Dining allocation

[the english lady]

Hi me again,still on Arcadia. I think those on freedom dining had to stick with it as it was a full sailing. Not sure if this one is.

Did hear tell that some freedom diners we waiting up to 45 mins to be sat, maybe they wanted a table for 2. Will not have to go to the MDR this pm,so will not know if there is a not.

I agree with those saying if you book a cheaper fare you should not get choices. It does make it clear in the tand c.

Ref the shuttles we were on one and someone was moaning about how many he had to pay for. We kept quiet.

[gadabout60]

Hi me again,still on Arcadia. I think those on freedom dining had to stick with it as it was a full sailing. Not sure if this one is.

Did hear tell that some freedom diners we waiting up to 45 mins to be sat, maybe they wanted a table for 2. Will not have to go to the MDR this pm,so will not know if there is a not.

I agree with those saying if you book a cheaper fare you should not get choices. It does make it clear in the tand c.

Ref the shuttles we were on one and someone was moaning about how many he had to pay for. We kept quiet.

 

 

Sorry - don't agree you shouldn't get a choice.

Agree that you should get what is left - but within that they should try and accommodate saver fares where possible.

 

I do feel some people look down their noses at those who paid getaway/ saver.

Where I think the vantage / getaway fare was a fiasco was in giving getaway passengers upgrades to better cabins. I am completely happy that select passengers got the top cabins in the grade and first choice of dining.

 

A saver passengers may still be paying thousands - no need to treat them like dirt

[davecttr]

Sorry - don't agree you shouldn't get a choice.

Agree that you should get what is left - but within that they should try and accommodate saver fares where possible.

 

I do feel some people look down their noses at those who paid getaway/ saver.

Where I think the vantage / getaway fare was a fiasco was in giving getaway passengers upgrades to better cabins. I am completely happy that select passengers got the top cabins in the grade and first choice of dining.

 

A saver passengers may still be paying thousands - no need to treat them like dirt

Them not getting a choice of dining is not treating them like dirt, after all, they pay less money and i am sure that if there are any choices left after the select and early savers get their preference the choices will be made available to savers. They could use some of all that money they save to eat in the cover charge restaurants.

 

Of course some will look down their noses at them but how will they know they are saver fares? they don't get their foreheads branded with a 'S' or have to wear big 'S' stickers on their chests ;)

[groovechick]

I don't care whether other pax paid saver, early saver or whatever. We would try for saver fares if we could wait until a few weeks before a sailing, but because we need to organise cruises around school holidays and DH's job, we book early to get the cruise we want at the time we want. C'est la vie.

 

On Azura last year the queue of people looking to change their dining arrangements was huge. I don't know how many of them were saver/early saver fares, but we queued for 1 1/2 hours. At one point the restaurant manager tried to disband the queue because we were supposed to go to the muster, and there was nearly a riot. I just found it extremely annoying because there was no distinction made between people who wanted to change their sitting, or change from a large table to a table for 2, and those who were there for another reason, like me, who'd been told I had to talk to the restaurant manager asap after boarding with regard to my children's special dietary requirements.

[pete14]

Some may 'look down their noses' at those on saver fares but I don't think there are many who do. My next 3 cruises are select because the deal at the time of booking was good. I have been on Getaway fares and never felt as though I was thought of as a second class passenger. As Dave says, how do other passengers know unless you yourself tell them.

 

It makes great sense to give benefits to those who pay the most, after all, for simple economic reasons, P&O prefer people to pay full fare. Possibly the reason popular cruises such as Britannia maiden tend to be reasonably priced is because they sell out to full fare paying passengers with no saver passengers to 'subsidise'. It does appear though that some are happy to pay the least but then want equality of opportunity with those that pay more. Nothing wrong with P&O trying to help people out but they cannot do it in every case.

[the english lady]

I do not look down my nose at saver bookings. When vantage fare payers complained a bout cheaper fare payers complained about cheaper fares being upgraded people were told you were happy with the priceyou paid onbooking.

This sailing does not appear full a all,so I guess everyone will be happy.

[gadabout60]

Sorry but unless I am over-sensitive there seems to me to be a feeling on this forum that if you pay saver you take what dining you have been given and you should be grateful!

 

I would repeat that I don't think many Select fares are worth it - I tend to book adult only where prices are generally higher!

 

If I book saver I agree I have last choice - but I still think there is scope to give savers their first preference if that is available when allocating dining to saver fares . I appreciate many will be disappointed and I don't have an issue with that - you know that when you book.

 

However if you have e.g. 1000 savers on a cruise and say 200 early places, 200 freedom and 600 late dining then I am sure P&O's computers can try to match up requests as far as they can.

