Host Hattie

Indeed .... Mr HH went off to register for archery and I watched the start of the Barbie film. So if you want to know who goes on a cruise to watch television you have your answer! I listened to the pianist outside the Chart Room for a while and we went for lunch in Britannia Club. Fish and chips twice in 2 days for me. The restaurant was fairly quiet and the staff were setting up for afternoon tea as tables were emptied. Our waiter explained that they use the restaurant as overflow for the Queens Room as the first few days are very busy. He also recommended going for dinner as soon as the restaurant opened if we wanted to go to the early show. We're happy with the Late show. Mark Foster was in the lift after lunch so I guess he'll feature as a Speaker at some point this week.

OK thanks, I'll report back.

Mike Doyle is a comedian.

I'm not a fan of queueing, what time do doors open ?

It's a rather grey morning but we made it to the restaurant for breakfast. We were the only ones on our table but had an enjoyable Eggs Benedict. We had a wander around, almost gate crashing the solo travellers' coffee morning in the Chart Room and then going to have a look at the Panaroma pool club, Cabana and the Pavilion via the buffet. It seemed busy but there were plenty of spare seats. A few first impressions- Cabin is fine, balcony seems bigger but that might just be because the table is very tiny! Now we've realised that my battery charger was keeping the night light on we might sleep better.🤣. It's a good idea though. I like the information on the TV. It's good to be able to turn the aircon off. Apart from when we first got onboard we haven't had any issues with the lifts and I like the 2 sets of controls.

Good morning from Queen Anne

We've booked for the 9.30 performance tomorrow. By the time I checked yesterday the late show was already full.

We opened the Pol Acker and tried it naked for the first time in years. We sailed away more or less on time past the Japanese warship visiting. We went to dinner at around 7, early for us but we wanted to beat the rush. As it was one couple was on their starters and the third arrived very soon after. All the men wearing jackets so it looks like we're going to be maintaining high standards on the table. The sommelier arrived promptly and we managed to get a bottle of NZ Sauvignon Blanc, but only one glass each - Plenty for tomorrow ! Couldn't fault the food and service was efficient. We went up to the Commodore Club to listen to the piano player. I was a bit disappointed in the new cocktail menu but my Brandy Alexander was good. We called it a night around 10, the ship is rocking nicely.

Here's your ship leaving Southampton taken from Queen Anne.

Cases arrived promptly and I asked for extra hangers. Storage didn't seem too terrible and we managed to put everything away. Mr HH went to the Britannia Club Restaurant to check our table. We've never bothered to do this before but we had problems on our last cruise and there was no table number on the card in the cabin. Apparently they hadn't yet been allocated but he was shown to a table of 6 near a window. We'd checked in at our muster station before lunch, no full drill today. The weather hasn't been as bad as the terrible forecast but we had a good view of the rainbows from our balcony. We're due to sailaway at 6pm.

Our taxi was around 20 minutes late but their website kept me updated and the journey time was also 20 minutes so we arrived at 12.30 for our 12.45 arrival time at Ocean Terminal. Everything progressed fairly smoothly and we were onboard in a busy Golden Lion by 1pm. We were given a card to say that cabins wouldn't be ready until 1.30 which was fine as we didn't have much hand luggage. We had an enjoyable Fish and Chips followed by Lemon Sponge pudding. There was a queue for the lifts so fortunately we're only on Deck 5 and we used the stairs.

We came down to reception and got the last seats so now we're playing guess which ship these hotel guests are sailing on. Choices today are QA, Anthem of the Seas and Disney Dream (which apparently has a clothing range).

First drops have arrived in this part of Southampton. When we checked in last night we were warned that it was going to be very busy today and to allow an hour to get to the terminal! We had a pleasant dinner in the hotel restaurant "Beefy's", another cricket reference! The room is very comfortable and was quiet last night, breakfast was a bit hectic but we only had to queue a little while for a table.

Welcome both, hope you enjoy your trips.

I did realise, which is why I regretted posting it ! It's bad enough trying to explain a normal cricket match but when Duckworth Lewis is involved it's a mystery to most people!

I really hope I'm not going to regret bringing cricket into the discussion!

Thank you for the good wishes, it was an easy journey once we actually got going, apart from a brief tour of Sainsbury's car park just before we found the hotel! The car park was fairly busy but we found a spot and got to our room overlooking the pitch just as the Sunrisers were celebrating their victory over the Vipers.

We're heading off on Queen Anne tomorrow for 2 weeks. This was a fairly late booking, originally a Balcony Saver fare but after a successful Upgrade bid we'll be in Britannia Club. We're staying overnight at the cricket ground in Southampton on their Cruise Parking package. (If we ever get out of South Wales, we had to turn back after setting off originally and I'm waiting for Mr HH).

@Lunalovegood_6 if you let us know which cruise line you are looking to book with, I can move it to the appropriate board.

Have a lovely day @Lanky Lad, we're off to Southampton tomorrow to join Queen Anne on Sunday.

Great picture, looks like a beautiful day there.

It looks as if the Book Now price isn't updating as it should as the cheaper cabins are being sold. I'd keep checking or contact a travel agent.