Goodbye P and O

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capt_courageous

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We were on the boat yesterday at Gosport. We heard the Pride of Portsmouth say Goodbye to QHM and the other ships that they passed on the way out of the Harbour. A sad day for the crew. Like lots of people I have faced redundancy and so feel for them. I wish them the best and God Bless. /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif
 
This is a real outrage when you consider the outcry that the Irish Ferries redundancies has provoked on the other side of the Irish Sea /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif
Look here

You lads really don't know how to kick up a fuss do you /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 
They've ben trying to sell the routes off to other companies. I was under the impression that the Le Havre route had been taken over, I think the people of Le Havre are quite keen on it as well, but no menion of it here
 
Based in Poole we have never used P & O although have used Brittany Ferries from Portsmouth to St Malo as well as their local to us Poole - Cherbourg service.

I checked a couple of times this year for Brittany Ferries' prices for a week's golf over the winter and the lack of competition seems to have really gone to their heads! I forget the details but it was around double what it used to be and double the price for going to Ireland from Holyhead or Fishguard, both similar time and distance crossings. Needless to say they will not get our custom, but I wonder how this will affect those with second homes in La Belle France.
 
P & O have comitted the classic error of thinking that increasing fares will bring in more money. SWMBO has family in and around Cherbourg and we used to go and visit several times a year. We simply can't afford the current fares, so we go maybe once a year now. Result: P&O make far less money out of us. Halve the fare and we'd probably travel three times as often.

We could fly to Nice for less than the ferry fare to Cherbourg
 
Re: Tough times in the ferry industry

P&O were trying to win custom with cheap fares. Brittany on the other hand just want to make a profit and stay in business, wise move.

I know for a fact that P&O were shipping a coach incl passengers for less than the incured port duties. That may have worked when duty free redressed the balance but not now.

Even now Brittany work on tight margins, the tunnel and more to the point cheap air fares putting on the squeeze.

It will all end in tears, the tunnel is massively in debt, a lot of the airlines run at a loss. Cheap travel cannot last.
 
Re:The P&O business model

was far to dependant on secondary sales. That used to work on the Dover Calais run, with its short journey times encouraging day trippers. The tunnel would have destroyed the Dover Calais ferries years ago if it had been better funded & properly managed. It keeps shooting itself in the foot though.

I think we're looking at the beginning of the end of cheap travel now. After all it's not green is it?
 
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