Norway Travel Misconceptions: What Tourists Often Get Wrong

In recent years Norway has enjoyed quite the tourism boom. From cruise ships making weekly visits to regular flights to all parts of the country, it’s suddenly become impossible to scroll through your Instagram feed without finding at least one post about Norway. 

Norway’s sudden rise to fame has resulted in a wide variety of people being attracted to explore this beautiful country, which is a double-edged sword. If you are the kind of person that appreciates the beauty of nature and enjoys hiking up a hill to visit an impressive viewpoint then you’ll love Norway. If you’re the kind of person who likes to tick off tourist attractions like you’re catching Pokemon then you might find yourself feeling a little underwhelmed.

Can You use Your Phone on a Cruise Ship?

Can You Use Your Phone at Sea?

Like Christmas Eve, everything is packed and ready to go, the house is walking a fine line between show-home and organised chaos, and you're ready for an early night before the big day. But while you're getting ready to board your cruise ship, you might be wondering how to keep in touch with friends and family throughout your trip. It's common knowledge that cruise ship wifi packages are tantamount to daylight robbery - so can you just use your phone on board instead? The short answer is yes. You will be able to get a mobile phone signal while at sea but, before you breathe a sigh of relief, keep reading for the full story. If you don't, you could be liable for a phone bill worth several hundred pounds! 

Moxy Hotels Southampton Review - The Perfect Pre-Cruise Stay?

Moxy Southampton - The Ideal Pre Cruise Stay?

Southampton isn’t just a student city - it’s the busiest cruise ship port in the UK, and one of the busiest in Europe. With this in mind, you won’t be surprised to learn that you’ll be spoilt for choice when trying to find a hotel in Southampton. Whether you’re looking for a pre-cruise say or a weekend getaway, Southampton is the perfect base for your adventures. In my never-ending pursuit to find the best hotel in Southampton for your money, I stayed at Moxy in Southampton city centre for a night to put it to the test.

After first experiencing Moxy during a mini-break, the quirky hotel chain has been a go-to for me. Full of personality without being style-over-substance, Moxy always manages to cover the basics and sprinkle some fun and luxurious touches on top. Each Moxy hotel is decorated to reflect the local area - in Chester the communal spaces features thoughtful touches that gave a nod to the city’s horse racing heritage, so you can imagine the nautical theme running through the chain’s Southampton offering.

What to Pack for Northern Norway & The Arctic Circle

Visiting the Arctic Circle, whether in Norway or another country, is a magical once in a lifetime experience, but preparing for your trip is a level of overwhelm that I've not experienced since moving house. For someone that resides in a fairly temperate climate all year round, the concept of battling -30ºC doesn't even begin to compute. I found myself in this exact position at the end of November. Having fallen down a rabbit hole of frantic Googling, asked many people more knowledgable than myself for advice and with the benefit of hindsight after living with my mistakes, I'm fairly confident that I can offer you a foolproof guide to getting ready for your trip to the Arctic Circle.

Cruise Diary: What to Expect on a Norwegian Fjords Cruise

Ambassador Cruise Line's Ambition, docked in Falmouth UK

This post is in collaboration with Ambassador Cruise Line, but they haven't had any say in what I've written - it's my usual brutally honest opinions!

Hi Friends,

It’s been a while since I’ve done a proper old-school-blogging travel diary, and with everyone watching vlogs again it feels like the perfect time to bring this series back - particularly when I want to share a particularly incredible trip with you! 

Earlier this year I embarked on a 10 night cruise around the fjords for my birthday (and wow, what a memorable birthday it was!) on board Ambassador Cruise Line’s Ambition. I’ve sailed with Ambassador a few times now and each time is as special as the last. It helps that Ambassador was born out of the ashes of CMV going bankrupt; the “friendly little ship” ethos transferred over to the new company, along with many of the friends we’d made over the years. Stepping on one of Ambassador’s ships feels remarkably like a welcome home, even though it was my first time seeing Ambition. 

With that out of the way, let me show you what taking a Norwegian Fjord cruise looks like, day by day.

