Always wanted to be on a cruise when a hurricane is out there

[MBP&O2/O]

10 hours ago, pr8hd said:

No, no you you don't.  In the 1970'ss  I was onboard a US Navy Oiler (Empty of course) in the Sea of Japan when a tropical storm hiy.  Not a hurricane, just a storm.  You do NOT want to go through that.   

Post 5. That is exactly where I was when mentioned the pleasures of a TRS. That was on a 32,000dwt fully laden oil tanker and generally speaking they are quite stable, and do not roll excessively, and of course when you are on the bridge you are, to all intents and purposes, on the highest deck so you get maximum arc!🫡 of the roll.

[luckyinpa]

on regal princess we had force 10 winds a few years ago. only time i ever got sick on a cruise. booze probably didnt help either. on our tour of the bridge  the captain said was only the 2nd time he went through something that rough and had to announce even on the speakers in the cabins what was happening. it's not a fun time. wouldnt want to go through anything higher on the scale. having one hand on the bar during an entire shower isnt a fun ride for me.

[StarPilot1960]

On 7/2/2024 at 11:38 AM, TGfromTX said:

Are you stating that you had embarkation out of a different port?  Or a different port was visited on the trip?  I don't understand how a ship could embark from a separate port on the other side of the state and expect people to be able to switch flights. If so, I hope they offered refunds to any that couldn't accommodate the change.

The debarkation port was indeed switched.  We flew in a couple days early to Orlando which is 1/2 way between Tampa and Port Canaveral.  Everybody that showed up in Tampa (over 90% of those booked) were bussed across the state to Canaveral, and were provided a "box lunch".  Fortunately, driving coast-to-coast in Florida is only a 3-ish hour jaunt.

 

I doubt there was time to switch flights.  Everyone that planned to embark in Tampa, did so, via a Carnival bus arrangement.  We did port back into Tampa at the end of the cruise.

[Harley167]

Nope not me! 10 years ago we were on Royal Caribbean out of NY in February and we hit a tropical storm ....OMG it was awful! No one could go outside on the decks at all! I get sea sick, I couldnt look out any windows as the water swelled up and down! The room steward told people to get out of the cabin , as it feels worse in there, and  go to the middle of the ship....it did feel better doing this...lots of people did the same! They were handing our green apples to help with the seasickness and they did help!Have not sailed out  of NY again in the winter haha!

[angelsfort]

Just think of the stories you could tell afterwards!!  Sure, it might not be so fun while it's happening but AFTER the cruise, you get to be the life of the party with your tale of woah from the seven seas!!

We did an excursion to Stingray City during one of our cruises (my then 8 year old daughter and I) and while cruising out to it, our little boat went through a squall.  It had us tossing and turning and wind was whipping us around...  we were towards the back and I was holding on to my daughter with one arm and holding onto the side of the boat with the other, trying to keep us from flying out of the boat.  I had a buoy that kept wacking me (hard!) in the arm almost as if it was trying to knock me loose!!  Everyone was scared and there were people screaming

People had brought cell phones, cameras, hats and changes of clothes...  towels to dry off after they came out of the water at Stingray city...    EVERYTHING got soaked.  I'm sure a couple of people lost their hats (and maybe other items) to the sea.

It was literally only about 5 minutes that we were in this squall but it seemed like time slowed down and we went through it for an hour.   We came out the other side and the sun was shining and the sky was beautiful LOL

to this day, this is our favorite excursion.  Nothing beats the excitement of the trip out and then being able to hang around in the water with the rays was so much fun.

[Softservekid1]

Been too quiet so far. I read this morning "they" are expecting September to be VERY active. Of course I'm leaving on the 14th🙏

[shipgeeks]

It's interesting to me what different people consider "rough", and then what different people consider enjoyable.
I would place myself closer to OP's desire to sail in a storm.  I've done so many times, including being blown across an open deck, meals at which the tablecloths were wetted down, etc.

I've been on many more in which doors to the outside decks were locked, shows were cancelled to protect the safety of the dancers, little bags were placed at stairways.

But I've also been on cruises with nothing but calm seas for days at a time.....and I hear people say "I don't think I'll ever cruise again if it's always this rough", and "Apparently this ship doesn't have stabilizers, we are really rocking and rolling".

Apparently perception varies!

[dml]

If you want to experience hurricane sea conditions, consider anartica cruises. Ships going to the southern most continent sail through the "Roaring forties". Big seas, gale force winds occur frequently. Similar to hurricane conditions. 

[Kilroyshere]

Was a regular on NCL 'Sun' weekly ( M - F) sorties to Havana, Cuba from Miami. Loved that cruise...a couple hours sail from Miami and you're in Havana Harbor/Old Havana for 4 days using the ship as hotel. 

 

September 2017 was on that ship and hurricane Irma started to point towards S. Florida. On Tuesday night they announced we had to leave next morning to beat the hurricane. The ship was to return Friday.

 

Many passengers who had air reservations or other plans scurried to get transportation, new flight, hotels...it was a mess.

 

Irma missed Miami and Atlantic coast but made a direct landfall hit on Naples, FL as a Cat 5 devastating the area. No ship could survive that kind of force.

[SeeUsCruise]

We were on Harmony of the Seas in June 2022 during Tropical Storm Alex. In the screenshot below, you can see the blue dot is where we were. It really only affected us during one evening. Most outside areas were closed, but we could walk around and explore still, which many others were doing too. The side overhang was a very popular spot! I was grateful we were on one of the largest ships at sea - I would have not felt so great on a smaller ship.