sleepingcat

just in case you didn't do this on previous visit, there is a round trip all sorted for you

https://www.norwaynutshell.com

it does Oslo - Bergen and then round to Flam and the railway. 

oh no completely wrong,  forgot which board I was on. sorry everyone. !wrong company!

As far as I remember (it ws last year) you dont need to do anything.  Saga will arrange the pick up time and will notify you and also tell you the contact for the taxi/car/limo provider , which will probably be local to you.  In our case, the driver phoned us the day before to confirm everything. He was prompt and pleasant. The only issue was that he hadn't done the Southampton cruise run before so our knowledge of the dock gates was useful.  

Disembarkation was even better, with Saga's staff in direct contact with our driver and pointing us to the correct vehicle. 

We came back from NZ to Southampton on Arcadia, that is to say, half a world cruise, 51 nights via Suez.  Depending on your budget, have a look at the so called obscured view cabins. We had one of these and the view was anything but obscured! waking in the morning and seeing the Sydney opera house outside the window was one of the highlights of my travels. plus these are on the deck above the prom deck, so its easy to nip down stairs and use the prom deck as your balcony. 

(you can check the actual view in each obscured view cabin, there is a bit of the P and O website which has all the photos, ask your TA). 

and btw the best place to enjoy either canal transit imho would be on the outside deck immediately below the bridge, then you can see both sides at the same time, the transit of Suez was another high point among many on that trip. 

And also, in our experience flying in and out of Cape Town, the trip from/to the airport may not be rapid.  and processing at the airport can be somewhat slow. so all good reasons for caution.

However another point, unless you have already had some Cape Town exploring time before your cruise, I would seriously take a few days staying there.  we stayed on for five days independently after our group tour of SA had ended, and really loved the experience. We rented an apartment near the lighthouse, which was walking distance to the historic dock area, and the ho ho bus went past the door. 

H first timer.  You ll find you are not the first to ask your question. suggest you have a look at

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/116-northern-europe-amp-baltic-sea/

and also post on the board for the cruise line you are sailing with.  You could also see if there is a roll call for your cruise  because other passengers may already be sharing info on what is needed. 

I suggest if you've been in Scotland in summer, its probably similar in Norway.  ie it can be pretty cold and wet any time, so be prepared for everything, as suggested by others. 

it is a bit hard to predict as its been 70 years since we last had a coronation.  However, going by how people around the UK reacted to the day of Her late Majesty Queen Elizabeth's funeral, most people wanted to be at home on that day to watch on TV unless they were actually going to London.  So that suggests that Saturday is the best day for you.  Extra trains have been laid on I have heard to get people to London, so that might impact the timetable for Southampton - Salisbury. and check if Stonehenge is actually open.  (because on the funeral day, some attractions and businesses closed for part of the day so that staff could watch the funeral, so I imagine that might happen for the Coronation as well). 

The plan for the Coronation weekend is that on Sunday there will be street parties and local events, and on monday its all about volunteering and voluntary organisations.  The monday is a public holiday. Which suggests a lot more people on the move on the Sunday. 

However another option for you would be to join in the whole Coronation razzamatzzz in Southampton, the Council's website lists the timetable plus  events some of which are free.

https://visitsouthampton.co.uk/coronation

another vote for Salalah. On our world cruise it was an itinerary substitute because Egypt suddenly became too dangerous.  Otherwise no idea why companies do port calls there. To be fair, some people on our ship did have a good day. 

And we are not great fans of Gibraltar either. I m pleased to have seen it and been up the Rock, but if we are on another ship that calls there I might not bother to disembark.

hi travrat, I havent been to Lorient but I do speak French. a bit of mashing around got me this site

https://www.taxi-lorientais.com

which should allow you to book something. I do notice good train and bus services as well, have a look on Lorient tourisme, which is in English. and it looks like people have posted on trip advisor as well.

Bonne chance.

Noise is an issue for us so we ve never been on a cruise ship where we havent paid the higher fare rate in order to select our specific cabin.  Then lots of research is required to find one with no noise hazards nearby. for me these are

restaurant above or below

anywhere near the theatres/disco/pub

close to the lifts

and avoid the laundrettes at all costs!

Having said that, though, the noise baffling between cabins on many ships is so poor that you can hear next doors TV and participate unwillingly in their FaceTime calls home.  I havent been on Aurora so dont know how it is for this. Others on here will help...

Ive had my hair cut and coloured on Arcadia and it was fine, that was on a RWC which is too long without a salon visit. 

my personal favourite pamper on board is a pedicure with all the trimmings so my feet look good as I wander to the pool! 

Worth knowing that the salon staff dont work for P and O, its a contract provider as far as I know, also that they dont just do hairdressing as far as I can see they get required to do beauty as well. And thirdly, they earn extra if they can sell you products.  

is going in the Aussie autumn rather than spring any good?  If so, as you ll have seen, almost all ex UK RWCs get to Sydney around the end of February so there would be a choice.  You might be fortunate to find that two different companies could give you enough time in Oz.  