Rotterdam in One Day - The Best Itinerary for 24 Hours in Rotterdam, Netherlands

How to Spend the Perfect Day in Rotterdam

It's no secret that Rotterdam is one of my favourite cities in Europe. As a port day on a cruise ship, you're presented with a wealth of opportunities to explore either Rotterdam or further afield. One of the most popular choices for a port day usually involves a day trip to Amsterdam, but I've known someone be left behind on more than one occasion because of traffic or trains, so I prefer to spend the day exploring Rotterdam instead. Rotterdam is a city packed full of arts and culture - it's got a huge foodie scene, a wealth of different museums and galleries, and more independent shops than you could possibly hope to visit in a single day. If you're not sure where to start, try this itinerary for a day spent in Rotterdam - perfect for a port day on a cruise ship or a mini break where you've flown into the city. 

5 Must See European Destinations to Visit This Summer

European summer is just around the corner, parents are gearing up for sunny half term breaks, and with the long days and warm nights on the horizon, I've found myself looking ahead to sunny weekend city breaks or beach trips. 

Having just had to cancel our cruise this year, I've got absolutely nothing booked and a bit of "blank page" syndrome. There are so many places I would love to re-visit from previous cruises, because one day in port just isn't enough! At the same time, it's a big world out there with lots to explore! If you're in the same boat and looking to book some summer trips, allow me to share a few of my all time favourite destinations to inspire you.

5 Things You Forgot to Pack for Your Cruise

Hey Owlets,

Packing for a holiday can be one of the most stressful parts of the trip, but when you’re getting ready to go on your first cruise that stress is amplified because it’s a step into the unknown. What do you need for formal night? Have you remembered to pack everything? And what do you even need for a cruise? I’m assuming that you’ve hopefully covered all the basics - maybe even remembered to pack your toothbrush rather than buying a new one at the start of every trip when you realise you’ve forgotten. When you’re going on a cruise there are a few specific things that you may not have thought about - here’s what you’ve missed.

In Search of the "Cruise Ship Sparkle" Post-Pandemic

Hey Owlets,

If you read my post a few weeks ago you’ll know that I’ve been really struggling to find the motivation with my blog in the last few months. While I started my blog in 2016, it was in 2017 after just one chance encounter and an unplanned cruise got me hooked on travel that The Owlet was really born. For three glorious years I got to travel, see more of what was on my doorstep and what was further afield and I could finally say that I was doing something I loved. So in 2020 when my wings were unexpectedly clipped and I found myself tethered to a two mile radius in a seaside town that no one has ever heard of, I lost my “why”. It’s understandable - when your whole personality revolves around a love of exploring and adventure, a 2 mile radius is never going to be enough to fulfil you - anyway, how do you write about travel if no one is allowed to do it anymore?

One of the things I found hardest was not being able to cruise, so when the opportunity finally came up to be able to get back to doing what I love most I was more than a little surprised to find myself apprehensive. I’ve long spoken about the magic of cruising where everything feels like it’s straight out of a fairytale and you’re the princess. I love being able to make friends with guests and crew and see new places knowing that at the end of the day I get to re-board my floating home and quite literally sail into the sunset for the next destination.

My Honest Opinion of UK Cruising in 2021

Hey Owlets,

There’s been a lot of talk recently about the cruise industry starting to reawaken, and honestly I’m excited. You have no idea how much I miss having my morning coffee with a view of the sun rising over the ocean, meeting new people and out of nowhere making friends for life, getting to experience a new culture every day and revel in the amazing entertainment. The only issue is that I’m not sure how possible some of the things I mentioned are going to be - it’s almost definite that several of those things are out the window for the time being, but at least we can go on a cruise, right? I have several thoughts about these UK Staycation cruises launching so I wanted to share - if anything just because I’m hoping you can help me decide.

