Embarkation times

[terrierjohn]

Many people think that the new system works and got aggravated by the free for all which preceded it.

 

Whatever the system everyone cannot board at the same time some people have to board later.

 

Many people I have spoken to the ink it works better this way.

 

 

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I would guess they are all Caribbean or above who get to board first anyway.

[daiB]

I would guess they are all Caribbean or above who get to board first anyway.

 

 

No, people who have turned up when asked and boarded very quickly.

 

 

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[bee-ess]

I would guess they are all Caribbean or above who get to board first anyway.

 

We are Caribbean but our cruising companions aren't so we will embark with them. This will be our first time since the change and we are not looking forward to it - preferred the old system when we were always on early.

[terrierjohn]

No, people who have turned up when asked and boarded very quickly.

 

 

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Strange that, the only people who discussed boarding with us were those who thought it was a poor system, we never heard anyone comment who liked it unless they were responding to someone who did not, and from my straw poll the likes were outnumbered by about 10 - 1.

 

ps and we were in freedom dining so saw far more table mates than someone on fixed dining.

Edited March 11, 2016 by terrierjohn

[daiB]

Strange that, the only people who discussed boarding with us were those who thought it was a poor system, we never heard anyone comment who liked it unless they were responding to someone who did not, and from my straw poll the likes were outnumbered by about 10 - 1.

 

ps and we were in freedom dining so saw far more table mates than someone on fixed dining.

 

 

Remember we had this with Britannia twice last year as well.

 

 

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[terrierjohn]

Remember we had this with Britannia twice last year as well.

 

 

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OK, so you had 3 lots of table mates versus our 28, nuff said........

[daiB]

OK, so you had 3 lots of table mates versus our 28, nuff said........

 

 

I am found on other tables as well. ;)

 

 

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[jeanlyon]

I 'll say what I, (and my new friend Scriv :D ) have said before,.....as long as I am on the ship before she sails and with a glass of wine ( or possibly fizz) in my hand when she does, I will be happy.:p

 

MM and Scriv - I'm with you. That's all I want as well.

[jeanlyon]

I would guess they are all Caribbean or above who get to board first anyway.

 

Nope, I am not Caribbean and don't actually mind when I board, my preference would be about 1.30.

[Presto2]

I suppose that everyone has different tastes. Some of us like to board early, some don't and some don't care.

 

What P&O need to do is work out a system that can cater for those different tastes in some way.

 

Good luck

 

:)

[terrierjohn]

I am found on other tables as well. ;)

Dai, I'm sure you won't be in the slightest bit interested but I just booked an RCI Canaries cruise for Sept. 2017 and my TA advises me that I can check in anytime from 11:00am, and I have never sailed with RCI before.

But my Celebrity Cruises put me into Diamond level in RCI's Crown & Anchor loyalty programme.

Now that's what I call top class customer service.

However the best bit is the price, it works out at under £100pppd, which is a lower rate than we paid for our Caribbean cruise, which itself was the lowest rate we have ever paid for a balcony cabin.:D;)

[daiB]

Dai, I'm sure you won't be in the slightest bit interested but I just booked an RCI Canaries cruise for Sept. 2017 and my TA advises me that I can check in anytime from 11:00am, and I have never sailed with RCI before.

 

But my Celebrity Cruises put me into Diamond level in RCI's Crown & Anchor loyalty programme.

 

Now that's what I call top class customer service.

 

However the best bit is the price, it works out at under £100pppd, which is a lower rate than we paid for our Caribbean cruise, which itself was the lowest rate we have ever paid for a balcony cabin.:D;)

 

 

Your correct. :)

 

 

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[peteukmcr]

Dai, I'm sure you won't be in the slightest bit interested but I just booked an RCI Canaries cruise for Sept. 2017 and my TA advises me that I can check in anytime from 11:00am, and I have never sailed with RCI before.

But my Celebrity Cruises put me into Diamond level in RCI's Crown & Anchor loyalty programme.

Now that's what I call top class customer service.

