Britannia Now … our personal opinion and observations on board

[Eglesbrech]

58 minutes ago, P&O SUE said:

I know what you mean but we went on holiday to the Lake District in July and had to book attractions and restaurants in advance. Also needed to use my phone to book things later in the week as I didn’t want to book every day before we went!

But it is not necessary on a cruise ship, I know because I have been on one last month where they managed perfectly well without that level of restriction.
 

There was still great attention to safety, cleaning, social distancing, mask wearing (with cute little bags to put them in so they were not dumped on bars, tables or chairs) etc but  still a level of spontaneity. You did not have to book far in advance to go to the theatre, dinner, join a quiz, speciality restaurant or anything else. So it is possible. 
 

On land I can understand the need as you have lots of disparate businesses. On a ship it should be more cohesive, they know how many passengers they have and what they can cope with.

 

In fairness to P&O we paid more for our cruise to enjoy this  sense of freedom.

Edited October 8, 2021 by Eglesbrech

[Cruise Puss]

12 hours ago, Britboys said:

My guess (and hope) is that the new Menus will only be for Iona and Our Vera (Arvia). The reason I am guessing this is that I feel with the new ships they are very much going all-out to foster new business from younger, more casual cruisers. I've been 'lurking' on a public chat group on the 'dark side' for Iona and there are lots of comments from folks saying the food is great and when you look at the profile pics, these folk appear younger than the past average demographic of P&O.

Whilst I consider myself far from 'old' - whatever that might mean - I don't like spicy food either and the mention of chilli is bound to set me off on a rant 😱😂. If the mdr menus on Aurora next summer limit my choice, that would be another reason (it's a growing list) for me to defect permanently to other lines.

 

I quite understand your feelings, and we also thought that they are trying to attract a 'younger' audience.

 

The menus are the same on Britannia I'm afraid.  We haven't been on Arcadia or Aurora for a few years now so don't know if they are on there, but it would not surprise me.

 

We don't think that they quite know what their image is, or what clientele they are aiming for.

 

What we do think is that they don't seem to care about the passengers that have been cruising with them for many years.

 

We have tried Princess this year and, personally, find it to be a superior product. We have already booked a cruise with them again next year, and we are trying Saga twice next year as well.

 

Maybe P&O will realise that it is not all about 'younger' passengers who will flit from one cruise line to another.

 

Happy cruising!  😊

[Interestedcruisefan]

11 hours ago, Eglesbrech said:

But it is not necessary on a cruise ship, I know because I have been on one last month where they managed perfectly well without that level of restriction.
 

There was still great attention to safety, cleaning, social distancing, mask wearing (with cute little bags to put them in so they were not dumped on bars, tables or chairs) etc but  still a level of spontaneity. You did not have to book far in advance to go to the theatre, dinner, join a quiz, speciality restaurant or anything else. So it is possible. 
 

On land I can understand the need as you have lots of disparate businesses. On a ship it should be more cohesive, they know how many passengers they have and what they can cope with.

 

In fairness to P&O we paid more for our cruise to enjoy this  sense of freedom.

Which ship were you on ?

 

How many passengers ?

[Interestedcruisefan]

On 10/7/2021 at 6:37 PM, Eglesbrech said:

Two issues here. 
 

1. Complete lack of spontaneity. (Book shows days in advance - really!)

 

2.  You need a smart phone (or to be bothered carrying one about with you on what is after all supposed to be a holiday).

 

People are different I guess

 

We actually enjoy planning things in advance. Gives us something to look forward to and a plan for each day

 

We feel we get more from our holidays by planning in advance so it suits us

 

With the shows no problem for us booking in advance and also deciding where we want to eat 

 

Once booked you can still cancel very easily if you change your mind or want to do something spontaneously 

 

Albeit I guess the most popular things do need booking. If everybody on the ship was spontaneous with what they do it could be chaos at times

 

With freedom dining on previous cruises we've had to wait longer for tables than using the app. And often had to go away with one of those buzzers.

