Just off Britannia, my thoughts and happy to try and answer questions

[wowzz]

59 minutes ago, BouncingWheel said:

Need to ensure the independent shore excursions are not just for UK ports before booking anything after seacations

Princess have confirmed that the new policy applies to European cruises, subject to local regulations.  That obviously means Italy could be a problem, unless the quarantine restrictions are lifted.

[BouncingWheel]

5 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Princess have confirmed that the new policy applies to European cruises, subject to local regulations.  That obviously means Italy could be a problem, unless the quarantine restrictions are lifted.

That is good news for us. I can understand some others not being as keen as it raises the risk of Delta variant being brought back on but for us it is a step closer to normality and double jabbing helps reduce it to an acceptable risk in our opinion.  Overseas cruising without independent shore excursions is not cruising for us.

Now to see if P&O follow suit....

[terrierjohn]

4 hours ago, Britboys said:

I have seen one person post that they could access it once they were in the terminal building...

I understand that you need to have the boarding pass code, and be close enough to access the ships internet, then you can log on and set up your account.

[debsjc]

6 hours ago, wowzz said:

Not quite sure where to post this - didn't want to start a new thread- but Princess are now allowing independent shore visits.  You would think that P&O woukd follow suit

Will I be able to go ashore?

In accordance with health authority guidelines, fully vaccinated guests may choose to explore destinations independently, and should comply with all local guidance relating to social distancing and face masks.

Guests aged 17 years or younger who are unvaccinated sailing on Regal Princess from 30 September to 3 November and Sky Princess 5 October to 5 November on 2021, will only be permitted to go ashore through shore excursions sold by or through Princess using tour operators who comply with our COVID-19 controls. Self-exploration or participation in shore excursions not sold through or operated by Princess will not be permitted.

I think P&O may well follow suit, especially as they are both Carnival corp companies 

[sam49]

I’m on Britannia now which is my first P and O cruise (previously gone RC and celebrity). 
I hate to say this but it’s dire. The staff are just about polite but that’s it. No friendliness or enthusiasm. Food is canteen level at best and don’t get me started on the app. You have to queue, it may be five minutes or 1.5 hours before you are summoned. So you have no idea when to queue if you have a show booked. 
 

Anyone like to create an emergency for me so I can be airlifted off? 

[sandancer]

Oh dear. Well that’s just ruined the anticipation of our cruise on the 29th. We are also Celebrity/RCI/Princess cruisers but we do not intend to spend the cruise comparing P&O with them. Did our first Marella cruise recently. That was not what we are used to either but we still had a good time. 

[Selbourne]

26 minutes ago, sandancer said:

Oh dear. Well that’s just ruined the anticipation of our cruise on the 29th. We are also Celebrity/RCI/Princess cruisers but we do not intend to spend the cruise comparing P&O with them. Did our first Marella cruise recently. That was not what we are used to either but we still had a good time. 

It would be a shame to silence those who don’t just view everything through rose tinted spectacles though. Good to hear all opinions - good and bad. One persons acceptable is another persons poor. Both opinions are equally valid. 

[debsjc]

53 minutes ago, sandancer said:

Oh dear. Well that’s just ruined the anticipation of our cruise on the 29th. We are also Celebrity/RCI/Princess cruisers but we do not intend to spend the cruise comparing P&O with them. Did our first Marella cruise recently. That was not what we are used to either but we still had a good time. 

 

You can still have a great cruise, Just go prepared to eat very early, or very late, or maybe you don't mind getting a pager then sitting enjoying people watching for an hour or so

 

I definitely did not want to jump ship, still made the best of it 

[terrierjohn]

4 minutes ago, debsjc said:

 

You can still have a great cruise, Just go prepared to eat very early, or very late, or maybe you don't mind getting a pager then sitting enjoying people watching for an hour or so

 

I definitely did not want to jump ship, still made the best of it 

I definitely want our October cruise to go ahead  and we won't be too concerned if we cannot go ashore on our own, but I am beginning to worry with all the comments about the waiting times in the dining rooms. We are so used to just turning up at the MDR when we are ready, and being seated after only a short wait, but all this virtual queuing, if the app works, or picking up a pager if it doesn't, will irritate me no end, and if the numbers on board increase significantly from seacation levels, then it will probably be even worse.

