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

[Steelers0854]

A sad, beautiful sight. 
 

[KeepCalmBearOn]

On 5/14/2023 at 11:13 PM, Steelers0854 said:

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

I would have gotten the Whole Roasted Turkey. I probably could have eaten only a little more than half of the whole turkey, but I'd give it a game try.

 

Wonderful report.

[KeepCalmBearOn]

On 5/17/2023 at 9:03 AM, Steelers0854 said:

Day 10 Edinburgh, Scotland (7am-7pm): Best of Edinburgh (Holyrood Palace, Royal Mile & Edinburgh Castle, Princess Street)

 

I have a new favorite city. Edinburgh is absolutely remarkable. Every corner you turn, every street you walk down there is so much to see and so much history here. If there was 1 city from this entire trip that I would come back to in order to spend more time it’s Edinburgh.

 

If you can get back during the Tattoo, it is an amazing time to be in the city.

 

I fell in love with Edinburgh even more reading Alexander McCall-Smith's 44 Scotland Street series and his The Sunday Philosophy Club series.

[Steelers0854]

1 hour ago, scottca075 said:

 

If you can get back during the Tattoo, it is an amazing time to be in the city.

 

I fell in love with Edinburgh even more reading Alexander McCall-Smith's 44 Scotland Street series and his The Sunday Philosophy Club series.

it was funny to hear they start setting up for it in May when it’s in August then it just takes them a month to take it all down. But our guide agreed the Tattoo was a great thing to visit for. 

[Steelers0854]

Day 13 Disembarkation and the Eurostar to Paris

 

We booked the Princess transfer back to Heathrow.  From there its a pretty easy 1 hour train ride over to St Pancras Station where we board the Eurostar train to Paris.  Our departure time is 2:30pm, so it will hopefully work out to us getting to the station about 90 minutes before departure and that appears to be more than enough time, but we will see!

 

This likely isn’t the best way to do this. But I opted for safe vs efficient. In doing some research there is a train you can take but that would involve getting to the station and working out departure times. Probably could have hired a car direct. But Heathrow is atleast in the same direction. I’m familiar with it and the Tube so it should be straightforward and then I can rely on Princess for the heavy lift.

 

Our number was called at 7:40 right on time. We kept our luggage so we literally walked right off the ship right on to the transfer and we’re headed to the airport by 8am. It was under 90 minutes and we were at the airport. So far so good.

 

We took a restroom break and headed for the tube. Caught the Piccadilly East line which takes you direct to St Pancras Station. 23 stops and just under an hour later we arrived to a very busy station. We were comfortably in St Pancras station by 11am.

 

I had seen that they have a luggage check and read if you buy in advance you can skip the line. This is true but the place was severely understaffed and the line to pick up your bags looked nightmareish. So we just flushed the £15 we paid and kept our bags so we didn’t risk it. There is a Nando’s just across from the station. And that’s always safe for DW to eat so we grabbed lunch there.

 

Got the obligatory platform 9 3/4 photo from Kings Cross station across the street.

 

 

Our train was at 2:30pm. We booked in standard and they suggested arriving 90 minutes before departure. It took us about 20 minutes to get through the automated boarding pass scan gate, security, border control and the automated passport kiosk. I can certainly see how this could get backed up. There was a train departing in 45 minutes and ours in an hour and 45 minutes so I feel like it was a good test of how busy it could be. The departure area is limited with the food offering. The seats aren’t super comfortable and they fill up quick as the boarding time for 1 train nears and there is one right after. They announce the track the train departs from about 25 minutes before departure. If you’re in coach 1-5 you go up one set of escalators. Coach 6-18 and other set.

 

[EDVM96]

18 minutes ago, Steelers0854 said:

 

Isn't there a shortcut thru the wall? 😄

[Steelers0854]

1 minute ago, EDVM96 said:

Isn't there a shortcut thru the wall? 😄

Yup! But 1,000 of my closets friends were waiting to use it!

[Steelers0854]

It was an easy 2ish hour ride to Paris. We headed towards the metro to our hotel. This is where things took a turn for the worst. As we were boarding the metro 2 men tried to rip the crossbody bag right off of DW. She was able to fend them off but this obviously put a bad taste in our mouths. We knew ahead of time pickpocketing was common especially in tourist areas. But this level of boldness took us off guard. We made it to the hotel and I think this is where I am going to leave you all. We are going to head to dinner and just decompress. DW is ok, upset but fine.

