aljo66

Thanks - I think you are right that this is probably the best way 🙂

Our final payment date is 2 days away and was set to be automatically paid via Credit card. I hope that now they have cancelled that they will not take this payment but it seems that they have so many cruises to cancel that the systems may not co-ordinate in time. Does anyone know how to change the automatic payment on the Cunard website? - I booked directly with them via the site.

Just checked the UK site and all the cruises for May, June and July are all now visible again - interestingly the prices have gone up slightly to before the glitch for our Iceland cruise.

Just been to the Cunard site as we have the Iceland trip in July booked on QV which is no longer visible to book - could this be the answer? Please note that our pause in operations currently includes all sailings up to and including 15 May 2020; we are experiencing a technical glitch today which means a number of our 2020 voyages are not showing and we are working hard to rectify this.

On the UK website this morning In light of new Government guidance and global restrictions to halt the spread of Covid-19 we are working through our plans for the resumption of sailings and will communicate our initial plans as soon as possible.

I am also looking to do the Blue Lagoon with the BL bus included - how long should we you recommend we plan to spend there as I have to choose a return time for the bus when we book?

We did this 2 years ago and was the best thing we did in Norway. We rented bikes from the top in Myrdal and then rode down but walked the very first part with the sharp turns. All we had to do was leave the bikes at the station in Flam with no-one there to meet you - so very fast. We also booked our seats via the Norwegian railways app and this was easy and smooth. You can easily do this in 2 hours but to get the best experience I would plan to leave more time.

We were due to be on the cancelled Oceana Christmas and New Year cruise this year but due to the cancellation tried to book the same cruise for Dec 2020 but they have already sold out for 3 person cabins (we travel with our 14 year old son) - so it seems that there is no lack of interest in sailing to Dubai etc!

I do understand why they have cancelled the cruises but do not understand that they chose to announce it but not have the replacement cruises announced until 3 weeks later! Surely they could have done the 2 at the same time so that we all know what the possible alternatives would be and plan accordingly

But surely Oceana will still cruise somewhere - we have the Christmas and New Year cruise and will not be able to book another one at this stage of the year. I would still be happy to stay on Oceana in another part of the world

Our most recent cruises have been on HAL where you can pay a fixed amount per day and have unlimited laundry done - allows us to travel lighter and also we have no intention of doing laundry on holiday 🙂 Does P&O offer the same type of thing?

By this logic there are not many places to travel to - Paris, London, Sydney, Wellington, Sri Lanka, Brussels etc have all had much worse terrorist attacks. These attacks around the gulf are not targeting tourists but as stated oil tankers. I agree that everyone has to make their own choices but this does not worry me at all and will not stop me enjoying a cruise there.

We pre-booked them with the cafe - http://caferallaren.no/en/ you then just leave them at the train station at the bottom. We also pre-booked the train as it does get very busy and can easily be sold out. This we did directly via the Norwegian Railways site. You have fantastic views and half way is a goat farm where you can get a drink and some limited food. The first section is very steep which many people walk but after it gets much easier.

If you are active then taking the train in Flam and then renting Mountain bikes at the top to cycle down again. We booked this independently and it was the highlight of our cruise. If you are scared of wet weather then maybe Norway is not the best cruise for you as there is a good chance that at least some of the days will be wet - just take the right clothing and enjoy the experience 🙂