5200 pax capacity on new ship?

I have just read an article about some of the potential features of the P&O new (yet to be named) ship and that it has a capacity for 5200 people? I must have missed that bit when the information came out about it at first. That's massive.

Im not sure if a ship that size will be for me but I will try it at least once. Thats a lot cabins to sell and a completely different demographic as well I would guess.

Britannia has a capacity of well over 4000, so in the scheme of things I guess another 1000 or so won't be that noticeable on s bigger ship.

Personally any ship with much more than 2500 pax is not on our travel list.

Sent from my XT1032 using Forums mobile app

The new P&O ship will be a sister of one currently being built for Costa. I've added an attachment so that you can get a better appreciation on the 'look'. Clearly the Costa ship will be different internally and looks like she will be carrying more passengers that the P&O creation. Balconies are going to be much the same size as Britannia, so small and I believe the itinerary will only feature 7 night cruises. P&O's new ship will feature a huge glass dome permanently midships, this will cover the pool which in itself will have a retractable stage for shows and events when not being used for swimming. I think the sunbathing area will be severely limited but on the plus side she will have a promenade deck circling the ship.

https://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/reviews/review.cfm?ShipID=1283

Bal

Here is another article which you might find interesting.

http://www.express.co.uk/travel/cruise/725816/PO-Cruises-new-ship-launches-2020-inside-out

Bal

I have just read an article about some of the potential features of the P&O new (yet to be named) ship and that it has a capacity for 5200 people? I must have missed that bit when the information came out about it at first. That's massive.

 

 

 

Im not sure if a ship that size will be for me but I will try it at least once. Thats a lot cabins to sell and a completely different demographic as well I would guess.

I don’t like small ships, this looks far too small for me.

;)

Sent from my iPad using Forums

To those who dismiss the big ships without trying them, you may be worrying unnecessarily. We have done 3 cruises on Britannia and the ship copes very well with the numbers and never feels over crowded. By contrast, on our recent cruise on Aurora, the ship felt extremely congested on occasions, particularly when trying to pass through the ridiculously narrow and congested atrium, especially when the stalls of 'tat' appear.

So, if your concern is that bigger ships are more congested, I would say that the opposite can be the case.

If the new ship has everything that Britannia has, plus a proper promenade deck, mid-ship stairs and (due to the new propulsion system) no aft soot issues, then, IMO, you have a near perfect ship. The only problem is that, due to it's size, the itineraries will get very repetitive as it will be more restricted as to where it can go!

We enjoyed Brittania and it did not feel crowded, good passenger flows but yes we did miss a proper promenade.

What puts me off bigger ships is the time it takes if you have to shuttle or tender. The shuttle queues on Brittania were absouotely dreadful. Embarkation and disembarkation also slower.

I would only travel on her again if there were no shuttle or tender ports. We have done so on some of the big RCI ships.

Dai, if you want really big try RCI 7000+ pax ;p

I’ve tried most of the P & O ships and Azura/Ventura are big enough for me. I’ve been on Britannia and did find it a bit too big and the lack of a promenade deck was an issue for me. My favorite is Arcadia, closely followed by Aurora. Personally, I think there is more space available on them and they don’t ever seem overcrowded. Each to his own.

Glad you like Arcadia as we are on her next month, with lots of wine, for the last time!

Sent from my SM-T700 using Forums mobile app

Glad you like Arcadia as we are on her next month, with lots of wine, for the last time!

 

Sent from my SM-T700 using Forums mobile app

Make the most of it and have a lovely cruise.

We tried the Britannia and found her too big. The day we had rough seas and all the outside decks were closed which meant the inside seating areas were packed. It's then you appreciate just how many passenger are on board.

We tried the Britannia and found her too big. The day we had rough seas and all the outside decks were closed which meant the inside seating areas were packed. It's then you appreciate just how many passenger are on board.

Britannia is no different from any ship in that respect. They all feel packed on rough sea days. Yes there are twice as many passengers, but the ship is twice as big! I'd be interested to see some stats on 'public area space per passenger', as I can't help but feel that it would debunk some myths about the bigger ships.

Britannia is no different from any ship in that respect. They all feel packed on rough sea days. Yes there are twice as many passengers, but the ship is twice as big! I'd be interested to see some stats on 'public area space per passenger', as I can't help but feel that it would debunk some myths about the bigger ships.

That would make interesting reading, it would be nice if we could find out that information.

