Caribbean Tier Members

How do the check in staff know your loyalty status?

If its just down to saying you are Caribbean this could be open to abuse.

I my experience RCI want you off the ship by 8am but P&O is much later we left at 10am on some cruises, maybe that's why they start boarding later?

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But it cannot work OK if more and more people ignore the time given and arrive at 11.30.

I have a cruise coming up and will be interested to see what correspondence I get from P&O about sticking to times. I say this because I do wonder how clear they have been to people, especially Caribbean tier. We only have so much info because of the boards, I've never had anything from P&O about it at all.

No one has ever checked our ticket time when giving us the coloured card, that has been at Ocean and Mayflower terminals. Is some of the time for Caribbean + hospitality being moved back to give those who travel by coach a chance to use this benefit? We always travel the day before and can stay at our hotel until lunch time so this is better than a 10am departure. We then get hotel transfers to the terminal. Pleased our next couple of cruises are fly cruise bookings.

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I have a cruise coming up and will be interested to see what correspondence I get from P&O about sticking to times. I say this because I do wonder how clear they have been to people, especially Caribbean tier. We only have so much info because of the boards, I've never had anything from P&O about it at all.

Same here, Arcadia in November no tickets available yet but will be interesting to see what all this hype is about, we now come by coach so will miss the early boarders bun fight...[emoji6]

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Same here, Arcadia in November no tickets available yet but will be interesting to see what all this hype is about, we now come by coach so will miss the early boarders bun fight...[emoji6]

 

 

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I'm taking popcorn [emoji6] are you on 3/11?

I'm taking popcorn [emoji6] are you on 3/11?

No the 24 nighter on the 25th..[emoji41]

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No the 24 nighter on the 25th..[emoji41]

 

 

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Fabulous, I'm on her for 24 next year, can't wait [emoji41] have a great cruise! Actually I think you may have already told me that - I lose track [emoji16]

I don't know if this muddies or clarifies the issue for Caribbean members but have just read this on P & Os FAQ.....

Q. What are Britannia's new embarkation timings?

A. We ask that passengers adhere to the check-in times provided on your E-Ticket to ensure a smooth boarding process. We are pleased to confirm that members of the Caribbean, Baltic and Ligurian tiers of our Peninsular Club and Suite passengers have the benefit of priority or early embarkation and are welcome to check-in from when the desk opens, you will then be boarded at the earliest opportunity.

To me this would suggest that you can still arrive and board early :confused:

That's how I interpret it, MM and I am pleased for you all.

I've got a long way to go yet myself, but I don't begrudge you. It's a justifiable perk.

Rather begs the question "is P&O's website up to date?" because that's not what it said in Christopher Edgington's piece?

Rather begs the question "is P&O's website up to date?" because that's not what it said in Christopher Edgington's piece?

There is so much confusion who knows? I've had absolutely nothing from P&O that suggests anything has changed at all.

I think the website has Ben updated recently as Britannias boarding arrangements haven't been in operation that long.

I think the website has Ben updated recently as Britannias boarding arrangements haven't been in operation that long.

I really hope that this is the case.

P&O have been so inept over this issue.

Bad Public Relations & even worse Customer Care.

Why bother running a Nation wide TV advertising campaign when you can shoot yourself in the foot like this ?

Other cruise lines operating out of Southampton must be rubbing their hands together & laughing their heads off !

This is from someone who holds Carnival shares ( P&O's Owners )

That's how I interpret it, MM and I am pleased for you all.

 

I've got a long way to go yet myself, but I don't begrudge you. It's a justifiable perk.

I don't begrudge anyone the perks they have earned but I must admit that the loyalty club doesn't have any influence on who I cruise with!

I have a long way to go too with P & O ....I have only just reached Atlantic tier after my last cruise.. Wish Cunard cruises would count too though.. :(

I don't begrudge anyone the perks they have earned but I must admit that the loyalty club doesn't have any influence on who I cruise with!

 

I have a long way to go too with P & O ....I have only just reached Atlantic tier after my last cruise.. Wish Cunard cruises would count too though.. :(

Wouldn't it be nice that any cruises within the Carnival group ( Carnival, P&O ,Cunard, Princess, Costa, Iberio , Holland America, Seabourne ) counted towards each others loyalty Clubs.

At the moment any cruise with P&O counts towards Princess Captains Circle Club but not the other way round.

I don't know if this muddies or clarifies the issue for Caribbean members but have just read this on P & Os FAQ.....

 

Q. What are Britannia's new embarkation timings?

 

A. We ask that passengers adhere to the check-in times provided on your E-Ticket to ensure a smooth boarding process. We are pleased to confirm that members of the Caribbean, Baltic and Ligurian tiers of our Peninsular Club and Suite passengers have the benefit of priority or early embarkation and are welcome to check-in from when the desk opens, you will then be boarded at the earliest opportunity.

 

 

To me this would suggest that you can still arrive and board early :confused:

https://ask.pocruises.com/help/PO/before-you-sail/priority_check_in

Have they always called it 'priority queuing' as per this link?

https://ask.pocruises.com/help/PO/before-you-sail/priority_check_in

 

Have they always called it 'priority queuing' as per this link?

I would go with MM's link rather than the one that mentions q's.

I would guess a lot of Caribbeans have been bending various ears. Others have posted that suites board at 12.30'ish. So I would take it Caribbeans can as well, regardless of what deck they are on.

