MellyMoo1989

Do all the necessary muster bits and bobs, go get some food and maybe duck into a bar and have a cheeky “yay we made it!” cocktail then back to the cabin to unpack, have a shower and get ready for dinner. 
 

Luckily when we go on Britannia our first “full day” is a sea day so plenty of time to explore 🙂 

22 hours ago, Pink15 said:

This is one of my bug bears as a solo traveller, I have to pick out certain people in my own group (e.g. Guy in bright green top) so if I turn to take a photo and the group moves on I can catch up with them! It's probably an environmental thing rather than cost cutting but it's surprisingly easy for the group to stretch out at times.

I did this on my recent Marella cruise excursions despite having a sticker as well. (Especially in Trieste as both Explorer1&2 were docked) It settles any panic I may have that I’ll get separated from the group or that I’ve got the wrong ‘meeting point’ etc. and I will be doing it with P&O too! 🙂

Regarding the ability to (at the moment) order a bottle of spirits via room service, My friend and I will be sharing a cabin but enjoy different spirits. Could we for example order a bottle of Pink gin and a bottle of Jack Daniels or is there a rule of only one litre of spirit per cabin for the duration? 
 

TIA 🙂 

Evening all! I know I’m getting too far ahead of myself and that my cruise is quite some time away yet (I feel like a child going to Disney, to be honest!) but I was just wondering for those of you who have done British cruises and had Kirkwall as a port of call on your itinerary, was there ever an excursion to tour the Highland Park distillery? My friend who is joining me on the cruise won’t drink any other whisky and I’m sure she would love to be able to walk around it and maybe have a ‘wee dram’ or four! 
 

Thanks! ☺️ 

p.s I’m aware that the distillery is currently closed and having a refurb but this will be completed by the time we go 🙂

7 hours ago, JeanieC,Aston said:

Hi

I have sailed Thomson since 1997,,,54 cruises in all,last one 3 weeks ago,,,I can’t remember Thomson/Tui/Marella ever being anything but All Inclusive.

I also cruise P&O (Britannia in 4 weeks) and always buy the DP,,this time with the 20% discount was a no brainier.

Each to their own I say.

 

If this topic turns into a ‘the merits or not’ of drink packages I’ll pull my chair up and get the popcorn out.its a bit like the old boring dress code or smoking threads.

I sailed with Thomson in 2011 and they weren't all inclusive as standard. I had to pay for all my drinks. My parents got a free AI upgrade because we were on board at the time of their silver wedding anniversary, as I was in a different cabin and a relatively poor 20 year old with a zero-hour contract bartending job, I couldn't afford the AI upgrade 😞 yet somehow I still didn't break £100 on board spend for the week, and I bought myself two bottles of perfume too! Those were the days!

14 hours ago, david63 said:

Unless something has changed recently I would not say that P&O have generous choices on their drinks menu, certainly not compared to pre Covid.

Having not cruised with P&O before I’ll just take your word for that one but for me, personally, there seems to be a lot of decent offerings and a lot of reasonable substitutions should I drink them dry of pink gin 😂 

13 minutes ago, posford said:

My last I put on this.

 

It is all down to profit.  Nothing else.

 

If it is all down to people like me spending about £20000 per year on P&O cruises, year on year, cancelling, perhaps they will realise it was not a good change.

I don't think as many people as you seem to think will cancel their cruise just because they can't take a litre of spirits on board. People don't go on cruises just to be able to have a drink on their balcony.. Don't get me wrong I'm a bit disappointed I wont be able to take a bottle of Southern Comfort, but I can certainly do without it for two weeks, with the (IMO) generous choices on drinks menus I won't be going thirsty.

So it looks like the no spirits on board is all but official now and straight away people are advising how to get round it or announcing they’ll get spirits on board somehow.. exactly the reason for these new changes, no? A small few trying to dodge the rules and in the end ruin it for everyone else.. 

I've got in (super) quick and booked my drinks package now, before any increase comes along! It wouldn't surprise me if P&O did do away with the allowance to take spirits on board seeing as so many people think that it's ok to bend the rules to suit themselves when it comes to this, advising people to smuggle more on board etc. .. It seems P&O don't have Southern Comfort on board which is a shame for me and I was considering taking a bottle on board but never mind - at least they have Pink Gin!

1 hour ago, AndyMichelle said:

The girl DJ kept asking why nobody was dancing, but carried on playing rap type music, just didn't make sense. 

Andy 

I doubt it would get me dancing and I was born in '89 so once I'd gotten over my obsessive Boyzone phase, music became more R&b, Rap and the like.... Give me a bit of Duran Duran or Kenny Loggins any day! Let's hope said DJ's have taken that advice on board (excuse the pun) by next year otherwise I'll be playing my own playlist over my headphones and dancing to that! 😂

Glad you had a good time!

