New to P&O I have some questions 😀

[dillie]

Hello My family & I will be going on our first P&O cruise onboard the Iona in January and we have a few questions so any help will be appreciated. I apologise if all questions have been asked before.

Firstly I know Iona is all freedom dining & you can arrive at the dining room and queue or via the app virtual queue for the dining room. I’m used to early seating but sure will be ok. I do however have one concern I use a wheelchair so I’m hoping if either heading to the MDR or virtual queuing this is taken into consideration. But I’ve also read we could prebook 2 weeks before we board. Wondering if that might be a good idea with having to book for a wheelchair before we sail. Do people have favourites of the MDR restaurants?. Also is there good choice of Vegetarian food?.

Do the Spas ever have offer’s onboard?.  Maybe cheaper prices on port days?

I’m also assuming that shows in theatres are booked on the app & does a wheelchair space show to select?. 
Also it will be my Dads 70th while onboard we’re thinking of booking a specialty restaurant what  restaurant do people recommend for a special occasion?.

 

 

Thanks in Advance. We’re looking forward to our first time on Iona. 
 

Dillie

 

[Otter18]

Hi Dillie. I was on Iona earlier this year. It was about 80% full, just for your info. Queuing for dinner was quite short whether physical or virtual. Generally my wife and I stopped for a drink in a bar close to the MDR's. We then joined the virtual queue. We usually got called to the dining room within 10 mins of joining the Queue. The table is held for 15 mins for you to be seated and then reallocated if you do not turn up on time. I don't think you will have a problem getting to the dining room in that time in a wheelchair, Unless you book from the opposite end of the ship and needed to use a lift. Even so you just re book if you miss your slot.  

 

We didn't have a great experience in the Epicurean. Food was mediocre and the service was very slow. I have spoken to people who are positive about the restaurant though. I've never had a bad experience in the Sindhu.

 

Can't help on the Spa offers I'm afraid.

 

Maybe someone else can help with some of your other questions.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Brian

[dillie]

16 minutes ago, Otter18 said:

Hi Dillie. I was on Iona earlier this year. It was about 80% full, just for your info. Queuing for dinner was quite short whether physical or virtual. Generally my wife and I stopped for a drink in a bar close to the MDR's. We then joined the virtual queue. We usually got called to the dining room within 10 mins of joining the Queue. The table is held for 15 mins for you to be seated and then reallocated if you do not turn up on time. I don't think you will have a problem getting to the dining room in that time in a wheelchair, Unless you book from the opposite end of the ship and needed to use a lift. Even so you just re book if you miss your slot.  

 

We didn't have a great experience in the Epicurean. Food was mediocre and the service was very slow. I have spoken to people who are positive about the restaurant though. I've never had a bad experience in the Sindhu.

 

Can't help on the Spa offers I'm afraid.

 

Maybe someone else can help with some of your other questions.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Brian

Thank you Brian. That’s helpful regarding the Queuing for the dining room especially if you miss the time hehe. Yes could be something waiting for a lift. I will see if I can find menus for the speciality restaurants. Thank you for your reply. Dillie 

[terrierjohn]

My wife is a wheelchair user and we found no real problems with the lifts except from the public floors as shows or entertainment venues finished. We were normally moving far faster than many of the other passengers, and always made it from a deck 15 fwd lift area cabin to the MDRs aft on decks 6 and 7 with plenty of time to spare.

The theatre does have wheelchair spaces but nowhere near enough for everyone even though you do specify you need a wheelchair space, so you need to get there early.

[Just 47]

19 hours ago, dillie said:

Hello My family & I will be going on our first P&O cruise onboard the Iona in January and we have a few questions so any help will be appreciated. I apologise if all questions have been asked before.

Firstly I know Iona is all freedom dining & you can arrive at the dining room and queue or via the app virtual queue for the dining room. I’m used to early seating but sure will be ok. I do however have one concern I use a wheelchair so I’m hoping if either heading to the MDR or virtual queuing this is taken into consideration. But I’ve also read we could prebook 2 weeks before we board. Wondering if that might be a good idea with having to book for a wheelchair before we sail. Do people have favourites of the MDR restaurants?. Also is there good choice of Vegetarian food?.

