P&O Arvia K307 - Not the experience we were expecting

[Interestedcruisefan]

22 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

I'm fully aware of that. What I meant by "out of season" was a cruise outside school holidays and bank holidays.  If these cruises were being sold at £999 each they were clearly difficult to fill, weather etc not being relevant.  Thousands upon thousands of people go to WDW in July/August because it's when they can holiday but that is "out of season" as far as the Corporation is concerned and gives them a chance to fill rooms that their "normal" clientele prefer not to use.

Long may they remain difficult to fill Megabear I hope!!

 

Same Arvia cruise (which we plan to be on next year) was 1500 each approx last time I looked

 

So I'm holding back for now

 

Edit just checked - it's 1435 each now so heading down already

 

My TA will get it a bit cheaper than that I'm sure. But I need it down to 1200 ish to be really happy again 

 

That's what we paid flying from Birmingham last year 

 

We didn't wait til week before for the 999 deals the real last minute bookers got (which also weren't from Birmingham  as far as I know. 100 each extra to fly from there normally on top of the headline rates) 

 

 

Edited April 8, 2023 by Interestedcruisefan

[CarlaMarie]

2 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

All great points

 

But for cruises do be successful ongoing - the older demographics will slowly but surely  be replaced by new cruisers who I honestly feel will be way less inclined to choose MDR ahead of the speciality, buffet and quays. When we first cruised it was the norm/tradition to use MDR every night. We knew no different then. 

 

I do believe avoiding school holidays is the way for those without children to ensure a much calmer cruise. Or opt for an adult only ship.

 

For the big ships if they are getting 800 kids on board imagine the size of the kids clubs they would need to accommodate them all?

 

If we were still travelling with kids we would be really disappointed if the kids clubs were full when we travelled. It's a huge benefit of cruising for the kids.

 

Maybe the ships need to limit the number of kids allowed on board? Would be a hard decision to take financially though?

 

Moleochip what do you think on that idea?

 

My biggest tip for adults travelling on Iona or Arvia would be to avoid school holiday cruises to avoid congestion problems AND to pay less for the same cruise

 

Or if you do have to travel in school holiday times - choose an adult only ship

 

I'm not sure I could advise families to cruise on Arvia at school holiday times if they ARE NOT all getting chance for their kids to use kids clubs  whenever they want

 

We never had that trouble on previous Xmas cruises on Azura, RCL and Carnival?

 

Never 

 

We never felt it was over busy on those cruises either

 

My parents have been regular cruisers for over 20 years and are now in their 60s. They sailed on Iona last year, for the itinerary which is what attracts them most when looking for a cruise. They sailed during term time, however they ended up in the buffet on the first night as they could not get into the MDR, something that has never happened to them before. The queues on the app were very slow and did not work. 

[Selbourne]

22 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

 

But people would have to deliberately go past the heavily promoted headline brilliant deals to pay more

 

You know we are happy with inside cabins and we go for the food, drink and entertainment and port experiences (which we normally do DIY)

 

To me it's madness to pay more than you need to

 

To others it's obviously important to do so for the benefits they think they get in return.  And its a choice they make.

 

I can't really feel sorry for people who choose to pay way way more for me for what I consider to be needless extras we ourselves wouldn't get any real benefit from 

 

Makes no sense to me to ignore and click past the great deals. You can't exactly miss them!

 

Maybe they think there's a catch. 

 

I don't have a bottomless pit of money to spend and I hope to be cruising for another 30 year so I make my price choices accordingly

 

Ps Megastar be careful what you say!

 

P and O will take your “P” away and send it to me instead!!

 

Lol

With all due respect, I do feel that you need to consider that not everyone wants to cruise in the same way as you do, even those of similar ages. There are clearly a number of problems at present. Even the most blinkered P&O fan can surely see that and it’s telling that even our forum P&O insider admits it. Just because they don’t affect you personally doesn’t mean that they don’t need fixing. 
 

