House. By day, it provides canopies (shaded seating) to relax with a drink and enjoy the sea views.
• "The Gelateria" (Atrium's top-level on Deck 8, at the entrance to The Quays) provides access to Promenade Deck. here are offered scoops of Italian gelato ice cream, premium teas, and coffees.
• "Sundaes" (Deck 16, in the SkyDome) offers complimentary ice creams.
• "Eric Lanlard's Afternoon Tea" (Deck 17) is the ship's classic British tea bar.
• "Beachcomber Bar" (Deck 18) serves with beverages the Beachcomber pool deck and offers plenty of sunbathing space and shaded seating.
• "Crystal Bar" and "Laguna Bar" (Deck 16, in the SkyDome) are outdoor poolside bars offering non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks. Fun activities here include the sail-away deck parties.
• "Sindhu" restaurant (Deck 8) offers authentic Indian food.
• "Taste 360" Pizzeria and Grill (Deck 16) offers complimentary fresh oven-baked pizzas by the slice, as well as grilled food (top-quality burgers, classic fish and chips), worldwide street foods.
• "The Crow's Nest" (Deck 17) is an observation lounge with floor-ceiling windows and comfortable seating, In the evenings it transforms into a cocktail lounge with live grand piano performances.
• "The Epicurean" restaurant (Deck 17, adjacent to Crow's Nest) is a specialty / fine dining venue with Select Dining, impeccable service, top-quality dining amenities, gourmet food, and premium wine list. Dishes are prepared with freshest and finest local produce. A private dining area and "Chef's Table" (capacity 8 guests) provide options for private parties and special celebrations.
• Part of the "Green & Co" restaurant (new for P&O / introduced on Arvia) is the Mizuhana Sushi Bar with an open kitchen (live cooking stations) and a menu of plant- and fish-based dishes.
• Another new (Arvia exclusive) dining venue is "6th Street Diner". The casual restaurant features mood lighting, retro seating, an authentic jukebox (automated music-playing device), American food favorites.

Through the partnership with Salcombe Distilling, on Iona and Arvia ships guests can purchase and even create their own Marabelle Gin (42% ABV/alcohol by volume). The exclusively created for P&O Cruises alcohol is produced only Iona and Arvia. For the unique gin recipe are used 18 herbs - including Iona Island's heather (calluna vulgaris), mint, citrus, blackberry, green apple, rose petals, kelp (seaweed). Since Iona ship's inauguration (2021), Marabelle Gin (trademarked brand) is also available fleetwide - served across P&O UK's fleet. The produced on the cruise ship gin is bottled and labeled, with bottles available for purchase.

Via partnership with three celebrity chefs (Marte Marie Forsberg, Jose Pizarro, Kjartan Skjelde), P&O UK upgraded Iona and Arvia ships' dining to offer the fleet's most diverse culinary experiences. Chef Forsberg designed the menu of "Taste 360" (street-food-style dining) and MDR's (dining room's) Norwegian-inspired dishes. On itineraries to Iberia (Portugal, Spain) and the Canaries, tapas dishes-based menus are specially created by Chef Pizarro for the restaurants "The Glass House" and "Taste 360". On Norwegian Fjords itineraries, the menus are upgraded by chefs Skjelde and Forsberg. Skjelde developed a special 6-course Norwegian food tasting menu for "The Epicurean" restaurant.

In November 2021 P&O UK announced that during MS Arvia's inaugural Caribbean season (Barbados fly-cruise January-March 2023) will debut dishes by Shivi Ramoutar (Trinidad-born chef and author, assigned as a "Local Food Hero") famous for her Caribbean fusion food recipes. Ramoutar's dishes were included in the menus of The Beach House (Horizon buffet) and "Taste 360".

