PaulB

That seems to be the attitude of a lot of people. And that's why the cruise lines a re getting busier as people are wanting to go away on vacation because of the COVID pandemic. Not only did we have 2 years of restricted travel but the unfortunate deaths puts everything into perspective.

The tour of the island is certainly something that I recommend. Not only is it a beautiful island, but the guide was informative and entertaining. We looked around the island and was shown how the life of the sugar canes and how cigars are done.

Azura is our ship. I believe the wife has booked us up on deck 15 now which is a far better than the lower decking. It does look spectacular and I'm looking forward to getting on there. It is my first time sailing with P&O, and I've heard some good things about the company. And I've always wanted to go Norway, so it's a win win.

@Jim Lamb oh well spotted 🤣🤣🤣. However the incident itself is quite worrying, and luckily nobody was injured - other than the insurance man paying out the expenditure of the maintenance. It just goes to show how accurate you have to be and concentration levels need to be top on every occasion.

I absolutely love sharks, and have been fascinated by them since I was a child. Maybe it was something like a nurse shark, who are very docile and swim around that area. I would love to see them up close, but then on the other hand I don't.

@3Sisters I don't recall the kind of shark and even though it looked tremendous to see such beauty swim past us, as sharks go, it may have been a small pup in comparison. And I'm guessing the no teeth line was a throwaway comment to ease us as the islanders do have a good but dry sense of humour.

Very interesting @kefthecruiser. And a very good valid point made. Seems every business wants your money but no guarantees when it comes to service. A possibility of paying for mediocrity.

@3Sisters the whole experience was amazing. The waters as you say was crystal clear, an unbelievable sight, and even more breathtaking was seeing a shark swim among the waves, gliding past us. It was out of this world seeing the greatest thing in the world so close. And we were assured by the workers that the sharks were like their grandparents - no teeth. Which seemed to relax us even more.

Recently booked a trip with the wife next year to the Norwegian Fjords with P&O. We have one of the lowest deck, so my understanding is that we are down with the lifeboats. We have paid for balcony, again with the understanding that if bad weather occurs, those balconies will not be available as the need to bring down the storm shield therefore blocking the balcony as it's intergrade into the hull somehow. Has anyone been on this ship and had similar views. I'd be keen to know what to expect..

@kefthecruiser So with what you're saying with cruises is that they just add gratuities regardless. Now isn't this the same way as being taxed or having VAT added to your bill. I don't agree with this concept really. As I mentioned, I've worked in hospitality and the gratuities do help in a not very well paid industry. However those gratuities are taxed out of our monthly pay.

Are the goods on board that much cheaper than American prices? Pardon my ignorance but I have never been to USA so wouldn't really know about the difference in prices.

I don't understand the overall gratuity being from the UK. We tend to tip if we receive good service, and it's up to the individual customer whether they wish to do so. I myself have worked in the hospitality trade for numerous years so I understand the need for gratuity, however I also know that if I don't do my job correctly and don't provide the customer with a decent customer service, then they will not be leaving any gratuities at all.

I never really though about how high it was, just annoyed that once you've been given a price on something, then that should be what you pay. Because the extra that the normal consumer doesn't get back, it's not the price that it should be.

@kefthecruiser that's interesting stats. I wouldn't have known that. And yes I agree that the pressure was far too much for the sub to withstand. @Kendall James-Vargas what I've read and certainly what keftthecruiser is talking about too, is even though the submarine made the dive several times, if there was a flaw or even an imperfections in any of the material, each dive would affect it on every occasion, and unfortunately on this instance, it finally gave in

Yes I did. Twice. All inclusive with its own private beach. Everything you needed was there and really there was no need to even leave the area, however I always like to see what's around seeing as it took me a long time to get there. It was very interesting area and the tour guide made it worthwhile and was funny and knowledgeable at the same time.

Vancouver is a place where I would dream of going. It's certainly somewhere that has everything and one day I will make my dream come to.

I've been to Dominican several times and love the country. I haven't been on a cruise but stayed in a hotel. We were treated like royalty and found it very safe. Even when we had a tour around the island, it seemed to be very safe and not once did we feel ill at ease. It's a shame to hear of the increased warning, but hopefully this won't put people off.

Seems strange that this seems to be happening on a few ships all the time. I'm surprised how many cancellations there have been lately. I would not be at all happy if things were cancelled or moved about

Just read in the papers, that unfortunately they have confirmed that they have come across human remains inside the imploded sub. I keep thinking of what was going through their minds all that way down. That company have a lot of questions to answer.

There is a TV program called rip off Britain, it's just an affectionate term that some use. The vat of 20% mainly covers goods and services.

It's getting popular no doubt which is lovely to see as everyone deserves to have been on a cruise at least once. I've noticed the tides have changed (no pun) and cruises seem to be more popular than normal vacations. But the downside of that, what first made the cruise experience out of this world, some feel have been tarnished.

It also baffles me that as @Kendall James-Vargas you say that NCL is growing in popularity. How can a company that treats guests with so much disrespect get bigger and popular? Is it because we now accept that this lax customer service is now the norm?

Yeah, welcome to rip off Britain lol. VAT is added to most products from VAT registered businesses that turnover is more than £85k. The rate is 20% and is an indirect tax, however it is still required to report it to the tax office. Does that differ to you @3Sisters?

@3Sisters yeah nobody likes the VAT in the UK. Another sly way of getting extra money out of you.

I agree with many of the posts on here, a few teething problems and issues do occur, and in general you can overlook little things, however when it seems to be the norm and no companies care about these teething issues, that is when as a consumer, we have every right to feel niggled and angry. Some companies don't look at the bigger picture, and they don't seem to care that we are spending our hard earned money with them and deserve to be treated with more respect.