However the best bit is the price, it works out at under £100pppd, which is a lower rate than we paid for our Caribbean cruise, which itself was the lowest rate we have ever paid for a balcony cabin.:D;)

Well done for your 1st RCI sailing. Also you'll find your Diamond level benefits slightly different to those on Celebrity, but you'll still get the free evening cocktail hours and 3 free beverage vouchers programmed onto your SeaPass card to enjoy at any bar during the cocktail hour. As for check in, here's a tip, although you will see lines for Diamond level guests, check out the lines for your deck, it maybe shorter and so you could get checked in sooner and onboard even faster by joining that line. You could be enjoying a beverage at one of the many bars or lunch by 11:30! Edited March 13, 2016 by peteukmcr

[kevinyork]

Nope, I am not Caribbean and don't actually mind when I board, my preference would be about 1.30.

 

 

Ok, so if you could choose that time on your cruise planner, wouldn't that be an improvement. Or as per Celebrity and Royal (non iPad check in ships) just turn up when suits after 10.30am rather than a random allocation by the cruise line that are happy to take your cruise pounds!

 

 

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[Clodia]

But would anyone accept a 3.30 boarding time?

[samjane92]

We go next week got a 14:30 time for Britannia, fine if we were driving but when the hotel kicks us out at 12 its not worth paying for Grand Harbour Lounge (nor dragging our bags around town to pay for another taxi to terminal) so we will be waiting at the terminal. Better to do that and maybe get on early than sit at the hotel reception with our packed bags. We are then joining Ventura the same day on return and have a 15:30 allocated time. Apparently p&o will assist us between terminals according to faq but again looks like another long wait as the lounge and extra transfers just not worth it. There are 7 of us so will add up plus we all have different times between the 3 cabins. Would rather spend our money on board getting to know the ship than twiddling our thumbs paying for the privilege. Not bothered about cabin being ready either being onboard having dropped our bags through the hole is the important thing.Will have to wait and see what happens, will have my kindle and supplies to hand. I am really hoping p&o prove peoples recent experiences are teething problems and everything runs smoothly. Think I will finally relax when I step onboard the Ventura to be honest!

[peteukmcr]

As P&O have responded to my enquiry as to when Azura is scheduled to sail on our upcoming cruise, does anyone know how long before sailing must all passengers be on board? In the US all passengers must be on board no later than 90 minutes before sailing.

[AndrewShooter]

P & O Statement - Chapter and Verse!

 

 

Getting you on board

14/03/2016

We’ve made some changes to our embarkation process to ensure that you start your holiday as quickly and smoothly as possible

 

Guest relaxing with a book on board

We want your holiday to get off to a great start, and that begins with a quick and easy embarkation. Over the past year, we’ve been working on ways to improve your experience at the cruise terminal and to get you on board your ship more quickly.

 

What has changed with embarkation

Improvements to embarkation include more security lanes, speedier baggage delivery to your cabin, having your cabin ready earlier and serving lunch on board all afternoon. And when it comes to check-in, we’ve introduced allocated arrival times for each guest to ensure you spend less time in the terminal and more time on board. It’s our aim to get you from kerb to cabin as quickly as we possibly can, and by staggering embarkation we avoid queues and congestion, and cut down on the time spent in the cruise terminal. This means your holiday can start straight away.

 

Arrival times

Your e-ticket states your allocated arrival time. If you’re unsure of your allocated time, please go to Cruise Personaliser to find and print your e-ticket or ask your travel agent for assistance. In the spirit of fairness, we will be giving priority to those who arrive at their allotted time – if you arrive at the time printed on your e-ticket you will be able to proceed straight to check-in. You’re welcome to arrive earlier, of course, but if you do we will ask you to make yourself comfortable in the terminal until we are able to check you in. We promise we won’t make you wait around unnecessarily, though.

 

Please note that the earliest possible arrival time is now 12.30pm, which is reserved for our Ligurian Tier and suite guests.

Mayflower Terminal, Southampton

Mayflower Terminal, Southampton

Difficulties arriving at allotted times

We realise that it’s not always possible to arrive at a scheduled time, especially if you’re travelling a long way or are checking out from a hotel. So if you do arrive early, please rest assured that we will do our best to get you checked in and on board as soon as possible. There are refreshments available at the terminal and plenty of seating to make you comfortable should you have to wait. Alternatively, feel free to drop off your luggage from 12pm and come back to the cruise terminal at your arrival time.

 

When it comes to travelling in a group, if people within your group have different arrival times but you wish to stay together, please arrive at the latest time within your party to ensure that we can check you all in at the same time.

