Britannia Christmas 2022 Goes Live!!!!!!!

[wowzz]

Compensation is paid if the flight arrives late. Everything else is immaterial.

[carlanthony24]

13 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Compensation is paid if the flight arrives late. Everything else is immaterial.

It isn't though. If you arrive 3hrs late they will look what happened from the beginning for that to happen. You arrived 3hrs late. Okay so the reason you arrived 3hrs late was because of weather. You won't get a penny. 

 

We were discussing over here 

 

Edited December 31, 2022 by carlanthony24

[tring]

On 12/30/2022 at 10:41 AM, TigerB said:

 

I learned recently that, even if you are in steerage, if you ask your cabin steward for a robe you will get one. We're in steerage on our next cruise, so I will try that and report back.

 

We were in a deluxe balcony for a 28 night Caribbean on Aurora last month and asked reception if we could hire robes, which were not included with the cabin.  We were told they used to hire them for a price, but we're not doing so now.  Strangely enough covid was cited as the reason.  So previously you could hire robes if in any cabin, but on a paid for basis.  

 

Robes were still being provided in suites - they come with that cabin grade.

 

Maybe someone was thinking of another cruise line.

 

 

 

[wowzz]

2 minutes ago, carlanthony24 said:

It isn't though. If you arrive 3hrs late they will look what happened from the beginning for that to happen. You arrived 3hrs late. Okay so the reason you arrived 3hrs late was because of weather. You won't get a penny.

Use this link. Yes, the reason for the delay is important, but the arrival time is key.

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/holiday-cancellations-and-compensation/if-your-flights-delayed-or-cancelled/

[carlanthony24]

7 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Use this link. Yes, the reason for the delay is important, but the arrival time is key.

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/holiday-cancellations-and-compensation/if-your-flights-delayed-or-cancelled/

Also correct but airlines will do anything to get around it that is why they make the excuses this happened the other end we did this so we did end up going effectively. Like I said so many loop holes they come up with to cover themselves. This is why a lot get taken to court and more often than not the airline finally cracks and decides to settle.

[Gettingwarmer]

10 minutes ago, tring said:

 

We were in a deluxe balcony for a 28 night Caribbean on Aurora last month and asked reception if we could hire robes, which were not included with the cabin.  We were told they used to hire them for a price, but we're not doing so now.  Strangely enough covid was cited as the reason.  So previously you could hire robes if in any cabin, but on a paid for basis.  

 

Robes were still being provided in suites - they come with that cabin grade.

 

Maybe someone was thinking of another cruise line.

 

 

 

You can buy robes from the steward for £25 which may be worth it for a longer cruise. 

[tring]

24 minutes ago, Gettingwarmer said:

You can buy robes from the steward for £25 which may be worth it for a longer cruise. 

 

Yes, I agree you can buy them, though must admit I thought the price was currently higher than that, but could be wrong.  We would not have been able to take them home and did not want to buy them anyway.  We have hired them for a decent price on previous cruises on another cruise line, so was worth asking on spec if that was done by P&O.

 

I only mentioned it as the post I had quoted claimed anyone in any cabin could just ask for them and they would be supplied, which is not true, but I had relatively up to date info. regards that.  Deluxe balcony cabins no longer come with robes.

 

 

[Megabear2]

1 hour ago, pennib said:

We were also on this Christmas cruise on Britannia. Putting aside the diabolical journey on 16 December from Manchester (which I will be dealing with in due course) our cabin was what we had paid for and was nicely cleaned each day. Our steward even supplied us with a bucket of ice each day which we have had to order on previous cruises. Can’t pass any comment about availability of drinks in any of the bars as we drank only in the GH before dinner and with a couple of friends. The boys knew what we all liked to drink and always had it available and they got us in for meals when it looked impossible to do so. Needless to say their dedication to service was suitably rewarded at the end of the trip…….

We thought the Epicurean was very disappointing this trip and couldn’t hold a candle to its equivalent (the dining club) on Marella Explorer.  We thought the beach house and Gh food was better than on previous cruises. MDR was OK. Oriental for breakfast was excellent and so civilised rather than having to fight your corner in the buffet which I find more difficult now that I use a walking stick.

