RedgeToo

25 minutes ago, 4380 said:

Agent. They are cruise specialists.  I'm not doing any naming and shaming as I'm awaiting a refund. 

 

Fingers crossed for you

UK law allows you to cancel anything within 14 days that you've bought over the internet. On a cruise ship, you are buying accommodation. Sadly, accommodation is excluded from the 14-day rule.

If you've booked via the cruise line website, there will be a record of the chat which you can request. By travel agent, it may be different.

A few questions, to see if I can help:

• Do you have a record of the chat?
• When did you book the cruise?
• Which cruise line?
• Did you pay by credit card? (don't give details of your credit card here)
• Who did you book with - the cruise line or a travel agent ?
• Does the company have an ATOL certificate?

Feel free to DM me these answers if you'd prefer a more private chat, but do not under any circumstances give credit card details, reference numbers or any other personal details, especially on a public forum. 

Tbh. I wouldn't trust the train service and would go the day before 

When I considered using the train to get to Southampton cruise terminal, I found it was cheaper to fly to Heathrow, stop over night, and get the coach the following day

In a month I'll be driving down because I have parking included 

3 hours ago, stinkyharriet said:

Go to the solo meeting the first night and you will meet people in person.  Not everyone is on CC or FB.

Agreed

4 hours ago, Timo_Berlin said:

Thank you for ur information. Hoped to find some other solo traveller before, but neithger on FB nor here it seems that a lot solos are in these groups

FB has lots of solos groups 

4 hours ago, Timo_Berlin said:

Mediterrain, starting Rome...Greek Islands...Italy....Rome. I am looking forward but haven´t found a lot of solos yet

I was on Epic last October and had a great time meeting other solos.

Epic has a solo lounge where many solos meet for a pre-dinner drink after which some went to dinner together. If you're not in a solo cabin, ask for your keycard to give you access to the solo lounge. Even if you can't get access go to the lounge early evening and someone will let you in ;)

Emir was the solo host. He was very good although a little too much of an organiser - I prefer to go with the flow, not be herded around the ship (JMHO and I respect some people who like to hang around in groups).

Show Emir my picture, he'll remember me as I hosted one of his events when he needed time off.

Have a great time

28 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

We have done quite a few TAs (in both directions) and favor West bound for the simple reason of the time changes.

Yeah, I get that.

My preference is to fly during my day and sail back to Blighty or Europe.

On 2/29/2024 at 8:14 PM, Miss Ellsworth said:

If I were from the UK and had to pick one of the above, I'd take the shorter flight at the end and deal with the loss of an hour every day.

Yep, I'm a Brit and my 3 TAs to date have been West to East. Much better IMHO

On 3/14/2024 at 1:38 AM, PG_traveller said:

I just finished my first solo cruise, and this was me too. I had room service for breakfast every day. Nothing beats coffee and pastry on your balcony in your jammies. I had the pizza on the pool deck one day, a sandwich at the International Cafe a couple of times, and the rest of the time I ate at the buffet. I ate inside the first night as it was cold outside, but the rest of the time I took my plate outside. I was trying to be mindful, as much as possible, not to get Covid on the cruise and I succeeded.

JMHO:

Next time you cruise solo, I would urge you to eat in the main dining room. It's much better in my opinion.

Try asking for a sharing table or boldly state table for one, hold your head high and walk to your table. Read a book or engage in small talk with the adjoining tables. You'd be amazed how many solos, couples and families are desperate to talk to someone new 🤣

I honestly love walking into the restaurant on my own, being led to a sharing table - you get to meet some fascinating people.

I'm originally a Manc (from Manchester) and I would love to tell you the weather will be warm and sunny, but Manchester is in the UK.

If you're fortunate, it'll be 25C and sunny, you'll need sunblock.

If you're less fortunate, it'll be 10C and raining with an overnight low of 7C.

So, regardless of the weather on the crossing, you most likely will need warm clothes to survive the summer in the UK.

Enjoy Clapton

I've recently been on NCL Epic (Oct 23 - Mediterranean) and was only asked for my passport.

I don't think there is a requirement for an ID and a passport, it wouldn't serve any purpose.

Hi Ima,

I'm a long-time cruiser and have cruised solo since 2019 with Royal Caribbean(2x), NCL(1x), P&O(1x), Princess(1x), Cost(1x), Marella(1x) and MSC(3x).

"I’m quite happy to go off and do my own thing but generally my cruise mate/s would at least meet up for dinner and we’d run into each other at different times and in different parts of the ship."

