Eavesway Coaches v Inter Cruises

Forgive me if this subject has been aired before

It is noted that in the new 2014 P & O brochure that the telephone number given to book a coach transfer to Southampton is for Inter Cruises. :(

Inter Cruises is a TUI Travel Company (ie Thomsons).

Reading their Terms & Conditions of Service it would appear that there is a luggage restiction of one case of 23kg and a small piece of hand luggage.

Inter Cruises apparently do not have their own coaches and sub contract so that no one can say what the quality will be.

It would appear from another forum site that Carnival (includes P & O) were asking too much for advertising in the brochure, wanted 15% of all the booking income, wanted to take on the booking themselves, and would have cost some of the Eavesway drivers their jobs

Eavesway will continue to run the Cruise Link Service but are extnding their scope to cover other major cruise lines.

We will stick with Eavesway - any other thoughts :)

We loved traveling from Glasgow last year and can't wait to travel again this year to southampton with Eavesway. They are a great company with superb drivers and coaches and take the hassle away from traveling to southampton. If intercruises are no good then I would probably stop using P&O altogether and start going with a cruise line who use eavesway!

I have sailed with P&O from Southampton over 20 times and on each occasion have travelled from my home town of Bolton with Eavesway. Indeed, the service they provide has been one of the reasons I have continued to sail with P&O. Their coaches have always been clean, their drivers courteous and punctual, their pick up point on the main town centre bus station convenient. Now they are to be replaced by a company of which I have no experience which will not (apparently) even pick up in the town centre but will do so several miles away at a much less convenient location. Bad news. I will continue to use Eaveaway as long as they provide a service.

If Eavesway are to provide transfers to Southampton for other lines however, then it will make it easier to get there if I sail other than P&O. They say that every cloud has a silver lining.

We loved traveling from Glasgow last year and can't wait to travel again this year to southampton with Eavesway. They are a great company with superb drivers and coaches and take the hassle away from traveling to southampton. If intercruises are no good then I would probably stop using P&O altogether and start going with a cruise line who use eavesway!

No need to stop using Eavesway or P&O. As Eavesway are still going to be operating to P&O cruises. When offered free coach or OBC take the OBC and then use Eavesway. Remember it is only those who have taken the free coach travel who have to use Intercruise.

Gan Canny

Dai

I have never used Eavesway. I think we would be tempted, if only the pick up point was more convenient. We live in Sheffield and the nearest pick up point is Woodall Services between J30 & J31 on the M1. It's about a £20 or more taxi ride.

No need to stop using Eavesway or P&O. As Eavesway are still going to be operating to P&O cruises. When offered free coach or OBC take the OBC and then use Eavesway. Remember it is only those who have taken the free coach travel who have to use Intercruise.

 

 

 

Gan Canny

 

 

 

Dai

Ah, thanks for clearing that up as I thought they where going to stop operating for P&O all together!

Ah, thanks for clearing that up as I thought they where going to stop operating for P&O all together!

You need to contact Eavesway direct and book through them. The number will not be in the brochure.

Gan Canny

Dai

:cool:

We have used Eavesway from Blackpool for both Princess and P&O and they are excellent and so convenient. They have very clean and modern coaches as mentioned above, the service is first class and are always on time.

Now Cunard coach transfers are another matter!! We have used Inter Cruises twice, they are based in Edinburgh - very poor I'm afraid on three journeys out of four. They do use companies they can get hold of, have arrived late, and pick up near the airport, not in town like Eavesway, and one year the coach was so old and the driver drove dangerously, unsure even of where he was going, and all passengers were eventually reimbursed! After that cruise though we were driven home on an Ellisons coach - their newest, all leather seats and just used by the England Rugby Team, so no consistency like Eavesway.......

If my understanding is correct Inter Cruises do not even guarantee that their coaches will have washroom facilities, only that they will usually have.

From Eavesway website

"In addition to our Cruiselink services for P&O and Princess Cruises from April 2014 onward we will also be operating NEW services to connect with all Royal Caribbean, Cunard, Celebrity and MSC departures from Southampton."

They are obviously fighting back. Let's just hope that their regular customers support them.

We used Eavesway to and from Blackpool last month and the driver explained about the changes. They will now offer Cunard, RCI etc and as mentioned, you will need to contact them yourselves. I will certainly still be using them. I think they also said the prices wouldn't increase in 2014.

We contacted Eavesway today to book for June 2014,they are giving, buy 1 get 1 free,we were charged £86 for me and my wife from Bolton to Southampton.How long this will last I do not know,we were going to get free travel from P&O,but did not fancy what was offered by this Intercruise,so opted for O/C and paid for our travel with Eavesway who we have travelled with often and always been happy with their performance.

I am not sure that if we still continue to use Eavesway in 2014 on a P&O ship, that if there was a problem getting to Southampton in time, that P&O would take any responsibility.

Perhaps someone can enlighten me.

Eavesway has been brilliant, however I think their fares are expensive.

For me having a Vantage fare, I have to use any credit that P&O gives me for the coach travel. Thats my fault for living so far from Southampton.lol

Regards

JO

Since Intercruises are a shoreside/port services company and not a coach company, I would expect them to tender out transfer services.

