pink845

So just to confirm British pounds can be used in London, Cornwall, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Invergordon, Belfast while Euros for Dublin, Cobh and LeHavre. If we buy something in Scotland and we get back Scottish pounds (is there such a currency), can it be used in London?

Avgsuperheroine, all the posts above are reiterating that the area outside of LeHavre has a lot to offer. Normandy beaches, war memorials, pretty towns, art and culture, Mont st. Michel and on and on. But these spots required concentrated time to truly appreciate not the rushed day of a cruise. We have LeHavre on our British Isles itinerary as well but are only going to make our way to Honfleur and save all the other spots mentioned in all the above posts to a dedicated trip to Paris and that Normandy coast for 2024 when we can truly appreciate. Tough one about London however. Pre or post if you have only one day. On arrival to London prior to cruise, you will be tired unless you have comfy lie back business class seats, and luggage to unload... hmm not ideal pre and post you would again after your transfer from ship to London, you got that luggage to deal with and chances are you will be tired from all the cruising. London pre or post would benefit from at least 3 full days as a sampler. My opinion.

This gives you another reason to book a future cruise that includes Edinburgh as a port. We specifically chose Princess because itinerary includes both Greenock for Glasgow and Edinburgh sovwe would not have to worry about cruise tours.

In Canada and US, our choice car rental with National, Enterprise will hold car for at least four hours. And with flight delays we have never had an issue. Maybe different rules in Uk but do the walk off.

Hilton Garden Inn Terminal 2 is connected to Terminal 2 via covered walkway and to Terminal 3 with underpass per their website. Transfers with Princess I believe from Central Bus station at Terminal 2. I need to confirm that myself. Hard to get information out of Princess but check with Ncl with respect to your exact pick up location and time for your transfer to ship. I know the last time I did a transfer with Princess in Los Angeles I had to go through several people there to get the exact location of where we should wait for the bus transfer. I wish details were more clear. But you should ask for specific details and time from ncl in your case. Also should you want to zip downtown to London, Hilton Garden website states it would be 15 min on Heathrow Express. After long flight, there is nothing better than getting to the hotel. Depositing bags for safekeeping and be on one's way. When we were younger, we could deal with lugging bags here there and everywhere but now we try to choose hotel close enough to the Terminal where we arrive.

I see the x99 appears very convenient but I wonder what time is the last bus to south queensferry and what traffic might be like on a saturday in August. We are in Edinburgh 7 to 7. We are going to have the train schedule ready as well in case no room on bus at end of day when we want to return.

Interestingly. When we boarded Majestic Princess at 1145 am couple of weeks ago, no one was able to get a glass of wine or any liquor. And that was in Vancouver. People with drink package were wandering up and down and all around looking for a bar that would serve.

What is this "merchant fee" mentioned in one of the posts above? We have both usd and cdn credit cards. On ships settling account usd card always use as that is ship currency and it is cleaner. There is no merchant fees being charged in Canada yet. There is talk of it coming. So prior to buying items in Europe is that something we should be asking the vendor? Will use Cdn card and charge local currency.

Bookbabe, I see you decided on Hilton Paddington. I guess when making any comparison to Toronto transit no one understands unless they live it and ride it. Countless delays mess with our minds to make us worry unnessarily about other advanced cities' transit systems (like London) and networks. I get it completely. Due to our bad luck in Toronto, we subscribe to the motto of ÀLWAYS staying at an airport hotel when we have an early flight or ship transfer the next morning. Then we can enjoy the short time we have for us 3 days in London prior. One night in London to see city at night is all we need. Been to shows etc... countless other times prior, so no worry about enjoying nightlife. The three full days we are in London prior, we will be up early and take tube into city. We are back in London for a full week in late sept but even on that trip my last night will be in an airport hotel close to my terminal 2.

Check the day of the week you arrive in port as if it is a Sunday like our day in Dublin, apparently Dart trains commence no earlier than around 9. We arrive in port at 7 but with the water shuttle to the pier, chances are it will be 9 before we reach the train anyways. I like the idea of the Leap Visitor pass. Will also look into that.

Of course we will pay admission fee whether we go to top or not. Just want to say we were there.

we will be in Cobh in August and our plan is to get off ship early. Grab the train to Cork and then the bus to Blarney. Apparently gardens are lovely. If we arrive prior to Blarney castle opens and are able to get up to top that is great. Will not kiss stone but will get photo from top anyhow. Then check out Cork and train back to Cobh and see sights there. We dicked 7 to 6. Hate to be in that part of world and not at least see the legendary Blarney castle. We avoid ship tours. Hate waiting for all the stragglers and dropped at shops I am not interested in.

Another vote from me for eating at the buffet. No more waiting half a hour for an appetizer only to be served cold, or not the one we ordered. No more anxiously eating quickly to be able to catch the show as the service is always so very slow. Buffet, so quick and easy. And I have yet to come across anything that is not tasty. Also, always a window seat available.

You might want to call Princess and specifically ask about the exact time you will be let off the ship with a walk off. You cannot get off the ship until the port officials arrive. Or call the port officials directly in Anchorage and ask them what time they begin processing the passengers. They will give you an estimate I am pretty sure. Nerve wracking for sure to book a morning flight out of Anchorage. We always spend the day in Anchorage and enjoy the transfer into Anchorage and the overnight there as well.

Well, let's see, we usually opt for mini suites, but maybe once my youngest kid opens up his medical practice this year, I won't have to spot him anymore, and I will have some extra cash to treat myself to a FULL SUITE, just not the $20,000 variety. My husband has many clients that earn well over $1.0 million a year. The amount of discretionary income out there is unreal. Also, remember that a lot of people did not use their travel budget due to covid over the last few years and now are flush with cash and are able to afford to splurge. Some of them prefer the $20,000 suite.

