Presto2

We've been out for the afternoon. Am wondering if anyone can guess where this is. Stoke on Trent may not be the prettiest place on the planet but we are so close to some stunning areas.

We spent 3 days in York last Feb for the first time and loved it. We stayed at the Radisson Park Inn or something like that. It was right in the canal about 10 mins from the cathedral on the river. Lovely hotel and a great Italian nearby. If you check it out on TripAdvisor you'll see our review under Presto2. Any questions ask.. we loved the place.

Dare I ask the date?

Great news Michelle. So pleased for you and of course your mum who must be worried about not being at home. Give her a special hug today 🙂

That's encouraging to read and good for someone to come on here to post some positives. Thanks

Grey and gloomy here too 😞

Wish we had taken a photo now - our house faces (from the front) North West so we get lovely skies as the sun sets to the West. (We are quite open at the back and wish the house faced the other way!) Hopefully 'red sky at night ........' We can but dream eh !

Beautiful skies our end of the city too 🙂 Just hope that red sky at night means we get a decent day tomorrow !!!

I have to say (and apologies if I've mentioned this and its slightly off topic), but the Captain on our recent cruise on Britannia was excellent in terms of communication. We had to cancel Bonaire due to high winds and there was a swap for Aruba. He gave a full explanation (at least twice as to why). And I have to say it was certainly windy in Aruba, so what it was like in Bonaire you can only guess. Similarly, high winds were given out for Antigua and he said that, as it was a narrow entrance and high winds were forecast, he was getting there as soon as he could incase we left it until the morning and it was too windy. We arrived before midnight and the next day was very windy again and the weather pretty grim for that time of the year (heavy prolonged stormy rain with high winds which even the locals said were unusual). Some people complained that they had to shut the casino and shops early to allow us to dock that evening, but to us it was a good swap. Again another good decision and the Captain explained his reasoning at least twice. It made us feel that he cared and was making decision based on what was good for the guests as well (obviously) what was safe. We had a lot of confidence in his decision making and looking back if he had cancelled a port I feel that he would have given a good explanation and we would have accepted his decision as being in our best interests. Perhaps your Captain lacks the communication skills, so it has made people doubt his reasoning when he too could be making perfectly good decisions in your best interests. (It just isn't coming across like that). (If this makes sense)

TBH we're only about 45 minutes, but we see the stop over as part of our holiday. My usual calm and patient hubby turns in to his alter ego on the day we finish the packing and lock the house up etc etc. We have to stay over night for his blood pressure and my nerves .................. well that's our excuse 🙂 P.S. Jet2 are a great airline to fly with 🙂

Thanks - I knew there was something, but couldn't think of the right word ! 🙂

Or perhaps made more of an effort on a shorter cruise if you get me. Hopefully that's your last cancellation. I am not a sea day fan so any cancellation like really impacts.on my enjoyment of the days cruising. Nothing worse than killing time at such a slow speed you feel like you are actually floating about a bit to kill.time.

Always use Manchester and love the airport. Have used Terminal 1 mainly up to 2019 but 2 more recently and no major queues. We tend to stay at the Radisson overnight as a treat and buy a fast track to get through security. Try not to worry and enjoy:-)

Were the other ships newer so may have been able to handle the sea and winds? Just thinking ..

I'm just sulking and grumpy because I am back in the grey and gloomy. Want that Caribbean beach ⛱️

This made me laugh. Good luck 🙂

No we didn't do the wandering bit and didn't use the waitlist as this time we were able to book before. As you know it wasn't the same on a previous cruise. I have, however, heard and seen people turning up to see if there is availability and have been seated TBH I think this discussion seems to be getting a bit heated as we express our opinions. Am not up for a heated debate and see no point. I've expressed my opinions as stated and you've stated yours. Let's leave it a that and agree to disagree.

Sorry disagree with this one - that would mean that you could end up wandering around at night from select dining to select dining just to see if anyone has cancelled as the last minute.. It is so selfish to book a shed load of select dining venues and not turn up as had been happening. I feel really strongly about this. It is plain selfish and something I can't remember being an issue in the past before 2019. Sorry if I sound mean but sadly, some people need a deterrent to stop them messing the system up for everyone else. Having said that, reading Megabear's issue I do agree that there should be some occasions that can be classed as exceptional circumstances when someone has the authority to make the common sense decision and refund the money if someone cancels at the last minute. It should also be that the member of staff making the decision is supported for making that decision and not told off --- only P&O can do that. It isn't really anything new when you think about it. All hotels I know have a deadline for someone to either pay in full or turn up.

Have a great time... we've jsut retired so no more school holiday cruises for us.. thank you God. 😊

We were on the one before you .. end of May, half term week. Sorry for some reason I have it in my head it was June. Never again when it's that busy ...

Apologies if you've told us, but am wondering if you have a new Captain - I remember that you weren't too impressed with the one you had when you boarded.

Yes I remember that - I think it was on Celebrity on the news sheet they gave out (can't remember its name at all now). I can't remember seeing the photographs, though staff were introduced on the Captain 's welcome event.

Apologies, I can't remember them doing that. Was it in the magazine then like they tell you who the captain's are?

I'm going to own up here - have never heard of gravlax and never seen it on a menu anywhere. To us it sounds more like an alien from Dr Who ........

To be fair to PO they seem to be caught between a rock and a hard place really. .I was told that lots of passengers were booking lots of select dining options and then just not turning up so others had not been able to book. I was speaking to customer services and at the time my comment was .. "Well make them pay then!" In your situation sadly it is a case of genuine passengers being affected by their 24 hr rule. Once a cancellation is made they have to go back to their waiting list I imagine and can't just give it to someone else who happens to be there at time. Am not one for speaking up for PO all of the time as you know but on the issue of booked dining I'm not sure what else they can do to deter people from misusing the system. Its those passengers who misuse the system to blame. Just a thought Megabear ...could any expenses or money lost due to your illness be claimed back on your insurance? Just a thought. Anyway hope you are feeling better now and on the mend. Ps we never got to the Retreat .. but we didn't miss it and it saved us a fortune :-)