Feedback on Fall Transatlantic Cruises

[taylortime05]

We’re  onboard the Beyond and booked an Aqua Suite for the  TA cruise below.  It would be our 1st TA cruise and I need to do more research.  I know weather is not predictable but we’d be disappointed if we had terrible weather and were not able to utilize the retreat deck and outside pools and hot tubs.  I’d love to hear feedback from  others who have taken a TA cruise.  Did you enjoy it?  What were the pro’s and con’s?  Thank you so much!

 

Edited December 15, 2022 by taylortime05

[Ex-Airbalancer]

15 minutes ago, taylortime05 said:

We’re  onboard the Beyond and booked an Aqua Suite for the  TA cruise below.  It would be our 1st TA cruise and I need to do more research.  I know weather is not predictable but we’d be disappointed if we had terrible weather and were not able to utilize the retreat deck and outside pools and hot tubs.  I’d love to hear feedback from  others who have taken a TA cruise.  Did you enjoy it?  What were the pro’s and con’s?  Thank you so much!

 

If you don’t want to be disappointed stay home 🤣

it could be streaming hot or damp and cold 

 

 

[WestLakeGirl]

Prepare for disappointment. But you already know that…..

[ECCruise]

Have done over 30 crossings, the majority westbound in the fall.

 

As others have noted (and you know already) the weather cannot be predicted in any way.  We've had smooth and warm sailings (including last month) and horrible, cold and very rocky sailings where we virtually never went on the balcony, let alone use Retreat decks, outside pools or hot tubs.

 

Prepare to not utilize those venues at all.  If you can, look at it as a bonus.  Then there is no way you will be disappointed.  Or, of course, don't add a crossing to your repertoire. 

 

[taylortime05]

2 hours ago, ECCruise said:

Have done over 30 crossings, the majority westbound in the fall.

 

As others have noted (and you know already) the weather cannot be predicted in any way.  We've had smooth and warm sailings (including last month) and horrible, cold and very rocky sailings where we virtually never went on the balcony, let alone use Retreat decks, outside pools or hot tubs.

 

Prepare to not utilize those venues at all.  If you can, look at it as a bonus.  Then there is no way you will be disappointed.  Or, of course, don't add a crossing to your repertoire. 

 

Thank you!  I should have left out the weather comment because I’d really like to get feedback on what you enjoyed the most and least on the TA cruise. You must enjoy the TA sailing.  

[taylortime05]

3 hours ago, WestLakeGirl said:

Prepare for disappointment. But you already know that…..

 

Thank you!  I should have left out the weather comment because I’d really like to get feedback on what you enjoyed the most and least on the TA cruises.

[taylortime05]

3 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

If you don’t want to be disappointed stay home 🤣

it could be streaming hot or damp and cold 

 

 

 

Thank you!  I should have left out the weather comment because I’d really like to get feedback on what you enjoyed the most and least on the TA cruise. 

[ECCruise]

6 minutes ago, taylortime05 said:

Thank you!  I should have left out the weather comment because I’d really like to get feedback on what you enjoyed the most and least on the TA cruise. You must enjoy the TA sailing.  

We mainly use crossings for transportation between US and Europe (we generally spend a month or so either before or after a crossing so that is a prime motivation/enjoyment).  We are fine with the sea days, although some may not be.  We've had as many as 9 consecutive days at sea because of port cancellations (which are fairly frequent) and been fine with that because we fall into a routine of gym a couple times a day, lots of reading, attending lectures if available and generally relaxing.

 

The only thing we dislike is that crossings sometimes attract people who really shouldn't be doing one, become antsy or bored after a few days and take it out on the crew.  Crew members generally despise crossings, in our experience, for just that reason. 

Edited December 15, 2022 by ECCruise

[kwokpot]

2 minutes ago, taylortime05 said:

Thank you!  I should have left out the weather comment because I’d really like to get feedback on what you enjoyed the most and least on the TA cruise. You must enjoy the TA sailing.  

