As my more frequent readers will know I am taking my family to Disneyland Paris soon and wanted an autograph book for my daughter to use when she meets the characters there. I have seen some amazing creations when it comes to Disney Autograph books. There are some brilliant personalisable ones available on eBay and I’ve also seen some wonderful hand made ones and really liked this blog post, it gave me a great idea. I decided to go down the more hand made route for us – despite buying the material to make one has cost more than it would to order a pre-made personalised one, but I’ve had a lot of fun doing it.
Disclaimer: I am not very creative, excuse the mess…
Despite my partner thinking I can draw well, I disagree so instead opted for a different approach than drawing characters. That and I just couldn’t get the colours right for the Disney Princesses. I am pretty happy with the result.
I loved using the foam glitter card as a front and back cover.
My go to shop was The Works and I found some black ribbon, adhesive foam glitter boards, multi-coloured card and sticky hearts and ribbon things for the autograph pages. I also had some photo card at home and lots of little scrapbooking papers to make it nice and colourful inside and add a bit more to the pages. As I’ve used photo paper I will be taking marker pens for the characters to use in the book.
I went with a red and black cover to create the mouse symbol associated with Disney
I then went on to create the pages. I used 20 pieces of multi-coloured card with the photo paper glued on for the autographs. I did this on both sides of the card and decorated. The decoration is the messiest part I think but it’s a personal touch and plenty of room for autographs. I left 10 pages blank for photographs. There is enough for 30 autographs and photographs.
I hole punched each page so that I could tie them together
The foam board and stickers were used again here to create frames to the photo paper.
Disney Autograph book front cover
I added a bow onto the mouse and attempted that Disney cursive script and I am actually pretty happy with the result. I know there are loads around that look fantastic but this is going to hold the memories of our first family holiday abroad and I wanted to make something special to us.
I have been working from home now full time since April 2015 and even though I’ve changed course a little bit and do things differently to when I first started, I wanted to share some of the things that allow me to do this and still make sure my family have food on the table, holidays to enjoy and heating in the home.
One of the most common questions I get asked when someone says how much money can I make working from home? And I always give the same answer. You can make as much as you want, everyone is given the exact same opportunity but the people that treat it like a business, are consistent and persistent with it are the ones that generate a full time wage from it.
So really you are key in this. Making money from home will require work, planning, organisation, sacrifices and your time. However it can be really rewarding.
You need to ask yourself what kind of work do I want to do from home?
How can I make money on Facebook and Instagram?
A lot of people find using social media to be a desirable way to earn money from home and it can be done. A lot of this is through working with brands and sharing products that you love and use in your life as well as a witty caption and an attractive photo. I’ve seen so many wonderful businesses grow thanks to social media from creative candle makers to retailers to selling art. Social media influencing can be an incredible way to earn a living from home.
Social media influencing usually involves working with a brand that wants to promote a specific product, for example, you might be a health and wellness person talking about the benefits of vitamins so working with a gummy manufacturer might be a product that your followers want to know more about.
I personally love to read and sharing my book reviews on Instagram has lead to me working with book sellers to read early advanced copies and whilst that isn’t payment, it’s given me the opportunity to read the work of some of my favourite authors prior to release and that in turn has also saved me money as I’ve not had to buy the books I’ve wanted to read.
How can I make money from writing?
I love this book, a gift for my recent Birthday. It really helps get those creative juices flowing and helps my imagination start working again after a break in writing.
There are lots of fantastic writing jobs you can do from home. In fact there are even writing jobs being advertised on job hunting websites such as Indeed. Why not write up your CV to show your interested in writing for a living and give some examples of your writing projects?
You can also join sites like Freelancer which offer paid writing jobs. Start with the smaller, less paid jobs to gain experience and good reviews and then you can work up to the bigger, better paid jobs and start making this a regular income booster. This does take time, you will need to set yourself a good few hours to get the work done and the lower paid jobs often require a very quick turnaround.
