Transatlantic cruises

[labradorsunseeker]

Hi, looking at booking a transatlantic from New York to London in April, 2021.  I know we can't predict the weather, just wondering what people's experiences have been.

[Host Kat]

@labradorsunseeker

 

Howdy!

 

I am moving this thread to a new home, the Transatlantic, Transpacific, Repositioning & Trans-Ocean Cruises forum.

 

Happy sails,

 

Host Kat

[njkate]

11 hours ago, labradorsunseeker said:

Hi, looking at booking a transatlantic from New York to London in April, 2021.  I know we can't predict the weather, just wondering what people's experiences have been.

I was on a trans Atlantic this past April but going to Spain, Portugal etc, not North to Ireland, England. Some days it was chilly, at night it could be very chilly and windy. I'm booked for 2021 for Trans Atlantic going to Ireland, Iceland Belgium etc ending in Amsterdam, I anticipate it to be chilly.

[Hlitner]

I think the OP answered their own question.  The weather and sea conditions are not predictable and we have experienced just about everything on our many TAs.   But NYC to London will usually take a Northern route similar to the Titanic, so it will likely be chilly.  Pack layers of clothing.

 

Hank

[annandme]

We've been on 8.  If you're worried about seasickness, get a cabin in the center of the ship - both horizontally and vertically.  As for weather, let's face it...you're mostly indoors on the ship, so, it's not a worry.   With that said, we had snow drifts on our balcony and the pool deck was a scene from "Frozen" last year in Halifax!

[woody14h]

We've done 8 as well. 2 East and 6 West.   Except for a fall TA in 2011 from Spain to FLL (hurricane) every cruise was like a mill pond.  Enjoyable on the veranda.  Eastbound might be a little cool but the weather was delightful.  But best laid plans of mice and men yada, yada, yada!! Stuff happens.  If one is queasy , maybe avoid or be adventurous.  Storms are short lived for the most part.

[HCI]

Hi

 

We will be traveling on the Getaway from New York to Rome in April, can anyone tell what weather we will expect,  especially as we have 5 sea days

 

We have never done this cruise before

Many thanks

[Sauer-kraut]

Could be anything, my crystal ball is cloudy right now.

[BirdTravels]

Could be bright and sunny. Could be dark and stormy with high seas. Could be windy and raining. 

 

Mostly likely cool to cold. 

 

Tell us what the weather will be like on those days in the Blue Mountains. Will it be warm and sunny? Will it be dark and stormy?

[IrieBajan54]

As the others have stated, no one can forecast what the weather will be like. However, I think I know what you are really asking. Since I have done 4 TA's out of NY, the weather was mostly chilly and some days windy. Some days the seas seemed as smooth as glass and others a little rocky. It can be relatively warmer when stopping in the Azores or Madeira. Just don't expect to wear tees and shorts on an April crossing. Anyway, just relax on those 5 sea days.

[CGTNORMANDIE]

3 hours ago, HCI said:

Hi

 

We will be traveling on the Getaway from New York to Rome in April, can anyone tell what weather we will expect,  especially as we have 5 sea days

 

We have never done this cruise before

Many thanks

You will be sailing in late April using the North Atlantic route.  That can be a bit of a crap shoot...maybe nice...on the cool side...could be stormy but most likely not.  Things will warm up when you hit Spain...should be 60’s - 70’s.  The last part of your cruise, Spain to Italy, will likely be very enjoyable.

 

 

Edited February 21, 2020 by CGTNORMANDIE

[HCI]

Many thanks for all your replies 

As coming from Australia I now have an idea what to expect 😃

[njkate]

12 hours ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

You will be sailing in late April using the North Atlantic route.  That can be a bit of a crap shoot...maybe nice...on the cool side...could be stormy but most likely not.  Things will warm up when you hit Spain...should be 60’s - 70’s.  The last part of your cruise, Spain to Italy, will likely be very enjoyable.

 

 

Agree did a TA last April from Brooklyn and that about sums it up, some nights while on the open Atlantic was windy and cold, bring at least a heavy sweatshirt and maybe even a rain slicker, once to Spain or Portugal beautiful touring weather

[mismal]

totally appreciate those that have shared their weather experience especially for the upcoming April crossing without being snarky.  In the current day of you tube and vlogs you see folks dressed in anything from shorts to coats with visions of palm trees and pineapple plantations.  Despite not having a crystal ball it is helpful know from a fellow cruiser 'hey you may want to pack a rain coat, and you may not be using that pool on deck etc'.  

