shocked and disgusted with p and o policy

[Hasthagotnowtmoist]

hi all,

 

 

 

I have been on two previous cruises with p and o on Arcadia and Oriana but my husband and myself have recently had a baby so we are now on family friendly ships. I phoned up today for a price on the N421B cruise in october for 2 adults and a 7 mth baby i have been quoted a price of £699 per adult which i think is very reasonable for a fly cruise but i have also been told that it would cost me £350 for my 7 month old baby, now im shocked at this as they dont get a seat on the plane, are too young for kids clubs wont be eating any p&o provided food as i will be providing that. the only cost will be for the loan of a travel cot as we will be providing the linen and towels for him as well, am I the only one that thinks £350 for a baby in arms is riddiculous? when i questioned them on the pricing i was told they would be charged as a third adult as thats their policy . i understand that you have to cover costs but im not sure what costs there is for a baby am i being silly thinking like this?

 

 

I voiced concearns similar to these on RCI's board where I was promptly shot down by a series of pompus brash American posters. Royal Caribbean really do take the proverbial with their kids prices on UK sailings. They wanted £799 for 12 nights for my 10 month old iirc!!!!!!!!! This was going last minute too!!! Hideous!

 

P&O charged £149 which I thought was much more reasonable but I was advised by my peers on here that I should be treating my little one as an equal etc & other such patronising waffle such as my child would be taking up space in a four berth cabin that could have been taken by full paying adults etc (step into the real world).

 

 

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Edited June 24, 2014 by Hasthagotnowtmoist

[Hasthagotnowtmoist]

Even at 7 months old, you baby can make use of the childrens' facilities - it's just that you can't abandon him/her there. I think it is you choice to use your own sheets/towels/food.... I can't get a discount if I tell P&O I'll bring my own sheets and towels, so why should you ;)

 

 

Didn't take long for some good old patronising here either...

 

 

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[Hasthagotnowtmoist]

True and very popular they are.

 

 

So popular its £699 for 14 nights in a Balcony on Arcadia... Popular indeed

 

 

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[richleeds]

So popular its £699 for 14 nights in a Balcony on Arcadia... Popular indeed

 

 

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Of course the no child concept is popular or it wouldn't exist within the P&O portfolio.

[rubydoobydoo]

I would resent paying that much for a baby but that is the charge so there is nothing you can do really if you want to go, I don't buy the argument they are taking up space that could have been sold/used by someone else :rolleyes:

 

I have just started camping as we need to be able to get away with our dogs as I hate leaving them too often and kennels are so expensive

 

I am being charged £3.50 per dog per night, they are costing the camp nothing and they are providing nothing for my dogs but they are the charges

 

Kids and pets keep you poor :D

[jeanlyon]

don't forget there are Oriana, Arcadia and Adonia that are child free. Not everyone wants kids on their holiday. Teachers for a start like to get away from them, not that I am one. We like child free ships and from what I heard about a cruise on Aurora, I'm glad we do. Teenagers pushing the lift buttons over and over again, kids having a poo in the pool - lovely!

[richleeds]

don't forget there are Oriana, Arcadia and Adonia that are child free. Not everyone wants kids on their holiday. Teachers for a start like to get away from them, not that I am one. We like child free ships and from what I heard about a cruise on Aurora, I'm glad we do. Teenagers pushing the lift buttons over and over again, kids having a poo in the pool - lovely!

 

What a nice, sensible, well balanced post jeanlyon and not for one minute do I think you are a miserable, intolerant old sod because of it.

[molecrochip]

don't forget there are Oriana, Arcadia and Adonia that are child free. Not everyone wants kids on their holiday. Teachers for a start like to get away from them, not that I am one. We like child free ships and from what I heard about a cruise on Aurora, I'm glad we do. Teenagers pushing the lift buttons over and over again, kids having a poo in the pool - lovely!

