Pre-Cruise London Hotel

Tips about a layover in London before heading to Southampton for a cruise.

London Layover

I am so glad that I overnighted in London prior to heading to Southampton to embark on Azamara Quest. To miss the iconic capital city would be a real shame: the people, history, culture, food, and activities should not be missed. Although I get that most people don’t have enough time for a side trip, especially when a 14-day cruise around Britain, Ireland and Scotland is on tap but… I am so glad I took the time.

Note: When I return to land (and a stable Internet connection, I will be doing articles about each of the three places that treated me like Queen while I was in London). In the meantime, check out some photo highlights below.

Tea Time

Scents of Summer Afternoon Tea at InterContinental London Park Lane hotel. Executive Chef Ashley Wells and Edward Bodenham from Floris London have created this limited edition Afternoon Tea celebration.

Cocktail hour at the Egerton House Hotel

One Aldwych Luxury Hotel

One Aldwych hotel, London is a luxury five-star hotel in Covent Garden. This bustling hotel has amazing food, well-appointed hotel rooms, an indoor swimming pool that plays underwater music as well as a doting staff ready to take care of guests.

Getting to the Port of Southampton

From London, I took a train from the city back to Heathrow where I availed myself of a pre-arranged cruise transfer from the ship. After fetching my bag from the luggage storage place at terminal 2, which I gladly paid the equivalent of $15 US dollars, I met a representative from the transfer company. For those interested in doing something similar, work with a travel agent or make sure to ask the cruise line for assistance. Of course, you could always get to the port on your own (I listed options for getting to the port on my Southampton port guide, you can see that by clicking here.)

The journey to Southampton

The bus ride took about 1.5 hours. We did not encounter much traffic along the way and when we arrived to the ship check-in took no longer than twenty minutes. I was extremely excited to be sailing from the iconic port that was famous for many reasons: immigrants left from this exact place heading to America as well as the ill-fated Titanic. Since the first dock was inaugurated in 1843, the Port of Southampton has played a pivotal role in history.

First impressions Azamara Quest

This is my second sailing on Azamara Quest and it was nice to see some familiar faces among the crew as I settled back into my home-away-from-home for the next 14 days.