Bikermouse72

Hi all,

I would really appreciate any advice/information on Britannia balcony cabin A102 which is right at the front of the ship. We travel tomorrow and would appreciate any advice asap as P&O have just re-assigned this cabin and it looks like it's a steel balcony with restricted access? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Bikermouse72

Hi,

 

We're looking at booking the Ventura on the early saver rate (usually always book the standard rate). In regards to dining options, we've been told that we can only request our preferred dining option (freedom dining) and we're then pretty much at the mercy of whether p&o can accomodate our wishes. Has anyone had this experience and have you found that you usually get what you want?

 

Thanks

Carl

Hi Carl,

I've done the saver fare a couple of times and did on Ventura this year, we prefer freedom dining and this is what we have always been given on the saver fares, I'm not sure if this is their usual system, I think it might be and select fare passengers are given preference over first and second dining times so in my experience, if you prefer freedom dining you'll be ok.

Good luck,

Bikermouse

I would recommend you break your rule and do take carry-on hand luggage this time with a few essentials. Sometimes your cases do not reach your cabin until about 10pm.

Thanks Marylizcat, I've been offered some good advice and will be taking a carry on bag with a few essentials (probably mostly shoes!). I've heard people suggest taking bathing suit, towel etc so you can start to enjoy the facilities as soon as you board. I don't usually like to have much baggage to carry at the airport but it does make sense to use the extra baggage allowance.

Thanks for the tip,

Bikermouse

If you don’t normally take any hand luggage then pop your shoes in a bag and carry them on.

Thanks Highpeaklad, good advice, the shoes can go in the carry on bag :D

Thank you CCPM and Annieuk,

I hadn't thought about that and you're both right, I have seen some crowding in the overhead lockers and would rather know my dresses were safe in the hold. Thanks for answering my question, the dresses will go in my suitcase, just means I'll have to take less shoes :)

Thanks again,

Bikermouse

If anyone could help I'd really appreciate it. I've just checked the measurements for my Thomas Cook flight to Barbados with P&O cruises and the measurement for my suit/dress bag is larger by 5cm than the carry on guidance (guidance is 55cm and my bag is 60cm), as I usually don't take any carry on luggage I'm not sure how strict the airlines are with this and I don't know whether I should risk taking the bag or not? I don't really want to put my formal dresses in my suitcase but neither do I want to pay extra at the airport either :(, any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance,

Bikermouse

We went to the cruise show at Earls Court about 5 years ago to get details of Antarctica. Found the perfect trip, Hapag Lloyd on the Bremen. Girl on the desk then said Don't book it today with us, Go to the Noble Caledonia stand, they are giving a 10% discount on it. Well as this was a 5 figure fare per person this advice saved us a few thousand.

So maybe there are bargains to be had at these shows.

 

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Sounds like it was definitely worth the visit for you, and a great deal. I can't say I saw any kind of deals worth the trip to Birmingham so I would definitely think twice before going to such an event again but it's good to know there are bargains to be had :)

But if you are prepared to do a weekend break, with a hotel, wouldn't it be better to make a weekend of it in Southampton (or nearby) and do a ship visit? Anywhere on the South Coast is a lot nicer than Birmingham International :D

Hi Selbourne,

I do like Southampton and staying at the Grand Harbour hotel with a visit to the Dancing Man pub which is close by so making a weekend of it in Southampton and doing a ship tour sounds like a much better idea :) . I thought you had to have invites for the ship tours but I now understand you can just pay for them, well you can for P&O at least.

I was expecting more from the cruise show including some good deals but I was sadly disappointed so don't think I'll bother again, I'll just keep finding cruise deals and the best prices at cruiseville.co.uk and in the comfort of my own home :)

Thanks everybody for you advice. I traveled almost 2 hours to get there and stayed over in a hotel for the night and although it was nice to have a night away, it turned out to be a costly weekend and would not do it again for this kind of event. I like the idea of a ship tour and would love to do one but as others have said, when you live a good few hours drive away from Southampton, a day tour isn't really an option.

Hi all, I've just returned from this weekends Birmingham cruise show, having never been to a cruise show before I was hoping for more and was a little disappointed that P&O didn't attend as well as some other UK favourites. The show was mostly attended by river cruises and luxury cruise lines, is this the norm and could anyone recommend any cruise shows?

Thanks in advance,

Bikermouse

Hi everybody, having read some of the posts I think price changes are a real issue but knowing when to book can be an advantage and can save hundreds, but I've also booked a cruise only to discover the price has reduced days later. I thought I'd share with you a website that I've come across where you can place watches on cruises and monitor the price fluctuations, they even email you when the prices go up or down, identifying the best time to book. The website is cruiseville.co.uk and they are not a TA, but a website that finds cruise deals and allows you to watch cruises, and book through your normal channels but be warned, the site is quite addictive

Hi everybody, someone in your thread recommended I post something on here after they saw a comment I made on another thread about a website that I've come across where you can place watches on cruises and then monitor the price fluctuations, they even email you when the prices go up or down, which from reading your posts, seems to be something you would all benefit from. The website is cruiseville.co.uk and they are not a TA, but a website that finds cruise deals and allows you to watch cruises, and book through your normal channels. But be warned, the site is quite addictive :D

Check out the Royal/ Regal princess site which has views from Obstructed view cabins equivalent to Britannia is E deck on Royal/Regal, It shows great views of all Balcony cabinshttps://sites.google.com/site/royalregalprincess/

Thanks again Mark, you've been a great help, I'll take a look as I've not been able to find many cabin pictures of Britannia.