 

Thank you all for following along with us. I hate to leave on this note, as we did have an amazing time and I know we will enjoy Paris once we move past this incident tonight. Just a word of warning, DW had her wits about her and this helped, but please do watch yourselves out there no matter where you are.

 

After we get home I’ll circle back with some final thoughts.

 

Thank you all again!

[Catchum]

On 5/19/2023 at 5:31 PM, Steelers0854 said:

Day 12 Le Havre, France (7am-8pm): Normandy Landing Beaches

 

Last night we went to the show by ventriloquist Gareth Oliver. He was an excellent comedian but just an ok ventriloquist, very worth seeing though as he was very funny and touched adult themes without being crude.

 

It’s a beautiful morning coming into La Havre.

 

 

The QM2 stole our berth today. She is 2 meters deeper than our ship and needed that berth so we had to park further out. 
 

 

We met for our tour at 7:30 in Princess live. It’s going to be a long day but it looks like we are going to have outstanding weather. We were off the ship and on the bus by 8. We left shortly after that on our narrated drive. This bus unfortunately didn’t have USB plugs for chargers like the last few buses we had which was disappointing.

 

Our first stop will be the American Cemetery. It was a 2 and a half hour drive. We stopped after about an hour at a gas station for a restroom break. There was also a bathroom on the bus in case it was needed. On my travels in Europe I have always found the food at gas stations to be among the best quick eats around, unlike back in the states. This gas station was beautiful with huge clean restrooms and plenty of options from coffee to food. I picked a Nutella donut and it was amazing. Sorry I forgot to grab a photo, it didn’t last long. 😎

 

 

 

 

At the American cemetery we had just under 2 hours. Our guide provided a narrated tour for the first part but the majority of the time we had on our own. I feel like this was an appropriate amount of time to do everything and not be rushed.

 

 

 

 

 

We took a short drive down to Omaha Beach and spent 30 minutes here before departing for lunch. This could have easily been cut down to 15, a quick hop off type of stop.

 

 

 

It was a 40ish min drive to the restaurant for lunch. The restaurant was located directly across from the museum we were visiting after lunch. Lunch was at 1:45pm and we meet the bus at 4:15pm to return to the ship. So that’s 2.5 hours for lunch and the museum on your own. Lunch was at the hotel de normandie.

 

DWs salad was the same as mine just sans the cheese and egg. The chicken and potatoes the came out with bacon and a cream sauce was delicious. DW got a plate with just the chicken and potatoes. This was the most challenging of all the places we have eaten. Our guide did call ahead and helped initially let the staff know but then we didn’t see her again. The staff doesn’t speak English and so we did our best with preprinted cards we had to communicate the allergies. It looked ok, but the chicken could have very well been cooked in butter and we just wouldn’t know. The staff did their best to express that it was safe for her to eat based on the allergy card so we shall see.

 

 

 

 

The war museum has above Audi guided tour. We had about an hour here after lunch’s had it wasn’t enough. The other issue, this place was PACKED. so we walked through it as best we can and listened to a few of the recordings. I think you need 90+ minutes here with freedom of movement to get it done properly. To me, the highlight here was right outside.

 

 

The tide had pulled out and with it revealed some of the historical treasures from the war. It was amazing to be able to walk out and touch the literal pieces that helped facilitate the flow of goods and troops during the war.

 

 

 

Before we know it, it was time to meet the bus to return to the ship. It’s about 1 hour 45 minutes back. We are on our way now.

 

Overall I’m thankful I got the opportunity to visit these sites. It’s a sobering reminder of how horrific that war was and privilege to be able to say I saw it in person. I would recommend it for those going to La Havre.

 

We have rather different feelings. DH is a Vietnam vet and has no desire to visit another place where so many young men lost their lives. As a brit I remember the horrendous loss of both world wars every time I travel through a tiny community and see the names on the war memorial, every villiage has one. We are surrounded by defenses (pillboxes) erected when invasion seemed inevitable. I am profoundly grateful for the US support in WW II but won't be taking the excursion.

