Transatlantic Question

[Desertbelle]

We are in the process of booking our first transatlantic cruise on the Mariner beginning November 2, 2012, from Rome to Galveston. My travel agent just emailed me and asked me which side of the ship I wanted for our balcony cabin, the sunny side or the shady side??

 

We like the sun and love sitting on our balcony, but we have no idea what the weather at sea is going to be like...there are a lot of sea days, and we want to get the most out of our balcony.

 

So which side?? Sunny or Shady?

[tnt10]

Depending on the weather, the sunny side of the ship on a Westbound TA would be the Port side.

On most of our TA's, usually the last half of the cruise is warm enough to sit out on the balcony.

Happy Cruising,

TnT

[Coralc]

Agree. Port side. :D

[Beachin2]

That TA is booking fast (all suites are gone, JS too) and prices have been rising. We booked it awhile ago (JS) when first it was first announced.

 

Balconies today are higher than JS's were then.

 

Book this one sooner rather than later if you want to go - it will be stuffed and the cost will continue to increase.

[neverenoughtime]

We book on the shady side. It makes it easier to read on the balcony and if we want sun, we can always go up top.

[Starry Eyes]

I like the sunny side. More light inside the cabin, too.

[The Big Booper]

We have done several Westbound TAs and always book on the port side for the sun. Center hump if available.

[traveling1969]

That TA is booking fast (all suites are gone, JS too) and prices have been rising. We booked it awhile ago (JS) when first it was first announced.

 

Balconies today are higher than JS's were then.

 

Book this one sooner rather than later if you want to go - it will be stuffed and the cost will continue to increase.

On Friday our TA sent us a promo for this cruise at the same price we booked at originally so although RCCL's site shows nearly full, there are still some real deals available.

[The Big Booper]

This sailing is selling well. E's are gty only and the only D's are D2's at the front and rear, and some D1's at the front. If you want near the hump, you have to go inside.:mad:

 

Great itinerary. Starts at Rome, with 6 stops including the Canaries and then on to Texas. 16 nights.

[MadManOfBethesda]

Book this one sooner rather than later if you want to go - it will be stuffed and the cost will continue to increase.

 

Completely disagree, unless you have your heart set on a particular cabin. We book transatlantics all the time (3 this year alone, including one coming up this month and another one two weeks later.) Our experience is that while prices may rise in the year leading up to the cruise, they usually come down when you get closer. We usually don't book TAs far in advance, but then we're not particular on where our cabin is. We paid $499 for an inside gty on Voyager's 13-night TA from Barcelona to New Orleans and $899 for a veranda cabin on Celebrity Equinox's 14nt TA from Rome to Ft. Lauderdale this fall.

 

If transatlantic cruises were so popular, the price per night wouldn't be significantly cheaper than regular non-repositioning cruises.

[MadManOfBethesda]

We like the sun and love sitting on our balcony, but we have no idea what the weather at sea is going to be like...there are a lot of sea days, and we want to get the most out of our balcony.

 

So which side?? Sunny or Shady?

 

I think you answered your own question.

[negc]

Completely disagree, unless you have your heart set on a particular cabin. We book transatlantics all the time (3 this year alone, including one coming up this month and another one two weeks later.) Our experience is that while prices may rise in the year leading up to the cruise, they usually come down when you get closer. We usually don't book TAs far in advance, but then we're not particular on where our cabin is. We paid $499 for an inside gty on Voyager's 13-night TA from Barcelona to New Orleans and $899 for a veranda cabin on Celebrity Equinox's 14nt TA from Rome to Ft. Lauderdale this fall.

 

If transatlantic cruises were so popular, the price per night wouldn't be significantly cheaper than regular non-repositioning cruises.

 

It may depend on which transatlantic you are talking about. The Jewel westbound TAs sell out the best cabins almost as soon as the books open, and most regulars have specific preferences as to which stateroom they want. We had to take our second choice this past cruise because we were unable to book until several days after the books actually opened. TAs may be an acquired taste but they are far more limited than non-repositioning cruises and prices are nowhere near the bargains that they were only a few years ago. If you are content with an inside stateroom on almost any cruise, especially longer ones, you can probably wait until close to the sailing date to book, but if you prefer to see daylight from your stateroom or have a preference for a particular room or category, early booking is certainly advisable.:)

[gourmet guide]

Port out Starboard home. Years ago the well off people changed staterooms for the return journey back to Europe. On their cruise tickets they ship printed the short version of port out starboard home (POSH) and thats where the word POSH comes from.

