Dining options on saver fares

[Bill Y]

We have not booked a saver for several years, then there used to be a pecking order for dining requests, select fares first, early saver next, then late savers.

 

I seem to remember on CC over the last year people saying that dining requests cannot be made until close to sailings dates? How does that work? I can’t see anything on the cruise personalised or whatever it’s called now.

We booked in Jan 23 so assume it was an early saver, and when asked about dining would have requested second sitting table for six. As we are due to sail in a few weeks time I asked our TA to check with P&O that they had the request. They have come back and said that “Saver fares do not allow for dining requests” So do early savers still exist and has anyone had any experience of requesting sittings on these fares prior to boarding in the last nine months? TIA

[Selbourne]

My understanding is that you cannot express a dining preference on any type of Saver fare at any stage. This is only possible with a Select fare. Even with a Select booking you can only have the type of dining confirmed (freedom or club) and, if club, first or second sitting, with table size always just being a preference, but not confirmed. 
 

With a Saver, your dining is only confirmed once you are on board. On Iona and Arvia this is of no relevance, as they only have Freedom dining anyway, but on the other ships if you aren’t happy with what you’ve been allocated then you can request a change on board, but this is subject to availability. 
 

We booked a Saver fare for our recent Aurora cruise. Our preference (which we couldn’t express) was table for 2, second sitting club. We were allocated second sitting, but on a shared table. We tried it for a week or so but then decided that it wasn’t working (for several reasons) so requested a change. We were told that Freedom dining was full (as it often is) but we managed to get a table for our sole use on 2nd sitting, so all was well. 

 

 

Edited March 18 by Selbourne

[daiB]

5 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

My understanding is that you cannot express a dining preference on any type of Saver fare at any stage. This is only possible with a Select fare. Even with a Select booking you can only have the type of dining confirmed (freedom or club) and, if club, first or second sitting, with table size always just being a preference, but not confirmed. 
 

With a Saver, your dining is only confirmed once you are on board. On Iona and Arvia this is of no relevance, as they only have Freedom dining anyway, but on the other ships if you aren’t happy with what you’ve been allocated then you can request a change on board, but this is subject to availability. 
 

We booked a Saver fare for our recent Aurora cruise. Our preference (which we couldn’t express) was table for 2, second sitting club. We were allocated second sitting, but on a shared table. We tried it for a week or so but then decided that it wasn’t working (for several reasons) so requested a change. We were told that Freedom dining was full (as it often is) but we managed to get a table for our sole use on 2nd sitting, so all was well. 

 

 

My experience is that second sitting is rarely full as we always noticed empty tables near us on all cruises with club dining. However we are now Iona/Arvia converts so we have to put up with freedom dining. To be honest I am not sure that club would work for us on the bigger ships because of the choice of venues available. It would not be fair to only go to the table 3/4 times in a cruise.

[Bill Y]

Thanks to those that replied. There used to be a distinction between “early” and “late” savers not too long ago, indeed the P&O website still mentions that, but the P&O website is often discredited on CC as been out of date. As late as last October it was being reported on CC the booking confirmations were stating

"As you have booked under our Early Saver price you will receive second priority for dining. We will capture your dining preference nearer to sailing and we'll do our best to accommodate it, subject to availability. You will receive notification of your allocated dining once on board."

So am wondering what happed regarding the “capturing” of the dining preferences as I am not aware of any further posts?

So I would be interested in how @NavyPanda, @Marmaduke, @Leomins et al got on?

 

Yes in the past there was always capacity on the late sitting but it would be nice to have the request go in before the cruise rather than queue up after boarding when it probably could have been sorted out easily beforehand

[Selbourne]

7 minutes ago, Bill Y said:

Thanks to those that replied. There used to be a distinction between “early” and “late” savers not too long ago, indeed the P&O website still mentions that, but the P&O website is often discredited on CC as been out of date. As late as last October it was being reported on CC the booking confirmations were stating

"As you have booked under our Early Saver price you will receive second priority for dining. We will capture your dining preference nearer to sailing and we'll do our best to accommodate it, subject to availability. You will receive notification of your allocated dining once on board."

So am wondering what happed regarding the “capturing” of the dining preferences as I am not aware of any further posts?

 

 

So I would be interested in how @NavyPanda, @Marmaduke, @Leomins et al got on?

