Winter cruises out of New York

Guys, I am looking at a late December 9 day cruise to the Caribbean out of New York. Would you cruise out NY in mid-winter or fly to Florida and leave from there? I read some reviews about the same cruise same dates last year and the weather was horrendous and the ship got hit by a big storm. The reviews were not complementary to the cruise-line.

I would fly to Florida

You may have a day or so of cool weather sailing to the warm weather from NYC

Plus more chance of snow & airport problems in NYC

If you have to connect choose an airport as far south in the US as you can

Fly in a day or more before the cruise in case of delays

JMO

The only reason to cruise from nyc is if you want to visit the city before or after , we love nyc but do not visit in winter.

December weather in NYC is usually not the most snowy and cold. But this year may not be typical. I’d fly out of Miami and arrive there the day before the cruise leaves. As far as the particular cruise line it is up to each individual to make this choice.

Have insurance, don't arrive the day of sailing or sail from someplace south. Weather is changing, snow storm in NYC in October two years ago.

One of the great things of a winter cruise is sailing down the Hudson in the dark with the City all lights all ablaze.

There is a second reason to choose to cruise from NY - if you can do so and not have to fly in winter. Flying is a bigger risk than a storm at sea. Rough seas can happen any time of year. Just have to accept that risk over the risk your flight is affected.

The only reason to cruise from nyc is if you want to visit the city before or after , we love nyc but do not visit in winter.

Many people sail out of NYC because they don't have to fly to get there.

Guys, I am looking at a late December 9 day cruise to the Caribbean out of New York. Would you cruise out NY in mid-winter or fly to Florida and leave from there? I read some reviews about the same cruise same dates last year and the weather was horrendous and the ship got hit by a big storm. The reviews were not complementary to the cruise-line.

There was a huge storm that affected the return of the NCL Breakaway last year. The captain decided to sail behind the storm instead of delaying the return. It was a no-win situation. Some passengers were upset for his sailing in very rough seas (there are some videos, people got seasick, ocean water got in on some decks (a lot of it)). Others would have been upset because of either a delayed arrival or a delayed departure of their next cruise.

I sailed out of NYC at the end of January. First two days were very cold, which limited on-deck activities and swimming. I can't say I was surprised.

Many people sail out of NYC because they don't have to fly to get there.

I understand that always cruised from there when I lived there, poster is from Europe.

Guys, I am looking at a late December 9 day cruise to the Caribbean out of New York. Would you cruise out NY in mid-winter or fly to Florida and leave from there? I read some reviews about the same cruise same dates last year and the weather was horrendous and the ship got hit by a big storm. The reviews were not complementary to the cruise-line.

My advice is based only on the fact that you live in Europe, and would have to fly to the port whether you leave from NY or Florida. Unless you'd like to visit NY before or after your cruise, I'd fly to Florida, since you'd be flying to someplace warm and not have a day or so each way of cold weather on your cruise.

I love sailing in and out of NY, and have even done so in the winter so that I don't have to fly to get to the ship. But that's not your situation.

The only reason to cruise from nyc is if you want to visit the city before or after , we love nyc but do not visit in winter.

Ice skating at Rockefeller Square, watching kids build snow forts in Central Park, seeing all the stores decked out for Christmas, what's not to love about NYC in December.

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If you have never been to NYC and can visit in Dec when it is all decked out for Xmas...do it. Fly in a couple days early to give yourself a buffer and experience the city at Christmas for a couple days before sailing. It is something everyone should do at least once in their life.

Don't obsess over what the weather might, could possibly be in Dec.

Guys, I am looking at a late December 9 day cruise to the Caribbean out of New York. Would you cruise out NY in mid-winter or fly to Florida and leave from there? I read some reviews about the same cruise same dates last year and the weather was horrendous and the ship got hit by a big storm. The reviews were not complementary to the cruise-line.

I live in NY.I would say that cruising out of Fla is the better option.

Many people sail out of NYC because they don't have to fly to get there.

I have cruised out of NY and Baltimore in both May and December. The only reason I would sail out of a northern port in the winter is because I don't have to fly. Once I'm getting on a plane I would say fly to FL.

