sandancer

Thank you both. That’s very helpful.

We have an accessible cabin booked for our cruise on Regal Princess. Since we have been travelling with a wheelchair we have only cruised with P&O who ask you to complete an accessibility form which has the dimensions of the wheelchair etc etc. They are very strict on this. On our recent cruise a lady with a scooter was refused boarding as she had not notified the cruise line that she was taking it. I can’t find a form on the Princess website. Can someone direct me to the correct place to find it, if there is one.

Thanks for the info.

That was Nov 22. I argued with them and pointed out that they had my card on file so if they could charge that card why couldn’t they just refund the obc. They wouldn’t budge so I had to take the other route which is now not allowed.

The only way Princess would let us have our refundable OBC back was by a cheque (in dollars) within 14 days. At that time you could do the casino deposit/play a little/cash out, but I understand that, like P&O you can no longer get cash this way. You cannot use OBC for casino spend on P&O.

We are doing b2b on Iona. However, they were not booked at the same time and one of them was moved from a different cruise. I assume this would cancel out the b2b benefit.

Being a total doubting Thomas or Thomasina rather, I called Intercruises again and the agent I spoke to confirmed that they won’t worry about the size of the bags but only about the weight. Next time it will be the Baggage Company for sure. Thanks to those who suggested it.

Hope you haven’t paid up front.

As we do. Would be nice to know though.

Thanks Megabear. I’m sorry to hear that you had some negative feedback. Unnecessary, especially when you are so helpful.

I would never cancel a cruise following posts on CC Megabear nor would I expect anyone to take my experience as the norm. You pays your money and you takes your chance. We are on Iona for New Year and we’re disappointed that we can’t get an aft balcony. However since Arvia we have acquired a wheelchair and it may well be that our mid ship balcony will prove much more manageable.

Well thank you for that. You obviously paved the way for our very pleasant balcony sojourns. The weather was indeed fantastic. We have been doing TAs for years and weather wise this was one of the best.

No, he wasn’t on our cruise, we came back from Barbados in April. We had heard about the noise before we went and were anticipating it. It didn’t happen though. Must have been a one off - we have an Arvia cruise in September and will now probably cancel.

Can I ask please how the temperature was in the restaurants posford. Not sure whether a jacket will be required for DH (for warmth, not dress code) as he’s already taking a dinner suit and a wrap for me. I’m hoping we’ll need neither as I could do with the packing space for other stuff. Not used to cold weather cruises so packing jeans and jumpers is a bit of a trial.

So you didn’t actually experience the noise yourself? We didn’t have any problem and didn’t speak to anyone who did. I hope the OP won’t be put off. We really enjoyed the aft cabin and spend a lot of time on our balcony.

I have booked the afternoon tea at Reid’s for next March. There is a UK phone number on their website and I just called them and booked. Initially I booked with P&O but cancelled when I discovered we would be in a tour group designated area and not in the general area.

We are on Iona for NYE. Today the speciality restaurants became available but still no dress code. We know that NYE will be black tie and there is one Chefs Table listed so that is obviously the other one. I would have liked one more.

We’ve been using these plastic tags for years now. No better way to tag your bag with cruise line luggage labels. Amazon have them.

Maybe it depends on the itinerary. We were on the repo from Barbados to Southampton and never heard any kind of thumping music. It may be that they are catering for a younger crowd on the summer med cruises and the entertainment is adjusted to suit.

We had an aft cabin on Arvia on deck 11. Loved it. No problem with either water or noise. We had also read the negative reviews, after booking, but decided to go for it anyway and we are so glad we did. We have an aft booked on both Iona and Arvia next year, both on deck 12. We are very disappointed that we can’t get an aft cabin on our next Iona cruise.

I can tell you that on both Arvia and Azura there were plenty of long dresses worn on black tie nights. I plan to take one on our upcoming Iona cruise. Really enjoy dressing up on formal nights.

To be fair I think my judgement was coloured by us having a Promenade Cabin which we really didn’t like. I never felt that we were on a ship, more a floating resort. Funny enough I didn’t get the same feeling on Arvia. However, no doubt about Azura being a ship.

The variety of eateries and choice of entertainment on Arvia won me over. I don’t think we’ll be back on Azura until she has a refit. That’s the problem with going from a new ship to an old one.

For anyone who is trying to decide between these ships - This year we have sailed on both ships so here is my personal opinion of the differences/advantages of both ships. Embarkation/Disembarkation - obviously easier on Azura with less passengers. Arrival at Southampton on Arvia was chaotic. MDR food - way better on Azura. No virtual queuing so still waiting in line for a table and having a beeper. Much prefer the virtual queue. We loved the many places to eat on Arvia so the MDR situation was not really an issue for us. Speciality restaurants (and here I only comment where both ships have the same and not for instance the Keel and Cow, which is not on Azura) - better on Azura. Especially the Glasshouse. Entertainment - definitely Arvia. to be expected on a bigger ship. However getting into the theatre was easier on Azura as it was just first come first served. Cabins - Arvia except there are no drawers. Why? The cabins on Azura really need some TLC, the bedding was very well worn. Towels however were fine. Thick and fluffy. Drinks service - same Room service - same Shopping - same but not high on my list of priorities so no doubt others will have a different opinion. Future cruise staff - more helpful on Arvia Excursion staff - they were great on Azura, ok on Arvia. So for us, overall it’s the big ship that wins out and I have surprised myself by saying that. We cruised on RCI Oasis of the Seas and I hated it. Our next 2 cruises are on Iona and I’m looking forward to all the desserts I can have as I’ll burn loads of calories pushing hubbies wheelchair down those long corridors. As I said at the start, my opinion and no doubt others will feel differently.

We were on Azura in October and it was impossible to book Epicurean onboard. It was full every night. We were on a 16 night cruise so booked in advance for 2 nights so we could try both menus. For a special occasion I would not leave it to chance. Glasshouse was always busy and we were told on arrival that there would be a wait of at least 45 mins for food. We could not book but arrived at 6pm when they opened for food. Ate there 3 times. We also ate in Sindhu and the Beach House (very popular as so reasonably priced) but I found the smoky atmosphere unpleasant.