The design of Ventura is
derived from the Princess Cruises's "Grand Princess" class cruise
ships. She
is
the largest superliner designed for the British cruise market and
offers a
contemporary cruise experience and her stylish design, innovation and
signature
features set her apart.
Her
scale allowed P&O
Cruises to make this the most
varied and exciting cruising experience of any British ship. Ventura was
“designed” for purpose, with
every detail meticulously crafted to make this a remarkable holiday
experience. Ventura, through her innovation,
scale and contemporary
appeal, marks the next step forward for the UK
cruise industry.
Three distinct elements of British culture
have been brought together by P&O Cruises when Ventura, the superliner designed
specifically for British holidaymakers, entered service in April 2008
with an
emphasis on fine dining, modern and contemporary art and family
entertainment.
The Ventura
also looks towards the
passenger
of tomorrow, and takes
care of
families like no other British ship afloat, offering unprecedented play
and
adventure areas, dedicated family pools and new concepts in family
dining like The Beach House, family dining venue
created
by Marco Pierre White using his expertise gained running
Frankie’s restaurants.
This is a cruise ship “first” - offering families the chance to dine
together somewhere designed specifically
for that purpose.
Children’s
favourite
Toyland character, Noddy,
will be on board every itinerary on Ventura,
enabling families travelling throughout the year to enjoy a variety of
Noddy
events. These will include children’s cinema shows for two to four year
olds,
tea parties hosted by Noddy, character breakfasts, talent shows, film
matinees,
signing and photo sessions.
Another
partnership on Ventura
is with Scalextric,
who have created a large digital scalextric track, located in the Havana club.
This is one
of many family orientated features of Ventura.
P&O Cruises
has partnered with art experts Tate Modern
to host ‘Introduction to Modern Art’ special interest cruises to be
held
throughout the year. These cruises will be hosted by experts from Tate
Modern
and give passengers the opportunity to attend seminars, presentations
and
practical art classes on cruises throughout the year.
Ventura is
to feature £1million worth of British contemporary art with 7,000
different
pieces from 55 artists decorating the ship. The cabins also take a
break from
the norm, with canvasses decorating the walls instead of traditional
prints. The three stairwells are to be a highlight of the art on board,
with each
stairwell being created by a contemporary British artist to provide
passengers
with perceptual experiences and visual illusions.
Ventura features
two restaurants and a coffee lounge where the menu has been created by
celebrity chef Marco Pierre White.
- The White Room is the larger of
the two restaurants and offers alternative dining to the main
restaurants on board.
- Marco Pierre White has also
created a menu for the first 24hour buffet style family restaurant -
The Beach House, located on Deck 15.
- There is also Tazzine which is
an Italian styled coffee lounge that sells snacks and beverages.
Ventura
features three main dining rooms that require passengers to book a
sitting at
either 6.30pm or 8.30pm in the evening. The largest is the Bay Tree
Restaurant
with the Saffron and Cinnamon restaurants being two similar sized
smaller
restaurants.
- Another one of the alternative
restaurants on Ventura
is East, which is located on Deck 7 (aft) and serves asian and pacific
cusine.
- Located on Deck 15 is the
Waterside Restaurant which is Ventura's
main food court and is open from breakfast to late afternoon. This is
an informal daytime dining venue.
- Frankie's Pizzaeria is located
by the Laguna Pool and is inspired by the informal restaurant chain
created by Marco Pierre White and Frankie Dettori
- Finally Ramblas which is named
after the historic avenue in Barcelona is a Spanish themed Tapas Bar
located on Deck 7.
On the 19th deck
of Ventura
is 'Cirque Ventura' which is the first contemporary circus school on
any
superliner. It holds workshops by performers teaching such activities
as tight
wire, acrobalance, clowning, break dancing and juggling. It also
features
bungee trampolines which allow passengers to reach heights of over 100
metres
above sea level. The activity is complimentary and circus shows are
also
planned regularly on board, that enable passengers to take part in a
live
performance.
Even
her naming ceremony in Southampton on the 16th April 2008 was a
break with tradition. Instead of simply pressing a button
to send a cradled Taittinger champagne bottle towards the ship, Dame
Helen Mirren commanded a
crack team of Royal Marine Commandos to assist her in naming Ventura in a
dramatic abseil. So Ventura offers an innovative and contemporary
cruise experience for the British market.
Design and Construction (2000 - 2005):
She
was built by Fincantieri Shipbuilders S.p.A. at their Monfalcone
shipyard
near Trieste in Italy. The keel laying ceremony took place on the 29th
August 2006. On the 8th June 2007 the Float Out & Launch Ceremony
for the Ventura took place at the shipyard. Godmother to
the Ventura was Moira Lumsden, a
travel agent for the tour operator Thomas Cook, who was chosen by the
ship
owner because she sold the largest number of P&O Cruise holidays. During the ceremony a newly-minted two
pound silver coin and a new
Euro are welded at the foot of the ship’s mast for good luck. Ventura was
then blessed by a priest as a bottle of Italian Prosecco smashed
against the
hull. The valves of the giant dry dock at the Fincantieri shipyard then
opened
allowing the ship to meet the water for the first time. Then then was
floated out and met her natural element for the first time.
In December 2007
she undertook her sea trials. On the 29th March 2008 the Ventura was
delivered to P&O Cruises in a special hand over ceremony at the
shipyard. Present at the
ceremony were the company’s
Chairman and CEO Micky Arison, DD Managing Director of P&O Cruises
and
Carnival UK and Fincantieri was represented by the company’s Chairman,
Corrado
Antonini, and Chief Executive Officer, Giuseppe Bono.
The
handover of Ventura
marked a special occasion for Fincantieri’s Monfalcone shipyard, as it
celebrates the build of its centenary ship. A restored building has
been
transformed into an on-site museum, showing photography of its 99
previous
ships. P&O Cruises commissioned photographer Mike O’Dwyer to design
a mosaic
artwork of Ventura
as a gift to the yard. The mosaic features more than 1300 individual
pictures
and 6000 tiles.
On
the 16th April 2008 the Ventura was named in Southampton in a lavish
ceremony by Dame Helen Mirren. The
spectacular celebrity evening naming
ceremony, with Dame Helen as the ship's Godmother, took place prior to Ventura's maiden cruise to the Mediterranean on the 18th April 2008. But in a
break with tradition, instead of Dame
Helen simply pressing a button to send a cradled Taittinger champagne
bottle
towards the ship, she commanded a crack team of Royal Marine Commandoes
to
assist her in naming Ventura
in a dramatic abseil. In
keeping with Ventura's
contemporary and innovative values, her naming ceremony was a departure
from
tradition. As well as Dame Helen's customary champagne naming, the
celebration
encompassed an exciting show with dramatic surprises. On board, were
1,500 guests including Ventura’s
consultant celebrity chef, Marco Pierre White, Hugh Bonneville, Kate
Ford,
Imelda Staunton and Nicholas Lyndhurst. The occasion benefited three
children's
charities supported by Dame Helen and P&O Cruises - Barnardos,
Kid's
Company and Naomi House.
P&O Cruises era (2005 –
Present):
She
then set sail on her maiden voyage on the 18th April 2008 which was a
cruise from Southampton to the Mediterranean. Since then she has
enjoyed a
successful career with P&O Cruises and throughout the spring,
summer and autumn,
Ventura sails to the Mediterranean, Baltic, Scandinavia and the Caribbean.
Today she continues to
sail for
P&O Cruises and remains a firm favourite with the British cruise
market.
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