TUI to Restructure and Change Thomson Cruises!! - Announcmen & Plans in May

[happy v]

I just agree with everyone.

 

One thing though, does anyone know if Tui are mainly cruise orientated or do they do 7 night cruises and 7 night stay? I prefer longer trips with a wider range of ports.

[Sailaway487]

I just agree with everyone.

 

One thing though, does anyone know if Tui are mainly cruise orientated or do they do 7 night cruises and 7 night stay? I prefer longer trips with a wider range of ports.

 

A bit of both really. They don't do cruise and stay, and they choose routes that aren't tied down just to those that their airline TUIfly go to which is good.

 

Currently for next year, they're offering 7 night b2b cruises from Valletta, 10 night cruise from Palma, and then a good range for Northern Europe from Germany. They do Canaries and Caribbean in Winter, and unlike Thomson, the Orient with Dubai and they are just starting the Far East!

 

If they took essences from the TUI itineraries, such as the range of actual destinations like the Far East, and also the 10 night itineraries, and then matched it with Thomson's port intensive itineraries and ones that go to lesser known ports as well as the big hitters, then they'd win hands down for me.

[FOD1984]

Just had an ad on my facebook feed for Thomson Cruises. Whilst they normally show their own fleet in previous ads, they clearly show what looks like a RCCL Vision class cruise ship. A sign of things to come, or am I letting my imagination run wild?

[geomagot]

its a bit of an odd turnaround this tui/thoms/thoms/tui merger thing with tui/rci

 

wasnt this the way island cruises operated? (in partnership with rci)

 

until rci suddenly without any warning wanted their ship back (island star) and pulled out (leaving island escape/island cruises dead in the water)

 

now thomsons/tui cruise are being swallowed back up (by tui) in partnership with rci again

 

tui are saying that they are 'gonna be big!... ie big players in cruise' what bigger than rci? or bigger because of their partnership with rci?.... rci wont want to be heading into a future where tui cruise could outshine/out monopolise them? (if tui do happen to make those huge profits from cruise that they are hoping for?)

 

what if rci pull the same stunt on tui and suddenly (without impunity) want their (mein shiffs?) back? that would leave thomsons and a large chunk of tui... dead in the water (not very big at all? or actually not even in existence anymore)

 

and an afterthought... where would this leave louis ....stuck with a load of ships they cant sell? this could shake up the whole european industry? with rci calling the shots

[kruzseeka]

its a bit of an odd turnaround this tui/thoms/thoms/tui merger thing with tui/rci

 

wasnt this the way island cruises operated? (in partnership with rci)

 

until rci suddenly without any warning wanted their ship back (island star) and pulled out (leaving island escape/island cruises dead in the water)

 

now thomsons/tui cruise are being swallowed back up (by tui) in partnership with rci again

 

tui are saying that they are 'gonna be big!... ie big players in cruise' what bigger than rci? or bigger because of their partnership with rci?.... rci wont want to be heading into a future where tui cruise could outshine/out monopolise them? (if tui do happen to make those huge profits from cruise that they are hoping for?)

 

what if rci pull the same stunt on tui and suddenly (without impunity) want their (mein shiffs?) back? that would leave thomsons and a large chunk of tui... dead in the water (not very big at all? or actually not even in existence anymore)

 

and an afterthought... where would this leave louis ....stuck with a load of ships they cant sell? this could shake up the whole european industry? with rci calling the shots

 

I'm finding it hard to get my head round too...............

 

And if RCI aren't calling the shots then Carnival are :rolleyes: (Cunard, P&O, Holland America, Princess, Costa, Windstar and Seabourn are all Carnival Corporation.) I suppose the only hope is that each cruise line within the 'Company' has a different identity, offers varying levels of luxury, that some to cater to families and provide different experiences so that everyone can find what suits them best - and at what cost. (Carnival seem to have a pretty good range which seem to me to be quite distinctive.)

 

The problem will be finding just that right niche for Thomson - we've probably got a good idea of what we think that should be (lots of opinions already expressed and finding common agreement) but the crunch will be what TUI, RCI and the bean counters decide!