TA's are about doing NOTHING. Literally. Oh sure there's all these events the ship does and you can choose to participate or not, but in the end, a TA is about NOT having a schedule, NOT rushing off the ship, and all about enjoying downtime. So many people have lost the ability just to do nothing and relax. Read, Take a nap. Putting your mind back in a relaxed and good mental state. That's what a TA is all about. (I've done over 20 TAs and TPs, and doing another TP next year Seattle to Brisbane, 30 days cruise, 20 seadays - YAY!!!)

[SbbquilterUT]

Love a TA - relaxing days to really enjoy the ship, lectures as well as the usual games.  Our fall sails have been Barcelona to Florida and each time the weather was warm and lovely after we left Spain.  In fact so smooth those particular years that it was surprising.

[taylortime05]

1 hour ago, kwokpot said:

TA's are about doing NOTHING. Literally. Oh sure there's all these events the ship does and you can choose to participate or not, but in the end, a TA is about NOT having a schedule, NOT rushing off the ship, and all about enjoying downtime. So many people have lost the ability just to do nothing and relax. Read, Take a nap. Putting your mind back in a relaxed and good mental state. That's what a TA is all about. (I've done over 20 TAs and TPs, and doing another TP next year Seattle to Brisbane, 30 days cruise, 20 seadays - YAY!!!)

We love to relax. Hubby loves to work out. I need to work out, lol.   Even when taking shorter 7-10 night cruises we choose to stay on board sometimes. We enjoy the evening entertainment.  I’m wondering if it’s worth booking a suite when on a TA.  We got a reasonable deal yesterday when booking an Aqua Suite but still kind of pricey.  I love the retreat amenities on the E Class ships but we’ve only been on 7 nights sailings. 

[taylortime05]

1 hour ago, ECCruise said:

We mainly use crossings for transportation between US and Europe (we generally spend a month or so either before or after a crossing so that is a prime motivation/enjoyment).  We are fine with the sea days, although some may not be.  We've had as many as 9 consecutive days at sea because of port cancellations (which are fairly frequent) and been fine with that because we fall into a routine of gym a couple times a day, lots of reading, attending lectures if available and generally relaxing.

 

The only thing we dislike is that crossings sometimes attract people who really shouldn't be doing one, become antsy or bored after a few days and take it out on the crew.  Crew members generally despise crossings, in our experience, for just that reason. 

Thank you!   I’m trying to decide if it’s worth extra expense for the Aqua suite.  I know we’d enjoy the thermal suite because not dependent on weather.  I need to price the Aqua vs Aqua Suite vs Verandah. Right now we have a refundable rate for Aqua Suite for 9k and 1400 obc.  I’ll also be monitoring prices to see if it comes down. 

[mahdnc]

2 hours ago, taylortime05 said:

We’re  onboard the Beyond and booked an Aqua Suite for the  TA cruise below.  It would be our 1st TA cruise and I need to do more research.  I know weather is not predictable but we’d be disappointed if we had terrible weather and were not able to utilize the retreat deck and outside pools and hot tubs.  I’d love to hear feedback from  others who have taken a TA cruise.  Did you enjoy it?  What were the pro’s and con’s?  Thank you so much!

 

 

We sailed on our very first TA (westbound in this case) aboard Constellation last month.  I posted and maintained a "Live from Constellation" thread which would be of interest to you.  Here is the link.

 

We enjoyed it very much and would love to do another one again some day.  As far as the weather goes, there is no guarantee--you are just going to have to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.  Our weather was pretty good although we were not out on deck a lot.  A 13 night itinerary where there are a lot of sea days to explore the ship sounds "taylor"-made for Beyond, if you ask me.

[kwokpot]

4 minutes ago, taylortime05 said:

We love to relax. Hubby loves to work out. I need to work out, lol.   Even when taking shorter 7-10 night cruises we choose to stay on board sometimes. We enjoy the evening entertainment.  I’m wondering if it’s worth booking a suite when on a TA.  We got a reasonable deal yesterday when booking an Aqua Suite but still kind of pricey.  I love the retreat amenities on the E Class ships but we’ve only been on 7 nights sailings. 

