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Marina or Regatta for Cape Horn?


marylovestotravel
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We did Cape Horn on NCL's DREAM (1750 passengers) back in February '02 (no longer in their fleet) and we were lucky -- cool weather but very calm seas. It was a great day.

 

But given that the area IS known for rough seas, I think I'd opt for Marina rather than Regatta. OTOH, someone just posted that they were on Regatta this week with 30 foot waves and they came through just fine!

 

You do need to decide if the greater choice of restaurants, culinary center, arts center, etc., make Marina more worthwhile to you. Many long termers on Oceania still prefer the smaller ships.

 

It's hard to definitely weigh in on one side or the other (at least for me) regarding your question.

 

Mura

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Just a P.S.

 

When we did the Buenos Aires-Valpo cruise so long ago, we had great weather both at Cape Horn and the Falklands.

 

The cruise before us (Valpo-Buenos Aires) couldn't dock/tender in the Falklands because the weather was bad. But when we came back a few days later the captain said it was the best weather he'd ever seen there.

 

Luck of the draw ...

 

Mura

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We were on Marina thru Horn, smooth as glass, coast of Chile a very different story, a wild ride, bumpy, dishes smashing, very interesting dinner at Terrace with all the movement but it was not all that bad. One can always retreat to room to ride it all out. It passes in time;)

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We rounded the Horn on Regent's Mariner which is about the same size as Marina. Before we came out of the channel the Captain told us all that the winds were so high around the Horn that we might just have to stick our nose out, and then return quickly to the channel (winds were over 160km/hr). But luckily for us the winds dropped to an acceptable level and we did round the Horn. It was rough. Cabinets crashed down outside the Observation Lounge. And it was exciting! Photo below was taken as we went around and my hair was blowing almost vertical! (The Calvados helped).

 

Bottom line is I would not have wanted to have been in a smaller ship... nor one without Calva!

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We were on the Insignia and it was fine at Cape Horn. The part that got to several passengers was the west coast of Chile.

 

Same here. The Straits of Magellan was where the ship encountered very rough weather. We even did the Drake passage to Antarctica on Insignia and it was smooth.

 

I would lean toward the R ships because of the number of passengers. I would prefer to be in and R ship for some of the small ports like Ushuaia, Puerto Montt , Puerto Chacabuco - less people for ports with small tourist infrastructures.

 

Would not worry about the sea state. There would be little difference if Marina or Regatta hits bad weather. Even large ships do not handle high sea states that well -- stabilizers or not. (if susceptible you will get sick on either ship).

Edited by PaulMCO
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As others have inferred, it's not the size of the ship but the size of the waves. Mother Nature is totally in control and the captain will do what is prudent.

We 'rounded the Horn in 2005 on Insignia and had no problems there but did have rough seas earlier on the trip between Ushuaia and the Falklands. In 2012 we had a totally calm Drake crossing from Antarctica on a ship roughly half the size of the R ships. The only bad seas we experienced were between the Falklands and South Georgia.

Hope for best weather and take(pack) Bonine before you think you need it!

Go for it!!!

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Did Lima to BA on Regatta this past February. Except near the Falklands, we had smooth sailing. A couple of larger cruise ships (other lines obviously) were a day or two behind us and missed a number of ports due to rough weather.

 

We were glad we were on the smaller ship for this itinerary as we could dock in all but three ports. If the weather is bad, the size of the ship really won't matter.

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We were on a small 100 passenger ship and not only rounded the Horn, we did a zodiac landing on it. There were only 3-4 ft seas but the next day the weather turned bad and we had 30 ft. seas. It just depends. In any case, the large ships like Marina and Regatta have to keep their distance from the horn itself so you aren't going to see very much, especially if it is rainy or foggy. I haven't been on the bigger ships but I would choose Regatta, just because you are more likely to be able to dock more places and get closer to the fjords-and because I like smaller ships.

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Just trying to be clear....... so, the Marina's stabilizers are no better than on the Regatta - despite the fact that the Marina is considerably newer?

 

 

They may be better -- but a stabilizer only works to dampen rolling motions. In heavy seas the major effect is the pitching of the bow up and down -- and up and down and up and down. and up and down ....... sea sick yet :D

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>.... a stabilizer only works to dampen rolling motions. In heavy seas the major effect is the pitching

 

 

Pitch, pitch damn your soul/

The more you pitch, the less you roll.

 

Roll, roll you dirty b***h/

The more you roll, the less you pitch.

 

Old sailor's rhyme

 

Ira

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I've sailed on both numerous times and I would say the Marina hands down because it's just a much nicer newer ship with more to offer. If the seas are choppy you will feel it on either ship. But the Marina is a bit smoother since its newer, larger and does have a better stabilizer system. More dining choices and nicer suites on the Marina the Red Ginger Asian fusion is amazing, plus the spa and facilities are top notch.