Me too. I love my own time to read, think or just watch the world go by. I'm still happy to do things with others I have met if the "thing" interests me.

In the evenings, I try to arrange a pre-dinner drink using this forum and/or FB. Generally, this works well with the highest attendance being 35 people. Then I either have dinner with whoever turns up or Igo the main dining room and ask for a sharing table. A sharing table is a bit of a gamble, but in all honesty, I've been very fortunate to eat dinner with some very interesting people. This is probably due to the nature of the people who ask for sharing tables. Go for it!

"What can you safely leave on your deck chair or table?"

I think the easiest way to save your place in a bar, restaurant, around the pool etc is just to leave a book on the table.

"If your solo cruising level is set to anything higher than ‘Novice’, I’m interested in hearing your tips or tricks to get the best solo cruise mileage."

IMHO, I would skip MSC. MSC don't cater very well for solos and there is generally only one meet-up per week. If you board on meet-up day, you miss the chance to meet other solos and could well spend your week isolated from others. Many people swear MSC are the best, they're certainly good value for money, but not for this solo. 

NCL were superb with a solo-only lounge which allows you to meet like-minded people, arrange for dinners, trips ashore etc. The lounge has a bar and an NCL host, who will book seats for the shows etc. On my NCL cruise, I met lots of people and had a great time, whilst being quite content during the day to sit and read.

P&O have daily coffee mornings for solos.

RC, Marella & Princess have daily evening meet-ups in bars

Costa does nothing for solos AFAIK, but my Costa cruise was booked the day before it was due to sail and was my first solo after my divorce so I wasn't really in the mood for socialising so I could be wrong.

That's it from me for now: You didn't say which cruise line you're sailing with, so please feel free to ask about the specific cruise line if you want to.

3 hours ago, BDL said:

Thanks for your response but I actually meant after the cruise in Miami.  Before the cruise , since I'm flying out of Buffalo NY and it's winter I'll be flying out on the 10th and arriving in Southampton on the 11th.  I'm leaving room for weather delays.  

I was more concerned if TA cruises ever take longer than expected and maybe I should plan on flying home a day after scheduled arrival. 

Barb

Oops, my bad

Enjoy your cruise

7 hours ago, BDL said:

I will be going solo on the NCL Joy from Southampton to Miami Feb 13-24, 2024. This is to cross off a bucket list item.🙂  It will be after it's 3 week drydock so I realize work may be going on in some areas during the crossing.  Hoping the Haven isn't one of them.  

In your experience, is it OK to book a flight out of Miami on the actual arrival day? I'd usually book a flight around Noon or later. Wondering if there is possibility of a late arrival. Thinking I may use some hotel points to stay in Miami that first night then fly out the next morning.  Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Barb

Assuming you are flying from Heathrow, it will depend on how you travel to the airport. For example

https://www.rome2rio.com/map/Southampton/Heathrow-England

Don't forget you need to be checked in 2-3 hours before the flight.

Personally, I'd be looking at an afternoon flight in case anything goes wrong.

Lots of info for you there.

I'll be on my 3rd TA in November 2024 from Miami to Southampton with NCL (Encore).

My first was with MSC from Rio de Janeiro to Marseille and I couldn't recommend MSC less for solo travellers, and my 2nd was with P&O from Barbados to Southampton. This trip was much better than MSC as there was a daily solo meet-up (only too early - 9 a.m. for my liking). 

I met some great people on both trips and I'm still in contact with a few of them.

I'm just off 11 nights with NCL (Epic) around the Med. This was my first time with NCL and it was a blast. 

I prefer east to west because I don't see the point of trying to sleep on a plane.

Weatherwise, I've been very lucky. Both TAs were in early spring and there was hardly a breeze with the Atlantic like a mill pond.

The worst part for me was the journey from Southampton up to Cheshire

Enjoy!

11 minutes ago, NaughtyNanna said:

I don't eat in the buffet for dinner, but for breakfast or lunch, I find it is just quicker and more in line with my eating habits for those meals.

That's fine.

I just prefer the MDR for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

The world would be a dull place if we were all the same

1 minute ago, NaughtyNanna said:

I came across this topic while searching for something regarding solo dining in the buffet!  I have been travelling solo for nearly 20 years after losing my husband.  That first time, I was a nervous wreck! However now I am fine, and I love it.  When cruising, I always try to get fixed dining on a table of 6 - 8 in the MDR for dinner.  I find it's nice to be able to see the same people each night and discuss your day with them.  I prefer sitting with couples or families.  I have found on Princess, they seem to seat all the singles together, which doesn't seem to be the case with HAL and Celebrity.