Everything We Know about P&O Arvia

Hey Owlets,

This morning P&O announced the name of the newest addition to their fleet and it’s fair to say I was a little bit excited for it. Named Arvia, meaning, she’s expected to undertake her maiden voyage in 2022 (pandemic willing, of course). P&O Cruises have kept their cards very close to their chest not his one with very few details being shared. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I feel like we knew a lot more about Iona at this point which makes me think that the cruise line have a few surprises up their sleeves. While we wait to hear more about what Arvia has to offer, let’s have a look at what we do know and perhaps make a few predictions along the way.

Travel Mishaps: Part 2

Hey Owlets,

A while ago I wrote an article called “Travel Mishaps: Everything that Happened” and in that I mentioned that I could’ve gone on for days about other stupid mistakes I’d made. However, not everything that’s happened while travelling was avoidable - either due to lack of experience, lack of knowledge or it was just one of those things. With that in mind, I wanted to make a part two to that article, but this time I want to focus on the things that have gone wrong, so you can have a laugh at my expense but also hopefully learn from them.

Cruising at Christmas: My Experience

Hey Owlets,

If you haven’t been keeping up to date with my Instagram account then you might have missed the spam all about my trip on board Cruise and Maritime Voyages’ MV Columbus. This was a bit of a first for me - both being on board CMV’s flagship and cruising so close to the festive season, arriving back in the UK in the first week of December. It’s one of those times where you aren’t entirely sure whether or not it’s a Christmas trip so I wanted to give you a rundown of my trip to help you.

Goodbye Marco Polo

Hey Owlets,

Marco Polo sailed out of Avonmouth last night. Out of context that statement seems a little mundane - why would anyone care about a ship doing what it’s meant to do? - but for me watching this elderly cruise liner sail away hurt in a way that I didn’t expect it to.

In case you’re new here, Marco Polo was one of the first ships I ever went on and my first taste of small ship cruising. One day I was bored and started scrolling through a cruise booking website - I wasn’t looking to book a cruise but it’s just something you do if you love travel, like scrolling through Instagram on the bus. During my mindless scrolling I came across a Christmas cruise for £123 sailing from Bristol on a line I'd never heard of (Cruise and Maritime Voyages) - I love Christmas, it was the cheapest cruise I’d ever seen & it was sailing from 10 minutes down the road so I couldn’t say no, out of curiosity if nothing else! When we boarded a month later we were subject to a cabin that broke, the worst night at sea I’ve ever had (even now nothing comes close!) and the cheesiest entertainment I’ve ever seen on a ship - but I loved it. 

A Foodie Guide to County Cork

Contains Sponsored Content

Hey Owlets,

When asked to name a few of my favourite trips over the past few years one of the first things to come up is my cruise to County Cork. It wasn’t just the cruise itself, but the areas of the county that we visited, the brilliant independent retailers, the kindness and willingness of complete strangers to make sure we enjoyed our trip, and the food of course. County Cork is known for being a very foodie place to visit and it didn’t disappoint! We went for the cruise and stayed for the food! Fair warning, I hadn’t yet gone gluten free when we took this trip, so be prepared to hate me when I talk about the farmers market sandwich we had, because I’m jealous of my past self too.

Goodbye Cruise and Maritime Voyages

Hey Owlets,

Cruise and Maritime Voyages was a cruise line with a cult following - every cruise line has their fans, but only a few rise to the level of having online groups dedicated to the cruise line, with friends being made online and met on board, rather than the other way around. 

CMV were the ultimate impossible cruise line, offering a no-frills service on older cruise ships in an industry that was all about over the top decadence and indulging in experiences that were totally unnecessary on ships that overflow with state of the art technology. The ships were basic but beautiful and the entertainment schedule was limited, but somehow just lying on a sun bed watching the waves was enough on their ships. Rather than being handed a jam-packed schedule every day, trying desperately to cram everything in and needing a holiday after your holiday, CMV ships were the place that you learned to let go and relax, or make your own entertainment. 

