Transatlantic- Port or Starboard

[Luv2Crus40]

My English parents told me that POSH means Portside Out Starboard Home -- when sailing/cruising from Great Britain.

Just the opposite for sailing from the States.

[MicCanberra]

My English parents told me that POSH means Portside Out Starboard Home -- when sailing/cruising from Great Britain.

Just the opposite for sailing from the States.

 

Except it was for sailings to India and it was avoiding the sun/heat.

[Fouremco]

The monsoon winds that ships which traversed the route between England and India were subject to shift from winter to summer: the sheltered and exposed sides of a ship change seasonally. One part of the year's posh therefore would be another's soph.

[cindy1957]

Well the port side leaving Port Everglades faces the sail-away camera. Watch for me waving! Don't really care which side I'm on.

[MicCanberra]

Well the port side leaving Port Everglades faces the sail-away camera. Watch for me waving! Don't really care which side I'm on.

 

LOL, enjoy.:D

[kalypso333]

So I thought to myself - heading eastbound the sun will be further south. My previous TA was rough, but I don't mind up/down motion. Choose a hull balcony, starboard side on the stern. I say balance it all and make a choice. And anyways make the best.

[jlayman800]

This is a fun conversation. It was settled in the 1930's.

 

"...Sailing between the UK and India, certain passengers would request ‘port out, starboard home’, or POSH – a way to protect themselves from the high heats of the sun and take advantage of the cool breezes. ...So which is best? Port or Starboard? Well, it all depends on the itinerary." https://www.bolsovercruiseclub.com/blog/should-i-book-a-port-or-starboard-cabin/

 

For a sailing between the US east coast to Europe or England, if your goal is to have a cooler cabin with less sun, think POSH (port out starboard home). If your goal is to have a warmer cabin with lots of sun, think SOPH (starboard out port home).

 

It's not about opinion or anything other than science. The sun runs along the equator (roughly) and that's on the right (starboard) side of a ship when it is travelling eastward. I stumbled into this conversation and couldn't believe the large numbers of confused replies. :D

[Rome Again]

A well known fact - the North Atlantic is chilly and very windy in the spring sailing eastbound to Europe - They don't call the winds Nor-Westers for nothing. The weather starts changing 36 hours out into the Atlantic . We prefer the warmer westbound crossings in the fall and stay on the port side - our balcony is sheltered from the wind that comes from the north . That works for us . Doing MSC Meraviglia in Sept 2019 - Kiel to NYC cabin # 13049 - port side. Doing a westbound from the Med to FLL in the fall - Met a lady and her mother last April when we went from FLL to Montreal (15 nights) - they had no warm clothing at all - somebody told them that it was warm in Canada in April - I told them they were lied to and that 35-40F was only warm if you were a penguin or polar bear. Quite a few people on board that trip had never seen snow before.

[cameljockey]

On 3/10/2016 at 12:29 PM, OneMoreTime said:

Wondering if it is better to be on the port or starboard side when doing an eastbound transatlantic.

 

Right now we are on the port side but we could move to the starboard side. Would prefer to have sun.

We always  book mid ship inside. We are only in the cabin  to sleep  and shower . We have tried  them all and found  for us this works  best . Some  funny  comments  on here though  about the sun . We  hope for clear  skies  and smooth  seas  for all.

[ipeeinthepool]

Always starboard side on any Celebrity cruise to avoid the smoking areas on the port side .

[Luv2Crus40]

We ptefer sailing starboard going east and port side sailing west. We like some isun in our cabin. 

[Jem 12]

On 3/11/2016 at 2:08 AM, OneMoreTime said:

We are sailing from Fort Lauderdale to Southampton on April 10th on the Celebrity Eclipse. We are currently port side and thought about moving starboard but the cabin wasn't desirable. This is our first Transatlantic so we'll be more knowledgeable in the future should we opt to do another transatlantic cruise. Appreciate everyone's input.

We would normally pick our cabin on the starboard side for an Eastbound, but in May we booked late and didn’t have a choice, we ended up with a forward Port side cabin, all I can tell you is that when we tended to be in the cabin late afternoon, we had sun until sunset.  Enjoy your cruise. 

 

[LucasLounger1]

Interesting responses.  We are doing Barcelona to Buenos Aires and I chose port side because I didn't want the sun to chase me off the balcony during the 7 sea days.  I based this decision on it going in a southerly direction; of course it won't be due south.

 

My sister booked a room just across the elevator divide so we'll have balconies with opposite exposures to enjoy.  Plus we got first off the hump deep balconies (7159 and 7206 on Silhouette), which I understand will allow for more shade.

 

Our recent TA from Miami to Rome was starboard and we had marvellous weather and sun, until around the Azores.

[teddytaylor]

In the early days of transatlantic voyages from the UK the first class passengers were often known as POSH, a term that has stuck around, for their preference to travel port out, starboard home to give them the sunniest outlook on their voyage. As most are only going one way these days I would follow that mantra when booking if possible

[cangelmd]

On 3/10/2016 at 11:44 AM, Desertbelle said:

I agree, starboard is preferable on an eastbound transatlantic cruise because of more sun exposure....which is fairly important because the sea days can be very chilly and you will enjoy your balcony more if it's a little warmer because of the sunshine.

LOL! - that is if you are allowed out on your balcony. On our TA last fall, the balcony furniture was tied down for over half the cruise. You could stand out there...And there were plenty of sunny days, I just couldn't spend enough time out there to remember which side the sun was on.

[kessdarln]

On 3/10/2016 at 10:04 AM, Desertbelle said:

 

 

You are not the only cruiser to have done multiple transatlantic cruises. Of course, you are welcome to your opinion but we prefer having the sunshine on our balcony....others may prefer more shade.

How cold does it get?  When traveling, I prefer morning sun, afternoon shade. 

[Wine-O]

11 minutes ago, kessdarln said:

How cold does it get?  When traveling, I prefer morning sun, afternoon shade. 

 

I don't think you can have it your way.  This is not Burger King.  Westbound normally gets the sun on the Port Side and Eastbound gets the sun on the Starboard Side.  Time of the year, May and September you have great temps.  Shorts weather.  🍷

[DreadPirateRobert]

Based on advice here we switched to a starboard side cabin for our Miami to Rome TA in April. The friends we are traveling with are on the port side so we have all the bases covered for scenic arrivals and departures if we choose not to be on deck for those occasions. 

[Ride-The-Waves]

On 6/12/2019 at 11:23 AM, teddytaylor said:

In the early days of transatlantic voyages from the UK the first class passengers were often known as POSH, a term that has stuck around, for their preference to travel port out, starboard home to give them the sunniest outlook on their voyage. As most are only going one way these days I would follow that mantra when booking if possible

Has nothing to do with traveling across the Atlantic.  Myth has it that it came from British travelers going to India during the colonial period and the wealthy would select the Port side outbound England and starboard side home from India.  Thus the acronym P.O.S.H!  Much cooler to travel POSH!

Edited January 15, 2021 by Ride-The-Waves