helenb

Thank you for the update! And also the picture of where to pick up the bus... that is very helpful!

I saw that, and I have it in my notes as an option. But when I checked out their site, they did not yet have up any information about 2024, so I still have it listed as a 'backup'. if it is as convenient as I have heard people say, I may use them instead of the train.

We did Mont St. Michel from Le Havre once using a rental car. Since the ship gets into port very early and stays late (to accommodate the busses that go to Paris) it was very doable.

Okay, here's what I have (note that our itinerary may differ from yours): Portland - Walk/blue shuttle to Portland Castle, visit D-Day Center, walk/taxi to Tout Quarry Sculpture Park. (Note, most people will be going to Stonehenge or Bath, but we have been to those sites before. I strongly recommend visiting Stonehenge on your own before/after the cruise (easy to reach if you are driving to/from London) as it will be cheaper and easier than taking an expensive tour from port. Cobh - Private tour to Blarney Castle and Cork Dublin - Taking DART to Dublin, then HOHO Bus to get around and see sights Glasgow - Taking train to Glasgow, then HOHO Bus to get around and see sights Kirkwall - Private tour to see Skara Brae and Maeshowe (Maeshowe not available on big tours) Invergordon - Private tour to Lochness and Inverness Edinburgh - Taking train to Edinburgh, then walking between sights Le Havre - Walking along beach, visiting Maison de l'Armateur, catching Bee Bus to Honfleur (Most people will be visiting Paris, Mont St. Michel and the Normandy Beaches, which we have see many times before, so we wanted something new. I highly recommend Mont St. Michel or the Normandy Beaches via private tour/rental car if you have never been.) NOTE I do NOT recommend visiting Paris from Le Havre. It's a long journey and you won't see much in the limited time you are there. Instead, it is worthwhile to fly into/out of Paris before/after your cruise and take a few days to see it on your own. You can then take the train to London. If you're sailing out of Dover, you can also take a ferry from Le Havre to Dover (and vice versa).

Our OBC for the 'Galveston inconvenience' stayed on our accounts the entire cruise. We actually did not purchase any drinks while in Texas waters, and it ended up applying against our gratuities daily charges.

On our recent cruise, 3 of us shared a single 'one device wifi' package. I purchased on my device. When my husband or son tried to load an internet page on their laptops, they were shunted to a page that asked for their credentials. IIRC, they only needed our stateroom number and my birthday to login and use my wifi package. Of course, logging in would kick off anyone who was already using it, and there was no popup warning. But we would verbally discuss who was using it when with each other, and all 3 of us were able to share.

I'm not Crookshanks, but IIRC, the gambling age, like the drinking age, varies depending in which part of the world the ship is currently sailing.

We had been talking about doing a British Isles cruise for years before COVID hit, but never did because they were so expensive as compared to other European cruises. We did the Med a few times, the Baltic, the Adriatic, the Holy Land, Hawaii, even Australia/New Zealand... all cheaper than British Isles. COVID completely changed our outlook (not being able to cruise for 2+ years). When we saw the British Isles cruises on the Regal for summer 2024, we went ahead and booked. We are on the June 7 cruise out of Southampton. I have been buried in planning for it the past couple of weeks and I think that we have come up with an amazing touring itinerary for pre-cruise, each port, and post-cruise. I am so excited for this trip! I know that it is something I will remember forever. So tl;dr is: do it! Seize the moment! You never know if this opportunity will be available again and it is a great cruising destination.

We do that too, but during the land portion of our trips. Occasionally, we will schedule a meal during a port stop that is part of a cultural event (e.g. a luau in Hawaii). But for the vast majority of port stops, we prefer to see more sights rather than stopping for lunch. Of course, this is why cruising is so eye-opening. Not only do you get to travel and see other parts of the world, but you get to interact with all kinds of people, both on shore and on the ship. We can have different touring approaches, and both of them are valid. it is simply what we prefer.

Just to be clear, I do NOT want to break rules, which is why I am asking what the rules are. And we have never left a picnic lunch on the ground, but always clean up after ourselves. More often than not, we are having our snack on a bus or in a car and then taking our trash with us to deposit in a receptacle. If we are not permitted to take off meat/cheese, then we will not do so.

We do too! We were confused on our recent cruise at first when it looked like the same menu the second time, but then we realized that there were a few differences. After about 4 days, we did try the deck pizza/lunch buffet combo for lunch the next time, but eventually came back to the MDR. Same for us. But on our recent Regal NYE cruise, I *think* that the MDR was open for lunch every day. We had to miss a port, and an hour or 2 later the MDR was open for lunch... I don't think that would happen unless they had already been planning to open for lunch. It's possible that this is why the lunch menu was standardized... they wanted to be able to open the MDR for lunch every day, and it's easier when the menu items are basically the same every day? Just a thought.