Do the Spas ever have offer’s onboard?.  Maybe cheaper prices on port days?

I’m also assuming that shows in theatres are booked on the app & does a wheelchair space show to select?. 
Also it will be my Dads 70th while onboard we’re thinking of booking a specialty restaurant what  restaurant do people recommend for a special occasion?.

 

 

Thanks in Advance. We’re looking forward to our first time on Iona. 
 

Dillie

 

 

18 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

My wife is a wheelchair user and we found no real problems with the lifts except from the public floors as shows or entertainment venues finished. We were normally moving far faster than many of the other passengers, and always made it from a deck 15 fwd lift area cabin to the MDRs aft on decks 6 and 7 with plenty of time to spare.

The theatre does have wheelchair spaces but nowhere near enough for everyone even though you do specify you need a wheelchair space, so you need to get there early.

 

18 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

My wife is a wheelchair user and we found no real problems with the lifts except from the public floors as shows or entertainment venues finished. We were normally moving far faster than many of the other passengers, and always made it from a deck 15 fwd lift area cabin to the MDRs aft on decks 6 and 7 with plenty of time to spare.

The theatre does have wheelchair spaces but nowhere near enough for everyone even though you do specify you need a wheelchair space, so you need to get there early.

 

19 hours ago, dillie said:

Hello My family & I will be going on our first P&O cruise onboard the Iona in January and we have a few questions so any help will be appreciated. I apologise if all questions have been asked before.

Firstly I know Iona is all freedom dining & you can arrive at the dining room and queue or via the app virtual queue for the dining room. I’m used to early seating but sure will be ok. I do however have one concern I use a wheelchair so I’m hoping if either heading to the MDR or virtual queuing this is taken into consideration. But I’ve also read we could prebook 2 weeks before we board. Wondering if that might be a good idea with having to book for a wheelchair before we sail. Do people have favourites of the MDR restaurants?. Also is there good choice of Vegetarian food?.

Do the Spas ever have offer’s onboard?.  Maybe cheaper prices on port days?

I’m also assuming that shows in theatres are booked on the app & does a wheelchair space show to select?. 
Also it will be my Dads 70th while onboard we’re thinking of booking a specialty restaurant what  restaurant do people recommend for a special occasion?.

 

 

Thanks in Advance. We’re looking forward to our first time on Iona. 
 

Dillie

 

Hi we booked our massages in the spa in advance as we wanted to choose the time that suited us but if you choose an early or late time it will be cheaper.Regarding offers on board they were mainly package deals but it's another matter if they have any space left at the times you want.

[dillie]

21 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

My wife is a wheelchair user and we found no real problems with the lifts except from the public floors as shows or entertainment venues finished. We were normally moving far faster than many of the other passengers, and always made it from a deck 15 fwd lift area cabin to the MDRs aft on decks 6 and 7 with plenty of time to spare.

The theatre does have wheelchair spaces but nowhere near enough for everyone even though you do specify you need a wheelchair space, so you need to get there early.

Oh yes that’s a normal thing isn’t it coming out of the theatre with wheelchairs will be really busy. Thanks I did wonder if prebooking on App for the theatre. It seems to be on all ships that there’s not enough wheelchair spaces in theatre. 

[dillie]

2 hours ago, Just 47 said:

 

 

 

Hi we booked our massages in the spa in advance as we wanted to choose the time that suited us but if you choose an early or late time it will be cheaper.Regarding offers on board they were mainly package deals but it's another matter if they have any space left at the times you want.

Oh ok that’s interesting about earlier or later times. I’ll have another look. 

[devonuk]

On 11/9/2022 at 8:22 PM, dillie said:

Oh ok that’s interesting about earlier or later times. I’ll have another look. 

We tend to book massages and treats on port days as there’s often deals available. 

[dillie]

1 hour ago, devonuk said:

We tend to book massages and treats on port days as there’s often deals available. 

