Just off Britannia

[Gettingwarmer]

4 hours ago, zap99 said:

As you insist. I foolishly kicked the coffee table on Oona. My own silly fault, not P&O. It took a year for the black bit to grow out. Not P&O's fault....still, it blooming well hurt.🤣

It is their fault. The cabins are too damn narrow 😀

[purplesea]

I was on Britannia (15th to 22nd Sept) and didn't notice any she was looking the worse for wear! (I also sailed on her just after her refit) Food choices to me were very similar to the rest of the fleet post covid, with some days being better than others.

I returned on home on Friday and tested positive for covid on the Monday, but did I pick it up on

the ship or on my journey home? No one else in my party (there were 7 of us) has had it.

[zap99]

3 hours ago, purplesea said:

I was on Britannia (15th to 22nd Sept) and didn't notice any she was looking the worse for wear! (I also sailed on her just after her refit) Food choices to me were very similar to the rest of the fleet post covid, with some days being better than others.

I returned on home on Friday and tested positive for covid on the Monday, but did I pick it up on

the ship or on my journey home? No one else in my party (there were 7 of us) has had it.

Sorry, but that could have been us. DW tested positive when we got back from St Ives in July, but Cadiz is off the hook as we haven't been there since last October.🤣

[Ardennais]

On 10/8/2023 at 1:04 PM, shot2bits said:

Just out of interest, I have not said P&O we’re responsible for the food poisoning symptoms I suffered and maybe it was down to covid, which I am suffering from now. Maybe it was a dirty coffee cup in Cadiz! I guess food is subjective, I thought it was poor on board but if others enjoyed it I respect their view. 

Interesting that you experienced this on Britannia. We also had poor lukewarm food on Britannia in May and felt queasy after eating some chowder. Since then, there have been good reports but there’s definitely inconsistency. 

[zap99]

12 hours ago, Ardennais said:

Interesting that you experienced this on Britannia. We also had poor lukewarm food on Britannia in May and felt queasy after eating some chowder. Since then, there have been good reports but there’s definitely inconsistency. 

The OP has advised that it was NOT food poisoning. So nothing to do with Britannia.  I was a bit unwell 2 years ago after eating garlic prawns. Nothing to do with P&O, Britannia.  No story here.

[S1971]

4 hours ago, zap99 said:

The OP has advised that it was NOT food poisoning. So nothing to do with Britannia.  I was a bit unwell 2 years ago after eating garlic prawns. Nothing to do with P&O, Britannia.  No story here.

 

Did they? I thought the OP advised it was UNLIKELY to be food poisoning they certainly didn't say it wasn't, so it is possible it could've still been P&O's responsibility.

 

I've had good experiences on P&O going back, but I'm not blind to the fact that they have their faults and it's well documented on other boards not just here, so there is obviously a story here or we wouldn't be posting on it.

[zap99]

27 minutes ago, S1971 said:

 

Did they? I thought the OP advised it was UNLIKELY to be food poisoning they certainly didn't say it wasn't, so it is possible it could've still been P&O's responsibility.

 

I've had good experiences on P&O going back, but I'm not blind to the fact that they have their faults and it's well documented on other boards not just here, so there is obviously a story here or we wouldn't be posting on it.

You obviously have some inside information. So I will make no further comment and will leave it to the experts.

[S1971]

34 minutes ago, zap99 said:

You obviously have some inside information. So I will make no further comment and will leave it to the experts.

Fair enough, but I advised what the OP was told by the GP in the previous post, it had nothing to do with inside information on my part, I was just simply stating what was explained and not falsifying it as you appeard to do.

Apologies if I read it wrong.

[Ardennais]

10 hours ago, zap99 said:

The OP has advised that it was NOT food poisoning. So nothing to do with Britannia.  I was a bit unwell 2 years ago after eating garlic prawns. Nothing to do with P&O, Britannia.  No story here.

I said nothing about food poisoning. Simply that we thought that the standard of food on Britannia this year was the poorest we’ve ever had on P&O in 13 years. 

[Interestedcruisefan]

Wow this is a roller coaster thread

 

I think moral of this thread is it pays to ignore the worst reviews you read about cruising in general

 

There's often a lot of emotion involved and dramatic statements that can't always be relied on as the facts slowly come out

 

 

Edited October 11, 2023 by Interestedcruisefan

[S1971]

6 hours ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Wow this is a roller coaster thread

 

I think moral of this thread is it pays to ignore the worst reviews you read about cruising in general

 

There's often a lot of emotion involved and dramatic statements that can't always be relied on as the facts slowly come out

 

 

Good point.

