catperson02

We boarded Iona just over a week ago. My daughter had a 12.30 boarding time but mine was 1.30 because we had booked seperate cabins as there was no single supplement . We obediently turned up at 1.30 (advised to turn up at later boarding time) only to discover that nobody even looked at our boarding times and everybody was boarded in order of arrival. Actually it was not too bad as we were through and onboard in about 40 minutes from getting out of the taxi. However, I suspect that if we had rocked up at the earlier time we would still have boarded in order of arrival.

I received my cabin allocation yesterday for A206, I got an email yesterday afternoon. I have just been able to print luggage labels and e-tickets, it seemed to take 24 hours for the personaliser to catch up.

I also booked early saver. Now just got to do the remaining paperwork before heading off to Gatwick on 17th ready for my flight.

About 4 years ago we had an issue. I filled in the details on my post cruise survey and followed it up with an email to customer services via the form on the website. I didn't expect much but felt better "getting it off my chest". I was amazed to receive a phone call about 3 weeks later where they apologised and agreed that the service on board had fallen below what I should have expected. I got an apology, confirmation that the crew member involved would be spoken to and a lovely hamper (which I priced up at about £100). The hamper was totally unexpected, I just wanted my issue recognised.

Mind you this was before the current situation and I imagine that trying to answer the phones is their main target at the moment.

I pre-registered for cruise A310A and received my cabin allocation yesterday. I was not happy with the cabin assigned (Riviera deck under the pool with a sheltered balcony) so rang to change it. They changed my cabin to C302 which was the only other cabin in the category left. When my confirmation came I realised that this is an adapted cabin so I rang straight back. I said to P&O that I did not feel comfortable occupying a cabin which really should be assigned to someone with mobility needs. I even offered to pay to get a cabin of the next grade. She informed me that there were no balcony cabins left in either grade so told me to stay put. Is it worth periodically ringing to see if any non adapted cabins have become available or can I assume that if someone needs an adapted cabin that I would be moved out (maybe upgraded you never know) Whilst I know that it would be lovely to have such a huge cabin to myself I really feel uncomfortable taking it.

Thank you. That sounds great. I didn't know about the Premier Inn. We have stayed at both the Hilton and the Sofitel in the past but they are a bit pricey. The Premier Inn sounds ideal. Having boldly said that I didn't mind where my cabin was located I had second thoughts today and have upgraded to a midships balcony HA grade (still early saver) because all of these cabins are in places that I would be happy to be and if they want to upgrade me to a superior delux then that's fine by me. Never been upgraded after numerous cruises on select fare so I am not holding my breath!

Well I have done it! I have booked myself onto A206 Azura's repositioning cruise in March 22. I have cruised the Med before from Southampton with my daughters and occasionally with my parents but this time I am literally flying solo. Any hints or tips would be great. I have also booked early saver for the first time, we usually go select to ensure that multiple cabins are close and that we dine together. I am really not bothered when I eat but I will probably ask for fixed dining to avoid the daily "where are you from, how many cruises conversations. If I get freedom then I won't be too bothered and as long as I have a balcony, which I have booked, location isn't important.

I know that it is too soon for flights to be available but do P&O usually fly from Gatwick or Heathrow? Gatwick would be my preference as there is a direct train from my local station but if it is Heathrow then so be it. I have an overnight in Barbados at the start, will there be tours available as I am not quite ready to explore on my own in the Caribbean? The other two ports are Cadiz and Gran Canaria which I am perfectly happy to DIY. I am a pretty social type of person and have seen lots of events for singles advertised in the Horizon on previous cruises so I intend to go along to as many as possible. When my daughters were younger they would be off with their friends from the children's clubs so I am fairly used to doing things on my own.

I know that March 22 is a long way off but planning is one of my favourite things.

Thanks

Thanks. It looks like it would be a good idea to track down my adapter. The toothbrush needs charging about every week or so at home so will definitely need charging while we are away. Hopefully it will be able to charge in the bathroom but if not then it can be charged in the cabin.

I am optimistically planning for our forthcoming cruises - Arcadia this Christmas and Britannia next August. Normally we take battery powered "holiday" toothbrushes but we would like to take our normal rechargeable electric ones.  My question is where are the razor sockets in the bathrooms? Are they at low level or, as in some hotels, at the top of the mirror? Hopefully they are near enough to the sink level for the cable to reach to the toothbrush charger. Otherwise I will have to root around and find our adapter to convert the 2 pin razor plug to a 3 pin UK one and charge in the bedroom area. This may take until Christmas as I am not totally sure where it was put after last years house move! I am fully aware that I cannot leave it charging when I am not in the cabin. Hopefully someone can help me with this. Thank you

Thank you. Planning a cruise is almost as good as going on one and just what I needed to give me a real boost. 

