Transatlantic Pre Cruise Q

[jeanmonti]

Was wondering if anyone that travels frequently or lives in Europe would give me their opinion. We are leaving from Dover on 9/15 for the westbound transatlantic cruise. Is it too much traveling to consider a stay in Paris beforehand? It would be an overnight flight arriving in Paris the morning of 9/12. We would probably lose some time that day getting settled but could start touring that night. In your opinion, is the travel from Paris to Dover easy and reliable to leave for Dover the morning of the cruise? Is this just cramming too much in to one trip?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Was wondering if anyone that travels frequently or lives in Europe would give me their opinion. We are leaving from Dover on 9/15 for the westbound transatlantic cruise. Is it too much traveling to consider a stay in Paris beforehand? It would be an overnight flight arriving in Paris the morning of 9/12. We would probably lose some time that day getting settled but could start touring that night. In your opinion, is the travel from Paris to Dover easy and reliable to leave for Dover the morning of the cruise? Is this just cramming too much in to one trip?

How long will you be staying in Paris? I wouldn't fly there just to stay 2 nights. I doubt that you'll much up to touring the day you arrive. I know I wasn't.

And I, definitely, would NOT travel the day of embarkation from Paris to Dover.

That said, travel from Paris to Dover isn't that difficult, about 4-6 hours (all things being good).

 

[Baduist]

Paris is tricky.

1. The airport is far, so add 1-2hrs to your travel time in each direction depending on where you’re staying in Paris.

Your location will also determine how easy / long the trip to Dover will be.

2. Paris is huge, you need a lot of time to explore it. I wouldn’t bother for 2 days.

 

[jeanmonti]

Thanks so much. for your input. I think you both are right. Two days isn't enough especially when you add jet lag and the amount of travel needed - we are coming from Chicago. We will tour London instead!

 

[ScooterScott44]

We will see you on board! We did consider flying to Paris before but we are traveling into London due to the flights we could find.

To me there are a few things that might make it possible but it may not be easy.

If you can sleep on the flight that will help with that first day. No matter how much sleep you get, if you arrive in the morning it is likely your hotel room will not be ready and you will be forced to drop your bags and find something to do to occupy your time.

Travel from Paris to Dover the day of is probably on the limits of what I would consider risky. Anything can happen. That philosophy can apply to even when staying close, but the further you get the more that risk seems to increase. The big factor is how early you want to board. As long as you are not planning to be there when boarding opens it seems like it would be reasonable.

 

[Dizzydizney]

Thanks so much. for your input. I think you both are right. Two days isn't enough especially when you add jet lag and the amount of travel needed - we are coming from Chicago. We will tour London instead!

We will be staying 3 nights in London. The Doubletree at Victoria station AAA rate is $334/night. You can also reserve the Disney transfer bus to the port for $60 PP......it picks up at the Doubletree. Someone is doing a really great trip report for the WBTA in 2018. She had some good things to do in London. I didn’t know about the Warner Brothers Harry Potter museum tour...its on my list now.
I’m trying to figure out how to take the Heathrow Express into London. That’s on my to do list for tomorrow.

 

[jeanmonti]

Yes, I decided to do the London route and just booked the flight. We are flying into Gatwick so I'll be looking into that transportation as well - I don't think it's as close as Heathrow but the flight was priced right. I'll look for the trip report you mentioned - thank you! Is the Disney transport from the Doubletree on the morning of the cruise or the day before? I guess I can login and see as well. Very excited to hear from people that will also be on the cruise. We did the Transatlantic three years ago out of Barcelona and loved it.

 

[Dizzydizney]

It’s the morning of. Some people are getting different info from DCL and are having difficulty getting the info. I need to authorize my TA to book this and I’ll let you know what the details are.

 

[Karin1984]

Yes, I decided to do the London route and just booked the flight. We are flying into Gatwick so I'll be looking into that transportation as well - I don't think it's as close as Heathrow but the flight was priced right. I'll look for the trip report you mentioned - thank you! Is the Disney transport from the Doubletree on the morning of the cruise or the day before? I guess I can login and see as well. Very excited to hear from people that will also be on the cruise. We did the Transatlantic three years ago out of Barcelona and loved it.

