Regular Celebrity Cruiser tries P&O!

We have been regular Celebrity cruisers since 2002 and although we have also tried Royal Caribbean we consider Celebrity to be our cruise line of choice. We have just returned from our first P&O cruise aboard Britannia for Christmas and New Year and I thought it might be helpful to share our thoughts and comparisons. I have posted this on both the Celebrity and P&O boards.

Why did we choose P&O on this occasion?

We decided 12 months ago to have a change and go away for Christmas for the first time. We have been on many cruises and enjoyed them all so started looking at options. P&O had not really appealed previously but their new ship, Britannia, caught our interest. There were several benefits over the Celebrity offering. Both cruises were in the Caribbean as we wanted some better weather and to see some blue skies! The P&O trip was 14 nights and covered Christmas and New Year’s Eve, compared to the Celebrity trip which was 12 nights and only covered Christmas. The P&O trip was £2,000 cheaper in total. P&O charter planes direct to Barbados and handle your luggage once checked in at the airport. This makes things very easy as we exited the plane and walked straight across the tarmac to buses ready to take us to the ship – no going through the airport, collecting bags etc. Similarly, on the return journey once you put your bags outside your cabin the night before departure you don’t see them again until collecting them from the airport carousel in the UK. We were able to stay on the ship all day on the last day and use the facilities, although we did have to vacate our cabin by 8 am. On the last day it took just 2hr 45mins from leaving the ship to being on the plane ready for take-off, including a 45 min journey from the ship to the airport. With a mobility impaired family member this made the whole process much easier. Finally, our youngest son, aged 19 would not have been able to drink alcohol on the Celebrity ship because of the ship operating under US laws and sailing in US waters, but with P&O he was able to drink as it operates under UK laws and does not sail in US waters (at least that is my understanding). He is not a heavy drinker, but given that this was a Christmas cruise (and being a student in the UK he is used to being allowed to drink) we would not have felt it fair to book a cruise where he couldn’t have the occasional beer. All of the above factors meant that, on this occasion, we decided to give P&O a try.

Our thoughts….

We enjoyed the trip and found there were many more similarities than differences. I am not going to write a detailed review of the trip but simply pick out the things that we liked and the things that we missed, when comparing this cruise to our many experiences on Celebrity.

The things that we liked…..

• The Britannia has a free launderette which, although I only used it a couple of times, was very handy. It was an excellent facility with 4 washing machines, 4 dryers and 4 ironing boards and irons and was open from 8 am to 10 pm. It happened to be close to our cabin (which I didn’t realise when booking) which made it even handier. There are no launderettes on Celebrity ships.

• Entertainment is subjective, but overall I would say the entertainment is better on P&O. In fairness, it is probably easier for P&O because they are not trying to cater to an international audience, as is the case on Celebrity, and can therefore tailor the entertainment to British tastes. There were several venues with live music every day/night (‘Pulse’ rock/pop 8 piece live band in the Live Lounge, ‘The James Murrum Band’ in the Crystal Room for more traditional dancing, The Anderson Sealy steel band by the pool etc.). In addition there were nightly performances in the theatre ranging from the usual production shows, a comedian, a ventriloquist, tribute bands and a violinist – something for everyone. On our more recent Celebrity experiences I would say the amount of live music has been paired back but this was not the case on Britannia.

• We hoped that by travelling on a British ship we would still experience something of a British Christmas and this proved to be the case. The whole team went out of their way to put on a range of festive activities – decorations put on every cabin door, a Christmas Eve deck party looking for sightings of Santa (with help from the officers on the bridge) was magical and great fun, midnight mass, a service of nine lessons and carols conducted by the Captain on Christmas morning, the nativity story performed by the children from the kids club, a passenger choir singing carols in the atrium, a Christmas Fete on the pool deck in the afternoon with a huge range of traditional games and prizes, Santa’s grotto with gifts for all the children, a gift for every cabin (P&O limited edition Monopoly), a Christmas themed production show etc. All that we had hoped for and more – you won’t feel as if you have missed Christmas on P&O.

• Room service - we used room service to deliver fresh orange juice every morning and found the service to be extremely prompt. On Celebrity we have found there can be a long wait, irrespective of how little you order.

• We found the Horizon buffet to be relatively civilised, particularly when compared to the Windjammer on Royal Caribbean which we found to be an awful experience. We never struggled to find a table at any time of day and generally the tables were cleared promptly.

