New to P&O. Help please!

[Burgmeister]

Just looked up the "gratuities" policy and was surprised to see that P&O have removed them. 

 

[AndyMichelle]

6 minutes ago, Burgmeister said:

I have read a number of reviews (admittedly not recently) that were not glowing in their opinions of Ventura. My response saying that I was aware that Ventura may not be the best ship in the fleet was in reply to Presto2's comment "Have to say --- to be  bit of a 'downer' sorry -- that Ventura was not our favourite ship though "

 

I think most of the reviews that were negative were from people that may not have been the target market for Ventura. As I understand it, Ventura is a large, family focused, ship  that doesn't suit everyone  - having said that I read similar reviews of the IotS before we sailed on her and we loved that ship.

 

Obviously, never having cruised on P&O let alone the Ventura, I can't offer any first hand opinion of her, however, as I said, the reviews I read were, on the whole, less than great. As you can see from my original query I have not let this put me off from thinking of booking on her.

 

On another point that you mentioned - the P&O FAQ. Thank you for pointing this out and its interesting to know that all of my questions could have been answered by reading that. I would, of course, not have received the other interesting titbits and opinions had I done that but I realise that some people get annoyed by forumites asking questions that could be found by doing their own research and for that I apologise. Personally, I am happy to answer anyone's questions regarding a ship I have sailed on whether they could get that information elsewhere or not - there is no substitute for real-world experience in my view.

Please keep asking questions, that's what we are all here for, to help others and be helped. 

I always ask questions as would rather have first hand experiences than P&Os official line. 

Andy 

[Burgmeister]

Thanks Andy

 

That has always been my thinking but, obviously, others don't necessarily agree.

[AndyMichelle]

2 minutes ago, Burgmeister said:

Just looked up the "gratuities" policy and was surprised to see that P&O have removed them. 

 

Yep, no tips needed or expected. 

To my surprise, it seems most passengers now follow this, we seemed to be the only ones giving our wonderful waiters a tip on our last cruise. 

Andy 

[wowzz]

1 minute ago, AndyMichelle said:

Please keep asking questions, that's what we are all here for, to help others and be helped. 

I always ask questions as would rather have first hand experiences than P&Os official line. 

Andy 

I didn't necessarily mean that you should not ask questions here, rather that the FAQ is a good place to start for  instant factual information (eg cost of drinks packages),which can then be supplemented with subjective advice here.

[wowzz]

3 minutes ago, AndyMichelle said:

Yep, no tips needed or expected. 

To my surprise, it seems most passengers now follow this, we seemed to be the only ones giving our wonderful waiters a tip on our last cruise. 

Andy 

We don't tip unless the service is extremely good. No point including tips in the fare if you then tip as well .

[Burgmeister]

1 minute ago, AndyMichelle said:

Yep, no tips needed or expected. 

To my surprise, it seems most passengers now follow this, we seemed to be the only ones giving our wonderful waiters a tip on our last cruise. 

Andy 

Did you tip each night or just at the end of the cruise?

Just curious, did you also tip your cabin steward?

 

I, like many in the UK, have always seen tipping as odd. People get paid to do a job yet some jobs are expected to be tipped (waiting staff, cab drivers etc) whilst others don't have any expectation of this (pretty much everyone else!). Now that there is a legal minimum wage it seems even more odd to tip certain staff - for the avoidance of doubt, I'm talking about jobs "onshore" and I do tip as it is expected. 

[Burgmeister]

1 minute ago, wowzz said:

We don't tip unless the service is extremely good. No point including tips in the fare if you then tip as well .

I would always expect the service to be extremely good though - that is what people are being paid for and everyone should take pride in their work - shouldn't they?

 

Interestingly, when we went to Finland for a holiday a few years back we were told that tipping is seen as an insult. Apparently it appears to staff that you are saying that their normal service is substandard and you are only tipping because their service was good - an interesting take on it.

[terrierjohn]

Keep asking the questions Burgmeister, it keeps us regulars in business and hopefully helps you as well.  As to tipping, daily, weekly or at the end of the cruise, or not at all, it's your decision, do what you feel is right.  

As to whether Ventura is good bad or neither, please let us have your views after your cruise.

[AndyMichelle]

18 minutes ago, Burgmeister said:

Did you tip each night or just at the end of the cruise?

Just curious, did you also tip your cabin steward?

 

I, like many in the UK, have always seen tipping as odd. People get paid to do a job yet some jobs are expected to be tipped (waiting staff, cab drivers etc) whilst others don't have any expectation of this (pretty much everyone else!). Now that there is a legal minimum wage it seems even more odd to tip certain staff - for the avoidance of doubt, I'm talking about jobs "onshore" and I do tip as it is expected. 

Fantastic, we have started another tipping thread... 😊

I don't feel obliged to tip anybody and understand why most don’t, but I do like to reward when crew go above and beyond. 

