Thejuggler

Southampton only handled about 750,000 passenger last year, a large drop from the 2m plus pre covid thanks to the failure of a major airline, flybe.

Whilst you may want to avoid London airports you will need to transit a major hub to then fly to Southampton.  Dublin would be my choice as its not huge and transfers are easy.

1 hour ago, gumshoe958 said:

Fairly standard tbh. They have to offer free wifi as people expect it in 2024 and their competitors all do. But they make it as useless as possible to make you upgrade to the premium wifi. It’s a budget hotel - you want frills, you pay extra.

I should have added I stay in Premierinns a lot and the free wi fi is generally more than acceptable.  When it is not available or drops out on a regular basis they aren't even offering what is promised,

I stayed in a Premierinn just outside London on Friday night.  The basic wifi was hopeless and I couldn't tether as we were surrounded by buildings so no signal!

I was on the tube a lot yesterday and the majority of passengers used smartphone to pay fare.

I recommend Joolz Guides youtube channel for anyone visiting London.  Well produced videos covering all sorts of stuff.  He also now has a book with some self guided walks.

Tower and Westminster Abbey are in different areas of London and some distance apart,so wherever you stay you will need transport between the two.  Hubs are a more basic option with smaller rooms and fewer facilities, great for maybe a night, but not somewhere to spend much time.
 

The Tower is in the City of London, which is a city within a city and has lots of history alongside modern architecture.  Whilst not as busy in the evening as the west end there's enough going on.  

I'd recommend the Skygarden, a rooftop bar with great views (free, but you need to book).  A restaurant booking is your 'beat the line' pass.  The food in the brasserie is v good.

In a day its a lot to fit in, but a private tour is available which covers Cawdor, Castle Urquhart and a Loch cruise.  Invergordon Tours are the operator.

Number 99 bus from the port bus stop will take you to Tilbury Town railway station.

https://bustimes.org/services/99-tilbury-ferry-to-tilbury-ferry

28 minutes ago, LINDAE3213 said:

.have not figured the transit out yet..we need Holborn station.   And not keen on smartcard usage...i'm old school...the oyster card will get a magnet upon return home and get stuck on fridge as a souvenir  

Elizabeth Line service to Tottenham Court Road (far quicker than the traditional tube), then a black taxi to your hotel.  Its not far to Holborn, but with luggage its not worth changing tube lines to Central Line at Tottenham Court Road.

Its only a short distance to Holborn so a taxi won't be much,  Holborn is an old station and isn't step free so you would need to carry luggage up stairs to the exit tube and you will still probably have a walk to the hotel.  

We are all different but for me the number one is sleep.  I am however someone who can fall asleep almost as soon as the wheels leave the ground and wake up many hours later!

Noise cancelling headphones are also a must have.  I never use inflight entertainment, preferring my own phone with downloads.  Podcasts or audio book work for me as they send me to sleep.

If that isn't possible for you then battle through, get to the hotel, have a couple of hours sleep, shower, refresh, walk and food with a few drinks. Early to bed first night.

If the priority is seeing Norway the Viking trip would be my choice.

Since they built the bridge Skye is longer an island and it is suffering greatly as a result. I was there last year in August, but limited our visit to a trip to Raasay which was bliss.

July is a busy month for visitors and adding a few thousand cruise passengers just adds to demand for services.

In all honesty 5 hours ashore isn't a great amount of time (is this correct as sites are suggesting 9 hours in port). It will be a tender port so that takes time.  Portree doesn't offer much, you can see it in a couple of hours, but it is central so you can get to most visitor attractions in about half an hour.

There are public buses and a trip on the 57A or 57C from Portree on a 2 hour circular trip of the north via Uig could be considered.

If private tours are full you may need to take a ship tour.

Premierinn are firmly in fluid pricing land.  If demand is high prices are high.

I'm staying in one just outside London on Friday, its the night before a cup final at Wembley.  I booked about three weeks ago, It was £70 a room. 

Two days later when the finalists were known and people started booking tickets the same rooms were £180 a night.  It is now sold out.
 

London hotels are very price senstive to date, major events and location, but there are plenty to choose from.

A google map search shows there are upwards of 50 hotels within walking distance of British Museum.  This includes chains such as Mercure, Thistle, Premierinn.

Most hotels provide breakfast, it is an extra charge at Premierinn, but London has so many places to eat its not a problem.

Have a look at Imperial Hotels group.  They have a number of hotels all near British Museum, Russell Square so handy for St Pancras and access to the rest of the sights.

Response also in UK cruisers forum

If its a modern or recently refurbished hotel you will probably find USB outlets whuch are ideal for charging, just don't forget your cables. Otherwise you will need a converter.

Many hotels have them at reception as so many people leave them behind!

If its a modern or recently refurbished hotel you will probably find USB outlets whuch are ideal for charging, just don't forget your cables. Otherwise you will need a converter.

Many hotels have them at reception as so many people leave them behind!

Thanks.

From Heathrow.  Elizabeth line to Tottenham Court Road.  There is a Luggage Hero close by at the eastern end of Oxford Street.

From there its bus, tube or taxi to Frameless which is close to Marble Arch at the western end of Oxford Street.  You could even walk it as its only about a mile.  Back to Tottenham Court Road, Northern line or taxi to Waterloo for the train to Southampton.

I'm sure UK residents can provide answers, but some additional trip details are needed.

What are your actual travel plans and dates?

Which London airport do you arrive at? What time?

Are you staying in London? Where? How long for?

When are you travelling to Southampton?

A round Britain will only ever give a taster and some ports don't offer much, so trips are the only way.

It would be great on a round Britain if you could alight at Greenock, hire a car and spend a few days driving around Scotland before getting back on ship in Edinburgh!

It is however on my bucket list to do a Scotland islands boat tour,  I've been all over Scotland over nearly 40 years, been on plenty of the inter islands ferries and am ticking off island visits, but a small boat around the Hebridean islands would be a completely different experience.

You probably won't have time for Castle, Britannia AND a return to Edinburgh.

Britannia is a 2-3 hour visit and in August it will be very busy.  Its not large inside and once in there you need to follow the crowd!

If you can I'd even be tempted to swap the visits around.  Get the earliest Britannia ticket you can as it will be quieter, then get into Edinburgh and see Holyrood and the Castle before returning to ship.

Whilst its busy at Festival time its amazing to experience, the street performers will keep you entertained.

9.00am is planned engine start time, boarding will begin at 8.15-8.30am

If you arrive at the airport for 7.30am you therefore have about an hour to check in, navigate Palma security and be on board.

There are about 30 departures an hour from Palma so it won't be quiet!

All the Irish and Scottish ports are near larger cities, but all require transportation as they are some distance, so excursions will be far easier if she doesn't want to go by public transport.

Cobh for Cork.  Cobh itself is a pleasant town with some Titanic history as it was the last port of call.

Dun Laoghaire for Dublin.

Holyhead, a long way from anywhere, so a tour is best.  Lots of trips to castles in North Wales  Beaumaris on Anglesey has a castle and is nice for a stroll.

Greenock for Glasgow, Loch Lomond.

Invergordon for Inverness

South Queensferry for Edinburgh.  If the trip is in August a popular tour will include the Tattoo, which is amazing.

Portland - I imagine Stonehenge is the popular trip

Le Havre - who knows

If you are happy to walk its about 15 minutes from Vallcarca Metro station and I do remember a number of escalators which ease the uphill sections.

This takes you to a side entrance and you can then walk through the park to the main entrance.

Google flights shows lots of low cost options from the London airports, all of which can be reached by train so it will probably come down to the time of flight and which Rome airport you wish to fly to.

Gatwick, Stansted, Luton with Ryanair, Easyjet, Wizzair, Vueling, Jet2.  You do however need to price in luggage costs to find the best deal.

There are also options from Heathrow and London City with BA and ITA which may be cheaper once all costs are considered.

Southampton departure is via Dublin or Amsterdam

Having had a GTY cabin two back from the bow on one cruise there is one significant advantage to midships higher up, over potential for less motion in rougher seas.
 

Far less disturbance when preparations for docking begin.  Chains being moved, motor noise, large doors being opened, crew calling to each other etc etc and this can start very early in the morning.

What type of taxi?  If Hackney carriage they are licenced by the Council and have set fares, if private hire they aren't.

If your taxi back was a Hackney cab you have cause to raise a complaint if the meter wasn't running, but you will need the cab number or reg.

It is important to note that fares charged for the hire of private hire vehicles cannot be regulated by the city council; in both hackney carriages and private hire vehicles, passengers should always ensure that the basis of the fare has been agreed before the journey commences, especially if that journey goes beyond the city boundary.