Cruising from Liverpool

[July morning]

We are departing from Liverpool and hoping someone could recommend car parking that's easy and convenient.

We're thinking of using CPS although it's not the same procedure as Southampton.

Anyone got any other suggestions? 

[tring]

1 hour ago, July morning said:

We are departing from Liverpool and hoping someone could recommend car parking that's easy and convenient.

We're thinking of using CPS although it's not the same procedure as Southampton.

Anyone got any other suggestions? 

 

I think the only other car parking you would find is if you are booking into a hotel and book a park and stay package.  Otherwise you are in the city centre, so not the sort of location where you will find any other long stay car parks.  The on road parking, and other multi-story car parks in the city centre, are very expensive on an hourly basis and many of the car parks close overnight anyway.

 

I do not understand your problem with the official car park, it is far easier and more convenient than Southampton docks, as you could have a distance to walk to your car in Southampton and also have a lot of walking inside the terminals there.  The Liverpool car park is right opposite the Exhibition Centre which is where you will need to go for cruises this year.  The testing and document check is done there, then you are bussed to the cruise terminal.  Unless you want to do a self disembarkation with all your luggage (and I am not sure if Fred allow that), you will put your baggage outside your cabin door as usual and it will be transported back to the Exhibition Centre when the ship docks.  You will be bussed there at your disembarkation time to collect your baggage in the Exhibition Centre, where there will be plenty of space for a socially distanced baggage re claim.  As I said previously, the car park is directly opposite the Exhibition centre.  The Exhibition Centre is 1.3 miles from the cruise terminal, but the terminal alone will not be usable alone, whilst there is a need for covid procedures and the Terminal website says for all 2021 cruises.  This is a link for the cruise terminal website (if you click on passenger information at the top, you will be able to scroll down and select a link specific to Borealis):-   https://www.cruise-liverpool.com/

 

Before covid the same car park was used, but there were regular shuttle buses to the cruise terminal as I understand it, though as we live within a 20 mins taxi ride, we have not used the system ourselves.  We did a recci at The Exhibition Centre a couple of weeks ago when MSC were embarking, as we were due on their ship next Thursday -  until they cancelled us off!  Hence I may be able to answer any other questions you have but the website I have given is fairly clear. 

 

If you arrive by taxi from a hotel, the drop off point is The Pullman Hotel, which is part of the Exhibition Centre building and you will need to walk to the left of the Pullman and you will see the entrance for cruise passengers, a matter of yards along a path to the side of the building away from the river.  The exit door is on the riverside of the building, from where you will be guided to the shuttles, a short distance away.

Edited June 20, 2021 by tring

[July morning]

Thank you very much for the detailed instructions, I will now have to get my husband to read them 😁😂

[tring]

1 hour ago, July morning said:

Thank you very much for the detailed instructions, I will now have to get my husband to read them 😁😂

 

Just to add, the cruise terminal (and probably Fred) refer to the ACC, which stand for the Arena and Conference Centre.  The exhibition centre, which I referred to, is just passed the main ACC building, but is still part of the overall ACC complex.  That is where the cruise passengers need to go for the initial processes (sounds bad doesn't it, but basically we will be "processed", this year on a one way conveyor belt).  I always find Google Earth useful when trying to identify locations, so the Pullman Hotel on Google Earth will show you the drop off point and the rest of that building is the Exhibition Centre.  The big, oval building nearer to the Albert Dock houses the actual Arena and Conference centre.

 

Can I ask which Fred cruise you are on?  We booked the one leaving on the 12th July, to Scilly and Portsmouth, yesterday, 

 

Barbara

 

Edited June 20, 2021 by tring

[July morning]

We're on the 23rd August for five nights ports are Belfast and Falmouth. 

 

Originally booked on Balmoral on the 5th August going from Rosyth it would have been very convenient only a 30-35 minutes from where we live so planned to get a taxi.  The ports were new for us but as you'd know all the Scottish ones have been cancelled.   We decided to book another one but with no Scottish ports, hopefully we'll get what we booked.  Not that I'm really bothered shall just be good to go on a cruise 😀

[tring]

1 hour ago, July morning said:

We're on the 23rd August for five nights ports are Belfast and Falmouth. 