Me thinks I am vaguely looking forward to our next cruise to see what the situation is then.

This is the reply I had from P&O when I emailed them for clarification. Whatever it says on the website, this is the current position.

It is correct that we are currently in the process of changing our embarkation to create a quicker, more pleasurable boarding experience for all of our guests. I understand you have found details of these changes within one of our Facebook posts. I am sorry that you have not yet received official details of these changes as yet, but I can confirm that we are currently working on a notification that will be sent to all our passengers. This notification has so far been delayed due to some of the finer details still being finalised. That said, we were aware that there was a lot of discussion regarding this subject amongst our passengers on various social platforms, and therefore we took the decision to make an announcement on social media, in order to minimise confusion.

I am confident that these changes will make for a much better embarkation process. We have been working on our check in systems so that we can process more passengers per minute than ever before. Further, by asking everyone to stick to their allocated check in times, waiting times in the terminal will be minimised. Cabins will also be ready as soon as passengers embark the ship, so again there will be no waiting around in this respect either.

As a result of these changes the embarkation lounge on board will no longer be required as a waiting area, because cabins will be readily available. With this in mind, we will instead operate a welcome reception for members who previously qualified for the embarkation lounge. The welcome reception will be open from 1.30pm to 3.30pm, serving complimentary alcoholic and soft drinks, along with canapés and the venue will be confirmed as you check-in. It has not yet been confirmed how check in time slots will be allocated, but it is my understanding that it will be in order of deck.

This is the reply I had from P&O when I emailed them for clarification. Whatever it says on the website, this is the current position.

 

 

 

It is correct that we are currently in the process of changing our embarkation to create a quicker, more pleasurable boarding experience for all of our guests. I understand you have found details of these changes within one of our Facebook posts. I am sorry that you have not yet received official details of these changes as yet, but I can confirm that we are currently working on a notification that will be sent to all our passengers. This notification has so far been delayed due to some of the finer details still being finalised. That said, we were aware that there was a lot of discussion regarding this subject amongst our passengers on various social platforms, and therefore we took the decision to make an announcement on social media, in order to minimise confusion.

 

 

 

I am confident that these changes will make for a much better embarkation process. We have been working on our check in systems so that we can process more passengers per minute than ever before. Further, by asking everyone to stick to their allocated check in times, waiting times in the terminal will be minimised. Cabins will also be ready as soon as passengers embark the ship, so again there will be no waiting around in this respect either.

 

 

 

As a result of these changes the embarkation lounge on board will no longer be required as a waiting area, because cabins will be readily available. With this in mind, we will instead operate a welcome reception for members who previously qualified for the embarkation lounge. The welcome reception will be open from 1.30pm to 3.30pm, serving complimentary alcoholic and soft drinks, along with canapés and the venue will be confirmed as you check-in. It has not yet been confirmed how check in time slots will be allocated, but it is my understanding that it will be in order of deck.

We await the communication with interest!

So therefore according to the P & O email, if you book a lower deck you will never get an early boarding time - definitely deckist!!

So therefore according to the P & O email, if you book a lower deck you will never get an early boarding time - definitely deckist!!

I don't think it's literally by deck, we are travelling with friends on a lower deck than us in a couple of weeks and they have 1.30, but they are midship is a good grade balcony. So I suspect it's sections of deck but only a guess.

Last time I cruised on Britannia over Easter they did away with the Caribbean perk of 'Priority baggage to cabin' because they said they had a new system where everyone would get their luggage speedily so the perk was not needed. Well on that cruise we didn't get our bags to well after we set sail even though we were one of the first to board. Luckily we were not on first sitting.

This time they have done away with priority embarkation. We have got a 3pm time slot for our cruise on 31st October on Ventura, so as well as no priority embarkation we will have little chance of making the 'Welcome lounge' as this will be closed by 3:30pm. We enjoyed the chance to meet with fellow regulars at the start of the cruise and sip a glass or 2 of sparkling wine.

I am not happy, it took me a long while to reach Caribbean level. I get more/better perks on other lines. I won't let it ruin my cruise, but P&O will be the bottom of the list of cruise lines when we come to choose next years cruises.

Last time I cruised on Britannia over Easter they did away with the Caribbean perk of 'Priority baggage to cabin' because they said they had a new system where everyone would get their luggage speedily so the perk was not needed. Well on that cruise we didn't get our bags to well after we set sail even though we were one of the first to board. Luckily we were not on first sitting.

 

This time they have done away with priority embarkation. We have got a 3pm time slot for our cruise on 31st October on Ventura, so as well as no priority embarkation we will have little chance of making the 'Welcome lounge' as this will be closed by 3:30pm. We enjoyed the chance to meet with fellow regulars at the start of the cruise and sip a glass or 2 of sparkling wine.

 

I am not happy, it took me a long while to reach Caribbean level. I get more/better perks on other lines. I won't let it ruin my cruise, but P&O will be the bottom of the list of cruise lines when we come to choose next years cruises.

If all of your party are Caribbean+ you can turn up earlier than the time on your ticket. Caribbean + get priority check in before main check in begins. If you turn up once main check in starts because of a delay in travelling, you get 'Fast Tracked'. You will still be able to enjoy the 'Welcome'.

On P Deck on Ventura, so the lowest deck, our embarkation time was 1pm - on our next cruise on Oceana we are on C deck and have embarkation of 3pm.

So maybe the lower the better on this occasion ?

Thanks for sharing, tartanexiles.