 

 

Yes in the past there was always capacity on the late sitting but it would be nice to have the request go in before the cruise rather than queue up after boarding when it probably could have been sorted out easily beforehand

 

 

That’s interesting. I’ve only booked Savers twice, once pre Covid and our most recent cruise. One was a late saver (although neither the P&O website nor any of the booking confirmations ever use the word ‘late’, and just say ‘saver’) and one an early saver. On neither occasion did we see the wording that you’ve quoted about being able to express a dining preference. In fact, on both occasions I attempted to express a preference and was told categorically (both by P&O and our specialist TA) that this is not possible on a Saver fare.

 

Whilst frustrating, I guess it’s a case of not being able to have your cake and eat it. After cabin selection, the ability to confirm your dining preference (on ships where this is still relevant) is one of the main reasons why people will pay what can sometimes be a substantial premium for a Select fare. I guess it’s unreasonable to take advantage of the cheaper Saver fare and yet expect the same benefits as those who have specifically paid more in order to obtain them. 

[Leomins]

26 minutes ago, Bill Y said:

Thanks to those that replied. There used to be a distinction between “early” and “late” savers not too long ago, indeed the P&O website still mentions that, but the P&O website is often discredited on CC as been out of date. As late as last October it was being reported on CC the booking confirmations were stating

"As you have booked under our Early Saver price you will receive second priority for dining. We will capture your dining preference nearer to sailing and we'll do our best to accommodate it, subject to availability. You will receive notification of your allocated dining once on board."

So am wondering what happed regarding the “capturing” of the dining preferences as I am not aware of any further posts?

 

 

So I would be interested in how @NavyPanda, @Marmaduke, @Leomins et al got on?

 

 

Yes in the past there was always capacity on the late sitting but it would be nice to have the request go in before the cruise rather than queue up after boarding when it probably could have been sorted out easily beforehand

 

 

My only cruises post Covid have been on Iona and Arvia where there is no dining preference as it’s all Freedom.

 

Previously I was able to state a dining preference in the Cruise Personaliser. I’ve definitely done this on an Early Saver but I can’t remember if it was available on a Saver (late) fare.

 

The facility wasn’t available immediately, but appeared some time before the sailing. It was somewhere within the area where you can change your bed setup. I remember clicking on the dining and it taking me to a link where my preference was recorded, always with the caveat it can’t be guaranteed. Our preference was always freedom first (if available) or second sitting. Most times we got one of those.

[Bill Y]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

That’s interesting. I’ve only booked Savers twice, once pre Covid and our most recent cruise. One was a late saver (although neither the P&O website nor any of the booking confirmations ever use the word ‘late’, and just say ‘saver’) and one an early saver. On neither occasion did we see the wording that you’ve quoted about being able to express a dining preference. In fact, on both occasions I attempted to express a preference and was told categorically (both by P&O and our specialist TA) that this is not possible on a Saver fare.

 

Whilst frustrating, I guess it’s a case of not being able to have your cake and eat it. After cabin selection, the ability to confirm your dining preference (on ships where this is still relevant) is one of the main reasons why people will pay what can sometimes be a substantial premium for a Select fare. I guess it’s unreasonable to take advantage of the cheaper Saver fare and yet expect the same benefits as those who have specifically paid more in order to obtain them. 

I don’t think it’s a case of having your cake and eat it as P&O used to state that the early saver fare gave you second choice of dinning after select. The website https://www.pocruises.com/our-prices-explained now omits “second choice of dinning” merely states “Flexibility required for your desired dining style, dining time and table size in the main restaurant” whereas for savers (presumably what used to be termed as late savers) it’s “Dining allocated upon boarding”. Note even when we book select the restaurant and table etc has only ever been confirmed by a card in cabin.

 

Things may have changed so we are interested when they did. P&O have form on this, there used to be “Vantage fare” which said if they reduced you would receive the difference as OBC, this did not normally happen as any reduction would be a “getaway fare” then we noticed the price had dropped by £100 so we contacted P&O who said vantage fare finished a year ago and you booked a “select fare”.

 

I was interested in the wording people quoted on their P&O confirmations last October as unless I book on board I do not see a “P&O” confirmation as my TA issue their own confirmation of booking and as also has been said you used to be able to see your request on the cruise personaliser.