In April 2022, P&O signed a partnership with The Tidal Rum (produced by the Shorts Boy Distillery founded by Ben Clyde-Smith and Harry Coulthard) to create an exclusive rum blend for MS Arvia's Caribbean cruises. The Tidal Rum is a blend of cask-aged Caribbean rums (produced in Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad, Dominicana). Via the partnership, The Tidal Rum is produced on the ship (in Arvia's Anderson's Bar, the first at sea rum distillery) and also available for purchasing (in bottles) fleetwide.

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

SkyDome is one of the boat's signature attractions and the largest onboard entertainment hub. SkyDome is named the pool deck which is covered with a retractable glass roof (sized 41x34 m / 134x111 ft, designed by Martin Francis from Eckersley O'Callaghan / structural and facade engineering firm) and consists of a large swimming pool (with retractable stage) and Jacuzzis (whirlpool hot tubs), SkyDome also serves a unique live entertainment program with performances and DJ-led deck parties, regardless the weather.

During the day, SkyDome serves resort-style leisure activities and offers entertainment and casual dining. The night entertainment includes on-roof media projections, laser shows, aerial acrobatics performances, DJ disco parties, theatrical productions, movies (on a large LED screen).

Note: SkyDome actually sits on two decks - Deck 16 (midship resort-style swimming pool with food and drink options, aft-located Infinity Pool/resistance swimming pool with stern views and Infinity Bar/swim-up bar) and Deck 17 (mezzanine level with a bar and outdoor seating). A second Infinity Pool is located aft on Deck 18.

On March 6, 2020, were announced three aerial acrobatic shows designed for MS Iona (available on MS Arvia too) - Rise (birds-themed), Dream (magic-themed) and Triboo (battle between the Moon and Sun tribes). Rise and Triboo are performed at the SkyDome, while Dream is at the Atrium. Two new for P&O UK aerial shows (Virtuosi, Spark) were developed for MS Iona and available on Arvia too.

The 3-deck high Grand Atrium is located midship and has an open-floor design. All Atrium levels have natural light and offer floor-ceiling sea views. Arvia's Grand Atrium is a new concept for P&O (created by architecture and interior designer Jennifer deVere-Hopkins) and the ship's key entertainment space that hosts from morning coffee to evening drinks, daily live events (like pop-up talks) and entertainment (performers, magicians).

"The Headliner's Theatre" (decks 6-7) is the ship's main show lounge for grand-style music and dance productions in the evenings. The theater has comfortable plush seating and the latest LED and sound technologies. The 2-deck-high auditorium during the day serves as a complimentary Cinema and also offers matinee performances and fun activities (Q&As, port talks, lectures). In the evenings, full-scale productions offer West End-style shows (including "Festival"), stand-up comedy, and cabaret performances.

• Exclusive to P&O Arvia is the WaveLength gameshow (interactive theatrical experience created by Ben Shephard/1974-born English TV presenter) that gives families/couples the opportunity to find out how well they know each other by trying to match the partner's answers.
• Arvia's Headliner's Theatre also hosts "Greatest Days - The Official Take That Musical". The exclusive to the ship stage show is an adaptation of West End's "The Band Musical" that features a story by Tim Firth (Olivier Award-winning writer) and Take That's best songs (Relight My Fire, Back for Good, Greatest Day, Never Forget, Shine and Rule the World, The Flood, A Million Love Songs).
• All shipboard show productions are by the UK-based Headliners Theatre Company (casting agent for P&O UK's production shows' artists/singers and dancers).

(Deck 19) Arvia's "Altitude" is a top-deck located outdoor adventure zone designed for families. The activity deck comprises the aquapark "Splash Valley", the ropes course "Altitude Skywalk" (P&O fleet's first), and the tropical island-themed "Altitude Minigolf" course (open through the day and nightly illuminated).

(Deck 6) "The 710 Club" has a stylish cocktail bar lounge served by professional mixologists. This sophisticated music bar offers live acoustic performances by top-quality artists. The venue was crafted to the vision of Gary Barlow (1971-born English singer, songwriter, actor, TV personality, also P&O Cruises' Music Director). Live musical performances are by "The 710s" (the lounge's resident band).