A great way to start writing and getting your voice known is through blogging. I started my blog through WordPress and have been blogging on and off for around five years now. I’ve been blogging on Candyfloss & Dreams for almost three years and I love it. I love being able to get paid for expressing my opinions and (hopefully) writing content others find useful and inspiring. I enjoy getting paid for writing articles and putting my stamp on them. There are lots of blogging opportunities, support groups and success stories where writers have seen there blog go from strength to strength. If you want to make money from blogging then the first thing you need to do is start working on building connections and getting your blog link out there. Most bloggers get paid depending on the audience and how influential they and having a high domain authority or DA is a good indication of how reliable and useful your website is. Do some research on how to increase your domain authority and then set yourself an aim and work on following the tips to get it. Start connecting with other bloggers, commenting on their posts and making your stamp. This will bring other bloggers back to you to connect with you.
Don’t just go for the massive huff post featured bloggers though, start with bloggers around the same size as you and connect with them. Not only will you start getting traffic to your blog but you will also start building some lasting friendships and bringing in an audience that really care about what you have to say. Join some groups on Facebook that give you tips and tricks on how to make your blog successful and also allow you to connect with other bloggers from all around the world. One of the most important things you need to do when working from home is form a network of people and connect with them. This will increase your engagement and give you that social boost which is one of the main reasons people enjoy being employed.
Can you make money from blogging? Absolutely, if you are serious about turning it into a business but like anything it takes dedication, work and patience. Joining communities like bloggers required will give you jobs you can apply for which often give you payment or products to use and keep. Look for small, local businesses in your area and contact them. Say who you are and what you do and that you would love to feature them. It may take a bit of time doing your work for free but it’s important to get your name out there and get companies and brands to trust you. Writing informative and interesting content will get brands to come to you but remember to stay firm and stay true to yourself. Perhaps, if you have the money, you could attend a blogger conference to interact with other bloggers, brands and business people which will build up valuable connections and relationships. There are also some great tips on how to make your blog popular.
It’s important to make a daily to do list to keep organised.
How can I make money writing reviews?
Having a blog is a great place to start reviewing the products you already use and love however by joining an online community like Ciao! you can also start getting paid for them. I have been writing reviews for Ciao! for a long time now and it has really helped give us a bit of extra saving money. The run monthly competitions with cash prizes too. I recently won £15 for one review I wrote and it was awarded a lovely little diamond which made me feel great about myself and my abilities. In December I had a pay in of £97 just in time for Christmas which covered some last minute presents, a day out for me and the family and some extra Christmas goodies. Again, the key thing is connecting with others. The key to getting paid through this website is writing a good quality review which makes others give you feedback, you should always try and return this feedback and rate other reviews.
I personally recommend a quality review of a minimum 350-500 words every day and then spend 30 minutes commenting and rating other people’s reviews. This will get them to rate you back and the higher rating your review has the more money it gets. A good tip if you work full time and worry you won’t have the time to do this is to set yourself a couple of hours at the weekend to type up your reviews on a word document so you can just copy and paste each day and then spend 30 minutes in the evening, whilst you’re watching your soaps or unwinding rating others work.
What are the pro’s of working from home?
Once you’ve started working for yourself or working from home you start to see the potential. Personally, I love that if I’m sick or my daughters sick I can still work, I don’t have to give reasons to a boss that doesn’t care or will give me consequences for taking time off. I don’t have to book time off to go on holiday or to take a day off, I set my own schedule and having that kind of control over my life is really liberating.
More Time
More Money
Quality Family Time
Freedom
Control
Social life
Personal Development
I received a lot of help thanks to female entrepreneur week and I wanted to give back to my readers.
Having a good planner can help you to focus the time spend on your business and prevent you from procrastinating
On Christmas Eve Eve we spent the day trying to be festive and jolly, visiting friends and family and of course meeting Father Christmas at Finkley Farm Park which is situated close to the Walworth industrial estate in Andover. It’s quite easy to find and very well signposted. There is a small car park at the park for those that drive and for those, like us, visiting by public transport you can get the Wheelers 13 bus which will drop you fairly close to the farm. It’s been a part of my town for years and a big part of my childhood so taking my own child there has been a real privilege. I was lucky enough to be able to use a season pass during my time in the hostel I lived in with my daughter a few years ago but hadn’t been back since.
