Transatlantic cruise

[Purple Rose]

Hi.

I have been thinking of taking a transatlantic cruise into western Europe. My question is, with all the days at sea, do you get bored and does it take a toll on you? Are you better off leaving out of Florida or flying to Europe and cruising back into FL.

 

Please help me decide.:o

Thanks

Rose

[ab0si]

Well, the obvious difference is the time changes. Would you rather have 25 or 23 hour days? the other difference is the time of the year. Most Europe -> America cruises and in the autumn and most going the other way are in the spring.

 

My wife and I love the ocean crossings (Our favorite is the annual 18-day LA -> Hong Kong on Crystal with just one stop, but we have taken several enjoyable Atlantic crossings).

 

Except for out of the way places (some of the Pacific Islands, St. Helena, etc.) we do not find cruising a good way to visit places unless what you are going for is the shoreline itself (fjords, etc.). If we want to see X, we go to X and spend some time there. On the other hand, we find sea days enjoyable and relaxing but never boring. Sitting around reading, talking to friends, old and new, in an unrushed atmosphere is something we both greatly enjoy.

 

There is enough on most ships to keep you as busy as you want to be.

 

Paul

[glgolfer]

Europe to Florida on the southern route. You fly to Europe a day or 2 early for 2 reasons. Won't miss the ship if there's a problem with the flight and you're over the jet lag before you board.

East to west you have 25 hour days instead of 23 hours. More time to rest and have fun.

The southern route is generally warmer with smoother seas. No guarantees, but the northern route can be a lot rougher.

 

Whether or not you're bored is up to you. We've been 6 days at sea a few times and were not bored for a second. There is always something you can do. The casino is open most of the time, there are various scheduled activities, you can win at bingo, they might have a behind the scenes tour of the theater, get a good book from the library, loaf around the pool, play cards, etc.

[cruiserking]

We are about to embark on a 17-day transatlantic repositioning cruise on the Noordam, New York to Rome. We love the sea days, there will be 8 on this voyage.

 

The time goes very quickly at sea, it is a chance to enjoy the ship and the easy going routine of meeting new friends. While I agree with ab0si that you are limited to what you see of Europe, you still have the opportunity to experience the highlights. Where else do you have the opportunity to visit up to eight European ports without having to run around and move into different hotels.

 

Furthermore, if you take a westbound transatlantic you will really enjoy the relaxing crossing portion after experiencing a port heavy portion at the beginning of your trip.

 

Jonathan

[travelteam]

We did the Barcelona to Miami last December. Spent 5 days pre-cruise in Barcelona touring, shopping and getting over the jet lag. Once on board we never felt bored. We had 5 sea days in a row after making stops in Lisbon, Maderia, Tenerife, Alicante Spain and Gilbraltar. Believe me we were ready for pampering and some night action on board. The weather was great and so were those 25 hour days. I would do it again in a hearbeat. Weather was just beautiful in Europe, great for touring and no crowds. Can't beat the beauty of it all.............so no matter what you chose you'll have a great time.

[Canuker]

We've chosen transatlanic cruises for all the reasons above. We prefer them to the frantic if-this-is-Tuesday-it-must-be-Cozumel cruises.

In fact, when we ported in Cozumel there were 9 (nine!) cruise ships in port. It was a nightmare on land. We returned to the ship around midday to get away from the crowds!

Believe me, a lot of the ports of call are nothing to write home about. A friend who recently returned from a port-intensive South Caribbean cruise said "just how many pineapples or bananas do you need to see?"

We love the sea days, best of all.

Also, cruises from the West Coast to/from Hawaii have a good few at-sea days, too.

[Lucid Interval]

A crossing is the best way to be at sea.

 

Southampton to New York on Queen Mary 2. No ports, wonderful ship, twenty five hour days.......

[pris993]

Before we did any crossings we wonder if we would be tired being at sea too. We are not big on joining in on group activities, even so, we never felt at a lose for how to use our time at sea. We have cross the Pacific from Hawaii to Vancouver (5 days) and done to Atlantic crossings (6 days) each. Going west is probably better because you gain an hours sleep each day at sea vs losing an hour going east each day. Regardless, we are booked on another TA going east in 2009.

