repositioning cruise -- Pacific Coastal

[cyclenut]

My wife and I are planning to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary with a cruise. We did one 4-day on Carnival Ecstasy a couple of years ago and loved it.

 

In poking around the cruise web sites we found an RCI cruise from Los Angeles to Vancouver. This is a 5-day cruise that is moving the ship to Vancouver for their Alaska cruise season in April. It stops in San Francisco, Victoria BC and Vancouver BC.

 

My question is this. Are these cruises any different for the passengers than any other cruise? The web site does not list any shore excursions so I assume we could be on our own here. Is the shipboard experience any different?

 

We are also considering a September cruise on this shame ship (Vision of the Seas) when it returns to Los Angeles. The return leaves from Vancouver, does a short Alaska sampler and then returns south over 9 days.

 

I checked Weather.com for the weather in Vancouver so I think it could be a little cooler on both of these since they are out of season. The value seems to be good.

 

We need to make a decision quick since we have a courtesy hold on the 5-day right now.

 

Any feedback is welcome!

 

Thank you!

[PSP]

Repositioning cruises are a great value. These occur in May and September every year. There are several other cruise lines that will be positioning as well. Princess, Holland America (has glass cover for their pool and you might be able to experience the pool) and Norwegian. You should check all the cruise lines for your best value.

 

I have found the service, entertainment and food to be comparable to other cruises.

 

Weather in Seattle, Victoria and Vancouver will indeed be cooler. However, September is their Indian summer days and weather can be quiet delightful, sometimes in the low 70's. Also there will be less tourists in September.

 

Both ports in Vancouver and Victoria are right downtown. Easy to walk around.

 

The Pacific Ocean can be a little rougher than the Caribbean and you could experience some moderate seas.

 

Valerie

[anniecat]

We did in Sept, 2005 the X Summit repo from Vancouver to Alaska/etc (hubbard glacier, skagway, sitka, juneau, ketchikan, victoria, seattle, SF, Catalina island) to LongBeach. Warmish/coolish weather, fog at sea down the coast but not rough at all. (could be very clear and rough seas though if the wind is strong and from the land ..ala Santa Ana Winds) Great time, less crowds, no whales:(.

Next time I'd do the repo from Vancouver to ft Lauderdale;)

[bob brown]

I was on the Radiance of the Seas from San Diego to Vancouver via San Francisco, Astoria, and Victoria in May, 2005. It was a wonderful cruise and there were several shore excursions available, though we explored on our own, as we were familiar with the ports.

I agree that repo cruises are an excellent value. You can imagine that you are on a liner rather than a cruise.

The only down side is that unless you live near one end, the air fares are usually more expensive than returning to the same port you started from.

I'm shopping for my next cruise for May from Fort Lauderdale to Montreal on HAL. I wish there were more East Coast cruises to choose from as there are on the West Coast.:)

[fozzyfoz]

we did the san diego to vancouver repo on Radiance last May and thoroughly loved it! It was so relaxing and peaceful. Yes the weather is cooler but still seasonable, just think layers and you'll be fine. I think there were some excursions (but they werent listed/available until closer to the cruise date) but we booked everything on our own. We found it very simpe to plan our own excursions as it's very easy to go to each port's chamber of commerce/tourism site for info, maps and activities.

[gratefulguy]

Sailed on same cruise as fozzyfoz (hope all is well with you), but did take a ship's excursion in Astoria (Ultimate Oregon Coast @98.00 each). This 6 hr. bus tour took us along the Coast for sightseeing and then inland to Tillamook for the Air Museum and then Cheese/Ice Cream Factory. Cruisers who stayed in Astoria said there wasn't a lot to do because it rained some--but people there are very friendly and there are some antique shops. Most ship's tours are the same for several cruise lines, so if you don't see it on RCI (will be there eventually), go to HAL or Princess sites to get an idea of what's offered. BTW, one differnce can be that some lines don't do Formal Nights on very short cruises (3-4 nights)

You might also go to the Roll Call for the 2006 repo cruises (e.g. Radiance May 21) --we shared a lot of info!

Happy Anniversary