The Santa passport and elf hunt to claim your freebie from the gift shop
My boyfriend had heard that the Magical Christmas they did was really good and we thought we would make the most of it before Christmas as I share custody with my daughter so time to do things together as a family is very limited for us. I did a bit of online research and it sounded like it would be a great experience. I did find out the price before we went so we knew it was going to be expensive but what I didn’t expect was to be completely let down and find it actually far too expensive for what turned out to be a three hour visit.
From what I remember as a child Finkley Farm used to be a good value for money day out to visit the goats, rabbits, chickens and ponies with a lovely huge outside play area. It’s now expanded to include a café and huge indoor soft play area suitable for very young children and bigger kids with an area for lunch and for mums and dads to sit with a warm drink. It’s around £10 per adult and £9 per child over two for entry. You can get a season pass which apparently is worth it just to give the kids somewhere to play both in the summer and winter as the park is open all year long except for a few days. My daughter does enjoy going but mainly to play in the soft play area which has slides, slopes and swings. That’s all very well but I can’t spend all day sitting down at soft play waiting for her to finish. It is advisable to take a picnic or your own snacks, a thermos and water as everything is expensive. You can get a kids lunch box for just under £5 which includes five items. I understand these places are always pricy because of the staff and the fact most things are home made but we’d already paid a small fortune to get in to the park.
At Mrs Klaus Kitchen decorating Gingerbread Men
The Magical Christmas is described as a truly wonderful event with decorating cookies, meeting Father Christmas and making reindeer food as well as getting a gift and then being able to take part in the usual activities such as holding a rabbit, grooming a pony and meeting the reptiles. There is also an elf hunt which can get the child a little gift from the gift shop by collecting all the elves names and stickers and stamps to collect for taking part in all the other activities. When you arrive you are given a time slot to start your Christmas experience which takes around 45 minutes but other than that you have the day to roam around, see and feed the animals and do what you want really.
Are you Naughty or Nice? – Bit of a psycho expression from Evie here…
You start at Mrs Klaus’ kitchen to decorate a Gingerbread man with a small pot of very runny white icing and a few sprinkles and chocolate drops. You can then walk over with the elves to see Santa in his magical Christmas barn. The benches are very, very low to the floor and you are surrounded by the younger animals. We saw a very cute Micro Pig wagging his tail and running about, some baby guinea pigs and young goats. That was quite sweet. The elves tried to get the kids enthusiasm up however we were in a group with mainly young children who didn’t speak much so it was very quiet. Santa came around to each child to say if they were on the good list and asked what they would like for Christmas after a conversation with the Elves that didn’t really make a lot of sense and wasn’t really very funny which I got the impression they were trying to be. After that there was an opportunity to get a photo with Santa which was incredibly rushed and to be honest having an elf shout ‘hurry up another group needs to come in’ ruined the magic a little bit. I know they need to get things moving a bit but they could have saved time by not “waking Santa because he ate too many gingerbread” man and just letting each child go into the house he was sat in and have a chat with him there and get a photo rather than sitting on low benches and waiting for him to speak to your child after a few awkward silences.
After that we were lead through a snow machine to see the Reindeer and make Reindeer food for the children to sprinkle in the garden and on the doorstep so the Reindeers know where to land (Even though we are always told Santa stops on the rooftop and comes down the Chimney). After this you are lead back to the main play area barn to exchange your gold star for a gift. The choice of gifts was shocking to be honest. Whilst I don’t believe in gender stereotyping toys my daughters dad feels otherwise and she is constantly told what is right for girls to have and so my daughter only likes things that are pink, fluffy or role play based. The choice of toys that she would choose included a teddy or a rainbow glitter baton. Everything else was from the farm gift shop like hats and cups or cars, trucks, tractors, swords, bow and arrows and other bits that just didn’t appeal to her in anyway. She ended up choosing the Rainbow Baton which looked like something you could pick up easily from Poundland.
