Muckyduckway

So Ziggy, did you just drink the wine you brought onboard at embarkation in your room? We're thinking of bringing a nice bottle from Trieste for a birthday meal - the options on the Premium plan are pretty dismal and we're not that fussy generally, but for a celebration...

We're flying into Trieste Airport, there's a train stop at the Airport. Flix aren't available for that route and date, but thanks for the tip.

Gorgeous weather. Let us know what you thought of the wine? And thanks for the laugh, I had Mr Bean-esque imagery of you waving the bottle all over the place 🙂

Not what I wanted to hear, but honestly not surprised. I'd be happy to pay more for a reserved seat but they're not available. Thanks for the info.

How busy would you say the train was to Trieste? We will be flying to Trieste Airport and taking the train from there. Just a little concerned about finding seats and space for luggage, since most cruise passengers will have joined the train in Venice.

Looks like you got perfect weather for Kotor- it's such a beautiful sail-in and away.

How was the Caesar? Meant to try this on last cruise but somehow didn't get round to it. Glad to see there were shuttle buses, it seems that NCL has either been ousted from the city centre cruise terminal or have opted for a cheaper spot. In any case, I know we're not the only folk who chose our Trieste hotel based on its proximity to the terminal! 're drinks, I enjoyed the sustainable cocktails on the Jade, if the Gem is also doing these I'd recommend - they're generally less sweet than some of the regular cocktails. If you don't have an aversion to bourbon cocktails I'd highly recommend the BlackBerry Bourbon Smash (Maltings). They tend to run out of blackberries so don't dally if you're interested.

Oh no, how late were you? Not the way one wants to start a holiday, hope that's all of the hiccups out of the way and all goes well from now on.

Curious as to the location of your upgraded balcony? We were upgraded on the Jade in May and assigned a cabin almost all the way forward. We were happy with it but wondering if it's a given.

Looking forward to this- we're doing the same cruise in October. Didn't know about the corkage policy change, so thanks already.

@dunnster1965 On the TV somewhere there's a complete week's showings, but comparing what you've posted so far with what was on last week, it looks like anything we post won't be of much use to Shakeyburns. We intended to use the cinema but just didn't have time 🙂

Thank you, I hope so too.

Cloth and medical masks offer little protection to the wearer but FFP2 masks offer two way protection. Thank you for your well-wishes, I too hope for a good outcome.

We were on the first Iona cruise to sail without a LFT requirement. We got off the ship on Saturday. Symptoms appeared on Sunday and we both tested positive. We were among a handful of people who continued to mask while moving around the ship indoors, and we used FFP2 masks. We took the usual precautions that kept us covid-free until now. If we got it, there must be hundreds maybe many hundreds more. There were certainly a lot people with symptoms. They will simply not be recorded in P&O's experiment. For background, this was our fourth cruise since October 2021, the others were with NCL who did require preboard tests and masking indoors. This is the first time we have had Covid.

Actually, I should have updated my findings but completely forgot. At the time of writing I checked a register, can't remember the name, which did not show anything for the Star regarding the necessary Polar Code certificates. BUT sometime later I was checking something else and noticed at that time that the "relevant" certification for the Star was listed. Hope you have a fabulous cruise in Greenland/Iceland, wish I was going too. We held fire until we were sure of the certification and in the hope the prices would drop! So going to Norway instead. 🙂

Good to know, thanks.

Thanks all, good to know you get some choice.

Are the designated places near the gangway? Do they announce the groups ship-wide as disembarkation times cycle round? J's knees do not appreciate unnecessary journeys! Is there any way to guesstimate what time a newbie on deck 9 might be called?

We have liked Carluccio's elsewhere, but the ratings for the Southampton place seemed low (didn't read the comments so maybe the ratings are not a true reflection). Nothing wrong with a Premier Inn breakfast either, but we fancied a bit of a treat. I wonder how many months, maybe years, we"ll be justifying treats because, you know, pandemic and all that! 🙂

We're staying the night before embarkation in the Premier Inn West Quay. As we've been given a late embarkation time we're thinking of treating ourselves to a good breakfast. The best looking place in the area appears to be Bill's which has good ratings and a varied menu. It will do, but does anyone have a better suggestion? One of the best breakfasts we've had in England was Albert's Schloss in Manchester (still drool at the memory of their cruffins!) Is there anywhere in central Southampton like that?

As it's our first time on P&O I've been doing a lot of research but information about disembarkation is either vague or inconsistent (probably because of pre-covid/covid etc). Could someone who has recently disembarked (Iona preferably, but any of the biggest PandO ships) outline the process. I've read all sorts including having to wait in a designated area and exiting as a group. Including folk who tramped halfway across the ship to their "spot" and then tramped the whole way back again to the gangway! Our usual plan is to pick the latest possible time slot, then hang out having a leisurely breakfast until the elevator queues subside. We never have any trouble finding our luggage as by that time there are usually only a dozen or so left.

Would you say the table spacing is the same at all of them? Not a big fan of two person tables positioned so close you might as well just share a table 🙂 Although to be fair it has resulted in some good chats! Also, same dress code for all?

@molecrochip Interesting observations, thank you. Never thought of sunsets, and I do like a bench seat (as long as they aren't the type where you have to clamp your feet to the floor or risk sliding under the table!!!)

I buried this question on another thread so thought I might get some responses if I posted it separately. I've had a look at the four MDRs so know what they look like and am aware they all serve the same menu. Apart from the views and availability, is there anything that would make you choose one for dinner over the others? I could just go and try them out, but on a seven day cruise there's just not enough time to waste! TIA

In that case I'm all set, thanks @davecttr