On cruises I try to get to the gym twice a day; late morning for some cardio, late afternoon for strength training. I like the port stops of the TA you're looking at. Spain is my favorite European country, even more so than Italy. Barcelona or the South of Spain is where I would move to if I ever left the US. I like the lifestyle of the Spaniards and it's cheaper than Italy. 

As others have said the weather can be so variable so definitely hard to predict. Since you're ending up in Florida there's a better chance for some warmer days where you can enjoy the outdoors as opposed to sailing on a northern route to NYC or Boston. 

[gordylad]

Been on a couple of Celebrity T/A's not that particular route you posted and slightly earlier in October.

 

All I can say is we hit lucky both times the sea was like glass didn't experience any bad weather and enjoyed both the time at sea and the stops.

[Gracie115]

We've done several TA's on a very similar route to the one you are considering.  All but one the weather was great.  This year's Apex TA wasn't as nice.  There were several days/nights when we could not utilize the balcony. 

 

If you can afford the Retreat areas that you get for booking a suite are well worth it.  Only you can decide if you want to spend the $$.  Luminae is wonderful.   

 

But as others have said TA's are more about relaxing than anything else.

[taylortime05]

9 hours ago, mahdnc said:

 

We sailed on our very first TA (westbound in this case) aboard Constellation last month.  I posted and maintained a "Live from Constellation" thread which would be of interest to you.  Here is the link.

 

We enjoyed it very much and would love to do another one again some day.  As far as the weather goes, there is no guarantee--you are just going to have to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.  Our weather was pretty good although we were not out on deck a lot.  A 13 night itinerary where there are a lot of sea days to explore the ship sounds "taylor"-made for Beyond, if you ask me.

Thank you!  I’ll definitely read your trip report.  

[Cruise Kay]

Did my first transatlantic in September on Disney. It was amazing. I loved every minute of it. It was a 12 night sailing from Dover England to New York. Regarding the weather… We had a mix of beautiful gorgeous sunny days, gray days, and some heavy rain days. We hit the remnants of hurricane Fiona and also hurricane Ian. That hurricane Fiona stuff sent the ship rocking like I have never experienced before. I did not get seasick and it was not dangerous or scary, but it was really something to experience. We had to hang on the walls to walk down the hall. The walls in every part of the ship and in my room were popping and snapping and cracking like crazy for hours and hours. I laid in bed and felt the boat rise way way up and then slam back down, over and over. They had to close the pools because the water was splashing everywhere. But in any case, that was literally only a handful of days out of the 12. There were plenty of sunny days where we were all in the pool watching outdoor movies and getting tanned and eating lunch outside. For me, that was part of the interesting aspect of crossing the Atlantic… Seeing the dramatically different weather from day to day. We also saw dolphins and flying fish and an occasional whale. Watching the sea change moods was exciting and it was really fun to see sunset after sunset.
 

for me the best part of the transatlantic was the amount of sea days in a row. It was the perfect time to wander the ship and explore all the little areas you normally don't get to. I got to know all the coziest nooks to sit and read or look out a window. I had plenty of opportunity to order room service and watch a movie inside my cabin or take a nap. I got to know some other people traveling through main dining… I was traveling solo and was seated with some other ladies who were also traveling solo. I ended up having friends to play bingo and trivia with. I enjoy the nightly entertainment and with such a long cruise, the shows ended up coming around twice. So I could skip one if I wanted to. In general the length of the cruise took away that slightly anxious feeling that you're not gonna get it all done before your vacation is up. You know what I mean? I did all the trivia and all the games and all the everything until I didn't feel the need to do it anymore and I could really just relax. I read books and watched movies, went to the shows, did some onboard shopping, had room service, went to the spa and the gym every day, things like that.   I loved being at sea that long and not seeing another ship for days and days. I loved the changes in weather. I enjoyed getting to know the crew over such a long cruise and getting to recognize little groups of families and things and see everyone having such a good time. I thought the constant time change stuff was interesting. I absolutely loved all the ports we stopped in in Ireland, Scotland, England. I loved the quietness and the sense of a little family that came to be on such a long cruise with all of us together for so many sea days. I would most definitely do it again. 
 

that's not to say it was one dreamy tranquil cruise from start to finish… Someone had a stroke and had to be evacuated by helicopter in the middle of the night at sea… I had a medical emergency and had to have arrangements made to see an eye doctor in Spain on our very last port stop before setting out across the Atlantic, things like that happened. But overall, it was really special, really relaxing. 

