British Isles Explorer Cruise

[Berlin Bear]

When the gangway is really steep they provide a service to drive you up or down - at least they did in June 2022 when we were last there.

[Berlin Bear]

I was born and bred in Liverpool so we don’t take ship tours when we’re there on a cruise - three times up to now. But on our last visit there we had my SIL with us. It was her first visit to Liverpool so we decided to take a City and Beatles tour leaving from the Albert Dock (about ten minutes walk from the ship) on a double decker bus. We booked it in advance via get your guide, but you can also just turn up.

We drove through the city centre out towards the two cathedrals and then through the leafier areas of Liverpool to Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields, John‘s and Paul‘s houses. We had a very knowledgeable guide who sung to us and it was great fun. The trip took an hour and a half, leaving plenty of time to do other things.

[puppymama1]

I was looking at an independent tour for Liverpool for our cruise in august… but the one I found does not provide a refund in the event the ship doesn’t dock.  While I fully understand that from her point of view, from what I have read of past cruises, unfortunately missing ports because of weather seems to be a common problem.  We don’t want to pay for her very pricy tour if we don’t actually do it.  What have others done in regard to independent tours?  We have this same issue with independent tours in other ports on this cruise also. Does Viking’s insurance cover that?  Thanks!

[CDR2001]

I only book independent tours that give refunds for missing the port. I’ve never had a problem with them, but it takes a lot of searching when booking. I use Viator to get an idea of what’s available, then I go to the actual tour provider website for details. I like 24 hour cancellations too. Good luck! 

[Newdaytrippers]

We did the included tour and loved it.  We drove a bit and it was one of the better panoramic tours.  Beautiful city, even on a gray drizzly day.  Pops of color everywhere. Sculptures, murals, statues, the Fab Four… Then we disembarked and toured the magnificent Cathedral, drove by the modern Catholic cathedral with starkly different architecture, walked a bit which was fine (DH walks slowly and uses a walking stick) and then toured the modern, renovated huge Central Library which was so impressive.  We went up escalators to the rare books collection and viewed some very large magnificent Audubon prints under glass while browsing the shelved collection of priceless books including the Gutenberg Bible.  Look it up online for photos of the library.  Loved this tour.  Easy walking.  Restrooms at the cathedral and library.  You can easily do an afternoon/evening tour as well as the included tour in the morning.  

[puppymama1]

I am a big Beatles fan so I definitely want to do a Beatles tour in Liverpool...

[Squawkman]

6 hours ago, SteelCity Cruiser said:

We did this cruise in June 2023 and took the Beatles Tour with Viking.  It was OK: stopped at Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields (spent a lot more time there than needed) and Paul's childhood home, drove by a couple of other spots, and ended at The Beatles Story Museum which is good, but was so crowded when we got there we couldn't really enjoy it like I hoped. After lunch we walked over to the Cavern Club ourselves and wandered around town and the waterfront.  It was a good day.  Our friends took an independent Beatles Tour and really liked it a lot - being in a car/van, they saw a lot more than we did.  Based on their feedback, I'd recommend an independent tour over the Viking provided one.  The ship docks right in town which was great, but the walk from the ship to shore is fairly long, and the gangway can be steep when at low tide!

 

We did the Viking Beatles tour and while similar to your tour, we fared much better. We had a great guide and did the museum first - almost had the place to ourselves. Had several photo opportunities. The guide lectured in depth about the Merseybeat groups of the 60’s, etc. As often the case with tours, YMMV.

[SteelCity Cruiser]

17 hours ago, Squawkman said:

We did the Viking Beatles tour and while similar to your tour, we fared much better. We had a great guide and did the museum first - almost had the place to ourselves. Had several photo opportunities. The guide lectured in depth about the Merseybeat groups of the 60’s, etc. As often the case with tours, YMMV.

Yes, there were other groups (I think there were 4 bus loads both morning and afternoon) that went to the museum first and had a great experience there.  Our guide was terrific though; he was a musician and a life-long resident of Liverpool.  He had some great stories to share including one about his uncle who actually lived in Paul McCartney's childhood home for a few years (and sold it because he got tired of dealing with all the tourists tramping through his yard!!)

[snookie1]

We will be on this cruise May 1-15 and are thinking about the excursions we'd be interested in.  Was wondering if anyone has been on the Coastal Drive and Glens of Anthem excursion out of Belfast.  It is marked "demanding", but it doesn't sound as if there is anything particularly demanding about it.  Maybe some of the trails -- are they steep or very uneven?  Has anyone been on this excursion and can explain what may be involved?  I had a knee replacement in December, but am able to walk well; I just don't want to get in "over my head".  But the excursion does sound like something we would enjoy.  Thank you in advance.

