Does anyone have an idea when summer '23 cruises (to the Fjords) might be released?

[NaomiW]

I wonder if they will release Winter 23/24 at the same time like they did a few years ago? Its hard to think that far in advance in the current climate, but itd be a good excuse for them to sell more cruises to get the cash flowing, and also gives people more options to transfer

[daiB]

2 hours ago, ann141 said:

Princess are now letting people explore independantly so I would expect P and O to do the same in a week or two

Great expectations. !!!!!

 

😃😎

[jeanlyon]

very strange quotes on Princess website.  Firstly it says all guests must show proof of full vaccination.  Then further down it says Unvaccinated guests will only be allowed ashore on a Princess excursion?

 

 

[wowzz]

7 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

very strange quotes on Princess website.  Firstly it says all guests must show proof of full vaccination.  Then further down it says Unvaccinated guests will only be allowed ashore on a Princess excursion?

 

 

It's quite clear.  All adults have to be double vaccinated, and can go ashore independently.  Those aged under 17 that have not veen vaccinated,  have to have a negative PCR test three days prior to boarding and have a negative test at the terminal - it is these youngsters that have to go on organised tours.

[jeanlyon]

Just found this on Fred Olsen website - hurry up P&O!

 

"We are pleased to announce that from 1^st September, guests will be able to explore ashore independently, without the need to join an organised shore excursion, in the destinations that allow us to do so. Of course, all explorations ashore will be subject to local restrictions in the destinations that we visit."

[bobstheboy]

I am looking forward to seeing  Arvia's itinerary's for summer 23. I fancy a September cruise to the Med, will be interested to see early prices.

[davecttr]

3 hours ago, bee-ess said:

Does that include the seacations ?

If they try and apply it to a cruise to nowhere it could get interesting 😉

[bee-ess]

41 minutes ago, davecttr said:

If they try and apply it to a cruise to nowhere it could get interesting 😉

We have Portland on our Princess seacation

[Selbourne]

21 hours ago, wowzz said:

if you wait until everything is back to normal, you will never cruise again!

Out of interest Wowzz, why do you think that cruising will never return to normal? Whilst I accept that, for many people, the current restrictions are a minor inconvenience that they are prepared to put up with to be able to cruise again, for us they would ruin the experience that we have always enjoyed so we aren’t interested in cruising at present. It would be a waste of money for us, especially as we have already been to most places that you can cruise to from the U.K.  We have been enjoying some lovely U.K. holidays where the sole difference from ‘normal’ has been having to wear a mask for a matter of seconds whilst walking from the entrance of a pub or restaurant to the table. My wife and I are struggling to get excited about Iona, but our daughters are keen that we all go on a cruise together on Iona or Our Vera. We are making the assumption that by Summer 2023 the cruise experience will be back to what it was pre pandemic. What do you think will still be different? BTW, we are in our 50’s, so don’t feel the ‘end of life’ pressure to have to cruise again before then 😉 

[jeanlyon]

Have to agree Selbourne.  We are in our 70s, but to cruise the way it is at the moment would not appeal at all.   If they have lifted the restriction on going ashore independently, then we possibly would go.  We enjoyed our short holiday in Wales very much and have 2 weeks booked to go around the UK in September.

[bobstheboy]

When I look at the prices of hotels in the UK it makes cruising a bargain. We are happy to be on a luxury ship, with everything we want on hand. If we can go ashore, great, if not we just enjoy everything the ship has to offer.

[jeanlyon]

We are staying in Inns round the UK and the prices are pretty reasonable.  Ranging from £75 per night to £120 and we can take the dog!  Seeing places in the UK we have never been to.

 

I think some people just like to be on the ship, but although I like the ship, it's a means to getting to new places and spending the day ashore.  Without that, for me, no point in going.  the idea of a staycation on a ship to me is a no no.  I also don't enjoy being on a coach with 50 others.  We like to be ashore and find new little places.

