Future Cruise Deposit scheme to end, and changed to on-board booking

[9is]

Where we will lose out is that we are a family of four. Two children, 7 and 3. We can buy future cruise deposit for all four of us and use it when booking into one cabin. So receive 4x extra onboard credit. If we book onboard then they only give the extra onboard credit to the first two people.

[terrierjohn]

It does seem that this is another example of P&O shooting itself in the foot, or maybe as Florry says they just want to discourage those of us who make use of the fairly small FCD perks.

Whatever the reason it will likely backfire, as Kruzseeka says, when the missing FCD points the way to us booking a cruise with the competition.

[bee-ess]

Maybe the falling Carnival revenues from P&O due to the fall in value of the pound has something to do with it. The bottom line is all that counts.

 

Sadly this is just one more thing being taken away. This forum seems to highlight a list of items being removed from the product now and little if anything added. We are waiting to see what the new Loyalty scheme offers but I think we will be disappointed when (if ever) it is announced

[john watson]

Have just read this in the weekly email mailing received from P&O today:

 

"On*‐board booking perks will continue, with extra on-*‐board spending money now available on all Select Price cruises of four nights or more.

Additionally, you told us you loved our low deposit scheme and this is set to stay. Just £50pp can secure a future adventure with us. And for extra peace of mind? While we will no longer be selling future cruise down payments from 2 July, the introduction of a two-week grace period on your return home when you book your holiday on board

 

 

Oh yes I remember this survey and i suspect everybody like me said, stop the Future Cruise Deposit scheme, take the extra on board credit away. Just let me pay £50 deposit a couple of weeks after my cruise finishes because everybody likes to be pressured into a hasty decision after they get home. The new scheme must not apply to short cruises I said, like everybody else. We just do not want more cruise credit than the next person who is booking later at a discount.

 

Fabulous incentive, I have now booked up, albeit Queen Victoria but reading between the lines this is what P&O want.

 

Incidentally who put in their survey, get a load of fat celebrities and have them do callisthenics on board a P&O ship and broadcast it on ITV on the Lorraine programme. I did it's a brilliant idea to increase bookings from an obvious social demographic group which has previously been overlooked. That's why I suggested it.

 

Regards John

Edited June 28, 2017 by john watson

[Bedruthen]

I can only relate this to our recent onboard experience. The loyalty club desk was in constant use, and whenever we walked past, there was always a couple of people waiting. Now we have never used the service before despite being regular cruisers, but on this occasion we got talking to the loyalty manager onboard one evening in the bar and so we started asking about the onboard booking benefits. They were telling us that more and more people wanted to pay the low deposit for a future cruise and that FCD was nowhere near as popular as it used to be. If their view is correct, then maybe P&O had crunched the figures and realised that encouraging people to book onboard generates a greater revenue stream than giving money away in the form of FCD and therefore want staff onboard to be available for future cruise sales only? What we did observe was that people were making speculative future bookings, in some cases multiple bookings, knowing that they would only lose their £100 deposit if they had to cancel or amend the booking in the future. I wonder how much revenue that generates in a year for P&O ????

[Dennis-The-Menace]

So far a number of issues have been raised as to why these new arrangements are to the disadvantage to customers as compared with the T&Cs of the previous scheme; there are problems surrounding the uncertainty of annual holidays from work, of not wanting to commit to a booking so far ahead for all manner of reasons (a fortnight after returning home really doesn't cut it) or being able to use the fcd on brochure launch.

 

Whilst I doubt anyone is naive enough to choose a holiday based on some additional obc I certainly like to buy a fcd. To a small extent I confess this is to take advantage of a perk (it's not a deal breaker but is a canny incentive tapping into folks' desire to get something extra) but mainly it's almost a psychological 'tie' to thinking about and planning our next holiday - a little consolation when coming to the end of a lovely cruise.

 

I suspect this might back-fire somewhat for reasons already aired as most people who previously paid a fcd had, to a large extent, therefore committed to another P&O cruise. Of course you can forfeit the fcd but I think most would be looking closely at P&O's itineraries with a view to 'cashing in' on their little bonus. But psychologically that connection has gone and I really do believe that will lead to customers being more receptive to considering other deals from other cruise lines. Of course some will not desert P&O but I suspect a proportion like me, without a fcd to consider, may well be less 'attached' to P&O whilst searching for our next cruise.

 

(And I find it laughable for P&O to infer this is what customers want - how does it benefit anyone over the previous arrangements? To infer that it is anything other than a hard-nosed business decision which, of course is their prerogative, is insulting to the customer's intelligence.)

 

Summed up beautifully KS, it's a hard-nosed business decision trying to be hidden away under their usual "due to customer feedback" line. They may well get more actual cruises booked onboard but I agree - without FCD's they have significantly reduced the likelihood of people booking another one later on and so, overall, I think this move is a big mistake.

