P&O vs Thomson

[joeholiday2]

Ok guys, you get the exclusive first look.....

 

I have sent this in as a review, won't publicize it on the P&O board as I expect to be shot down in flames on there....;)

 

Oceana E330.

 

We are seasoned Thomson Cruisers, having been on 8 or 9 of their cruises, one NCL and once on the Oceana around 2 years ago, so you have an idea what we are comparing to....

 

The ship was very similar to how we found it 2 years ago, modern and new looking compared to the Thomson ships we are used to. The food was good, nothing spectacular, but good quality and well presented.

 

The weather was poor on the BOB crossing and to say we were in a force 9 at times the ship handled it well, it got better as we headed home. We were in cabin F229 (we did book late) which is right at the front, so some nights were sleepless. It was like being in a tumble dryer sometimes. The cabin was spotless and kept well by Joris our lovely Stewardess. The only good weather we had was in Casablanca, the rest of the ports having dull days. I would have to think hard about whether to do a similar cruise at this time of year again, the Canaries or Caribbean being a better option.

 

This was a Christmas cruise but it was no party ship. 12.30am Christmas Day and the ship was dead, they had all gone off to bed. This doesn’t happen on a normal Thomson ship night never mind Christmas. There was no atmosphere on the ship, this probably comes down to the entertainment team, they don’t mingle with the guests and get people involved in anything. After the main shows finish there is not a lot going on, no late night cabaret from the show team that gets everyone up dancing, the disco is quiet, it’s just a hot chocolate or horlicks and bed....

 

The acts performing were good, Lloyd the Comedian was good, Clem Curtis (singer ex Foundations) and Matthew McGurk the magician were excellent. Howard Hughes the Children’s Magician was also excellent, great shows and he along with his wife were wonderful company on the dinner table. However the rest of the entertainment left something to be desired. The headliners company could be considered to be OK as long as you have not been spoiled by Thomson show teams in the past. These guys probably work about a quarter of the hours the Thomson teams do, hence the atmosphere on the ship.... It was however good to have real life backing Musicians to the shows, they really are professional. Having two good venues to perform in I found it strange that on some nights there would be one of the acts in one venue and a film being shown in the other, where were the show team?

 

In general the waiting on service was slow and poor. We waited half an hour one night for a drink, and the lounge was mostly empty, this was not uncommon. It took 1.5 hours to have Lunch in the MDR one day, and a lot of the evening services took around 2 hours. Again there is no atmosphere in the MDR, too few staff waiting on, most (but not all) are miserable, no groups of waiters going around playing guitars and singing if they a spare 5 minutes (which these guys do not have). I get the impression that the staff are told not to get too friendly or interact with the guests, just do your job with a stiff upper lip.

 

On Christmas Day the kids were all meeting Santa on his sleigh, parents were told they could not take their own pictures and were being turned on by the ship’s Photographers. Come on guys, we know you have a job to do but it’s Christmas Day for crying out loud!

 

One excellent service was the Eavesway coach transfer, they have been dropped by P&O as they want a large upfront payment to be the “preferred” provider. If you need a coach service to Southampton I suggest you take any OBC offered instead of the P&O coach service and give Eavesway a call, it will more than likely work out cheaper for a guaranteed quality service. There was a free WiFi connection on the coach back too.

 

Would we go back on P&O? Yes we would, as despite these little niggles we did have a good time, and a cruise is as much about the itinerary as the ship, and after all we wouldn’t get entertainment this good in a 5 star Hotel anywhere for the price we paid.

 

Still, glad I’m back on Thomson Majesty for my next cruise though.

 

 

Having read some of the comments on this forum, I will make some additional notes.

The background music is present on P&O too, the only quiet place we could find was in the Library or the card room. The music was so loud that I could not sit and watch a downloaded Iplayer programme, even with the headphones on full volume.

 

On the whole the cruise was good, I just think that we are more Thomson's type of people, yep the ships aren't as good but it's the staff that make it for us. A lot of the staff on P&O are Indian, so they are more reserved than the Filipino/Indonesian crew members that we have come to think of as our friends on the Thomson ships.

 

If anyone wants reviews of the ports, La Caruna, Casablanca, Cadiz, and Lisbon, just shout.

 

BTW, the sea was that rough that some families got off at Casablanca and flew home....

We found the Avomine that P&O sell at reception (£3.60 for 10 tablets) better than Stugeron, kwells, or travel-eez.

[Julessmiles]

Thanks for your report Joe. Thomson certainly do have it right with their staff & their entertainment - that's why we love them so much.

