No cot for a 1 year old on Oceana!!

[king-queen-suited]

Hi

 

We've just contacted P&O as advised to discuss baby's needs and were told there would be no cot for our one year old daughter!! At time of booking we gave dates of birth and a cot was requested by Thomas Cook and P&O acknowledge this but say due to the room configuration a cot may not fit in !!:mad: The suggestion being bed rails !!!!!!!!!!!!:confused: On an upper bunk !!!!!! or myself or husband sleep in one of the upper bunks and our daughter has a bed rail on a lower bunk !!!!!!!!!!!!!! :confused::mad:You can see my consternation! We now have to travel from Harrogate to Southampton with a travel cot ourselves!!

 

Just wanted to warn other unsuspecting parents particularly as without calling we would have turned up on our dream cruise with no safe sleeping arrangement for our baby girl!!!!!!!

 

How has it been for other parents of infants ? Is there anything else I need to watch for ?

 

Thank you

 

Regards Colette

[ROSEBASKETS]

There will be a cot on board for your child (they just don't want to allocate you one for "health and safety" reasons) There are lots in the night nursery and they carry spares. Speak to your cabin steward when you get on board, he's the best person to sort you out, no need to get the shoreside numpties involved as they don't know much at all and if you refuse the layout when you get on board go straight to reception and tell them to remove all tips and gratuity payments from your bill because of poor service.

 

Alternatively, there's a Mothercare on thre retail park in Southampton 5 minutes drive from the port. Nip in, buy a travel cot, leave it in your cabin at the end of your cruise and deduct the cost from your gratuity payment. Simples! :)

[ROSEBASKETS]

PS when our kids were toddlers we took the matresses from the top bunk and placed them on the floor at night so if they did roll off, they just rolled on the floor. a bit of a nuicance, but gave us a good nights sleep.

 

Alternatively, our child had to sleep sat up due to a medical condition up to the age of 2, would your little girl be able to sleep in a carry cot / car seat for the duration? not ideal i know but far safer than sleeping in a large bed with only guard rails for support.

 

Just please don't consider letting your one year old share with you as you tend to sleep heavier at sea (I know you wouldn't, but I feel i've got to mention it, as I wouldn't want anything bad to happen)

[daiB]

There will be a cot on board for your child (they just don't want to allocate you one for "health and safety" reasons) There are lots in the night nursery and they carry spares. Speak to your cabin steward when you get on board, he's the best person to sort you out, no need to get the shoreside numpties involved as they don't know much at all and if you refuse the layout when you get on board go straight to reception and tell them to remove all tips and gratuity payments from your bill because of poor service.

 

Alternatively, there's a Mothercare on thre retail park in Southampton 5 minutes drive from the port. Nip in, buy a travel cot, leave it in your cabin at the end of your cruise and deduct the cost from your gratuity payment. Simples! :)

 

 

Odd that you should want the poorly paid staff to lose out for something the OP would appear to have known about at the time of booking, unless I am reading this quote wrong.

 

"At time of booking we gave dates of birth and a cot was requested by Thomas Cook and P&O acknowledge this but say due to the room configuration a cot may not fit in"

 

In any case why should the staff suffer for something out of their control.

 

 

 

 

:)Happy Cruising:)

 

 

:cool:

 

 

Dai

[ROSEBASKETS]

If you want to start a thread on "poorly paid staff" please do so, then we can argue the point on a relevent thread. ~The point is that the "poorly paid staff" will do more for you if they think they are going to be paid even less and it's something in their limited power to deal with.

 

The highly paid office staff, who aren't on the front line will fob you off because they will still be highly paid whether you get your cot or not, however the financial motivation on board will secure you your cot.

 

Also, as previously noted, could you please shorten your long list of cruises as the number of threads per page decreases significantly when you post! If we all decided to list our cruises as you do there would only be a couple of posts per page. Happy Cruising!

[Norfolk Brit]

Odd that you should want the poorly paid staff to lose out for something the OP would appear to have known about at the time of booking, unless I am reading this quote wrong.

