Iona specialty restaurants closed?

[terrierjohn]

3 minutes ago, Bazrat said:

That is a comparison 

Semantics!

[Yorkypete]

1 hour ago, Bazrat said:

That is a comparison 

So the review into what was available on the other cruiseline was a comparison to what is available on P&O? If that is the case for genuine REVIEWS then we had better not have any reviews or opinions on here.

[Bazrat]

1 hour ago, Yorkypete said:

So the review into what was available on the other cruiseline was a comparison to what is available on P&O? If that is the case for genuine REVIEWS then we had better not have any reviews or opinions on here.

Alas another one who as missed the point, if you are doing a review, you review the ship in question, if you are doing comparison's you do like for like, to put it basically if you do a comparison of one companies baked beans you would not compare them with another manufacturers spaghetti hoops.

[Bazrat]

2 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

Semantics!

Did you read the thread 

[Fionboard]

LOL!  Play nice boys!

[Dermotsgirl]

42 minutes ago, Bazrat said:

Alas another one who as missed the point, if you are doing a review, you review the ship in question, if you are doing comparison's you do like for like, to put it basically if you do a comparison of one companies baked beans you would not compare them with another manufacturers spaghetti hoops.

It's not really like comparing baked beans to spaghetti hoops ( completely different things) if you are comparing a ship to a ship as they are both ships !

 

I don't really understand what the problem is.  This is a P&O board, so most of us have probably sailed with P&O, particularly before the pandemic.  Therefore, when reviewing a cruise with a different cruise line, it can be helpful when comparisons are made to P&O, as it's a reference point that we all understand.

 

For example, when I think about my Fred Olsen cruise from 2018, I might say.

 

' One of the differences from P&O was that Fred Olsen had a small buffet available in the MDR's at breakfast and lunch time.  You could either eat from the buffet, or have waiter service from the menu. I thought this was a good idea, as I could have the convenience of the buffet,  but with the comfort of the MDR.

 

When I'm on a P&O cruise, I always take the opportunity to catch up on recent films, but Fred didn't show a single film throughout the cruise, which was disappointing.

 

__________________

 

I can't see anything wrong with this approach - hopefully it adds a bit of interest to people who are more used to P&O

 

 

 

[Megabear2]

Head above the parapet time - now on Regal Princess and everything to date seems to be open.  No waiting for someone to order my drink from when I sat down and lots of people offering assistance.  Time from arrival at ship to being onboard 15 minutes, a record for me.

[kalos]

33 minutes ago, Fionboard said:

LOL!  Play nice boys!

 

 

 

I'll stick to my Bontempi  thanks 

 

Round two will commence shortly 

 

[paulatsea]

3 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Head above the parapet time - now on Regal Princess and everything to date seems to be open.  No waiting for someone to order my drink from when I sat down and lots of people offering assistance.  Time from arrival at ship to being onboard 15 minutes, a record for me.

Impressive - have a great cruise.

keep us updated would you ?

I love it when someone comes over and takes your drinks order as soon as you sit down - always a good sign and panic over !

[Fionboard]

6 minutes ago, kalos said:

 

 

 

I'll stick to my Bontempi  thanks 

 

Round two will commence shortly 

 

What, the furniture or the keyboard?!

[Megabear2]

5 minutes ago, paulatsea said:

keep us updated would you

Will do.  Impressed so far.  Just learned my auntie is the most travelled guest onboard so we are having lunch with the Captain tomorrow, I'm a Princess newbie but got invited too.  Should be fun.  Incidentally the app is working well which is a bonus as I can never get the P&O one to!

[Dermotsgirl]

3 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Will do.  Impressed so far.  Just learned my auntie is the most travelled guest onboard so we are having lunch with the Captain tomorrow, I'm a Princess newbie but got invited too.  Should be fun.  Incidentally the app is working well which is a bonus as I can never get the P&O one to!

Watch out, you are making a comparison!

 

Hope you have an excellent cruise. 

[Dermotsgirl]

17 minutes ago, kalos said:

 

 

 

I'll stick to my Bontempi  thanks 

 

Round two will commence shortly 

 

Unusual version of that song! 

[kalos]

2 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

Unusual version of that song! 

 Compared to what ?  Oh look you've got me comparing now 

[grapau27]

25 minutes ago, Dermotsgirl said:

It's not really like comparing baked beans to spaghetti hoops ( completely different things) if you are comparing a ship to a ship as they are both ships !

 

I don't really understand what the problem is.  This is a P&O board, so most of us have probably sailed with P&O, particularly before the pandemic.  Therefore, when reviewing a cruise with a different cruise line, it can be helpful when comparisons are made to P&O, as it's a reference point that we all understand.

 

For example, when I think about my Fred Olsen cruise from 2018, I might say.