Going back briefly to the horrendous delays of 16 December, a fellow PE passenger on the way back to Manchester yesterday said that no one would be able to claim compensation for the 16 December delays at Manchester because they had put us all on the plane (where we all sat for 4 hours on the tarmac). In his view if you are put on the plane rather than just left in the terminal then you are deemed to be taking the journey and tarmac delays don’t count. In his words “that is why they put you on the plane so they don’t have to pay out any compensation”.

we shall see………

 

Going back to the supply of water in tins, I don’t have a picture of one but if you know what a can of beer looks like, then the cans of water are the same size. 
finally, for this post, I was speaking to a fellow passenger at Manchester airport when we were waiting for our luggage and he and his wife had intended to go to Benidorm for Christmas but something went wrong with trip and they saw an advert for Britannia’s Christmas cruise and couldn’t believe the price. Usually they have an inside on a low deck but the cabin they got on Britannia was a huge inside with a double bed on a high deck for£2300 for the 2 of them. They were well happy (except for the flight delays).

 

Apart from the fact that we have already booked Britannia for Christmas 2023, we have decided to bin the Christmas cruise and go for something else so we booked Ventura leaving 3 January 2025 35 nights Soton to Soton round trip whilst we were on board Britannia. Good price plus £1400 obc. 
Happy New Year. 

Good to hear you had a great time.  I would agree the service from our cabin steward was excellent and we valued his service very much.  We used the Peninsular restaurant for breakfast every day and it was always a delight.  We had the same table every day with the same waiting staff and they were the most helpful group I have experienced on P&O for many a year.

 

As I mentioned previously our cabin was not the one booked as the air conditioning had failed and our option was either to take the alternative or be very hot as repairs did not seem to alleviate the fault.

 

I am pleased you managed to move your next Britannia cruise to a suitable alternative. Unfortunately there was no suitable alternative for us as long cruises are not possible for my husband as he still works and to make the cost more than our Arvia 2023 costing we would need to just purchase a higher grade cabin on a cruise which did not appeal.  Our Arvia cruise was priced comparably with the one we've just taken and the cost was £7400 for an overlooked balcony on the corner plus another £1,000 for the premium economy seats.  Following our experience on this cruise we have decided to cancel entirely.

 

I did however book the 18 March Iona Canaries cruise as a solo to use up my final £1,000 FCC.  We are now no longer committed to P&O going forward and will most likely return to Cunard and Celebrity.  Seems like the ending of an era somehow.

 

I cannot say we did not enjoy the cruise because we did overall but some of the aspects were certainly poor in comparison with previous Christmas cruises.  

 

I have one happy story.  At the airport yesterday I sat with a couple who had actually boarded Britannia on the previous cruise.  Unfortunately they were struck down with covid and put into isolation on deck 8 starboard side - apparently it still exists.  After 10 days in isolation ending on 14 December P&O made them an offer: if you wish you may stay on for the next cruise but you will have to fund your return airfare.  They spoke between themselves and was going to refuse, however on 15th they were called by the representative who had been looking after them while they were in quarantine and told P&O would fund the fare home if they would like to stay.  They accepted and had a wonderful Christmas cruise.  I thought this was a lovely gesture by P&O, it's a shame this type of human gesture isn't acknowledged by the media but then I guess it wouldn't sell newspapers or fill breakfast tv.

 

Happy New Year to all.

[Gettingwarmer]

10 minutes ago, tring said:

 

I only mentioned it as the post I had quoted claimed anyone in any cabin could just ask for them and they would be supplied, which is not true, but I had relatively up to date info. regards that.  Deluxe balcony cabins no longer come with robes.

You’re right, stewards will not give you robes which is why we had to buy one but not a bad price for a long cruise and we managed to get it home. However we did get the slippers 😊

[carlanthony24]

7 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Good to hear you had a great time.  I would agree the service from our cabin steward was excellent and we valued his service very much.  We used the Peninsular restaurant for breakfast every day and it was always a delight.  We had the same table every day with the same waiting staff and they were the most helpful group I have experienced on P&O for many a year.

 

As I mentioned previously our cabin was not the one booked as the air conditioning had failed and our option was either to take the alternative or be very hot as repairs did not seem to alleviate the fault.