After much thought and family discussions we decided that even if our August Britannia cruise goes ahead it would not be the best time to be cruising. So we transferred the deposit to a Christmas cruise on Arcadia around the Baltic. There will be five of us in two cabins. My parents 70+ years old in one and myself and my 2 daughters who will be 22 and 20 in the other. The girls are aware and quite happy that this will be a very different beast to a summer in the Med on Britannia and are quite happy with a cocktail, dinner, a quiz or a show in the evenings. The itinerary looks fantastic and after all if bank of mum is paying...…… The prices are very reasonable too.

Anyway we decided to splurge on mini suite cabins. We have booked B82 and B84. We have sailed in superior delux cabins on Azura. Am I correct in thinking that these will be broadly the same? I am sure that I read somewhere that they get priority embarkation and come with the fizz and chocs. Is there anything else that I have missed? We mainly went for these cabins for the extra space and could not justify the cost of a full suite but hey you never know the upgrade fairy may call although she never has before. Any other advice or tips on what appears to be a beautiful vessel would be greatly appreciated. Looking on the deck plans I can only see one laundrette on board which will no doubt be needed as someone is bound to slip over and land in mud, puddles or snow. Is this true and do they get crowded? We always visit the Epicurean a couple of times, how does the ocean grill compare? I have one fussy pescatarian who won't eat anything spicy or that is "looking at her" or if it contains mushrooms or cauliflower (need I go on?)

After feeling very doubtful that our summer cruise would happen we are much more confident that this will go ahead and it has given us all a much needed lift. Mind you it has just been pointed out that I did say in a moment of weakness that if the summer cruise did not go ahead that we would get another cat after loosing our last elderly lady just before Christmas, and yes the rescue shelter in the village is taking phone calls and doing "telephone dating" to make a match.

Thank you

Whilst not quite £1 each I have booked an aft corner suite on Britannia during the school holidays for 4 of us - myself, 21 year old daughter and my parents. It came to not a lot more than 2 insides (£7500 for all four of us with the extra people being £719 each). Yes it will be cosy and we will only have one bathroom but the separate toilet will help and our cabin F730 has a huge wrap around balcony which will give room to spread out. I have also seen some reviews that suggest that this cabin has a corridor between the lounge and sitting room which, if true will give more privacy at night. I am considering taking a blow up mattress if the sofa bed proves too small or uncomfortable. It will be fine, hopefully

Sorry I should have said that it will be Britannia, blame the germs which have turned into a chest infection. I think that although it will be a bit cosy for the price and suite benefits I will be pre registering. I have decided that select may be better then I can try for an aft cabin. Just rung and pre registered for a B4 suite £7646 for all four of us!

One thing designed to make you feel better whilst struggling with a stinking cold - looking at the new cruises for 2021! I have found one that appeals and am considering it for myself, my daughter who would be 21 and my parents. Pricing it up it would be significantly cheaper for all 4 of us to share a suite. Also for the first time ever I would consider an early saver as, even including OBS, it would be a saving of over £1000. Being all in the same cabin I am not concerned about being allocated different dining times and early/late/freedom - none of those would be a deal breaker. We do get on well and there appears to be a room divider which would give some privacy. There also appears to be an extra cloakroom so two loos! 

My only concern is the sleeping arrangements - it would be a double sofa bed for myself and my daughter. Has anyone any experience of the comfort of these?  I have shared a bed with her in the past and she is a wriggler and, with hair down to her waist, I frequently end up with a face and mouth full of hair! (Imagine Cousin It from The Addams Family and you will be pretty close) An option would be to take an inflatable single air bed for her if there was sufficient floor space and to try and sweet talk the room steward into some extra bedding.

The prospect of a suite at such a good price is very tempting but the risk of not choosing our cabin is a bit daunting. Are there any suites that are to be avoided or would any be fine?

Any thoughts or advice would be great.

Yes. I have an incredibly fussy 19 year old daughter (don't ask me how that happened. her sister eats anything). We explained this to our waiter and she usually looks at the menus the day before and picks what she fancies. They are always happy to substitute chips (chunky ones or fries, whichever she wants). They will change any vegetables which she turns her nose up at. She also has the option of choosing items that she likes the sound of from the lunch menu and have them served in the evening. I am sure that they would "scale up" items from the children's menu for you. We have always found the restaurant staff incredibly accommodating. Thankfully she does not expect similar service at home because it simply won't happen!

I have looked at this and it looks tempting for our cruise next year. I assume that the steward will be able to provide a vase for the flowers - I don't really want to have to pack one. Do you get your peninsular discount if you order from cruise personaliserr? I would probably buy 2 packages, one for us and one for my parents who will be in the cabin next door.

 Many thanks for your replies. A gift credit may be a good idea. However, my parents will only be on their second cruise so get no loyalty discount. I will get 7 1/2% so it would be a better idea if I bought any drinks. Maybe a home made certificate to promise to buy their drinks at dinner each night may be the way to go. We didn't get a huge amount of on board credit when we booked at launch so my discount will quickly kick in once that is gone, especially as we took advantage of the great 3rd passenger discount and my 21 year old daughter is joining us in the cabin (yes it will be cosy!)

