Free nationwide coach connections to P&O cruises

P&O Cruises is offering free travel from more than 40 regional pick-up points for passengers sailing on a selection of 20 cruises between April and December 2006. 

The coach transfers to the line’s departure port of Southampton are available on selected ‘Sailaways’ itineraries to destinations in the Mediterranean, Baltic, Atlantic Isles and Norwegian Fjords, ranging from nine to 18 nights in duration. 

Head of brand marketing Philip Price said: “This initiative removes all the ordinary stress involved in getting to your holiday departure point. Congestion on the roads, car parking and payment can all make the start of the holiday a nightmare and we simply wanted to remove this aspect for our passengers.

“It is a convenient, local, no-hassle pick up service making travel easier that ever before.”

Coach transfers are available from: Abergele, Aust, Bangor, Barnsley, Birmingham North and South, Blackpool, Bolton, Bradford, Bridgend, Cambridge, Cardiff, Carlisle, Cherwell Valley services, Chester, Colwyn Bay, Darlington, Glasgow, Heathrow Airport, Holywell, Knutsford services, Lancaster, Leeds, Leicester, Leigh Delamere Services, Letchworth, Liverpool, Llandudno Junction, London (Victoria), Newcastle upon Tyne, Newmarket, Newport (Gwent), Northampton, Norwich, Nottingham, Pont Abraham services, Port Talbot, Preston, Rickmansworth, Sheffield, South Mimms services, Stoke-on-Trent, Swansea, Swindon, Thetford, Warwick services and Wetherby.

Meanwhile, P&O Cruises has published a second edition of its 2006 brochure featuring three new cruise itineraries including a 38-night voyage to the Amazon and Orinoco rivers, an ex-UK 24-night Caribbean itinerary, both on Artemis, and a three-night cruise-break on Oriana. Other itineraries include calls to new ports in Libya, Iceland and Tunisia.  

The line is highlighting the segmented onboard experiences offered by the five ships in its fleet. The new Arcadia and Oceana offer ‘contemporary and innovative’ cruising; Aurora and Oriana are ‘original and authentic’ whilst a ‘traditional and intimate’ experience can be found on Artemis.

Thirty fly-cruises to the Caribbean are featured with charter flights from 14 regional airports including Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield for the first time. The programme also features more than 90 cruise holidays from P&O Cruises’ homeport of Southampton. 

During the summer all five ships offer cruises to the Mediterranean, Adriatic, Atlantic Isles, Baltic regions and Norwegian Fjords. In winter, Arcadia and Oceana sail in the Caribbean, US and Central America while Artemis, Aurora and Oriana embark on world voyages.

New Itineraries:

·        Artemis – 38-night Amazon & Orinoco Adventure, February 20–March 30, 2007: Ports of call include: Barbados, Tobago, sail along Orinoco River, Puerto Ordaz, sail up the Amazon, Santarem, Parintins, Manaus, Grenada, St. Lucia and Dominica.

·        Artemis – 24-night Caribbean Voyage, March 30–April 23, 2007: Ports of call include: Ponta Delgada, Antigua, Tortola, Dominica, St. Lucia, Grenada, Barbados and Madeira.

·        Oriana – Three-night Summer Break, June 21-24, 2006: Ports of call include: Amsterdam and Bruges.

Report by Phil Davies