On our last cruise, we moved cabin halfway through. The first cabin steward did her job, she did not get a tip. The second could not have been more helpful and friendly and added a bit of humour to our holiday, he got a tip. 

I don't care if I am right or wrong, I will give a few quid to those who do a little bit to make my holiday better. 

Andy 

 

[Burgmeister]

17 minutes ago, AndyMichelle said:

Fantastic, we have started another tipping thread... 😊

I don't feel obliged to tip anybody and understand why most don’t, but I do like to reward when crew go above and beyond. 

On our last cruise, we moved cabin halfway through. The first cabin steward did her job, she did not get a tip. The second could not have been more helpful and friendly and added a bit of humour to our holiday, he got a tip. 

I don't care if I am right or wrong, I will give a few quid to those who do a little bit to make my holiday better. 

Andy 

 

Oops Sorry, I'll drop the tips comments!

 

You aren't right or wrong though. I don't think there is a right or wrong - it's what you feel happy doing. At least with P&O you have the option.

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, AndyMichelle said:

Fantastic, we have started another tipping thread... 😊

I don't feel obliged to tip anybody and understand why most don’t, but I do like to reward when crew go above and beyond. 

On our last cruise, we moved cabin halfway through. The first cabin steward did her job, she did not get a tip. The second could not have been more helpful and friendly and added a bit of humour to our holiday, he got a tip. 

I don't care if I am right or wrong, I will give a few quid to those who do a little bit to make my holiday better. 

Andy 

 

Andy - that would have been my course of action as well.

[Burgmeister]

Hi again everyone

 

Well, turns out that this cruise is back on and we are booked on Ventura for our first P&O cruise.

 

I'm afraid I have another question. How strictly is the dress code followed on formal nights. 

 

We quite like dressing up for the formal nights as we don't do this at home, but would feel quite self conscious if we were in a minority of people joining in.

 

Thanks

[Josy1953]

5 minutes ago, Burgmeister said:

Hi again everyone

 

Well, turns out that this cruise is back on and we are booked on Ventura for our first P&O cruise.

 

I'm afraid I have another question. How strictly is the dress code followed on formal nights. 

 

We quite like dressing up for the formal nights as we don't do this at home, but would feel quite self conscious if we were in a minority of people joining in.

 

Thanks

Our experience on P&O ships is that the dress code is followed by the majority of passengers.

[AndyMichelle]

14 minutes ago, Burgmeister said:

Hi again everyone

 

Well, turns out that this cruise is back on and we are booked on Ventura for our first P&O cruise.

 

I'm afraid I have another question. How strictly is the dress code followed on formal nights. 

 

We quite like dressing up for the formal nights as we don't do this at home, but would feel quite self conscious if we were in a minority of people joining in.

 

Thanks

We all hear horror stories, but our experience is the majority still partake. 

You certainly won't be in a minority. 

It is still enforced mainly. 

Andy 

[Burgmeister]

10 minutes ago, Josy1953 said:

Our experience on P&O ships is that the dress code is followed by the majority of passengers.

Thanks Josy and Andy

 

Looking back through the answers to my previous questions, I have a follow up to the question on taking alcohol aboard. I now understand that we can take 1 litre of alcohol per adult - is that a single bottle up to 1 litre or could you take 2 x 0.5 Litre bottles each? 

 

I know people have said that they don't really check for it but I am a rule follower

Edited February 5, 2020 by Burgmeister

[AndyMichelle]

9 minutes ago, Burgmeister said:

Thanks Josy and Andy

 

Looking back through the answers to my previous questions, I have a follow up to the question on taking alcohol aboard. I now understand that we can take 1 litre of alcohol per adult - is that a single bottle up to 1 litre or could you take 2 x 0.5 Litre bottles each? 

 

I know people have said that they don't really check for it but I am a rule follower

1 litre each in any form I believe... 

Even loads of miniatures... 

Andy 

[KnowTheScore]

@Burgmeister

 

In regards to drinks:

 

Definitely bring your own bottles on board within the P&O limits which can be drunk in your cabin.

Be aware that once on-board, if you purchase any further bottles of wine/spirits in any of the ports you will be required to hand it in when re-boarding for the duration of the cruise and it will be returned to you on the penultimate night.

Drinks prices are imo very reasonable on P&O and always have been.

 

In regards to Ventura:

 

As with the other poster, Ventura is not my favourite ship at all and I most certainly will never sail on her during the season when kids are on-board.

 

However you must understand that such views are always personal and largely concern what type of cruise an individual wants.  For example, like many traditional cruisers I like to play cards during the day like Bridge, Whist or Cribbage but Ventura offers no dedicated room for this.  It used to but replaced it in favour of creating a chargeable children's arcade machine area.   I have always found that in the kid's season, the children on-board are loud, unruly, often out of control and not properly supervised by the parents who are too busy having drinks and partying.   I have also found that the enforcement of rules and such behaviours by staff on Ventura is exceptionally poor compared to other ships in the fleet.   I have witnessed kids tearing around the 3 deck atrium playing tiggy, throwing ice cubes from the top deck onto balconies below and running and shouting along cabin corridors at 1.00am in the morning.   Totally unacceptable behaviours imo but the Ventura staff seem very lax to tackle it.