The gift Evie selected at Magical Christmas
We paid £34 for two adults, a child and a Santa passport which was apparently worth £7 on top of the child entrance fee. We were treated to one free tea or filter coffee which was available until 24th December and paid for my partner to get a drink which was £2.85. A bottle of water or a fizzy drink ranged from £1.50-£1.80 in the café which is just far too expensive. Sandwiches were around £3.50 and a hot meal was priced up to about £8-£10 and the portions were fairly small.
In Santa’s Grotto
The good points were seeing the animals enjoying the day and interacting with them as well as the soft play area which is really good and the large outside play area. We love the goats there as they can be very funny especially if you have a bag of feed for them and the chickens like to roam around too which is nice to see. However the interaction with Santa was poor and badly managed, the elves tried too hard and ended up making it a bit strange and awkward and the choice of toys for the money you paid was just very poor. I would have valued the day out and Santa experience at £12 for a child and I don’t think it should charge so much for adults either as it’s a park catered to Children. For places like this I think it’s unnecessary to charge more than about £8 per adult, £6 per child considering the prices of snacks and drinks.
Sadly everything is becoming more and more expensive these days and with the growing demand for housing in our town and the fact that the next spring of houses is being built around the farm I can’t see it staying open in the next three years which is sad because we really don’t have that much for children and families here and it’s been a part of my childhood too. Because of the price and our poor experience here we probably won’t be returning to visit and would instead opt for a visit to our local Garden Centre next year which has a fantastic grotto full of family games and a large selection of toys for children to choose from. You also only pay for the child to experience it and get their gift.
A stunning view from the Canal Boat, you can just see the Belfry in the distance, Bruges
You may have recently read that I went on a fantastic mini-cruise with my partner of three years to celebrate our time together. During our two nights and one day in port onboard the Oceana P&O Cruise Ship we spent some of our time in the city of Bruges. Bruges is located in West Flanders, Belgium and is a beautiful city close to the seaport of Zeebruges which I believe translates into Sea Bruges. Prior to embarking, we hadn’t booked any trips or excursions and had just planned to free flow for the time we were docked in port. However, my partner decided that if we could get a last minute trip we should or we would end up coming back far too early and not really seeing any of the city. So after an early breakfast we headed to the Shore Excursions desk located on Deck 5 in the main Atrium and asked if there was any availability and ended up with the last two places on the A Taste of Bruges trip at £46 each. Excursions are notoriously expensive but I really think this was worth the money as it meant the Euro’s we had could be spent on shopping and souvenirs rather than getting a train into Bruges and waiting for shuttle buses. There were a great choice of trips including ones to Flanders Fields which would have been lovely as it was Remembrance Sunday, a trip to Ghent and also a scenic village and chocolate factory tour. All of these have made us think about booking a long weekend away in Belgium to see a bit more about what it has to offer – basically sample more chocolate and more beer!
Multi Archeticture Square in Bruges
A Taste of Bruges offers you a two-hour walking tour, a 30-minute canal boat tour and around one hour of free time. If you feel this isn’t enough and you just want to do things your own way, other excursions were basically coach transfers to and from Bruges or you could make use of the free shuttle bus which was every 20 minutes or so to the railway station where trains to Bruges were every hour and took around ten minutes. Because we got an excursion I am not sure how much the train fare would be and I feel one train every hour is not very frequent. Plus having to find your way from the rail station to the city centre might have been difficult. However, there may have been the option to rent a bicycle to ride around the city which is a very popular method of transportation. In the centre of Bruges you also have the option of having a horse and carriage ride around the city which looked beautiful. Carriages were big enough for families and would have made my daughter very happy. Bruges is mostly cobblestones so easy for little feet to slip – I did a few times – or get caught in the cracks. Pushchairs and wheelchair users might have found this difficult too, with uneven roads and pathways as well as lots of bridges with little steps.