 

if I do book a saver and get an early dining time which would be something I could not live with, I would simply eat in the speciality restaurants. I would feel I had lost something as I enjoy sitting at the same table and meeting my fellow diners and enjoying the cruise with them. But that is not worth the several hundred pounds difference on the cruises I am currently monitoring. In fact in one July cruise I have been watching the difference is £900 x 2. I appreciate some people have to book select because of available holiday leave or others need a disabled cabin. Others might be happy to pay top price - fair enough -we all know what we are prepared to pay for a holiday and what it is worth to us.

 

However IMHO many other cruise lines offer better value than P&O select fares at this present time

[simonpjd]

Gadabout says

IMHO many other cruise lines offer better value than P&O select fares at this present time

 

Then go there. If you think the select fares are far too high and want to pay less but you do not want to abide by the terms and conditions applicable to the lower fare then just go elsewhere. There is obviously no pleasing you.

[clivep]

If you think the select fares are far too high and want to pay less but you do not want to abide by the terms and conditions applicable to the lower fare then just go elsewhere.

 

I'm quite happy to abide by the terms and conditions of the saver fare and do not expect anything more. However, I do expect P&O to abide by those same t's & c's and not try to add new ones such as the "AND CANNOT BE CHANGED" about the dining allocation AFTER I make a booking.

[gadabout60]

Gadabout says

IMHO many other cruise lines offer better value than P&O select fares at this present time

 

Then go there. If you think the select fares are far too high and want to pay less but you do not want to abide by the terms and conditions applicable to the lower fare then just go elsewhere. There is obviously no pleasing you.

 

 

Not true that there is no pleasing me.

On this forum we often talk about things we would like changed or improvements.

All I am saying is that I will rarely pay select price as on the cruises I would choose they are not good value (for me)

And there is no reason why P&O can't accommodate the dining needs of saver passengers as far as possible. If not possible then thats fine, but if they can do it then they should

[simonpjd]

I think we allo assumed that P&O would do their best to help if timing changes are required.

But according to some it says that dining times are allocated on board AND CANNOT BE CHANGED. I think most of us would be surprised if they stuck to this rigidly and I am sure there will be a bit of give and take. But if they do stick to it then, as you say, the money you have saved going cheap will pay for speciality restaurants. Everyone on board will think you are rich being able to afford the posh places.

[Margana]

I think we allo assumed that P&O would do their best to help if timing changes are required.

But according to some it says that dining times are allocated on board AND CANNOT BE CHANGED. I think most of us would be surprised if they stuck to this rigidly and I am sure there will be a bit of give and take. But if they do stick to it then, as you say, the money you have saved going cheap will pay for speciality restaurants. Everyone on board will think you are rich being able to afford the posh places.

 

Our 83 year old friend is travelling with us on her first cruise. She is booked as a solo passenger and paid the single supplement (double Saver fare), which is also significantly higher than the corresponding Select fare. She is certainly not travelling "cheap". We have no dining preferences, but there is no guarantee that she will be allocated the same dining arrangements as ourselves. We hope a reasonable attitude will prevail, otherwise the enthusiasm she has for this new experience will be severely dampened. It's not just about the fare category that people have paid.

[SSCEscapee]

I think it wouldn't hurt P & O to enable Saver passengers to select a preference for a dining time "if available". We actually enjoy Freedom Dining but we are going on Aurora next which doesn't offer Freedom dining. We will just have to wait and see what we are offered.

[davecttr]

I think it wouldn't hurt P & O to enable Saver passengers to select a preference for a dining time "if available". We actually enjoy Freedom Dining but we are going on Aurora next which doesn't offer Freedom dining. We will just have to wait and see what we are offered.

It would be too complicated to administer. As I mentioned elsewhere, there would have to be a system that ensured all the 'select' and 'early saver' passengers had a chance to request a change first.

 

In other words there is no way P&O would know there were any available preference changes left until well into the cruise.

 

I suppose you could have a system where 'select' could request a change on day 1,2,and 3, 'early saver' on day 4 and 5, 'saver'on day 6 plus.

 

not on Ventura fly cruises though, half your club dining table mates might change half way through, unless passengers on different legs are given seperate tables.

[kevinyork]

If its true they dont allow Saver Fare passengers to change at all then they risk affecting the cruise experience for a lot of people. Yes its part of the deal in terms of choosing a lower Saver Fare, however lets say there are 1000 Saver Passengers onboard and 500 of them have been allocated a dining arrangement that they wouldnt have chosen. If as many of those as possible are allowed to swap with others that want to swap then thats 500 happy passengers that are more likely to return to P&O. Or in doing this would it alienate the 2000 Select Fare Passengers who wouldnt want to see Saver Fare passengers getting any dining preference?

