Nemo, Alan, and anyone else who's done transatlantic repositioning cruises.

[catii]

I've never done a TA, but I've done a much-longer trans-Pacific repositioning. All of my cruises are free, because I'm an edutainment speaker, & ships need a lot of us on those longer cruises.


About half the time, our rooms had just a window, but, for that TP, I lucked out, & we had a balcony. Not sure about the difference in price, but I've pushed for balconies ever since. The TP weather was beautiful, but the few Atlantic cruises I've taken, the weather wasn't anything to get excited about. We live in Hawaii, & aren't interested in sitting on a balcony & shivering!


A lot of your decision should be based on what you enjoy doing. I can sit in a room & read, anywhere on the planet, so I try to do different things on cruises. My room is mostly for sleeping, so shoot for the closest one to the bow, because it'll be the quietest.

 

[Earlygirl]

Did a transatlantic cruise from Florida to Amsterdam. Then another cruise from Amsterdam to Norway.

Had an absolute blast. We've done quite a few cruises. Probably less than ten. We always get an inside cabin-we are frugal and my husband loves the pitch black for sleeping. Neither of us claustrophobic. Besides, most of the time we are not in our cabin! We like to be out and about whether on land or wandering about the ship or lounging by the pool. We like to go to all the venues in the evenings.

I think your plan sound awesome. Wish I was coming with you! What cruises are you looking at?

 

[RNretired]

Different sizes of inside rooms

The hubster and I are tentatively planning a trip for next spring. We'd fly to FL and visit family, then leave there via cruise ship to Europe. We've got a couple cruise itinerary's identified as possibilities.

The big question is how claustrophobic will and interior stateroom feel? Big price difference and lots of days at sea with nothing to look at make this seem like the right choice... Lots of windows/decks on the ship if we want to see the ocean/view.

Any advice appreciated.

I have been on 23 cruises and majority have been in an inside. The cost savings is tremendous. We are not in the room enough to pay for a balcony or Jr.
suite, except for our Alaskan cruises. I went on a 17 day repositioning cruise from Galveston, TX to Barcelona in an inside room. It was perfect. With so many days at sea there was nothing you couldn’t see on deck. On Royal Caribbean they have different size rooms and that can made a difference. Don’t get one right by the elevator, or either right under a venue or over the Crew deck! The Promenade rooms are nice as you can see down onto the main inside deck. Less than a balcony price. Save the money for something fun…

 

[leftcoastjayhawk]

When I joined the Navy (to avoid being drafted in the the Army during Vietnam) I was hoping to "See the World" as advertised on recruiting posters.


I saw the world. Its mostly water, but I saw it...

 

[Bamaman]

The trip is going to be fun... Florida to visit family, cruise that ends in Italy, then a week in Cinque Terra. Lots of interesting stops at the beginning and end of the cruise.

Rodi: You might want to reconsider Cinque Terra for January. It's a summer resort, and northern Italy gets cold in January.

We once went to Venice the end of January and about froze our tails off. The waves were also lapping over St. Marks Square--high tides.

There are plenty of things to do in Italy in all seasons, however. Fast Train service is so good that you can get just about anywhere north of Rome in 2-3 hours.

After 15 months of being locked down, we're really missing the place.

 

[FIREarly]

The hubster and I are tentatively planning a trip for next spring. We'd fly to FL and visit family, then leave there via cruise ship to Europe. We've got a couple cruise itinerary's identified as possibilities.

The big question is how claustrophobic will and interior stateroom feel? Big price difference and lots of days at sea with nothing to look at make this seem like the right choice... Lots of windows/decks on the ship if we want to see the ocean/view.

Any advice appreciated.

Claustrophobia is not something I can directly address but can tell you from the one cruise (first one) I've been on, it was AMAZING!! DW and I got the super intro cabin (no windows and small but manageable). It was on Carnival. We had a great experience and will do it again, Celebrity Cruise next time (departs Ft Lauderdale and Miami). Heard AMAZING reviews of Celebrity and they include: tips, Wifi, and drinks(?... I don't drink).

