Iona no show for Geiranger

[Ardennais]

1 hour ago, gsmt47471015 said:

Well until its official we will remain optimistic, however if this does turn out to be fact then we ,and our cruise relative newbies are not going to be very pleased ,and have to say if it wasn't for them and the fact we have made arrangements for pre cruise accommodation and taxis and covid testing we would cancel or transfer, really feel that Iona is not  suited to this part of the world and appears that when planning this itinerary P and O did not do their research 

I sympathise. The disparity between the the plans on paper and the plans in practice mentioned above  - to me, that confirms a lack of research or a lack of something pretty basic somewhere. In other words, a c… up. 

[yorkshirephil]

3 minutes ago, Ardennais said:

I sympathise. The disparity between the the plans on paper and the plans in practice mentioned above  - to me, that confirms a lack of research or a lack of something pretty basic somewhere. In other words, a c… up. 

Reminds me of the Ventura cruise to the Panama canal a few years back. Plenty of hype for the canal, unfortunately Ventura wouldn't fit through the locks. 

[Megabear2]

5 hours ago, molecrochip said:

There seems to be some disparity between the plans on paper and the plans in practice.

 

The suggestion I heard I’d that there have been changes to the mooring arrangements which then creates the situation mentioned by Sharon.

I didn’t think Iona was ever scheduled to stop at Bergen….. but I could be wrong. I thought that was why Britannia was still doing the Fjords including Bergen.

Not looking good then for the introduction to a nice easy schedule with the friendly Norwegians we spoke about a couple of weeks ago.   Seems totally bonkers to send a brand new flagship somewhere where the advertised schedules are actually never going to be achieved.

[Selbourne]

13 hours ago, molecrochip said:

There seems to be some disparity between the plans on paper and the plans in practice.

 

The suggestion I heard I’d that there have been changes to the mooring arrangements which then creates the situation mentioned by Sharon.

 

If I am reading all of this correctly, Iona will now be unable to call at Geiranger - ever? If correct, this would be completely and utterly inexcusable.
 

We booked our Iona cruise specifically because it went to Geiranger, as it is the only one of the top 3 fjords that we haven’t been to. Not only does it now appear that we will no longer go there, but P&O now has the bare faced cheek to sell overpriced excursions to the place that we have paid to go to anyway which, to rub salt into the wound, they describe as “the most beautiful fjord in the World”!
 

We hate going on excursions at the best of times as we prefer to look around places independently rather than be herded in groups, but due to my wife’s disability we wouldn’t be able to do them anyway. 
 

Would you please be kind enough to state very clearly if my understanding of this situation is correct (I.e. NO Iona cruise will now go to Geiranger at any time in the future), or whether this is temporary? I’m afraid that P&O has considerable form for continuing to sell cruises to locations that they know full well they are unable to get to. They have a terribly arrogant attitude that people book cruises purely for the ability to be on a specific ship and where it goes is of no relevance. Wrong. We booked our cruise to go to Geiranger and wouldn’t have booked it had we known that it wouldn’t get there. 
 

I hope that I have misunderstood all of this and it’s a temporary problem, but my confidence in P&O has waned considerably in recent years and if this is true then I’m afraid that what confidence or enthusiasm that I have for P&O is left in tatters. 

[Britboys]

Iona's 2023 Norway cruises only include Olden as a Fjord port of call. Should Iona fail to go to Olden due to the weather not co-operating, she will be doing a Norway Coastal cruise...

[gsmt47471015]

There appears to be a theme running here ,recent posts regarding cancelled ports in Croatia, up to four on one cruise, the uncertainty over Geiranger  , the whole of the USA leg of the five week cruise on Ventura in February ,which we were on lost, and three days before departure another port cancelled, it looks at times as if P and O are just taking the rise out of paying passengers who have paid to visit specific places, and in the instance of Geiranger, (if true) will have to pay AGAIN to get from Helisylt .

It just feels as though you are paying for something you don't really want, and with the questions about Arcadia and Aurora resurfacing (which we are booked on three times up to 2024)we are certainly glad we are sharing our cruise's with lots of other lines and have to say up to now every one of them has been a far better experience than with P and O, which is a shame as we have enjoyed most of our time with them, in these days of belt tightening the customer experience will be the thing that keeps any company in business   

[P&O SUE]

I agree about missing Geiranger being a massive disappointment. My only Norway cruise so far was early season and we went to Bergen Flam, Olden and Stavanger. 
I’ve long wanted to go back as all the waterfalls were frozen when we went. I’ve been looking at the Iona cruises but luckily haven’t booked yet but I was looking especially for Geiranger! I see Britannia is doing some but they are not going to Geiranger. Very disappointing for all  those already booked.