My biggest concern (apart from the single supplement) is breakfast or lunch, and what to do in the buffet when you want to get up to get something else!  It's fine if you had been sharing a table with others, as you can ask them not to let the waiter/tress clear your perhaps not finished food or drink.  But so many times when I have been at a table by myself, I come back to find the table has been cleared, my half eaten meal gone, and perhaps others are seated there!!  What do other singles do?  I have tried tilting the chair forward to try to indicate it's "taken".  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't and the chair just gets straightened and table cleared anyway .  On my up-coming cruise, I am considering taking a book and an old pair of glasses and leaving them there.  Things that it won't matter if they "go missing".  I usually have my phone or tablet with me, but don't want to risk leaving anything valuable on the table.

 

I would love to hear what others do, or is there some cruise etiquette that I have yet to learn!! 😂😂

I don't eat in the buffet - I prefer the MDR

10 hours ago, Trixie21 said:

Yes , I've looked at the flight times and the cruise gets back on a Saturday which is the only day of the week there is not an evening flight.

The more I look at it the more I'm of the opinion that its either a hotel in Southampton for the night or go to Heathrow. 

I would definitely consider an overnight or late afternoon flight from either Heathrow or Gatwick

In October, I'm doing the same thing but Manchester/Heathrow with the Heathrow/Southampton leg on National Express. Believe it or not, including an overnight stop at Heathrow this was cheaper (and more reliable) than the train

1 hour ago, Trixie21 said:

We are working on booking a cruise on Sky Princess for May 24.

Trying to put together flights to and from Belfast.

Outbound is no problem.

Flying back the only flight that day with Aer Lingus from Southampton to Belfast is 9.15am. The ship docks at 7am on a Saturday axcording to the port schedule - 

I have never had so early a flight from Southampton after a cruise - I'm thinking its doable if we walk off with our own luggage ,  but no room for any delays - don't really want to hang about another day in Southampton.  I know we could go to Heathrow and fly back that way but would rather not have to do that if possible. I think port to airport was about 20 minutes if I am remembering correctly ?

Has anyone successfully made a flight from Southampton Airport that early ?

I don't think you'll make it.

The ship docks at 7 am but then you have to wait for customs clearance, which could be an hour.

Even a taxi may not get you to the airport for boarding time.

Air Lingus has a later flight or you can go via Gatwick at 14:20 of Heathrow at 13:15

34 minutes ago, Meander Ingwa said:

talk about being alone on a cruise.  I bet many crew members are missing home and contact with people who really care about them.  What a simple gesture you made to make someone feel seen and important.

I try to make a point of talking to the cleaning staff - not the cabin people, I talk to them twice a day 

On 6/24/2023 at 2:02 PM, ghjcmo said:

but honestly the hardest thing for me is paying for two people when it's just me.

There are websites that cater for solos offering big discounts for solo travellers. I don't think I'm allowed to name them but sometimes Google is your friend.

On 6/24/2023 at 4:41 AM, Bender68105 said:

So now I just go to the buffet and that takes care of that.

I often find the best part of cruising solo is walking into the MDR, asking for a shared table and meeting new people.

It helps that I'm naturally gregarious and am easily fascinated by people with a story to tell.

Try it, you may like it and even get a chance to be bored silly by me! 🤣🤣🤣

7 hours ago, SakeDad said:

I apologize for yet another post on the topic...but I have read the others and still need advice. We are staying in Shepherds Bush a few days precruise. Deciding if it's better to do National Express bus from Victoria Station or a shared shuttle? We do not want to spend hundreds when the bus seems fine at less than $50....any input is appreciated 

I've just booked National Express from Heathrow to Southampton for £18

Please be aware you will need a taxi or a walk through Southampton to get to the cruise terminals, so you may want to factor that into your costs.

23 hours ago, CruisinKikster said:

I'm booked on a cruise on the Celestyal Olympia in August. My documents and their website say that we're departing and arriving in Lavrion, but Cruisemapper says Piraeus is where they are scheduled to be. They are in very different parts of town, so I'm not sure which one is right. 

According to the Celestyal website, the departure port is Lavrion.

Cruisemapper could be wrong or haven't updated their website.

You can always contact Celestyal customer support if you are still unsure.

Enjoy your cruise.

Celestyal Journey March 2024, 7 night Three Continents out of Athens

Inside cabin £610 including drinks with meals, £883 all-inclusive

5 excursion package is £243 if you're all-inclusive, £373 if not.

Gratuities included.

I'm booked!