Ocean Village advertise themself as "The Cruise for people who don't do cruises", and it's a fitting slogan.
Cruises are nothing new, but they all follow the same stereotype carried forward from the great transatlantic liners.
I don't want to wear a monkey suit for dinner when I'm on holiday, and recognising that there must be a market for people who want to cruise but aren't hankering for the 1920s P&O have come up with a new concept, rebuilt from the ground up.
It throws away the formality, and offers an experience comprable to any 5-starresorthotel, yet retains sufficient elegance to ensure that this isn't "Maplins Afloat"
We've taken two cruises with Ocean Village (which, in itself, tells you a little something, because I'm not in the habit of giving companies a second chance if they get it wrong), but there are already ample reviews of the Ocean Village cruises in the Med or in the Carribean. This review looks specifically at an Ocean Village Transatlantic cruise.
Ocean Village cruises the summer in the Med and the winter in the Carribean, with the result that twice a year, there is a Transatlantic week whilst the ship is repositioned. This week (attached to a week in the Carribean either before or after the transatlantic bit) is rather cheaper than a normal 2 week cruise, but has less ports of call.
Perhaps the best review would be a travelogue of our voyage
Pre-cruise administration ==================== A breeze. Everything arrives when it should, and is perfectly clear.
Credit card details for paying teh on-board account is sorted.
The cabin upgrade was a welcome bonus!
Day 1 (Tuesday 1st November) - Palma =============================== Fly out from Manchester, having been met in the check-in line by an Ocean Village rep who needs us to sign a form to say that we haven't had the trots or been up-chucking in the last week (they take hygeine seriously on board, particularly after the "plague ship" thing a couple of years ago).
Flight with Brittania (ThompsonFly) is pleasant, and the anticipation starts to build, because everbody on board is heading for the ship, which you are reminded of when the Pilot's little chat includes "... landing at Palma, where Ocean Village is currently berthed, at around noon..."
Palma AIrport (for those who haven't been) is huge, super modern, and blessed with the longest walk to baggage reclaim I've ever known. This does cut down on waiting, because by the time you get there the bags are already on the belt. If you aren't up to the walk, let the cabin crew know, and they will arrange for a golf buggy for you.
After reclaiming bags, it's off to the fleet of moderm air conditioned coaches for transfer to the ship. Once your bags are on the coach, you can forget about them, because from here on in the crew will deal with them until they are delivered to your cabin.
Ship's check-in is in the "passenger terminal" on the quayside, in reality a large recently built shed (it does have a bar and a duty free shop), where you will have a 5-10 minute queue
to show your passports and be given your "cruise card". From here on, this card is your boarding pass and charge card on board (so don't lose it!). Embarkation photographs, and a security check (metal detector for you, and x-ray machine for your hand luggage.
Then onto the gangway, where you encounter for the first time something which will become a ritual for the next 14 days - the alcohol gel. You are expected to sanitise your hands by rubbing in alcohol gel every time you board the ship, and every time you enter a restaurant.
At the head of the gangway, your cruise card is scanned, and your picture taken. You are officially on-board.
Cabins aren't usually available until 3pm, and you will arrive on board any time from 11:30am to 2:30pm, so you will have time to kill. Don't worry, there is plenty to keep you busy in the couple of hours available! + Have a wander round, find out where everywhere is, and work out which lifts go to which floors. + Eat! The plantations restaurant on Deck 12 will be open and there is bound to be something you fancy. + Get in the pool or Jacuzzi (you did pack your swimming kit in your hand luggage didn't you?) + get the shuttle bus into Palma for a couple of hours.
And so, at 3pm to your cabin!
The main part of your cabin will be approximately 8' x 10' (unless you've gone for a suite!), with a Queen -size bed, dressing table and chair, coffee table, and an easy chair.
There is adequate hanging space (about a dozen hangers provided), a total of 16 drawers for clothes, a mini-safe and a small cupboard, and even a fridge.
The shower room/loo is compact, but well designed, and the showers are a pleasure to use. Do remember to take great care not to block the loo.
Once you've unpacked, just time for a bite to eat before the emergency drill. Everybody on board mustered (complete with buoyancy aids) in the ships bars for a brief (15 minute) talk on what will happen if there is an emergency.
Then, it's time for the sail-away party. BBQ up on deck, with music playing, and laser show. Just the thing to make sure you know you're off on holiday now.
For the night owls, the Bayside NIght Club stays open until 2am, and of course, there are snacks available throughout the night in Plantations (24 hour dining means just that).
And so, to bed
Day 2 (Wednesday 2nd November) - AT SEA =================================== The realisation that you really are on board your cruise hits you as you awake to the sensation that the ship is moving, and that you are out at sea, with the Spanish coast off on the horizon to the right (or starboard if you've really got into it).
This is a good day to chill out on deck, and just let the world pass you by. You've several days at sea to come and you need to train yourself to relax properly.