Edited August 19, 2021 by jeanlyon

[Dermotsgirl]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

Out of interest Wowzz, why do you think that cruising will never return to normal? Whilst I accept that, for many people, the current restrictions are a minor inconvenience that they are prepared to put up with to be able to cruise again, for us they would ruin the experience that we have always enjoyed so we aren’t interested in cruising at present. It would be a waste of money for us, especially as we have already been to most places that you can cruise to from the U.K.  We have been enjoying some lovely U.K. holidays where the sole difference from ‘normal’ has been having to wear a mask for a matter of seconds whilst walking from the entrance of a pub or restaurant to the table. My wife and I are struggling to get excited about Iona, but our daughters are keen that we all go on a cruise together on Iona or Our Vera. We are making the assumption that by Summer 2023 the cruise experience will be back to what it was pre pandemic. What do you think will still be different? BTW, we are in our 50’s, so don’t feel the ‘end of life’ pressure to have to cruise again before then 😉 

My take on this.

 

I think that life in general won’t return to the way it was in December 2019. 
 

We are  nearly 18 months into the pandemic, and it still has some way to go. No doubt we will eventually emerge from the pandemic, but huge global events shape our world, and us. So ‘after’ ends up being different to ‘before’.

 

As cruising is a microcosm of the world, it applies to cruising as well.  Last October, I moved two cruises to 2022, and I genuinely thought that they’d have a good chance of sailing the planned itinerary. I’m not really so sure anymore and have given up trying to put a date on ‘after’. It’ll happen when it happens.

 

I also think we’ll need to adapt to our changed world - that is ‘living with it’. I always used to book cruises as soon as they came out. I’ll be much less likely to do that in future. I can’t see myself doing the long cruises that we used to do either. I think we’ll do shorter cruises closer to home, booked nearer the time of sailing. If we still don’t fancy cruises, we’ll do something else instead. 
 

I feel blessed to have done the cruises that we did, and saw a lot of the world. But that was before, and I’ve accepted that the world has moved on, so, looking to the future, I do hope to cruise again one day, but I know that it will likely be different what it was prior to the pandemic. If we try to wait for a pre pandemic experience, then Wowzz is probably right we’d be waiting forever! 

 

 

[Selbourne]

15 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

We are staying in Inns round the UK and the prices are pretty reasonable.  Ranging from £75 per night to £120 and we can take the dog!  Seeing places in the UK we have never been to.

 

I think some people just like to be on the ship, but although I like the ship, it's a means to getting to new places and spending the day ashore.  Without that, for me, no point in going.  the idea of a staycation on a ship to me is a no no.  I also don't enjoy being on a coach with 50 others.  We like to be ashore and find new little places.

Same here Jean. We have enjoyed some fantastic value U.K. breaks in accommodation that is far superior to a cabin on a P&O ship and we are not confined to the accommodation and can go where we like when we like without restrictions. Like you, we have enjoyed going to new places.

 

Those that are paying silly prices for U.K. accommodation probably left it too late and are therefore being exploited. We assumed that 2021 would still be problematic for overseas holidays so booked our 2021 U.K. holidays last year, so got them at normal prices. Friends of ours booked a holiday cottage in Cornwall for £1,500. The owners phoned them the other day and asked if they would consider cancelling if they were given a full refund plus £500 extra as compensation. They declined the offer as they wanted the break, but the owner said that they could re-sell the accommodation now for £3,500. Madness. Our next U.K. break is next month where we have a detached holiday cottage right on the seafront on the Isle of Wight. We have stayed there multiple times and it’s fantastic. Booked it last year - total cost for a week for 4 people £553. It’s sold out for the whole year but God knows what they could ask for it now!

[terrierjohn]

34 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

We are staying in Inns round the UK and the prices are pretty reasonable.  Ranging from £75 per night to £120 and we can take the dog!  Seeing places in the UK we have never been to.

 

I think some people just like to be on the ship, but although I like the ship, it's a means to getting to new places and spending the day ashore.  Without that, for me, no point in going.  the idea of a staycation on a ship to me is a no no.  I also don't enjoy being on a coach with 50 others.  We like to be ashore and find new little places.

I assume your hotel prices are room only, so you need to factor in all meals, plus entertainment and,  assuming you are sailing to warmer climates, then the UK  weather is a big problem.