We are only a few years older than you, so in the same age group. However, we differ in how we cruise in almost every respect. To explain;

 

Price - You often cite how low cruise prices are and the comparison with other holidays. However, you happily book inside cabins, possibly on Savers and can always cruise off season if you wish. In our case, we would absolutely detest an inside cabin, so much so that we would rather not cruise than have one. A balcony cabin is a minimum for us. A cabin is not just a place to sleep or change. We spend a lot of time in it, reading, watching the views (from the sofa or balcony) etc. especially on sea days when the ship is busy. Location is important to us, so we want our first choice location, not what is left over. On ships where there is a dining choice, we always want Freedom dining. All these factors rule out Savers. Because we need an accessible cabin, last minute (bargain) bookings aren’t possible. All of these factors combined mean that we pay significantly more per cruise than you do. It is therefore not unreasonable that our expectations may be different. 
 

Dining - You tend to use the buffet or speciality restaurants. We also like the speciality restaurants, but we avoid the buffet like the plague. We don’t pay to go on holiday to eat in a self service cafeteria. The majority of evenings we will use the MDR. I don’t expect to be forced to use the speciality restaurants more than we would chose to, just because the MDR is poorly organised or inadequately provisioned. Whilst we can cruise off peak, we are going on Iona in August. Not our choice, but one daughters partner is a teacher. As megabear rightly points out, Iona and Arvia are designed as family ships. They should still be able to comfortably cope with 6,000 passengers in school holidays. It’s simply not acceptable that on Arvia at present people are being forced to use the buffet as they cannot get into the MDR. I’ve read a few excuses for that, but excuses are all they are.  Whilst Iona doesn’t seem to be as badly affected as Arvia, I have still decided that we will probably be best to avoid the MDR other than perhaps one formal evening. I’m paying for the holiday for all 6 passengers, so the decision to use speciality restaurants most evenings is going to add to my cruise cost considerably. That’s wrong. 
 

Shows - We dine much later than you so if we go to a show it’s always the 10.30pm one. Whilst we have to get there early to secure a wheelchair space and companion seat, there is never a problem with people being able to walk in right up until the show starts. Now we will have to book and if we decide not to go remember to cancel. Meanwhile, those who decide on the spur of the moment to go (who would previously have just walked in) will now have to queue and wait for no shows. This is solving a problem that never existed and even our P&O insider agrees it should stop. The joy of cruising for many is spontaneity and doing things on a whim. That’s all gone. 
 

There are other ways in which our cruise expectations differ, but hopefully this gives you a flavour of the fact that we are all different (even if similar ages) and just because P&O are ticking all your boxes at present you can appreciate that for others they are going backwards. We have only ever cruised with P&O and have been loyal to them since 1996. However, we have started looking elsewhere now, something that we wouldn’t have done had all these things not occurred. We have booked our first Cunard cruise and are registered with Saga. Yes, P&O cruises are a lot cheaper in real terms than they used to be, and we will still use them as ‘filler’ holidays. But we are at a stage where we rate quality over quantity and we would happily pay more for a better experience. 

[CarlaMarie]

1 hour ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

But us experienced cruisers who do have  choices of when to travel and who care enough about our experiences on board enough to research and talk about cruising on here would be silly not to factor in what's happening

 

And have to take control ourselves a bit to avoid the issues

 

Use this forum to avoid mistakes whilst P and O figure out how to reduce issues at busy time. We can't solve those issues Megabear

 

But we can avoid them

 

No cruiser should have to factor all of these issues in, and many do not have the luxury to have choices of when they can travel (even as an experienced cruiser). 

[Interestedcruisefan]

1 minute ago, CarlaMarie said:

 

My parents have been regular cruisers for over 20 years and are now in their 60s. They sailed on Iona last year, for the itinerary which is what attracts them most when looking for a cruise. They sailed during term time, however they ended up in the buffet on the first night as they could not get into the MDR, something that has never happened to them before. The queues on the app were very slow and did not work. 