 

I am pleased you managed to move your next Britannia cruise to a suitable alternative. Unfortunately there was no suitable alternative for us as long cruises are not possible for my husband as he still works and to make the cost more than our Arvia 2023 costing we would need to just purchase a higher grade cabin on a cruise which did not appeal.  Our Arvia cruise was priced comparably with the one we've just taken and the cost was £7400 for an overlooked balcony on the corner plus another £1,000 for the premium economy seats.  Following our experience on this cruise we have decided to cancel entirely.

 

I did however book the 18 March Iona Canaries cruise as a solo to use up my final £1,000 FCC.  We are now no longer committed to P&O going forward and will most likely return to Cunard and Celebrity.  Seems like the ending of an era somehow.

 

I cannot say we did not enjoy the cruise because we did overall but some of the aspects were certainly poor in comparison with previous Christmas cruises.  

 

I have one happy story.  At the airport yesterday I sat with a couple who had actually boarded Britannia on the previous cruise.  Unfortunately they were struck down with covid and put into isolation on deck 8 starboard side - apparently it still exists.  After 10 days in isolation ending on 14 December P&O made them an offer: if you wish you may stay on for the next cruise but you will have to fund your return airfare.  They spoke between themselves and was going to refuse, however on 15th they were called by the representative who had been looking after them while they were in quarantine and told P&O would fund the fare home if they would like to stay.  They accepted and had a wonderful Christmas cruise.  I thought this was a lovely gesture by P&O, it's a shame this type of human gesture isn't acknowledged by the media but then I guess it wouldn't sell newspapers or fill breakfast tv.

 

Happy New Year to all.

Do you know if they had to pay extra to stay on or was it just P&O giving a good gesture will. That is a lovely thing to do. Quite right if only the media used these positives. 

 

Happy New Year to everyone.

[Megabear2]

37 minutes ago, carlanthony24 said:

Do you know if they had to pay extra to stay on or was it just P&O giving a good gesture will. That is a lovely thing to do. Quite right if only the media used these positives. 

 

Happy New Year to everyone.

It was free, a gesture to them for being honest apparently.  

 

On the subject of C there were a huge amount on the plane yesterday who clearly had something very nasty either flu virus or Corona.  Quite a few masked up on the plane including interestingly two staff members who'd started out without them

Edited December 31, 2022 by Megabear2

[carlanthony24]

4 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

It was very, a gesture to them for being honest apparently.  

 

On the subject of C there were a huge amount on the plane yesterday who clearly had something very nasty either flu virus or Corona.  Quite a few masked up on the plane including interestingly two staff members who'd started out without them

Not bad then.

[Yorkypete]

4 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

It was free, a gesture to them for being honest apparently.  

 

On the subject of C there were a huge amount on the plane yesterday who clearly had something very nasty either flu virus or Corona.  Quite a few masked up on the plane including interestingly two staff members who'd started out without them

Unfortunately we were not so lucky. We were honesy, isolated and missed 4 out of 5 ports. No 'sorry' or anything. Honesty does not usually pay.

 

[Wonky]

On 12/31/2022 at 4:42 PM, carlanthony24 said:

It does. In the system it counts as off which means they have pushed back even though they may not have. Of course it depends on what time you arrive but they will take into account what happened the other end. 

 

We use to do this all the time. We have a bad delay. We board the passengers on the aircraft, shut the doors and release the brakes or even we push back and park somewhere near the runway. Delay timer effectively stops since it thinks you departed. Their is so many ways they can get you. 

Absolutely not the case when it comes to EU261 compensation (if eligible). It is purely based on destination arrival times.

[wowzz]

22 minutes ago, Wonky said:

Absolutely not the case when it comes to EU261 compensation (if eligible). It is purely based on destination arrival times.

Thank you - for some reason some people do not understand the rules. 

[Mollag]

On 12/31/2022 at 1:53 PM, Megabear2 said:

Good to hear you had a great time.  I would agree the service from our cabin steward was excellent and we valued his service very much.  We used the Peninsular restaurant for breakfast every day and it was always a delight.  We had the same table every day with the same waiting staff and they were the most helpful group I have experienced on P&O for many a year.