I agree slightly with wowz that things will never be back to the pre covid experience, but I do expect that going ashore on your own will be possible  and mask wearing will gradually diminish, however testing and vaccination passports and a higher level of hygiene demands will continue.

[Windsurfboy]

We've found some very nice hotels in UK that have cost us circa £300 to 350 DB&B ,  certainly cheaper than  a  suite on P&O.  Enjoyed it. Fingers crossed for Portugal in September  , which is a bit cheaper  than UK for even better hotel. 

 

We hope to be back cruising in 2022 , once some other countries open up as long as we can visit ports on own , don't mind the mask wearing inside and no buffet . I  expect itinerary in 2022 will change a bit at last minute , but as long as it heads south we don't mind

[wowzz]

3 hours ago, Selbourne said:

Out of interest Wowzz, why do you think that cruising will never return to normal

Let me first preface my comments by stating the obvious. The major cruise companies only survived the no-sail period by borrowing enormous sums of money at high interest rates. Any further lengthy period with no cruising could be terminal. Therefore they are likely to be ultra cautious for far longer than other forms of tourism. 

So, my crystal ball says that for the mid term:

• All adults to be double vaccinated
• Negative tests required at embarkation
• Mask wearing to continue to be enforced whilst moving around inside the ship, and also in the theatre and other large indoor venues
• Cabins to continue to only be serviced once per day
• No buffet
• No ship's choir
• Limited karaoke (!)
• Limited sail away parties 

To be honest nothing on my list seems too onerous to me, and as long as independent shore visits are allowed, we will continue to cruise.

We have had a few UK breaks over the last year or so - helped break the monotony,  but the weather was always iffy, the holidays were expensive for what they were (especially when you take the cost of eating out into account) and on returning home we never felt like we had been "away".  

   

[Selbourne]

8 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Let me first preface my comments by stating the obvious. The major cruise companies only survived the no-sail period by borrowing enormous sums of money at high interest rates. Any further lengthy period with no cruising could be terminal. Therefore they are likely to be ultra cautious for far longer than other forms of tourism. 

So, my crystal ball says that for the mid term:

• All adults to be double vaccinated
• Negative tests required at embarkation
• Mask wearing to continue to be enforced whilst moving around inside the ship, and also in the theatre and other large indoor venues
• Cabins to continue to only be serviced once per day
• No buffet
• No ship's choir
• Limited karaoke (!)
• Limited sail away parties 

To be honest nothing on my list seems too onerous to me, and as long as independent shore visits are allowed, we will continue to cruise.

We have had a few UK breaks over the last year or so - helped break the monotony,  but the weather was always iffy, the holidays were expensive for what they were (especially when you take the cost of eating out into account) and on returning home we never felt like we had been "away".  

   

Thanks Wowzz. That makes sense. I fully appreciate the paranoia that cruise lines currently have, given all the bad PR that they had at the outset of the pandemic. Most of the things in your list wouldn’t be show stoppers for us, but two of them are. The pre boarding tests add a level of stress and hassle that we would not wish to experience. Our next cruise might be as a group of six and the worry that any one of the six could be denied boarding and therefore result in the whole cruise ending before it has started isn’t something that we’d want to be worrying about. Also, I really struggle with masks and absolutely detest wearing them. Having to wear them around the ship completely puts me off cruising for as long as that’s a requirement. That’s just my choice and I appreciate that for others it’s no issue at all but, for the time being, we would rather enjoy holidays where these things aren’t an issue.
 

I am still hopeful that by 2023 these particular requirements will be consigned to history, especially as some of them (such as having to wear masks whilst moving around) have negligible impact on infection control. Maybe we are odd, but we have found some of our U.K. holidays over the past few years to be every bit as enjoyable as many of the cruises that we have been on. 

[zap99]

3 hours ago, bobstheboy said:

When I look at the prices of hotels in the UK it makes cruising a bargain. We are happy to be on a luxury ship, with everything we want on hand. If we can go ashore, great, if not we just enjoy everything the ship has to offer.

