First transatlantic..need reassurance

[joevoter]

My husband and I booked a package for Voyager departing Barcelona on Nov. 29. We've done two Caribbean and one Alaska, but I'm concerned about the Atlantic in winter. If you've done one of these, please respond and tell your experiences. Any info about Barcelona would be great, too.

Thanks for your help.

joevoter in dusty West Texas

[suzyluvs2cruise]

We did the Voyager TA from Barcelona in Nov '06. It was a fantastic cruise. We lucked out with warm weather and seas like a lake. We stayed at the Hotel Continental Palacete in Barcelona (recommended by someone on CC) and it was great. Be sure to use the HOHO bus. Any other questions, please ask.

[tally10]

My husband and I booked a package for Voyager departing Barcelona on Nov. 29. We've done two Caribbean and one Alaska, but I'm concerned about the Atlantic in winter. If you've done one of these, please respond and tell your experiences. Any info about Barcelona would be great, too.

Thanks for your help.

joevoter in dusty West Texas

 

Don't worry about the seas. We did the Dec. 2, 2007 BOS from Barcelona to Miami, our third transatlantic, and the seas were fine. 6ft whitecaps but very little motion on the ship. The only motion that bothered me was the night before Miami, we had 40mph crosswinds and I was a little green. I must have been the only one as the dining room was full. That was the southern route. We did the same route in April, 2005, and the seas were like glass. The more northern route can be a little dicey, but they usually don't do that one in the winter. We have our fourth transatlantic next month, so I am praying for calm seas. Barcelona is beautiful. We just came in the day before so did not get to see very much. We stayed closer to the port than the historical area at the Hilton Diagonal Mar. Beautiful and luxurious with a mall right behind it. There are plenty of inexpensive eateries and a supermarket on the ground level where you can stock up on bottled water/soda for the cruise. One tip, do not go through Charles de Gaulle (Paris) when booking your airfare. Difficult to navigate and lots of stairs. If you have any questions, please ask. Transatlantics are such a good bargain and very restful. If you tend to get bored, bring some reading material just in case.

[yarlenna]

I did transatlantic on a HAL ship and LOVED it. You will have lots of time to enjoy the ship and all that it has to offer. It was COLD for the first 3 days, and we missed one and a half ports because of the weather. If I could ever do it again, I would - today. If I ever win the lotto - - - If you can, enjoy it. The price for the cruise should be a good deal. The killer is the flight. It may cost MORE that the whole cruise.

[aloha of the seas]

I did the North Atlantic during the end of hurricane season and captain just adjusted our location to accomadate for the weather. The temps were not that bad, but not really sun bathing conditions unless you were in the Solarium. That becomes very popular on the sea days. Transatlantics are great trips and I am looking forward to booking my next one. Good Sailing, Murf.

[6MonthsHere6MonthsThere]

Don't worry, you will love it if you like relazing, which are what all the sea days are all about for a lot of people.We will be on our 15th Transatlantic in April and 2 more booked after that and we have loved all 14 previous crossings, if you add the total days sailing which would be around 200 we have had about 4 days which you could call very unpleasent, so around 2% is a very good ratio, probably better ratio than what we have had doing cruises around the Caribbean.

[SomeBeach]

I was on the same cruise as Tally 10 and will confirm that we had a great crossing. The weather during the day was warm to hot and the bit of rain we had did not interfer with our sea days.

Barcelona is a beautiful city and I think you should consider a few days pre-cruise to see it. A few of us from the Roll Call stayed at Hotel Royal Ramblas

http://www.royalramblashotel.com/en/services/ and found it to be convenient to restaurants, shopping, the subway, and the port. The weather, for me, was a bit chilly during the day, cold at night but nothing a long sleeved shirt and jacket couldn't handle.

A couple of us took a trip up to Montserrat which was absolutely worth the time. We were able to purchace tickets for the ride right outside the hotel on the Ramblas. It may sound difficult to get there because it involves a subway, train, bus, and another train ride but it really isn't and doesn't take as long as it sounds like it might. For me it was the highlight of my time in Barcelona; the views from up in the mountains are fantastic. Just plan on it being much cooler up there. And if you like chocolate, go to the bakery, and look for chocolate in a light fluffy filo type pastry. It is beyond belief yummy! :D

Maderia was a favorite stop on the cruise. We had much more time there than your schedule shows you having so you may not be able to do all we did. As part of a private tour we saw quite a bit but the trip up to the second highest peak was fantastic and extremely windy and chilly.

Carnary Island, I ended up canceling out on going to Mt Tiede because of an allergy attack and just walked around. Try to avoid that as it wasn't all that great. Those that went to Tiede used RCI tour and enjoyed it.

Hope this helps some. :)

[Mexico]

My husband and I booked a package for Voyager departing Barcelona on Nov. 29. We've done two Caribbean and one Alaska, but I'm concerned about the Atlantic in winter. If you've done one of these, please respond and tell your experiences. Any info about Barcelona would be great, too.

Thanks for your help.

joevoter in dusty West Texas

 

Hey Guys -

Don't know how far west Texas you are BUT, think we beat you being from El Paso.

You might want to check out www.kenandpene.com for information on Barcelona.

Should you have questions, don't hesitate to write us.

Ken and Pene

[SomeBeach]

You seem to have 2 threads going with the same questions. ;)