That’s good to know thank you.

[9265359]

On 11/8/2022 at 10:22 PM, Otter18 said:

Hi Dillie. I was on Iona earlier this year. It was about 80% full, just for your info. Queuing for dinner was quite short whether physical or virtual.

On the Iona cruise I got off yesterday the queues for the MDRs were significantly longer with waits of over an hour not being unusual.

 

Even those willing to share tables were complaining about the wait, and then with shared tables from 8pm onwards there was the issue of people needing to wait again for the table to fill if they were the first seated - and occasionally them giving up and serving only a pair of couples on a table for eight when nobody else willing to share arrived.

[terrierjohn]

2 hours ago, 9265359 said:

On the Iona cruise I got off yesterday the queues for the MDRs were significantly longer with waits of over an hour not being unusual.

 

Even those willing to share tables were complaining about the wait, and then with shared tables from 8pm onwards there was the issue of people needing to wait again for the table to fill if they were the first seated - and occasionally them giving up and serving only a pair of couples on a table for eight when nobody else willing to share arrived.

That last paragraph is somewhat contradictory, although I know it happens. But it just shows that they have not got a satisfactory way of allocating tables. If you have both sharing tables waiting to be filled, and passengers willing to share queueing  at the same time, then it's not rocket science to sort it out.

[davecttr]

Are there separate queues for each of the 4 dining rooms? If so it complicates matters if everyone wants to go to XXX and nobody wants to go to YYY. Do different dining rooms have different peak demand times?

 

Maybe even more fun on Arvia with just 2 MDR's

[zap99]

2 minutes ago, davecttr said:

Are there separate queues for each of the 4 dining rooms? If so it complicates matters if everyone wants to go to XXX and nobody wants to go to YYY. Do different dining rooms have different peak demand times?

 

Maybe even more fun on Arvia with just 2 MDR's

Time for dinner. What queue join on the app?. For us, it's the one with the shortest queue. Same food in all of them. In and out fairly quickly and off to the shows.

[9265359]

2 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

That last paragraph is somewhat contradictory, although I know it happens. But it just shows that they have not got a satisfactory way of allocating tables. If you have both sharing tables waiting to be filled, and passengers willing to share queueing  at the same time, then it's not rocket science to sort it out.

To clarify, there were lengthy waiting times for both sharing and non-sharing tables, not helped by the fact there are separate queues for each of the four restaurants so you might have eight people waiting to be seated but they all want to be seated in different restaurants.

 

The queues were not as result of there being no available tables free, there were plenty - although most of the sharing tables were unmade and full of the previous diner’s detritus by 8pm. It was the lack of waiting and kitchen staff that was the issue - waiters either running around like mad things serving their tables, or stood around polishing cutlery whilst waiting ages for the kitchen to deliver the food - the latter particularly the issue if anything had to come from the ‘allergy kitchen’ when waits of 40 minutes for a course were not unusual.

 

When those sharing tables were eventually made up then they either went unoccupied, or one couple would turn up, then five minutes later another couple, and five minutes later perhaps another couple, and then either another couple eventually turned up or the waiters acknowledged the first couple had been sat at the table for 20 minutes plus the waiting time in the queue and served the part full table.

 

Where did the other sharers waiting in the queue go - sorry I have no idea, but my guess is they either got fed up waiting and simply physically went to another restaurant as by that time people seemed to getting sat at individual tables as they turned up straight away (by that time the waiters want to get people through otherwise they are going to be late closing up).

[dillie]

Thanks for peoples input. I’m hoping my cruise sailing in the dining room goes ok 🤞. Can I ask another couple of questions.
 

In the Casino I’m guessing British sterling notes will be used or is it on your sea pass card?. I did read some comments that you’re allocated your boarding time is that correct?.

 

Thanks Dillie

[Yorkypete]

2 hours ago, dillie said:

Thanks for peoples input. I’m hoping my cruise sailing in the dining room goes ok 🤞. Can I ask another couple of questions.
 

