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British Isles

devolve

By devolve,
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karatemom2 "Live from...." Rare

karatemom2

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We did the British Isles cruise on the Emerald Princes in 2022 and it still ranks as one of our top 5 cruises in my estimation. They are port intensive, so you need to be prepared for an energetic vacation as there is so much to see and do and each destination. Here is an itinerary of what we did on our 4 day stay pre-cruise in London, and then at each port on our cruise:

 

London: Buckingham Palace

              Westminster Abbey

              Tower of London

              Churchill War Rooms

              Shakespeare's Old Globe Theatre

              St. Paul's Cathedral

              Maritime Museum at Greenwich

 

Southampton Departure - transfer and tour vis International Friends:  Windsor Castle 

 

Guernsey - Private Tour: Castle Cornet 

                                        WWII Sites and Museum

 

Cobh - Princess Tour: Rock of Cashel

 

Dublin - Princess Tour: Glendalough Monastic City

                                     Christchurch Cathedral

 

Belfast - Odyssey Tours: Giants Causeway

                                        Dunluce Castle

                                        Titanic Museum

 

Liverpool - Wales Tour via Busy Bus: Conwy Castle

                                                           Snowdonia Park

                                                           Pontcysyllte Aqueduct

 

Invergordon - Private Tour: Dunrobin Castle

                                            Cairn Liath

                                            Falls of Shin

                                            Dornoch Cathedral

 

Glasgow - Discover Scotland: Sterling Castle

                                                Doune Castle 

                                                Village of Luss

                                                Loch Lomond

                                                Trossachs National Park

 

Edinburgh - used local taxi: Edinburgh Castle

                                            Royal Mile

                                            St. Giles Cathedral

                                            Royal Yacht Brittania

                 

Le Havre - Normandy via Overlord Tours: Omaha Beach

                                                                   American Cemetery

                                                                   Bayeux - for Cathedral and Bayeux Tapestry

                                                                   Honfleur

 

Southampton Departure - transfer and tour via EC Minibus:  Stonehenge

 

It was a busy and action packed cruise vacation, but one I highly recommend!

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Jadn13

Jadn13

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Sept on the Regal (12 Day with Bruges)  It was Fantastic! 

Port intensive so if you are flying in, best to pad it a day to get over jet lag before the cruise starts. 

 

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konatyme

konatyme

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In 2014, we did an around the British Isles cruise on the Ruby and it was one of our favorite cruises. (We loved it so much that we've talked about doing it again.) We went early and stayed in London for several days to see all the sights there and were really glad that we did--so much to see there!

We did privately-arranged tours, rather than Princess ones. In some cases, (like Liverpool and Guernsey), we simply disembarked and walked around. For Cobh, we took a tour (with E-Bus, I think) to Blarney Castle (though we weren't interested in kissing the stone and just walked around the very scenic castle grounds), Charles Fort, Kinsale, and St. Colman's Cathedral).   In Dublin, we shared a taxi with some other cruisers to Trinity College to see the Book of Kells. From there, we were able to catch the HOHO bus to go around town (with stops like the Guinness Storehouse, of course!), then caught a taxi at Trinity College to return to the ship. We also did the Odyssey Tours trip from Belfast to Giants Causeway (and the other things mentioned in the post from karatemom2), as well as the same Discover Scotland tour from Glasgow. We did a WowScotland tour to Inverness, Loch Ness, Culloden Battlefield, Clava Cairns, and Cawdor Castle  (a really good tour!). At South Queensferry pier for Edinburgh, we took the train into town (following directions I found here on CruiseCritic) and then walked to the castle and around town.  From the LeHavre port, we had an amazing small group tour of the Normandy battlefield beaches, the cemeteries, etc. with Bayeaux Shuttles. (if possible, watch the original "The Longest Day" movie before going here.)

 

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helenb

helenb

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We had been talking about doing a British Isles cruise for years before COVID hit, but never did because they were so expensive as compared to other European cruises. We did the Med a few times, the Baltic, the Adriatic, the Holy Land, Hawaii, even Australia/New Zealand... all cheaper than British Isles.

 

COVID completely changed our outlook (not being able to cruise for 2+ years). When we saw the British Isles cruises on the Regal for summer 2024, we went ahead and booked. We are on the June 7 cruise out of Southampton. I have been buried in planning for it the past couple of weeks and I think that we have come up with an amazing touring itinerary for pre-cruise, each port, and post-cruise. I am so excited for this trip! I know that it is something I will remember forever.

 

So tl;dr is: do it! Seize the moment! You never know if this opportunity will be available again and it is a great cruising destination.

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nini

nini

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We were on the Emerald in May 2022 for this itinerary. One word can't sum it up but here is one: FABULOUS!!!

Our tours were amazing as other posters have said. We did many of those as well. We would love to go again, but we would not go on the Emerald. I think the Regal is doing this now and we love the Regal.

