May Sea Conditions AND East Vs West on Ship ?????

2 Questions - Sea Conditions in May and Which Way on Ship is Best To Avoid Time Lag???

Thank you in advance to all CC members who respond with their expertise.

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QUESTION #1 - Generally, what type of sea conditions should one expect in May?

I have never travelled the ocean before and I am sensitive to movement (I have cruised 6X in the carribean and no problem).

I plan a QM2 crossing and was focusing on May in order to avoid tourist crowds in London. The fall is out to avoid impact of hurricane seas

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QUESTION #2 - Which way best to take ship?

My objective is to be as fresh as possible for a week in London. Therefore, should I take QM2 before or after London?

I have heard going west bound you gain an hour a day - But, alternatively would you not "eat into the time change" an hour per day by taking the ship first from New York?

Suggestions?

Thanks to all - ABoatNerd

Aboatnerd,

Sea conditions - somewhere between millpond and storm - sorry to not be helpful, but the Atlantic is just like that. However, the QM2 does appear to be very good at handling rough weather from reports on the first transatlantic to Fort Lauderdale - so I wouldn't worry too much.

Direction - as a European, definitely Westbound - sailing into NY is magical, and the extra hour every day really helps.

London is busy most of the year, May not noticeably quieter than other months.

When I fly across the pond from North America I try to take a daytime flight - the 6/7 hour night time flights are worse than useless - I get more trouble from those than I do flying from Sydney!

Peter

We took the QEII westbound last May. Our last weather report in England showed large storm fronts in the Atlantic that we were sure would effect our crossing. However, we navigated around the storms and missed them completely until we pulled into New York Harbor in driving rain. With the two extra days built into the crossing time, the Queens can maneuver to give a smooth crossing. I was never seasick at all, and I am somewhat sensitive to rough water.

I liked returning westbound by sea. It was very pleasant to return with no jet lag, and to have all of the relaxation time on board to recharge before returning to work. Sailing into New York Harbor was also very exciting, even if it was a monsoon.

I hope you have an enjoyable crossing.

I crossed im May and the sea was completely flat. The week before the crossing had sixty foot waves. I was flying over QE2 and we were shaken madly until 50000 feet.

Generally May is considered better than April but not as good as June for weather on the North Atlantic. Of course there is no guarentee that your crossing will follow the general trend. The only thing predictable about North Atlantic weather is that it is not predictable. Just hope. Sorry.

Another thing to consider is the weather in London. It should be getting warmer and drier from Aril onwards until July or August. Some people prefer cooler weather in a city, so late May may be best. Again there is no guarentee.

I would personally sail to my holiday destination. I want to feel at my best for my holiday. Missing one hour a day for five days on a crossing is tough but leaves me brighter than missing five hours in a one day flight. I would rather have jet lag at work.

Best wishes, Stephen.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CunardShipQM2/

I also vote for westbound. I have done both and never did get adjusted to losing the extra hour each day on the eastbound.

The westbound is much more leisurely with the extra hour added almost every day. ANother thing is that because the trip westbound is 10 hours longer than eastbound (5 + 5 hours =10) the captain can go more slowly thus making for smoother travel.

I liked having that extra hour to sleep in on the westbound trip and would definitely do that direction again. I felt more rested and my internal clock seemed to adjust better than the previous trip.

If you are sensitive to motion, get a midships cabin as low as you can in the ship. You do NOT want to be in a glass balcony on a upper deck in bad weather, especially in the North Atlantic, if you tend to get seasick. Motion will seem worse the higher you go and the nearer to the ends of the ship you are.

Frankly the motion is usually so slow even on the QE2, I just enjoy the rocking to bed you get every night. Can't beat that for luxury, can you? SOmeone to rock your bed at night?

Enjoy!

I was on the Tandem Crossing eastbound. The loss of an hour evey night was a little hard. Next time I will do a westbound. I met a woman in the laundry (great place to meet fellow passengers) told me the westbound is rougher then the eastbound. I was hoping for a weather to see what the QM2 was made of, like the crossing the week before. The crossing ended up being pretty smooth. I don't know if that's true or not. I would assume what ever the Atlantic wants to do it will do.

J.P.

Queen Mary 2 Caribbean 3/9

Did Eastbound last June and would ditto previous comments about Westbound. We were so relaxed when we got off the ship in Southampton but then exhausted after a week in London and flight home. Wished we had done the trip in reverse order.

Just another opinion--

I would highly recommend the westbound trip. Besides the hour gained almost every day, there's the fact pointed out above that after a hectic week of sightseeing in London, there's no better way to relax than a crossing back home. And sailing into NY is a wonderful event, not to be missed.

As for the date, I went the last week of August and found not too many crowds. And the weather during the crossing was very calm. Hurricanes can be avoided while sailing, so I wouldn't limit yourself to May just because of that fear.

Good luck and have fun!

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Hurricanes can be avoided <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Sailaslot makes a good point - to cross the pond QM2 has to make 24 knots - but can go quite a lot faster (up to 29 I think - so not quite as fast as her older sister). I've been on QE2 in October where we swung quite a way south to miss a Hurricane - and were up to 29 knots - not that you'd know unless you watched the position monitor on your cabin TV.

Also recall the QM2's original arrival into NY was going to be late - but she caught up time. Since the move to 6 day crossings Cunard have bought themselves a lot more flexibility, their passengers a more comnfortable voyage, and a LOT lower fuel bills

Whenever you go - enjoy!

Peter

Have to agree with sailsalot. Westbound is a great way to relax after time in London (or wherever) and gaining that hour nearly every night allows you to enjoy the nightlife on the ship and still get sleep. Also, did the last week in August last year and sailed into NY on Labor Day. Having Lady Liberty welcome you home is a moving experience.

Here is to a safe voyage whichever direction you choose to sail.

Southampton to New York is by far the most relaxing trip. The other way, one is always trying to catch up on lost sleep.

As for the Atlantic in May, my very first trip over, in May, we had an unusually rough crossing, and I spent much of the time in my cabin with tea and crackers.

This last trip back from Southampton, also in May, the ocean was as smooth as glass. Granted the first was on QE2, which will have more motion than QM2, but this QM2 crossing was so smooth, for the most part, I sometimes forgot I was on a ship.

Another thing about sensitivity to motion: I find the more I sail, the less sensitive I become to the motion (called getting one's sea legs I guess). In fact, it took me about 2 weeks this time, after my arrival in NYC, to get used to being on solid ground---the floor seemed to sway beneath my feet, so I suppose I had adjusted well to the motion at sea.