 

 

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[davecttr]

If its true they dont allow Saver Fare passengers to change at all then they risk affecting the cruise experience for a lot of people. Yes its part of the deal in terms of choosing a lower Saver Fare, however lets say there are 1000 Saver Passengers onboard and 500 of them have been allocated a dining arrangement that they wouldnt have chosen. If as many of those as possible are allowed to swap with others that want to swap then thats 500 happy passengers that are more likely to return to P&O. Or in doing this would it alienate the 2000 Select Fare Passengers who wouldnt want to see Saver Fare passengers getting any dining preference?

 

 

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Yes, it would alienate me as a select fare passenger if i was told i could not request a place because the saver fare passengers had grabbed them all.

 

Why should those saver passengers be unhappy? They knew when they booked that dining allocations were made aboard and could not be changed.

 

It is an example of them wanting to have their cake and eat it. As a select fare passenger i could pay many hundreds more than a saver fare and i want a lot more perks to reflect this. Enough to offset some of that subsidy I am giving to those saver passengers. I am willing to wait and see if the new system works but it seems the saver payers want something for nothing. Cheek :mad:

 

I doubt there will be many cruises with 1000 saver passengers. If so it will be P&O's fault for alienating Select payers.

[supergran]

Yes, it would alienate me as a select fare passenger if i was told i could not request a place because the saver fare passengers had grabbed them all.

 

Why should those saver passengers be unhappy? They knew when they booked that dining allocations were made aboard and could not be changed.

 

It is an example of them wanting to have their cake and eat it. As a select fare passenger i could pay many hundreds more than a saver fare and i want a lot more perks to reflect this. Enough to offset some of that subsidy I am giving to those saver passengers. I am willing to wait and see if the new system works but it seems the saver payers want something for nothing. Cheek :mad:

 

I doubt there will be many cruises with 1000 saver passengers. If so it will be P&O's fault for alienating Select payers.

 

 

If you booked early and got your dining choice why would you want to change once on board? If you booked early and got your choice why does it bother you if I booked late, didn't get my choice and was allowed to change? It doesn't bother us. We prefer late sitting. If we were given early sitting we would eat in the buffet if the times didn't suit our plans for the day.

[Josy1953]

I think it wouldn't hurt P & O to enable Saver passengers to select a preference for a dining time "if available". We actually enjoy Freedom Dining but we are going on Aurora next which doesn't offer Freedom dining. We will just have to wait and see what we are offered.

We were on Aurora in December and were told that starting 19th December one of the restaurants would become Freedom Dining. Have they not implemented this or did they try it and had to revert back to club dining only ?

[AchileLauro]

Relatives were supposed to be cruising on Aurora in May and they were to be on Freedom dining.

[clivep]

Yes, it would alienate me as a select fare passenger if i was told i could not request a place because the saver fare passengers had grabbed them all.

 

Why would it affect you? We're talking about Saver fare passenger dining changes being made AFTER you have been given your preference in dining.

 

Why should those saver passengers be unhappy? They knew when they booked that dining allocations were made aboard and could not be changed.

 

Have you not read the t's and c's and previous posts? The "and could not be changed" DOES NOT appear in the t's and c's and is only advised to those on Saver fares AFTER making a booking.

 

It is an example of them wanting to have their cake and eat it. As a select fare passenger i could pay many hundreds more than a saver fare and i want a lot more perks to reflect this. Enough to offset some of that subsidy I am giving to those saver passengers. I am willing to wait and see if the new system works but it seems the saver payers want something for nothing. Cheek :mad:

 

No, I just want P&O to abide by their actual t's & c's at the time of booking. Yes, you should be given more perks rather than them trying to make the Saver fares less attractive by introducing petty inconveniences.

If it were not for the Saver fare passengers taking up the surplus cabins then the cabin stewards and waiters would suffer from a drop in income.

I do NOT want something for nothing, I want exactly what I have paid for under P&O's terms and conditions pertaining at the time of booking rather than what they say AFTER taking my money.

 

I doubt there will be many cruises with 1000 saver passengers. If so it will be P&O's fault for alienating Select payers.

 

This may well be the case in the summer when they find it easier to fill the ships. At this time of year it wouldn't surprise me if more than 50% of the passengers are on Saver fares.

[gadabout60]

Why would it affect you? We're talking about Saver fare passenger dining changes being made AFTER you have been given your preference in dining.

 

 

 

Have you not read the t's and c's and previous posts? The "and could not be changed" DOES NOT appear in the t's and c's and is only advised to those on Saver fares AFTER making a booking.

 

 

 

No, I just want P&O to abide by their actual t's & c's at the time of booking. Yes, you should be given more perks rather than them trying to make the Saver fares less attractive by introducing petty inconveniences.

If it were not for the Saver fare passengers taking up the surplus cabins then the cabin stewards and waiters would suffer from a drop in income.

