Transatlantic HAL Sailings- Departure Ports

[MaisonRose]

Last Spring we were really excited that the Rotterdam was sailing out of New York, an easy train ride from our Maryland home. Booked & ready to go and then emergency surgery stopped us in our tracks. I adore HAL & I am never as happy on other lines, and we…are high status. But as we advance in age the trip to Florida has become a big and expensive slog. The overnight hotels in Fort Lauderdale must be the worst value in the USA, and that’s after the flight: going to Florida pre-cruise adds over $500 to the cost.

So missing the Rotterdam’s one-off New York-Rotterdam sailing was heartbreaking and I’m wondering if there are others out there who would welcome NYC or east coast departures? I looking forward to comments from fellow HAL fans.

Thank you.

Susan

[RuthC]

I LOVE sailing out of New York, but the last time I did I HATED trying to board in NY. As I've become more and more disabled, getting to the ship is getting to be more trouble than it's worth. 
The last time in NYC I arrived by coach, and asked for a wheelchair to get inside and upstairs. That 'service' wasn't provided! I had to schlepp my carry-ons to the huge elevator, get upstairs to the disabled assembly area, and recover there from the ordeal and wait for some assistance. 

The beauty of the sail down the Hudson is something not to be missed if you can book a cruise sailing from there, though. It is one of the most beautiful sail-aways one could possibly take. 

[shippmates]

I wish they would sail out of NYC.  It is just a short train ride for me if it is a short cruise or a car service to take me and all my luggage to the city.  I have been sailing on Cunard Queen Mary 2 as it leaves from Brooklyn.  Love sailing down the Hudson.

 

[rafinmd]

18 minutes ago, MaisonRose said:

Last Spring we were really excited that the Rotterdam was sailing out of New York, an easy train ride from our Maryland home. Booked & ready to go and then emergency surgery stopped us in our tracks. I adore HAL & I am never as happy on other lines, and we…are high status. But as we advance in age the trip to Florida has become a big and expensive slog. The overnight hotels in Fort Lauderdale must be the worst value in the USA, and that’s after the flight: going to Florida pre-cruise adds over $500 to the cost.

So missing the Rotterdam’s one-off New York-Rotterdam sailing was heartbreaking and I’m wondering if there are others out there who would welcome NYC or east coast departures? I looking forward to comments from fellow HAL fans.

Thank you.

Susan

Would you consider Amtrak's Silver Service from Baltimore to Fort Lauderdale?  I think there are things like the Voyage of the Vikings from Boston that might also be possibilities.

 

Roy

[Ready2go11]

Another Marylander who would love NY, Bayonne NJ, BALTIMORE or Norfolk VA departures.

 

My first HAL cruise years ago on the Maasdam was actually an 11 night Caribbean from Norfolk.  Shortly after that they stopped departures from that port.

 

Baltimore did just get some NCL departures (in addition to Carnival and RC) so there is some hope I guess since HAL has some smaller ships that may be able to make it under the bridge.  Maybe more success will cause expansion of the port facilities which would make it more attractive to new lines. 

[albingirl]

4 minutes ago, rafinmd said:

Would you consider Amtrak's Silver Service from Baltimore to Fort Lauderdale?  I think there are things like the Voyage of the Vikings from Boston that might also be possibilities.

 

Roy

Something about sailing past the Statue of Liberty is breathtaking. Not to be missed, as well as view of Ellis Island. 

[rafinmd]

18 minutes ago, albingirl said:

Something about sailing past the Statue of Liberty is breathtaking. Not to be missed, as well as view of Ellis Island. 

True, although not much of a view from Brooklyn and even less than Bayonne.  Manhattan has also gotten quite busy with only 3 available berths, and I think getting a non-routine sailing in there is not always available.

 

Roy

[St Pete Cruiser]

We sailed in and out of NYC IN 2006 on the Maasdam's spring reposition cruise and loved it! I remember walking to Times Square from Pier 88.

 

Royal Caribbean and Celebrity and several other lines use Cape Liberty, NJ, which entails a more difficult transfer into the city. Red Hook in Brooklyn is better, but still not like walking off into Manhattan. 

 

There is a free way to sail by the Statue of Liberty; the Staten Island ferry! 

[rodndonna]

9 hours ago, St Pete Cruiser said:

We sailed in and out of NYC IN 2006 on the Maasdam's spring reposition cruise and loved it! I remember walking to Times Square from Pier 88.

