Topic: P & O Med Fly Cruises?

QUOTE:

I cant see the point of sailing to Med from Soton .. not for a week .. but on a fly cruise its not a prob .. why dont some of these shipping people wake up a bit and give people what they want , a choice ......

That's just the point. P&O do give their clientele what they want: Mediterranean cruising sailing from the UK and with itineraries that cover the whole Mediterranean and the Black Sea. In the same way they do not promote 'one week' Mediterranean cruises. No point, the itinerary would be so unattractive. So, if it is to be considered, you can bet it will be a 'Family Friendly' ship that is 'stationed' for the season.

QUOTE:

That's just the point. P&O do give their clientele what they want: Mediterranean cruising sailing from the UK and with itineraries that cover the whole Mediterranean and the Black Sea. promote 'one week' Mediterranean cruises. No point, the itinerary would be so unattractive. So, if it is to be considered, you can bet it will be a 'Family Friendly' ship that is 'stationed' for the season.

Hi
As i have said before P+O do not sail to Eastern Med/Black Sea from Southampton its to far for a 14 day cruise,have just looked on website,,
They sail from Southampton to=
Canaries.
Western Med.
Baltic.
Caribbean (one way).
City Breaks + Round Britain.
Fjords + Iceland.
So,if people want the Eastern Med/Black Sea with P+O it will have to be fly cruise.
Thats why i believe they are looking to berth a ship in the Med.
JC

QUOTE:

Hi
As i have said before P+O do not sail to Eastern Med/Black Sea from Southampton its to far for a 14 day cruise,have just looked on website,,
They sail from Southampton to=
Canaries.
Western Med.
Baltic.
Caribbean (one way).
City Breaks + Round Britain.
Fjords + Iceland.
So,if people want the Eastern Med/Black Sea with P+O it will have to be fly cruise.
Thats why i believe they are looking to berth a ship in the Med.
JC

P&O do sail to the Eastern Med from Southampton. In fact we are going to the Black Sea on Oriana later this year. Last year we went to Cyprus, Turkey, Rhodes and Egypt all from Southampton. Ok not 14 days but 18 days.
Brian

QUOTE:

P&O do sail to the Eastern Med from Southampton. In fact we are going to the Black Sea on Oriana later this year. Last year we went to Cyprus, Turkey, Rhodes and Egypt all from Southampton. Ok not 14 days but 18 days.
Brian

Thank you Brian. Indeed, we could add the Artemis which is also heading into the Black Sea on 27 September and Aurora as far as Cairo in November.

I know that this is a circular discussion repeated on other forums but the point is WHY don't P&O do fly cruises to the Med? Answer, they don't need to as they can fill their ships with people who can afford the cost and time to sail from Southampton. When the summer 2011 itineries appear we will know whether Carnival consider retaining the casual fly cruise market with british ambience ships is something they want to do.

QUOTE:

I know that this is a circular discussion repeated on other forums but the point is WHY don't P&O do fly cruises to the Med? Answer, they don't need to as they can fill their ships with people who can afford the cost and time to sail from Southampton. When the summer 2011 itineries appear we will know whether Carnival consider retaining the casual fly cruise market with british ambience ships is something they want to do.

Exactly Dave, well put and why I wrote above "That's just the point. P&O do give their clientele what they want"

I think it is only a matter of time before a P&O ship is stationed in the med. Just adds another option for them as a brand and an alternative for those who are happy to fly to meet a cruise. I'm certain that not all loyal P&O fans only cruise with P&O because they do not have to fly. It would seem logical to me that if they feel they can tap into that market then they will go for it.

You have to remember that Ocean Village was originally set up by P&O for Med based cruising in 2003. One of the reasons given for the closure was the increased cost of air travel due to higher fuel prices and thus could not be competitive. So why would P&O want to go back to Med based cruising now having just closed their brand.
Brian

QUOTE:

You have to remember that Ocean Village was originally set up by P&O for Med based cruising in 2003. One of the reasons given for the closure was the increased cost of air travel due to higher fuel prices and thus could not be competitive. So why would P&O want to go back to Med based cruising now having just closed their brand.
Brian

Do you not think that now Ocean Village have created a gap in the Med market, that if P&O don't fill it someone else will. Or could it be they just wish to continue OV style cruising under a different banner?

I dont quite know why they found the fly cruise not cost effective when you consider that OV were using chartered aircraft flying non stop compared to other med based cruises who often use convoluted aircraft routes because they have some deal with one particular company. I agree it does leave a gap in the market but MSC and Costa seem to be expanding rapidly and there are also many RC and Princess med cruises. At the more expensive end, Cunard have some fly cruises out of Civitavechia or Venice going to the eastern Med area.
Brian