Has anyone encountered rough seas on the eastbound TA?

[fredandkell]

So I've never considered the TAs before because my kids were always in school, but we now do a hybrid homeschool that gets out in early May, so it just occurred to me today, OOH! We could do a TA!
My question is, has anyone had really rough seas on the eastbound? And if so, was it just super bad being stuck for 6-7 days in a row without being able to get on land? (I would NEVER do the westbound TA for the rough seas reason. Hearing the stories of those on the 2019 westbound TA were a big bag of "nope" for me.)

 

[Jetsetter42]

Nope. I have done 5 Disney Cruise Line transatlantic sailings (1 Westbound and 4 Eastbound). And honestly they were all smooth as glass.
EBTA was my favorite sailing, but DCL really jacked the price of them so I probably won't be doing those anymore.

 

[fredandkell]

Nope. I have done 5 Disney Cruise Line transatlantic sailings (1 Westbound and 4 Eastbound). And honestly they were all smooth as glass.
EBTA was my favorite sailing, but DCL really jacked the price of them so I probably won't be doing those anymore.

Thanks for the report! Glad to hear it was smooth for you. I haven't been tracking prices for the TA, but in looking at 2022 (which we wouldn't do, since many of the rooms are already taken that we'd want), it would be less than $1k/night for our family of 4, which is my ideal benchmark for any Disney Cruise. Compared to the Greek Isles cruise I priced last year, that is an absolute steal!

 

[kaseyC]

I don't know if there are any trip reports still available but the 2007 EBTA had very rough seas.

edited to add. I've done a WBTA (2007)and 2 EBTAs (2013,2014) with Disney which were all pretty much smooth sailing.

 

[Jetsetter42]

My first DCL TA was 2011 and the last in 2018 and this is the pricing progression. These are all verandah staterooms (on the Magic), the only variable being the growing family size and the number of nights of the sailing (but they are both adjusted for in the Night/Person column)

Sail Dates	Category	Passengers	Total	Night/Person
9/10/11-9/24/11	VGT	3	$3,777.00	$89.93
5/18/13-6/1/13	4A	4	$5,361.72	$95.75
5/19/14-5/31/14	4B	4	$3,574.84	$74.48
5/13/17-5/28/17	5C	5	$7,769.05	$103.59
5/13/18-5/26/18	5B	5	$8,198.42	$126.13

 

[Jetsetter42]

Looks like that May 2022 13-night EBTA would be $12,773 for us in an 4E (White Wall balcony), so that Night/Person is now $196.51. This is the cost progression I'm referring to.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

My question is, has anyone had really rough seas on the eastbound?

Yes. Our 2016 EBTA had 5 days of rough weather. Cold, rainy, sleet, couldn't go on the outside decks. The captain diverted as far south as he could to get below it. It didn't really bother me, but the MDRs were pretty empty at dinnertime. And, when land became visible, there was a lot of cheering going on.

Now, we were on an extreme northly route (Canada to UK), I'm not sure what the route for the upcoming TAs might be.

And our 2010 WBTA the seas were smooth as glass. That route took us, basically, through the middle of the Atlantic and we had sunny, clear, smooth sailing the whole trip.

 

[fredandkell]

Yes. Our 2015 EBTA had 5 days of rough weather. Cold, rainy, sleet, couldn't go on the outside decks. The captain diverted as far south as he could to get below it. It didn't really bother me, but the MDRs were pretty empty at dinnertime. And, when land became visible, there was a lot of cheering going on.

Now, we were on an extreme northly route (Canada to UK), I'm not sure what the route for the upcoming TAs might be.

And our 2010 WBTA the seas were smooth as glass. That route took us, basically, through the middle of the Atlantic and we had sunny, clear, smooth sailing the whole trip.

I think you’ve hit the nail on the head. It’s not so much the direction, it’s the “how far north” part.
If we did the TA eastbound, it would be one from Miami or Port Canveral or Galveston for sure.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I think you’ve hit the nail on the head. It’s not so much the direction, it’s the “how far north” part.
If we did the TA eastbound, it would be one from Miami or Port Canveral or Galveston for sure.

Well, our rough sailing EBTA was from PC. But, I believe, most TAs DCL has been doing across the middle of the ocean. Maybe the northly one taught DCL a lesson as to route.

 

[Toulou]

We did the 2019 EBTA and it was smooth sailing all the way!! We left out Miami with Captain Tom who positioned our ship so we had warm sunny weather for the most part. After not being on a ship for so long because of this pandemic, I'm sure your children will enjoy it! By the time we hit the Azores...we were ready to embark for our land adventures. Well rested, with all the sun we needed. The h20 slides were out of our system...lol and we had a week of downtime...together. The rest of the trip was very exciting! (I had homeschooled too!) We loved this trip better than any other we have taken with DCL. We will be on the EBTA 2022...I am praying we will set sail again. If you go, may this be a fabulous journey for you and yours!

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

I've done both the EB and WBTA and it does depend on the route also. Southern route crossing is, from my understanding, overall smoother. Generally that is the EBTA, for the 2021 WBTA they changed the route from 2019 to a more southern route. I have been on a rough WBTA crossing, and although the seas were a bit much, it wasn't for the entire crossing, only 1.5 days. The Captain/Commodore does their best to route around the rough parts if possible, which can also mean missing a port, as was the case in 2019.

