What do we love about P&O?

There are a few threads on the go where we have discussed observations where some think there is room for improvement, that in turn led to questions about why we still sail P&O. I'm guessing it's because there are more things in favour than against (for those who haven't jumped ship so to speak). So .... in the interest of balanced discussion, what are the things you love?

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1) The diversity of itineraries from Southampton, plus the number of ships to choose from.

2) The on board pricing is in sterling, and drinks, excursions, speciality dining and general on board purchases are quite reasonable.

3) Cruise pricing is quite competitive, especially launch prices which we need to use anyway to obtain an accessible cabin, and we nowadays seldom see even saver fares beating our price.

4)....................sorry Florry but I seem to have exhausted my benefits, and its a great pity that my cons list is quite a bit longer.

I would only do P&O to the Caribbean, anywhere else it would have to be Celebrity or HAL.

What I like about P&O Caribbean cruises -

* Ease of getting to Caribbean - avoiding USA with no luggage hassle.

* Less Sea Days / more ports of call than competitors

* Wide range of reasonably priced wine

* reasonably priced alternative dining

Biggest dislikes -

*Sea Days too Hi-De Hi

* MDR dining - quality and standard unacceptably poor.

What do we love about P&O?

Sailing from Southampton.

What do I love about P & O?

Oriana and Aurora are beautiful classic ships.

Sailing from Southampton.

Sindhu.

Some interesting itineraries.

Syndicate quiz.

Sensible pricing.

There may be some people on board that I run a mile to avoid but there are an awful lot more that I look forward to meeting.

Here goes,

I enjoy,

1. the P&O experience, the feel of the ships. Difficult to put into words.

2. The staff who are constant in their friendliness and professional approach.

3. Having a variety of ships to sail on. I.e. They are not all the same.

4. Sailing from Southampton. I don't fly with my scooter.

5. Range of cruises from Southampton far greater than any other line.

6. Cruises with plenty of sea days. Cannot stand port after port after port.

7. The food in the MDR and also in the speciality restaurants.

8. Taking drinks on board, although we often don't bother. Usually a bottle of Gin but only if we have one in the house, we will buy a bottle of Madeira when in Funchal. But only if we visit on the way out so we can have a drink in the cabin.

9. The high standards we find find all over the fleet.

10. The price of drinks on board.

11. Being able to sail to the Caribbean and sail back.

12. Being able to sail from Southampton and back to Southampton for 12 months of the year.

13. The glasshouse.

14. The Lords Tavern.

15. Sitting up at the bar watching the bar stewards work. Always impressed.

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Shareholder benefits and share dividends, ability to choose a wide range of cabins for solo occupancy. Otherwise not significantly different than other cruise lines.

I'm shocked that daiB only had 15 things :D but here's mine;

1) The Britishness of the product.

2) Round trips from Southampton and not having to have the hideous experience of airports and a flight at the beginning and end of a holiday.

3) The professionalism of the senior crew and the fact that most are British. You feel safe in their hands.

4) The extremely friendly and hard working Indian and Philippine crew members.

5) The fact that most passengers are British.

6) Select Dining restaurants, particularly The Epicurean on Britannia.

7) Very accommodating for disabled passengers.

8) The pride that most staff have in working for P&O.

9) The varied choice of ships in the fleet.

10) The differently themed bars and lounges.

11) The lack of 'brashness' compared to some US lines.

12) The huge variety of curries, thanks to the Indian crew.

13) Did I mention the Britishness?

My list of things they could do better would be as long (or longer) but I shall refrain in order to keep to the spirit of this thread.

Sailing from Southampton throughout the year, OH cannot fly for health reasons

Everything being priced in Sterling

Competitive pricing

Choice of ships

I forgot to mention the fact that on board currency is U.K. £ Sterling, but that's another 'Britishness' point!

What do I love about P & O?

Oriana and Aurora are beautiful classic ships.

Sailing from Southampton.

Sindhu.

Some interesting itineraries.

Syndicate quiz.

Sensible pricing.

There may be some people on board that I run a mile to avoid but there are an awful lot more that I look forward to meeting.

Oh yes I forgot to mention Aurora and Oriana, we're not really keen on most of the other ships especially the larger ones.

As for the Britishness of P&O that some have mentioned actually we often find that just a bit too much and would love to see and meet passengers from other countries on P&O cruises.

I would only do P&O to the Caribbean, anywhere else it would have to be Celebrity or HAL.

What I like about P&O Caribbean cruises -

* Ease of getting to Caribbean - avoiding USA with no luggage hassle.

* Less Sea Days / more ports of call than competitors

* Wide range of reasonably priced wine

* reasonably priced alternative dining

Biggest dislikes -

*Sea Days too Hi-De Hi

* MDR dining - quality and standard unacceptably poor.

Ditto.

Value for money

No 15 or 18% Service Charge

Discount on purchases via loyalty scheme

Southampton departures

Opportunity to flash the glad rags

The Glasshouse

Everything everyone else has stated - well apart from the Curry - can't stand it! Going from Southampton is a big plus for us as we only live about 10 miles from the port. Compare that with Gatwick - well there's no comparison. Love Sea Days - there's nothing to beat that waking up in the morning on a Sea Day and knowing that there's everything or nothing to do.