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Fisherwoman

Fisherwoman

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We did the British Isles cruise and it was one of the best cruises and I've done more than 50.  If you book it, go in August and attend the Edinburgh Tattoo out of Glasgow.  It is spectacular!  

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charliedalrymple "Live from...." Rare

charliedalrymple

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10 hours ago, karatemom2 said:

We did the British Isles cruise on the Emerald Princes in 2022 and it still ranks as one of our top 5 cruises in my estimation.

 

We went on a very similar cruise, although ours also included Cork.  And we agree, it was wonderful!  I would say it was our second favourite (after Alaska), but we've only done eight cruises.  The only disappointment was that we couldn't dock at Invergordon due to rough seas. I'd say Edinburgh was the highlight--it's a breathtaking city. It was closely followed by Cork, where we hired a very entertaining private guide.  (He recommended that we skip the Blarney Stone because we would fight crowds of tourists, and we didn't feel deprived.).  The only missable stop was Le Havre.  Not much to see or do there.

 

This will sound strange, but there were almost too many ports. We stopped in a different port every day, and it got to be a little exhausting.  Of course, we didn't want to miss any of the destinations, but we are accustomed to have sea days throughout a cruise to relax and recharge.

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leck57 Holiday Sharing Rare

leck57

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5 hours ago, nini said:

We were on the Emerald in May 2022 for this itinerary. One word can't sum it up but here is one: FABULOUS!!!

Our tours were amazing as other posters have said. We did many of those as well. We would love to go again, but we would not go on the Emerald. I think the Regal is doing this now and we love the Regal.

 

Hello again. We did this cruise as well and the Emerald was fine by us, but I would also do a Royal class ship in preference.

To the OP @devolve I highly recommend for your stop in Liverpool, do a Lakes District tour. That was one of our best days. Our cruise went to the Orkney Islands as, from memory, they exchanged that stop with Glasgow. Edinburgh was a great stop. We did a ship tour to Paris from Le Havre and thought it was a waste of time as the drive to Paris was about 2 hours and we only had time to the see the sights from a wet bus window. We are doing another cruise from Southampton later in the year and will stop at Paris on the way for a few days an then train it to London. I was going to suggest London activities but just noticed you are from the UK so I'm guessing you don't need any help.

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sandancer

sandancer

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18 hours ago, devolve said:

 

Hi

we are considering a cruise around the British Isles, has anyone experience of this cruise they can share.

We are also from the UK and we’ve booked the Regal Princess for this Summer. We have always headed for the sun (other than Alaska) and have been to some of the ports on this itinerary, just not on a cruise. It will be great to see it all from a different perspective. 

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insidecabin "Live from...." Rare

insidecabin

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These are great trips, good ports with  interesting tour options.

 

We live here and will do them every year when the prices drop to sensible levels.

Last year NCL undercut Princess so we did them,  year before it was Princess but that was when Plus was £30pppd, now at £50 the base fares need to drop a lot(under £50pppd)

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nymshowdown

nymshowdown

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Highly recommend it. Second favorite cruise I've done behind Alaska. As many have said, port intensive, but it's a good mix of some really great stops and some that are a bit more laid back. 

 

What I loved most was that many of those ports weren't like the typical Mediterranean stops. Coach rides to the cities/highlights were much shorter. The cities, while beautiful, have less to try and cram in with limited time than say a Florence or Rome. Finally, you'll find much less crowding in ports and more tolerable weather compared to a Med cruise. Really makes each stop more enjoyable and less exhausting by the end of the day. 

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treadingwater

treadingwater

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On 1/18/2024 at 6:04 PM, helenb said:

We had been talking about doing a British Isles cruise for years before COVID hit, but never did because they were so expensive as compared to other European cruises. We did the Med a few times, the Baltic, the Adriatic, the Holy Land, Hawaii, even Australia/New Zealand... all cheaper than British Isles.

 

COVID completely changed our outlook (not being able to cruise for 2+ years). When we saw the British Isles cruises on the Regal for summer 2024, we went ahead and booked. We are on the June 7 cruise out of Southampton. I have been buried in planning for it the past couple of weeks and I think that we have come up with an amazing touring itinerary for pre-cruise, each port, and post-cruise. I am so excited for this trip! I know that it is something I will remember forever.

 

So tl;dr is: do it! Seize the moment! You never know if this opportunity will be available again and it is a great cruising destination.

Would love to hear what you've planned for each port itinerary.  We leave on the same trip May 3rd and need to get things pinned down and like to book more local, smaller tours than Princess.  Thanks!

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helenb

helenb

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17 hours ago, treadingwater said:

Would love to hear what you've planned for each port itinerary.  We leave on the same trip May 3rd and need to get things pinned down and like to book more local, smaller tours than Princess.  Thanks!

 

 

Okay, here's what I have (note that our itinerary may differ from yours):

 

Portland - Walk/blue shuttle to Portland Castle, visit D-Day Center, walk/taxi to Tout Quarry Sculpture Park. (Note, most people will be going to Stonehenge or Bath, but we have been to those sites before. I strongly recommend visiting Stonehenge on your own before/after the cruise (easy to reach if you are driving to/from London) as it will be cheaper and easier than taking an expensive tour from port.

