Iona at the Port of Southampton
Iona at Southampton in 2026
Iona is P&O Cruises’ LNG-powered flagship and one of the largest cruise ships ever built for the British market, carrying well over 5,000 guests when full. In the published 2026 schedule she appears at Southampton 14 times, from Sat, 22 Aug 2026 through to Sat, 19 Dec 2026, with September her busiest month here.
Which terminal does Iona use?
Every single Iona call in the 2026 list is at Ocean Cruise Terminal in the Eastern Docks (SO14 3QN), which makes planning easy: the pickup point does not move between sailings. We still check your e-ticket at booking, because the port can reassign a berth at short notice.
Who else is in port on your date
Southampton rarely handles one ship at a time, and that is what decides how busy your journey is. On 12 of her 14 calls another cruise ship is alongside the same day — the heaviest is Sat, 29 Aug 2026, when Iona shares the port with Celebrity Apex, MSC Virtuosa, Sky Princess and Ventura. Several thousand extra guests arriving and leaving through the same dock gates means slower approach roads and an emptier taxi rank, so on those dates we build extra time into the pickup rather than hoping for a clear run.
Timing your transfer around Iona
Most Iona calls in the list arrive and leave the same day, which is the classic Southampton pattern: guests off in the morning, guests on in the afternoon, ship away by early evening. Where the port has published times, Iona has been listed arriving as early as 06:15. For embarkation we time the pickup to your check-in window rather than the ship's arrival, so you are not standing in a queue with your cases; for disembarkation we track the ship and adjust the pickup free of charge if she docks late.
Luggage, groups and the right vehicle
A ship this size turns several thousand guests around in a single morning, and the taxi rank outside the terminal is emptied within minutes of the first coach arriving. A pre-booked, fixed-price car with a named driver removes that gamble entirely — and if your party needs it, the 8-seater takes up to 8 passengers and 8 cases in one run.