Booking on board?

[cimarron42]

I’m on Iona in about 10 days.  Is it worth waiting until I’m on board to book another cruise that I’ve seen for May?  I’ve found a good price at a TA but don’t know if there are extra perks or better prices for booking on board?  The TA price is about £180 cheaper than the P&O website. 

Thanks

 

 

[sandancer]

We were on Iona in December and they were offering extra obc and reduced deposits. I was told that the offer varied depending on the cruise booked.  

[jeanlyon]

We booked on board and had a reduced deposit and lots more OBC.  If you have booked the current cruise through a TA they will ask you if you want it sent through to the TA, in which case, you can get even more discount.

[david63]

I would suggest that you go armed with all the relevant information and see what is on offer and then make a decision.

 

One thing that they will not do onboard is "price match2 so if the deal from the TA is better, and still available, then that answers your question.

1 hour ago, cimarron42 said:

if there are extra perks or better prices for booking on board?

The main "perks" are reduced deposit and/or more OBC - occasionally there may be better prices than those currently on offer. There is no way of knowing in advance what will be on offer and it can change from day to day.

[sandancer]

What I can tell you for sure is that you will be waiting in a queue when you visit the future cruise dept. Do not leave it until the last day when the queue was ridiculous on our Iona cruise. There are 3 agents but sometimes only 2 are in attendance. Also you might ask if there will be any offers later in the cruise. They were offering an extra 10% discount on longer cruises but that didn’t come into effect until around day 3 or 4. 

[TigerB]

Also, you cannot get the additional OBC with a Blue Light card.  You can still apply the shareholder credit at a later time.

[seahorse001]

Hi

I popped in to future cruises when I was recently on ARVIA (insane q but I went passed when they had a cancellation)

 

Didn't have a particular cruise in mind but knew date & area I wanted to go too.

My experience was .

 

*Agent was not interested in me at all 

*I didn't think what they offered was a good deal 

* Rushed me & didn't follow up when they said (telephone call to my cabin )

 

I must add I am a solo traveller & very few good deals for solos . Assuming we are not lucrative enough re drinks etc & no one is ever interested in us. 

 

On saying this if you already have your cruise earmarked & a couple it may well be worth your while. Book appointment in advance early evenings & port days seemed quiet 

[Winifred 22]

The solo deals offered onboard would be no different from call centre/ T A agent. P&O solo deals are no worse than other lines. They charge 175 % for single occupancy whereas say Princess charge 200% and other lines more. There are special offers sometimes on cruises near to sailing with lots of availability. I don’t like the high supplement but I have two choices either pay and cruise or don’t go. I chose the former and accept that’s the price to me . I am sorry you had a bad experience of loyalty sales but I am I don’t think a couple would have had any more favourable experience. 

[Fionboard]

Booked my May Aurora cruise a month ago. Now reduced. A couple of friends have paid less than me for the same cabin. Have effectively paid more than 100% supplement. They also got twice the obc I did. Booking last minute from now! 

[kalos]

On 2/1/2024 at 8:56 AM, cimarron42 said:

I’m on Iona in about 10 days.  Is it worth waiting until I’m on board to book another cruise that I’ve seen for May?  I’ve found a good price at a TA but don’t know if there are extra perks or better prices for booking on board?  The TA price is about £180 cheaper than the P&O website. 

Thanks

 

 

 

If you know what cabin area of the ship you want ,then check whats available.

The Azura one we did was totally sold out a few weeks before final payment day .

Best thing would be take a screen shot of  your TA quote what you intend to book 

and see whats on offer when onboard .

If it's not a good seller cruise ,you run the risk of losing out to further reductions at 

a later date . Good luck with your choice .