 

Royal Caribbean and Celebrity and several other lines use Cape Liberty, NJ, which entails a more difficult transfer into the city. Red Hook in Brooklyn is better, but still not like walking off into Manhattan. 

 

There is a free way to sail by the Statue of Liberty; the Staten Island ferry! 

 

 

I realize this is better asked on Port forum but since you seem to have knowledge ...

 

As a cruise to/from NY is on our "to-do" list and we would be flying, would either NY or NJ cruise departures be easier? We have options to either airport as well. From a cursory look it seems really any NY/NJ airport to either NY/NJ cruiseport would be at least be "reasonable" - is that true?  We are very mobile (still 🤞)

 

We did do the Staten Island Ferry "tour" of the Statue of Liberty. Just kind of tripped on it by mistake looking for a proper tour boat .. was a great mistake to make!

 

[rafinmd]

34 minutes ago, rodndonna said:

 

I realize this is better asked on Port forum but since you seem to have knowledge ...

 

As a cruise to/from NY is on our "to-do" list and we would be flying, would either NY or NJ cruise departures be easier? We have options to either airport as well. From a cursory look it seems really any NY/NJ airport to either NY/NJ cruiseport would be at least be "reasonable" - is that true?  We are very mobile (still 🤞)

 

We did do the Staten Island Ferry "tour" of the Statue of Liberty. Just kind of tripped on it by mistake looking for a proper tour boat .. was a great mistake to make!

 

Any of them for Manhattan or Brooklyn,  Definitely Newark for Bayonne.

 

Roy

[pmjnh]

We would welcome Baltimore or Norfolk as a departure port for HAL.  I see RCCL and NCL use Baltimore  but we prefer to sail HAL. Our first cruise ever was on RCCL's tiny Song of America.. then the big ships happened..🫣

[CNSJ]

With the exception of the Voyage of the Vikings and a one off from NYC here and there, don't expect HAL to sail from mid-Atlantic ports.  The demographic in Florida provides a large customer base to draw upon.  That includes US Citizens as well as Canadian snowbirds and others.  

 

I do trust that HAL's marketing team runs these numbers.  Sailings from Tampa, pre-Covid were nice as it was a change from FLL.  Much prefer (by several orders of magnitude) FLL over MIA.

[Caribbean Chris]

3 minutes ago, CNSJ said:

With the exception of the Voyage of the Vikings and a one off from NYC here and there, don't expect HAL to sail from mid-Atlantic ports.  The demographic in Florida provides a large customer base to draw upon.  That includes US Citizens as well as Canadian snowbirds and others.  

 

I do trust that HAL's marketing team runs these numbers.  Sailings from Tampa, pre-Covid were nice as it was a change from FLL.  Much prefer (by several orders of magnitude) FLL over MIA.

I agree, We sailed TA on Ryndam for 21 days once from Tampa to Dover and it was one of my favorite HAL cruises ever. And FLL is by far my preference over MIA.

[0106]

I would LOVE a HAL ship to cruise from the port of Baltimore.  I think the proximity to BWI with many Southwest flights would be an advantage.  I wonder if the Vista class ships would fit under the bridge?  I prefer them to the Rotterdam class because we like a standard verandah cabin.

[RuthC]

9 hours ago, rodndonna said:

As a cruise to/from NY is on our "to-do" list and we would be flying, would either NY or NJ cruise departures be easier? We have options to either airport as well. From a cursory look it seems really any NY/NJ airport to either NY/NJ cruiseport would be at least be "reasonable" - is that true?

I did fly into Newark once for a HAL sailing out of Manhattan. It was a very easy ride over to the piers. 
I did use the HAL transfer, but then I almost always do. 

[AKJonesy]

I can understand how those on the east coast might like to sail out of NY.  I think that your transportation options might guide your decision.  We used to sail out of Tampa quite a bit, but then my in-laws lived there so they dropped us off, so it was extremely convenient.  I still like FLL and SAN because the airports are a hop skip from the ports and I like knowing that when I disembark, I don't face a lot of hassle just getting to the airport.  I've been to NY/NJ many times so I personally have no desire to cruise out of there.  Of course, I have to travel far enough to get just about anywhere so the idea of an eastern port city would not interest me.  

