P&O Cruises Casinos

Having started life as a subsidiary of the freight transport company P&O when it was founded in 1977, P&O Cruises actually claims the oldest heritage of any cruise line thanks to the fact that the wider company’s first passenger operations began in 1837. The current fleet has seven ships, all of which fly the flag of Bermuda and call Southampton their home.

The largest ship in terms of gross tonnage is the Arvia, which sits alongside the Iona as the joint largest ship that has ever been built for the UK market. In terms of the casinos, all seven of the ships that sail under the P&O brand have a casino on board for passengers.

The Casinos

With every ship in the P&O line boasting a casino, you don’t need to worry about which one to take your trip with if you’re hoping to take advantage of the chance to have a flutter whilst you’re away. The casinos are decked out (pun intended) to be just like the real deal, so everything will look just like it would in a casino on land. The casinos are only open to passengers aged 18 and over, with anyone under the age of 18 only allowed to enter the casino on occasions when it is a thoroughfare to another part of the ship. Even then, they shouldn’t hang around for too long, with anyone who looks under 18 liable to be asked for ID.

Some of the ships will have events such as bingo or horse racing, which those under 18 are allowed to attend on the proviso that they’re doing so with someone over the age of 18. You can’t take videos in the casinos, but photographs are allowed provided anyone who would be in the shot is happy for that to happen. Similarly, you can use mobile phones on the casino floor or whilst using slot machines, but not if you’re playing one of the table games. The casinos don’t have a dress code, but passengers are asked to be wearing shoes and shirts, so no swimwear or towels can be worn whilst in the casino on board.

High Rollers

If you’re a high roller wondering what facilities there are for you on P&O cruises, the short answer is that there aren’t any. That is to say, there is no separate part of the casino that is only open to high rollers, as you might find on some other cruise lines. Instead, there is the facility to place bigger bets on some tables if you speak to a member of the casino staff and let them know that that’s what you would like to do. In most cases, this will more than suffice in terms of being able to place wagers with higher stakes, to say nothing of the fact that high rollers tend to be given more inducements to keep betting than other passengers will get.

What You Can Play

It would be untrue to suggest that the games on offer in the casinos are the same on every single P&O vessel, which is entirely down to the fact that not all of the casinos are the same size. That being said, you are likely to be able to enjoy a number of the stock games that you’d expect to find in any casino. That means that you’ll be able to sit in front of a roulette table and have a bet on where you think the ball will land, or take on the dealer in a game or two of blackjack. Three-card poker is also available, as is craps on some of the ships, so you need to ensure that you pick the game that is right for you when you’re there.

It is fair to say that slots are also an important part of the P&O casino offering, with every ship having its fair share of the modern game. If that is the sort of thing that you prefer to table games, you’ll want to keep an eye out to see whether or not there are any video poker or electronic roulette machines that you can get involved with. If you aren’t sure what you’re doing, you can always ask a member of the casino staff how to play any of the games on offer. If you head along to the casino during the daytime, you might also get the chance to play the games for fun as you’re taught the way in which each of them works.

How to Pay for Your Gaming

One of the things a lot of people wonder when they go to a casino on a cruise ship is how they have to pay for their play. The simplest way to do it is by using your onboard account, which you can do without a fee. The casino also accepts cash, with sterling being the currency needed. You can’t use any on-board spending money that you’ve been given in the casino, nor when there is an event like bingo or horse racing. When you’re using the slot machines, money that you cash out will be held in your casino account, which you can then use next time you go to the casino, or you can take it by cashing out at the cash desk.

Casino Events

As mentioned already, the cruises of P&O do have both bingo and horse racing events, although these aren’t held in the casino itself. They’re still worth mentioning because of the link to betting. There are occasional events that take place in the casino though, such as the blackjack tournaments. These require you to pay a nominal fee before being able to go up against the dealer and your fellow guest, with the player who gets the highest score of the day often being rewarded with a prize. If you like to play blackjack but find it too expensive to constantly meet the minimum bet requirement, this is a good alternative.

