Good thing or not

[wavehopper]

(03 September 2009)

Thomson Cruises is to open its ships on port days to give people on who have never cruised a chance to go on board and have lunch.

The “test-drive” lunch events launch in April 2010 and will be available to all Thomson and First Choice clients staying in hotels within easy distance of the ports being visited.

TUI director of cruise UK and Ireland David Selby said there will be a nominal fee for the lunch events to cover transfers to and from the ship and this will be redeemable against a future cruise holiday.

The test-drive lunches will not be available on turnaround days when the ship is in its home port.

The move is one of several developments at Thomson Cruises next year, with others including the creation of a passenger photo gallery, where guests can display their own photographs of the cruise, and the chance for passengers to offer unofficial dance lessons to others on board.

The cruiseline will also be trialing podcast guides of the major destinations for passengers who want to do their own thing on port days.

Pre-loaded MP3 players will be available for hire on board Thomson Cruises’ ships for free, but passengers will have to leave a refundable deposit.

Destinations being considered for the first phase of the trial include Barcelona, Roma, Pisa, Florence and Marseilles.:confused:

 

Wavehopper;)

[kruzseeka]

(03 September 2009)

Thomson Cruises is to open its ships on port days to give people on who have never cruised a chance to go on board and have lunch.

The “test-drive” lunch events launch in April 2010 and will be available to all Thomson and First Choice clients staying in hotels within easy distance of the ports being visited.

TUI director of cruise UK and Ireland David Selby said there will be a nominal fee for the lunch events to cover transfers to and from the ship and this will be redeemable against a future cruise holiday.

The test-drive lunches will not be available on turnaround days when the ship is in its home port.

The move is one of several developments at Thomson Cruises next year, with others including the creation of a passenger photo gallery, where guests can display their own photographs of the cruise, and the chance for passengers to offer unofficial dance lessons to others on board.

The cruiseline will also be trialing podcast guides of the major destinations for passengers who want to do their own thing on port days.

Pre-loaded MP3 players will be available for hire on board Thomson Cruises’ ships for free, but passengers will have to leave a refundable deposit.

Destinations being considered for the first phase of the trial include Barcelona, Roma, Pisa, Florence and Marseilles.:confused:

 

Wavehopper;)

 

Just hope the security is tight and taken very seriously for visitors!

The podcasts are a good idea though. I think Thomson have been really good in the last year or so in terms of port advice for DiY travellers and this is another welcome development. So much for trying to 'rip you off' on exursions! I think that Thomson excursions are not badly priced in comparison to many other cruise lines - but supporting their passengers who want to try a cheaper option - or just want to 'do their own thing' has to be applauded.

[jenny wren]

Sounds a good idea to me...we have done this on other ships in Southampton and were issued with temporary pass card which I think gets around the security issue.

I agree the port information given to independent travellers is excellent, so any improvement is to be welcomed.

Thomson obviously feel the need to encourage more passengers on board to see their 'product' so perhaps passenger numbers are falling?? or is it that there are more beds to fill now we have Thomson Dream and Island Escape?

[davecttr]

I suppose the security issue is already taken care of as potential visitors will have already been processed as part of their hotel holiday. Hopefully this will not impact on cruisers enjoyment of a quiet day aboard. The thought of hordes of day trippers filling all the restaurants and bars - yuk!

 

Ah!, of course, filling all the bars, now I understand.

 

In my experiance port information varies by ship, on Celebration it was excellent with guides and maps available but on Spirit almost nothing was provided.

[davecttr]

[quote name=wavehopper;21088353..................Destinations being considered for the first phase of the trial include Barcelona' date=' Roma, Pisa, Florence and Marseilles.:confused:

Wavehopper;)[/quote]

 

Marseilles?

I have a obsession about this port. How long do I have to wait for someone to base a ship there so I can use the TGV. Travel time just over 4 hours from London with check in time 30 minutes!

Plus no flying :D

[jocap]

I think it's a brilliant idea! There'll be lots of peope on holiday who'll wonder about being on a cruise but think it's out of their league.

Did you see on the UK site that Thomson's has come 2nd to Cunard for best cruises? That must be a massive boost to the company!- jocap.

[gosport11]

We are on a thomson ships vist on 1/10/09 we had to give passport no when booking and paying our 15£,this is ex southampton and includes lunch and promo tour, hoping to get a little discount if we book whilst on the tour

[EJNutz]

I think it is a good idea. However I do remember going on a cruise on the QE2 and a group of people came on for lunch during a port day. As they were all concentrated in one are at any one time they held up the lifts, stairs and bigger than normal queues at the restaurants were created. So if Thomson can sort it out so it causes no disruption to passengers on board I say go for it.