[HELEN HENRY]

(y) Dennis-The-Menace. Good to see you posting again. Look forward to your future postings.

[9is]

Interesting about the low deposit bookings. We had to cancel a cruise with a low deposit on it. We were made to pay the equivalent extra to equal the 15% that would normally be required when making a booking.

[barriead]

It would be nice if P&O actually provided some evidence of changes "due to customer feedback" such as a table showing the percentages who actually referenced it.....but of course they will not as this is the usual clap trap they (like all other Companies) spin out to justify changes.

I find it hard to believe anyone would actually see FCDs as negative....I could probably see people who book cruises onboard preferring the extra on board credit (for select fare:D) but I would be amazed if many people reference that in their feedback either.

Given that most Cruise Ship Visits do sell out I am guessing there must be a low uptake on FCDs and they may well try a hard sell of Bookings with extra OBCs

[peteukmcr]

Incidentally who put in their survey, get a load of fat celebrities and have them do callisthenics on board a P&O ship and broadcast it on ITV on the Lorraine programme. I did it's a brilliant idea to increase bookings from an obvious social demographic group which has previously been overlooked. That's why I suggested it.

 

Regards John

Do I detect a hint of sarcasm here regards the TV exposure of Oceana on this weeks sailing?

 

Perhaps it was also as a result of surveys that 2 millionaire presenters broadcast a TV program during prime time viewing on a Saturday from Britannia was it?

 

It's called marketing from P&O's viewpoint and a prime example of the company trying to attract a different market. Perhaps the changes to this FCC is part of the same plan by discouraging past cruisers from finding it attractive to make repeat bookings.

 

 

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[davecttr]

Do I detect a hint of sarcasm here regards the TV exposure of Oceana on this weeks sailing?

 

Perhaps it was also as a result of surveys that 2 millionaire presenters broadcast a TV program during prime time viewing on a Saturday from Britannia was it?

 

It's called marketing from P&O's viewpoint and a prime example of the company trying to attract a different market. Perhaps the changes to this FCC is part of the same plan by discouraging past cruisers from finding it attractive to make repeat bookings.

 

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Apparently they make more profit from new cruisers than past cruisers who spend less aboard.

[peteukmcr]

Apparently they make more profit from new cruisers than past cruisers who spend less aboard.

I think that's the same on all cruise lines. The perceived reduction in benefits for repeat cruisers is very obvious on other lines including RCI, Celebrity and Carnival and causes no end of debate as to whether cruise lines appreciate customer loyalty.

 

However, booking on board RCI and Celebrity can mean a reduced deposit of $100 per cabin (as opposed to £150 each) and immediate credit of the same amount to spend on board during the current sailing.

 

You just have to work out what's the best for you.

[Florry]

I wish I'd made more £1 deposit bookings with Princess last week now.

 

 

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[Dennis-The-Menace]

(y) Dennis-The-Menace. Good to see you posting again. Look forward to your future postings.

 

Thanks Helen, good to see you :D

[Dennis-The-Menace]

I wish I'd made more £1 deposit bookings with Princess last week now.

 

 

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Me too Florry :(

[tartanexile81]

I have read with interest the posts and agree with what you're saying, particularly Florry's and kruzseeka's wise words.

 

We were at the Deputy Captain's table on our cruise recently and he talked at length about P&O's approach these days, and was very open in his responses. Amongst the questions asked were why the balconies are so small and why there is no central stair-case on Britannia. Answer - they don't make money although couched in corporate speak! Another question was about the new ship. He said it will be based in Southampton, aimed at a new clientele (surprise, surprise!) and that most of its cruises will between 2 and 11 days long. Britannia is the same apparently and the 14 day cruise we did was not the norm and they won't be doing it for another 2 years. There are still 14 day cruises in the Caribbean on Britannia although with St Lucia being introduced, 7 day cruises are becoming more common. I know this doesn't add to the FCD discussion but to me it exemplifies more and more where P&O is aiming.

I had to go to the desk and actually ask for the FCD forms having waited for the announcement in Horizon so I thought it was strange. It was only by chance that I passed the desk when she was off-duty but still around that I was able to get them for otherwise there were always lots of people sitting around waiting - as you all know

 

I am very sad about the removal of FCDs and Scriv and I have been chatting and commiserating with each other about it. We love our P&O cruises but if they devalue our loyalty, maybe we should consider looking elsewhere. Businesses need to grow and to attract new customers without doubt but they also need to retain their loyal clientele. P&O should realise this

Edited June 28, 2017 by tartanexile81

[terrierjohn]

If the max cruise length in future is to be limited to 11 days then the number of ports is likely to only be 4 or 5, or maybe even less for those like us who prefer warm or hot weather cruising, and do not want fly cruises.

Clearly this is to maximise revenues, short cruises always have a higher pppd cost than longer ones, and more sea days also increase revenue earning potential.

It will be interesting to see the if the deputy captain was right when the new ships itineraries are issued in Sept. 2018.