 

Although we don't try for MDR I do personally expect first night is always the worst for dining on cruises. Everyone finding their feet on the ship etc

 

Our first night on a cruise we like to just explore and understand a new ship.

 

Think we dined in the Quays first night on Arvia so didn't face any issues

 

On Iona we won't need to explore like we did Arvia. As its effectively the same layout. Might do Quays again. Or maybe book epicurean to start the cruise on a high.

 

That will work for us

[Megabear2]

2 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

All the time we had no choice but to book school holiday peak cost Xmas/New Year Caribbean  cruises we used to be envious of the prices for effectively the same cruise one week after we got home

 

I can't imagine any situation now where we would pay the inflated prices as these times for essentially the same cruise just far busier

 

But obviously it's personal choice. I can't stop others making that choice. 

I have no children or family nearby, 140 miles to the nearest ones, and for 35 years have accordingly travelled over Christmas by choice paying the premium without quibble as frankly Christmas at home is just like another day.  My husband's industry virtually closes down for the period from 23/12 to 3/01 which also meant in our early married life enforced two week Christmas holidays although now he's running his own business it's not enforced but still means it's extremely quiet for us personally.  Never until December 2022 have I been disappointed with the holiday my money bought.

 

I guess my point is I quite like being away, be it on a ship or a hotel, in a multi age group over Christmas and I'd quite like it to run smoothly so its memorable for the right reasons.

 

I don't see why I should be expected to expect anything less than the same experience on a 22nd December cruise to a 2nd February 2024. 

[Interestedcruisefan]

16 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

With all due respect, I do feel that you need to consider that not everyone wants to cruise in the same way as you do, even those of similar ages. There are clearly a number of problems at present. Even the most blinkered P&O fan can surely see that and it’s telling that even our forum P&O insider admits it. Just because they don’t affect you personally doesn’t mean that they don’t need fixing. 
 

We are only a few years older than you, so in the same age group. However, we differ in how we cruise in almost every respect. To explain;

 

Price - You often cite how low cruise prices are and the comparison with other holidays. However, you happily book inside cabins, possibly on Savers and can always cruise off season if you wish. In our case, we would absolutely detest an inside cabin, so much so that we would rather not cruise than have one. A balcony cabin is a minimum for us. A cabin is not just a place to sleep or change. We spend a lot of time in it, reading, watching the views (from the sofa or balcony) etc. especially on sea days when the ship is busy. Location is important to us, so we want our first choice location, not what is left over. On ships where there is a dining choice, we always want Freedom dining. All these factors rule out Savers. Because we need an accessible cabin, last minute (bargain) bookings aren’t possible. All of these factors combined mean that we pay significantly more per cruise than you do. It is therefore not unreasonable that our expectations may be different. 
 

Dining - You tend to use the buffet or speciality restaurants. We also like the speciality restaurants, but we avoid the buffet like the plague. We don’t pay to go on holiday to eat in a self service cafeteria. The majority of evenings we will use the MDR. I don’t expect to be forced to use the speciality restaurants more than we would chose to, just because the MDR is poorly organised or inadequately provisioned. Whilst we can cruise off peak, we are going on Iona in August. Not our choice, but one daughters partner is a teacher. As megabear rightly points out, Iona and Arvia are designed as family ships. They should still be able to comfortably cope with 6,000 passengers in school holidays. It’s simply not acceptable that on Arvia at present people are being forced to use the buffet as they cannot get into the MDR. I’ve read a few excuses for that, but excuses are all they are.  Whilst Iona doesn’t seem to be as badly affected as Arvia, I have still decided that we will probably be best to avoid the MDR other than perhaps one formal evening. I’m paying for the holiday for all 6 passengers, so the decision to use speciality restaurants most evenings is going to add to my cruise cost considerably. That’s wrong. 
 