On her regular trips, Ocean Village only does one "at sea" day each week, and because of the increased number of at sea days on this cruise, there is no shortage of pub quizes, games, sports tournaments etc organised by the staff to keep you amused.
As dark falls, the north coast of Africa is seen on the left, confirmation that you are reaching the straights of Gibraltar. Watch out astern at dusk, and you may see Dolphins slipstreaming the ship. Around 9-10pm, you make a passage through the straights. There are lights all around, and you just hope the captain knows where he's going, baecause you can't work it out.
Soon enough, the lights start to fade behind you, and you head of for bed as land dissapears.
Day 3 (Thursday 3rd November) - AT SEA ================================ You awaken to a site which will become familiar over the next week - a 360 degree horizon with no land in sight. You are actually running parallel to the west coast of North Africa, but we are too far out to see it.
The weather isn't too clever (we are suffering from the backlash of storms in the Bay of Biscay), so a good day to sample the indoor entertainments, including the cinema.
Clocks go back tonight, as we cross from CET back into GMT timezone, so the first of FIVE clock changes this week which give an extra hour in bed :-)
Day 4 (Friday 4th November) - MADEIRA =============================== It;s a pity that Ocean Village only gets here twice a year on the transatlantic trips, because it really is a superb island, with plenty to do.
You wake up as the Madeira harbour pilots are getting ready topick up a tow to assist with turning in the confined harbour, and finally you are berthed, and ready for a full day ashore.
Best bits are the cable car ride up to the top of the mountain, the little market at the bottom of the cable car, and one of the many converted boat bars along the front, where a litle of a very nice beer was €1.40
Days 5-9 (Saturday 5th - Wednesday 9th November - AT SEA) ================================================ This is the big one! Day after blissful day of calm blue water (getting bluer by the day), brilliant sunshine, loads of opportunities for activities if you want, and loads of opportunities not to if you don't.
If you know how to chill out, you've got it made. If you don't, then learn!
I've lumped the 5 days at sea together, not because they aren't great, but because they are all great in exactly the same way.
This phase of the cruise is the decision maker for you. If you want to laze your days away, this makes it the cruise for you. If you are desparate to be somewhere different every single day, it just won't suit.
Because we are now at sea for many days, they've drafted in a few minor TV celebs to boost the entertainments staff, and there is no shortage of dance workshops, live talk shows and bing nights to temps you away from the sunbed.
There is also the fascinating galley tour (only available on the transatlantic cruise), which is an absolute must!
As we head further south, the flying fish become more frequent. This truly is paradise.
Day 10 (Thursday 10th November) - St Maarteen ====================================== You've done it! You've crossed the Atlantic the old fashioned way.
Philipsburg is a quaint little town (with room to berth 4 cruise ships) in the Dutch south of the island by the salt lake. The whole town is only 4 streets deep along the spit, and has a kind of deep-south USA meets Amsterdam in the Carribean look.
This is a place to hit the beach and take the rays, and to get used to the land beneath your feet again. The locals are friendly, and there is some good shoopping to be had for local trinkets in town.
Day 11 (Friday 11th November) - Tortola BVI ================================== Yup, one of the bits of the world that we still own.
The whole place seems a bit of a shanty town, but charming all the same. Chickens wander the grassy batches between wooden huts selling garish clothing and cheap beer.
The traffic on the island is a little odd. You see, it's ours, so they drive on the left, but most of the cars are imported from the US, so 99% of them are left hand drive.
If you fancy going a little further afield, the boat trip to the baths of Virgin Gorda is well worth doing.
Today is also Armistice Day, and we were impressed to note that the captain marked it appropriately. At 11am, there was a tannoy announcement inviting passengers and crew to join the captain in marking the two minutes silence. It was quite incongruous (yet moving) to see passengers in swimwear standing respectfully around the pool in a farflung corner of the Carribean.
Day 12 (Saturday 12th November) - St Kitts ================================= First impression - Derbyshire, but sunnier! Second impression - Derbyshire but sunnier!!
Beautiful rolling hills, St George's church in Basseterre could have been St George's church in any English village, and the nicest and most polite people anywhere.
We opted for a taxi tour of the island, good value at $20 per head, and saw both the rich tourist areas and the frankly depressing slums that many islanders live in.
A walk around St George's Church and graveyard (donations only), a visit to the national museum ($1 each) and a beer in one of the bars in the circus is a must.
If I had to pick a single island to spend a week on, this was it.
Day 13 (Sunday 13th November) - St Lucia ================================= The weather was threatening to change as Tropical Depression 27 (later Tropical Storm Gamma) was forming.
Notwithstanding, we had a *superb* morning out on "Capatin Mike's" Whale and Dolphin Watching boat. Easily the best excursion ever. £44 each, so not cheap, particularly when there is no guarantee of seeing anything.
We did though! A sperm whale and hundreds of dolphins, which together with the complimentary rum punch, soft drinks and beer made it the most enjoyable day out I can remember.
