laslomas

Just reading the thread entitled 'Britannia today, any questions?' and saw this in #100:

"To let you know we had an email this morning to say only a bottle of wine or champagne is allowed to be brought on board, but no vodka, or spirits.

It seems our cruise next week on Britannia is the first to do this."

So not a 'scam'.

On 4/14/2024 at 11:33 AM, Cathygh said:

I agree wholeheartedly. I had forgotten you could watch the muster drill online before hand, and just scan your card at the Muster point.

Or maybe not.

I'm currently on the Arvia, and we had to do a Full muster. That's a good 50 minutes I won't get back. 🤨. Sadly not everyone listens to the announcements and It took a long time to get everyone to turn up and checked off, before the Captain's announcement, the chat and then a demonstration. It seems that Maritime Law demands this at regular intervals, I think it hadn't been done for several months. Just unlucky if you catch one.

3 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

You do not appear to understand the effect that having timed labels has on the way the luggage hall empties from front to back, rather than the haphazard way it empties when passengers disembark by deck. This leads to the hall emptying in progression rather than passengers swarming all over creating chaos and slowing down the queues.

In addition most cruise lines using this system do not request you attend a venue, but they make regular announcements calling for the next coloured group to disembark, and strangely this seems to reduce the crowding that is always apparent with P&O.

Totally agree. My last several cruises have been on Celebrity. The system is as you state. No need to have a gathering point to wait. The baggage is loaded into place in the baggage hall by time. In fact with this method there is no benefit to 'jump the queue' and disembark early as your luggage will not be there. Never had a problem with this. I hate being asked to congregate in a certain venue that is not big enough for the passengers, and nowhere to sit.

13 minutes ago, molecrochip said:

P&O are really hot now on who books a fully accessible cabin.

 

Whilst you may get occasional last minute upgrades/purchases, this is very uncommon.

 

Some people require specific beds or pieces of furniture for their wellbeing and accessible cabins are the only ones that fit. Doesn’t necessarily mean they can’t walk.

 

The most common scenario are people needing an electric scooter to use in ports but can slowly walk around the ship. They need the cabin purely for the scooter.

 

There is nowhere near enough cabins for actual demand and this is why you’re finding they are sold out - not because they are regularly being mis-sold.

Surely an option in this instance would be for P&O to offer storage facilities for electric scooters / wheelchairs and get them out for port days. The passengers could then book into any class of cabin and get about the ship with the help of sticks or folding walking aids if required on board. Does anything like this happen?

3 hours ago, Mike.S said:

Sadly we can read into that, no, we won't put a second ship in Southampton, we'll have more ships repeating the same intineries in the Caribbean. And as for future upgrades to M class ships, no chance.

I was looking forward to listening to the Q&A. You are right - just waffle, not answers. I ask the same question every chance I get - any more Southampton sailings?

A second ship from Southampton would be great, my preference would be an M or S Class. One ship all year round would be great too. But currently just one ship for 6 months is simply not good enough. There are many potential cruisers in UK who do not, or cannot fly to join a cruise. Canaries, North Africa etc are lovely through the winter months. If I want a cruise between mid-October and mid-April my only choice is to sail on another cruise line.

1 hour ago, tring said:

 

B428, which you said you have been allocated appears to be an inside cabin.  So presuming that is what you have booked, it is possible that the majority of inside cabins would not work with a cot in the cabin.  There is often very little room to move around cruise cabins (particularly insides) without any additions, so may well be why the only way it could be done is with twin beds and the cot between them.  That would also explain why your bed configuration changed when you requested a cot.  There are loads of U-Tube videos of cruise cabins, so you may be able to find one similar to your, so you can assess the size of them.

 

The poster stated that B428 is the Cruise number - not the cabin number. The cabin is C539.

1 hour ago, funinhounslow said:

 

As there are increasing numbers of non drinkers around I wish P&O would cater to us more, in particular stocking the AF Guinness - on my last cruise I had the choice of Koppaberg (not bad but a bit sweet), mocktails, or soda water!

 

I contacted P&O on this subject as I noticed there is only one 0% Lager available on board. I suggested they could increase the choice of beers and other alcohol free adult drinks on board. I simply do not like cola and other fizzy drinks, but love alcohol free beers. Corona make a reasonable  0% Mexican beer that could prove popular. This was their response: 

"Hi, we are unable to guarantee that we will be introducing similar beverages however we take on all guests feedback for review"

Maybe more cruisers need to pass on their thoughts to P&O for things to change. They say they review feedback.

I even suggested to them that it could help cut back on some of the anti-social behaviour I have read about in some recent reviews.

3 hours ago, Josy1953 said:

I am just watching the news and I was shocked to see the queue outside a dentist waiting to register with an NHS dentist.  I know that there are dental practices who are refusing to take new NHS patients but what I don't understand is why so many people are not already registered with a dentist.

Is it that some dentists are switching from the NHS and dumping previous regular patients?

