A Coronation and Live From 12 Day British Isles on the Regal

[Steelers0854]

it’s another beautiful morning in Dublin

 

[1160451]

Hi we are on the same cruise.
We live in the UK so it’s a cruise around our own back yard as we say.

It’s very interesting to hear other people’s  perception of the cruise. 
It is our first time on Princess. 
We always cruise with British Based lines. P&O, Marrella and Fred Olsen.

We have cruised once with HAL and Celebrity.

 

 

[Martha1974]

3 hours ago, 1160451 said:

Hi we are on the same cruise.
We live in the UK so it’s a cruise around our own back yard as we say.

It’s very interesting to hear other people’s  perception of the cruise. 
It is our first time on Princess. 
We always cruise with British Based lines. P&O, Marrella and Fred Olsen.

We have cruised once with HAL and Celebrity.

 

 

I agree, I’m from the UK too and love reading live reports and reviews of British Isles / UK cruises either because they’re going to places I’ve never been or to experience places I know through someone else’s eyes (so to speak). Really enjoying this one - Cobh is on my to do list but haven’t made it there yet. 

[Steelers0854]

6 hours ago, 1160451 said:

It’s very interesting to hear other people’s  perception of the cruise. 
It is our first time on Princess. 

 

Hope you’re enjoying it! We love Princess. 

 

2 hours ago, Martha1974 said:

I agree, I’m from the UK too and love reading live reports and reviews of British Isles / UK cruises either because they’re going to places I’ve never been or to experience places I know through someone else’s eyes (so to speak). Really enjoying this one - Cobh is on my to do list but haven’t made it there yet. 

thanks for the kind words. Glad you’re enjoying it!

[Steelers0854]

Day 5 Dublin, Ireland (7am-7pm): Best of Dublin (St Patricks Cathedral, Trinity College, Dublin Castle)

 

Reflections on yesterday. I’m glad we went to Blarney castle. Even if you don’t kiss the stone it’s a great sight to see. Kinsale was just ok. If there is an option to just go to the castle I may recommend that instead. The tour guide was so knowledgeable that it made the time spent worth it.

 

It’s going to be a beautiful partly cloudy day today. We had breakfast in the buffet and met our tour in the Princess Theatre at 8:15. We were on board the tender and on our way by 8:30. Apparently you can dock directly in Dublin but the port these days is very busy with cargo due to Brexit so we actually anchor in Dun Laoghaire and tender in. The trip took just under 15 minutes.

 

We boarded another great couch bus. This one also had a bathroom, not as important today as the drive is short and we are in the city all day. Funny enough they said the coach was brand new and this was the very first trip. Traffic was a mess with a lot of road construction. If you’re doing Dublin on your own highly recommend the train. It’s a short walk from the pier and will get you to the city in 20 min.

 

We went to several sites around the city and stopped for photos. The entire drive was narrated by a local to the area. Then we had an hour on our own.  To get into St Patrick’s you need to have a reservation so we can only see the outside.

 

 

 

 

Lunch today was at The Old Storehouse where we also had Irish music and dancing. Our guide spoke with the chef and worked with them to get DW soup, falafel salad and a fruit plate for dessert.  Today is much less organized and they seem unprepared for us as they have limited staffing. But after this we just head back to the ship so if we are delayed it doesn’t really impact anything.

 

 

 

I went with the salmon, seafood chowder and the apple crumble. Sorry I forgot to grab a picture of the salmon.

 

 

 

grabbed a pic of my neighbors casserole 

 

 

The food was excellent. DW said the salad was great, she loves falafel and these were cooked perfectly. She also loves the soup. I enjoyed the salmon, it was a good portion and the seafood chowder was FULL of fish and shrimp and had a rich creamy broth. Excellent.

 

We were here for about 2 hours. The band played the whole time and the dancers came on and off throughout. It was so much fun. They were taking requests from the crowd as well. What a great time.

 

 

Dublin has so much to see. This tour I think was great because you did get to see and experience a lot, some of which I don’t think you could do on your own (like the music and dancing). Your choices are really to pick 1 or 2 things to do them in detail or do something like this and see many things at the surface level. Given our limited time in port I’m glad we did this So in retrospect I think this tour is worth it.

