P & O...3 Star? What to expect?

[glutenhab]

My wife & I are looking to book a 7-8 week cruise to celebrate our 25th anniversary & her 50th birthday in 2011. I have scoured cruises for months, looking for the perfect one. These include Holland America, Celebrity, Princess, Azamara, Oceania & Seabourn. We had not even considered P & O, as the main site we have been searching on has them rated 3 Star, compared to the others at 5-6 Star. Is there a reason for this rating? I have looked at the P & O ships & itineraries & they look great. Is there something we should know to justify this low rating? We are looking for relaxation & exotic ports & P & O looks like it would provide both. From what I have read recently, it seems P & O caters to mostly British passengers. From my experience, English people are certainly not as good as us Canadians, but almost as good as Americans.

 

(Relax folks....just kidding. Archie Bunker gets stuck in an elevator on the Oceana with a Briit & a Canadian. He gets into an arguement with the Brit....Brit says, be careful what you say Mr. Bunker, I'm just as good as you. Archie gives him that Archie grin & says, "as good as me, you ain't even as good as him" ..as he points at the Canadian.

 

Anyway, so much for the comedy. We are from Newfoundland, Canada & are often mistaken for being Irish or British by our accents. I guess what I am asking here is, should we be concerned by this 3 Star rating & stay away from P & O?

[jomf]

Hi,

Your sense of humour would go well on the P & O ships!

 

We have travelled on P & O, Princess and NCL. I would rate P & O as good as Princess in food and ambience. ( Better if the Princess cruise leaves from New York- but that is another story!)

 

I would think that Holland America, Oceania & Seabourn are definately a better class. Don't know about the other lines. But it depends on you, not the class of the ship.

 

You have to work out which you would enjoy the most. We are happy with the type of people you get on P & O ships. Similar types to ourselves mostly.

 

Possibly not much help, but not a hinderance answer either!!

 

Either way, enjoy.

[pkpon]

Definetly for me on par with Princess with maybe the food on Holland America being slightly better.

 

I have feeling you have to be a UK resident to be able to book a P&O cruise.

[u2cruiser]

I agree, definitely a similar product to Princess. The service on P&O was excellent on my cruise, as were the cabins and entertainment - excellent comedians. You wouldn't be disappointed. :)

[Elderflower]

We were used to sailing on Seabourn (the original small ships - have not been on the new "bigger" 450 pax yet). Last month we tried P&O for the first time and sailed on the Arcadia to the US and Canada. Really looked forward to our stop in Newfoundland but didn't get in there because of rough seas.

 

P&O compared favourably with Seabourn but there were advantages and disadvatages on both.

 

I liked the mix of nationalities on Seabourn, on P&O The only passengers we met we from the UK. This is probably because that trip sailed in and out of Southampton. I do not believe they do not take bookings from people who live in other countries, but many of their cruises sail out of Southampton but no doubt you would have to fly somewhere. I would put P&O in the 4 star category rather than 3 star. I say this having sailed on 6 star Seabourn and also Regent (which I disliked).

 

We had a balcony cabin on the Arcadia and after the size of the all suite accomodation on Seabourn, was decidely smaller. We did get used to dodging around one another eventually.

 

There is a greater variety of entertainment and stuff to do on sea days on P&O. Seabourn disappointed us most of the time. The entertainment was certainly geared towards it's US passengers. Unfortunately, the comedians were most unfunny. We spent a Christmas and New Year on Seabourn and it was what I would regard as a stereotyped American Christmas.

 

The food in the main dining room on the Arcadia compared very well with Seabourn, however, the self service restaurant was not nearly as good on the Arcadia.

 

The service from all staff and crew on Seabourn certainly was 6 star. Not that it was bad on P&O, just not as personal. On Seabourn, because of the low number of passengers, you will be addressed by your name by all crew and staff, including the captain. They learn your name the first day you are on board and have a test the following day to make sure they have done their homework. Because the ships are smaller, there is no queuing, waiting around to get off the ship and everything has a very special feel about it. You really are made to feel special whilst on board. Another thing which we prefer about Seabourn is that there is no tipping, no charge for drinks - you can have champagne whenever you want plus caviar at any time of day or night. Nothing is too much trouble.