Not sure how this morphed into - dentists, but I will add my experience of this. I had been registered with an NHS dentist for 10 years. When I last called to make my regular appointment I was told the last NHS dentist (my dentist) had left the practice so the only choice was to book with a private one. I didn't. There are none available in my area now.

On Celebrity you can use OBC before sailing. When making a purchase prior to sailing you are offered a choice of paying with OBC or credit/debit card. Hopefully it would be the same as this if P&O went that same route.

1 hour ago, Windsurfboy said:

 

The infirm , disabled , wheelchairs aren't made to stand in queue, everyone else says those that  qualified for assistance are let in. Just a red herring to justify turning up at wrong time.

 

 

 

There are many people who are not actually infirm, disabled, or in a wheelchair, that struggle to stand around for long periods. I didn't realise this until it finally hit me as I got older. I do not use a stick, or any mobility aid, but as the years go by I find many things a problem that never were a few years ago. I would not turn up early and expect to jump the queue, but I know that if I arrived on time and there was a hold up for any reason I would really struggle to be standing around more than 20 minutes, or so.  Hopefully it all goes smoothly for my next check-in.

But this situation is not always understood until it hits you. I never thought I would become 'old'. The suggestion of walking around to waste a few hours would be my worst nightmare. 

I would not qualify, nor would I ask for, or expect 'assistance' because I don't need it in most situations. So I would be in the queue outside.  

1 hour ago, david63 said:

I have said this before and I will say it again.

 

90% of the arrival time problems could be cured if P&O, like other cruise lines, allowed passengers on a first come basis to choose their own arrival times to suit their travel arrangements. Currently there is nothing factored in with the allotted arrival times for those travelling by coach which effectively means that some (or in some cases many) passengers have two arrival times one of which is unused and thus depriving others of that time.

51 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

I think they need to start embarkation sooner, the same way as do al the other cruise lines. 

If they can start sometime between 10:00 and 11:00, there is no reason at all that P&O cannot. 

That would go 99% of the way to solving the problems.  As Paul Ludlow might say.

Totally agree that offering a choice of arrival times to passengers works well. I have sailed numerous times with Celebrity and choose the time that suits me best and that I can adhere to. I have never had to queue more than a minute or two, and only once had to sit for a short time, indoors, after check in, to wait to be called onto the ship.

I think the suggestion to start embarkation earlier at 10:00 or thereabouts will just mean being 'kicked off' even earlier so not something I would be keen on. 

Just now, Snow Hill said:

I think we have moved on somewhat since the Victorian era, I quite like the “No Black Tie Black Tie Night”  look as I find ties to constraining I own very few now, I gave most of mine to a local charity shop. 😬

I agree - just think that it needs to be described correctly. After all, a dress code of Black Tie, has a meaning.

P&O should definitely rename it to something else if that photo is how they see it. 'Black Tie' is an actual dress code that has requirements. It was actually created in the Victorian era as a more relaxed evening dress not requiring a tail coat for dinner. If anyone receives an invite to an event with the dress code as 'Black Tie' it does not mean turn up as the gentleman shown in the photo above!!

I am not saying you cannot go to dinner on a P&O ship dressed like that - but just don't call it 'Black Tie'.

On 1/1/2024 at 1:57 PM, holidaylover10 said:

Thank you for the replies. I think I am at the point of booking. Have read a few negative reviews but that seems to be quite common with all cruise lines these days. Friends have said I won't like P&O after sailing Celebrity for many years but I am open to trying new lines. We have booked  Cunard's Queen Anne for summer 2025.

I have been following this thread with interest - although it has drifted a bit from the original question. After 25+ years of cruising and approximately 80% of them on board Celebrity ships, I have booked my first P&O cruise. Some of the reviews have been a bit worrying but I am determined to enjoy my time on Arvia. I know it will be different. One of the reasons for not choosing Celebrity this time is the cost which I find well above anything I have previously paid. There were never very many children on Celebrity sailings out of the main holiday times, so I chose mid April to miss Easter by a couple of weeks, so will see how that works out. I also wonder about the fact it will be mainly UK cruisers on board, I have not had that before so it will all be different.  But hopefully fun finding out 😊 

Possibly changing the start and end dates of cruises on one of the big ships to midweek would relieve a bit of the stress to deal with so many passengers over two days.? But with the schedules already being available up to Spring 2026 I can't see that would be simple.

11 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

OP is assuming that skin color or multiracial was the reason. I don't see proof of that. 

Not proof, but why were the other children travelling with them not asked whether they were adopted too??? 

11 hours ago, enjoysailing said:

Out of interest, is there any rule as to the age that children can be left to wander around ships on their own, unaccompanied by adults? 

This is something I have wondered about too. Basically I think once a child is alone on a ship, out of their cabin, it is the same as being out of home, alone, on land. There are parks (lido deck), shops and bars, and do you allow your 10 year old, or 14 year old to roam in those places when not on board ship? Sometimes at 10pm.? 

Someone mentioned stranger danger too.

I am not anti-kids, just interested. 