 

This beats that 

 

 

[Eglesbrech]

55 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Which ship were you on ?

 

How many passengers ?

Silhouette and the week we were on around 800 pax so as I said above comparing apples and pears.

 

I think cruising in future will be you get what you pay for more than ever and lines will decide what their strategy for profit is. Pile them high and offer a perfectly reasonable product or offer a higher quality product but charge more for it.
 

Both are legitimate and passengers will choose which suits them best.

[Interestedcruisefan]

17 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

Silhouette and the week we were on around 800 pax so as I said above comparing apples and pears.

 

I think cruising in future will be you get what you pay for more than ever and lines will decide what their strategy for profit is. Pile them high and offer a perfectly reasonable product or offer a higher quality product but charge more for it.
 

Both are legitimate and passengers will choose which suits them best.

Ok that makes sense now

 

It's just 27 per cent capacity

 

Once that ship gets anywhere back to normal it will also need to manage availability for certain shows and certain restaurants at times just like the rest of the ships 

 

Either that or just get big queues or have to turn people away at the theatre entrances

 

And will almost certainly use an app to do so like the rest

 

Unless you think Celebrity can be financially viable to keep operating with so few passengers?

Edited October 9, 2021 by Interestedcruisefan

[Eglesbrech]

Just now, Interestedcruisefan said:

Ok that makes sense now

 

It's just 27 per cent capacity

 

Once that ship gets anywhere back to normal it will also need to manage availability for certain shows and certain restaurants at times just like the rest of the ships 

 

And will almost certainly use an app to do so like the rest

Silly sailed with double that number of passengers the following week (and during the summer school holidays) and still had open seating for the theatre etc as far as reports I have seen. Perhaps the space ratios or passenger flows are just different?

 

They offered entertainment in the Atrium and the Sky lounge and also sea day matinee performances in the theatre so that split the number of passengers in the different venues. Theatre seats were blocked off to ensure distancing.

 

Celebrity do have an app but it was not required for booking standard dining, theatre etc. We did not have to carry a phone around to be able to do things which I much prefer.

 

I think all the lines are doing well to just be back in business. They need to do what they need to do to keep people safe and that will vary by line, passenger numbers etc.

[Interestedcruisefan]

Ive cruised on Royal Caribbean, P and O and Carnival

 

On every cruise in the normal world prior to this we've had to queue for certain shows, restaurants etc

 

Some we haven't got in at all having queued

 

Most cases we've got in but wasted time having to get somewhere earlier than needed to secure a place 

 

So for thise reasons I personally hope the cruises keep going with these apps

 

I personally would much prefer to know I have a guaranteed space waiting for me and be in a virtual queue than not know I have a guaranteed space and having to waste valuable time waiting in a real queue

 

We did ZERO real queuing for anything on Britannia 

 

We were in virtual queues we chose to be in whilst getting ready or whilst enjoying cocktails in the bar

 

Tbh the only issue we faced was sometimes the virtual queues finished quicker than we wanted. But even then we still had 15 minutes before we needed to head to the restaurant

 

For theatre shows we had pre booked for the first time ever on a cruise we could get there 5 mins before the start knowing we had seats waiting for us

 

For those reasons we much prefer the apps to not having them

 

Hope that all makes sense ?

 

 

[bee-ess]

48 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Ok that makes sense now

 

It's just 27 per cent capacity

 

Once that ship gets anywhere back to normal it will also need to manage availability for certain shows and certain restaurants at times just like the rest of the ships 

 

Either that or just get big queues or have to turn people away at the theatre entrances

 

And will almost certainly use an app to do so like the rest

 

Unless you think Celebrity can be financially viable to keep operating with so few passengers?

 

Sorry I disagree - we have been on all the P&O ships for the last 22 years when they have been full or nearly full and have never needed to pre-book a show or restaurant or use a smartphone. So why now ? What happened to spontaneity ?

