All aboard for a no-fly, no-hassle getaway...
IF YOU’RE put off travelling by worries about airport hassles or delays, choosing a no-fly cruise means you start your holiday the moment you step aboard.
And although the variety of cruises departing from Southampton and Dover is vast, next year there will be some wonderful itineraries starting from ports that are handy for holidaymakers living all over Britain. Here are some great valuefor-money ideas.
A leisurely 16-night autumn voyage from Newcastle with Fred. Olsen (fredolsencruises.com) aboard
Balmoral will take you all the way to Malaga on the Mediterranean and back, with calls along the way including Antwerp, Cadiz and Oporto. Departure is on October 12, 2021.
The same line has a 15-night cruise from Liverpool to the Azores and
Portugal aboard Black Watch from
October 18, 2021.
Both cruises start at £1,999pp, and if you book by the end of this month, up to £200pp on-board spending money is thrown in.
Bristol is the perfect departure point for a Hibernian summer adventure, sailing on August 12, 2021, on Marco
Polo (cruiseandmaritime.com). In a week you’ll circumnavigate Ireland, visiting lively Cork, beautiful Bantry Bay, musical Galway, Killybegs in the wild north-west and Belfast, home to the fascinating Titanic Quarter.
Fares start at £594pp (thanks to a buy one, get one free offer for two people sharing a cabin).
Southampton has great rail links and acres of long-term parking, and a tremendous choice of no-fly cruises going all over the world next year.
For example, a week to the Norwegian fjords from April 17 on Iona, P&O’s new flagship (pocruises.com/ deals), costs from £549pp. The ship visits Stavanger, the setting for State Of Happiness, this year’s hit Scandidrama TV series, shown on BBC4.
Or you can take a five-night city break from Dover on October 5, 2021, sailing to Hamburg, where the ship docks overnight, then Amsterdam, with sightseeing tours included. There will be two days at sea to enjoy the spa, bars and lectures aboard new boutique ship Spirit of Adventure
(saga.co.uk). Fares start at £1,083pp for a balcony cabin, and are currently up to 35 per cent off brochure prices.