Pine Man

With regard to ongoing discussions about LFTs and the suitability of the companies involved surely it is very easy to break down the options. 1. If you want to cruise with P&O you have to have a LFT. Not much point whinging about it IMHO. 2. If you want to have a LFT there are numerous choices available. You certainly don't have to have Randox but reports suggest that they are probably the most reliable and maybe even the cheapest. I certainly don't see it, necessarily, as a serious subject, we all, as individuals, have choices that start with Option 1.

As meaningful as MOT tests on your car BUT should they be ignored?

It worked fine on my iMac and I was NOT surprised to see comments about Olly Smith who keeps popping up on emails from P&O. He seems to be the 'front man' for P&O now, appearing more times recently than Paul Ludlow! It was interesting to hear Paul referring to Olly with, "I strongly suggest taking the leap and trying Olly’s wine recommendations". His Bon Viveur wines really are very good and cheap! On my last cruise, a couple of weeks ago, I was encouraged to see adverts for his wine on the wine list BUT on the first night I was told, "Sorry sir we haven't got any of that", and as the cruise went on other brands seemed to drop off the list as well!!

My challenge on the next cruise is finding additional drinks vouchers given in lieu of the Loyalty Cocktail Parties!!

Sorry, it's not strictly legitimate BUT no passengers lost out, maybe just P&O!

Me too and I never had less than 3 or 4, whereas on Britannia a couple of weeks ago I got a voucher for just one drink. Mind you, if you knew where to look, lots of additional vouchers could be found!!

All the queues were for the early shows.

I was on the last Britannia cruise and you could only book for shows in the theatre when you were onboard as the app uses the ships WIFI. I tried booking on Personaliser before the cruise but wasn't able. As others have said, you don't need to book but when you arrive at the theatre your cabin number will be recorded. The first show I attended I hadn't booked and, after recording my cabin number, it was explained to me that guests who have booked will get priority over those that haven't. There wasn't, however, an explanation about how that would work! The inference seemed to be that if you turned up with a booking, and the theatre was full, somehow seats would be found but god knows how!! Just out of interest guests, with or without bookings, were sometimes queing for up to nearly an hour before the show was due to start.

I was on the same deck as you - what a bloody racket from above!! It did decrease slightly after a complaint to reception. We had Club Dining in the evenings and after a shaky start we had good service and a better selection of food than on previous cruises. Breakfast was always taken in the Oriental Restaurant and there appeared to be more staff than guests but it maybe that some were undergoing training. There was a strange mixture of 'Guests' on the cruise and a small minority where not to my liking. In fact after a fight in the Live lounge some of them left us at Cadiz! Some 'strange' happenings on board due to Covid. The Peninsular Club Cocktail Party was cancelled and we got a voucher for one drink each, which appeared strange because most nights in the Live Lounge, where the party would have been, it was jam packed and waiters were pushing their way throught the crowds to serve drinks - a bit like the cocktail Parties used to be!!, and, strangest of all I asked when the 'Themed' night was going to be. "Ahh Sir", was the reply, "Due to Covid Protocols they have had to be cancelled". When I asked if the Covid protocols dictated what our dress code was I got a nasty glare in return. Not a bad cruise but certainly not the best. No real atmosphere and Britannia is really getting shabby.

Maybe a bit symplistic, BUT whatever the reason for Marseilles being replaced with Toulon, it sure beats sitting on a plane at Gatwick Airport and being told to get off as your flight AND holiday have been cancelled!

Randox testing was a breeze this morning with the results in 30 minutes, thoroughly recommended AND cheap!

Not as surprised as me. My wife and I just got emails from Lloyd's reminding us of our appointments tomorrow!!! Due to all the adverse reports about Lloyd's I had ordered Randox kits for both of us and if either of the Randox kits fail for some reason, early tomorrow morning, we've still got time to go to Lloyds, or we can cancel them if necessary.

For those that are worried, the link to the Express report are perfectly safe. Edit : As is the link to Cruise hive

Every so often the picture is reversed, a mirror image in effect. This often happens with YouTube videos and it is possible to get them reformatted if the content is important.

Great revue and very helpful. Covid permitting, my wife and I hope to join Britannia at the weekend and from what you say it seems as good as it ever was. Glad the've resolved the saving of wine and, having done many Med cruises, it wouldn't worry me if some of the ports are changed. In fact it may mean we go somewhere we've not been before! Thanks for your report and hope your cruise continues as well as it appears to have started.

Yes - no testing now.

Why would they need to do that? Given that most of the 'Formal Dress' cruises are virtually fully booked, why should they worry about the concerns of a few 'non-conformists' and just continue as they are 'without upsetting the sensibilities of the more traditional cruisers'. We all make are choices of cruise based on our preferences and what is being offered. For that very reason my wife and I will never use Iona, for example, as only Freedom Dining is offered. We certainly won't just go on it and then complain later on this forum about the lack of club dining!

I've had two appointments booked at Lloyds for some time now BUT following the adverse comments here I have ordered two Randox LFTs and will use those instead. Installing the Randox app and registering couldn't have been easier and the test kits were delivered within two days. Total cost of two Lloyds tests - £59.98. Total cost of two Randox tests - £24. Bit of a no-brainer really but I haven't cancelled the Lloyds tests yet and will use them as a backup if the Randox tests fail for some reason - that is if the Lloyds tests haven't already been cancelled!!

No whites 😱

'But then when have P&O consistently behaved reasonably?' Having posed the question it would be nice to know what happened to others who have either had their cruise cancelled by P&O or chosen to cancel and accept a cash refund due to significant changes.

Is it not the case that once a FCC always a FCC, or should you reasonably expect to get a cash refund for a cancelled cruise paid for with FCCs?

No, he wasn't. He was merely enquiring about buying it on board to drink on his balcony. Not an unreasonable query nor was my legitimate, alternative, solution.

You ARE allowed to bring a litre of spirits with you when you embark.

Below is the P&O policy on bringing alcohol aboard:- Each guest aged 18 years (21 years in United States of America ports) and older may bring up to 1 litre of wine, Champagne, beer, spirit, or liqueur on board as they embark the ship for the first time only. Alcohol over the 1 litre limit will be stored and returned to the guest prior to the end of the cruise. If this alcohol is consumed in the dining rooms, bars, restaurants or lounge areas, it will be subject to a corkage fee of £20* per bottle, per occasion which will be charged to the guest’s on-board account.

Probably cheaper to take a bottle with you on embarkation and replenish, as necessary, on port visits.