 

We will be going to Casablanca & Cadiz on the Dream in the summer so would be good to read of any hints for those ports when you get time please. Think we are going to do Rabat from Casablanca as I have read that is one of the best options there.

[kruzseeka]

Thanks joe for that very interesting and informative comparison which mirrors pretty closely our views after travelling on Aurora earlier this year. Yes, thomson really do get some things just right! ;):D

[joeholiday2]

Casablanca... Hmm, I think you are doing the best thing doing a trip.

We just walked off the ship and along the front to see the big Mosque, it's very impressive. We then spent the rest of the day sunbathing on the ship.

 

Many we spoke to got the shuttle bus to the main square and got straight back on to come back. They also said the shuttle bus was disgusting, filthy and full of gum on the seats. We never walked into the town properly, just along the front, but never felt threatened like we did in Alexandria. We are back in April, but will more than likely just treat it as a sunbathing day on the ship.

 

Cadiz is lovely.... very walkable and loads to see.

It's great if you like Churches, some are really nice inside. We didn't do the Cathedral (€5 each) but the small Church in the same square is gorgeous inside, don't miss it. We also found the Holy Cave Church (€3 each) which has some Goya paintings inside, it's small but we thought it was well worth the entrance fee.

It's on a street called Rosario, and you would not think it was a Church from the outside. It's worth tracking down though, it took us ages to find it.

 

http://www.cadizturismo.com/media/publications/pdf/4walkl.pdf

This map gives some good walks, but it's easy just to do your own thing with the map.

 

When we are there in April, I think we will head for Seville on the train if time permits.

 

Will put some pictures of the ports up when I get them all sorted...

[Julessmiles]

Thanks for the info Joe. Thought as much with Casablanca! We enjoyed a trip to Taraoudant from Agadir which is why we thought we would still like to see a bit more of Morocco & I have read that Rabat is worth visiting.

 

Cadiz sounds nice - think we will just have an easy day exploring there - thank you for the walk leaflet download.

[Sailaway487]

Thanks for the info Joe. Thought as much with Casablanca! We enjoyed a trip to Taraoudant from Agadir which is why we thought we would still like to see a bit more of Morocco & I have read that Rabat is worth visiting.

 

Cadiz sounds nice - think we will just have an easy day exploring there - thank you for the walk leaflet download.

 

We did the Rabat trip from Casablanca and I'd definitely recommend. From what I saw of Casablanca itself, I wouldn't rate it much, in fact I didn't like it at all, but Rabat was a real contrast. One of the best trips we've ever done I think and considering it is quite a distance away and a full days excursion, not a bad price really either.

[Julessmiles]

We did the Rabat trip from Casablanca and I'd definitely recommend. From what I saw of Casablanca itself, I wouldn't rate it much, in fact I didn't like it at all, but Rabat was a real contrast. One of the best trips we've ever done I think and considering it is quite a distance away and a full days excursion, not a bad price really either.

 

Thank you for that Sailaway - sounds good to me then ;)

[janny444]

Quite right joeholiday2 it can become very very heated on the P&O forum if one dares to make a comment that isn't favourable. there are a few who have only sailed with P&O and will not tolerate one word against them. We have sailed a few times with P&O...a couple of times on the Oceana...our last time was in October on the Ventura and all I can say is that it didn't seem a "happy" ship and I felt that staff morale was pretty low and standards compared to previous cruises had deteriorated.

 

We try our first Thomson cruise in May and we are really looking forward to it... I know it will not be as "glitzy" as some of our previous cruises but I think the ambiance will more than compensate for that

[StPiran]

We are also visiting Casablanca but thinking of the trip to Marrakesh and would welcome views on that

[happy v]

Thanks for taking the time,Joe.

It's nice to read peoples oppinions of other lines.

[joeholiday2]

Pictures are up if anyone's interested.

 

https://joeholiday2.shutterfly.com/pictures

 

Videos being added right now, give it a few hours...

