NIGHTLY TURNDOWN

[Electra 7]

6 hours ago, Adawn47 said:

Well isn't this an interesting thread?

Do you think it will ever replace the dress code thread, lift etiquette thread,  tipping thread, the correct way to hold cutlery thread, cabin stewards folding your nightwear thread, sunbed thread, the mystery of the disappearing face cloth or flannel thread,? and on and on....😉

Which only goes to show, ------ Cruising's back!!!!

Avril

Well said that made me laugh      what is Nightwear????? lol

[Electra 7]

2 minutes ago, Electra 7 said:

Well said that made me laugh      what is Nightwear????? lol

OOPS yeah might need it if I have to isolate at a hotle on my own 🤧

[Electra 7]

Just now, Electra 7 said:

OOPS yeah might need it if I have to isolate at a hotle on my own 🤧

Oops hotle is hotel

[Electra 7]

6 hours ago, Adawn47 said:

Well isn't this an interesting thread?

Do you think it will ever replace the dress code thread, lift etiquette thread,  tipping thread, the correct way to hold cutlery thread, cabin stewards folding your nightwear thread, sunbed thread, the mystery of the disappearing face cloth or flannel thread,? and on and on....😉

Which only goes to show, ------ Cruising's back!!!!

Avril

Just thinking Mum liked her nightwear folded on her 50 odd cruises she could tell anyone who wants all about the cut backs over the years and the dumbing down  

[Electra 7]

4 hours ago, davecttr said:

Reminds me of the story i read here or somewhere else. The husband goes onto the balcony naked and discovers there is a dirty great cruise ship parked next door. 'Come back in' shouts his wife, 'they will all know I married you for your money'

Brilliant😄

[Adawn47]

10 minutes ago, Electra 7 said:

Well said that made me laugh      what is Nightwear????? lol

Every one of those I mentioned was a genuine topic discussed on here, though not all had there own thread. 

Nightwear is whatever you wear in bed and would or would not like the cabin steward to fold. Although what some people sleep in would be impossible to fold😉

Avril

[Electra 7]

2 hours ago, majortom10 said:

plus they may use Covid as an excuse but will never return so basically using Covid as excuse to save money and lower standards even further and the question is where will it end.

I am thinking you are long time P&O  cruiser and see all the little differences each one nothing but when you count them all up !! that is the difference

[Interestedcruisefan]

Do Seven Seas not still offer all of the above?

 

 

[majortom10]

1 hour ago, Electra 7 said:

I am thinking you are long time P&O  cruiser and see all the little differences each one nothing but when you count them all up !! that is the difference

Correct.

[Beckett]

2 hours ago, Adawn47 said:

Every one of those I mentioned was a genuine topic discussed on here, though not all had there own thread. 

Nightwear is whatever you wear in bed and would or would not like the cabin steward to fold. Although what some people sleep in would be impossible to fold😉

Avril

Oh yuk Avril. Loose skin must weigh a ton!  Jane.x 

[Eglesbrech]

9 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Do Seven Seas not still offer all of the above?

 

 

They probably do but they don’t sail out of the U.K. often which for many cruisers is important, particularly those who can’t / don’t like to fly.

 

These are people who have spent a lot of money with P&O over sometimes many decades and built up loyalty status which they won’t have with Seven Seas.

[Eglesbrech]

13 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

You must choose your hotels very carefully Avril?

 

It's rare nowadays 

 

(Edit unless you are saying you've not stayed in a hotel since 2010?)

 

Turndowns are common in the traditional 5 star hotels and country house hotels. Here for example you will find it Gleneagles, the Balmoral, the Cali, Lochgreen, Turnbery, the Old Course etc. Most of the more standard chain hotels with 5 stars no longer do so.

 

By comparison every cruise line I have ever travelled on, including the basic ones like TUI,  provided an evening turndown. 

[Interestedcruisefan]

12 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

They probably do but they don’t sail out of the U.K. often which for many cruisers is important, particularly those who can’t / don’t like to fly.

 

These are people who have spent a lot of money with P&O over sometimes many decades and built up loyalty status which they won’t have with Seven Seas.

But I think we all at least recognise and accept P and O offer great value in comparison to Seven Seas

 

Many of those same customers as a result will have been able to enjoy far more cruises with P and O due to them offering great value in comparison with higher end cruise lines

 

To deliver great value there has to be compromises

 

It's inevitable 

 

You can't have it both ways

 

People surely have to understand that?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Eglesbrech]

5 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

But I think we all at least recognise and accept P and O offer great value in comparison to Seven Seas

 

Many of those same customers as a result will have been able to enjoy far more cruises with P and O due to them offering great value in comparison with higher end cruise lines

 

To deliver great value there has to be compromises

 

It's inevitable 

 

You can't have it both ways

 

People surely have to understand that?

