British Cruise Ports
As one of the world’s leading cruise ports, Southampton is literally the first port of call for many holidaymakers in the UK looking for a cruise but that can leave you missing out on some fantastic opportunity’s as slowly, other ports are starting to invest in their facilities and to attract top company and great ships.
Cruise Lines
Southampton attracts the vast majority of cruise lines, from the biggest to local favourites whilst ports such as Newcastle and Dover attract popular cruise lines to them.
Smaller ports such as Portsmouth, Leith and ports in London attract a range of luxury lines. Unfortunately ports in Wales and Northern Ireland struggle to attract cruise liens to use their ports as starting points for holidays.
Local companies such as Fred Olsen use smaller ports around the British Isles whilst giants such as P&O, Cunard, Princess, NCL and more all operate out of Southampton.
Popular English Cruise Ports
There are now a number of cruise ports offering holidays from England but there are a number that still stand out as the key England ports.
The most popular cruise port in England is of course Southampton whilst Dover, Liverpool and Newcastle all offer a good choice of cruises.
When it comes to British cruise ports, the Port of Southampton is head and shoulders above the rest and thankfully that is down to the greatness of the port rather than the rest simply been worst.
Southampton offers cruises all year around to most parts of the world and you can pick and choose from one of the widest ranges of cruise lines in the world including many of the world’s largest and most modern cruise ships.
Whilst best known as a ferry port, Dover also offered a dedicated cruise terminal from where you can start off on your next cruise adventure to location across Northern Europe and the Med as well as a small number of world cruises that open up almost never ending possibilities.
The iconic port of Liverpool is a possible port of call for cruises around the British Isles but it is also the start and end port for a small number of cruise lines.
The Port of Tyne in Newcastle offers a small number of cruises each year including a shorter crossing over the Norwegian Fjords and with the trip so long for those from the North East to Southampton, it could well be worth looking for cruises from Newcastle.
Falmouth is the gateway to Cornwall and thanks to a big recent investment in its facilities, the port is now used by many ships sailing around the British Isles or arriving or departing Europe on a transatlantic cruise.
Popular Scottish Cruise Ports
There are now a number of cruise ports offering holidays from Scotland but there are a number that still stand out as the key Scottish ports.
The Port of Greenock is the gateway port for the city of Glasgow but there are also a small number of cruises that start their journey at the port each year.
The Port of Rosyth, on the Firth of Forth to the north west of the Scottish capital city of Edinburgh is mostly used for cruise ships stopping off on trips around Britain but a small number of holiday can be started near to the iconic Forth Bridge.
Leith offers a number of cruise holidays from Edinburgh to the Norwegian Fjords and the North of Europe and is also a popular port of call for numerous lines.
Cruises From Britain Destinations
There is hardly anywhere in the world where you cannot visit via a cruise from Britain, with world cruises on offer from Southampton and Dover.
With that said, most of us don’t have the time and funds to enjoy months at sea but the good news is that for a 7 to 14 day cruise, you still have plenty of options.
Amongst the most popular are the Norwegian Fjords, the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, the Baltic, the Canary Islands and Transatlantic cruises.
Cruise From British Ports
For many people, one of the biggest draws and joys of cruising is avoiding the hassle of an airport and the sitting in a cramped seat for hour after hour whilst flying but of course by not flying to departure points across the globe, you are limiting yourself to cruises that are offered from British cruise ports.
Thankfully, we are fortunate to live on a relatively small island, where we are never too far from the coast, which has a long maritime history that has allow us to develop a number of cruise ports, including Southampton, one of the world’s greatest ports for cruising from.
The south coast of England has long been an area of the world dominated by the sea and dominated by seafaring. From pirates to explorers and from naval bases to cross channel ferries, the world has often been open from numerous coastal ports but when it comes to cruising, it has been the Port of Southampton that has developed a well-deserved reputation as a world leading port.
It was during the era of trans-Atlantic liners when the port really developed into what we know it to be today but there is now so much more choice that heading out into the open ocean and across the waves to North America.
With the trip down to the south coast often a long one for many of us, although with good road, rail and air connections it is relatively straight forward at least, the great news is that whilst Southampton is still the main and domain cruise port in the British Isles, it is not the only one to offer a choice of cruise lines and a choice of destinations.
Newcastle, Greenock, Leith, Dover, Liverpool, and Rosyth are amongst other ports to offer cruises but from time to time other ports offer cruises, normally from ferry terminals or using facilities of ferry companies.
It is easier to simply drive to a port, park up and set sail and you can avoid having to pay for extra luggage or going through the struggles of getting your baggage down to a certain weight to be able to fly but that is a struggle that is often worth it to get the right cruise ship for the right cruise line and going to the right destination for the right price.
The great news for all of those looking for a cruise holiday starting closer to home is that the cruise ports in the British Isles, you also get a great selection of cruise destinations including the majority of cruise ports in Northern Europe, the Mediterranean, Greece and the Adriatic whilst there are also lots of options heading to Africa, North America, the Caribbean, Central America, and the Middle East.
The choice of cruise lines available to those looking to set sail from Britain is also amongst the widest of any country in the world and it is a list that continues to increase. The majority of the biggest cruise liens all offer a choice of cruises, mostly from Southampton, whilst small lines offer holidays from a range of ports.
Luxury lines also call into many ports across the country as well as offering special trips out of central London ports and terminals.
With so much choice in terms of cruise lines and destinations and with a large number of cruise ships coming into British ports, including many of the biggest and most modern cruise lines in the world as well as many of the world most luxurious, it will come as no surprise that you can also get great value for cruises starting off in Britain.