 

And now back to the ship!

[billiebob]

9 hours ago, Steelers0854 said:

it’s another beautiful morning in Dublin

Hi,

We are on this same cruise next week and can’t wait!  Thank you so much for all of the amazing information you have provided about the ship and of the ports.  And we love the photos too!  Th food looks delicious!

Your weather does look lovely.  Just wondering what the temperatures have been?  We usually cruise in warmer climates, so finding it harder to pack for this one.  🫤

 

I was surprised to see that your first ‘formal’ night was when you were in Guernsey and the next one is called something else the second last evening.  
 

Looking forward to reading more as you continue on your cruise! 
 

Bobbie 😊

[Steelers0854]

1 hour ago, billiebob said:

Hi,

We are on this same cruise next week and can’t wait!  Thank you so much for all of the amazing information you have provided about the ship and of the ports.  And we love the photos too!  Th food looks delicious!

Your weather does look lovely.  Just wondering what the temperatures have been?  We usually cruise in warmer climates, so finding it harder to pack for this one.  🫤

 

I was surprised to see that your first ‘formal’ night was when you were in Guernsey and the next one is called something else the second last evening.  
 

Looking forward to reading more as you continue on your cruise! 
 

Bobbie 😊

We have had exceptionally good weather. It’s been in the high 50s the entire time. Today hit low 60s and in the sun you would contemplate shorts. But it was cloudy most of the morning and finally cleared this afternoon. We should have another sunny day tomorrow as well thanks to a high pressure system that came in. I hear you on packing we had the same struggles. I recommend layers and plan for rain. Waterproof shoes will be a lifesaver and a good rain coat to avoid umbrellas is key as well. 
 

seems they really only have 1 formal night and another they essentially suggest as formal. The issue is our first sea day isn’t until day 7 which is why they had it in Guernsey. That and we departed there at 4 with an all about at 3 versus all the other ports at 7pm or later. So it kind had to be that day. 
 

you’ll have a great time. It’s been an epic trip thus far. 
 

 

[billiebob]

9 minutes ago, Steelers0854 said:

We have had exceptionally good weather. It’s been in the high 50s the entire time. Today hit low 60s and in the sun you would contemplate shorts. But it was cloudy most of the morning and finally cleared this afternoon. We should have another sunny day tomorrow as well thanks to a high pressure system that came in. I hear you on packing we had the same struggles. I recommend layers and plan for rain. Waterproof shoes will be a lifesaver and a good rain coat to avoid umbrellas is key as well. 
 

seems they really only have 1 formal night and another they essentially suggest as formal. The issue is our first sea day isn’t until day 7 which is why they had it in Guernsey. That and we departed there at 4 with an all about at 3 versus all the other ports at 7pm or later. So it kind had to be that day. 
 

you’ll have a great time. It’s been an epic trip thus far. 
 

 

Sounds wonderful!  😊 Hope that high pressure system lasts for two more weeks!!  🤣

[Steelers0854]

Day 5 Dublin, Ireland (7am-7pm)

 

 

DW got a salad tonight and a chicken breast with veggies, she was so sad to see the chicken removed from the favorites menu. She said it looked boring but she very much enjoyed her chicken.

 

 

 

I got the corn and crab chowder and the pork chop. The soup was good. The pork was delicious but a tad bit over cooked.

 

 

 

The real highlight of the evening was the dessert for DW. Kuddos to head waiter Michael in the Allegro. He asked the chef for a strawberry shortcake. And boy did they deliver!  This is the Princess we know and love!  DW was happy to report it was delicious!  And they didn’t even need to clean her plate when she was done with it.

 

 

we also realized that they have a Vegan menu each day. This does change every day so I’ll start posting these going forward as well. Here is tomorrows. 
 

[Musky Ike]

3 hours ago, billiebob said:

We are on this same cruise next week and can’t wait!  

Same here. The anticipation is building. Thank you Steelers0854! Keep it ship shape for us next week.

