Cpbryant Posted July 31, 2017 #1 Share Posted July 31, 2017 I was wondering if anybody knew approximately how long after setting sail it takes for the dream to leave the New Orleans port and out into the Gulf of Mexico. I'm looking forward to seeing the Mississippi turn into the ocean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VolzCruiser Posted July 31, 2017 #2 Share Posted July 31, 2017 It will be about 6 hours until you get to the gulf. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bllybb758 Posted July 31, 2017 #3 Share Posted July 31, 2017 We left at 4:00 pm. My dinner was at 8:15, about the time it took to get to desert we were in the gulf. What amazing views of the oil rigs as I’ve never seen one before as I’m from New England. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evandbob Posted July 31, 2017 #4 Share Posted July 31, 2017 I thought it was a bit longer, 8 or 9 hrs. It's been a long time since I sailed from NOLA, perhaps on the Holiday, but I seem to remember getting into the Gulf after midnight from a 4PM sail time. Do today's ships go a bit faster? I'll find out on the Dream Oct 1. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coevan Posted July 31, 2017 #5 Share Posted July 31, 2017 They do not go fast in the gulf, ships this size need forever to stop. I believe the pilot boat takes it out to the gulf, yes 7-8 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martinchem Posted July 31, 2017 #6 Share Posted July 31, 2017 I also thought it was 7 to 8 hrs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purvis1231 Posted July 31, 2017 #7 Share Posted July 31, 2017 7 to 8 hours is right normal but remember this is one of the most congested waterways in the world so there is always a chance a delay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midwestcruiser2001 Posted August 1, 2017 #8 Share Posted August 1, 2017 We cruised on the Triumph in March and left port at 4:30. I found a time stamped picture on my phone that shows the river pilot disembarking at 11:40 pm, so just over 7 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hassellcastle Posted August 1, 2017 #9 Share Posted August 1, 2017 A few years back we sailed on the Conquest out of NOLA. I specifically remember the last night of our cruise around 11pm we were no longer out in the Gulf but already making our way up the Mississippi River. It takes a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
portocaller Posted August 1, 2017 #10 Share Posted August 1, 2017 It takes closer to 8 hours to get to the mouth of the river. It happens close to midnight on a 4:00 departure. The ships move at a pretty decent clip. There is 68 miles between the Port of New Orleans and Pilotown. Not sure if that is a the crow flies or accounts for all the bends in the river. Sent from my SPH-L720 using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fkfad Posted August 1, 2017 #11 Share Posted August 1, 2017 I found this in another post...at the bottom, it shows that it takes 7 to 8 hours to get to the Gulf... This is all pretty interesting! We are sailing on Dream on September 3 and will be following this "tour" as we sail along... ;-) I will attempt to create a play by play tour of exactly what you will see as you embark on your journey down the mighty Mississippi, so here goes: The French Quarter: 1. Ernest N. Morial Convention Center: This is the massive building you will see where the boat is docked. This is actually the original location of the 1984 Worlds Fair. You can still see the decorative waterfall staircase that was just adjacent to the Space Shuttle display during the Fair. The Convention Center is the 6th largest in the country. 2. Riverwalk: This mall was built for the words fair and has remained a great specialty shop and upper end type of mall. This is also the mall where in 1996 the MV Bright Field ship lost power and rammed into while thousands of tourists where still inside. 3. Harrah’s Casino: It is what it is… 4. Aquarium Of The Americas: Great place to spend a day. 5. Woldenberg Riverfront Park: Great park to see the river and possibly hear some musicians. 6. Jax Brewery: Formerly where Jax Beer was made, now it’s a shopping mall. 7. St. Louis Cathedral: One of the oldest cathedrals in the country, original structure was completed in 1793 on the location where the former Catholic Church was destroyed by the Great New Orleans fire in 1788. A Catholic Church has stood on that ground since 1718. It is still a working Cathedral and therefore receives no historic funding. 