 

 

It's interesting, I find that it tends to be those who are 60+ who are ruder than teenagers. For some reason, some OAPs don't understand that it is polite to let a lift empty before pushing in - not a problem I find with teens.

 

Back to original query, I read somewhere that even infants would now have seats on long haul flights.

 

 

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[Hasthagotnowtmoist]

It's interesting, I find that it tends to be those who are 60+ who are ruder than teenagers.

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I second this entirely [although i have to say my experience on Aurora recently was brilliant in terms of fellow passengers especially those who were older] i've got to say on the whole, this demographic of passenger tend to be far ruder, more surly, ignorant and generally show much worse behaviour than that displayed by under 18s. I think a lot of them are oblivious to it to be honest though...

 

 

 

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Edited June 24, 2014 by Hasthagotnowtmoist

[richleeds]

Back to original query, I read somewhere that even infants would now have seats on long haul flights.

 

 

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I don't think this will ever be the case, it would surely fill more seats and earn more revenue for the airlines but the reason an infant sits on the parents lap for take off and landing is because the parent is responsible for putting the infant in the brace position on their lap in an emergency landing, something an infant couldn't do if sat in its own seat.

[Alan Flett]

I actually think the prices charged for children are unfair. We have booked to go on Britannia in August 2015 with our children who will then be aged 7 and 2. It was cheaper for me to buy 2 inside cabins than to pay for a 4 berth inside cabin due to the full on board credit we will be receiving and the 80% of the full adult fare we would have been charged for our children.

 

Therefore those who argue that the space could be sold to somebody with an older child, yes it could but I now have 2 cabins and the second cabin could have been sold to 2 adults who spend heavily on board. As it is now we will spend the same as we would if we had only 1 cabin.

 

My problem with children's fares is that they are the same whether you are 2 or 16. My 2 year old will not eat anywhere near what a 16 year old will eat next year. Before anybody says that she will use the children's clubs, when my 7 year old was 2 she wouldn't entertain the children's club as she wasn't used to staying with anybody but family as our parents had her whilst we were at work. So she may only be using the night nursery (which is excellent by the way). She will be eating food but it will be the children's tea which will be chicken nuggets and such like. Whereas a 16 year old will be eating far more.

 

In my view the fares should be staggered like the kids clubs (2-4, 4-8 etc). I don't think paying 80% of the adult fare is acceptable for the age range. Also P & O must make quite a bit of money from ice cream sales, soft drinks and in the on board shops from children. My daughters will want ice cream and not free tea, coffee, orange, water etc from the restaurants.

 

I have cruised several times with family and my Auntie and Uncle regularly spend around £200/£300 per cruise in total after their on board credit whereas we spend £1,500+.

 

When our daughters were under 2 we brought all their food and milk and had very little provided from P and O. That was our choice as looking back we were very over protective but we still had to pay a flat fee of around £299. We would however use the night nursery.

 

Don't get me wrong I am by no means slagging P and O off as they provide an excellent product that suites our family and their children's facilities are second to none. I just think the fares could be better for younger children.

 

One final point is that we generally have to pay more as we have to book as soon as the brochure comes out as children's places get filled up quickly and we are at a disadvantage as we can't risk leaving it late to book to get any better prices. This is due to my wife having to put her holidays in a year in advance too.

[Herbie100]

I do tend to agree regarding child/3rd/4th adult prices. We will be travelling with 2 teenagers and would quite happily share a cabin if the child prices were cheaper. We've ended up booking 2 balcony cabins for not much more than a single balcony. We've had to book the select price (as we wanted to use some Tesco vouchers for partial payment). One of the balcony cabins has the capacity to sleep up to 4 (as we need this option as one of my children is Autistic and 3 or all 4 of us may end up sleeping in the same cabin anyway with a vacant one next door!). Maybe the select price shouldn't be as high as 80% but understand more when it's 80% of a saver price.....?