Edited December 16, 2022 by Cruise Kay

[taylortime05]

On 12/15/2022 at 11:25 PM, Cruise Kay said:

Did my first transatlantic in September on Disney. It was amazing. I loved every minute of it. It was a 12 night sailing from Dover England to New York. Regarding the weather… We had a mix of beautiful gorgeous sunny days, gray days, and some heavy rain days. We hit the remnants of hurricane Fiona and also hurricane Ian. That hurricane Fiona stuff sent the ship rocking like I have never experienced before. I did not get seasick and it was not dangerous or scary, but it was really something to experience. We had to hang on the walls to walk down the hall. The walls in every part of the ship and in my room were popping and snapping and cracking like crazy for hours and hours. I laid in bed and felt the boat rise way way up and then slam back down, over and over. They had to close the pools because the water was splashing everywhere. But in any case, that was literally only a handful of days out of the 12. There were plenty of sunny days where we were all in the pool watching outdoor movies and getting tanned and eating lunch outside. For me, that was part of the interesting aspect of crossing the Atlantic… Seeing the dramatically different weather from day to day. We also saw dolphins and flying fish and an occasional whale. Watching the sea change moods was exciting and it was really fun to see sunset after sunset.
 

for me the best part of the transatlantic was the amount of sea days in a row. It was the perfect time to wander the ship and explore all the little areas you normally don't get to. I got to know all the coziest nooks to sit and read or look out a window. I had plenty of opportunity to order room service and watch a movie inside my cabin or take a nap. I got to know some other people traveling through main dining… I was traveling solo and was seated with some other ladies who were also traveling solo. I ended up having friends to play bingo and trivia with. I enjoy the nightly entertainment and with such a long cruise, the shows ended up coming around twice. So I could skip one if I wanted to. In general the length of the cruise took away that slightly anxious feeling that you're not gonna get it all done before your vacation is up. You know what I mean? I did all the trivia and all the games and all the everything until I didn't feel the need to do it anymore and I could really just relax. I read books and watched movies, went to the shows, did some onboard shopping, had room service, went to the spa and the gym every day, things like that.   I loved being at sea that long and not seeing another ship for days and days. I loved the changes in weather. I enjoyed getting to know the crew over such a long cruise and getting to recognize little groups of families and things and see everyone having such a good time. I thought the constant time change stuff was interesting. I absolutely loved all the ports we stopped in in Ireland, Scotland, England. I loved the quietness and the sense of a little family that came to be on such a long cruise with all of us together for so many sea days. I would most definitely do it again. 
 

that's not to say it was one dreamy tranquil cruise from start to finish… Someone had a stroke and had to be evacuated by helicopter in the middle of the night at sea… I had a medical emergency and had to have arrangements made to see an eye doctor in Spain on our very last port stop before setting out across the Atlantic, things like that happened. But overall, it was really special, really relaxing. 

Thank you so much!  Your TA sounds wonderful.  I think we will enjoy a TA.  We do enjoy sea days and relaxing. 

[Lastdance]

I love TA's because of all the sea days; the port days are also nice even if you just get off to walk around the area.  Of course you do lose or gain hours depending on which way you cruise, but that's all a part of the experience. As mentioned above, a TA/TP is a great mode of transportation, especially if you are adding a b2b and land stay.  We are doing all of that in April on Beyond.  On my prior fall TA on Apex, my DH and I both caught Covid, but being in a suite and nearing the end of cruise two was not bad at all.  We also frequent the gym, so that is an important part of the TA/TP for us too. You have plenty of time to visit the venues, or do nothing at all!  ~Enjoy!