ukoyster7

Me too, although our flight from Gatwick lands late afternoon/early evening so there won't be much time for anything!

Our only other cruise delivered us to the ship in Genoa for a late lunch and we were able to wander off the ship after the lifeboat drill to explore a bit and shop.

What time will we get to the ship in Malta?...has anyone done it recently on the late Gatwick flight?

It took us approx. 90 mins from landing at MLA to sitting down for lunch onboard. You cannot get lost at the airport, there must have been a P&O rep holding up a sign every 15 yards to the coaches!

Remember to bring your summer/pool gear in your hand luggage (if you don't wear it on the plane) as we had a 2 hour wait for our luggage to arrive at our cabin door.

And one final thing - take time to admire the cruise terminal in Valletta - it's stunning.

I am also on the ship next week, flying with Thomson, however I was informed by a friend who did it a few weeks age and it was mentioned on this board too, that we will pass through a duty free shop before boarding the ship. Are you saying this is not the case? As we had hoped to pick up a bottle of gin

Yes there is a shop you pass through after cruise terminal check in before you board the ship. It's decent value - I got a 50cl bottle of gin for EUR6, and tonic/bitter lemon for EUR2 each. It's the usual airport shop type stuff - overpriced colourful chocolate (think M&Ms, Toblerone etc) - not good for 30deg heat!

There's another local shop approx. 2 minute walk towards the harbour exit (north east) called Crew Inn or something like that. They sold Maltese wine and local beer too (and it was in the fridge!).

Thomas Cook and Easyjet flights will be collect luggage. Thomson will be bonded luggage straight to ship.

Did this last week.

5 min walk from ship to people mover monorail. EUR1.50 each way for people taller than 1.00m.

Then approx. a 35-40min walk to the Rialto bridge through some lovely streets and across a number of canals.

Pretty easy to walk. I had 2 small children so had to carry the pushchair with child in it over some of the bridges that had steps rather than ramps. No probs with this though.

Having completed the trip, I can now answer my own questions (which others might be interested in).

1. On the outbound flight to Malta, there was no time to visit the arrivals lounge. This is fair enough - the arrivals process was pretty smooth (though being onboard ship without shorts (as they're in my suitcase, was a drawback).

2. On return P&O do not get you to the airport very early at all. The meeting time on the ship was only 1hr 45m before the gate time on our boarding passes. We still had to disembark the ship, get on a coach, drive to the airport, join a huge queue through security and then we could get into the VIP lounge. The lounge is brilliant and well worth a visit. But presumably few P&O passengers use it as they drop you off with only perhaps 15 mins to spend in the lounge. Glad I hadn't paid with cash in advance to use that lounge!

And on return, how much time ahead of the flight do they drop you at the airport?

Luqa airport has a delightful little lounge which would be good to visit and not be so rushed that we only get 20 mins in there before our flight.

Hello.

Will be flying to Malta on a P&O charter (Thomson) for an Oceana cruise next week.

Is there time to visit the arrivals lounge in Malta airport before getting our transfer to the ship? Or will we be hurried out to a waiting coach?

I've found it impossible to find out the cruise only cost of a med cruise in 2017. Does anyone know how much the difference might be?

I'm keen to book my own flight as I can then choose my flight timings and maybe get a decent deal for Club Europe.

I assume the P&O flight-included price also covers the cost of transfer to ship. But I suspect there's a large 'peace of mind' premium charged too.

First post and first cruise, so go easy with me.

We're going on Britannia in September from Southampton and wondered whether anyone has any tips on avoiding mishaps, tantrums and disturbances with very little children. I want to have a great holiday, but I also want those around us to have one too, and not be disturbed by our little ones.

The children will be 7 months and just turned 2 years old.

On valet parking and check in, can we use a priority queue?

Are the balconies safe (i.e. difficult to climb)?

Are there hazards in the cabins to watch out for?

Is there much space to store pushchairs? We can't decide whether to take 2 single pushchairs or a double one. Bit worried the double won't fit through many doors.

Can the night nursery be booked before the cruise date?

Thanks