I believe that it is every day. Although the first embarkation lunch is still different from this menu.

And it is mourned by our family. However, we were able to book the same dining room at the same time every night. On the first night, we liked our table and waiters. On the way out of the dining room, we asked if we could stay there for the entire cruise. The staff hemmed and hawed, but eventually did book us there and it was basically the same as traditional dining. But we really had to work for it.

The non-alcohol package is different from the soda package. The non-alcohol package is much more... while the soda package is only $15 per day. $15 + $16 for gratuities + wifi is far less than $60.

Really? We always take food from the cruise ship on land, if we are permitted. There have been a couple of places where they were extremely strict (Australia/New Zealand come to mind) and we couldn't take off anything, but it's always nice to have a snack when we are on shore all day. We never purchase food on shore because we feel that it is a waste, since we have already paid for the cruise food. I agree that theoretically, there shouldn't be an issue going from a UK port to a UK port, but since the cruise ship travels around, there are often different rules for it, since the people on shore don't know where the food came from. That's why I was asking for the experience of people who have been to these ports and heard announcements/seen signs regarding food.

My husband and I are power tourists. We generally do not stop to eat when we are on shore, particularly in Europe, where there is so much to do! We usually bring off canned sodas and other 'snacks' from the ship. I know that every port has different rules as to what is acceptable to take onshore. We don't want to break the rules. So I am wondering what the restrictions are on a UK cruise (also going to Ireland and France). Can we bring off bread/rolls/pastries? Cereal? Can we bring off cold cuts and cheese to make sandwiches? (My guess is no on that one.) Can we bring off only pre-packaged items? I'd appreciate advice from others who have experienced these ports. Thank you! Just to add.... I found this site https://www.gov.uk/bringing-food-into-great-britain/print It details specifically what is allowed, but there is a difference if it is from the 'EU' versus other countries. If I'm on a cruise ship that originated out of Southampton (but if not a UK cruise line) is that considered EU or 'non-EU'?

We did the soda package on our recent Regal NYE cruise. Like you, we used to get the 'soda only' package that was $7 per day. Now we have to pay $15 per day. But I can confirm that it DOES include mocktails. So you can get cans of soda and mocktails with no limits. One thing I liked about the new package was that they were no longer enforcing the 'one drink per person' rule. I was able to walk up and get 3 cans of soda at once, all by myself. It made it easy to stockpile soda cans and then take them onshore with us. With the soda package being $15 per day, it *almost* made sense for the Plus package instead... when it was $40 per day. Now at $60 per day, it's not even close. If you don't drink alcohol, it's tough to get your value out of Plus.

If you can't make any reservations before you board, you can always ask at the dining room shortly after embarkation. They may be able to help.

I hope that they find your friend's luggage. Experiences like that are why I am terrified of checking a bag. I am Team Carry-on all the way, no matter how long the trip. Hopefully, Alaska will make good on the missing luggage and your friend can still enjoy the cruise. At least you found out in time for her to buy some necessities onshore. Now that you are there, relax and enjoy!

I got a really nice necklace on Etsy which was lanyard-length. It worked perfectly! Give a search for 'princess medallion on Etsy and a lot of nice items come up.

Oh you'll get the glass of (low quality) champagne.... along with a sales pitch. The best free drinks are the ones that come with past passenger status. Free minibar setup, free wine tasting... also free drinks at the past passenger events.

Another tip: if you get a service in the spa, write 'NO SALES PITCH' in big letters on the form that you have to fill out. It works, because those attendants want their gratuity.

There were a number of people being taken in wheelchairs to the 'tender', and I saw a couple being met with wheelchairs on the other end (by Princess personnel). I don't know if they had to arrange this in advance or not. there were also a lot of people with walkers and other mobility needs on the 'tender' boat.

I get the disappointment in this thread. We just got off the NYE Regal cruise that visited both Belize City and Roatan. Both were great ports, but Belize City is logistically more complicated. Princess hires massive 'ferry' boats (too big to be called tenders) and they pack people in... it takes at least an hour to board the 'tender' and then get to shore/ship. Factor in that time. However, we did a cave tubing excursion in Belize, which was fantastic. It was easily the best excursion we had all cruise (11 nights). I would highly recommend this to anyone who is looking for something fun and different to do. This was our tour, but there are many others. This one can be combined with a visit to Mayan ruins. https://www.viator.com/tours/Belize-City/Cave-Tubing-from-Belize-City/d5094-9025P1

We just got off Regal. No tote bags, no elite toiletries, no chocolates on pillows.