Gatwick is closer to the city of London than Heathrow. By public transport it's about an hour from Heathrow to get to the city center, from Gatwick little over half an hour.

 

[jeanmonti]

What’s everyone doing in Cork? Of all the stops on the cruise I’m most excited to see Ireland.

 

[Dizzydizney]

I think we will do a self tour of the town. We are doing the Disney excursion for Stonehenge on our first stop. There is a discussion thread for this cruise. I’ll try to post the link.

 

[tlprice]

What’s everyone doing in Cork? Of all the stops on the cruise I’m most excited to see Ireland.

Well, since unfortunately we are arriving in Ringaskiddy instead of Cobh, I'm bummed out. I was most excited about this port too until they changed it. We were planning on walking into Cobh, going to the Titanic museum, to the cathedral, and just enjoying the town. Now, we are going to have to find transportation there. I have done a lot of research and nobody has anything good to say about Ringaskiddy.

 

[Dizzydizney]

If you click on my name and then messages you’ll see where I posted in the group. I thought I read somewhere that there will be some kind of shuttles to the Cobh port. It’s not that much further is it? More research to do tomorrow.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

What’s everyone doing in Cork?

I think we will do a self tour of the town.

we are arriving in Ringaskiddy instead of Cobh,

If you click on my name and then messages you’ll see where I posted in the group.

The DISboards WBTA cruise meet thread is here:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/disney-magic-september-15-2019-wbta-dover-to-nyc.3683212/

 

[Dizzydizney]

Thank you PrincessSchmoo. I’m using my iPad and it drives me nuts sometimes.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Thank you PrincessSchmoo. I’m using my iPad and it drives me nuts sometimes.

Well, I don't think you can post links until you get a few more posts in.

 

[ivanp91]

Gatwick is closer to the city of London than Heathrow. By public transport it's about an hour from Heathrow to get to the city center, from Gatwick little over half an hour.

Heathrow is approx. 20 miles from London.
Gatwick is approx. 26 miles from London.

Dependent on the time of day, getting from Gatwick can be faster, but via the express trains available at both airports they are comparable. But distance-wise, in no way is Gatwick closer to London.

 

[Karin1984]

Heathrow is approx. 15 miles from London.
Gatwick is approx. 28 miles from London.

Dependent on the time of day, getting from Gatwick can be faster, but they can also be comparable. But in no way is Gatwick closer to London.

I used a time-measurement to compare the two airports. Not a distance-measurement. When I go from Heathow to the city center (as an example I took Victoria station), it usually takes me 1 hour, Gatwick is usually faster.

 

[ivanp91]

I used a time-measurement to compare the two airports. Not a distance-measurement. When I go from Heathow to the city center (as an example I took Victoria station), it usually takes me 1 hour, Gatwick is usually faster.

It was more about the choice of the word "closer", which is generally used in terms of describing distance rather than time, and has the potential to confuse people that aren't familiar with how the London area is laid out. "Travel time is shorter" probably works better.

Yeah, yeah, I know I'm being nitpicky just for the sake of it

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

Yes, I decided to do the London route and just booked the flight. We are flying into Gatwick so I'll be looking into that transportation as well

From Gatwick into London you have several choices for transportation. You can take a cab......(expensive), if your hotel offers a shuttle you can use that. You can take the "tube" (public trains) into the city. This is the cheapest, if you are comfortable with using public transportation and hauling luggage onboard this is a good option. For a slightly more expensive but easier option you can use the Gatwick Express trains. The GE trains are especially useful if you are staying near Victoria Station because they go directly to Victoria Station. It's around 17 pounds if you pre-purchase, and even though you pick a time, their website does state you can use it for any train that day (or 2 days after). You can also just purchase the tickets at the airport which will be around 19 pounds. These trains are usually less crowded, and have a bit more room for storing luggage, since they are designed for airport travelers to get to and from London. It takes around 30 minutes from Gatwick to Victoria Station on the GE trains.