As far as the room from Carnival, it was great for a dark room for sleeping. We went in hurricane time (do not advise; worth a few extra bucks to go another time) and 1 port was changed and 1 port was canceled. The changed port went to... what is the Casino location... Nassau. IMO, dangerous location with a beautiful hotel/casion. Will not return there. If you're into that, and many are, it has a beautiful beach. Back to the room, VERY DARK is great for sleeping! If you feel like you need to "get out" of the room, it's ok to do 24/7. Go out in the hall, walk down, take the steps (so you're not in elevator that might also have same effect), go to the gym, go to 24/7 food (so hard to resist ).

It is definitely something for you to consider bc once you're on the ship, you're there until it returns (unless you go to a GREAT island and don't return to the ship!)

 

[Librarian]

It REALLY depends on the particular cruise line.
We have done interiors on Princess, Celebrity & RCCL and would again with no reservation. We find that a room is a place to sleep & shower.

That being said, we had an INT on the NCL Getaway in Dec. 2019. HOLY COW was it small--like 130 sq. ft. We both agreed that was TOO SMALL. So I check those INT room sizes before booking now! I think 160 sq. ft. is minimum that we feel comfortable in. Luckily the Getaway (and sister ships) has the Waterfront on Deck 8. EVERY ship should have this. This deck had a bar on each side that is open deck. Several restaurants & our fav music bar also opened to the sea. We absolutely loved this area & spent A LOT of time out there. We would often socialize with the bartenders or other passengers--thus this gave us the best of both worlds, a "balcony" & socializing.

We do enjoy a balcony but honestly find that we do not use it enough to offset the price increase, typically.

We are considering a 2-4 week S. Pacific cruise & it will have to be an interior due to the huge price difference. I am fine with that--I can find a deck to sit on & enjoy all the perks of a balcony w/o the cost. Yes, not as private, but it seems those lower decks are never busy anyway.

If you are a person that would spend a lot of time out on a balcony, and prefer the privacy of it, the cost may be worth it to you. For us, we would rather take more trips!

 

[FIREarly]

It REALLY depends on the particular cruise line.
We have done interiors on Princess, Celebrity & RCCL and would again with no reservation. We find that a room is a place to sleep & shower.

Agree, the room is where you sleep and shower.

The purpose of the cruise is the locations you visit, amenities in the ship, and people you meet. None of those happen in the room.

 

[RetireeRobert]

Agree, the room is where you sleep and shower.

The purpose of the cruise is the locations you visit, amenities in the ship, and people you meet. None of those happen in the room.

+1

 

[Librarian]

Agree, the room is where you sleep and shower.

The purpose of the cruise is the locations you visit, amenities in the ship, and people you meet. None of those happen in the room.

CLEARLY i agree. We are active vacationers--wherever we go, we like to do things. It may be as simple as sitting with a cocktail socializing or catching a few rays...or more active like golf, hiking, dancing.

But there was one ship where we had a balcony & I hit that cruise WIPED OUT. I spent a lot of time on the balcony reading, recharging. It was great.
So I get that for some people that is important.

Just returned from a week in Vegas yesterday...and I'M POOPED! Have the blessing of being a teacher & I have time to recharge at home!

 

[Cayman]

We've racked up a lot of nights on ships over the years. Been in most cabin classes.
Consider the number of nights you will be in an inside cabin. Our first transatlantic was a large stateroom with balcony (Disney) - 3 weeks total Atlantic crossing and Med. A few years later, my frugal self convinced hubs to take a 3 week transatlantic interior cabin. We prob won't do that again, 3 weeks inside was a bit long for us. Nonetheless we had a good time. No matter what you decide, you're fortunate and I bet you'll enjoy yourselves.

 

[brett]

There have been numerous times when we have scored a last minute balcony cabin for a price that was very close to the ocean view cabin price. Sometimes even similar to an inside cabin. More often on Celebrity than other cruise lines.

Since retiring we typically book like this. Last minute. We understand the pricing and can quickly discern the difference between a fair offer and an excellent one. Same for other forms of travel and accomodation.

The best last minute offers are for inside. Pre covid, it was not unusual to see last minute inside cabins for 7 day Alaska cruises from Vancouver being blown out at $329-399 USD pp. In Sept and in high season July/August. HAL, Princess, etc.