 

can you tell i'm bored :D:D:D

[Desertbelle]

Thank you for the suggestions, we went with Port side. I knew the good people of Cruise Critic would have the answer to my question quickly!!

[MadManOfBethesda]

Port out Starboard home. Years ago the well off people changed staterooms for the return journey back to Europe. On their cruise tickets they ship printed the short version of port out starboard home (POSH) and thats where the word POSH comes from.

 

can you tell i'm bored :D:D:D

 

That's a common misconception of the origin of the word.

 

http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/posh.asp

[The Big Booper]

That's a common misconception of the origin of the word.

 

http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/posh.asp

 

Learn all kinds of stuff when hanging around CC !!

[ortrud]

If you can't get an aft balcony, take the sunny side for sure.

We once had an Aft balcony cabin booked, then we got upgraded to a suite, on the shady side. we were never able to use our balcony it was just too cold. Our friends kept their aft balcony and had a wonderful sunny and windless crossing.

The Atlantic can be very cool when crossing, with much wind on deck.

[ssb]

Port

[Desertbelle]

If you can't get an aft balcony, take the sunny side for sure.

We once had an Aft balcony cabin booked, then we got upgraded to a suite, on the shady side. we were never able to use our balcony it was just too cold. Our friends kept their aft balcony and had a wonderful sunny and windless crossing.

The Atlantic can be very cool when crossing, with much wind on deck.

This is exactly exactly what we were afraid of, having a balcony on a transatlantic that we couldn't use because it was too cold.

[Sequim88]

We picked Starboard on eastbound Mariner trip this coming May for same reason - more chance for sun. But on other threads have been told sun angle is pretty high so all balconies except the ones that extend out from the one above are mostly shaded. Still it has to be better than the other side.

 

Spring TA will have cooler water but also tend to have more sun. Wesbound in Fall will be dealing with waves coming off Sahara and coming across Atlantic - often forming tropical depressions and sometimes into hurricanes. Water is warmer in Fall and storms pop up easier.

 

it will be stuffed and the cost will continue to increase.

 

Our May Mariner TA, now seven months out, is almost fully booked. A few insides and oceanview but not balconies or suites left. Once in awhile the E2 we booked for $990/pp become available and are listed at $2,500/pp. After final payment date I suspect a fair number will become available and there might be a temporary drop but probably not back to the levels on the day bookings opened. We had to have a specific cabin so had to book the day it opened up. There are only eight wheelchair accessible balconies and those go extremely fast.

[mjldvlks]

We had a port side balcony for our eastbound TA [independence, Ft. Lauderdale to Southampton] in 2009. Since the sun is going to be slightly south of directly overhead, that is the shady side. Here is a picture looking down to the water from our balcony [deck 9 just aft of the hump] about mid day on a sunny day. From the shadow of the ship you should be able to see what everyone is talking about.

 

 

Having said the above, with the exception of Jewel, the TA's tend to be fairly well to the south so the temperatures tend to be comfortable. We were comfortable on our balcony pretty much the whole trip. We are not pool people, but my memory is the pools go a lot of use, at least until we turned north from Vigo, Spain. We didn't find the wind to be an issue. Keep in mind on a TA, the Captain has more time and room to maneuver. They are pretty good at avoiding bad weather if reasonably possible.

[ssb]

The ship can have a soutern route or a northern route depending on whether you go to and or pass the Bahamas on the north and which destination islands

you may dock in near portugal and Africa , and of course what the weather is! We have done both routes and east and west ! TA's can be cooler or warmer depending on all these factors. We have had port cabins corner aft with lots of sun on eastern routes! Galvestern to Europe ! Of course there are spring and fall TA's which makes everything relative.

[gourmet guide]

That's a common misconception of the origin of the word.

 

http://www.snopes.com/language/acronyms/posh.asp

 

 

nah snopes is just plain wrong :D:D. must through a few more "allegedlies" into my posts hehe

[pspercy]

Snopes isn't always right either.

 

POSH was usually said to refer specifically to passage thru' the Red Sea.

[MadManOfBethesda]

Snopes isn't always right either.

 

POSH was usually said to refer specifically to passage thru' the Red Sea.

 

Fine; don't believe snopes.

 

How about the Oxford English Dictionary? Is that enough of an authority to refute this nonsense?

 

And I quote:

 

"Despite exhaustive enquiries, including interviews with former travellers and inspection of shipping company documents, researchers for the 20-volume historical Oxford English Dictionary have found no supporting evidence for this explanation of the origins of posh."

 

http://oxforddictionaries.com/page/originposh