Your (re)views on P&O's land-side service, please.

[Selbourne]

Double on board credit promo sounds good :D

I'm looking to book next Wednesday, I've spoken to two P&O customer service advisors recently and neither of them mentioned free parking, is this something I need to mention when booking?

 

If you book a 'Select' fare, you should be offered it free of charge anyway. If the value of OBC exceeds the worth of the parking, they will offer you the balance as OBC. P&O booking staff are great and will make sure that you get everything you are entitled to. As for discounts with travel agents I'm sure they exist (others mention them on here but sadly can't say where they get them - for reasons I disagree with) but I get emails from all the main Cruise specialist agencies and what they dress up as unique offers to them are in fact P&O offers available to all. P&O are just very poor at promoting them whereas travel agents livelihoods depend on shouting about them, which they do far better.

[daiB]

Double on board credit promo sounds good :D

I'm looking to book next Wednesday, I've spoken to two P&O customer service advisors recently and neither of them mentioned free parking, is this something I need to mention when booking?

 

 

When you actually book you should be offered OBC, or car parking or coach travel. You have to make your mind up which one you want.

 

Sometimes later in the booking period, 6 to 9 month on they may offer more OBC £300/£400 or thereabouts. However the price you are paying will be more than now by perhaps £500 to £600. Clever what.

 

 

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[jaynor]

I have cruised for many years with P&O. Always loved the product so never felt the need to go elsewhere. Always booked with excellent cruise specialist TA. I agree with nearly everything said by all the knowledgeable posters in this site

The only thing that is really bugging and confusing me at the moment is the crazy pricing and OBC. I'm not talking about early savers and late offers. There are clear enough but all the other different prices offered along the way are crazy imo. I just haven't the confidence in booking anymore. Can someone please explain to be simply what on earth is going on?

 

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[mandylennon]

No, I think in the past you got more OBC if you were a past customer, but now it seems to be based on the offer available at the time of booking. We are taking my father in law on his first cruise and our sixth cruise and he is getting the same OBC as us, although he will not get the peninsular discount for trips and anything purchased onboard.

[Cruise Puss]

Double on board credit promo sounds good :D

I'm looking to book next Wednesday, I've spoken to two P&O customer service advisors recently and neither of them mentioned free parking, is this something I need to mention when booking?

 

There is one thing you may wish to be aware of when booking.

 

You should be asked if you want an 'automatic upgrade'. You need to be aware that if you say yes to this an 'upgrade' will be within the grade of cabin you have booked, ie. if you have booked, say, a GC cabin on Britannia, an 'upgrade' could well be just up to a GB or GA, not up to a DC, DB or DA grade in the category above. This is a bit of a mine field as new cruisers don't realise what an 'upgrade' will actually mean and they sometimes think they will go up a category.

 

Just so that you know. :)

[R**T]

a score out of 5

 

 

Zero.

 

We recently completed our first P&O cruise and it probably will not be the last. We loved the cruise and the P&O experience. However, we live in the United States and just booking our cruise was a challenge. The P&O online booking system does not work outside the U.K. so we thought we could just ring them up. Wrong! After making an international call and being placed on an endless hold, we were transferred to an extension that no one answered. Finally we found a travel agent in the U.S. that was able to make a booking.

 

 

Clearly, P&O does not want to communicate with their customers either by telephone or by email. Simple email inquiries either got a delayed response or a rude one. Even their shareholder benefits department did not respond to emails in a timely fashion.

[jaynor]

No, I think in the past you got more OBC if you were a past customer, but now it seems to be based on the offer available at the time of booking. We are taking my father in law on his first cruise and our sixth cruise and he is getting the same OBC as us, although he will not get the peninsular discount for trips and anything purchased onboard.

Thank you mandylennon for your clarification but what I really want to know is do P&O still control the prices of cruises including the discounts for previous passengers etc that are available to all that qualify or are we going back to the bad old days when TAs bird with each other on discounts and the only conversation on dining tables was "how much did you pay for your cruise". I hope that is not the case but from reading some of the posts on this and other sites about individuals being given fabulous offers, I'm beginning to wonder what's going on.

 

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[daiB]

Thank you mandylennon for your clarification but what I really want to know is do P&O still control the prices of cruises including the discounts for previous passengers etc that are available to all that qualify or are we going back to the bad old days when TAs bird with each other on discounts and the only conversation on dining tables was "how much did you pay for your cruise". I hope that is not the case but from reading some of the posts on this and other sites about individuals being given fabulous offers, I'm beginning to wonder what's going on.

 

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People who get lots of OBC would have payed more fore there cruise. That's how it seems to work at the moment. They do not get cheap deals and lots of OBC.

 

 

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[JimJam39]

There is one thing you may wish to be aware of when booking.

 

You should be asked if you want an 'automatic upgrade'. You need to be aware that if you say yes to this an 'upgrade' will be within the grade of cabin you have booked, ie. if you have booked, say, a GC cabin on Britannia, an 'upgrade' could well be just up to a GB or GA, not up to a DC, DB or DA grade in the category above. This is a bit of a mine field as new cruisers don't realise what an 'upgrade' will actually mean and they sometimes think they will go up a category.

 

Just so that you know. :)

 

Thank you for this. If I say yes to a potential upgrade (I intend to pay a select fare and pick a cabin), if I'm offered something I deem worse, can I decline the 'upgrade' or am I committed to move because I've selected yes to an automatic upgrade?

[jaynor]

This happenned to me when the upgrade I was given was in an appalling position. Obviously a cabin that was difficult to sell. I objected strongly and eventually was allowed to stay in my original cabin but they were not very happy about it . Since then I have not requestedan automatic upgrade unless I have been at the top grade in my chosen category which would then mean being upgraded to a higher category

 

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[JimJam39]

So if I book a balcony room with shower (no sofa), to be upgraded to a balcony room with a shower and sofa would I need to select cabin type HA? Is HF deemed the worst cabin type in that category?

[JimJam39]

I would love a bigger room but I think paying £100pp to have a sofa in the room is ludicrous. Ideally I'd like a superior balcony to have the bath but the price difference per cabin is silly, just to have a bath and I most certainly cannot afford an extra £1000pp to have a suite which would have been a touch of luxury for a honeymoon but hey ho. I would rather have more spending money and be out of the room more then I am in it :)

[happy v]

So if I book a balcony room with shower (no sofa), to be upgraded to a balcony room with a shower and sofa would I need to select cabin type HA? Is HF deemed the worst cabin type in that category?

 

Probably yes. However on Britannia grade HF is often 'guaranteed' even with select fare. This means in theory you could be in any grade, but I wouldn't bank on it.

[Cruise Puss]

Unfortunately, once you have accepted an automatic upgrade, if you are given one, that is it. Your previous cabin would have been given to someone else I'm afraid.

 

We fell foul of this when we booked a cabin for my Mother-in-Law and she was upgraded to a cabin within the same category, but further towards the centre of the ship. Unfortunately she ended up on a different deck when we had deliberately chosen a cabin near us. There was no returning her to her original cabin I'm afraid.

 

Unless you don't mind this, I would not accept an upgrade.

[Selbourne]

I would love a bigger room but I think paying £100pp to have a sofa in the room is ludicrous. Ideally I'd like a superior balcony to have the bath but the price difference per cabin is silly, just to have a bath and I most certainly cannot afford an extra £1000pp to have a suite which would have been a touch of luxury for a honeymoon but hey ho. I would rather have more spending money and be out of the room more then I am in it :)

 

A few things you should be aware of.

 

1) You would NOT be paying £100pp just for a sofa. Cabins with sofas are also bigger than those without. This can make a significant difference to the enjoyment of your cabin, for example being able to sit in comfort and watch a movie, sit and have a drink, one of you can sit on the sofa whilst the other is changing etc etc. The smallest (non sofa) cabins are very small. If you are on a very tight budget then fair enough, but if it were me I would spend the £200 - especially for such a very big holiday such as a honeymoon.

 

2) It does appear to be the case that P&O 'balances' on board credit and holiday price. If you work out the cost of the cruise as being price less on board credit, you will find that the total outlay is similar even when the prices change e.g. price goes up, OBC goes up to offset, price goes down, OBC goes down so you don't gain anything.

 

3) In spite of the above (and as often stated by Dai B and others who have more knowledge of P&O than myself), it does appear that the best overall prices are to be had when the cruises first go on sale. I have 5 future cruises booked and using my 'price less OBC' calculation, every single one of them is more expensive now than when I booked. Yes, you can sometimes save money with Saver fares and very late deals but, in my opinion (others note - I am not 'wrong', it is my opinion), this is often false economy and not worth the saving. I say this because to get the deal you cannot choose your cabin and will end up with the least desireable ones (those of us booking Select fares will have chosen them) and the loss of benefits (free parking etc) makes the 'saving' far less than it appears. Besides, would you want second best on your honeymoon?

 

4) Please be aware that with a Select fare you don't just get free Parking OR on board credit. It is often possible to get both. I only book direct with P&O (so can't speak for TA's) but I always seem to end up with free Parking AND a slug of OBC as well, even when I have booked very early and prior to any special OBC deals.

[annieuk]

Like Selbourne we too have managed to have both parking and a good amount of OBC as well on the past few cruises we have booked - through a well known Cruise Agent - not high street TA . We usually book early as well, although for a December cruise on Aurora, not over Christmas, we didn't book until November and still got parking and OBC.

I have brochures dating back to 2004 and they were so much better. For one thing the deck plans of the ship were large enough to see without having to get out a magnifying glass! They tended to put the cruises under each ship separately which I much prefer. The whole thing was a really good read whereas I find the current brochure really challenging. The pictures of the different cabins in the old brochure were much better. They didn't just give one example of a suite for example, they showed the suites, and all the other grades of cabin, for each ship, they are not the same.

I suppose it's all a case of do we want to pay more money for the cruise and go back to the old brochures, printed in detail or put up with the modern version and pay less for the cruise.

I have never really had to get in touch with P&O landside. I have an excellent Cruise Agent who will take care of any queries.

[JimJam39]

A few things you should be aware of.

 

1) You would NOT be paying £100pp just for a sofa. Cabins with sofas are also bigger than those without. This can make a significant difference to the enjoyment of your cabin, for example being able to sit in comfort and watch a movie, sit and have a drink, one of you can sit on the sofa whilst the other is changing etc etc. The smallest (non sofa) cabins are very small. If you are on a very tight budget then fair enough, but if it were me I would spend the £200 - especially for such a very big holiday such as a honeymoon.

 

2) It does appear to be the case that P&O 'balances' on board credit and holiday price. If you work out the cost of the cruise as being price less on board credit, you will find that the total outlay is similar even when the prices change e.g. price goes up, OBC goes up to offset, price goes down, OBC goes down so you don't gain anything.

 

3) In spite of the above (and as often stated by Dai B and others who have more knowledge of P&O than myself), it does appear that the best overall prices are to be had when the cruises first go on sale. I have 5 future cruises booked and using my 'price less OBC' calculation, every single one of them is more expensive now than when I booked. Yes, you can sometimes save money with Saver fares and very late deals but, in my opinion (others note - I am not 'wrong', it is my opinion), this is often false economy and not worth the saving. I say this because to get the deal you cannot choose your cabin and will end up with the least desireable ones (those of us booking Select fares will have chosen them) and the loss of benefits (free parking etc) makes the 'saving' far less than it appears. Besides, would you want second best on your honeymoon?

 

4) Please be aware that with a Select fare you don't just get free Parking OR on board credit. It is often possible to get both. I only book direct with P&O (so can't speak for TA's) but I always seem to end up with free Parking AND a slug of OBC as well, even when I have booked very early and prior to any special OBC deals.

I love this forum in general but Selbourne, your replies have always been super informative and always give me food for thought. Going to go relook at balcony cabins with sofas. As you said, it is my honeymoon after all :D

[JimJam39]

Couldn't help it, I looked straight away as I'd originally been looking at the GD grade. Cabin B721 is showing an icon like this =

Caption to it states "cabin has two additional beds, one in the form of a single sofa bed and one in the form of a upper pullman berth" Does this mean the cabin will be cramped? You can see on the deck plan if you enlarge it on an ipad that it appears slightly bigger.