(Deck 6) "Ocean Studios" is a boutique cinema with comfortable plush seating and 4x screens running throughout the day classic movies and recently released blockbusters. The Cinema is fitted with the latest surround sound technology.

"The Club House" (Deck 8) is a multi-purpose indoor/outdoor space for families to enjoy afternoon entertainment and play fun games. In the evening, it becomes a late-night "music hall" for dancing and live performances by Arvia ship's band (named "Pulse").

"The Ivory Suite" (Deck 17, adjacent to Crow's Nest and Epicurean) is the ship's chapel - a dedicated venue for weddings and vow renewals at sea.

MV Arvia's Kids Clubs are on Deck 17. "The Reef" is P&O UK's complimentary onboard program for children, served by a crew of qualified Reef rangers and offering age-specific activity entertainment. The program is divided into Nursery (toddlers 6-months to 2-years-old), Splashers (ages 2-4 years), Surfers (ages 5-8 years) and Scubas (ages 9-12). A secure outdoor playground area and splash pool park are available for all age groups.

• There is also a spacious indoor playground.
• Parents benefit from the company's "Night Nursery" (complimentary for kids ages 6 months to 4 years, opening hours between 6 pm - 2 am each night).
• P&O partnered with Aardman Animations Ltd (Bristol-based animation studio) to offer kids activities themed on Aardman's popular plasticine characters Wallace and Gromit and Shaun the Sheep, including craft workshop, dance class, All-Hands-On-Deck (as a signal, OHOD is used on ships for calling everyone to come help in a particular emergency).

"Scene" (Deck 6) is the liner's teen club (hang-out lounge for teenagers 13-17 yo) which is separated from the kids' club. It operates only during the high-peak season. During low season, the Scene teen club functions as an adults-only entertainment venue.

Oasis Spa & Health Club (2-level wellness complex located forward on decks 5-6) has a Thalassotherapy Pool, Cool Therapy Room, Salt Sauna Room, Steam Rooms, 18x Treatment Rooms (for massages), The Salon (beauty and grooming services for women and men), Spa Shop, Oasis Villa (spa lounge), 2x Wellness Suites (one with Steam Room and the other with Hammam Room/Turkish bath), 2x Thermal Suites for couples (each with Steam Room and Hammam Room), Wellness Relaxation Lounge (with heated loungers). New (Arvia ship exclusive) treatments include Kneipp Walk (pebble foot massage combined with hot-and-cold water treatments). Part of the wellness complex is also the fleet-first Barber Station (haircuts/male grooming collections from the premium brands American Crew, Barbour Pro, Clarins for Men, Clinique for Men).

The ship's fitness center (Gym & Health Club) is fitted with the latest Technogym equipment and served by personal trainers. Fitness classes include Body Sculpt Bootcamp, Tour de Cycle, Functional Stretch, Yoga and Pilates, spinning. The Gym also features the latest Evolt 360 (advanced body composition scanners) generating unique 360-degree pictures of the body's physical conditioning in order to set individual goals. Professional well-being consultants provide advice on sleep, stress, and nutrition management.

Sports Arena is named the outdoor full-size, multi-sports court suitable for playing football, basketball, tennis, cricket, and other group games.

The Beachcomber complex (forward on Deck 18) features an indoor swimming pool (covered by a SkyDome/round-shaped glass roof) and a spacious outdoor Sundeck (sunbathing space with shaded seating, 2x outdoor Jacuzzies/whirlpool hot tubs, padded chaise lounges, deckchairs, showers). During the day, the Beachcomber hosts pool deck activities, while in the evenings, the sundeck transforms into an entertainment venue with aerial acrobatic performances and live music, also hosting deck parties under the stars.

