P&O Adult Only refund issue

bagand96

Grumpy_chap said:

I understand that.
BUT the OP has only said that the ship has been upgraded to include family friendly features.
The OP has not said what the basis is for the specific cruise itinerary they are booked on.
I have been on cruises that are "adult only" on one sailing and "family friendly" on another - date and route dependant.

I think it's maybe the case that the OP booked an Adult Only sailing, that P&O have now changed to allow families with children on board.  Understandably this has upset quite a lot of customers Agents report mixed response after P&O Cruises opens adult ships to families - News

P&O have a page on this and have relaxed their cancellation terms for affected passengers FAQs about holidays for all ages on Arcadia and Aurora | P&O Cruises

OP, you mention your agent, if you booked via an agent then ultimately it is their responsibility to sort this out.

P&O do seem to keep causing a stir, that dodgy airline a couple of years ago and now this.

daveyjp

Grumpy_chap said:

MyRealNameToo said:

Grumpy_chap said:

daveyjp said:

Grumpy_chap said:

anotherwrenservicemoan said:

I am trying to get a refund (as advertised on the P&O website) for a cruise on an Adult Only ship as P&O changed the 2 ships in their fleet to allow families on board. 

What actually has to be changed on a ship to differentiate it between "Adult Only" or "Family"?

I would always have expected that the actual ships are configured to support the maximum flexibility in itinerary but then the actual individual cruises tailored for different markets - so any specific ship might be offering a family-focused itinerary in, say, August but the same ship offering adult-only cruises in September.  Another date, the same ship might be offering an itinerary better matched to senior citizens.  Another date, targeting as a party cruise.

The biggest change on the ship is the provision of a child care/child activity facility split into different areas for different ages from baby to about 15 year olds - usually baby to about 5, 5-11, 12 to teens.  A night nursery with beds etc is also provided for smaller children.  Each age group will have a maximum number of chidren on each cruise.

You then need to employ staff to manage the new facility and to provide child focussed activities etc.

So, some part of the ship is used for a kids club when it is a "family friendly" cruise.  
I assume when the ship is assigned as "adult only" they simply do not run the kids club.  Either the play stuff is offloaded and the space used for another bar / lounge, or that space simply locked.
It seems perfectly reasonable that the same ship could be designated as "family friendly" or "adult only" depending on itinerary and dates.

I suspect the OP booked the particular vessel because they wanted to be able to use the pools, restaurants etc without having to deal with other peoples uncontrolled kids etc running amok  so is less about the fact that the kiddy club will be running on sub deck 6 rather than it being locked up and more about them being outside of the kids clubs at some times. 

I understand that.
BUT the OP has only said that the ship has been upgraded to include family friendly features.
The OP has not said what the basis is for the specific cruise itinerary they are booked on.
I have been on cruises that are "adult only" on one sailing and "family friendly" on another - date and route dependant.

The two P&O ships in question have always been adult only.  They are the oldest and smallest of the fleet and I suspect will be moved on in a few years, until that date maximising income will be key so opening up to families with children to increase sales is the decision they have made.

There are now so many much larger ships with thousands more cabins to fill prices are falling (eg - 2 weeks in the Caribbean over Christmas including flights from UK, inclusive drinks, tips and wi fi - £2,000 for two) but smaller ships cost more to operate so they need filling.

Grumpy_chap

daveyjp said:

weeks in the Caribbean over Christmas including flights from UK, inclusive drinks, tips and wi fi - £2,000 for two

If I'd seen a deal like that, we'd be sunning ourselves for Christmas rather than looking at the grey and drizzly outside in Blighty.