Cruise Holidays - A Guide

Having not long returned from my first Cruise - 24 days aboard the Saga Pearl II - I found this recent article from The Telegraph most interesting.

If you're thinking of booking a cruise - take a look

A is for... ashore

This is where a lot of your time will be spent, so pick an appealing itinerary and check out the shore excursions. If you really want to push the boat out, look for cruises with land-tour extensions. Choices include cuddling a panda with Crystal Cruises and watching an outback sunset at Uluru in Australia with Princess Cruises.

B is for... book ahead

Contrary to popular opinion cruises – and especially river cruises – do sell out quickly. If you have any type of event in mind, cultural or otherwise, are travelling with family (during school holidays) or in a group or want a particular type of cabin, secure it as soon as you can. Christmas markets and New Year cruises are often booked a year in advance. The same applies for booking flights.

C is for... cabins

Most cruise lines don’t call them that. For stateroom, read en-suite bedroom. For suite, read the same, but much larger, with a seating area; rarely does it mean two separate rooms, usually just more room. For studio: read en-suite bedroom with seating area and curtain divider.

D is for... dining options

The venues menu is more mouthwatering than ever, so pack an appetite. Celebrity chef choices include Jamie Oliver’s restaurant Jamie’s Italian on Royal Caribbean International’s Quantum of the Seas and Anthem of the Seas, and Atul Kochhar’s Sindhu on P&O’s Azura, Aurora and Britannia cruise ships.

E is for... enrichment

This term embraces destination-related lectures and locally sourced experiences on board. Don’t miss them: they will help you get more from your cruise.

F is for... fun

The sky’s the limit on newer, larger ships, with skydiving, surfing, ice skating, rock climbing and dodgems among the thrills on offer.

G is for... gratuities

These are covered only on genuinely all-inclusive ships. Other cruise lines either add them to your bill or suggest appropriate amounts. On most ships, gratuities are shared between all the service staff.

H is for... health

It’s in your hands. As on land, at least 30 seconds lathering with soap and hot water before leaving toilets or entering public areas reduces the risk of contagion.

I is for... internet

Connections are still patchier and slower afloat than ashore, but improving. Crystal has upgraded Wi-Fi fleet-wide. Royal Caribbean’s Quantum-class ships claim to offer industry-leading bandwidth and speed. Many ships charge for Wi-Fi but it’s free on Viking river cruises in Europe, Russia and Ukraine.

J is for... just you

Going solo? Norwegian Cruise Line’s ships Breakaway and Getaway each have 59 single studio cabins, within a keycard-accessed complex featuring an exclusive lounge. The refit on Cunard’s Queen Victoria will create nine single cabins. On rivers, Emerald Waterways ships each have two single cabins and every Scenic Tours vessel has one. Elsewhere, look for sailings offering “no or low single-occupancy supplement”.

K is for... keeping fit

It’s easier to keep fit on a cruise ship which usually has a well-equipped gym and promenade deck that you can walk around. Some river ships carry bicycles. Or choose an active cruise such as the August itinerary offered by Ramblers Worldwide Holidays, which includes a guided walk tour in France as part of a cruise on board Fred Olsen Cruise Lines’ Braemar.

L is for... luggage

Weight restrictions will apply if you fly, but cruise lines don’t impose them on board. The night before you disembark, large cases must be left outside your cabin.

M is for... mealtimes

For increasing flexibility, more and more ships are offering when-you-like, where-you-like and with-whom-you-like venues and menus. Those who prefer assigned seating at dinner are catered for on many cruises.

N is for... numbers

The smaller the ship, the fewer passengers, venues and activities on board. Bigger ships have many more activity, entertainment and dining options; but more passengers also means more queues.

O is for... on-board spend

Normally there’s an additional bill at the end of a cruise, so be sure to budget for it. Only a handful of luxury lines are truly all-inclusive: Azamara Club Cruises, Crystal, Regent Seven Seas, Seabourn, SeaDream Yacht Club and Silversea. On the rivers, there are three: Emerald Waterways, Scenic Tours and Uniworld.

P is for... ports of call

Where you dock determines how much you can see and do ashore. You’ll get more time at step ashore ports than somewhere like Civitavecchia, which is the port of call for Rome but is set 50 miles away from the city.

Q is for... Quantum class

Royal Caribbean’s game-changing vessels will sail in Europe from April. The newest and “smartest”, Anthem of the Seas, has robot bartenders, robo-screen experiences, “virtual balconies” and wristbands that function as a room key and payment card on board.

R is for... rivers

Cruising’s fastest-growing sector shows no signs of slowing, and remains the most relaxed, immersive and intimate way to see countries from the “inside”.

S is for... sailing

Star Clippers has the world’s largest full-rigged tall ship, the five-masted Royal Clipper, and two four-masted ships. Ponant has the three-masted Le Ponant. Luxury Windstar Cruises is another alternative.