 

http://www.youtube.com/user/joeholiday2

Edited January 5, 2014 by joeholiday2
video addition

[middy]

Thanks for the review Joe. Sailed on Oceana in November and agree with many of the things, especially with regards the crew making so much difference. I have sailed on several lines and Thomson has by far the friendliest crew ( just how I like it) :)

[kruzseeka]

Think geo will be back this weekend so will be very interested to get his take too. But it's good to get affirmation that the things we value about Thomson is shared by others. ;)

[OldJerseycruiser]

Hi Joe,

 

It's funny how we all think differently as we have been on many cruises, several on P & O. We went on our first ever cruise on Thomson (Celebration) this Christmas and found that our Christmas cruises on P & O and Princess were far more "Christmassy" than Thomson. We were also very disappointed in the food served in the MDR, however, the food in Mistrals was wonderful (the buffet was good too). Have to say that the crew on Thomson were absolutely outstanding, nothing was too much trouble and they always have a smile on their faces, unlike the P & O staff. This has not put us off trying another Thomson cruises though and have booked again for June.

[kruzseeka]

Hi Joe,

 

It's funny how we all think differently as we have been on many cruises, several on P & O. We went on our first ever cruise on Thomson (Celebration) this Christmas and found that our Christmas cruises on P & O and Princess were far more "Christmassy" than Thomson. We were also very disappointed in the food served in the MDR, however, the food in Mistrals was wonderful (the buffet was good too). Have to say that the crew on Thomson were absolutely outstanding, nothing was too much trouble and they always have a smile on their faces, unlike the P & O staff. This has not put us off trying another Thomson cruises though and have booked again for June.

 

 

Oh dear! Exactly the same point I made about the Dream. Thomson has been making little economies over the years - but imo it's now reached tipping point where it's become very noticeable - and the difference in standard from previous cruises is now quite marked! :(

 

Glad you were able to see the plus points of Thomson though Oldjerseycruiser and I hope you enjoy your June cruise - and that the main dining room food is much improved! :)

[geomagot]

hi guys

 

happy new year to all

 

many thanks for the above post joe :cool:

 

so, I'm also back from p&o in caribbean after a v enjoyable christmas & ny

 

will spill all the beans on dream v ventura just as soon as I have had a chance to dry out my alcohol levels and finish dealing with an unwanted visitor to our household over christmas (part of a tree):(

 

speak soon guys

[kruzseeka]

hi guys

 

happy new year to all

 

many thanks for the above post joe :cool:

 

so, I'm also back from p&o in caribbean after a v enjoyable christmas & ny

 

will spill all the beans on dream v ventura just as soon as I have had a chance to dry out my alcohol levels and finish dealing with an unwanted visitor to our household over christmas (part of a tree):(

 

speak soon guys

 

Pleased to hear you enjoyed the festive season - hope the tree isn't too serious an issue - we've had quite a few blown down here.

 

Looking forward to hearing all about your trip. ;)

[Julessmiles]

Welcome back Geo - seems ages since you went. Hope you had a great time. Good luck with the tree :rolleyes:

[Little Nell]

Great to have you back, Geo. So sorry to hear about the trouble with the tree. What an awful thing to come back to. I hope it hasn't done too much damage.

[Little Nell]

Thanks for the comparison, Joe, I really enjoyed reading it and also for the pics. It certainly looks a lovely ship but to be honest, nothing I have heard so far would persuade me to give up on Thomson just yet. It is so good to get opinions from people like you, which help others to make the right choices.

[CRUISIN LINDA]

Welcome home Geo :) Hope the tree problem is soon sorted.

[CRUISIN LINDA]

Great photos (as usual ;)) Joe. She is the sister ship of the Sea Princess, so brought back happy memories of our first Caribbean trip :) I have a photo of the two together in Grenada. Will put it on later whn I go on the main computer :)

[geomagot]

honestly...when is it going to stop raining!! (on a plus: I can now kayak from my back garden to the shops...no parking ticket required....bonus)

 

so...here's my review/comparisons (ventura v dream) apologies this is rather long, i have broken it up into separate posts so that you can just read the bits you’re interested in

 

we flew out from gatwick on the thoms dreamliner ..... great aircraft spacious, snazzy lighting, big windows, good legroom, a very comfortable flight and a nice in flight meal (salmon)...not bad

 

arrived at barbados to the usual slick transfer to ship, straight onto the tarmac, loaded onto a fleet of busses while bags were trucked on ahead.....some queuing in the cattle shed to embark the ship (same as thomsons)

 

we arrived about 4pm...it was 30 degrees!....and raining!! I felt at home already

 

the ship:

 

the cabin....... we usually have an outside plus on dream, on ventura we had a deluxe balcony cabin midships on d deck (deck 9)

 

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we had....a balcony, a walk in wardrobe/dressing room, with a free (FREE) safe, a sitting area with a sofa and 2 flat screen tv's, fridge, fluffy bathrobes (fluf....ffy...barrrth...robes!) lovely...and...a bottle of fizz on ice waiting for us on arrival...double lovely! take note thoms....er...please;)