There are a few specialist TAs in the UK which deal with passenger travel on freighters and are very knowledgeable.  I investigated a bit when we went to Cape  Town, thinking we could maybe come back by sea, but dates didn't work. We ve certainly met people at sea who have come from Aus to Europe on a freighter and had a great time. 

a loose cotton kaftan cover up will do the job and will roll and pack up small in your case.  and you can cover up in it when the sun gets too hot.  If you need to buy I would scout local charity shops for a bargain.   I still have my P and O logo dressing gown (bought as I remember) as a nice souvenir of our 2014 RWC, but that was for cosying up in the cabin rather than going to the pool. 

How about flying in to Madrid and then using the brilliant modern high speed Spanish rail network to visit say Granada and Seville and thence on to Lisbon by train?

or fly in to Malaga ditto. 

Do you only want cities? if not the Algarve coast of Portugal is lovely and the west coast between Algarve and Lisbon very untouristy and beautiful. 

Hi, local Devon person here. yes, do go for the Round Robin,  we took our 20 French guests last year and they all loved it.  Its a bit more complicated to plan than you might think because the timings of the cruise boat trip leg depend on the tides on the specific day you will be there.  

Right, Ive just looked up the timetable.  the tides on that day mean you need to go anticlockwise, ie bus from Paignton to Totnes, then the river trip departs 11 am down river to Dartmouth. that gives lots of time to see Dartmouth, cross the river to Kingswear and board a suitable train to get you back to Paignton. 

https://www.dartmouthrailriver.co.uk/timetables?date=2023-09-02

You d need to be on the 10 am round robin bus from Paignton to Totnes.  I THINK the round robin bus will go from outside the steam train station, it certainly drops off there. JB s advice above is all good. 

Ask away if anything is not clear.  We ve found the Dartmouth Steam railway company staff very helpful and pleasant. 

On 11/22/2022 at 9:04 PM, craig01020 said:

Bilbao, Spain; La Coruna, Spain; Vigo, Spain; Oporto, Portugal.

Bilbao,  ive just looked where the ship will dock, its miles, you ll need a tour. (note I put 'cruceros Bilbao' into my maps programme. try doing that for all your ports )

A Coruna: ship docks right in the city centre, just walk off and wander, nice historic buildings and cafes, we loved it. 

Vigo,  also possible to just walk off and historic centre again but a bit less fun than A Coruna.  We didn't/t but next time probably will use a ferry to get out onto the harbour and islands. 

ps October, its not going to very warm  by then, and Bay of Biscay may be rough. 

and I can add, an even further reassurance, we have had two largish claims with NW insurance in the last ten years and both have been settled. One was a medical emergency and the other a lockdown covid cancellation. 

oh good luck with your first cruise.  be aware that having a polite word with the maitre d of the restaurant you've been allocated for 8,30 could easily get you moved to a 6 pm sitting. Ive always been successful with this  request, and last time on FOCL we were moved to a table with some delightful dinner companions, and to a nicer restaurant. 

good interesting thread has been started here, thanks.  I think as suggested above, you might find if you are willing to fly to Europe to start a cruise you will find more ships and lines which will suit you. Smaller ships can as you point out get in to more, and more interesting, ports. I well remember arriving at St Lucia I think it was, the Queen Mary II was at anchor off the island, not even in the harbour, and tendering its passengers ashore. our modest little ship, the Black Watch, sadly now decommissioned, sailed right in to the dock where we all piled off (actually only 650 passengers as I recall) and made our own adventures for the day.  out of the UK and Germany there are several ships and lines which do not take children, and cruises with lots of activities. 

Also check out your bank account. We get annual travel insurance free with ours and several offer this. 

there are a couple of British companies operating out of UK ports with smaller ships and no glamour and glitz. but their passenger profile is mainly older, which might not be right for you. Saga does Norway and the north cape stopping in small ports, also Iceland. so does Fred Olsen.  the reviews of the saga Northern lights cruise suggest the off ship activities are good: some recent photos and posts on the saga section of these boards.

Hi Rob, suggest you repost on the P and O UK section of the boards.  You will find lots of comments from people who have done this cruise last winter. the one you are looking is likely to be repositioning probably as they operate fly cruise out of Barbados during the winter.

there may also be reviews of the ship and the cruise in the reviews section. 

We have been to the Caribbean from Southampton, not with P and O, and absolutely loved it; there is a point when you first see flying fish alongside the ship because you are far enough south and its getting warmer. but note there are a lot of sea days crossing the Atlantic, so if you are not a fan of ship life you may prefer to fly to Caribbean as you have done before. 

just in case you are not aware, there is also the Norwegian Company Hurtigruten.  Its not a cruise as such, as their ships service the ports up the Norway coast.  but it is a good way to see the Northern Lights, and they guarantee you a further trip for free if you dont see the lights. My bro and Sis in Law went with them in November and had a wonderful trip including 2 nights of Northern Lights.

Not needed in La Corunna, the ship docks walking distance to the centre.

the port for Porto is some distance away. Havent been by ship to La Rochelle, but thoroughly recommend the city and the old harbour, its quite lovely. 

this site is generally the go to site for any info about European train travel, maintained by someone who has done an awful lot of it. and all in English.

https://www.seat61.com