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think you will find I have acknowledged that numerous times, most recently a few posts back in a reply to you.

 

P&O never cost the same as Seven Seas but it did used to cost comparatively much more than it does now.

 

The point is some of us will pay more to retain what we enjoyed about cruising. P&O offer some opportunities to do so eg the excellent extra pay restaurants, Limelight club with the type of entertainment that used to be available to all in the theatre, charges for room service etc. This option is not available for other things which have now gone.

 

Value to me is a combination of both price and product. I don’t want it both ways, I don’t mind paying for quality.

 

[Eglesbrech]

17 minutes ago, LynnForestgate said:

 

and we are back to five star hotels again....

Only to compare the fact that some have dropped turndown except at the top end but cruise ships generally have not.😀

[terrierjohn]

22 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

But I think we all at least recognise and accept P and O offer great value in comparison to Seven Seas

 

Many of those same customers as a result will have been able to enjoy far more cruises with P and O due to them offering great value in comparison with higher end cruise lines

 

To deliver great value there has to be compromises

 

It's inevitable 

 

You can't have it both ways

 

People surely have to understand that?

 

 

 

 

 

 

ICF, you seem happy to let longstanding services be whittled away in the name of cost cutting, however if most other mass market lines are able to maintain these services, even with the constraints of covid, what does that really say about P&O?

Edited October 21, 2021 by terrierjohn

[Interestedcruisefan]

29 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

Turndowns are common in the traditional 5 star hotels and country house hotels. Here for example you will find it Gleneagles, the Balmoral, the Cali, Lochgreen, Turnbery, the Old Course etc. Most of the more standard chain hotels with 5 stars no longer do so.

 

By comparison every cruise line I have ever travelled on, including the basic ones like TUI,  provided an evening turndown. 

You must accept those traditional 5 star hotels you describe are very much in the minority now?

 

Meanwhile the 5 star hotels that DONT offer turndown are very much in the majority. I think your post and examples given do acknowledge that already tbh. 

 

Vast majority of guests at hotels are simply not prepared or can no longer justify paying the costs demanded by those traditional hotels to receive those old fashioned extras

 

They are niche hotels for a reason

 

And represent a tiny percentage of rooms booked in those locations 

 

When in Edinburgh I've dined at the Balmoral on several occasions

 

Wouldn't dream of having an overnight stay there. Lots of great hotels at a fraction of the price

 

Great old fashioned and traditional hotel with old fashioned charm, service and atmosphere

 

But boy do you have to pay through the nose for it

 

Let's be honest. The exact same at Gleneagles

 

What I see on this forum is people wanting old fashioned value and old fashioned service 

 

But they are paying value for money prices on P and O

 

I'm a businessman. I recognize you can't have both

 

Hypothetically:

 

Let's just say P and O keep their standard prices as low as possible. Without turndown included

 

But offered the chance for passengers to pay let's say £15 per night per cabin for nightly turndown service with fresh towels and a chocolate included etc 

 

What per cent of guests would choose to pay the extra?

 

I'm going to say 20 per cent max

 

The other 80 per plus would prefer the better value for money price

 

IMO

 

To offer great value for money you have to be efficient at managing costs and utilising staff as efficiently as possible

 

I find it hard to see how cruise lines like P and O can offer such great value compared to the ever increasing costs for hospitality 

 

I think they are doing a great job in that respect tbh

 

I personally don't want to pay more money for old fashioned extras myself. Woukd rather cruise more on a low standard price and pay extra for things I want to pay extra for

 

Obviously others feel different

 

We all have choices to make

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 21, 2021 by Interestedcruisefan

[Interestedcruisefan]

29 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

ICF, you seem happy to let longstanding services be whittled away in the name of cost cutting, however if most other mass market lines are able to maintain these services, even with the constraints of covid, what does that really say about P&O

First of all P and O are largely UK based

 

John do you accept that cruising with P and O now costs far less a percentage  of an average salary in the UK than ever before?

 

Whilst at the same time all other prices in UK hospitality are rising significantly?

 

Scary to see the costs of fuel and food rising so quickly tbh

 

You describe it as whittling away services in the name of cost cutting

 

I could equally describe it as managing services they offer to allow them to still sell cruises at the best value they possibly can to as many passengers as possible 

 

Same end result though whichever way we both choose to describe it ?

 

It's a tough industry out there right now for any hospitality business

 

Either increase prices to cover increasing costs or manage those costs to try and keep prices at great value ?

 

 

 

 

Edited October 21, 2021 by Interestedcruisefan

[Interestedcruisefan]

18 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

Only to compare the fact that some have dropped turndown except at the top end but cruise ships generally have not.😀

Which other cruise lines offer similar value for money to P and O right now?

 

And why arent we all using them? 