There is a superb shopping area within the port (rum shop is a must), and the local market is a short ferry ride away. However, we were not impressed with the town of Castries outside the port gates. It was dirty, and the people seemed unfriendly. Perhaps the rest of the island is nicer, and perhaps Castries isn't at it's best on a Sunday afternoon.
Day 14 (Monday 14th November) - Mayreau ================================== Or rather not!
As we set sail from St Lucia yesterday, the weather was getting steadily worse, and it's been a rough night. At 8am, the captain announces that due to the weather conditions, it isn't safe for the planned disembarkation by tender to take place, and that we will stay at sea all day, before making for Barbados tonight.
10 minutes later, we spot the "Pitons", extinct volcanos on St Lucia. Not only aren't we going to Mayreau, but we haven't even left St Lucia. Some people are complaining, but what do they want? Is the captain to change the weather for them?
We spend the day in the eye of the developing storm, curiously calm, and windless. It's great fun in the Jacuzzis, until at 6pm, the captain starts out towards Barbados, and passes through the eyewall, as the rain and hail lashes down.
Time to go and pack., because bags have to be outside the cabin by 11pm tonight.
Day 15 (Tuesday 15th November) - Barbados =================================== Time to go home :-(
Our bags have already gone, transported direct from the ship to the plane, and we won't see them again until Manchester.
Immigration was an irritation, as no other port has required it, but dozens of local officials come on board, and scan our passports in a makeshift imigration centre in the Marquee theatre.
We aren't due to leave for the airport until 3:30pm, so we have time for a bit of sightseeing in Bridgetown. Very colonial, and I get the feeling that some time here wouldn't be a bad thing.
Taxi into Bridgetown is $2 each, a bargain, and there is a good duty free shop at the port.
The journey home was not the best bit of the holiday.
One hour transfer to Grantley Adams airport in a poorly air conditioned bus, before being taken into the airport by a back gate, and taken in through a side door after a 30 minute queue in the sun (flight check-in was, thankfully, completed on board)
the airport terminal just isn't big enough for this number of people, and it's sweltering.
The flight home is Thomas Cook A330, which is significantly more cramped than the outgoing 767.
Still, can't complain too much, OV have done their best to mitigate for the inadequacies of the airport.
Food ==== Splendid!
I defy anybody to ever find that they don't find something to their taste.
There are salads and cold meats aplenty, snacks (pizza, chips, baked potato) all afternoon, full cooked breakfast fruit juice, hot drinks.
Evening meals are themed (Indian, Oriental, French, English, Chinese, Spanish, Italian etc.), with two different themes each of 4 choices every night
Drink ==== If you want alcohol on board, you have to buy it from them, but prices aren't over the top (£2.20 a pint), and there is a good selection of beers (John Smiths, Boddingtons, Stella etc).
Drinks are well kept, and served chilled.
Beware though that all drinks have to be charged to your cabin. You can easily run up a large bill without thinking about it.
Bars ==== There is a wide selection, from the Blue bar (very posh), via connexions (trendywine bar), the Oval (a pub) to Splash (deck bar).
LIve shows ========= Regular and varied selection in the Marquee. SOmething for ever taste somewhere there. Some of the tribute acts actually very good.
Cinema ======= Selection of about a dozen films, mostly recent releases, could possibly do with a bit more variety.
Village square ============ selection of acrobatics, street performers, and live piano in the evening.
Shops ===== Good selection of gifts, and essentials at not too expensive prices.
Pools ===== two pools(one with swim up bar), and 4 Jacuzzis. More than adequate
Gambling ======== The casino is great (be careful!), and for the less adventurous, don't miss out on Bingo night.
Staff ==== Absolutely superb.
90% of staff are from the Phillipines, and they know about customer service. The staff attitude alone is enough to make it worth going.
Gripes ===== Well, there have to be some, but the biggest one has to be certain passengers hogging sun loungers by leaving towels on to reserve them for hours.
The ships newspaper tells people not to, but there is nobody enforcing it.
Handy hint ========= Remember that on a transatlantic trip, only cabins on the southern side will get any sun for the first week (that's even number cabins going to barbados, odd numbers heading for the med)
Well, that's about it.
If that doesn't give you a feel for the ship, nothing will. If you go, you'll enjoy it
Great review. i am thinking of cruising next Jan. Vicky
rafa80 12.10.2006 11:15
Great information, sounds really good ;o)
Shorty0301 20.03.2006 19:29
The most informative review I have read yet. That pleased with it, I have booked a 14 day med cruise, sailing 9th May 2006. Heres hoping for the same level of service.
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Advantages: Cabins, General cleanliness, Waiters, Cabin stewards friendly and helpfull Disadvantages: Expensive trips ,Surcharging bistro's ,Poor customer care, Entertainment
Oneon1 25.04.2008 (27.04.2008)
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Review of Ocean Village Cruise
Jan 4th, 2006
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