8. Jackson Square: Park in front of the Cathedral with large statue of Andrew Jackson on his horse. The statue is significant as it was the first statue of a horse and rider standing on its back legs, very difficult balancing problem. 9. The Moon Walk: This is the small riverfront boardwalk area in front of Jackson Square. You will always here a saxophone going in this area 10. The French Market: Open air market with shops, flee market and produce stands. 11. The New Orleans Mint: In operation from 1838 to 1861 and from 1879 to 1909. It is now part of the Louisiana State Museum. Leaving French Quarter to Bywater, Upper and Lower 9th Wards: 12. Old docks: Doesn’t seem significant unless you a fan of the group Journey!!! This is the location where they filmed the video for “Separate Ways”. 13. Bywater and Upper 9th ward: The neighborhoods you see in the background. 14. Industrial Canal: man made canal for shipping purposes. This is the canal where one of the major levy breaches took place during Katrina and Rita. You can’t see the location; it’s on the other side of the St. Claude Bridge, which you can see. 15. Lower 9th ward: heavily damaged during Katrina. 16. Holy Cross School for Boys: This is where I went to high school. The school was established in 1849. The original administration building, which is still standing and you should be able to see, was built in 1895. Katrina damaged the campus beyond repair and after over 150 yrs of being on this location, it was moved to a new location on the other side of town. 17. Fats Domino’s house: you can’t see it, but its there. 18. Jackson Barracks: Originally designed by Andrew Jackson and built in 1834-35. It now houses the Louisiana National Guard Headquarters. It also serves as the dividing line between Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes. Entering St. Bernard Parish and Chalmette: This is where Katrina hit the worst, even more so than the lower 9th ward. Abandoned by its country, the first responders here where Canadian Mounties. 19. The Le Beau Plantation: It’s about 2 blocks in and hard to see so look real hard. It’s in bad shape and has not been restored, would be beautiful if it were restored. 20. Interview with a Vampier fire: This area is the location where they burned a bunch of old warehouses and whatnot for the movie. 21. Domino sugar: One of the oldest sugar refineries in the country dating back to 1909. It produces 6 million pounds of sugar per day and more than 2 billion pounds per year about 19% of the country’s sugar. Now that’s a lot of sugar!!!!!! 22. Cavaroc House: Located at Domino Sugar, looks like a small plantation but dwarfed by the massive Sugar refinery. 23. St. Bernard Port: It was once talked about to build the cruise terminal at this location. 24. Chalmette Battle Field (Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve): This is where the Battle of New Orleans was fought during the war of 1812 one of the greatest land victories of the war. You should be able to see the “monument”, which looks like a small version of the Washington monument in DC. 25. The Beauregard House: Built on this site in 1832. 26. Chalmette National Cemetery: Veteran cemetery established in 1864. 27. Kaiser Aluminum: This plant pretty much established the town of Chalmette. Its smoke stack has become a local landmark of years past. The plant was the largest Aluminum Smelter in the world until it closed down in 1983. 28. Chalmette Refining LLC: This used to be Mobil which used to be Tennecco etc. It is now a venture of ExxonMobil and the Venezuelan State Oil company. Some of the fuel you and others used to get to N.O. was refined at this very location. If your lucky you may catch them Flaring the Boom. If so you will see a massive fire ball which will light up the entire sky. This is all part of the refining process. 29. Chalmette Ferry Landing: This ferry landing is still used to get residents from one side of the river to the other. To go around is a twenty mile journey, but the time can be the same if you don’t catch the ferry right That pretty much sum’s up the first hour or so of your 7-8 hour cruise down the might Mississippi. The rest of the trip is still very interesting, but not too many landmarks. You will pass multiple oil and gas refineries such as BP and Chevron on your way down to the mouth. River Pilot: The very last thing of interest is when you get to the mouth of the river. A pilot boat will meet up with the ship, the ship will slow to a crawl and you can watch as the river pilot (who has been navigating the river) will jump from an open bay door on the ship to a small pilot boat. This will happen late at night usually