 

so there i was in barbados...on my private balcony...in my fluff...fy bathrobe drinking a chilled glass of bubbly......while ms magot spent a (not insignificant) amount of time exploring the interactive tv which included a room service menu ...i could hear the oh's and ah's from my comfy position on my balcony (yes...my balcony....mine) :p

 

magot? magot? where are you magot? come here magot? get off that balcony and come and look at this!....look....we can order a (free) room service breakfast to be delivered in bed in the mornings! thats fab isn’t it magot?....magot??....er wonderful dear....thereafter continental breakfast miraculously arrived at 7.30am :eek: on the dot every morning

 

 

i did notice that our balcony was bigger than the ones above and stuck out over the side, consequently it was overlooked by all the balconies above so not especially private....ms magot was happy that she could smoke on the balcony, no long trips up the stairs to deck 10 (smoking area on dream) for an early morning fix

 

we left the delights of our cabin to explore the ship....how would we ever find our way around?

 

first stop the atrium (rather hard to miss as all the lifts seem to go there first before moving on? somewhere else?? or seemed to??)...the atrium/shopping mall, very glitzy covers 3 floors, with chandeliers, stone steps a glass lift and the red bar (piano bar) the library, reception and the embarkation area and loads of shops...all nicely decorated for christmas, beyond the atrium is an art gallery ('ohh they have an art gallery' said ms magot...'I'd love to get my nails painted??'... doh!) and olly smiths glass house, a nice bar...quiet, time for a very welcome long cool beer before the lifeboat drill (didnt get much further than this until the drill)

 

 

our muster station was the tamarind club (the main show lounge) we arrived with our life jackets to find most people had already settled into this lounge for the evening...we squeezed ourselves in....standing room only (same as thoms only in a bar and not squeezed elbow to elbow onto the prom deck)

 

tbc.....the sundecks: (aka sunbed situation)

[geomagot]

the outside decks (sunbed situation)

 

deck 15 is the main pool area of beachcomber pool and laguna pool and the burger bar, pizza bar, some pool bars and the beach house buffet...v similar to the dreams sirens/lido areas

 

a quick checkout of the buffet

 

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then quickly on to the sailaway party on deck

 

wow!....what a party! :cool: the band playing , the bubbly flowing (£4 a glass) it looked (to me) that nearly everyone must have been on deck partying, the demographic seemed a little younger than on dream....more (extended) families/groups of young professionals, we joined in for a while with a couple of gangnam styles....then leaving the kids behind (doing some sort of modern rap/mime/one direction style chicken dance??)

 

....we continued to explore the various decks, promenades, pools, bars & eateries and (most importantly) checked out the sunbed situation (for the forthcoming sea days)....I noticed a gated area of sunning space with a pool...the retreat...a pay per visit, adults only (aka everyone else by the public pools will baby-sit your kids while you enjoy an adults only pampering session on the basket weave padded lounges in the retreat...at a price).....I have a sneaky suspicion that its only a matter of time before thoms get in on this same act (reserved sunbed areas) I'm willing to bet thoms would love to do this if only they had the space?....the sports net thoms...the sports net;)

 

 

deck 16 is the upper deck area of oasis pool plus the kids clubs/night nurseries

 

a further family pool (terrace pool) on deck 14 also a bar on the balcony above where the smokers congregated most mornings (to peer over the side rail)

 

deck 7 is the (quite spacious) wrap around prom deck

 

 

there appeared to be plenty (i mean plenty!) of sunbeds on the various pool decks (a sea of sunbeds)....in fact we never had a problem finding a space on one of the (more than on thoms itineraries have) sea days, the decks were crowded, especially on the sea day but there were corners available, we tended to sit near the burger bar (frankies grill), where there was some shade and not to far from the bar, this gave us first dibs every time they decided to wheel out another skipload of burgers....people on this ship...they luvved those burgers!

 

 

after a few days we were finding it easy to navigate a round the ship, the temperature was soaring by this time, accompanied by a few scattered warm tropical showers (and the mother of all thunderstorms on christmas eve) in the evenings for sailaways we retreated to our comfortable balcony for afternoon tea courtesy of room service, the balcony was furnished with 2 steamer chairs with footrests and a small occasional table…I luvved that balcony

 

to be continued: (the eateries/formal nights/food etc)

[CRUISIN LINDA]

Here is the photo of the Oceana & Sea Princess in Grenada :)