MSC, Great Value Cruising

I work with many cruise lines and they all offer a different type of package, whether it be a fly cruise or cruise only it seems their all battling for you're business.

 As the lines get busy for the summer getaway and availability diminishes, I keep finding myself checking the MSCrange for what they have to offer. I do this because I just cant believe my eyes most time!

MSC offer a contemporary style of cruise inspired by the Italians, this obviously includes the usual attention to detail you may find with an Italian product. They are offering some fantastic fares from as little as £349 per person for an inside cabin, if you like value for money well look no further, this works out to only £43.63 per night for an 8 night cruise! Not only the cruise but great food, great service and great entertainment. You couldn't stay in the UK for that sort of price



I visited the MSC Opera on the 28 June 2011, which is the only member of their fleet to cruise from the UK, Southampton.

I went with my colleagues from the office and we were all pleasantly surprised, the ship felt modern, clean and we were greeted with smiles and a great atmosphere. We had a member of the crew give us a guided tour around the decks. Take a look at some of my pictures. I think you will agree it looks great.

Although this is an Italian based cruise line the primary language on board is English, it also has areas within the ship at selected bars where you can smoke, but I'm not sure how long this will continue with the EU laws changing by the minute!

I've often heard rumours about the food being cold, boring and generally not pleasant, I really don't know  where this comes from because we ordered everything from the menu and it was all great. I had a seafood cocktail to start followed by the soup of the day and for my main I had a pork dish which was very yummy!



Overall this ship exceeded expectations a good quality ship at very low prices, what more can you ask for!

Have a look at our website to find all the deals at: www.cruise.co.uk

Have you been on the MSC Opera? What did you think?

Last Minute Madness

Only 4 weeks to go until the summer holidays! I recently wrote about the limited available places for children on cruises but now with the holidays looming it may be difficult to get you to a ship!

Although cruise lines offer great last minute deals, flights to get to the ships are often not available or over priced at this late stage. I am receiving a large number of calls at the moment from customers hoping for that last minute deal which they find on our website www.cruise.co.uk. Not realising that all these deals are cruise only they often get disappointed that the deal doesn't include flights and when we add flights the price increases quite dramatically.

One of my guests make a valid point today about this so I thought I would share it with you. She asked me this question: 

"If these cruise ships have all these empty cabins they are offering at knock down prices, how do they expect to sell them if we cant get to them"?

With the Nation looking to get away very soon don't you think extra flights should be chartered and extra routes made available?

Tell me what you think!

Fred Olsen Ship Visit

At the end of last week I went back down to Southampton to sample the delights of Fred Olsens Balmoral.

I went with an open mind and was really looking forward to veiwing this ship as I have many customers booked on her and many more enquiries. Fred Olsen only have four ships in their fleet and this family run business has been around for over 150 years! The perception has always been that they cater for the more mature traveller with departures from 7 UK ports, making them one of the most accessible cruise lines across the country.

On entering the ship I was welcomed by a very spacious and pleasant reception area and some very attentive crew!

There was a really nice ambiance on board, I felt like I could quite easily do a long cruise on this ship. The cabins were spacious and fresh with the suites offering complimentary drinks and lots of space!

The upper decks felt modern and looked smart, my photos don't do it justice as the skies were black but I was very impressed as I didn't imagine a Fred Olsen ship would look like this. After the tour we dinned in the Ballindalloch Restaurant with a glass of wine. The food was great, I had soup for starter and beef for main. 

I had a fantastic day and would recommend this ship to any traveller who wants a friendly ship from the UK with great service and years of experience. Take a look at some of there offers at www.cruise.co.uk.

P&O Adonia Visit

Following the recent cancellation of my overnight stay on Adonia, the most recent addition to the P&O fleet. I was once again invited down to Southampton to have a look around and sample the menu with fellow agents from around the UK.

It was also very nice to meet Carol Marlow, the managing director of P&O Cruises. She was very welcoming and pleasant, it was nice to meet the lady I see everyday in the brochure!

On arrival I was amazed with the size of this tiny ship, something i'm not quite used too. As I stepped aboard it felt a little cloaustraphobic and became very evident that this ship only caters for around 700 guests, but this small ship will be great going into the ports that the bigger ones cant reach and P&O have set up some great itinaries for her to visit.

We were given a map with a route to follow and we set off to discover all she had to offer. Adonia has a traditional feel and the decor is very simular to others in the fleet, she also has all the facilities you would expect on a bigger ship but on a smaller scale.

She has one pool on deck with a running track and a sparking new gymnasium and spa. We looked at all the grade of cabins and I was surprised to find that the inside cabins were so large, I wouldnt hesitate to use one of these. At the other end of the scale the suite was amazing with its living area a bedroom with endless wardrobe space and a stunning bathroom with a whirlpool bath!

We had lunch in the main restaurant and was offered the full menu which was very nice and included a blue cheese mouse for starter, Goose for main and cheesecake for dessert followed by a coffee to finish of! The meal was cooked to a fantastic standard and I left feeling very full for the long journey home!

No More Kids!

The summer is coming and were all trying to plan the perfect family holiday, If you're anything like me I forget about the school holidays and at the last minute I'm rushing around trying to find the perfect trip!

The only problem with doing that is that you don't always get what you want. I'm currently having this issue as some of my customers want to go away in the school holidays on a fantastic cruise with the Grand Princess from Southampton.

Although the Grand Princess has cabins available they are currently not taking any more children on board and claim;             "NO INVENTORY AVAILABLE FOR THIS AGE GROUP".

Cruising from Southampton is becoming increasingly more popular and so to get your perfect cruise it pays to book early. It's not only Princess that offer this service, P&O, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity and Fred Olsen are just some of the operators that also sail from the south!

I have access to all of the cruise companies that leave the UK, and will be happy to look at something for you. Give me a call on 0800 408 6164.

Rafting on the River

Another bank holiday over with and I certainly made the most of it!

We went to the  National Watersports Centre which cater for all types of activities on the water.

With the weather as bad as it was here in the Midlands on Monday, a group of us decided to go white water rafting on the River Trent in Nottingham. The rain lashed down and the wind made it colder out of the river than in so we took advantage of that and spent most of the day swimming!

Its a great experience on this man made course with qualified instructors and excellent equipment to hire. Prices are really competitive and if you can get a group together of 6-8 you can have your very own raft which heightens the experience.

It's been a couple of years since I've done anything like this, I used to go every year to the River Tryweryn white water rafting centre in Wales which is longer and wilder.

 I am also a keen sailor, canoeist and diver, basically if it involves water I'm there!