 

[youbet]

This is the suite we will be in on our next cruise. It is at the stern of the ship.

Nice. That's what we'd have to have. We've never big-boat cruised but we do enjoy "cruising." We like space and solitude so being with thousands of other folks on a ship hasn't seemed appealing so far. Maybe some time. Fully understand and appreciate why it appeals to others.

Our boat has all "outside cabins" with views and fresh air all around! This isn't a pic of us since I can't find anything handy at the moment. But it's similar to my view of the back of DW while we're paddling to the next campsite. Only her hair is now short (very) following chemo.

 

[Starsky]

On any cruise, I'd recommend that you try to get your cabin in a location that is as close to the center of the ship as possible. This is because in rough seas you will feel the least amount of motion. He further you are from the center of the ship, the more you feel the wave action.

 

[RetireeRobert]

On any cruise, I'd recommend that you try to get your cabin in a location that is as close to the center of the ship as possible. This is because in rough seas you will feel the least amount of motion. He further you are from the center of the ship, the more you feel the wave action.

+1 Yes, we were told same thing at a travel presentation by AAA rep. who had cruised many, many times.

 

[MarieIG]

Nemo no longer frequents this forum.

He is otherwise fine.

Glad to know that he is fine. IMHO, he has contributed a lot to the forum over the years. I will miss his personality, travel tales, and his adorable granddaughters.

 

[bearkeley]

Decided to book the 34 day Transatlantic to the Arctic Circle via Iceland, Scotland, Ireland, England and some of the Norwegian Fjords. We were going to book an interior cabin (we cruised on our little Trawler for 5 and 7 months, so small rooms are ok), but decided a balcony would be worth it given the itinerary. Too bad it’s still a year away!

 

[ivinsfan]

I'm still sad about Nemo. And wondering what caused his departure.

 

[samcat]

Decided to book the 34 day Transatlantic to the Arctic Circle via Iceland, Scotland, Ireland, England and some of the Norwegian Fjords. We were going to book an interior cabin (we cruised on our little Trawler for 5 and 7 months, so small rooms are ok), but decided a balcony would be worth it given the itinerary. Too bad it’s still a year away!

 

[gayl]

Booked my 1st transatlantic a while ago. Goes September 2nd -17th. Princess website sort of leaves a bunch of holes about covid testing but I fly out for 16 days so maybe it'll get cleared up

 

[brett]

20 plus cruises on various cruise lines. I am somewhat claustrophobic.

We would never consider anything less than a balcony cabin. Our preference would be mid ships.

We would want the cabin located under other cabins, above other cabins.

Definitely NOT under or above public areas like dining venues, clubs, pool, kitchen. Anywhere where they are setting up or tearing down in the AM/PM.

We did one TA. Wonderful ship/ wonderful everything. We hated it. After three sea days we wanted to jump ship. Perfect weather, seas like glass.

Others really enjoyed it. It was our first and last TA. And our last.

Strictly a personal preference.

 

[Koolau]

We went on one Caribbean cruise. Just not our thing though I'd say we actually enjoyed it. But now, been there, done that, got the T-shirt.

We had an inside cabin and it was so small you had to go outside to change your mind. The entire bathroom was smaller than our shower at home. But we slept in the cabin and showered there - that's it. Had someone offered us a balcony room for free, we'd have jumped at it. But we had no real issue with the room in the bowels of the ship.

Having said all that, the idea of a TA cruise sounds very interesting. I may look into it. YMMV

 

[Souschef]

The only reason we did a TA cruise was because we got to fly from LHR to JFK on the Concorde for $200 each.
Cunard had a deal where if you got to NY and took the QE2, you could fly back on the Concorde. Then you were on your own to get home.

 

[gayl]

.... We would never consider anything less than a balcony cabin. Our preference would be mid ships. .... Strictly a personal preference.

My personal preference is mid ship right above the shops if possible. Sells as obstructed but only obstructed looking down. I don't like elevators, haven't been to the buffet, and like to be in the middle of all the entertainment

 

[gayl]

..... We usually had reserved deck chairs, ....

unaware that those exist .... which line?