[okavango]

its a bit of an odd turnaround this tui/thoms/thoms/tui merger thing with tui/rci

 

 

and an afterthought... where would this leave louis ....stuck with a load of ships they cant sell? this could shake up the whole european industry? with rci calling the shots

 

Louis only own Majesty and not Spirit

[Langtoncouple]

I'm not sure which ship my sister and her husband were on a couple of years ago but the first language in every announcement was Italian. Some told passengers to "hurry along" "don;t be late for..." etc. By the time they got to announcing it in English, they were too late for certain things!!!

[Red Scorpion]

So it seems there is widespread agreement on two things. The first is that we do not want to lose the staff and entertainment that make cruising with Thomson such a joy. The second is that the ships could be a lot more modern though probably not much bigger. I was on the Majesty when it was docked next to one of the Mein Schiffs and the difference between the two ships is stark.

 

I think the TUI senior management are right to make changes. We all know that the cost-cutting is beginning to impact upon our holidays but more seriously upon the crews who give us such a great time and people on the FB pages have expressed worry about that. We also know that sales pitches for drinks packages, perfumes etc. have become more noticeable. It seems likely that these measures have been taken because the business model is not really sustainable. But it is possible to move to a more sustainable business model without losing the essence of what makes Thomson so different.

 

It is not just the Britishness that makes Thomson what it is. There are other British cruise lines but they are not the same as Thomson. The new version of Thomson needs to retain the attributes that make it so special, the friendliness, even cheekiness of the crew as well as the fabulous entertainment provided by Peel. But we all know that most of the ships are close to their sell by date. MSC sprang from nothing to being a successful cruise line in quite a short space of time. Thomson have been in this business for a long time and have built up a lot of knowledge about what customers want. If they are smart they will draw upon this knowledge so that when the ships change the essential product does not.

 

If they get this right Thomson could be transformed into the undisputed best cruise line in their target market area. They may decide to become more international. Some people won't like that. Some customers want a little piece of Britain floating between foreign ports but acting as a refuge for Brits. But not everyone is like that. Some people would welcome the chance to mingle with others so long as English remains the dominant language on board. Me, I am happy with either a Brits only clientele or a more international customer base. One advantage of the international model might be the loss of comedy night because although one or two of the usual stock of comics is of a high standard most of them are fairly ordinary and one of them is despicable. Comedy does not translate well even if the person in question is a fluent English speaker.

 

There is also the risk that they get this horribly wrong not only for Thomson but for Tui. It is my guess that the Tui customers like their German language ships dominated by German culture. They may not want to put up with us Brits wanting chips all the time and being useless at speaking everyone else's language and sometimes not too good at speaking our own.

 

If the senior managers at Tui know their business then they will use Tui's model of ship procurement, possibly make savings by merging head office functions but keep two distinct cruise lines. Keep what is working but change what is not.

[CRUISIN LINDA]

I'm not sure which ship my sister and her husband were on a couple of years ago but the first language in every announcement was Italian. Some told passengers to "hurry along" "don;t be late for..." etc. By the time they got to announcing it in English, they were too late for certain things!!!

Thar sounds like Costa! We spoke to people who said they had been on Costa and English was always the last language given out!

 

Not good when the ship is turning over :eek::eek:

[CRUISIN LINDA]

So it seems there is widespread agreement on two things. The first is that we do not want to lose the staff and entertainment that make cruising with Thomson such a joy. The second is that the ships could be a lot more modern though probably not much bigger. I was on the Majesty when it was docked next to one of the Mein Schiffs and the difference between the two ships is stark.

 

I think the TUI senior management are right to make changes. We all know that the cost-cutting is beginning to impact upon our holidays but more seriously upon the crews who give us such a great time and people on the FB pages have expressed worry about that. We also know that sales pitches for drinks packages, perfumes etc. have become more noticeable. It seems likely that these measures have been taken because the business model is not really sustainable. But it is possible to move to a more sustainable business model without losing the essence of what makes Thomson so different.

 

It is not just the Britishness that makes Thomson what it is. There are other British cruise lines but they are not the same as Thomson. The new version of Thomson needs to retain the attributes that make it so special, the friendliness, even cheekiness of the crew as well as the fabulous entertainment provided by Peel. But we all know that most of the ships are close to their sell by date. MSC sprang from nothing to being a successful cruise line in quite a short space of time. Thomson have been in this business for a long time and have built up a lot of knowledge about what customers want. If they are smart they will draw upon this knowledge so that when the ships change the essential product does not.