somewhere between 10-12 depending on departure. Remember this phrase: “White over Red…Pilot Ahead”. The pilot boat will be a small vessel and at the very top of it, you will see 2 lights, a white light that sits above a red light. This is how you can identify the pilot boat ahead of time. That’s it, you have officially finished you sailing of the river and are entering the Ocean Blue. Oh, don’t forget to watch for the more then 3000 oil rigs along the continental shelf. Have a great trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ch27088 Posted August 1, 2017 #12 Share Posted August 1, 2017 I don't think you will be able to see the Mississippi river as you go into the gulf as it will be pitch dark. It does take 7 - 8 hours, and you won't be able to see a thing. However, once you start cruising down the Mississippi at 4pm, it is nice to see all the oil rigs and barges. For me, it was amazing to finally be cruising down the Mississippi, the might river that we learned about in school. Have a wonderful time, I'll be doing this cruise again in October 2017. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chengkp75 Posted August 1, 2017 #13 Share Posted August 1, 2017 They do not go fast in the gulf, ships this size need forever to stop. I believe the pilot boat takes it out to the gulf, yes 7-8 hours. I believe you mean "do not go fast in the river", as the ship will "hook it up" to whatever speed is necessary to get to the next port, once outside the breakwaters at Southwest Pass. The reason the ships cannot go fast in the river is the wakes are damaging to the levees. 7 to 8 hours is right normal but remember this is one of the most congested waterways in the world so there is always a chance a delay. The Miss is hardly "one of the most congested waterways in the world", and the only real delays are caused by fog and high river levels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winddawn Posted August 1, 2017 #14 Share Posted August 1, 2017 You can count on several hours (6 or 7 at least) from the time you leave NOLA until you reach the Gulf, depending on local conditions and traffic. Once it gets dark, you can't see much; however, along the way the oil rigs will be lit up and many people enjoy that view. A lot depends on what time of year you are cruising, and thus how much daylight you can expect. What is your sail date? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naomi John Posted August 1, 2017 #15 Share Posted August 1, 2017 If you are leaving on a Saturday you may cross another ship going up stream to dock on Sunday. It is 6-8 hours to the Gulf. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeanieTheMom Posted August 2, 2017 #16 Share Posted August 2, 2017 I've cruised out of New Orleans 6 times, and I've never been awake when we got to the Gulf. It's dark, so I don't think you could tell by the water. Of course a smart phone could tell you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CheapieD Posted August 2, 2017 #17 Share Posted August 2, 2017 I found this in another post...at the bottom, it shows that it takes 7 to 8 hours to get to the Gulf... This is all pretty interesting! We are sailing on Dream on September 3 and will be following this "tour" as we sail along... ;-) I will attempt to create a play by play tour of exactly what you will see as you embark on your journey down the mighty Mississippi, so here goes: The French Quarter: 1.Ernest N. Morial Convention Center: This is the massive building you will see where the boat is docked. This is actually the original location of the 1984 Worlds Fair. You can still see the decorative waterfall staircase that was just adjacent to the Space Shuttle display during the Fair. The Convention Center is the 6th largest in the country. 2.Riverwalk: This mall was built for the words fair and has remained a great specialty shop and upper end type of mall. This is also the mall where in 1996 the MV Bright Field ship lost power and rammed into while thousands of tourists where still inside. 3.Harrah’s Casino: It is what it is… 4.Aquarium Of The Americas: Great place to spend a day. 5.Woldenberg Riverfront Park: Great park to see the river and possibly hear some musicians. 6.Jax Brewery: Formerly where Jax Beer was made, now it’s a shopping mall. 7.St. Louis Cathedral: One of the oldest cathedrals in the country, original structure was completed in 1793 on the location where the former Catholic Church was destroyed by the Great New Orleans fire in 1788. A Catholic Church has stood on that ground since 1718. It is still a working Cathedral and therefore receives no historic funding. 