Britannia today, any questions?

[AndyMichelle]

18 minutes ago, TMSA said:

Hi Andy. Thank you so much for this. I'm going on Britannia on 10th May so you're making me very excited. Have you seen anyone braving the pools? I take it they are freezing? When I was on Arvia a lady was telling me how much p&o had changed over the years and how it used to be so much better for families. She said you used to be able to see steam coming from the pools but now they are all cold.

 

Thank you x

We have been very lucky with the weather and have managed to use the pools. 

I don't think they are particularly cold for outside pools, you soon get used to it. 

Yesterday the lido deck pool was absolutely packed, but went up to the serenity pool and I was the only person in it for a while and a completely different vibe. 

The hot tubs have been busy every time I have looked. 

Didn't expect to be sipping a pina colada by the pool the day after sliding down a snow covered mountain on my backside😂 

Andy 

[Fionboard]

4 hours ago, AndyMichelle said:

We have been very lucky with the weather and have managed to use the pools. 

I don't think they are particularly cold for outside pools, you soon get used to it. 

Yesterday the lido deck pool was absolutely packed, but went up to the serenity pool and I was the only person in it for a while and a completely different vibe. 

The hot tubs have been busy every time I have looked. 

Didn't expect to be sipping a pina colada by the pool the day after sliding down a snow covered mountain on my backside😂 

Andy 

Serenity pool and bar area is lovely. 

[CCFC]

Can you tell me what films are showing please, I know it might change in the 6 weeks until we get on but would appreciate an idea of what to expect.

[TMSA]

6 hours ago, AndyMichelle said:

We have been very lucky with the weather and have managed to use the pools. 

I don't think they are particularly cold for outside pools, you soon get used to it. 

Yesterday the lido deck pool was absolutely packed, but went up to the serenity pool and I was the only person in it for a while and a completely different vibe. 

The hot tubs have been busy every time I have looked. 

Didn't expect to be sipping a pina colada by the pool the day after sliding down a snow covered mountain on my backside😂 

Andy 

Sounds amazing. Thank you x

[AndyMichelle]

On 5/1/2024 at 6:54 PM, CCFC said:

Can you tell me what films are showing please, I know it might change in the 6 weeks until we get on but would appreciate an idea of what to expect.

We have had Barbie, Openheimer, the newer Indiana Jones, Wonka and a few others that I can't remember, so nothing brand new but not too old. 

We didn't get to the Cinema, most of the timings clashed with something else. 

Andy 

[jaydee6969]

1 hour ago, AndyMichelle said:

We have had Barbie, Openheimer, the newer Indiana Jones, Wonka and a few others that I can't remember, so nothing brand new but not too old. 

We didn't get to the Cinema, most of the timings clashed with something else. 

Andy 

 

.Welcome back, hope all your party had a good time.  4 weeks until we board for our Fjord trip.

[Clodia]

On 5/1/2024 at 10:48 AM, AndyMichelle said:

Yes, seems to be. 

You definitely can when first boarding. 

I think if you buy it in port, they 'can' hold it for you until the end of the cruise, but that doesn't seem to be being enforced. 

Andy 

I was told last cruise that they no longer enforce this; too many complaints about bottles "disappearing" and being stolen at end of cruise. I think if you just bring one bottle of something locally produced back in your bag, they ignore it. That was certainly my experience on my last 2 cruises.

[AndyMichelle]

Back home after a fantastic cruise, just coming out of a 'food coma' 😊

Although not perfection, the good definitely outweighed the couple of little niggles we encountered. 

The ship was in great condition after the refurb, right down to the new table tennis equipment. 

Our balcony cabin was spotlessly clean and kept that way by our very efficient and helpful steward. We barely saw him but, as expected, our Hyacinth had him run ragged😂

Our waiters at dinner in the Oriental restaurant were fantastically helpful and efficient, as were the ones in the Peninsula where we had breakfast and lunch most days. 

Most of the food was good, 1 or 2 disappointments but mostly good. 

Our GF vegetarian was very well looked after and enjoyed the food and choice. Quite often her options looked better than the meat options. 

MDR food was usually a fish dish, a couple of meat dishes, then 2 or 3 veg options, as well as the 5oz steak and chicken, plus the chefs recommendation.

I suppose we could do with a few different options, but all 7 of us always found something we liked. 

As mentioned before, I gave up on the desserts and stuck to ice cream, but some were enjoyed by the rest of our party, especially Hyacinth who had to try them all, every night... 

Drinks service was good and quick, with some very friendly waiters all around the ship. 

Embarkation was OK, just be prepared to wait if you arrive early. 

Disembarkatiin was good and organised too. 