[9265359]

3 hours ago, Bill Y said:

Yes in the past there was always capacity on the late sitting but it would be nice to have the request go in before the cruise rather than queue up after boarding when it probably could have been sorted out easily beforehand

 

It is just another example of P&O having poor systems.

 

Don't take requests as that diminishes the value of Select fares, but simply use the information you already hold to reduce the number of people asking to change sittings.

 

It really wouldn't be rocket science for P&O to identify that 'Bob & Sue' who book on Saver fares always ask to change to late seating, so rather than flip a coin to randomly allocate them between early and late, have the system just automatically allocate them to late. 

 

There is no need to tell 'Bob & Sue' what you have done and diminish the possibility of them upgrading to a Select fare, and if this cruise 'Bob & Sue' actually want an early sitting then they can queue up as now and ask to change.

[Selbourne]

I track the prices on quite a lot of P&O cruises that, if the price falls to within our target price we might book. I was updating the prices last night and was struck by how close the Select price was to the Saver price on a lot of these cruises, especially when you net off the OBC and cost of parking. In fact, there were several examples of where the Select price worked out cheaper than the Saver price, which seems daft but actually happens quite often. So, by getting the timing right, dining choice can be guaranteed for little or no extra cost over a Saver, plus you are also able to pick a cabin in a good location rather than have what’s left over!

[NavyPanda]

6 hours ago, Bill Y said:

Thanks to those that replied. There used to be a distinction between “early” and “late” savers not too long ago, indeed the P&O website still mentions that, but the P&O website is often discredited on CC as been out of date. As late as last October it was being reported on CC the booking confirmations were stating

"As you have booked under our Early Saver price you will receive second priority for dining. We will capture your dining preference nearer to sailing and we'll do our best to accommodate it, subject to availability. You will receive notification of your allocated dining once on board."

So am wondering what happed regarding the “capturing” of the dining preferences as I am not aware of any further posts?

 

 

So I would be interested in how @NavyPanda, @Marmaduke, @Leomins et al got on?

 

 

Yes in the past there was always capacity on the late sitting but it would be nice to have the request go in before the cruise rather than queue up after boarding when it probably could have been sorted out easily beforehand

 

 

 

I never had an opportunity to choose my dining preferences, although I never pushed the idea by quoting the booking confirmations with P&O. In the end I was fortunate to be allocated what I wanted on embarkation and I didn't have to queue up and get it changed.

 

All my future cruises are booked on Cunard at the moment, their 'Early Saver' fares DO allow you to choose dining preferences. This I'm very happy with (choice of cabin doesn't mean much to me), so will continue to book this fare type with Cunard unless the OBC situation means I'm likely to spend less booking the Cunard fare instead.

[terrierjohn]

On 3/19/2024 at 1:57 PM, 9265359 said:

 

It is just another example of P&O having poor systems.

 

Don't take requests as that diminishes the value of Select fares, but simply use the information you already hold to reduce the number of people asking to change sittings.

 

It really wouldn't be rocket science for P&O to identify that 'Bob & Sue' who book on Saver fares always ask to change to late seating, so rather than flip a coin to randomly allocate them between early and late, have the system just automatically allocate them to late. 

 

There is no need to tell 'Bob & Sue' what you have done and diminish the possibility of them upgrading to a Select fare, and if this cruise 'Bob & Sue' actually want an early sitting then they can queue up as now and ask to change.

I doubt that P&Os IT system will ever be able to track down to individual passenger preference, but allowing saver passengers to express a preference seems a very sensible approach, which might in fact mean 90% received their preference.

[Eglesbrech]

19 hours ago, terrierjohn said:

I doubt that P&Os IT system will ever be able to track down to individual passenger preference, but allowing saver passengers to express a preference seems a very sensible approach, which might in fact mean 90% received their preference.

Fred Olsen allow saver passengers to select a dining time but charge £2pppd for this service. Perhaps P&O would get less saver passengers queuing to change if they allowed them to pay in advance to set a guaranteed preference.
 

Once a dining seating is allocated the only way for saver passengers to change is to pay up. Stops all the “I absolutely need x dining because of Y and z” conversations.
 

Charging would also keep the higher paying select passengers happy as this would be a more tangible “perk” for select over saver (and I say this as a frequent user of saver fares).