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5 best cruises from Southampton - 2020
One of the main advantages of a cruise holiday is that it offers a foreign holiday without the boredom and stress of airports.
Southampton is arguably the best place for UK cruisers to start looking for a no-fly cruise with more than a dozen cruise lines using the port. If you're driving, it's about 2 hours 30 minutes from Birmingham to Southampton or about 4 hours 30 minutes from Manchester. By train, you can get to Southampton in about 90 minutes from London or it's about 2 hours 30 minutes from Birmingham.
Southampton also won 'Best UK Port' at the Cruise International Awards 2018.
We’ve picked out the five best cruise lines which operate from Southampton by looking at customer reviews, prices, industry awards and destinations.
For our price comparison, we looked for a Mediterranean cruise of around two weeks in 2020 for two people. We looked at the price of a room with a window (i.e. an 'outside' cabin).
Southampton is arguably the best place for UK cruisers to start looking for a no-fly cruise with more than a dozen cruise lines using the port. If you're driving, it's about 2 hours 30 minutes from Birmingham to Southampton or about 4 hours 30 minutes from Manchester. By train, you can get to Southampton in about 90 minutes from London or it's about 2 hours 30 minutes from Birmingham.
Southampton also won 'Best UK Port' at the Cruise International Awards 2018.
We’ve picked out the five best cruise lines which operate from Southampton by looking at customer reviews, prices, industry awards and destinations.
For our price comparison, we looked for a Mediterranean cruise of around two weeks in 2020 for two people. We looked at the price of a room with a window (i.e. an 'outside' cabin).
1. Princess Cruises - mid-priced, family-friendly, couples
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Princess Cruises is a family-friendly mid-priced cruise line which is a good choice for a first time cruiser. Their most notable recent award was when they were named Highly Commended in the Best Cruise Line category at the British Cruise Awards 2019 (Highly Commended means second place behind Viking Cruises which doesn't depart from Southampton). Princess Cruises was also shortlisted in the 'Best Value' category at the 2019 awards.
When I checked Princess Cruises had more than 80 cruises departing from Southampton, ranging from a 4 day trip the Channel Islands and Belgium through to a 54 day trip around the world. Their main destinations from Southampton were Scandinavia (including Iceland and Norway), the Mediterranean (including Spain, Italy and Portugal) and Russia. |
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Princess Cruises operate more than 20 ships and they get decent customer reviews, with an overall average of around 4/5 at the time of writing (3.5/5 on CruiseCritic, 5/6 on IGLU, 3.8/5 on Cruiseline.com)
Although Princess Cruises are suitable for families, they do have a fairly wide age range onboard including lots of couples.
Activities onboard vary depending on which Princess cruise ship you choose from Southampton, but typical options include stargazing, outdoor cinema, dance class, cookery demonstrations and swimming pools.
One thing worth noting with Princess Cruises is that in the price comparisons I've done, I have found that upgrading to a balcony is often very reasonably priced compared to some cruise companies.
Typical price: £3098 for two people travelling onboard Island Princess from Southampton for 10 nights in October 2020. The holiday was a European Explorer cruise staying in an oceanview stateroom (which is a room with window but no balcony). It included visits to five destinations including Sicily and Rome.
Although Princess Cruises are suitable for families, they do have a fairly wide age range onboard including lots of couples.
Activities onboard vary depending on which Princess cruise ship you choose from Southampton, but typical options include stargazing, outdoor cinema, dance class, cookery demonstrations and swimming pools.
One thing worth noting with Princess Cruises is that in the price comparisons I've done, I have found that upgrading to a balcony is often very reasonably priced compared to some cruise companies.
Typical price: £3098 for two people travelling onboard Island Princess from Southampton for 10 nights in October 2020. The holiday was a European Explorer cruise staying in an oceanview stateroom (which is a room with window but no balcony). It included visits to five destinations including Sicily and Rome.
2. Saga Cruises - mid-priced, best for 50+
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Saga doesn’t have the razzmatazz and ice skating of some cruise lines, but it does get strong reviews (4/5 on average) and was named the 2nd Best Cruise Line by Which? in 2018 and 2019. It also won Best for Dining in the small ships category at the Cruise Critic Awards 2017 and Best Specialist Cruise Line at the British Travel Awards 2017.
They are exclusively for the over 50s, but it isn’t all early bedtimes and episodes of Countdown. There’s plenty of dignified entertainment onboard, as well as bars and places to eat. The cruise ships aren’t as mammoth as those offered by some companies, but that generally means they are easier to navigate and have a much smaller number of passengers onboard. |
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From Southampton there was a choice of 25 no-fly cruises when we checked, mostly around the Canaries, Mediterranean and Scandinavia. Cruisers with stamina can spend more than a month onboard a cruise to the Caribbean or USA.
Saga is a mid-priced option and it won a ‘Best Value for Money Cruise Line’ award at the Wave Awards 2017 and 2018.
Typical price: £7611 for a 16 night Mediterranean cruise with an outside cabin for two people in October 2020 (travelling from Southampton and visiting Malaga, Monaco, Gibraltar and other stops).
Saga is a mid-priced option and it won a ‘Best Value for Money Cruise Line’ award at the Wave Awards 2017 and 2018.
Typical price: £7611 for a 16 night Mediterranean cruise with an outside cabin for two people in October 2020 (travelling from Southampton and visiting Malaga, Monaco, Gibraltar and other stops).
3. Marella Cruises - mid priced, adults only from Southampton
Marella Cruises makes our top 5 after being named as the Best Value for Money Cruise Line at the British Cruise Awards in 2018 and 2019. That's on top of solid customer reviews (3.5/5 on CruiseCritic, 5/6 on IGLU, 4.2/5 on Cruiseline.com, 3.5 from Berlitz) and a choice of cruises from Southampton.