I am a tad confused. You are Canadian. You are flying to Vancouver. The cruise ship is in Vancouver at the Vancouver pier. I never really thought about it but are there US border agents at the Vancouver port screening passengers. I do not recall seeing any border agents at the pier. This is a tough one. Have you submitted the immigration information on the app (passport #, etc. that needs to be entered) yet. That information is provided to Alaska immigration authorities prior to passengers boarding the ship. I am thinking that you might very well encounter an issue if he becomes flagged during that process. Perhaps he will be let on board, but will be denied the ability to disembark at the Alaska ports with you. That is my thought so far. Forget the pardon for now. Takes a good year for some to get pardoned. But definitely, if travelling is part of your future, a good thing to start to work on. I would never want my destiny to be left in the hands of a border agent.

Interesting topic. I have been on several of the Royal Class Ships, not Discovery (next Feb 2024) but Regal, Sky, Enchanted, Royal and come to think of it, when I order coffee from room service, (which is still free .... but with Princess going cheap on everything, that too could be a thing of the past), the coffee comes in a carafe and is very hot and actually tasty. Hmmm. It tastes much better than the stuff served the buffet. Maybe the carafe adds some some magic to it.

JamesBauer, Let's hope the laundry perk is still available. Fingers crossed for you. Princess has been taking away a lot of the perks that made being Elite precious. I wonder if we still get the blue bags. Just a tip, make sure that you include very clear and precise instructions with your bag. I made the mistake travelling with one of my sons (Hawaii 15 days) not to tell the steward to avoid using FABRIC SOFTNER on my guy's workout tops and my son was not happy with the result. Lesson learned. Now I am very clear with my instructions.

As a fellow Canadian, please be careful when booking your excursions via your Cruise Personalizer. The Cruise Personalizer may look like the price of shore excursions are in CDN dollars, however, THEY ARE IN USD. Secondly, you can call Princess and have the agent book the excursions for you as well. That is what they get paid for. Thirdly, if you have OBC, yes, that money can be applied to your shore excursion any time you want (before you make final payment or after you make final payment). Or, you could simply leave the OBC there on your account and pay for your shore excursion with your credit card. We like to make sure that all shore excursions are paid with our credit card so that in the event that we need to cancel the whole darn vacation, then our credit card insurance pays out everything to us, including that shore excursions. We have several credit cards with various insurance on them but one of them requires that EVERY SINGLE travel related expense is charged to that credit card, so a $200 OBC credit used for a shore excursion would Nullify out our insurance. Silliness galore. But true. Fourthly, if you cancel your excursion (not helicopter rides, or other far flung excursions, you have until 5 days to cancel and you will get a refund to your credit card. If you booked with your OBC, you will get your OBC credit put back into your folio to be used on board for something else. (Same 5 days prior required.) Finally, if you wait until you board, the excursion you want may be sold out. I myself like to have all shore excursions prepaid on my credit card, and then I love to use the OBC that Princess has given me for COFFEES, now that Princess has taken away my free coffee. (another hot topic on the forum). Also, should you happen to be Elite, you get 10% off shore excursions if you book onboard and if you book in advance of the cruise, Princess will give add the 10% discount to your onboard folio upon your boarding the ship.

Thank heavens my Keurig cannot pull a shot of expresso, I would have serious heartburn all day. Mild, everything mild for me which is why I enjoy my Keurig.

Malba2366, My Keurig has a wonderful latte attachment, and I also make great chai tea lattes with it. One of the pricier Keurigs. Plus I control the sweetness, not like on the ships, overly sweet there.

Wowzz, Good to see that people are getting dressed up. We love to dress up and never go to the dining room in the evening without being a bit fancy. We were first on the Sky in Dec 2019 and will be on it again in Dec 2023. Always nice to update it a bit. Question for you as we will be on the Regal in August out of Southampton. Did you have to show any proof of vaccination upon boarding. Any Covid tests required. Are any of the guests / staff wearing masks.

I, as well, today saw the italicized red words "Pricing is not available on certain ships and destinations" at the moment under the CDN at Par. Then, the website promptly ejected me. I tried to enter again and the words "We are experiencing technical issues and please try again this evening" appeared. Really! What that means is "WE ARE INCREASING OUR PRICING" AND "ADDING IN NON REFUNDABLE FARES" AND "PAY TO CHOOSE YOUR CABIN fees" AND of course, Escape completely with us and lay open your wallets for our Pricy Beverage Packages, should you so choose.

XuGator, Very Well Said.!! "There will never be a universal answer on this for everyone because people drink different amounts and different types of drinks and some do not care for wifi. So its best to do your own math on how much you forecast spending per day out of pocket vs plus for everything (drinks, wifi, tips, etc). For a people on their first cruise paying an additional $600 to $700 bucks each (maybe a trip of a lifetime type of thing), wanting to experience it all, that extra money put towards an expensive beverage package might be worth it. Are they sailing in an inside cabin, cheaper, then sure, Princess Plus Beverage Package may seem worth it to them. Remember too, OP, that you are allowed to bring on two bottles of wine upon embarkation. For me, I usually leave one bottle behind, shows you how much I drink. Years ago, when I drank a bit more, we did have and having a massive cruise credit, we had to use it somehow by a certain date, so we splurged on the all inclusive drink package and a suite. Loved the suite more than the beverage package actually. Got tired after the first couple of days of different cocktails. At one point I was simply taking photos with them. Anyhow, very personal preference. Now bring back my coffee card.

Micahs Grandad, thanks for putting it on the comment card. They gotta pull more money out of us to build up their war chest in case of another pandemic. This time, they will have more money in their kitty complements of everyone buying those pricy drink packages.