Day 2 – Sunday (day at sea).

We started off with a leisurely breakfast back in the Coral Restaurant. In the daylight, it is a bright airy room, with sky blue and grey décor, pale wood effects and lots of sea view tables. Breakfast items are similar in all restaurants (including Horizons, the buffet restaurant on deck 16) with a choice of fruit juices, fruit, yogurts, cereals, pastries, bread, muffins etc, cheese and cold cuts, ‘Full English’ cooked breakfasts with a huge choice of additions (or deletions) as well as pancakes with maple syrup and Eggs Benedict. All washed down with the best tea on a cruise ship (PG Tips) and served with a full range of traditional British condiments.

As today was the day before the Queen’s Funeral, ‘Iona’ held an interdenominational Service of Prayer and Reflection at 10.30am in Headliners Theatre, led by the Captain. Along with the books of condolence that were made available for guests to sign if desired and the 2 minutes silence observed by the ship as well as the rest of the UK, on the Sunday evening (at 9pm as we were an hour ahead), it acknowledged the Queen’s long association with the cruise line, most recently with the naming of ‘Britannia’ in March 2015. It also demonstrated the level of proactivity and reactivity that can be achieved by a ship at sea – more of this later in the week!!

There are a wide range of activities available on board during the day and especially when at sea. In addition to the usual entertainment and the cinema (see later) there is a Casino, as well as talks on subjects like the Vikings, the Marabelle Gin (distilled on board) and different art presentations – I went to the one entitled ‘LS Lowry : 20th Century British Master’ which was interesting. The Gym and Spa offer boot camps, yoga, Pilates and stretching sessions, Tour de Cycle cardio workouts, as well as clinics focusing on treatments like acupuncture, wrinkle remedies and foot care. There are get togethers for Solo travellers, LBGTQ+ and Friends of Bill W groups. The Sports Hub allows you to play shuffleboard, deck quoits, table tennis, golf and archery and there are line dancing classes as well. For something a bit more cerebral there are up to 5 quizzes a day in Brodies as well as bingo, a pool table and live sport to watch on the large screens. Buskers, pianists and other singers perform in The Crow’s Nest, the Grand Atrium and Brodies during the day and you can try your hand at karaoke (in The Limelight Club) or improve your scales at vocal workshops.

As we sailed during school time, the Kids Clubs tended to only operate in the afternoon and evenings when we were in port, but from 10am on sea days. Days at sea also mean that the shops are open for a bit of duty free retail therapy. There are over 275 brands for sale on board across a range of genres including beauty, fashion, watches, handbags, spirits, skin care and P&O Cruises crafted collections. Talks on Breitling watches, Pandora items and ‘Guessing the Carat Weight of the Tanzanite’ run alongside the flash sales and offers.

In the evening it was Celebration Night – and formal dress (dark lounge suits or dinner jackets for men). Although there is a request on formal nights to wear jackets upon entry to restaurants, the dress code was not observed by all guests, which is a bit of a shame, for what is a P&O Cruises cruising tradition. Everyone was offered a complimentary glass of Prosecco and a five course meal.

We decided to have pre dinner drinks in Andersons Bar (and Library), which offers a quiet space to sit and read in during the day, with the bar opening in the late afternoon and becoming ‘adult only’ after 6pm. The bar showcases over 300 gins and also includes a boutique gin distillery, the first at sea. This is the result of a partnership with the Salcombe Distilling Company in Devon. ‘Iona’s’ own sea inspired signature gin (‘Marabelle Gin’) is made to a recipe tailored to portray the ‘bold and daring’ spirit of the ship. It uses 18 botanicals, including heather, citrus, green apple, blackberry, rose petals, mint and sea kelp (as found on the island of Iona). The bottle label is the shape of a gin pennant flag, a symbol of hospitality, flown by sailors in years gone by. A limited edition gin (75 bottles/day) is made in the 450 litre copper still (called Columba) and bottled, for sale on board, in a room outside the bar. You can tell it is actually made on board as the bottle has a gold seal. Future limited editions will include ingredients local to the destinations that’ Iona’ will cruise to.

We decided to eat at The Chefs Table (8.30pm sitting) which was actually a sectioned off part of Horizons Restaurant and included in the cruise price. The menu was created by Marco Pierre White with wines selected by Olly Smith (two more P&O Cruises Food Heroes), showcasing traditional British and regional dishes and was very nice. I had an Amuse - a shot of Gazpacho Soup, laced with the ship’s own Marabelle gin, followed by Jerusalem Artichoke Soup, Turbot with a Viennoise Crust (I was sorely tempted by the Beef Wellington and the New England Lobster Mornay) and Biscuit Glace, but passed on the coffee and truffles. Sadly, I didn’t think the ambience in Horizons lived up to the occasion – there may have been more atmosphere in the MDRs (Aqua for example).

For entertainment, we headed back to the two deck high Headliners Theatre for a set by guest singer Kalon Rae.