Edited October 9, 2021 by bee-ess

[Interestedcruisefan]

I challenge any of you on here to the fact that on normal cruises you have to often head to the theatres early to make sure you get a seat at times ?

 

And with freedom dining you've sometimes had to wait a while for a table to become available when you've gone to the restaurant

 

That doesn't happen with the apps

 

So much better IMO

[terrierjohn]

Just now, Interestedcruisefan said:

I challenge any of you on here to the fact that on normal cruises you have to often head to the theatres early to make sure you get a seat at times ?

 

And with freedom dining you've sometimes had to wait a while for a table to become available when you've gone to the restaurant

 

That doesn't happen with the apps

 

So much better IMO

In freedom dining pre covid, if you were happy to share a table, which we are, you rarely needed to wait for a table.

[Interestedcruisefan]

8 minutes ago, bee-ess said:

 

Sorry I disagree - we have been on all the P&O ships for the last 22 years when they have been full or nearly full and have never needed to pre-book a show or restaurant or use a smartphone. So why now ?

Yes you don't have to book the theatre. But those theatres get full as we all know 

 

So how much earlier do you personally head to the theatre to secure seats ?

 

If you are on set dining times on set tables for restaurants you are effectively pre booked for all of these meals

 

If you want speciality dining instead you normally have to pre book for most. For glasshouse for examplr  on Britannia you don't currently have to pre book but may be given a buzzer to come back if when you go there they dont have space 

 

For freedom dining you are often in a queue with or without a buzzer

 

The apps remove any queues or any need to go to theatres and sit around waiting for 15 mins plus 

 

The app isn't to blame for why we currently can't all sit together at the same times for dinner. That's purely down to Covid not the app

Edited October 9, 2021 by Interestedcruisefan

[Angel57]

10 minutes ago, bee-ess said:

 

Sorry I disagree - we have been on all the P&O ships for the last 22 years when they have been full or nearly full and have never needed to pre-book a show or restaurant or use a smartphone. So why now ? What happened to spontaneity ?

I agree. I’ve never had to wait for a table on Freedom Dining (always happy to share) and as long as I got to the show 15 mins before start in the main theatre I always got a seat.  However Covid has changed things and has given P&O the excuse to change how things are done.
I’ve not sailed since Dec 2019 so cannot comment if these changes are in anyway beneficial to the passengers - but I somehow doubt it…..

[Interestedcruisefan]

10 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

In freedom dining pre covid, if you were happy to share a table, which we are, you rarely needed to wait for a table.

John I agree   - but you say rarely but that's not the same as never

 

And we all already knew busy times to avoid regradless

 

But what if you didn't want to share a table John? The answer is you had to go away and come back. With the app you no longer have to go away and come back. The table is ready for you 

 

And we all know due to Covid not the app we generally havevto avoid sharing tables it would seem?

 

 

 

 

[Interestedcruisefan]

2 minutes ago, Angel57 said:

I agree. I’ve never had to wait for a table on Freedom Dining (always happy to share) and as long as I got to the show 15 mins before start in the main theatre I always got a seat.  However Covid has changed things and has given P&O the excuse to change how things are done.
I’ve not sailed since Dec 2019 so cannot comment if these changes are in anyway beneficial to the passengers - but I somehow doubt it…..

 

Covid doesnt allow us to share tables currently does it?

 

In the past I've always like you had to go 15 mins plus early to the theatre to get a seat

 

Sometimes that was stressful being honest

 

Hence I really hope they continue with allowing at least those of us who want to - to be able to prebook theatre, know there is space waiting for us and just turn up 5 mins early without any stress or rush at all 

 

It was way better for us

 

Hopefully they will at least keep some parts of the theatre available for pre booking if not all of it

 

People often don't like change 

 

But many times it can be for the better

 

 

[bee-ess]

3 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

 

Covid doesnt allow us to share tables currently does it?