[Mary229]

43 minutes ago, AKJonesy said:

I can understand how those on the east coast might like to sail out of NY.  I think that your transportation options might guide your decision.  We used to sail out of Tampa quite a bit, but then my in-laws lived there so they dropped us off, so it was extremely convenient.  I still like FLL and SAN because the airports are a hop skip from the ports and I like knowing that when I disembark, I don't face a lot of hassle just getting to the airport.  I've been to NY/NJ many times so I personally have no desire to cruise out of there.  Of course, I have to travel far enough to get just about anywhere so the idea of an eastern port city would not interest me.  

I would like to see HAL expand their US home ports.  Princess now sails Transatlantic from Texas, needless to say I would love to see HAL in that port too going both east and west 

[MaisonRose]

22 hours ago, rafinmd said:

True, although not much of a view from Brooklyn and even less than Bayonne.  Manhattan has also gotten quite busy with only 3 available berths, and I think getting a non-routine sailing in there is not always available.

 

Roy

We were certainly nonplussed on our Queen Mary arrival in Brooklyn in Dec 2021 & I’d think twice about using that location again. It was about out of the way as an industrial port can get.

[MaisonRose]

3 hours ago, RuthC said:

I did fly into Newark once for a HAL sailing out of Manhattan. It was a very easy ride over to the piers. 
I did use the HAL transfer, but then I almost always do. 
Hi Ruth:

Last spring we sailed RCI out of Bayonne & EWR is about as close as you can get to a port BUT the traffic at that NJ TURNPIKE EXIT was quite congested since there are a lot of tractor trailers using those roads. Still it was pretty easy (tho slightly less so than FLL).

[MaisonRose]

11 hours ago, 0106 said:

I would LOVE a HAL ship to cruise from the port of Baltimore.  I think the proximity to BWI with many Southwest flights would be an advantage.  I wonder if the Vista class ships would fit under the bridge?  I prefer them to the Rotterdam class because we like a standard verandah cabin.

I see that Carnival Legend is doing a TA from Baltimore to Barcelona in April but dare I take that ship?

Here is the clearance on the Bay Bridge:

Each span features: Two main spans over the bay's two shipping channels: A 3,200-foot (975 m) long suspension section over the western channel with a maximum clearance of 186 feet (56.7 m) at the 1,600-foot (490 m) main span—high enough to accommodate ocean-going vessels and tall ships.

 

I confess that I don’t know any ship’s requirements.

[St Pete Cruiser]

Our Sunshine Skyway Bridge has 180 feet clearance over the channel. The Carnival Legend has sailed under it as has the Oosterdam. 

[Shalandara]

This Virginia resident would love to see a HAL ship sailing out of Baltimore or Norfolk/Newport News. 

[RD64]

On 9/19/2023 at 8:29 PM, MaisonRose said:

Last Spring we were really excited that the Rotterdam was sailing out of New York, an easy train ride from our Maryland home. Booked & ready to go and then emergency surgery stopped us in our tracks. I adore HAL & I am never as happy on other lines, and we…are high status. But as we advance in age the trip to Florida has become a big and expensive slog. The overnight hotels in Fort Lauderdale must be the worst value in the USA, and that’s after the flight: going to Florida pre-cruise adds over $500 to the cost.

So missing the Rotterdam’s one-off New York-Rotterdam sailing was heartbreaking and I’m wondering if there are others out there who would welcome NYC or east coast departures? I looking forward to comments from fellow HAL fans.

Thank you.

Susan

@MaisonRose I was also booked on the NYC crossing and literally had to cancel at the last minute. It truly broke my heart. I have sailed HAL from NYC to Rotterdam and from Lisbon to Boston, and would welcome more of these East Coast crossings as well.

 

At present I am looking at a November Lisbon to NYC crossing on Norwegian. Although I have no desire to go with Norwegian - the NYC disembarkation suits me for a variety of reasons. Sadly the HAL Barcelona to Florida - leaving a few days later is not as convenient for me.

 

I would personally like to see a crossing to /from NYC  / Boston with the possibility of the Florida pre / post option. 

[Haljo1935]

On 9/19/2023 at 9:57 PM, albingirl said:

Something about sailing past the Statue of Liberty is breathtaking. Not to be missed, as well as view of Ellis Island. 

Sat from a Carnival NYC departure. It was lovely. 

[MaisonRose]

On 9/20/2023 at 2:50 AM, rafinmd said:

Would you consider Amtrak's Silver Service from Baltimore to Fort Lauderdale?  I think there are things like the Voyage of the Vikings from Boston that might also be possibilities.

 

Roy

I did do that train trip (I love trains) and heard the click and clack for days) but I wouldn’t let that stop me except the fare.