Drinks package/policy changes?

[posford]

Makes me wonder how they will police this change.

So will the Southampton security people, I believe will not.

Will the ship have their own scanners? Don’t think so.

Good luck with getting 5000+ passengers on board scanning them all on the new ships.

P&O, please don’t cheese off even more passengers, you have put off enough already.

[molecrochip]

21 minutes ago, galeforce9 said:

@molecrochip what is a plus/premium package?  Unaware of princess offerings.  Seabourn/P&O only for me.  Is it a drinks package pitched above P&O’s deluxe?

Plus is drinks + single device internet + gratuities

 

Premium is Plus package plus deluxe drinks and 4 device internet plus signature deserts plus multiple speciality restaurants plus prize draws.

[galeforce9]

3 minutes ago, molecrochip said:

Plus is drinks + single device internet + gratuities

 

Premium is Plus package plus deluxe drinks and 4 device internet plus signature deserts plus multiple speciality restaurants plus prize draws.

@molecrochip hmmm.  Bit OTT.  

[molecrochip]

16 minutes ago, posford said:

Makes me wonder how they will police this change.

So will the Southampton security people, I believe will not.

Will the ship have their own scanners? Don’t think so.

Good luck with getting 5000+ passengers on board scanning them all on the new ships.

P&O, please don’t cheese off even more passengers, you have put off enough already.

Practically it will be difficult. P & O have normally only policed in exceptional circumstance and booze cruises.

 

You’re right that Southampton security staff don’t see it as their job.

[molecrochip]

1 minute ago, galeforce9 said:

@molecrochip hmmm.  Bit OTT.  

It’s been a tremendous success for Princess.

[galeforce9]

2 minutes ago, molecrochip said:

It’s been a tremendous success for Princess.

I don’t doubt. We buy the deluxe drinks package, one streaming package each and dine in speciality restaurants each  night. But there aren’t enough speciality restaurants on the older (preferred) ships to make this plus package a viable offering.  If it’s that popular, increased demand for speciality dining would outstrip supply, leaving unhappy package and non package customers.  Accessibility of good speciality  restaurants (glasshouse, Sindhu) is my number one priority. If these become difficult to get a reservation in I will sail elsewhere.  

[doog442]

 

18 minutes ago, molecrochip said:

Plus is drinks + single device internet + gratuities

 

Premium is Plus package plus deluxe drinks and 4 device internet plus signature deserts plus multiple speciality restaurants plus prize draws.

 

Princess have dragged the bog standard drinks package down until its almost meaningless and the premium plus puts its way above P&O offerings price wise.

 

As you know P&O have tried to appeal to a new demographic and succeeded . People aren't daft, I know cruises are selling but if this is true there's not much difference now between that all inclusive in the Caribbean or Med and P&O attempting to squeeze things. 

 

'Pre drinks' are almost part of UK culture, balcony, getting glammed up etc, yet the bars are still as busy as hell afterwards. 

 

If this happens and they rigidly enforce the policy at cruise ports (not been happening) it will be interesting to see. 

Edited May 4 by doog442

[Eglesbrech]

1 minute ago, molecrochip said:

It’s been a tremendous success for Princess.

The priority theatre seats are a bonus if you have the package (but not to those who don’t drink, don’t need a package and so have less chance of seating). I can take or leave the prize draw, a bit gimmicky.

 

People were nudged towards the higher packages when for example the alternative dining venues such as Alfredo’s, which they has always enjoyed for free were made chargeable and then added into the drinks package as a “new benefit”.

 

The drinks package is good as it includes some high quality offerings but it’s pricy on longer cruises.

 

I hypothesised some time again that Princess and P&O would move ever closer in terms of what they offered and it’s happening eg Princess now charge for some categories to select a cabin which they never did before and P&O will as you say probably adopt the higher priced package model eventually.

[david63]

One other thing that the Princess packages include is crew gratuities which obviously would be meaningless on P&O

[purplesea]

On Arvia last month my mother asked for three different drinks - none of which were available. A very poor choice was!

[Mad4WDW]

12 minutes ago, purplesea said:

On Arvia last month my mother asked for three different drinks - none of which were available. A very poor choice was!

what were they?

[AndyMichelle]

9 hours ago, purplesea said:

On Arvia last month my mother asked for three different drinks - none of which were available. A very poor choice was!

It's definitely limited.

Like a lot of the moans, we miss things we used to be able to get like Hendricks, Peroni, raspberry creme brulee and planters punch, but obviously the new cruisers wouldn't miss these and we just have to adapt. 

Hyacinth was very upset that she couldn't get a pre dinner sherry anywhere on board... We have known her for many years and never known her to drink sherry, so that was her little victory😂

Andy 

 

[purplesea]

11 hours ago, Mad4WDW said:

what were they?

If I remember correctly they were Tia Maria, Contreau and Grand Mariner.

[yorkshirephil]

8 minutes ago, purplesea said:

If I remember correctly they were Tia Maria, Contreau and Grand Mariner.

As they are popular liqueur's I would expect them to have generic versions for making cocktails?

