On board British Isles cruise Royal Princess

Hi, I have been posting information on our 2 June Roll Call site but thought it might be more useful on here. We are Currently on the 2 June cruise round the British Isles and Ireland on Royal Princess.

Just to update we are in Dublin today, and instead of berthing inDun Laoghaire as scheduled, they have brought us into Dublin itself which is great. They have laid on a shuttle bus service $8 each way per person and it takes aBout 25minutes. Not thAt far really but it seems that Dublin is being dug up!! Road works everywhere. There were plenty of double decker buses lined up on the dock when we arrived aNd the service seems very efficient.

Weather ok, raining earlier but now sunny, but still a cold wind.

We are back on board at 3 p.m. For an early sailing toLiverpool.

If anyone has any questions ask away and I will try to answer them.

Sue

Nancy 48, thank you for posting. We are on this cruise in August so will be following along. I had already looked at your postings on the other board. Very helpful information. I'll be looking for more.

Hi Sue, thank you for posting. I'm on this cruise in August so am very interested. I had already seen your other postings and have enjoyed them. No questions at this time but will look forward to hearing more from you.

We are on this cruise on 26th June and I have been asking about formal nights and whether the dress code was complied with and you have answered this for me .

I think husband will leave his dinner suit at home from what you say.

Was the formal night on a port day? aren't they usually on sea days? Which day will the 2nd one be on.

Looking forward to your posts and might ask a few questions if that's ok

thanks Lynn

We were on this cruise and got off on May 21. Formal night was the stop in Guernsey (I believe sail away is around 3 pm) and the second was on the first sea day. As for dress, most people dressed up. For men a sport coat. My dh wore a tux and he was not alone but most were at least wearing a sport coat.

Hi Lynn, yes the first formal night was after Guernsey, early sail away of 3 pm. The second formal is on the first sea day, quite correct. I will post on here after that again, but after the first one on this Cruise the tuxedos were definitely in the minority. There were lots of sports jackets etc., but not many full evening dress, men and women. Having said that we were not made to feel uncomfortable, indeed everyone seemed to be comfortable with how they were dressed. I am sure luggage restrictions for all of the passengers from overseas has a big impact on dress.

Ship preparing for sail away now, sun shining but still that cold wind.

Will report more later

Sue

Well we got away at 4 pm prompt but have left six passengers behind! Ship needed to sail and they weren't back, so we've gone without them. Captain Nash tells us they will be ferried over to Liverpool tomorrow to rejoin the ship!

He says we can expect force 7 or 8 winds/gales tonight (eek!) so he's going straight over to Liverpool as quick as he can, expecting us to be alongside by 4 a.m. And another very windy day in Liverpool tomorrow. Happy days!

More later

Sue

Enjoy the rest of your cruise.....:):):)

Bob

A belated Bon Voyage! Thanks for posting live comments. At least the 6 don't have to wait too long or travel to far to rejoin the ship. :)

This trip is on my bucket list. We we scheduled to go last summer but had to cancel. Maybe next year.

Have a great trip!

Thank you so much for this! We are also on the June 26th sailing. I appreciate you taking the time to post live.

Hi we are going down to the river tomorrow to see her docked, it's kinda weird knowing we will be boarding her next week in Southampton, I wish we could leave with you tomorrow [emoji3] We live in Liverpool and we are expecting good weather tomorrow. There will be plenty to do right by the ship as there is a free concert all day by the pier head and its a celebration of the river, plenty of good pubs and places to eat. You don't need any bus to get you to the city here!!!

Nancy, thanks for posting. We'll be on this cruise on July 8th so will be following along with interest. Please keep us posted on weather as I'm still debating what to pack--sounds like we'll still need layers even in the summer. Have a wonderful cruise and check in when you can.

Susan

Hi Sue!

Belated bon voyage!! Thank you so much for taking the time to let us sail along with you. We are on the August 1 cruise and your information will be very helpful to us. I hope the wind improves and you have a wonderful journey.

I find it amazing that some cruisers didn't get back in time - hellllooooooooooooooo?

I will be watching for all of your posts!:D

Thank you for posting on this board. I've been following you on your roll call, but more people will read this board. We'll be on the Aug. 25th and ta after that. I hope that docking in Dublin will be a permanent change.

Enjoy the rest of your trip; I'll be looking forward to your posts.

Wow it seems I have a small fan club, I'm flattered. I avidly read these boards before a cruise so just thought I would post stuff that I would want to know in return. Hope I am helping you all out. Don't hesitate to ask if you want to know anything specific, otherwise will just let you know what I think is interesting.

Well tonight we are steaming across the Irish Sea, may well be a Force7/8 as Captain Nash said, but if it is then Royal Princess doesn't seem to care. No movement on board, and believe me I am not a good sailor so would know if there was any kind of ship movement.

We are already seeing the coast of Wales so he has made good time.

Weather a bit misty and murky, but ok. Show tonight was good, a Scottish guy called Glenn Macnamara. If you like the "Great American Songbook", Frank Sinatra etc., then you will enjoy this show. Very good.

Well it's Liverpool tomorrow, an action packed day. Well it will be for my husband, he's planning on an early start, me I've ordered breakfast in bed!!

Will talk to you tomorrow, turning in now.

Sue

Thanks for posting. We are on the same cruise July 20. We did the same in June 4 years ago and it rained every day! We are hoping for better weather in July!

We will give you a wave tomorrow Sue lol. Ken and Pam

Liverpool! Any excursions planned?

Is the minimum age for drinking alcohol 18 or 21?

Is the minimum age for gambling 18 or 21?