Great feedback, thank you all.

Mid-winter might be an issue, but December 9 is still fall and snow would be unlikely

Because I live near New York, I much prefer sailing from there. Going to the Caribbean usually puts you in 70 degree Gulf Stream water by afternoon of the first day, - your last full day will be cold, but there is much to do inboard.

A short train ride to NY is far preferable to flight and hotel day before for a Florida sailing. Also, there is little real likelihood of serious storm at sea - much less risk than of weather- related flight delays.

That said, when Celebrity and HAL sailed from NY it made sense- now the options are limited to second-rate experience on NCL or the absurd mob scene on Anthem of the Seas 5,000 passenger floating shopping mall/amusement park- so I now seek other options.

If you like NCL or huge Anthem, you should definitely sail from NY.

Ice skating at Rockefeller Square, watching kids build snow forts in Central Park, seeing all the stores decked out for Christmas, what's not to love about NYC in December.

 

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Just do not like cold weather , lived in nyc for over 30 years now been in Texas over 30 years, love nyc but perfer visiting Memorial Day week. Nyc is by far my favorite city . But perfer weather in Texas where I can use my pool 6 months out of the year.

One of my nephew is planning the Caribbean route this winter, he's done the sailings out of NYC homeport a # of times, fares are higher for January and choices are limited.

They are now looking at sailing out of Florida (choice of ports, lines, itinerary, length & competitive prices) except that I'm advising 2 of them to fly south 2 days prior, just in case of winter storm/weather - backup option to go Amtrak & worst, jump into their Jeep 4WD and go drive & park if airlines start cancelling flights & doing waivers. She works at JFK and he used to, they've seen it all & processed thousands of distressed & stranded travelers ... know better than to take unnecessary risks, even with trip insurance. On their short list now, waiting for sales/last minute deals - perhaps, they are now saving enough money to pay for 2 nights of hotel in FL, and to get a rental car to run around ... before looking at interline discounts.

OP is doing a 9 days out of NY, in late December, as I read it ... blizzard isn't too common but it only take a 1/8" ice storm to shut down air traffic & for aircrafts to remained at their gates, unable to taxi out to join the takeoff queues ... even at JFK. But, even for cruising out of FL, they aren't going self-insured and will have trip insurance protections, just in case.

Guys, I am looking at a late December 9 day cruise to the Caribbean out of New York. Would you cruise out NY in mid-winter or fly to Florida and leave from there? I read some reviews about the same cruise same dates last year and the weather was horrendous and the ship got hit by a big storm. The reviews were not complementary to the cruise-line.

I have sailed out of New Jersey in early December and twice in early January. None of my sailings encountered rough weather other than on all 3 sailings, the outside deck was closed on the last full sea day returning to New Jersey.

On my most recent Anthem January sailing, it was 60+(f) on the first sea day. A few weeks earlier, it was 72(f) on Christmas Eve. The first Anthem sailing was smooth, 2 Anthem cruises later (early February) the ship was caught in a storm off NC and returned to NJ. You cannot use past weather as an indicator of what may occur when you sail.

As for the comment about overcrowding on Anthem, I never experienced such. I was on 2 Carnival cruises with 2500 passengers and I encountered worse crowd conditions than on Anthem.

We are also sailing out of NYC on December 9.  We are about 3 hours away and are driving up the day before and staying at a hotel in NJ that will shuttle us to and from the cruise port.  We also bought trip insurance and the thermal pass which will come in handy on the first and last days when it is cold.  Hopefully we are prepared for all eventualities. 

We are in NYC now waiting for breakaway.  I would not choose to cruise again from here.  Everything is harder because it is a big city.  Add in the cold and the rain, not to mention snow, and it is even harder.  

1 hour ago, momto2js said:

We are in NYC now waiting for breakaway.  I would not choose to cruise again from here.  Everything is harder because it is a big city.  Add in the cold and the rain, not to mention snow, and it is even harder.  

Not a nice day to sail from NYC! The only benefit from sailing from NYC is being able to visit, plus a great sailaway (and for me being 10 miles away). It’s also more expensive to sail from this area, hotel and transportation costs are higher.