laslomas

But, due to the size of North America, huge numbers of those cruisers fly to their embarkation port. So, why not fly a bit further to Barbados to embark if they are flying anyway. I just think if P&O promoted cruises more in US it could relieve the necessity to get 5000+ passengers there from the UK for each sailing.

just a little aside, that came to mind after reading this thread. Maybe P&O should advertise their Caribbean cruises more widely in the U.S. If they had more customers flying in from North America it would be easier to source enough planes for those coming from UK. I have not been on a P&O Caribbean cruise, but have been with other cruise lines. The bulk of the passengers were from North America. They like the Caribbean.

I don't think I would want to sail without having the use of a balcony. I am guessing that if you have an inside cabin you will not want to spend hours during the day sat in it, in the artificial light and air-con. On a cruise with several sea days if you want to get outside you need somewhere to sit, or lie down and relax. I have read quite a bit about people who think they can 'reserve' a sunbed for the day, and I don't want to get up at silly o'clock on my holiday to be sure of being able to relax outside. I fully expect I would make several circuits of the open decks to find 2 sunbeds together. So I make the choice to have my own outside space. I wish it wasn't like this. Open deck space that used to be available when wanted is a thing of the past. Extra passenger accommodation decks on ships and hundreds, or thousands more vying for their access to the sun is something that we have to accept, but the positive for some is the cheaper prices. But I would still choose one cruise with a balcony cabin to two in inside cabins. Horses for courses.

Possibly you need to clear cookies on Edge. Worth a try seeing as you know the offers are there on iPad,

Just trying not to get into trouble 🤣

There are some quite positive reviews on the Social media page that shall not be named. Including pictures of some food etc.

This is exactly what I have been thinking. For example, a fit and healthy person books a cruise. Two weeks before the cruise they suffer a small injury that requires occasional use of a walking stick now and again, for a week or two. Presumably they then have to inform P&O to update their previous 'on board needs' statement to include the use of a walking stick. This person does not require any assistance from staff on board in the case of emergency but could be denied boarding as they declared occasional use of a walking stick. This would include loss of money paid for the cruise. I am sure the health insurance would not cover anything like this. So we need a crystal ball, or we need to state the use of a stick - just in case!!

It all seems to be very vague, and a bit of a minefield. I have had the email, and so far am ignoring it until I am sure whether I need to complete it. My cruise is not until April 2024, so plenty of time for requirements to change. I wonder if turning up at embarkation with a walking stick umbrella would cause a commotion if you had not said you were bringing one 🤔 I also think for some people a walking stick, or cane, is a fashion accessory. Try telling Chris Eubank that his fashionable walking stick is actually a mobility aid.

I am thinking of going without the alcoholic package and charging drinks to my onboard account on my upcoming P&O cruise. For my last several cruises which were on Celebrity I had the package so nothing to think about. Prior to that when ordering without a package there was a little chitty to sign for every purchase, so easy to keep a check on it. How is it dealt with on P&O without a package? Is it just a swipe of the card? Is the onboard account itemised with all drinks purchased, and a note of the venue? Is it easy enough to order varying priced drinks for 2 or 3 people and handing over their cards? Thanks for any input.

Tui, as do many other airlines, increase their fleet in busy periods by leasing planes from other companies. My daughter is crew on Tui based from Gatwick, and this summer she completed extra training due to being on different planes, to fly for 5 months on Avion Express. They were still Tui flights, with Tui crew and catering etc. Tui also used this company in 2022 to increase their number of planes available. She did say that passengers were surprised to see a plain white plane, but after that everything was fine. I realise this may be different to what is happening with Maleth, but it seems to be quite common. So even when booking direct with Tui, you could end up on planes from leasing airlines. BA have also been using Avion Express planes out of Gatwick. I think the problem with what has happened this P&O Caribbean season is due to the lack of Premium Economy, and possible P&O should have been aware of this to enable correct information to be provided. But with fly-cruises being booked so far in advance, currently up to April 2026, how can that work? Who knows what the situation will be in 3 years time. Flights are usually only available for booking 11 months in advance, so it's all guesswork really.

I think it should be mandatory for any company to start by showing the base rate for whatever is being sold during a 'sale' promotion. On the Celebrity website the first time you actually get to see the base price of a cabin is after making a dummy booking. I just did a dummy booking on an infinite veranda for an 11 night cruise from Southampton. It seems the base rate for this is £4674 pp. I am sure I have never seen their prices advertised as this high. I believe they decide the price they want to charge and then work backwards to the base price they invent for their current promotion. It will be a completely different base rate in the next 'amazing offer'. I remember when they had brochures with the prices included. Yes, I agree they think we are idiots!! I have just checked this cruise on the US website and the base rate is $7199. Shocking - not sure how they do their exchange rate!!!

