My cruise aboard Ocean Majesty (page & moy) arrived two hours late Southampton, by the time they assembled the gangway, got clearance etc it brought 10.30am. The upshot was that I missed my flight from S'hampton 11.15 take-off by a few minutes. So I joined the coaches back to the NW. The tour people did all they could to get me off the ship quickly and helped with my contingency plan of coaching it back.

My experience of cruise punctuality is limited, and I booked the flights only after being reassured by the Operator that I could rely on the ship being on time. I allowed 3hours 15 mins to disembark and to take the taxi (20mins tops)to the airport.

The announcement stated that strong currents in the channel (Brest to S'ton journey) were the reason. My recollection of the evening was a fairly smooth crossing, certainly smoother than the outward journey. Maybe I'm being a bit cynical for harbouring the thought that fuel efficiency may have been a factor. What I can say is that it caused a deal of chaos to travel arrangements after disembarking.

What approach would experienced cruisers take in future. The taxi driver who had to return me to the airport told me that the larger operators arrived on the dot .

Your views will be most welcome as I plan more trips soon.

Thanks
Joe