posford

Which site Bazrat

I don’t think that I need to explain myself, but I will anyway. i am a very keen collector and drinker of high quality craft gins. we lead a very busy life, albeit being retired, with community commitment work, 3 small grandchildren and a large garden. Our two great thrills on a cruise are exploring ports and sitting on the balcony. We sit and read, play cards, watch the sea and enjoy a craft gin and tonic. We don’t do quizzes, we don’t drink heavily in bars and don’t do night clubs. We go to the evening shows, daytime talks but our greatest love is the balcony. So will the new policy affect us, too true it will. Try getting a really decent gin from room service, try getting one from the bar. The choice is very poor. I have 4 P&O cruises booked this year making 50 in all. i won’t be booking anymore. In fact I might cancel the last 3 as I have only paid the deposit at the moment. i have to go on the first as it is next weekend. This was the main reason we use P&O. So to all who think it is a small change, it definitely is not to us. IT IS HUGE.

Moley-If you sail next weekend, the change in policy is very last minute. Fairer to change policy for those paying for cruises - say 12 weeks.

Makes me wonder how they will police this change. So will the Southampton security people, I believe will not. Will the ship have their own scanners? Don’t think so. Good luck with getting 5000+ passengers on board scanning them all on the new ships. P&O, please don’t cheese off even more passengers, you have put off enough already.

Selbourne, I have posted before how I am a huge fan of your posts. I really don’t know what to read now, whilst eating breakfast! It has kept me enthralled for all 65 days. Thank you and well done to you both.

Port stop in Ibiza in August. I can’t seem to find much info on the port. Does P&O provide a shuttle into the town centre? Are there bars and cafes near the port? Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.

JakTar I will add you to my list of must reads. what an excellent log. Thanks for the entertainment. I loved it.

Keep at it Selbourne. If you don’t give up you will get there in the end. I can’t tell you how many fights I’ve had to put things right. I did once demand to speak to the Captain. Things happened quickly after that. Dont give up.

Trifle Wally Ladd Oceana 2011

Until a few years ago, P&O used to do 8 ports in a 2 week Med cruise, now it’s 7 and next year on Arvia it’s 6. Most all cruisers love the cruise ports, mixed with a few sea days. Not sea days with a few port days. please tell me if I’m wrong.

Well Selbourne, it’s taken me 8 days to post on this thread. As I’ve said before, I’m one of your biggest fans/followers. It is only 8 days into your tour but my wife and I are totally addicted. if this goes on for 65 days I don’t know what I’ll do when you finish. We really feel we are on there with you. Keep it up, Selbourne, you are helping us through the cold winter days. Well done and thank you.

It’s a disgrace really. P&O can get back from Vigo in one day but it takes two days to get there. P&O need to do more port stops and less faffing around on the high seas not paying port fees.

Kindle is only an app. you can upload kindle books on any device as long as you have the app.

Where next?

Anyone know the next port? Or is it a mystery tour?

Does anyone know the new revised itinerary?

Must just come back on the subject of disembarkation. Last 3 cruises on Iona, Sept, Oct and Dec this year. Passengers taking their own luggage off just after 6.00, all others off just after 7.00. So very smooth. We don’t normally attend guest lectures but on the last cruise was a guy that was in charge of the Crown Jewels at the Tower of London. Three very informative and interesting lectures. Venue packed out for all three.

Hi All, just to close this topic off. A few observations. P&O may not be who they were, but who is. If you really think deeply about it, they/we are extremely lucky that they did not go under because of Covid. I book a cruise. Drive down to Southampton, book my car in to CPS, which comes with the cruise cost, board immediately( lucky to be Baltic tier), hospitality lunch with unlimited drinks, go to immaculate cabin. Lots of onboard spend which we never had pre Covid. Oh yes, can take your drinks onboard for cabin drinking - try that with some other companies. Dining in MDR. Breakfasts are fantastic. Can’t manage lunches as well. Evening meals need some attention, but I addressed that in a previous mail. Olive grove on Iona is exceptional. Shows, especially on Iona, are better than we have ever seen. Organisation including embarkation and disembarkation is second to none. staff continue to be wonderful. So summing up, apart from the evening meals in MDR, what has changed for the worst? The cost of the overall product is, I believe, still very competitive. In the last few months we have rediscovered our love of cruising. Just my honest opinion.

Hi, Temperature in the dining rooms warm. No need for jackets etc. By the way, numerous female waiters on Iona, including female hosts on front desk of all restaurants. Very pleasant intelligent ladies. A pleasure to be greeted by them.

Just back from my third Iona cruise in 3 months. My fifth P&O cruise in 5 months. I do not wish to write a review as I could not match the quality of Selbourne or TigerB. I do though wish to share a few thoughts on my experiences. Iona rides the sea’s magnificently. Force 9 or 10 winds, 10 metre waves, no problems, just a mild sway. The staff, especially the waiters LOVE working on Iona and actually ask to come back on next contract. That is good because they are the best we have had on our 20 years of cruising. I could name so many instances, but just one. A waiter, who was not our waiter, noticed my wife had lost her voice, so he went and got a plate of honey and lemons for her to take back to our cabin. He checked for the next couple of days to see if it had done the trick. Fantastic. The organisation including embarking, disembarking, ports is first class. Much better than all the other P&O ships. One for Lady Selbourne, no problems at all with lifts, especially front and back. The etiquette was exemplary. Wheelchairs and pushchairs were always were given priority. Please give it another try outside of school holidays. The food was good but was let down by the menus, which is company wide. PLEASE P&O SET UP A PASSENGER PANEL TO ASCERTAIN WHAT PASSENGERS WANT. The dining app works a treat because most use it. The food in the Olive Grove is fantastic, why it is included baffles me. The shows are good, enhanced by the quality high tech. The Christmas decorations were fantastic as well. Last thoughts. Cabin steward gave us 4 packs of biscuits per day. Ice when he did the cabin, usually when we were at breakfast. If I told the waiter I liked something he always asked if I would like two. For instance, if I asked for a steak, he said “ would you like 2”. Nothing was too much trouble. Yes, I know P&O is not what it was but it will do for me. Especially as I booked the same cruise for next year and got £830 OBC No, I don’t know why!! Selbourne - please give it another try.

Thanks TigerB

Hi All Does anyone know where P&O are dropping off the shuttle bus these days. It used to be next to the old river bed ( Park) in the middle of Valencia but I have read that it maybe the new part of town now. Any advice would be helpful. Thanks.

Don’t forget, the last 6 numbers on the boarding pass is your “my holiday” login code,

CPS start booking in cars at 11.00. We are Baltic tier and the last 3 cruises (Iona, Ventura and Aurora) we have arrived at 11.00, booked car in, booked in and have been on the ship about 11.30ish. Last month on Aurora we were called to go through and Caribbean tier followed us through. P&O have really improved the embarkation process since Covid. Very slick process now.

No, the green bean era is not over. P&O must buy enough green beans to feed the Nation. Food was good though, apart from the green bean abundance. Off on Iona this Saturday. I hope our experience will be as good as Selbournes. We did this similar cruise last September and the main gripe was lack of staff everywhere. Everything else was good.