Another Case of Bad Reporting

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david63
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Another Case of Bad Reporting

#1

Post by david63 »

There is an article in today's Telegraph which likens P&O to Butlins (I know here we go again!)

The headline is "Britain's biggest cruise operator is becoming 'Butlins on Sea', Which? survey finds" but then goes on to talk about the "liner" with a photo of Britannia. Now if they had done their homework they would know that P&O do not have any "liners", they are cruise ships. And also why slate the entire company when only one ship is mentioned - and there is no mention of how large the survey was - was two passengers or two thousand (I know probably somewhere in between)

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allatc
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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

#2

Post by allatc »

I recall taking part in the Which survey mentioned in the report. Which conducts consumer surveys most months of the year with Which subscribers invited to participate. How many do so I do not know. No doubt the Telegraph cherry picked the report to suit what it wanted to say (as all newspapers do). It will be interesting to read the whole thing.


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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

#3

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I read a little bit more about this Which report. Apparently Viking Ocean Cruises was top, awarded 5* in every category, second was Saga Ocean Cruises followed by Azmara. MSC was bottom, second bottom was Holland America. The research looked at 20 cruise companies and asked 2,253 passengers to rate their experiences out of five across 11 categories, including customer service, cabin space, onboard facilities, food and drink, port excursions, entertainment, atmosphere, WiFi and value for money. Those polled were also asked how likely it was that they'd recommend the cruise line in question to their friends and family. As far as P&O is concerned passengers said they liked the ease of flight-free travel as well as the absence of set dining?? The comedy acts apparently got a thumbs up, described as 'straight from the 1970s.' But several repeat travellers complained that standards have slipped and that it's become a 'downmarket company, priced accordingly.' The lowest star rating for P&O was for the social atmosphere, with a few of those surveyed describing the pool area as being 'overrun' and 'a nightmare'. According to MSC they say the sample size was 67 passengers is not representative of their overall passenger experience given that they have, in the UK market, seen a 37 percent increase in passengers from 2018 to 2019 with a high number of repeat guests.

What all this means, if anything, I don't know. How you can compare lines like Viking and Saga with their small ships to something like MSC isn't mentioned. One thing, the publicity won't be to P&O's liking I would have thought.

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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

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Post by david63 »

CaroleF wrote: 27 Jan 2020, 09:27
The research looked at 20 cruise companies and asked 2,253 passengers
Which means that it is an average of around 100 passengers per cruise line - which in itself is not representative when P&O have something around 400k passengers per year.

I also doubt that the membership demographic of Which? is not that of cruising in general nor P&O specifically.

As they say - you can make statistics show whatever you want.

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Ray B
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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

#5

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The few passengers that like to pick holes in everything on a cruise make better news than someone who enjoyed their cruise. People having a good time are the majority, that's why are there so many returning passengers on cruise lines.
I have cruised with PandO for many years and have had really good holidays to remember and met lots of cruisers with which we have enjoyed their company.
We have sailed on all the fleet up to the largest being Ventura and Azura, but can not comment on the accusations of butlins at sea which I assume is aimed at Britannia as I have never cruised on her. Can not say I have seen posts saying Britannia is Butlins, only posts with good reports (lifts and stairways aside).
Things have changed over the years on PandO,
but to look at the 'mega' ships now on the high seas if anything, I would say they are more butlins with all the fun fair attractions.
As with the shows in the theater it is difficult to please everyone. When going to the theater at home, one would only normally go to a show if it is something you want to see.
Just my view.
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poole boy
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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

#6

Post by poole boy »

David63 I have no doubt you are right that such a small sample can be twisted any way to suit the papers own ideas,
but living in Poole we are only 45 mins from Southampton so quite a lot of people go cruising and the general feeling seems to be that the ships are getting to big and a lot of people are looking at smaller ships, our travel agent told us that cmv sailing from Poole is very popular also although I do not post a lot I do read this forum and have noticed the increase in people posting that they are looking at other lines than p&o with smaller ships,
we as an example will not travel on a ship larger than Arcadia so we have a cruise booked on Queen Victoria this year and one booked for Arcadia next year, :relaxed:

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Mervyn and Trish
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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

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I have no doubt the survey has been selectively reported but our own impression on Azura last year was the clientele have done down hill! There were a lot more of the "I've paid for my f***ing holiday and I can do and wear what I please" brigade.

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Gill W
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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

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I've been cruising with P&O since 2001, and I've lost count of people in that 19 year period who've called P&O 'Butlins on Sea'. This normally comes from people who've never been to Butlins, and in spite of all their complaints, still use P&O as their sole cruise line.

I have to say, comedy straight from the 1970's would be a thumbs down for me.
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Gill W
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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

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Mervyn and Trish wrote: 27 Jan 2020, 16:31
I have no doubt the survey has been selectively reported but our own impression on Azura last year was the clientele have done down hill! There were a lot more of the "I've paid for my f***ing holiday and I can do and wear what I please" brigade.
I recall that you went on a relatively short cruise.

I went on a 19 day cruise on Azura last year, and it was generally agreed that it was a great cruise, and the passengers seemed very nice. I think the trick is to keep to the longer cruises.
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Mervyn and Trish
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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

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Post by Mervyn and Trish »

Gill W wrote: 27 Jan 2020, 16:36
Mervyn and Trish wrote: 27 Jan 2020, 16:31
I have no doubt the survey has been selectively reported but our own impression on Azura last year was the clientele have done down hill! There were a lot more of the "I've paid for my f***ing holiday and I can do and wear what I please" brigade.
I recall that you went on a relatively short cruise.

I went on a 19 day cruise on Azura last year, and it was generally agreed that it was a great cruise, and the passengers seemed very nice. I think the trick is to keep to the longer cruises.
You're right that it was only 7 nights but it seemed to attract some of the clientele that used to do the 2 night booze cruises. It was also just after they scrapped tips and introduced the drink package.

Don't get me wrong there was still a majority of lovely people aboard. But the drunken louts made their presence felt.

We have little choice that our 2022 cruise (everything booked till then) will be 7 nights on P&O as we'll be taking and paying for 5 people so can't afford different. Future trips for the two of us will be longer and/or other more expensive lines.
Last edited by Mervyn and Trish on 27 Jan 2020, 17:31, edited 2 times in total.

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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

#11

Post by david63 »

I think that if you are talking about Britannia/Azura/Ventura at the height of the summer holidays then, to some, it could be somewhat akin to Butlins (whatever Butlins is!) but most of the rest of the year I doubt it.


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Re: Another Case of Bad Reporting

#12

Post by poole boy »

we have been to Butlins but not enjoy that either, in november we sailed on Aurora 4 day cruise to Amsterdam the age range was lower but because of the drinks packages there was a lot more drink consumed on a night with a resultant increase in noise levels

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