• P&O are very relaxed about taking your own alcohol on board for use in your cabin. We bought bottles of gin and rum in the duty free shop in Barbados and took them on board with no problem. They also sell bottles of wine, spirits and mixers (for consumption in your cabin) on the room service menu at very reasonable prices. On Celebrity you are only allowed to take 2 bottles of wine and if you purchase alcohol along the way it will be confiscated and only returned to you on the last day.

• The gratuities are cheaper on P&O as are the drinks, although on Celebrity they offer an all-inclusive drinks package (often offered as a free incentive to book), free drinks at the evening drinks party for their Elite members (part of their loyalty scheme) and ‘free pour’ measures making their drinks much stronger.

• Freedom dining – our last couple of trips on Celebrity and Royal Caribbean have been with flexible dining, rather than fixed time dining. We found P&O had the best of all the flexible/freedom style dining experiences. If there is a queue they give you a pager, allowing you to remain in a bar until your table is ready, but this was rarely needed. Very efficient and no need to stand in a queue.

• Fun – this was a Christmas cruise and therefore the demographic was probably younger than the typical P&O cruise. We enjoyed the sail away parties (I know they are not for everyone) and the New Year’s Eve deck party. It was generally livelier than we have experienced on our Celebrity cruises – they certainly know how to party!

The things we missed…

• On P&O there are no towel stations by the pool. You are given one pool towel in your cabin and that is it. We really missed the Celebrity system where there are piles of fresh towels by the pool (no need to carry them around) available all day. If your towel gets wet you simply place it in the used bin and collect some more. On this trip, we would often visit the beach in the morning returning to the ship for a late lunch and pool swim. Our towels were wet and sandy so we put them in the used towel bin on the way back on the ship but there was nowhere to pick up any fresh towels. We ended up collecting towels from cabin attendant’s trolleys and hiding them under our bed to build up a store for future use. We spoke to others who did the same so we were not alone. Completely ridiculous and a definite negative for us.

• Soft drinks – on Celebrity there are free drinks stations by the pool and in the buffet with a choice of water, fruit punch, lemon drink, iced tea, coffee, tea etc. whereas on P&O there is a jug of iced water on the bar by the pool and that is it. In the Horizon buffet they don’t even have an ice machine so if the glasses have just come out of the dishwasher your only option is warm water, coffee or tea - or put your hand in your pocket and pay for a drink. We really missed this facility.

• Ice cream – on P&O the only ice cream available has to be paid for (apart from in the dining room) whereas on Celebrity there is a free ice cream counter in the buffet supplying a range of ice creams, sweets and toppings. On Royal Caribbean there are soft serve ice cream machines by the pool, again free of charge.

• It has been reported many times that the balconies on Britannia are very narrow and we found them to be disappointingly small. We had 3 cabins and opened up the dividers to create a large space, but the space was so narrow it was impossible for us to sit around on the balcony together. Disappointing but not unexpected since I was aware of the issue before booking.

• We found the food to be of good quality but a bit limited in choice when comparing to Celebrity, both in the dining room and the buffet. No signs of any smoked salmon at breakfast, no streaky bacon at breakfast, no olives in the buffet, no pasta on the evening dinner menu – typically there would be 3 meat with veg options, two fish options, plus one vegetarian option. The desserts were better on P&O and were ‘proper’ desserts rather than the air filled mousse type desserts often seen on Celebrity.

• We found there was a lack of visible security around the ship. We hadn’t realised this until one of the sail away parties during which a member of the crew was targeted and in our view treated very badly by some passengers. We felt very uneasy and could not believe there appeared to be no security around to help. At such a gathering on Celebrity or Royal Caribbean there would be visible security stationed around the pool with walkie talkies to call for back up if needed. This needs addressing urgently for the safety and security of the crew. The sail away parties are attended by large numbers of people, most of whom have been drinking to a greater or lesser extent, and it is easy for things to get ‘out of hand’. A visible security presence would help prevent this and is desperately needed at these events.

• TV – there is no facility to check your on board account or order room service via the TV on Britannia, as is the case on Celebrity, although I understand this is going to change (certainly with regard to the on board account anyway).

In conclusion…

Well done if you have made it to the end of this! I hope it has been of some use for anyone considering either cruise line. We would consider P&O cruises again but probably only on their newer, larger ships and only if the itinerary and price were favourable. Celebrity is probably still our line of choice but for Christmas we enjoyed the British feel provided by Britannia. If you are on a cruise in the Caribbean in the depths of winter, when the UK is covered in grey skies and rain, you can’t go wrong. Just wish we were still there!