 

' One of the differences from P&O was that Fred Olsen had a small buffet available in the MDR's at breakfast and lunch time.  You could either eat from the buffet, or have waiter service from the menu. I thought this was a good idea, as I could have the convenience of the buffet,  but with the comfort of the MDR.

 

When I'm on a P&O cruise, I always take the opportunity to catch up on recent films, but Fred didn't show a single film throughout the cruise, which was disappointing.

 

__________________

 

I can't see anything wrong with this approach - hopefully it adds a bit of interest to people who are more used to P&O

 

 

 

I agree.

P&O do a lot of things that we like so we cruise on them.

Royal Caribbean and Princess do a lot of things we like so we sail on them too.

We are fortunate to have cruised many times on all 3 companies ships and had 5 Cruises since August 2021 so feel I could give a realistic assessment on them all.

Some of our posters on here have done similar and I absolutely respect their opinions because I know they are trying to help.

We love the speciality restaurants especially Epicurean and would be very disappointed if we were due to sail in the near future and they were not available.

[Astrajet]

 

 

30 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Just learned my auntie is the most travelled guest onboard so we are having lunch with the Captain tomorrow, I'm a Princess newbie but got invited too.

Hope you have a wonderful cruise.  Congrats to your aunt - enjoy lunch with the captain!

[grapau27]

59 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Will do.  Impressed so far.  Just learned my auntie is the most travelled guest onboard so we are having lunch with the Captain tomorrow, I'm a Princess newbie but got invited too.  Should be fun.  Incidentally the app is working well which is a bonus as I can never get the P&O one to!

That is an honour for your Aunty to be Top cruiser.

I hope you have a lovely lunch with the captain tomorrow.

[Ardennais]

5 hours ago, Bazrat said:

That is a comparison 

Afraid not.  A comparison is a different writing genre. My comments were expository and descriptive, not expository and comparative. 

[Ardennais]

1 hour ago, Megabear2 said:

Head above the parapet time - now on Regal Princess and everything to date seems to be open.  No waiting for someone to order my drink from when I sat down and lots of people offering assistance.  Time from arrival at ship to being onboard 15 minutes, a record for me.

Have a lovely time! 

[Yorkypete]

3 hours ago, Bazrat said:

Alas another one who as missed the point, if you are doing a review, you review the ship in question, if you are doing comparison's you do like for like, to put it basically if you do a comparison of one companies baked beans you would not compare them with another manufacturers spaghetti hoops.

Sorry but I have not missed the point. As far as I am concerned the post by Ardennais was a review. If you see a review of a cruise you are bound to compare it to your own. That is natural but a review is a review NOT a comparison. As to 'baked beans' compared to' spaghetti hoops'...well I mean ! Does anyone compare a cruise liner with a rowing boat?

Edited July 2, 2022 by Yorkypete

[tim2go]

3 hours ago, kalos said:

 

 

 

I'll stick to my Bontempi  thanks 

 

Round two will commence shortly 

 

OMG this actually made me cry! 🤣

 

Hope you don't mind but I've downloaded it and it's now my ringtone!

[kalos]

25 minutes ago, tim2go said:

OMG this actually made me cry! 🤣

 

Hope you don't mind but I've downloaded it and it's now my ringtone!

 

From my wmc club land days, the group used it between the performances .. Enjoy !

[Megabear2]

After the exciting and delicious lunch with the Captain yesterday (goodness he is a tall man!) just a quick update that I've now toured the ship checking how we are - definitely required after the huge offerings - and delighted to report everything is operational and functioning as it should.

 

The staff are wonderful, very accommodating and there seem to be plenty of them.  As my first proper Princess cruise - I completed a 4 day staycation last year - the experience is so far really good.

 

Incidentally the lady seated next to me yesterday evening is a big P&O cruiser.  She recently sailed on Iona to the Fjords (or not as she put it!!) and she too is impressed with what's happening here.  We both agreed, however, if it wasn't for the Princess Plus package P&O offer the best value.  Also met a couple if well travelled Australians who hate Cunard but love P&O Australia.

 

Found the quarantine quarter by accident and can report there are a number of cases onboard, mainly I believe staff.

 

Today the ship celebrated American Independence Day, great fun for all.  The sail away from Gibraltar was noisy and joyous, none appeared worse te wear for their free drinks.  A surprising amount of the entertainment has been British so far and all nationalities are joining in whole heartedly.

 

The food is still good, a little on the cool side for me on occasions.  The staff are working tirelessly to ensure everyone is having a good time - certainly we are! Tomorrow another seaday - certainly need a rest after today's exertions!

 

I can confirm there are two Captain's Circle cocktail parties tomorrow.  Like my previous one on Celebrity all is as near to pre-pandemic as it could be.