Hi Bikermouse, Slight correction which could be good news, I had G407 and G409 so hopefully G405 will not have a noise issue, All cabins above glass house have a good view no obstruction, I found Britannia a good ship and enjoyed the cruise, Even with the hassle we had it was ok. Hopefully you do not get any issues but if you do raise it with the reception and keep on we got moved in the end.

Thank you Mark, that could be good news, I'll remain hopeful. Hope you enjoy your next cruise on Britannia, thanks again.

Hi Bikermouse, I was in G405 and My mother had G407 both cabins suffered from a constant low level noise disturbance from the area opposite which is some sort of service room, Electrical I think. I complained about this on board and eventually got both cabins changed mid cruise, I am not a complainer but after 5 days we had enough.

 

There was smoking below the balcony which is on the Java Side but this was not an issue not much smell or smoke. My issue at the time was PO website said smoking was on Glasshouse side so information at time of Sailing was wrong. I was told they had switched smoking sides from Glasshouse to Java.. When I returned home I spoke to PO directly and they changed there web site details to correct information, Smoking outside Java.

My Opinion if you can change your cabin go for Glasshouse side. I am going on Britannia again and have booked G226, No obstruction and not a smoking area.

Thank you Mark for your response, I'm pleased that the smoking below is not as big an issue as i thought it might be and I agree with your complaint, if you book a cabin based on information that is provided and then they change it, I agree they should give you what you've paid for. Unfortunately for me I booked a guaranteed cabin and have been allocated this room, which from the plan looks to be in a good position in terms of obstructions as it looks like the room isn't too affected by the lifeboars, can you confirm this please? So for us it looks like we've got what we've been given and so i'm a little concerned about the noise.

Thanks again, your input is appreciated,

Bikermouse

Thank you both, I'm more concerned with sitting together than having little added luxuries (although don't get me wrong I do like them), but it's looking like even if you upgrade you still have to wait to pre-book your seats after the upper grades have the opportunity 2 days before the rest of us so you're still not guaranteed seats together.

Thanks again,

Hi all,

Can I ask why the front 2 rows are better? I always prefer to be in the middle of the plane and I too am a nervous flyer so also get a little anxious about sitting with my family. We are flying in February also and did look at upgrading to premium economy but it looks like it's £299 pp so that would amount to another £900 for us and I'm not sure it it's worth the extra cost? Do you get to book your seats early? Any help is appreciated.

Many thanks,

Bikermouse

No-one is allowed to smoke on either of the decks outside The Glass House or outside Java.

 

The outside smoking deck you are possibly thinking about is on the port side outside The Live Lounge.

 

Sent from my Sony Z1 Compact.

Thank you, that's good news, but people are talking about smoking outside Java and the Glass House so has this changed recently? I was on Britannia last April and I think people were allowed to smoke outside the Glass House then but I could be mistaken.

Thanks again for your reply,

Bikermouse

Thank you 9is, I feel much better now, it looks like a well placed cabin and given it's obstructed it looks like it will have a decent view although I've not been able to find any pictures of this, have just looked on the deck plan but I think you said there was very little obstruction on this cabin?

Thank you again for relieving my concerns, I can get back to being excited!

Hi all,

I'm doing a Caribbean cruise on Britannia in February next year and are staying in cabin G405, I read a previous post that mentioned it was a noisy cabin with a constant fan noise and this on top of it looking like's it's directly above the smoking area at Java is starting to worry me a little. Although I'm not a fan, I can put up with the occasional smell of smoke but all 3 of us will struggle with being kept awake with a noisy fan.

Any pictures, tips or advice would be helpful and greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Bikermouse

We have stayed in g405 just a few weeks ago. Our cabin looked down onto the outdoor area of Java coffee shop. I would say that we had very little obstruction. i think g403 had a bit more obstruction from lifeboat, it didn't seem stop our neighbors using it as they were always sat outside. Never had any problems with people sitting outside on the deck below. Don't recall it being smoking area. By the cabin steward is a lovely man named Sachin, quite possibly the most friendly man I've met. Absolutely amazing with us and our children.

 

Don't know age of your children but this cabin was great for the four of us. A double bed, a sofa bed and a Pullman above the sofa.

 

Any questions about the cabins just ask.

Hi there, we have cabin G405 booked and have just read a post about it being a noisy room with some kind of extractor fan constantly running, can you tell me if you also experienced this and any other tips about the cabin would be greatly appreciated. Myself, my husband and 14 year old daughter will be in the room so it's useful to know that the sofa bed is big enough for a teenager.

Many thanks,

Bikermouse