 

As I mentioned previously our cabin was not the one booked as the air conditioning had failed and our option was either to take the alternative or be very hot as repairs did not seem to alleviate the fault.

 

I am pleased you managed to move your next Britannia cruise to a suitable alternative. Unfortunately there was no suitable alternative for us as long cruises are not possible for my husband as he still works and to make the cost more than our Arvia 2023 costing we would need to just purchase a higher grade cabin on a cruise which did not appeal.  Our Arvia cruise was priced comparably with the one we've just taken and the cost was £7400 for an overlooked balcony on the corner plus another £1,000 for the premium economy seats.  Following our experience on this cruise we have decided to cancel entirely.

 

I did however book the 18 March Iona Canaries cruise as a solo to use up my final £1,000 FCC.  We are now no longer committed to P&O going forward and will most likely return to Cunard and Celebrity.  Seems like the ending of an era somehow.

 

I cannot say we did not enjoy the cruise because we did overall but some of the aspects were certainly poor in comparison with previous Christmas cruises.  

 

I have one happy story.  At the airport yesterday I sat with a couple who had actually boarded Britannia on the previous cruise.  Unfortunately they were struck down with covid and put into isolation on deck 8 starboard side - apparently it still exists.  After 10 days in isolation ending on 14 December P&O made them an offer: if you wish you may stay on for the next cruise but you will have to fund your return airfare.  They spoke between themselves and was going to refuse, however on 15th they were called by the representative who had been looking after them while they were in quarantine and told P&O would fund the fare home if they would like to stay.  They accepted and had a wonderful Christmas cruise.  I thought this was a lovely gesture by P&O, it's a shame this type of human gesture isn't acknowledged by the media but then I guess it wouldn't sell newspapers or fill breakfast tv.

 

Happy New Year to all.

Happy New Year MB. You say you can’t afford SAGA but as a comparison to the price you quoted which I presume is for 2 weeks we’ve paid less than £18K for 5 weeks on here in a standard balcony not overlooked no obstructed view and a higher standard than the deluxe balcony we had the pleasure of our free upgrade to on Aurora also no bill at the end of the cruise for purchases and no hassle from drunken idiots only me on NYE 😂

[Megabear2]

14 minutes ago, Mollag said:

Happy New Year MB. You say you can’t afford SAGA but as a comparison to the price you quoted which I presume is for 2 weeks we’ve paid less than £18K for 5 weeks on here in a standard balcony not overlooked no obstructed view and a higher standard than the deluxe balcony we had the pleasure of our free upgrade to on Aurora also no bill at the end of the cruise for purchases and no hassle from drunken idiots only me on NYE 😂

Happy New Year to you too.  I have been looking at a lot of cruises for this year the past couple of days including Saga. Strangely a great many are cheaper than we paid P&O this year but we could not stretch to Saga fares and also the itineraries at the time we want to travel all appear to be for longer cruises.

 

Currently our favourites seem to be on Azamara and Celebrity.  We are also looking into land based holidays in Costa Rica but have an open mind on what to do.

 

Glad you are having a good cruise, after your previous trials and tribulations you certainly deserve it.

 

 

[wowzz]

So, MB, we are fairly easy going, have a  wake view cabin on Britannia in early December this year, and have PE seats on TUI from BHX. 

After your experiences I am a little concerned,  but hope that by avoiding Christmas we will avoid what you experienced. 

As The Clash so succinctly put it, " Shall I Stay or Shall I Go?".

Edited January 2, 2023 by wowzz

[paulatsea]

6 hours ago, wowzz said:

So, MB, we are fairly easy going, have a  wake view cabin on Britannia in early December this year, and have PE seats on TUI from BHX. 

After your experiences I am a little concerned,  but hope that by avoiding Christmas we will avoid what you experienced. 

As The Clash so succinctly put it, " Shall I Stay or Shall I Go?".

It’s “should I stay or should I go” - !!

[Megabear2]

3 hours ago, paulatsea said:

It’s “should I stay or should I go” - !!

