gumshoe958

Yes to 1) and 3). Don’t know for 2), sorry. But if necessary Tara Street to Pearse is only a 5 minute walk.

There are two direct coaches a day from Victoria coach station (NOT train station, although close by) to Portsmouth International Port, at 11.00am and 3.30pm. If those times aren’t convenient there are regular coaches to Portsmouth, The Hard from where it’s a 10 minute cab ride to the port.

It’s very popular with cruisers due to its location close to the terminals. Premier Inn is a budget chain with hotels across Great Britain. They are basic but clean and consistent. Don’t expect any perks or frills, and you’ll always pay extra for breakfast.

If you get the train, the cruise port is a 10 minute cab ride from either Portsmouth & Southsea or Portsmouth Harbour station. National Express run a few coaches from London that stop close to the terminal. You want the ‘Portsmouth International Port’ stop if possible; the main Portsmouth stop ‘The Hard’ has a more frequent service but is a 10 minute cab ride from the terminal.

I’m constantly amazed how anyone dares to live in the United States when it’s only 55 miles from Russia.

I see the Venice flight is actually at 10.25. So that might be doable. Ryanair bag drop closes 40 minutes before departure so if you’re on the road by 7.15, or 7.30 at the very latest, you could make it. Still tight, but not impossible and more feasible than the Bologna flight. You haven’t said, but I’m going to stick my neck out and hazard a guess that you’re booked on Symphony out of Barcelona?

@SusanPerb I’m seeing a Vueling flight out of Florence at 1.05pm, arriving BCN 2.50pm. That’s a 2 hour drive so easily doable. And only 2.5 to 3 hours on the train which would obviously be cheaper.

Royal no longer allows early disembarkation.

That’s cutting it far too fine IMHO. Assuming you need to check in at BLQ at least an hour before the flight, you’d need to be on the road - not just off the ship - by 6.45 at the latest. Ship’s scheduled arrival time is 6.00. That leaves very, very little margin for error if the ship’s late or there are any traffic delays. I don’t know your attitude to risk but if it were me I’d spend the whole cruise worrying if I was going to make it, which would spoil it. Venice is the same. The flight’s an hour later, but it’s an hour further away. So I think Bergamo is your only realistic option. If you’re off the ship by 7.30 you’ll easily make a 12.30 flight. But it’s 200 miles so yes, a cab will be very expensive and the train would take too long.

There’s also a Radisson right in the middle of Covent Garden. Radisson Blu Mercer Street, I think it’s called. But if St Martin’s Lane caught your eye and you’re happy with the price, go for it. Great location if you want to be at the heart of the action.

If you’re not on a budget look at the St Martin’s Lane Hotel or Ham Yard Hotel. Both quite hip and boutique but not cheap.

True. But probably not quite the image the marketing people want associated with Royal.

The Vatican museums are closed but most non-religious places are open (eg the Forum, Colosseum). And I think the Pantheon is open in the morning. So no, you shouldn’t stay on the ship. Rome’s a huge city and there’s plenty to see outside the Vatican although I appreciate it’s annoying.

Very easy. Google Maps is unreliable. From T2 arrivals, follow signs to the Underground. Elevators & escalators will take you down to the underground walkway that’ll take you straight to the bus station.

Yes, there’ll be Uber drivers. Or if you’re staying at the Holiday Inn or Staybridge Suites on Bath Road, you can catch a U3 bus two stops from Heathrow Central bus station, there’s a bus stop right opposite the hotels. It runs every 12-20 mins and the fare is £1.75, payable by contactless credit or debit card or Apple/Google Pay.

To add - while VISITOR Oyster cards aren’t available to buy in London, standard Oyster cards are. You can buy them with cash at tube station ticket machines, for a £7 admin fee. Still much easier to use a contactless card or Apple/Google Pay to get around though! If you’re arriving at Terminal 2, it’s a short walk via underground tunnel to Heathrow T2/3 tube station. Take the Piccadilly line one stop to Hatton Cross, get off and wait on the other platform for a train back to Terminal 4. That’s a free journey but you’ll need your contactless or Oyster card to get through the barriers at both ends.

