gumshoe958

Newcastle itself doesn’t have an awful lot of interest for tourists - it’s probably the British equivalent of somewhere like Minneapolis: a busy regional centre with plenty of shops, bars and restaurants but not really somewhere you’d choose to go on vacation. But, as already mentioned, there’s Hadrian’s Wall nearby - it’s also only about 15 minutes by frequent train to the beautiful university and cathedral city of Durham, or in the other direction the train ride up the Northumberland coast to Berwick-upon-Tweed is stunning. You’d also have more than enough time to catch the train down to York (on the same line as Durham, but about an hour away).

You can buy tickets on board the tram. For adults it’s €3.40 for a single ticket or you can buy a day ticket for €9. You can only use a credit or debit card, they do not take cash.

If NCL use the main Amsterdam passenger terminal, it’s a very easy 15 minute walk to Centraal station, or a 5 minute tram ride (#26). From the station you can walk or catch a tram to all the main sites. Or, do as the locals do, rent bikes and cycle. Either way, the city centre is fairly compact. If NCL use the IJmuiden terminal, that’s much further out and requires a taxi to Haarlem station than a train into Amsterdam (or a taxi all the way).

Heathrow to Bath is a 100 mile journey so no, a taxi or shared car will not be cheap. @Globaliserhas set out the train options and is correct in saying you will have to change as there are no direct services. National Express do run direct coaches 6 or 7 times a day (which can cost as little as £1 but the fares vary according to demand). BUT there are big gaps in the schedule in the morning, AND they only run from Heathrow Central, the stop for Terminals 2 and 3. A few British Airways flights do arrive at T3 but the vast majority use T5 which is a completely separate terminal and not served by the coaches to Bath. So - check which terminal your flight arrives at. If it’s T5 you’d need to take a (free) train to Heathrow Central to pick up the coach there. On balance I’d probably go for the train, even though it involves a change and will be pricier. It’s faster and far more frequent than the coach and the change at London Paddington is pretty straightforward.

I would use the ship’s shuttle - $25 isn’t outrageous, it’ll be easier and give you peace of mind. The train, while cheap and efficient, involves taking a tram or shuttle bus from the cruise terminal to the station in the nearby town of Blankenberge so it’s not completely straightforward.

The cheapest fares on Eurostar for late April/early May will be long gone I’m afraid. The UK has two holiday weekends in a row (29 April-1 May and 6-8 May) so the trains will be extremely busy around then. Consider upgrading to the Standard Premier class (the equivalent of Premium Economy). You get a bigger seat, more space and a light meal. The extra cost is often minimal. Note you’ll need to go through airport-style security and passport control at St Pancras station so you need to allow enough time for that. If it’s busy, queues can be long.

Heathrow doesn’t let hotels use their own shuttles. It insists they use the (overpriced and often packed) Hoppa buses which stop at several hotels en route to and from the terminals. And they only serve hotels close to the airport so are of no use if you’re staying further afield (like Windsor). There is a public bus between Windsor and Heathrow every half hour but it takes an hour and only serves Terminal 5 (the British Airways terminal) so it’s not ideal and a cab is really the only viable option from there.

Yes, things do go wrong with the trains. There are fairly regular strikes at the moment. BUT - driving from Dover to Cambridge involves using the notorious M25 London orbital motorway, including the Dartford Tunnel under the Thames where there are ALWAYS delays, plus you have to remember to pay a toll online afterwards. And, as mentioned above, Cambridge is not at all car-friendly. So on balance I’d also say take the train. The ‘high speed’ service from Dover to St Pancras runs hourly, then St Pancras to Cambridge is half hourly (or also half hourly, and faster, from King’s Cross across the street).

Jersey’s far better 😉

Yes, London is increasingly becoming cashless these days. You can’t use cash at all on buses and if you use it at ticket machines on the tube you’ll pay two or three times more than you would if you “tap in” and “tap out” with a contactless card or with Apple/Google Pay on your phone. As mentioned above, in restaurants the service charge is often added on automatically and the whole bill can be paid by card. Additional tips are NOT required or expected unless the bill clearly states “service not included”. You might want to tip cab drivers but if you use Uber, again that’s all cashless on the app.