 

If they get this right Thomson could be transformed into the undisputed best cruise line in their target market area. They may decide to become more international. Some people won't like that. Some customers want a little piece of Britain floating between foreign ports but acting as a refuge for Brits. But not everyone is like that. Some people would welcome the chance to mingle with others so long as English remains the dominant language on board. Me, I am happy with either a Brits only clientele or a more international customer base. One advantage of the international model might be the loss of comedy night because although one or two of the usual stock of comics is of a high standard most of them are fairly ordinary and one of them is despicable. Comedy does not translate well even if the person in question is a fluent English speaker.

 

There is also the risk that they get this horribly wrong not only for Thomson but for Tui. It is my guess that the Tui customers like their German language ships dominated by German culture. They may not want to put up with us Brits wanting chips all the time and being useless at speaking everyone else's language and sometimes not too good at speaking our own.

 

If the senior managers at Tui know their business then they will use Tui's model of ship procurement, possibly make savings by merging head office functions but keep two distinct cruise lines. Keep what is working but change what is not.

Very well put Red Scorpion. I completely agree :)

[happy v]

A bit of both really. They don't do cruise and stay, and they choose routes that aren't tied down just to those that their airline TUIfly go to which is good.

 

Currently for next year, they're offering 7 night b2b cruises from Valletta, 10 night cruise from Palma, and then a good range for Northern Europe from Germany. They do Canaries and Caribbean in Winter, and unlike Thomson, the Orient with Dubai and they are just starting the Far East!

 

If they took essences from the TUI itineraries, such as the range of actual destinations like the Far East, and also the 10 night itineraries, and then matched it with Thomson's port intensive itineraries and ones that go to lesser known ports as well as the big hitters, then they'd win hands down for me.

All of that sounds good.

 

If nothing else this announcement has given us all something to talk about............and the day the Far East cruise is launched will probably see us all meeting up on board.;)

[Jakanne1]

All of that sounds good.

 

If nothing else this announcement has given us all something to talk about............and the day the Far East cruise is launched will probably see us all meeting up on board.;)

 

And maybe Newcastle Airport for you and me, Vera. :);)

[happy v]

And maybe Newcastle Airport for you and me, Vera. :);)

 

Bring it on!!!:D

[geomagot]

and the day the Far East cruise is launched will probably see us all meeting up on board.;)

 

I'm in :cool::)

[blackpoolbelle]

Thar sounds like Costa! We spoke to people who said they had been on Costa and English was always the last language given out!

 

Not good when the ship is turning over :eek::eek:

 

we've just got back from a Costa cruise and English wasn't always the last language on our ship. Italian first, as you would expect, then it varied. From what I'd read, I was expecting this multi-language announcement process to be an issue - it wasn't in the slightest. Quite easy to tune out other languages.

[sennen]

Just back from Majesty bad cruise really bad husband is a Coeliac and there practices are really poor ended up with him being Glutened.

 

People were drunk at the dinner table one night and again next day at lunch different people each time someone was asleep in the games room. Dress code flip flops, running vest and hudie in bright orange or any sports wear this is in the evening.

 

It took over an hour to check in then what's with finding your luggage and then putting labels on it never done that before, paying for a safe.

 

Also walking around with bottles of wine in your hand sorry that's not on. I will amit that I did not do enough checking out of the ship but this was a cross between Butlins, Blackpool and Benidorm.

 

So come on TUI you need to spend serious money to get your ships, staff ect up to standard.

 

 

Sennen

[geomagot]

Also walking around with bottles of wine in your hand sorry that's not on.

 

how true...i completely sympathise ;) its really difficult to juggle a bottle of wine, a plate of cake (with cheese) and a pint of lager top while your hands are slippery from alcohol gel whilst wearing flip flops? isnt it?! ;):)

[tilford]

Just back from Majesty bad cruise really bad husband is a Coeliac and there practices are really poor ended up with him being Glutened.

 

People were drunk at the dinner table one night and again next day at lunch different people each time someone was asleep in the games room. Dress code flip flops, running vest and hudie in bright orange or any sports wear this is in the evening.

 

It took over an hour to check in then what's with finding your luggage and then putting labels on it never done that before, paying for a safe.