[Steelers0854]

tomorrows patter

 

 

[Steelers0854]

Well this isn’t supposed to be here!

 

[Pink-belle]

That’s a shame! Hope it’s cleared by now, we did a great tour in Belfast out to the Gaol and then around to see the “walls”. When we were there a couple of years ago. 
 

hope you have had a good day. 

[sammyjoanne]

16 hours ago, billiebob said:

Hi,

We are on this same cruise next week and can’t wait!  Thank you so much for all of the amazing information you have provided about the ship and of the ports.  And we love the photos too!  Th food looks delicious!

Your weather does look lovely.  Just wondering what the temperatures have been?  We usually cruise in warmer climates, so finding it harder to pack for this one.  🫤

 

Hi We live in the UK and its currently reaching highs of 16/17 degrees celcius (60.8 farenheit) . Next week its going to go up by a couple of degrees. We have found that BBC weather is pretty good so its worth googling BBC weather and the city name and it gives you a 2 week forecast.

 

I wear a t-shirt and cardigan or a light jumper this time of year, and I have a light rain coat which I pack in the rucksack as weather can very changeable.

[Shocker]

We are on this cruise starting May20th. Thank you so much for all your information and food photos and menus. What currency is used on the ship. If we wanted to tip extra for great service are dollars ok? Any issues using credit cards off ship? 

 

Keep up the great information and posts read you every day.

 

dave

[Steelers0854]

23 minutes ago, Shocker said:

We are on this cruise starting May20th. Thank you so much for all your information and food photos and menus. What currency is used on the ship. If we wanted to tip extra for great service are dollars ok? Any issues using credit cards off ship? 

 

Keep up the great information and posts read you every day.

 

dave

don’t quote me but our folio is in USD on board. Not sure if there is an option for pounds or not. 
 

they have the pound and euro at guest service and can give change. Ireland (not Northern Ireland they take the pound) takes the euro, If you need to convert it’s a $4.50 per transaction fee plus I’m sure some terrible conversion rate.
 

I highly recommend using Wise. They send you a debit card and it runs in an app. Very easy to connect to your US bank account and you can easily convert money in the app to a vast number of different currencies at fantastic rates. Then when I’m in country I go to a local ATM (NOT a currency exchange) and pull out funds from my pot of funds that I had converted. I’ve never paid an ATM fee to this point and the Wise fee is a fraction of a dollar generally. Very easy to use. https://wise.com
 

no issues using credit cards off the ship as long as you have a Visa card. Many places don’t take Amex and some won’t accept Mastercard (they take Maestro which is a European offshoot). I have used Apple Pay exclusively since we have been gone with 0 issues. 

[phabric]

When we were on the Sky in May/June out of Southampton doing Norway and Scandinavia, my BIL asked our cabin attendant what he wanted £ or US$ and he wanted £ as he was standing on the ship.  Our dining room servicer was leaving the ship so we extra tip him in UD$.

[Steelers0854]

Day 6 Belfast, Northern Ireland (8am-9pm): Best of Giants Causeway and Atrium Coast

 

Wash. Rinse. Repeat. Breakfast in the buffet and the. Princess Theatre by 8:30. We were on the bus by 8:40 for our excursion today. It’s another very nice, very comfortable bus with a restroom. Todays guide asked the group about food allergies before we left so he could call ahead.

 

Our weather luck ran out today. Our scenic coastal drive was wrapped in fog unfortunately. We caught some glimpses of the coastline and I imagine on a clear day it’s remarkable.

 

 

We are hoping as the day wears on and we get to the causeway it will burn off. It was about an hour drive and we stopped at the Londonderry arms hotel for tea/coffee and scones. We were here about 30 minutes and next to the hotel was a small bay where they filmed some of game of thrones.

 

 

 

 

 

We departed and had an hours drive to the causeway along the coast. Sorrow and despair quickly turned around to wonder and awe as we apparently had a little luck left in the tank. As we drove along and turned the corner the blue skies came out and the Atrim coast showed her beauty. The photos don’t do it justice it’s just breathtaking. We stopped at 2 places along the way for photos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We arrived at the Giants causeway around 12:15 but were early for our assigned time and he took us down to Dunluce castle for a quick photo stop.

