Who has decided to take a summer staycation cruise?

[grapau27]

1 hour ago, Cathygh said:

When we were new to cruising we always asked people how many they had done as we wanted to hear their stories and what their advice was. My DH still asks the question as he struggles with small talk and he finds it a good ice breaker. We are not boasting when we say how nay we've done and have only once met someone who dismissively said 'too many to say.'

Please be aware that when pax are asking the question it could be the only way they know of starting a conversation they feel comfortable with

Cathy

That is a good point Cathy.

I think it is the people who are not really interested in you but just want a stage and audience to talk about themselves are the ones to avoid.

Graham.

[grapau27]

1 hour ago, alpha whiskey said:

If only they could bring back those DFDS ferries across the North Sea again from Harwich . So lovely just to drive your car across to Denmark! 

There are 2 sailing between Amsterdam and Newcastle.

[Adawn47]

16 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

That is a good point Cathy.

I think it is the people who are not really interested in you but just want a stage and audience to talk about themselves are the ones to avoid.

Graham.

So true Graham. There's a big difference between general cruise chat and someone wanting an introduction into a during and after dinner speech.

Avril

[SarahHben]

56 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

If you saw us on a ship you and Pauline would be best friends straight away but you wouldn't be talking cruising.

I think you would get most of the information you need on here so you could avoid boring braggers on board.

I have lost count how many  people have asked us How much we paid for our cruise then happily say they got theirs for £×××

I would love to meet you and Pauline, she and I could have a natter about shoes & handbags etc and you and my other half could talk sport. I do suspect Pauline and I would recognise each other’s Roman Originals clothes 😂

Edited May 9, 2021 by SarahHben

[grapau27]

Just now, SarahHben said:

I would love to meet you and Pauline, she and I could have a natter about shippers & handbags etc and you and my other half could talk sport. I do suspect Pauline and I would recognise each other’s Roman Originals clothes 😂

That would be lovely.

Pauline loves clothes, shoes,bags etc and sport is my main interest so I think we would have a great time.

Graham.

[Josy1953]

 

[SarahHben]

9 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

That would be lovely.

Pauline loves clothes, shoes,bags etc and sport is my main interest so I think we would have a great time.

Graham.

I’m sure we would 😊.

I did mean shoes not shippers, have edited it now! 

[wowzz]

4 hours ago, Josy1953 said:

We are an anti-social couple and always ask for a table for 2.  Last year on Oceana we were a little later than usual when we got to the MDR and there were no tables for 2 so we ended up on a table for 6 and I have to say that we had a brilliant evening everyone was happy to be talking to everyone else.  We ended up being asked to leave because they wanted to set the table up for breakfast the next morning so we all went together to the bar and carried on the conversation there.

There was no talk about how many or few cruises anyone had done other than one lady asked if everyone had cruised before and we all just said yes.

Maybe we have been lucky because even in the days when everyone had set dining times we never had bad table companions and are still in contact with 5 couples from our earlier cruises.

To be fair Josy, that is our experience as well. Mrs W and I spend every evening eating together at home, and we relish the chance to chat to others. Yes, there are the odd cruising "bores" but the majority of cruisers have been delightful. 

We tend to alternate between dining as a couple, and sharing a table, although we do prefer a table for 6,  rather than 8,  as then everyone can hear my joke without me needing to shout out the punch line!  

[wowzz]

4 hours ago, alpha whiskey said:

If only they could bring back those DFDS ferries across the North Sea again from Harwich . So lovely just to drive your car across to Denmark! 

I did that back in 1970 with 3 mates, in a Ford Consul. Went to Copenhagen and back, via Hamburg.  Just a tent, a big atlas, and the innocence of youth. Our parents had literally no idea where we were.

A totally  different world to today.  

Edited May 9, 2021 by wowzz

[Purdey16]

11 hours ago, grapau27 said:

As someone who suffered from motion sickness unless I was driving I was not interested in cruising until I was persuaded to go on the DFDS cruiseferry from Newcastle to Gothenburg in 2000.

We did a few to Norway Sweden and Amsterdam and I was only seasick a couple of times so we started proper cruising in 2003 on Aurora and cruised 3 times a year ever since.

