Give some thought to flying to any hub city on the European mainland i.e. AMS CDG FRA MAD take to the rails (EURAIL) from that point. Trains run with a great deal more certainty than buddy passes! Plan to do this a few days in advance of your cruise sailing. Now as for return - the EURAIL pass is generally valid for a period longer than your cruise will be. So after your cruise use the rail pass to get to a hub city that offers the best potential for using the buddy pass crossing the pond. It used to be that you could do Europe on the cheap-side. But not anymore - plan - compute - and return to take another look. Plan your options to have options and as mrs767er noted you are going to need luck and whole great deal plenty lot of it !