 

If you are travelling by one of our Intercruise coaches, you may notice that your e-ticket arrival time doesn’t match your coach’s arrival time. Don’t worry. In this case your coach’s arrival time will override the time on your e-ticket – we will expect you at the time given by the coach company.

 

Peninsular Club and suite benefits

If you’re a suite guest or a Ligurian Tier guest, you’ll still enjoy your early embarkation benefit and will be allocated the first possible arrival time of 12.30pm. You will also still have the use of an exclusive hospitality area within the cruise terminal, serving complimentary refreshments and snacks.

 

In addition, we're delighted to tell you that from now on, all Baltic and Caribbean Tier guests will be given an early arrival time of 1pm. Even if your ticket has a later time, all Baltic and Caribbean Tier guests are welcome to arrive at the cruise terminal from 1pm and we will check you in straight away.

 

There may be a priority queue for our suite, Ligurian, Baltic and Caribbean guests, but instead of dedicated desks we are operating a Priority Lane to ensure you proceed to the next available desk more quickly.

 

Due to the slightly later embarkation times than we had previously, we invite our suite, Ligurian, Baltic and Caribbean guests to a new and improved Welcome On Board Reception in place of the existing embarkation lounge reception. This will run from 1.30pm to 3.30pm and a selection of complimentary alcoholic and soft drinks and canapés will be available.

 

We’ve worked hard to get this right and believe that this updated system is the fairest and most efficient way of getting everyone on board as quickly as possible, while recognising our most loyal guests. We’re constantly reviewing The Peninsular

[peteukmcr]

P & O Statement - Chapter and Verse!

 

 

Many thanks but I am familiar with the detail you posted, but it still doesn't answer my question of how many minutes before sailing must all guests be onboard.

[kruzseeka]

Well that seems pretty reasonable to me. They have addressed the points raised about the process and given a comprehensive description and explanation of their policy on this.

[terrierjohn]

It may well be a comprehensive description but it still does not answer the question as to why P&O cannot commence boarding until 12:30 when other cruise lines, with similar or bigger ships, aim to open by 11:00, or even earlier if they are ready.

This means that they have almost 5 hours to board their passengers, as against 3 hours for P&O, which is why P&O's new system still seems to produce more congestion than the US based lines.

I want to be on board as soon as possible and really don't care if the cabin is ready or the luggage waiting for me. If P&O really want to improve the boarding experience they need to change 3 things;

Start the boarding process at 11:00.

Change to the ABP parking system where the car stays where you park it and you don't need to wait for a CPS valet driver.

And most importantly, have security at the front of the terminal where any delays do not slow down or stop the check-in desks.

[Scriv]

If P&O really want to improve the boarding experience they need to change 3 things;

Start the boarding process at 11:00.

Change to the ABP parking system where the car stays where you park it and you don't need to wait for a CPS valet driver.

And most importantly, have security at the front of the terminal where any delays do not slow down or stop the check-in desks.

 

Changing these 'three things' would involve such a radical change not only to all the crew and ship cleaners and baggage people and P&O, but also to the ABP Parking system and to the CPS and to the Port of Southampton Authorities and possibly also the City Council, that they are hardly likely to do it to appease those people who are unhappy about not being able to board early though, are they? ;)

Edited March 16, 2016 by Scriv

[daiB]

Many thanks but I am familiar with the detail you posted, but it still doesn't answer my question of how many minutes before sailing must all guests be onboard.

 

 

Perhaps, that is because there is not a set time. I have never heard of one and certainly never seen it written. The sailing takes place after the drill usually within 30mins of the end.

 

 

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[peteukmcr]

Changing these 'three things' would involve such a radical change not only to all the crew and cleaners and baggage people and P&O, but also to the ABP Parking system and to the CPS and to the Port of Southampton Authorities, that they are hardly likely to do it to appease those people who just want to get on board earlier though ;)

I think we've beaten this topic to death and those of us who have sailed other lines from Southampton are very unlikely to ever agree with P&O loyalists who in a lot of cases have never sailed on other lines over this restrictive boarding process.

 

I repeat, other lines manage this at Southampton, so I assume the port authority, car parking companies, baggage handlers, crew, cleaners and cruise lines are capable of doing this otherwise they wouldn't be boarding passengers well in advance of the P&O experience.:D

[jeanlyon]

Not all lines. Fred Olsen do not board until 1400 and you don't get lunch. That doesn't bother us either!