Thoughts from prior Pacific Coastal (Repo) Cruisers about potential wind/rough seas

[CBEW4]

Hey All,
We just finally decided to go with the Wonder 5-night San Diego to Vancouver repo cruise 5/17/17. Curious to hear from those who have sailed this route before if you encountered wind and rough seas in May? We have sailed along the Atlantic coast during that time of year, and have had decent sailing luck. My sister is intending to spend a good deal of time on the veranda enjoying cucumber martinis and beautiful scenery. Should I tell her to bundle up? ;-)

 

[dclpluto]

Hey All,
We just finally decided to go with the Wonder 5-night San Diego to Vancouver repo cruise 5/17/17. Curious to hear from those who have sailed this route before if you encountered wind and rough seas in May? We have sailed along the Atlantic coast during that time of year, and have had decent sailing luck. My sister is intending to spend a good deal of time on the veranda enjoying cucumber martinis and beautiful scenery. Should I tell her to bundle up? ;-)

I was on DCL first repo cruise up to Alaska the water was calm. But DCL first Alaska cruise the first night was the worse rocking I had in 18 cruises.

 

[MunFam]

Yes! We did this cruise in May 2012 (on Holland) and had HORRIBLE rough seas. It was freezing cold too. I ended up buying a scarf, mittens and hat set in the gift shop. One of the nights, the captain announced that overnight we experienced 27 foot waves and hurricane force winds (70+ mph). (10 on the Beaufort scale). They slowed the ship down to avoid damage, we missed our port of call and pulled in to Vancouver about 8 hours late. FWIW, there were no storms or rain...just rough seas. Deck 5 windows were getting sprayed. It was nuts.

The workers on board said that the seas were "normal" for that time of year and part of the Pacific.

 

[bumbershoot]

The workers on board said that the seas were "normal" for that time of year and part of the Pacific.

DH, who worked on what he deems "real" ships, would agree.

 

[lorimay]

We did it in May 2013, it was rocky alright and windy and chilly.
I brought all open shoes and summer clothes. I had to buy sweatpants, crocs and socks the first night.
Thank God I had my Bonine with me, I couldn't even imagine if I didn't have that.
It was still a great cruise though.

 

[MPS516]

Welcome, we are on this cruise with you. Our previous PC crossings and Alaska have always been smooth however always plan for rough seas. Figure if one side of the ship is rough we will just hang out on the other

 

[ludari]

I've competed three Pacific repo cruises on both two on Disney and one on another cruise line. I found that the seas where fine and only got a little worse the further north we where but it still wasn't bad. I would definitely suggest that you have a jacket to wear or plan on layering because you never know for sure what the weather will be.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

Just like all oceans and seas, the weather, waves, swells, etc can be good or rough, there is honestly no way to predict or control it, one way or the other. So I would suggest you not worry about it and enjoy your cruise.


AKK

 

[OKW Lover]

Just like all oceans and seas, the weather, waves, swells, etc can be good or rough, there is honestly no way to predict or control it, one way or the other. So I would suggest you not worry about it and enjoy your cruise.


AKK

Very good advice.

 

[CBEW4]

Thanks for all the feedback, everyone! We definitely plan on enjoying this cruise, but it's good to be prepared.

 

[CBEW4]

Welcome, we are on this cruise with you. Our previous PC crossings and Alaska have always been smooth however always plan for rough seas. Figure if one side of the ship is rough we will just hang out on the other

Awesome! Happy to be sailing with you! I started a cruise meet thread if you are interested.

 

[MPS516]

Is it different from this one ?
http://www.disboards.com/threads/may-18-2016-wonder-5-night-san-diego-to-vancouver.3403249/

 

[BartmanLA]

We sailed on the Repo trip in 2013, but it was from Los Angeles to Vancouver, 7 night trip with an overnight in San Francisco. We had a Deck 2 10c inside stateroom aft, WAY aft. and the first 2 nights out of LA we felt the ship shuddering and the tail of the ship swaying side to side and up and down. It wasn't nausea inducing for us, but it did make for challenging showering and sleeping because of the rocking and rolling. After the 2nd night and we got to SF, the seas were relatively calm. I think crossing over from the southern current to the colder stream out of the Bering sea is what is causing the turbulence. If you're sensitive to motion sickness I wouldn't recommend a lower deck stateroom or one aft. The front of the ship where the winged stabilizers are seems to handle the rougher seas better.

 

[CBEW4]

Is it different from this one ?
http://www.disboards.com/threads/may-18-2016-wonder-5-night-san-diego-to-vancouver.3403249/

lol - Well maybe we're not on the same cruise after all. We're on the 5/17/17 cruise. Looks like you get to enjoy The Wonder a year ahead of us. Have fun!

 

[JMHDisney]

We did this cruise in 2014. It was our first cruise so it was hard for me to know if it was normal but it felt very rocky. I couldn't walk straight down the halls sometimes (perhaps me being a newbie without sea legs). Our closet door kept slamming open and shut despite the Velcro. Our table mates assured us it was normal but I would have struggled without the bonine. Our next cruise was Caribbean. It felt like a still lake next to that pacific coast voyage! So while it wasn't anything crazy and likely wouldn't have raised any eyebrows for experienced cruisers, it definitely was more rocky than other cruises. We had great weather though - I actually got sunburned in San Francisco!

 

[CBEW4]

Thanks for sharing your experiences!

 

[Markonefive]

We're on this cruise in a week. Deck 6, starboard, aft. If we get the chance to upgrade closer to mid-ship, would this be a good idea? First cruise for my wife and I.

 

[CBEW4]

We're on this cruise in a week. Deck 6, starboard, aft. If we get the chance to upgrade closer to mid-ship, would this be a good idea? First cruise for my wife and I.

It's personal preference, but for me, I always prefer midship. I find it the best spot for the smoothest sailing. Having said that, lots of folks enjoy aft views from their decks.

 

[rosiep]

I am very nervous about getting sea sick but found that if I am proactive and take the Bonine 2 days before I even board the ship, and then continue through-out, I am fine. I did the Repo cruise 2 years ago and we had rough seas...my (adult) daughter didn't like my strategy because the Bonine made her sleepy...but the she felt ill and I did not! Same thing when I traveled with my husband- he chose not to take the Bonine and lo and behold....I was fine and he felt nauseous.
You can best believe I am sticking to my plan for this upcoming North Atlantic Repo Cruise and this time hubby is following my lead!

 

[jrabbit]

We did this the first year DCL went to Alaska (2011?). From LA to SF was nice - and warm-ish. The night that we left San Francisco through arriving in Vancouver (with a stop in Victoria) the pool decks in the evenings were very chilly. We had a pirates night but it was much closer to Freezing the Night Away - literally. Don't know how the performers managed to not cramp up and pull a muscle in the cold.

That all being said, we had a wonderful cruise (that cruise was end of April, early May). And we will be joining you on the 2017 version of the SoCal to Vancouver BC repo. Happy Sailing.