snaefell

It seems to vary across the fleet but we were on Arcadia back in May & even though the cruise planner origionally said that restaurants would be bookable 2 weeks before departure that never happened,2 weeks from departure that changed to book on board.

I get the impression with a lot of cruise related things you find out by experience!😎

When it comes to pre booking restaurants there seems to be one rule for Arvia & Iona,very different for the smaller ships & poor old Britannia seems stuck somewhere in between!😆😆

She did have a good go,we had a great time & ended up paying £300 each which included 2 visits to Sindhu & 3 to the Ocean Grill,quite a difference to £1500 just for drinks!😎

Used Sindhu twice on Arcadia back in May,couldn't book until on board,no mention of £10 to reserve back then.

For our 19 night cruise back in May the drinks package would have cost us £1500,when you consider that I don't drink alcohol,sodas,coffee or tea it would have been some going for my Wife to make it worth the money on her own!😂

I tend to be the 'kiss of death' to anything new tech & tend to rely on paperwork too,hence the title,I am always being caught out by spellcheck,I checked the message but didn't notice the title of my post had changed!😁, Thanks for your replies guys

Just booked a TA on Anthem for April 2024,just curious to know how technology has moved on these days,is everything booked on board using the app ,our last Royal cruise on Quantum in 2019 the new tech was often refusing to work. Also how rigid do they tend to be at Port Liberty with checking in times please guys?

Spot on guys,thanks so much for your help,much appreciated.

Just starting planning a New York trip in July 2024,possibly including an Eastbound TA crossing on QM2,does one side or the other see more of the sun during the crossing at all & are some balcony cabins better or worse than others for enjoying any sun. Grateful for any advice please guys.

Likewise,we had a 19 night cruise on her in May & loved it,great ship,great crew,after reading so many negative comments pre cruise. We booked our cruise in January 2022 & just knew that it wasn't going to happen,everybody just knew that the 'old tub' was already sold,just to make it look more certain Arvia was scheduled to start a cruise to the same area on the same day,what more proof did anyone need,so glad it wasn't true!😎

We were on board Arcadia just after 1400hrs back in May & were told about the buffet but we were booked for the Ocean Grill at 1900hrs so it was too late for us,too much unpacking to do anyway! Assuming we do cruise again we will probably have to reconsider our dining options,we have always gone with Freedom Dining because the 'fixed dining' times were either too early or too late but given that we ended up queuing outside the MDR at 1730hrs on Arcadia we might as well go with the earlier 'fixed dining' option! There is some doubt that we will cruise again as the last two trips back from Southampton by coach have been bad enough to all but make you forget you have been away! The options from Liverpool all seem way too dear.

Not much use to anyone travelling down on Intercruises coach service sadly!

Really depends on what time you board I guess,for us that has always been between 1400-1500hrs,for us that is too late for lunch &/or too close to Dinner.

Had to laugh one day during our Med cruise back in May when the Horizon had an item advising how Norwegian currency would be needed at our next destination,available at the travel bureaux....oops!😂

They seem to make it up as they go along,same with the app! Enjoy your cruise,we did!

We were not able to book ahead for Arcadia back in May,originally it said on the Cruise Planner that we would be able to book from April 30th,when that date arrived it changed to enquire on board,when we got on board & tried to book the Ocean Grill for the first night I was told it was full,making a fuss got us a table!😮

Really didn't find that a problem,we visited the Ocean Grill 3 times & Sindhu twice,the food & service was first class every time,the other nights we used the MDR or the Buffet,(one night we did have a BBQ out on deck),couldn't really complain.

Funny how we have different experiences,nearly 3 weeks on her in May/June & didn't see any of those,loved it

I can vouch for that,as an ex postie I well remember being out in Winter wearing my heavy cold weather trousers,after a couple of hours heavy rain the crutch was down by my knees! As for shorts,I started the job at the beginning of May,two days into the job we were all asked if we wanted shorts,they finally arrived the day before I finished in December so you just knew some just had to wear them!

On Arcadia back in May in the Med the mix in the buffet for dinner had all sorts including shorts & a lot of people in suits,DJ's & gowns on formal nights.

IMO the newer ships are aimed at different clentel from the two older 'adult only' ships. Iona is basically doing a 'ferry' service with fjord 'cruises' week in,week out,Arvia a similar repetitive schedule every two weeks to the Med,sometimes advertised on tv from as little as £499pp,a bargain basement price holiday,it will be interesting to see which turn out to be the future for P&O,I imagine the company hope it is their new investments,if ports continue to limit the number of visitors allowed could that be problematic?

I know for our Arcadia cruise back in May checking the itinerary on the cruise planner showed when the formal nights were

Didn't think I would miss the trays but on Arcadia in May I think somebody had turned up the heating,sometimes the 'warm' plates were blooming hot!

On Arcadia in May due to an outbreak of gastric arthritis staff were on hand at all entrances to ask people to wash their hands,some passengers still just walked past,any hand sanitizer not working were quickly replaced & the crew were serving the food,didn't stop some people helping themselves.