Not Caribbean related - but wonder if anyone has any idea when more dates will be released for Celebrity sailings from Southampton? The last Celebrity cruise advertised from Southampton is the 23 October 2024 Transatlantic repositioning. I really wish Celebrity would keep a vessel sailing from UK into the autumn / winter months with sailings to the Canaries and North Africa. If I want to do this in the cooler months I have to choose other cruise lines.

In my post #9 I stated I had only attended them on my Celebrity cruises. I agree the P&O Roll Calls are also not very active. For my P&O cruise in April 2024, a Roll Call was started in April 2022 and there is only one post!! Maybe it is more a US thing. The ones on US cruise lines are certainly more active, and they do include many Brits too.

The Cruise Critic Meet and Mingle (see the tab at the top of this page) was a way for CC Forum followers to meet with each other on their cruise, and with Officers and Staff. Was usually very informative, especially chatting with the Hotel Director and the Chef. You needed to register, and a minimum number was required, 25 I think. But I think Covid put an end to most of these meetings.

After reading that attachment, especially the part about toxic smoke, I think I would pass comment to Guest Services if a mobility scooter was being left in the corridor, especially if overnight. It really should not be happening.

I attended several Cruise Critic Meet and Mingle events on Celebrity cruises pre-Covid. Not on P&O though. There were always a good number of crew and officers present and they 'mingled'. A welcome drink, nibbles, pastries, and tea and coffee were provided. Sadly since covid I think many cruise lines are no longer hosting these events. I always found them interesting and it was good to meet some of the officers.

A cargo ship has collided with another ship in the area and gone down. I believe Iona is involved in the search for survivors.

An idea would be to have a price guarantee whereas the difference in price would be given back as On Board Credit. So not actually refunding the money. Some passengers would probably spend less 'real' money on board due to the extra OBC, but at least the cruise line has their original money in the coffers. I wonder how the cruise lines manage in the U.S. as they honour price drops for their customers in the form of a refund up to final payment, and as OBC after that.

Since posting this after changes were made to pricing, it has all changed again. I must have jumped in before they had got it working right. Currently when looking on the UK website the main thing I notice is that the only option now is cruise only or cruise only plus gratuities. So I wonder if that will change to have the option to add drinks and wi-fi at the time of booking??

Massive price rises as far as I can see!! But the other thing I notice is that going through the booking process the Cruise only, and the upgrade to All Included (which still includes tips) are the same price. So basically there is no cruise only price. An example of the huge prices is a cruise I was interested in, from Southampton in September 2024 to Spain, Portugal and Mediterranean, 13 nights. The starting price is now £4361 pp for the cheapest inside cabin / £6076 pp for cheapest veranda. I can't imagine this will be booked out soon at those prices. I have lost interest.

I always have one, or two, Prawn Cocktails on Celebrity. It is on their everyday choices. There is a choice of sauce - Marie Rose, or the one they simply call "the hot one". personally I love the hot one. The problem with these on Celebrity is the prawn/shrimp, which are very large, have been decreasing in number over the years. Hence my need to order two. Last year, on a couple of nights there were only three in the dish.

This was something available on Celebrity cruises until a few years ago. You could pre-book everything through their website, even the dickie bow and patent shoes. I thought it was a great idea, especially for fly cruises when weight could be a problem.

An idea would be a charge, a minimal amount, £10 or £20 maybe, to guarantee seats together, anywhere on the plane. That is all many people want.

Thank you for the review - following as I have a cruise booked on Arvia for April next year. Referring to the post above, the crowding is something I am a little concerned about. But, surely, if ships keep adding more and more passenger decks beneath the pool deck this will always be a problem as the pool / lido deck is still the same size. The earlier ships I sailed probably had up to 5 passenger decks compared to 8 or 9 on current new ships. Sun beds were set out in two's with a small table between. It was lovely. I accept the cruise lines want to increase passenger capacity, so my choice is to always book a balcony cabin to ensure my own outside space. But the 'old days' were certainly less crowded.

Yes I know there are 'sunset verandas', but as well as being more expensive, they sell out quickly too. Did you choose it as you wanted to be in an aft cabin, or because you wanted a 'real' veranda?