Adjacent to the Beachcomber (at the bow on Deck 18) is The Retreat - an adults-only VIP Sundeck with 2x outdoor Jacuzzies/whirlpools. This is the ship's "spa terrace" with several shaded private cabanas (available for rent). The VIP sundeck (accessed via prepaid day- or voyage-long passes) is inclusive of alfresco dining, Spa massages, dedicated staff service (chilled drinks, cold flannels, light snacks).

New for P&O UK entertainment options (currently planned only for MS Arvia) include Altitude Skywalk (two different Ropes Courses positioned 54 m/177 ft above sea level), Altitude Minigolf (9-hole Mini-Golf Course under the ropes course/featuring water hazards, tiki huts, night-time illuminations), Altitude Splash Valley (outdoor aqua-zone with cooling water jets, Canopy-shaded seating/benches, enclosed by a high-glass wall), as well as the aft-located/stern-facing infinity swimming pool (sundeck with a raised swim-up bar /fleet's first).

(Deck 8) Arvia's "Mission Control" is another P&O UK's fleet first. The "Escape Room" is suitable for all ages. This is a group gaming experience based on motion simulation technology and interactive consoles. The underwater adventure is set onboard the fictional submarine "Arvia II" and led by Dr Melissa Ryan. Gamers (max capacity 10 people per session) have to solve "puzzles" with two live-action-packed storylines. The 3D gaming experiences feature surround sound, stunning underwater scenery, sunken cities, real and fictional sea creatures. The simulators were developed by tennagels Medientechnik GmbH (1999-founded, Dusseldorf -based company specializing in creative media systems).

PO Arvia ship also features The Avenue (shopping zones sized 1300 m2/14000 ft2) and an 800 m ( 0,5 mi) long outdoor Promenade Deck (named "Lanai Deck") wrapping around the entire Deck 8. The Lanai is much wider than the industry's standard and lined up with open-air bars and alfresco dining venues. In the Promenade's forward section are positioned a total of 6x Infinity Whirpools with glass walls facing the ocean (3x portside and 3x starboard).

Shipboard shopping

MS Arvia's "The Avenue" combines several experiential shopping zones (including 900 m2/9700 ft2 open-plan retail space).

Pandora Brilliance (P&O brand's first fine jewelry bar) offers design-your-own jewelry items and showcases a new range of lab-grown diamonds.

Also new (first at sea) is the Concept Store (selling Swarovski's Wonder Lab jewelry and the brand's latest crystal collections by Giovanna Battaglia Engelbert (Swarovski Group's Global Creative Director).

The ship's shopping complex also includes dedicated retail stores selling products by Apple Inc (consumer electronics, software), Mulberry (fashion, luxury leather goods, particularly women's handbags), and The White Company (retailer selling homeware, clothing, fragrances).

Arvia's shopping options include 30x total brands including 25x sustainable (like Skin Regimen and Comfort Zone) as well as the new to P&O UK Cotswolds Distillery (crafted spirits), Floral Street (fragrances, bath and body products, homeware, gift sets) and RADO (Swiss watches).

The Photo Gallery & Shop sells exclusive photoshoots (made by the ship's professional photographers) and also includes the new "360" photo booth (for making photos with attractive surrounding scenery).

Itineraries

MS Arvia ship's itinerary program started in December 2022 with the maiden voyage (Dec 23rd) out of the UK homeport Southampton England to the Canaries, followed by a Transatlantic crossing to the Caribbean..

Arvia's inaugural cruise season (in the Caribbean) was based on P&O fly-cruise deals from the UK (roundtrip UK-Barbados-UK flights included in the fares) and roundtrip voyages from the Caribbean homeports Bridgetown Barbados and St Johns Antigua . The 7-day Caribbean itineraries can be combined into 14-day B2Bs (back-to-back cruises) .

