LibraLass41 Posted July 9, 2009 #1 Share Posted July 9, 2009 I have just completed a P&O questionnaire emailed to me from Nigel E, the one that offers £100 John Lewis vcrs, and is sent a couple of times a year. This one asks a lot of questions about my feelings about fly-cruises to the Med, if 'P&O were to start doing them' I think P&O are considering sending one or perhaps even 2 ships to the Med for fly cruise only in 2011. There I've said it.! I think they are trying to attract custom from the OV cruisers who loose their brand at the end of 2010, OV cruisers like to fly-cruise from the Med. OV cruisers have been sent letters and emails introducing them to the delights of Ventura Ventura and Oceana are the 2 ships I reckon are being primed for Med based cruises, they have already introduced freedom dining and dropped semi formal nights, the next step to lure the OV passenger is to send them to the Med Azura will stay here for Southampton return cruises, (why have 2 ships the same size based in Southampton ?- thus Ventura is sent to the Med) I was asked if I was prepared to pay more or less for a Med Fly-cruise and my reasons. I was tempted with more ports and less sea days if they were to offer fly cruises. All very interesting stuff. Lots of change due in the next few years I bet. __________________ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
History addict Posted July 9, 2009 #2 Share Posted July 9, 2009 Very interesting information, LibraLass, perhaps I'll keep on monitoring P and O with a weather eye to the future after all. My personal aim is to try and spend the maximum number of days in port as possible and also to duplicate as few ports as possible, which is getting increasingly difficult as we are soon to go on our 7th Mediterranean cuise. The itinerary is everything for us so I shall continue to loiter on this forum for further updates. I had been monitoring P and O with a view to the Fjords and the Baltic but it looks like they may be offering even more in the future. It's only the long journeys to the Med from Southampton that are no use to me as I can't take more than a week at a time on holiday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robanddiane Posted July 9, 2009 #3 Share Posted July 9, 2009 Would really appeal to us Sue. As we live in the north east it is approx 8 hour coach journey to Southampton or 2hr 20 mins to Palma and no Bay of Biscay to contend with. With the right itineraries it would give us the chance to see Venice and greek islands on a P&O ship as we cannot do 16 night cruises because of holiday limits at work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David&Heather Posted July 9, 2009 #4 Share Posted July 9, 2009 Sounds like a move in the right direction to me, probably enough to make us give P&O a try:) Plenty of time to go out and buy football shirts, baseball caps, shell suit & get my tattoos done otherwise you would never recognise me as being an ex OV cruiser:D Joking aside I hope this happens along with designating a few venues on ship as informal on formal nights, I am sure Ventura is big enough to accomodate all. David. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David&Heather Posted July 9, 2009 #5 Share Posted July 9, 2009 Just in case anyone from P&O is monitoring this board could I respectfully suggest you canvass the views of OV passengers as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alberich Posted July 10, 2009 #6 Share Posted July 10, 2009 What is supposed to be wrong with sea days? The more the merrier! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraLass41 Posted July 10, 2009 Author #7 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I don't think there is a problem with sea days. But with the extra 3000 passenger ship Azura arriving next year, there may well be too many P&O ships based in Southampton, perhaps the long-term plan was ALWAYS to commence Med- fly-cruises after OV disbanded.. A choice for everyone on PandO - Adult only cruising, family cruising, casual Med cruising , formal Southampton based cruising.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
History addict Posted July 10, 2009 #8 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Some people love sea days as a great opportunity to relax, but not everyone. I can sit still with a book for a couple of hours but no more. To me I cruise to travel and my idea of relaxation is putting my feet up on the balcony with a chilled glass of wine having spent a full day in port. I don't need or want to relax any more than that. I know to some people the cruise itself is the destination. However to me it is a very convenient and enjoyable way of travelling and visiting the maximum amount of places without the hassle of other forms of travel. This is why I tend to prefer the informal ships as they allow more flexibility for dining so I can eat when I want depending on how sore my feet are! Unlike many cruisers I actually lose a few pounds in weight every time I cruise despite dining well. It sounds to me as though P and O are considering moving towards having different products to suit the different types of cruisers. From these forums there are a multitude of reasons why people cruise and they are trying to widen their target audience. Now for me, if they introduced informal fly cruises for adults only with no days at sea and a formal restaurant for when I fancied something a little more special then they would sign me up on the spot. I hope someone from P and O is listening.....:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David&Heather Posted July 10, 2009 #9 Share Posted July 10, 2009 But with the extra 3000 passenger ship Azura arriving next year, there may well be too many P&O ships based in Southampton, perhaps the long-term plan was ALWAYS to commence Med- fly-cruises after OV disbanded.. A choice for everyone on PandO - I do hope that you are right but if it was planned why keep it a secret? More likely they are belatedly reacting to retain ex OV cruisers, somewhat of a U turn and maybe a little late to retain as many ov passengers as they would like to. They have certainly left a gap for other cruise lines to take advantage of in 2010 as all the ov cruisers cannot possibly fit onto one ship, for us it will probably be a choice between ov and NCL in 2010 and we are minded to give NCL a try especially as it is getting very difficult to book balcony cabins on ov. We await the 2011 brochures with interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gstewart Posted July 10, 2009 #10 Share Posted July 10, 2009 Seemingly Azura is to have no retractable roof on her swimming pool. Instead she will have a "SeaScreen", therefore I wonder if she is earmarked for being based in the Med, then moving to the Caribbean. Would certainly make more sense than putting Ventura there and minimising the use of her retractable roof. I am probably wrong though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheeper370 Posted July 10, 2009 #11 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I think they are trying to attract custom from the OV cruisers who loose their brand at the end of 2010, OV cruisers like to fly-cruise from the Med. It's not so much the case that "OV cruisers like to fly-cruise from the Med" - it's all we've ever been offered in Summer. I personally would have loved to have the option of an OV cruise out of Southampton. However, I certainly won't be using Ventura or Oceana wherever they put them! