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Happy to help, as there seems to be a lot of confusion on the subject - not just here but in the media generally. Absolutely correct. EES biometric data can only be captured by an EU border guard, so nothing could be done at Southampton whatever happened. And as the purpose of EES is to know who is in the Schengen Area then if you failed to get back on board then your details would be passed to the authorities on shore so they would know then - plus when you tried to leave the Schengen Area to return back to the UK after failing to get back on board you would be caught by the exit checks not seeing you arrive. EES really isn't going to be an issue, other than for queues at Schengen airport passport / ferry port / Eurotunnel control for the first year as people are scanned onto the system. It is ETIAS that is going to be an issue, particularly for the over 70s (or those with children) where there is highly likely to be misunderstandings that no fee does not mean no requirement to have an ETIAS - or other variations, such as "well I never get off the ship so why do I need one", etc.

To start with you are confusing EES and ETIAS, which are two different systems. Firstly EES (Entry Exit System), this has an announced start date of the 10th November 2024 and there is no charge for it. With EES, if you are a non-EU citizen then on your first entry to the Schengen Area your fingerprints and a photo will be taken by the border guards at the Schengen Area airport or at Dover (etc.) or St Pancras. The purpose of EES is to monitor the time spent in the Schengen Area and to ensure that the 90/180 day rule is correctly enforced, plus removing the need to 'wet stamp' passports. Unlike now, the border guard won't need to try to look at all the stamps in the passport to try to calculate how long someone has spent in the Schengen Area, the system will simply tell them when they put the passport in the scanner. Individuals will have access to a website so they can see how long they have spent in the Schengen Area and how long they have left in the current rolling 180 day period so they don't inadvertently break the rules. EES is also designed to work with family members of EU citizens and ensure that they time they spend in the Schengen Area with their EU family member does not count towards the 90 day limit (it does if they are there on their own). Turning to the impact of EES for cruise passengers (not ETIAS which is covered below) For round trip cruises starting and ending at non-Schengen ports, e.g. a cruise starting and ending at Southampton, then EES will not be required at port stops in Schengen countries - exactly the same as you don't have to go through passport control now - cruises are a low risk for the Schengen Area because you are scanned on and off the ship and the ship has to report if you have not got back onboard. For cruises starting at a non-Schengen port and ending at a Schengen port, e.g. a repositioning cruise from Southampton to Barcelona, then EES will be required at Barcelona, because you have simply used a cruise ship as a method of transport from A to B. For cruises starting at a Schengen port then EES will be required but that will be at the airport you fly into (or whatever other means you take to get to that Schengen country. Thus for any P&O passengers doing Southampton to Southampton cruises then they will not be troubled by EES. Now for ETIAS (European Travel Information and Authorisation System) which does not have an announced start date. ETIAS is a 'travel authorisation' and although it isn't a visa or a visa waiver it has pretty much the same effect - you don't have one then you are not getting in! The purpose of ETIAS is so the Schengen Area countries have some control on the type of people entering with a passport as the ETIAS application contains details on your background, employment, criminal convictions etc. Once in operation then non-EU citizens will need to apply before they travel to the Schengen Area and it has a cost of 7 euros unless you are under 18, over 70, or a family member of an EU citizen. There is no announced start date for ETIAS but the indications are - - You will be able to apply from May 2025 for an ETIAS but importantly there will be no requirement to have one for another six months, likely to be up to November 2025. - From November 2025 you will be required to have an ETIAS but you will be allowed into the Schengen Area once and once only provided everything else is OK, and this state will last for six months up to May 2026. - From May 2026 you will be required to have an ETIAS and there will be no allowance if you don't. But as before, all those dates are not certain yet and may yet move. Turning to the impact of ETIAS for cruise passengers (not EES which is covered above) For round trip cruises starting and ending at non-Schengen ports, e.g. a cruise starting and ending at Southampton, then an ETIAS will be required if the ship has port stops in Schengen countries. For cruises starting at a non-Schengen port and ending at a Schengen port, e.g. a repositioning cruise from Southampton to Barcelona, then an ETIAS will be required. For cruises starting at a Schengen port then an ETIAS will be required but that will be at the airport you fly into (or whatever other means you take to get to that Schengen country. Thus for any P&O passengers doing Southampton to Southampton cruises then they will need an ETIAS if there are any Schengen Area port stops. In summary, EES will make no difference to almost anyone using P&O, because either it will not apply (Southampton to Southampton) or it will be dealt with at the airport on a fly cruise into Malta or Tenerife. However ETIAS will make a difference and look out for 'sad faced posts' from people denied boarding at Southampton or denied boarding an aircraft for a fly-cruise, when the firm requirement kicks in. And lastly, for those who are fortunate enough to be EU citizens (or dual UK and EU) then neither EES or ETIAS will trouble you if you travel on your EU passport - and importantly, it doesn't matter if you are an Irish citizen as Ireland is a non-Schengen country due to the 'common travel area' with the UK, the same is true and EES and ETIAS is irrelevant. Plus your non-EU spouse (and children under age 21), although they will need to do EES and do ETIAS (unless they have residency in a Schengen Area country) can go with you through the EU passport controls and as mentioned above are not limited to the 90 days if you are somewhere in the Schengen Area (it doesn't need to be the same country) at the same time. Confused - I am not surprised!