There is quite a few references to Greek Mythology throughout Bruges, this is Pegasus
Getting into Bruges did not take long at all by coach, only around 20 minutes in fact and we had a helpful guide onboard pointing out various points of interest on the way into the city whose name I can’t remember but the coach driver was Theo and I remember that because above his seat was a ‘Theosaurous’ picture of a coloured in dinosaur which made me smile. As we walked onto the coach we were given a small box of Belgium chocolates which was a very nice thought as well as a receiver to use when on the walking tour to hear all the information clearly and a map of Bruges to use as a guide too as we were walking along. I couldn’t even begin to remember everything we were told on both the walking and canal boat tours but Bruges is a very old city with a lot of history and we were handed a lot of information that day so I would definitely recommend having a guided tour around this city if you would like to find out more information. I remember seeing a sign for the canal boat tours with the price of 8 Euros for an Adult and 4 Euros for a Child which I thought was quite reasonable for 30 minutes with a guide who was quite funny as well as informative.
The most breathtaking thing about Bruges is the stunning architecture. There are many views, sightseeing spots and a huge variety of
Some Bruges Architecture
different styles from gothic to post-modernism and you can find all these types of buildings in one square which was just so interesting to look at. There is also a church going under renovation at the moment which houses a famous statue by Michelangelo and is one of the three statues that were ever sold by him out of Italy. Another point of interest is the Church of the Holy Blood which is found in the main square with a variety of administration buildings and the old halls of justice with the most beautiful gold plated statues. We also headed over to the Markt Square which is where the Belfry is located, another beautiful piece of architecture and we arrived just as the clock struck eleven so we were able to hear all of the four tunes it plays as well as the bell chimes. The walking tour was great and the guide was full of useful, helpful and interesting information about the city.
Our first stop on the walking tour was to view the Begijnhof across the canal. It is a small community of houses that have been a home to women since 1245. The Beguines were unmarried or widowed women that wanted to live a simple life without attaching themselves to a covenant. They took two of the three vows a nun would take except the vow of poverty which meant that they still held onto their wealth and if they wanted to leave the community they were free to do so. In the 1900’s it became a Benedictine Covenant. Other posts and reviews of this little place inform that it’s a lovely place to visit in the spring when Daffodils are in bloom.
Walking through the smaller streets of shops was lovely and as it’s approaching Christmas there were some really beautiful window displays. One thing Belgium is famous for is handmade lace which women used to make to earn a living. Many shops sell lace but it’s important to find the right one if you’re looking for authentic hand-made lace – usually it comes with a higher price tag but is much better quality and with many beautiful, intricate designs. We stopped by to purchase some lace keyrings and a decoration for our Christmas tree this year as I always like to get something a little different each year. There are many small, narrow walkways through the city of Bruges and, one in particular, was an entrance into what used to be the local bathhouses which has a cheeky little picture of some of the women that used to ‘assist’ the men when there.
The walking tour took us around all the major landmarks in the city and it has definitely made me wish to go back there to actually go inside the churches and Belfry and see more of that fantastic architecture. The canal boat tour was really enjoyable too because we got to see a bit more of the city and a few other statues and landmarks that would be difficult to see by walking or that you might not notice. One thing we did see on the canal boat tour was a very cute, sleepy golden labrador who was in the film In Bruges and just so is Bruges most famous citizen. It was lovely to see him and snap up a quick picture. After our dash around the canals we had an hour to shop. We found an artisan chocolate shop for gifts and looked in a few of the Christmas shops before sitting down with a beer in the Half Moon Brewery. Two half pints of blonde Belgium beer at this Brewery was just under 7 Euros and it was lovely to just sit down and enjoy the surroundings for a few moments. My partner then went in for three other bottles of the beer to bring home and enjoy
Enjoying a beer!
and is hoping to be able to get some for Christmas too.
Everyone was really polite and the city was very clean. One thing to take into consideration when visiting, something I didn’t even think about, is you will need small change in Euros to be able to use the toilets, at least a few 50 cents or so and there we were carrying notes! Luckily we found a public loo that didn’t require payment, but then the coach station did and the prices range all over the city. We weren’t warned of any crime except to be aware of pickpockets, but this is something I am sure you would be vigilant about in any city at home or abroad. We found the shops were all reasonably priced and spent all of our 60 Euros which was more than enough for a drink, some gifts and something for ourselves too. I particularly enjoyed our little selection box of chocolates!
