Arriving in Southampton, UK

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I’m not saying I got emotional seeing land again… but I’m also not not saying that.

After a week of ocean, coffee, more food, and convincing myself I could absolutely live on a ship forever, we arrived in Southampton and it felt like stepping into a completely different rhythm.

Stepping off of a ship after being on one for a week means trying to regain your land legs. We spent to much time on the ship trying to stay balanced when walking through the halls that when you go to get off and realize you don’t have to do this anymore, your body doesn’t know how to react.

Disembarkation was surprisingly smooth, and just like that, we were back on solid ground, luggage in hand, quickly taking a car from Bolt (which I’ve learned is a decent alternative to Uber, who tends to be overpriced in a lot of places). From here, it’s the perfect jumping-off point; whether you’re heading into London for the classics or continuing onward (like we are) into full-on European adventure mode.

Today, we’re taking a ferry with Brittany Ferries to the lovely city of Caen, France where we will spend a day before heading off to Paris. It’s rather ironic that we are going from a cruise ship to land and then back onto the water for a 6 hr ferry ride but we decided that rather than sit on a train (which we’ve done many times), we might as well try something different and enjoy the view from a ferry instead.

To take the ferry, you simply take a train from the Southampton Port to Portsmouth Ferry Port or drive (it’s about 50 minutes either way). Then you hope on a Brittany Ferry for a 6 hr ride across to Caen.

Upon arrival in Caen, we’ll be sure to share lots of photos and videos on Instagram and during the entire trip, we encourage you to follow along because this is where the real trip begins and now the adventure awaits.

Next stop: France… and I have a feeling carbs are about to become a personality trait.

— Karlynn