Yes an iPhone 13 takes eSIMS. With these apps such as Airalo (there are many) you simply download the app form the Apple App store, open the app, select which location you are in, how much data you want, and for how long, pay for it and it installs an eSIM and then you then need to select that eSIM from the normal sim that is in the phone. It is easier than buying a physical SIM provided that you are familiar with installing apps and selecting an eSIM.

If you have a phone that takes eSIMs then just look at one of those providers that can add an eSIM from an app, providers such as Airalo.

Nearest to the cruise terminal about 500m is Europcar but they don't open at the weekend if that is when you are going to be there. https://maps.app.goo.gl/RhHrrpqpAkjxuk7S8 Alternatively 15 minutes in a taxi will get you to the airport where you will have load of choice. And just a caution, driving in Portugal and especially Lisbon can be 'interesting'.

You can, but I wouldn't. It doesn't make sense spending lots of money on a cruise and then wanting to walk some distance carrying luggage to save £10 on a taxi.

You are not wrong there! Yes, and that will be enforced from November by EES, not ETIAS which is about who is coming in, whereas EES is about how long they are staying. And there have been a lot of people playing fast and loose with the 90/180 rule, knowing that it is difficult and time consuming for the border guards to check all the stamps in the passport, but from November it will be put the passport in the machine and if the machine goes red because you have overstayed and that isn't going to be waived away by the border guard. Unless you are planning on shuffling off before November 2025... (and I certainly hope not!). But they do now seem to be on the home run to actually get it up and running.

ETIAS will apply to the Schengen area which is all the EU member states* other than Ireland and (currently) Cyprus, plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein, and a single approval applies to all of them and lasts for three years or the expiry of your passport. Turkey isn't in the EU so ETIAS is not relevant to them. And importantly the ETIAS (and the separate EES which is starting in November) is checked at the entry to the Schengen area so it will be checked when you fly into Rome and not again after that. For completeness, EES is the Entry Exit System where you will have to provide fingerprints and have a photo taken, and your movement in and out of the Schengen area is recorded on a single computer system and does away with the need to 'wet stamp' passports. The dates for ETIAS have not been finalised yet, with the start date having been constantly pushed back for many years, but the current position appears to be - From May 2025 you can apply for an ETIAS, but importantly it won't be needed. Then six months later from November 2025 they will be checked, but importantly if you don't have one then provided everything else is fine then you will be allowed in once, and only once. Then six months later from May 2026 thats when the hard 'not coming in without one' kicks in. But currently nothing is absolutely certain. *for those who can't name the 27 EU states, they are Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden.

A better bet would be an EU website than a UK government website which has nothing whatsoever to do with EES and ETIAS... EES - European Union (europa.eu) ETIAS - European Union (europa.eu) And good luck getting answers to the questions that people are asking from those official websites.

Most of the cruise ship shuttle buses drop off behind the fence in in the area facing the cathedral the https://maps.app.goo.gl/Q3Wb9ZgFrYkarVbp8 It isn't a bad place to be dropped off if you want to do a self guided walk up to the cathedral and then up through the old town before dropping back into the new town around the Vieux Port. And from the street outside the shuttle stop to the M1 metro at Vieux Port isn't 0.5km but 1.9km - a good 30 minute walk.