 

Cobh - Private tour to Blarney Castle and Cork

 

Dublin - Taking DART to Dublin, then HOHO Bus to get around and see sights

 

Glasgow - Taking train to Glasgow, then HOHO Bus to get around and see sights

 

Kirkwall - Private tour to see Skara Brae and Maeshowe (Maeshowe not available on big tours)

 

Invergordon - Private tour to Lochness and Inverness

 

Edinburgh - Taking train to Edinburgh, then walking between sights

 

Le Havre - Walking along beach, visiting Maison de l'Armateur, catching Bee Bus to Honfleur (Most people will be visiting Paris, Mont St. Michel and the Normandy Beaches, which we have see many times before, so we wanted something new. I highly recommend Mont St. Michel or the Normandy Beaches via private tour/rental car if you have never been.)

 

NOTE I do NOT recommend visiting Paris from Le Havre. It's a long journey and you won't see much in the limited time you are there. Instead, it is worthwhile to fly into/out of Paris before/after your cruise and take a few days to see it on your own. You can then take the train to London. If you're sailing out of Dover, you can also take a ferry from Le Havre to Dover (and vice versa).

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Yehootu

Yehootu

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40 minutes ago, helenb said:

NOTE I do NOT recommend visiting Paris from Le Havre.

Or to Mt Saint Michel. If you can stand a 3hr bus ride both ways with 1 stop, it's a beautiful place. Unfortunately we got the "I'm French, so I don't need to be politically correct" tour guide. Thankfully I had cell reception and watched You Tube videos for the ride back😀

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helenb

helenb

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2 minutes ago, Yehootu said:

Or to Mt Saint Michel. If you can stand a 3hr bus ride both ways with 1 stop, it's a beautiful place. Unfortunately we got the "I'm French, so I don't need to be politically correct" tour guide. Thankfully I had cell reception and watched You Tube videos for the ride back😀

We did Mont St. Michel from Le Havre once using a rental car. Since the ship gets into port very early and stays late (to accommodate the busses that go to Paris) it was very doable.

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dickinson "Live from...." Rare

dickinson

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2 hours ago, helenb said:

 

 

 

NOTE I do NOT recommend visiting Paris from Le Havre. It's a long journey and you won't see much in the limited time you are there. Instead, it is worthwhile to fly into/out of Paris before/after your cruise and take a few days to see it on your own. You can then take the train to London. If you're sailing out of Dover, you can also take a ferry from Le Havre to Dover (and vice versa).

 

I DO recommend visiting Paris from Le Havre.  We did it on our BI cruise.  Drove by the Arc de Triomphe, went to the Louvre, had lunch in the Eiffel Tower, and drove along the Champs Elysee.  Wish I could have had more time there but I didn't and probably won't be back although one never knows.

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pink845

pink845

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Everyone should do a British Isles cruise on Princess.  We loved ours in August of 2023.  We had fabulous weather to boot.  What a great way to sample Scotland and Ireland.  Once my husband retires this summer, we plan on heading back to Scotland ourselves now that we have gotten a snippet.

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fruitmachine

fruitmachine

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9 hours ago, helenb said:

Edinburgh - Taking train to Edinburgh, then walking between sights

 

The train is an option, but the X99 Cruiselik service (https://www.lothianbuses.com/cruiselink-x99/) takes you into the city centre from the end of Hawes Pier - where the yellow traffic cones are on the left of this picture (https://maps.app.goo.gl/5eaPB687Tfzcakm3A) - rather than having to walk up the half-mile path to the rail station at bridge-deck level.

 

Last year, their £12.00 round-trip ticket also gave free access to all buses in the city (plus many that go outside it) and to the Edinburgh Tram.

 

 

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KKB Great Review Rare

KKB

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I did BI on MSC (don't recommend) in May. 

Fell in LOVE--DH & I are doing it on the Regal in April.

 

Cobh--loved this little town, just hit a couple pubs; will probably take train to Cork this time. Looks like a lovely small city

 

Dublin--was a fiasco & unable to get off. SUPER excited to go pub hopping this time!

 

Glasgow--walked around Greenock. FAIL--nothing much in this sleepy town.

Will train to Glasgow this time

 

Belfast--did HOHO & LOVED it. Fabulous city. Sad it is not on our itinerary

 

Kirkwall--took the T11 Orkney Tour. FABULOUS & great price

 

Invergordon--did a Loch Ness/Highlands/Invernesss Tour via invergordon-bustours FANTASTIC

Completely fell in love w/ this area

 

This time we add Portland, Edinburgh (YEAH) & LeHavre.

We hit LeHavre in Oct on our N. Europe tour. Our friends got off & said "meh".

It was the last day so we relaxed, did laundry & packed. Possibly the same this time.

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