Parking at West Quay was a breeze, £6 per day and felt safe enough, you take the ticket and pay on exit. Even though we are fairly local, it was still much cheaper than taxis.

The only real niggles was with the entertainment, or lack of it... 

Far too many quizzes and game shows in the evenings in the main venues. 

The Headliners only performed twice on a 7 night cruise, Pulse only did 3 shows max, it might have even been 2?

One evening, there was a quiz on in the Live Lounge, Crystal Rooms and Brodies, all at the same time. 

Add this to the many daytime quizzes, it was just an overload to the extent that many of the questions were repeated. 

The other gripe was with the young 'DJ' in the Live Lounge playing music that she liked to an audience mainly over 50, and wondered why nobody was dancing. We did try to request some more suitable songs which she played the odd one, quickly reverting back to modern music that we just didn't know how to dance to. With the lack of Pulse many evenings, this left no opportunity to have a boogie. 

We did try the buffet a couple of times, but it was carnage, so steered clear wherever possible. 

Overall though, we could hardly find any problems and the 5 new cruisers with us are all converted and can't wait to go again. 

Andy 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Selbourne]

Welcome home Andy. Delighted to hear that you enjoyed the cruise and in particular that your MDR experience was far better than last year. I wish you could persuade Hyacinth to write a review as well 😂 

[AndyMichelle]

2 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Welcome home Andy. Delighted to hear that you enjoyed the cruise and in particular that your MDR experience was far better than last year. I wish you could persuade Hyacinth to write a review as well 😂 

Our Hyacinth always expects to be disappointed, it's her way, pushing boundaries, but even she was very well looked after. Our assistant waiter cottoned on to this quite quickly and preempted most of her requests, which made her very happy. 

Andy 

 

[happy v]

Last year on Britannia. I told the DJ if he looked around the room and most people had grey hair. It was safe to assume they didn't like rap. It worked for a couple of days inside. Out on deck he happily played to himself for a fortnight 

[AndyMichelle]

3 minutes ago, happy v said:

Last year on Britannia. I told the DJ if he looked around the room and most people had grey hair. It was safe to assume they didn't like rap. It worked for a couple of days inside. Out on deck he happily played to himself for a fortnight 

The girl DJ kept asking why nobody was dancing, but carried on playing rap type music, just didn't make sense. 

Andy 

[yorkshirephil]

32 minutes ago, happy v said:

Last year on Britannia. I told the DJ if he looked around the room and most people had grey hair. It was safe to assume they didn't like rap. It worked for a couple of days inside. Out on deck he happily played to himself for a fortnight 

Rap has a silent C for a reason

[Cloudyrain]

I like new music (rap, EDM, a bit of a part-time Swiftie etc) but when we last went on the Britannia it was Elvis and Doris Day 😂 It wasn’t even decent old “retro” - just old. I think my exact phrase was “even my Nan would have thought the music was old fashioned, and she’d be 120 if she was alive now”. Maybe they took my feedback too far 😂

[SarahHben]

I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise Andy. Four weeks until I try Britannia for the first time 😊

[MellyMoo1989]

1 hour ago, AndyMichelle said:

The girl DJ kept asking why nobody was dancing, but carried on playing rap type music, just didn't make sense. 

Andy 

 

I doubt it would get me dancing and I was born in '89 so once I'd gotten over my obsessive Boyzone phase, music became more R&b, Rap and the like.... Give me a bit of Duran Duran or Kenny Loggins any day! Let's hope said DJ's have taken that advice on board (excuse the pun) by next year otherwise I'll be playing my own playlist over my headphones and dancing to that! 😂

 

Glad you had a good time!

[grapau27]

5 hours ago, AndyMichelle said:

Back home after a fantastic cruise, just coming out of a 'food coma' 😊

Although not perfection, the good definitely outweighed the couple of little niggles we encountered. 

The ship was in great condition after the refurb, right down to the new table tennis equipment. 

Our balcony cabin was spotlessly clean and kept that way by our very efficient and helpful steward. We barely saw him but, as expected, our Hyacinth had him run ragged😂

Our waiters at dinner in the Oriental restaurant were fantastically helpful and efficient, as were the ones in the Peninsula where we had breakfast and lunch most days. 

Most of the food was good, 1 or 2 disappointments but mostly good. 

Our GF vegetarian was very well looked after and enjoyed the food and choice. Quite often her options looked better than the meat options. 

MDR food was usually a fish dish, a couple of meat dishes, then 2 or 3 veg options, as well as the 5oz steak and chicken, plus the chefs recommendation.

I suppose we could do with a few different options, but all 7 of us always found something we liked. 

