grand princess rides like a bathtub

[zaandam_2]

hi all. just back from the 16 night grand princess transatlantic. i'll be posting a full review in time. all-in-all it was a good trip which visited amazing ports.

 

i'm not susceptible to motion sickenss, but anyone who is susceptible should seriously reconsider sailing on this ship. even the slightest waves sets the grand pitching and rolling.

 

we had one bad night out of greenland where the ship had to be turned into the wind and hold position. we did this for about 10 hours and missed the port of newfoundland. no controlling the weather, but it was interesting to be on a ship shaking itself apart. wall panels were falling off in many cabins (they were stacked in the elevator lobbies the next few days), and on baja deck light fixtures were falling out of the passageway ceilings. no serious injures that i heard of.

[dforeigner]

As long as it does not sink, things are OK. It is my understanding that the Grand class ships are made for cruising on calm waters, not really transatlantic crossing like the QE2. That said, if the waters were that bad, I am sure you would feel the motion of the oceans on any other ship (maybe not as bad or maybe even worse than) as well.

[B40 Tha Cruisa]

Does that apply to all Grand Class ships? I have been on the CB twice and thought it was fine. Sure a little roll here and there, but thats expected.

[stoneharborlady]

Does that apply to all Grand Class ships? I have been on the CB twice and thought it was fine. Sure a little roll here and there, but thats expected

 

 

Has the CB ever taken passengers on transatlantic? I thought only Caribbean. Isnt that a big difference for smooth sailing?

Karen

[spongerob]

i'm not susceptible to motion sickenss, but anyone who is susceptible should seriously reconsider sailing on this ship. even the slightest waves sets the grand pitching and rolling.

I've been on Grand Princess 7 times and have hit some fairly rough weather. To say that the slightest waves set the ship pitching and rolling is quite an overstatement. I DO think the ship is more susceptible to motion in crosswinds and seems less uncomfortable in rough weather compared to other ships we have been on.

 

It does serve to show that the commonly-held idea that bigger ships are more stable is not correct.

[tomcruiser1234]

So would the Saphire be in the same class

 

We are doing Transpacific next April

[cusyl]

The Grand Princess was fine in the Med. last year.

Personally, I wouldn't want to do a Transatlantic on anything but the QM2 which was built for that. :D

[spongerob]

Yes, Sapphire is built on basically the same hull. The biggest complaint I have with this design is that the bow tends to ride up on waves then slam down. It's not nearly so bad aft, but for that reason I would avoid the extremely forward cabins for those who area adverse to motion.

[dutrie]

spongerob, you are correct. My brother and his wife were in a forward mini-suite on the Diamond (identical to the Sapphire) during an Australia-New Zealand cruise. The encountered high winds in NZ and they described the Diamond's bow slamming into the waves followed by the ship shaking like a dog shedding water.

 

I have been on the Grand and the Sapphire (twice) but had calm seas each time, so I cannot comment on their behavior in rough water.

 

 

David

 

[ The biggest complaint I have with this design is that the bow tends to ride up on waves then slam down. It's not nearly so bad aft, but for that reason I would avoid the extremely forward cabins for those who area adverse to motion.

[B40 Tha Cruisa]

Does that apply to all Grand Class ships? I have been on the CB twice and thought it was fine. Sure a little roll here and there, but thats expected

 

 

Has the CB ever taken passengers on transatlantic? I thought only Caribbean. Isnt that a big difference for smooth sailing?

Karen

 

While this is true, I have hit some pretty rough waters in the Caribbean. Large enough for half the dining room to be empty and the cancellation of most shows throughout the ship, including the theater. I am not worried about me getting seasick, it is my lady I am worried about. I just wanted to see if people thought the Grand was worse than the CB.

[MattOsprey]

Someone please feel free to correct me, but I think these ships are built with flat bottoms for the Caribbean market.

 

Makes calm water journeys more stable and fuel efficient.

 

I thought they were not meant to be used in the Med.

 

Matt

[PescadoAmarillo]

So would the Saphire be in the same class

 

We are doing Transpacific next April

We encountered 40 foot waves in the Tasman Sea on our first transpacific crossing on the Sapphire. To say it was a roller coaster was not an understatement, but I don't know that any other ship would have been significantly better given the conditions. I do know that few of us slept for about 36 hours, and that I was black and blue from being airborne and thrown against the cabin wall (our's was a balcony cabin made up as twins) for 2 nights straight. We were 4 cabins from the back of the ship on Aloha deck, and "slamming", then "shaking" are exactly the right words for it

 

Crossing the Tasman Sea on our 2nd transpacific crossing (on the Diamond, again 4 cabins from the back on Aloha deck), a piece of scenery fell during a production show, ending the show. We were in our cabin at the time and every wine glass, bottle, etc. on the shelves by the TV went flying across the room when that happened. It was like hitting a brick wall at sea (the "slamming") and then a shuddering went the length of the ship, and those waves weren't half the size of the first crossing.

 

We have done 3 transatlantic cruises, and never encountered anything like the Tasman Sea on the Sapphire and the Diamond.