[Peregrina651]

Just to change the topic again. To those who have already done this itinerary, for which currencies will Viking break larger bills into smaller bills. I know that they do not do currency exchange and I know that they usually will break US$ but will they also break € and/or £?

 

Thanks in advance!

[KBs mum]

6 hours ago, Peregrina651 said:

Just to change the topic again. To those who have already done this itinerary, for which currencies will Viking break larger bills into smaller bills. I know that they do not do currency exchange and I know that they usually will break US$ but will they also break € and/or £?

 

Thanks in advance!

Get £ and € in 10s, there is no need for anything smaller, shops can do change. It is useful but not essential to have coins for public toilets. 

Most transactions are tap and pay card payments now

[KBs mum]

23 minutes ago, KBs mum said:

Get £ and € in 10s, there is no need for anything smaller, shops can do change. It is useful but not essential to have coins for public toilets. 

Most transactions are tap and pay card payments now

Also, avoid having £50 notes, smaller shops often won't take them due to not having much change and the risk of forgeries. 

Scottish notes, particularly £20s may not be accepted in England. Probably will be, but be aware of the possibility

[Peregrina651]

5 hours ago, KBs mum said:

Get £ and € in 10s, there is no need for anything smaller, shops can do change. It is useful but not essential to have coins for public toilets. 

Most transactions are tap and pay card payments now

 

While the information is helpful, smaller denominations than 10 are used for tipping tourguides and bus drivers and thus we ask if can rely on the ship to supply us with smaller notes. 

[KBs mum]

38 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

While the information is helpful, smaller denominations than 10 are used for tipping tourguides and bus drivers and thus we ask if can rely on the ship to supply us with smaller notes. 

Tipping here isn't routine or expected, so it's not something the visitor has to worry about, of course you can tip if you want to, but if you don't have change not tipping is fine. However, be sure to thank the person, an email to their company is a nice and useful thing to do

[deec]

Our group of 10 is looking for a guide/driver to  tour Britiana and the Castle and tour of old town area if time permits.  May 11 thought we had it figured out but the company has not responded in over a week.  Suggestions? we will be using New Haven harbor and it seems to be a tender port.

[Peregrina651]

2 hours ago, deec said:

Our group of 10 is looking for a guide/driver to  tour Britiana and the Castle and tour of old town area if time permits.  May 11 thought we had it figured out but the company has not responded in over a week.  Suggestions? we will be using New Haven harbor and it seems to be a tender port.

 

Definitely a tender port.

 

[PRH]

51 minutes ago, Peregrina651 said:

 

Definitely a tender port.

 

The Britannia is about a 15 to 20 minute walk from the tender.  Buy tickets in advance.  Will take about 45 minutes to an hour.  We then took the HOHO bus into town.  It stops near the Castle and takes you through the old town and back to near the tender.  The rail system may be operating now and that would certainly cut time as traffic can be horrible. 

[Peregrina651]

54 minutes ago, PRH said:

The Britannia is about a 15 to 20 minute walk from the tender.  Buy tickets in advance.  Will take about 45 minutes to an hour.  We then took the HOHO bus into town.  It stops near the Castle and takes you through the old town and back to near the tender.  The rail system may be operating now and that would certainly cut time as traffic can be horrible. 

 

The same HOHO bus stops at Newhaven before it reaches the Britannia stop. 

[Peregrina651]

1 hour ago, PRH said:

The Britannia is about a 15 to 20 minute walk from the tender.  Buy tickets in advance.  Will take about 45 minutes to an hour.  We then took the HOHO bus into town.  It stops near the Castle and takes you through the old town and back to near the tender.  The rail system may be operating now and that would certainly cut time as traffic can be horrible. 

 

The same HOHO bus stops at Newhaven before it reaches the Britannia stop.  

[deec]

We would like to hire a guide/driver for the day in Edinburgh.  I appreciate the info on doing it ourselves but with a group we want a guide

[PRH]

Just be aware, the traffic is horrendous.  We spent more time in traffic than anything else.  Is the light rail open yet?  If so, Uber to Britannia and then take the light rail in and meet your driver at the station.  Will give you much more time!

Edited March 11 by PRH

[PRH]

29 minutes ago, deec said:

We would like to hire a guide/driver for the day in Edinburgh.  I appreciate the info on doing it ourselves but with a group we want a guide

 

25 minutes ago, PRH said:

Just be aware, the traffic is horrendous.  We spent more time in traffic than anything else.  Is the light rail open yet?  If so, Uber to Britannia and then take the light rail in and meet your driver at the station.  Will give you much more time!