Shows - We dine much later than you so if we go to a show it’s always the 10.30pm one. Whilst we have to get there early to secure a wheelchair space and companion seat, there is never a problem with people being able to walk in right up until the show starts. Now we will have to book and if we decide not to go remember to cancel. Meanwhile, those who decide on the spur of the moment to go (who would previously have just walked in) will now have to queue and wait for no shows. This is solving a problem that never existed and even our P&O insider agrees it should stop. The joy of cruising for many is spontaneity and doing things on a whim. That’s all gone. 
 

There are other ways in which our cruise expectations differ, but hopefully this gives you a flavour of the fact that we are all different (even if similar ages) and just because P&O are ticking all your boxes at present you can appreciate that for others they are going backwards. We have only ever cruised with P&O and have been loyal to them since 1996. However, we have started looking elsewhere now, something that we wouldn’t have done had all these things not occurred. We have booked our first Cunard cruise and are registered with Saga. Yes, P&O cruises are a lot cheaper in real terms than they used to be, and we will still use them as ‘filler’ holidays. But we are at a stage where we rate quality over quantity and we would happily pay more for a better experience. 

I totally understand all your choices and totally respect them

 

We are lucky we find zero to detest in inside cabins so it removes a lot of cost choices and worrying about locations for us. All inside cabins are exactly the same to us

 

We spend pretty much all our waking time outside our cabin. We don't spend any time we don't need to in the cabins full stop. That was underlined to us when upgraded to a balcony on our third day and me never once using the  balcony. I think my wife went on it twice in 11 nights briefly.

 

I feel slightly attacked on here by being so positive about my experience of cruising. But I guess I just have to stick up for myself

 

And although I can sympathise with others who don't enjoy as much as me I can't let it spoil my enjoyment of cruising and all I can really do is say how we personally avoid some of those issues

 

I don't expect others to copy what we do. We do a few things you do. But wouldn't copy everything you do.

 

We all make our own choices. 

 

Also the money you budget for cruises will allow you to choose elsewhere of course.

 

We don't budget high enough to choose elsewhere at the moment. But wouldn't get the return even if we did.

 

We love what we get as it is

 

 

Edited April 8, 2023 by Interestedcruisefan

[Interestedcruisefan]

12 minutes ago, CarlaMarie said:

 

No cruiser should have to factor all of these issues in, and many do not have the luxury to have choices of when they can travel (even as an experienced cruiser). 

But if they don't enjoy what they get in return for their hard earnt cash they can choose to stop cruising or cruise elsewhere

 

I would if I wasn't happy with what I got. I wouldn't repeat simple as that

 

Right now I'm happy and planning to buy shares as I'm expecting to cruise many more times as a result

 

That may change and if so I will change what I do and sell the shares!!

Edited April 8, 2023 by Interestedcruisefan

[Selbourne]

6 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

I totally understand all your choices and totally respect them

 

We are lucky we find zero to detest in inside cabins so it removes a lot of cost choices and worrying about locations for us. All inside cabins are exactly the same to us

 

We spend pretty much all our waking time outside our cabin. We don't spend any time we don't need to in the cabins full stop. That was underlined to us when upgraded to a balcony on our third day and me never once using the  balcony. I think my wife went on it twice in 11 nights briefly.

 

I feel slightly attacked on here by being so positive about my experience of cruising. But I guess I just have to stick up for myself

 

And although I can sympathise with others who don't enjoy as much as me I can't let it spoil my enjoyment of cruising and all I can really do is say how we personally avoid some of those issues

 

 

Thanks. I completely understand why inside cabins appeal for those who cruise in the way that you do. I wish we felt the same as it would save me a small fortune 😂

 

I would hope that you don’t feel attacked, but a little more understanding of the fact that what works for one doesn’t always work for another is all that is asked for 😉 

[Cathygh]

@molecrochip Do P&O increase the staffing on school holiday cruises? Specifically regarding Iona and Arvia with  full lower and upper berths, there seems to be a problem with long waits for drinks and lack of spaces in the Kids clubs. Whoever decided that you had to book your children in the day before on the app at 10.30 am, when you could be off the ship exploring or on a tour, has no idea what people want to do on holiday or the reality of family life when the kids are up at 6 and you need to get them off the ship for a runaround asap. 

