Princess 12 day British isle cruise sailing August 12

Portland/Weymouth- the ship docks, you cannot walk out of the port but have to take the free port authority shuttle bus into Weymouth (c 2 miles) and to Portland Castle (closer still). There is frequent local transit to other destinations on the Isle of Portland and lots of walking. Weymouth is a big seaside resort, so plenty to do here.
Also trains to Dorchester.

Guernsey is a tender port- the tenders land you in the town centre with lots of local transit around this small island BUT it is a renownedly tricky tender port, your chances of getting in are probably no more than 50:50

Edinburgh- you tender into South Queensferry. It does tend to blow up in the Firth of Forth, and it is not unusual for a ship to be unable to tender. If you do make it in you are about 8 miles out of the City Centre. Lothian Buses provide a special Cruise Shuttle Bus which is timetabled to take 30 minutes into the City Centre. Day tickets including all other Lothian buses and trams are £12.
Unless you go up steep steps from Hawes Pier to Dalmeny station for a train that is your only transit.

Cork/Cobh- you berth right in the town and opposite Cobh Railway Station- that provides the only transit into Cork City, every 30 minutes. Cobh is a very walkable town with the Titanic Museum and the Emigration Museum.
On rare instances you might berth at the old Ringaskiddy Ferry port across from Cobh- then you take the Bus Eireann local bus into the City.

Dublin- there are several berths which can be used. All are several miles out of the City. Usually the HoHo buses come down to meet the ships and usually the lines I sail with provide a shuttle bus into the City Centre (Princess won't tell you that, if they are, until the night before). Alternatively taxis will come down to the berth. You can also walk out (20 to 30 minutes) to the LUAS tram terminus.
However Princess normally do not even berth in Dublin port. They usually anchor off the old ferry port of Dun Laoghaire some miles south, and tender in. A free shuttle should be provided from the tender dock to the DART station (the frequent local rail service) into the City. The DART gets very crowded on cruise days, you may well have to stand. You should look at alternative local bus services into the city or to the LUAS terminus - Dublin Bus #46A every 10 minutes- journey time 30 minutes; or #75 to Tallaght LUAS terminus (46A is the much faster route)

In Cobh you can tour St. coleman’s Church. There was a docent there and we were the only ones visiting. She was lovely. There is a Titanic exhibition, it was thier last port of call. In Guernsey visit. Near the port is the Cobh Experience. We also dressed in Titanic period clothing for a picture, near the Titanic Experience, it was fun.

In Guernsey you might tender in. By the port is Castle Cornet you can tour on your own, we also toured Victor Hugo’s home while he was in exile, you must pre-book. It’s called Hauteville House. Really interesting bordering in bizarre decor. We were there on a Sunday so we attended mass at a French Church.

Both places are lovely to just walk around. We didn’t book any excursions and enjoyed our stops.

In Dublin we hired a guide through Toursbylocals.com. He pickup us up (4 adults) at the pier and delivered back there too. With his advice we prebooked the Goal, Guinness Storehouse, then went to St. Patrick’s. We walked the grounds of Trinity University. We had THE BEST fish n chips at Leo Burdock’s. They are take away and have a few places. Google them.

Edinburg we did the same - private guide.

Have a look at the Cruise Critic website. While the site is vast, you can check out the Princess forum, and the Ports of Call forum. The latter will have information tailored towards cruisers. You can also check out your Roll Call, which is a subforum for people cruising on your specific sailing. There will likely be discussions on the port stops and even small group excursions. It can be hard to find, but you seem to be on the Regal Princess,; here's the link:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2860102-regal-princess-12-day-british-isles-with-orkney-islands-aug-12-2023-changed-from-emerald-princess/?do=findComment&comment=63405472

I’m currently on a Princess Cruise out of Southampton to Norway/Arctic Circle. We received a printed page early in the voyage that detailed port information for every stop. It stated exactly where the ship would berth, how far it was from the city core, and what transportation options were available and their costs. Places where there was more than a 20 minute walk into the core always had a shuttle bus available (fee).

There will also be a “destination expert” onboard who will give you a presentation about each port of call prior to your arrival. If you miss it, a taped version is available on your stateroom TV.

Almost every location had tours available upon landing that were less expensive than Princess excursions.

We had just one tender port and it was very smooth and well-organized. I don’t view this as a huge negative unless you have mobility challenges that keep you from walking independently . In that case, you would need to stay on the ship at a tender port.

The destination expert has “office hours “ near the shore excursions desk daily. You might want to stop in and talk to him/her early in the cruise.

Thank you for your comprehensive and helpful reply. I appreciate your input. Barbara.

Guernsey is fairly small. You might like to check on whether there's a public bus that goes all the way around the island. The VisitGuernsey website (VisitGuernsey.com) says the local bus company has an app called buses.gg . Guernsey was occupied by Nazi Germany during WWII; I'm sure there are some related sights.

Although Guernsey's currency is the pound sterling, it issues its own coins and notes. The coins and notes you might get in England are valid in Guernsey, but the reverse is not true; Guernsey money can be spent only in Guernsey. Unless you're looking for souvenirs, be sure you get regular UK money as change; just tell the merchant you're only in Guernsey for one day and need UK money.

This is the Guernsey bus map- https://buses.gg/bus-map

and this is the bus timetable- https://tower-transit-storage.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/file_upload/file/69/Guernsey_Bus_online_TT_April2023.pdf.

A hard copy can easily be picked up at the town bus terminus.

To go round the island there is no single bus- you have to change between services at Vazon Bay- routes 91 and 92 together do the circuit.

A one day bus pass costs £10.

The same company as operates the buses in Guernsey and Jersey is also a major London Bus Operator- Tower Transit!

At Portland you may encounter protesters outside the port as a large accommodation barge for asylum seekers is due to open at the port in the next few days.