Cruise and Maritime Voyages MV Columbus: A Review

Update: I originally wrote this article in February 2020 and it was due to be published at the end of March. Due to lockdown I delayed publishing the article and now CMV have sadly gone into administration. However, when I asked on Twitter a lot of you said you would still enjoy reading the review so I decided to publish it regardless.
Hey Owlets,

Yes, I’ve been on another cruise and yes, I might actually be addicted to cruise ships (if that’s possible!) but another trip means I have another cruise ship review for you, and today I want to talk to you about Cruise and Maritime Voyages’ (CMV) MV Columbus. I originally tried out CMV on a 3 day cruise to Ireland aboard MV Marco Polo.

Mv Columbus is the current flagship of the fleet and the biggest ship they own. CMV are a budget cruise line and buy ships from other cruise lines rather than building their own, which means each ship has it’s own unique personality; Columbus was built for P&O Australia which makes her a unique addition as she still has the “P&O-ness” - if you’ve been on P&O before you have to keep reminding yourself who you’re sailing with!

Despite being over 30 years old Columbus doesn’t really show her age. Unlike other older ships that I’ve been on CMV have clearly put the work in to make sure that she’s well maintained and continues to be an asset to the fleet. There are a few places where her age is starting to show (there is the odd rusty, leaking pipe around) but it’s to be expected when she’s spent 3 decades being battered by waves and salt-water spray - even relatively new cars rot if they’re exposed to salt/salt water on a regular basis. 

Virtual Cruise Experiences you Need to Try

Hey Owlets,

I know we're all getting fed up of being on lockdown, and everyday I'm getting a tweet from one of you saying that you should've been on a cruise today or you've had to cancel your holiday. While I can give you all the tips on working from home and looking after yourself during lockdown, I think we could all do with a bit of a break - enter virtual cruises. I've seen some amazing options - and some not so great ones - so here's a run down of my favourites.

Virgin Voyages: A Very Honest Recap

Update: On publishing this article I received an email from the PR team, expressing their disappointment and asking me to rewrite my article. I was provided with a document to "help" me do so. I refused as the article detailed my honest experience, which is what I was invited to share. Virgin Voyages declined the offer of providing a comment, and I was subsequently removed from the brand's press list. I have always said that being provided with payment or a gifted experience will not affect my reviews and I will continue to provide fair but honest commentary, regardless of possible repercussions from the brand.

Hey Owlets,

I’m back with another cruise ship review today; I’m usually so excited to write these that I’m planning the article in my head before I’ve even disembarked but this one has been a bit of a struggle. Last week Virgin Voyages invited me to spend a few days aboard Scarlet Lady, their first ship and inaugural venture into the cruise industry. I can’t lie, as soon as I got the invite I was already looking at deck plans, checking out cabin photos online and planning all of my Instagram photos. I was ready to absolutely love this ship and be inspired to save every penny in order to get on board this magical ship. The reality, however, was a bit different from that. I must admit, I waited for a few of my fellow media guests to write their articles first while I wondered what to do, and maybe they also didn’t have the best experience either because while there is the odd honest review, most have stuck to listing all the ship’s beautiful features. Having deliberated for days and being told by everyone around me “don’t be too harsh” or “make sure you’re totally honest”, I think I have to take the latter option and tell you what I experienced, rather than reviewing the ship so that you can make your own mind up.

Scarlet Lady’s long awaited arrival at her first ever port of call in Dover, Kent was going to be the birth of a new age in the world of cruising.  Built specifically for passengers aged 18-35 and free from screaming kids, Richard Branson and his team threw everything “cruise” out of the window before they’d even installed one, including the team itself. Holidays are now called “voyages”, passengers are “sailors”, travel agents are “first mates”, bathrooms are “heads” (I’m going to need someone to explain that one) and the design team were specifically chosen for their lack of experience in designing cruise ships, and it shows.


*Virgin Voyages invited me on board to experience the ship for myself but I was not paid or obliged to create
 any content for them and all views are my own and entirely based on my personal experience

A Night With Gary Barlow & P&O Cruises

Walking through the streets of a London suburb on a particularly grey day in January you’d be forgiven for thinking that nothing interesting or exciting was going to happen until the days started getting longer, but if you’re a fan of a certain Boy-Band-Legend and love cruise ships then this dull day was about to get a lot more interesting.