Embarking and testing experience

[Bubbles4u]

First impressions of the app were very positive.  We could finally book for the Limelight club and dining for the day.  We booked for Toyah Willcox as soon as we knew she was the act.  It wasn't long before all the shows were sold out.  Capacity was reduced probably by about a third but at least 5 booked tables on the Monday were unoccupied.  Candles burning but no guests.  A couple behind us in the queue had decided to try to get in if there was any no shows so they were very lucky and got a table 1 back from the stage.  We weren't charged for this until after the show - personally I feel if P and O were to charge people beforehand there might be fewer speculative bookings so passengers who actually want to see a performer can actually do so.

Just because the app is showing fully booked don't believe it most of the shows are still available.   Go the venue and the staff will tell you to sit in any seat that doesn't have a 'just resting' sign on it.

 

The onboard spend showed up fairly instantly on the app and the queueing system for the dining was pretty efficient but there was no audible notification that a table was ready. Just screen option to indicate that we were on our way.

The app worked quite well until I realised I could access on-shore wi-fi.   Big mistake 😲  It took half a day to be able to be get back to the app and couldn't access it at all on Wednesday and neither could my travel companion. If you are travelling in a group it is better to have one person to stay offline and on the app.  Don't bother to ask main reception about any app issues.  They are clueless but also won't book any restaurant tables.  

I appreciate that this is all very new but we weren't on the first cruise this season I felt P and O still had a lot learning to do.

[PJL1973]

Thaniks for all the updates on the testing / embarkation procedures. Seems to me there is no penalty for not turning up early, other than the lengthy queues. 

Re the app, I have heard lots of negative reviews about it, but if there is a work around by actually just turning up and hoping for the best (which people used to do anyway), then I don't think it will be a deal breaker.

[jaydee6969]

1 minute ago, PJL1973 said:

Thaniks for all the updates on the testing / embarkation procedures. Seems to me there is no penalty for not turning up early, other than the lengthy queues. 

Re the app, I have heard lots of negative reviews about it, but if there is a work around by actually just turning up and hoping for the best (which people used to do anyway), then I don't think it will be a deal breaker.

 

Reports from the latest cruises are passengers are being turned away and told to return at the correct time for testing.

 

As Bubbles4u said, thinking back to any issues I had with the 'app', it was when I had connected to 4G land signal and tried to access it.  Soon learned what to switch off on the phone to get back on the ship system.  Quite often found that logging out and back into the 'app' got things working straight away, rather than refreshing and mashing the screen.

[PJL1973]

1 minute ago, jaydee6969 said:

 

Reports from the latest cruises are passengers are being turned away and told to return at the correct time for testing.

 

That's good to hear, will result in shorter queues for those who are supposed to be there at the earlier times.

[Britboys]

5 hours ago, Nauti Buoy said:

Currently aboard Britannia.

Ben Richards is in the Limelight - Fully booked every night.

Great vocalist and a really nice guy.

[Bubbles4u]

I really struggled to get back on to the app after I had disconnected from 4G land.  Deleted the webpage (because its not really an app), reloaded the QR code and my 6 digits and even restarted my phone several times.

 

The 12 year old (well, they are like policemen when you get on a bit😉 ) at reception tried to show me how to get on it again then eventually said he would report it to IT!!

 

When it works its great. 🙂

[Bubbles4u]

to PLJ

You can show up at either MDR and get a pager so they can bing you when a table is available if you haven't made a booking or joined the virtual queue via the app.  The range is limited to the atrium but there are bars there😄

[davecttr]

Should be OK with my smartphone because it does not have a SIM installed so can only connect to the ships WiFi, and make emergency calls of course. For talking and texting I use a simple PAYG phone with BIG pensioner proof buttons 🙂

[wowzz]

10 minutes ago, davecttr said:

and make emergency calls of course

I'm a bit of a Luddite - can you really make emergency calls without a SIM ? I thought you needed a SIM to connect to a mobile network.

[davecttr]

4 minutes ago, wowzz said:

I'm a bit of a Luddite - can you really make emergency calls without a SIM ? I thought you needed a SIM to connect to a mobile network.