"At time of booking we gave dates of birth and a cot was requested by Thomas Cook and P&O acknowledge this but say due to the room configuration a cot may not fit in"

Dai

 

I think you have mis-read the quote. The way I read it, the OP requested a cot at the time of booking, was presumably not informed it was impossible in the cabin she had booked, and it was only at a later stage that she was told the room configuration would not accommodate it. I'd be deeply underwhelmed, and would not view a travel cot, or top bunk, as suitable or safe for a one year old, presumably fairly mobile, baby.

 

Despite being the most reasonable person on the planet(:rolleyes:) I'd be asking for a cabin that fitted my original request, at the expense of either the travel agent or P&O, depending on who fouled up.

 

Mary

[daiB]

If you want to start a thread on "poorly paid staff" please do so, then we can argue the point on a relevent thread. ~The point is that the "poorly paid staff" will do more for you if they think they are going to be paid even less and it's something in their limited power to deal with.

 

The highly paid office staff, who aren't on the front line will fob you off because they will still be highly paid whether you get your cot or not, however the financial motivation on board will secure you your cot.

 

Also, as previously noted, could you please shorten your long list of cruises as the number of threads per page decreases significantly when you post! If we all decided to list our cruises as you do there would only be a couple of posts per page. Happy Cruising!

 

As previously noted ...No

 

I still do not see how not giving your waiter and cabin steward any tip is going to help apart from you looking a pratt.

 

 

 

:):)Happy Cruising:):)

 

 

 

:cool:

 

 

Dai

[ROSEBASKETS]

As previously noted ...No

 

I still do not see how not giving your waiter and cabin steward any tip is going to help apart from you looking a pratt.

 

 

 

:):)Happy Cruising:):)

 

 

 

:cool:

 

 

Dai

 

Awayn****eyafrigga

[ROSEBASKETS]

Oooops, there I go looking a prat (with one t) got my point thru though eh?!

 

Obvuiosly no children or grandchildren then?

Probably a schoolteacher too - they never like being told what to do.

 

A thoughtless Geordie - I thought I'd never see the day :rolleyes:

[king-queen-suited]

Thank you everyone for you comments.

 

I have to say my first inclination was that P&O or Thomas Cook should be the ones making this good - and I find it astounding that health and safety is being quoted when clearly a mobile 1 year old in an upper bunk should have social services screaming never mind anyone else.!!!

 

Thank you for your advice Rosebaskets - it is reassuring to know that the stewards will be helpful and I'm sure daiB misunderstood your rationale for withholding gratuities I think the point you were making is that by brininging it to the pursers attention it raises the profile of the problem!!

 

I think we might take the no cot advice and purchase one at Southampton if needed as the prospest of lugging a 10kg (yes I have weighed it) cot with the rest of our luggage and 2 young children on a flight from Leeds to Southampton was not exactly putting me in the mood.

 

After the cruise I will take this up with P&O as we now feel we've been missold a holiday and as fellow parents will appresicate I would sleep on the floor rather than have my little girl put in danger - but then lets be honest who pays £5000 odd to sleep on the floor!!!

 

I'll let you know what happens as we sail on Satureday

 

Best Regards

[ROSEBASKETS]

Thank you everyone for you comments.

 

Thank you for your advice Rosebaskets - it is reassuring to know that the stewards will be helpful and I'm sure daiB misunderstood your rationale for withholding gratuities I think the point you were making is that by bringing it to the pursers attention it raises the profile of the problem!!

 

No, Thank you, that's exactly my point, though iterated with a more succinct panache than my previous schizoid utterences for which I apologise.

 

Good Luck with Saturday. I'm sure you will be fine and if they can't provide a suitable bed for your little girl especially having paid in excess of £5k then P&O should be vilified. Nothing get things done better than informing your other pax of your predicament while on board, especially those with children or grandchildren of their own.

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[daiB]

Oooops, there I go looking a prat (with one t) got my point thru though eh?!

 

 

No need for you to point this out, as we all can see it.

 

BTW I was not saying that you were a pratt or, if you like, prat. No I was merely point that by taking your advice anyone going to the reception desk was going to look a bit silly, or like a prat, if they explained why they were taking the tips off.(Of course assuming the OP is on freedom as no tips would be taken any other way)

 

No, I was only trying to save them from a degree of embarrassment.

 

Had you stuck with your first suggestion of asking the steward to help then that would have been most helpful.

 

It is very strange that there is a problem at all as there appears plenty of room in the Oceana's smallest cabin, according to the web site.

