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Seas on Cruise around the Horn

LakeErieLive

By LakeErieLive,
in South America

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LakeErieLive

LakeErieLive

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We are considering the BA to Santiago cruises, but the worry over the bad sea conditions worries us. We recently hit bad seas in the Med for about 5 hours and DW got terribly sick. We are vets of 10 cruises and I thought this might be our last cruise as the 5 hours were very stressful.......I have heard that this passage is known for troubled seas and am really concerned. I am really asking if there is any better time to try this cruise as when the waters are usually a bit calmer. Or should we just forget this itinerary as a bad sea trip might be our last cruise, and we love cruising....

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biker1972

biker1972

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To predict seas is like predicting weather. People report passage around the Horn on glass-like seas and others tell of high waves and wind and snow. Best time is January/February (peak of summer) but is no guarantee. With the amount of snow and ice nearby there can be winds created by temperature disparities at any time. The Falklands is one of the most frequently missed ports of any cruise port because of wind and waves (tendered port). It is an awesome intinerary and if you plan, use bands or meds should be worth the risk of possible (not probable) high seas.

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diane.in.ny

diane.in.ny

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On the return from Antarctica, the captain sailed west for a bit so we could say we 'rounded the Horn.'

 

Our Drake Passage sailing was relatively calm but the wind picked up when we got the Horn and we had some rolling seas. To the best of my knowledge no one got ill but you do need to plan for the worst.

 

So all things being equal, if that is your main concern, I think I would sail on the largest ship making the itinerary which would be the best you could do to minimize effects of a rolling sea. And book a cabin on a lower deck.

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Fattony

Fattony

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I can empathize. I get seasick easily. When my wife and I were still SCUBA diving, I was somtimes the only one on the boat feelng queasy.

 

Above posts give good pointers about the "best" time of year, but that's a matter of increasing your chances for better weather, not ensuring calm seas. And a storm during the best of times could change things quickly (as we found out). B.A.-Valparaiso was our first cruise (wife's idea). We chose a larger ship, the Star Princess, in part due to the possibility of rough seas. A somewhat smaller cruise ship (NCL ship?) leaving at about the same time, cost less and was able to get into some bays and fjords we could not.

 

Both because of wariness re Cape Horn seas, and a desire to see inland sites in Patagonia (my wife had already been there), I arranged to disembark in Montevideo, visit PeritoMoreno Glacier at El Calafate and Ushuaia area on my own, and reembark in Ushuaia. My wife reported that while the seas were rough enough around Cape Horn that they just went part way around, all in all it wasn't bad at all. Our roughest seas were after I got back on the ship, when we were west of Punta Arenas, due to a storm, and many people, including crew, got sick. Somewhat to my surprise, I was okay, though apprehensive, especially after taking Dramamine (which made me sleepy enough that I spent extra time in bed). Seas were rough for a full day or so. More than 5 hours. Besides Dramamine, we also bought, in the ship's gift store, the magnetic bracelets. I was skeptical, but we decided no harm in trying (my wife is a doctor; she does not like the patches, though some people do).

 

One of her patients took the same cruise, and said the seas around Cape Horn were like a lake. As noted,you could also hit super rough seas. The guy reported that the captain remarked it was the calmest he'd ever seen it. You can, of course, encounter high seas almost anywhere, but it's a matter of playing the odds.

 

But this all may be of little help to you, since there's no way to predict things. I wouldn't risk Antarctica, since the seas are even rougher there. Cape Horn? If it would be possibly be hell for them for hours, or even days, I'd probably rethink it. But the scenery is great, and there are, as you know, anti-nausea medications. Tough call.

