Sailing in Snow!

[Red-Sol]

Hi Folks,

 

We are sailing out of New York in January for a 10 day cruise on the Gem. Call me crazy (which would be true ;)) but I am hoping when we depart it is during a snow storm. I live in Western New York so having snow is definitely not a novelty for us. For some reason though that I cannot explain I think sailing off to the Caribbean in January in a snow storm would just add to the adventure.

 

Anyone had that happen before?

[pathubia]

Hi Folks,

 

We are sailing out of New York in January for a 10 day cruise on the Gem. Call me crazy (which would be true ;)) but I am hoping when we depart it is during a snow storm. I live in Western New York so having snow is definitely not a novelty for us. For some reason though that I cannot explain I think sailing off to the Caribbean in January in a snow storm would just add to the adventure.

 

Anyone had that happen before?

 

Sailed out of Boston for a weekend CTN during a snowy nor'easter, it was a very rocky sailing.

[Paul Bogle]

We sailed on the Gem in February of 2009. It snowed overnight as we returned. Watching the crew shovel four inches of snow of Lido deck debarkation morning really let us know our cruise had ended and we were back home.

 

I hope you get your wish. Better to have snow outbound and leave it behind.

[uncleah]

Did a January cruise of of Bayonne. Decks were covered with snow when we left. The concierge disappointed me. He didn't have any skis! That would have been pretty neat - skiing on a cruise ship.

[casofilia]

We are sailing out of New York in January for a 10 day cruise on the Gem. Call me crazy (which would be true ;)) but I am hoping when we depart it is during a snow storm. I live in Western New York so having snow is definitely not a novelty for us. For some reason though that I cannot explain I think sailing off to the Caribbean in January in a snow storm would just add to the adventure.

 

Be careful what you wish for!! A "snow storm" might keep you tied up at the pier!! Might mean you can't even get to the pier!! Might mean a bit of a rough passage!! Might mean lots of people being sea sick!! Have you even been on a boat where the predominant smell is of sea sickness?

 

Mike

[jaja]

We sailed once out of NYC in the snow...Luckily no problem getting to pier..as snow was light...and I have to say it was kind of pretty sailing out of harbor with all the building lights and ship lights reflecting off snow flakes..ps ...we stayed on our snow dusted balcony to watch till it got too cold ;)

[Turtles06]

We haven't sailed out of NY in the winter, so no snowy sailaways yet (but we'll be on the Gem in February, so it could happen!). We did, however, return to NY on the Gem in late October 2011, where a Nor'easter had dropped some very early snow the day before (and made for quite a wild ride that final sea day). It was so strange to have snow in the parking lot at the pier in October.

 

 

(photo by turtles06)

[Vyhanek]

I sailed out of New England only one time. It was freezing for the first 1.5 days. Then returning, same thing. A snowstorm on land means rough seas. Cold and then rough seas are not fun.

[TraJon9]

The predicted report for January for the region is above average temps.. Little snow quickly to rain.. Which means 25 inches of snow for sure..

[luv2swimwdolphins]

One winter ,on way to NYC port we hit an ice storm. Took 4 hrs to go 55 miles. It was horrific. Thought we'd miss the boat. thruway was closed. 17 closed. The horror stories of those taking buses from Albany or anywhere within 50 miles radius may change your mind about any winter weather on cruise day! Still love cruising out of NYC anytime of year but I do silently pray for dry weather the day we leave.

[spidybabe]

One there was Heavy snow day/ night before cruise from NYC. We live so close (30 mins away) and couldn't get a cab , nobody would take reservation the night before. Finally in the morning, my DH just offered a very very nice amount to take us, and a company finally did. NO PROBLEMS getting into Manhattan -less than 30 mins. The water around the ship was frozen into large chunks floating by. It looked amazing

Once coming home we woke up to dusting of snow on the balcony.

FYI- if parking at NY port in the winter- make sure you have a shovel- its outdoor parking

Safe sailing

[bob brown]

Even though I too, only live about 12 miles east of the cruise ship terminal, if a serious blizzard warning was in effect prior to the cruise, I would seriously consider trying to get a hotel near the terminal the day before....don't want to miss the cruise. On the way home, it wouldn't matter...

[KJE Atlanta]

We sailed out of NYC on the Getaway last year in a snowstorm. Here's a link to the photos I posted here on CC. Was very cool (literally and figuratively!).

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1985802

[Turtles06]

We sailed out of NYC on the Getaway last year in a snowstorm. Here's a link to the photos I posted here on CC. Was very cool (literally and figuratively!).

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1985802

 

Thanks for sharing those!

[geegee1]

Be careful what you wish for!! A "snow storm" might keep you tied up at the pier!! Might mean you can't even get to the pier!! Might mean a bit of a rough passage!! Might mean lots of people being sea sick!! Have you even been on a boat where the predominant smell is of sea sickness?

 

Mike

 

As others have stated, while it might look pretty and seem cool now. Getting to the port could be a pain or impossible. This past January when they predicted the blizzard that ended up going so east that only a couple of inches fell, they closed all the roads the night before and shut down the transit system.

[hateswaterloves2cruise]

Since 2005 we have sailed out of NYC in Jan/Feb about half a dozen times. Sometimes its been so nice we've been outside by the pool with our drink of the day toasting NYC as we leave. Last year they predicted an ice storm the day we left so we moved our hotel to just over the GWB in NJ. Didn't have any problems getting to the pier and the ice storm really didn't materialize. One year we were out on deck and it started snowing. By the time we got to the Statue of Liberty you couldn't even see it :eek:. It's always a challenge and sometimes the ride can be rough. Going again on the Gem this February but booked out of Florida for next February. Last year's trip, going and coming back, was so rough that if it had been our first cruise out of NYC it definitely would have been our last.

[hateswaterloves2cruise]

Also, definitely pack a shovel and boots if you plan to park in the lot by the pier. We've returned when they had the snow piled up behind our cars and we had to chop/dig our way out.

[pathubia]

Also, definitely pack a shovel and boots if you plan to park in the lot by the pier. We've returned when they had the snow piled up behind our cars and we had to chop/dig our way out.

 

Great advice!!

[sdmike]

Be careful what you wish for!! A "snow storm" might keep you tied up at the pier!! Might mean you can't even get to the pier!! Might mean a bit of a rough passage!! Might mean lots of people being sea sick!! Have you even been on a boat where the predominant smell is of sea sickness?

 

Mike

 

You're clearly a glass-half-full kinda guy :)

[genman36]

Here are a few photos from our Gem cruise that left last Feb 2015. It was cold leaving NYC but started to warm up the next day and we were in shorts by the second sea day.

 

[meatball_nyc]

Screen shot of QM2 deck in Brooklyn last winter:

 

Screen shot of Breakaway's bridgecam last February:

 

Getaway docked in NYC last January:

 

Screen shot of port of New York from PTZtv:

 

Weather here has been wonderfully warm for December so far. It's going to be 60* this weekend!

Have a great cruise!