I will also say that across the fleet Ventura for me personally is the most informal of all ships and thus I don't expect dress codes to be particularly good.    To try and convey this better, it's the difference between a set of people who love say black and white nights and feel right at home dressing up in glam dresses and penguin suits and never tire of it, verses a set of people who don penguin suits begrudgingly because they have to but who would rather be in t-shirts and jeans. 

In the end it comes down to what kind of experience you are after and as you have kids, Ventura may well be a good fit for you.

Every ship in the fleet is unique and has it's different types of regular loyal cruisers.   Over time you find out which ships represent which style of cruising and you then favour the ships that suit your preference.

 

In regards to dress codes:

 

Dress codes are enforced but we must be clear, the dress codes have been dumbed down significantly over the years by P&O (or rather Carnival!).    There will only be Smart Casual Nights and Black Tie nights and the latter will be minimal.  In days gone by many gents would regularly wear smart jackets and shirts to dinner and ladies would wear lovely dresses every day which made for a "special night out" feeling every night.   Now that has all disappeared.  It's "no jacket required" except on Black Tie night and so people turn up to the restaurant in all manner of attire.   Very casual "Fred Perry" style polo shirts are often seen with older gents as an example.   The overall ambience has therefore very much changed but as you are new you won't notice that erosion of dress code.   The experience is imo now no different to going to your local pub.   It's free and easy and informal to the point of no longer being anything special but many people desire that kind of experience which is why Carnival have steered the dress codes that way.   Everything comes down to what you want out of your cruise.

 

I have to say that picking a long 35 night cruise as your first on any ship is somewhat risky as any individual ship may not provide the experience you are looking for.   Better imo to try shorter cruises on different ships to find the ones that best suit your personal preferences.

 

Cheers

Edited February 5, 2020 by KnowTheScore

[hollyjess]

you will have a supply of tea bags coffee sachets milk and biscuits in your cabin. These are replenished daily by your cabin steward.

[Burgmeister]

21 hours ago, KnowTheScore said:

@

 

I have to say that picking a long 35 night cruise as your first on any ship is somewhat risky as any individual ship may not provide the experience you are looking for.   Better imo to try shorter cruises on different ships to find the ones that best suit your personal preferences.

 

Cheers

Thank you for your response but I'm not quite sure where you got the idea that I was signed up to a 35 night cruise? We have booked  a 7 night cruise

 

Disappointed to hear that kids run riot - that can absolutely ruin a cruise.

[davemorton]

1 minute ago, Burgmeister said:

Thank you for your response but I'm not quite sure where you got the idea that I was signed up to a 35 night cruise? We have booked  a 7 night cruise

 

Disappointed to hear that kids run riot - that can absolutely ruin a cruise.

I would not worry about it, I would hardly say it was the norm. 

[Burgmeister]

Couple more questions.

 

1. Are any of the MDRs open for lunch on embarkation day?

2. Can you get access to your cabin as soon as you board (as on Princess) or do you have to wait until a certain time (as per RC and Norwegian)?

 

Thanks

[AndyMichelle]

19 minutes ago, Burgmeister said:

Thank you for your response but I'm not quite sure where you got the idea that I was signed up to a 35 night cruise? We have booked  a 7 night cruise

 

Disappointed to hear that kids run riot - that can absolutely ruin a cruise.

Never seen any kids run riot... 

Some can be lively, but that's just kids getting excited. 

Andy 

[AndyMichelle]

19 minutes ago, Burgmeister said:

Couple more questions.

 

1. Are any of the MDRs open for lunch on embarkation day?

2. Can you get access to your cabin as soon as you board (as on Princess) or do you have to wait until a certain time (as per RC and Norwegian)?

 

Thanks

The Glass House etc are open for lunch on embarkation, don't think the MDR is. 

As for cabin availability, depends what time you arrive. 

We have been lucky most of the time, but our last cruise we had about a half hour wait. 

Most are ready by 2ish.

Andy 

[grapau27]

On 2/5/2020 at 6:40 PM, Burgmeister said:

Hi again everyone

 

Well, turns out that this cruise is back on and we are booked on Ventura for our first P&O cruise.

 

I'm afraid I have another question. How strictly is the dress code followed on formal nights. 

 

We quite like dressing up for the formal nights as we don't do this at home, but would feel quite self conscious if we were in a minority of people joining in.

 

Thanks

After 6pm you are expected to be dressed formally and certain bars and restaurants will not let you enter if you are not dressed appropriately and I have seen people asked to leave.

In my experience probably 95% of people dress up for formal night.