We’re delighted to announce that Captain Robert Camby will lead the team on board Arvia. Supporting Captain Camby will be Captain Paul Brown, Andy Foote and Archie Kennedy as Deputy Captains, Robert Long as Chief Engineer and Helen Kimber and Daljit Sharma as Hotel General Managers.
Arvia’s Senior Management Team (SMT) is focused on preparing to welcome and support their teams to get ready for the arrival of Arvia, and build an inclusive culture with great opportunities for everyone onboard.
They are a team of carefully selected people to ensure a mutually strong set of senior management teams across the P&O Cruises fleet, guaranteeing the same high standard of operations and ensuring unforgettable holiday happiness for our guests across each and every ship.
Arvia will enter service in December 2022. Captain Camby will bring her from the Meyer Werft shipyard in Germany to our home port of Southampton where she will then sail her inaugural winter cruises, before re-positioning to Barbados for her first series of Caribbean fly-cruises.
“After 26 years with the company I feel so privileged to command P&O Cruises Arvia and to be working alongside the most talented and experienced team.
Arvia will underpin all the innovative and environmental credentials of Iona and will create even more aspirational and desirable guest experiences and itineraries specifically for British guests.”
Captain Robert Camby
“After 26 years with the company I feel so privileged to command P&O Cruises Arvia and to be working alongside the most talented and experienced team.We’ll be sharing more on our Arvia milestones soon, but in the meantime find out more about Captain Camby and what it takes to become commander of our latest LNG ship…
Captain Camby was introduced to the sea from an early age, having a father who had served in the Royal Navy. His first introduction to cruising was through his grandfather who took the family on SS Canberra when Robert was 14 – this sparked his dream of a career at sea.
In 1995 Robert was selected into the P&O Princess Cruises Cadet program and started his studies as a deck cadet at South Shields Nautical College. His first ship was where it all began on board SS Canberra. He worked his way up through the ranks on various ships before gaining his masters ticket in December 2003. In November 2005 Robert was appointed as navigator on Cunard’s flagship Queen Mary 2, where he remained working up to the rank of Deputy Captain in June 2008.
In December 2011 he was promoted to Captain, taking his first command of Oriana in January 2012. Since then, he has commanded Azura, Arcadia, Aurora, Oceana, Ventura, Britannia, Queen Victoria, Queen Mary 2 and most recently Iona.
When not at sea he enjoys following Formula 1 motor racing, supporting Chelsea Football Club, as well as being a fan of England and Wasps Rugby. He is also a lover of classic cars, especially the Austin Healey. He lives in Warwickshire with his wife Danni and their children Austin and Jenson.