How does P&O compare with Celebrity Carnival and Norwegian

[zap99]

9 minutes ago, BillieJeanKaraokeKing said:

 

He'll be getting a restraining order on you before long! 😋

Eric and Ern won't need to😁

[scifimonkey]

 Can really only compare two of these and both impressions are skewed by the fact that we were in suites on most of the trips. Comments are based on cruises on Ventura, Azura and Britannia on P&O and on Silhouette and Eclipse on Celebrity.

P&O is very good, but very British, occasionally a bit butlins but still possible to avoid this and have a good quality cruise with a bit of judicious upgrading. The suites, the Epicurian restaurant, the Glass house wine bar, and drink and excursion prices generally are all very competitive with Celebrity but the suite perks are very minor. Good set piece entertainment but focused in a few locations which can lead to areas getting overcrowded.
Celebrity is excellent as long as you avoid high season to the Med when it suffers from the same butlins mentality as P&O from too many guests. Significantly more expensive than P&O on every level from the base price to the on board spend and the excursions. Excellent perks for suite guests with lots of bolt on goodies like the Lumiere restaurant, the retreat lounge and sun decks . More speciality restaurants than P&O which are all of good and some of excellent quality and there is the brilliant martini bar. Set piece entertainment is IMHO not as good As P&O however there is more supporting entertainment spread accross the ship which seems to reduce the number of times that areas become crowded. More hassle from sales staff and ‘special offers’.

Carnival has always looked too brash for us to try it

NCL almost got our custom this year for a trip to Japan but in the event they quite understandably cancelled the cruise. Unfortunately after 4 months they have still not refunded our deposit and for that reason alone we will never be giving them our custom again.

[drsel]

Thanks so much that was very informative and enlightening.
I am surprised that Norwegian has not refunded the money but maybe they will give you a 125% free cruise certificate to compensate.
Glad to hear that the entertainment and shows are very good on PO, even better than Celebrity.
Don't the staff try to sell you drinks or spa packages on PO?

[funinhounslow]

3 hours ago, drsel said:

Don't the staff try to sell you drinks or spa packages on PO?

 

Yes but they aren't at all "pushy". Same with the speciality restaurants...

 

In connection with this drink prices on board really aren't that different to what you'd pay in a city centre pub, (and no "service charge" added on) so opting for a package may not be worth it for many...

[Francisdrake]

Haven't tried Celebrity or Norwegian but I have been on a Carnival cruise to Hawaii. 

 

I found Carnival better for entertainment as they had more things happening (though that may have been because there was 4 consecutive sea days each way from LA to Hawaii and back so they had to put more on to keep a full ship entertained)  I did think the food was a bit lacking on the Carnival ship though.

[drsel]

yes, Carnival is known to be the ultimate party ship with non stop entertainment and activities, although some people find it a bit too loud and crowded

[Bazrat]

On 6/4/2020 at 6:53 PM, scifimonkey said:

 Can really only compare two of these and both impressions are skewed by the fact that we were in suites on most of the trips. Comments are based on cruises on Ventura, Azura and Britannia on P&O and on Silhouette and Eclipse on Celebrity.

P&O is very good, but very British, occasionally a bit butlins but still possible to avoid this and have a good quality cruise with a bit of judicious upgrading. The suites, the Epicurian restaurant, the Glass house wine bar, and drink and excursion prices generally are all very competitive with Celebrity but the suite perks are very minor. Good set piece entertainment but focused in a few locations which can lead to areas getting overcrowded.
Celebrity is excellent as long as you avoid high season to the Med when it suffers from the same butlins mentality as P&O from too many guests. Significantly more expensive than P&O on every level from the base price to the on board spend and the excursions. Excellent perks for suite guests with lots of bolt on goodies like the Lumiere restaurant, the retreat lounge and sun decks . More speciality restaurants than P&O which are all of good and some of excellent quality and there is the brilliant martini bar. Set piece entertainment is IMHO not as good As P&O however there is more supporting entertainment spread accross the ship which seems to reduce the number of times that areas become crowded. More hassle from sales staff and ‘special offers’.

