New to RCCL and questions regardig IOS out of Southampton

[meaclasact2]

Greetings all. We will be trying out RCCL this October on Independence of the Seas. We are not new to cruising but this will be our first time on RCCL. Will undoubtedly coming back here for you expertise.

 

The first question that comes to mind...this is a huge ship - we're used to being on large ships but not this big. How do you not get lost?

 

We are on a 12 night cruise out of Southampton. Several sea days. Which places would you recommend as "not to be missed" on the ship?

 

We will be arranging our own transportation (flying in a day early) to and from Southampton...any suggestions?

 

And finally, for those of you who have stayed in Southampton pre cruise - do you have a hotel to recommend? We'll only be staying there one night precruise.

 

Many thanks. :)

Edited February 28, 2014 by meaclasact2

[Clarea]

Royal ships a pretty easy to get around. You will be surprised at how quicly you acclimate to the layout of the ship. Very few dead ends. In fact, about the only dead ends are in the middle of decks 2 and 3 where the ice rink takes up the whole width of the ship.

 

The Solarium is a nice place to spend time on sea days.

[Bizzie07]

We have stayed at the Novotel. Good for one night and handy to walk over to the shopping centre to pick up the toiletries that weigh heavy in your luggage when flying. (also to buy your wine to carry on).

Easiest transport from Airport is taxi. I think it is around £25 to £30

 

Ship is quite easy, all food/restaurants are at the back of the ship and theatre at front.

 

Have a good time.

[nelly55]

Don't miss the ice shows, amazing what they can do on a small ice rink. Also there are sessions where you can skate yourself, great fun and no extra charge, they provide skates and helmets and you have to wear long trousers. We also love the cantilever hot tubs.

[sky0000547]

Once you get onboard, the ship is very easy to navigate and places are easy to walk to.

 

There is a Holiday Inn adjacent to the cruise terminal which will be within easy walking distance.

[Grandma Dazzles]

The Independence is a great ship - lots to see and do. As others have said, easy to find your way around. Make sure to see the ice show. We have sailed a lot on RC and thought the ice show on the TA was the best we had seen.

 

Don't overlook the main dining room for lunch and breakfast - many people get in the habit of going to the Windjammer buffet each day - we found the main dining room to be much better; especially on sea days you have nothing to "rush" to.

 

Make sure you sign up for your Meet and Mingle - you may find a very active group that has scheduled events for the trip.

 

Check the Compass (daily newsletter) to see what events are offered each day. Also, by guest services is a bulletin board that passengers can post on. Met a delightful group of ladies that met daily (for as long as you wanted; depended on personal schedules) who enjoyed knitting, crocheting, sewing, etc. and brought their work along.

 

Finally, we stayed at the Holiday Inn Main Pier. It is a big, old, but well maintained Holiday Inn. Had a restaurant/bar/work out center that was great for just one night. It is within walking distance of the ship - literally right on the dock. Our friends from England stayed the night there with us and drove us to the ship but we could have walked. The Holiday Inn also called cabs for anyone who did not want to walk because of luggage, but it was a minimum fare. It felt good to wake up in the morning and see the ship right there!

 

Enjoy your cruise.

[summersigh]

Greetings all. We will be trying out RCCL this October on Independence of the Seas. We are not new to cruising but this will be our first time on RCCL. Will undoubtedly coming back here for you expertise.

 

The first question that comes to mind...this is a huge ship - we're used to being on large ships but not this big. How do you not get lost?

 

We are on a 12 night cruise out of Southampton. Several sea days. Which places would you recommend as "not to be missed" on the ship?

 

We will be arranging our own transportation (flying in a day early) to and from Southampton...any suggestions?

 

And finally, for those of you who have stayed in Southampton pre cruise - do you have a hotel to recommend? We'll only be staying there one night precruise.

 

Many thanks. :)

 

We stayed at the Ibis which is an economy hotel. It was clean, dependable and cheap by UK standards. We were sailing out the following day on the Queen Mary 2 so we didn't really care about luxury.:) The Novohotel next door was good according to folks we talked to at the pier.

 

In Southhampton there's a pub near downtown and near the small maritime museum called "The Red Lion" .... it's from the 16oo's and very cool! The fireplace is big enough for a man to stand in and has an interesting place in English history. It was a lucky find for us and we hope to get back there someday soon. :)

[meaclasact2]

Thank you all for sharing your experiences and insight. The size of the ship was a bit overwhelming but I'm sure we'll manage! The tips were great and, yes, we have jointed the roll call too.

 

Thanks again and happy sailing!

[TOM CRUIZES]

We try to stay at the Premier Inn West Quay, prices good if booked early, good meals, clean, staff are friendly, handy for the nearby mall and Taxi to Ship only £5.

[Static events]

You could walk from the holiday inn to the ship.

 

If you want to push the boat out :p stay at Chewton Glen Hotel & Spa Luxury Country House Hotel in ...http://www.chewtonglen.com..... It's one of the best hotels anywhere.

[NorbertsNiece]

How close the Holiday Inn is to the pier.... a friend in a wheelchair was able to access the pier easily (husband wheeled the cases)

 

[Gilpet]

You'll find it very easy to navigate your way around Independence - I'm the world's worst at finding my way around a ship but on Indy the Royal Promenade makes it so easy that even I have never got lost lol :p. If you're on the Royal Promenade the Pyramid Lounge is at one end (the front) and one of the MDR's at the other (back), but for a basic rule of thumb food is at the back and entertainment at the front lol.

 

Somebody else mentioned lunch in the MDR but if you go to the lowest MDR level (deck 3) they have what I think is called 30 minute Brasserie - and you really shouldn't miss the salad there, you choose what you want in the salad and they prepare and toss it in front of you........my only complaint is that it's only available on sea days lol. As well as the salad they have a menu that changes every day with such things a pasta, curry, sausage and mash, fish and chips etc etc.

 

Where not to miss? We've been on Indy several times but it was only on our last cruise that we discovered a sheltered area on deck 11 - just behind the swing seats in the solarium there is a door into what is not much more than a corridor but it has loungers/chairs opposite the windows and is very quiet with no wind at all.

 

Have a great cruise

 

Gill

Edited March 1, 2014 by Gilpet

[drarill]

Thank you all for sharing your experiences and insight. The size of the ship was a bit overwhelming but I'm sure we'll manage! The tips were great and, yes, we have jointed the roll call too.

 

Thanks again and happy sailing!

We always use Adelphi Executive Hire for our transports in England. Tell Darren you found out about him in Cruise Critics. Enjoy the IOS. :)

[Grandma Dazzles]

[quote name=Gilpet;41867932

 

Somebody else mentioned lunch in the MDR but if you go to the lowest MDR level (deck 3) they have what I think is called 30 minute Brasserie - and you really shouldn't miss the salad there' date=' you choose what you want in the salad and they prepare and toss it in front of you........my only complaint is that it's only available on sea days lol. As well as the salad they have a menu that changes every day with such things a pasta, curry, sausage and mash, fish and chips etc etc.

 

Gill[/quote]

 

Totally agree about the salad - I was the one who mentioned lunch in the MDR. As far as I know and remember, the salad that is made for you - you pick all the ingredients - is called the Tutti Salad (or something similar). It has been available on several RC ships that we have sailed. Also, when the MDR is open for lunch it is usually just one level (often the lowest tier of the dining room); again, the Compass gives the deck number and hours of operation. Suggest making a note of the times - they do stick to them - I think lunch was something like 11:30 to 1:30, and they definitely closed up at the posted time.

 

We also found the MDR to have a nice fruit/cereal/pastry bar at breakfast; some ships also have a full buffet breakfast - much nicer than the Windjammer.

[gerry hat tricks]

Greetings all. We will be trying out RCCL this October on Independence of the Seas. We are not new to cruising but this will be our first time on RCCL. Will undoubtedly coming back here for you expertise.

 

The first question that comes to mind...this is a huge ship - we're used to being on large ships but not this big. How do you not get lost?

 

We are on a 12 night cruise out of Southampton. Several sea days. Which places would you recommend as "not to be missed" on the ship?

 

We will be arranging our own transportation (flying in a day early) to and from Southampton...any suggestions?

 

And finally, for those of you who have stayed in Southampton pre cruise - do you have a hotel to recommend? We'll only be staying there one night precruise.

 

Many thanks. :)

Try the Holiday Inn, Herbert Walker Avenue, Southampton, its right on the Dock.

 

Food good, accommodation good. you can park a car there, and walk to the ship if you wish to.