Reykvick to London via Ireland - Itinerary Opinions?

[CalifCarol]

I'm looking at the May 26 2010 trip from Reykjakvik to Southampton that includes several northern islands, e.g., Orkney and Skye, and then several major Irish cities, e.g, Belfast, Dublin, and Cork, a stop in Cornwall and then departure at Southampton.

 

This is a 10 night cruise ID # VOY100526.

 

Any comments? I know it will likely be dicey weather late May but wonder if it will be too rough to be enjoyable.

 

Anyone ever sailed this route? What time of year?

 

Thanks in advance,

CalifCarol

[Threechicks]

I have never sailed this route but five of us are booked on the Fort Lauderdale to Iceland to Southampton cruises and I don't anticpate any problem. Looking forward to the cruises.

[lkbside]

We did the Reykjavik to Southampton itinerary last May, and spent 5 nights in iceland before boarding the Voyager (3 in Reykjavik, 2 on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula. We had great weather in Iceland, mixed on the cruise - generally alternating between sunny and partly rainy days. We had no rough weather any day or night on the ship.

 

Here's a link to my travel log/blog of the trip:

 

http://expect-to-fly.blogspot.com/2009_05_01_archive.html

[RachelG]

We are booked on this cruise as well. We plan to spend 3 days pre cruise in Iceland. Which were your favorite tours, Leslie?

[CalifCarol]

Leslie,

Thanks ever so much for your reply and for creating such a well-thought out and executed travel blog. I enjoyed the entries about the cruise and plan to read about other trips you've taken.

 

I'd just returned from dinner with a friend discussing this possible trip and she was talking about how fantastic is the Giants Causeway along the North Ireland coast. What a nice surprise to come home and find your description of it and photo.

 

My husband and I are about 99% committed to this Reykjavik to Southampton trip; will likely book it while on the Voyager next week on trip around Spain/Portugal.

 

Rachel, it's difficult for me to be away from work more than 2 weeks at a time but I'm going to try and make time for some pre-cruise days in Iceland. Look forward to hearing what you decide.

 

Carol

[RachelG]

Also difficult for me to be away more than 2 weeks. Our trip this year to Norway (18 days all together) was the longest we have ever taken, and it was wonderful. So I decided to bite the bullet and do another long trip.

Thankfully, I have one partner who likes to travel as much as I do, so he holds down the fort pretty well because I do the same for him.

But the trip has to overlap into 2 mos--can't be gone more than 10-12 days in one month or havoc ensues with billing, etc. This trip fits as far as that requirement, as did the Norway trip.

[lkbside]

Rachel - we loved Iceland and enjoyed all our excursions and especially renting a car for a few days. You can see a lot on day trips basing yourself in Reykjavik.

 

The Golden Circle tour covers a lot of the highlights - the company we used, Nature Explorer, also took us up on the glacier and offers snowmobiling as an option. I would recommend them if you want active tours by super jeep. Andi took several of their tours and one of the tours she took was way too much for her, but I think you'd enjoy them for your family. The Thorsmork excursion we took with Iceland Excursions was good also and included some hiking; we only had 6 other people on the tour - but it might not have been as good if they had a larger group of people.

[RachelG]

I am thinking we will rent a car and hike on our own. The traffic can't possibly be bad there, and it's an island after all. I read about Andi's hiking adventure, and it actually sounds right down our alley. So we will have to decide. Leaning toward the car rental now though.

[lkbside]

Driving is super easy - even in the middle of Reykjavik. There is an Avis office downtown - they picked us up from our hotel the day we picked the car up and drove us over to the ship when we dropped it off. I'm sure you could also rent at the airport and drop in town.

 

If you decide to go to the Thorsmork area be sure to rent a 4wd car as there are rivers to cross and the water flow is unpredictable. Otherwise a regular car is fine.

[RachelG]

Driving is super easy - even in the middle of Reykjavik. There is an Avis office downtown - they picked us up from our hotel the day we picked the car up and drove us over to the ship when we dropped it off. I'm sure you could also rent at the airport and drop in town.

 

If you decide to go to the Thorsmork area be sure to rent a 4wd car as there are rivers to cross and the water flow is unpredictable. Otherwise a regular car is fine.

Thanks for the info--will try to get 4 wd as husband will want to explore as much as possible.