Carnival has always looked too brash for us to try it

NCL almost got our custom this year for a trip to Japan but in the event they quite understandably cancelled the cruise. Unfortunately after 4 months they have still not refunded our deposit and for that reason alone we will never be giving them our custom again.

really interesting read but i have never been to butlins to expensive for us when we were younger so did not get that part

[KnowTheScore]

On ‎6‎/‎3‎/‎2020 at 9:44 PM, BillieJeanKaraokeKing said:

Quizzes were more detailed, innovative and interactive on P&O, whereas on the others they mainly simple Q&A and over in no time. 

 

Quizzes have become largely a farce on P&O imho.  The cruise staff really aren't interested in them and rush through them as quickly as they can.  They have a number of "Individual" quizzes which are supposed to be done individually of course yet people sit in teams of 6 and the hosts turn a blind eye, not remotely interested.  The quiz after all is "just for fun" and just for a little worthless gold sticker.

 

The once professional, very well prepared and serious Evening Syndicate Quizzes held at 10.30pm in various venues on different ships has long since become an utter farce generally run by entertainment team kids who again, have no real interest in the affair.  They spend hardly any time preparing, have no idea what a balanced quiz is and some of them even turn up with ZERO preparation at all and randomly pick questions there and then from a large database.   Many of the "kids" have absolutely appalling education (sorry but it's true) and have no idea what the answers to questions are except that the answer is in front of them.   Composers like Bach are pronounced "Batch" and it is all in all an hour of cringing embarrassment.   The syndicate quiz used to be really really good.  Run by adults who had some semblance of knowledge and who were passionate about setting a good quiz.   Now things are run by kids like a McDonalds outlet things have degraded terribly.   There remains AFAIK just one really good quiz master in the fleet and he is known as D J Martin.  He takes pride in what he does and his quizzes are exceptional. 

 

Quote

Food I feel is comparable quality wise (decent enough), though it has to be said there was much less choice on P&O (both MDR and buffet). 

 

Food on P&O has gone badly downhill in the past 1-2 years imo.  It is now akin to a Weatherspoons pub.  The staff are excellent but the food is pub fare.  Plates are sparse, desserts are embarrassingly poor.   It's not worth paying £1000s for imho.

5+ years ago the food was great.  Lots of great fish choices inc Sea Bass, John Dory, Mahi Mahi, Baramundi and so on.  Now it's a lot of salmon.   The Witch Sole on the first night of the cruise is usually good though.   Vegetables are very sparse.  You can of course ask for more but the poor waiters are stretched enough as it is as they now have to double up as wine waiters, the genuine articles having now been abolished.   It's all very impersonal too.  They take your order with electronic tablets as if you were in the pub.   It is as I said, Weatherspoons at sea.   I'm led to believe Celebrity is far superior.

 

Quote

 

Activities are far more sedate on P&O in my opinion, no-one was remotely interested in anything sporty or energetic (I'm neither lol, but like to give em a go). 

 

The Horizon paper delivered to every cabin each day and which outlines the daily activities hasn't changed in probably 5 years.  It's the same dull list of activities every single cruise and most of those activities pertain to health lectures, presentations or participating events where they want to take the opportunity to sell you stuff.  There is very little actual content put on that incurs any effort on their part.  It's boring as hell.  We generally ignore it now and make our own entertainment.   P&O have done their utmost to eradicate card playing on ships which is a traditional cruising favourite amongst many cruisers.  Whist players have to fight tooth and nail to get a Whist Drive added to the Horizon paper and proper card rooms have disappeared at an alarming rate in favour of using the space for chargeable activities and services.  Even Bridge and Bridge tutors have become more sparse I think. 

 

Still the dire itinerary of activities suits those people who are happy to just relax and chill either sunbathing or reading a book or knitting and so on.  In this respect it can get a bit like an old folks home depending on the time of year you cruise and the length of the cruise.  One of the things I hate is people sitting reading and knitting in the chargeable alternative restaurants such as Glass House on Ventura.  Creates entirely the wrong atmosphere.  Why would I pay money for a lunch to have people lounging reading,  knitting and/or playing card games on nearby tables?!    It's a bit of a farce.

