So, what happens on a small ship when

The weather is horrible?

So far the forecast here along the coast of Spain is horrible for the next 2 weeks. My hubby has been checking daily, and things don't look good at this point, even though we don't board til Sunday.

Does the boat movement get really bad? My husband is way nervous about the seasickness potential.

Does the boat cancel dockings? How do you tender in a storm? In places like Seville where there's no tendering do you not have to worry, or could storms keep the boat from getting inland up the river?

What do you do on the ship if there isn't any outdoor option? I mean, where do you hang out? I know big ships have zillions of lounges and other spaces, on Windstar boats is there anything other than the casino? What about say lounge chairs, are there any inside? I don't relish hanging in our cabin all the time.

How do you not be super bummed out when your once-in-a-lifetime trip sorta sucks? I know it's early, I'm just struggling with the potential. It's my husband's fault.

First of weather can change along a coast and does like New England you never know. 2nd safety first as for docking and ports. 3rd Seville has a very protected harbor it like it is a basin up a wide river. 4th weather is not the fault of Windstar and they will work extra hard to make you comfortable. 5th you are going to very interesting ports when I was on a similar cruise with WS we always docked. Depending on the ship both sail and motor have lovely inside options but different ones. I would surmise that during the days you will mostly be sightseeing. Coastal Spain is georgeous with incredible things and places to see, eat, experience. I can not speak for seasickness, everyone is so different. The doctor's office provides for free pills, if you are afraid of seasickness make sure you take the pills 2 hours before the ship sets off. In rough weather I wear the wrist bands and find them helpful also the patch behind the ear. Come prepared. There is plenty of inside seating in all ships. You are in charge of letting rain wreck it for you. It is a great cruise enjoy. Funny all the times I have been to Spain in the fall and spring and on the Med. Sea it has never rained for 2 weeks straight, might drizzle, on and off, bits of sun, lots of sun, can be very windy. You should be fine. Come with an open mind you will not be disappointed. Have a great time.

If you haven't seen the inside of the ship (if it is either the Breeze or the Legend), you might be tempted to look at a review done by the USA Today last year. 99 photos of the ship interior might convince you that there are quite a number of area were you can spend the day.

http://www.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/travel/cruises/2015/05/06/first-look-inside-windstar-cruises-new-star-breeze/70875806/

And you will meet great people, staff and guests.

Cheers,

dandee2

I ditto what Strenz said about the wrist bands. They worked like a charm for me & I'm quite susceptible to seasickness.

Sorry, that was pretty whiny of me. I'm hoping weather forecasts are wrong and the seas won't be super choppy. Thanks for the support.

If you haven't seen the inside of the ship (if it is either the Breeze or the Legend), you might be tempted to look at a review done by the USA Today last year. 99 photos of the ship interior might convince you that there are quite a number of area were you can spend the day.

 

http://www.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/travel/cruises/2015/05/06/first-look-inside-windstar-cruises-new-star-breeze/70875806/

 

And you will meet great people, staff and guests.

 

Cheers,

 

dandee2

The yacht club space is very comfortable. If that's crowded, we've always found the compass rose to be deserted during the day. Only issue we've found with the Pride/Breeze/Legend is that private outdoor space is harder to find than on the other ships.

It's my husband's fault.

I literally did the LOL thing when I read this gem, Sujormik. That's why us hubbies tend to have the broad shoulders. We use them to support the weight of criticism that gets heaped upon us at odd times. :)

Trust me, I think your trip will be a blast. We're also taking our first Windstar cruise this Fall, and I cannot wait. There will be some rainy weather at times (helps the green stuff grow), but all in all I think it will be amazing. But then again, I'm the glass way-more-than-half-full kinda guy, the eternal optimist.

Take a walnut shell and float that shell in a bath tub. Now splash around the water in the bath tub with your hand. The sea is the bath water and you are a passenger in the walnut. Paints a picture doesn't it? The chance of you ever experiencing that type of weather is pretty rare. That said, I've found that big ships can get knocked around just as much as smaller ones when the waves turn the minutes to hours. The size of your ship isn't as important as we are led to believe. As stated above, weather when at sea is very changeable. If you don't dwell on the sea state and wind (actual or imagined) you should be fine, even if it starts to get a little busy outside. If it gets bumpy (it won't) choose your foods wisely and avoid any food that is difficult to digest. Do not stop eating but remember to think before you chomp.

Hello everyone. Home from the big European adventure and wanted to reply to this thread both to thank you all for your in out and to share our experience on the small ship in bad weather.

Our first night in the Star Breeze we left Lisbon on our way down the Algarve for docking in Portimao. Apparently it was one of the worst nights anyone had experienced on a cruise. People who've been on many cruises and never had issues were blown away by the bouncing and bumping. More than half didn't make it to dinner. The crew was short handed as well due to sea sickness. The captain acknowledged the next day that it was one of the worst nights he'd experienced as well. Fortunately my hubby went to sleep early and wasn't affected too badly at all!

We made every port so weather wasn't an issue there. However it was cold and rainy the first several days of the cruise which did impact our enjoyment greatly. The limited entertainment options were felt as well, since there wasn't much reason to stay in ports when the weather was so crappy and thus everyone was in the boat. The outdoor bar was virtually unused. The boat was silent by 10:30 every night. We were unable to eat outdoors due to the rain and cold but it took a few days for them to figure out that breakfasts etc should be served in Amphora. Candles was indoor as well.

In our low 50s, we were among the youngest on the ship. Nobody we encountered had a drink package, the pricing was just so high pretty much everyone felt the one or two drinks plus possibly wine at dinner made the cost untenable.

Still we did enjoy the trip overall, enjoyed much about the smaller boat and would definitely consider trying it again.

Thanks for sharing your experience. That what Cruise Critic is all about.

Cheers

Dandee2