[Mad4WDW]

12 hours ago, molecrochip said:

It’s been a tremendous success for Princess.

Because it's a decent deal IMHO. If you like a couple drinks before and after your evening meal your ahead. Princess also have a much better cocktail choice and also let you pay just the difference if you want something thats over the cutoff price. 

[Mad4WDW]

19 minutes ago, purplesea said:

If I remember correctly they were Tia Maria, Contreau and Grand Mariner.

I think ive only saw Tia Maria on any of the menus. The problem is probably because the cocktail list is so sparse they don't have these spirits onboard at all. The closest you'd get is a generic triple sec that they use in a cosmopolitan. 

[Selbourne]

11 hours ago, purplesea said:

On Arvia last month my mother asked for three different drinks - none of which were available. A very poor choice was!

We have been surprised to see how restrictive the drinks menus have become, in particular the choice of cocktails with some bars only offering a tiny number. When we were on Britannia, during our second week a drinks waiter said that he could get us other drinks, but that seemed to be a one-off. When we were on Iona shortly afterwards they were adamant that they could only supply drinks from the specific menus for each bar. My daughter wanted a particular cocktail in the Crows Nest and whilst it wasn’t on the menu, all of the component ingredients were present in other drinks offered in that bar, so they could have made one - but refused to. 

[Angel57]

14 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

We have been surprised to see how restrictive the drinks menus have become, in particular the choice of cocktails with some bars only offering a tiny number. When we were on Britannia, during our second week a drinks waiter said that he could get us other drinks, but that seemed to be a one-off. When we were on Iona shortly afterwards they were adamant that they could only supply drinks from the specific menus for each bar. My daughter wanted a particular cocktail in the Crows Nest and whilst it wasn’t on the menu, all of the component ingredients were present in other drinks offered in that bar, so they could have made one - but refused to. 

I wonder if the cocktails offered are already pre-mixed - I haven’t watched them make the drinks but might explain why they won’t make one that’s not on the menu. I will watch carefully when on Iona in a few weeks time!

[david63]

9 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

all of the component ingredients were present in other drinks offered in that bar, so they could have made one - but refused to. 

Valid reasons could be:

 

1. The bartender did not know how to make it.

2. Would not know how much to charge.

3. It would affect the stock control system as that cocktail is not in the computer.

 

As I have said before - the offerings in the bars on P&O ships is a mere shadow of what it used to be pre Covid. I could understand that the offerings were reduced at the restart due to not having a full compliment of crew but as far as I am aware that problem is more or less resolved now

[david63]

2 minutes ago, Angel57 said:

I wonder if the cocktails offered are already pre-mixed

In my experience cocktails on P&O are "made to order"

[Denarius]

17 hours ago, Angel57 said:

My gut feeling is that there is an element of truth in this. Social media is full of it and some are threatening never to book with P&O again! What an over-reaction over a litre of spirits.

Over reaction indeed. And who are they going to book with instead, as to my knowledge virtually all other lines have similar restrictions except those which are all inclusive? Or are they going to book with the latter for the sake of drinking their own favourite brand instead of the one for which they have already paid in their all inclusive fare? Joined up thinking, please!

[enjoysailing]

12 hours ago, posford said:

Makes me wonder how they will police this change.

So will the Southampton security people, I believe will not.

Will the ship have their own scanners? Don’t think so.

Good luck with getting 5000+ passengers on board scanning them all on the new ships.

P&O, please don’t cheese off even more passengers, you have put off enough already.

 

I am probably called 'old school' whereas when informed something cannot be taken on board ship, I don't take it, nor try to find ways to 'sneak' it on. P&O have had a policy different to other cruise lines that people have got used to over the years. They are a business and have decided to get in line with other major cruise lines in not allowing spirits to be carried on. They can make the rules, and whether we agree or not, they have the right to change them. I am sure the scanners are used more for finding real restricted items such as electrical equipment, weapons, and drugs.

 

I agree the drinks menus have become restrictive, and although I moan inwardly I still find something to drink. I like a pre-dinner tipple in my cabin. But bottles can be ordered to the cabin, so not a complete dealbreaker, in my opinion.   

[david63]

I would make a guess that those who are complaining the most are those who take a couple of bottles on with them at embarkation, stock up at ports and never buy a drink from any of the bars - and we all know it happens.

[yorkshirephil]

1 minute ago, enjoysailing said:

 

 

I agree the drinks menus have become restrictive, and although I moan inwardly I still find something to drink. I like a pre-dinner tipple in my cabin. But bottles can be ordered to the cabin, so not a complete dealbreaker, in my opinion.   

I am with you on this, I don't drink much these days but do have a couple of favourites which I usually take with me, however I will be neither devastated or sailing with another line because of a minor change. 

[Palaceman]

5 minutes ago, david63 said:

I would make a guess that those who are complaining the most are those who take a couple of bottles on with them at embarkation, stock up at ports and never buy a drink from any of the bars - and we all know it happens.

... and maybe they're the same people that moan that they can't spend their OBC!!