Should be Leith tram rather than light rail.  It was close to opening when we were there last spring.

[fruitmachine]

28 minutes ago, PRH said:

Just be aware, the traffic is horrendous.  We spent more time in traffic than anything else.  Is the light rail open yet?  If so, Uber to Britannia and then take the light rail in and meet your driver at the station.  Will give you much more time!

The traffic will very much depend on the time of year you're here and whether there are any specific events on that create a spike.  I suspect you might have hit a bad day as the traffic isn't normally "horrendous"!  If you're planning on hiring a driver anyway, barring some exceptional incident, they will always be quicker between Newhaven and the city centre than any public transport option.  I drive it regularly; trust me!

 

The tram/light rail is running to Newhaven: https://edinburghtrams.com/  The end of the line is a five minute walk from Newhaven Harbour, and the next stop is at Britannia (a 10 minute walk, or 2 minutes on the tram).  From there into the city centre is c.20 minutes on the tram.  Trams are timetabled to run every 7 minutes.  If you get a DAYticket (currently £5.00) you can use both the tram and any city bus all day.

 

If you're wanting to take the main city centre HOHO, then an alterative to getting the tram into the city (followed by a 5 minute walk) is to pick up the HOHO Majestic route at Britannia.  Although poor value for money on its own, it's only a small up-charge when combining with either of the city centre routes, and you have no walking to do when swapping between routes.  https://edinburghtour.com/

 

 

[fruitmachine]

17 hours ago, deec said:

Our group of 10 is looking for a guide/driver to  tour Britiana and the Castle and tour of old town area if time permits.  May 11 thought we had it figured out but the company has not responded in over a week.  Suggestions? we will be using New Haven harbor and it seems to be a tender port.

I've responded to others' comments already, but let me address your questions directly with what I'd do in your position.  You will have plenty of time to do all you propose.  Edinburgh is a compact city and is easily walked.  With a driver/guide you won't be able to get into the pedestrianised areas and the biggest issue will be them finding somewhere to park.

 

• Walk c.400m to the tram (https://edinburghtrams.com/)
• Buy Adult DAYtickets for £5.00 and/or Family DAYtickets (2 adults & 3 children) for £10.50 from the machine on the platform.  All credit cards accepted.  These will get you on the tram and any city bus all day.
• Take the tram 1 stop to The Royal Yacht Britannia.  The included audio guide is excellent; you don't need a tour guide.
• Take the tram to Princes Street stop.
• Walk up The Mound to the Royal Mile.  If you're feeling lazy and there's a bus coming, get on it for one stop.  You've got a DAYticket remember!
• Now is the time to get the help of a guide.  You could join one of the multiple walking tours available, some of which include the Castle, or organise something privately.  Or you could do the Castle bit on your own, using the optional audio guide, and take only a walking tour in the Old Town.  Mercat Tours (https://www.mercattours.com/) are a long established company that I can recommend, but many others are available.
  If visiting the Castle under your own steam, buy your tickets online in advance.  They frequently run out on the day.
• If you've some spare time, visit the National Museum of Scotland in Chamber Street.  https://www.nms.ac.uk/national-museum-of-scotland/
• Walk back down The Mound to the Princes Street tram stop.
• Take the tram back to the end of the line in Newhaven.
• Walk back to the tender pier in Newhaven Harbour.

 

One easy change would be to move Britannia to the end of the day, breaking the return journey with a stop for it.  Even if there is a public transport issue, it's only a 15 minute walk from there back to Newhaven Harbour.  You can maximise your time in Edinburgh by being certain that nothing will stop you arriving before the last tender!

 

 

[CurlerRob]

9 hours ago, fruitmachine said:

I've responded to others' comments already, but let me address your questions directly with what I'd do in your position.  You will have plenty of time to do all you propose.  Edinburgh is a compact city and is easily walked.  With a driver/guide you won't be able to get into the pedestrianised areas and the biggest issue will be them finding somewhere to park.

 

If I can add one thought to @fruitmachine's very insightful advice - however you get to the Castle, save a bit of time to explore the Scottish National War Memorial (no pictures inside). It contains multiple extraordinary tributes to various service branches and famous regiments - each with its own alcove. One of the finest remembrances of military service I've ever seen.

 

As sailors, you may find the maritime (naval and merchant) sections very touching. 🍺🥌