In the Casino I’m guessing British sterling notes will be used or is it on your sea pass card?. I did read some comments that you’re allocated your boarding time is that correct?.

 

Thanks Dillie

As a regular casino visitor they accept English money but even though you have to show your pass card at the tables they are not useable for any transactions accept at the cashiers.

 

[davecttr]

You can buy chips with cash or use your cruise card. That's for table games, not sure about the slots.

 

You will allocated a boarding time slot during the pre cruise form filling in

 

edit - Yes, oops, you use your cruise card at the cashiers and they give you a receipt to take to the table, I think. i normally hand over the cash at the table and they give me the chips. 

The notes go into a slot and down a tube to the dealers cabin, As a perk they get to sleep on a bed of comfy notes.

Edited November 14, 2022 by davecttr

[dillie]

1 hour ago, davecttr said:

You can buy chips with cash or use your cruise card. That's for table games, not sure about the slots.

 

You will allocated a boarding time slot during the pre cruise form filling in

 

edit - Yes, oops, you use your cruise card at the cashiers and they give you a receipt to take to the table, I think. i normally hand over the cash at the table and they give me the chips. 

The notes go into a slot and down a tube to the dealers cabin, As a perk they get to sleep on a bed of comfy notes.

Thanks for answering about the Casino. That’s good to know. I’m not for the tables but my dad has a go. I bet they wish that was a real perk hehe.
 

Ok allocated time when filling in pre cruise form. Thanks Dave.

[weskiers]

We came off Iona on Saturday. If you need to sit in the wheelchair whilst eating they just take the chairs away to make room. We eat early and never waited more than ten minutes in the virtual queue before the table was ready although we were happy to share. There were several choices for vegetarian diets. 

[Britboys]

On 11/13/2022 at 3:24 PM, davecttr said:

Are there separate queues for each of the 4 dining rooms? If so it complicates matters if everyone wants to go to XXX and nobody wants to go to YYY. Do different dining rooms have different peak demand times?

 

Maybe even more fun on Arvia with just 2 MDR's

I must say that when I saw there were 4 different mdr's I thought the potential for chaos and confusion was ripe. With regard to Arvia, I feel P&O are hoping that only having 2 mdr's will aid an increase in food-related on-board revenues...

[dillie]

On 11/15/2022 at 12:23 PM, weskiers said:

We came off Iona on Saturday. If you need to sit in the wheelchair whilst eating they just take the chairs away to make room. We eat early and never waited more than ten minutes in the virtual queue before the table was ready although we were happy to share. There were several choices for vegetarian diets. 

Thanks for that. Hopefully as we will eat earlier things will be easy. That’s great to know my aunt is a vegetarian. 

[Camberley]

There was some lovely vegetarian food last time: not a massive selection, but good nonetheless for the most part. Their so-called app is functional: a few glitches but mostly does the trick.

 

Hope you have a good time: it’s a lovely ship.

[Neecy1]

We're on Iona now. Weve been using the app. Working OK. We go to a bar nearby and join the queue. There was a wait of about an hour on celebration evening but it was peak time at around 8pm otherwise half an hour. 

 

Re vegetarian food. Had some lovely blue cheese arancini in the mdr.   

[bbtablet]

On 11/15/2022 at 12:23 PM, weskiers said:

We came off Iona on Saturday. If you need to sit in the wheelchair whilst eating they just take the chairs away to make room. We eat early and never waited more than ten minutes in the virtual queue before the table was ready although we were happy to share. There were several choices for vegetarian diets. 

dillie said:

Thanks for that. Hopefully as we will eat earlier things will be easy. That’s great to know my aunt is a vegetarian. 

 

dillie - how did weskiers know your aunt is a vegetarian but you didn't?

[dillie]

9 hours ago, bbtablet said:

dillie said:

Thanks for that. Hopefully as we will eat earlier things will be easy. That’s great to know my aunt is a vegetarian. 

 

dillie - how did weskiers know your aunt is a vegetarian but you didn't?

A great was pure guess for weskiers hehe.