British Isles Voyage v Road Trip

[NE John]

Allow me to barge in with a question regarding a future UK trip from an American. All these great stories and pictures have me planning a next trip. Last year, we spent 10 days on land and drove around England and Wales while using London and Bath as bases. Then we took QM2 back home. Loved driving in the UK.  
As for seeing the rest of the UK, is it worth taking a cruise like this one and making many day stops around the Isles or, as mentioned, going by car or train? Sometimes I feel you don’t get a real flavor of an area with a one-day port stop. Maybe an around a UK cruise is different. Any feedback?

[exlondoner]

I don’t think you see much of the UK from the ship, because the places it can dock are so limited. If you want to visit some of the great cities, York, Newcastle, Glasgow, Manchester, the train might be a good way. If you want to visit more rural areas like the North Yorkshire Moors, or Devon and Cornwall, a car will be useful. Or you could for instance combine a few days in York with a few days touring the moors. The one place that is splendid to visit by ship is Liverpool.

[Selbourne]

15 minutes ago, NE John said:

Allow me to barge in with a question regarding a future UK trip from an American. All these great stories and pictures have me planning a next trip. Last year, we spent 10 days on land and drove around England and Wales while using London and Bath as bases. Then we took QM2 back home. Loved driving in the UK.  
As for seeing the rest of the UK, is it worth taking a cruise like this one and making many day stops around the Isles or, as mentioned, going by car or train? Sometimes I feel you don’t get a real flavor of an area with a one-day port stop. Maybe an around a UK cruise is different. Any feedback?

Even though I am currently on a round UK cruise, as @exlondoner says you really need to travel by road to see the best of the UK. To take Scotland as an example, none of the cruise ports are within reach of the most scenic parts. Even as an Englishman I have no qualms in saying that Scotland is the highlight of the UK, but to do it properly you need at least 2 weeks there alone.
 

Interesting that you enjoy driving in the UK as most of us Brits don’t as our roads are now so overcrowded. Scotland is less problematic though, especially away from the big cities. 
 

London can occupy a week on its own but it sounds as though you have done that. I also agree that York is a must see. 

[Megabear2]

Car, but use the heritage trains if you can for days out.  Trying to tie in with one of the Cathedral Expresses can give a good day out through some great countryside and you get to travel behind one of our great steam locomotive engines to boot.  A couple of weeks back I travelled behind the Sir Nigel Gresley London to Chester and you can get a choice of destinations and full range of engines including the Flying Scotsman.

 

Not exactly the Belmond Orient Express but you dine onboard and it's generally fun on a scenic route

 

https://steamdreams.co.uk/full-day-journeys/

 

 

[exlondoner]

3 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Car, but use the heritage trains if you can for days out.  Trying to tie in with one of the Cathedral Expresses can give a good day out through some great countryside and you get to travel behind one of our great steam locomotive engines to boot.  A couple of weeks back I travelled behind the Sir Nigel Gresley London to Chester and you can get a choice of destinations and full range of engines including the Flying Scotsman.

 

Not exactly the Belmond Orient Express but you dine onboard and it's generally fun on a scenic route

 

https://steamdreams.co.uk/full-day-journeys/

 

 

I think if you are going to have a city break somewhere like York or, indeed, Chester, both of which have enough to occupy you for several days, the last thing you want is a car while you are there.

[NE John]

24 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Interesting that you enjoy driving in the UK as most of us Brits don’t as our roads are now so overcrowded.

I found there is little road rage and crazy driving in the UK as is around here. British drivers are far more polite too. I love driving stick shift and had no problem with that left-handed feature either. The narrow B roads around Glastonbury were a challenge with hedgerows, sheep, and lorries. 
Ironically, the toughest city I drove in was in Southampton dropping luggage off at our hotel and then dropping the rental car off near the docks. Lots of odd intersections in that area. 
I’d love to spend some real time in Scotland!

[Megabear2]

18 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

I think if you are going to have a city break somewhere like York or, indeed, Chester, both of which have enough to occupy you for several days, the last thing you want is a car while you are there.

