Tag Archives: P&O

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P&O makes a play for the School half-terms to capture the Family Market.

P&O Britannia sitting pretty in the Caribbean photo credit Spacejunkie2 (Flickr account)

P&O Cruises has bolstered its autumn half-term offering for 2025 in an effort to entice more families onboard its ships. 

The line will operate three seven-night ex-Southampton sailings specifically aimed at families whose children go to schools in different countries within the UK.

The voyages depart on 18 October, 25 October and 1 November 2025. Each sailing covers a different October half-term either in Scotland, Northern Ireland or England. 

A P&O Cruises spokesperson said: “Consequently, there will be a much larger number of holidays departing during this period.”

P&O Cruises sales director Ruth Venn said: “We’ve tried to put three consecutive sailings to cover each of three half terms. It’s great to have broad appeal.” 

P&O Cruises will return to 12 ports, including Los Angeles, Melbourne, Bali, Bodo and Dunedin, for the first time in five or more years during 2025/26. 

The programme also features two new itineraries for Britannia. Prices for the sailings, which include calls to Jamaica, Turks and Caicos and Dominican Republic, start from £1,399pp.

From January 2026, Arcadia will operate a 100-night Eastern Circumnavigation World Cruise for the first time in nine years. 

The ship will call into 28 destinations including Dubai, Singapore, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney, Dunedin, Auckland, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Prices start from £9,599pp. 

The line will visit Tangier, Morocco, for the first time when Azura calls there during its sailing from Valetta, Malta. 

Cruises booked by 4 December will include a 10% saving. Past guests, who have cruised with P&O Cruises for 15 nights or more, can access a further 5% discount on selected sailings. 

Carnival Corp Posts 109% Occupancy in Third Quarter

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P&O one of the Carnival Group, photo credit Spacejunkie2 (Flickr account)

Carnival Corporation’s nine brands enjoyed full ships in the third quarter of 2023 as the company delivered a profit of over $1 billion and record revenue.

The ships on average were 109 percent full. Cruise ship occupancy is calculated by having two people in each stateroom, bringing a ship to 100 per cent. Any additional guests, such as children, will push a ship over the 100 per cent mark.

The company said that the 109 per cent occupancy number was better than its own expectations and marked a return to historical levels, compared to just 84 per cent in 2022 and 113 per cent in 2019, the last normal year prior to the pandemic.

“On the European front, occupancy came in better than anticipated for Costa and AIDA, with both brands hitting 119 per cent occupancy in August. Not to be outdone, P&O Cruises achieved its highest occupancy in over a decade,” said Josh Weinstein, president and CEO, on the company’s third-quarter earnings call.

“And so I can’t say that their yields were higher. But I can tell you that their occupancy is back, and they are well on their way, and that’s absolutely as expected,” said Weinstein, commenting on the company’s P&O brand.

P&O Britannia is returning to Southampton after Collision in Palma

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P&O Britannia in the Caribbean photo credit for Spacejunkie2 (Flickr Photos)

P&O Cruises’ Britannia is expected to reach Southampton by Friday morning (1 September) after it departed Palma on Monday night (28 August) following a collision with a freight vessel.

P&O Cruises’ Britannia is expected to reach Southampton by Friday morning (1 September) after it departed Palma on Monday night (28 August) following a collision with a freight vessel.

The incident, which happened on Sunday (27 August), saw the cruise ship break free from its moorings during a storm in Mallorca and collide with a freight vessel. 

P&O said a small number of people are being cared for onboard after sustaining minor injuries, and according to the BBC, around 321 passengers were told they would have to fly home due to structural damage to a lifeboat.

“Following a weather-related incident in Palma de Mallorca on 27 August, P&O Cruises Britannia departed Palma last night and is expected to reach Southampton on Friday morning,” a spokesperson told TTG. 

Following the incident, Lisa Henning, managing director of the Inspire Group, urged travel companies to improve communication with agents and operators.