Thank you - I have really enjoyed reading your review with comparisons drawn and reasons given for your preferences. That makes it so much more meaningful in my book than some reports which contain no explanations for opinions expressed.

We have travelled with Celebrity and found that experience as good as P&O - but different. Pluses and minuses for both depending on your personal priorities. Celebrity was certainly a more international passenger mix, we found drinks (and wine in particular) more expensive since we didn't have a drinks package and I must say we preferred the entertainment on P&O. We felt the food on Celebrity had the edge but have no complaints about P&O. I was interested to read the issue you raised about security and would hope that it should be addressed as apart from H&S concerns, passengers need to feel confident that inappropriate behaviour will be dealt with promptly. We've never experienced anything untoward but perhaps at Christmas and New Year when there are likely to be high spirits then that would seem to be an occasion to 'beef up' visible security even if only temporarily or for occasions which may be rather lively.

Anyway pleased you enjoyed your trip and at least now have an alternative cruise line to consider.

Surprised to learn that on board accounts are not available through the tv. You can certainly do this on Ventura and Azura.

Thanks for this review - really well written and helpful. We have only travelled with Cunard and P&O to date but have often considered trying another line. The comparisons you have given are really useful.

From our perspective we think we would find Britannia too big as generally we prefer the smaller ships , and so far have not considered cruising on her - and for similar reasons have been put off RCI and Celebrity. We have been on Azura, which we did enjoy but even that was a bit bigger than we really like. Also we are restricted to cruising from the UK rather than doing a fly cruise, so the choice of itineraries is obviously much greater with P & O and Cunard, probably why we have stuck with them!

But thank you again for sharing your experience, and pleased you enjoyed your Christmas and New Year cruise!

Excellent review and possibly the best comparison of the two cruise lines I have read.

One thing, security, I do not think I have ever seen the need for a security presence on any of my cruises, I am a bit surprised that Celebrity have them all the time. Is this an American thing.

Great review and most informative. I'd love free ice cream and soft drinks by the pool but I guess the not insignificant saving on the cruise cost and the better pricing for drinks on board cancel that out. Will still look at Celebrity when booking our next trip.

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We have just done the Xmas cruise on Ventura, our first P&O cruise having done 16 on RCI and Celeb, so very much the same boat as you (pardon the pun!). I echo all your thoughts on pro's and con's and would just add these few. Bar drinks prices were much cheaper than on RCI/Celeb. Vodka & Lemonade £4 ($7.70 +15% service on RCI), bottle Old Speckled Hen £3.75 ($7.50 + 15%). What with prices and being allowed to bring on more or less what you want, P&O win hands down on this. We got the Monopoly too (I think everyone did!). We could see our onboard account, but thought TV in general was terrible. 9 channels (20+ on RCI) of which 4 were P&O 'ads', BBC world news, sky news, sky sports, map and front camera...not a lot of choice. Our main bugbear was Xmas dinner. We had freedom dining and were told about a month before embarking that there would be 2 sittings for Xmas dinner (6.15 and 8.45);no freedom, buffet closed. After a mini mutiny on board, because loads of people (including families with young children) were given the late sitting, they opened up Sindhu, the Glasshouse and the buffet as overflow seating. I don't know why they didn't just keep it as freedom. The Xmas dinner was really nothing special (except there was turkey) and the wait staff were rushed off their feet (eg to save time, our coffee time chocolates were dumped [no other word for it] on the table before we even had main course!). This was really the biggest let down of the cruise and nearly everyone we spoke to felt the same (except those who went to the buffet who said it was great!).

Anyway, just thought I'd stick in my two pennyworth, but agree on the vast majority of your comments kruzgal.

Simon

Thanks everyone for your lovely comments.

With regard to security they are not everywhere all of the time on American ships, but they are an occasional presence and wear a recognisable uniform. They don't have sail away parties on Celebrity so it is perhaps not as necessary, but I am sure if they did they would be present at that type of event. I was just shocked that at an event organised by the ship, where there must have been at least 1000 people present (if not more) most of whom were in high spirits, there was no visible security presence at all. Prevention is better than cure and this could so easily have been prevented.

