Britannia where are P & O going?

[oldtimer]

P &O to my mind are not top of the range cruising experience, neither are they bucket and spade cruises, they are reasonably priced and appeal to family's and what I would call "working folk". So I'm confused about Britannia and which market they are trying to appeal to. Presumably it's the same P & O dining experience in main restaurant, not silver service, still the holiday camp sail away's etc. Now they offer Kiki Dee for £22, no criticism of the lady who I liked a bit in her prime many years ago, but if she was on at my local theatre I would not be going to see her for £25 or even if it was free. Eric Lanlard makes nice cakes, but £15 for a cup of tea and some salmon does not tempt me. The cookery club is also expensive and when you go through the booking procedure it does not guarantee that James Martin will be there, just someone cooking one of his recipes. To me these all seem gimmicks and would make more sense on one of the upmarket cruise lines.

[Manoverboard]

but surely many of those ' working folk ' would actually enjoy doing something a little different on their cruise, even if it does cost them a few extra £££s. The real point however is that it is all optional rather than being built into the cost of the cruise ... and that has to be a good thing for those on a tight budget.

[poole boy]

all these extras you have to pay for sound like real rip off's to me not that I am interested in going on this boat anyway

[Quizzical Bob]

all these extras you have to pay for sound like real rip off's to me not that I am interested in going on this boat anyway

Likewise.

[Mervyn and Trish]

The cookery club is also expensive and when you go through the booking procedure it does not guarantee that James Martin will be there, just someone cooking one of his recipes.

You are entitled to your opinion of course Oldtimer, but please get your facts right. Trish has actually done this and when we booked the Cookery Club is was entirely clear which sessions James was hosting and which he wasn't, the latter being cheaper. And was it expensive? Well it depends whether you're a cookery lover and/or fan of James or not. Trish loved it. Two and a half hours of hands on cooking in a small group with one of her favourite chefs. For the same money you could watch two premier league football games or do five laps of Silverstone in a Ferrari. Trish preferred what she did, and from the fact it was sold out presumably others thought it worthwhile too. Why shouldn't P & O offer an innovative experience?

And PB and QB you don't "have to" pay for any extras if you don't want to. You can still have a great cruise without doing any of them and enjoy the included dining, activities and entertainment as before. But why deny others the choice if they are willing tp pay? And no one will force you onto Britannia if you don't fancy her. OSAV!

[poole boy]

m&t
did not say I wanted I wanted to deny any bodies choice just that I thought it was a rip off and would not be interested in that ship.

[Mervyn and Trish]

Accept that Poole Boy. My point was your phrase "have to pay for" and that you don't have to do anything you don't want to. You can enjoy your cruise without these extras. And compared to similar experiences ashore they're not expensive.

[Ian Perth]

Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but in my experience of p and o and the Britannia it's a great ship. If you don't sail on her you can't really comment on how good it is. Good for p and o on building such a great ship that offers a full range of things to do as well as being a great ship for, dare I say the word children.

[Mervyn and Trish]

Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but in my experience of p and o and the Britannia it's a great ship. If you don't sail on her you can't really comment on how good it is. Good for p and o on building such a great ship that offers a full range of things to do as well as being a great ship for, dare I say the word children.

[Mervyn and Trish]

Just to add I'm not trying to get at anyone in particular here, but it irritates me when anyone starts talking about "rip offs" when what they mean is "I don't fancy that". I'm not a burger fan so to me £1.99 for a burger would be a "rip off" while £50 for a Michelin standard meal would be a bargain.

The same applies when people denigrate a cruise line because it doesn't suit them. There are lots of choices out there. No one is forced to use a particular cruise line, nor indeed to cruise at all if they prefer a different sort of holiday. And once aboard no one has go pay for any extras they don't fancy or consider too expensive for their tastes. If one wants to give it a miss fine, but that doesn't make it a "rip off".

A "rip off" wiill be when they charge extra for bed linen and towels and start selling tickets for the lifeboats.

[Gill W]

I might not go to see Kiki Dee at my local theatre, as I'd have to think about getting there and back, and wondering whether my car would be ok parked for the evening in the town centre car park, or whether I'd get mugged going back to the train station.

But, as she was performing on my doorstep when I was on Britannia, I thought I'd give the Limelight Club a try, and had a thoroughly nice evening. A tasty, well presented meal, that I could eat at a leisurely pace, knowing my table was mine for the entire evening. Then, an entertaining, intimate show. Plus, dancing afterwards if I wanted.

We went in at 7.30pm and came out just before midnight. All in all, I thought it was good value for £22pp, and something different to anything I'd done at sea before.

Although I enjoy cooking at home, the cookery lessons didn't appeal to me - so I didn't book any lessons. It's all about choice, and people that wanted to try this innovation were free to do so, and enjoyed it.

So where is P&O going with Britannia? (apart from the Med, Canaries and Norway ) I think they are trying to appeal to people who like the P&O product, and enjoy the traditional aspects of cruising, but also like to have new experiences on holiday.

People a bit like me really.

Also, they wish to continue to innovate, to entice new customers, who are essential to the company's future

I'm not saying Britannia is perfect, and I think there are issues, which have been well documented.

But if the price and itinerary were right, I would sail on her again

[Silver_Shiney]

Well said, Gill

[barney]

Any company that stands still goes backwards.

P&O are simply trying innovative things, at an additional cost, should you like to try them.

Very few of these new, quirky ideas appeal to me personally but I still think it's great that they are trying something a bit different.