Apparently so, it is law that a phone should be able to make an emergency call, for example the SIM may be broken etc. I have never tried it and there are some responses online that say the phone network may reject an unknown phone anyway 😵

 

for me the upside is I have 2 mobiles, one of which can't connect to 4G which may mitigate onboard 'app' problems

[wowzz]

13 minutes ago, davecttr said:

Apparently so, it is law that a phone should be able to make an emergency call, for example the SIM may be broken etc. I have never tried it and there are some responses online that say the phone network may reject an unknown phone anyway 😵

 

for me the upside is I have 2 mobiles, one of which can't connect to 4G which may mitigate onboard 'app' problems

"Another common myth is that it is possible to make a 999 call on a phone without a SIM card. This would be handy however phones without a SIM card are blocked from making any calls to reduce the frequency of hoax calls.  This has often confused people as a SIM-less phone may display ‘Emergency Calls Only’, however that is just the phone’s software displaying the message when turned on. As the phone is not yet subscribed to any network it will not be possible to make a 999 call.

It is possible, however to make a 999 call on a Pay as you Go phone with no credit left – good to know!"

Edited August 3, 2021 by wowzz

[zap99]

10 hours ago, Bubbles4u said:

to PLJ

You can show up at either MDR and get a pager so they can bing you when a table is available if you haven't made a booking or joined the virtual queue via the app.  The range is limited to the atrium but there are bars there😄

A few folk ventured as far as Brodies and got paged ok.

[zap99]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

I'm a bit of a Luddite - can you really make emergency calls without a SIM ? I thought you needed a SIM to connect to a mobile network.

I got a shock when I was fiddling with the bits on my new car. I must have pressed the emergency button and found I was talking to the manufacturers breakdown service. My phone was switched off. Who is watching what we do ?.👽

[Son of Anarchy]

1 hour ago, zap99 said:

I got a shock when I was fiddling with the bits on my new car. I must have pressed the emergency button and found I was talking to the manufacturers breakdown service. My phone was switched off. Who is watching what we do ?.👽

For the last few years all new cars have a GPS beacon.  It should activate automatically if the car is in a collision, sending out a distress signal and location to the emergency services.  I think it was an EU directive that brought this in, so not sure whether this remains the case since B-Day.

Our car also has a button which will manually send out the distress signal if you push it.  Basically a panic button...

[davecttr]

4 hours ago, wowzz said:

"Another common myth is that it is possible to make a 999 call on a phone without a SIM card. This would be handy however phones without a SIM card are blocked from making any calls to reduce the frequency of hoax calls.  This has often confused people as a SIM-less phone may display ‘Emergency Calls Only’, however that is just the phone’s software displaying the message when turned on. As the phone is not yet subscribed to any network it will not be possible to make a 999 call.

It is possible, however to make a 999 call on a Pay as you Go phone with no credit left – good to know!"

Thanks, that clears the confusion. My smartphone is still OK for the onboard 'app' which uses the ships network via WiFi

[PJL1973]

6 hours ago, zap99 said:

A few folk ventured as far as Brodies and got paged ok.

 I will probably use my smartphone & onboard Wi-Fi if I can. Though I'm thinking of asking the onboard crew on where the best ship Wi-Fi hotspots are on the vessel, as I believe they use the same network as well. 

Edited August 3, 2021 by PJL1973

[zap99]

4 hours ago, Son of Anarchy said:

For the last few years all new cars have a GPS beacon.  It should activate automatically if the car is in a collision, sending out a distress signal and location to the emergency services.  I think it was an EU directive that brought this in, so not sure whether this remains the case since B-Day.

Our car also has a button which will manually send out the distress signal if you push it.  Basically a panic button...

If DW had one her side, she would be pressing it a lot. One day I will read the handbook. See if I can find out how to stop my car grassing me up.🤣

[rumbalizw]

On 8/2/2021 at 9:40 PM, Bubbles4u said:

As a long time lurker on this site I decided to sign up to respond to some of the points made in this post.

