GigiT Posted May 1 Report Share Posted May 1 Any pointers on a transatlantic cruise is very much appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted May 1 Report Share Posted May 1 Check out this blog post about @JC Pats https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2023/04/17/transatlantic-cruise-review Bob Burd and PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pattycruise Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 If you like chips or pretzels or another salty item pack it. Don’t expect additional extra days of entertainment for any shows. PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cedricmr Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 First time next year in april (Brilliance) PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottB Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 Our first this Nov for 14 Nighs on Odyssey, Rome to NJ. PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonOasis Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 1 hour ago, ScottB said: Our first this Nov for 14 Nighs on Odyssey, Rome to NJ. My husband and I will be on that same cruise it will be our first Transatlantic cruise as well. We always do a B2B 7 nighters in the fall so this year we decided instead of a B2B Caribbean cruise why not do a 14 night Transatlantic cruise. PPPJJ-GCVAB and ScottB 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottB Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 29 minutes ago, JasonOasis said: My husband and I will be on that same cruise it will be our first Transatlantic cruise as well. We always do a B2B 7 nighters in the fall so this year we decided instead of a B2B Caribbean cruise why not do a 14 night Transatlantic cruise. Very nice. We hope to see you guys. My husband and I have our first B2B on Utopia in Feb 25. PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biaggio Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 Pointers…..Relax! I’ve taken 5 crossings with 2 coming up and love them. Activities in the morning. Walking, pickleball, miniature golf. Lunch in The Windjammer, afternoon reading and a nap. Cocktail, dinner, maybe some casino play, they a show. Wash, rinse, repeat. Great way to decompress. Baked Alaska, JasonOasis, PPPJJ-GCVAB and 1 other 3 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_Texas Posted May 2 Report Share Posted May 2 We did a 2022 transatlantic on Rhapsody. We absolutely loved the crossing experienced. Less crowding on the ships, more mature cruisers, we made multiple shipboard friends and that’s not normal for us. We sailed from Barcelona to Barbados. It was mid October and every day got warmer and better for the pool. Also we kept picking up an hour of time change overnight as we sailed west. We liked that the beating of the long flight was at the beginning of vacation when we were excited rather than at then end when we are exhausted. We’ve heard from others on the blog who feel totally differently about east bound vs west bound. Our only issue was that 8 sea days on a Vision class ship (Rhapsody OTS) became a bit boring. The small ship provided little diversion from the pool and dining room. The same lounge singer was in the Centrum day after day. So we booked a west bound crossing for 2025 on Independence OTS. Our thinking is that an AMPED Freedom class ship will provide more diversity onboard. As soon as November comes this year and the 2026 transatlantic autumn deployment schedule is released we will book either a Quantum or Oasis class crossing. PPPJJ-GCVAB and cedricmr 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mel Posted May 3 Report Share Posted May 3 9 hours ago, Biaggio said: Pointers…..Relax! I’ve taken 5 crossings with 2 coming up and love them. Activities in the morning. Walking, pickleball, miniature golf. Lunch in The Windjammer, afternoon reading and a nap. Cocktail, dinner, maybe some casino play, they a show. Wash, rinse, repeat. Great way to decompress. How many shows they usualy do? Every night is a show or less? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biaggio Posted May 3 Report Share Posted May 3 Every night is a show. Depending on the ship. Broadway type, magician, comedian, song and dance. Always some going on. 1 hour ago, Mel said: How many shows they usualy do? Every night is a show or less? PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PPPJJ-GCVAB Posted May 3 Report Share Posted May 3 My first Transatlantic is on Odyssey from Bayonne next April/May. Looking forward to relaxing and enjoying the company of our little group of friends. I like how losing the hours gets spread out over the entire cruise which I’m assuming will mean once we end up in Rome we will feel refreshed enough to enjoy another 5-6 days exploring Italy before flying home! whitsmom and WAAAYTOOO 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cakemeister Posted May 3 Report Share Posted May 3 I recommend going east to west, because of the time changes. I loved the transatlantic I took from Rome to Galveston back in 2011. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxrunner Posted May 3 Report Share Posted May 3 16 hours ago, Doug_Texas said: Our only issue was that 8 sea days on a Vision class ship (Rhapsody OTS) became a bit boring. As soon as November comes this year and the 2026 transatlantic autumn deployment schedule is released we will book either a Quantum or Oasis class crossing. Did you stop at some cool islands in the crossing? Something the big ships can't do. Asking because we are weighing the pros and cons of big vs small ship crossings. Baked Alaska 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biaggio Posted May 3 Report Share Posted May 3 Big ship, more activities offered. Always prefer the bigger ships on a crossing. foxrunner 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug_Texas Posted May 3 Report Share Posted May 3 5 hours ago, foxrunner said: Did you stop at some cool islands in the crossing? Something the big ships can't do. Asking because we are weighing the pros and cons of big vs small ship crossings. Our particular sailing had Cannes France, Funchal Portugal, and Malaga Spain. We enjoyed the stops but they were not stops limited to small ships. We’d like to find one in the future with Canary Islands. foxrunner 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FOB Posted May 4 Report Share Posted May 4 Got TA east west on Jewel booked for August, TP in October on Ovation and then TA west east on Odyssey next April. have done B2B bust with that being in Europe it was lots of ports and not many sea days. have done a 12 night from