Marella has become the latest line to offer round-Britain cruises this summer, with two ships sailing from Southampton and Newcastle at under £450pp for three nights, all inclusive.
Marella Explorer will offer voyages from Southampton to ports including Belfast, Dublin and Liverpool from June 25.
Adults-only Explorer 2 will be based in Newcastle from July 10. Details of itineraries from both ports are at the end of this blog. Newcastle cruises go on sale on May 5.
The Southampton itineraries include a three-night taster cruise visiting Dover and Portland, and a 12-day voyage to Ireland including visits to Dublin and Cobh (Cork).
Scottish sailings include stops at Invergordon, Kirkwall, Leith (Edinburgh) and Greenock (Glasgow). Belfast and Holyhead also feature among ports being visited this summer.
Marella has also announced sailings to Spain and Portugal in September.
Round-Britain cruises are only available for UK residents. Anyone over 18 will be required to have had both Covid jabs at least seven days before sailing. Under-18s will be asked to have a lateral flow test and infants under the age of two will not be able to sail because they are exempt from testing. All guests will also be tested before boarding – more details will be provided nearer the sailing dates.
The ships will still offer facilities such as the Champneys spa, a range of dining experiences, fitness classes, entertainment and family-friendly activities on Marella Explorer, such as the indoor cinema or minigolf.
Passengers will only be allowed on shore as part of Marella excursions.
Chris Hackney, the MD of Cruise TUI UK and Ireland, said: ‘Domestic sailings are a great step for the cruise industry and have given us the opportunity to take our customers to new destinations full of culture and history whilst still being close to home. We’re looking forward to this new adventure on the British seas and are dedicated to making sure our customers have the most memorable and exciting cruise with us.’
Marella will continue the suspension of sailings for Marella Discovery and Discovery 2 until July 31. The ships are due to be based in Palma and Corfu this summer.
See also:
Round-Britain 2021: How the major lines compare
Southampton itineraries
| Sail the South Coast | June 25 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| June 28 | 2 | Dover (London), England | |
| 3 | Portland, England | ||
| 4 | Southampton, England | ||
| Sail the South Coast | August 27 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | Portland, England | ||
| 3 | Dover, England | ||
| 4 | Southampton, England | ||
| A Taste of the West Coast | July 2 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Greenock (Glasgow), Scotland | ||
| 4 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 5 | Holyhead, Wales | ||
| 6 | At Sea | ||
| 7 | Portland, England | ||
| 8 | Southampton, England | ||
| West Coast Wonders | July 9 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Holyhead, Wales | ||
| 4 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 5 | Greenock (Glasgow), Scotland | ||
| 6 | Liverpool, England | ||
| 7 | At Sea | ||
| 8 | Southampton, England | ||
| West Coast Wonders | August 7 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Greenock (Glasgow), Scotland | ||
| 4 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 5 | Liverpool, England | ||
| 6 | Holyhead, Wales | ||
| 7 | At Sea | ||
| 8 | Southampton, England | ||
| West Coast Wonders | August 20 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Holyhead, Wales | ||
| 4 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 5 | Greenock (Glasgow), Scotland | ||
| 6 | Liverpool, England | ||
| 7 | At Sea | ||
| 8 | Southampton, England | ||
| East Coast Explorer | July 16 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Greenock, Scotland | ||
| 4 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 5 | At Sea | ||
| 6 | Stornoway*, Scotland | ||
| 7 | Kirkwall*, Scotland | ||
| 8 | Invergordon, Scotland | ||
| 9 | Leith*, Scotland | ||
| 10 | Newcastle, England | ||
| 11 | At Sea | ||
| 12 | Dover, England | ||
| 13 | Southampton, England | ||
| British Sights and Seas | July 28 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | Dover, England | ||
| 3 | At Sea | ||
| 4 | Leith*, Scotland | ||
| 5 | Kirkwall*, Scotland | ||
| 6 | Lerwick*, Scotland | ||
| 7 | Invergordon, Scotland | ||
| 8 | At Sea | ||
| 9 | Newcastle, England | ||
| 10 | At Sea | ||
| 11 | Southampton, England | ||
| East Coast Getway | August 14 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Kirkwall*, Scotland | ||
| 4 | Leith*, Scotland | ||
| 5 | Newcastle, England | ||
| 6 | At Sea | ||