For a cab you might be better off going one more stop to Connolly, which is much busier.

The DART runs every 15 minutes on a Saturday. I would suggest getting off at Tara Street station, then it’s a 5 minute walk over the river to Abbey Street where you can catch the Luas (tram) to Heuston which is a 10-15 minute walk to the Guinness Storehouse. Alternatively it’s a 30-40 minute walk from Tara Street station, past Trinity College and Dublin Castle.

No, Southampton to Heathrow Terminal 5 and Central (for T2/3) is direct every couple of hours. Only T4 requires a change but that’s just a short train ride within the airport.

Same with European sailings where the price is typically $1 more than in the US (but still covered by the C&A vouchers).

Yes, at Zeebrugge you’re always bussed from the ship to the terminal. It’s a very short journey and the buses run frequently but if you just miss one there’ll be a short wait.

No.

It’s very easy to do on your own by train. Just get to the nearest main station to the port (Blankenberge) by taxi, tram or cruise line shuttle bus, then there’s an hourly direct train to Ghent which takes about 45 minutes.

There is a taxi rank next to the coach station but it’s not very busy so you may have to wait for a cab to turn up. That journey is barely half a mile so you may find it quicker to walk (10-12 minutes). Also note the hotel is a standard Holiday Inn, not an Express.

Should be doable - the Megabus stop is only a 10 minute cab ride from the terminals and most ships tend to start disembarkation around 7. Note that Megabus is a ‘low cost’ operation and doesn’t use the National Express coach station in Southampton but a different stop in the city centre instead. And I think you’ll have to change coaches in Birmingham with a 70 minute layover, so time to stretch your legs and grab a quick lunch.

The driver will load your luggage into the coach. According to Heathrow porters are available for £30 to help you get your luggage through customs and out to the bus station. https://www.heathrow.com/at-the-airport/airport-services/porters

I haven’t been to Stornoway but I’ve been to Kirkwall on Anthem of the Seas and it was definitely not tendered.

You don’t have to buy tickets in advance but it’ll be cheaper if you do, and you’ll be guaranteed to get on the coach if it’s full. But there are ticket machines at all the Heathrow stops, or you can buy a mobile ticket online once you’ve landed. As for flexibility, apparently you can pay £5 extra for a ‘Change & Go’ add-on which allows the following: Board any available coach 12 hours before or after your original departure time Amend your ticket to a new departure date - free of charge Refund on your ticket up to 24 hours before departure So if your flight is delayed, then there's no need to panic; you can just hop on the next available coach. Simply add the 'Change & Go' option to your ticket in the Add Extras section of the booking process. (source: https://www.nationalexpress.com/en/airports/heathrow)

I haven’t, no. But they’re the only rental company with a location right at the port. Otherwise your only option really is a cab to the airport as buses would take at least an hour each way and involve changing in the city centre (even though it’s about half a mile as the crow flies!).

Despite being right behind the runway, I’m not aware of any direct bus from the port to the airport. It would be easiest to get a cab. Alternatively, SIXT car rental apparently have a location right at the port. If you’re planning to stay within Belfast city I wouldn’t bother with a car. There’s a HOHO bus that’ll take you round all the main points of interest. And while the city centre is perfectly safe and walkable, bearing in mind Belfast’s troubled recent history it’s quite easy to unwittingly drive into nearby areas that it probably wouldn’t be advisable to visit alone. A car might be useful if you plan to explore outside the city though, like the Giants Causeway.

It’s only a 10 minute cab ride to the station, so you should be fine any time after 9am - maybe even earlier if you disembark quickly. The train takes about 1 hour 20 mins and they normally run every half hour. Note if you book a cheaper “Advance Single” ticket, you must travel on the specific train you booked (although you won’t have a specific seat reserved on it). The more expensive “Anytime Single” is much more flexible and allows you to travel on any train that day.