Cutbacks on P&O - good or bad?

[oldbluefox]

Shame really as I was beginning to look like a 5 star General

[Stephen]

They weren't the words I was thinking of

[Ray B]

I had actually forgot about the pin badge, did anyone ware the badge, never noticed. I'll have to find up mine ready for the next cruise.

[Stephen]

They're still advertising the lapel badge on our tier upgrade so I'm fully expecting it to be waiting for me in the cabin. There will be hell to pay if it isn't

I say for me, it'll be a nice surprise for Mrs S at Christmas.

[Onelife]

I'm off on Ventura in a eleven days time. I'll pack bed linen, towels and a knife and fork just in case

I’m pleased to see your conscience has got the better of you…. giving back what you have stolen is a good thing Stephen

[Stephen]

Who said anything about giving back. It's exchange time.

[oldbluefox]

And the boiled sweets (which the cabin steward used to eat!) have gone as well.
As Stephen says these were all little touches which helped to make the cruise special.
I would be happy to pay more and see some of these little gestures return. Unfortunately I am likely in a minority and do not match the current P&O passenger profile.

[david63]

I would be happy to pay more and see some of these little gestures return.

The problem then would be that there would be a two, or more, tier/class system which would not go down well with many.

[Stephen]

If a small price increase was across the board I feel pretty sure most people wouldn’t even notice. A bit like the gratuities that are now included which probably increased the price more than a few of the old little extras would.

[Pam + Neil]

We sailed on Aurora 27th August. This cruise originally started out as Oriana but then the ship was sold and covid kicked in. We transferred it to a suite having always promised ourselves this from when we first sailed in 1998. It did not disappoint. It took us us back to our first cruise in terms of feeling special. Obviously the cabin, the balcony and the suite experience were amazing. The meals in the MDR were basic but Ok. No longer did we experience cuisine. Staff amazing throughout with exception of one bar steward. I loved this cruise. So much. We are forward booked on SAGA but I so wish we could turn the clock back on P and O.

[Onelife]

From the comments posted it appears that most of us feel like passengers, when in fact we just want to feel special…which at the end of the day is what P&O promise.

[Mervyn and Trish]

There was an interesting and rather intemperate comment on the P&O/Saga comparison (to my mind there isn't one, they are completely different offerings) from a lady who is clearly a big Saga fan. She said that she used to cruise with P&O but on her last cruise with them the food was "inedible".

I don't think she spotted the irony in my reply when I said she must have been starving by the time she got home.

[Whynd1]

Well over 20 odd years I have done P and O with just 2 Princess fly cruises.

It will be nice trying Saga have been looking at on line blogs etc I must say the accommodation and food looks amazing.

Lindsey

[towny44]

I am not a fussy eater and don't really yearn for fancy gourmet dining, included excursions would be no good for us as my DW cannot manage coach steps, and most of the onboard activities don't appeal to us either, and we are not big drinkers, so the much higher prices on Saga are not really worthwhile to us.
Furthermore we have not been too disillusioned by our 3 post covid cruises on P&O, but I would like to see Ventura have a thorough refurbishment, especially the cabins, along with having some new big screen TVs installed, so we can go back to our favourite P&O ship.

[oldbluefox]

We are going on Arvia shortly and we are going with an open mind. It will be a different experience for us having been weaned on Aurora and Arcadia. We were unimpressed by Ventura and Azura, not by the size but bu the lack of natural light inside the ship and no dedicated cinema . It all felt (to us) very claustrophobic and it didn't help when there was an almighty bang one night on Ventura when an upper walkway split.

We have looked at Saga but it is very expensive (even taking into account all the included benefits). Saga is excellent though so you get what you pay for. We enjoyed Cunard but their itineraries are very samey and clearly catering for the American market. We have friends who go with MSC but the jury is out on them at the moment. Fred seems to be much more expensive but ticks a lot of boxes which P&O have vacated. The lady opposite has just come back from a TUI cruise, enjoyed it AND they still do a turndown in the evening!!!

I wonder what this Ambassador line is like. Big benefit for them they cruise out of Newcastle which is a big plus for us. I'll investigate what they offer. Meanwhile fingers crossed that P&O pull the rabbit out of the hat with this Arvia cruise.