 

If you enjoy being aboard ships you will enjoy a crossing. Usually the fares are cheaper, try it and you may get hooked just like us.

[hajekfam]

We love transatlantics so much that we just booked our 5th one. We do the westbound transatlantic - Europe to the US because the heavy excursion port stops are at the beginning of the cruise with the sea days during the crossing at the end so that you can rest up. We did our first transatlantic after doing two different 7 day cruises 6 months apart - both were to areas that we had never been before (Sourthern Caribbean & Alaska) and both had 6 ports in those 7 days. We enjoyed those cruises but came home just as tired as when we left home. When I found that we could do a 14 day transatlantic for the same amount as our 7 day Alaska and we had 9 sea days, we jumped on the chance. It was the first vacation that we came home totally relaxed, refreshed, and most important rested.

I love to read and can read a book in one day so I brought 6 books for the 9 sea days. Well, I never got through chapter one of the first book. Everytime I would pick up the book and start to read, it would suddenly be two hours later. The gentle rocking of the ship would just lull me to sleep. And with all those days at sea, we actually got time to enjoy the ship and its amenities, instead of just using the ship as a floating hotel.

After that first transatlantic, we decided to do one every other year as our 4-R's cruise (rest, relax, refresh, & rejuvenate).

I don't think that we would enjoy an eastbound trans as much because the ports with must-do excursions (Europe) are at the end of the cruise and you will return home as tired as when you left.

[mikenjane]

We're about to embark on our second transatlantic in about two weeks. we absolutely love the days at sea. Its so relaxing and you do get to know the ship much better. Our last one was a 12 day trip and we could have easily done another week. This ones 17 days so hopefully we won't be too sad getting offafter that.

[barante]

We will take our first transatlantic, departing Venice Oct. 3 and arriving in Fort Lauderdale 18 days later.

We decided on this cruise for the following reasons:

-- Itinerary. It covers the greatest hits: Venice (where we can board the ship the day before sailing, saving us hotel and food costs), Naples, Rome, Florence, Cannes, Barcelona, Cadiz, Lisbon, Azores.

-- Time: We have been in Nice, France, in April. It can be really chilly. By contrast, early October should be just perfect in the Mediterranean, not too hot, not too chilly. (This is also true about Bermuda, where the spring often is very chilly because the surrounding water is so cold).

-- Cost: Because the itinerary we wanted is hard to come by, we booked some 16 months early. The price was $2,500 pp for a balcony cabin. It since went down to $2,000 pp. and is now over $3,300. We also booked flights as early as we could, getting a $525 pp. fare from Baltimore to Venice.

In general, all European cruises will cost more because of the sinking dollar. Air will be going up too. On the flip side, you ought to follow the ups and downs of prices. There is quite a bit of capacity on trans-Atlantic sailings. With many ships carrying 3,00o passengers or more, that's a lot of cabin space to fill so there will be some interesting opportunities for a smart and discerning traveler.

We have since booked a South American cruise because we don't think that we'll see prices this low again.

[Rob & Beckys mom]

Hi.

I have been thinking of taking a transatlantic cruise into western Europe. My question is, with all the days at sea, do you get bored and does it take a toll on you? Are you better off leaving out of Florida or flying to Europe and cruising back into FL.

 

Please help me decide.:o

Thanks

Rose

 

I did get bored in our Ta cruise, but I consider that a good thing;) , we were on Oceania & we watched a lot of movies in our cabin. Just relax, read & sail...nice:) . We sailed from Barcelona to Rio, if I did it again I would fly to Europe & sail to Fla., have fun planning!

 

Jan

[Deeliteful]

Hi Rose

 

I think you have you're answer! But they are addictive. I am about to cruise my 2nd TA Eastboound and have booked westbound for September and another eastbound for next April.

 

Those sea days are absolutely the best - I felt sooooo relaxed after my last TA. Can't wait for next month.

 

Try it - you'll love it.:D

[IWanttocruisenow]

If there was ever a time to pay for an upgrade, this is it. OMG, I made the mistake of booking an inside on Princess last year, and after 16 days, I wanted to jump overboard. Even though the ship was not full, I was not allowed to upgrade on ship

I was told it was Princess's policy:mad: