Longtime Celebrity cruiser's 2nd P&O cruise - Impressions

[techwatcher]

We complete our second P&O cruise on Sunday (first was a 5-day cruise on Arcadia in 2015) We are frequent cruisers mostly with Celebrity and a few with Royal Caribbean. FWIW, here are our impressions of our second P&O cruise.

 

The cruise was on Britannia to the Norwegian Fjords.

 

1. Embarkation/disembarkation. We were in a suite and so had priority embarkation/ disembarkation and all worked as expected - basically walked straight on and straight off.

2. The ship. Mixed feelings about Britannia. Not a pretty ship, but not many new builds are. It is newish, but doesn't look it. Decor is a bit bland. Some 'interesting' design decisions; theatre only holds 900ish on a ship that carries 3600? Arrangement of the three main restaurants also a bit strange.

3. Cabin. We had an aft corner suite. it was OK; the living area is somewhat cramped. Bathroom and bedroom were fine. Balcony was more like a private sun terrace or being on a quiet deck; I kept expecting someone to appear from 'around the corner'!

4. Food - MDR food better than Celebrity's MDR efforts. Food was always hot and reasonably tasty. Tried The Beach House - excellent food and service. Epicurean was nice for breakfast, albeit with a limited menu and limited flexibility. P&O should be providing MORE for suite guests, not less. A request for Eggs Benedict one morning almost caused a diplomatic incident!

5. Service - a let down. Service was flaky and inconsistent. Cabin steward had not made up our cabin at 2100 on the first night and actually sent us away whilst he did it! (Please make up my room sign had been displayed since 1930) Dinner service in the MDR on second night was awful; we were without water and facing dirty plates for 15 minutes. This was unacceptable; I had words and service did improve on subsequent nights. We experienced similar dining issues on Arcadia previously so it seems that this is the standard of service P&O normally provides. Service in Epicurean for breakfast was better.

5. Entertainment - We don't care for the shows but did a few of the quizzes. The entertainment staff didn't engage with passengers - they'd turn up one minute before something was due to start and disappear one minute afterwards.

 

The itinerary was fine and the weather was wonderful. Overall we enjoyed the cruise. P&O seem to be behind the curve on benefits for suite guests, although they are also cheaper than other lines.

 

 

We would consider sailing P&O again, but it wouldn't be our first choice, and the itinerary would have to be right.