Here's what you need to know about cruising P&O in 2022!

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Join my private Facebook group for cruise deals, tips and advice - the more members we have, the better we’ll get! www.facebook.com/groups/CTGdeals Follow me on Facebook and Instagram: www.facebook.com/thecruiseandtravelguy www.instragram.com/thecruiseandtravelguy Head to my website for great cruise and travel deals: www.thecruiseandtravelguy.com.au Now that cruising has finally returned to Australia, I thought I’d breakdown some of the important things you should know before going on your P&O cruise. Download the app P&O launched a brand new app only a few weeks ago and we had a good chance to test it out during the activation cruise. The app is your go-to onboard guide for what’s on around the ship. Plus you can review the deck plans, find out opening hours for the different facilities and review your onboard spending. The app also allows you to book any of the restaurants onboard for dinners and lunches, depending on their hours. It looks like online ordering from Charlie’s Bar and NZ Ice Cream will be available soon, but the facility wasn’t functional during our cruise. VeriFLY and pre test P&O utilise a third party app called VeriFly. It’s simple to use, and allows you to scan your international vaccination certificate and have it loaded against your booking. You’ll also record the results of your self-administered Rapid Antigen test in the app in the 24 hours before departure, but no later than 6am on the day of departure. If you opt for a PCR test, you can record the results in Verifly up to 72 hours before departure. Check-in At the terminal, you’ll drop off any large suitcases with the porters. If you haven’t printed your luggage tag, don’t worry, you can collect one at the drop off point and write your cabin number and name on it. At the entrance to the check in hall, you’ll show your boarding pass from your phone, making sure to display the green tick. You’ll then make your way to the check in desk where an agent will scan your boarding pass with their tablet. Your boarding pass will be scanned a couple of times during the process, and then you’ll also need to show your completed verifly app. If you haven’t uploaded a photo in cruise control, or if the photo isn’t of good enough quality, a new one will be taken. This was all fairly straight forward, though our agent had some tech issues with their tablet and it took a bit longer to work than it should have. Once checked in, it’s through security and straight onto the ship. Our cruise cards were waiting for us at our cabin door. Masks Masks will be required in the terminal during embarkation and disembarkation. Onboard, they’re required in the marquee theatre and black circus, though you can remove them to drink or eat, you will need to put them back on once you’re done. Masks are also required where social distancing isn’t possible, the elevators being a prime example. For the most part, people weren’t wearing them indoors in general, as it’s not a requirement to do so. Masks are provided in your cabin by your room steward and were available at the entrance to the theatre as well. Muster Long gone are the days of crowded muster drills, instead, on boarding day you’ll make your way to your muster station at any time before spillway, and have your cruise card barcode scanned. You then need to watch the demonstration that plays on a loop on your stateroom television. The drill is still broadcast over the PA system, and the bars and venues cease operating during the announcement, but wherever you are, you can remain. You don’t need to take your life jackets from your cabin at any stage during the process. Onboard Spending Linking a credit card to your account via the Cruise Control website is the easiest way to pay for your onboard purchases. P&O will provide you with a statement at the end of the cruise that details all purchases made to your cruise card folio. Expenses are charged to your credit card daily, as opposed to in one lump sum at the end of the cruise. You can also add cash to your onboard account if you don’t want to use a credit card. EFTPOS machines are available on the ship for you to withdraw additional cash reserves and then you can add this to your account at the reception desk. Thanks for watching!