 

I'm open to cruising on any cruise line that offers me fantastic value cruising with same quality or similar quality (with or without turndown! Lol)

Edited October 21, 2021 by Interestedcruisefan

[Interestedcruisefan]

Ps I'm also attracted to river cruising. Never done it before. But it looks great. No doubt most of the river cruise lines offer lots of the old fashioned traditional extras and service

 

Equally I would love a few nights on the Orient Express. 

 

I actually do like the old fashioned style service and traditions especially for special occasions 

 

But I also want lots of holidays each year at the same time

 

And I have a budget for our holidays. We are early 50s (semi retired) - we might be going on hols for another 30 years plus with a bit of luck

 

But similar to my message above about Balmoral and Gleneagles I recognize if I want to enjoy that River Cruise down the Rhine or Danube or that trip on the Orient Express its not going to be cheap and nowhere near the value I know I can get on P and O. So it impacts my annual holiday budget

 

Like comparing chalk and cheese in terms of nightly cost

Edited October 21, 2021 by Interestedcruisefan

[pete14]

28 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

You must accept those traditional 5 star hotels you describe are very much in the minority now?

 

Meanwhile the 5 star hotels that DONT offer turndown are very much in the majority. I think your post and examples given do acknowledge that already tbh. 

 

Vast majority of guests at hotels are simply not prepared or can no longer justify paying the costs demanded by those traditional hotels to receive those old fashioned extras

 

They are niche hotels for a reason

 

And represent a tiny percentage of rooms booked in those locations 

 

When in Edinburgh I've dined at the Balmoral on several occasions

 

Wouldn't dream of having an overnight stay there. Lots of great hotels at a fraction of the price

 

Great old fashioned and traditional hotel with old fashioned charm, service and atmosphere

 

But boy do you have to pay through the nose for it

 

Let's be honest. The exact same at Gleneagles

 

What I see on this forum is people wanting old fashioned value and old fashioned service 

 

But they are paying value for money prices on P and O

 

I'm a businessman. I recognize you can't have both

 

Hypothetically:

 

Let's just say P and O keep their standard prices as low as possible. Without turndown included

 

But offered the chance for passengers to pay let's say £15 per night per cabin for nightly turndown service with fresh towels and a chocolate included etc 

 

What per cent of guests would choose to pay the extra?

 

I'm going to say 20 per cent max

 

The other 80 per plus would prefer the better value for money price

 

IMO

 

To offer great value for money you have to be efficient at managing costs and utilising staff as efficiently as possible

 

I find it hard to see how cruise lines like P and O can offer such great value compared to the ever increasing costs for hospitality 

 

I think they are doing a great job in that respect tbh

 

I personally don't want to pay more money for old fashioned extras myself. Woukd rather cruise more on a low standard price and pay extra for things I want to pay extra for

 

Obviously others feel different

 

We all have choices to make

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If nightly turndown is so important to some, I suggest that rather than making it a paid extra as you suggest, maybe it could be given as a service for Select bookings only. The price differential between Saver fares and Select can be quite large (less when OBC is taken into account) so extra benefits would not go amiss and more may be encouraged to book the most expensive fare.

[Interestedcruisefan]

4 minutes ago, pete14 said:

If nightly turndown is so important to some, I suggest that rather than making it a paid extra as you suggest, maybe it could be given as a service for Select bookings only. The price differential between Saver fares and Select can be quite large (less when OBC is taken into account) so extra benefits would not go amiss and more may be encouraged to book the most expensive fare.

That makes sense

 

[Eglesbrech]

1 hour ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

And why arent we all using them? 

Because they don’t sail out of the U.K. over the winter as stated above.

 

Because some have long term loyalty benefits with P&O as stated above

 

Because we would rather the product was not reduced further and are happy to pay for that as stated above.

[Eglesbrech]

53 minutes ago, pete14 said:

If nightly turndown is so important to some, I suggest that rather than making it a paid extra as you suggest, maybe it could be given as a service for Select bookings only. The price differential between Saver fares and Select can be quite large (less when OBC is taken into account) so extra benefits would not go amiss and more may be encouraged to book the most expensive fare.

Yes select fares are now less value with freedom dining etc. It will however be an issue in cabins which need beds made up for extra guests. I don’t think many will want to DIY the beds that come down from the ceiling etc.
 

I don’t think anyone in the know will book a guarantee on Iona given some of the cabin issues which have been reported re privacy and overshadowing.

Edited October 21, 2021 by Eglesbrech

[Interestedcruisefan]

16 minutes ago, Eglesbrech said:

Because we would rather the product was not reduced further and are happy to pay for that as stated above.

That isn't a reason to still use P and O?

 

That is a reason to pay others to provide your cruise who do provide the traditional extras you want?

 

You can't pay P and O extra for something they don't offer?

 

And I do have to question how many others would be willing to pay higher prices to P and O for some of these things they no longer provide 

 

You must see there is a battle between low price and what you get for that price?