9 minutes ago, AndyMichelle said:

It sounds like it, we got the email today. 

At least I will have a gelato filled doughnut to make it more bearable🍩😂

I suppose it's a better way to make sure everyone does it, rather than relying on people to do the right thing and watch the video in the cabin. Reckon they'll let me take a pint with me? 😉

17 minutes ago, AndyMichelle said:

The 'gelato filled doughnuts' now available in the market cafe sounds like a bit of me... 

Having to do a full muster, not so much... 😂

Andy 

Back to all standing on Deck/sitting in theatre in lifejackets again? 

On 4/20/2024 at 11:59 AM, zap99 said:

I think they are waiting to announce the new Greggs.

Pink Jammie and a pint? Perfect. 😂

2 hours ago, zap99 said:

We are on Arvia in a couple of weeks. Next time I'm allowed out by myself I will buy some posh chocolate mints. I can turndown our own beds and put a choc on the pillow. I may be able to get through the first week before DW finds out it was me. Doubt I could pull off that scam with a cheese wheel.🤣

Pop a Babybel on DW's pillow every night...kill two birds with one stone that way. 😉

1 minute ago, AndyMichelle said:

You will feel a bit more movement higher up, but from our experience, not enough on Britannia to cause you major issues. 

She always feels fairly stable to us, and Michelle can suffer from motion sickness but has had no issues. 

Look at the positives, you are very close to the Crows Nest, pools and buffet.. 😊

You might just want to check out what the area directly above you is, shown in white on the deck plans, opposite Epicurean. 

Probably nothing to worry about but could be a boiler room, galley or something that creates noise. 

I'm sure our friends on here will be able to help with this. 

As it is quite a way off, you should be able to swap without too much trouble if needed, but choose carefully. 

Andy 

Thank you! 🙂 From what I can see on the deck plans, we seem to be below deck 16 toilets (next to Ivory Suite)

Hello! Back with my silly questions again!

As I may have mentioned before, I'm off on the 10th Anniversary sailing round the British Isles in June next year and will be staying on Deck 15. I've heard that the higher you are on the ship the more motion you feel with some saying "you feel every little bump, wave and breeze" so I was just wondering if anyone has had experience of staying on Deck 15 on a similar cruise and what was it like? Was it really as bad as some seem to suggest? I'm taking plenty of sea-sickness tablets with me just in case as I know the North Sea can be choppy at the best of times and my friend I am going with has never cruised before.. Is it worth breaking her in gently as it were and looking at contacting P&O to see if we can change our cabin? I did have the option to select my own cabin and stayed with the one P&O allocated (A216) but now I'm thinking I wish I had researched a little better! 🤦‍♀️😂

Thank you so much Selbourne & Lady S for taking the time out of your holiday to do the blog for us! I will miss it very much, though! I look forward to hearing your review of Cunard as well. 🙂

If they happen to be aboard the same time as you while on Cunard, I highly recommend going to see a band called The Four D's. I've been lucky enough to see them while in Blackpool a few times and they put on a blinding show. 🙂

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

Todays MDR menus (Black Tie night tonight)

 

Marco's recommendations sound wonderful - apart from the Black Truffle! - I wonder how easy it would be to get it without... and if that's not possible it's getting splatted on to the tablecloth! 😉😂

31 minutes ago, hamrag said:

 

Wow, never seen anyone drink pints of Sauv Blanc before! 🤣

I heartily reccommend it! 😂

7 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

Would you drink 4/5 lagers every day on a port intensive cruise though.

probably. One or two when back on the ship and three in the evening as an example. 

I went on a different tack with working things out, I'm going on a 14 day cruise and I'm a girl who likes her lager. If I was to have 4 or 5 lagers throughout the day/evening and a couple of glasses of wine at dinner, every day, without ever ordering anything different, by the end of those two weeks I'd be £51 under the total cost of what it would be if I went for the Classic Package**... For the sake of £51 and the additional bonus of small costa coffees, soft drinks, cocktails, spirits.. it was a no brainer.🙂

** Basing prices on pints of Birra Moretti & New Zealand Sauv Blanc.

MDR Menus looking much better today! I'd be tempted to try the Clam Chowder... but I'd be too embarrassed to leave it if I didn't like it! 😂

6 hours ago, Selbourne said:

Todays MDR menus 

 

Lovely menu tonight 🙂 Lunch one didn't look too shabby either. Definitley going to be leaving that ship at least 2 stone heavier when it's my turn, ha ha!

