The newest ship part of the fleet of P & O Cruises, the Adonia, was named by Dame Shirley Bassey, singing legend, in Southampton, UK. The Adonia has a capacity of 710 passengers. The ship, formerly part of Princess Cruises and named Royal Princess was rechristened as Adonia part of P & O cruises.
The ship underwent an over haul for three weeks at the Grand Bahama Shipyard, where a number of additions and refurbishments were made to fit in with the rest of the fleet at P& O. The theme for the christening ceremony, which was headed by Dame Shirley Bassey, a legend vocalist, was diamonds. The diamonds theme was placed in honor of the song “Diamonds are Forever”, which is one of the greatest hits sung by the diva.
Adonia is now the smallest ship part of the P & O cruises fleet. The ship was originally built as part of the Renaissance fleet in 2oo1. It was known as R8 at the time. After that it sailed for a period of time as Minerva II for Swan Hellenic and recently as Royal Princess as part of Princess Cruises.
Neither P& O nor the previous owners have made extensive changes to the interiors of the ship. There are many elements that were typical of the country house elegance that the Renaissance R8 was known for. There are trompe l ’ oeil ceilings, faux fireplaces, a wrought iron staircase and more.
The casino abroad the Adonia has been changed into an Anderson’s, the lounge and club option trademark to P & O. The Sun deck has the two new additional restaurants, Sorrento and Ocean Grill, excellent alternative options. The Ocean Grill will be looked over by Marco Pierre White, celebrity chef and the Sorrento will serve Italian classics.
The power sockets have been changed into three pin British plugs and kettles and tea bags have been added in all cabins. The official currency on board will be the Sterling. The cruise ship will set sail on the maiden voyage on Sunday. It will sail out on a sixteen night Western Mediterranean cruise.
The ship will sail out of Southampton throughout the summer, and a series of Mediterranean fly cruises will be embarked upon in the autumn season. In January 2012, there is an eighty seven night cruise to South America being planned.