Calling all Portunus members

Don't forget that if you want to benefit from double on board credit, early booking prices and free car parking for P&O sailings for 2011. Then you must book by close of business tomorrow. This is also the best time to get the cabin of your choice.

Cunard's early booking offers also end tomorrow..so don't delay & book today!

Why are the swimming pools so small?

I was also one of the lucky people who got to sample NCL Epic's launch party last week. The weather was fantastic and on Wednesday, I was able to chill out by the pool.


The main pool area, as shown in the photo above, consists of two separate swimming pools and lots of cooling blue tiles around it. It looked amazing and my colleague Sian and I enjoyed dipping our toes in the water. However there was a huge amount of wasted space and we questioned why they hadn't made the whole area into one giant pool. Individually you could probably fit around 20 people in each pool to cool off, and the ship holds over 4000 passengers.

This isn't just an NCL design fault but seems to be the case on many ships. This photo shows a pool area on P&O's Ventura - again look at the space of the pool compared to the deck area

What I'd like to know is - are the pools small because cruisers don't like to swim and would prefer to have more deck area? Or is it an economical reason - ie does it cost too much to keep maintained or to build? Or is it an actual physical limitation - does a large body of water weigh too much for a ship to sustain. Please excuse me if these questions sound a bit daft (you can see that I am blonde) but if anyone actually knows why cruise ship pools are small please let me know.

Hotels in Dover

Since writing about hotels in Southampton I have been asked to provide info on hotels in Dover. The choice is more limited but here are two to choose from.

For a budget hotel - pick the County hotel. Just 2km from the ports it offers basic accommodation, it's reviews aren't fantastic but if you just want somewhere to lay your head it's fine. Starting at £65 for the room its a cheap offering.

For a better quality property I can offer the Ramada Dover. This 4* hotel is in a quiet location near a championship golf course and less than 5 miles from the port. It has a Costa coffee bar inside and restaurant aswell as a gymnasium. Prices here start from £47pppnight.

How much do drinks cost?

As a cruise specialist, I often get asked about the price of drinks onboard the cruise ships, so I thought I would share some details with you all!

Drinks prices vary from ship to ship, as they do in most bars at home. It is also worth bearing in mind that overall the American based cruise companies work out  more expensive as they add on a 15 - 18%  service charge to drinks aswell as being more pricey in the first place. Royal Caribbean, NCL & Oceania are all known to be expensive.

Fred Olsen and P&O tend to be more competitive  as their prices are in Pounds Sterling. A spirit and mixer is approximately £2.65, a bottle of beer is approximately £2.30 and a coffee is about £1.50, although some offer free tea and coffee in the afternoons or in your cabin you may get tea and coffee facilities, it is always worth checking this information when booking.

Island and Thomson Cruises are also fairly reasonable, charging average bar prices, but they also offer an All Inclusive drinks package for the duration of your cruise, starting from as little as £49 per person. These need to be purchased before departure, and is often offered for free if booked in advance. If you decide not to take this option, prices for a spirit and mixer is just over £3.00, and a bottle of beer from £2.70.


The European cruise lines such as Costa and MSC will charge prices in Euros. Depending on the exchange rate at the time, the prices work out at 7 Euros for a spirit/mixer, a coffee is approximately 2 Euros and a beer range from 4 Euros.


Cunard, Royal Caribbean and Princess Cruises all charge in dollars and will add a 15% gratuities onto their prices automatically. Prices for a beer aboard these floating marvels start at $4, and a spirit/mixer on average is $5 plus. Cunard offer a soda package which includes unlimited soft drinks from $3.75 a day, all of these prices do not include the 15% service charge. Royal Caribbean has a child soft drink package starting from $20 for a 7 night cruise - well worth it for those of you with thirsty children!

Seabourn and Regent - the most exclusive of cruise lines offer complimentary drinks aboard their ships, however you do pay for this in your original cruise cost.
Hopefully this will give you some insight into additional costs onboard and will help you budget for your dream holiday!  Any further questions just give me a call!

Hotels in Southampton

With more and more people choosing the sail from the UK, Southampton offers a great port and many of the cruise lines are based there. However it's a long way a way from many places. I am often asked for the best place to stay before the cruise so have put toghether a collection of good hotels to cater to all passengers. Just call me for prices for your exact dates.

The Novotel is great for those travelling by coach, as it is only an 8 minute walk from the National Express Coach Station. It also has a heated indoor pool, sauna and fully equipped gym. Prices start from £42pppnight, room only.

The Holiday Inn is close to the cruise ports, M3 and M27 motorways and is one of the most popular hotels for pre-cruise stays. Unwind after your journey in the spa pool, sauna and solarium. It is also a great cost, starting at £44pppnight including a hot buffet breakfast.

To really treat yourself, start your holiday at the DeVere Grand Harbour hotel. This 4* hotel has award winning restaurants with contemporary cuisine and even offers a candlelit spa. Bewarned though, this hotel does book up so don't leave it until the last minute to book. Prices start from just £55pppn

Cabins for 4 or 5 on Century this August

Celebrity Century has some more cabins available that will sleep a family of 4, during the school holidays. And at all levels – inside, outside and concierge class.

They even have some family veranda’s for families of 5

Sailing a 12 night itinerary from Barcelona, on the 14th August, this is a fantastic find. You can book cruise only and make your own way to Barcelona, or add on flights and transfers from London Heathrow with Celebrity. This way you’ll be protected if there are more air strikes or that dreaded volcano starts erupting again.

The Celebrity price on a cruise only basis starts at £4133 for a family of 4 through Celebrity including the pre paid gratuities – but obviously if you call me you can have the cruise.co.uk discount. The flights and transfer package is £335pp

These cabins won’t be available for long though, so please don’t hesitate!

Is it safe to travel on NCL Epic?

I’m due to travel on NCL’s new flag ship in under 2 weeks time but I’m not sure if it’s worth it after a third fire on board. Several thousand people had to be evacuated during a visit for families and employees involved in the building of the ship, this weekend.

Fortunately there was no major damage caused, the fire being in an air conditioning duct and there will no delays in delivering the ship on the 17th June, so my visit on the 22nd is scheduled to go ahead.

However, reports are that the fire was caused by arson and the police are conducting interviews. Why would anyone want to start a fire on such a great ship – there shouldn’t be disgruntled employee’s as yet? NCL must be really worried about and the negative publicity it will be attracting.

I just hope that the police hurry up and catch whoever is doing this, before they cause any major damage or worse still harm to any people on board.

Royal Caribbean offer DIRECT flights from LOCAL airports for 2011

Royal Caribbean have finally done the sensible thing and teamed up with Thomas Cook airlines for 2011 to offer regional flights to Mallorca.

These flights are to go with their Vision Class ship, Grandeur of the Seas which will be sailing 2 7 night itineraries from May onwards. This will be a huge winner for Royal Caribbean and customers alike, up until now most people outside of London have been booking cruise only and arranging their own travel arrangements. However this has proved costly this year with BA strikes and ash clouds meaning many people have failed to make the cruise ship. By offering regional flights customers will now be able to have the protection of booking the complete package and the ease of flying from a local airport.

Flights are being offered from -
Gatwick
Manchester
Newcastle
Birmingham
Doncaster
East Midlands
Leeds Bradford
Belfast

My suggestion would be to book early for these flights, once they are booked up it will be back to travelling to London or maybe indirect flights.