 

 

We headed back towards the Giants Causeway and had just under 2 hours minutes here and it wasn’t enough. If you are a hiker and can do 3-4 miles you likely want about 3-4 hours to do it all. There are so many walking paths and if you listen to the guided tour they provide to you on a handset and take the time to explore the causeway and take it in you need the extra time.

 

This place was amazing. The natural formations are incredible. Even with all the people there is still a peace and serenity about it.

 

 

 

 

I would 1,000% book this excursion.

 

We then headed on a 15 minute drive down the coast to the Royal court hotel for lunch. It’s a late lunch so was a good thing we had a big breakfast. We started with a plated melon course which was great. Then they came around and served Yorkshire pudding, potatoes, veggies and sliced beef. They provided gravy on the table with horseradish (which it desperately needed). Of all the meals thus far this one was the least impressive but it was still just fine. DW had hers plated from the kitchen which they brought out to her. Lunched wrapped up with a berry pavlova.

 

 

 

 

 

The highlight of the entire trip this far is the tofutti ice cream they gave DW for dessert. You think I’m joking. But I’m not. DW was tickled and loved it. Kuddos to this hotel for having it and taking care of DW! 😉

 

 

We boarded the buses at 4 and headed back to the ship. We took a different route home so if you do this tour sit on the driver side of the bus as that’s your only chance for good views of the coast as you drive.

 

[nini]

Your photos are a lovely reminder of our tour there as well last May.

[A Pisces]

Loving your detailed review! Thank you so much for taking the time to share it with us!

[Steelers0854]

Day 6 Belfast, Northern Ireland (8am-9pm): Best of Giants Causeway and Atrium Coast

 

 

DW got the wild rice and lentil salad from the Vegan menu, as well as a garden salad with the vegan dressing and the vegan frittata for her main. She said the dressing was excellent and the rice and lentil salad was also very good and well seasoned. The frittata she was concerned about as she had no idea what to expect. She said it was delicious. She said it reminded her a little of gf/vegan pizza, but way better, even better than Alfredo’s.

 

 

 

 

I got the Vol-Au-Vent and the rack of lamb. The vol-au-vent was very good and the puff pastry was excellent.

 

 

DW got a coconut panacotta for dessert tonight. She isn’t a jello fan and generally vegan panacotta has a hello like consistency but this one was very good and had a good texture.  
 

 

here is the vegan menu for tomorrow. 
 

[kttraveler]

I will be taking this cruise with my parents in July. My mother uses a wheelchair and she has signed up for several excursions listed as wheelchair accessible. Most of the time the easy excursions still require climbing up steps in a bus but since these are listed as wheelchair accessible I am hoping there are busses with lifts. If you see any busses with lifts as you head out on your excursions I'd love to know they exist. 

[Pepes Pal]

16 hours ago, Steelers0854 said:

Well this isn’t supposed to be here!

 

hello to Steelers0854.  Thank you for your wonderful, informative day by day! We are following you. We will be aboard on May 20th, the day you disembark. Our itineraries are actually identical!!  You've answered so many of our questions, so thank you.  

Here's a question for you, are you Pittsburghers?  My travel friend & I are original "Burgers" & of course we also love 'dem Steelers!

[Steelers0854]

Day 7 Glasgow, Scotland (7am-6pm)

 

here todays patter

 

 

 

We originally booked a tour today going to a museum with some time in town, but decided to cancel it before we left.  This is going to be a busy trip and the excursion here seemed to be more of something to do than something we MUST do.  So we plan on taking the train from the port into Glasgow (seems to be about a 45-60 min trip) and doing a leisurely stroll around town and enjoy our day.  But it’s raining out today and we may just decide to stay on board or roam around the port city. 

[Martha1974]

Glasgow is one of my favourite cities and it’s also my husband’s home-town. If you have time to get out of the city centre I would really recommend the Riverside Museum. It’s kind of a mixture between a transport museum and a social history of the city… hard to explain but well worth a visit. 

Edited May 14, 2023 by Martha1974
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