themanwithahat

The impression I get is you'll be very lucky to get Freedom Dining, the consensus of opinion is (I think) you will be on the later sitting.

Still, no harm in asking :)

Yes, I just wondered if they counted your cabins as one booking or not, that's all. We book Select normally to make sure of it.

They're two bookings.

Thanks themanwithahat - would that also be if you yourself are paying for the two cabins under the one booking reference?

Yes.

I probably sounded more pessimistic than the reality. It is right - there is no guarantee - but tbh I'd be very surprised if you aren't together. When we did it on Azura we had our own table for 4, tried it on Cunard and shared a table of 8.

From what I read here, most people seemed to agree that it was very likely you would be okay - it's just not absolute :)

So can we link two cabins on one booking for dining under an Early Saver and Saver booking?

 

I don't mean for selction of sitting etc, but just that wherever we are allocated we can sit together?

No.

I would say that in my (fairly limited) experience and that of others (I asked the same question 12 months ago roughly), it is pretty likely you will be sat together, though you may be sharing a table with others (which can be great .... we did this on a Cunard cruise and we were always the last to leave !)

I did this on an Azura cruise last year, and the P&O lady was fairly straight about this - nothing is guaranteed. They will *try* to put the linked bookings on the same seating, but they don't *guarantee* it. The only way to get your guarantee is to book a select fare - that's what you get for that fare.

As she put it, you are quids in anyway. You can eat in the buffet, you can eat every night in the pay restaurants and you'd still save money. You probably will sit together in the MDR. If not, it may be doable after the usual round of changes that happens on the first day of the cruise, especially if you are open to any size table any time.

But there is a *possibility* that you may not.

'.

I can see from your replies to people on other threads that you seem to be a very helpful, witty fellow so apologies if I was a tad over-sensitive. I hope you can understand why.

Cheers.

Yes, sorry if I upset you. I don't actually think that view of Merseyside, and especially Liverpool holds any more really.

Thanks John, I didn't know that. Could be very useful. You learn something every day on these boards :)

A little bit of research here and there will save you time and money and improve your holiday - just browse these forums and the like, read anything that interests you.

We are eagerly awaiting our second cruise but it is still weeks away. We booked in January so will have waited 9 months for it to come round, just slightly longer that you will have to wait!!

This is horrible ..... the waiting is tortuous. If the Spanish Inquisition had used "making you wait for your cruise" rather than the rack then we'd all be Catholics .....

Delux balcony (they are only £100 more PP on some cruises which imo will prove to be brilliant value) have a sofabed ideally for your kids.

Are they all Sofabeds ?

The answer is yes people have been turned away from the MDR for not having a jacket and tie on formal nights.

 

We have been asked to leave Andersons on Oriana at 18.00 when having a drink before going up to change. Very nice about it

Think I prefer that to the anarchy described on other lines. First sitting is 6:30 so it is probably nice to come to have a pre-dinner drink and see everyone in their finery.

Most people want to dress up anyway, certainly for my wife and daughter it's a treat, and those that don't want to know about it and use the buffet, room service or whatever.

Different lines, different approaches.

People like you who persist in perpetuating the tired old stereotypes probably haven't been near Liverpool for years. You should give it a go - you will find a vibrant, feel-good, welcoming city with great pubs, bars and restaurants and eclectic, independent shops. The crime rate in Liverpool is no greater than in most other large cities and the police have done great work over the past few years, in partnership with the council, to rid the city of its previous negative image.

Oh please. It's a joke.

I know exactly what Liverpool is like (though there are areas of very significant deprivation). My last visit was about 8 months ago so I doubt it's changed much since then. (I do live 200 miles away) (L8R: Though I wish they'd sort out bl**dy Switch Island)

I come from Norfolk and Norwich gets exactly the same sort of stuff (mainly about farming types and Alan Partridge).

Every area has its own "joke stereotypes". The best way to deal with it is to reply with humour rather than sulks (which is odd, because I'm always told what a great sense of humour Liverpudlians have, obviously not ....).

