Hello and welcome to my October update!
The past month has continued to be a mixed picture with sales slowing over and beyond the period of the state funeral and non-sales queries still running at record levels, representing a significant proportion of our inbound calls. I mentioned previously that I had taken the decision to create a new department dedicated to dealing with after sales issues and this work is well underway. We are also currently working with British Telecom to reconfigure our telephone system and, as we get closer to Christmas, we will switch over to the new arrangement. Essentially, going forward we will only have one incoming telephone number and you will have three easy options, the first dedicated entirely to new bookings with our dedicated Sales Team supporting this, a second option for after sales and general queries and then finally a payment option.
Currently, the main priority is building the after sales team to enable this new system to operate effectively and free our Sales Team to prioritise new bookings only. I am confident that this new structure will help us handle calls more effectively and, with the additional staff currently training, bring calls times down significantly in busy periods. Sadly, this is a departure from our previous policy of one-to-one service, but this is simply no longer feasible as we have to embrace flexible working policies and the huge increase in administrative tasks as a direct result of cruise operators relying more and more on digital documents etc.
With regard to digital documentation, I would like to take a moment to cover this again, as we still face misplaced criticism from time to time on this subject. Quite clearly the digital revolution is well and truly upon us and, as cruise passengers, we are not immune from this fast-changing world. The Covid years have clearly accelerated this process and almost all cruise operators now ask you to complete immigration details and check-in online via your own protected account. I am afraid we must move with the times and the days of old-fashioned paper tickets, luggage labels, leather ticket wallets etc are a thing of the past. But please don’t shoot the messenger! Strict data protection legislation means we simply cannot access your personal account and undertake these steps for you; plus, in most instances, your e-tickets and such like are accessed via the same account. So, it is important that you are familiar with the features pertaining to your cruise booking to facilitate check-in and boarding. However, we continue to give as much guidance as we can, but simply have no option other than to move with the times.
Since my last update, Princess Cruises have announced that they are adding a brand-new ship, Sun Princess, to their fleet in February 2024, a name that might sound familiar to some of you. There have previously been two Sun Princess ships sailing for Princess Cruises, the first of which was in service between 1974 to 1988 and the second from 1995 to 2000. The vessel will accommodate 4,300 guests and be the first in the fleet to be powered by liquified natural gas, which is becoming the fuel of choice for many of the major cruise lines these days. Her inaugural season is already on sale here, where she will be heading to the Mediterranean and calling at popular ports such as Santorini, Naples and Barcelona. I know many of our Cruise Club Members have been keen to book on this exciting new ship, so I’d urge you to get in touch if you have your eye on any of these sailings to avoid any disappointment.
Also launching in 2024 is the hotly anticipated Queen Anne, the fourth queen to join the Cunard fleet. Details recently emerged of her keel laying ceremony which took place at the Fincantieri-Marghera shipyard in Venice – this marks an important stage in the construction process and I’m sure you will join me in looking forward to receiving more updates on her progress over the coming months.
This will be one of my final updates before the new P&O Cruises ship Arvia sets sail on her maiden voyage. A couple of members of our team were recently invited to Germany to see Arvia in the Meyer Werft shipyard and it’s fair to say their feedback has been glowing. They were treated to a tour of some of the main areas of the ship, including the Grand Atrium and SkyDome by none other than Captain Camby, who will be at the helm when Arvia launches in December.
A number of exciting new Baltic Sea and Scandinavia cruises have also just been launched by P&O Cruises featuring other ships in the fleet. This is a fascinating part of the world I have been fortunate enough to sail many times and I can highly recommend these itineraries. Nine new cruises have been released on Aurora, Arcadia and Britannia in 2024, which also include sailings around the British Isles and Canary Islands, follow this link for further details or call our Sales Team who will be only too pleased to help you.
P&O Cruises Winter 2024, 2025
We are just a matter of days away from being able to share the latest collection of P&O Cruises holidays with you, which will cover the winter 2024/25 season, including the 2025 World Cruise. Details will be making their way to your inboxes and appearing on our website on 20 October.
But in the meantime, here are the on-sale dates for your diary:
- Tuesday 1 November 2022 – Exclusively on sale for Caribbean, Baltic and Ligurian tier members of the P&O Cruises Peninsular Club
- Wednesday 2 November 2022 – Holidays departing September to December 2024 go on general sale
- Thursday 3 November 2022 – Holidays departing January to April 2025 go on general sale
We will be opening pre-registrations on 20 October, when you will have the opportunity to register your specific requirements and we will book these for you once they go on sale as per the dates above. This process is something we have perfected over the years and together with our bespoke booking system connected to P&O Cruises, I am confident in achieving close to 100% success for our clients. I firmly believe no other agent can match our pre-registration process and help you obtain the cruise and accommodation of your choice! Look out for our launch details on 20 October and register with our Sales Team without delay to avoid disappointment!
This month marks the start of the ever-popular Caribbean cruise season, and it is reassuring to see many of the most popular cruise lines making a full return to the region. Celebrity Cruises recently announced they would have nine ships based in this part of the world over the coming months and, as many ports such as Barbados eliminate their entry restrictions, I expect that the destination’s popularity will only continue to rise. Plus, P&O Cruises continue to offer their highly successful Caribbean cruises from now through to spring with very convenient charter flight options from several UK airports. It’s a perfect opportunity to enjoy some great winter sunshine! Take a look here
Once again thank you for following my updates and I wish everyone travelling over the next month Bon Voyage and have a great holiday
Yours sincerely
Michael Wilson
19 thoughts on “Your October Update from Michael Wilson”
After years of loyalty to P&O and Bolsover I agree with all of the comments made. Older cruisers seem to be too much trouble for P&O. I asked a question at the loyalty desk on Aurora recently and was told ” thats the way things are going to be madam” basically like it or dont bother coming back!! As for the rest of the cruises I have got booked I will not be able to apply for Visas and ArrivCan documents without help and was hoping to come into Bolsover Cruise office for advice. Maybe it’s time to consider a different type of holiday. Thank you everyone at Bolsover for the help you have given in the past it was much appreciated.