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I guess I'm having a difficult time making a choice. I've been on the Marina multiple times and love the ship. On the other hand, I've heard that the "R" ships are very nice as well, with the intimacy of being on a smaller ship. It was interesting to consider that the smaller ships will be able to dock at more of the smaller ports.

 

It seems that both ships will handle the seas somewhat equally, it being the luck of the draw about the state of the seas we will encounter.

 

But in reading the rollcalls of the current voyages, the Marina seems more active, with more people putting together tours. Will I find people are less active on the Regatta? Is that the general experience on the R ships?

 

Mia

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I wouldn't say that is the case, but it also can depend on the itinerary.

 

I have often set up Meet & Greets on Oceania. On my most recent Marina cruises (the last 3) we had around 100 people at each function. Actually, I think that is too many!

 

On the "R" ships we've had groups of 35-50 people most often -- perhaps more, I'm not going to go back and count!

 

But your question presumes that the size of the ship indicates the activity on a Roll Call. I don't think that's the case.

 

First, as I said above, it can depend on the itinerary. We have had very active roll calls on the "R" ships when we were in somewhat unusual itineraries. If you are doing a Caribbean cruise, you may not have so much action.

 

Don't assume that because it's a small ship, you won't find much "action" here.

 

We are doing a Lima-NYC cruise on Marina in April and the roll call has been very quiet. The prior cruise (Papeete-Lima-NYC) has about twice as many members. But the last M&Gs I set up on Marina had more than 100 participants -- those were on an Oct '11 cruise (Athens-Istanbul), Nov '13 (Barcelona-Rio) and May '14 (NYC-Dover). Our August '12 Black Sea cruise on Regatta had 40.

 

As far as putting together tours is concerned, we also have not had a problem on the "R" ships. Whenever we've wanted to set up (or join) a group, we've been able to do so. Again, it does depend on the itinerary. And you cannot predict just from the itinerary what the other passengers want to do.

 

Back in the beginning of Oceania (and this wasn't just on Oceania, it was on Viking and the QE2 as well around then), people weren't aware that these message boards existed. They thought they were very interesting, but almost no one ever asked me how to find them online.

 

I would suggest that you book the cruise you are interested in. Then join the roll call (or create it!). You should have an indication pretty early on if this is an active group or not. There just aren't any guarantees.

 

Many of us participating here are seniors and we use our computers. But not all passengers are!

 

Mura

Edited by Mura
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We went around the Horn on Insignia in 2008, smooth as a lake. But, it was really rough between the Falklands and Ushuaia. Insignia handled it well. On another cruise, on the maiden voyage of Marina, it was really rough between Casablanca and Tenerife. Marina handled it fine. We felt the pitching in both cases, but one was no better or worse than the other.

 

Insignia is also Oceania's choice to go around the world, where the chances are that rough water will occur somewhere. Insignia is identical to Regatta, and Marina is identical to Riviera.

 

Both classes of ships are safe and able to handle rough water. Both will cause queasiness if you are susceptible. Your decision really boils down to more facilities or more intimacy.

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Speaking as one of those older folks, it's obvious that retirees can afford to take longer trips -- more because of the time involved than the cost. When we were working it was harder to take more than 14 days for a vacation. Now we don't have that limitation.

 

But I haven't seen that older passengers are all less active. (That's could be true about Caribbean or perhaps even Mediterranean itineraries.)

 

Our Barcelona-Rio cruise last November/December tracked exactly (except for one port) a Regent cruise. We happened to share a shuttle with a couple from the regent ship in Cape Verde and they commented on how "our" cruise passengers seemed much more active than theirs. That was just from appearance, I would think, but she said it ... I didn't.

 

There ARE people who use the ship as their destination, but I'm not sure that age has anything to do with it.

 

While we have come to prefer itineraries that have more sea days than a completely port intensive itinerary, when we are in port we usually are either taking a tour or going out on our own. I know we aren't alone.

 

Mura

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Longer itineraries also means less (or no) children. This is something people of all ages sometimes look for if they are taking a vacation while the grandparents are watching the kids or simply looking for a quiet vacation. Also, large groups of people tend to take short itineraries (typically 7 nights).

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Just trying to be clear....... so, the Marina's stabilizers are no better than on the Regatta - despite the fact that the Marina is considerably newer?

 

 

 

Correct.... its a very old and established principal and unless the enterprise beams you up there is nothing else. Both ships have the same hull design so it doesn't matter

 

Stabilizers are in effect small airfoils....wings that are gyro activated...

 

Anytime the ship is doing more than 18 kts they work just fine...below that speed they are of no value and their is not enough lift to counter any roll.

 

Stabilizers only work too for roll... they have no effect on pitch or yaw

 

By the way in Arctic waters, stabilizers can not be used at all for fear of ice tearing them off and holing the ship

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