[s19]

Well although it sounds a good idea like someone else said will it spoil a quiet day onboard?

[sunbather11]

As long as they dont pinch all the sunbeds..................:D

[ROSEBASKETS]

Well although it sounds a good idea like someone else said will it spoil a quiet day onboard?

 

Quite agree, Thomsons will make money from bored passengers desperate to get away from their dull beach holidays for a few hours. Can you imagine 200 "tourists" waking around the ship each day, The self catering brigade doing the weekly shop in the lido taking fruit, rolls, tea bags et-al!

 

Some of the best days of our holiday have been while the hoards have gone on tours (ie Rome) not fighting for sun beds, being able to chat to the staff casually, winning the quizzes, using the jacuzzi in peace, watching the waiters throw each other in the pool... the list goes on.

 

It is quite different allowing pax on board in Southampton, who make a special effort to get there and are genuinely interested in seeing the ships facilities with a view to booking, rather than tourists who just want to see something different while on holiday.

 

Are Thomsons going to leave 4 cabins on every cruise vacant so that the tourists can look inside a cabin? I think not! so will the tourists be sneeking a peek inside cabins while they are being cleaned? If the steward is attending to 4 or 5 cabins at a time and has all the doors open (as i've seen in the past) will a tourist be able to "pop in" to that room unsupervised? I'm probably stupid, but I trust the passengers who have paid £1000+ for their holiday rather than the £99 brigade.

 

I've done 16 cruises with Thomsons over the last 8 years and I will be very interested to know how this idea pans out before I book with them again!:(

[barnowl1950]

Hi ROSEBASKETS, i agree with everything you just said, these are very good points, we will be doing our first cruise in February so this won't make any difference to us, but i shall be watching the situation in the future before making any bookings, this would definately put me off another cruise.:(

[Scarey Mary]

I can't see how this can really be a good idea and create business for Thomsons cos lets face it compared to other cruise lines the ships themselves are not at all glam or luxurious with lots of things to do on board and on first impressions can be dissapointing. I think if we had done this first we would not have booked.

 

BUT as all us Thomson Cruise addicts know it's not the ships themselves that make the cruise special but the fantastic staff and service, entertainment and food. :)

 

Trying the Island Escape in Nov. and cannot wait but not expecting luxury. Then back on Celebration in May:) and hopefully not with hords of day trippers.:(

[ROSEBASKETS]

BUT as all us Thomson Cruise addicts know it's not the ships themselves that make the cruise special but the fantastic staff and service, entertainment and food. :)

 

Excellent point Mary. The evening ambience, the attentive staff, the first rate shows, good food served well and the clientelle the ships attract will not be sampled by the "Day Trippers"

 

One of the main reasons we travel year after year with Thomsons are the like minded people who travel on Thomsons. "Normal" people, not the ones who like to talk about how much money they have, or how many cruises they have been on, or how poor the ship is compared to another ship.

[gosport11]

Scarey mary if everyone is like you i have i shall give booking a miss,and hope that the fares double due to not being able to fill ships :mad::mad::mad:

[ROSEBASKETS]

Scarey mary if everyone is like you i have i shall give booking a miss,and hope that the fares double due to not being able to fill ships :mad::mad::mad:

 

Please elaborate, I am quite bemused by this comment - thank you

[gosport11]

I can't see how this can really be a good idea and create business for Thomsons cos lets face it compared to other cruise lines the ships themselves are not at all glam

 

 

hopefully not with hords of day trippers.:(

we will be paying for this vist and was hoping to book a cruise :mad::mad:

[ROSEBASKETS]

Still confused, I must be having a thick day :confused:

[jenny wren]

I don't think this will cause a problem at all....how many people do you think will be wanting to pay to look around the ship while they are on holiday....Shouldn't think there will be that many if weathers nice they will be on the beach!!...and most of the ships passengers will be ashore anyway...I think it is a good idea myself...

 

(Gosport11 I lived in Gosport for 30 years!!)

[Scarey Mary]

Scarey mary if everyone is like you i have i shall give booking a miss,and hope that the fares double due to not being able to fill ships :mad::mad::mad:

 

:(:(:( Feeling quite picked on here. My negative comment about day tickets was quite tame compared to some of the others.

 

My main point on this was the Thomson ships are old and not that special compared to other cruise lines and I cannot see anyone wanting to book based on a tour of the ship alone.

 

It is the whole package that is special.

