On Friday, I am joining Cunard’s Queen Victoria for a 3 night mini-cruise to Belgium, this will be my first sailing with Cunard and I am pretty excited to be honest – I’ve been building up to this for quite some time.

Our itinerary is simple: a day at sea and then a day in Burges before arriving back in Southampton on Monday morning. I’ve never been to Bruges before so I am looking forward to that (I’m told that I must buy chocolate), but this trip for me is mainly about the ship and I am really, really looking forward to a day at sea! I’ve had a busy few weeks and I am ready to simply enjoy the surroundings and relaxation of a beautiful ship. I may even visit the spa, which is something I have never done!

For this sailing, I have a Princess Grill Suite and aside from being desperate to see what the suite is actually like, I am also excited to dine in the Princess Grill Restaurant. If the food is good then I guess only being on for 3 nights will be a blessing – for the next few weeks I need to make sure that I am leaving space for Christmas provisions. 😉

They don’t make ships like they used to, but the closest we can come to the grandeur of yesteryear in modern times is the Cunard fleet and that aspect, I think, is priceless. What I would give to go back and experience a voyage aboard the original Queen Mary, sadly it is never going to happen, but I am hoping that her young sister, Queen Victoria can at least offer me some glimpse into what it must have been like. I visited Queen Mary 2 a few years ago during her call to Greenock in Scotland and it really was love at first sight. Such a grand vessel and in a class entirely her own, she made me feel like I had entered another world, a world that was sort of caught between two times. She was incredible. I’m really hoping Queen Victoria gives me that same feeling.

This cruise will also mark the first time that my brand new luggage (well, some of it. I don’t quite need all three cases for a 3 night trip) will be going on its first ever cruise. This is the new Art-Deco range from Skyflite London and I absolutely love it! The set is available in green, graphite or the white/gold colour that I chose. They are super lightweight, on 4-wheels (offering perfect 360° motion) and they each have a little organiser section in the middle – great for loose cables, notebooks and tablets. I was desperately missing this on my last suitcase and it drove me mad. Sizes, from small to large, are: 55cm (37L), 66cm (66L) and 76cm (103L). They are made from ABS material, so they are hard on the outside and soft on the inside.

So, with not a lot of time to spare, I guess I should open my suitcase, dive through the wardrobe, plug-in the iron (ugh) and get some packing done!