[JimJam39]

I am all over the Internet you may find me elsewhere.

I've looked, I cannot find you using the google search engine, was hoping I'd find some blogs you'd done :confused:

[terrierjohn]

Like Selbourne we too have managed to have both parking and a good amount of OBC as well on the past few cruises we have booked - through a well known Cruise Agent - not high street TA . We usually book early as well, although for a December cruise on Aurora, not over Christmas, we didn't book until November and still got parking and OBC.

I have brochures dating back to 2004 and they were so much better. For one thing the deck plans of the ship were large enough to see without having to get out a magnifying glass! They tended to put the cruises under each ship separately which I much prefer. The whole thing was a really good read whereas I find the current brochure really challenging. The pictures of the different cabins in the old brochure were much better. They didn't just give one example of a suite for example, they showed the suites, and all the other grades of cabin, for each ship, they are not the same.

I suppose it's all a case of do we want to pay more money for the cruise and go back to the old brochures, printed in detail or put up with the modern version and pay less for the cruise.

I have never really had to get in touch with P&O landside. I have an excellent Cruise Agent who will take care of any queries.

I imagine that large amounts of OBC as well as one of the 3 select perks, are only available for bookings made outside, or at the very end, of the launch period.

We need to book very early to secure an accessible cabin and have never seen separate OBC offered during the launch, except for once when for a limited number of cruises extra OBC was being offered late on during the launch period. I assumed these cruises were proving unpopular and P&O were trying to increase the demand.

We did book next years Caribbean cruise just after the launch ended and did receive some extra OBC, but the price had increased from the brochure level and the extra OBC just brought it back to the same level.

Like a lot of holiday products the price is determined by demand, which is why an identical cruise in the school holidays can be 20% or so higher than one outside school holidays, and cruises in April and October are cheaper than June and September, and cruises on Aurora, Oriana and Adonia are so expensive; and no amount of arm twisting applied on the customer service staff is likely to give you more than the maximum discount or OBC they are permitted to concede.

[sapphire4]

If you opt for a GD cabin directly on the back of the ship you will have a deeper balcony which is worth considering. Its usually relatively quiet with not much passing traffic.

[Florry]

I was thinking about this thread this morning, contemplating service onboard, service land side etc. I decided that I rebook because I like the P&O product but I don't really have any affinity, trust or respect for P&O as a company, despite a +15 year cruising history. I can't think of another company that has retained my custom in such circumstances for so long, it's a bit odd really. I can only conclude that it is the onboard customer experience which I am loyal to, but anytime I seem to 'touch' the land side 'corporate' aspect of P&O, my experience and loyalty sadly feel quite opposite. When I reflect on many of the threads here I wonder how many feel the same?

 

 

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[techwatcher]

Post Cruise - Another weakness I'm afraid. I spend ages diligently filling in the end of Cruise questionnaire - good and bad. Do I think that it makes any difference? No! I don't believe that they genuinely act upon the feedback. That said, I spent years making comments that they should ban smoking on balconies and eventually they did, but they were several years too late doing so. 2/5

 

I suspect that they do act on the feedback in questionnaires, but not necessarily to individual feedback. I don't think any large company will act on one person's comments in a questionnaire. P&O will be looking at trends in feedback and if a significant number of people comment on, for example, food quality then they will look at the issue ('significant number' in P&O terms may well be in the thousands).

[Selbourne]

I suspect that they do act on the feedback in questionnaires, but not necessarily to individual feedback. I don't think any large company will act on one person's comments in a questionnaire. P&O will be looking at trends in feedback and if a significant number of people comment on, for example, food quality then they will look at the issue ('significant number' in P&O terms may well be in the thousands).

 

You're telling me that P&O won't change their entire operation based on my feedback alone? That's outrageous! Thanks for explaining to me how feedback works :')

[techwatcher]

You're telling me that P&O won't change their entire operation based on my feedback alone? That's outrageous! Thanks for explaining to me how feedback works :')

 

Selbourne, that was uncalled for. If you know "how feedback works" then why make the comment in your original post that "I don't believe that they genuinely act upon the feedback" and then reply sarcastically when someone posts a comment about it?