 

Also walking around with bottles of wine in your hand sorry that's not on. I will amit that I did not do enough checking out of the ship but this was a cross between Butlins, Blackpool and Benidorm.

 

So come on TUI you need to spend serious money to get your ships, staff ect up to standard.

 

 

Sennen

 

Well,I am also just back of Majesty(disembarked Tenerife 13 Feb) and I think I must have been on a different ship to you. I don't recall seeing anybody drunk or walking around with wine bottles. Check-in at the quayside took around 5 minutes maximum and our cases were delivered to our cabin at the same time as we got there.(On my last cruise with Celebrity it took 3 hours for our cases to arrive).You say that "you have never had to put a label on a suitcase before". err right.

 

For the money we paid,I thought Majesty was excellent,and moreover the many other passengers I chatted to were well pleased also. To say that "staff need to get up to standard" is really outrageous. The staff on Majesty are fantastic and could not have been more helpful and friendly. They are the main reason I would be happy to go on Majesty again.

 

Its clearly very unfortunate your husband became ill,and everyone is entitled to their opinions but I really do not feel that yours are representative of the vast majority of passengers on Majesty.

[nancyneptune]

You are right Tilford. People are entitled to their opinion. You are lucky you had a good experience. Someone else did not. In fact very many people have not had good experiences on Thomson's ships lately. You only need to read the reviews. The forum is for people to express their opinions whether positive or otherwise.

I have in the past experienced passengers whose behaviour leaves a lot to be desired. Drunkenness, rudeness, refusing to to observe the dress code and use the hand sanitizers. Their attitude is " It's my holiday, I paid for it. I'll wear what I like and I'll please myself.....tough "

We all go on holiday to enjoy ourselves. unfortunately some people have no regards for others. My my, how Thomson's cruises have changed over the years.

[dronnygirl]

Thomsons now have competition in the Med - we have been looking at P&O Cruise on Oceana around Italy in September. Basic price is from £699 whereas the cheapest Med cruise in September with Thomson is £846. Thomson will have to get newer ships or they will lose customers.

[Sheila49]

Obviously if people have bought the wine package they are going to have to walk about with their bottle at some point unless they stay in one bar or restaurant until the bottle is finished. I know the restaurants will keep it for the next night but I don't suppose the bars will and if they did you could have an opened bottle in every bar!:confused: If they wanted a glass of wine during the show they would have to take the bottle with them.

[so,ton saint]

Obviously if people have bought the wine package they are going to have to walk about with their bottle at some point unless they stay in one bar or restaurant until the bottle is finished. I know the restaurants will keep it for the next night but I don't suppose the bars will and if they did you could have an opened bottle in every bar!:confused: If they wanted a glass of wine during the show they would have to take the bottle with them.

i did not think you had bottle,s of wine on a drink,s package only served by the glass,unless you brought five bottle,s at a price when embarking on ship that was dream last year please quote me if i am wrong :p

[Jakanne1]

Obviously if people have bought the wine package they are going to have to walk about with their bottle at some point unless they stay in one bar or restaurant until the bottle is finished. I know the restaurants will keep it for the next night but I don't suppose the bars will and if they did you could have an opened bottle in every bar!:confused: If they wanted a glass of wine during the show they would have to take the bottle with them.

 

Also walking around with bottles of wine in your hand sorry that's not on. I will amit that I did not do enough checking out of the ship but this was a cross between Butlins, Blackpool and Benidorm.

 

Guilty, I'm afraid. :eek: We had the Wine Package. The cutback in bar staff means one can no longer have a waiter to carry One's bottle from one bar to another. ;):D

Edited February 18, 2015 by Jakanne1

[tilford]

i did not think you had bottle,s of wine on a drink,s package only served by the glass,unless you brought five bottle,s at a price when embarking on ship that was dream last year please quote me if i am wrong :p

 

Yes,its the wine package you buy on board £72 for 5 bottles and £99 for 7 bottles. I assume this is the same across all Thomson ships?

[gillhalfpint]

Price not bad, but I didn't have the wine package as I only drink red and they wanted me to have white and fizz in the package.

 

Do you get the bottles in MDR and can you carry them round the bars and in the theatre to drink, and just ask for a glass?