I personally travel by train most places here and in Europe but a sightseeing holiday, not a city break is best accomplished by car particularly at present with unreliable trains and strikes. I'm able to plan my journeys to avoid engineering works and strikes but anyone on a schedule may find that difficult and hence my suggestion car.  

[NE John]

So what would be the benefit (besides being onboard a Cunard ship) of taking a UK Isles cruise?  (Outside of this specific cruise with the naming ceremony in Liverpool). Mainly scenic cruising?

[Victoria2]

5 minutes ago, NE John said:

So what would be the benefit (besides being onboard a Cunard ship) of taking a UK Isles cruise?  (Outside of this specific cruise with the naming ceremony in Liverpool). Mainly scenic cruising?

We have around five UK cruises on QV and QE under our belts and love the snippets we see of cities we wouldn't normally visit but the best part is the scenic cruising and the places which wouldn't be on our radar such as the Irish stops and most important, Kirkwall.

 

 

[Pushpit]

1 hour ago, NE John said:

So what would be the benefit (besides being onboard a Cunard ship) of taking a UK Isles cruise?  (Outside of this specific cruise with the naming ceremony in Liverpool). Mainly scenic cruising?

Benefit? Your bedroom stays the same!

 

One thing to consider (if I can get away with it on this esteemed board) is Fred. Olsen. Not many Americans take that line, and it's somewhat regressive to say the least. But their small ships can nip in to all sorts of places like Galway, Stornoway, Portree, Dartmouth, St. Marys.

Edited May 29 by Pushpit

[Tattycoram]

NE John--A few years ago my family of history buffs, museum-goers, and nerdy readers mixed train travel with a car service to see a bit more of the stuff north of London, though never enough, of course!

 

We took the train from London to York, where my children (then 12 and 21) had never been.  For two full days we stayed near the Cathedral in a quirky hotel with gardens for reading (short walk from the station).  We walked everywhere--plenty for everyone together and separately to see for a few days; I love going to Matins and Evensong; kids could safely walk about on their own.  

 

Then we took the train to Edinburgh (which again the children had never seen) for about 5 days.  Another day we hired a car and guide to take us across the Borders to two places along Hadrian's Wall:  Housesteads and Vindolanda.  I really wish we'd spent the night at an inn by Vindolanda--I knew I'd love the site, but the new museum was one of the most engrossing I'd ever been in and I felt a little rushed for time by our guide.  The drive (partly along a Roman road) was quite straightforward as soon as we were out of central Edinburgh, and if I were doing it again I think I would try to drive it myself, although I'd need an automatic.  Some of the streets through towns like Melrose and Jedburgh are fairly narrow, and even in July there was frost at the top of Carter's Bar, but it seemed less nerve-racking than narrow country roads in Kerry and West Cork or the hedges in Devon.

 

We had been planning a return to more northerly places, flying directly into Scotland, with more local driving and stays, but then Covid happened and the family schedules have become a bit more complicated.  One day!

[Tattycoram]

I've long wanted to try a Fred Olson cruise!  I see there are some even smaller Highlands-specific lines (one's called Majestic, but it is more the size of a boat charter I think) and I think Hurtigruten has some tours?  

 

I'm really much more interested in small ports, and my tendency is to linger in one place rather than zip from point to point.  I've wondered if I could patch together a trip all on the island-hoping ferries in the Shetlands, for instance, especially if I could avoid renting a car altogether.

[NE John]

49 minutes ago, Tattycoram said:

NE John--A few years ago my family of history buffs, museum-goers, and nerdy readers mixed train travel with a car service to see a bit more of the stuff north of London, though never enough, of course!

 

We took the train from London to York, where my children (then 12 and 21) had never been.  For two full days we stayed near the Cathedral in a quirky hotel with gardens for reading (short walk from the station).  We walked everywhere--plenty for everyone together and separately to see for a few days; I love going to Matins and Evensong; kids could safely walk about on their own.  

