P&O standards

[jeanlyon]

We have cruised many times with P&O, but we also had problems with the food last October on Oriana. Not always, but enough to notice. Beef Wellington, meat overdone and soggy pastry. Creme brulee, not crisp on the top. A piece of fish that was grey and slimey, (sent back), changed for something else, but by that time everyone else had eaten.

 

We are on Oriana again this coming October, so will hope for improvement. Before then we are with Fred, and have always found their food to be excellent.

[davecttr]

I didn't have bad service apart from the incident at Java. The only place we had good service was in the Epicurian and our room steward. Everywhere else was just bla...most of the crew looked miserable.

 

 

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It is my experience that the coffee bars fleetwide offer inferior service. It appears that the staff have lessons in avoiding eye contact :mad:

 

It may be that as these staff are waiters that are deployed to Java they are unhappy with the tiny amount of tips received from the bar tipping pool.

 

I have heard/read that the bar wait staff get 12% commission on pooled sales in that bar. This is included in your drink price but not listed :confused:

 

My next P&O cruise might be in December on Ventura, unless it is confirmed that they have 'formalised' The Glass House, the only decent bar on the ship, in which case I may well be looking elsewhere.

[daiB]

It is my experience that the coffee bars fleetwide offer inferior service. It appears that the staff have lessons in avoiding eye contact :mad:

 

 

 

It may be that as these staff are waiters that are deployed to Java they are unhappy with the tiny amount of tips received from the bar tipping pool.

 

 

 

I have heard/read that the bar wait staff get 12% commission on pooled sales in that bar. This is included in your drink price but not listed :confused:

 

 

 

My next P&O cruise might be in December on Ventura, unless it is confirmed that they have 'formalised' The Glass House, the only decent bar on the ship, in which case I may well be looking elsewhere.

 

 

So one complaint about poor service in one bar and above being asked too often if you wanted a drink. .??

 

Why do I get good service wherever I am? I drink in the coffee shop on most days. After two or three days they even know what I drink.

 

 

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[jeanlyon]

Yes I have always found the service excellent in all the bars and have no complaints about any other service either. Just the food has gone down.

[Bav]

Seven cruises on P & O since 2006.....standards and quality in buffet definitely gone down...smaller portions and not much variety......I have never criticized on this site before but if it had not been for the Specialty restaurants,mainly glass house, we would not be happy cruisers... No problems with any staff. Excellent service. But standards all round have gone down...May have been our last cruise. Someone said some years ago that 'it is like Butlins at Sea ' I am being to see what they meant. I believe the Monocled Mutineer would not be happy. Is he still out there somewhere ?

[davecttr]

So one complaint about poor service in one bar and above being asked too often if you wanted a drink. .??

 

Why do I get good service wherever I am? I drink in the coffee shop on most days. After two or three days they even know what I drink.

 

 

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So why don't i get good service wherever i am?

 

Come on Dai, lets be fair

[jeanlyon]

I don't think it's like Butlins on Oriana, but I didn't enjoy Azura which was far too big and crowded for us.

 

We don't bother with the specialty restaurants. I have heard conflicting reports from other tablemates as to whether they enjoyed those! We do like the evening buffets, Indian, Thai etc.

[aquilegia]

Let me assure them they will receive first class service that they never encounter at home. I notice no complaints about being able to take alcohol on board, cheaper drink prices than on US lines, no 15% additional charge to drinks, cheaper gratuities.

 

Well, I personally wouldn't be commenting on the lack of alcohol restrictions or the cheaper drink prices and 15% drinks charge, because it's of no interest to me as I drink very little. As to the cheaper gratuities, I did indeed welcome those - before i got on board. They are not much over half the price of Princess, which is a big difference. However, after a few days on Ventura with miserable, bored-looking staff and service that could only be described as adequate at best, I remarked to DH that the difference in gratuities was a pretty accurate reflection of the difference in service!

[daiB]

So why don't i get good service wherever i am?

 

 

 

Come on Dai, lets be fair

 

 

Sorry Dave but I can only tell it as I find it. On whichever ship I am on I get good service like you I tend to use the same venues most days and by the middle of the first week they know my name and what I drink be it G&T or coffee.

 

 

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[jody75]

Interesting isn't it that in order to get a good meal you have to pay more and incur the cost of additional cover charge in a speciality restaurant. That tells me everything about what P&O want.

 

That is exactly the same on Celebrity or HAL. It just proves that all the Mass Market cruise lines are the same. If you want better go to Seven Seas or similar and pay double !!

[Balaena]

However, after a few days on Ventura with miserable, bored-looking staff and service that could only be described as adequate at best, I remarked to DH that the difference in gratuities was a pretty accurate reflection of the difference in service!

 

Have to agree with Dai, never have a problem with service, especially Ventura which we regard as one of the friendliest ship in the fleet. I'm not suggesting you don't, but it helps a lot to smile and acknowledge the staff. We do and you know, after a couple of days we are recognised and referred to by our name.

Bal

[tankmc]

Have to agree with Dai, never have a problem with service, especially Ventura which we regard as one of the friendliest ship in the fleet. I'm not suggesting you don't, but it helps a lot to smile and acknowledge the staff. We do and you know, after a couple of days we are recognised and referred to by our name.

Bal

 

 

We always said hello to staff and asking how are you. Asking if they had a good day etc. Most of the time it was like talking to a brick wall. The only people who spoke to us where our cabin steward and the staff in the Epicurean.

[jeanlyon]

I really have never experienced that with the staff. They have always been superb.

[peteukmcr]

That is exactly the same on Celebrity or HAL. It just proves that all the Mass Market cruise lines are the same. If you want better go to Seven Seas or similar and pay double !!