On this occasion I am guessing that the P&O trip was cheaper because of the flight cost. With Celebrity we would have been on a 'normal' flight whereas with P&O we were on a plane chartered by them, which I suspect keeps the costs more under control. That being said it was not a cheap cruise by any means (it was probably the most we have ever paid in fact) and so having to then pay for ice cream and only getting water at lunch in the Horizon was an annoyance.

P&O does win on the price of drinks, although because we have cruised a lot with Celebrity, and the loyalty programs are transferable between Celebrity and Royal Caribbean, we get free drinks for several hours every evening with both lines. We bought the duty free thinking this would make up for not having that perk, but because the balcony was so small this didn't really work as it was impossible to sit together and we ended up bringing much of it home in our suitcases.

The ship is big and also the hardest we have ever been on to navigate. I don't know why that was the case as we have been on many ships and never had this problem before. It is all quite plain and there weren't many signs around so maybe that was the problem. The artwork was less distinctive than on Celebrity and we realised we often use the art to get our bearings. I can understand why people say they find it difficult as at the end of the 2 weeks I still got confused!

Interestingly I think the things we missed were not particularly expensive for P&O to provide - an ice machine and some fruit juice in the Horizon all day, a pile of clean towels for collection when you get back on ship after a trip to the beach (or even better a supply by the pool), some ice cream at the Horizon over lunch time. Small things that would make a difference to the overall experience.

Great report, thanks for posting.

Thanks everyone for your lovely comments.

 

Interestingly I think the things we missed were not particularly expensive for P&O to provide - an ice machine and some fruit juice in the Horizon all day, a pile of clean towels for collection when you get back on ship after a trip to the beach (or even better a supply by the pool), some ice cream at the Horizon over lunch time. Small things that would make a difference to the overall experience.

Hi - did you feed that back to P & O on your questionnaire, or otherwise? It would be useful if you did because certainly ice cream used to be freely available (a few years ago now...) at lunchtime in the buffet and I certainly remember clean towels being available in the pool area way back. As you rightly say, these are little things in the scheme of P & O , but are actually quite significant for the customer. Ice is always available from your cabin steward - you only have to ask and he/she will bring it whenever you want it. We always ask for fresh ice in the morning when he makes up the cabin and it lasts pretty well in the fridge.

I too have enjoyed reading your post. It is refreshing to read a balanced review and not just a long list of complaints.

We are heading off on Britannia at the end of next week and while we are looking forward to seeing the new ship and hopefully good weather, we also feel that we will miss our balcony. However, we like the OP knew exactly what we were booking and will make our own mind up once we have sailed.

The points made in the post are all valid and having sailed on Eclipse I think our thoughts will be much the same.

Getting to the Caribbean with P & O is a dream compared to both Celebrity and Princess. Friends of our returning from a Caribbean cruise on the Regal spent many more hours getting to the ship and were deposited at the airport in Miami early morning for an evening flight home.

It really is swings and roundabouts - nothing is perfect.

Thanks again for a great review and the tips about the towels.

Ice is always available from your cabin steward - you only have to ask and he/she will bring it whenever you want it.

Unfortunately not on Britannia, Mysticalmother. We asked for ice and our marvellous steward, for whom nothing was too much trouble, was profusely apologetic, but said he was not able to supply ice and it had to be ordered from room service IIRC. We found the fridge to be much better than on other P&O ships (Azura and Aurora), though, it kept any drinks in it very nicely chilled.

I did feedback our thoughts via the online questionnaire on our return.

For cruises to the Caribbean you really can't beat the P&O system for flights and transfers. We have previously sailed Celebrity from Miami, also spending the day at Miami airport, and it is not the best ending to the trip. We were the last ones off the ship, leaving at 4.15pm, so we took up the option of keeping one cabin for the day (cost £70). Our children were able to have a lie in (although disturbed by all the announcements) and we could store our hand luggage, put valuables in their safe, hang our flight clothes in their wardrobe the night before etc. and after a day by the pool we could shower before we left the ship. A very relaxed ending.

We managed to get ice delivered daily to our cabin so it must be down to your steward. However, when going for lunch at the Horizon I don't want to have to return to my cabin, especially on such a large ship, just to get some ice for my water. To me that is basic and should be provided, ideally along with some fruit juice as is supplied at breakfast. Maybe it's a cultural thing but on American ships it is standard.

Unfortunately not on Britannia, Mysticalmother. We asked for ice and our marvellous steward, for whom nothing was too much trouble, was profusely apologetic, but said he was not able to supply ice and it had to be ordered from room service IIRC. We found the fridge to be much better than on other P&O ships (Azura and Aurora), though, it kept any drinks in it very nicely chilled.