Looking forward to future comments as I try to pack that bag for 15 days of unknown weather. 😎

 

[LHT28]

You never know what to expect

We did an April crossing but because we  were doing the Northern route  we did have our  winter wear

We also ran into a couple of storms  & the weather & seas were very bumpy  for most of the trip  to Ireland  where it poured & we could not leave Cobh  for 2 days

 

After visiting France  for  2  stops the weather was much better & Southampton was lovely  weather  ..not too hot

 

Take layers

 

[snookerrich]

4 crossings on the southern route out of Ft.Lauderdale/ Miami shirt sleeves &pool time. Have fun.

[labradorsunseeker]

Thank you everyone for the responses---I can take the cooler/cold weather, , was just worried about huge storms, waves etc.  Nobody mentioned those LOL. (( Not for seasickness, just fear))

[LHT28]

On 1/30/2020 at 5:54 PM, annandme said:

We've been on 8.  If you're worried about seasickness, get a cabin in the center of the ship - both horizontally and vertically.  As for weather, let's face it...you're mostly indoors on the ship, so, it's not a worry.   With that said, we had snow drifts on our balcony and the pool deck was a scene from "Frozen" last year in Halifax!

LOL

They would not let us out to play either

[LHT28]

44 minutes ago, labradorsunseeker said:

Thank you everyone for the responses---I can take the cooler/cold weather, , was just worried about huge storms, waves etc.  Nobody mentioned those LOL. (( Not for seasickness, just fear))

we had  bad seas  crossing from Halifax to Ireland last  year  

we were caught in between two fronts  so several days of wet  weather & bumpy seas

Now if you are going from Miami or FLL  it is not usually as bad

[grimpil]

On 2/26/2020 at 4:34 PM, LHT28 said:

LOL

They would not let us out to play either

Do you wanna build a snowman?

[LHT28]

1 hour ago, grimpil said:

Do you wanna build a snowman?

 Some people asked  😉

The crew were loving it especially those that have seen snow  before

 

[CGTNORMANDIE]

On 1/26/2020 at 10:48 PM, labradorsunseeker said:

Hi, looking at booking a transatlantic from New York to London in April, 2021.  I know we can't predict the weather, just wondering what people's experiences have been.

Sorry I got sidetracked.  You will be sailing the North Atlantic route in April.  This can be iffy...maybe storms maybe calm.  It will be cool...probably 50’s Fahrenheit and 40’s at night.  A transatlantic crossing is always worthwhile...an adventure not to be missed.

[Traveling Mike]

I had to go back to my pictures to remember my Trans-Atlantic from NY to London last May.  All my pictures had me in a polo shirt or at the most a light hoodie sweater.  I do remember a couple of nights and days the ship did rock and roll but it did not last.  We did the straight across from New York to Belgium and did not go the northern or southern rout.

[chengkp75]

9 hours ago, MikeAndNick said:

We did the straight across from New York to Belgium and did not go the northern or southern rout.

A "straight across" from NYC to the English Channel would be a "rhumb line" (a straight line course on a chart), but that is not the shortest distance between the two points, the "northern route", which is a "great circle" route is the shortest.  Over a distance like that voyage, this can be a difference of over 100 miles, or 8-10 hours steaming, so "rhumb lines" are not usually used for long distance passages.

[Heidi13]

14 hours ago, MikeAndNick said:

I had to go back to my pictures to remember my Trans-Atlantic from NY to London last May.  All my pictures had me in a polo shirt or at the most a light hoodie sweater.  I do remember a couple of nights and days the ship did rock and roll but it did not last.  We did the straight across from New York to Belgium and did not go the northern or southern rout.

 

Further to the Chief's response. The Great Circle route, while the shortest also follows the prevailing currents - Gulf Stream and North Atlantic Drift.

 

On a NY to the Western Approaches, the only reason to steam a Rhumb Line would be weather routing, which seems unlikely based on weather and seas experienced.

 

Your most likely routing, if you didn't head too far North is a composite Great Circle, where the Master picks a maximum Latitude, often based on currents, weather, etc.