 

In the past I've always like you had to go 15 mins plus early to the theatre to get a seat

 

Sometimes that was stressful being honest

 

Hence I really hope they continue with allowing at least those of us who want to - to be able to prebook theatre, know there is space waiting for us and just turn up 5 mins early without any stress or rush at all 

 

It was way better for us

 

Hopefully they will at least keep some parts of the theatre available for pre booking if not all of it

 

People often don't like change 

 

But many times it can be for the better

 

 

We can now book shows 14 days before our cruise starts - how many will just book every show and decide on the night if they want to go or not thus leaving empty seats ?

[Marmaduke]

Last time I was on a P & O cruise was Feb 2020 , the MDR Lunch menu was poorly designed and  consisted of large plates, small plates, light opitions etc, all very confusing.  Has the MDR Dinner menu changed to this format as well, or is it still a traditional layout e.g starters, soup, main course, deserts etc.

[Angel57]

2 minutes ago, bee-ess said:

We can now book shows 14 days before our cruise starts - how many will just book every show and decide on the night if they want to go or not thus leaving empty seats ?

That was just going through my mind. Sometimes we opted for the later show because dinner was taking longer or we fancied going up on deck for a stroll.

Life is controlled by apps and doing everything online these days and to be honest I really don’t want that, but perhaps I’m a bit of a dinosaur…..

[bee-ess]

3 minutes ago, Angel57 said:

but perhaps I’m a bit of a dinosaur…..

I know I am - if it ain't broke don't fix it.

Edited October 9, 2021 by bee-ess

[Interestedcruisefan]

Just to say

 

When we first got on board I also didn't like the idea of the app for pre booking stuff

 

And first time we went in an online queue for MDR was thinking this is a pain

 

By the end of just a 4 night break I wouldn't want to do it any other way

 

In fact I remember one of the comedians on a previous cruise doing a 5 minute spot all about how everybody on a cruise ship seems to want to form queues for everything! 

 

He'd never seen so many queues anywhere

 

He joked that if he paid five people to queue up outside his cabin door that within ten minutes there would be another 30 passengers in the queue thinking "wow there must be something good happening in his cabin - lets join the queue!"

 

He was so right

 

By and large we all get used to queuing for stuff and get on with it

 

With the app you don't physically queue for anything

 

It's like the buzzers they use but way better as you can join any virtual  queue without physically having to go and get the buzzer first

 

Trust me the benefits far outweigh the negatives

 

If you dont have a smartphone staff will assist at and near reception 

 

But you will have to go to reception and there may be a queue as normal of course!

 

 Here's a thought

 

Maybe they could let us use the app for virtual queues for a couple of receptionist? 

 

So whilst those who don't like the app queue as normal. We who like the app can sip a cocktail whilst in a virtual queue in a bar nearby and just casually walk to reception with our cocktail in hand when we get the message!

 

Please don't anyone tell me youve never queued for customer service ! Lol

[Britboys]

2 hours ago, Cruise Puss said:

 

I quite understand your feelings, and we also thought that they are trying to attract a 'younger' audience.

 

The menus are the same on Britannia I'm afraid.  We haven't been on Arcadia or Aurora for a few years now so don't know if they are on there, but it would not surprise me.

 

We don't think that they quite know what their image is, or what clientele they are aiming for.

 

What we do think is that they don't seem to care about the passengers that have been cruising with them for many years.

 

We have tried Princess this year and, personally, find it to be a superior product. We have already booked a cruise with them again next year, and we are trying Saga twice next year as well.

 

Maybe P&O will realise that it is not all about 'younger' passengers who will flit from one cruise line to another.

 

Happy cruising!  😊

I so agree that P&O are not currently seeming to present a clear image in terms of the passenger demographic they are trying to attract. A number of us on here have been saying for some time that they are trying to be all things to all people. Whilst of course there are some things that are the same fleet-wide, I do feel the overall cruise experience differs considerably between Aurora/Arcadia and the larger ships.