We got ice every day on our 28 night back to back cruise in September/October. Never a problem.

I did feedback our thoughts via the online questionnaire on our return.

 

 

 

For cruises to the Caribbean you really can't beat the P&O system for flights and transfers. We have previously sailed Celebrity from Miami, also spending the day at Miami airport, and it is not the best ending to the trip. We were the last ones off the ship, leaving at 4.15pm, so we took up the option of keeping one cabin for the day (cost £70). Our children were able to have a lie in (although disturbed by all the announcements) and we could store our hand luggage, put valuables in their safe, hang our flight clothes in their wardrobe the night before etc. and after a day by the pool we could shower before we left the ship. A very relaxed ending.

 

 

 

We managed to get ice delivered daily to our cabin so it must be down to your steward. However, when going for lunch at the Horizon I don't want to have to return to my cabin, especially on such a large ship, just to get some ice for my water. To me that is basic and should be provided, ideally along with some fruit juice as is supplied at breakfast. Maybe it's a cultural thing but on American ships it is standard.

I think your last sentence is correct, when we were in the states every hotel had ice making machines in the 'hall' for you to help yourself.

Clearly the heat in the US makes this essential.

We had no problem with ice, our lovely cabin girl bought a bucket full morning and night and also a small plate with sliced lemon and lime. She also left us champagne flutes (she saw a bottle of champagne in the fridge) very thoughtful young lady who was tipped very well for her efforts

We got ice every day on our 28 night back to back cruise in September/October. Never a problem.

But you were in a suite DaiB....:)

But you were in a suite DaiB....:)

True but others were getting its well. But ours were had frozen and gift wrapped.

We were in a standard balcony cabin and our stateroom attendant organised ice for us every day.

Yes, in the States there are ice machines on every floor of most good hotels. It would be great if they plumbed ice machines in to the launderette on the ships. Then you could nip along with your bucket and fill up - save the stateroom attendants a job!

Still doesn't solve the issue of no ice in the Horizon.....;)

The last couple of times we've been on P&O, we've had to request ice and lemon via rom service and choose a time for its delivery. We just place a repeat order although last time it took a few days of phoning to get going

I'd also add my thanks to kruzgal for her very informative, fair and balanced review. We've cruised a couple of times on Celebrity (Summit / Equinox) and we find the entertainment on Celebrity isn't really to our taste at all and the evening entertainment is a big part of our cruise. We don't go to the theatre much but we enjoy the relaxed music we know and can 'bop' along to in the P&O bars rather than the jazz and acapela which seemed to predominate on Celebrity. It feels more like muzak to us.

Having said that, if the right itinerary came along from Southampton (I don't fly) then we'd definitely look at Celebrity again.

V ery well thought out review. I agree wholeheartedly about the pool towels. I have often been for a swim and would like to pick up a fresh towel, but none available. How come you can't see your account on Britannia? You could on Azura. I found Azura really difficult to navigate, unlike Oriana which is easy. However, anything bigger than Oriana is too big for us, so won't be trying Celebrity or RCI

I was in a single cabin on Aurora earlier this year and I asked for two beach towels instead of the usual one. I had two towels for the rest of the cruise. I'm sure if you'd asked your steward (s)he would have given you more.

Thanks tartanexile81 - you hit the nail on the head with regards to the entertainment. On Celebrity I don't recall there being so much live music, and what there was tended to be jazz/easy listening. PULSE, the band on Britannia, were a really talented 8 piece band who played a range of music/themed nights - pop classics, 80'nights, rock nights and they also performed on deck for New Year's Eve. They reminded me of the sort of band you might see on the bigger Royal Caribbean ships but they were better. It just felt younger and more fun than Celebrity, although maybe that was partly due to it being a Christmas cruise, I don't know.

I am sure we could have got extra towels from our steward but with 5 family members it would have been a lot to carry. I guess I just missed the convenience that we are used to on Celebrity. Even on a sea day it is easy to collect a couple of towels each in the morning and if by lunch time they are getting wet you can swap them for dry ones. Just one of the luxuries that I missed really. It felt as if the towels were on ration!

I don't know why you can't see your account on Britannia, but you can request a print out at any time and according to guest relations it will be coming.

Actually you can see your account on Fred Olsen ships, so it seems strange that a brand new ship like Britannia doesn't hav e it.