Either way they are GREAT cruises and I wouldn't hesitate to book either one again. Well.... other than the time change issues. Because loosing the 6 hours on the EBTA was painful! By the last time change day no one was even up for breakfast. Something else to consider.

Overall I'd pick the one that works with my schedule and has ports I am more interested in. Can't loose either way.

 

[braysmommy]

My first DCL TA was 2011 and the last in 2018 and this is the pricing progression. These are all verandah staterooms (on the Magic), the only variable being the growing family size and the number of nights of the sailing (but they are both adjusted for in the Night/Person column)

Sail Dates	Category	Passengers	Total	Night/Person
9/10/11-9/24/11	VGT	3	$3,777.00	$89.93
5/18/13-6/1/13	4A	4	$5,361.72	$95.75
5/19/14-5/31/14	4B	4	$3,574.84	$74.48
5/13/17-5/28/17	5C	5	$7,769.05	$103.59
5/13/18-5/26/18	5B	5	$8,198.42	$126.13

Our first was in 2011 and also our first on Disney. We had originally booked a 7 night on the Fantasy until I realized we could cruise for double the nights and half the cost! We book a 9B for 2A/1C and oh how I wish we could still get '11 pricing!

 

[Deb T.]

Our 2017 & 2018 EBTA's were smooth as glass the entire way.

One word of caution: be sure to factor International flights back home into your projected costs.

 

[Ralph&Pam]

Our one EBTA, Miami to Barcelona in May 2018, was smooth as glass. Southern route across to the Azores for the sea days, then stops in Lisbon, Portugal and a number of Spanish ports.

Our first WBTA, Barcelona to Miami in September 2015, was also smooth sailing. However, our second one, Barcelona to New York in September 2016 experienced rough seas once we left the Azores heading toward Nova Scotia and along the Atlantic coast down to NYC. Despite that, we’re planning to book the WBTA in September 2022, assuming it goes from Dover to New York via Bermuda rather than via Canada.

 

[NancyIL]

Yes. Our 2015 EBTA had 5 days of rough weather. Cold, rainy, sleet, couldn't go on the outside decks. The captain diverted as far south as he could to get below it. It didn't really bother me, but the MDRs were pretty empty at dinnertime. And, when land became visible, there was a lot of cheering going on.

Now, we were on an extreme northly route (Canada to UK), I'm not sure what the route for the upcoming TAs might be.

And our 2010 WBTA the seas were smooth as glass. That route took us, basically, through the middle of the Atlantic and we had sunny, clear, smooth sailing the whole trip.

I was on the 2015 EBTA, from Port Canaveral to Copenhagen (it didn’t go to the UK), but I don’t remember having 5 days of rough weather.

I do remember that the 2013 EBTA from Galveston to Barcelona had at least 1 rough day in the Mediterranean - between Gibraltar and Barcelona.

I think northern Transatlantic cruises generally have more interesting itineraries than southern TAs. I also prefer to have 2 or 3 sea days in a row on the northern route - rather than the 6+ sea days in a row on a southern crossing.

Frankly, I’ve had rougher seas on some Caribbean cruises on the first night after leaving Florida! I wouldn’t let the possibility that you might encounter rough seas dissuade you from booking a Transatlantic cruise.

 

[gismo1554]

I don't know if there are any trip reports still available but the 2007 EBTA had very rough seas.

edited to add. I've done a WBTA (2007)and 2 EBTAs (2013,2014) with Disney which were all pretty much smooth sailing.

Was about to post I did the EBTA in 2007 and this was rough! Pools were closed because it was just too dangerous. They did try and do a dance party on deck one day and it was a mess - there were only like 4 of us brave enough to even venture to the deck to watch mind as the boat was just rocking back and forth like a bath toy. There were a lot of bruises on that cruise and a lot of oops sorry as you waddled into someone.

I however have done 6 other TA's mainly Westbound and none of them have been that bad. The one I did to NY was a bit grey and miserable for a few days with some rocking but overall they've been pretty stable.

The only time I've ever got Seasick was leaving Florida on a Caribbean cruise as others have said. Even on the really rough one I found that the sea sick bands kept me OK it was just very wobbly walking around

 

[PrincessShmoo]

I was on the 2015 EBTA, from Port Canaveral to Copenhagen (it didn’t go to the UK), but I don’t remember having 5 days of rough weather.

That's because it was 2016, sorry. Didn't catch the typo, fixed now.

 

[Intr3pid]

The earth is bulged at the equator. It takes longer to cross the Atlantic and Pacific oceans in the southern routes (well, southern for us in the northern hemisphere). That's partly why the cruise ships prefer the northern routes. Plus, if you do it in the right season, the big bonus is the itinerary. We did one with Celebrity in August and went through the northern arc, including the British Isles, Iceland, Greenland, and Canada with plenty of sea days in between. The summer crossings are silky smooth.

 

[nmoody1]

As everyone here has said, we did the 2019 ebta and it was so smooth. We were booked onto this year but that's not happening - so looking forward to next year.

They are great itineraries. It's relaxing, it's disney service at its best, there are things to try on the ship that don't usually happen and the ports of call are great!

 

[Snowwhyt]

I am a gold level Disney cruiser my very first cruise was eastbound during Thanksgiving. And the waves that we had went up so high that the fourth floor deck and all outdoor decks were closed almost the entire trip. I never got to walk on the fourth floor deck the entire cruise.