Edited May 25, 2022 by P&O SUE

[Selbourne]

17 minutes ago, gsmt47471015 said:

There appears to be a theme running here ,recent posts regarding cancelled ports in Croatia, up to four on one cruise, the uncertainty over Geiranger  , the whole of the USA leg of the five week cruise on Ventura in February ,which we were on lost, and three days before departure another port cancelled, it looks at times as if P and O are just taking the rise out of paying passengers who have paid to visit specific places, and in the instance of Geiranger, (if true) will have to pay AGAIN to get from Helisylt .

It just feels as though you are paying for something you don't really want, and with the questions about Arcadia and Aurora resurfacing (which we are booked on three times up to 2024)we are certainly glad we are sharing our cruise's with lots of other lines and have to say up to now every one of them has been a far better experience than with P and O, which is a shame as we have enjoyed most of our time with them, in these days of belt tightening the customer experience will be the thing that keeps any company in business   

Spot on. I’m afraid that P&O is now appearing to treat its customers with complete disdain. It’s all very well switching their focus to the ‘new to cruising’ market, but surely any company needs to ensure repeat custom for long term sustainability?
 

To a degree, we are all used to these port change nonsenses, but it won’t even be considered by those booking their first cruise that they might not get to where they have booked. It’s a bit like booking a city break to Paris and then being told by the operator that they’ve changed it to Reims and when you query it being told that they can’t understand why it would matter to you!

[Selbourne]

30 minutes ago, Britboys said:

Iona's 2023 Norway cruises only include Olden as a Fjord port of call. Should Iona fail to go to Olden due to the weather not co-operating, she will be doing a Norway Coastal cruise...

Our cruise is still showing both Olden and Geiranger, but I shall be interested to read @molecrochip reply to my earlier questions. If Geiranger is no longer possible then clearly P&O should stop advertising Iona cruises featuring it and contact all passengers on the affected cruises. Anything less is sharp practice IMO. 

[jon01]

I am new to cruising, done just a few and never experienced port cancellations or alterations

 

I am due in Geiranger with Iona in a couple of weeks with excursions booked. Do we expect P&O to contact customers with this change of port, or do they wait until you are on board as they fear announcing it before departure they will get a load of cancellations with customers moving to other cruise lines? Am I right in thinking that the original itinerary was to call at Hellesylt briefly in the morning to drop off and then move to Geiranger? So technically this is a cancelled port situation?

 

As I have lost an excursion and a port call has been altered/cancelled, do I have the right to an insurance claim?  I know I can cancel the booked excursion in advance

 

I now feel that I will be spending half of the holiday on the ships website checking things, booking dining, shows etc and grabbing a nice excursion from Hellesylt before they sell out

 

The roads around the port at Hellesylt don't look suitable for coaches, maybe only minibuses and there is no road between Hellesylt and Geiranger, so I'm sure our trip from the latter to the viewing spots and Fjord Centre will be cancelled

 

If only P&O had thought about this in advance and had a nice small/medium sized ship built for small ports and with less height to help in strong winds, rather than build two monsters to keep up with modern trends!

[Fionboard]

The big ships should stick to container ports and leave the fjords to smaller ones. Best of the fjord trips I have done was on Fred! Trouble with Iona is LNG! Bit like electric cars with not enough charging points!

[jon01]

A live camera has been set up to see Iona at Hellesylt: 

 

Wider live view:

 

[Fionboard]

Does that pier look a bit short for the ship? Looks like only one exit area open which surely will cause queuing!

[crompton21]

Interesting that the first webcam was named Geiraingerfjord cruise port by whoever set up the account (many years ago by the look of it).

[Gettingwarmer]

1 minute ago, crompton21 said:

Interesting that the first webcam was named Geiraingerfjord cruise port by whoever set up the account (many years ago by the look of it).

That is because Hellesylt is in Geiraingerfjord, just a different branch of the fjord. 

[vitrocmax]

There’s plenty of room for 2 gangways, they are both in use. We came back on board around lunchtime and it was busy but less than 5 minutes queuing. Wheelchair access is the forward one. I think Sarah mentioned that in her thread  

[Britboys]

4 hours ago, Selbourne said:

Our cruise is still showing both Olden and Geiranger, but I shall be interested to read @molecrochip reply to my earlier questions. If Geiranger is no longer possible then clearly P&O should stop advertising Iona cruises featuring it and contact all passengers on the affected cruises. Anything less is sharp practice IMO. 