 

Then we took the train to Edinburgh (which again the children had never seen) for about 5 days.  Another day we hired a car and guide to take us across the Borders to two places along Hadrian's Wall:  Housesteads and Vindolanda.  I really wish we'd spent the night at an inn by Vindolanda--I knew I'd love the site, but the new museum was one of the most engrossing I'd ever been in and I felt a little rushed for time by our guide.  The drive (partly along a Roman road) was quite straightforward as soon as we were out of central Edinburgh, and if I were doing it again I think I would try to drive it myself, although I'd need an automatic.  Some of the streets through towns like Melrose and Jedburgh are fairly narrow, and even in July there was frost at the top of Carter's Bar, but it seemed less nerve-racking than narrow country roads in Kerry and West Cork or the hedges in Devon.

 

We had been planning a return to more northerly places, flying directly into Scotland, with more local driving and stays, but then Covid happened and the family schedules have become a bit more complicated.  One day!

Thank you fellow Nutmegger! 

[Globaliser]

3 hours ago, NE John said:

So what would be the benefit ... of taking a UK Isles cruise? ... Mainly scenic cruising?

 

Being on a cruise, rather than anything to do with the destinations - much like most cruises everywhere. There are relatively few places around the world where "scenic cruising" makes being on a cruise ship worthwhile from a destination point of view, although there are a few destinations which are interesting by-products of being on a ship but to which one probably wouldn't go to otherwise.

[NE John]

1 minute ago, Globaliser said:

 

Being on a cruise, rather than anything to do with the destinations - much like most cruises everywhere. There are relatively few places around the world where "scenic cruising" makes being on a cruise ship worthwhile from a destination point of view, although there are a few destinations which are interesting by-products of being on a ship but to which one probably wouldn't go to otherwise.

I have been on both Transatlantic crossings and regular cruises and appreciate the difference. I am wary of overcrowded cruise ship calls that spend such a short time in port looking at: Rome/Barcelona/Santorini.  Going to those calls is more hassle than it’s worth. I am also wary of land tours that do the same thing with activities centered on shops, etc. However, I would imagine many of the UK port calls would be perfect to spend a day or hopefully an overnight stay for a bigger city. 
And yes @Pushpit- no unpacking! I do like being at sea and Cunard has, so far, been great for us. 

[Thejuggler]

A round Britain will only ever give a taster and some ports don't offer much, so trips are the only way.

 

It would be great on a round Britain if you could alight at Greenock, hire a car and spend a few days driving around Scotland before getting back on ship in Edinburgh!

 

It is however on my bucket list to do a Scotland islands boat tour,  I've been all over Scotland over nearly 40 years, been on plenty of the inter islands ferries and am ticking off island visits, but a small boat around the Hebridean islands would be a completely different experience.

 

 

[Harters]

As others have said, the best way to see our country is by a road or rail  trip, remembering that most of us live outside of London. That said, we are a small country. None of us live more than 75 miles from the coast, so quite a bit can be accessible (as a taster) from a cruise port. 

 

Most of our holidays are outside the UK, but we always enjoy time exploring here and usually have a week's stay somewhere in the UK. This year, our base will be Hereford and we're looking forward to checking out the area's small towns and villages, particularly looking for antique and second hand book shops, old churches, gardens open to the public. And one bucket list visit to the Regimental Museum of the South Wales Borderers at Brecon - folk, particularly Britons, of a certain generation will remember the film "Zulu", which featured an historic military action by a company of the Regiment. I've been to the site of the fighting in South Africa and am looking forward to viewing some of the actual Victoria Crosses awarded then for bravery. You can't easily do that from a day in port. 

 

But, of course, it all depends on what interests you about the UK and Ireland. 

[ABQrobin]

We did the Regal Princess cruise last Sept and loved it so much, we are doing it again, only 12 days instead of 10, next june 2025.  The reason?  Loved that we never  had to pack a bag and carry it anywhere, our bedroom stayed the same for the journey, and the ship changed Cities(ports) during the night.  We did excursions every port, got out and really saw things, really enjoyed experiencing the areas and people.  

So that is why we are doing it again, by ship.  Depends on what you want.