Britannia is no different from any ship in that respect. They all feel packed on rough sea days. Yes there are twice as many passengers, but the ship is twice as big! I'd be interested to see some stats on 'public area space per passenger', as I can't help but feel that it would debunk some myths about the bigger ships.

I guess a reasonable, not perfect calculation would to divide the tonnes of a ship by the number of passengers. Tonnes being the enclosed space occupied by revenue earning areas. So cabins would be included as they are on all passenger ships .. Oh! or do we call them guest ships! And, all the other internal lounges, eateries, theatres, corridors, shops and so on would be included.

I'll let someone else do the calculations. Ha!

Bal

I guess a reasonable, not perfect calculation would to divide the tonnes of a ship by the number of passengers. Tonnes being the enclosed space occupied by revenue earning areas. So cabins would be included as they are on all passenger ships .. Oh! or do we call them guest ships! And, all the other internal lounges, eateries, theatres, corridors, shops and so on would be included.

 

I'll let someone else do the calculations. Ha!

 

Bal

Only it is not just the floor space the tonnage includes all the internal Air space, like the Britannia atrium. The sum you need to do is available deck space.

It always appears to me that Arcadia has a lot of usable space especially with her covered pool area.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

That would make interesting reading, it would be nice if we could find out that information.

The data is all available on the Choosing Cruising website, Britannia is 39.2 gt per passenger, Azura is less at 37.4, but both are bettered by Celebrity Eclipse at 42.8, and most of the bigger RCI ships are even better, and the new ship will be only 35..4.

We're not struck on the bigger ships prefer them a tad smaller Azura is about the biggest for us now, tried Britannia enjoyed it but not my favourite also been on MSC Divina and Carnival Vista, Divina was ok really didn't like Vista at all though.

The data is all available on the Choosing Cruising website, Britannia is 39.2 gt per passenger, Azura is less at 37.4, but both are bettered by Celebrity Eclipse at 42.8, and most of the bigger RCI ships are even better, and the new ship will be only 35..4.

The only trouble with these figures is they're based on gross tonnage which is the total enclosed volume of the ship and therefore includes areas not accessible to passengers. Bal's use of net tonnage would be a more accurate measure but neither include the open decks so I would agree with Dai, what we need is some idea of the deck space available per person.

The only trouble with these figures is they're based on gross tonnage which is the total enclosed volume of the ship and therefore includes areas not accessible to passengers. Bal's use of net tonnage would be a more accurate measure but neither include the open decks so I would agree with Dai, what we need is some idea of the deck space available per person.

As far as I know the figures I quoted are recognised as the industry standard.

I quite like to meet and greet other guests during the course of a cruise, and perhaps share the odd beer. The chances of this happening with 2000 pax is twice as likely as with 4000pax, hence my preference for smaller ships.

Sent from my SM-T700 using Forums mobile app

Personally, I think the newer ships generally feel much more crowded, both inside and on the decks. Older ships were built not only with bars but also rooms that are more like lounges - The Crows Nest on P&O ships for instance (which I realise is on Britannia). Also, as time has gone on, the cruise lines have been more keen to install more 'on-board revenue centres', which take up internal space. As ships have got higher - i.e. being built with more cabin decks, the outside deck space has not increased to the same proportions. Ventura and Azura for instance were later-built Grand Class Ships, which had a full extra deck of cabins but no extra internal or external public space. Later Princess ships in this class were the same. I think this is why the likes of Oriana and Aurora generally feel more spacious.

As far as I know the figures I quoted are recognised as the industry standard.

I agree these are the standard and I wasn't trying to belittle your post, I just think they have the potential to be misleading.

I think we tend to be pretty open minded re ships and love Britannia, but we tend to agree that this new ship will just be too big. Hate the RCI mega ships and it is sad to see that P&O are going this way. I do hope they keep some of their mid size ships, but I suppose they will only go for so long before they need to be replaced. I asked the Captain on Britannia if the future for P&O was big ships and he said that it was. Sad.

That would make interesting reading, it would be nice if we could find out that information.

If you look at the Berlitz Guide it is there and I think (not sure without looking it up) that Aurora and Azura score the best on passenger/space ratio.

I am not quite sure how passenger space ratios are calculated these days and I think it is getting harder to rely on them. The newer, larger ships seem to have an increasing number of 'for-fee' venues, which generally have more space per passenger. If there are a number of these on a ship, it could mean the 'fee-free' venues are more crowded.