But please. no climbing walls

[towny44]

I am happy for P&O to introduce new paid for facilities for those that want them, which all helps to keep the basic price down. However I would be very unhappy if they started charging for elements of the cruise that are currently included in the price.
As regards the original question, I see very little in Britannia which is different to what P&O provide on their other ships, in fact quite a bit of it is done better IMO, therefore the premise that they are moving away from their core values is, again IMO, not proven.

[poole boy]

m&t
charging over £100 for a cookery lesson is a rip off even if you can not see it.
we really like the adult only boats so will stick with these
we are taking our friends to Southampton in 3 weeks to catch Britannia will be interesting to hear what they think of it.

[Mervyn and Trish]

m&t
charging over £100 for a cookery lesson is a rip off even if you can not see it.
we really like the adult only boats so will stick with these
we are taking our friends to Southampton in 3 weeks to catch Britannia will be interesting to hear what they think of it.

Charging £60 to watch 22 men kicking a ball of air round is a rip off. Charging £99 to drive a car 7 miles is a rip off. Charging £50 for a meal you could eat at home for £5 is a rip off.

No. Not so actually if you enjoy those things, even if you can't see it. If it is your passion and you want to do it it is not a rip off just because someone else doesn't fancy it.

Tell me somewhere that a passionate cook like Trish could get that sort of experience with a top chef for less and I'll consider your argument, but otherwise why do you assume others who have different preferences to youself are wrong?

And for the record, get your facts right. It was not over £100. It was £100, or actually £91.50 after Peninular discount. When I went to school that wasn't over £100

[barney]

It's all relative poole boy

One mans meat is another mans poison

You could well have some kind of hobby that holds no interest to most, so every penny you spend on that could be seen as a 'rip off' by others.

Up until this year, I did quite a lot of Scuba diving which is very expensive.
Some may say the prices charged are a bit of a rip off, but I was happy to pay it.
Look at the price of a round of golf on a top course. Rip off?

The only thing that is guaranteed excelent value is my Gillingham FC season ticket.

Or is it ?

[Gill W]

The only thing that is guaranteed excelent value is my Gillingham FC season ticket.

Or is it ?

Hmm, jury is out on that one !

I think 'rip offs' are something designed to deceive or not deliver.

Therefore, I don't think there's any way that additional activities on the cruise ships can be described as rip offs.

The price is clearly quoted for each activity and if you choose to purchase the activity they deliver the experience. If they can't deliver, such as a cancelled excursion they refund you.

No deception involved, everything is clear and transparent.

It's up to the individual to decide whether they want to buy or not, no one's twisting their arm. Even if a person attends a 'seminar' that turns into a sales presentation, a simple no thank you is more than sufficient to decline a purchase.

[Manoverboard]

' Rip off ' to the OP presumably means anything that involves spending money, not necessarily his own because he need not subscribe to any of the stated optional extras.

It would however be quite interesting to discover what the OP's ' bill ' total was for on-board spends on his most recent cruise and what the charges were actually for.

Is he a tad frugal or just somebody with old fashioned ideas about what constitutes ' Value for Money '.

[Stephen]

Just to add I'm not trying to get at anyone in particular here, but it irritates me when anyone starts talking about "rip offs" when what they mean is "I don't fancy that". I'm not a burger fan so to me £1.99 for a burger would be a "rip off" while £50 for a Michelin standard meal would be a bargain.

The same applies when people denigrate a cruise line because it doesn't suit them. There are lots of choices out there. No one is forced to use a particular cruise line, nor indeed to cruise at all if they prefer a different sort of holiday. And once aboard no one has go pay for any extras they don't fancy or consider too expensive for their tastes. If one wants to give it a miss fine, but that doesn't make it a "rip off".

A "rip off" wiill be when they charge extra for bed linen and towels and start selling tickets for the lifeboats.

It'd be just my luck the life boat ticket machine would run out of paper at my turn

Personally I think £100 for the cookery class with a celebrity chef is good value. And like everything in life, don't knock until you've tried it

[Silver_Shiney]

Just to deviate slightly, I would dearly love to do the "back scenes" tour on the ships, but I am not prepared to pay £75 (as at the last time on board) for the privilege. I think maybe £30 would be a reasonable fee.

Rip off?

[daib GC]

Just to deviate slightly, I would dearly love to do the "back scenes" tour on the ships, but I am not prepared to pay £75 (as at the last time on board) for the privilege. I think maybe £30 would be a reasonable fee.

Rip off?

A Rip Off is something you pay for and at the end of doing that thing you are not satisfied with the result. With regard to the ships tour, I have not read one comment from anyone you has actually done it who said it was a rip off. Only those who have not done it. BTW all the cruises I have been on the tour has filled up very quickly.

Fully agree with M&T it is a completely overused expression which with over use looses meaning.


Dai

[Silver_Shiney]

Dai

I didn't say it was a rip-off, merely said it was not a price I was prepared to pay.

[Mervyn and Trish]

I've done the behind the scenes tour and thought it was great, if you're interested in that sort of thing. Compared to other activities for the same price I thought it was good value, but having done it once I don't need to do it again. Now chocolate, that's another matter and, fortunately, cheaper.

Most of these things come down to market forces. The behind the scenes tour is limited capacity and sells out fast. Why would they sell it for less if they can sell it out anyway? I know I wouldn't if I was taking the money!

[Stephen]

Like everything Merv, as long as the punter is willing to pay the price they will continue to provide the goods.