BouncingWheel

How close is Iona to sailing at full capacity now? I see a number of people who were worried about the bigger ships being won over by Iona by the greater choice etc... but were these representative of a true cruise under normal numbers as that is probably the biggest worry for many of us deliberating about moving up to a bigger ship. I think we would all like to have the best dining and entertainment options etc... but the bigger the ships the more likelihood of bottlenecks in popular places. I haven't sailed on Iona yet - will give it a try because you only know yourself once you have tried for yourself - but I did a sailcation on Britannia (half full) and it was lovely but then again on Britannia in April when it was about 80-85% full (with some Covid restrictions for no sitting at bars etc..) and people were getting very annoyed at not being able to access the Vista lounge due to no room and other areas showed congestion. This is my biggest concern and I am worried with Iona that we have not had "real" (I apologise for the bad choice of that word but have struggled for a better one) reviews yet as it has never sailed under full capacity and normal post-covid conditions.

The background information provided by @molecrochip was indeed useful. I also have shares but bought fairly low (but above what they are now) and based on the old adage "buy only what you you can afford to lose". However, I also agree with @Selbourne regarding assets in that surely they are only worth what others are prepared to pay and there does not seem to be buyers for 2nd hand cruise ships at present though at least the scrapping of them seems to have more or less stopped. I am guessing their value on the balance sheet is far higher than scrap value.

Maybe some of the shows have been duplicated on some of the ships but certain ships (e.g. Britannia upwards) have technical specification that is not on the older ships so could not be performed (not sure the exact wording as my daughter in the industry explained it to me). Therefore I can imagine some basic shows being available/shown on all ships and some other shows being seen on Britannia & Iona but to say all the shows are always the same on all ships is probably a bit extreme. I am a lover of the smaller ships but the shows that I have seen in the bigger ships have been better in my opinion.

Website says (and has for some time) that the flexible transfer policy is for 2022 departing cruises. People on here have had success going from higher price to lower price cruise for 2023 so it does seem to be down to pot luck who you get on the phone.

Yes those are the official 2023 rules as the flexible transfer is only officially 2022. However, lots of people seem to have moved 2023 cruises successfully so it seems to be down to which TA/P&O person you speak to. If you want to switch it then I would try again and hope you speak to someone different.

I see where you are coming from but do hope that you are wrong. Only time will tell. I just hope that sometime over the summer we find out one way or the other for this and the other few remaining "COVID changes" that are still in place.

Ventura is my preference for the niece's 1st group based on lots of feedback. It is not a ship I have been on but has good reviews for families. As mentioned I was on Britannia in April and the kids club were grouped by age into "Cohorts". This separated some families and the disgruntled parents I came across were the ones that had their kids in sessions at different times meaning they always had at least 1 child with them so no down time to themselves. They understood the kids would be in different groups due to their ages but couldn't understand why they couldn't have sessions at the same time even if in different groups. It seem to be a first come first serve situation.

I would also say that I am paying special interest to the activities for children as I am trying to book a cruise with my niece and her 3 year old for later this year. It will be their first cruise so am waiting for night nursery etc.. to return.

They do need to get their act together! I know the emails have been going out to some as they have been posted on here in other threads but I was on a Britannia cruise end of April and although I had no kids there were some disgruntled parents then that had not been made aware of the reduced children facilities. As for emails booking a restaurant that isn't open that is now just gonna lead to post replies that will top that one🤣

My understanding is that it is only sent to those that have children and not to all passengers. Planned cruise of 2024 means current state of play should not really be a factor anyway. I'm sure that you will find lots of options for your family to choose from.

When are you planning to go? At present the Kids clubs are not operating normally - it seems to be one of the last things to be returning. Other posts have indicated that it will not be back by July and P&O have sent out emails to those on these cruises informing them of that. If you are planning on a last minute cruise be aware of that although and although there are still items for children they are reduced. If it is in the future then I am sure you can book and move to a later cruise (before payment date) if normal operations have not returned if that is what you are after.

it might seem that some do not do this but some in fact do it so quickly that you do not even notice or you only notice it when it goes wrong. I believe timings also have a lot to do with this. Some are presented and dropped quickly but if weekend, bank holidays or later in the day then some of the ones that usually disappear will hang around longer than normal.

They may look dangerous but they are skilled "drivers". My family have done it and if there had been loads of accidents then I'm sure you would know about it. However, our experience is that you cannot ride all the way down. It takes you about halfway where there are taxis waiting to rip you off to get you back to the bottom.

Thank you so much for the wonderful reporting. You are really making the cruise come alive and giving those of us planning a Fjords trip such important first hand insights. This Geiranger waterfall sounds fantastic and a must do - was it far from where your Rib docked in the Geiranger port?

I hoped they would have stopped doing this by the summer. This was the case on Britannia as well in April and I met a couple of unhappy parents with multiple kids of different ages as the times were not in sync and therefore always had at least 1 child in tow with them at all times. Back then the night nursery was not available and I guess that may be the same in July. I also felt that it makes the ship more crowded as more children are around the ship because of the reduced kids club. A positive I heard was that the Live Lounge became a kids club with entertainment for all ages combined (Magicians etc...) up until the late night entertainment - there is a recent cruise blog on here somewhere that gives some more detail. This may be usual though on Britannia when lots of families are onboard. Managed expectations are the key so as long as parents are prepared for having their children with them more than a usual cruise they can be prepared and maybe pack a few extra things to help them be more entertained.

we just had 2 cans sat on their own on Britannia last month

Us too but it may be because 2 in a cabin so 1 per person.

To summarise, it appears that the 2022 Iona Fjords seasons is a much poorer Fjords cruise season than P&O had planned and on top of that, they have already committed to 2 more Iona Fjords seasons that will also have to have weaker itineraries. This surely make the cruises harder to sell so more competitive pricing will be needed to entice people onboard. I also guess that some will be using the flexible transfer option to change to another cruise and then try the Fjords on a different ship and/or line. In some businesses heads would roll for this.

I'm sure P&O wouldn't care if the money was right.

Rags baby hurrah - the kind you buy in a 2nd hand store

That was almost the same when we were on Britannia in April. The only difference was you were not meant to dance in the Live Lounge when the acts were on though Pulse did encourage it one night (by accident I believe). Is the Live Lounge now completely accepting dancing?

That would be our thoughts too but it could be that Ambassador picks her up and as long they keep the purple to the outside and not the inside then I would move across. My wife loves purple so would probably accept the inside too but you have to draw the line somewhere🤣 Aurora begins with A so they could keep the name too if allowed as that seems to be their pattern so far.

It just seems to be one thing after another with Iona, since launch, with trying to get into ports. Hopefully her luck will change but obviously not with Geiranger unless they change the Seawalk/port. Though for those people that put ship before itinerary it is not as much of a big deal. I guess Arvia will have the same issues if built the same.

and Bristol too.

Thanks. Very organized. I like your style!