[1160451]

Steelers…..so sorry to hear of your experience. Hope you are both over the shock. 
I was robbed in the Gare de Nord 6 years ago. Not a pleasant experience.

I enjoyed your posts.

We were on the cruise and have just got home up in Yorkshire.

It was our first Princess Cruise and we were impressed with many aspects of the cruise.

Stay safe.

[Steelers0854]

Couldn’t leave y’all on a negative note! The beautiful Arc de Triomphe. 
 

[Kay S]

LOL.  Negative note.  The Arc de Triomphe is the only place we have ever been robbed in Paris.!

[Scottygirl1]

I'm rather enjoying your follow up posts... feel free to keep commenting (I know it's not Princess related now but still travel).  I'm sorry to hear about your DW's experience.  When travelling I have one of those cross body bags that can't be cut.  I'm so glad your wife fended them off but so scary.

[JimmyVWine]

Whether or not this truly is the end, I thank you sincerely for the time and effort that this has taken.  All of my trip reports are done in the past tense as I cannot imagine trying to do them in real time.  That would require a level of sobriety that I fear I may never achieve on a cruise!  Let us know when and where your next adventure takes you and I will be sure to follow along.   Cheers!

[Steelers0854]

Day 13+1 Paris

 

We had 10:30 tickets to get into the Louvre. There are 2 sets of lines one for top of the hour reservations and one for bottom of the hour reservations. They let you into like 40 minutes before your entry time. We got here about 10:05 and the queue was already quite long. They started moving our line through security at 10:15. We were in past security by 10:25. We spent several hours here. It’s a confusing Labyrinth of wonderful works of art and physical pieces. You could spend a month here and not see it all.

 

Also, the line for the Mona Lisa was ridiculous, so this was the photo i took, check the box! Lol

 

 

 

 

Afterwards we headed to Hanks Burger for lunch, a local vegan place I had found. It was excellent and they had a GF bun DW could eat. The potato’s weren’t GF so she got a side salad instead of my potatoes. This place was great, they have a couple of locations, I highly recommend it.

 

 

Afterwards we walked to Norte Dame and saw what we could given the renovations.

 

 

We also took a cruise down the Siene River before dinner and our time slot for the Eiffel Tower.  Before we knew it our day was over.  We had beautiful weather not only today but all throughout our trip.  We got very lucky!

 

 

 

 

 

Today is our last day in Paris, we leave tomorrow.  Thank you all for following along with us on our trip!

[EDVM96]

18 minutes ago, Steelers0854 said:

This is just crazy. And it might not even be the original. 😄

[Kay S]

One advantage to being is a wheelchair is that they take you right up to the front of the crowd.  Yo, Lisa!

[G&Gcruisers]

Thank you for all the work you put into posting your trip.  So much helpful info that I hope to use.

I will be on this same itinerary in June.
I’m sorry to hear about your wife’s close encounter at the end of your wonderful cruise.  I will be in France in a few weeks and this sounds very scary to me.

[Steelers0854]

4 hours ago, G&Gcruisers said:

Thank you for all the work you put into posting your trip.  So much helpful info that I hope to use.

I will be on this same itinerary in June.
I’m sorry to hear about your wife’s close encounter at the end of your wonderful cruise.  I will be in France in a few weeks and this sounds very scary to me.

thanks! Yea no point in sugarcoating this. People need to know and be extra aware of their surroundings. France is a beautiful city. Not sure if it’s your first trip or not but you will enjoy it and as long as you pay attention to those around you, stay away from the doors as much as possible on the metro you should be just fine. Enjoy your trip!

[Steelers0854]

Here are some of our Final Thoughts from our trip:

 

1) Princess has the best beds versus any other cruise line, I even think their bed is better than what I have at home.

2) The itinerary is so busy, and because of the expense (airfare, cruise fare etc) we felt obligated to do something in every port, and were pretty exhausted by the end.  It was worth it, we saw and went to amazing places, but this was no Caribbean beach vacation.

3) Really the only excursion we likely wouldn’t have done again was in Invergordon where we went to Loch Ness and Cawdor Castle.  Loch Ness was beautiful, but we saw a lot of beautiful sites during our trip.  I think I may have taken this as a leisurely ship/easy town day.