The company is the one which handles all the check-in services and other things in the terminal, but I was under the impression that it was only for RCCL lines, and not Carnival lines, which are handled by CPS.

Seems odd why P&O wouldn't just recommend Eavesway which they have done for a while.

I am not sure that if we still continue to use Eavesway in 2014 on a P&O ship, that if there was a problem getting to Southampton in time, that P&O would take any responsibility.

That is a good point. The ship will wait (within reasonable time) for official transfers, but not for private transfers.

Since Intercruises are a shoreside/port services company and not a coach company, I would expect them to tender out transfer services.

 

The company is the one which handles all the check-in services and other things in the terminal, but I was under the impression that it was only for RCCL lines, and not Carnival lines, which are handled by CPS.

 

Seems odd why P&O wouldn't just recommend Eavesway which they have done for a while.

Littlesteelo, as ever it is money. Basically the other company would do the job for less. Remember now virtually all the passengers on the bus are paid for by P&O. Before the passenger paid for the bus and it was of little concern of P&O.

Gan Canny

Dai

Sent from my iPad using Cruise Critic Forums mobile app

Since Intercruises are a shoreside/port services company and not a coach company, I would expect them to tender out transfer services.

 

The company is the one which handles all the check-in services and other things in the terminal, but I was under the impression that it was only for RCCL lines, and not Carnival lines, which are handled by CPS.

 

Seems odd why P&O wouldn't just recommend Eavesway which they have done for a while.

As with everything else with P&O nowadays, it is all about extra revenue.

Previously Eavesway ran coach transfers to and from Southampton as P&Os preferred carrier. It was not part of your contract with P&O but Eavesway advertised in P&O brochures and P&O pushed business their way. It may be that P&O got a commission. Following the decision to include coach transfers in Vantage fares it appears that P&O got greedy and that Eavesway were not prepared to agree to their terms so P&O took their business elsewhere. So a service which has served P&O and their passengers well for at least two decades has been jettisoned to grub a little more revenue for Carnival. Mind you, in the light of their recent profits warning they probably need it.

If my understanding is correct Inter Cruises do not even guarantee that their coaches will have washroom facilities, only that they will usually have.

That is correct, and the is also a question about provision for the disabled.

David

As with everything else with P&O nowadays, it is all about extra revenue.

Previously Eavesway ran coach transfers to and from Southampton as P&Os preferred carrier. It was not part of your contract with P&O but Eavesway advertised in P&O brochures and P&O pushed business their way. It may be that P&O got a commission. Following the decision to include coach transfers in Vantage fares it appears that P&O got greedy and that Eavesway were not prepared to agree to their terms so P&O took their business elsewhere. So a service which has served P&O and their passengers well for at least two decades has been jettisoned to grub a little more revenue for Carnival. Mind you, in the light of their recent profits warning they probably need it.

And of course all other cruise lines do not. Come on.

Gan Canny

Dai

We used Eavesway to and from Blackpool last month and the driver explained about the changes. They will now offer Cunard, RCI etc and as mentioned, you will need to contact them yourselves. I will certainly still be using them. I think they also said the prices wouldn't increase in 2014.

We travelled back from the Azura today on Eavesway and on the coach there was short presention on the tv screens that said that from 2014 Cunard, Celebrity and RCI cruises would be serviced by Eavesway. It also stated that if you booked your 2014 cruise travel with them during 2013 you would pay the 2013 prices, there was no suggestion that there would not be a price increase in 2014.

So would Eavesway or InterCruises do transfers from Southampton Cruise Terminal to London Heathrow ? Looking at post Arcadia 30 April 2014.

So would Eavesway or InterCruises do transfers from Southampton Cruise Terminal to London Heathrow ? Looking at post Arcadia 30 April 2014.

Just had a look at both websites. If you have free coach travel it would be intercruises, if you take the OBC (if you are a vantage booking) and use the equivalant amount of money you can book and pay for eavesway.

At least you all have a choice. I just checked if we did that where we would be picked up from...We live midway between Oxford/London. the nearest pickups with either company is Oxford or Heathrow. Neither of which are at all suitable, so OH has to drive (which he doesn't really like doing now) or we pay for a car from home to terminal-quite expensive ,but company has never ever let us down. Train would be too complicated with changes ...plus ofcourse it would cut down on the amount of luggage we bring. I knew there was a reason why I had never picked that in the past.

So would Eavesway or InterCruises do transfers from Southampton Cruise Terminal to London Heathrow ? Looking at post Arcadia 30 April 2014.

Dont know about Intercruises, but Eavesway do pick up to and from from Heathrow.

2013 & 2014 pickup times and fares can be found on their website

http://www.eaveswaytravel.com/

Brian

Brian and the English Lady, thanks for your responses re transfer Southampton to LHR, helps us a lot.

Intercruise will be the offical company that P&O are using from 2014 for people who take free travel and will include all the safe guards that Eavesway coaches had. Yes Eavesway will still link up with P&O Cruises if you decide to make a private booking with them but my understanding after talking with the head office today is that they will not have the same safe guards in place that they previously had when they were the official cruise coach firm for P&O.