[Cornish.Maid]

Funnily enough, we are having dinner in our chalet overlooking the sea at Hayle and have been watching Britannia sail by and out to sea.  Recently we watched a similar cruise by Britannia and somebody was airlifted off!  Suggest you ask them how they did it 😉.   
 

[hamrag]

1 hour ago, sam49 said:

I’m on Britannia now which is my first P and O cruise (previously gone RC and celebrity). 
I hate to say this but it’s dire. The staff are just about polite but that’s it. No friendliness or enthusiasm. Food is canteen level at best...

 

We got off our 3 day cruise as you boarded on Sunday. Sad to say, you are not far off the mark! The two main things that made it tolerable for us were fantastic sunny skies, meaning we spent our day on and around the outer decks; also great entertainment options, outwith the main theatre (which whelmed us at best), all around the ship and especially atrium areas.

[hollyjess]

Our daughter came off Britannia on sunday. She loved every minute! The food was delicious and the staff were very friendly and polite. The only downside was that she was unable to book a cruise for October this year on Ventura for balcony cabin as there is a waiting list.

[wowzz]

5 hours ago, sam49 said:

The staff are just about polite but that’s it. No friendliness or enthusiasm

I think there is a cultural difference here. P&O staff are traditionally recruited from Southern Southern India/Goa, where, in general people tend to be friendly but reserved. They are diligent and hardworking.

RC and Celebrity  recruit from a totally different part of the world,  with an alternative viewpoint as to guest interaction.  But,again, they are diligent and hard working 

Neither is wrong,  they are just different personality attributes.

Personally,  I sometimes find the "in your face" service on some US cruuse lines a little wearing, but I would never feel it necessary to complain about it.

 

 

Edited August 17, 2021 by wowzz

[terrierjohn]

9 hours ago, wowzz said:

I think there is a cultural difference here. P&O staff are traditionally recruited from Southern Southern India/Goa, where, in general people tend to be friendly but reserved. They are diligent and hardworking.

RC and Celebrity  recruit from a totally different part of the world,  with an alternative viewpoint as to guest interaction.  But,again, they are diligent and hard working 

Neither is wrong,  they are just different personality attributes.

Personally,  I sometimes find the "in your face" service on some US cruuse lines a little wearing, but I would never feel it necessary to complain about it.

 

 

The RCI service may appear "in yer face", but from my experience it is all linked to the companies desire to provide the best possible service and ensure that passenger needs are fully met. Something you cannot say about P&Os customer service, which seems to treat passengers as an annoyance that is spoiling their enjoyment of the cruise.

[Adawn47]

14 hours ago, sandancer said:

Oh dear. Well that’s just ruined the anticipation of our cruise on the 29th. We are also Celebrity/RCI/Princess cruisers but we do not intend to spend the cruise comparing P&O with them. Did our first Marella cruise recently. That was not what we are used to either but we still had a good time. 

Don't get despondent, we all view things differently. My freind recommended RCI to us, said she had a great time, couldn't fault it. In our opinion the worst cruise we have ever had, so personal opinions vary. 

Enjoy your cruise and judge for yourself.

Avril

[debsjc]

10 hours ago, wowzz said:

I think there is a cultural difference here. P&O staff are traditionally recruited from Southern Southern India/Goa, where, in general people tend to be friendly but reserved. They are diligent and hardworking.

RC and Celebrity  recruit from a totally different part of the world,  with an alternative viewpoint as to guest interaction.  But,again, they are diligent and hard working 

Neither is wrong,  they are just different personality attributes.

Personally,  I sometimes find the "in your face" service on some US cruuse lines a little wearing, but I would never feel it necessary to complain about it.

 

 

It's interesting to hear about the different areas of the world the different cruise companies recruit from. We did find the service polite, but reserved. There was a couple of small issues (such as our cabin steward banging on the door and then ringing the phone .... when the 'i'm resting card was in the door) But nothing we complained about. 