8.Jackson Square: Park in front of the Cathedral with large statue of Andrew Jackson on his horse. The statue is significant as it was the first statue of a horse and rider standing on its back legs, very difficult balancing problem. 9.The Moon Walk: This is the small riverfront boardwalk area in front of Jackson Square. You will always here a saxophone going in this area 10.The French Market: Open air market with shops, flee market and produce stands. 11.The New Orleans Mint: In operation from 1838 to 1861 and from 1879 to 1909. It is now part of the Louisiana State Museum. Leaving French Quarter to Bywater, Upper and Lower 9th Wards: 12.Old docks: Doesn’t seem significant unless you a fan of the group Journey!!! This is the location where they filmed the video for “Separate Ways”. 13.Bywater and Upper 9th ward: The neighborhoods you see in the background. 14.Industrial Canal: man made canal for shipping purposes. This is the canal where one of the major levy breaches took place during Katrina and Rita. You can’t see the location; it’s on the other side of the St. Claude Bridge, which you can see. 15.Lower 9th ward: heavily damaged during Katrina. 16.Holy Cross School for Boys: This is where I went to high school. The school was established in 1849. The original administration building, which is still standing and you should be able to see, was built in 1895. Katrina damaged the campus beyond repair and after over 150 yrs of being on this location, it was moved to a new location on the other side of town. 17.Fats Domino’s house: you can’t see it, but its there. 18.Jackson Barracks: Originally designed by Andrew Jackson and built in 1834-35. It now houses the Louisiana National Guard Headquarters. It also serves as the dividing line between Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes. Entering St. Bernard Parish and Chalmette: This is where Katrina hit the worst, even more so than the lower 9th ward. Abandoned by its country, the first responders here where Canadian Mounties. 19.The Le Beau Plantation: It’s about 2 blocks in and hard to see so look real hard. It’s in bad shape and has not been restored, would be beautiful if it were restored. 20.Interview with a Vampier fire: This area is the location where they burned a bunch of old warehouses and whatnot for the movie. 21.Domino sugar: One of the oldest sugar refineries in the country dating back to 1909. It produces 6 million pounds of sugar per day and more than 2 billion pounds per year about 19% of the country’s sugar. Now that’s a lot of sugar!!!!!! 22.Cavaroc House: Located at Domino Sugar, looks like a small plantation but dwarfed by the massive Sugar refinery. 23.St. Bernard Port: It was once talked about to build the cruise terminal at this location. 24.Chalmette Battle Field (Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve): This is where the Battle of New Orleans was fought during the war of 1812 one of the greatest land victories of the war. You should be able to see the “monument”, which looks like a small version of the Washington monument in DC. 25.The Beauregard House: Built on this site in 1832. 26.Chalmette National Cemetery: Veteran cemetery established in 1864. 27.Kaiser Aluminum: This plant pretty much established the town of Chalmette. Its smoke stack has become a local landmark of years past. The plant was the largest Aluminum Smelter in the world until it closed down in 1983. 28.Chalmette Refining LLC: This used to be Mobil which used to be Tennecco etc. It is now a venture of ExxonMobil and the Venezuelan State Oil company. Some of the fuel you and others used to get to N.O. was refined at this very location. If your lucky you may catch them Flaring the Boom. If so you will see a massive fire ball which will light up the entire sky. This is all part of the refining process. 29.Chalmette Ferry Landing: This ferry landing is still used to get residents from one side of the river to the other. To go around is a twenty mile journey, but the time can be the same if you don’t catch the ferry right That pretty much sum’s up the first hour or so of your 7-8 hour cruise down the might Mississippi. The rest of the trip is still very interesting, but not too many landmarks. You will pass multiple oil and gas refineries such as BP and Chevron on your way down to the mouth. River Pilot: The very last thing of interest is when you get to the mouth of the river. A pilot boat will meet up with the ship, the ship will slow to a crawl and you can watch as the river pilot (who has been navigating the river) will jump from an open bay door on the ship to a small pilot