Westward or eastward on Transatlantic?

[ladysadie]

For those of you that have done a transatlantic which direction did you prefer and why? Would you prefer the relaxing days at sea to be at the beginning or at the end, and would you book any pre-cruise pkg at the beginning if you were travelling westward? Is the Atlantic rougher in the spring or the fall? :confused:

[Druke I]

Gross generalization of course, but Atlantic smoother in spring than fall - as hurricanes go into the Atlantic to die out. Sea state is a crapshoot.

 

We prefer Westbound - you gain time as you cross. Eastbound you lose time, and 23 hrs days are harder for me than 25 hr days. That internal clock is not the same for all, but mine adjusts better Westbound.

 

Going either way is a treat - I'm a lover of sea days.

 

Reference pre-cruise and Westbound, certainly. Spend a few days in London or Paris, then do a crossing.

[electricron]

I feel just the opposite.

 

I would take the Eastbound cruise for several reasons.

 

(1) The shorter 23 hour days at the start of your vacation seems a quicker trip, and less waiting around doing nothing. On a Westbound cruise at the end of your vacation, it's hard to keep busy for 25 hours, and the days seem to stretch on and on.

(2) There should be no hurricanes in the Spring.

(3) My internal body clock takes the westbound flight much better than the eastbound flight. Leaving the East coast at night and arriving in Europe the next afternoon is far more distrubtive than leaving Europe and arriving on the East coast an hour or two later, by the clock. Just take a short nap on the return flight resets my internal clock.

 

But, to each their own.

[newmexicoNita]

Well, we all have our ideas and each for a different reason: we did westward last fall and would again. Because of the time change you keep picking up time thus you arrive back in America completely rested. yes, there are a couple of fairly long days, but relaxing it is. As for rough seas, well we did the norhtern route: the first 3 or 4 days were wonderful and the last 2, the rest a bit rough. We had to miss one port because of fog and high winds. The good part about that, we had lots of time to relax and read or try our in the casino. I sure wish I would have spent more time reading>>LOL

 

I think we prefer the relaxed sea days in the middle of the cruise; yes, I would book a pre cruise package either on your own or thru the cruiseline. You will arrive in Europe a few days prior to sailing and have a chance to do some touristy things plus get the jet lag out of your system. I always feel sorry for those who have flown all night, just to hop back on a ship a few hours after arriving. Sometimes this can't be controlled, but given the chance, I would opted for 2 or 3 days relaxation before cruising back. NMnita

[FundyGirl]

Both. If you can swing the $$$

[TrinaLC]

Don't forget to pick the side of the ship depending on which way you are going!

 

Is it starboard, eastbound, port, westbound? There just was a thread on this - you need to get it right so you have sun on your balcony.

 

I thought there was some sort of acronym from the old days of transatlantic voyaging ... anyone?

[BarbCT605]

I thought there was some sort of acronym from the old days of transatlantic voyaging ... anyone?

You could be thinking about POSH:

 

P ort

O ut (or outbound?)

S tarboard

H ome

 

I'm not positive about the "O"

[DroopySails]

Ah, that's clever. Maybe it's port over, starboard home.

 

We accidentally picked the correct side! Yay!

[Druke I]

POSH did not refer to trans-Atlantics, but trips to the mid-East during the days of the British Empire and before air conditioning.

 

Port Out (away from England) and Starboard Home (towards England). That put you on the shady (cool) side of the trip through the sweltering mid-East.

[electricron]

For those who prefer shade on their balcony, choose the opposite sides.

 

Sun > Starboard eastbound, Port westbound.

Shade > Port eastbound, Statboard westbound.

 

Yes there are many who prefer shade....