I do NOT want something for nothing, I want exactly what I have paid for under P&O's terms and conditions pertaining at the time of booking rather than what they say AFTER taking my money.

 

 

 

This may well be the case in the summer when they find it easier to fill the ships. At this time of year it wouldn't surprise me if more than 50% of the passengers are on Saver fares.

 

Clive

 

Couldn't agree more with your post.

P&O have to try and keep all their passengers happy - and giving saver passengers their dining preference where available and after select passengers have chosen what they want is a no brainer. Otherwise we almost go back to the days of the seaside landladies when you had to stay out of your b&b all day and only come back in the evening!

 

Savers passengers are essential to the long term future of cruising. IMHO with the amount of cruise companies available more people won't be prepared to pay the select price in future years (I do accept that some people have no choice but to pay select fares but these people will slowly decline in future)

Last year we hear anecdotally that some ships sailed with a majority of passengers paying getaway. Without saver / getaway or whatever you call it ships could ultimately not sail

[kevinyork]

Clive

 

 

 

Couldn't agree more with your post.

 

P&O have to try and keep all their passengers happy - and giving saver passengers their dining preference where available and after select passengers have chosen what they want is a no brainer. Otherwise we almost go back to the days of the seaside landladies when you had to stay out of your b&b all day and only come back in the evening!

 

 

 

Savers passengers are essential to the long term future of cruising. IMHO with the amount of cruise companies available more people won't be prepared to pay the select price in future years (I do accept that some people have no choice but to pay select fares but these people will slowly decline in future)

 

Last year we hear anecdotally that some ships sailed with a majority of passengers paying getaway. Without saver / getaway or whatever you call it ships could ultimately not sail

 

 

I totally agree. However I still dont get why P&O and Cunard keep getting their fare structure so wrong. The US lines RCI/Celebrity have fluid pricing. Supply and demand. They may reduce fares to boost bookings and often increase fares as sailings become popular. Exactly the same as UK tour operators do with package deals. If I book a package holiday to say Egypt a year ahead Im fully aware that there will be people in the hotel that will have paid less by taking a late availability offer. However, they will still get the same type of room, meals and facilities as I will but thats the way it is.

 

The select/saver fare structure is just silly. Ok if they want then give select fare payers extras but dont remove services or facilities for those who book saver fares ( only offered as P&O have not sold enough cabins ) just so that select fare payers feel less miffed. That treating select fare payers like second class passengers.

 

We booked an RCI cruise last year at a good price with free drinks thrown in. Once the promotion ended the price increased and then eventually sold out. We did a Celebrity cruise last year. We booked at a good price and from then till departure the price went up. Weve booked two Celebrity cruises for this year both with free drinks and free tips. Both cruises have increased in price since we booked. How come it works for the US lines but not the ones aimed at the British market?

 

 

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[molecrochip]

We were on Aurora in December and were told that starting 19th December one of the restaurants would become Freedom Dining. Have they not implemented this or did they try it and had to revert back to club dining only ?

 

 

Aurora has freedom dining from 19th December 2014. This has been the case since it was announced as it is the first cruise after her refit and bow flag painting. I'm on the cruise and have selected late club dining as part of a group if 30+!

 

 

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[majortom10]

We were on Aurora in December and were told that starting 19th December one of the restaurants would become Freedom Dining. Have they not implemented this or did they try it and had to revert back to club dining only ?

 

Freedom dining doesnt start on Aurora until 19th December 2014 as shown below from P&Os website-

 

Freedom Dining will be held in the following restaurants:

Azura - The Meridian Restaurant

Oceana - The Ligurian Restaurant

Ventura - The Cinnamon Restaurant and The Saffron Restaurants

Arcadia - Upper tier of Meridian Restaurant

Oriana (from 18 May 2014) – The Peninsular Restaurant

Aurora (from 19 December 2014) – The Medina Restaurant

[oldman40]

I continually read about the discontent regarding Select/Early Saver/Saver fares, it appears to cause much dissatisfaction and upset.

 

I cannot understand why P&O do not just have a simple fare price without names, this price of course would fluctuate depending on how the ship was filling up, as do hotel prices by supply and demand.

 

The earlier you book would result in all the additional benefits, full choice of cabins, OBC, parking, coach travel and dining choice etc and the later you book albeit the price will most probably be less as will choice of cabins and no OBC, no parking, dining choice as wait-listed etc.

 

At the end of the day we must all accept ships need to be filled for the lines to make a profit otherwise none of us would be able to cruise and ultimately prices will be dictated by supply and demand.

 

My OH and myself have had many cruises with P&O both early and late bookings, we pay the price at the time of booking and accept others may well pay less but I would not want them denied any of the facilities like shuttle buses or dining choice if available.

 

No doubt many will disagree with my thoughts, one of the reasons I read and seldom post.