Better make sure its hubcaps are well secured ....

And Im sure the dress code for children is just smart casual, so no need to shoehorn them into a mini-tux! :)

Yep. Younger children can do smart casual, as they get older they can wear a shirt and tie w/wo a jacket or a nice dress or something.

Also we are not fussed on the formal nights, can we give these a miss? I assume we can go to the buffet on these nights so we are out of the way.

I'd give it a crack. It isn't spectacularly formal. I have a proper Tux now but didn't for my first three cruises, jacket and tie is fine, smart frock for ladies, but it doesn't have to be sumptuous ballgowns and so on, it's more about being a bit ahead of smart casual. Also, I think they occasionally do special menus on formal nights.

Hi. We are booked on X612 next year with the extended family.

One of our number, my brother in law, does not like his first christian name and thus is always referred to by his middle name for everything where possible. Due to security/passport reasons, he has been booked under his real first name.

Does anyone know if it is possible to have a "known as" on P&O - or would it cause more problems than its worth ? The only place I can think it is used is on the ID cards, and obviously the ships electronic systems.

We're taking our first ever cruise in September, starting in Genoa after a flight from the UK.

We'd like to buy a couple of bottles of alcohol on arrival in Genoa before we sail to drink in our cabin/balcony. Is this allowed?

Can we also buy a bottle of wine in other ports to drink on board during our 14 day cruise?

We like the idea of a drink of our choice on our balcony at the beginning or end of an evening.

It's allowed, but it's non trivial. You are taken straight from the airport to the cruise terminal pretty rapidly. I don't know if much is near the terminal itself, you can disembark again. I'm guessing stop 1 will be Livorno so it might be easier buying stuff there ?

My experience is people bend over backwards to be helpful and friendly - almost entirely.

I think they're confused ..... I've never heard of such a thing. Even things like the breakfast buffet vary stuff. As others have said, there is a fixed menu - steak, chicken, salmon that is the same every night - and there's the varying choice. It's great, my son is a bit fussy but is quite happy to eat steak most nights, those of us who want to experiment a bit can do so.

I did something similar on the QE before Christmas. It's much the same I think, no guarantees, but you are almost certain to be togehter. We shared with a family of four who were great. Most days we were last out of the dining room.

But there are no guarantees. The P&O Woman I booked Azura with a while back summed it up ; you almost certainly will be together, worst case scenario you can eat in the Buffet, and for the money you save you can eat in all the speciality restaurants every night and you'll still be ahead. (precis).

OTOMH you can't get a cooked breakfast on room service ?

Almost certainly on the Sea Day. Looking at your schedule (X513P I presume) you leave Amsterdam on 25th AM and arrive Soton on 26th AM so probably then.

Just like to thank all for replies. Got in touch with TA. I complained (calm & assertive) saying I feel very let down. They contacted p&o & they've changed us to balcony. Yehhh. It's 1 with obstructed view but that's what I was expecting anyway. I can concentrate on packing now. Only 10 days to go. Looking fwd to visiting glasshouse. Is it true that u have to book this?

Thanks again. I love this site.

Result :-)

Balconies are great, even if the view is obstructed - hopefully not too much. If you put your Cabin# in someone may be able to tell you exactly how much.

I've never been on Britannia (yet) but on Ventura the Glass House has never looked exactly packed. You might even get a better deal by waiting, we visited "East" on Ventura on the first night and it was cheaper and included a free bottle of plonk.

Unless it's really really important for some reason I wouldn't, you never know there might be a show you really want to see when you book it for (say), but then some of the recent Britannians can probably tell you more.

I'd agree with that. When they did the sequence dancing they used the cameras and screens that they use for shows and acts - with the ballroom dancing they didn't and you couldn't see their feet, which made it difficult. Every cruise I've been on, dance lessons have been very popular.

Thanks - important, as #1 son is a bit of a fussy eater :)