 

The contrast with P&O is partly to do with the larger number of passengers they cater for each trip.

 

We tried P&O as we were looking at doing a full world cruise. We were certainly aware not to expect the same sort of cruise as with Seaboun, but it compared quite favourably. In fact, we booked the worldy while on board.

 

I would imagine that you would be happy on either of these lines depending on what your priorities are.

 

Pat

[marylizcat]

I don't know where you saw them rated at 3 star. Without wishing to offend the Australians, it may possibly have been P & O Australia, which I think has older ships. However, the UK P & O is equal to Royal Caribbean and Princess, but possibly slightly below Holland America, Celebrity and Cunard, I believe. They are considered 4 star not 3 star. Read the official Cruise Critic reviews on here and the Berlitz Guide for more info.

 

Have you cruised before? If not, I should try a shorter cruise first to test whether it suits you, and to see what factors are important to you, before doing such a long cruise. Also bear in mind that the long cruises will be almost entirely retired people who have the time available, so there may not be many in your age group onboard.

[ovccruiser]

As you know, P & O are owned by Carnival as are Princess. I have heard on many occasions that they are both on a par, one aimed at the US market, Princess, and one aimed at the UK market, P & O. I sail with Cunard and P & O and would rate Cunard slightly higher than P & O, purely on tha age of the ships. Cunard's oldest is only just 6. Having said that, I have not sailed on any of the newer P & O ships, only the Artemis and the Oceana. As reagrds star rating, based on UK hotels, I would rate P & O as almost 5 star, maybe 4.5 star and Cunard at 5 star +, though not too much to choose. In the main, P & O is British though and through, sail out party on the Artemis was cancelled when sailing from St Maartens, the cruise director realised the ship in front was German and the ship to the side was Disney. The normal sail away anthem on the later nights of the cruise is Land of Hope and Glory:D:D

[blitznbobs]

The service on P&O is definitely different to that of Princess or Celebrity as it is aimed at the UK market. From what I've seen of the difference in service is a cultural thing. I (being British) personally prefer P&Os more restrained, less 'in your face' service, but the Americans I know seem to prefer the more forward and (in my opinion) obtrusive service of the American Lines... The service is not better or worse, just different. The P&O PAX are as a general rule British so if you are an American, you have to like us Brits to sale with them. The menu's (from my limited experience of P&O) are more British orientated as well tending towards 'game' for their 'posh' dishes rather than lobster and sea food... as I said not worse or better, just different.

 

HTH

 

Bx

[glutenhab]

Wow, thanks. Seven replies as quick as that & every one courteous & helpful. What suprises me most of all are the comments from Elderflower & the comparisons with Seabourn. If it is in a class with Princess etc. & even remotely comparable to Seabourn (I understand your explanations of both, thanks) then I guess we should have no reservations (no pun intended) booking P&O. We have cruised before, the longest being 14 days, & love it. We would have no problem managing on any cruise ship for 5-6 weeks, believe me!

 

We are reserved people & hate the "in your face" stuff, as blitznbobs so aptly puts it, so that part sounds perfect. And I guess 45 years of watching Monty Python, The Two Ronnies, Fawlty Towers, Up Pompei, On The Busses etc. won't hurt. By the way, the site that has all the P&O vessels rated as 3 Star is *****.com.

 

Thanks again to all.

[marylizcat]

One thing to consider is that your onboard expenses will be much lower with P & O than with the American lines. Drink prices are half the US prices, with no 15% tip added or expected. Gratuities are also less than half. Over 7 weeks, that could make quite a big difference to your budget!

[jocap]

Hi...if you look in Berlitz Cruising guide, their star system is out of 2000 points....very few ships in their 6*+ category.

4* ships come in at 1401 to 1600 points.....a quick check shows most of the middle range ships as 4*, including all P&O, except Artemis, which is old and due to retire next year. HAL, Princess and NCL , along with RCI, all gain 4*. The first ship with 4*, is Ruby Princess at 1547; the first P&O is Ventura with 1511. In between these scores are some HAL and RCI. When you look at the actual scores, Ruby has 2 points more for accommodation, and 6 points more for food. Zuiderdam is 6 points above Ventura, but below for food and entertainment......and on it goes!