I was on the cruise that departed on the 25th but have just got home after a few days on a land based stay tagged on to the end of the cruise hence the late response.

We had a 13.00 check-in so arrived at the cruise terminal at 13.05 having travelled by train/taxi.  Joined the short queue outside the marquee where the testing takes place.  After about 15 minutes outside made in through the door to join one of the longest queues I have seen for a long time☹️.  Surrounded by people saying 'my check in is 2 but I thought I would come early' 'oh mine was 3 but I want to get on board'   it took another 1 hour and 45 minutes before we even got tested.    I do hope P and O have decided to make all the early arrivals wait outside regardless of the weather!  

For anybody who is stressing about the covid test itself - don't-  the person doing the test barely got beyond the nostril.  No tonsil swabbing.  I don't believe anybody would test positive.  Not very reassuring to be honest!

We had to show our covid vaccination proof several times before we got to check in.  Also had to show the travel insurance documents. Save your time and everybody else's and print off a copy.  It took about 15 minutes for our results to come through. Some people seemed to be quicker but others were slower.  Actual check in was 5 minutes.

After boarding we went straight to our muster station which appeared to be at the top of the spiral staircase and no further🤔

We went straight to our cabin to sign up for the app and watch the muster drill video.

 

I was in another site group and one couple ,the husband tested positive at port . They took him off for a PCR test which took an hour to come back positive again so he and wife were sent home .

[debsjc]

On 8/2/2021 at 10:58 PM, jaydee6969 said:

 

Reports from the latest cruises are passengers are being turned away and told to return at the correct time for testing.

 

As Bubbles4u said, thinking back to any issues I had with the 'app', it was when I had connected to 4G land signal and tried to access it.  Soon learned what to switch off on the phone to get back on the ship system.  Quite often found that logging out and back into the 'app' got things working straight away, rather than refreshing and mashing the screen.

Can I ask if you got much 4G land signal? Hoping to be able to send a quick email home without using ships wi-fi 

[Bobblehat71]

5 hours ago, rumbalizw said:

I was in another site group and one couple ,the husband tested positive at port . They took him off for a PCR test which took an hour to come back positive again so he and wife were sent home .

 

If that was the 25th then it may well have been me. 🙂

If not then I'm not surprised that I wasn't the only one. 

[rumbalizw]

8 minutes ago, Bobblehat71 said:

 

If that was the 25th then it may well have been me. 🙂

If not then I'm not surprised that I wasn't the only one. 

Was the 18th and i am sorry to hear that you tested positive and missed your cruise. I hope you are getting better now x x 

[Bobblehat71]

7 minutes ago, rumbalizw said:

Was the 18th and i am sorry to hear that you tested positive and missed your cruise. I hope you are getting better now x x 

 

Yes all good now, thanks for asking. 

 

To be honest, after we got over the initial disappointment I was glad not to have made it onboard as it would have been a pretty miserable few days.  May try again in a couple of weeks. 😀

[Beckett]

48 minutes ago, debsjc said:

Can I ask if you got much 4G land signal? Hoping to be able to send a quick email home without using ships wi-fi 

I'd like to know that too if anyone can help. We're sailing on Saturday  (MSC) and also don't want to connect to the maritime site. Thanks to anyone who can help. Jane.x

[jaydee6969]

44 minutes ago, debsjc said:

Can I ask if you got much 4G land signal? Hoping to be able to send a quick email home without using ships wi-fi 

It all depended on how close the ship was to shore.  Along the Dorset and Devon coast I seemed to have signal a lot during the day, but off the Cornish coast had limited reception mostly in the morning near Lands End.  I was mostly checking when out on deck, didn't really check when inside.

 

On our Iona cruise next week I am not expecting to receive much 4G signal at all, perhaps only when we are near a few islands around Scotland, as I expect we will be in the main shipping lanes for much of the journey.

[terrierjohn]

2 hours ago, debsjc said:

Can I ask if you got much 4G land signal? Hoping to be able to send a quick email home without using ships wi-fi 

I always use text messaging when cruising, even when sending them at sea, the charge for each text was only at the overseas rate, which from memory was only about 50p.