 

Organisation is excellent, events well supported and running smoothly. Onboard count is around 2,600 but the ship is in no way feeling crowded or unable to cope.  Masks are recommended in the theatre but not mandatory.  Some are to be seen.  The middle lifts can be busy but we are aft and rarely see anyone in the ones nearest us, the front ones much the same except after theatre turnout.

 

We have booked another cruise for early next year whilst onboard, looking forward to it already.  Certainly this trying other lines rather than sticking is offering great delights and pleasures not seen for some time.

[grapau27]

10 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

After the exciting and delicious lunch with the Captain yesterday (goodness he is a tall man!) just a quick update that I've now toured the ship checking how we are - definitely required after the huge offerings - and delighted to report everything is operational and functioning as it should.

 

The staff are wonderful, very accommodating and there seem to be plenty of them.  As my first proper Princess cruise - I completed a 4 day staycation last year - the experience is so far really good.

 

Incidentally the lady seated next to me yesterday evening is a big P&O cruiser.  She recently sailed on Iona to the Fjords (or not as she put it!!) and she too is impressed with what's happening here.  We both agreed, however, if it wasn't for the Princess Plus package P&O offer the best value.  Also met a couple if well travelled Australians who hate Cunard but love P&O Australia.

 

Found the quarantine quarter by accident and can report there are a number of cases onboard, mainly I believe staff.

 

Today the ship celebrated American Independence Day, great fun for all.  The sail away from Gibraltar was noisy and joyous, none appeared worse te wear for their free drinks.  A surprising amount of the entertainment has been British so far and all nationalities are joining in whole heartedly.

 

The food is still good, a little on the cool side for me on occasions.  The staff are working tirelessly to ensure everyone is having a good time - certainly we are! Tomorrow another seaday - certainly need a rest after today's exertions!

 

I can confirm there are two Captain's Circle cocktail parties tomorrow.  Like my previous one on Celebrity all is as near to pre-pandemic as it could be.

 

Organisation is excellent, events well supported and running smoothly. Onboard count is around 2,600 but the ship is in no way feeling crowded or unable to cope.  Masks are recommended in the theatre but not mandatory.  Some are to be seen.  The middle lifts can be busy but we are aft and rarely see anyone in the ones nearest us, the front ones much the same except after theatre turnout.

 

We have booked another cruise for early next year whilst onboard, looking forward to it already.  Certainly this trying other lines rather than sticking is offering great delights and pleasures not seen for some time.

Pleased to hear you are having a great time.

I'm sure you have done already but don't forget to get a Princess Captains Circle membership.

Graham.

[gsmt47471015]

11 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

After the exciting and delicious lunch with the Captain yesterday (goodness he is a tall man!) just a quick update that I've now toured the ship checking how we are - definitely required after the huge offerings - and delighted to report everything is operational and functioning as it should.

 

The staff are wonderful, very accommodating and there seem to be plenty of them.  As my first proper Princess cruise - I completed a 4 day staycation last year - the experience is so far really good.

 

Incidentally the lady seated next to me yesterday evening is a big P&O cruiser.  She recently sailed on Iona to the Fjords (or not as she put it!!) and she too is impressed with what's happening here.  We both agreed, however, if it wasn't for the Princess Plus package P&O offer the best value.  Also met a couple if well travelled Australians who hate Cunard but love P&O Australia.

 

Found the quarantine quarter by accident and can report there are a number of cases onboard, mainly I believe staff.

 

Today the ship celebrated American Independence Day, great fun for all.  The sail away from Gibraltar was noisy and joyous, none appeared worse te wear for their free drinks.  A surprising amount of the entertainment has been British so far and all nationalities are joining in whole heartedly.

 

The food is still good, a little on the cool side for me on occasions.  The staff are working tirelessly to ensure everyone is having a good time - certainly we are! Tomorrow another seaday - certainly need a rest after today's exertions!

 

I can confirm there are two Captain's Circle cocktail parties tomorrow.  Like my previous one on Celebrity all is as near to pre-pandemic as it could be.

 

Organisation is excellent, events well supported and running smoothly. Onboard count is around 2,600 but the ship is in no way feeling crowded or unable to cope.  Masks are recommended in the theatre but not mandatory.  Some are to be seen.  The middle lifts can be busy but we are aft and rarely see anyone in the ones nearest us, the front ones much the same except after theatre turnout.

 

We have booked another cruise for early next year whilst onboard, looking forward to it already.  Certainly this trying other lines rather than sticking is offering great delights and pleasures not seen for some time.

Cant say I blame you, after years of been P and O regulars we have been trying out "the competition" and comparing as best we can like for like, certainly agree up to now that without the various packages offered by other lines the price comparison makes P and O look reasonable, service level's across all we have tried,  are about the same, however we have some others to try later this year and next