Looking for transatlantic to Barcelona or Spain

[kjfbw]

I have a loved one moving to Barcelona in early 2020 and my husband and I would dearly love to visit him. However, my husband is not very comfortable on transatlantic flights and it occurred to me that we might cruise there. We are not very experienced cruisers having only gone twice both times to the Caribbean on Princess once , then Celebrity. Looking at maybe the fall or even winter 2020.  Can’t seem to find anything! We are late 70s- early 80s if that helps. 

 

 

[mom says]

Highly unlikely that you'll find any TAs between Spain and the US sailing east in the fall. Only in the other direction as cruise lines reposition their ships to the Caribbean for the winter. The closest you'll come that time of year might be the Queen Mary 2 sailing from NY to Southampton. From the UK, if you can't fly, you can take the train from London to Paris, then another train to your Spanish destination.

[VMax1700]

or wait until Spring 2021 when the ships will reposition from Caribbean to Europe.

[LHT28]

Your only option in the fall is Cunard from NY to Southampton or NY to Hamburg  then  you could take the train to Barcelona

 

[hallasm]

I’m booked at Allure of the Seas - 16 nights from Fort Lauderdale to Barcelona March 1st 2020

[taglovestocruise]

Search for transatlantic cruises.  Celebrity, NCL, Princess and Royal Caribbean all sail eastbound in March and April.  They all return in Oct. and Nov.  Cunard sails many more dates back and forth. Prices for inside cabins are as low as the $600 range each way. 

[navybankerteacher]

29 minutes ago, hallasm said:

I’m booked at Allure of the Seas - 16 nights from Fort Lauderdale to Barcelona March 1st 2020

Also in winter 2020 (per OP) is Costa Luminosa Fort Lauderdale to Malaga on March 5, and Viking Sky Miami to Barcelona on March 7.

Coming back by ship would mean getting up to Southampton to catch QM2, or staying until late summer for a westbound TA.

[marco]

In the spring there should be a few to choose from as many ships reposition to Europe for the summer season. However, most sail  from Fla, so you'd have to get yourself from Ohio to there.  Would that flight be OK?  Then, there probably isn't much of anything west bound that time of year as far as a cruise ship repositioning back and if you did not want to fly home, get yourself to England and sail back on the Queen Mary 2 , to NYC.  The other option is just coordinate timings for  a round trip out of NYC on the QM 2.  Obviously, you'd have to get yourself from England to Barcelona either via a short flight or train. Note: some QM2 sailings also call at Hamburg, Germany.  You might even want to google "freighter sailings" as it might be an option, at least one way.  Of course, it won't have the ambiance of  cruise ship or QM2,  but if you're that adamant about not flying, that's another option.

Edited November 19, 2019 by marco

[jocap]

I notice that you say your husband is not very comfortable on transatlantic flights... is he fine on shorter ones?

It's only a couple of hours or so from London to Barcelona- there will be many flights out of the airports there.

I did look at the destinations from the small Southampton airport, but I could only find Murcia, in south east Spain, and Mallorca, which is an island not so far from Barcelona, but you'd still need a flight or ferry across.

[wowzz]

Cruise to Southampton,  easy transfer to London Heathrow or Gatwick, and you will find plenty of flights to Barcelona. 

[LynnTTT]

If you don't want to fly overseas, I suggest flying to New York City and taking the Cunard Line ships from NYC to Southhampton England .  Those are seven nights cruise, perfectly suited for older passengers,  Then fly to Barcelona for your visit and take a transatlantic cruise back to the US, preferably Florida.  The Northern route to New York can get cold and choppy, while the Southern route can be warm and very calm.

  We've taken many transatlantic cruises in the Fall, from Europe to the US. Great way to relax and readjust to the time changes .  During the crossing you turn the clock back every night and you're back on US time when you get home.

Don't bother with a balcony, as it will be cool and windy. 

We are in our 70;s and those flights are murder, We'd doing a ww cruise in January, leaving from Venice,  But at least we won't have to fly to Australia to see it. 

[marco]

And just as an aside, and I know some folks cant "afford" the 7 days, but....we've booked a QM2 sailing next year.  7 days on the ship, in a balcony cabin, with the beverage package is less $$$$$ than flying business class!

Edited November 21, 2019 by marco

[navybankerteacher]

4 hours ago, marco said:

And just as an aside, and I know some folks cant "afford" the 7 days, but....we've booked a QM2 sailing next year.  7 days on the ship, in a balcony cabin, with the beverage package is less $$$$$ than flying business class!

We’ve found that seasonal  repositionings (in balcony cabins) giving anywhere from 12 to 18 days, with many attractive port calls, are far less expensive than business class flights.

[Cardex]

Not sure you are looking for 2021 sailings but there is a return transatlantic that might interest you. Carnival Valor - Jan 25/21 New Orleans to Barcelona, the ship will go into dry dock and then will do the return sailing, Barcelona to New Orleans on Feb 26/21. This would give you 17 days to visit with your loved one.

[Lois R]

Most crossings go to Europe in the spring and come back to the states in the fall.

I am going in April for 16 nights......Ft. Lauderdale to Barcelona

[jamacka]

On 11/19/2019 at 12:00 PM, kjfbw said:

I have a loved one moving to Barcelona in early 2020 and my husband and I would dearly love to visit him. However, my husband is not very comfortable on transatlantic flights and it occurred to me that we might cruise there. We are not very experienced cruisers having only gone twice both times to the Caribbean on Princess once , then Celebrity. Looking at maybe the fall or even winter 2020.  Can’t seem to find anything! We are late 70s- early 80s if that helps. 

 

 

 

Celebrity Edge is sailing from Fort Lauderdale to Rome, leaving April 19th arriving in Rome on May 4th.  We have a stop in Barcelona.

You'd still have to get home though.  You could always see about taking a Cunard TA from Southampton.. maybe take a nice train ride from Barcalona (Or Rome if you stay on after Barcelona) to Paris then London then hop on the Queen Mary 2 out of Southampton on May 6th and sail directly back to NYC.