| 7 | Southampton, England | ||
| Sail the Irish Sea | August 30 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Greenock, Scotland | ||
| 4 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 5 | Liverpool, England | ||
| 6 | Holyhead, Wales | ||
| 7 | Dublin, Ireland | ||
| 8 | At Sea | ||
| 9 | Cobh, Ireland | ||
| 10 | At Sea | ||
| 11 | Portland, England | ||
| 12 | Southampton, England | ||
| Iberian Explorer | September 10 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | At Sea | ||
| 4 | Vigo, Spain | ||
| 5 | At Sea | ||
| 6 | Malaga, Spain | ||
| 7 | Gibraltar, Gibraltar | ||
| 8 | Cádiz (for Seville), Spain | ||
| 9 | Lisbon, Portugal | ||
| 10 | At Sea | ||
| 11 | La Coruna, Spain | ||
| 12 | At Sea | ||
| 13 | Southampton, England | ||
| Mediterranean Explorer | September 22 | 1 | Southampton, England |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | At Sea | ||
| 4 | Vigo, Spain | ||
| 5 | Lisbon, Portugal | ||
| 6 | At Sea | ||
| 7 | Malaga, Spain | ||
| 8 | Cartagena, Spain | ||
| 9 | Valencia, Spain | ||
| 10 | Barcelona, Spain | ||
| 11 | Palma, Majorca |
| Newcastle itineraries | |||
| ITINERARY | DEPARTURE DATE | DAY | PORT |
| Weekend Escape | July 10 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Newcastle | ||
| A Taste of Scotland | July 13 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | Leith*, Scotland (for Edinburgh) | ||
| 3 | Invergordon, Scotland | ||
| 4 | Newcastle | ||
| Celtic Explorer | July 16 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 4 | Greenock (Glasgow), Scotland | ||
| 5 | At Sea | ||
| 6 | Invergordon, Scotland | ||
| 7 | At Sea | ||
| 8 | Leith*, Scotland (for Edinburgh) | ||
| 9 | Newcastle | ||
| British Treasures | July 24 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | Invergordon, Scotland | ||
| 3 | Lerwick*, Scotland | ||
| 4 | At Sea | ||
| 5 | Dundee, Scotland | ||
| 6 | At Sea | ||
| 7 | Newcastle | ||
| Gaelic Getaway | July 30 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 4 | Greenock (Glasgow), Scotland | ||
| 5 | At Sea | ||
| 6 | Kirwall, Scotland | ||
| 7 | Dundee, Scotland | ||
| 8 | Newcastle | ||
| British Delights | August 6 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Greenock (Glasgow), Scotland | ||
| 4 | Holyhead, Wales | ||
| 5 | At Sea | ||
| 6 | Dundee, Scotland | ||
| 7 | Leith*, Scotland (for Edinburgh) | ||
| 8 | Newcastle | ||
| Coastal Delights | August 13 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | Leith*, Scotland (for Edinburgh) | ||
| 3 | Invergordon, Scotland | ||
| 4 | At Sea | ||
| 5 | Holyhead, Wales | ||
| 6 | Liverpool | ||
| 7 | Greenock (Glasgow), Scotland | ||
| 8 | At Sea | ||
| 9 | Newcastle | ||
| British Treasures | August 21 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | Invergordon, Scotland | ||
| 3 | At Sea | ||
| 4 | Lerwick*, Scotland | ||
| 5 | Kirwall, Scotland | ||
| 6 | At Sea | ||
| 7 | Newcastle | ||
| A Taste of Scotland | August 27 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | Invergordon, Scotland | ||
| 3 | Leith*, Scotland (for Edinburgh) | ||
| 4 | Newcastle | ||
| Coastal Charms | August 30 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Dover, England | ||
| 4 | Portsmouth, England | ||
| 5 | At Sea | ||
| 6 | Liverpool, England | ||
| 7 | Belfast, Northern Ireland | ||
| 8 | At Sea | ||
| 9 | Torquay, England | ||
| 10 | Le Havre, France | ||
| 11 | At Sea | ||
| 12 | Newcastle | ||
| Icelandic Adventure | September 10 | 1 | Newcastle |
| 2 | At Sea | ||
| 3 | Lerwick*, Scotland | ||
| 4 | At Sea | ||
| 5 | At Sea | ||
| 6 | Reykjavik, Iceland | ||
| 7 | Isafjördur*, Iceland | ||
| 8 | Akureyri, Iceland | ||
| 9 | At Sea | ||
| 10 | At Sea | ||
| 11 | Kirwall, Scotland* | ||
| 12 | At Sea | ||
| 13 | Newcastle |
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Does that mean back to normal in Oct
That’s as far as they’ve gone with new itineraries
Any chance to join this company as Bartender
You’ll have to apply to them
Can you get 12 day cruise from Newcastle if so what dates and what price for outside cabin
They haven’t released Newcastle itineraries yet.
We have missed our cruise’s could you let me know when the itinerary are starting from Newcastle please.
Many thanks
Avril
Hi Avril, as mentioned in the story, the sailings begin in Newcastle on July 10 but the details have not yet been released.
We know that travel insurance is mandatory,,is our bank travel insurance valid which is a world wide travel insurance. Please reply. otherwise we have to cancel our booking.If you could let us know ASAP. Thank you.
I’m sorry, I can’t answer that – please check with Marella or your travel agent.