boat. This will happen late at night usually somewhere between 10-12 depending on departure. Remember this phrase: “White over Red…Pilot Ahead”. The pilot boat will be a small vessel and at the very top of it, you will see 2 lights, a white light that sits above a red light. This is how you can identify the pilot boat ahead of time. That’s it, you have officially finished you sailing of the river and are entering the Ocean Blue. Oh, don’t forget to watch for the more then 3000 oil rigs along the continental shelf. Have a great trip. Nice information. Would be interesting to also plot on a satellite map Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coevan Posted August 2, 2017 #18 Share Posted August 2, 2017 you can feel an immediate movement of the ship once it enters the gulf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakeT Posted August 2, 2017 #19 Share Posted August 2, 2017 You can still see the oil rigs, its dark, but the oil rigs are all lit up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E@syPe@zy Posted August 2, 2017 #20 Share Posted August 2, 2017 I found this in another post...at the bottom, it shows that it takes 7 to 8 hours to get to the Gulf... This is all pretty interesting! We are sailing on Dream on September 3 and will be following this "tour" as we sail along... ;-) I will attempt to create a play by play tour of exactly what you will see as you embark on your journey down the mighty Mississippi, so here goes: The French Quarter: 1. Ernest N. Morial Convention Center: This is the massive building you will see where the boat is docked. This is actually the original location of the 1984 Worlds Fair. You can still see the decorative waterfall staircase that was just adjacent to the Space Shuttle display during the Fair. The Convention Center is the 6th largest in the country. 2. Riverwalk: This mall was built for the words fair and has remained a great specialty shop and upper end type of mall. This is also the mall where in 1996 the MV Bright Field ship lost power and rammed into while thousands of tourists where still inside. 3. Harrah’s Casino: It is what it is… 4. Aquarium Of The Americas: Great place to spend a day. 5. Woldenberg Riverfront Park: Great park to see the river and possibly hear some musicians. 6. Jax Brewery: Formerly where Jax Beer was made, now it’s a shopping mall. 7. St. Louis Cathedral: One of the oldest cathedrals in the country, original structure was completed in 1793 on the location where the former Catholic Church was destroyed by the Great New Orleans fire in 1788. A Catholic Church has stood on that ground since 1718. It is still a working Cathedral and therefore receives no historic funding. 8. Jackson Square: Park in front of the Cathedral with large statue of Andrew Jackson on his horse. The statue is significant as it was the first statue of a horse and rider standing on its back legs, very difficult balancing problem. 9. The Moon Walk: This is the small riverfront boardwalk area in front of Jackson Square. You will always here a saxophone going in this area 10. The French Market: Open air market with shops, flee market and produce stands. 11. The New Orleans Mint: In operation from 1838 to 1861 and from 1879 to 1909. It is now part of the Louisiana State Museum. Leaving French Quarter to Bywater, Upper and Lower 9th Wards: 12. Old docks: Doesn’t seem significant unless you a fan of the group Journey!!! This is the location where they filmed the video for “Separate Ways”. 13. Bywater and Upper 9th ward: The neighborhoods you see in the background. 14. Industrial Canal: man made canal for shipping purposes. This is the canal where one of the major levy breaches took place during Katrina and Rita. You can’t see the location; it’s on the other side of the St. Claude Bridge, which you can see. 15. Lower 9th ward: heavily damaged during Katrina. 16. Holy Cross School for Boys: This is where I went to high school. The school was established in 1849. The original administration building, which is still standing and you should be able to see, was built in 1895. Katrina damaged the campus beyond repair and after over 150 yrs of being on this location, it was moved to a new location on the other side of town. 17. Fats Domino’s house: you can’t see it, but its there. 18. Jackson Barracks: Originally designed by Andrew Jackson and built in 1834-35. It now houses the Louisiana National Guard Headquarters. It also serves as the dividing line between Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes. Entering St. Bernard Parish and Chalmette: This is where Katrina hit the worst, even more so than the lower 9th ward. Abandoned by its country, the first responders here where Canadian Mounties. 