TA Sea Days & Crowds

[TACoor]

Question for those who have taken a west-bound transatlantic. I'm expecting it to be rather cool/cold in December, perhaps too chilly to sit outside. Just wonder about crowds indoors all day every day. Is it hard to find a peaceful place (other than one's own cabin) to read? We've only done Caribbean in warm weather so most of the crowd is outdoors by the pool or on shady side deck chairs. Also daytime games and activities - with everyone "stuck" indoors, is it impossible to find seats in the atrium or theater?  Thanks!

[Heidi13]

Most W'bd TA's are ships returning to N/America in Oct/Nov. Due to prevailing winds/currents they tend to take a more southerly routing. At least initially, when sailing SW'ly you will have the NE Trade Winds astern, so minimal wind over the open decks.

 

For temp, everyone has a different definition of cold, but I have never found it uncomfortable on a southerly routing.

[LHT28]

We had a bad crossing wind rain snow  several  days   outside was blocked off

Yes it was hard to find  a place to relax  in the public areas

If you wanted peace & quiet  we went to the cabin

 Many people ended up with colds etc..

DH was in the medical centre  the night before disembarkation  with a bad URI

 

We were on a smaller ship  1250 Pax  so maybe the mega ships would have more spaces to hide

 

 

[TheOldBear]

4 hours ago, TACoor said:

Question for those who have taken a west-bound transatlantic. I'm expecting it to be rather cool/cold in December, perhaps too chilly to sit outside. Just wonder about crowds indoors all day every day. Is it hard to find a peaceful place (other than one's own cabin) to read? We've only done Caribbean in warm weather so most of the crowd is outdoors by the pool or on shady side deck chairs. Also daytime games and activities - with everyone "stuck" indoors, is it impossible to find seats in the atrium or theater?  Thanks!

Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 is designed for North Atlantic crossings, including prolonged foul weather. The interior volume is quite generous for the maximum capacity passenger load. 
In our experience, the only time the ship seems crowded is after boarding on turn around days in New York. Otherwise, I don’t recall crowds or lines anywhere on board (public rooms, buffet, dining rooms, bars, pools). 

[Jazzbo]

We were on a westbound TA in November 2014 originally scheduled to sail directly to NYC. The captain changed the itinerary to head to Madeira because of two major storms in the North Atlantic. We still hit 14-foot seas heading to NYC and the outside decks were closed off for a couple of days. We were on the Celebrity Eclipse, and it wasn’t too crowded except for the Cafe Al Bacio coffee bar. (The Martini Bar is always crowded.)

[rkacruiser]

23 hours ago, TACoor said:

Just wonder about crowds indoors all day every day. Is it hard to find a peaceful place (other than one's own cabin) to read? 

 

On which ship will you be sailing?

 

Most trans-Atlantic cruises, particularly at the time you will be sailing, will not be as fully booked as a Caribbean cruise might be.  Finding an interior nook or cranny for some solitude and away from lots of other guests is something that you ought to be able to find.  Study your ship's deck plan before you embark to help you find those possible areas.

 

Even in cool, windy weather, you might find you'll enjoy being in a sheltered area on an open deck sitting in a deck chair with a deck blanket tucked around you.  Listening to the sounds of the sea, breathing the sea air, observing the sea while few are "out and about":  these are some of my good memories of trans-ocean crossings.  

[Heidi13]

On 6/19/2021 at 5:20 PM, TheOldBear said:

Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 is designed for North Atlantic crossings, including prolonged foul weather. The interior volume is quite generous for the maximum capacity passenger load. 
In our experience, the only time the ship seems crowded is after boarding on turn around days in New York. Otherwise, I don’t recall crowds or lines anywhere on board (public rooms, buffet, dining rooms, bars, pools). 

 

Having sailed across the Atlantic way too many times, I would only do a northern crossing into NYC in Winter aboard the QM2.

 

Another reply noted experiencing 14' seas, which are fairly common, and are indicative of less than gale force winds - usually Force 7, or about 30 kts. QM2 and similar liners don't even reduce speed in those conditions.