Are P&O really that bad? 1st time cruiser

[Malcesine]

Ready to book first ever cruise to Norwegian fjords this year.

Did a ton of research and best itinerary and value is P&O with Princess a close 2nd.

However I look up multiple P&O reviews and they are awful, between unreliable old ships, low quality free for all buffets, plumbing issues and norovirus outbreaks they sound like a disaster.

There are a fair few satisfied customers too to be fair.

Princess equivalent does very slightly better but not by much.

At an average rating 3 to 3.5 out of 5 - put it this way, I'd never book a hotel or holiday much below 4.5.

 

My question is, are P&O really that bad and I should steer clear or are cruisers just super picky and harsh critics?

 

Edited March 26 by Malcesine
Error

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, Malcesine said:

Ready to book first ever cruise to Norwegian fjords this year.

Did a ton of research and best itinerary and value is P&O with Princess a close 2nd.

However I look up multiple P&O reviews and they are awful, between unreliable old ships, low quality free for all buffets, plumbing issues and norovirus outbreaks they sound like a disaster.

There are a fair few satisfied customers too to be fair.

Princess equivalent does very slightly better but not by much.

At an average rating 3 to 3.5 out of 5 - put it this way, I'd never book a hotel or holiday much below 4.5.

 

My question is, are P&O really that bad and I should steer clear or are cruisers just super picky and harsh critics?

 

 

I wouldn't concur that the P&O tonnage is old. All ships were built this century and only 2 of them are over 15 yrs old.

 

If you routinely stay in 4.5 star hotels, no mass market cruise line will provide a similar experience. That level of service requires a premium or luxury line, which tend to have smaller ships, with more space per pax, more crew per pax and higher quality meals.

 

The luxury/premium ships are also more inclusive, so have a much higher base fare.

[CruiserBruce]

You will find all the P&O info you need on the portion of Cruise Critic devoted to P&O, located here:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/22-po-cruises-uk/

[Malcesine]

9 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

If you routinely stay in 4.5 star hotels, no mass market cruise line will provide a similar experience

 Thanks for reply - just to clarify I meant the reviews left by customers on their experience should normally be 4 or 4.5 for me to feel confident it will be a good experience. Not star rating.

P&O get around 3 to 3.4 which is extremely  low for a £5k cruise.

[Malcesine]

8 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

You will find all the P&O info you need on the portion of Cruise Critic devoted to P&O, located here:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/22-po-cruises-uk/

Thanks, I have looked through this board and it's very helpful.

What I don't see though is how P&O are performing generally relative to others and whether many of the criticisms are well founded and fair or are more outliers from a small amount of customers that don't reflect the typical experience of the majority.

[SteveH2508]

There are several options from UK to do the Norwegian fiords: Fred Olsen, Marella and Ambassador are 3 that spring to mind. I have not sailed Fred or Marella but have done 4 on Ambassador with another booked. IMHO Ambassador beat P&O in every metric except perhaps modern tonnage. I think their food, service, entertainment and value for money are all better.

[2BACRUISER]

P&O's Iona mainly doesthe Fjords out of Southampton, she's a relatively new ship but she's big and there's been problems with cancelling port calls and also the freedom dining and getting drinks served though I understand a lot of the issues have been smoothed out. Also take into account the time of year u plan to sail different demographic at diff times of year eg during school hols families of a ll generations outside school hols tends to be more retirees and a slightly older clientele. Look at the ages of reviewers will help. We did the Fjords on Cunard couldn't fault it and worth a look if u r a couple. Hth 

[wcook]

Literally millions of people sail on P&O each year and have a great time. 

[John Bull]

Any current or on-going problems such as plumbing would be a concern, but I wouldn't pay too much attention to things like age, especially for a first cruise cos pretty-well any ship will amaze you.

 

We've sailed several P&O ships and a couple of Princess ships, along with a number of other cruise lines.

We had a significant problem (plumbing) with one of the other ships - I won't name the cruise line because it was a short-term one-off - but none with either P&O or Princess

 

Mention of "old ships" confirms that if ship's age is a concern to you (it isn't to us) you need to check out the age and other factors of the individual ship rather than the cruise line.

P&O in particular have a mainly new fleet, Aurora - a "proper" traditional cruise ship - is our favourite amongst P&O's fleet and also the oldest - built 2000 & last refurbished 2019.

Oldest Princess ship is Grand Princess, built 1998 & last refurbished 2019, we've not sailed in her.

You will find both newer fleets eg MSC and older fleets eg Marella & Fred Olsen, but most cruise lines operate both new & older ships

 

For what it's worth, we prefer Princess over P&O - P&O ships we find a little bland, Princess have a little more style. But other factors including size of ship (we're not keen on the leviathons), itinerary and the bottom line are much more important to us.

 

I think all P&O and Princess ships were delivered new. Some cruise lines eg Ambassador & Marella have only second-hand ships - they don't have all the latest whistles & bells but it doesn't mean that they're not well-maintained or refurbished and of course it means that they provide better value. 

Best cruises by far that we've ever had were on MS Discovery - built 1972, and by the time we first sailed her in about 2006 she was about 35 years old and had 4 previous owners.

Also the most basic ship by far that we've ever sailed, but age & facilities are only one factor - itineraries, atmosphere, food, crew, cruise fare are amongst other factors and we mourn the day she went to the breakers

 

I do suggest that a Brit-orientated cruise line is a good choice for first-time Brits. There's a lot to learn about a cruise holiday and simplest is best - Brit routines, passenger-mix, language, food, ship's currency, absence of large add-on costs. Carefully review those matters with other cruise lines

 

All just MHO as always

 

JB  🙂

 

[Sekhmet]

5 hours ago, John Bull said:

 

Best cruises by far that we've ever had were on MS Discovery - built 1972, and by the time we first sailed her in about 2006 she was about 35 years old and had 4 previous owners.

Also the most basic ship by far that we've ever sailed, but age & facilities are only one factor - itineraries, atmosphere, food, crew, cruise fare are amongst other factors and we mourn the day she went to the breakers

JB  🙂

 

This brings back memories - we sailed with her twice in 2009/10, especially for the itineraries and the guest speakers.  The first was around the Black Sea, the second was Budapest to Alexandria, but chiefly for three stops in Libya during that brief period when travel there was permitted.  At one stop, there was only one ship excursion, to Leptis Magna, and basically everybody went.

Older ships can be very good - we've sailed two of the Marella 'new' acquisitions which were ex-Celebrity (and we'd sailed them in their earlier incarnation), and maybe because they were a good original design, they didn't seem particularly dated to us.

Edited March 28 by Sekhmet

[Heidi13]

4 hours ago, Sekhmet said:

This brings back memories - we sailed with her twice in 2009/10, especially for the itineraries and the guest speakers.  The first was around the Black Sea, the second was Budapest to Alexandria, but chiefly for three stops in Libya during that brief period when travel there was permitted.  At one stop, there was only one ship excursion, to Leptis Magna, and basically everybody went.

Older ships can be very good - we've sailed two of the Marella 'new' acquisitions which were ex-Celebrity (and we'd sailed them in their earlier incarnation), and maybe because they were a good original design, they didn't seem particularly dated to us.

 

Brilliant ship, as I spent 4-months on her back in 1979 as 3rd Officer.