Marina Crossing

[LHT28]

My review on the Marina crossing April 5 to 19th

This is my opinion

Well we started on a gloomy New York day .

In Saint John N.B. It was cool & sunny

We met friends there & had a non tourist tour, then lunch with a stop at the reversing rapids before heading back to the ship.

Halifax another day & another climate zone, cold & damp we met friends there and walked along the waterfront then to lunch & back to the ship.

We ventured out later in the day to meet with more friends & by the time we got back onboard the snow was starting.

Overnight it snowed & the seas were bumpy so the Captain decided to miss Newfoundland

 

We had a lot of snow drifts on the decks, some of the crew enjoyed the snow experience

Had some bumpy seas, then as we got close to Ireland a very rough night

After 5 sea days in a row we docked in Cobh ...WHEW!!

It was a very cold, wet & a very windy day ..many went ashore but we opted to stay on the ship

Got the laundry done so all is good .

Late in the day an announcement came from the Captain that we will be staying overnight in Cobh due to a storm system ...Finally a good night's sleep without rocking & rolling

 

We will be missing Dublin & heading to Saint Malo

As we headed out the next evening the seas wee too rough for the pilot to get off so he had a free day on the Marina ..we did a technical stop near Falmouth UK so he could get off & return to Ireland

In St Malo the weather was sunny so all was good

DH was not feeling well so we opted to stay onboard again

Lots of coughing going around the ship so not surprised that people are sick.

 

LeHavre I had a taxi booked with 2 other couples to Honfleur,  sadly we did not go with them.

I am hoping they had a good time ..

DH ended up with a fever to go along with the cough.

He ended up at the Medical centre that evening along with many others

After a battery of tests a shot in the derriere & some antibiotics he was released

 

 

Overall the cruise was good

All the time changes really affected us & our body clock,  plus being cooped up inside for most of the cruise due to weather conditions we felt tired a lot.

Not sure I would do a crossing again I think we prefer to fly to Europe have a nap & get on with things Getting the time change over with all at once.

The cruise was too early for a Northern crossing in my opinion

 

My biggest complaint as usual is why can they not server the  food HOT in the Terrace  or anywhere for that matter .

 

The ship is good shape with some minor damage in the storm but the crew are working on those issues.

I did not go looking for nicks & stains & nothing really jumped out at me.

 

There seemed to be a lot of VIP's on this cruise & the rudeness they bring with them is noticed.

 

Saw a lot more suits with ties at the repeaters party, but if you do not want to keep up with the elite there were plenty that still did not wear a suit & looked just fine.

 

Taking a break from CC as we do not have any cruises in the near future

Happy sailing

 

 

[retrembl]

Thanks for the insight concerning weather.

[RJB]

49 minutes ago, retrembl said:

Thanks for the insight concerning weather.

 

49 minutes ago, retrembl said:

Thanks for the insight concerning weather.

Wrong time of year to do this kind of crossing.  We did a similar one the end of May into June a few years ago and the weather was very good.   Just lite jackets a few places in Canada  and some days at sea in  bathing suits.  Had a great time.  

[ChappChapp]

Sorry to hear you had such a rough crossing. Our Canada New England cruise last fall convinced us we would not do a TA ,too many days at sea and rough weather to boot. REALLY sorry you are taking a break from CC as you are one of my favorite voices but totally understand , social media gets to be a pain after awhile to say nothing of a time sucker. Best to you and hope to see you back on board.

[CintiPam]

Lyn, I so admire your positive attitude and am happy to read that you feel that overall the cruise was good.  We board Marina at the end of next week for a Barcelona to Rome cruise that we signed up for just two months ago.  Glad to hear that she is holding up well.

 

I am such a wimpy sailor that we never have considered doing a transatlantic and nothing you wrote leads me to feel any differently!

 

I only participate on these boards when I have an upcoming cruise so I certainly understand your taking a break.  However, I also know that you are a mainstay of this board and your reasonable (and factual) voice will be missed.

 

Best wishes.

[kibutzer]

We missed you in Honfleur. Lovely town.  Not sure about the VIPs, food was good, ship is ready for a refresh. 

[LHT28]

I posted  some photos

https://www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-DbbGVF/i-VRLGF2h

not too many as  we had many sea days or we did not venture out

 

 

[DeeniEncinitas]

21 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

I posted  some photos

https://www.smugmug.com/gallery/n-DbbGVF/i-VRLGF2h

not too many as  we had many sea days or we did not venture out

 

 

Thank you so much for the info and I looked through all your pictures!

Sorry to hear DH got ill.. All that snow on board and your missed ports do to the storms, what a shame.

Do they do a later date on this cruise at all? Just curious since the season of storms are around this time.

Thank you wants again

Denise😊

 

[LHT28]

the previous  crossings  from Montreal were in May

not sure what they were thinking  & then again not sure what we were thinking booking it  😄

[sammiedawg]

I enjoyed your thoughts. We were supposed to be on the leg after yours but sadly had to cancel. 

We have never done a TA but we’ve had some rough Northern Europe sailings.   Being cooped up inside is not fun after a day or so. 

We love the Marina. 

Who were the VIPs?  

[Sopwith]

I still have the cough I picked up on the Marina somewhere between Ecuador and Panama last month. 

