Snowbound and dreaming of the Whisper...But what do I pack for the Atlantic crossing?

Well, we're knee-deep - at least - in snow here in the Upper Midwest, with a foot-and-ahalf drift at the end of the driveway, so why not escape with thoughts of our Southhampton-Boston crossing next August? I hope someone can share some experiences and give a clue about what sort of weather we might expect?

The England-Ireland portions are a no-brainer, but what about those four days at sea? Will it be considerably chillier? And Newfoundland - the second week of September...is a light jacket or sweater likely to be sufficient? Should I pack a rain slicker? Turtleneck? Heavyweight sweater? Help!

We did a very similar itinerary on Seabourn for 3 weeks in September, 2003 (although Seabourn sails out of London, under Tower Bridge), and it was rainy and cool. The days were grey most of the time, with occasional bursts of sunshine, and I was surprised at how frequently I was wearing a sweater, with a wool coat and scarf. However, all of our photos confirm my recollection.

Newfoundland was particularly windy, although the locals seemed to think it was positively tropical since the sun was shining. At 50F, it was not uncommon to see shorts and a t-shirt! Not so for the visitors--we were wearing jackets and scarves to keep warm, due to the wind chill factor. BTW, the friendliest people in the world seem to live in Newfoundland!

The crossing itself was cool, fairly grey days with occasional bursts of sunshine. We hit a huge rainstorm in Newport, R.I., where we rented a car, but I understand that the following day was quite lovely; we just missed it by a day.

If you are contemplating a warm weather cruise, this will not be it. OTOH, it is alot of fun to do a crossing bracketed by the various ports, and I am sure you will enjoy it. And of course, those of us who live in San Francisco may have a lower tolerance to the cold; you may find it quite tolerable :-) We are actually considering repeating the itinerary later this year.

Enjoy!

Regards,

Denyse

My husband and I are also on this crossing! I am a "warm weather gal", so I have been slightly worried about clothing too.

My husband and I are also on this crossing! I am a "warm weather gal", so I have been slightly worried about clothing too.

I am also one who prefers warm weather (I say that as I pack for 4 days in NY---brrrrrrrrrrr!), but I was comfortable because I packed accordingly.

If you bring a coat, a pair of gloves and a rain slicker, you will be fine. Just realize you won't be sitting on deck in a swim suit on most days; it's not that kind of cruise. Nor will you be touring in a pair of shorts. Think of the weather as fall in New England, and you will be fine. If you happen to catch a sunny day here and there, you will be all smiles.

:-)

Regards,

Denyse

Thanks, Denyse, so very much - that's exactly the kind of detailed information I was hoping for! And it pretty much confirms what I'd suspected. A "crossing" (as opposed to 'just a cruise somewhere') has been a longtime dream, so I'm not about to let any clouds or chill bother me. But I did want to be properly prepared. As it is, it seems like we'll have to pack more for this trip (formal, etc) than any other and I didn't want to be tucking in turtlenecks if they weren't necessary...but I had a feeling they would be!

And hello to fellow cruiser CPorter! We seem to be the first from this cruise to show up here. Have you done any other SS cruises?

Our itinerary was very similar to yours, except Seabourn's cruise is 18 days, with a few more ports. We did have more to pack because sweaters are alot larger than swimsuits. Having said that, we still managed one suitcase each, with a carry-on.

It is, however, the only cruise where I have ever turned the thermostat on to "heat". :-)

Have fun!

Regards,

Denyse

We just did the January 5th cruise on the Shadow. It was our second cruise and our first SS. Needless to say, we won't be cruising anything else. We had a TREMENDOUS time.

We booked this one before we left the ship in San Diego. Our travel agent just loves our spontaneity!

Thanks, Denyse, so very much - that's exactly the kind of detailed information I was hoping for! And it pretty much confirms what I'd suspected. A "crossing" (as opposed to 'just a cruise somewhere') has been a longtime dream, so I'm not about to let any clouds or chill bother me. But I did want to be properly prepared. As it is, it seems like we'll have to pack more for this trip (formal, etc) than any other and I didn't want to be tucking in turtlenecks if they weren't necessary...but I had a feeling they would be!

 

And hello to fellow cruiser CPorter! We seem to be the first from this cruise to show up here. Have you done any other SS cruises?