crimson moon

If you are going to Flam the railway is a must. However, book it directly online at www.norwaysbest.com The price is half the cost of the P&O trip and the only difference is on P&O you get escorted to the station five minutes walk from the ship and reserved carriage. I also found that when we got to Myrdal station (the turn round point) I was able to get off and walk round and take in the views, whereas the P&O trip were apparently told in no uncertain terms by the guide that no one was allowed off the train.

The Holiday Inn Birmingham Airport - NEC at the freight entrance to the airport on the Coventry Road does a free shuttle to Birmingham International Station from where they could get the free monorail to the airport.

I got a calendar and diary plus a Christmas card on Saturday; first time ever. Should also say that I'm in the middle of the Mediterranean range of points and with the number of future cruises booked it will be 2026 at least before I reach the hallowed heights of Caribbean

Premier Inn Dubai Ibn Battuta Mall has a gym; swimming pool; pub (with large indoor tv and an outside area with a screen that looks as big as that on Arvia); coffee shop, restaurant and is next to a shopping mall (which has a M&S). So not quite all that P&O offer but you can get bed and breakfast for £42 per night which ain't too shabby. Mind you it's then about £550 for a return flight

Many years ago just before we made our first visit to Malta a friend warned me, "Beware their driving, they just seem to drive on whichever side of the road is in the shade." Never was a truer word said in jest

We used Caribbean Islands Tours for Arvia's transatlantic in January and had fantastic service both from Owena here in the UK and the companies on the Islands. We did 3 trips, an Island Tour in Grenada and one in St Maarten (which took in Sunset Beach) and an evening trip to Oistens in Bardados. All were cheaper than P&O

We were on Ventura at the beginning of August, the height of the school holidays, and we had no complaints about the food in any of the venues. We were on freedom dining and the longest we had to wait for a table was about 20 minutes on the first formal night. This was due, I would say, to lots of people attending the welcome aboard drinks in the atrium and when thy saw a queue forming for the MDR they had a compulsion to join it. By the time we got into the queue at 10 to 6 we were almost in The Exchange. The only "complaint" we would have about the food would be that over the course of two weeks you could count on the fingers of one hand (and have some left over), the number of times we had green beans!! The food and service in the Beach House was excellent and we had no complaints there

This from the CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association) website CLIA Statement regarding incorrect reports about cruise operations in Amsterdam 21 July 2023 | CLIA UK (cruising.org)

We were on Britannia in the Fjords last week and the weather was amazing. Temperatures were in the mid to high twenties and the sun shone nearly all the time. However, the guide on one trip we went on said that the previous week it had rained nearly all the time.The pool areas were busy in the afternoons when people returned from their trips. Several evenings I was sat on the balcony in shorts and a t-shirt watching the sun set at around midnight and I was also wearing the same on the balcony at 4.15am watching the sail up the Sognefjord to Flam

A wine flight is a selection of wines with a common theme tying them together. A flight typically consists of between three and eight but sometimes, even more, brought together for tasting and comparison purposes. They are usually presented on a board or tray and are accompanied by tasting notes and possibly some small snacks. Most commonly each wine will be served in a smaller than standard measure. Wine pairing is a process of combining food dishes with the perfect wine to make the perfect dining experience. The main consideration is to match the wine to the most prominent element of the dish

You do need to book it though, usually at the time of booking the cruise.

My wife and I did it in January when we were on Arvia's TA. It wasn't what we expected, mainly because we didn't realise Oistins was the name of the village and not, as I thought, a restaurant. We thoroughly enjoyed the evening. The area was absolutely heaving but we felt completely safe though I would say as in any crowded place, keep a hold on your purse/wallet. The only thing I found offputting was the volume of the entertainment. Given that it is out in the open it was louder than being at a rock concert in an indoor arena. Perhaps it's an age thing! We booked a transfer prior to the cruise via a lady from Wales who has a page on social media site. She acts as an intermediary for taxi/tour companies on many of the Islands

Tablelamp and Jeanlyon My wife and I have just returned from the Arvia transatlantic and found that the web page (it's not an app) wasn't worth the pixels on the screen it was displayed on (in the good old days this would be the paper it was written on!). On boarding it appeared that the "5AM towel on the sunbed blockers" had been in action on their computers before leaving home as every restaurant and show was fully booked unless you were a party of 6 or above. On many occasions we would just turn up at a venue to find that many of the bookings were no shows and we would be seated straight away or within 10 - 15 minutes.

In Limelight there were supposed to be three acts all of whom I had never heard of before, La Voix; Ray Quinn and Matt Terry. After seeing some comments on another site we decided to take the plunge and booked to see La Voix, I am so glad we did. I have not laughed some much for a long time. The Greatest Days was very good as was the show "X" in the Skydome. If you have seen The Blue Man Group you can see where many of the ideas came from. Other entertainment included a young girl playing the piano in the Amber Lounge who was OK but did play a few bum notes. Maddison M, the busker, who played at various venues. Again OK but her repertoire was quite limited, unlike the busker we saw on Aurora last year. Also appearing in the Amber Lounge were The Caribbean Cultural Ambassadors who without doubt are the worst act I have seen anywhere, never mind on any cruise ship. Two chaps on the stage, one who sat at a laptop choosing which song to play and the other chap sitting or standing in front of a tablet appearing to sing. I say appearing as he had so many different voices some of which were quite clearly female that it was obviously not him you could hear through the speakers. Quite often the chap at the laptop would abruptly cut short the song and start another. Other times he would stop the song without turning off the "singer's" mic and he would be left "singing" the song and it was obvious that he couldn't carry a tune in a bucket. If P&O were paying them 1p for each performance they were being ripped off. There were no theme nights at all though once we reached the Caribbean you could see many men walking around in their brightly coloured Caribbean shirts that they had bought in the particular port we were in.

It's Gareth Oliver and he continually reminds you that he was on the same show as Susan Boyle