Wineinhand

Ours was 2 weeks before sailing.

In June my daughter had Bircher muesli everyday, I asked for honey and received it and toast was in the racks .

I have Morton’s, here in U.K. I was given special insoles from physio. There is a lump in part of the insole that means your foot is no longer applying pressure onto the neuroma. I found these invaluable for work when on my feet for 9 hours.

I have since had two surgeries for 2 separate neuromas and although no pain, can feel a stone of tissue in the area and my 2 toes are numb, I was told to wear shoes with rocker style bottoms, think new balance trainers, and I live in FIT flop brand mules and boots. 
I was told do not go barefoot or thin soles or very soft shoes without support. Skechers do not have enough support. Though comfy for short periods.

colours I go for are silver or gold ,or pink/nude. These go with all colours and can match bags if you wish. 
 

Haugesund we got off and walked, as did all the passengers I saw.

We are doing a ships cruise to Pisa and Florence, it does say there isn’t time to go into the tower .

We are booked on what sounds like the same cruise, and went with the P and O tour, mainly because of the distance from ship, and not having been before. The site just says early morning to early evening which could mean anything. 
After hearing stories of people not getting back to ship in time, I worried so we booked at least then P and O need to either wait or get you to the next port.

also we are in Rome the day before so a leisurely coach to Pisa and Florence sounds better.

If you look at the rough times of the planned trips and make sure you head back in plenty of time then I’m sure you’ll be fine.

Wowzz that looks a good site , though first look shows returning at 17:30 which if Harry is on point is the time ship would be leaving ! 
 

I am such a worrier perhaps I need to stump up for ships excursion .

Thank you both.

Harry this is 1 of the reasons I’m asking, it’s so cheap to do yourself but is it worth the worry, then expense if you get stuck.

Can you recall what time ship leaves the port? 
 

Hello, I have booked on Azura and will be in citivecchia for Rome, never been before and wondering how difficult/ fraught this might be. I have googled and there’s an express train but only goes once a day around 9am and back around 4pm. This sounds good but I will worry about missing it, I also read about the Frecce train, is this a commuter train? Does it run more frequently? Can I prebook  it? Does it stop at all Rome train stations? 

Also I would prefer an overview and see the sights just from outside get a feel of the atmosphere of Rome rather than queue to get in the attractions. If so how much am I likely to see. I would obviously go back at some point to go more in depth. 

basically if anyone can help me plan my trip it would be much appreciated. I am used to walking and did google the attractions and their distance from each other. Any ideas welcome. Thanks

Hi, we did Iona to fjords in March last year, I put a loose dress over costume, in the jacuzzis on the side at the time there was a max number allowed in and time limit of 15 mins if people were waiting. There are chairs at the side. So be mindful of how warm/cold it may be whilst waiting, some people ignored the 15 min limit!  Afterwards whilst wet we wrapped in towels and made our way back with the towel under the dress, as was too cold to sit and wait to dry. There are toilets you could nip into to change if you prefer.

also in the bigger jucuzzis at the back some inconsiderate parents allowed their young children under 5 to go in without supervision, and the 3 year old was “diving “ under . Not very nice getting splashed whilst trying to read a book or relax.

On Iona it was 2 singers in limelight ,both X factor guys, Ray Quinn and Garett Gates. Separately a few nights each during the week. The comedian was on a few times including a late night adults only in the clubhouse, didn’t do the theatre as was musicals by the in house entertainment and wasn’t to our taste. The ariel display was on a few times in the SkyDome , they did 2 different shows during the week.

We did pulpit rock booking through P and O , you stop off on the way back for the coffee and waffles , it’s all ready and it’s a short stop. We were back in plenty of time before the ship left.

We did the pulpit rock by boat , not sure if there was a wheelchair on board? The boat had a covered deck with rows of seats with what I recall room just to walk through each side , and the open upper deck with no seats , but she would be unable to get up there. If she can manage to get on and fold the wheelchair,I’m sure they can sit her near the door you get on , there is a tiny bit of deck that some went out on to take photos there.

The menu looks very similar if not the same as Iona a couple of weeks ago, the food we ate was cooked well . I don’t recall seeing chicken on the menu at all apart from in starters🤔 On Iona we enjoyed the fish and chips in the Quays, which was served through hatches like take away, then you find your own seat to eat ,you could also get your own drinks of tea or water and sweets as in the buffet. This also served Asian and burgers or southern fried chicken.

Does the Brittania have anything similar?
Thank you for your blog Vampiress

Hi, we did Pulpit rock by boat, a couple of weeks ago it was freezing out on top but enjoyable all the same. Olden we booked the Briksall glacier it had snowed and the troll car was not on, it was very slippery  underfoot and took longer than normal because of that ,also we had wrapped very warmly and were roasting by the time we got to the top. We loved the sail away there as the locals came out and waved, and played We are sailing by Rod Stewart over a tannoy.

In Haguesand, we walked to the monument, but not much was open in the town possibly as it was Good Friday.

Alesund was pretty but if going on the troll bus get off and book straight away as it got full very quickly. You can walk up the 400 steps to the look out over the town , which is nice. We saw an open top bus there too.

23 hours ago, wowzz said:

You could "unfortunately " catch Covid the week before your cruise. P&O would then cancel your entire booking, and give you credit to be used on a future cruise.  

3 minutes ago, bobstheboy said:

I understand you complete a Health Declaration 1-3 days before your departure date. If you fail, you are told you cannot travel and a FCC will be issued in due course. This was the position when I cruise in Feb 22.. 

Thank you , that may be an option to try if we can’t get someone else to come. 

Thank you all for your replies.I understand P and O now have you do cert to travel the day before so not sure “catching Covid” would work 😂

Pete , I am going to have to speak to them but was just hoping to get a plan together.  If I knew how much it would cost to transfer the booking to another person 🧐 but thought if I contacted them they would realize what  I need to do and say I have to cancel.  I think a quick check to see if anyone has any holidays from work and would be able to go might be my next step. Thanks again .

When we were on Iona the formal night was the 2nd night of the week.

We ate at the beach house which was Mexican and was very good.

Other than that we ate in the MDR every night and for breakfast each day. We had no issue with the food.

Getting drinks was only a problem 1time in Brodie’s it was packed, and also in the Crowsnest.

On Iona a couple of weeks ago, we either booked on the app and put table for 4 , as we were in 2 cabins when we got to the dining room they just asked which cabin numbers and took both numbers.

when you give the cabin no they pop in a computer and that generates a ticket they hand to waiter who then takes you to the table.

I did see on the last breakfast a number of different people sharing a table for 8 .

Hi, everyone , I’m new to posting on here though I have lurked and found your tips on cruising very helpful. I have cruised with P and O 3 times and have a booking with 2 other people in the same cabin which is sailing in 4 weeks. Unfortunately the lady I’m going with is unsure she can go now due to her daughters illness becoming worse. I am wondering if we can transfer the booking to next year ? Also if anyone know the likely cost? I know if we cancel we lose 90% to 100% at this late stage.

Other than that if we could possibly get someone else to travel would we be able to change the names on the booking? Again would this incur a cost that anyone knows?
Sorry for the long post but would like to have an idea of both before speaking to P and O direct.