Lucky Daily Echo readers were some of the first people in Southampton to tour the city's new £300m supership.

An embarkation pass for Ventura is the city's hottest ticket at the moment as the ship prepares for a glittering dockside naming ceremony performed by Oscar-winning actress Dame Helen Mirren on Wednesday.

Winners Although the luxury ship stayed tied up alongside her berth at the Mayflower Cruise Terminal in the Western Docks, the 300 winners were able to get a taste of what life is like on the biggest vessel ever built specifically for British passengers.

They toured all the public rooms, including the spectacular theatre, the three main restaurants, the exclusive White Room created by celebrity chef, Marco Pierre White, as well as taking a look at Ventura's staterooms which can accommodate up to 3,600 passengers.

Some of the readers, who were all winners of a Daily Echo competition for 150 double tickets to visit the ship, met up with children's favourite Noddy, who will be making an appearance on every Ventura cruise this year.

Others could not resist trying their hand at Ventura's huge Scalectrix car racing track while the more adventurous dropped in on Cirque Ventura, a contemporary circus skills school, and its bungee trampolines.

Over the coming days more than 22,000 visitors, including past P&O passengers and representatives from the travel and shipping industries, will tour the ship before she leaves on her maiden Mediterranean cruise next Friday.

Ventura is due to leave today for a two-night party cruise to the Belgium port of Zeebrugge before returning to Southampton on Sunday.