We don't go until August next year but planning makes the long wait more bearable.

We are sailing with my parents on Britannia next year. Last time we sailed with them (and I did say "never again" but hey ho) I bought them a wine package as a Christmas present which they used on board. It was ok but not all the wines were available, the selection was not vast, it and on a couple of occasions we had a slight disagreement as to what to choose. I was not particularly convinced that it was much of a saving either. This time I am considering putting a gift credit on their account. This way they can pick what they want, maybe just a glass or a beer. I have looked on the cruise personaliser and gift credits seem to be available for specific things - spa, select dining etc. My question is do they actually restrict what you can spend the money on? I would hope not, after all as long as it is spent on board I can't really see the problem but I would hate for the computer system to throw a hissy fit and leave them with unspent gift credit and a bar bill. Any thoughts?

Thanks. I will be heading to the pharmacy for saline spay and will look into some essential oils too. Sadly I have to wait almost a year for my next cruise so I won't be able to feed back the results for some time

I returned on Friday from a fantastic cruise on Ventura. For the first week I was fine but then I became increasingly congested at night. My nose/sinuses became blocked meaning that I woke every hour with a dry, parched mouth needing a drink. This meant that the next time that I woke I not only had a dry mouth but needed a wee! The congestion vanished as I showered and was up and about. I assumed that the air conditioning was the cause and tried to drape a damp towel over the bedside table but this didn't seem to make any difference. I returned home on Friday and had a great nights sleep, no congestion issues. 

Has anybody got any suggestions to help for next years cruise? I am planning to ask the (lovely) village pharmacy for their advice as I am happy to use nose sprays or tablets as it will only be for a couple of weeks or possibly just for the last week but any advice from seasoned cruisers would be great. Thanks

I have negotiated discounts on our last two cruises. The maitre de in the main dining room was able to offer us five for the price of four in Sindhu on one occasion and on the other I wandered around the food and beverage fayre on the first sea day. I booked for 3 of us I the Epicurean for two meals and got my daughter at half price for both, this was after being told when I enquired on embarkation that no discounts were available except on the first night which I politely declined and walked away. Neither of these bookings were for the first night, I chose my dates on both occasions. This was on Azura and Britannia. I will be looking to book when we go on Ventura in a few days but will be prepared to walk away if no discount is available.

Thanks. Oh well it was a thought. I will have to come up with something else.

I know that it is not possible to book the glasshouse before we cruise but is it possible to book a table once on board? It's my daughters 19th birthday just before we sail and she is meeting her friend who she met on a cruise a few years ago on board. I would like to give her a gift credit to go for a meal with her friend. She is a very fussy pescatarian and the example menus for the Beach House do not look very promising. The Glasshouse, however, looks like it has lots of things that she would enjoy. Because it will just be the two of them I would want to have reserved a table as I feel that they might be overlooked if they just turned up on their own (both are a bit shy and quiet). Many thanks

We found our tour with SPB met our needs much better than the ships tours. My children were 15 and 17 and, with only 12 on the tour, our guide was able to point out items of interest to my 2 and another 2 children who were about 9 and 11. People who took the ships tour were in groups of 40 or so and felt herded around. I booked a highlights tour which took us to the Peterhoff (including a hydrofoil ride), Catherine Palace, Peter Paul fortress, the Church of the spilled blood, an early entrance to the Hermitage, a subway ride and about an hour on Levsky (?) Prospect for lunch  and a wander on our own. Our minibus driver was amazing and we were encouraged to leave passports and any valuables with him on the mimibus to avoid pickpockets. We also made a couple of extra photo stops when we requested. 

It actually worked out cheaper than the ships tour

We tendered in, the hop on hop off bus stop was just by the drop off point. To be honest my daughters said that they felt that the hop on hop off bus was one of the poorest that we have ever done. There was a bit of a queue and we had to wait for the next bus (about 20 minutes). The bus was one of the priciest that we have ever done and was absolutely packed, mind you this was in August with three ships in port. When we stopped at the palace we took one look at the crowds waiting to get back on and decided to stay on the bus! The driver, trying to be helpful announced at each stop the name of the stop and said "shopping" which was great but meant that we missed the recorded commentary as it cut over it. With hindsight we wished that we had done a ships tour which is something that we rarely do.

Me too. It somehow switched my date of birth with my daughters who was in her own cabin (four times in the space of a few months). Now don't get me wrong I would like to loose a few years but going back to 19 again - no thanks.

P&O swapped them back each time before the last person that I spoke to realised that somehow our peninsula numbers had been swapped. This was a couple of years ago and so far all has remained as it should be. Now that's tempting fate!