4) Princess MDR food I think has gotten better.  It was already some of the best IMO, but I was very happy with the food we had on our trip.

5) DW’s dining experience is directly tied to how creative the chefs are.  Was what she ate this trip safe?  Yes, absolutely, was it the best? Not by a long shot.  A lot of this is tied to the pastry/dessert chef as her main meals were good to very good.  But the lack of creativity for desserts was disappointing especially compared to some of the other Princess experiences we have had.

6) Paris isnt my favorite city (removing our bad experience as well).  I’m glad we went, and it is beautiful, but I’m not focused on going back anytime soon.  I would much rather head back to London, Edinburgh, Dublin, The Hague, Florence etc.  All of those are repeats I would make before Paris.

7) We thought the Princess excursions were very well done, and DW didnt get sick at a single one of the lunch stops, we appreciated them taking care of her allergies.

😎 We got really lucky with our weather, there were 2 days where we got sprinkled on once for about 5 min, other than that we had either beautiful weather or just cloudy conditions which I thought was equally as nice.

9) My Favorite thing: Giants Causeway. DW’s Favorite Thing: The Pub experience in Dublin.

[KeepCalmBearOn]

Thanks for all the awesome reviews and pictures. I am green with envy you got to be in London for the coronation and see the procession.

[nini]

7 hours ago, Steelers0854 said:

Here are some of our Final Thoughts from our trip:

 

1) Princess has the best beds versus any other cruise line, I even think their bed is better than what I have at home.

2) The itinerary is so busy, and because of the expense (airfare, cruise fare etc) we felt obligated to do something in every port, and were pretty exhausted by the end.  It was worth it, we saw and went to amazing places, but this was no Caribbean beach vacation.

3) Really the only excursion we likely wouldn’t have done again was in Invergordon where we went to Loch Ness and Cawdor Castle.  Loch Ness was beautiful, but we saw a lot of beautiful sites during our trip.  I think I may have taken this as a leisurely ship/easy town day.

4) Princess MDR food I think has gotten better.  It was already some of the best IMO, but I was very happy with the food we had on our trip.

5) DW’s dining experience is directly tied to how creative the chefs are.  Was what she ate this trip safe?  Yes, absolutely, was it the best? Not by a long shot.  A lot of this is tied to the pastry/dessert chef as her main meals were good to very good.  But the lack of creativity for desserts was disappointing especially compared to some of the other Princess experiences we have had.

6) Paris isnt my favorite city (removing our bad experience as well).  I’m glad we went, and it is beautiful, but I’m not focused on going back anytime soon.  I would much rather head back to London, Edinburgh, Dublin, The Hague, Florence etc.  All of those are repeats I would make before Paris.

7) We thought the Princess excursions were very well done, and DW didnt get sick at a single one of the lunch stops, we appreciated them taking care of her allergies.

😎 We got really lucky with our weather, there were 2 days where we got sprinkled on once for about 5 min, other than that we had either beautiful weather or just cloudy conditions which I thought was equally as nice.

9) My Favorite thing: Giants Causeway. DW’s Favorite Thing: The Pub experience in Dublin.

Giant's Causeway is fabulous!

[maggieq]

Are there car services or taxis to take from euro star to Paris hotels to avoid the metro?  Thanks!

[tml1230]

10 hours ago, maggieq said:

Are there car services or taxis to take from euro star to Paris hotels to avoid the metro?  Thanks!

yes on taxi and car servix=ces... we just did that a few weeks ago...after exiting the train platform in Paris follow signs to official taxi area (currently turning right from the platform to the  side door). DO NOT accept an offer of a taxi in the train station or while walking to the taxi area as they will be unlicensed and will charge absurd amounts. 

At the stand have your address of hotel written down on paper, verify the driver takes credit card and finally make sure he or she actives the meter, 

we travel to Paris twice a year for weeks at a time. As mentioned above, like any big city, be alert and keep your belongings secure.

we feel way more comfortable and safe in Paris than we do in NYC.

[tml1230]

I forgot to mention.... although the Paris metro system is VERY efficient, there are a LOT of steps up and down...withyour  luggage, in a new city etc., I highly recommend a taxi until you can drop off the luggage.