T is for... transatlantic

This isn’t a cruise, it’s a crossing; and the ship that most famously makes it, Cunard’s Queen Mary 2, is not a cruise ship but an ocean liner. Several other lines offer twice-yearly transatlantic repositioning cruises.

U is for... under the radar

Up-and-coming destinations: Cuba, with Star Clippers; Japan, the Philippines or both with Azamara Club Cruises, Crystal, Celebrity, Holland America Line, Princess and Silversea. Exotic new river routes include Vietnam’s Red River, and, in India, the Brahmaputra with Pandaw Cruises and the Lower Ganges with APT.

V is for... view

But what will you be able to see from your cabin? “Obstructed view” means there’s a lifeboat or structural feature in the way. On river ships, views are a given (but see Windows, below).

W is for... windows

The higher your deck, the bigger your window. In lower cabins they’re shallow and high on the wall, or portholes. Inside cabins don’t have windows, but a few ships create “virtual portholes or balconies” by projecting outside views onto a wall.

X is for... ex-UK cruises

This year, Fred Olsen has departures from 10 UK ports* and Cruise & Maritime Voyages will sail from eight.** Among larger lines basing ships in Southampton are Celebrity Cruises, Cunard, Royal Caribbean and Princess Cruises. Princess will also base Ocean Princess in Dover, and Harwich will host Holland America Line’s Ryndam.

Y is for... youngsters

Ships that cater for children do so in spades. They’ll be so busy you won’t see much of them, unless you want to.

Z is for... Zodiac

These rigid inflatables are not for the faint-hearted. You need to be nimble on your feet to get on and off, and happy to balance unsupported on a sturdy rubber edge

For Great Travel Insurance prices - CLICK HERE

Cruise Complaint Silliness

So, in the spirit of last week's article, I thought we would research some further amusing anecdotal tales of complaining holidaymakers - this time the ocean faring variety. Obviously, there's only so far we can go with this - but let's enjoy it while it lasts.

Here are some examples of Cruising Silliness

The most unusual was from a lady on a Mediterranean cruise who said the sea was too loud and claimed it prevented her from having a decent night's sleep during her holiday. She suggested the cabins be "better sound-proofed against the sounds of the sea."

bonvoyage.co.uk revealed the hilarious complaints, which included a man who voyaged on a summer cruise around Alaska complaining about the weather not being as warm as he expected. He said he expected to be able to "swim in the swimming pool each day" and "get an impressive tan".

The man stated that "all cruises are meant to be hot", and so sought compensation for having to buy warmer clothing as he "had only packed minimal clothing for the expected hot weather."

A woman on a Celebrity Cruises ship asked bonvoyage.co.uk for a full refund in June last year because she didn't see any celebrities on board. The woman said the company was guilty of "false advertising" due to the lack of stars.

In another complaint, a woman on a cruise departing from Southampton said that she had to re-schedule her whole holiday as she was not aware of the fact that she was supposed to take her passport with her on the cruise. She apparently thought she only needed her passport when going on a fly-cruise and blamed the cruise company for not texting her the day before to remind her to take her passport.

A woman on a Hawaiian cruise told the customer service team she had heard Gary Barlow was once on the same cruise she had ventured on but failed to see him on the ship this time. She demanded an explanation as to why he was not on the same cruise again this time.

Steph Curtin, Cruise Development Manager of bonvoyage.co.uk, said: "As an online cruising agency, we always try to provide the best customer service possible for our customers; whether it's regarding their comfort on-board, the information they get before getting on board or all the services and entertainment available on the ship."

She added: "The vast majority of feedback we get from our holidaymakers is hugely positive, usually telling us what a great time they had, but from time to time we come across a few quirky complaints that we can do little to help. Whilst we always make sure we go back to every complaint, I'm afraid we can't be held responsible for the sea being too loud or the lack of celebrities on board; as much as we wish we could put Gary Barlow on every cruise!"

More next week!

Going on a cruise? Check out Holsure's Travel Insurance page HERE

Vaccinations For Foreign Travel

We thought we'd have to see the GP.

Apparently not.

These Days, if you need a vaccination for a foreign trip you pop along to your local Vaccination Bureau which might be in a National Chain store Chemist or a high street clinic. However, we were still surprised at the cost involved.

Now, we are off on a Cruise later in November and will be stopping off in Gambia, Cape Verde, The Canaries and Spain - more articles regarding this later in the year, but we are very excited - and we were advised to get a Yellow Fever jab.

That's £58 each please...Ouch!

So, I thought it would be of interest to show a list of popular (!) jabs and, as you can see, the most expensive will set you back around £268.....EACH. For a family of four that'll cost you well over a thousand pounds...and that's just one particular batch of tablets....

Don't forget to add that to your budget...

Here's the list below - I think it's quite an eye opener.

More news about the Cruise as it happens.....

For Travel Insurance - click HERE