[LaCroisiereS'amuse]

With regards to peoples interpretation of the "country club casual" dress code, we actually noticed the opposite - it became a game seeing how many people we could notice at dinner in jeans (and we didn't use the Terrace in the evening).....I won with 14 pairs noticed in Polo one evening 😁 

The port changes weren't a problem - the overnight in Cobh was a positive as we got a weekday in in Cork rather than the original Sunday when everything was closed (Dublin I can take or leave as it's a long shuttle ride into the city with everything that entails), and we had gained St John's, NF on a previous Regatta crossing.  Activities during the poor weather were poor & seemed to consist of the invisible CD scheduling an extra movie or 2 in the afternoons....his PA announcements were incessant though - we can all read Currents!  The cruise/entertainment staff rarely engaged with passengers.

On a positive note F&B service was as good as ever, particularly in the Culinary Centre.

I agree with the previous comment about the ship needing a refresh.....GDR in particular.

[LHT28]

Yes  the  dress code  seemed to be very lax in the GDR  as well

I was happy to stay in Cobh even if we did not get off the ship  it was better than bouncing around  the ship in the rough seas

 

I guess I was not looking in the right places  as I thought  the ship looked pretty good  still

 

The "entitled" were in abundance  though

[LHT28]

7 hours ago, Sopwith said:

I still have the cough I picked up on the Marina somewhere between Ecuador and Panama last month. 

I hope my DH  does not have his that long

It has been a week  & he is still whining LOL

[pinotlover]

As I reported on our FP cruise two months ago aboard the Marina ( which I hoped wasn’t repeated) there was no effort by the maitre des to enforce any dress codes in any of the restaurants. Many cruisers quickly noticed and took full advantage of the lax measures. Country Club casual it wasn’t! It appears the trend continues.

[ChappChapp]

29 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

As I reported on our FP cruise two months ago aboard the Marina ( which I hoped wasn’t repeated) there was no effort by the maitre des to enforce any dress codes in any of the restaurants. Many cruisers quickly noticed and took full advantage of the lax measures. Country Club casual it wasn’t! It appears the trend continues.

 Really disappointed that there is no enforcement and more upset with the pax that they think they can do this. What is so difficult with putting on some nice clothes. It doesn't need to be fancy.

 

[daveispar]

22 hours ago, RJB said:

 

Wrong time of year to do this kind of crossing.  We did a similar one the end of May into June a few years ago and the weather was very good.   Just lite jackets a few places in Canada  and some days at sea in  bathing suits.  Had a great time.  

 

2 hours ago, ChappChapp said:

 Really disappointed that there is no enforcement and more upset with the pax that they think they can do this. What is so difficult with putting on some nice clothes. It doesn't need to be fancy.

 

We've taken Transatlantics on NCL and Princess before, but, in May and Sept or Oct either in or out of Florida and have had good sea and weather experiences.  A couple of rough days on the Epic, but, nothing too bad. Early April seems a little early for a Transatlantic in the North Atlantic. 

We are doing a Transatlantic in November on the Marina from Barcelona to Rio de Janeiro(?).  We're hoping the weather will be okay going South. 

[Hawaiidan]

49 minutes ago, daveispar said:

 

We've taken Transatlantics on NCL and Princess before, but, in May and Sept or Oct either in or out of Florida and have had good sea and weather experiences.  A couple of rough days on the Epic, but, nothing too bad. Early April seems a little early for a Transatlantic in the North Atlantic. 

We are doing a Transatlantic in November on the Marina from Barcelona to Rio de Janeiro(?).  We're hoping the weather will be okay going South. 

Your dropping into the  " Inter tropic convergence zone"  a storm breeder for  South America like our Gulf of Alaska and the Tasman sea. off Australia.    November is  the start of hurricane season....    Think this through

[ORV]

What do you mean by VIPs? Passengers or home office people?

[jackdeb]

Thank you Lyn for the informative review.  It is too bad that people are always trying to lower the bar for the dress code. Country Club casual is quite relaxed. April is definitely  not the time to do a North Atlantic crossing, if you remember another ship that tried that it finished early on April 12th.

[Hawaiidan]

1 hour ago, ORV said:

What do you mean by VIPs? Passengers or home office people?

 Very

 

Very    Irritating   People

 

Edited April 24, 2019 by Hawaiidan

[LHT28]

Just now, ORV said:

What do you mean by VIPs? Passengers or home office people?

entitled pax ...you know the kind LOL

[LHT28]

Just now, daveispar said:

We are doing a Transatlantic in November on the Marina from Barcelona to Rio de Janeiro(?).  We're hoping the weather will be okay going South. 

Usually better than the North Atlantic 😉

 

[tropicalkerry2002]

we did Rome to Rio starting in Nov in 2011. It was perfection!

 

[Mura]

Most of our TAs have been the southern route, both Miami to Europe and Europe to North or South America.  We did one NY-Dover TA in May 2014 which had lovely weather.  I was booked on this April's NY-Southampton but had to cancel for reasons other than time and weather.  (But in retrospect, glad I did!)

 

We did a December TA -- Southampton to NY -- on the QE2 in 2004.  No ports, just the "transfer".  I don't recall awful weather, but the seas were VERY rough at the outset.  Once I caved in and got the anti-seasick shot I was fine.  Before that I was prostrate!

 

I started out this post with the idea that December wasn't a bad time ... but in looking at my diary I've changed my mind!  Still, we enjoyed the trip which may be because it included a week in London pre-cruise.

 

Mura