What to expect TA BCN-MIA Escape 26Nov24 [Weather-related question]

[Jplatz]

hey,

 

I know this might be a very dummy question so apologies in advance but I don't know how to figure this out. We are considering booking the Escape Transatlantic and have never done a TA before.

 

I wanted to ask if anyone could have some guidance on what the weather might look like (with all the caveats related to weather with more than 6 months advance, I'm aware). We keep hearing / reading how rough the Atlantic can be and the amount of cold/rain/fog we could get but we are unsure if that relates to Northern crossings (to/from UK, NYC, etc) - considering the cruise would take the route Madeira towards Antigua, does anyone know what kind of temperatures and level of rain can be expected on those latitudes? We are just trying to figure out if the 5 sea days crossing the Atlantic would restrict us to being fully indoors or on those latitudes there's a chance we could still use the outdoors areas and potentially pools at a confortable level. Looking at December mean temperatures for both Madeira and Saint John my answer would be "yes" but as I mentioned we have no previous experience on TA cruises to understand what the weather looks like and if we can use those 2 references.

 

Thanks!

[wcook]

Can you find any trip reports from people who did that sailing in prior years? 

[Host Kat]

4 hours ago, Jplatz said:

hey,

 

I know this might be a very dummy question so apologies in advance but I don't know how to figure this out. We are considering booking the Escape Transatlantic and have never done a TA before.

 

I wanted to ask if anyone could have some guidance on what the weather might look like (with all the caveats related to weather with more than 6 months advance, I'm aware). We keep hearing / reading how rough the Atlantic can be and the amount of cold/rain/fog we could get but we are unsure if that relates to Northern crossings (to/from UK, NYC, etc) - considering the cruise would take the route Madeira towards Antigua, does anyone know what kind of temperatures and level of rain can be expected on those latitudes? We are just trying to figure out if the 5 sea days crossing the Atlantic would restrict us to being fully indoors or on those latitudes there's a chance we could still use the outdoors areas and potentially pools at a confortable level. Looking at December mean temperatures for both Madeira and Saint John my answer would be "yes" but as I mentioned we have no previous experience on TA cruises to understand what the weather looks like and if we can use those 2 references.

 

Thanks!

 

Hello @Jplatz

 

Thank you for your new thread on the Ask a Cruise Question forum! However, it is the forum for general questions regarding cruising. Your inquiry specifically concerns TAs and was off topic there. 

 

To help you out your new thread has been moved to the Transatlantic, Transpacific, Repositioning & Trans-Ocean Cruises forum where it will be on topic. The majority of your fellow Cruise Critic members that have sailed TAs frequent this forum and provide feedback here. Browse through the thread titles on this forum looking for threads of interest. You will probably find your fellow Cruise Critic members have already posted questions and received answers that will be of interest to you.

 

The Cruise Critic website and message boards are both great resources for new as well as experienced cruisers, and we are so glad you are posting! Please feel free to browse the Cruise Critic Community categories list for the various forums. I suggest you Bookmark the page or put it in your Favorites for quick and easy access in the future. Please read a few threads in the different forums to get a feel for what each forum is about. Make sure you read any pinned threads (aka Stickies) on the top of the first page of threads in most forums. You will find very important instructions or information there.

 

Hope this will be helpful and glad to have you aboard Cruise Critic!

 

Happy sails,

 

Host Kat

[fredflint]

I have been on 6 TAs and only had a little bad weather on one cruise.  The weather is usually pretty nice if you like sun get the port side of the ship.  I get seasick pretty easy and on Caribbean cruises I would always be sick for a couple of days but never on a TA the ocean is deeper and there is nothing to move the currents like in the Caribbean, I also get the feeling the captain can adjust the speed and course a bit to smooth stuff out.

As always you could have a different experience but  you should have a good cruise going to the Azores can be cooler than the Canary Islands but both have been good overall.

[akeka]

I sailed the Epic TA from Barcelona to San Juan in November 2019 and wouldn't do another one that late in the year.  It was cold and rainy until we got to Portugal.  To be expected but it did impact the enjoyment of the port stops in Spain. 

[Ex-Airbalancer]

36 minutes ago, akeka said:

I sailed the Epic TA from Barcelona to San Juan in November 2019 and wouldn't do another one that late in the year.  It was cold and rainy until we got to Portugal.  To be expected but it did impact the enjoyment of the port stops in Spain. 

We done a couple of late November crossing , on one  it was nice in Rome , than rain until Barcelona, when we sailed though a Hurricane, it was rocking and rolling ,

Beside that time the weather been good 

our TA this year leaves Lisbon November 21 , 

you never know when a storm will blow in , just go with the flow as changing weather patterns, you never know what you are going to get 

 

[Hlitner]

While I do understand the doubts/concerns of the OP, there really is not a good answer (or any reassurance) we can offer.  We have done several dozen crossings (in both directions) and had all kinds of weather ranging from warm balmy days with glassy seas, to days of rough seas.  The weather on the Atlantic is as unpredictable as the weather at home.  However, the cruise lines do their best to choose the best routing, given the weather, currents, etc.  

 

Will you need to be indoor?  Anyone's guess.  We just (March) did another transatlantic which followed the route from Florida to Madeira.  Temps were not bad (mid 60s to mid 70s) but we did have several days of 4 meter seas.  For those of us who spend a lot of time on the sea, 12 foot swells are really not a big deal (when seas get over 8 meters that is a different story).  But for folks that have only cruised in the Caribbean where folks whine about 4 foot seas, 4 meters is rough.    

 

I know that the OP is looking for reassurance, but to feed that need would be disingenuous.  A ship is simply a vessel on the sea, and the sea/weather is always unpredictable.  For many of us who love to be on ships, the weather and sea conditions are simply part of cruising.  If the fear of bad weather/seas is going to take over the OP's mind, then perhaps they should consider another form of travel.  On our recent crossing it was interesting to hear the comments at the Martini bar where not many talked about the moving ship. But rather the unfortunate situation where the pool had to be emptied (the water was slopping over the deck) and nobody could go swimming for several days.

 

Hank