A cruise to the North? Surely you jest.

So here's the deal, all my other cruises (16) were to warm beaches south. (Caribbean) I am now booked on the Explorer on a northern route in September. Need I bother bringing my snorkeling gear? I love to snorkel, but not sure about water temps up north. Canada? Nova Scotia?

Unreal.. lol I need input. thanks.

September, North Atlantic, snorkeling. Probably can be done but you may need a wetsuit.

I seriously doubt that you will be wanting to snorkel in September in Canada. I think if you are used to warm water then you won't appreciate the water temperature :D

Eh!

No snorkeling experience here. But, as a Canadian I believe our waters have warmed as much as possible by summers end! ;)

The average summer air temp in September in Nova Scotia is 57F, so I think beach days may be out. Currently the water temp in Halifax Harbour is 35F.

I do not think you will want to go into the water in Canada or New England. I live here, and it is too cold.

 

Plus there is nothing as beautiful to see here compared to the crystal clear water in the Caribbean!

Did a cruise up north to Canada a few years back. DEFINATELY a change from the caribbean. But, to my surprise, I had a wonderful time and enjoyed the sights greatly. Would I do it again? ABSOLUTELY! :D

 

Have a great cruise! :)

I'll never forget my first Canada/New England cruise. It was September, and it was not warm enough to snorkel, I assure you. That year the tropical storms seemed to all head north, and greatly altered our itinerary. In fact, a hurricane hit Halifax that week. We docked there the next day...huge trees were uprooted, stop lights were out, many locals lacked power...and yet, even with all that, every single local person we encountered was nice to us as tourists. Lovely people....

We took a short 5 day cruise to Canada last June and both Halifax and St John were wonderful and very enjoyable ports. It was a nice change.

 

I wish that offered a similar cruise. We were on Carnival. The ports were great but the ship and ship activities were less than wonderful.

Edited January 23, 2014 by sellwingri

I want to do a longer version of Canada cruise. Princess Quebec-FtLauderdale, every Fall, like Oct 20, various ships Ruby this yr. .Never found a cruisemate.Will do as solo some day. Pricing comes way down.

We took the N. Engl/Canada route a bit over a year ago and loved it. It is definitely different than a beach/sun vacation. Don't think I used the swimsuit at all. However, it was absolutely lovely. Sun was out, days were bright, touring was fabulous. We went to places we would never get to via a car vacation. So pack some layers...just in case...and enjoy.

You would need a wetsuit. Check in advance with the dive shops in the ports you will be visiting to see what kind of diving/snorkeling is in the area, and whether it would be worth it, and what gear you will need.

Thanks for the laugh! It is so cold here in NE that the mention of snorkeling made me LOL! Also, the seas are not light colored like in the Caribbean and would probably have low visibility!

Loved our Canadian cruise. But I'd skip the snorkeling :)

Do this....look for a snorkeling excursion for the ports you are visiting. The results of the search should answer your questions.

If you only cruise for the beach/water experience, this is not the cruise for you. BUT, there's so much else to see that you won't miss it. I'm not sure what your ports are, but every one is packed with fantastic scenery, historic and cultural sites, friendly people. Take some land excursions and enjoy the great food. Believe me, the lobster in Maine is better than any you'll find on a cruise ship.

 

Kathy

If you only cruise for the beach/water experience, this is not the cruise for you. BUT, there's so much else to see that you won't miss it. I'm not sure what your ports are, but every one is packed with fantastic scenery, historic and cultural sites, friendly people. Take some land excursions and enjoy the great food. Believe me, the lobster in Maine is better than any you'll find on a cruise ship.

 

Kathy

 

have to second this. Well said and sums it up. Great trip but not for those wanting a warm vacation spot.

I love New England, I think one of the fall cruises would be wonderful =)

 

However I've been up that way before. Snorkeling is not the main attraction. The water isn't clear like down south anyway, so there's not a lot of exciting things to see. Things like hiking, enjoying the scenery, sailing, whale watching, exploring the lighthouses...*that's* what you do in New England.

If you only cruise for the beach/water experience, this is not the cruise for you. BUT, there's so much else to see that you won't miss it. I'm not sure what your ports are, but every one is packed with fantastic scenery, historic and cultural sites, friendly people. Take some land excursions and enjoy the great food. Believe me, the lobster in Maine is better than any you'll find on a cruise ship.

 

Kathy

 

Yes, eat the lobster where's it's locally caught! It's fabulous!

I'm with you! Did the Brilliance last September. It was too chilly to even put on my bathing suit except for the hot tub in the Solarium. It was a very cool trip but I probably wouldn't do it again!

In terms of lobster, I am always amazed when people get excited about the frozen lobster on a cruise ship. It is completely different than real Maine lobster that we can get quite easily here. There is no comparison.

We Canadians have a bit of a weird habbit. On New Years Day we find some lake, cut a hole in it with a chain saw and jump in just for the heck of it. This right of passage is normally followed by some obscure amount of alcoholic beverage, often one refered to as Moose Milk. If you plan to swim in the North Atlantic in September the only difference will be that you won't need the chain saw!

We went to places we would never get to via a car vacation.

 

This statement has me curious as the common port stops for a Canada/New England cruise are not out of the way or hard to drive to.

I have to admit I find some of these answers funny but I guess its what you are used to. In Nova Scotia, our Septembers are often very nice. Last year was cooler than normal, but several summers before that, September was almost as nice as August. It is not uncommon to still go in the water in September since it has warmed up all summer. Its certainly not Caribbean temps, but even at the warmest, it isn't, unless you do a lake.

The weather is hit and miss, i wouldn't plan a trip banking on swimming, but it isn't a totally crazy idea that you could go.

I do have to agree though, there isn't much in the way of snorkeling around here. Plenty of places to dive though

 

 

If you want better lobster than the cruise ship and Maine, come to Nova Scotia :D (sorry, but I'm married to a lobster fisherman's son).

Edited January 25, 2014 by 1kaper

We Canadians have a bit of a weird habbit. On New Years Day we find some lake, cut a hole in it with a chain saw and jump in just for the heck of it. This right of passage is normally followed by some obscure amount of alcoholic beverage, often one refered to as Moose Milk. If you plan to swim in the North Atlantic in September the only difference will be that you won't need the chain saw!

I have been swimming a number of times at P.E.I. and it was not bad at all. I'll be in Newfoundland next month, and I can pull up water temps in 19 NF locations, and all but one of these is above 60 degrees F. Way warmer than when I went swimming in minus 1 C in Deception Island, Antarctica. I'll admit that was cold, but I enjoy 19 degree C water for actual swimming. I thought Canadians were a hardy bunch, but I'm not so sure any more.