19. The Le Beau Plantation: It’s about 2 blocks in and hard to see so look real hard. It’s in bad shape and has not been restored, would be beautiful if it were restored. 20. Interview with a Vampier fire: This area is the location where they burned a bunch of old warehouses and whatnot for the movie. 21. Domino sugar: One of the oldest sugar refineries in the country dating back to 1909. It produces 6 million pounds of sugar per day and more than 2 billion pounds per year about 19% of the country’s sugar. Now that’s a lot of sugar!!!!!! 22. Cavaroc House: Located at Domino Sugar, looks like a small plantation but dwarfed by the massive Sugar refinery. 23. St. Bernard Port: It was once talked about to build the cruise terminal at this location. 24. Chalmette Battle Field (Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve): This is where the Battle of New Orleans was fought during the war of 1812 one of the greatest land victories of the war. You should be able to see the “monument”, which looks like a small version of the Washington monument in DC. 25. The Beauregard House: Built on this site in 1832. 26. Chalmette National Cemetery: Veteran cemetery established in 1864. 27. Kaiser Aluminum: This plant pretty much established the town of Chalmette. Its smoke stack has become a local landmark of years past. The plant was the largest Aluminum Smelter in the world until it closed down in 1983. 28. Chalmette Refining LLC: This used to be Mobil which used to be Tennecco etc. It is now a venture of ExxonMobil and the Venezuelan State Oil company. Some of the fuel you and others used to get to N.O. was refined at this very location. If your lucky you may catch them Flaring the Boom. If so you will see a massive fire ball which will light up the entire sky. This is all part of the refining process. 29. Chalmette Ferry Landing: This ferry landing is still used to get residents from one side of the river to the other. To go around is a twenty mile journey, but the time can be the same if you don’t catch the ferry right That pretty much sum’s up the first hour or so of your 7-8 hour cruise down the might Mississippi. The rest of the trip is still very interesting, but not too many landmarks. You will pass multiple oil and gas refineries such as BP and Chevron on your way down to the mouth. River Pilot: The very last thing of interest is when you get to the mouth of the river. A pilot boat will meet up with the ship, the ship will slow to a crawl and you can watch as the river pilot (who has been navigating the river) will jump from an open bay door on the ship to a small pilot boat. This will happen late at night usually somewhere between 10-12 depending on departure. Remember this phrase: “White over Red…Pilot Ahead”. The pilot boat will be a small vessel and at the very top of it, you will see 2 lights, a white light that sits above a red light. This is how you can identify the pilot boat ahead of time. That’s it, you have officially finished you sailing of the river and are entering the Ocean Blue. Oh, don’t forget to watch for the more then 3000 oil rigs along the continental shelf. Have a great trip. Thank you so much....amazing detail! I've always loved sailing from New Orleans and now will be even more intrigued following your information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobsfamily Posted August 2, 2017 #21 Share Posted August 2, 2017 Does the casino open at all on the first night? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisingautiger Posted August 3, 2017 #22 Share Posted August 3, 2017 Yes. Gambling is legal on the river in LA and the casino opens shortly after you leave port. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbismith Posted August 3, 2017 #23 Share Posted August 3, 2017 Follow Sent from my HTC6535LVW using Forums mobile app Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
honestguy Posted August 3, 2017 #24 Share Posted August 3, 2017 i sailed on the dream. went to bed after 11, and we were still in the river. I had a cove balcony. the ship moves in that river. i'm guessing 10-15 knots Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare steve4031 Posted August 3, 2017 #25 Share Posted August 3, 2017 I'll be in a cove balcony in 10 days 13 hours and 38 minutes. Pumped. And 8 hours later I'll be checking this out live. Bucket list item checked off . . . Sent from my iPhone using Forums Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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