[Florry]

It's funny but just a couple of days ago I was thinking about the small balconies on Britannia, wondering how many extra cabins they squeezed in as a result and wondering if the new ship would be the same. I think we have all observed that P&O are completely focused on keeping prices low to attract more cruisers, and their marketing has been geared to changing the image of cruising to attract a new customer base (of course they must do this to remain sustainable). This leaves us loyal customers who like the convenience and Britishness in a quandary; it seems to me we either embrace the changes, enjoy the comparatively low prices and upgrade our experience with chargeable extras OR move to another line (preferably one that will transfer the loyalty points).

 

 

 

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[daiB]

It's funny but just a couple of days ago I was thinking about the small balconies on Britannia, wondering how many extra cabins they squeezed in as a result and wondering if the new ship would be the same. I think we have all observed that P&O are completely focused on keeping prices low to attract more cruisers, and their marketing has been geared to changing the image of cruising to attract a new customer base (of course they must do this to remain sustainable). This leaves us loyal customers who like the convenience and Britishness in a quandary; it seems to me we either embrace the changes, enjoy the comparatively low prices and upgrade our experience with chargeable extras OR move to another line (preferably one that will transfer the loyalty points).

 

 

 

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Sorry how can a narrow balcony mean more cabins. As far as I can see they are all about the same width. I.e. The length of the bed plus 2 to 3 feet. The fact they are narrow is nothing to do with P&O as the ships were built for Princess and P&O got the 3rd one. They all have narrow balconies.

 

How can they be focused on keeping prices low when people are complaining the prices are going up? Prices are going up because demand is going up.

 

 

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[P&O SUE]

As several people have said the future cruise desk is often crowded or closed so it's much more convenient to fill out the FCD form and pop it in the box!

 

Also regarding the 11 nights or less cruises I noticed Aurora and Oriana hardly doing any 7 night cruises next year which is a great shame. Many of them are not even 14 nights but 17, I can't do that long!! [emoji20]

 

 

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[P&O SUE]

Maybe it wasn't being utilised enough because people didn't understand the benefit. If they've had more takers for the BOB £50 deposit scheme (aka it's what our customers want) perhaps they use the administrative saving of closing the FCD scheme to open the desk for longer. I suppose there aren't many people who book multiple cruises a year and other cruisers may be more likely to BOB in the moment and on sea days when there isn't much to do. I suppose the die-hard P&O cruisers who come here are a tiny majority of those who sail, my guess is P&O view us as old school moaners who spend much of their time repeatedly squabbling about tips, dress codes and boarding times - perhaps not surprising they don't seem to care what we think or whether they get our repeat custom. These days they are far more likely to be courting opinion from those who run high profile FB groups, and move their offerings towards solutions that attract the biggest return.

 

 

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I belong to a couple of FB groups and people on there are very unhappy about the FCD ending!

 

 

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[Eglesbrech]

There is a new bit on the cruise personaliser which has just popped up in the last couple of days promoting the "book onboard". It is at the top of the life onboard section when you open it up.

 

We also got a promotional e-mail from our TA about it this week.

 

Definitely not as useful o flexible as the old system.

[terrierjohn]

Sorry how can a narrow balcony mean more cabins. As far as I can see they are all about the same width. I.e. The length of the bed plus 2 to 3 feet. The fact they are narrow is nothing to do with P&O as the ships were built for Princess and P&O got the 3rd one. They all have narrow balconies.

 

How can they be focused on keeping prices low when people are complaining the prices are going up? Prices are going up because demand is going up.

 

 

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Dai, you are leaping in to defend P&O (Carnival) at all costs as usual. Think about it, if there were no benefit to the cruise line in having 3 ft deep balconies as opposed to 6ft deep ones, then surely any cruise line or shipbuilder would build the latter.

I can only assume that the extra 6 ft of interior space allows the Royal class ships to have more inside cabins than they otherwise would, giving increased revenues.

If you are happy with this then fine, but for me this is one of the reasons I prefer to book the Grand class ships; and I am not alone and hope that this information is trickling back to the Carnival board and taken into account in the new build.

[tartanexile81]

Sorry how can a narrow balcony mean more cabins. As far as I can see they are all about the same width. I.e. The length of the bed plus 2 to 3 feet. The fact they are narrow is nothing to do with P&O as the ships were built for Princess and P&O got the 3rd one. They all have narrow balconies.

 

How can they be focused on keeping prices low when people are complaining the prices are going up? Prices are going up because demand is going up.

 

 

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All I know Dai is that the Senior officer when asked the question why the balconies are so small on Britannia gave the answer - quote- Because balconies don't generate income.

[daiB]

All I know Dai is that the Senior officer when asked the question why the balconies are so small on Britannia gave the answer - quote- Because balconies don't generate income.

 

 

 

And senior officers spout theories to passengers when they do not know the answer either.

 

 

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