Jennizor

I understand your frustration Firsttimer. We are frustrated about the cost of the tests we may have to take before we can go ashore too. We have been on several Caribbean cruises now and sometimes don’t get off at some of the islands. We wouldn’t do that at every port so we will pay whatever we need to if necessary. Staying on board has its attractions, its lovely and quiet on deck, no wandering round looking for somewhere to sit. The views are usually amazing too. Lunch is very laid back as there are not many people in the MDR. I look at it this way. We have had four cruises cancelled, maybe five as I’m not sure our Med cruise on 25th September will go ahead. Just going on a holiday that we know we will enjoy, whatever the restrictions are, is better than staying at home like we have since March 15th last year.

On our first Britannia cruise a few years ago, James Martin was doing the Cookery Club. I persuaded my husband to do it with me and we had a great time. He demonstrated two dishes and then we had to make them. It was hilarious, James was really amusing and kept us all on our toes. There were a couple of disasters but generally most people did OK. We then all sat together at a large table and ate our efforts. James sat at the head of the table and kept us amused. I would do it again very happily. 

Sorry Silkworms you are right, we are on Britannia on the 4th of December. I have booked four cruises to replace the ones we had cancelled. 3 on Britannia and 1 on Azura. I am not quite confused!!!,

We are due to be on the Azura Caribbean cruise on 4th December, flying from Manchester. Just did a dummy booking and the only flight option was London. Being optimistic, perhaps the Manchester flight is full (us on it). I am going to ring our TA tomorrow for clarification. It would be a pain for us to get to London with all our luggage, probably involving an overnight stay. We would probably want to cancel. I will report back if I get any info from the TA. 

We are on the Britannia 25th September cruise. Balance due 28 August. This was booked on 29th June, although TA has asked for it a couple of weeks earlier. Don’t mind this but will try to assess the current situation before I pay it. 

Zapp, I wasn’t sure whether the £175 was each, each way.

Hi Kevboy,

 We last cruised with P & 0 in the Caribbean In Feb 2020.;

Things may have changed since then but I think we paid £35 pp each way to select seats. They were available to book 14 weeks before the cruise. To upgrade it was, I think £175 return for each of us. We didn’t opt for that, however, but I believe they were sold out pretty quickly.

I hope this helps.

I can’t get my head round the briefing tonight. Surely a lot can happen in two weeks. If people get there hopes up as a result of what Boris says, only to have them dashed a week later, will be another blow to our mental health. 

I totally agree with you Pete. In normal times we cruise twice a year and have one land based holiday abroad. If we sailed with the more expensive lines that would have to change and we are not ready to do that just yet.

Snow Hill, I spent quite a bit of time this evening giving my garden a good drink after several days of hot weather. Having spent quite a lot on bedding plants, I had no option. An hour later the heavens opened and we got quite a drenching. I feel a bit guilty now but my garden keeps me sane in this crazy time.

There appears to be a lot of negativity about cruising with P & O on this thread. Having only cruised with them and Princess, I can’t really make comparisons. All I can say is that after having 4 cruises cancelled, I can’t wait to sail on Britannia on 25 September (fingers crossed). 

Fourth cruise cancelled for us, Azura to Eastern Med 9th September. Disappointed but really I was expecting it. Our next cruise is 4th of December to the Caribbean. Hopeful that this will go ahead. I will transfer to next September on a similar itinerary. 

Sorry, should read Shepherds Pie recipe,

2 hours ago, wowzz said:

I add a couple of big "dollops" ( cordon bleu description) of Branston Pickle  to our cottage pie whilst cooking it in the slow cooker

Wowzz, Gordon Ramsey must have copied your idea when he devised his Shepherd’s Recipe. I hope you got the royalties. It’s my favourite version.

Three years ago my daughter adopted a Romanian rescue dog. She was two years old and had spent her life on the streets. She is really lovely but still has issues from her former life. She doesn’t like men in dark clothing (we think that’s from being abused). She rarely drinks water out of a bowl but makes a beeline for any puddles when out for a walk. Perhaps the worst is she has a problem with one of her back legs where it has at some point  been damaged, possibly from being kicked. As Jen is a vet nurse she has lots of contacts, although it’s still expensive, she is getting lots of care. For some reason she loves me and I go walking with her a lot with my autistic grandson. We are fortunate to live on a lovely small estate, many know Leo, who always asks people ‘what’s your name please?’ and lots know Polly’s history.The walks sometimes take a long time if lots of people are about!

My daughter is a Vet nurse. She went to Uni and got a 2.1 degree, went to work for Waterstones but hated it. Retrained and qualified 15 years ago. She has just changed jobs and is now earning 10% more than minimum wage for the first time.  I have always had a cat but after a huge vet bill for my last one and the insurance company arguing over paying most of it, I decided not to take up insurance for my new cat. I opened a Post Office savings account for her, have a standing order for £50 a month and it has now nearly £2k in and I don’t have to worry about her bills. 

I love the formal nights. I have 10 in the wardrobe starting at size 14 from our first cruises in the early 2000s and down to size 10 now. I am only 5ft 1 so all have had to be shortened (one at quite at a cost though but worth it). Can’t wait to wear them again but will probably have to wait until our Caribbean cruise in December as I think our September Eastern Med cruise is unlikely to go ahead.

We were on the last Britannia Caribbean cruise in March 2020. The two wine packages were still available then. For the first time we had the drinks  package because we had quite a lot of OBC and loyalty discount. It worked out great for us. We previously tried both wine packages and enjoyed them. We can’t know what the situation is now but we are hopefully back on Britannia in December, hopefully nearer the time they will advertise the packages available. 

I received an email from P & O this morning setting out all the insurance requirements for our September cruise (if it goes ahead). Nothing they haven’t said before. Unlike MSC, if you don’t have the correct insurance, you won’t be allowed to board the ship.

We should have been on her in February but transferred to next February. Great to have it to look forward to. 

Andy, so pleased to see you back on here. You have been greatly missed.

Just watched the naming ceremony. Mixed feelings really. What they showed of the inside looked lovely, would have liked to have seen more. Paul Ludlow was OK, not very inspirational though. Gary Barlow’s first song was OK, then he sang Rule the World, which was great. Obviously done in a studio a long way from Southampton. Overall, it made me feel that we all have something to look forward too and I can’t wait. 

Just re-read the email it is about 2022. It will teach me to pay more attention. I got so excited too!

Just had an email from P & O advertising cruises from Southampton from 1 September. Fjords, Canaries and Med are listed. This makes me a little more hopeful for our Eastern Med cruise on 9 September. 

I received an invitation yesterday which I accepted. Let’s face it it’s the nearest thing to cruising we have had this year - Atlantic tier. If we had not had three cruises cancelled we would have moved up to the next level.