[Onelife]

There was an interesting and rather intemperate comment on the P&O/Saga comparison (to my mind there isn't one, they are completely different offerings) from a lady who is clearly a big Saga fan. She said that she used to cruise with P&O but on her last cruise with them the food was "inedible".

I don't think she spotted the irony in my reply when I said she must have been starving by the time she got home.

She probably thought you were just plain rude…I hope you didn’t mention this forum as she wouldn’t last a week without chocking on the comments

[Stephen]

Like you Foxy I have been looking around at different cruise lines and think along the same lines as you.

Some of the prices on the more upmarket cruise lines are eye watering.

I was interested in Ambassador cruises when they arrived on the scene and even enquired about ship visits. They do them but unfortunately not at that time due to Covid. I might enquire again.

We like both Azura and Ventura and are on Ventura in ten days time and again next June. Partly because we like the ship but mainly because the itineraries suited us. But after that who knows.

Aurora is no longer a choice for us and we just didn’t like Arcadia when we did a ship visit. We have done a Celebrity cruise which we liked and would do again if we could get a good itinerary from Southampton, or I might have to bite the bullet and as much as I hate it….fly ……providing I can turn left.

[Mervyn and Trish]

Celebrity are a good example of why P&O have cut some of the frills. Ignoring the fact that we had a dreadful experience on Calamity years back and won't darken their door again we recently did a price comparison on a similar two week Med cruise. Celebrity were a lot more expensive than P&O even before you considered tips and drink prices.

[david63]

I am not sure if all of the cutbacks are actually cutbacks or are part of the evolution of cruising.

The changes have been going on for years, well before Covid, but, understandably, Covid has had an impact on all cruise lines. The mainstream cruise lines are out to attract the new cruiser and they know no different and whilst the long established cruiser still has to be catered for the cruise lines are not over interested in them as, literally, they are dying out.

The main problem for me is that when sailing out of the UK the itineraries are mostly underwhelming on all cruise lines - in fact they are pretty much the same and this is where the new big ships come into their own - the ship becomes the destination, which is all part of the evolution of cruising.

I think that in the coming years there will be a lot less loyalty to a specific cruise lines and passengers will move from one line to another, not necessarily because of the itinerary but to have a different cruise experience. We abandoned P&O this year for Princess and whilst Princess was not perfect there was a different cruise experience which we enjoyed. The point about moving from cruise line to cruise line is that you effectively become a "new" cruiser each time and you are not constantly comparing what was with what is.

The question of price then starts to become a major factor. Once you move away from the "big boys" then the prices start to rise - although you do have to look beyond the headline price as to what is being offered. The big question then is "Is the overall cruise experience worth the extra cost?" and the answer to that will vary from person to person and what they are comparing it with.

To be honest I don't know what the answer is but I feel that our cruising days may shortly be coming to an end.

[LadyPCruiser]

We have just come back from a cruise on Arcadia - it will be our last one- too many cutbacks to make it feel special- it will be less cruises but Cunard from now on - quite sad really

[Onelife]

Hi David, I think what you have posted is a very good analysis of what is happening in cruising today.

[Stephen]

The way things are going I think P&O will eventually attract just the stack'm high sell'm cheap string vest and football shirt brigade. The old school clientele will just go elsewhere.

A shame really that this well known brand has had to cut everything back to the bone.

[Onelife]

The way things are going I think P&O will eventually attract just the stack'm high sell'm cheap string vest and football shirt brigade. The old school clientele will just go elsewhere.

A shame really that this well known brand has had to cut everything back to the bone.

Unfurtunatly it is all about profit margins e.g., how much is too much and how much is acceptable…companies never appear to look for a fair compromise.

[barney]

We have just come back from a cruise on Arcadia - it will be our last one- too many cutbacks to make it feel special- it will be less cruises but Cunard from now on - quite sad really

Loads complaining about cutbacks on Cunard as well, LadyP
Times and things have changed.

[Stephen]

The way things are going I think P&O will eventually attract just the stack'm high sell'm cheap string vest and football shirt brigade. The old school clientele will just go elsewhere.

A shame really that this well known brand has had to cut everything back to the bone.

Unfurtunatly it is all about profit margins e.g., how much is too much and how much is acceptable…companies never appear to look for a fair compromise.

More about greed and how much they can get away with is my view.
I would say, and keeping the share holders happy, but like everyone else I’ve seen bu99er all dividends dished out yet they can afford new ships when it suits costing hundreds of millions.