Loyalty Scheme

The good news for those of you that like a loyalty programme is that P&O do operate one. The bad news is that casino spending doesn’t count towards it. Instead, you will become a member of the Peninsula Club after you’ve spent 15 nights on board a P&O vessel, with the nights not needing to be consecutive. The tricky part of things is that you don’t become a member until your 15th night, so if you spend a fortnight on a P&O cruise you won’t become a member of the Peninsula Club until after the first night of your next cruise with the company. From that point on, you earn points depending on how many nights you spend cruising and what money you spend on board.

Sadly, any money spent in the on-board casino does not count towards the Peninsula Club. Instead, you will become part of the Pacific Tier after your 15th night on board, moving up to Atlantic Tier when you’ve sailed with the company for 51 nights or more and then Mediterranean Tier from your 101st night onwards. If you sail with P&O for 201 nights you’ll become a member of the Caribbean Tier, then the Baltic Tier comes after 251 nights on board as well as between 80 and 200 nights on board over the past three years. Ligurian Tier is the most exclusive, being for those that have sailed for 251 nights and 201 or more nights over the previous three years.

Routes

With such a large number of ships on offer, it isn’t all that surprising that P&O offers a wealth of different routes for those that wish to sail on one of their vessels. Not all of the ships sail to the same places, so which ship you end up on will depend on where you’re heading. Arcadia sails to the Mediterranean as well as Northern Europe and Scandinavia, with some world cruises also carried out. The Arvia, meanwhile, also does the Mediterranean, including Spain and Portugal, as well as the Caribbean, whilst the Aurora keeps things closer to home by adding the British Isles to Spain, Portugal, France and the Mediterranean.

The Azura is the ship that you’ll be on if you want to head to the Med or the Canary Islands, whilst the Britannia will take you to the Med, as well as the Norwegian Fjords and the Caribbean. The Iona takes in the Norwegian Fjords, the Canary Islands and Northern Europe and Scandinavia alongside the Caribbean, whilst the Ventura will be cruising the Canary Islands, Spain, Portugal and France, as well as the Caribbean. In fact, the only ships that don’t head to the Caribbean are the Arcadia and the Azura, meaning that the other vessels will take you to the likes of Barbados, Aruba, St Kitts and other amazing islands in the area.

What Else Is on Board

Whilst most readers of this page are likely to be predominantly interested in the casino, it is always worth knowing what else you might be able to do on a P&O cruise. The exact activities available to you will depend entirely on the ship that you’re sailing on, but obviously many of the same things apply regardless. You might be able to take on a rope climb on the top deck of the ship, for example, or have a swim in a pool overlooking the ocean below. The dining options are plentiful, with different things aimed at different people, which is why you need to look out for your favourite kind of eatery to see whether it’s on your ship.

Activities

Similarly, there are numerous different places on P&O ships that you can head to for a drink, ranging from a pub-style place through to a much more upmarket bar. There are often nights held on board in which you’re expected to dress up, which is worth bearing in mind when you’re doing your packing. There are theatres on board all of the ships that promise a night’s entertainment as good as anything you could hope to see on Broadway or in London’s West End. If you fancy a chill and relax, then the spa and wellness area will be the best place to head to, or you might want to go to the gym in order to keep fit.

Classes, Talks & Kids Clubs

As with most cruise ships nowadays, there are shopping areas that you can go to in order to spend as much money as you want, whilst those hoping to get married on board will be pleased to know that there are wedding packages available. If you want to use your cruise to better yourself, you can look at the likes of the various lessons that take place during the course of a cruise, including the likes of painting and photography. Alternatively, you might want to head along to one of the talks that are given by guest speakers, or take part in a quiz. If you’ve got young ones in your lives, you’ll also be delighted to know there are kids clubs available on all ships.