I've gone!  Booked Celebrity Beyond from Fort Lauderdale departing 22 December for 12 nights and added on 4 nights there to visit our friends. Aqua class cabin with drinks, Wi-Fi etc and $400 OBC for £3260pp and free flights from Heathrow.  Access to thermal suite included as well. Also refundable deposit until October this year was £300.  Arvia 22 December for 14 nights was to cost £7100 total, no drinks/Wi-Fi etc.

 

Sad to go but the disappointing cruise just gone convinced us it was worth a longer flight and a bit of inconvenience.

 

 

[paulatsea]

35 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

I've gone!  Booked Celebrity Beyond from Fort Lauderdale departing 22 December for 12 nights and added on 4 nights there to visit our friends. Aqua class cabin with drinks, Wi-Fi etc and $400 OBC for £3260pp and free flights from Heathrow.  Access to thermal suite included as well. Also refundable deposit until October this year was £300.  Arvia 22 December for 14 nights was to cost £7100 total, no drinks/Wi-Fi etc.

 

Sad to go but the disappointing cruise just gone convinced us it was worth a longer flight and a bit of inconvenience.

 

 

Wow !! Beyond looks fantastic.

That will be good MB. Good choice .

Edited January 3, 2023 by paulatsea

[wowzz]

41 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

I've gone!  Booked Celebrity Beyond from Fort Lauderdale departing 22 December for 12 nights and added on 4 nights there to visit our friends. Aqua class cabin with drinks, Wi-Fi etc and $400 OBC for £3260pp and free flights from Heathrow.  Access to thermal suite included as well. Also refundable deposit until October this year was £300.  Arvia 22 December for 14 nights was to cost £7100 total, no drinks/Wi-Fi etc.

 

Sad to go but the disappointing cruise just gone convinced us it was worth a longer flight and a bit of inconvenience.

 

 

I don't blame you. 

Off to have a look myself !

[Bazrat]

3 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

I've gone!  Booked Celebrity Beyond from Fort Lauderdale departing 22 December for 12 nights and added on 4 nights there to visit our friends. Aqua class cabin with drinks, Wi-Fi etc and $400 OBC for £3260pp and free flights from Heathrow.  Access to thermal suite included as well. Also refundable deposit until October this year was £300.  Arvia 22 December for 14 nights was to cost £7100 total, no drinks/Wi-Fi etc.

 

Sad to go but the disappointing cruise just gone convinced us it was worth a longer flight and a bit of inconvenience.

 

 

I thought that was a good offer but only can find 11 nights for that date, am I looking in the wrong place.

[Megabear2]

21 minutes ago, Bazrat said:

I thought that was a good offer but only can find 11 nights for that date, am I looking in the wrong place.

No, you are correct. We have 1 night FLL before departure, 11 night cruise and then 4 nights in FLL.  We chose Beyond rather than Silhouette which is cheaper, this is because of my love affair with Edge class ships which started in June.  

 

Sorry about confusion.  We did think about a normal IB and taking the trip after as well but haven't seen my friends since October 2019 and anxious to do that.

 

I very nearly booked to fly FLL to New York and sail home on QM2 - a bargain in an inside - but the OH was concerned about giant snowstorms so I settled for the four days in Jupiter with my friends instead.

 

I notice this morning the fare has increased from yesterday so we are lucky.  I had this in June this year but Celebrity honoured the lower fare with an upgraded package.  

[Bazrat]

5 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

No, you are correct. We have 1 night FLL before departure, 11 night cruise and then 4 nights in FLL.  We chose Beyond rather than Silhouette which is cheaper, this is because of my love affair with Edge class ships which started in June.  

 

Sorry about confusion.  We did think about a normal IB and taking the trip after as well but haven't seen my friends since October 2019 and anxious to do that.

 

I very nearly booked to fly FLL to New York and sail home on QM2 - a bargain in an inside - but the OH was concerned about giant snowstorms so I settled for the four days in Jupiter with my friends instead.

 

I notice this morning the fare has increased from yesterday so we are lucky.  I had this in June this year but Celebrity honoured the lower fare with an upgraded package.  

We was interested in a balcony but the dining options if we wanted fixed ( which we don’t ) only available was 8.30 far to late for us to busy having a pint at that time.