Yes, sorry - i should have looked closer. Early and late season itineraries don't include Geiranger but some of the high season ones do.

[dalesmouse]

2 hours ago, Gettingwarmer said:

That is because Hellesylt is in Geiraingerfjord, just a different branch of the fjord. 

 

We are currently on board Iona and were initially disappointed to be diverted to Hellesylt however decided to make the best of it .Went out on a RHIB tour down Geraingerfjord this morning and would thoroughly recommend.Not only was it a fantastic way to see the scenery from the fjord, our guide who was born and lives on a farm on the fjord side provided a fantastic commentary on the Fjord and it's history. Top notch survival suits were provided .Check out Bonseye RHIB tours website- they are easy to locate on the quayside.Hellesylt is a pretty little port and as the sun has just come out ,no complaints from me🌞

[delgirl]

We went to geiranger in 2014 on hal ryndam. Beautiful place although we were tendered. Ncl or Costa were on sea walk. Ryndam only a small ship 55,000 tons. Also went right down to Eidford which was also gorgeous. Was told back then that they were building bridges to stop the large ships from going too far into the fjords. We only just fitted under the bridge at eidfjord. So anything larger would have no chance. Should keep the smaller ships for norway and the larger ones for elsewhere. P and O should know this 

[delgirl]

1 hour ago, dalesmouse said:

 

We are currently on board Iona and were initially disappointed to be diverted to Hellesylt however decided to make the best of it .Went out on a RHIB tour down Geraingerfjord this morning and would thoroughly recommend.Not only was it a fantastic way to see the scenery from the fjord, our guide who was born and lives on a farm on the fjord side provided a fantastic commentary on the Fjord and it's history. Top notch survival suits were provided .Check out Bonseye RHIB tours website- they are easy to locate on the quayside.Hellesylt is a pretty little port and as the sun has just come out ,no complaints from me🌞

we did the rib ride in geiranger in 2014. Booked on the geiranger website as less than half the price of the ship excursions. HAL excursions are very expensive eg eye watering expensive🤣. In fact it was less for the both of us than each on ship excursions

[Denarius]

I have read this thread and similar ones with interest and have picked up on a recurring theme; that nowadays P&O appear to regard changes in itinerary as a minor issue. Is this because in the brave new world of family big ship cruising the ship is now seen as the primary destination, and the ports mere diversions? A floating resort hotel which some passengers (sorry, guests!) will not leave during their holiday, like resort hotels such as  Sandals on land.

[thornegirl]

2 hours ago, dalesmouse said:

 

We are currently on board Iona and were initially disappointed to be diverted to Hellesylt however decided to make the best of it .Went out on a RHIB tour down Geraingerfjord this morning and would thoroughly recommend.Not only was it a fantastic way to see the scenery from the fjord, our guide who was born and lives on a farm on the fjord side provided a fantastic commentary on the Fjord and it's history. Top notch survival suits were provided .Check out Bonseye RHIB tours website- they are easy to locate on the quayside.Hellesylt is a pretty little port and as the sun has just come out ,no complaints from me🌞

Can I ask was this a rib tour through P&O or direct with Bonseye?  I've emailed Bonseye direct but not had a reply yet

[yorkshirephil]

12 minutes ago, Denarius said:

I have read this thread and similar ones with interest and have picked up on a recurring theme; that nowadays P&O appear to regard changes in itinerary as a minor issue. Is this because in the brave new world of family big ship cruising the ship is now seen as the primary destination, and the ports mere diversions? A floating resort hotel which some passengers (sorry, guests!) will not leave during their holiday, like resort hotels such as  Sandals on land.

Maybe they should start running mystery cruises, you book the ship for a period of time and P&O decide where it goes. Oh hang on that's already happening.

[dalesmouse]

It was via  P&O but was twice the price £99 pp we ended on it by default as P&o had made a mess of booking a kayak trip...won't bore you with story but I'm so glad they did as we had such a fabulous morning .You probs haven't had an answer as the guys & gals from Bonseye  apart from farming and running a success tourist business do all sorts of things for the port and are currently  on the quayside untying Iona and sending us on our way

[thornegirl]

18 minutes ago, dalesmouse said:

It was via  P&O but was twice the price £99 pp we ended on it by default as P&o had made a mess of booking a kayak trip...won't bore you with story but I'm so glad they did as we had such a fabulous morning .You probs haven't had an answer as the guys & gals from Bonseye  apart from farming and running a success tourist business do all sorts of things for the port and are currently  on the quayside untying Iona and sending us on our way

Thanks for the information.  That price is a lot more than they charge direct, hopefully we can book direct with them.