[Megabear2]

3 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

I totally understand all your choices and totally respect them

 

We are lucky we find zero to detest in inside cabins so it removes a lot of cost choices and worrying about locations for us. All inside cabins are exactly the same to us

 

We spend pretty much all our waking time outside our cabin. We don't spend any time we don't need to in the cabins full stop. That was underlined to us when upgraded to a balcony on our third day and me never once using the  balcony. I think my wife went on it twice in 11 nights briefly.

 

I feel slightly attacked on here by being so positive about my experience of cruising. But I guess I just have to stick up for myself

 

And although I can sympathise with others who don't enjoy as much as me I can't let it spoil my enjoyment of cruising and all I can really do is say how we personally avoid some of those issues

 

 

No one is attacking you but your enthusiasm for telling others what they should be doing to get your experience will inevitably draw criticism and observations. Your experience on Arvia was for you great, for others it clearly isn't the case.  As I said your enthusiasm prompted me to book Arvia and I'm sure it will be good for me too as I'm prepared to be flexible.  However also a factor was the ship going to La Spezia on the date I picked and fitting in around already booked land based holidays.  Looking at her future repetitive itineraries through 2023/24/25 she won't feature very high on my list going forward unless I'm booking just for a last minute holiday.

 

On Thursday just passed two of my friends have booked Arviacwith their 11 year old daughter for 4 August 2024.  They had problems getting a balcony cabin to sleep them with P&O who they booked with direct advising that availability on the summer holiday cruises were already tight - they had tried for 2023 previously and nothing was available due to one of the special offers being cheap children's places.  The last minute bargains may well be less now.

 

The inside cabins on Iona for 7 days in the fjords may also become less attractive to many due to the repeat itineraries. Great for bargain hunters like you, but maybe not for everyone. Only time will tell.

[DamianG]

2 hours ago, Harry Peterson said:

I noticed this on another forum:

Arvia Mediterranean 14 nights
Departure Southampton 16 Apr 2023
Arrival Southampton 30 Apr 2023
Stateroom Inside stateroom PF, GUAR
Fare Saver

Total price for 2 £1080

 

Quite some price £540, even for an inside!   Not selling too well?  Wrong demographic?

 

Incredible, the cheapest cruise we ever took cost £1000 (for 2) on Arcadia on a 10 night Christmas Markets cruise in 2010. 13 years ago and you can now take a cruise with an extra 4 days for just an additional £80. 

[CarlaMarie]

37 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

But if they don't enjoy what they get in return for their hard earnt cash they can choose to stop cruising or cruise elsewhere

 

I would if I wasn't happy with what I got. I wouldn't repeat simple as that

 

Right now I'm happy and planning to buy shares as I'm expecting to cruise many more times as a result

 

That may change and if so I will change what I do and sell the shares!!

 

The main issue is that the product P&O sell to you can at times not be provided. Dining in the MDR should be available to all whether they choose it or not, as that is what you have paid for in your fare. 

 

If you choose to pay for a select dining venue then that is your choice. But for those who can't, or don't want to, then they should be able to access the MDR without any hassle and not find themselves in the buffet. 

 

There should be enough room in the MDR's, just like there used to be before (and let's not get started on reports of not enough outside deck space and sunbeds for Arvia...)

 

If as you say those who are not happy can choose not to cruise, then how does that actually fix the problem? It is the responsibility of the cruise line to fix the issue.

 

[Fionboard]

11 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Interesting point

 

The issues here appear to be due to this being a capacity cruise at school holiday time

 

Do any of the P and O smaller ships allow children on?

 

If so how do they cope at school holiday time?