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KenAndJulie Posted July 10, 2009 #12 Share Posted July 10, 2009 I think that such a move would be a good decision and hopefully they would support several more local airports. It should allow them to offer more varied Med itineraries. Maybe they will sell one of the ships smart casual ... who knows? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freesteve Posted July 13, 2009 #13 Share Posted July 13, 2009 for us we have done the fly cruises and living less than 1 hour from southampton and free parking also no luggage worrys unless its a real good deal or i win a free fly cuise (most unlikey) we will stick with cruises from southampton dont worry about how far to the first port as there are plenty of bars to keep us busy but do understand why fly cruises apeal to people who live far away maybe you should move steve s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David&Heather Posted July 13, 2009 #14 Share Posted July 13, 2009 for us we have done the fly cruises and living less than 1 hour from southampton and free parking also no luggage worrys unless its a real good deal or i win a free fly cuise (most unlikey) we will stick with cruises from southampton dont worry about how far to the first port as there are plenty of bars to keep us busy but do understand why fly cruises apeal to people who live far away maybe you should movesteve s Fully understand your point, at one time I would have been quite happy to prop the bar up with you! but it's no longer the case as we like to get off the ship, explore and appreciate the history / culture of the places we visit. I probably could move to Southampton as the company I work for has a base in the area, however I am staying put in the lovely North West:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesOceanVillage Posted July 13, 2009 #15 Share Posted July 13, 2009 I think More of Ovs passengers will be given to Ncl than P&O. Looking at the ships Ncls do look nicer than P&Os and Ncl is Family Friendly:confused: and what is wrong with Ov passengers goin to P&O LibraLass41 ? Half the people we spoke to on Ov had been with P&O and Princess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraLass41 Posted July 13, 2009 Author #16 Share Posted July 13, 2009 I think More of Ovs passengers will be given to Ncl than P&O. Looking at the ships Ncls do look nicer than P&Os and Ncl is Family Friendly:confused: and what is wrong with Ov passengers goin to P&O LibraLass41 ? Half the people we spoke to on Ov had been with P&O and Princess. I never said there was anything wrong with them coming to PandO - I am discussing the position of our ships in the 2011 season and the reasons behind it. My, My some OV have a real chip on their shoulders! :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesOceanVillage Posted July 13, 2009 #17 Share Posted July 13, 2009 I think P&O are considering sending one or perhaps even 2 ships to the Med for fly cruise only in 2011. There I've said it.! I think they are trying to attract custom from the OV cruisers who loose their brand at the end of 2010, Their Ive sed it????? what is that all about? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraLass41 Posted July 13, 2009 Author #18 Share Posted July 13, 2009 I think More of Ovs passengers will be given to Ncl than P&O. Looking at the ships Ncls do look nicer than P&Os and Ncl is Family Friendly:confused: and what is wrong with Ov passengers goin to P&O LibraLass41 ? Half the people we spoke to on Ov had been with P&O and Princess. Your views on Pando - explain how NCL is more family friendly than pando? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheeper370 Posted July 14, 2009 #19 Share Posted July 14, 2009 My, My some OV have a real chip on their shoulders! :rolleyes: He's a 14-year old schoolboy - give him a chance!:rolleyes::rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyBarlow Posted July 14, 2009 #20 Share Posted July 14, 2009 If you have the fleet then i only see this as a good thing. As long as you can still offer your regular pax the same product then this is good for everyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daiB Posted July 14, 2009 #21 Share Posted July 14, 2009 If you have the fleet then i only see this as a good thing. As long as you can still offer your regular pax the same product then this is good for everyone. Only problem is that Carnival have just helped build a new terminal in Southampton for their larger ships and expanded fleet. So why move them? There must also be great advantages in being able to supply your fleet in Southampton and not in the EU with the variance in exchange rates. No the plans quite clearly are to build up the UK based operation. Fly cruises are adding extra complications. :):)Happy Cruising:):) :cool: Dai Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alberich Posted July 14, 2009 #22 Share Posted July 14, 2009 Only problem is that Carnival have just helped build a new terminal in Southampton for their larger ships and expanded fleet. So why move them? There must also be great advantages in being able to supply your fleet in Southampton and not in the EU with the variance in exchange rates. No the plans quite clearly are to build up the UK based operation. Fly cruises are adding extra complications. So why would Cunard be running a series of fly cruises in the Med at the end of 2010? Both are Carnival brands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daiB Posted July 14, 2009 #23 Share Posted July 14, 2009 So why would Cunard be running a series of fly cruises in the Med at the end of 2010? Both are Carnival brands. Good Point:rolleyes: :):)Happy Cruising:):) :cool: Dai Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraLass41 Posted July 14, 2009 Author #24 Share Posted July 14, 2009 The questions in the poll were nearly all aimed at med cruises, Do you really think PandO can fill all these ships Dai from Southampton every fortnight -Azura AND Ventura, plus Arcadia,Aurora, Oceana, Artemis and Oriana? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alberich Posted July 14, 2009 #25 Share Posted July 14, 2009 The questions in the poll were nearly all aimed at med cruises, Do you really think PandO can fill all these ships Dai from Southampton every fortnight -Azura AND Ventura, plus Arcadia,Aurora, Oceana, Artemis and Oriana? If P&O take a more liberal position with US agents then fly cruises may well be popular, always allowing for the exchange rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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