Cobh (tours to Cork) cruise port, Ireland
Titanic's last port of call, on 11 April 1912, when the town was called Queenstown. A hundred and twenty three people were tendered out to her from the pier on the front, and forty four of them lived. St Colman's cathedral stands over the terraced streets with the largest carillon in Ireland in its tower.
Worth knowing. Two and a half million people emigrated through this harbour. The Lusitania was torpedoed eleven miles off this coast in 1915, and the dead were brought here and buried above the town.
What to do in Cobh (tours to Cork) for free
The berth is in the middle of the town and the promenade is three minutes from the gangway. The cathedral is a steep climb up from it and costs nothing to go into. The Lusitania memorial is in the square and the pier Titanic's passengers left from is on the same front, a few minutes apart.
What costs money
The ship's own excursions usually cost more than booking the same trip yourself. Two things come with the price. The ship waits for its own excursions and does not wait for you. And if the port is missed, P&O refunds its own without you asking. A trip you booked yourself is a claim on your travel insurance, so check what your policy covers. The ship sells its own trips to all of these, and the desk is open on board if you would rather do it that way.
Cork on the train. The station is in front of the berth and the train takes about twenty-five minutes each way, every half hour. The English Market in the middle of Cork is what most people go for, and it has been trading since 1788.
The Titanic Experience. In the White Star Line's own ticket office on the front, which is the room the last hundred and twenty three passengers were checked in at. It is small and it is the actual building.
Which ship calls at Cobh (tours to Cork), and when
Every call here between 15 August and 28 November 2026, with the hours ashore P&O published. These times are a guide, not a promise: the captain gives the real ones the day before.
| Ship | Sails | Day | Ashore |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arvia | 20 August 2028, 14 nights | Day 10 | 08:00 to 18:00 |
| Arvia | 27 August 2028, 7 nights | Day 3 | 08:00 to 18:00 |
| Arvia | 27 August 2028, 14 nights | Day 3 | 08:00 to 18:00 |
How long you get ashore in Cobh (tours to Cork)
The published times give you about 10 hours alongside, depending on the sailing. Take off the time it takes a few thousand people to get off, and the time you need to be back on board before the ship leaves, and that is your day. P&O give the real hours the day before, and the all-aboard time is earlier than the departure time.
The other stops on these cruises
Every one of these is on at least one of the sailings that calls at Cobh (tours to Cork).
- AlesundThe whole town burned down in one night in January 1904 and was rebuilt at speed in Art Nouveau, with materials Kaiser Wilhelm II sent by ship.
- Getxo (tours to Bilbao)Basque country, at the mouth of the river up to Bilbao.
- HaugesundNorway calls this its birthplace: Harald Fairhair, who pulled the country into one kingdom in the 870s, had his seat at Avaldsnes, just down the coast.
- Le Verdon (for Bordeaux)The mouth of the Gironde, where the estuary meets the Atlantic, and a deep water quay built for cargo rather than for a town.
- OldenA village of a few hundred people at the head of Nordfjord, 100 km in from the open sea.
- SkjoldenThe innermost point of the Sognefjord, about 200 kilometres from open water.
- StavangerA herring and sardine-canning town that struck North Sea oil in 1969 and became Norway's richest city.
Money and language in Ireland
Euro (EUR, €). The euro, not the pound, which catches people out on a week that starts and ends in Southampton. Cards are taken everywhere. Onboard is always charged in sterling, so this only matters ashore.
English everywhere. Irish is the first official language and it is on every road sign, so these are for reading rather than for saying.
| English | Irish | Say it |
|---|---|---|
| Hello | Dia duit | DEE-a gwit |
| Goodbye | Slán | slawn |
| How much? | Cé mhéad? | kay VAYD |
| Thank you | Go raibh maith agat | guh rev MAH ah-gut |
| Please | Le do thoil | leh duh HULL |
Free, and it works with no internet. Give it the dates you sail and it works out your own stops and saves the street map for each one. It shows you round the ship too.
All the ports written up so far, the things to do before you sail, or the ship pages for Iona and Arvia.