Kettle in the cabin! You can use your own tea bags and coffee. Being able to put the kettle on when arriving back from trips ashore, waking up, afternoon, last thing at night.

mickey89 your spot on. we sailed caribbean on britannia last november. p and o are too british for me, i like to go away on holiday to get away from daily life and us brits have a particular way of life at home which we tend to take with us on holiday. sorry this may bother some of you. prefer (american style ships) and your comment about the food was right as this was the biggest disappointment of the trip.the ship is lovely and modern but no proper outside seating on an evening.

mickey89 your spot on. we sailed caribbean on britannia last november. p and o are too british for me, i like to go away on holiday to get away from daily life and us brits have a particular way of life at home which we tend to take with us on holiday. sorry this may bother some of you. prefer (american style ships) and your comment about the food was right as this was the biggest disappointment of the trip.the ship is lovely and modern but no proper outside seating on an evening.

Off topic. We have been asked to restrict ourselves to the positives. We all have things we don't like!

We've cruised with Celebrity, RCCI, Cunard, Fred Olsen and Princess but the majority of our cruises these days are with P&O.

Some reasons:

1. Cruises from Southampton twelve months of the year.

2. Itineraries to places we want to visit especially to The Caribbean in Winter

3. The variety of entertainment in the lounges.

4. We cruise as a couple and find it easier to socialise and meet people on P&O.

5. The improvement in alternative dining options particularly The Glass House and The Beach House.

6. The different feel on each of the ships.

7. Dress code suits us, particularly now the amount of formals has been significantly reduced on longer cruises

8. The staff are friendly and helpful (apart from at breakfast!!) but not obtrusive

9. Passengers are allowed to take alcohol onboard.

I want to stick to the spirit of this thread and will not say anything I think could be improved. Of course people are entitled to have their opinion but it would be good to have a least one thread where people who cruise with P&O are actually positive about the experience. Good question Florry

Here goes,

 

I enjoy,

 

1. the P&O experience, the feel of the ships. Difficult to put into words.

 

2. The staff who are constant in their friendliness and professional approach.

 

3. Having a variety of ships to sail on. I.e. They are not all the same.

 

4. Sailing from Southampton. I don't fly with my scooter.

 

5. Range of cruises from Southampton far greater than any other line.

 

6. Cruises with plenty of sea days. Cannot stand port after port after port.

 

7. The food in the MDR and also in the speciality restaurants.

 

8. Taking drinks on board, although we often don't bother. Usually a bottle of Gin but only if we have one in the house, we will buy a bottle of Madeira when in Funchal. But only if we visit on the way out so we can have a drink in the cabin.

 

9. The high standards we find find all over the fleet.

 

10. The price of drinks on board.

 

11. Being able to sail to the Caribbean and sail back.

 

12. Being able to sail from Southampton and back to Southampton for 12 months of the year.

 

13. The glasshouse.

 

14. The Lords Tavern.

 

15. Sitting up at the bar watching the bar stewards work. Always impressed.

 

 

 

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All good plus.

Great choice of English Ales.

Onboard currency is £ sterling.

Small autogratuities.

Entertainment aimed at British guests.

A massive choice of mini breaks 2,3,4 days ideal for new cruisers ,hen parties or stag party's.

Kettles and cookies in every room.

Sky sports channels on tv.

Afternoon tea in the restaurant.

Sailaway from Southampton.

Brilliant sailaway from last port with waving union jack flags.

43 cruises and counting.

All good plus.

Great choice of English Ales.

Onboard currency is £ sterling.

Small autogratuities.

Entertainment aimed at British guests.

A massive choice of mini breaks 2,3,4 days ideal for new cruisers ,hen parties or stag party's.

Kettles and cookies in every room.

Sky sports channels on tv.

Afternoon tea in the restaurant.

Sailaway from Southampton.

Brilliant sailaway from last port with waving union jack flags.

 

43 cruises and counting.

Plus after OBC used up we get 7.5% discount off everything

Free glass of champagne on sailaway from Southampton with loyalty.

43 cruises and counting.

I agree with everyone else but I have to have to add a special mention for the Ocean Grill on Arcadia, free laundrettes, thermal suites and option of adult only holidays.

I know it's already been said but sailing from Southampton, the British culture and kettles are all high on my list of preferences.

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Only the fact they sail from Southampton. They could take lessons from Royal Carib about embarkation arrangements.

You know when you think about it P&O are fantastic and its only when you start an excellent thread like this and think of all the positives you realise how good they are.

43 cruises and counting.

Really great transfer service on European fly-cruises. Say goodbye to your suitcases at Gatwick airport and see them again outside your cabin a few hours later, very slick. Oh...and Costa coffee is preferable to some lines coffee. Love the kettles too, and not so expensive speciality restaurants. Apart from the Broadway type shows, some of the best theatre acts we've seen have been on P&O.

Large range of itineraries.

Lots of ships.

Range of dining options.

Range of entertainment.

Getting picked up 5 minutes from our house and being taken to Southampton without any hassle.......... for free.:D

Having a balcony. We haven't been cruising with P&O for long so I'm still over awed with my balcony.

This is a good thread. So much better to look on the good things in life.