P&O to the rescue again.

[ceeceeDee]

53 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

If you ever cruise with a butler service, the main thing I have found is that they look for a tip, this is why suites with butler are not my style.

Well, give them a tip. 'Wear clean undies every day in case you can hit by a bus' or 'Lightening Flash in the third at Randwick'. 😂

Sorry, couldn't resist!

[MicCanberra]

It would have to be the 2nd one, not too many buses on a cruise ship. 

[ceeceeDee]

26 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

It would have to be the 2nd one, not too many buses on a cruise ship. 

Oh, I dunno. The RCI mega ships have a car on the Promenade Deck, not to mention Bumper Cars. I'm sure they could jam at least a mini bus in. 😆

[MicCanberra]

11 minutes ago, ceeceeDee said:

Oh, I dunno. The RCI mega ships have a car on the Promenade Deck, not to mention Bumper Cars. I'm sure they could jam at least a mini bus in. 😆

Butlers in mini briefs? No one wants to see that.

[ceeceeDee]

1 minute ago, MicCanberra said:

Butlers in mini briefs? No one wants to see that.

Depends on the physique, I guess, but a tux and white gloves would be more dignified.🤭

[aussielozzie18]

I don’t care if the media are calling them a luxury cruise line.  Just nice to read something positive about cruising in the media for once.

 

I haven’t cruised with p & o and I am unlikely to but big kudos to them.  Rotary do great work in their communities and this group would have been in a very stressful situation.  Wonderful that p & o stepped up and is bringing them home.  

[ceeceeDee]

22 minutes ago, aussielozzie18 said:

I don’t care if the media are calling them a luxury cruise line.  Just nice to read something positive about cruising in the media for once.

 

I haven’t cruised with p & o and I am unlikely to but big kudos to them.  Rotary do great work in their communities and this group would have been in a very stressful situation.  Wonderful that p & o stepped up and is bringing them home.  

AND it's excellent PR

[aussielozzie18]

8 minutes ago, ceeceeDee said:

AND it's excellent PR

True

[arxcards]

10 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

It's great that the P&O ship has empty cabins to accommodate the group, but I wouldn't describe a P&O ship as 'luxury'.

 

Although maybe it would be luxurious compared with the accommodation this group would have had on Tanna.

Kudos to P&O, and possible due to some available accommodation. Pacific Encounter is due in Port Vila on Tuesday, and hopefully they also have a few cabins to help out some more stranded Aussies. Carnival Splendor will be there in a few days, perhaps some more - we will see.

 

The advice since lockdowns has been to avoid flying via Air Vanuatu, and this isn't the first time they have had planes grounded. After a few days, someone has come to rescue the airline, but not this time.

[arxcards]

1 hour ago, ceeceeDee said:

AND it's excellent PR

Yes, AKA goodwill.

 

The other point is they are repatriating Rotary volunteers, and P&O have often delivered emergency relief supplies on behalf of Rotary in the past.

[MicCanberra]

I am not sure that there is an official partnership but yes, they have collaborated in the past.

[bazzaw]

My understanding is that P&O have pioneered and developed cruising in the South Pacific - all these other cruiselines are just carpetbaggers in the area. An example is the building of the Jetty on Kiriwina Island in PNG (Trobriand Islands) 

[Aus Traveller]

24 minutes ago, bazzaw said:

My understanding is that P&O have pioneered and developed cruising in the South Pacific - all these other cruiselines are just carpetbaggers in the area. An example is the building of the Jetty on Kiriwina Island in PNG (Trobriand Islands) 

Agreed. A few years ago P&O built a new jetty on Dravuni Island in Fiji.

[lyndarra]

"luxury" defined.

 

 

[MicCanberra]

Carnival have also picked up people from Vanuatu now.