Bruges really is a beautiful city and I really haven’t done it justice for what is there to see. A good few hours is needed to walk around the city and that’s exactly what we had. I thought the price of the excursion was on the pricey side, however, it was worth it for all the information that was provided to us and the fact that we had two guided tours in one session was brilliant – although a lot of information and dates to take in!
There are many fantastic ways to travel and this weekend for my third anniversary with my partner we decided to take a mini-break and our chosen method of transportation was a cruise on board P&O’s Oceana. Oceana is described as a family-friendly, mid-sized ship and has a great choice of cabins to choose from. The price we paid included two nights full board on the ship with £60 onboard credit and a balcony cabin. Whilst I was trying to research the Oceana as well as get an overview of the trip and what to expect I didn’t find a review that answered all of my questions so I am going to go into as much information as I possibly can from booking through to disembarkation, therefore, this may be a little on the long side, forgive me for that!
Booking
You can book your cruise very simply on the P&O website or find a travel agent. We have booked a future cruise with Thomas Cook next August so I understand they offer a booking process with P&O. Booking online is incredibly simple process and very easy to follow. When booking a cruise with P&O you have a few options to think about, the first being which cabin you would like. You can have an inside, outside, balcony or various types of suites on most cruises and each come with a different price tag. As this was a fairly last minute booking we had the choice of a balcony or suite so we went with the former and were very happy with the price paid. The next option to look into is the flexible or select price, both come with unique options however I believe the select price is better value for money as it enables you to choose a perk from onboard spending money, car parking or coach transfer. In many cases you can also choose your cabin location which again can have incur a change in price. You then simply enter in all of your details and choose your preferred method of payment.
Cruise Personaliser
One little gem to really help personalise your holiday is the cruise personaliser which is available around 24-48 hours after booking. This system is easy to use and log on to and gives you the chance to view and book excursions, dinner reservations, little treats and luxuries such as flowers, chocolates and champagne in your room as well as view the full itinerary. It is here that you can input your passport and insurance information as well as print off e-tickets and luggage labels. We also received an information pack in the post around a week before we travelled which included more luggage labels.
Black Tie night – dressing for dinner
What to Pack & Luggage Allowance
You will need black tie formal dress as well as smart casual clothes for every evening and comfortable layers during the day. I would advise keeping suits in a suit bag to prevent creasing although there is an onboard laundrette we didn’t find the iron particularly brilliant as it didn’t seem to get hot and leaked a lot of water. Having to have a lot of extra clothes can really impact on the 20kg per case allowance, especially if you are travelling for a longer period of time. However, you can take as many cases on board as you like as they are not stored anywhere, just taken to your room for you. Small cases can pass as hand luggage and can also be taken on board. I think it’s very handy to not have huge restrictions on luggage as you really do need to have a wardrobe of choices.
Check In and Embarking
We had to check in at Dock 10, Mayflower Terminal for 2pm as presented on our e-tickets. Once we arrived we gave our luggage to the baggage handlers and headed inside the terminal which has a bar for hot and alcoholic drinks as well as clean toilets and plenty of seating space. You are handed a card with a letter which when called allows you to join the line for check in. At check in you will have your photograph taken and boarding pass handed to you which you will need every time you want to place an order for drink, extra food or other purchases onboard as well as when you enter or leave the ship at any port. I found this to be a really smooth process and we were checked in and through security and onto the ship within around 40 minutes of arriving at the terminal.
The beautiful Atrium on Oceana, view from Deck 7
First Impressions
You enter Oceana at Deck 5 where the Atrium is located. It is an absolutely stunning place to enter and provides you with many ‘oh’ and ‘ahh’ moments. Photographers were on hand for embarkation portraits as well as information being handed out from the Oasis Spa team. I thought walking into the Atrium was breathtaking with a stunning water feature, palm trees and arrangements of Lillies around the stairways and base of the two glass elevators that went up to Deck 8. We went ahead to find our cabin which was very smooth going and easy to find. We were impressed by the amount of storage and cleanliness of the cabin and enjoyed a little sit down on our balcony looking out at Southampton before unpacking and heading off to explore the rest of the ship.
