Cruise to Scotland and Ireland

[fun2cruise]

Last year we went on a tour of Italy for 17 days, we were up early and running all day, no time to rest, living out of a suitcase. It was a great tour but so tiring. We thought that maybe it would be better to go on a cruise, unpack once, having the same cabin and some relaxation. My question is, if you go on a European cruise, do you really get to experience the destinations. On a tour you got to see a lot but it was more or less what they wanted you to see. I thought maybe on a cruise we could pick what we wanted to see. anyone out there with any comments or advice?

[calmac]

Having done both land based vacations and cruises I guess there are some differences.

 

Our land based vacations have always been ones where we have rented a car and driven from place to place so we've been able to make the decisions on what we want to see and where we want to go but have, at times, had to drive through uninteresting places/countryside to get from one interesting place to another. After our first trip of this kind we realised that 1 night stays should be avoided if at all possible and our preference is for 3+ nights per location. Otherwise you just seem to be constantly going between places rather than seeing the places themselves.

 

On our first cruise we couldn't believe how relaxing it was to have someone doing the "driving" from place to place. I guess the limitation is on being able to only choose to do something which is within a limited distance from your port of call, albeit you can choose to do your preffered type of day trip at each location. It is nice just having to unpack the once and having your hotel take you from place to place.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

If you want to experience the destination, there's nothing better than land. That being said, it depends on your touring style--I have never been on a packaged tour, but I believe there are some that are more laid-back and slower than others. The "if this is Tuesday it must be Edinburgh" would not suit me at all.

 

I love to cruise, don't get me wrong. But usually if we cruise in Europe, it's punctuated with land trips. When we get too old to do that independently (!), we will consider tours, or stick to cruising.

 

Actually, what I said above is not a bad compromise. If you can pick a small region or just a city, you can spend some time there before/after a cruise and soak up the ambience of that place without doing a tour. If you have your heart set on Scotland and Ireland, look around for the tour alternatives--you may find something less frantic, or semi-independent.

[Nymue]

We did the 10 night British Isles cruise with Princess last summer and loved it! We added on a week in London prior to the cruise so we had a bit of both.

 

We are hooked on cruising, as you say....let someone else do the driving PLUS no packing and unpacking. We loved it so much we are repeating the trip next year. It's now a 12 night cruise with an extra stop in Ireland and a stop in Normandy. This time we will rent a car in England for a week prior and spent time touring the countryside.

[Whippets]

I am leaving next week for a 9 day tour of Amsterdam, Scotland, Ireland and the Channel Islands on a cruise. Spent a week in London a few years back. There are pros and cons to each type of experience. I am just grateful that I can have this opportunity.

[phrankbama]

We did the 10 night British Isles cruise with Princess last summer and loved it! We added on a week in London prior to the cruise so we had a bit of both.

 

We are hooked on cruising, as you say....let someone else do the driving PLUS no packing and unpacking. We loved it so much we are repeating the trip next year. It's now a 12 night cruise with an extra stop in Ireland and a stop in Normandy. This time we will rent a car in England for a week prior and spent time touring the countryside.

 

We're booked on the Grand Princess 12 night British Isle cruise sailing July 4th. Sounds like you hit many of the same stops, what were your highlights? Can you make any recommendations on what to see to someone who has never been there and traveling with 2 teenagers?

[Nymue]

Will you be spending any time in London before or after the cruise? Your teenagers would love it! Dublin, Edinburgh and the Scotish Highlands where the Highlight for us. Loch Ness is a most see ;) The Book of Kells and Trinity College was something I will always cherish. Pubs in Dublin are wonderful and the teens should LOVE them!

 

My one disappointment was not being able to find a tour out to Newgrange. There don't seem to be any that run on Sundays :(

We are taking this cruise again in 08' and this time we will be in Dublin on a Saturday :p

[phrankbama]

Thanks for all the input, I will look into some of your suggestions.

We will have one day prior to sailing to see London, hoping to see as much of the city as possible. Our day in Dublin has already been planned, we have family there and they will be meeting us to show us the sights.

[Nymue]

Last year our first full day in London we did a wonderful tour with Golden Tours http://www.goldentours.co.uk/ it was called Historic and Modern Londen. They took us to Westminster Abbey, St Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, and the Tower of London. It included a Thames River Cruise, lunch at the Tower and a ride on the London Eye - All Entrances fees where included. The guide was awesome :D This is a wonderful tour that covers all of the main London Highlights!

[nomars_girl]

The advantage to the cruise is the ability to unpack once and know where you will sleep each night. (Our daughter found that very comforting as we have had a tendency to sort of "wing it" on land based vacations).

 

Disadvantages are the limited time in ports. You usually are back on board the ship before dinner time, so you don't get to experience the night life in any of the places you visit.

 

Try to avoid ship's tours and do as much as you can on your own so that you can experience some of the local flavor. The ship's tours will be very efficient and you will see all the major tourist attractions, but you will have no interaction at all with the locals. And don't try to see everything or your whole trip will be a whirlwind. Take time to sit at a sidewalk cafe or a pub somewhere and watch the world go by.

[phrankbama]

Thanks all for all the great ideas. The tour of London sounds perfect and I definitely like the idea of spending time in a pub.

[2ladies]

On our Princess British Isles cruise last year in August, one of the ships' tours was the Edinburgh Tattoo. A night to remember!! So well organised by Princess. Only certain cruise dates feature this trip though. Something not to be missed!!

 

Obviously, you only get an overview of each port you visit, as you are only there for about 7 or 8 hours. But a great way to travel!!