The Eastern-Southern Caribbean itineraries visit as call ports La Romana Dominicana (maiden for P&O UK port), Willemstad Curacao , Fort-de-France Martinique , Basseterre St Kitts , Castries St Lucia , Philipsburg St Maarten . The 14-day B2Bs include an overnight in Bridgetown. Fly-cruises from the UK are with departures from either Barbados (Bridgetown), Antigua (Saint John's) or Martinique (Fort-de-France).

Due to the Coronavirus crisis, the vessel's construction was delayed and its delivery was postponed from 2022-H1 to 2022-Q4 (December).

P&O Arvia cruises were open for booking on April 7, 2021, featuring:

• CANCELED ( Maiden Voyage /December 9, 2022) 14-night Canary Islands roundtrip from Southampton
• (inaugural Transatlantic crossing/January 6, 2023) 15-day from Southampton to Bridgetown Barbados
• (flight-cruises from the UK) 14-day Caribbean B2Bs leaving from Barbados (Bridgetown), Antigua (St John's), and Martinique (Fort-de-France).
• 7-day Caribbean itineraries between Barbados and Antigua.

In October, Arvia’s first cruise was rescheduled from December 9th to December 23rd (due to delayed delivery). The Transatlantic crossing (RepositionCruises.com) from Europe to the Caribbean (departure January 6, 2023) was from Southampton to Bridgetown Barbados (15-day), and to St John's Antigua (22-day).

Arvia - user reviews and comments

Photos of arvia.

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Currently under construction at Meyer Werft's shipyard in Papenburg Germany , MS Arvia is the shipbuilder's 51th cruise liner. The vessel's construction officially started on February 22, 2021, with the steel-cutting ceremony (hull S-716). The event was online (via live satellite link) and attended by Paul Ludlow (P&O UK's President).

The ship's keel-laying ceremony (aka coin ceremony) was held on February 16, 2022. During the ceremony (attended by Paul Ludlow), under the first hull block were placed specially minted Barbados coins. The keel block had weight 570 tonnes, length 11,3 m (37 ft), width 42 m (138 ft) height 11,8 m (39 ft), and was lifted by an 800-ton gantry crane.

Iona and Arvia are P&O UK's largest vessels ever constructed - with GT tonnage 180,000+ tons and max passenger capacity of nearly 6300 (plus ~1800 crew). It is also the biggest UK-based passenger ship (permanently homeported in Southampton England ) and the UK market's second (after Iona ) newbuild powered by LNG (liquefied natural gas). The liner has LNG engines that provide electricity for the propulsion system both in ports and the open sea.

Like most large -sized newbuilds , the P&O ship Arvia is LNG-powered , with 4x engines generating combined output 61.7 MW. The propulsion system is based on two Azimuting thrusters with combined power output 74 MW. The vessel has 3x LNG tanks (cryogenic steel) with total capacity ~3200 m3. Two of the tanks are larger (length 35 m / 115 ft, diameter 8 m / 26 ft, gas capacity 1525 m3), while the 3rd tank has length 28 m (92 ft), diameter 5 m (16 ft), gas capacity 520 m3.

Arvia's SkyDome (970-m2 / 10440-ft2 glass roof cover) consists of 340 pieces and weighs 105 tons. For the mounting operation, Meyer Werft uses a Liebherr LTM1750-9.1 (750-ton mobile crane).

P&O revealed the "Arvia" name for the new ship on February 18, 2021, in a 1-min YouTube video. According to the company's press release, Arvia means "from the seashore". The name also keeps the tradition all boats in the P&O UK fleet to have names ending with "A".

Next is the P&O UK's timelapse video of the Iona-Arvia ships' construction.

The vessel was launched/floated out from drydock (building dock II's Hall 6) on August 27, 2022. The float-out started at 9 am Germany time (7:00 UTC) and after the maneuver's completion, the vessel was moored at the yard's outfitting dock for loading the funnels and masts (by a crane) and continuing interior works.

After Arvia's undocking, the FERU (floating engine room module) for Carnival Jubilee ( CCL ) was maneuvered into the free-now building dock II as the CCL ship's front part was already been built there. Carnival Jubilee's FERU was constructed at Neptun Werft in Warnemunde and was transferred to Papenburg in the previous week.