Ship Facilities
Floodlights Theatre
Theatre onboard Oceana Ship
Spotlights Stage
Sports Pub
Nightclub
Champagne Bar
Costa Coffee
Gallery
Spa
Gym
Laundrette
Shops
Buffet
Pool Bar
Swimming Pool
Jacuzzis
Sun Deck
Golf
The Cabin
Our Balcony Cabin
As I mentioned above we had a balcony cabin to enjoy which was lovely, spacious and had plenty of storage. The only thing I didn’t like, and this is just personal due to sensitive skin, is I really don’t like the feeling of ‘crisp linen’ which I know a lot of people love. It was clean, comfortable but my skin, particularly elbows and knees can’t cope with linen so I had to wear long pj’s which got quite hot at night. Luckily the air-con was fully functional so I was able to keep cool. In the room was a desk and stool, TV and cabinet, a side table and on the balcony was two chairs and a small table. Included in the cabin was a kettle, hair dryer, TV, various tea and coffee and a clean shower room with shower gel, shampoo, conditioner and soap. Everything you would expect in a hotel room and a bowl of mints too. Also included in the cabin was a phone which can be used to call friends and family as well as other cabins on the shop and all other contacts from booking dinner reservations to room service. Each day you are given the Horizon which is the ship newspaper. This includes a day timetable of all activities, information about music, shows and films that may be on throughout the day as well as the shops, bars and restaurant opening hours. Room service was available 24 hours a day and usually with you within 30 minutes although the menu was very limited and our food wasn’t particularly hot when received however it didn’t really have that much of a negative impact on our trip. I was impressed by the cabin as it was bright, clean and despite the linen the beds were really comfortable with each bed having two pillows which seems to be rare or something to ask for in most hotels. The bathroom amenities were really lovely too, although, I have to say we didn’t get much use out of the included shower cap. Speaking of showers, it was relatively powerful and the temperature was easy to adjust to something comfortable. I wasn’t too impressed with the hairdryer but it did it’s job so I can’t complain too much. The Horizon newsletter was incredibly helpful as it included information on the dress code that evening and a little bit of info on the shows that were available that evening. On the last night before disembarkation, you are
Our Wake Me Up Room Service Breakfast
provided with information on where you need to go and what to do with luggage.
In the cabin information pack you will find a ‘wake me up with’ leaflet which I thought was a really nice touch. You could simply select a time and the foods you wanted which included fruit juices, fresh fruit, continental meats and pastries. We decided on a small selection to wake us up with including fresh coffee, orange juice and some fresh figs which came around 7am and made us get up ready for the day in port. It was nicely presented and tasted lovely.
The Staff
The staff in the Ligurian restaurant were fantastic, polite, welcoming and attentive and when in the bars or lounges waiter service was efficient but no one was very personal which was a shame however perhaps this is down to the short length of the cruise there wasn’t really time to get to know the people who are there to assist you and, therefore, didn’t really make me feel the tip we decided to keep on the account was worth paying. Tipping is automatically added at the end of the cruise at £5 per person per day and this is the rule for all P&O ships. This can be altered by speaking to reception or removed altogether and tips offered to individuals if you prefer.
The Food
Trio of Fish starter from the Gala Menu in the Freedom dining restuarant
The food was fantastic especially on our first night which just so happened to be the black tie evening. Black tie evenings include a six-course Gala dinner menu. Depending on whether you have club or freedom dining you simply head to the restaurant at your time and give your details to be seated. The chairs were pulled out for me, napkins were placed and a waiter was quickly over with water and a choice of white or brown bread rolls. On the table there is butter and houmous available to use for your bread which made for a nice choice. We then placed our drink orders from the wine list which featured a great range of reds, rose and whites and all priced by the glass in pounds. You find this all over the ship actually so it makes keeping up with your account really easy rather than converting money over from dollars or euros. The drinks are very fairly priced in my opinion, and often similar to what you would expect to pay in a restaurant, bar or pub here. We both had a small glass of red wine each and with the provided water it was more than enough for the entire meal. You could also mix and match between the set menu and the choices menu which was fantastic as it gave you a chance to try something new. I started my meal with a mushroom and shallot risotto with red wine sauce which was really tasty and seasoned beautifully whilst Adam went for a trio of fish which was very well presented. We both followed with Asparagus soup, champagne sorbet and a medium-rare beef wellington which was so tender and mouthwateringly good. The only disappointment was the knives weren’t particularly sharp which made it a bit difficult to cut food. We asked for steak knives which were a little better but still it is hard to look delicate when you are literally trying
Main Course of Beef Wellington cooked Medium Rare
to saw through a piece of cauliflower. I am surprised I didn’t come out with sauce all over me. However, this didn’t impact on the presentation or the taste of food, it was just fantastic.