Arcadia and Aurora for me. Adults only. Expensive but often sold out as very popular still!

[Vampiress88]

11 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Mizhuana on Arvia was a very small part of Green and Co

I like meat in my dish and I can’t do sushi. 

[Megabear2]

7 minutes ago, Vampiress88 said:

I like meat in my dish and I can’t do sushi. 

You're not alone.  As I posted elsewhere in this thread so do 87% of the UK population!

[Son of Anarchy]

3 hours ago, Harry Peterson said:

I noticed this on another forum:

Arvia Mediterranean 14 nights
Departure Southampton 16 Apr 2023
Arrival Southampton 30 Apr 2023
Stateroom Inside stateroom PF, GUAR
Fare Saver

Total price for 2 £1080

 

Quite some price £540, even for an inside!   Not selling too well?  Wrong demographic?

We booked this cruise in March.  At that time, a Saver inside was £749.  What a price drop!

 

At the time we booked, there were good OBC deals on Select balcony fares, so that's what we went for, and managed to get one of the larger corner balconies.  Taking into account the OBC and "free" parking, the overall cost was less than Saver, plus we've said no to a downgrade to the dreaded deck 8.  Subject to Operational Reasons of course!  

 

If this cruise hasn't sold well, then hopefully there won't be queues for MDR as reported elsewhere.

 

 

[Megabear2]

15 minutes ago, Fionboard said:

Arcadia and Aurora for me. Adults only. Expensive but often sold out as very popular still!

Interestingly not so much for the remainder of this year. If people will take the inside saver fare these ships too have the bargains.  Currently only the two October Aurora sailings are sold out and only 20/7 and 21/12 sailings are carrying the big premium prices.

 

Obviously the difference between saver and select fares remains enormous but realistically the availability is there for the bargain hunter.

[Gettingwarmer]

1 hour ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

 

I feel slightly attacked on here by being so positive about my experience of cruising. But I guess I just have to stick up for myself

We love your enthusiasm but a lot of people don’t like small staterooms because they spend a lot of time there. They don’t like eating in canteen type environments. They don’t spend a lot of time at the entertainments. 
They are different to you but have paid their money and deserve good MDR facilities. 

[Fionboard]

2 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Interestingly not so much for the remainder of this year. If people will take the inside saver fare these ships too have the bargains.  Currently only the two October Aurora sailings are sold out and only 20/7 and 21/12 sailings are carrying the big premium prices.

 

Obviously the difference between saver and select fares remains enormous but realistically the availability is there for the bargain hunter.

But I always want a balcony. Not so many on these ships so I have been unable to book some cruises I wanted. Never would consider an inside so just have to pay the premium.

[kalos]

From what I am reading P&O need to re think the App as when your seeing tables going

begging for up to 3/4 of an hour on a maxed out ship at Easter, questions need to be asked

at the P&O planning stages for such cruisers .

I'm not sure what the answer is but when everyone's trying to bulk book these venues on the

basis they might use them, is not helping the matter .

Going to the theatre onboard we used to like to stroll up and if we fancied the show we would

go in, just like we have done at home in our towns and city's on a night out .

If we were sat there in the onboard theatre half hour early with a drink in our hand ,just like we

would in any other bar, it wasn't a problem to us .

I'm sure the Apps will work fine in the long run but personally I enjoyed being on holiday doing 

what I fancied at my time of choosing and not booked days /weeks in advance .

Maybe that's the answer, only allow booking say 36 hours before a venue onboard .

I used to hate B&B's that wanted your meals booked the day before as I did not know

if I would eat it .

Providing you get what you booked and paid for ,regardless of price /cabin ,that should be 

the very least regardless of the size of any P&O ship customers get.

Just my personal thoughts ! 

[Bill Y]

1 hour ago, CarlaMarie said:

 

The main issue is that the product P&O sell to you can at times not be provided. Dining in the MDR should be available to all whether they choose it or not, as that is what you have paid for in your fare. 

