Aulanis

Yes its the same distance from the Train station and the coach station if taking a taxi try and get a fixed price on cruise days ( on cruise days the roads get gridlocked so a metered taxi can be expensive. OP is there on 16th july Sunday and only 3 ships showing I think the 102 berth is the horizon and next to city terminal 101 which are probably the easiest traffic wise. https://www.southamptonvts.co.uk/Live_Information/Shipping_Movements_and_Cruise_Ship_Schedule/Cruise_Ship_Schedule/

Maybe check out the trains - usually direct from waterloo. But depending on when you go check for rail workers strike days. https://www.southwesternrailway.com/train-times/london-waterloo-to-southampton-central?gclid=CjwKCAjwg-GjBhBnEiwAMUvNW03-J5rNwrczxY1DIYREmAql3aB9QAfvR92N-stsxsPR-cKsZoSBjBoC1UAQAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

If this is the Norway cruise there are higher grade cabins available so I guess there is always the chance of an upgrade for the OP.

Not from london or even near but as we have to get across london whenever we go to the airport LHR or to Southampton for a cruise. we have the same problem. You may have found it but Transport from London have a section on step free access. https://tfl.gov.uk/travel-information/improvements-and-projects/step-free-access. Problem for you is that the tube stations closest to your hotel are not step free. My suggestion ( Londoners feel free to pull it to pieces) would be to use the Elizabeth Line service from the airport to Paddington ( Said to be step free from platform to pavement) then catch a bus Number 23 from Paddington to a stop just outside your hotel! https://tfl.gov.uk/bus/route/23/

As you are new to cruising you will not have read the hundreds (Thousands!!) of posts on this subject. If under 50 and have no prior medical conditions then the premiums may be more in line with a worldwide land tour. There are 2 major considerations in addition to age and medical conditions that account for the increase in premium for a cruise. One is summed up in this P& O condition in cruise contract 32. It is a condition of the Contract that every Guest must have adequate and appropriate insurance. This must include cover for travel, cancellation and curtailment and full and valid medical cover for pre-existing medical conditions worldwide, or as a minimum, in the countries that the Guest is due to visit and which must remain in force for the entire duration of the Package. The insurance policy(ies) must, as a minimum, include medical and repatriation coverage for not less than £2 million and must include cover for the cost of emergency evacuations from the ship, including but not limited to, evacuations by helicopter. It is the Guest’s responsibility to ensure that adequate and appropriate insurance is in place for the entire duration of the package. Land tours do not in the main require this I have always wondered just what the statistics are for helicopter evacuation?? Second - you have been used to european holidays where hospital treatment can be offset somewhat by carrying a EHIC or now a GHIC so insurance is cheaper. ( You should still carry one on a cruise if cruising transatlantic as you could have an accident in a European port on the way to other places) There is also the cost of medical care in the US and it seems extended to the caribbean, it has to be paid for and can be very expensive. As for ships doctor I believe they are all on US prices. We have always used Annual policies and these can save a lot if you cruise or holiday more than twice a year. Something to consider is if your bank does travel ins as part of your account it is something to look into. Nationwide is often mentioned as a good policy I keep thinking we should try it but its easier to just renew what we have. I sometimes mention that if you cruise a lot even a £1000 premium for 2 pax annual policy is £ 500 each two 14 day cruises £250 each per cruise "Plus packages" say £50 per person per day @ 28 days 2 people = £2800!!!! So maybe the insurance is cheap??

"Best way to get from hotel in London staying close to Hyde park to Dublin for cruise?" Dont understand that bit where exactly does your cruise leave from?

Can I assume you have seen this Utube video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkEdEcOdZkQ

Here is the walking route station to hotel also on that pic is the abitart hotel direct link https://www.abitarthotel.com/en/ Might be a bit quieter not next to rail track

Are we talking about a UK passport here? and is flying involved? It may just be a temporary glitch on P&O system - it is maybe not the most reliable.

Wow! I like the sound of that it even goes to Easter Island wonder if that is a sail by or a a proper stop? The map is way out in a few places EI is far from the s american coast nearer to adamstown /Pitcairn and I dont know of any cruise ships that go ashore there , last time we were there the villagers came on the ship to sell their stuff. They also have Isafjord in N Norway and it is in Iceland?? hope the captain has a better map!