Breakfast on Sunday was spent in the buffet restaurant which was nice and had a great choice of both hot and cold foods. The only thing I would have liked to see is identification on what some of the pastries were so I could decide what to have rather than guessing as I picked up something I didn’t particularly enjoy at the table. There were plenty of juices, coffee and around nine different flavours of tea to choose from. After our excursion, we had lunch in Cafe Jardin which is situated at the very top of the Atrium and in the evening becomes one of the select dining venues which require a cover charge. However, lunch is free and includes a small light bites menu and salad and dessert buffet. There were plenty of sandwiches available as well as some interesting lunch alternatives. I had the goats cheese and hazelnut tart with a side of salad and Creme Fraiche salsa whilst Adam had a sirloin steak baguette. We also took advantage of the buffet salads although didn’t get to try a dessert as we fancied afternoon tea.
Afternoon tea was probably the biggest disappointment. It’s only 45 minutes and very rushed
Afternoon Tea is from 4pm until 4.45pm
because it’s quite close to dinner time and they need to get the tables ready for dinner. There was a selection of cakes of which I tried a lemon drizzle cake however they were taken away very quickly so we didn’t really get a chance to look at any others let alone try one. Tea was poured as soon as we sat down which was nice but we didn’t get to choose which type of tea to drink, which I thought was the whole point. We were offered a choice of three sandwiches which were chicken, cheese and pickle or houmous and then a scone, crumpet or tea cake. Despite having many afternoon tea’s before I wasn’t trying to compare but this was rushed in a bad way and made uncomfortable like we were inconveniencing the staff. Because of this I don’t really understand why it was offered and thought perhaps it would be easier if it were a little earlier to stop such a rush between tea and dinner. Either way it was something to experience and hopefully we will get to experience it in a more pleasant environment onboard Azura in August next year. You can read more about my favourite afternoon tea and some very nice tea rooms I visited recently. The room service menu was also a little disappointing and limited as sometimes the food arrived cold. Some of the nicer options were unavailable on the ship as well which seemed a shame but then room service is only supposed to provide snacks.
Enjoying a Kir Royale
On our last morning, we decided to have breakfast in the Ligurian which had a small continental and hot breakfast menu. Each day hosted a special and on Monday it was eggs benedict which was really tasty. I had this with a nice, hot cup fo English breakfast tea and the smoothie of the day which was delicious. Breakfast was served hot and promptly with polite service.
Going Ashore
Once in port you can then go ahead to your excursion meeting point at the given time. We went with A Taste of Bruges which was fantastic and we managed to get the last two spots. You may need your passport when going ashore and this will be detailed in the Horizon newsletter. You will also need your cruise card to be scanned when leaving and coming back. When you do come back onboard all your bags will be scanned through security to make sure you haven’t purchased anything illegal.
Leaving the Ship
Following the instructions on the newsletter in the evening, we decided to take all our luggage down the gangway rather than placing it in the hold which meant we left the terminal very quickly. Waiting around took a while but leaving the ship was very easy. For those that had luggage taken off the ship it was available in the baggage reclaim area and sorted by deck so relatively easy to find everything.
Final Thoughts
Overall we had an amazing anniversay weekend on board the Oceana and had a fantastic day in Bruges. The ship was beautiful, clean and had a lot going on. I wish we had caught up with the entertainment rather than going to bed so early but we still had a great time and I would reccomend a mini cruise to anyone. I am glad we got to try lots of different things and sample what a cruise would be like and it has made me even more excited for our longer trip to Norway next year.
