This was our second trip to Bruges on a cruise ship but this time was disappointing. This ship carries too many passengers to make the trip to shore a pleasant, stress free experience within the time allocated. We did the organised tour last time so decided to go it alone and take in the local atmosphere at our own pace this time.

There was limited information from P&O on how this would work. The cabin newsletter told us about the free shuttle bus to the nearest rail station where we could catch a train to Bruges, but failed to point out there was a limited rail service due to it being a Sunday - just 1 train per hour. This would have been fine if we knew the times of the trains - our shuttle bus driver announced (as we crossed the railway) that the train we could see below was leaving and the next one was in an hour! There was literally nothing to do in the town where we were dropped as it was shut for winter so we wasted an hour of our shore time waiting for the next train in the cold after a fruitless search for life in the surrounding streets.

When we finally found Bruges it was a good 30 minutes from the rail station to the centre which was fine but it made us very aware of time and getting back to the rail station again so we didn't miss the ship! We didn't want to risk catching the last possible train in case of delays or overcrowding so we opted to head back on the 2 pm train. Bruges was heaving because of the Christmas Market so it was difficult to find a place to stop, relax and take in the atmosphere. We finally found a restaurant in a side street that allowed us a beer (although they really wanted us to eat but there was no time) and then the mad dash back to the rail station where everyone else had the same idea. The whole process of train, shuttle bus, gaining access back into the port took the best part of an hour and then the eternal wait while each bus queued outside the ship before being allowed to drop us off. We we outside the ship for another 30 minutes or so - it was really unacceptable. We felt like we were being punished for not taking the organised tour option and regretted going to shore after all, it couldn't be classed as a day in Bruges - more a fleeting half day at best. Very disappointing. Read more