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P&O Cruising for Idiots

gteach

By gteach,
in P&O Cruises ( UK )

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gteach

gteach

Posted
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I am on Iona to Norway for my first ever cruise. We bought on select fare and have already booked our excursions (2).
 

How do I make sure I make the most out of it?!

 

How much planning and booking shall I do before? 
 

Any top tips for making sure we don’t get stuck in queues/buying items on board. 
 

What to pack and how much? Suggested items to bring onboard?

 

Top tips for general first time cruisers?

 

TIA

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Technoman2

Technoman2

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1 hour ago, gteach said:

Mid August 

We went in August and the first port  was Bergen and it rained all day heavily . In Stavanger we stopped for a coffee at a harbourside cafe very nice but the coffee was served out of a flask, no milk, no sugar no spoons and cost 9 Euros each, we got up and left when they did not return with milk or sugar and had a Costa on the ship. Take a mixture of clothes for warm, cold and wet and  brollies. The fjords are lovely but do take plenty of euros or take bottles of water and snacks off the ship if on a tight budget.

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LondonLad60

LondonLad60

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13 hours ago, Technoman2 said:

We went in August and the first port  was Bergen and it rained all day heavily . In Stavanger we stopped for a coffee at a harbourside cafe very nice but the coffee was served out of a flask, no milk, no sugar no spoons and cost 9 Euros each, we got up and left when they did not return with milk or sugar and had a Costa on the ship. Take a mixture of clothes for warm, cold and wet and  brollies. The fjords are lovely but do take plenty of euros or take bottles of water and snacks off the ship if on a tight budget.

First time in Bergen for us was back in 2015, and it was an overnighter. It was raining when we arrived and raining when we departed, and if it did stop at any time in between I must have blinked and missed it. We went ashore in the evening with another couple. Despite having been warned by many people about Norwegian prices, we decided to go for a drink. Two half litres of a locally brewed beer and two shots of a local brandy based liqueur came to the equivalent of just over £40 - and as I said, that was seven years ago...

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Thejuggler

Thejuggler

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13 hours ago, Technoman2 said:

We went in August and the first port  was Bergen and it rained all day heavily . In Stavanger we stopped for a coffee at a harbourside cafe very nice but the coffee was served out of a flask, no milk, no sugar no spoons and cost 9 Euros each, we got up and left when they did not return with milk or sugar and had a Costa on the ship. Take a mixture of clothes for warm, cold and wet and  brollies. The fjords are lovely but do take plenty of euros or take bottles of water and snacks off the ship if on a tight budget.

Norway uses the Krone, so no need to pay for anything in Euros.

 

The country is now largely cashless so have a fee and foreign exchange free credit/debit card to use.  It is expensive, but on a cruise there is no need to spend anything ashore.  If you do buy gifts, clothing etc don't forget to claim the VAT back.

 

By all means plan, but always have an alternative in case its throwing it down (which it can do a lot).

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Technoman2

Technoman2

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1 hour ago, LondonLad60 said:

First time in Bergen for us was back in 2015, and it was an overnighter. It was raining when we arrived and raining when we departed, and if it did stop at any time in between I must have blinked and missed it. We went ashore in the evening with another couple. Despite having been warned by many people about Norwegian prices, we decided to go for a drink. Two half litres of a locally brewed beer and two shots of a local brandy based liqueur came to the equivalent of just over £40 - and as I said, that was seven years ago...

Even Dick Turpin had the good grace to wear a mask.🙂

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bbtablet

bbtablet

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4 hours ago, LondonLad60 said:

First time in Bergen for us was back in 2015, and it was an overnighter. It was raining when we arrived and raining when we departed, and if it did stop at any time in between I must have blinked and missed it.

Annual rainfall in Bergen is 98 inches.

If it isn't raining when you are there, ask for your money back.

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Denarius

Denarius

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2 hours ago, bbtablet said:

Annual rainfall in Bergen is 98 inches.

If it isn't raining when you are there, ask for your money back.

If you do not have them already, invest in a lightweight waterproof jacket and overtrousers. And make sure you take some rain resistant shoes. Then if it rains you can get off the ship and explore without returning like a drowned rat.

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Cruisemeister2002

Cruisemeister2002

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I think when you take your first cruise it's like being a kid in a sweet shop. As the saying goes "You always remember your first time " although I not convinced that related to cruising. But the general idea is spot on. Not many will I suggest not cruise again. Usually you are hooked. I have friends who I tried persuading to try a cruise but many don't realise how big cruise ships are and although people do suffer sea sickness it's really not that bad. We went through a force twelve going to the USA a few years ago and although there were a few tables in the MDR that were empty I didn't consider it that bad. Next cruise we go on will be our 17th and from our first back in 2002 when we were cruise virgins you discover either by default or through fellow passengers what suits you best. How you book, when you book, whether you book excursions through the cruise line or do your own thing. In a lot of cases it's safer to go the through the cruise line as a) For your own safety, B) because if you are late the ship won't wait. If you do your own thing as we did in New York plan your days carefully. Go further out on the first day (That is if you have more than one day in Port) and less far on the second day or on an excursion by the cruise line. We did the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island ourselves and it saved 50% of what it would cost via the cruise line excursion and we could stay as long as we wanted. 

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sleepingcat

sleepingcat

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On 9/15/2022 at 7:07 PM, gteach said:

What to pack and how much? Suggested items to bring onboard?

 

Top tips for general first time cruisers?

hello gteach, I am sure you will love it.  we took our first cruise (to the Caribbean) in 2012 and I loved it so much that I cried when the ship docked back in Southampton.

 

Packing items apart from the usual: a torch useful for emergencies, and for visiting the bathroom at night; one of those pound shop circular washing driers with the pegs attached to hang up in the bathroom, and something to wash out a  few clothes as you go along. I take seasick tablets and wear those wrist bands which appear to help. for Norway, yes, it does rain a lot so agree with advice above. Binoculars good as so much of time in Norway you are on the ship looking at the scenery as it goes by. 

in Bergen you could easily make your own day out, lovely to wander round, and the town mountain you can ride up and walk back down; I was there for work a while ago and so on my own and had a good day just wandering. 

 

For us one of the pleasures of cruising is that you don't need to plan so much, you can just get off the ship and see what there is (and in unlikely event the place is a dump you just get back on board and enjoy the ship). but prior homework  on each port means you can have a target place to visit (museum,  beach, cable car, whatever) and pay local rates to do it. We usually try and find the tourist info as their maps are usually more useful than the one provided by the ship  (and they make nice souvenirs for after). 

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FangedRose

FangedRose

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Just be aware that for a myriad of reasons you not get to the places you expected/hoped/planned to. You may end up somewhere better!

 

Is is a fact of cruise holidays, don't pin your holiday around getting to seeing a particular place, and go with the flow and you'll enjoy it a lot more.

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