We were given the option on our select fare (?) I think to opt for free terminal parking with CPS at Southampton so have gone for that, never used them before but my friend who will be doing the driving seems happy to leave her keys in their care as she says, and I quote "It's one less thing for my clumsy butt to accidentally drop overboard". 😂 Good to hear other people have not had a problem with them either. 🙂

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

Day 24 - Friday 26th January 2024 - New Orleans (2nd Day)

 

Apparently there has been no crew shore leave permitted by US authorities since we entered US waters, due to the well publicised ‘jumping ship’ of a number of P&O crew members a few years back. This has been a source of frustration to them, but particularly disappointing for the new crew members for whom seeing the USA was one of their big motivations for signing up for a life on the ocean. I feel really sorry for them as they gaze ashore enviously from the top deck, but in fairness to them they are all being very professional about it. 

 

As yet another miserable day, weather wise, was forecast, we decided to limit our time ashore to the adjacent Riverside Outlet Mall. We are fed up getting drowned! We were a bit late for the MDR breakfast, due to it closing earlier on Aurora than the other ships, so we went to the buffet for breakfast for the first time. It didn’t take long to remind me why I dislike the buffet so much. I’m up and down like a blue arsed fly getting food and drinks because of the absolutely idiotic decision to ban trays. Needless to say we didn’t stay long. 

 

The adjacent Riverside Mall is supposed to be an ‘outlet’ centre, but prices didn’t seem cheap to us at all (probably because sterling is quite weak against foreign currencies these days) and then, of course, you have to factor in that they charge tax on top (whereas U.K. prices include VAT). There is a desk to claim back tax but a) you have to remember to ask for a specific form at each outlet you buy in, b) some outlets didn’t supply the forms, and c) there was a queue to get the tax back. As a combination of all of this we just browsed rather than purchased. 

 

As we hadn’t gone into Cafe du Monde in the French Quarter the previous day (which all the guide books recommend doing) we decided to end our visit with a coffee and beignet in their outlet within the centre. Here’s a top tip. The coffee and beignets that we had in Monty’s on the Square (on the corner of Jackson Square, opposite Cafe du Monde) the previous day were far superior. By a mile in fact. We both agreed that the coffee wasn’t as good in Cafe du Monde and the beignets were just plain, whereas the ones we had in Monty’s had a cinnamon filling that melted like chocolate, were a little less swamped with powdered sugar and also had ‘New Orleans Sprinkles’ on them! If you find yourself in New Orleans, go to Monty’s. The ambiance was far nicer as well. 

 

For the rest of the day we just chilled on the ship until the 5pm sail away. Whilst waiting for Aurora to pull off the berth we marvelled at the skill of the pelicans and other sea birds that could spot a fish in the brown waters of the Mississippi and nab it within a split second! I was able to take a few shots of the New Orleans skyline but, in a stroke of bad luck that just typifies the weather we have had, and continue to have, on this cruise, a huge cloud of mist engulfed the French Quarter as we cruised past. 100 yards beyond it and naturally it cleared 🙄. Transiting down the Mississippi sounds quite glamorous but the reality is somewhat different. The outlying areas of New Orleans are far from attractive. Sparse residential areas abut waste land and industrial areas. It was impossible to tell whether the area hasn’t recovered from Hurricane Katrina, is suffering from industrial decline or both. Either way, scenic it is not. Once clear of New Orleans it’s oil and gas refineries for mile after mile. As it was dark by now all we were seeing was lights. 

 

In an extremely rare informative announcement by our elusive Captain, he told us that there would be some more thunderstorms tomorrow but mid 20s temperature. So more of the same. He also said that our route to Puerto Rico would take us north of Cuba and Dominican Republic. This disappointment me for two reasons. Firstly we are on the port side, and I had anticipated that we would be passing them on our side of the ship (we may be too far from land anyway for all I know). Secondly (and could someone please correct me if I’m wrong here) but if we are north of Cuba and Dominican Republic, doesn’t that mean that we are still in the Atlantic and not the Caribbean? I had assumed that we would be in Caribbean waters in 48 hours time but now think it could still be some time away?

 

At 7pm I popped down to Carmens to listen to Polish violinist Izabella Zebrowska. She gave a good show with a wide vareity of musical styles. Her English is poor (but far better than my Polish) so the patter between tunes was a bit painful. During dinner we had a continuing view of the lights of the oil and gas refineries as we continued down the Mississippi. The theatre show was comedian William Caulfield, but as neither of us find cruise ship comedians to be funny we called it a day. Tomorrow is the first of 3 sea days en route to Puerto Rico.

Would you like a bit of pastry with your sugar there Selbourne? 😮😮