Our first cruise also was Aurora in 2003 to the Mediterranean and it was still silver service then took ages to serve and if you were last getting served you got less potatoes 😂

[davecttr]

More staycation cruise fun. The Telegraph reports today that the free self administered lateral flow tests may not be valid for foreign travel. Concerns are that people don't do it properly and it is not accurate enough. I wonder what P&O will do?

[Son of Anarchy]

42 minutes ago, davecttr said:

More staycation cruise fun. The Telegraph reports today that the free self administered lateral flow tests may not be valid for foreign travel. Concerns are that people don't do it properly and it is not accurate enough. I wonder what P&O will do?

Lateral flow tests are good enough to get you in to visit someone in a care home.  However, the care home staff administer the test. 

 

P&O have said that if people have to be tested prior to boarding, it will be at P&O's expense.  If there are concerns about individuals ability to self-administer the LFT, then P&O could have properly trained staff do it at the terminal.  It would involve people having to hang for the 20 or so minutes it takes for the test to complete.  Not too difficult for those arriving in cars - just send them to a designated parking area to wait until called forward.  Those arriving by at the taxi/drop off area, or even on foot could to be directed somewhere under cover close to the terminal for testing and waiting.  Those arriving on coaches could be tested prior to boarding the coach.

 

If the LFT isn't accurate enough for foreign travel, maybe it's not fit for purpose full stop.  In which case there may well be problems ahead.

Edited May 10, 2021 by Son of Anarchy

[majortom10]

13 hours ago, Purdey16 said:

Our first cruise also was Aurora in 2003 to the Mediterranean and it was still silver service then took ages to serve and if you were last getting served you got less potatoes 😂

P&O have never served, or at least for many years, proper silver service it was just a pretend system of serving you vegetable separately and if you were the first to be served and were on a table for 8 and you had manners and waited for everyone to be served before starting more often than not your vegetables were cold. One thing that always amazed me is if you ordered a curry with rice for your main course the waiters still came and asked you if you wanted sprouts yuk.  

[jaydee6969]

Just had my second AZ vaccine dose, now all set for my 2 staycation cruises.  

 

Bring on those sea days🚢🥂

[MX-Drew]

I personally have no problem if some asks me if I have cruised before or how many cruises as that has always and I mean every single time for myself and my wife lead to a conversation that gave us tips and tricks either about cruising in general or that particular ship. With that in mind I often ask people if they have cruised before with a view to passing on some of those tips.

In my book everyday is a school day but it just depends what the subject is that day.

[Snow Hill]

From Government website, on what is required on arrival in respect of internal &CTA travel

 

Travel within the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man

You do not need to take a COVID-19 test or quarantine on arrival in England if you are travelling within the UK, Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, (the Common Travel Area), and you have not been outside of the Common Travel Area in the previous 10 days. 
 

However nothing on rules before departure from U.K., which are normally set by the country you are travelling to, as ships are around U.K. only it isn’t clear from government guidance on what the rules are for pre-departure tests would be. The U.K. chamber of shipping guidelines doesn’t specifically mention cruises which don’t call at any non U.K. or CTA Ports. It talks about pre-screening and that you may be required to take a Covid Test by the Cruise company. 
 

Guess these leaves it up to the companies themselves to define the rules.

 

 

[Snow Hill]

8 hours ago, Son of Anarchy said:

Lateral flow tests are good enough to get you in to visit someone in a care home.  However, the care home staff administer the test. 

 

P&O have said that if people have to be tested prior to boarding, it will be at P&O's expense.  If there are concerns about individuals ability to self-administer the LFT, then P&O could have properly trained staff do it at the terminal.  It would involve people having to hang for the 20 or so minutes it takes for the test to complete.  Not too difficult for those arriving in cars - just send them to a designated parking area to wait until called forward.  Those arriving by at the taxi/drop off area, or even on foot could to be directed somewhere under cover close to the terminal for testing and waiting.  Those arriving on coaches could be tested prior to boarding the coach.

 

If the LFT isn't accurate enough for foreign travel, maybe it's not fit for purpose full stop.  In which case there may well be problems ahead.