[richleeds]

The trouble is where does it end? You want P&O to have more complex child fares when most people are crying out for fare simplicity. P&O are dammed if they do and damned if they don't. They have to take an overall look at the net cost of a child on board and the fact that your particular child did or did not use a certain facility or only ate fish fingers is immaterial in the bigger picture.

 

We never use the free room service, never snack between meals with afternoon tea etc, always buy sparkling water when others get it free from the jug, only have simple salad lunches and muesli at breakfast, pay a decent bar bill at the end of the cruise, can we get a discount compared to the people who stuff their faces 24-7?!

[AchileLauro]

There are many other unseen costs that people don't generally consider but none the less have to be provided. While I don't think that P&O have got it totally right with their pricing I don't think that they have got it totally wrong either with regard to children's fares. In fact we have been most happy with what we have paid in the past compared to say a package holiday.

 

Some years ago a workmate was travelling to France on a camping holiday that included ferry crossings, hire of tent and equipment and camp site fees. He his wife and baby daughter were paying more for a week than our family of four were paying for a 9 night cruise on Aurora to the Canaries. This was before you considered the cost of his fuel to get to France and the cost of food that they had to buy.

[daiB]

The trouble is where does it end? You want P&O to have more complex child fares when most people are crying out for fare simplicity. P&O are dammed if they do and damned if they don't. They have to take an overall look at the net cost of a child on board and the fact that your particular child did or did not use a certain facility or only ate fish fingers is immaterial in the bigger picture.

 

We never use the free room service, never snack between meals with afternoon tea etc, always buy sparkling water when others get it free from the jug, only have simple salad lunches and muesli at breakfast, pay a decent bar bill at the end of the cruise, can we get a discount compared to the people who stuff their faces 24-7?!

 

 

In that case I never go to the shows and hardly ever have lunch and never go to the port talks.

 

That's excellent my bill is coming down as we speak. :) :) :) ;)

 

 

 

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[heywood]

Is it not the same with any holiday re children's prices.
I remember when there used to be 'free' places on offer for holidays in Spain etc. However, you were then charged for under occupancy which then hiked the holiday price up to almost the same price as an adult.

[daiB]

Errrrr am I in danger of losing my 'miserable grumpy old fart' title as I'm not booked on a adult only ship in the next 2 year and it has been 4 cruises since I was on Oriana.

No one told me that it was possible to lose your title.

Can I not be a MGOF on Oceana if I try hard.


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[Hasthagotnowtmoist]

[quote name='daiB']Errrrr am I in danger of losing my 'miserable grumpy old fart' title as I'm not booked on a adult only ship in the next 2 year and it has been 4 cruises since I was on Oriana.

No one told me that it was possible to lose your title.

Can I not be a MGOF on Oceana if I try hard[/QUOTE]


I cant grasp why a MGOF would go on a family friendly ship when they can go on one of the child-free vessels instead. Oh hang on... Yes I can, it gives them something else to moan about!


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[SeagoingMom]

[COLOR=DarkRed]Ultimately, what difference does it make whether a population of CC posters agrees or does not agree that this rate is riddiculous (sic)? It is your decision to sail or not.

According to Delta Airlines, if you fly internationally with an infant on your lap, you still pay for an airline ticket. Perhaps this is the policy of the airline you would be flying on to get to your cruise. In which case it sounds like you are getting your baby's cruise practically free.

Does the price you were quoted include taxes and port fees? These are undoubtedly calculated per "soul" (not per adult) on board.

Babies create messes -- they poop and pee (creating a lot of solid waste), they spit up (sometimes creating cleaning issues), they are washed and bathed (incurring water treatment costs), etc., etc. And as was said before, the ship is not going to discount a fare because the pax carry their own food and bedding for the infant.

I am not unsympathetic to the disappointment you feel regarding the cost you were quoted; lots of things cost more than I wish they did, too...

[/COLOR]

[daiB]

[quote name='Hasthagotnowtmoist']I cant grasp why a MGOF would go on a family friendly ship when they can go on one of the child-free vessels instead. Oh hang on... Yes I can, it gives them something else to moan about!