 

Another moral is don't dare have a negative view of P&O or it'll be frowned upon and not believed.

 

One persons cruise can be another persons nightmare, why some people simply cant accept this is beyond me!!

Edited October 12, 2023 by S1971

[lincslady]

Completely agree.  You might have a problem journey getting to the ship, are unlucky enough to be served at your first meal by one of the very few inefficient or not smiley waiters, get the main course that  has been hanging around accidentally for too long etc. etc.  The people in the next cabin have travelled without problems, been greeted by one of the most cheerful of the staff and had the same main course but a nice hot one.  And so on.

 

So one of you will be expecting and therefore probably having a lovely cruise, and the other tending to find lots of other problems after a bad start.  Both will give truthful accounts of the same cruise.

[Interestedcruisefan]

1 hour ago, lincslady said:

Completely agree.  You might have a problem journey getting to the ship, are unlucky enough to be served at your first meal by one of the very few inefficient or not smiley waiters, get the main course that  has been hanging around accidentally for too long etc. etc.  The people in the next cabin have travelled without problems, been greeted by one of the most cheerful of the staff and had the same main course but a nice hot one.  And so on.

 

So one of you will be expecting and therefore probably having a lovely cruise, and the other tending to find lots of other problems after a bad start.  Both will give truthful accounts of the same cruise.

 

 

As a business owner myself I do feel sorry for businesses when they get accused of serious issues in forums like this that aren't as they are first described

 

Describing food as bland and carpets being stained - fair enough. No problem at all.

 

Not enjoying a cruise and not wanting to do another one. No problem at all

 

Suggesting the food on the ship caused food poisoning though (which this OP did for sure) but then backtrackIng when they were  questioned more is not on

 

Hence why I said this is a roller coaster thread

 

And shows how hard it is to be business owners however big or small you are

 

 

 

[kalos]

There is a saying that goes  "  If  you enjoyed your produce/holiday etc  "

 

Please tell others  but if you did not  then please tell us "

 

 

[Winifred 22]

18 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

 

 

As a business owner myself I do feel sorry for businesses when they get accused of serious issues in forums like this that aren't as they are first described

 

Describing food as bland and carpets being stained - fair enough. No problem at all.

 

Not enjoying a cruise and not wanting to do another one. No problem at all

 

Suggesting the food on the ship caused food poisoning though (which this OP did for sure) but then backtrackIng when they were  questioned more is not on

 

Hence why I said this is a roller coaster thread

 

And shows how hard it is to be business owners however big or small you are

 

 

 

What has annoyed me about this whole thread is the insinuation that food poisoning was contracted after eating food prepared and served onboard. The first go to conclusion I was ill with stomach problems so must have been the …. I ate onboard. Let’s blame P&O without any substance. Don’t bother to contact medical centre. I accept for some people their cruise does not live up to their expectations and they seem to have a miserable experience but please don’t lay the blame for serious issues without any substance other than your personal thoughts at P & O ‘s door. 

 

[jasperado]

A lurker for many a long time and reading the posts makes my day. Also came off Brittania last Friday. Very busy but a great cruise, but now hubby and I are quite unwell with you know what. A lot of people were having room service every day but to be honest we didn't witness too many folks showing symptoms. Ah well, onwards and upwards.

[Interestedcruisefan]

3 hours ago, S1971 said:

Good point.

 

Another moral is don't dare have a negative view of P&O or it'll be frowned upon and not believed.

 

One persons cruise can be another persons nightmare, why some people simply cant accept this is beyond me!!

I'm all for fair criticism. 

 

In this thread I've also seen medical teams on board the ship being talked about negatively. Medical teams who haven't actually been made aware of anything to allow them to help on the ship. But in this thread they have become bad guys as well. 

 

Not actually fair on them either.

 

I'm in a business that serves many customers weekly. 

 

We have a tiny percentage who face issues with the service we provide. (We want to provide a fabulous service to everyone)

 

The problem we face is genuinely being able to get to the bottom of the validity of an issue so we know what we can do about it and improve. 

 

When someone faces an issue and presents the facts transparently its far far easier to resolve happily for all concerned. When the facts get clouded. That's when it's harder to resolve.

 

The saying that the customer Is always right. 

 

I honestly don't think nowadays you can always take what customers tell you at face value.

 

But because I want all my customers to be happy I do have to take what I'm told by all customers at face value and bend over backwards to help them (knowing in some cases in my head that I'm almost certainly being hoodwinked by them at times) as the facts don't really stack up. 