The vessel's conveyance along Ems River (from Meyer Werft Papenburg to the North Sea) started on Nov 5th (at 7 am UTC). The ship was tugged backward, passing Friesenbrucke/Weener (11:45 am), crossing Jann-Berghaus-Brucke/Leer (3 pm), passing Ems Barrier/Gandersum (6:30 pm), passing the Ems River barrier (10:30 pm), arriving in Emden Germany (at 12:45 am) and in Eemshaven Netherlands on the next day (Nov 6th, at 1:30 UTC). North Sea trials (roundtrips from Eemshaven) were successfully conducted in the period Nov 17-24th. Arvia left Holland/Eemshaven on Dec 14th, arrived in Bremerhaven on Dec 15th, and docked for the first time in the UK (Southampton) on Dec 18th (at 11:35 UTC).

Arvia's delivery was initially planned for December 9, 2022, (later postponed to December 23rd) but she was officially delivered to P&O on December 15th. The ceremony was held at Meyer Werft's Papenburg shipyard, while the Protocol for Delivery and Acceptance was signed by Paul Ludlow in Bremerhaven Germany .

The name of Arvia's Godmother was revealed on March 2, 2023 - Nicole Scherzinger (1978-born as Nicole Prascovia Elikolani Valiente in Honolulu, Hawaii USA). Nicole Scherzinger is a singer, dancer, actress and TV personality, best known as a judge on TV talent shows The Sing-Off (2009–2010), The X Factor USA (2011), The X Factor UK (2012–2013, 2016–2017, 2019), and Australia's Got Talent (2019).

MS Arvia's christening ceremony was held on March 16, 2023, in Bridgetown Barbados . The naming ceremony was held at two locations - onboard and at Heywoods Beach. The event was hosted by the popular English DJs and broadcasters Sara Cox (Sara Joanne Cyzer/1974-born) and Trevor Nelson (Trevor Ricardo Nelson/1964-born). Trevor Nelson was the host at Skydome (where was held the traditional bottle-smashing event) while Sara Cox hosted the beachside event (at Heywoods Beach/broadcasted live on YouTube, also featuring live performances by Olly Murs). Both DJs also attended the March 11th voyage and hosted late-night deck parties. Arvia's naming ceremony was remembered for the breaking (in the hull) of the world’s largest bottle of rum - Mount Gay Rum's Black Barrel - in a specially made 15-liter glass bottle. A replica of the 15L Black Barrel (demijohn bottle) remained on the liner.

In October 2021 was announced the ship's Master - Captain Robert Camby. Born in London, he started his career by signing into P&O Princess Cruises' Cadet program (at South Shields Marine School/South Tyneside College) in 1995. As Navigator on RMS Queen Mary 2 , he was employed by Cunard Line in the period 2005-2008. He became Captain in 2011 and joined P&O UK in 2012 as Captain of Oriana/now Piano Land . In the following years, he captained P&O boats (Azura, Arcadia, Aurora, Oceana, Ventura, Britannia, Iona), as well as Cunard's Queen Victoria and Queen Mary 2. The liner's alternating Master is Captain Paul Brown.

In July 2018 was announced that KfW IPEX Bank GmbH (a wholly-owned subsidiary of the German banking group KfW) provides ~EUR 786 million (~USD 951 M) in financing for Carnival Corporation's newbuild for P&O UK (Arvia), scheduled for delivery in 2022. KfW IPEX Bank handled the newbuild's entire financing acting as book runner (lead underwriter), MLA (mandated lead arranger/investor), facility agent (primary point of contact) and ECA (export credit agency/providing trade financing and insurance). KfW's financing had a 12-year term (from the vessel's delivery date/2022) and was backed by export credit insurance with Hermesdeckung (Hermes cover) - an ECG (export credit guarantee) by the German Federal Government.

on July 29, 2021, P&O UK announced that Arvia ship's FERU (floating engine room unit) has been installed at Meyer Werft Papenburg. This hull section (manufactured by Neptun Werft in Warnemunde-Rostock ) houses all main engines and the LNG tanks, has length 140 m (460 ft), width 42 m (138 ft), weight ~12,000 tons. Once floated in the Papenburg shipyard's construction hall, the FERU served as a base platform for installing all the other prefabricated blocks (hull and superstructure) which are mounted onto the FERU.