[BestGuessed]

Sandancer … I absolutely agree with Avril.  
We find every cruise is different and we have enjoyed cruises on ships that have had rotten reviews from other passengers.  We always find things to like on every voyage.  
Some of our cruises rate more highly than others but having cruised many times and with different lines we have never returned from a cruise thinking “Never again”.

We too did our first Marella cruise a couple of years ago and although it was a different experience than we have had on Celebrity or Cunard we had a great time.
Keep an open mind👍🏻😁!! Enjoy your cruise 🥂

[sam49]

To be fair I have found the RC customer service a bit over the top at times. However P and O staff seem to be not just reserved but miserable and unengaged. Eg no ‘good morning’ , no smiling, shrugging shoulders when you ask for anything. 
Not to be rude but I get better service in my local pound shops. 

[sandancer]

You could almost  be describing the Cunard staff Sam that we encountered on both cruises we took yet other people think the service is top notch. Just goes to show that everyone sees things differently. I will definitely come back and follow up after the cruise. I’m truly sorry you didn’t have a good experience and I hope you enjoy your next cruise. 

[Adawn47]

47 minutes ago, sam49 said:

To be fair I have found the RC customer service a bit over the top at times. However P and O staff seem to be not just reserved but miserable and unengaged. Eg no ‘good morning’ , no smiling, shrugging shoulders when you ask for anything. 
Not to be rude but I get better service in my local pound shops. 

I have to say that after 12 cruises with P&O we have never found the staff to be miserable and unfriendly(apart from in reception sometimes that is) I have to say that after disembarking RC we said 'never again' the entire experience was much too OTT for us.  We needed another holiday to recover😵.Which proves there's a cruiseline and ship out there to suit everyone.

Avril

[zap99]

16 hours ago, sandancer said:

Oh dear. Well that’s just ruined the anticipation of our cruise on the 29th. We are also Celebrity/RCI/Princess cruisers but we do not intend to spend the cruise comparing P&O with them. Did our first Marella cruise recently. That was not what we are used to either but we still had a good time. 

We have done 2 cruises on Britannia in the last 6 weeks. The app is rubbish. The food and entertainment were fine, staff were fine most other stuff fine. We have sailed many, many cruises with Celebrity, RCI, NCL and a few others. I would go again on any of them in a heartbeat. Some of the fellow guests can a bit moanny though. Perhaps they should realise they are on holiday.

[zap99]

15 hours ago, hollyjess said:

Our daughter came off Britannia on sunday. She loved every minute! The food was delicious and the staff were very friendly and polite. The only downside was that she was unable to book a cruise for October this year on Ventura for balcony cabin as there is a waiting list.

We loved out 2 and will love the next one on Iona and the one after that. If it's not exactly as we want, the one after that probably will be. Things are different at the moment. We have to book for Pizza express. Nando's has closed down as has Carluccios and Cafe Rouge in our town. If folk expect every thing to be the same as it was, I have some news for you. It won't be.

[brian1]

23 hours ago, wowzz said:

Princess have confirmed that the new policy applies to European cruises, subject to local regulations.  That obviously means Italy could be a problem, unless the quarantine restrictions are lifted.

You're allowed to transit Italy in 36 hrs before quarantining.A day tour should be ok.Don't know about multiple Italian ports though,cheers,Brian.

[sam49]

30 minutes ago, zap99 said:

We loved out 2 and will love the next one on Iona and the one after that. If it's not exactly as we want, the one after that probably will be. Things are different at the moment. We have to book for Pizza express. Nando's has closed down as has Carluccios and Cafe Rouge in our town. If folk expect every thing to be the same as it was, I have some news for you. It won't be.

No we don’t expect everything to be the same post Covid. But I am sure you would be disappointed to go to pizza express and find you had to wait an hour and a half to be seated, they only had half the usual menu and the staff just put the food on the table without a smile? 

[zap99]

8 minutes ago, sam49 said:

No we don’t expect everything to be the same post Covid. But I am sure you would be disappointed to go to pizza express and find you had to wait an hour and a half to be seated, they only had half the usual menu and the staff just put the food on the table without a smile? 

We were in there on Sunday. We booked in advance. Good food and happy staff. Just like we found in our 2 Britannia cruises in the last 6 weeks. Everything apart from the app was fine.