We are off on our third staycation cruise soon and are just about to book our third UK land break. Some folk talk like it is one, or the other. Chuck a few weekends in as well,UK and Europe. Variety ,as they say, is the spice of life

[zap99]

2 hours ago, Selbourne said:

Same here Jean. We have enjoyed some fantastic value U.K. breaks in accommodation that is far superior to a cabin on a P&O ship and we are not confined to the accommodation and can go where we like when we like without restrictions. Like you, we have enjoyed going to new places.

 

Those that are paying silly prices for U.K. accommodation probably left it too late and are therefore being exploited. We assumed that 2021 would still be problematic for overseas holidays so booked our 2021 U.K. holidays last year, so got them at normal prices. Friends of ours booked a holiday cottage in Cornwall for £1,500. The owners phoned them the other day and asked if they would consider cancelling if they were given a full refund plus £500 extra as compensation. They declined the offer as they wanted the break, but the owner said that they could re-sell the accommodation now for £3,500. Madness. Our next U.K. break is next month where we have a detached holiday cottage right on the seafront on the Isle of Wight. We have stayed there multiple times and it’s fantastic. Booked it last year - total cost for a week for 4 people £553. It’s sold out for the whole year but God knows what they could ask for it now!

So they give your friend £2000 and resell it for £3500. A net £1500. The same as what they started with. As you say ,madness. We mix our holidays up. Some cruises, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, cities. We can look at the last minute and see who's infection rates is particularly high, like the Isle of Wight🤣

[zap99]

46 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Let me first preface my comments by stating the obvious. The major cruise companies only survived the no-sail period by borrowing enormous sums of money at high interest rates. Any further lengthy period with no cruising could be terminal. Therefore they are likely to be ultra cautious for far longer than other forms of tourism. 

So, my crystal ball says that for the mid term:

• All adults to be double vaccinated
• Negative tests required at embarkation
• Mask wearing to continue to be enforced whilst moving around inside the ship, and also in the theatre and other large indoor venues
• Cabins to continue to only be serviced once per day
• No buffet
• No ship's choir
• Limited karaoke (!)
• Limited sail away parties 

To be honest nothing on my list seems too onerous to me, and as long as independent shore visits are allowed, we will continue to cruise.

We have had a few UK breaks over the last year or so - helped break the monotony,  but the weather was always iffy, the holidays were expensive for what they were (especially when you take the cost of eating out into account) and on returning home we never felt like we had been "away".  

   

Agree with all that, but buffet is open for ' they serve you', karaoke is happening. For the delight of Guests, Silent late night Disco is held on deck.🤣

[bobstheboy]

44 minutes ago, zap99 said:

We are off on our third staycation cruise soon and are just about to book our third UK land break. Some folk talk like it is one, or the other. Chuck a few weekends in as well,UK and Europe. Variety ,as they say, is the spice of life

We have two staycations booked , 28th Aug and 11th Sep, both on Iona and at 50% discount as a Veteran, no UK hotel could get close to the price when you consider what's included. Everyone has to do what suits them.

[wowzz]

43 minutes ago, zap99 said:

but buffet is open for ' they serve you',

Yes, sorry, I did mean that the days of the self serve buffet are over.

[Selbourne]

46 minutes ago, zap99 said:

So they give your friend £2000 and resell it for £3500. A net £1500. The same as what they started with. As you say ,madness. We mix our holidays up. Some cruises, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, cities. We can look at the last minute and see who's infection rates is particularly high, like the Isle of Wight🤣

I know that sarcasm is your forte Zap, but just to correct your maths;

 

Holiday home owner starts with a vacant week = bank balance £0

Weeks rental sold for £1,500 =  bank balance £1,500 in credit 

Weeks rental refunded at £2,000 = bank balance £500 in debt

Weeks rental re-sold at £3,500 = bank balance £3,000 in credit

 

So they end up with £1,500 more than they started with and have doubled their money. 

[terrierjohn]

1 hour ago, zap99 said:

So they give your friend £2000 and resell it for £3500. A net £1500. The same as what they started with. As you say ,madness. We mix our holidays up. Some cruises, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, cities. We can look at the last minute and see who's infection rates is particularly high, like the Isle of Wight🤣

Back to school for you Zap.😊