I think it may be more of they can’t trust people to give truthful responses to self administered tests, the indications from the Rules are that the test on return to U.K. can be a LFT but not self administered. Tests need to be done 72 hours before departure testing someone who has travelled a few hours on a coach is not likely to be picked up in any test I would have thought. 
 

The risk is if you travel by coach and someone on the coach tests positive at the Port, then it is likely that the people onboard that coach will also be denied boarding.

 

 

Edited May 10, 2021 by Snow Hill

[grapau27]

5 hours ago, jaydee6969 said:

Just had my second AZ vaccine dose, now all set for my 2 staycation cruises.  

 

Bring on those sea days🚢🥂

Great news.

Hopefully you have no side effects.🤞

[Bazrat]

8 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

Great news.

Hopefully you have no side effects.🤞

From the cruises or the jabs

[Purdey16]

7 hours ago, majortom10 said:

P&O have never served, or at least for many years, proper silver service it was just a pretend system of serving you vegetable separately and if you were the first to be served and were on a table for 8 and you had manners and waited for everyone to be served before starting more often than not your vegetables were cold. One thing that always amazed me is if you ordered a curry with rice for your main course the waiters still came and asked you if you wanted sprouts yuk.  

Majortom it was also meat being served separately too we had empty plates then they all started rotating round the table and always on a table of 6 and everyone waited for everyone else to be finished being served before we all started, I must say this was my first and only one because it was five years later before I took my next cruise for our Pearl wedding Anniversary 

[majortom10]

41 minutes ago, Purdey16 said:

Majortom it was also meat being served separately too we had empty plates then they all started rotating round the table and always on a table of 6 and everyone waited for everyone else to be finished being served before we all started, I must say this was my first and only one because it was five years later before I took my next cruise for our Pearl wedding Anniversary 

Well we have cruised with P&O since 2000 including Aurora and have never had the meat served at the table it has always been bought to the table as ordered on plates prepared in the kitchen and then the vegetables served at the table.

Edited May 10, 2021 by majortom10

[grapau27]

17 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

Well we have cruised with P&O since 2000 including Aurora and have never had the meat served at the table it has always been bought to the table as ordered on plates prepared in the kitchen and then the vegetables served at the table.

We like Epicurean restaurant as it is proper silver service and meat carved at the table.

Edited May 10, 2021 by grapau27

[majortom10]

13 hours ago, grapau27 said:

We like Epicurean restaurant as it is proper silver service and meat carved at the table.

We love Epicurean on Britannia but must admit we preferred the Epicurean on Azura when it was called XVII prior to being renamed Epicurean. We loved the actual restaurant and ambiance as much as the food.

[Host Sharon]

On 5/9/2021 at 5:16 PM, Beckett said:

Me too Graham and Avril. If travelling with family obviously not, but when travelling alone, I prefer to sit alone. I have shared on tables of 6 or 8 in the past but found it a bit of an ordeal. One of the shared tables of 8 was made up of singles and it was like a Grab a Granny ( or grandad) Convention. I only stuck it out for 3 nights (of 14) then ate in the buffet the rest of the time.

 

So if you come across a slightly battered, bleached blonde old girl in the MDR, sitting alone and happy with it, don't be scared - it's me!

 

Jane.x

That's a bit unfair to older passengers. One of my most entertaining table shares included a lovely lady in her 90s. She was so much fun - way more than the awful woman in her 40s I had to contend with on one sector of a world cruise who couldn't speak without a swear word in every sentence.

[wowzz]

3 hours ago, Host Sharon said:

That's a bit unfair to older passengers. One of my most entertaining table shares included a lovely lady in her 90s. She was so much fun - way more than the awful woman in her 40s I had to contend with on one sector of a world cruise who couldn't speak without a swear word in every sentence.

Slightly different experience,  but on our last Princess cruise, my wife and I shared a table with two elderly sisters ( dressed a little dowdy,  to be unkind), and as we walked up to the table where they were already sitting, our hearts sank.  

Well, we had a great night. They had travelled all over, but didn't brag, had met loads of interesting people, but also were interested in us as well. In other words, like any good table guests, they listened as well as talked.  

What we thought would be an uneasy, quick meal, became a long, entertaining evening. Just shows that you can never judge, and taught me not to pre-judge.