It is of course possible to be all things to all people but to make that successful is pretty hard and needs a top-notch senior management team, which I can't say might be the case at P&O...

Maybe they will introduce the Iona-style menus etc on board Aurora & Arcadia with the intention of alienating older, long-standing pax, so that they can dispose of the smaller, older, less profitable ships sooner...?

[Interestedcruisefan]

9 minutes ago, bee-ess said:

We can now book shows 14 days before our cruise starts - how many will just book every show and decide on the night if they want to go or not thus leaving empty seats ?

Well I'm sure anyone capable of pre booking shows 14 days plus in advance is equally capable of cancelling something

 

It's so quick and easy to do and you can rely on the vast majority of people to do the right thing

 

Not only that for meal bookings the app will highlight anybody abusing the system ongoing ni doubt if it ever became too common

 

But also the app won't let you double book the same timeslot 

 

So if you change your mind and want to actually book something the same time as your initial booking you are forced to cancel first regardless

[bee-ess]

11 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Just to say

 

When we first got on board I also didn't like the idea of the app for pre booking stuff

 

And first time we went in an online queue for MDR was thinking this is a pain

 

By the end of just a 4 night break I wouldn't want to do it any other way

 

In fact I remember one of the comedians on a previous cruise doing a 5 minute spot all about how everybody on a cruise ship seems to want to form queues for everything! 

 

He'd never seen so many queues anywhere

 

He joked that if he paid five people to queue up outside his cabin door that within ten minutes there would be another 30 passengers in the queue thinking "wow there must be something good happening in his cabin - lets join the queue!"

 

He was so right

 

By and large we all get used to queuing for stuff and get on with it

 

With the app you don't physically queue for anything

 

It's like the buzzers they use but way better as you can join any virtual  queue without physically having to go and get the buzzer first

 

Trust me the benefits far outweigh the negatives

 

If you dont have a smartphone staff will assist at and near reception 

 

But you will have to go to reception and there may be a queue as normal of course!

 

 Here's a thought

 

Maybe they could let us use the app for virtual queues for a couple of receptionist? 

 

So whilst those who don't like the app queue as normal. We who like the app can sip a cocktail whilst in a virtual queue in a bar nearby and just casually walk to reception with our cocktail in hand when we get the message!

 

Please don't anyone tell me youve never queued for customer service ! Lol

I find this post quite patronising. Please don't assume that I don't understand the purpose or supposed benefits of the app. I have just told you that I don't want to plan my holiday down to the n'th degree and there will be others that feel the same. Let's just leave it at that.

 

In my experience P&O and IT don't go in the same sentence and you may find relying on the app may make you the only one without a seat in the theatre. That is my final comment on the matter.

Edited October 9, 2021 by bee-ess

[Britboys]

I always book Club Dining, second sitting and so consequently have no experience of waiting or queuing for the mdr's. With regard to the theatre, I go to most shows for the late performance after second sitting dinner and have never turned up more than 10 minutes early and often arrive at the last minute. Can't say I've ever not been able to get a seat.

I do however appreciate that the situation may be different aboard the larger ships.

[Interestedcruisefan]

6 minutes ago, bee-ess said:

I know I am - if it ain't broke don't fix it.

I'm suggesting you having to ever head to the theatre well in advance of a show starting to make sure you got a seat is actually a broken system and stress you dont need

 

At some stage each week or day you must decide what show you want to see and what time you want to eat and where etc

 

30 seconds on an app can literally remove 15 mins plus of wasted queuing time and stress

 

I know which I prefer

 

If we all have to endure online check ins for flights and holidays etc with passport details etc then we aren't the dinosaurs you might think we are

 

And the apps are so much easier than you expect once you get used to them 

 

Honestly they are