Southampton to the canaries and back - but that is max 2 sea days before you stop. so will be interesting to see how we cope with 5 sea days on the bounce No internet - we are not planning on getting Voom, but that might change depending on health of parents at home so looking forward to being able to decompress and see so many different cultures PPPJJ-GCVAB and foxrunner 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Last2Know Posted May 8 Report Share Posted May 8 Currently on Explorer heading to the Med on the first leg of our B2Bx3. Things I've learned on the crossing: Booked a balcony but will ensure we have a starboard side room when heading east to enjoy the southern exposure and extra sunshine. Book a balcony on the port side for the trip west. Be nice to the crew. The first nine days are at sea and are taxing on them. There were some interesting theme nights for food at the MDR when compared to shorter cruises. Book some lunchtime specialty dining. It's cheaper at lunch and we ended up eating very lightly at dinner due to the successive time changes. The weather on the transit was much warmer than we expected with lots of pool days. As a native Floridian, I over packed for weather under 70 degrees. Plenty of people brought games for entertainment. The challenge has been finding a place to play. The available tables in lounges, cardroom, library, etc. fill up quickly. D+ drink coupons run out quicker on sea days. ; ) PPPJJ-GCVAB, ZBrady, foxrunner and 3 others 3 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted May 9 Report Share Posted May 9 18 hours ago, Last2Know said: The first nine days are at sea and are taxing on them Just curious why you think that. I'm all for being nice to the crew members on any sailing, but wanted to know why you think a TA crossing is different for the crew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Last2Know Posted May 9 Report Share Posted May 9 @Matt, that's an easy answer, I talked with quite a few on the sea days during the crossing. Definitely not a scientific sampling size but enough give me that impression. foxrunner 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZBrady Posted May 9 Report Share Posted May 9 I suppose front of house crew has to be more "on" with the ship full of passengers on sea days, as opposed to many passengers off the ship on port days. Perhaps this is anticipated and they reassign staff in other areas of need on port days. foxrunner 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxrunner Posted May 10 Report Share Posted May 10 16 hours ago, ZBrady said: I suppose front of house crew has to be more "on" with the ship full of passengers on sea days, as opposed to many passengers off the ship on port days. Perhaps this is anticipated and they reassign staff in other areas of need on port days. This was what a crewmember explained to us. We haven't tried a transatlantic yet but the ship was just off one. That same bartender also said that most passengers go to bed on a Transatlantic at a reasonable hour. That gave her more rest at night. She was encouraging us to give it a go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brando95 Posted Monday at 03:18 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 03:18 PM A transatlantic is definitely on my bucket list. I just got off the repositioning from Hawaii to Vancouver and absolutely loved the string of sea days. First time I've had that many successive sea days and really made me think I would really enjoy a TA. WAAAYTOOO and Lovetocruise2002 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZBrady Posted Monday at 04:32 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 04:32 PM 1 hour ago, Brando95 said: A transatlantic is definitely on my bucket list. Same! Probably won't be until after we're retired in 15+ due to work obligations. But gives us something to look forward to! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brando95 Posted Monday at 05:15 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 05:15 PM 38 minutes ago, ZBrady said: Same! Probably won't be until after we're retired in 15+ due to work obligations. But gives us something to look forward to! Oh yeah, the 9 nighter is probably my max for now but once I retire that window opens wide! I was quite envious of the people on my last cruise that had been on from Australia and were continuing on to do an Alaskan cruise after ours. ZBrady and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted Monday at 05:45 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 05:45 PM 2 hours ago, Brando95 said: A transatlantic is definitely on my bucket list. I just got off the repositioning from Hawaii to Vancouver and absolutely loved the string of sea days. First time I've had that many successive sea days and really made me think I would really enjoy a TA. I literally just had a conversation with my parents about this a few hours ago! A few years ago, my parents took a cruise from Hawaii to Vancouver and it was one of their most memorable sailings. Although, they did say that they encountered pretty rough waters while crossing the Pacific. I told my parents how a sailing like this, and a TA, is on our bucket list. But I definitely have to wait another 6+ years until I retire because all these sailings happen during the school year and I would not be able to leave. Sweety and WAAAYTOOO 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brando95 Posted Monday at 05:55 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 05:55 PM @Lovetocruise2002 We had pretty smooth seas once we got a day or so out of Hawaii. The trade winds were up around the islands and the first sea day or so was pretty rocky. I didn't affect me. After that it was pretty smooth all the way into Vancouver. I'm glad I stayed a couple days in Vancouver on the back end too. Man, that's a gem of a city. Lovetocruise2002 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted Monday at 06:51 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 06:51 PM 54 minutes ago, Brando95 said: I'm glad I stayed a couple days in Vancouver on the back end too. Man, that's a gem of a city. Yes, we've been to Vancouver a few times. My aunt lives there. Lots to see and do and quite pretty with the backdrop of the mountains. Brando95 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Va4fam Posted Monday at 08:05 PM Report Share Posted Monday at 08:05 PM Also want to do a Transatlantic...preferably from Europe back to the States. Just waiting for Fall 2026 release dates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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