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I some how thought that would be your answer. You have no sense of humour. Or is it just a big chip on your shoulder.

I like children and have never complained about them on board or on here.

In fact as many will let me know all the time I do not complain about much only to the right people at the right time.

But I can still be a BOF if I like.


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[Hasthagotnowtmoist]

[quote name='daiB']I some how thought that would be your answer. You have no sense of humour. Or is it just a big chip on your shoulder.

I like children and have never complained about them on board or on here.

In fact as many will let me know all the time I do not complain about much only to the right people at the right time.

But I can still be a BOF if I like.


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Apologies if you took that personally, it was meant as more of a general comment (which I stand by). That said, i've been on family friendly ships and been astounded by how friendly those aged 60+ were to our family so I should really try not to generalise too much despite a few questionable remarks from others on here who most definitely seem like MGOFs


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[richleeds]

[quote name='daiB']I some how thought that would be your answer. You have no sense of humour. Or is it just a big chip on your shoulder.[/QUOTE]


I think it's both.

[Tom Baker]

[quote name='daiB']There were some very good deals on Celebrity recently with the drink packages etc. although 5 cruises this year already another one may be OTT.[/quote]

ROFPMSL :D:D:D:D:D

Yeah Right! Like you considered travelling with anyone else but P&O!!! :rolleyes:

[Alan Flett]

[quote name='richleeds']The trouble is where does it end? You want P&O to have more complex child fares when most people are crying out for fare simplicity. P&O are dammed if they do and damned if they don't. They have to take an overall look at the net cost of a child on board and the fact that your particular child did or did not use a certain facility or only ate fish fingers is immaterial in the bigger picture.

We never use the free room service, never snack between meals with afternoon tea etc, always buy sparkling water when others get it free from the jug, only have simple salad lunches and muesli at breakfast, pay a decent bar bill at the end of the cruise, can we get a discount compared to the people who stuff their faces 24-7?![/QUOTE]

I'm not saying they need to complicate the pricing structure, far from it. The net cost of a child on board will vary significantly for a 2 year old to a 16 year old and therefore eating fish fingers certainly does come into it. P and O are a global organisation and will have complex pricing structures showing estimated costs per passenger. I am merely saying that maybe the structure should be based upon the children's club they are in so for instance 0-2 40% of the adult fare, 2-5 50% of the adult fare and so on. Paying 80% of the adult fare for a 2 year old and a 16 year old is totally disproportionate.

As for then saying that you only have light breakfast and lunches, well that is your choice and as an adult you can weigh up whether you are getting value for money. All that I am saying is that it is expensive for a 2 year old but that is a choice I take by booking the holiday. I am paying nearly £5,500 for the 4 of us next year, if we didn't have children then it would be half and good value for money. Is it justified to be paying £2,750 for a 2 and 7 year old? I don't think so but I like the product and will pay it but that doesn't make it fair. If I had 16 year old twins, well it would be a different story.

For the record I don't attend any talks, do any activities on board or such like so I don't get full value for money but that is my choice which I am more than happy with.

My main gripe is the pricing structure for children and I think it could be more fair.

As I mentioned earlier I can't book last minute due to holidays at work for my wife and child places availability as P and O will only let a certain amount of children on per cruise and if the capacity is taken then we wouldn't get on.

I can understand why P and O do it as it's basically supply and demand and the cruise we are booked on I would imagine it being the most popular of the school holidays. However if you look at all of the cruises throughout the school holidays the child price varies greatly. I'm pretty sure if it was a 2 week cruise to the fjords going the same date then the price of a child would not be 80% of the adult fare.

[daiB]

[quote name='Tom Baker']ROFPMSL :D:

Yeah Right! Like you considered travelling with anyone else but P&O!!! :rolleyes:[/QUOTE]


Tom, how could you I always think about it. But I have too many P&O cruises booked to fit the others in. :) :) ;)



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