 

But each to their own.  Everyone has different requirements and the "old folks home" style suits some.   If you like knitting you can attend the "knit and natter" activity in the Horizon paper.   Oh Yes . . .  This is the life !!

 

.

 

Edited June 5, 2020 by KnowTheScore

[wowzz]

10 minutes ago, KnowTheScore said:

 

Quizzes have become largely a farce on P&O imho.  The cruise staff really aren't interested in them and rush through them as quickly as they can.  They have a number of "Individual" quizzes which are supposed to be done individually of course yet people sit in teams of 6 and the hosts turn a blind eye, not remotely interested.  The quiz after all is "just for fun" and just for a little worthless gold sticker.

 

The once professional, very well prepared and serious Evening Syndicate Quizzes held at 10.30pm in various venues on different ships has long since become an utter farce generally run by entertainment team kids who again, have no real interest in the affair.  They spend hardly any time preparing, have no idea what a balanced quiz is and some of them even turn up with ZERO preparation at all and randomly pick questions there and then from a large database.   Many of the "kids" have absolutely appalling education (sorry but it's true) and have no idea what the answers to questions are except that the answer is in front of them.   Composers like Bach are pronounced "Batch" and it is all in all an hour of cringing embarrassment.   The syndicate quiz used to be really really good.  Run by adults who had some semblance of knowledge and who were passionate about setting a good quiz.   Now things are run by kids like a McDonalds outlet things have degraded terribly.   There remains AFAIK just one really good quiz master in the fleet and he is known as D J Martin.  He takes pride in what he does and his quizzes are exceptional. 

 

 

Food on P&O has gone badly downhill in the past 1-2 years imo.  It is now akin to a Weatherspoons pub.  The staff are excellent but the food is pub fare.  Plates are sparse, desserts are embarrassingly poor.   It's not worth paying £1000s for imho.

5+ years ago the food was great.  Lots of great fish choices inc Sea Bass, John Dory, Mahi Mahi, Baramundi and so on.  Now it's a lot of salmon.   The Witch Sole on the first night of the cruise is usually good though.   Vegetables are very sparse.  You can of course ask for more but the poor waiters are stretched enough as it is as they now have to double up as wine waiters, the genuine articles having now been abolished.   It's all very impersonal too.  They take your order with electronic tablets as if you were in the pub.   It is as I said, Weatherspoons at sea.   I'm led to believe Celebrity is far superior.

 

 

The Horizon paper delivered to every cabin each day and which outlines the daily activities hasn't changed in probably 5 years.  It's the same dull list of activities every single cruise and most of those activities pertain to health lectures, presentations or participating events where they want to take the opportunity to sell you stuff.  There is very little actual content put on that incurs any effort on their part.  It's boring as hell.  We generally ignore it now and make our own entertainment.   P&O have done their utmost to eradicate card playing on ships which is a traditional cruising favourite amongst many cruisers.  Whist players have to fight tooth and nail to get a Whist Drive added to the Horizon paper and proper card rooms have disappeared at an alarming rate in favour of using the space for chargeable activities and services.  Even Bridge and Bridge tutors have become more sparse I think. 

 

Still the dire itinerary of activities suits those people who are happy to just relax and chill either sunbathing or reading a book or knitting and so on.  In this respect it can get a bit like an old folks home depending on the time of year you cruise and the length of the cruise.  One of the thinks I hate is people sitting reading and knitting in the chargeable alternative restaurants such as Glass House on Ventura.  Creates entirely the wrong atmosphere.  Why would I pay money for a lunch to have people lounging reading,  knitting and/or playing card games on nearby tables?!    It's a bit of a farce.

 

But each to their own.  Everyone has different requirements and the "old folks home" style suits some.   If you like knitting you can attend the "knit and natter" activity in the Horizon paper.   Oh Yes . . .  This is the life !!

 

.