As mentioned before, I gave up on the desserts and stuck to ice cream, but some were enjoyed by the rest of our party, especially Hyacinth who had to try them all, every night... 

Drinks service was good and quick, with some very friendly waiters all around the ship. 

Embarkation was OK, just be prepared to wait if you arrive early. 

Disembarkatiin was good and organised too. 

Parking at West Quay was a breeze, £6 per day and felt safe enough, you take the ticket and pay on exit. Even though we are fairly local, it was still much cheaper than taxis.

The only real niggles was with the entertainment, or lack of it... 

Far too many quizzes and game shows in the evenings in the main venues. 

The Headliners only performed twice on a 7 night cruise, Pulse only did 3 shows max, it might have even been 2?

One evening, there was a quiz on in the Live Lounge, Crystal Rooms and Brodies, all at the same time. 

Add this to the many daytime quizzes, it was just an overload to the extent that many of the questions were repeated. 

The other gripe was with the young 'DJ' in the Live Lounge playing music that she liked to an audience mainly over 50, and wondered why nobody was dancing. We did try to request some more suitable songs which she played the odd one, quickly reverting back to modern music that we just didn't know how to dance to. With the lack of Pulse many evenings, this left no opportunity to have a boogie. 

We did try the buffet a couple of times, but it was carnage, so steered clear wherever possible. 

Overall though, we could hardly find any problems and the 5 new cruisers with us are all converted and can't wait to go again. 

Andy 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welcome back home Andy.

Great cruise summary.

Nice to hear you all had a great time and the ship was in excellent condition for you after the refurb.

Graham.

 

[GSPG]

2 hours ago, AndyMichelle said:

The girl DJ kept asking why nobody was dancing, but carried on playing rap type music, just didn't make sense. 

Andy 

I’m on next Friday on the Baltic cruise stopping at Stockholm for a couple of days.

I wonder if they’ll play some Abba?

Perhaps they should “Take a Chance” with them!

[terrierjohn]

2 hours ago, Cloudyrain said:

I like new music (rap, EDM, a bit of a part-time Swiftie etc) but when we last went on the Britannia it was Elvis and Doris Day 😂 It wasn’t even decent old “retro” - just old. I think my exact phrase was “even my Nan would have thought the music was old fashioned, and she’d be 120 if she was alive now”. Maybe they took my feedback too far 😂

I don't think I have ever heard Doris Day on P&O, although Move over Darling was quite good, but maybe not for dancing, and only the odd Elvis track.

However if Pulse or the DJ wants to fill the dancefloor, then a selection of songs from the best of the 60s 70s and 80s always proves the best option.

[HalifaxYorksCruiser]

Looking forward to being back on Britannia 3 weeks today . Last cruise on Britannia was last August when we broke the lines during a storm in Palma.

[TigerB]

Welcome home Andy & Michelle, and the rest of the gang. I'm glad you had, in the main, a great cruise.

[BouncingWheel]

7 hours ago, GSPG said:

I’m on next Friday on the Baltic cruise stopping at Stockholm for a couple of days.

I wonder if they’ll play some Abba?

Perhaps they should “Take a Chance” with them!

We are there too and will be saying’Gimme, Gimme, Gimme’ a song we can dance to.

[AndyMichelle]

10 hours ago, HalifaxYorksCruiser said:

Looking forward to being back on Britannia 3 weeks today . Last cruise on Britannia was last August when we broke the lines during a storm in Palma.

Let's hope you have a drama free cruise, I'm sure you will. 

The vibe on board was really good, from the crew to our fellow passengers, obviously with the odd exception, but overall, really good. 

Andy 

[waddle]

13 hours ago, yorkshirephil said:

Rap has a silent C for a reason

And the reason silent discos were invented ! 

[GSPG]

On 5/1/2024 at 10:48 AM, AndyMichelle said:

Yes, seems to be. 

You definitely can when first boarding. 

I think if you buy it in port, they 'can' hold it for you until the end of the cruise, but that doesn't seem to be being enforced. 

Andy 

To let you know we had an email this morning to say only a bottle of wine or champagne is allowed to be brought on board, but no vodka, or spirits.

It seems our cruise next week on Britannia is the first to do this.

 

I also understand drink packages have gone up. Okay, I suppose there is only one way the price of drinks was going to go.

 

What got under my skin a bit though were increased excursion charges in the change in itinerary.

Because of timings and shorter stays, two excursions we booked were cancelled then put on sale again but with a different title.
The excursions looked identical, but they had added £5 to one, and £7 to the other.

They also did not give the chance to those who had had the excursion cancelled to book first for the ‘new one’.