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llbz327
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Pros and cons for both ways.

I like heading to Europe as we have usually had good weather and you get to know some people before you hit ports.  You do lose some time in time changes.  However depending on how you are with jet lag, I prefer sailing to Europe than flying.  Flying home does not affect me the same way as flying to Europe for some reason.

Heading home Transatlantic is great as you have usually done some touring whether it be on the cruise or land trips and it’s nice to rest up and enjoy the ride.  You gain time instead of losing it.  

Either is great - I’ve had better weather heading to Europe than returning generally speaking but that’s just my experience in the TA’s we have done.

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I have done both ...  very much prefer westbound -- a week-ish pre-cruise in Europe somewhere, then a week of ports, then a week of sea days (blissful relaxation and seemingly gaining an extra hour per night).  The timing works out well too usually late October to mid-November --  that fall lull before (US) Thanksgiving and the holidays.   Most memorable? Inaugural TA on Koningsdam -- arrived back to FLL Wednesday 09th November 2016 -- the morning after the night before. Lido for early breakfast, was, umm, interesting. Scott.      

Edited by YXU AC*SE
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Both.  Whenever possible I go one way on a cruise ship and the other on QM2.  That's usually Eastbound on QM2 followed by west on the cruise ship as QM2 tends to miss most of the spring transatlantic season for her World Cruise.

 

Roy

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Great question! I personally prefer to travel east although I have made 5 West and 10 east crossings.

 

I do not mind losing an hour each day, especially since these usually happen on sea days.

 

I like arriving at the ports refreshed and rested (and also a bit anxious to get off the ship).

 

I don't mind the day with 7 extra hours to come home from Europe since I tend to use miles rewards for a bus/first class seat.

 

Of course, I respect the opinions of those who prefer west.

 

 

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I've gone in both directions, and far and away prefer westbound. 
I fly east a few days in advance, business class overnight where I can sleep, then get adjusted to the new time zone by the time I board the ship. 
I can now tour the ports while I am still fairly fresh, and my energy hasn't been depleted. Then, rest up, recover, and relax on the trip back to the US, with those longer nights gaining an hour 5 or 6 times. It's not a hard trip home after disembarking, either. 

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2 hours ago, RuthC said:

I've gone in both directions, and far and away prefer westbound. 
I fly east a few days in advance, business class overnight where I can sleep, then get adjusted to the new time zone by the time I board the ship. 
I can now tour the ports while I am still fairly fresh, and my energy hasn't been depleted. Then, rest up, recover, and relax on the trip back to the US, with those longer nights gaining an hour 5 or 6 times. It's not a hard trip home after disembarking, either. 

 

I agree.  Fly East, Sail West.  Lots of reasons; most already stated here.

Have fun and enjoy your cruise back home.

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2 hours ago, RuthC said:

I've gone in both directions, and far and away prefer westbound. 
I fly east a few days in advance, business class overnight where I can sleep, then get adjusted to the new time zone by the time I board the ship. 
I can now tour the ports while I am still fairly fresh, and my energy hasn't been depleted. Then, rest up, recover, and relax on the trip back to the US, with those longer nights gaining an hour 5 or 6 times. It's not a hard trip home after disembarking, either. 

 

Either direction is OK with me, but I do agree that a Westward voyage is probably a better one for my biological clock.  

 

The best is a cruise like VOV where one goes in both directions during one cruise.

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One other plus for sailing over to Europe - if you want to wait to pick up some of your major toiletires (shaving cream, etc) once you arrive, it's easier to obtain products you know in North America than in Europe.  Europe has some great products but they are not what most are familiar with

 

Of course, this only applies to people who have to fly.  Those that can drive have no issues 😉 

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We've only been on one TA (Westbound Nieuw Statendam Fall 2019)......but we think that's the preferred direction for us....Why?

 

  • get the flight (& jet lag) over first while you are pumped for the trip
  • Enjoy fall in Europe (we think we witnessed less crowds & we had good, comfortable weather at that time of year)
  • Wear yourself out in Europe with a go-go-go land itinerary (& cruise ports) knowing rest time is coming
  • Bring onboard all your dirty clothes and get HAL to clean them while on TA!
  • Recoup, relax and organize your pics during the blissful 7 days at sea (best days ever)
  • Enjoy the extra hour practically every day of the 7 days....arrive home rested

We flew to Florence and based there for 5 days of non-stop sightseeing (Florence, wine, Venice, wine, Tuscany, wine, Pisa, wine) and then left out of Rome/Cititivichia (however you spell it) w/3 Spanish ports, wine, Azores and wine.  We took only one carry on each.  Best trip ever.

 

We've got our eye on the Ryndam's TA in the Fall of 2021 and thinking of a similar plan (5 days in Amsterdam and then TA home).  The price is way too high right now but watching.  We also think we need the newer ships for the 7 days crossing the pond. 

 

No matter what direction you choose, enjoy the journey....and enjoy the wine along the way!

 

 

 

 

 

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We have crossed the Atlantic about 16 times - always on a traditional  (express) crossing of between five and nine days to or from New York or Montreal or (once) Halifax.  I don't know if HAL has an arrangement with the UK immigration service as Cunard does, but having the inspections during the crossing is most civilised. Upon arrival in Southampton we simply step off the ship.

 

Despite the advantage in gaining time on a westbound crossing, we have to deal with the arrival palaver in New York which can be a horror, although certainly not always. So if we can go only one way by ship it is eastbound.

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1 hour ago, doncarlos said:

How do we feel about the time of day when clocks are moved up [ Eastbound ] ? Do we like mid day or 2 am ?  I am old timer and prefer 2 am

Eastbound? I want to see the clocks advanced during the day. It is too exhausting to lose an hour of sleep every night for five or six nights in a row.
One cruise I was on lost 8 hours, although not one per night. We were touring on many days, alternating with sea days. By the time the ship turned around to head west again, everyone on board was dead tired. 
One eastbound trans-Pacific lost two hours on the same day, one time. One hour in the afternoon, and one at night. It was awful! 

Losing 1/2 hour each day and night is an acceptable alternative, but not as good. 

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44 minutes ago, RuthC said:

Eastbound? I want to see the clocks advanced during the day. It is too exhausting to lose an hour of sleep every night for five or six nights in a row.

 

I’m with you Ruth. 🙂. I like having the clocks moved ahead during the day.  It worked really well for us 😉 

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We prefer westbound TAs as well. Another plus for going westbound: when your luggage is inevitably heavier at the end of the cruise, usually you're just lugging it home or onto a plane, rather than on to more touring at your destination. 

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thank all of you for the reply's. i think i am more confused. i did have a transatlantic booked for november but that wash cancelled. that was a casino offer so i did not have a choice. i would really rather sail sooner than latter. God willing. i will think about it and reread the posts and let you know. thank you again

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42 minutes ago, llbz327 said:

thank all of you for the reply's. i think i am more confused. i did have a transatlantic booked for november but that wash cancelled. that was a casino offer so i did not have a choice. i would really rather sail sooner than latter. God willing. i will think about it and reread the posts and let you know. thank you again

 

After you have reviewed....Take a look at the itineraries and go with the TA that has the itinerary you like the best 😉 

 

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We've only done east to west trans-Atlantics, but loved the fact that we could tour our faces off during the first portion, and then kick back, relax, and enjoy ship life until we disembarked in Florida.   After a trans-Atlantic, we always feel like we've really had a vacation, totally relaxed and refreshed.   We were looking forward to our 5th this year in October, but that's been delayed now until November, 2021.  It's still something to look forward to.

 

Smooth Sailing! 🙂🙂🙂

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