 

 

 

 

So, which cruise line do you now cruise with ? 

[KnowTheScore]

Heading over to Celebrity but in current climate likely won't cruise till well into 2021 or even 2022 depending on whether cruise lines can actually get any kind of reasonable agreement with CDC and other authorities to manage on-board COVID cases without quarantining every other passenger.

[drsel]

Don't worry, I think the virus will be well under control by mid October and cruises will start by then

[drsel]

Yes, celebrity is a class act

 

 

[KnowTheScore]

17 hours ago, drsel said:

Don't worry, I think the virus will be well under control by mid October and cruises will start by then

 

I think that extremely unlikely indeed.   Cruising cessation will continue to be extended probably until end of 2020 imho.

 

I suspect the only reason to keep extending the cessation in piecemeal chunks is to keep people guessing and thereby keep share prices volatile and buoyant.

 

Either way the issue is still not whether you or anyone are at risk of getting COVID-19.   The risk is that one, just one person, be it crew or passenger presents with COVID-19 on-board and as a result the entire ship gets quarantined and all ports refuse entry to the ship.

 

This fundamental showstopper issue has got to be resolved.  Thus far it hasn't been resolved imho.

 

.

 

 

[Scratchrat]

I've only sailed on Carnival so far and have 60 sailing days with them.

 

From what I can gather, going by the research for my first P&O cruise, the biggest difference is that Carnival are much more casual. Nobody is going to throw a fit if you're wearing trainers on a Carnival ship, unless it's elegant night. You're free to pretty much be yourself. 

 

Some people may think this means it's "low brow" but as someone who regularly engages with celebrities as part of my work, I'll tell you that people with real money and real influence don't go round in suit and tie, CEO's wear jeans and trainers. Those wearing smart clothes all the time are doing so to LOOK rich and influencial, you see it all the time in the top restaurants in London, the suited ones never order the good wine 😉

 

Carnival's food is simpler, the main dining rooms provide relatively harmless food, nothing you'd be wowed by potentially but I've never had a dinner I've been unsatisfied with. They provide the menu outside the MDR the morning of the day and so if you dont like the look of it, you can decide to make other arrangements, for example some of their ships have a great italian restaurant called Cucina del Capitano which is only a $12 cover charge and you literally get so much food you roll out!

 

The experience of any cruise is truly down to you and what you make of it. If you don't like being around people having a good time, partying and being with their families, Carnival is likely to be a no-go. For me? I'm booked on Carnival Legend from Dover next June for a 12 day cruise to Iceland and can't wait! I'm also booked on my first P&O cruise this December on Iona.

 

My worries are that people are going to be very snooty on this cruise but I'm hoping I'll be pleasantly surprised. I do like dressing up nicely but I don't like it to feel forced.

[the english lady]

On 6/4/2020 at 5:12 PM, Harry Peterson said:

Depends on personal perception.  One person's idea of mid level will be another's idea of low level.

 

P&O is certainly no Cunard - and the passengers are entirely different.  A lot of that is marketing, though, and the real differences aren't as great as you might expect them to be for the additional money.  Cunard's mid-market these days, and since P&O is below that people must draw their own conclusions.

 

 

Well having been on Cunard and Pando , the passengers were the same.  There wasn't a great deal of difference between a pando ship and the cunard one we went on.Main thing was they charged a lot more for the drinks so you thought you were on a better class of ship...which you were not. Why someone thinks Celebrity is not mass market I have no idea..having seen a relatives pictures who sailed on two of their ships . The thought that came to mind was little boxes ,little boxes and they are all made of ticky tacky (you have to be of a certain age to know the song) Their balcony cabin was tiny. Also they said there was musak everywhere..in the corridors, in the lifts..my idea of hell personally. Again they may try and charge more so you think you are getting something better, but you are not. If they have enough ships to sail from here and in the us they are a mass market line..end of story. Still when all is said and done we will have to see who is still around next year...as I am sure not all will survive.  

[drsel]

Don't worry, I expect MSC, the Carnival group and Royal group to survive