Edinburgh, Dublin, the Orkneys, and nobody has to drive on the left.
Round Britain and Ireland in 10 to 12 nights: Edinburgh, Invergordon for Loch Ness, the Orkney Islands, Belfast and the Giant’s Causeway, Dublin, Cork, Liverpool and Guernsey. Princess, Holland America, Celebrity, Viking, Oceania, Azamara and Regent sail it from Southampton and Amsterdam between May and September, and the small ships add the Hebrides and the Scilly Isles. SmartCruiser shows every British Isles sailing with taxes and fees included and puts the ones with SmartCruiser bonus onboard credit at the top.
Three ways round the islands
Pick one and the list below filters to it. The route is nearly the same; the ship and the starting point are the choice.
Round trip from Southampton
- Princess, Celebrity, Cunard and P&O, 10 to 12 nights, clockwise or counter
- Guernsey, Cork, Dublin, Belfast, Glasgow, the Orkneys, Invergordon, Edinburgh
- London before or after; Heathrow is 90 minutes from the pier
Best for: first British Isles trips, London add-ons, big-ship comfort
From Amsterdam
- Holland America and Celebrity, 10 to 14 nights; Oceania and Viking some seasons
- Crosses the North Sea first to Edinburgh or Newcastle, then round the top of Scotland
- Nonstops from most US hubs; Amsterdam is a two-night city in itself
Best for: US travelers flying in, pairing with the Dutch canals, mid-size ships
10 to 12 night classics
- The sweet spot: enough nights for Orkney, the Hebrides or Shetland as well as the big cities
- Azamara, Oceania, Regent and Viking overnight in Edinburgh or Dublin on these
- Filter here to skip the 7 night tasters and the 14 night Iceland combos
Best for: Scotland first, whisky and castles, people who want every port
British Isles deals: SmartCruiser picks first
Every British Isles sailing from every line, priced live with taxes, fees and port expenses included. The picks at the top are sailings where booking with SmartCruiser gets you something extra: instant savings, bonus onboard credit, a Special SmartCruiser rate, or a senior, resident or police & fire fare that beats the public price. Below them, every other sailing with full sorting.
SmartCruiser picks
Sorted by what you save, biggest firstEvery British Isles sailing
Stack any filters, then pick a sortPrices are per person, double occupancy, in US dollars, and include cruise fare, taxes, fees and port expenses as published by the cruise line at the moment you load this page. Fares are capacity controlled and change daily; the fare is confirmed when you book. Flights, hotels and transfers are extra unless the line’s offer says otherwise. SmartCruiser instant savings and bonus onboard credit are provided by SmartCruiser on top of the cruise line’s price and are not available when booking direct; amounts are per stateroom, vary by stateroom category and are shown for the lowest category offered. Special SmartCruiser rates are pricing SmartCruiser holds on that sailing for its clients, with extra onboard credit; you book your own stateroom and travel on your own. Senior fares apply to guests 55 and over; resident fares need proof of residency in a listed state or province at check-in; police and fire fares apply to active or retired police, fire and EMT personnel with ID. Qualifier-fare savings are measured against the best fare the cruise line offers the general public for the same stateroom category on the day the list was pulled, updated weekly.
Where you start
Southampton has most of the sailings, Amsterdam the best flights from the US. Pick a port and the list above filters to it.
Which line for the British Isles?
Tender ports and tidal harbors reward the mid-size ship; the big ships bring the price down. Our one-line take, with a link to each deals page.
When to go
May to September, and even then pack for four seasons in a day. June and July are the long, bright ones.
British Isles cruise questions we answer every day
Do I need a visa or a passport?
A passport valid for your whole trip; US and Canadian citizens need no visa for the UK or Ireland. US visitors to the UK now need an ETA travel authorization, a quick online form done before you fly; Ireland does not require it. We walk you through both when you book.
Will it be rough?
The Irish Sea and the Pentland Firth off Orkney can be lively, and tender ports like Guernsey, Portree and Kirkwall get missed when the wind blows. Pick a mid-size or large ship if you worry, and treat every port you make as a bonus; it is the North Atlantic.
What are the must-do excursions?
Edinburgh Castle and the Royal Mile (the ship docks at South Queensferry or Leith), Loch Ness and Culloden from Invergordon, the Ring of Brodgar and Skara Brae from Kirkwall, the Giant’s Causeway from Belfast, Blarney and Kinsale from Cork. Dublin and Liverpool you can do on foot.
Do I need pounds and euros?
Both. The UK, Channel Islands and Northern Ireland use pounds; the Republic of Ireland uses euros. Cards work almost everywhere, including on buses; carry a little cash for the small shops in Orkney.
Are taxes and fees included in the prices here?
Yes. Every price on this page includes cruise fare, taxes, fees and port expenses. Flights, hotels, gratuities, drinks packages and excursions are extra.
What do the SmartCruiser picks mean?
They are sailings where booking through SmartCruiser gets you something you do not get booking direct: instant savings, bonus onboard credit, a Special SmartCruiser rate we hold on that sailing, or a senior, resident or police & fire fare that beats the best public price.
Talk to a British Isles specialist
Tell us how much Scotland you want and we match the ship and the week, priced on every line with the London hotel before. Monday to Thursday 9 to 6, Friday 9 to 5, Saturday 10 to 6 ET.