Anyone else in the British isles cruise

[MnkyGirl]

thanks so much for all the great info--as of now we have a tour of the medevial catheral in salisbury but it is a 6 hr tour which on our last day is a little too long we like to keep tours close and simple on the last day

that Portland castle sounds like it would be perfect for our last day

about how far is it from the ship

thanks again this was just so helpful

Portland Castle is actually the first stop on the free shuttle. They let us out literally right in front of the entrance—super easy!!!

 

[MnkyGirl]

Hello - I live near Liverpool and I’ve taken the kids to see the Magic when it came in 2017 so I can tell you it’s a very easy walk to a couple of Beatles places. Liverpool city centre is a 10-15 min walk from the dock and it’s a very pedestrian friendly city. I’ve attached a pic of where the boat docks (the shaky cross!) and you can see the Cavern Club and the Beatles experience museum, which is a 15 min walk to give you an idea of scale. The big S is where the shopping complex is. Albert Dock (where the Beatles museum is located) is nice to walk around.View attachment 765444
The city has made a big fuss whenever the Disney Cruise comes to town so I hope they do it again. It made us very emotional when the Magic sailed away and it did the horn etc. Excited for you!

Thanks for the map Rachel!!! We TRULY enjoyed seeing everyone come out last year. It was extra special because we got to participate in the Maritime Moment. It was an unforgettable experience.
@Dznypal I would recommend if you are going to do some of the Beatles stuff on your own, to try to be some of the first people off the ship. We were and immediately hit the Beatles Statue on the dock, walked to the Cavern Club, and the Eleanor Rigsby statue is literally right at the end of the road that the Cavern Club is on. About the time that we finished, the tours had started catching us up and any time we passed by it was just packed with people. By getting out early, we ended up with some gorgeous pictures and a nice quiet experience.

 

[hmsTigger]

Portland Castle is actually the first stop on the free shuttle. They let us out literally right in front of the entrance—super easy!!!

Thanks for the info Very Helpful! How often does the shuttle run? If you get off at the Castle can you get back on to visit Weymouth?

 

[MnkyGirl]

Oh absolutely! If I remember correctly it just ran on a constant loop, so there was generally only about a 15 to 20 minute wait or so between shuttles

Thanks for the info Very Helpful! How often does the shuttle run? If you get off at the Castle can you get back on to visit Weymouth?

 

[hedwigowl73]

This will be our second British Isles cruise. On Princess, we visited different ports than this cruise. We were in Edinburgh during the Fringe Festival. We visited Holyrood House and Edinburgh Castle. I was in a Mary, Queen of Scots phase at that time, so Holyrood was neat to see. We visited the Kilmainham Gaol, a prison in Dublin with stunning architecture. I am most excited to visit Belfast, Cohb, and even Southampton. I've been a Titanic buff since 11th grade and look forward to seeing the relevant Titanic sites. Some other things that look neat are the Spike Island Prison in Cobh, The Beatles sites in Liverpool, and the Falkirk Wheel in Scotland.

 

[auntlynne]

Blarney Castle: I just watched a YouTube video of cruisers visiting Blarney Castle.

Yikes! Time in the queue was 1.5 or so. That includes tight, narrow, winding steps. I was concerned at the idea of getting down on my back on the ground. And then getting back up - okay, really that ruled it out. But the staircase! and line.

It reminded me of “if your friends jump off the cliff, are you going to, too?”

The countryside drive maybe nice, but isn’t there an alternate activity at this port?

@Dznypal - Concierge guest requests get filled before Castaway Club members can book. Possible reason things were Sold Out? And then they added more buses/ transportation, opening up spots (or Sone cancelled already?)

 

[hedwigowl73]

Blarney Castle: I just watched a YouTube video of cruisers visiting Blarney Castle.

Yikes! Time in the queue was 1.5 or so. That includes tight, narrow, winding steps. I was concerned at the idea of getting down on my back on the ground. And then getting back up - okay, really that ruled it out. But the staircase! and line.

It reminded me of “if your friends jump off the cliff, are you going to, too?”

The countryside drive maybe nice, but isn’t there an alternate activity at this port?

@Dznypal - Concierge guest requests get filled before Castaway Club members can book. Possible reason things were Sold Out? And then they added more buses/ transportation, opening up spots (or Sone cancelled already?)

I saw a Blarney Castle video with La Lido Loca, Don, and ParoDeeJay. Those were some tight passageways to get up to the stone! Not my cup of tea, either. I'd find a way to fall down, LOL.

 

[auntlynne]

I saw a Blarney Castle video with La Lido Loca, Don, and ParoDeeJay. Those were some tight passageways to get up to the stone! Not my cup of tea, either. I'd find a way to fall down, LOL.

Haha. That is exactly the video. And the resulting fall Tony had in Dublin due to his leg muscles being over stressed.

That group are all 6’ tall, minimum. None too light.

But, still, that wait, for one quick touch of the lips in a rock. ???

 

[hmsTigger]

Gardens are beautiful there and shopping great for some quality wool sweaters. Stairs are narrow difficult to fall sideways.

 

[tidefan]

The countryside drive maybe nice, but isn’t there an alternate activity at this port?

Yes! We just got off of Regal Princess on the cruise prior to these folks (Enjoyed the ship, BTW, I thought that our food was pretty good - so I agree with Don, not Tony ).

At any rate, just take the train. It is literally just a few steps from the dock. We took it to Midleton and did a tour of the Jameson Distillery then went to a great pub. Loved it. You can also take the train into Cork if you wish.

 

[tidefan]

One other thing. When you get off of the tender for Dublin, and into Dun Lagohaire, the hop on hop off bus people there will tell you that the Guinness storehouse is sold out and to buy tickets through them. Do not believe them… We went into town and they had plenty of spots…