 

 

 

 

:):)Happy Cruising:):)

 

 

 

:cool:

 

 

Dai

[cclarke12]

Depending on age (ie. if child is nearer 2), you may want to consider a ready bed. We used one of these when my son had just turned two and we were on a cruise (OV). They are pretty light weight and we took as hand luggage. They can also be stored away easily during the day, e.g. on top of the upper berth. We have been warned that a travel cot may not be available when we go on Ventura next year. My daughter will only just be one so we will take a travel cot, but as we are driving it doesn't present a problem. Have a great tme!

[KenAndJulie]

Also, as previously noted, could you please shorten your long list of cruises as the number of threads per page decreases significantly when you post!

Apologies to OP. Some forums have a policy about the size of signatures but I have not seen one on this site yet so people can do as they wish.

 

You can however fix both of these issues yourself. If you go into 'User CP' (at top of each screen) and then on the left hand side select 'Edit options' a new screen is displayed that has an option 'Show signatures'. All you need to do is uncheck it causing all signatures to be hidden.

 

Secondly there is a dropdown 'number of posts to show per page' which you can set to 10, 20, 30, 40 .. whatever you wish (remember the higher the number the longer it takes to load a page .. although with high speed broadband that is less of an issue).

[Oarsman55]

I have read a request somewhere on here, politely asking people to limit the size of their signatures. This seems eminently reasonable, and I know that Dai has been asked to do this several times before; for some reason he seems unwilling to extend this courtesy to others on this forum, who have to scroll down past acres of nonsense to see the next post.

 

Brief details in small print of previous/future cruises are sometimes useful: turning them off, just to avoid one person's inconsiderate behaviour, limits the information available to the rest of us.

[ROSEBASKETS]

Apologies to OP. Some forums have a policy about the size of signatures but I have not seen one on this site yet so people can do as they wish.

 

You can however fix both of these issues yourself. If you go into 'User CP' (at top of each screen) and then on the left hand side select 'Edit options' a new screen is displayed that has an option 'Show signatures'. All you need to do is uncheck it causing all signatures to be hidden.

 

Secondly there is a dropdown 'number of posts to show per page' which you can set to 10, 20, 30, 40 .. whatever you wish (remember the higher the number the longer it takes to load a page .. although with high speed broadband that is less of an issue).

 

Thank you :) I shall do that straight away and may I say that your list is just right. You are obviously well cruised and everyone can see that without the need to scroll down through line gaps and regional dialectisms??? (if there is such a word)

[Pink-belle]

King-Queen-Suited, in reply to the original post, I do not know what kind of stateroom you have on Oceana, but the insides have very little floor space. With the main beds in a queen configuration the only place for a travel cot to be placed would block the door, and then obviously cause Health and Safety issues.

 

With the beds in a twin configuration for the use of an upper berth, (I am sure P & O would be expecting an adult to sleep in the upper berth, and not a one year old, and they are large enough for adults). There is enough room to place a mattress on the floor between the two beds, if both the adults would prefer the lower beds.

 

I think the suggestion of a ready bed is a good one, especially if you got your daughter used to it before the cruise, so it was like home from home.

 

I do not agree with Rosebaskets way of dealing with things, but all are entitled to their own approaches and opinions, I have always found all cabin stewards to be very accommodating and ready to help if the need should arise, and would not consider the threat of removing gratuities to sort out a problem I was aware of before travel. I would be the opposite and ready to give an additional gratuity for the additional work they were going to do in helping me come up with the solution that I wanted. Whether that be, moving a mattress or ready bed daily, or securing a cot from somewhere on the ship.

 

All of that said, if I was in your position right now, I would be feeling very frustrated and angry. I do not feel, with the information provided, that P&O are in the wrong. I think if time allows before your cruise, I would contact P & O and ask exactly, why it is not possible to have a travel cot for a one year old, explain your partner and yourself are not happy to sleep in the upper berths, and what are the alternatives. I would then take this information to Thomas Cook and ask what they will do to put the situation right. Yes, I am jumping to conclusions that may be wrong! but I suspect you were sold a stateroom by someone who didn't know about the layout and suitability for your needs.

 

This is such a shame and puts a bit of a down on the anticipation of a great holiday, but I am sure once onboard this will all be behind you, the ships really are child friendly.