lancashire_cruisers

Quite simply yes. We started cruising with P&O in 2002 and back then there wasn’t the choice of alternative venues that we have now. I’m a pescatarian and a fussy one at that and P&O have served me very well with my restricted diet - much more so than some of the other cruise lines I’ve sailed with.

I know my late Mum would have as she was a very plain eater and she wasn’t alone in that respect. I read some posts on this board and wonder why the heck some people put themselves through the horror (in their minds) of a P&O Cruise 😂😂😂

If that was the full menu I’d agree but it’s only a small selection of it as per the original post. Having done a long cruise in the past we got to the point where we craved ‘normal’ food so whilst it wouldn’t appeal to me as a pescatarian my husband would have maybe appreciated it. I had a quick mooch through other boards and there are complaints about the standard of food on most of them, including Celebrity and Cunard which goes to show how subjective the perceived quality of food is.

It looks like you had a fabulous day in my home city. Congratulations on your wedding anniversary 🎉🎉

Good morning everyone after reading Josy’s post what I was going to write seems so trivial. I can’t even begin to imagine how you and the family are feeling but I send you all of my love and thoughts ❤️❤️

Me too! Especially as my handbag brand of choice isn’t available onboard.

Today I’m back to physio for my next set of exercises/torture 😂. I’m pleased with my recovery so far but being off work is costing me a fortune - we booked another cruise yesterday adding to another one we booked a fortnight ago! A miserable day here but at least the garden is getting watered.

Thanks. I’m not at all worried I’ve cruised enough to know that all new ships are always ripped apart on here. I remember well enough the outrage and pearl clutching when Ventura and Azura were launched 😂😂

I’d agree with that. To me fine dining means Michelin star standard which you’d be hard pressed to find on any mass market cruise line, which is what P&O, Celebrity, Cunard etc. are. I’d describe huge lamb chops as good quality Gastropub type catering and there’s nothing wrong with that. To the OP I would say go with an open mind and judge for yourself, which is what I’m intending to do on my next couple of cruises on Iona which has been getting an absolute pasting on here recently.

I’ve also booked my COVID and flu jabs as I’m in the clinically vulnerable group as well as working for the NHS. There was talk of the COVID jabs being available to buy this year but as I’m not in work at the moment due to my surgery I’m not sure if this is still going ahead.

That’s good to know! Mine is as a result of severe RA from the age of 21 so not as dramatic as yours 😂. I haven’t had any pain since day 2 or 3 post-op luckily but the exercises are ramping up so who knows in the future 😳

We’re mid-50s and did our first cruise when we were 34! 😂

We’ll see, maybe in the future when we feel we’re the right age profile. In the meantime we have other potential cruises we’re planning to do including Cunard and a world cruise in a few years’ time when we take early retirement.

Good morning! I’m now nearly 8 weeks post-op following a total reverse shoulder replacement and my physio rumbles on at a pace. I’m not back to driving yet but I hope to be soon, especially as we have a cruise booked for just under 2 months’ time which I’m starting to feel quite excited about. Have a great day everyone! 🙂

I still feel a bit too young for a Saga cruise but I’ve found this thread quite interesting to see what you get for the extra money you pay. I can completely understand why some would love it but purely based on the dining arrangements as described it wouldn’t be for us. However, I can’t see anything in the thread that warrants closing it down and it would be a shame if @Dermotsgirl’s hard work disappeared into the ether. If you don’t like something just scroll on by people!

That’s a shame. As others have said the only judgemental one is not a Brit.

I don’t see any issue with what the OP posted. However it is lovely to see so many non-Brits on a P&O thread, I do hope you’ll take the opportunity to experience life on board one of the ships so you’re able to participate in the discussion from a perspective of experience 🙂

Spoke to my TA this morning and itineraries are being released on Tuesday.

In Barbados we went to the Boatyard beach club, Tortola Cane Garden Beach is gorgeous but can get a bit busy later on, St Maarten you can watch the big jets land over on the Dutch side of the island and do some shopping, in St Kitts we shared a taxi with some other passengers to a local beach. I’m probably in the minority but I really don’t like St Lucia and not had a great experience when we’ve been there. The last time we were there we went to Rodney Bay beach and there was a strong current that day with an elderly couple from the ship getting into trouble in the sea and had to be saved by my husband and other passengers from the ship. However, banana ketchup that you can only seem to get there is delicious.

I know it isn’t as my husband has an irrational fear of flying but in this specific case we’re not talking about the whole ship being disembarked are we??

I don’t think people need to panic about being forced off the ship if they can’t or won’t fly. I’m pretty sure that if you were in the affected group and you can’t fly then P&O would look for volunteers to fill the quota. You would probably need to move cabin for muster reasons though.

Just seen a video of the moment one of the lines broke free and it was lucky no-one was there as they’d have been killed. Hopefully everyone on board is ok and it doesn’t take too long for those waiting to reboard,

You’ve just described my Mum to a tee. However, in her case she refused any help even when she was dying which made her last days very traumatic for us. In fact had she not collapsed in the street and a neighbour called an ambulance I would never known she was so poorly. Getting a phone call from a paramedic late on a Friday evening was just the start of her refusing to go to hospital for 3 days despite several ambulances and GP visits. All I wanted for her was a comfortable passing which she would only get in hospital as she had a ruptured duodenum, sepsis, and aspirated pneumonia. I’m all for being independent but not to the extent my Mum was in her final days and the impact that left with her family in the aftermath of her passing.

Thank you @SummmerInKefalonia for posting these itineraries. We’re really interested in the QA central med cruise which will be our first on Cunard.

As both a parent and NHS staff with 20 years service (and I do see it very much as serving the public) this is the first time I’ve ever been ashamed to work in the NHS. As a service we have let the families down in the worst imaginable way and things have to change in the most radical way. There can no longer be a culture of personal/organisational reputation above doing what’s right.