[MattOsprey]

We encountered 40 foot waves in the Tasman Sea on our first transpacific crossing on the Sapphire. To say it was a roller coaster was not an understatement, but I don't know that any other ship would have been significantly better given the conditions. I do know that few of us slept for about 36 hours, and that I was black and blue from being airborne and thrown against the cabin wall (our's was a balcony cabin made up as twins) for 2 nights straight. We were 4 cabins from the back of the ship on Aloha deck, and "slamming", then "shaking" are exactly the right words for it

 

Crossing the Tasman Sea on our 2nd transpacific crossing (on the Diamond, again 4 cabins from the back on Aloha deck), a piece of scenery fell during a production show, ending the show. We were in our cabin at the time and every wine glass, bottle, etc. on the shelves by the TV went flying across the room when that happened. It was like hitting a brick wall at sea (the "slamming") and then a shuddering went the length of the ship, and those waves weren't half the size of the first crossing.

 

We have done 3 transatlantic cruises, and never encountered anything like the Tasman Sea on the Sapphire and the Diamond.

 

I think I would have given up cruising after that. 40 foot waves!!!

 

I am on Diamond in a few weeks. Does anyone know if it gets very rough on the way to Hawaii.

 

Don't get me wrong, I will go no matter what, but it would be nice to be prepared.

 

Matt

[herbshopgirl]

It is never fun in any storm but it is interesting the difference in descriptions from people on the same cruise. The following was posted from Desert Nurse from the Grand this past week...

 

"I haven't posted in the past few days because I've been so busy. Yes, we hit a storm but it isn't nearly as bad as posted on the boards. I've been in higher waves but the wind was gale force. We didn't get sea sick and have a forward balcony. The noise from the wind was the most annoying. The captain has done a fantastic job of keeping the passengers informed as the storm and our course, far better than any captain I've sailed with. I am always amused at the exaggerations of some posts. I was on the Diamond when it hit the pier in Victoria several years ago and it was a slight nudge at most but I read posts here that said that three people died!"

 

Here's hoping we all have smooth seas.

[alolewis]

400 feet under the sea in a submarine, but then there is no cruise ship submarines as there coulddn't be any balconey cabins :(.

 

Sorry, couldn't resist.

[morriscats]

I think I would have given up cruising after that. 40 foot waves!!!

 

I am on Diamond in a few weeks. Does anyone know if it gets very rough on the way to Hawaii.

 

Don't get me wrong, I will go no matter what, but it would be nice to be prepared.

 

Matt

 

Matt - we are on Diamond to Hawaii 11/3. When we went in 2005 on Celebrity Infinity the first night out was rough but after that it was fine. I am wondering too how Diamond will handle rough seas compared to Infinity???

[happy cruzer]

There is a current off the coast of California that is usually rough. sometimes pretty bad for two days. I think you can pretty much count on one bad day when you leave California going to Hawaii. We experienced that and a storm system that lasted for 3 more days. So yep you probably will have rough day or two going to Hawaii. But it is still a very nice affordable way to see a bit of the islands. Enjoy!

[UK Cruiser]

We caught the tail end of a typhoon in the South China Sea while on the Diamond. The ship handled really well eve though the waves were quite spectacular for a while. This was in late 2005.

[Pam in CA]

Someone please feel free to correct me, but I think these ships are built with flat bottoms for the Caribbean market.

 

Makes calm water journeys more stable and fuel efficient.

 

I thought they were not meant to be used in the Med.

The Grand Class ships were built not for the Caribbean but to hold more people more efficiently as Princess ships go all over the world; they are flat-bottomed with a shallow draft, making them susceptible to movement. They ride over waves more than the old Royal Princess or the Regal Princess which are more like the classic liners of old which could cut through waves better. For a transocean voyage, give me the old Royal any day. I'll see how the Sapphire handles a trans-Pacific cruise next Spring.

[jcrandle]

hi all. just back from the 16 night grand princess transatlantic. i'll be posting a full review in time. all-in-all it was a good trip which visited amazing ports.

 

i'm not susceptible to motion sickenss, but anyone who is susceptible should seriously reconsider sailing on this ship. even the slightest waves sets the grand pitching and rolling.

 

we had one bad night out of greenland where the ship had to be turned into the wind and hold position. we did this for about 10 hours and missed the port of newfoundland. no controlling the weather, but it was interesting to be on a ship shaking itself apart. wall panels were falling off in many cabins (they were stacked in the elevator lobbies the next few days), and on baja deck light fixtures were falling out of the passageway ceilings. no serious injures that i heard of.

 

Welcome to the North Atlantic. I expect you would have just as rough a ride on any cruise ship at the same location at the same time.

[zaandam_2]

Welcome to the North Atlantic. I expect you would have just as rough a ride on any cruise ship at the same location at the same time.

 

your expectations would be wrong, then. i've been on much rougher seas, pictures were not falling off the walls then. on our way to bergen the seas were only 1 - 4 feet with a 'fresh breeze'. the movement was substancial, not to mention the noise. it was like being in a dryer full of tennis shoes, only louder (i was in b336, midship on baja). i like movement, but the noise made sleeping impossible. fortunatly there was a vacant cabin (on caribe deck) where i was able to sleep.

[happy cruzer]

Can't wait to read your full review. I'm sure the Grand was ruff but hey it's a cruuuuuise ship vs. a liner. Glad you enjoyed your ports.