Lisbon to/from Southampton cruise itinerary

[bobolz]

Curious if anyone has recently taken this itinerary with SS or any other cruise line. I understand the Bay of Biscay can be quite rough at times, wondering if during a northerly route from Lisbon in May  rough waters were  enough to cancel ports?  Ports include Porto, La Corunna, Bilbao, Bordeaux. Thanks in advance. 

[Gourmet Gal]

We took this cruise in September 2022 in the opposite direction in Silver Moon and it was quite rough.  Had to wear a patch for seasickness.  We did miss the port that is near Biarritz due to rough seas so our San Sebastián excursion was cancelled.

[david63]

There is no way of predicting what the sea state of the BoB will be at any time of the year. It can be like a mill pond when you least expect it or it can be rough when you would not expect it.

 

As most of those ports are south of the BoB I would not expect to miss any - but then again I will not be driving the ship and having to make those decisions!

 

Irrespective of what has happened in the past with other cruises it will be what it is on the day and there is no way of predicting what may, or may not, happen.

[CruzinFeraBruzin]

We took the Lisbon to Southampton sailing aboard the Dawn in May 2023 and did not experience any unusual rough seas anywhere along the route.  We did miss the port at La Coruna due to political unrest (transportation protests).  This port was not substituted and we had an extra day at sea.  As david63 indicated, there is no way to predict what the conditions will be on any given day.

[dawntrdr]

We did Lisbon to London in May 2018 and the only rough seas were exiting the Tagus River estuary at Lisbon, which is not uncommon.

[bobolz]

Thanks to those that responded with your experience. I’m aware that there is no way to predict sea conditions, I just read that it is considered one of the roughest sea passages(like the Drake Passage) , but apparently the worst time is after August ,in the fall and winter, and  based on what I read above, gourmet Gal experienced just that in Sept while those that traveled in May did not notice anything out of the ordinary. I’ll just cross my fingers it won’t be too bad in May. Thanks again! 

[david63]

8 hours ago, bobolz said:

apparently the worst time is after August ,in the fall and winter,

Not necessarily so. I have crossed the BoB dozens of times at all times of the year and it is totally unpredictable.

[Clodia]

I have sailed across Biscay many times with any line sailing from the UK as I hate flying. It can be millpond smooth or very rough any month of the year, though I've  had more smooth then rough days in about 40 crossings. Silversea ships being smaller are going to feel it more, whereas you don't notice it much on a large ship.