 

Very hard to deal with. And questioning the ones you aren't sure are being 100 per cent transparent potentially just makes a bad situation worse.

 

Can Britannia improve? No doubt she can in many ways like all businesses.

 

But be fair to her at least where she's at fault and where she's not. 

 

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by Interestedcruisefan

[zap99]

15 hours ago, S1971 said:

Fair enough, but I advised what the OP was told by the GP in the previous post, it had nothing to do with inside information on my part, I was just simply stating what was explained and not falsifying it as you appeard to do.

Apologies if I read it wrong.

Apology accepted. The OP seems to have accepted their error. Their post #52 says it all and I suggest they would prefer the subject dropped.

[Interestedcruisefan]

On 10/9/2023 at 12:24 PM, ace2542 said:

You would have been locked in the cabin for at least 2 days if you had? So probably best that you didn't.

Seeing as it now appears the passenger already had Covid

 

Best for who?

 

 

[ace2542]

1 minute ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

Seeing as it now appears the passenger already had Covid

 

Best for who?

 

 

But thought he had food posioning which they would say is noro when it isn't.

[Interestedcruisefan]

6 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

But thought he had food posioning which they would say is noro when it isn't.

How do you know what the medical crew would say?

 

Regardless if the medical crew had told the passengers to stay in the cabins then they would have been making the correct decision even if it was with wrong diagnosis

 

But the medical team on board a cruise ship are capable of diagnosing illnesses the same as a GP is. 

 

I imagine there are covid testing kits on board the ships for example for the cruise medical team to use?

 

Do you think it's ok for people with covid to be out and about on the ships nowadays?

 

 

Edited October 12, 2023 by Interestedcruisefan

[Megabear2]

15 minutes ago, ace2542 said:

But thought he had food posioning which they would say is noro when it isn't.

But it transpires he most likely had neither. Surely any person would not take the chance of deliberately ignoring something which could be contagious for the sake of worrying they'd be confined to their cabin or have to pay an insurance excess.  That would be frankly outrageous.

 

Reading the OP's story he seems to have been very unwell and I doubt very much the thing going through his head was I'm going to be confined to my cabin.  The symptoms he describes would have made going elsewhere a very unlikely option anyway.

 

People are very flippant about things like food poisoning and colds with lots automatically claiming the first as soon as they have a bad tummy and the latter constantly referred to as flu.  Accusing somewhere of giving you food poisoning really should only be done with medical confirmation and if you are worried about confinement if you are unwell then perhaps a cruise isn't the best place to holiday.

Edited October 12, 2023 by Megabear2

[Cathygh]

I am on Britannia in a few weeks so I am reading this thread with interest. Food is my thing so I shall be comparing it with the standard of food on Arcadia in August. I am expecting the same boring menu in the MDR, but hopefully on Britannia it will be ccoked to a better standard.

[ace2542]

9 minutes ago, Interestedcruisefan said:

How do you know what the medical crew would say?

 

Regardless if the medical crew had told the passengers to stay in the cabins then they would have been making the correct decision even if it was with wrong diagnosis

 

But the medical team on board a cruise ship are capable of diagnosing illnesses the same as a GP is. 

 

I imagine there are covid testing kits on board the ships for example for the cruise medical team to use?

I have food posioning number 2 was coming out green gp said immodium on the phone walk in centre said antibotics after getting a sample tested. It was chicken. Would medical centre test sample they never tested sample when i had "noro" on the NCL Pearl which i dispute I had by the way.

[Interestedcruisefan]

10 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

But it transpires he most likely had neither. Surely any person would not take the chance of deliberately ignoring something which could be contagious for the sake of worrying they'd be confined to their cabin or have to pay an insurance excess.  That would be frankly outrageous.

 

Reading the OP's story he seems to have been very unwell and I doubt very much the thing going through his head was I'm going to be confined to my cabin.  The symptoms he describes would have made going elsewhere a very unlikely option anyway.

 

People are very flippant about things like food poisoning and colds with lots automatically claiming the first as soon as they have a bad tummy and the latter constantly referred to as flu.  Accusing somewhere of giving you food poisoning really should only be done with medical confirmation and if you are worried about confinement if you are unwell then perhaps a cruise isn't the best place to holiday.

And tbf to the poster in this case they self confined to the cabin due to how ill they were anyway

 

They've obviously had a horrible time as well

 

It's just not particularly Britannia's fault in this case

 

What  is the situation with medical assistance on board a cruise ship?

 

Is there always a big cost simply to get advice and/or diagnosed ?

 

Is that what's putting people off using them?

Edited October 12, 2023 by Interestedcruisefan