Thanks

Hi Sue,

Thanks for posting. You can add another one to your fan club who will be following you around. I too am booked in August and looking forward to reading your experiences.

Hi, feel a bit like Robin Williams if I say Good Morning, older readers will know the exact tone of voic, no doubt.

Well a good crossing in the end and here we are in a very sunny Liverpool. She is berthed Port side to, (my husband used to be an officer in the Merchant Navy so I have to use the technical terms😉) which means that if you are on the left hand side facing the front then your cabin overlooks the magnificent Liver Building etc. sadly we are on the Starboard side, the other one, and so have a lovely view of the Mersey.

My husband is having n early breakfast and then down to the Maritime Museum, which I have visited before, so a lazy early morning for me. You won't get lots of information on shore side from me as I am disabled and so tend to just take it very slowly.

Someone asked about minimum drinking ages. Will find out later today and let you know. I also see someone is asking about the wine packages on another thread. First of all, in Southampton we had our two bottles of wine in he hand luggage. No one looked at them, no one asked about alcohol, there was no "table" for alcohol etc. Nothing. Our two bottles did 't get stMped with anything. And in two ports, because my husband is sad there is no lager on tap on board(I don't think this has affected me in the same way it has him, but he seems quite upset about it!) he has brought a single can of lager on board after we have been ashore. No problem, no one has queried it or anything. Don't know whether a single can is not worth their hassle, or whether this would work on a full bottle.

Now the wine package. When we boarded inSouthampton we went to the Concerto Dining Room for lunch. Very nice. The waiter who served us asked us if we would like the wine package and after studying the wine list we went for the 12 bottle silver package. There are several wines on the list around the 29$ price and we figured even if we went up two or three dollars on that we were still winning. The guy did the sale and handed us a small card on thick paper with the details and twelve numbers. Now each time we go to the dining room, I put it on the table, the waiter brings us the wine list, we choose our wine, he takes the order and the little card, and then beings it back to us with one of the numbers punched out. We also have to sign a sales receipt. Shortly after our bottle of wine arrives. As the advert says, "simples".

Hope this explains it.

Well breakfast has arrived, what luxury, getting toast crumbs in bed and not worrying about it.

Will report back on Liverpool later today. And I will wave back Ken and Pam, you may spot me, I'll either be in a wheelchair or hobbling along with my stick, and my husband looks a bit like the Ancient Mariner, or Father Christmas, whichever you prefer.

Bye for now

Sue

Hi, I have been posting information on our 2 June Roll Call site but thought it might be more useful on here.

 

Sue

Hi Sue,

THANKS for treating us to your Live thread. I hope you don't mind but I brought over the previous day's posts (prior to this thread) from the Roll Call thread so that they can be read here as well.

Have a wonderful time on Royal Princess!!

Posted June 3rd

"Finally sailed at 9p.m. Delays due to winds. Bit of a bumpy tossing but we,a aged to get into Guernsey. Tender queues for returning to ship here were horrendous and we were later leaving this afternoon. I guess because of delays I tendering everyone back. Heavy swell made it tricky I think.

Sun is shining and we are on our way to Cobh."

"Well just to update. Delays in Guernsey were due to another ship being in and us being unable to use tenders whilst they did something. And the we were delayed by another ship, Captain Nick Nash sounded pretty annoyed when he was apologising for the delays. Because of those delays, and the large sea swell and winds we are going to be arriving quite late into Cobh. About 9.30 to 10 he thought.

The good news is that we are no longer going into Dun Laoghaire but directly into Dublin. Apparently they have worked out how they can manoeuvre there. They have laid on shuttle buses for Dublin as well, 8$ one way for a 25/30 minutes shuttle ride, and you can book shuttle tickets in advance.

First formal night tonight. Very disappointing, not many people in tuxedos and long gowns, we were in a very small minority. Lots of men in open necked shirts, and lots of people wandering around in shorts, jeans, t shirts etc. no atmosphere at all. Very mixed passenger demographic, USA, Canada, Australia, lots from Asia, Spanish, a few Brits. So maybe that's why atmosphere different.

Much calmer sea tonight, very pleasant.

Goodnight all,

Will keep you updated as things happen."

Posted June 4th

"Hi so we are all tied up in Cobh, finally got here earlier than Captain Nash had predicted after a very quick and comfortable crossing. Weather sunny and pleasant, just light winds. Because of our late arrival a couple of planned tours have been cancelled, but most have just been rescheduled. Communications on ship seem to be good, they are keeping us well informed about all changes.

We leave promptly this evening, all back by 5.15 as they need to get up to Dublin to catch the tide that will allow us to go alongside.

Well off to explore Cobh now, will report back later."

"Well as I am disabled we don't go too far so don't expect major travelogues from me. But Cobh is a very pretty town, beautiful multi coloured houses on the cliff side surrounding the Church/Cathedral. Really pretty. Went to the Titanic Experience which was well done and very interesting.

Got away from port on time and are now sailing up to Dublin. They are really doing the Irish theme on here. At 5.15 p.m. We saw an Irish themed show with four guys playing and singing all types of Irish songs, old and new, and three youngsters doing traditional Irish dancing. They were very good. The later shows were a young Irish guy who again sang old and new Irish songs (I think we might be done with Danny Boy now) and a little bit of Irish humour. All well done.

Well the sea is very calm now thank goodness. Weather ok, saw quite a bit of sun today, although still a cool wind. But much better than a couple of days ago.

Ready for Dublin now, will let you know how it goes."

THANKS again Sue!

:D

18 in the UK, but they do ask for id in some places

18 in the UK, but they do ask for id in some places

Morning from sunny Liverpool, hope you enjoy your day with us 🌞