Hi Jean, rest assured we will still assist you and ensure you have correct documents to board the ship. We hope to open our Cruise Bureau too shortly. Thank you.
I agree with your note from Valerie Page. P&O do not seem to cater for us these days.We are long standing cruisers and have been loyal to P&O but no more, it seems they don’t want us.
internet bookings for dining on board and for theatre shows, which don’t seem to work and are definitely more stressful. Also they have cancelled the port talks and printed guides which made the ports we were visiting so much more interesting. We used to love going to those. Food not the same variety and much more of a bun fight.
This is not a Bolsover complaint but one for P & O. Bigger and Bigger ships mean less more intimate ports of call. You can only do all the cities so many times. This is going to mean leaving P & O after 30 odd years. Such a shame. The enormous ships are soul less and seem to cater for the younger generation with all day music playing on deck and many cut backs. So long P & O.
With regard to the information regarding digital procedures can someone please explain to me how I can get my Flight and Cruise E-Tickets as I have no way of printing these myself for our cruise on Arvia in February 2023 . I do not want to cancel the cruise but if there is no way I can get my documentation it appears I will have to. Please can you help as I am very concerned about this. Thank you
Hi David, as long as you’re online checkin is complete, they will issue boarding passes at the airport for your flight and at the cruise terminal to board the ship. I hope this helps. Thank you.
I am disappointed to read that you are intending to discontinue the personal service with one consultant dealing with all issues surrounding a booking.
The reason I moved my not unsubstantial business from a travel agent who was impersonal but gave a larger cash back ( before you reduced yours!) was the personal service.
This may prompt me and probably others to look around for either personal service or monetary benefits.
Hi John, our new department will help improve our call wait times and will mean we can handle calls more effectively. All of our staff offer exceptional customer service in all departments but if you’d like to work with an individual Cruise Experts like you have in the past, that won’t be a problem either, you can still ask for them when you call and they will be more than happy to help. Thank you.
Very disappointing that one to one service will no longer be provided. We have built up a good relationship with our reps over many years, who give a personal service and get to know our likes and dislikes. We found this to be a differentiating factor with Bolsover. I am not sure now what the advantage will be from using Bolsover in the future over any other agent or booking direct.
Hi David, our new department will help improve our call wait times and will mean we can handle calls more effectively. All of our staff offer exceptional customer service in all departments but if you’d like to work with an individual Cruise Experts like you have in the past, that won’t be a problem either, you can still ask for them when you call and they will be more than happy to help. Thank you.
I quite understand moving with the times regarding paper documents etc but one if the main reasons we have stayed loyal to Bolsover Cruise Club is that you have always presented everything in paper form. As we are not very good at technology we struggle to sort it out ourselves. We have had incredible support from Adele who guides us through the processes but left to sort it out ourselves we would struggle. We do not have a printer and our phones are not very reliable either. Our friends used imagine cruises and on our recommendation we adviced them to book with you and they are in their 80’s and do not even have a smart phone. They have booked 3 Azamara cruises with you over the past 3 months, due to the fact that they could have written documents etc. I do not think they will book again as they will be unable to sort things out themselves. I am not sure if we will continue to use Bolsover Cruise Club if we have to sort everything out ourselves. I think its a shame that things are moving this way. There are so many holiday firms selling criuises now and we feel your company had the upper hand as you were more personal and helped people of later years. We feel its such a shame.
Hi Carol, unfortunately it is the cruise lines that are going digital and we can only follow their procedures. Not all cruise lines require documentation to be filled in online, Azamara, for your friends, do still send ticket booklets that we can send on. We will do all we can to help and assist you with any online processes, but we are legally unable to do this for you due to GDPR regulations. All cruise operators have to offer the ability to complete the check in process at the port as they understand that there will be individuals who do not have access to the internet. We will always ensure we provide our customers with as much documentation as we can to assist you on your journey. Thank you.
When will you open your doors for face to face consultations again. That was part of our holiday journey and its very much missed. Without it I’m not sure why you’d expect loyalty from your customers
Hi Judith, we are hoping to welcome you into the Cruise Bureau very soon. Thank you.
Thank you for your update but not everyone as access to e-ticket? In this case will they be posted as note everyone has technical ability.
Secondly Bolsover Cruise Club USP was being able to visit the office and discuss options face to face with cruise professionals is the office due to open up to the public or is everything going to be via phone and online.
Hi Angela, not all cruise lines require documentation to be filled in online. We will do all we can to help and assist you with any online processes, but we are legally unable to do this for you due to GDPR regulations. All cruise operators have to offer the ability to complete the check in process at the port as they understand that there will be individuals who do not have access to the internet. We will always ensure we provide our customers with as much documentation as we can to assist you on your journey. We are hoping to welcome you into our Cruise Bureau soon. Thank you.
I am awaiting details from Celebrity cruises regarding compensation for catching covd (along with my Wife) towards the end of our Canary Islands cruise on Celebrity Silloute in September 2022.
Kind regards John and Sylvia Green.
Just wondering where you have been for the last few years Mr Wilson. I usually book our cruises with Bolsover, made a big mistake booking through P & O. Will never book direct again. Very poor customer service. Regards Mike
Hi Michael, we have all still been here working throughout the pandemic from home and now back in the office. Our Cruise Experts are always here to help. Thank you.