Inaugural cruise itineraries 2022-2023 (Canaries, Caribbean)

P&O opened Arvia's cruises for booking on April 7, 2021.

Next tables show the inaugural itineraries as call ports and times, with prices per person with double occupancy.

(MAIDEN VOYAGE/first cruise 2022) 14-day "Canary Islands" (GBP 1445 / EUR 1680 / USD 2055)

Note: Due to delayed delivery, the inaugural cruise was rescheduled (from Dec 9th to Dec 23rd) and one 14-day voyage to the Canaries was canceled.

(inaugural westbound Transatlantic crossing/2023) 15-day UK to Caribbean (GBP 1330 / EUR 1545 / USD 1890)

(inaugural Caribbean voyage 2023/ B2B ) 14-day Eastern Caribbean from Barbados (GBP 2195 / EUR 2555 / USD 3120)

(inaugural eastbound Transatlantic crossing/2023) 15-day Caribbean to the UK (GBP 1300 / EUR 1510 / USD 1845)

P&O Arvia Caribbean Cruise Excursion – Escape to Saona Island, Dominican Republic

For our second shore excursion on our P&O Arvia Caribbean cruise, we’d picked to do the P&O excursion to Saona Island in the Dominican Republic.

It promised a full day with all the things we’d hoped for on a day trip in the Caribbean – boat rides, snorkelling, all food and drink catered and remote island beaches – and we weren’t disappointed.

We left the ship at 8.15am and made our way to the clearly sign-posted excursion meeting point.

While we do a mixture of independent excursions and P&O’s own ‘official’ excursions on our cruises, one big benefit of the P&O ones is that it’s very clear and simple where you need to go and what you need to do.

You may pay a premium when you book an excursion with P&O, but there’s no stress or uncertainty of having to find your own way around – you simply step off the ship, follow the shore excursion signs and step straight onto a bus without any hassle at all.

The bus soon set off for Bayahibe, the departure point for the speedboat leg of the tour over to Saona Island.

The tour guide ‘Rocky’ gave an entertaining commentary over the bus tannoy during the drive, which was only about 15-minutes or so, at which point we reached a beach where we got off and boarded a speedboat.

There were just under 60 people on our excursion (which is an extremely popular one with P&O and was booked up almost immediately on being released).

We all fitted comfortably on the boat, which made its way out to sea as the morning sun heated up, with a welcome sea breeze from the speeding boat.

We followed the Dominican Republic coastline, over crystal clear blue water, until we reached the first stop on the excursion – a ‘sandbank’ that sits between the Dominican Republic coast and the island of Saona.

At this point, the water is shallow (about waist deep) and you can get out of the boat and wade / swim around in the perfectly clear water, whilst Rocky the tour guide and the boat’s crew dished out rum and other drinks (all included in the price) from a floating ‘bar’ in the sea.

If you have snorkels / masks, it’s worth bringing them (none are supplied on the excursion) as there are tropical fish, starfish and even a few stingrays (small, friendly and harmless) swimming around the boat at the sandbank.

One of the boat’s crew was a professional photographer and he was wading around, photographing people with the stunning Caribbean backdrop, for photos which you could buy from him if you wanted to do so (they were decent photos so we did buy some as they made our own amateur holiday photos look pretty lame in comparison).

After about half an hour at the sandbank, we were back on board the boat and headed for the main destination of the excursion – Saona Island.