Thanks for the replies, stillseems a n+bit of a gray area I will try and get an answer from Princess and report back. I will suggest to them that this, in their terms and conditions may be misleading "Future Cruise Deposits cannot be added to a booking after the booking has been paid in full and may not be combinable with other promotional offers." as I want to read it that FCDs CAN be added between booking and final payment date 😕

If heat is a problem, May to Sept are the cooler months in Brisbane. It starts to warm up in October.

|Everything is doable if you have enough time and money ideas here https://www.seat61.com/europe-to-australia-without-flying.htm echoes @Harters reply plus other ideas Cunard do a 30-40 day cruise Soton to Perth but maybe not when you want to go. There are cruises from west coast US to oZ so if you can find one at the right time you can get a cunard Soton to NY cross us by train . See if similar to return. Alternate way to West coast US several trans atlantic repositioning to miami or Fort Lauderdale then get a cruise from there through the Panama canal.

And yet another question.... We are booked on a cruise in Sept and used our FCDs for that. Now, we have seen a "cruise" for April 2024 that we would like to do and are thinking we would book now as we think it may be popular. So first part of question is, if we book and pay the deposit now can we buy future cruise deposits in September and still apply them towards the balance for the cruise in April 24 . Second part is, The "cruise" is only shown on Princess as 2 separate cruises that are back to back so we will be asking our agent to book them separately in which case can we buy 4 FCDs (2 each) and apply them separately thus getting OBC on each sector. We felt wronged years ago when we booked a LA to New Zealand and Oz trip and found that on that occasion the cruise was sold as one originally then split LA to NZ and NZ to OZ. and those booking later were able to treat it as 2 and received two lots of OBC and 2 lots of elite perks of cabin bar refill. That may not be the full/correct story it may just be that it was sold differently in the Uk than in the US.

We are booked on the Westerdam 9Dec 23 singapore to HK so interested to hear how things are. We were on Volendam in Nov 22 FFL to Amazon and the seemed to struggle in the dining rooms not enough waiters nor chefs. The staff that were there were still friendly and efficient the problems were out of their control. Last cruise with HAL prior to that was 2016 and overall it was not as good as we had hoped, though still good value for money. We have been on 2 Princess cruises last year and they too had too few staff. Lots of cut backs there as well notable on the elite perks. We are on P&O next week another Carnival group company so will see how they are doing. In the UK I think most of the land side staff are working from home still and enquiries are difficult , phone line is not free to call so expensive if you are on hold for ages and replies to emails can take weeks. Hopefully it will continue to improve.

Hi Its not easy maybe someone who lives in that area may have ideas but to get you started there is this site which will give you an idea and a map that will get you familiar with the area. https://www.rome2rio.com/map/Port-of-Southampton/Highclere-Castle

This might help https://www.tui.co.uk/destinations/info/check-in-and-airport-faqs#:~:text=DAY-BEFORE BAG DROP,by checking in online beforehand.

Thanks -Yes - the link wasnt working last night when I looked.

The notice you have posted is from the 2021 annual meeting? The 2022 annual results are just being announced and may contain the extension or amendment. The current one covers until July 2023 so you can claim now for your cruise in May 23 You will just have to wait until the next one is published for your cruise in March24.

Hi, @Mamamiahwelcome to cruise critic. If you have not found it there is a whole section for first time cruisers. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/58-first-time-cruisers/ Maybe you will find answers or even some new questions there.

I think he is on a MSC cruise?

Maybe check out this https://www.whatsinport.com/Hamburg.htm There is a link on there Poert location on googlemaps which shows a railway station fairly near the dock that goes to the town centre. Perhaps post back how you get on - we are going later this year but not sure where docked yet.

Gibraltar

There is also the "Blue Bus" which may work out cheaper for non select We have never used it but have read about it before on CC https://www.barcelona-tourist-guide.com/en/faq/cruise-ship-terminals/shuttle-bus-barcelona-cruise-terminal.html

Not heard of it personally but there are umpteen reasons they might reject a claim. The policy documents would need to be scrutinised .