We have been on 4 cruises in the past 7 years and 3 of them have missed at least one port due to weather conditions. Not a big sample we know but our experience prompts the questions how often this happens and how to avoid cruise routes and/or times of year when missed ports are more likely.
We don't question the right of the captain to miss ports on safety grounds but would like before booking a cruise to know for that particular route how often in the past the cruise has missed ports and when. The cruise companies know this but they don't tell us.
E.g in October/November 2014 we took a HAL cruise from Sydney to Auckland via Melbourne, Hobart, Milford Sound, then ports in NZ. The NZ immigration staff boarded in Melbourne and when we asked them why there and not Hobart they replied that the weather that time of year often prevented the passage to Hobart. Sure enough we missed both Hobart and Milford Sound.
A related point is whether the size of the ship affects its ability to dock in bad weather. Thus last week our P&O Oceana could not dock at Citiavecchia but we saw a smaller cruise ship attempting it. Either her captain was reckless or big ships suffer more from wind resistance and lack of manoeuvrability.
We cruise mainly to visit places as opposed to the "cruise experience" and an enforced day of on board activities is no substitute for a missed port. We accept the risk but would like to be able to make an informed choice based on known facts before deciding whether or not to go ahead. Is there any way we can get this information short of trawling through all the posts on particular cruises?