The boat pulled up at a sandy beach, where we climbed out and were lead through a small patch of “jungle” to the main beach area on Saona.

This was our first taste of the Caribbean as you imagine it to be. The pure white sand, the clear turquoise water, the coconut trees leaning over with a bright blue sky behind.

It was the kind of place we’d dreamed of coming to when we booked the cruise – and with only a few other excursions here at the same time as us, the beach was quiet enough to find plenty of secluded places to sit in the sun and swim in the warm sea.

The photographer was back and taking pictures if you wanted them – and a very decent lunch was being prepared that was all included in the cost, along with unlimited drinks – rum, beer, coffee and soft drinks.

We helped ourselves to lunch from the buffet at one of the beach bars – chicken, pork chops, rice, spaghetti, salad – and much more to choose from, then spent the rest of the time relaxing on loungers (all provided as part of the excursion) under the coconut trees.

We had about 3-hours enjoying the peace and beauty of Saona Island before we were rounded up to head back to the boat for the final leg of the excursion.

We got back on the speedboat, which took us just offshore where a catamaran was anchored – and climbed from the speedboat onto the catamaran, which set sail back to the Dominican Republic mainland on a journey of about an hour and a half or so.

This was a more relaxed journey – with the crew dishing out plenty of rum to anyone who wanted it, music playing over the speakers and the crew encouraging passengers to get up and dance with them.

We sat looking out over the Caribbean Sea as the catamaran sailed leisurely along, watching flying fish leaping out of the sea and flying through the air next to the boat.

Eventually arriving back at Bayahibe, we climbed onto another speedboat for the short trip (2-minutes or so) back to shore, where the bus was waiting to take us back to Arvia at the La Romana cruise terminal.

The final ‘all aboard’ time on Arvia was 5.30pm and we arrived back at 5.10pm, which was a bit close for comfort for our liking.

However, as it was the P&O official excursion to Saona Island, if you do happen to be late back to the ship, the ship is guaranteed to wait for you before leaving – unlike with an independent excursion, where there’s a risk you could be left behind if you miss departure time.

Because we like to avoid the risk of that ever happening, we always leave a good few hours’ margin for error when we’re doing our own thing, so we wouldn’t have wanted to do the Saona Beach Escape excursion independently, if arrival back to the ship was so close to the departure deadline.

This excursion was a brilliant day. We felt like we’d got to experience the real Caribbean as you imagine it to be, with the stunning natural beauty of the islands, hot, sunny weather – and ample amounts of food and drink all thrown in too.

Really well worth spending the money on and it gave us a day we’ll always remember. We definitely highly recommend it.

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My main question is can anyone tell me how to sign in to find out info about dining, bookings, excursions, formals nights. I don’t seem to have to right reference number for their website. Also, am I right that you can sort the app out until you arrive? It all seems very complicated!

Any advice would be appreciated!

5 replies to this topic

I am due to cruise with Princess next week and can go into the App and amend anything so would presume you can too.

If you are cruising in June l would have thought all the information you’re seeking would now be available on their App.

Formal nights usually depend on the length of the cruise .

I would have thought you’d have needed the correct reference/booking number to put into the App initially to register and then obtain the further information you’re looking for.

Hi Reb,I cruised on the Arvia in June last year and had a wonderful experience.just a few ideas to help you out:-

Keep an eye on your P&O online account, it will confirm when you can book shows and restaurants, usually 3 wks before departure.

On the day you board, you will be able to log on to their app (i think you dont need data for this), once logged on you will see the same thing, able to see what you have booked and what you can book, also your bill/balance etc.

It is easy, it's called "My Holiday"

https://www.pocruises.com/my-holiday

FYI. There isn't an app. It is a Web page on the ship's intranet so can only be accessed when in range of the ship's WiFi. Full instructions will be in your cabin. IIRC you need basic details such as name, cabin number and the number on your boarding pass. It's straightforward.

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