Sea Cruising

If you don't like flying there are plenty of cruises that go from Southampton around the Meditteranean (and back!).
We always go for a balcony cabin - there's nothing like sitting on your own balcony having breakfast and watching the sea go by....
We have cruised with several different cruise lines and have never had bad food, and the staff are always extremely helpful.
Good luck with your search - there's no other holiday like it!!! (But that's just my opinion from our own experiences over the past 15 years of cruising)

Where is Galen when you want her?

Packing the dresses and pearls for the christmas cruise.

Fred Olsen ships are smaller. I took my mum on "Black Watch" a few years ago now. There was a lot of hanging around between check in and boarding but once on board the ship and the cruise was great.
H and I have done P&O. Only critisism there being the shore excursions are damn expensive.
Galen is the expert though

Saga for us. Wouldn't go with anyone else now. Pick up from home, crew fantastic, nothing to much trouble. Wonderful food, small ships, sail from Dover or Southampton which is great for us and if you don't fly, you can take as much luggage as you want. Perfect . Can't wait for the next one!

Also, free wine and all tips included in price. No hidden extras.

I like Cunard best. P&O is slightly cheaper. If you prefer a small ship Adonia will soon be returning to P&O. The benefit of a smaller ship is going to less well known ports.

The entertainment on the larger ships is very good. Particularly the Queen Mary.

The food is good on all of them these days. Shame about the extra pounds (weight) you come home with!

Just turn up at Southampton with all the clothes you want at any time of the day of departure. No stress.

Liaise I agree, We love Queen Victoria. We tried P & O once (Oceana) but we have been spoilt by Cunard. Not tried Queen Mary yet though.

We only ever went on one cruise, to the Norwegian fjords, we went on quite a small ship, the Marco Polo, nothing too fancy, but small, friendly, easy to find your way around, only carries 800 passengers. Oh, and the food was great. If I was going to go again, I`d like to be on that ship again, definitely don`t fancy the floating blocks of flats that they call ships, carrying thousands of people!

If you live in reasonable travelling distance of a cruise port most cruise lines have a ship visit programme. Gives the opportunity to get the feel of a ship and see the cabins as well as the public areas. There is a charge but it does usually include a very nice meal. We've done it a couple of times to check out a ship. We enjoy sea cruising, prefer the smaller or medium sized ships with the opportunity for flexible dining and not too much formal drsssing. A favourite ship is very individual. Fair to say food has always been good, staff helpful and good humoured and any problem dealt with promptly. We travel from Southampton, a bit of a trog now but booking a hotel the night before extends the holiday and makes life easy. Many offer a car parking and return taxi package but there is also good parking at the cruise terminal. We find the whole process easy and stress free. Hope it works for you.

I think you just have to research and look at the reviews on Cruise Critic and Facebook groups which are all really helpful. Personally I would rather fly and pick up the cruise in a warm place than start in the unpredictable UK also do not fancy the Bay of Biscay and rough seas but many people like starting in UK.
We have had 2 cruises with Thomson - 1st from Palma and 2nd from Dubrovnik and both were excellent. Thomson's ships are dwarfed by the huge ships but you can see familiar faces more easily.

I think you have to be honest with yourself about what type of cruise you want - same as any holiday. No use picking a big glitzy ship if you prefer staying in small family run hotels.
We loved both the Saga ships - its like a country house hotel holiday where all the staff soon get to know you AND recognise you six months later!!. I know some people worry about it being a bit 'old folks home' but evidently its pretty much the same clientele on any comparable line. That being said we've met some very lively folks on our cruises!

I have cruised a few times with Cruise & Maritime. The Marco Polo callgirl1 mentioned is one of theirs. The advantage to us is they have sailings from Avonmouth, just up the road, as well as Tilbury and some northern ports as well.
None of their ships are big ones. Their website is www.cruiseandmaritime.com

Yes, we sailed from Tilbury. We found that the advantage of sailing from a British port is not having to worry about the amount of luggage that we took, or having to pay to take cases on a plane.

I looked at the Saga cruises and nearly fell of my chair when I saw the cost! - I don't think we will be doing that any time soon!

When we go the long route to France I am always happy when the ride is over - the idea of doing it for a week is mind-blowing!

But....I hate flying and would love to see the Northern Lights.

Luckygirl, cruises to see the Northern Lights do sail from British ports. I found Saga to be quite expensive, but Cruise and Maritime aren`t too bad pricewise, especially if you can get a BOGOF like we did.

Cunard in grills class.
Expensive,but sheer luxury
And es, I'm packing and choosing which of my pearls to take!
Decisions, decisions!
HELP

I agree Saga can be expensive but in my opinion worth it. We book early and get a 35% discount rate and also book an inside room which is why we can afford to go. No extras like tipping (I have heard on cheaper cruise lines you are expected to pay up to £15 a day for tips). Food is good and the crew take very good care of you and are so friendly and nice.

I am keen to book a Norwegian Fjord cruise as a great way to see Norway, but I have just been on the Cruise & Maritime site and I am put off by the suggested dress code for 2 formal nights plus informal dining nights. I don't own a dress, let alone a "fancy" full length one or a cocktail one or even a trouser suit. I might possibly source them for the sake of the cruise, but I'll never get my partner into a suit. We are just people only comfortable in jeans (M&S and Debenhams jeans so not complete slobs!) If anyone knows of a cruise line that might suit a couple of tired old rockers, please let me know.

You don't have to do the dress up bit. There is another Bistro restaurant with no dress code and the same food, but self service.
And anyway only about half the people do go all the way with dressing up,( some do love it ). Smart casual is the most you have to do.

As said above, there`s a bistro self service restaurant, we ate there all the time, after the first night, which was casual anyway. We are/were ordinary folk, not dressy up types, so we were quite happy not doing "posh" dining. There was a £5 per day per person tipping charge added to our holiday cost on the Marco Polo.

On holiday in the Cape for past 3 weeks- every day was fabulous and oh so different. And as we have been talking a lot about cruises with friends who are trying to persuade us to go- every day we said- oh my, we could never have done THAT had we been on a cruise'. Each to their own - and enjoy.

Thanks Yggdrasil and callgirl1 that is just the information I need. I do know lots of people who do love dressing up and that's great for them, we are both just extremely uncomfortable in formal gear especially when we are on holiday. I seem to have missed out completely on the gene for posh dresses, handbags, even make up!

Pandaw are fantastic. Just come back.

Dressing up for dinner doesn't have to be expensive or difficult. I have managed for many years with a short black skirt, long black skirt and black trousers none of which cost much. Add any blouses you own and a couple of cheap dressy tops. It's easy.