 

 

I agree, but I can vouch for the fact the food in the MDR on Celebrity is good so there isn't the need to visit the speciality restaurants to get a decent dinner.

[Presto2]

I agree, but I can vouch for the fact the food in the MDR on Celebrity is good so there isn't the need to visit the speciality restaurants to get a decent dinner.

 

Much prefer the food on P&O than Celebrity - portions far too big and very, very salty. Not fine dining to us .. but each to their own. :)

 

have to admit we use the speciality dining areas on P&O and Celebrity just to have a change from the norm occasionally.

[gadabout60]

I agree, but I can vouch for the fact the food in the MDR on Celebrity is good so there isn't the need to visit the speciality restaurants to get a decent dinner.

 

I agree but the specialty restaurants on Eclipse are all of a high quality and as we are on holiday we like to treat ourselves

[aquilegia]

Have to agree with Dai, never have a problem with service, especially Ventura which we regard as one of the friendliest ship in the fleet. I'm not suggesting you don't, but it helps a lot to smile and acknowledge the staff. We do and you know, after a couple of days we are recognised and referred to by our name.

Bal

 

I don't need any instructions on how to behave towards the crew. If you look at my first post on this thread #8 you will find that my specific point was that I was saying hello and smiling at staff when they stood aside in corridors for me and they were not responding. And since your post, I see that tankmc has made exactly the same complaint of lack of response when he greeted crew on Ventura. I don't know whether or not he was on the same cruise as me. Other posters on this thread have also remarked on crew attitude. This may not be at all typical of P&O but there has obviously been something very amiss recently on Ventura, as my experience was not an isolated one.

[mickey89]

I agree, but I can vouch for the fact the food in the MDR on Celebrity is good so there isn't the need to visit the speciality restaurants to get a decent dinner.

I can't disagree more, I was on Celebrity Eclipse in February and the MDR food was disgraceful. The only place to get a decent evening meal was Murano, even the Tuscan Grill was poor and at a ridiculous cost of $100.

[jody75]

I agree, but I can vouch for the fact the food in the MDR on Celebrity is good so there isn't the need to visit the speciality restaurants to get a decent dinner.

How can you agree and then say that Celebrity MDR food is good - it is no better than all other mass market lines. If you want a decent meal you need to pay extra, that unfortunately is a fact these days.

[Presto2]

I can't disagree more, I was on Celebrity Eclipse in February and the MDR food was disgraceful. The only place to get a decent evening meal was Murano, even the Tuscan Grill was poor and at a ridiculous cost of $100.

 

Good point re the cost. The speciality restaurants on Celebrity are far more expensive than those on P&O. I think it is now at least $50 per person on Celebrity .... plus the additional cost of very expensive wines and water if you enjoy wine with a meal.

[Florry]

In my opinion the food has deteriorated and the food in the MDR has got progressively less inspiring and varied. We generally eat in speciality venues and the evening buffet as both of these are better quality. We eat in the MDR on formal nights as I like the port soaked Stilton, sadly on our last cruise there was only one for the whole restaurant and it took an age to get it. Having said this I don't recall seeing significant price increases on P&O for years so I guess we get what we pay for, personally I like the convenience and the brand and would rather pay more to have better quality food. As for the staff - in my opinion they are usually very pleasant but I have noticed that they are far less happy when working a shift in the buffet, and the MDR waiters whilst very nice, no longer have much time to chat as they are just so rushed. For me the MDR experience just isn't what it used to be. There was mention some time ago when there was a restructure at head office that P&O was destined to become the budget brand. I do see a trend emerging and it grieves me as much as it grieves other regulars who are noticing the difference. On a positive note I thought that these concerns were less noticeable on Britannia than other ships and she would be my P&O ship of choice for future bookings. I have already made a decision to start using other brands, I am cruising with Princess next month and will be trying Ociana in 2017 - you pay your money and make your choice!

Edited March 25, 2016 by Florry

[Presto2]

I have already made a decision to start using other brands, I am cruising with Princess next month and will be trying Ociana in 2017 - you pay your money and make your choice!

 

Ok if you can afford it - we have to cruise in school holiday times so the other cruise lines are way past our budget. Keep looking at Regent and dreaming about their offers but we would have to win the lottery ! (But we don't do that either!)

[Florry]

Ok if you can afford it - we have to cruise in school holiday times so the other cruise lines are way past our budget. Keep looking at Regent and dreaming about their offers but we would have to win the lottery ! (But we don't do that either!)

 

 

School holiday prices are awful and I sympathise with anyone restricted to travelling at those times. We are trying other brands and will think carefully about cost:benefit ratio. If there is a significant difference in both I would certainly consider cruising less often and paying more. If on the other hand I don't think there is significant difference in quality I'd be back to the economy of P&O. I think it's a fine line between running an economical brand and reducing standards to such a point it's no longer my provider of choice. I will probably come back to P&O when I'm trying to survive off a pension.

[Granny bee]

Bad food, not enough Stilton, surly waiters not being able to chat, cabin stewards not saying hello while passing in the corridors. I have never experienced any of these in all of our cruises with P & O. You have other choices

[Florry]

Bad food, not enough Stilton, surly waiters not being able to chat, cabin stewards not saying hello while passing in the corridors. I have never experienced any of these in all of our cruises with P & O. You have other choices

 

 

It's only the last few cruises out of very many I have noticed the decline, I've always been a very loyal P&O cruiser. I am choosing other brands because of my personal experience, I just think it's a shame I feel the need. I'm really pleased you haven't noticed/experienced the same difference [emoji4]

Edited March 25, 2016 by Florry