 

Originally booked on Balmoral on the 5th August going from Rosyth it would have been very convenient only a 30-35 minutes from where we live so planned to get a taxi.  The ports were new for us but as you'd know all the Scottish ones have been cancelled.   We decided to book another one but with no Scottish ports, hopefully we'll get what we booked.  Not that I'm really bothered shall just be good to go on a cruise 😀

 

Ah yes, just realised you are from Scotland, so a bit of a drive down.  I think some people have got better parking deals when staying in hotels pre cruise on a stay and cruise basis.  All a bit difficult at present though as I would feel uncertain of a cruise would go.  We have just lost two cruises (MSC and Tradewinds) which were due out soon, because overbooked and the Tradewinds one had to re schedule everything as was sailing in/out of Scottish ports.  We were due to embark at Greenock and disembark in Liverpool.  We had non cancellable train tickets up, so we are still going and having two nights in Greenock, then five nights in Glasgow.  No idea what we will do there, but it will be somewhere different. 

Edited June 21, 2021 by tring

[nooosey]

For those on Borealis from Liverpool our online Port Terminal info has recently changed to the ACC Exhibition Centre as expected. We are on 12th July. From my experience on Virtuosa recently, on ACC entry checks are made on tickets, passport and vaccination status on entry. If you are showing vaccination status on a recent iphone with face recognition, my NHS phone app will not open when wearing a mask so might be best to print it out. Luggage is taken for van transfer to ship, COVID Lateral flow tests are then done. Seating is then required for 25 minutes approx for them to await results. Groups are then directed to buses to go to the cruise terminal, tickets again checked, hand luggage security check, and room key and perhaps a Fred Olsen contact tracing wristband issued. Then it's a walk to the gangway and ship, hand luggage may be sprayed for sanitisation. Bus journey from the ACC centre takes around 15 minutes as there are roadworks. Hopes this helps those of us looking forward to cruising Borealis.

Philip

[tring]

59 minutes ago, nooosey said:

For those on Borealis from Liverpool our online Port Terminal info has recently changed to the ACC Exhibition Centre as expected. We are on 12th July. From my experience on Virtuosa recently, on ACC entry checks are made on tickets, passport and vaccination status on entry. If you are showing vaccination status on a recent iphone with face recognition, my NHS phone app will not open when wearing a mask so might be best to print it out. Luggage is taken for van transfer to ship, COVID Lateral flow tests are then done. Seating is then required for 25 minutes approx for them to await results. Groups are then directed to buses to go to the cruise terminal, tickets again checked, hand luggage security check, and room key and perhaps a Fred Olsen contact tracing wristband issued. Then it's a walk to the gangway and ship, hand luggage may be sprayed for sanitisation. Bus journey from the ACC centre takes around 15 minutes as there are roadworks. Hopes this helps those of us looking forward to cruising Borealis.

Philip

 

We are booked on the 12th as well, can I ask if you have your tickets yet, ours not showing on manage my cruises?  We only booked a week or two ago though (through an agent), (after we were bunked off MSC and Tradewinds due to overbooking) and only filled in our passenger details at the end of last week.  I hope we still get any mailings including booklets and luggage labels - we should because we have booked freedom fare.  I have just started a roll call if you would like to join me there,

 

Barbara

Edited June 28, 2021 by tring

[nooosey]

Hi Barbara,

Yes have tickets by email and on manage my booking, they say luggage labels will come by post.

Just this minute have received a health questionnaire by email, very short and easy to submit back online. I phoned them to book a tour as online booking would not work for me, phone answered very quickly and very helpful operatives.

I will join the roll call, thanks for starting it.

Philip

 

[tring]

5 hours ago, nooosey said:

Hi Barbara,

Yes have tickets by email and on manage my booking, they say luggage labels will come by post.

Just this minute have received a health questionnaire by email, very short and easy to submit back online. I phoned them to book a tour as online booking would not work for me, phone answered very quickly and very helpful operatives.

I will join the roll call, thanks for starting it.

Philip

 

 

Thanks for the reply.  I rang Fred earlier and was told we should get our tickets and luggage labels this week.  They normally arrive about three weeks before cruise, so hoping we do still get the cruise book and luggage labels even though we booked fairly late, though they will supply the correct colour labels for us to fill in our cabin number if not.  Head office do tend to be pretty good and will happily sort requests, even if you have booked

through an agent.  Will move to the roll call with further comments.

 

 

Edited June 28, 2021 by tring