sandancer

Also remember that you have to wait 15 mins between drinks so you can’t get a 175ml glass and then order another right away.

Thanks a lot. If departure is 18.00 then all onboard should be 17.30. The earliest time for tea is 3pm giving us 2.5 hours which I’m sure is fine. I’ve checked the times for the ships tour and it leaves at 1.30 for a 2.5 hour tour. This includes a sightseeing tour before arrival at Reid’s. It’s a bucket list event for me so fingers crossed we make it.

I am trying to find out what time Iona sails from Funchal on March 12th but none of the Funchal port sites actually show the departure time. We are going to Reid’s for afternoon tea and don’t want to rush it. I would be very grateful if you could help. Thanks

Did you make it to Reid’s Tiger and were you on Iona? We are booked for tea at 3pm and as P&O don’t publish a departure time, only “evening” I want to make sure we don’t have to rush, especially as we need a taxi that will take a wheelchair.

We have booked afternoon tea at Reid’s independently rather than take a ships tour. We plan to take a taxi from the port. Anyone know how easy this would be with a wheelchair.

(I). We travel by coach and we just go straight to the assistance team regardless of our booked arrival time. (I). We travel as a couple and we are kept together. I would think the party will stay together but can’t confirm that for sure. As MIL has an adapted cabin I assume know P&O know they are travelling with a mobility scooter. On our last cruise one lady was refused boarding as she had not let them know in advance. They are becoming very strict about this.

First of all, have they completed an accessibility form? This is essential as the guest will not be allowed to board if not. There is a dedicated area where they have a list of everyone arriving who needs assistance. They allocate a “helper” to escort you onboard. This person then takes you the check in and then security. Once onboard they go with you to your emergency muster station. We only have a manual wheelchair so can’t comment on what happens with a mobility scooter but it can’t be much different. Can’t praise them enough for the service they provide.

Great. Thanks

The problem for us is that a standard cabin is a tight fit with 2 pieces of kit. It’s just manageable in a de luxe cabin although obviously not as comfortable as an accessible cabin. Like yourselves booking last minute is not now an option.

To be fair this cruise was moved from another cruise some time ago and at the time of booking we didn’t need an accessible cabin. Unfortunately since then circumstances have changed hence our being waitlisted.

The online accessibility form ask you to provide the dimensions of your wheelchair to make sure it will go through the door. We found a standard balcony to be not really suitable for us as my hubbie has both a folding wheelchair and a Rollator which also folds. Our next cabin is a de luxe balcony - we can’t get an accessible cabin even though we have been waitlisted for months. We are beginning to realise that we have to book far in advance to get an adapted cabin. Do fill in the form, it’s easy and you won’t have to worry about being refused boarding. As others have said this is definitely happening now.

Does anyone know if the menu in the Beach House on Iona has changed. I’ve just booked 2 nights and on checking the menu I can’t see the hot stone steak. I’m hoping I’ve got it totally wrong. It was probably the most popular dish on the menu so I can’t believe it’s gone.

The Holiday Inn which is very close to the docks offer day rooms. We did this once when we had an evening flight from Southampton airport and it was great. Cost around £50 but worth it to store bags, rest, shower and watch a bit of tv instead of sitting in the airport all day waiting to check in. Different circumstances I know but an option for the OP.

We fly several times a year from Newcastle to Southampton to visit family and to cruise. Train station is right there at the airport to get to Southampton Central.

We have used a US travel agent for several years. Booked Celebrity, Royal, Holland America with no problem. Have also cancelled and had full deposit refunded - we always book a refundable fare even if it’s a slightly higher cost. Have also benefited from price drops several times. We did not book online, we used an agent recommended by friends who live in Florida. These days we only sail out of UK ports as flying is just too much hard work with mobility problems or we would still be using our US agent. She was great, immediate response, the best customer service we’ve had from any travel agent. Hope you find one as good.

That’s great. Just bought the essential package for our Iona cruise. With the valentine savings and our loyalty discount it was worth taking.

I agree with Clodia, the de luxe package is well worth the extra few £s. We probably didn’t get the full value of it but that’s just us. We did enjoy ordering a glass of wine costing £16.50. We have a shed load of obc on our next cruise so no package for us this time. We have however booked the Premium package on our next Princess cruise. No comparison to P&O.

On Iona recently they had 2 queues, 1 for walk ins and 1 for virtual queuers. The walk in queue was inevitably longer and lots of buzzers being handed out. I think a lot depends on how big the party is and what time you want to eat. We like a table for 2 but if you are happy to share you usually don’t wait too long.

New bookings can get 20% off the classic drinks package at the moment.

Thanks Mark. Our TA has checked and there are no CS available on either deck so I think it would be futile to bid. If any become available I’m sure the highest bidder will get it and that won’t be us. We’ll stick with our aft de luxe balcony I think.

Didn’t realise that Graham. I thought it was only on deck 8 where there was no view or privacy.

Wouldn’t touch the ones on deck 8. However, had a peek at one on deck 9 and they look great. Plus the perk of breakfast in the Epicurean is very attractive.

I don’t blame you for being annoyed. There is no comparison between La Rochelle and Le Havre. This happened to us once on a TA, they cancelled Bermuda and replaced it with Le Havre. They immediately started pushing tours to Paris, many of our US fellow cruisers fell for it and were delighted to go to Paris. They weren’t so delighted after spending hours on a bus and about 2 hours actually in Paris.

Thinking of making a minimum bid for a conservatory suite on Iona. On the bid page it gives 2 options - promenade deck suites and then another line conservatory suites. Not interested in deck 8 and I’m not sure that we would be guaranteed a deck 9 suite if the bid was successful. Anyone done this or know if they would just allocate any available CS. We spend a lot of time in the cabin and the extra space would be great.

I rang on the reservation number firstly but hung up after 10 mins. This was around 9.30am on Monday. I then rang the 0800 number and waited maybe another 10 mins. The agent who answered was very helpful. You don’t get an email confirmation as it could be a surprise gift. Good luck.