See my reply to your other thread but you can buy standard Oyster cards with cash at some tube station ticket machines. There is a £7 admin fee. You are right about capping, the daily cap is £14.90 as long as you stay within London zones 1-6 and don’t use the Heathrow Express train (use the tube or the Elizabeth line train instead). If you have unused credit left on the card at the end, if it’s under £10 you can get it back from a tube station ticket machine. Otherwise you have to call up or apply by mail. But as I said on the other thread, contactless cards or Apple/Google Pay are MUCH easier and are the way to go if you have them.

If you have credit or debit cards that are contactless enabled - ie that let you just tap and pay without having to enter a PIN or sign anything - OR you have Apple or Google Pay on your phone, you don’t need to bother with Oyster or travelcards. Just touch in and touch out at the start & end of every tube or rail journey and you’ll be charged a maximum of £14.90 a day. This is by far the easiest and most cost-effective way of getting around London. Visitor Oyster cards cannot be bought in London or at the airport. You have to order them by mail before you leave home and they’re only worth considering if you don’t have contactless cards or Apple/Google Pay. One-day travelcards cost more - £15.20 if you don’t use them before 9:30am Mon-Fri or £21.50 if you do - and can be bought in London or at the airport. But they’re only worth considering if you don’t have contactless cards or Google/Apple Pay and are using cash. Windsor is a bit more complicated as it is outside London. From Heathrow there is a direct bus (number 8, every 30-60 mins, takes an hour) from Terminal 5 (not 4). Or from London, there is a direct train from Waterloo station (every 30 mins, takes an hour). Either way you’ll need to buy a separate ticket at the station or on the bus, using cash or contactless card, as Windsor is not part of the Transport for London network and its daily fare capping and Oyster cards aren’t valid.

Don’t do it. There are much nicer hotels in nice areas of London for similar or even cheaper prices.

No confusion with dates I fear: 4 nights at the Premier Inn County Hall, 2-6 Aug in a Plus Room with breakfast for 2, Flex rate does indeed price out at £1079 which is $1319. Which, for a Premier Inn, is exorbitant. I strongly advise the OP to look elsewhere in London where prices are more reasonable.

There is no way on earth I would pay $1300 for 4 nights in a Premier Inn! They’re absolutely fine for what they are - basic, clean and consistent - but not at that price! If you’re in London for four nights don’t confine yourself to Waterloo - you can easily jump in a cab to get there on departure morning. For instance for under $1000 I’m seeing the Hilton London Hyde Park which is right above a tube station (Queensway) so easily accessible for sightseeing as well as on several bus routes, both city buses and HOHO, and in a nice part of town. That will be far nicer than a Premier Inn, for less money! (If you do look at other Premier Inns, and there are lots, avoid the “Hub” ones - they have tiny rooms.)

I think there’ll still be big feature shows - just not Broadway/West End ones which cost a lot of money to license and which Royal has little or no creative control over. The Wizard of Oz “reimagined” says to me it’ll be an in-house production inspired by the original, just like Effectors is Royal’s own take on a Marvel Avengers type movie.

If there are five of you I’d book a car service. The trains, while faster and cheaper (if booked in advance) have very little luggage space and you’ll have to load and unload all your cases on and off the train and into and out of cabs at both ends.

Not very easily. The nearest station, called Percy Main, is about a 20 minute walk from the cruise terminal. That’s on the self-contained Tyne & Wear Metro, which runs frequently into Newcastle city centre and stops at Central station where you can catch mainline trains to York, Durham & Edinburgh. In reality it’s easiest to take a cab from the cruise terminal to the city/Central station.

There are M&S Simply Food grocery stores in the arrivals halls at Heathrow terminals 2, 3 and 5, after baggage reclaim and customs. I’ve never looked but they may sell a limited selection of wine. They’ll certainly have some sodas. But as @John Bull correctly says, the options around the cruise terminals in Southampton are very limited and involve a fairly grim walk through the industrial port area.