Thoughts from Aurora

[Tablelamp]

39 minutes ago, alija1960 said:

just recently off Aurora last week and the first thing that the steward advised us was that there was no turn down service on first night, but this did not bother us. 

 

Were the bathrooms serviced?  It would most certainly bother me if they are not!

[FangedRose]

Wouldn't bother me. I wouldn't dream of cleaning my bathroom, certainly not change my towels, twice a day! 

[Tablelamp]

30 minutes ago, FangedRose said:

Wouldn't bother me. I wouldn't dream of cleaning my bathroom, certainly not change my towels, twice a day! 

 

I think of those people who have been travelling for most of the day.  A nice shower before dinner, but to wake up on the first day of their cruise and be confronted with wet towels in the bathroom is dreadful.  I am aware, that in order to keep the prices down, P and O need to make cut backs (and some)!  but this most certainly must not spread to cleanliness.  If what we have heard is not a ‘one off’ it is absolutely shocking.

[Brayman]

11 minutes ago, Tablelamp said:

 

I think of those people who have been travelling for most of the day.  A nice shower before dinner, but to wake up on the first day of their cruise and be confronted with wet towels in the bathroom is dreadful.  I am aware, that in order to keep the prices down, P and O need to make cut backs (and some)!  but this most certainly must not spread to cleanliness.  If what we have heard is not a ‘one off’ it is absolutely shocking.

We may not have had a turn down but I'm prety sure the bathroom was tidied.

 

[FangedRose]

I'll have been travelling since 4.30am or 5am. I wouldn't dream of changing for dinner without a shower. But, I arrange the towels I have used in such a way that they dry. Over the hooks on the back of the bathroom door, on the towel rail on the back of the bathroom door, even, in extremis, over the door itself. I have never woken up to wet towels. 

 

I have never used a towel just once then put it in for changing. (Apart from pool towels). Cruising is hard enough for the environment, without causing unnecessary washing. I usually get replacement towels every other day at the most, and never had a wet towel. 

 

Mind you I usually have two sets to go at (depends on the steward). 

[jeanlyon]

Well if you have a shower before dinner and hang the towels up, they would be dry by the next morning anyway.  What a fuss about nothing!

[Clodia]

Now been on 3 cruises where there was no turn down service the first night. The stewards work from about 6.30 on the turnaround morning so by the time they go off duty at about 4.30 pm they are exhausted! They have always asked me if I need anything else before they go, and if I shower before dinner I just hang the bath towel up where it will dry. Often I shower in the morning instead because I stay at a hotel the night before.

[FangedRose]

12 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

Well if you have a shower before dinner and hang the towels up, they would be dry by the next morning anyway.  What a fuss about nothing!

Well that's a first. Something we agree on 😁

[BrianI]

Currently on Ventura. No turn down service on first night but not a problem as everything is pristine.  Service twice a day from then on. 

Brian

[AndyMichelle]

6 hours ago, BrianI said:

Currently on Ventura. No turn down service on first night but not a problem as everything is pristine.  Service twice a day from then on. 

Brian

Have a fantastic time Brian.

Andy

[Port out]

On Aurora in July and there was a first night turndown service. Maybe it just applies to suites now.

[Tablelamp]

28 minutes ago, Port out said:

On Aurora in July and there was a first night turndown service. Maybe it just applies to suites now.

 

Are you saying you are in a suite and because of that, got a turndown Service the first night?

[Port out]

16 hours ago, Tablelamp said:

 

Are you saying you are in a suite and because of that, got a turndown Service the first night?

Could well be. Maybe the Butler did it!

[Ranchi]

We had an inside. The butler turned down our bed and then brushed his teeth and clambered into bed next to his wife. ( having ensured the bathroom light was left on and the door closed to ensure just enough light escaped into the cabin to avoid swearing during the night caused by stubbing a toe!)

[JimHatch]

On our 4-night cruise on Aurora, there was no turn-down on the first night. In 13yrs, that's the first I've experienced. We had it on Britannia 2yrs ago.

[Les_ldh]

1 hour ago, Ranchi said:

We had an inside. The butler turned down our bed and then brushed his teeth and clambered into bed next to his wife. ( having ensured the bathroom light was left on and the door closed to ensure just enough light escaped into the cabin to avoid swearing during the night caused by stubbing a toe!)