The company is run by TUI and was previously called Thomson Cruises. It's a mid-priced cruise line which is popular with couples and families. However, when I checked, all the Marella Cruises from Southampton were onboard their adults-only cruise chip which is called Marella Explorer 2. They also operate a number of holidays from Newcastle. So, it's perfect if you're looking for a peaceful holiday without any children, but no good if you're looking for a family holiday.
The adults only ship has more than 900 cabins, a Champneys spa, nine bars, nine restaurants, a golf simulator, a show lounge and a swimming pool.
When I checked, Marella Cruises was offering no-fly cruises from Southampton to the Caribbean, the Baltics (including Russia and Estonia) and Scandinavia (Finland, Denmark, Norway).
Typical price: £3509 for a 14 night cruise to Norway and the Northern Lights in September 2020. This was for an outside cabin, but there wasn't a Mediterranean Cruise available when we checked so we went for a similar length cruise for our price comparison.
The company is run by TUI and was previously called Thomson Cruises. It's a mid-priced cruise line which is popular with couples and families. However, when I checked, all the Marella Cruises from Southampton were onboard their adults-only cruise chip which is called Marella Explorer 2. They also operate a number of holidays from Newcastle. So, it's perfect if you're looking for a peaceful holiday without any children, but no good if you're looking for a family holiday.
The adults only ship has more than 900 cabins, a Champneys spa, nine bars, nine restaurants, a golf simulator, a show lounge and a swimming pool.
When I checked, Marella Cruises was offering no-fly cruises from Southampton to the Caribbean, the Baltics (including Russia and Estonia) and Scandinavia (Finland, Denmark, Norway).
Typical price: £3509 for a 14 night cruise to Norway and the Northern Lights in September 2020. This was for an outside cabin, but there wasn't a Mediterranean Cruise available when we checked so we went for a similar length cruise for our price comparison.
4. P&O Cruises - mid-priced, best for families & couples
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P&O is top of our list of cruises from Southampton because their range of ships and destinations from the port is the widest we've found.
There are nearly 250 round-trip cruises from Southampton on offer and the company regularly wins awards from customers including ‘Favourite Ocean Cruise Company’ at the Globe Travel Awards 2018. Customer reviews average around 4/5. Couples and single travellers usually go for one of the adults-only cruises from Southampton with a choice of about 75 cruises. |
P&O has several cruise ships which sail from Southampton
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Families have a choice of about 150 no-fly cruises from Southampton onboard a handful of larger cruise ships with children’s activities in four age groups. There's also a big range of fun and games for grown ups including several dining options and bars, spa facilities, swimming pools, cinema, theatre, libraries, as well as health and fitness classes to burn off the holiday platters.
P&O no-fly cruises from Southampton range from a 2 night mini cruise to Guernsey through to a month’s cruise to the Caribbean. Stick with a shorter option if you’re a first time cruiser.
Other destinations from Southampton include Canada, Central America, Scandinavia, Mediterranean, USA and Western Europe.
P&O prices are somewhere around the mid-market, although you can obviously adjust things significantly depending on the type of accommodation you choose. For the benefit of first-timers, cruise lines offer ‘inside cabins’ without windows for a bargain price, with options to upgrade to ‘oceanview’ cabins or suites with balconies if you can stretch the budget.
Typical price: £3298 for a cruise for 14 nights for two people sharing a balcony cabin in June 2020 (Barcelona, Rome and Gibraltar, departing from Southampton).
P&O no-fly cruises from Southampton range from a 2 night mini cruise to Guernsey through to a month’s cruise to the Caribbean. Stick with a shorter option if you’re a first time cruiser.
Other destinations from Southampton include Canada, Central America, Scandinavia, Mediterranean, USA and Western Europe.
P&O prices are somewhere around the mid-market, although you can obviously adjust things significantly depending on the type of accommodation you choose. For the benefit of first-timers, cruise lines offer ‘inside cabins’ without windows for a bargain price, with options to upgrade to ‘oceanview’ cabins or suites with balconies if you can stretch the budget.
Typical price: £3298 for a cruise for 14 nights for two people sharing a balcony cabin in June 2020 (Barcelona, Rome and Gibraltar, departing from Southampton).
5. Royal Caribbean International, best for families
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Royal Caribbean International is arguably the first place to look if want an action-packed family-friendly cruise from Southampton.
Many of the world’s biggest cruise ships are part of Royal Caribbean’s large fleet and they take great pride in offering quirky activities such as bungee trampolining, ice skating, laser tag and one of those games where you have to escape from a room within a certain amount of time. Royal Caribbean often wins family-friendly awards including Best Family Cruise Line at the Wave Awards 2019. They get decent reviews of about 4/5 from customers on average. |
Royal Caribbean is a popular family choice
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When we searched there were three Royal Caribbean cruise ships which sailed from Southampton and a choice of 33 cruises. The shortest was a two night trip to France, whilst the longest was a fortnight around the Mediterranean. Other destinations included Scandinavia and Ireland.
Typical price: £4598 for a 14 night cruise for two people with an ocean view in June 2020 (Mediterranean cruise from Southampton visiting Rome, Lisbon and Gibraltar).
Typical price: £4598 for a 14 night cruise for two people with an ocean view in June 2020 (Mediterranean cruise from Southampton visiting Rome, Lisbon and Gibraltar).
The Best Cruises Guide Dont-Blame-Us-Disclaimer: facilities, onboard activities and prices were correct when we checked, but things change all the time so please check details direct with cruise lines, rather than blaming us. Bear in mind that some cruise lines are more 'inclusive' than others, so will add extra charges later. We just looked for the basic price.