I suspect they (and many many others) do... For those who don't know, the Schengen area comprises all the EU member states other than Ireland and Cyprus (Ireland can't become part of Schengen because of the common travel arrangement with the UK and Cyprus is going through the steps to join) plus the four non-EU countries of Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

That is the case if you fly/train/ferry into a Schengen country from a non-Schengen country, for example to start your cruise, or you are on a 'one way' repositioning cruise that starts in a non-Schengen country and ends in a Schengen country. However it does not apply if you are on a cruise ship starting and ending from a non-Schengen port, with Schengen countries as port stops, when a registration for EES is not required, so those sailing out of and back to the UK will not be troubled by EES. So for example, fly into Barcelona from the UK/US to start your roundtrip cruise from there and you will do EES, but sail from and back to the UK with Barcelona as a port stop and you won't do EES, but sail from the UK with a cruise ending in Barcelona and you will do EES. Confused yet! For the first six months from May 2025 it will be a “transitional period” where those travelling are expected to have applied for the waiver, but if they have not they will not automatically be refused entry at the border if they fulfil the other entry conditions. And the important thing to realise, is that although those under 18 or over 70 (or those with a spouse with EU or other Schengen country citizenship) don't pay the 7 euro application fee, they still need to have applied and received the ETIAS authorisation.

Around £50 or so for both of us, and as a taxi is a fixed price of 39€ then the small difference in price was well worth it.

Shuttle bus will be down you your ship and whatever RCI charge, and most likely will be added to your cabin bill. Cable car is 12,50€ one way and they do take cards. Queue - lots of factors, such as time of day, weather, time of year, how many cruise ships in, etc. and when I have walked past the queue has either been non-existent or around the building. The Monte gardens are 15€, and they take cards. The bus is 1,95€ if you pay on the bus (its less if you buy a ticket before boarding) and it is in cash as they don't take cards (other than their own pre-paid cards) but they do give change - although don't expect change from a 50€ note! There is no entrance fee for the cathedral but there is a 4€ charge if you want an audio guide (in various languages) - the cathedral at Christmas -

Yes. It was offered when we were asked towards the end of the cruise about preferences for disembarkation time and I had some OBC left over and it was a good way to use it.

On the occasions I have disembarked at Barcelona I have never seen any porters. As for baggage trollies, probably, but I never bothered as the distance between the hall and the taxis outside is so short that they were not worth bothering with. And as you are on QV, assuming that you are disembarking to head to the airport, then I would recommend checking out the private car airport transfer Cunard offer, as the last time I did that it wasn't significantly more expensive than a taxi but being wafted to the airport in a big black BMW was far nicer - and the driver took care of the large suitcases.

Each or between you! Either way... Weirdly I find that the longer I am staying away the lighter my luggage - a couple of weeks away and I will take a normal suitcase because I am not going to be doing laundry, but a month or more away and then I can just take a 10kg cabin bag as laundry is inevitable.

Likewise. Jet2 doesn't appear to be one of those airlines that deliberately splits those on a single booking apart, so paying to choose the standard seats is pretty pointless.

Videos saying 'everything is fine, nothing to see here' don't generate clicks and YouTube advertising revenue, but videos that say 'shock horror, you won't believe this' do.

After being delayed by 20 minutes sitting down and then waiting 90 minutes for any food to arrive. As before, they are either doormats or they are exaggerating,

Fair enough. Not good, but not terrible. Again, not good, but not terrible. Sorry! Assuming you mean that the 1.5 hour started after sitting down, really? Really? How long did they sit there before saying anything - 30 minutes? An hour? More? Then how long after involving the head waiter did the food arrive, because if it wasn't instantly then I would be very surprised. And I guess that the whole thing including drinks was on the house.

So how long were they kept waiting for the table, and how long between being seated and the food arriving? An hour for each? Sorry, but I really cannot believe anyone would have been kept waiting until say 9pm for a table booked for 8pm and then would sit there without saying anything until 10pm before food arrived. Either your acquaintances are doormats or they are exaggerating.

Look at companies like www.parcel2go.com who are are agencies for all the main courier companies - a quick quote with them for a 10kg 50x40x20 cabin sized bag was £45 from the UK to the USA with it being shipped with UPS and you dropping it off whichever local convenience store is nearest to you, and although that was only with £50 insurance, even adding that on it would still be way less than the $244 you were quoted.

When I was there recently on a Sunday the bars, cafes, and restaurants were mostly open, as were the more tourist shops, but a lot of the 'normal' shops were closed. As for recommendations - sorry, only had a coffee and a pastry there.

The official Spanish government website I posted indicated that it did, and that website indicated that it all seems to be automated these days with the traveller entering their details into a computer terminal and then the terminal deciding if the customs staff needed to actually see the goods or speak to the passenger, and if not then it would do what was needed automatically.