Hope I haven't confused the issue!!:cool:

Jo.

[glutenhab]

Thanks again to all. Your responses lead me to call my travel agent to find me something with P&O. She books many many cruises & has been doing so for years & has never booked P&O. They tried twice to make a booking but P&O seemed to throw up obstacles at every turn. They wanted full payment immediatley & demanded that insurance be bought only through them. They were never helpful or even cordial she tells me. On the last ocassion the conversation got so bad that P&O just brushed her off & said they didn't want to talk to her any longer. This agent is very professional & super friendly. Has anyone else experienced this?

[Elaine0138]

try contacing a UK TA who has an online facility you may find you have better luck.

 

Although the food quality is fine on P&O the food choices are pretty boring, They could learn a thing or two from Celebrity and RCI about food offered at the buffet, it can be pretty dire, not a great choice of food

[tom_uk]

Thanks again to all. Your responses lead me to call my travel agent to find me something with P&O. She books many many cruises & has been doing so for years & has never booked P&O. They tried twice to make a booking but P&O seemed to throw up obstacles at every turn. They wanted full payment immediatley & demanded that insurance be bought only through them. They were never helpful or even cordial she tells me. On the last ocassion the conversation got so bad that P&O just brushed her off & said they didn't want to talk to her any longer. This agent is very professional & super friendly. Has anyone else experienced this?

 

I wonder if, again, this is a result of the 'P&O is aimed at the UK' thing? As a result of posting on CC I've come to understand that a lot of TAs in the US and Canada are small, personal organisations: almost one-person companies. If I'm right, the US-based cruise lines are used to dealing with these companies. In the UK the situation is rather different. I won't say there aren't any small TAs, but the great majority of passengers will book their cruises either through one of a small number of bricks & mortar travel agents who have offices in every high street in the country (e.g. Thomas Cook), or through one of a small number of large, on-line TAs. As a result P&O will be used to dealing with those companies rather than the smaller, individual american-stye TAs. There are also difference in the way bookings are made for UK-based lines: deposits are mandatory and non-returnable, for example.

 

As regards insurance, P&O and other UK-based cruise lines do require passengers to have it. However, I've never been required to buy insurance from the cruise line (or from the TA). With the (large) on-line TA I use there's always an option to declare the insurer I use instead of buying the cruise line's or the TAs insurance.

 

Have you tried speaking to P&O in the UK? I would have expected that they would know how passengers outside the UK can book a P&O cruise.

[glutenhab]

You're probably right. It very well may have to do with the fact that we are booking from Canada. However I think P&O is dismissing a huge market if that's the case. I have looked through their available itinearies & profile & had myself conviced they were for us but now I am not sure it is worth the trouble. Dealing with a travel agent on another continent is not for me. And if she got attitude like that on more than one ocassion from a P&O rep I would think that I would be up against the same if I called directly. Other lines a begging for your business while they brush off 300 million North Americans, & who knows how many others outside of Britain. Strange business practice to say the least.

[KarenR_UK]

there is a large US (online) travel agent - that I am not allowed to name (and have to admit I have not used) - who I got an email from today who say they can book P&O

From the email

Originally founded as the Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company in 1837, P&O Cruises literally created the concept of leisure cruising in 1904 and has been the most popular cruise line in Britain since that time.

 

********* is proud to be P&O's exclusive representative in the United States, Canada and Central America.

 

To see itineraries and discounts for P&O Cruises' eight ships that cruise the Mediterranean, Caribbean, South America, Scandinavia, Asia, Australia and other destinations, click here.

 

P&O Cruises is owned by Carnival Corporation & plc, the world's largest cruise company. Carnival Corp operates 11 cruise brands -- a fleet of 98 ships with more than 200,000 berths -- with a further 10 ships to be delivered by May 2014.

 

So IF you want to do it - it should be possible

[tom_uk]

OK, I found that TA, and i checked their site.

 

I wonder why they rated Ventura and Azura as 4*, whereas Crown Princess, Emerald Princess and Ruby Princess are rated 5* ? They're actually all sister ships.