Singer and TV presenter Jane McDonald on her four cruises to France, Northern Europe, the Caribbean and Mediterranean — and why setting sail is easier than ever
HAVING started my TV career 20 years ago on the BBC docu-drama The Cruise, I thought I knew a lot about holidaying on ships.
But since then, the industry has exploded, with a cruise holiday for every taste — from enormous ocean liners complete with indoor skydiving rooms to quaint little ships with just a few cabins for a more intimate experience.
For my latest series of Cruising With Jane McDonald on Channel 5, I took four different journeys and had four completely different experiences.
First up was something I never would have picked — Scandinavia on the Viking Sky.
I’m a bit of a sun worshipper and always imagined a northern European cruise to be a bit chilly. But to my surprise, it wasn’t cold at all and now I’m mad with myself for not going sooner.
I had no idea how beautiful it would be, sailing past lovely pastel- coloured houses set on jagged rocky coastlines.
We travelled as far north as St Petersburg in Russia, then on to Estonia and Helsinki — but my favourite port of call was Stockholm in Sweden.
It’s a gorgeous city, where I visited the Abba Museum and got the chance to try out being the fifth member of the band.
The shopping was so good that I needed to buy another suitcase to haul all my goodies home.
Next was France on the Avalon Poetry II, a river cruise up the Rhone on a small ship. It was a lovely experience and meant we could visit tiny towns that you’d never normally reach on a large ocean-going vessel.
I had my own perfume made, which was gorgeous, and took a hot- air balloon ride at dawn that had me feeling like the lady in the old Nimble adverts.
The design of the ship was fantastic, with floor-to-ceiling windows to help you soak in the stunning scenery.
My third cruise was in the Caribbean on Celestyal Crystal, which began and ended in Havana, Cuba.
Walking the crumbling streets of old Havana, I imagined myself as an extra in a musical, as wherever we went there was someone playing a guitar or singing and dancing.
In fact, I got so into the carnival atmosphere that I blagged my way into a stranger’s house party.
After hearing music pouring on to the streets I couldn’t help but join in. The locals were incredibly friendly and we had a ball.
My final cruise of the series was aboard the MSC Meraviglia, which sailed around the western Mediterranean, taking in destinations including Naples, Messina, Valletta, Barcelona, Marseille and Genoa.
Jumping on and off the ship so many times, I noticed how much easier boarding and disembarking have become since my early days working on a cruise ship.
Jane's top cruising tips
1. USE a really good travel agent – I do for all of my holidays. Tell them what sort of cruise you want, and what you want to see, and let them use their expertise to put together something perfect for you.
2. DON’T waste suitcase space taking lots of toiletries. You’ll pass plenty of shops where they’ll probably be cheaper than they are at home. Leave the shampoo and use the extra space to pack another pair of shoes.
3. DON’T worry about exploring the whole ship straight away – just find the pool deck, the lifts and whatever else you’re into. I got off the Italy cruise having not seen half of it. But I found the champagne bar, the restaurant and the theatre, which are the important areas for me.
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It used to be that you would wait for ages in port — but now modern technology on new ships such as the Meraviglia make it so efficient it’s almost pain-free.
My top spot in the Med was Portofino, a fishing village on the Italian Riviera that’s lined with super-yachts.
It’s a true millionaires’ playground, but to be part of that life for even one day was incredibly exciting.
I felt like George Clooney could appear at any minute with an offer to buy me a drink — he never did.
There are pictures all over town of the famous faces who have visited over the years, from Raquel Welch to Liz Taylor and Rita Hayworth.
We ended the cruise on the island of Capri where I was lucky enough to visit the grave of Gracie Fields, a
British wartime actress and personal hero of mine, who was the biggest star in the world at the time.
It was an honour to see her final resting place and I felt really quite emotional.
From Abba to Gracie Fields — proof that the cruise holiday in 2017 really does have something for everyone.
- Cruising With Jane McDonald starts on September 1 at 9pm on Channel 5
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