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  • 3 weeks later...
Lynda S

Lynda S

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Not to discourage the original poster, but we experienced a storm of a lifetime in mid December crossing from the Falklands to Ushuaia. It seems the weather there is truly unpredictable - when we left the Falkland Islands on the Sunday evening we started to experience some rough seas. It got worse, and by the time we got off the ship on Wed morning in Ushuaia, we had been shaken, stirred, tossed, rolled, pitched, yawed - the whole works. The captain had warned us on Monday morning that we were going to hit a storm with 55 mph winds and 30 foot seas. By the time we finished he told us that we clocked in with 90 foot waves and 115 mph winds.

 

It was, truly the scariest 30 hours of my life. Especially when I was watching the waves lap up on our 10th floor deck.

 

There was plenty of mishaps in those 30 hours, $5000 worth of broken dishes, a lady with a broken hip, me with a crushed finger trying to save a floor to ceiling mirror in our dressing room (broke anyways), plenty of green people (surprised I wasn't one of them), a ton of minor injuries and a missed supper - the captain actually had to close the dining room on the Tuesday night. Not to mention that the anchor lashings broke loose in the middle of the night and played out to 300 feet - which was more dangerous than all the way out. They couldn't reel it back in as that was during the worst part of the storm, so the captain had to reel it all the way out past the bottom of the ship to ensure it didn't break a hole in the ship as it was swinging around. We were then unable to go anywhere until the storm subsided and they could bring it back in.

 

But, it truly is the luck of the draw - the sailing before us had seas of glass!

 

Guess that's why they say it's either the Drake Shake, or the Drake Lake.

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smeyer418

smeyer418

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We did the same trip last March and had dead calm seas the entire trip. You just never know. We had dead calm at the Cape and the Sun came out. The crew was scrambling to take pictures because this rarely happens.

They also had one cruise where they only made one port in 14 days.

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digitl

digitl

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Not to discourage the original poster, but we experienced a storm of a lifetime in mid December crossing from the Falklands to Ushuaia.

Was this the Veendam? We couldn't get in to the Falklands on our way from Ushuaia to Montevideo and Buenos Aires in early December. We sailed into 30' waves and Force 12 winds soon after our drive-by.

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LakeErieLive

LakeErieLive

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the last post talks of the horrendous storm they endured. That is scary....when we posted this question about the weather and seas, we had hoped for an answer like "oh, don't worry about it" from a bunch of people who made the trip around the Horn and had a fine time.

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Fattony

Fattony

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the last post talks of the horrendous storm they endured. That is scary....when we posted this question about the weather and seas, we had hoped for an answer like "oh, don't worry about it" from a bunch of people who made the trip around the Horn and had a fine time.

 

If you had gotten those responses, you would feel better for a while, but, of course, it would have no effect whatsoever on the weather you encounter. If you want accurate info, there are lots of sources. If you want positive reports, whether they're typical or not, well . . .

 

For almost any cruise the weather can't be predicted with certainty. For that area, less so than usual. Haven't heard of any deaths on cruises there.

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rainbow6

rainbow6

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Sailed Jan-6-23 unbelievable weather rounded the horn in calm seas not even 2foot waves-They report that was the first time in 5 years that seas were that calm.Having said that-even if the seas were a lot rougher it is a trip not to be missed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Fattony

Fattony

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Only suggestion I can make is to not worry about it, because there isn't any way you can control the weather.

 

Easy to say if seasickness is not a big problem for you. And it is good advice if one has already paid for the cruise, and they can't-- or don't want to-- change their plans. And in that case they can still prepare. I used Dramamine on the worse days, and we bought the wrist bands sold on the ship (not sure if the bands work, but they didn't hurt). My wife, a physician, doesn't like the behind-the-ear patches (which were off the market for a while and then back on), but obviously some use them (should always talk with a physican first, and they may be prescription-only).

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MVPinBoynton Great Review Rare

MVPinBoynton

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we are booked on infinity for 2/27 can't wait to go

 

Gigi,

Congratulations on your first CC post. You need to go over to our roll call for the 2-27 Infinity cruise and meet others that are traveling with you. Below is a link to the roll call.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=977977

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