What I want to know is why the butler was in your cabin with his wife who was already in your bed 🤣

[Tablelamp]

On 8/20/2019 at 9:11 AM, terrierjohn said:

Just back off Independence OTS and despite our stateroom attendant (steward) sometimes not finishing until 2pm, we always had the evening turn down and bathroom tidy service every day, including the first night.  Lack of the bathroom clean up every night would certainly bother us. 

 

It would bother me also!  We are continually being told that germs spread easily on a ship.  This must work for both crew and passengers.  They are very rigid for the first 48 hours in case somebody has bought an infection onto the ship.

[jeanlyon]

Hang on, we are talking about the steward cleaning the cabin before you board.  Then the only thing he doesn't do after you have gone for dinner is turn down the bed?  Germs?  For goodness sake.  Do you change your towels after you have a bath/shower at home?  If we stopped using antibacterial this and that, there would less illness because your immune system would work properly.  We are talking here about someone not turning down your bed on the first night!!!

[FangedRose]

3 minutes ago, Tablelamp said:

 

It would bother me also!  We are continually being told that germs spread easily on a ship.  This must work for both crew and passengers.  They are very rigid for the first 48 hours in case somebody has bought an infection onto the ship.

I must be missing something? How would this make any difference to infection spreading. You are the only person/people using your cabin. The bathroom will be clean before you use it. 

 

[Tablelamp]

2 hours ago, FangedRose said:

I must be missing something? How would this make any difference to infection spreading. You are the only person/people using your cabin. The bathroom will be clean before you use it. 

 

I was on the Arcadia a few weeks ago and we had an outbreak of NV.   I have cruised with P and O for many years and have always had a lovely time,  but have never ever known such stringent precautions to be put in place.  I did resent the fact that it was made very obvious that the passengers were to blame.  (Strangely enough, once the situation was cleared the precautions were lessened to such an extent that it was laughable).   I even noticed a crewmember coming out of the lavatory and going straight back into the buffet area without washing her hands. When I queried this she said, “it doesn’t matter because I have rubber gloves on”.

 

Hence my remarks about the servicing of bathrooms on the first night. Cleanliness cuts both ways,.   Very much looking forward to 1st. September on Aurora.  No members are listed but If you go onto the roll call ‘View discussion’ some interesting facts have been made available.

[daiB]

Sorry I cannot believe that people are so upset that they are not having their cabin serviced after they have used it for a few hours on the first day so that the stewards can get some time off on their busiest day.

 

If you go to a hotel you do not get your room serviced every night never mind the first night.  Some people seem to moan about the smallest thing.

[FangedRose]

59 minutes ago, Tablelamp said:

I was on the Arcadia a few weeks ago and we had an outbreak of NV.   I have cruised with P and O for many years and have always had a lovely time,  but have never ever known such stringent precautions to be put in place.  I did resent the fact that it was made very obvious that the passengers were to blame.  (Strangely enough, once the situation was cleared the precautions were lessened to such an extent that it was laughable).   I even noticed a crewmember coming out of the lavatory and going straight back into the buffet area without washing her hands. When I queried this she said, “it doesn’t matter because I have rubber gloves on”.

 

Hence my remarks about the servicing of bathrooms on the first night. Cleanliness cuts both ways,.   Very much looking forward to 1st. September on Aurora.  No members are listed but If you go onto the roll call ‘View discussion’ some interesting facts have been made available.

There is no way that your bathroom could be infected because you had a shower.

 

I'd be quite glad to know that I could return to my cabin straight after dinner, on my first night,  knowing I would not interrupt the steward. 

 

As regards NV, I've been on board when restriction were put in place, even though the illness was restricted to certain members of one family group, who had partaken of one particular dish whilst on shore. There partners were allowed to roam the ship at will. So, even though it obviously wasn't NV and simple food poisoning  contracted whilst on shore, there were still reports of "plague ship" etc. And, whilst the captain went out of his way to not call the episode NV, it didn't stop passengers phoning home to tell family members that it was. 

 

As far as the buffet worker is concerned, whilst very gross, and I too would have reported her to a superior (I wouldn't have said anything to her) as long as she wasn't wearing the gloves whilst in the cubicle, and put them on afterwards, there would be very little chance of contamination. The gloves work as a barrier both ways.