[ROSEBASKETS]

:(:(:( Feeling quite picked on here. My negative comment about day tickets was quite tame compared to some of the others.

 

My main point on this was the Thomson ships are old and not that special compared to other cruise lines and I cannot see anyone wanting to book based on a tour of the ship alone.

 

It is the whole package that is special.

 

Don't feel picked on Mary, you've said nothing that isn't true and to single you out is quite unfair.

 

I think the vast majority of people on this forum accept that the fleet is quite tired and dated, and though the staff keep the ship spotless and work very hard to maintain them they are old, tired and lacking in facilities that the newer ships have.

 

But that's not the reason we sail with Thomsons and I think that the majority of pax sail with them not for the esthetics but the atmosphere. Lets face it, we started on the Emerald, bless her. One pax at dinner one evening compared her to a barge, we were taken aback as we thought she was great, but when we went on the Spirit we saw their viewpoint. But the Emerald experience is what got us into cruising and we went back on her because of the ambience rather than the facilities.

 

Thomson will continue to be popular, not because of the ships, but because of the product. I can't see many pax walking round Verntura, Azura, Oasis or Independence seeing familiar pax day after day, getting to know staff and being attentively served due to the sheer size of the vessels and the numbers aboard.

 

"Day Trippers" will not get that feel for the ship, they will see worn out carpets, rust marks, out of order lifts, small pools, small cabins and think this is not for us. Something that regular cruises or those who have sampled the overall product (over a week or more) look past because of the other benefits, which far outweigh the visuals.

 

If you view the fleet, they are at the lower end of the scale and don't even match the likes of Ocean Village for size, features and facilities but vastly outsine even the likes of Cunard, Princess and RCI in entertainment, food quality, service and ambience, which is what keeps pax returning and those who view the ships with a view to sailing on them will see a poor comparison to the newer, larger, all singing and dancing 21st century ships.

 

Pick on me, not Mary. I've got broad shoulders and I think you'll find that she was agreeing with my points.

 

Sorry for the long post!:)

[davecttr]

It may be that the day trippers idea is 'accountant designed' and as such bares a resemblence to 'architect designed houses', ie. don't touch it with a barge pole. If the visitors are put off cruising by the lack of climbing walls, wave riders etc etc it should be quickly dropped.

 

If the Dream is OK what they really need is 3 newer ships.

 

Dave

[kruzseeka]

:(:(:( Feeling quite picked on here. My negative comment about day tickets was quite tame compared to some of the others.

 

My main point on this was the Thomson ships are old and not that special compared to other cruise lines and I cannot see anyone wanting to book based on a tour of the ship alone.

 

It is the whole package that is special.

 

I agree with you completely, scarey mary - you make a very valid point (and Rosebaskets too). Thomson ships are all about the service, entertainment, warmth and atmosphere and short visits over lunch will not show them in their best light. In fact, the negatives are what will make the biggest impression and for anyone used to (and who likes) the 'glitzy' ships, the impression they will get is not likely to be favourable by comparison.

 

We went on a really snazzy, big ship (needed to walk around in your shades job - for the clashing colours, not to look cool!) and I never felt at home all 12 days. It lacked a 'soul' - now that's not something you can say about Thomson ships (thanks to the mix of crew and pax) but it takes more than a couple of hours to 'feel' it. Or at least I think so anyway.

 

:):):) - to cheer you up!

[Scarey Mary]

Hi Rosebaskets and Kruzseeker

 

Thank you both for your replies. Seams most people agree with us about the day viewings so why I was singled out I don't know.:(

Suppose really it was just a surprise for comments like that as we are not used to them on this forum, as we are normally get very friendly and helpful members.:)

Anyway like Rosebaskets I am also broad shouldered (must be us Yorkshire Folk):) and I am not going to say anything I shouldn't.

Also Rosebaskets loved your comments about the carpets etc. it's not what your expecting but as you say after experiencing the overall product you don't notice the faults anymore. Saying that going on the Island Escape in Nov. and have just read the new review so a bit concerned about that but I am sure we will enjoy it.

I have never been on one of the glitzy big ships when we first looked into cruising we decided to start small with Thomsons and then if we liked it we would try one the bigger ships. We have done 3 now and have 2 more booked and don't even think about going with any other Lines now.

[gosport11]

Well we had our day vist on sprirt today:D and booked a cruise in

oct on celebration, i have to agree after having been on celebrity, po,rci azamra it hasnt got wow factor, but ive booked for the ports :):) so any one else doing a cruise in oct 2010 dont be shy :cool: