Curious cruise overlap on Royal

[Pohra]

We're on the April 30th British Isles cruise from Le Havre on the Royal, and I though something was odd about the excursions. Why in the world would we have disembarkation excursions for Southampton when we're doing a round trip from Le Havre, and day trip excursions from Le Havre on embarkation day that we couldn't possibly make? It definitely seemed like a mistake.

 

I was curious about where the Royal would be on the previous cruise because I wanted to see what the turnaround was going to look like, and if the 1:00 PM check-in the Princess rep was talking about was realistic. Much to my surprise, that previous cruise is a repo from Ft. Lauderdale to Southampton that overlaps ours. Embarkation day for us on April 30th is also the last port of call for the repo cruise, and our first port of call at Southampton is disembarkation for the repo. I've been on several cruises but never seen anything quite like this.

 

That explained quite a bit about the excursions. Our embarkation day excursions are actually the regular port excursions for the repo cruise, and those Southampton disembarkation excursions are not meant for us at all. It's confusing and somewhat disappointing, since I was hoping for a handy pre-cruise excursion from Paris that dropped us at the ship, but no big deal really.

 

What I find fascinating is the logistics of all this. Even assuming that the repo cruise doesn't sail full, it seems likely that our sailing is going to lose a sizable number of passengers on day one unless a majority of them do an early disembarkation in Le Havre. I don't see how Princess can make it work financially and otherwise if we end up on a 12-day cruise with a half-full ship, but I also don't see how they can fill the ship with this kind of overlap. After all, you can't load new passengers at Le Havre if the heads are still in the beds.

 

Has anybody experienced this and seen how it all works out? I'm hoping that somehow it translates to some attractive upsell or upgrade opportunities. :D

[Pohra]

Even crazier - it looks like both our cruise and the one before are actually part of a 27-day "grand adventure" cruise. With three overlapping sailings that's a lot of embarking and disembarking. I imagine all that is too complex to even try to manage separate excursions online. I wonder if there will be additional excursion choices onboard.

[fishywood]

You are way overthinking this.

 

Passengers on the Transatlantic have the option of disembarking at either Le Harve or Southampton.

Passengers on your sailing immediately after the TA have the option of embarking at either Le Harve or Southampton.

Additionally passengers on the TA have the option of remaining on the ship for your sailing, booking the 27 days total under a single booking number. This in particular is totally routine.

 

Princess has been doing this for several years on the Baltic sailings, offering turnaround in Copenhagen, Warnemunde, or St Petersburg, whichever the passenger finds most convenient to book. Something European lines have been doing for years in the Med as well. It is nowhere near as difficult as you seem to think it is simply to offer the same number of "slots" disembarking as embarking each advertised turnaround day.

 

As for excursions, are you saying the only ones for Southampton in your cruise personalizer are designed exclusively for disembarking passengers (end at airport rather than return to ship)? There certainly should be at least a couple round-trip excursions as even if there wasn't embarkation being sold for Le Harve there are always back-to-backers continuing--as you have already discovered by the presence of the 27 night option. But honestly because of Southampton's location there are not a lot of options for 6 or 7 hour round-trip from the ship excursions; if wishing to see, say, Salisbury or Stonehenge tours are almost always designed to continue either to the airport or central London. That is simply all the tour operators can offer the cruise lines. If you don't pre-plan something on your own for the day in Southampton you should head straight for the Shore Excursions desk upon boarding as some of the disembark tours may have been modified at the last minute to also return to the ship. Though no guarantees.

Edited February 2, 2018 by fishywood

[yoyosma]

There is a Princess shore excursion that returns to the ship in Southhampton called Stonehenge and Salisbury costs $99 and returns to the ship about 2:30. Also one that goes to Windsor. another one called London City Drive, and one called Windchester. I think i have also seen shore excursions offered by International Friends but can't be sure, you'll have to look.

[susancruzs]

Princess does this with their Grand Adventure cruises and it works out fine. I took a TA to Copenhagen, then the Baltic cruise and there were many options for people, getting on in other ports. I booked a Fall 2019 TA from Dublin that is similar, too where people are booking it as a Southampton to Southampton shorter cruise but the rest of us are going to Ft. L. It isn't something new for Princess. People are getting on before me in Southampton, but I opted for Dublin, saved me over a thousand dollars, sailing as a single, been to Southampton, don't need those 3 days.

[moki'smommy]

What amazed me was that boarding in FLL was less costly than boarding 3 days later in NY.

[OzKiwiJJ]

It's quite common on Australian-based cruises. Often more than one embarkation / disembarkation port will be offered on longer cruises and that cruise will either overlap with another cruise or there will be a 2 or 3 night cruise offered to fill up those cabins freed up by the first disembarkation.

 

It can get quite complicated e.g. next year Sea Princess does a Round Australia cruise ex both Brisbane and Sydney, followed by a Hawaii/Tahiti cruise with three different embarkation/disembarkation options, then a World cruise ex Sydney and Brisbane plus World Cruise sectors, followed by another Hawaii/Tahiti cruise with three different embarkation/disembarkation options. All of these overlap with a few 2-4 night cruises (with a limited number of cabins) only to fill the gaps between the disembarkations.

Edited February 3, 2018 by OzKiwiJJ

[Cindy]

I am on the Royal on June 30 — Southampton round trip. The cruise is offered as a 12 night from either Le Havre or Southampton. All the British Isles cruises this summer have that option.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[AF-1]

Cindy, what is the price difference between boarding in France or boarding in Southampton?

[Cindy]

Cindy, what is the price difference between boarding in France or boarding in Southampton?

 

 

 

Prices are the same. Everybody on our roll call so far is boarding in Southampton.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Al54]

There is a Princess shore excursion that returns to the ship in Southhampton called Stonehenge and Salisbury costs $99 and returns to the ship about 2:30. Also one that goes to Windsor. another one called London City Drive, and one called Windchester. I think i have also seen shore excursions offered by International Friends but can't be sure, you'll have to look.

 

 

 

I booked this cruise from Le Havre (but twelve days later) and the OP is perfectly right : on my cruise personalizer, there's just one excursion in Southampton for those embarking in Le Havre (Windsor), no excursion to Stonehenge, London or Winchester. I suppose Princess just made a copy of what is usually offered to people disembarking in Southampton, and that it is subject to change.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[AF-1]

Cindy, thanks for your reply. Have a great cruise

[SLYScorpions]

I am on the Royal on June 30 — Southampton round trip. The cruise is offered as a 12 night from either Le Havre or Southampton. All the British Isles cruises this summer have that option.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Also next summer...we are booked for May 16, 2019 from Dublin to Dublin on the Crown Princess with LeHavre and Southampton as additional ports for embarking and debarking.

[yoyosma]

I booked this cruise from Le Havre (but twelve days later) and the OP is perfectly right : on my cruise personalizer, there's just one excursion in Southampton for those embarking in Le Havre (Windsor), no excursion to Stonehenge, London or Winchester. I suppose Princess just made a copy of what is usually offered to people disembarking in Southampton, and that it is subject to change.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Here is the itinerary detail from my personalizer for the London City Drive. It clearly states a return to the ship, no other drop off offered. Only someone continuing on from Southhampton can take it unless they were staying in Southhampton. Maybe anyone interested in this should call Princess and ask about it. It really doesn't look like it was intended for anyone disembarking the ship, there are tours that are marked for doing that.

 

The tour is SOU-100. The tour for Stonehenge is SOU-215 and the tour for Royal Windsor is SOU-115.

DETAILED ITINERARY

 

 

Hide All Itinerary Details

Return to your ship following your tour of London

 

Details:

 

Travel time: 02:30 Transport type:Air Conditioned Motorcoach

Transport Capacity (Normal Use):45

Total number of steps:0

 

Narrated driving tour continued past the Tower of London, Tower Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral

 

Details:

 

Transport type:Air Conditioned Motorcoach

Transport Capacity (Normal Use):45

Time at site:02:00

Total number of steps:0

Photo/Video opportunity:Yes

 

Depart from ship for a narrated driving tour of London past Oxford Street, Piccadilly Circus, and Trafalgar Square

 

Details:

 

Travel time: 02:30 Transport type:Air Conditioned Motorcoach

Transport Capacity (Normal Use):45

Time at site:02:00

Total number of steps:0

Photo/Video opportunity:Yes

 

Lunch at a traditional local pub

 

Details:

 

Transport type:Air Conditioned Motorcoach

Transport Capacity (Normal Use):45

Time at site:01:00 Inside Visit :Yes

Total number of steps:12

Wheelchair accessible?:No

Restrooms available?:Yes

Shopping available?:Yes

Currency accepted:GBP Credit cards accepted: Yes

 

 

Tour timeline may vary to avoid overcrowding, etc.

 

SPECIAL NOTES

 

 

The guides usually do not accompany the buses on the return drive from London to Southampton.

 

The drive between Southampton and London is approximately two hours each way. Traffic delays and large crowds should be expected in London.

 

 

 

 

 

[Al54]

Thanks a lot, Yoyosma, but I still just have Windsor excursion on my cruise personalizer, may be because it's a different date? Princess will probably make an update for those not having all those excursions on their CP.

 

 

Envoyé de mon iPad en utilisant Forums

Edited February 4, 2018 by Al54

[flamomo]

Even if some excursions do not show up to be pre-reserved well in advance, you may find there will be something different added once you are onboard. Check with the tour desk early in your cruise.

[geoherb]

We enjoyed getting to Southampton the day before our cruise last summer. We toured the Tudor House and the Sea City Museum. The museum has a great Titanic exhibit. I wouldn't want to take an excursion to London from Southampton. It doesn't seem worth it to me to spend so much time riding on a bus.

[Al54]

Even if some excursions do not show up to be pre-reserved well in advance, you may find there will be something different added once you are onboard. Check with the tour desk early in your cruise.

 

 

 

A very good advice, thanks!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Al54]

We enjoyed getting to Southampton the day before our cruise last summer. We toured the Tudor House and the Sea City Museum. The museum has a great Titanic exhibit. I wouldn't want to take an excursion to London from Southampton. It doesn't seem worth it to me to spend so much time riding on a bus.

 

 

 

That's exactly what I planned to do in Southampton, because I have been in London a lot of times and totally agree with you about spending so much time in the bus; but if there is a possibility to go to Stonehenge, I might change my plans because I always wanted to go there.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Cindy]

You might find what you are looking for if you consider some independent options. I think the company I am using for my London — Southampton transportation also does round-trip tours. I found them here on CC and they had great reviews. Here’s a link: http://www.woodfordchauffeurcars.co.uk/cruise-connection.php

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[Al54]

You might find what you are looking for if you consider some independent options. I think the company I am using for my London — Southampton transportation also does round-trip tours. I found them here on CC and they had great reviews. Here’s a link: http://www.woodfordchauffeurcars.co.uk/cruise-connection.php

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

 

 

Thanks for this information!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[HighSierra]

Having done London, Stonehenge, and Windsor Castle, I would urge you to consider Windsor. Of the three, it is the one I would do again.