Britannia

[Davey M]

I am going on the Britannia on 4th September to Iberia and Canary Islands.. What is this ship like crossing the Bay of Biscay? I hear it is very well stabilised.

[sapphire4]

Hi there is a roll call set up for this cruise. For us one of the main reasons we like the Britannia is that she is a huge ship and is very stable. The worst crossing of B of B was on the Ventura last year which seemed to list somewhat and was very disconcerting sat in the bar at the top looking along the length of the ship. We had a suite last year on the Britannia right at the front and it did move around a bit but saying that we like the aft cabins.Sometimes the B of B can be rough, other times like a mill pond. You just cant tell. Hope its a good crossing as were on the same cruise! ( 5th time on Britannia)

[Davey M]

Thanks for that. I have never been on a Cruise before and I have a single balcony cabin L which is at the front at the top. I dont suffer from seasickness. I live by the sea. I just wondered though how these massive ships ride out the B ay of Biscay if its rough. Im not worried just interested. Ive heard lots of very bad reviews about the Britannia but Ive always found that you have to make your own mind and take no notice or you would never go anywhere!

[Foodie06]

We crossed the bay of Biscay on britannia in June and we felt nothing. Crossing was perfect as was the ship itself. We only felt a slight movement going into corsica and even then it was nothing. Hubby suffers with seasickness but never bothered him at all. Take no notice of the bad reviews of her. Go on with an open mind and make the most of your own holiday. I think most of the bad reviews come from the older generation(not all older generation please don't take offence) . We had NOTHING to complain about. Ship was very modern, no tacky glitz thankfully, service almost perfect, v reasonable prices and absolutely no problem with the lift issue most like to carry on about. Go and enjoy...and enjoy you will.

[Florry]

I am going on the Britannia on 4th September to Iberia and Canary Islands.. What is this ship like crossing the Bay of Biscay? I hear it is very well stabilised.

 

 

 

Good choice I'm on her this year going to Spain, Portugal and the Canaries, it's not too far off now so my brain is like a jumping bean, I can't wait! In fact looking forward to a cruise is my favourite part!

I have been on Britannia before and I absolutely love her, I hope you do too.

I love the choice of restaurants, the thermal suite, the special effects in the theatre and just about everything!

The bathroom and balcony were small, but if it's your first cruise you won't have anything to compare with, so I'm sure it won't matter!

Have a fabulous time ❤️

I almost forgot to answer your question, when we were on her I had to keep looking out the window to see if she was moving - so yes, very stable!

 

 

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[Presto2]

Depends on BOB to be honest. ......

 

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[Davey M]

Thanks to everyone for their replies. I wont take offfence at being "older generation". I am only 69 so still young yet. Ha Ha. Some friends have been on the Britannia and they gave good reviews apart from the soot when standing at the rear of the ship. I am really looking forward to my first Cruise.

[Lovetocruise1950]

Had a very smooth crossing last October on B deck forward. You are right to form your own opinion on this ship. We found it really good . We've asked on a few P&O ships and I think they each have their own merits . Enjoy your cruise and hopefully calm crossing.

[Selbourne]

We have done 3 cruises on Britannia. First one in 2015 to the Med (Forward Suite). No movement whatsoever. Second on in 2016 to the Fjords. Also forward suite. No movement whatsoever. We have just returned from our 3rd cruise on Britannia (Med), this time in an aft suite. Outward journey, no movement. Return journey, quite a bit of movement almost immediately that we left the Med. I would liken it to a mild corkscrew motion. Up and down, with a twisting motion also. Relatively slow (no waves crashing on the bow) as it was a swell, but it lasted the best part of two days and made quite a few passengers (including one of our adult daughters) unwell. The Meridian Restaurant was very quiet as a result! The coastal passage alongside Portugal and Spain was worse than the Bay of Biscay. The motion stopped as we entered the English Channel. It didn't bother the rest of us, but we use Stugeron which we swear by. Take 2 as you leave Southampton and then one in the morning and one in the evening until you have your sea legs (usually just a day or two for us). We only take them again when conditions worsen (as they did last week). They do make you feel a bit tired, but you can safely drink alchohol with them!

[Selbourne]

I should add that the motion sensation was the same in all areas of the ship - fore, aft and midships. I have often felt that it's a bit of a myth that those in midships locations experience far less motion than those at the front and back, so I did an experiment and stood in all areas during the worst day and found it to be pretty universal. I'm sure that the laws of physics would point to a low deck, midships as best in rough weather, but in reality, as others have said, if the ship is moving about you can't really escape it and will know about it wherever you are.

[danielundecided]

I should add that the motion sensation was the same in all areas of the ship - fore, aft and midships. I have often felt that it's a bit of a myth that those in midships locations experience far less motion than those at the front and back, so I did an experiment and stood in all areas during the worst day and found it to be pretty universal. I'm sure that the laws of physics would point to a low deck, midships as best in rough weather, but in reality, as others have said, if the ship is moving about you can't really escape it and will know about it wherever you are.

 

 

In April we were in cabin E623 on Ventura - technically "midship aft" but more like aft (the cabin 2 doors down from us was considered aft). We'd found our movement in the BOB was quite noticeable, but when we'd gone to the forward stairwell, it was awful; walking up and down the stairs was like being in a (not so) fun house! Midship however the movement seemed fairly similar to what we found in our cabin, just a little bit less extreme.

 

It's probably still true that being midship means the least movement, but it may possibly be a bit exaggerated by the agents and companies to get more money out of us. [emoji849] However, it'll be dependent on each ship and all weather situations will be different with different effects [emoji4]

 

Dan

 

 

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[doog442]

We returned on Saturday on the Britannia and were extremely surprised at the movement we encountered as stated above, it wasn't good. This was south of Biscay, a large swell hit the ship West to East for a couple of days.

 

Plenty of people were ill, the contents of the adult swimming pool deposited itself over the decks on several occasions, the whole cabin was creaking and it was a little bit lively and more akin to a cross Channel car ferry.

 

I thought the ship would handle it better, however down at dinner in the Meridian and closer to the waterline next to the window the size of the swell had to be seen to be believed, if you could bring yourself to look outside that is.

[pierrepedro]

We were on Britannia in March when she returned to the UK from the Caribbean. The water across the Atlantic was great, however, after the Azores we had very rough seas and high winds with gusts in excess of 100th which lasted over 48 hours. All the decks were closed except between the Crows Nest and the buffett and some lifts were taken out of service. Crew that we spoke to said that the ship was a lot better than other ships they had been on. We had to be careful moving around the ship but we did not witness anyone being ill. We are new to cruising and felt safe on the ship and are on her again in October.

[Florry]

It doesn't even really occur to me to think about how bumpy the ride will be. I generally just take no notice of it and carry on as usual or if it's night just let it rock me to sleep. Hardly any movement when I was on Britannia.

 

 

 

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[Jennizor]

In the last year we have been across the Bay of Biscay on Britannia and Azura. On both cruises I took all sorts of travel sickness medication and ginger biscuits with me. Didn't use any of it as all crossings were excellent. I think it is just the luck of the draw. Try not to worry about it and concentrate on enjoying your cruise. Britannia is brilliant.

[RICO72]

What an incredibly subjective question, and answers too !

 

Ship movement is massively dependent on wind strength, wind direction, swell size and direction of travel, a ship's beam and keel length and its relation to the wavelength. Yes, there are other factors from a ship design but these pale in comparison to the afore mentioned variables of weather and sea state.

 

It is certainly true that the longer the craft, the less movement will be felt on decks closer to the waterline and more midships but, even then, a different combination of the weather/sea variables from above can reduce this benefit.

 

It is also true that craft designed with liner hulls (deep draught and shaped to cut through each wave, such as QM2, rather than continually ride) are less susceptible to the movement experienced by the vast majority of cruise ships designed with shallower, flat-bottomed hulls.

 

Whatever.....enjoy your cruise !