Tips and suggestions for First Time UK Cruisers

What tips/ideas/suggestions would you give to First Time UK Cruisers ?

(Please no naming of TA's)

I would suggest shopping around as here in the UK cruises can be discounted.

Also I would suggest checking if the TA/Cruiseline charges an admin fee or extra cancellation charge on top of those within their normal T&Cs

Research BEFORE you buy! :eek:...there's someone asking the question today about how do they get to the ship from Gerona airport (booked own flights)....they don't land until 1pm, and sail at 5pm....I'd have palpitations all the way...esp. on a January flight, with snow in the offing!

Check out the tipping procedure....my sister bought a cruise from a newspaper(!)....1st time with a US line, and laughed in my face when I told her about gratuities....Utter cheek, is how she described it....

And check the dress code...we've all heard of poor souls who've been and bought a case load of expensive ballgowns, only to find fellow pax in something less expensive, and still looking good.

Jo.

Join the roll call for your particular cruise to pool resources for shore trips. It is useful to look at some others going to the same ports at different dates too.

Check the prices in the US.

There is one US site(not a TA) that allows TAs to compete for your cruise business and many acept UK customers.

NCL allows direct booking on NCL.com

IN the UK RCI owns a TA so always check prices with them they are often the cheapest.

Research, ships,cabins,itineraries and dates a cruise can be 1/2 price just by changing dates.

Compare prices on costs per day if different length.

A good target price is £50 per person per day for an inside or less on some trips

Check the prices in the US.

 

There is one US site(not a TA) that allows TAs to compete for your cruise business and many acept UK customers.

 

NCL allows direct booking on NCL.com

 

 

IN the UK RCI owns a TA so always check prices with them they are often the cheapest.

 

Research, ships,cabins,itineraries and dates a cruise can be 1/2 price just by changing dates.

 

Compare prices on costs per day if different length.

 

A good target price is £50 per person per day for an inside or less on some trips

What would be a good price for a balcony?

Thanks

A small packing tip....with the rules about liquids etc having to go into checked luggage, before you pack any shower gels, toothpaste, shampoo etc....selotape down the lids.

By doing this simple thing, it should prevent any spillage if the case is crushed during the flight or at the airport.

Nowt worse than unpacking on the ship to find clothes stained with toothpaste or shampoo. Takes a few seconds to selotape the lids securely down :)

A small packing tip....with the rules about liquids etc having to go into checked luggage, before you pack any shower gels, toothpaste, shampoo etc....selotape down the lids.

 

By doing this simple thing, it should prevent any spillage if the case is crushed during the flight or at the airport.

 

Nowt worse than unpacking on the ship to find clothes stained with toothpaste or shampoo. Takes a few seconds to selotape the lids securely down :)

Good point - for good measure I also put suncream etc. into plastic sandwich bags an extra precaution which has never been necessary until my last cruise - was I glad I had!!!! All my toilet bag contents would have been coated otherwise as the container had burst in transit!

We have all been novice cruisers...or newbies as they are often called..we have all felt the same at some point...so never be afraid to ask questions.

No question is silly.

We are going to Egypt in May and the tour operator there (Rameses) wants to be paid in cash at the end of the trip (over $1000). This presents two problems:

First, do I get my dollars in advance and take them on board;

and second, what do I do with the cash while we are touring around in Egypt.

We are going to Egypt in May and the tour operator there (Rameses) wants to be paid in cash at the end of the trip (over $1000). This presents two problems:

 

First, do I get my dollars in advance and take them on board;

 

and second, what do I do with the cash while we are touring around in Egypt.

This is my second attempt to post this...database error message, so could be a double post, not sure.

Anyway...personally I would never take that amount of cash anywhere...home or away.

I would get the amount needed for the tour in travellers cheques and at the end of the tour, have the driver take you to a bank/bureau de change and change them to cash & hand it to the driver inside the bank/bureau.

The travellers cheques are insured against theft, so that would offer you some security. By changing them up inside the building & handing them over there, again you'll have some sort of security incase of problems.

If you carry that amount of cash in Egypt (or any country with significant poverty) you are at more risk of things going wrong. Also by having travellers cheques, only you can cash them as they require a passport to cash...so even if they do get stolen or lost, they are useless to anyone else.

Cover your rear end, never leave yourself vulnerable...afterall, the worst case scenario could be very unpleasant.

Try to find a bank or bureau close to the ship...thus you won't have far to go once the payment is made, again just a basic security thing.

JMO.

Another thing UK cruisers on CC need to be aware of is that posting in the morning can have problems most days, so make sure you take a copy of any long posts before attempting a submit.

There seems to be some overnight(US time) maintanence that overlaps with UK mornings i have had issues from around 7am thought 10am usualy an hour or two.

I just learned this recently, if you are taking a CPAP machine onboard your RCCL cruise, you can contact RCCL Special Needs Dept and request Distilled water and an Extention cord, this should be in your stateroom upon arrival, if not ask your steward to look into it.

I'd echo the advice to check US prices. But before you do, remember that you are sacrificing ABTA and ATOL protection. But you can cancel with full refund of your deposit up to 90 days before you travel - at which point you'll have to pay in full.

Sometimes you will find that the prices are better in the US, sometimes in the UK.

US insurance is also far more flexible when considering previous medical conditions.

There are pros and cons of booking on the two sides of the pond. But it is an option to consider.

My TA can book me on anything bar P&O. Don't ask me why!

My own experience is with Cunard, if that is of relevance.

WD

Oh - and read the brochure. Carefully!!!!!

You're not going to want to go on Cunard if you are a laid back hippy, nor want to travel on NCL if you wear a tie to prune the roses!

WD

Don't be scared about sharing a table at dinner. When we booked our 1st cruise we requested a table for 2. Friends who had done previous cruises said to change it so we did. We requeted a table of 8 (P & O) & were given a table of 6 & had great table companions. 2 of whom we spent time off ship with too.

I read somewhere that if you have to cancel a cruise, and have pre-paid your gratuities, the insurance may not pay for these. So you might get the cost back, but not the 14 nights at $11 or whatever....

Jo.

I'd echo the advice to check US prices. But before you do, remember that you are sacrificing ABTA and ATOL protection. But you can cancel with full refund of your deposit up to 90 days before you travel - at which point you'll have to pay in full.

 

Sometimes you will find that the prices are better in the US, sometimes in the UK.

 

US insurance is also far more flexible when considering previous medical conditions.

 

There are pros and cons of booking on the two sides of the pond. But it is an option to consider.

 

My TA can book me on anything bar P&O. Don't ask me why!

 

My own experience is with Cunard, if that is of relevance.

 

WD

Be carefull of taking out insurance elewhere many policies have residence retrictions

Typicaly a UK policy will require travel to start and end in the UK.

As for UK protections using with a UK booking

Using Celebrity as an example.

If only using a Celebrity provided extras

Fly cruise using cruise line Air are covered by the RCCL ATOL

Cruise only is covered by PSA

Both the above apply booked direct or through a TA.

If you by any extra(flight, accomodation, transfers etc.) from the TA then neither of the above two covers apply you have to check what cover the TA provides.