There is quite a long discussion on the Celebrity Cruises forum about whether there should be .no phone zones'. Specifically to stop the loud phone conversations, Facetiming, and watching videos and other content without using headphones. A bit like thinking back to the old days of smoking indoors and the discussions on having no smoking areas. I know P&O want everyone to use  smart phones for their App / webpage, so it may not happen. But sounds a good idea to me. 

1 hour ago, david63 said:

And do as Princess do and arrange the baggage by disembarkation group rather than by deck. That way you do not have passengers wandering up and down the entire baggage hall trying to locate their "lost" case.

This is the way Celebrity do it too. So the hall gradually empties from one end and it works really well.

24 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

If you join virtual queue for a restaurant once you are informed your table is ready you then have 15 minutes or the table is released. Understandable as if they didn't do it that way there would be a lot of empty tables and many not being able to join virtual queue. We were on Iona in March joined virtual queue for MDR and by the time we had got the lift and made our way to restaurant we were informed table was ready and had no issues at all.

Sorry, thanks, I understand that. It was not what I was asking. I probably didn't explain very well.

If I book the theatre or any other venue and then get delayed stuck in a long virtual queue for my meal, will my theatre booking stand if I arrive just in time or a little late? Or will it have been given to someone else?

6 hours ago, sddsddean said:

Agreed. I don't know what I want to do tomorrow, let alone 3 weeks time!! In the old days, we used to just wander into the theatre and stay near the back. If you liked the show you stayed; if you didn't, you could slip out without disturbing anyone. All this 'planning' makes the cruise seem more like Butlins at sea than a nice relaxing 'do what you want' holiday. With that said, we are on the Iona on the 16th for Xmas and all theatres are booked...though we might not go to them all!!

 

Simon

I agree with what you say about 'the old days' it was much simpler then. Easier to visit and leave the theatre as you please. You say you have booked all theatres, but may not go to them. I understand that booking everything gives you the choice on the day, a chance to be spontaneous. I wish P&O would come up with a different system, like maybe opening up booking 24 or 48 hours before the event. It would stop the need to book just to cover all options. And there would be fewer 'no shows'.

57 minutes ago, Jazzytelly said:

We always tip the Cabin Steward and the waiter and assistant waiter. All the crew do such a great job and when you think if you visit a restaurant at home you would tip 10% for the meal , taking into account the number of meals you would have on a cruise tipping each person £20, £30 or £40 for the whole cruise is a good deal. 

But would you tip extra in the restaurant at home if the tip had already been included in the bill?

Many people, me included, tip in restaurants, but something amazing needs to have taken place for me to tip twice.

12 hours ago, The Med said:

This is what is concerning me about this huge ship, certainly more than double the amount of passengers on any ship that we have booked on previously.

 

If you have to book everything in advance, it does take away the relaxation of a holiday and the spontaneity.

 

We quite often like to decide on a whim what we want to do, where we want to eat and what we want to see.

 

I’m not sure that all this forward planning and trying to decide in advance what we might feel like doing on a certain point in the future in conducive to a relaxing holiday.

 

Well it’s booked now so it is what it is. 

This is how I am thinking at the moment. I like a bit of spontaneity, especially on holiday. So many factors can change what you want to do each day.

I wonder after reading about the necessity to make bookings ahead of time, how many people book things to make sure they have something to do each evening, and then make a decision on the night? Would there be many no shows? Also if you are stuck in a virtual queue waiting to eat, can you then turn up late to your booked venue, or would you be denied? 

3 hours ago, Ipeeinthepools said:

 

For the first time in many, many years this is what I see on the Celebrity website and I'm not sure it will change anytime soon.   High prices, E-class ships, a new definition of Always Included and the lack of longer itineraries have caused me to look else to send my vacation time.  I suspect there are many other cruisers in the same situation.

 

Maybe the new CEO will change the situation.

 

 

Yes, I am the same. For me I find the prices have risen so much, alongside the E class now sailing from Southampton, and I really want an 'outside' balcony. I don't mind a fly cruise but Celebrity seem to be way higher priced, even without including drinks or gratuities (I don't care about wifi). So I also have 0 upcoming cruises on Celebrity for the first time in 10+ years   😣

I check on this website for times in port.

Cruise Timetables | Cruise Schedules | Cruise Ship Schedules

It is also useful for finding out which other ships are also in port with you. They have arrival and departure times, but not sure how far in advance they are showing. Plus, of course, they can always be changed "for operational reasons".

1 hour ago, Dermotsgirl said:

I always what was the cultural norm at the time. When they suggested an amount and provided an envelope for handing to the steward/waiter, I did that. When gratuities were added to the onboard account, I paid by that method. When P&O said that tips were no longer required, I took them at their word and didn’t give it a second thought.

 

 

This is exactly the way I deal with tipping. I follow the guidelines for the cruise I am on. Certainly removes the worry about getting it right or wrong.

Plus, as already stated, the constant begging for top marks toward the end of a cruise with some cruise lines can become really annoying. I would not tip extra to anyone simply doing their job. Now and again there are those that go out of their way to smooth things out so then I would. 

It's all a personal choice after all.