 

If you choose to pay for a select dining venue then that is your choice. But for those who can't, or don't want to, then they should be able to access the MDR without any hassle and not find themselves in the buffet. 

 

There should be enough room in the MDR's, just like there used to be before (and let's not get started on reports of not enough outside deck space and sunbeds for Arvia...)

 

If as you say those who are not happy can choose not to cruise, then how does that actually fix the problem? It is the responsibility of the cruise line to fix the issue.

 

How times are changing. It was always a tenet of cruising that you had a seat allocated at a table in a MDR for dinner if you wished to use it, no matter what grade you had booked. People were then sold the concept of freedom dining which at times reading the reports gives anything but freedom to decide when to dine. Even when this started some years ago long queues built up half an hour before the doors opened.

 

We are now informed that the cruisers these Excel class ships were built for do not want to dine in MDR’s they either wish to pay extra or use the buffet. It’s been said that the problem is that during their maiden year traditional cruisers are going on them which upsets the apple cart. Therefore the design/ strategy is working, the problem being with the traditional cruisers whom these ships were not intended for are being nosey and booking on them. I note that the poster stopped short of using the excuse “it’s the wrong sort of” cruiser.

 

As other people have pointed out won’t these traditional cruisers be needed to fill these ships during the slack periods, despite it being said that the break even point is much lower than the older ships?

[CarlaMarie]

1 minute ago, zap99 said:

Many, many Med hotels, even 5* have restaurants that are ,as you describe, Canteen style.

 

But you would know that is the style and what is provided upon booking, which is a big difference to the product that P&O advertise. 

[Dermotsgirl]

5 minutes ago, kalos said:

From what I am reading P&O need to re think the App as when your seeing tables going

begging for up to 3/4 of an hour on a maxed out ship at Easter, questions need to be asked

at the P&O planning stages for such cruisers .

I'm not sure what the answer is but when everyone's trying to bulk book these venues on the

basis they might use them, is not helping the matter .

Going to the theatre onboard we used to like to stroll up and if we fancied the show we would

go in, just like we have done at home in our towns and city's on a night out .

If we were sat there in the onboard theatre half hour early with a drink in our hand ,just like we

would in any other bar, it wasn't a problem to us .

I'm sure the Apps will work fine in the long run but personally I enjoyed being on holiday doing 

what I fancied at my time of choosing and not booked days /weeks in advance .

Maybe that's the answer, only allow booking say 36 hours before a venue onboard .

I used to hate B&B's that wanted your meals booked the day before as I did not know

if I would eat it .

Providing you get what you booked and paid for ,regardless of price /cabin ,that should be 

the very least regardless of the size of any P&O ship customers get.

Just my personal thoughts ! 

I’m all for technology when it enhances the customer experience.

 

Take the M&S Cafe for example. In our local cafe, we normally had to get there for our cup of coffee at 9.45am at the latest, otherwise we knew we’d be queuing for 15 - 20 minutes.

 

Recently, the local M&S cafe was refurbished. Now, there is a bank of six screens ( I’ve only ever had to wait seconds for a screen to be free) where you make your order, attach a pager to your order, take the pager to a table and your order is brought to your table within about 5 minutes (10 mins max) . It’s excellent, and we can now go there at any time in the confidence that we won’t have to queue for ages, and will get our order delivered quickly. I love it, and don’t want to go to any of the other cafes in the shopping centre.

 

My perception is that the P&O system is a hurdle, rather than an enhancement. They seem to have some way to go to make it reliable and consistently improve the passenger experience. 

 

As it stands at the moment, it is one of the barriers that make me reluctant to return to P&O 

[zap99]

1 minute ago, CarlaMarie said:

 

But you would know that is the style and what is provided upon booking, which is a big difference to the product that P&O advertise. 

It's a self select restaurant not a canteen. In a canteen, cook dollops a ladle full of gruel onto your tray. Disparaging descriptions don’t advance the discussion.