Independence in the rain

[cruisingiscool]

We are thinking of booking Independence of the Seas Canary isles cruise departing Southampton Feb 2012. We have been on 12 cruises and all have been in the Caribbean at that time of year. We realise that sailing from Southampton and it being February the weather will not be very good, but DH is on meds which make him photosensitive , and even with Factor 50 he burns easily so we thought we would try Indy and the Canaries as a compromise. Can anyone tell me what the facilities are for sea days and bad weather? We dont want to be in the cabin all day but I have read that when people cannot sunbathe the ship gets very crowded and uncomfortable and this is to be expected with the number of passengers on board, but I cannot find on RCI website any idea of what to do during the day. Are there enlightenment lectures for instance? Or will we have to wonder around along with a few thousand other lost souls? Any information would be appreciated.

 

Thank you.

[Shelley61]

We went on Indy at the end of May, and despite this, the weather was pretty rubbish! There were a few days where the weather was not good enough for sunbathing, or for being outside generally, and yes, the ship did feel busier, but not unbearable.

 

There are normally things going on during the day, quizzes, lectures, etc, and there is also a cinema screening room, though we never felt lost for something to do to need to make use of these...

 

You could always give the ice skating a go?!

 

One day it was pretty miserable, we sat in Boleros and got a drink, and I swear, of the 15 people sitting in there, we were the only 2 awake! Everyone else appeared to have fallen asleep reading a book! Shows how relaxing it is I guess!

 

If you're wrapped up warm enough against the weather, you can still play a bit of shuffleboard on the promenade deck as it's fairly protected... there were also plenty of people playing mini-golf in the rain, including us, until there was a slight flooding issue on the first green...!

 

Take a few good books, and have a look through the daily Compass, and I'm sure you'll find plenty to do...

[hamrag]

We are thinking of booking Independence of the Seas Canary isles cruise departing Southampton Feb 2012. We have been on 12 cruises and all have been in the Caribbean at that time of year. We realise that sailing from Southampton and it being February the weather will not be very good, but DH is on meds which make him photosensitive , and even with Factor 50 he burns easily so we thought we would try Indy and the Canaries as a compromise. Can anyone tell me what the facilities are for sea days and bad weather? We dont want to be in the cabin all day but I have read that when people cannot sunbathe the ship gets very crowded and uncomfortable and this is to be expected with the number of passengers on board, but I cannot find on RCI website any idea of what to do during the day. Are there enlightenment lectures for instance? Or will we have to wonder around along with a few thousand other lost souls? Any information would be appreciated.

 

Thank you.

 

There are things to do, but the best advice I can give you (especially since you have done Caribbean in winter) is stay home!!

[dmwnc1959]

There are things to do, but the best advice I can give you (especially since you have done Caribbean in winter) is stay home!!

 

Amen! OP you will probably remember all too well the incredible weather mainland Europe and the UK experienced winter 2009/2010. Not that it was typical, but the blanketing snowstorms (called a snowpocalypse), devastating floods, and huge coastal storms which stretched from Madeira to the Russian border lasted from December to March. Madeira was hit in Feb 2010 by devastating floods.

 

Traveling in winter out of Southampton will most definitely have it's risks.

 

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_of_2009–2010_in_Europe

[hmallett]

We spend most of the sea days in the whirlpool spas!

[LoisGriffin1]

I went on the Indy in November and the weather was pretty rubbish. The cruise was still fantastic though.

 

There are always places to relax in bad weather. The promenade got really busy so avoid if you do not like crowds. I liked the Viking Lounge. It never seemed busy and had great views (even if the views were of grey sky and rain).

 

The entertainment staff did make an effort to put more on during the bad days.

[negc]

Bad weather is no more inevitable than any other kind. It will be what it is, so in such situations we just need to make the best of it. On a ship like Independence there are certainly plenty of things that you can do onboard the ship during the day and there is no need to feel you will be stuck in your cabin. The daily activities calendar (Cruise Compass) will list dozens of things to fill your day. At least on a cruise you won't be stuck in one location for a week subject to the weather conditions in that location.:)

[cruisingiscool]

Thank you for your kindness in answering. I would stay at home but DH will be 60 in Feb and we always use "special" birthdays and anniversaries as an excuse to take a cruise. DH feels bad enough about being photosensitive to such a high degree that the caribbean is definitely out so we would really like to cruise somewhere. Anyway we have an idea now, so will be talking it over and hopefully the right decision will be made!