As a retired person, I did a repositioning cruise to Europe. I got a nice relaxing trip over, then spent 2 months in Europe and flew home. I wasn't tired when I arrived in Europe and enjoyed the land portion there from the start w/o having to recover from jet lag and all the stress of a flight. Perfect way to travel if you have the time.
Never taken a cruise in my life, but I am considering a transatlantic for the same reason. I have been spending many months in Europe each summer. This seems like such a civilized and relaxing way to get there. Or back.
I did the repositioning from Los Angeles to Sydney in 2022. After ten days in Australia I continued to Dubai and spent a few days there with my niece, then returned home. I traveled around the world in one shot, so to speak. The initial cost for an interior cabin was low and I was upgraded to what some might think an inferior balcony room, but the view was unobstructed, and the cabin suited my needs. The sea days were fine by me. The passenger load was about 2/3 capacity and most travelers were NOT Americans. I had a delightful time. Gary, I have been following your vblogs since early '22 and have found them accurate and helpful.
I am a duck of a different color, and LOVE LOVE LOVE sea days! I can sit with a book and just watch the blue water go by. I’m not that social, so this sounds like a perfect adventure! Yes, I understand you need to take a flight to get to where you’re leaving from, and another to return home. This sounds like the perfect time to use a Travel Cruse Agent. They can save you allot of money and smooth out all the small details. For me, the smaller and quieter the ship, the better. I don’t need planned activities all day long. I have no problem keeping myself amused ❤
My husband and I love repositioning cruises. For my husband, who hates flying, it has become a less stressful way to travel to Europe by air (stressful for him, even in business class), spend a little time and see the things he wants to, then take a cruise back. We have even taken a repositioning cruise that was Mediterranean port-intensive (that was really wonderful). It minimizes jet lag and we explore the ship and get to know fellow passengers on our way home. In today's world it seems we are always rushing somewhere. A repositioning cruise is a wonderful way to slow down.
My husband and I took our first ever cruise, a trans-atlantic crossing, on Viking, in Dec of 2023. It was the perfect opportunity to test the theory of "your ship as a destination". I had had a very stressful end to my semester, and was looking forward to 10+ days of unwinding including a nap every afternoon. Viking did a superb job of making sure there was always an activity to go to on the ship as well as oodles of books to read. However, I will admit that after our last official port (Hamilton, Bermuda) was canceled due to rough seas, everybody was getting a bit tired of the ship, it being 8 days straight of sea. It made me appreciate what my ancestors had endured -- and they were certainly not on luxury liners, but had weeks at sea in 3rd class. Also, it makes me appreciate what crew go through. They are on ship for the next several months. We did have an unscheduled stop in Nassau due to a sick passenger and I must say it was quite funny to watch everybody (including crew) cheer when it was announced, but then look abashed when we realized it was due to someone's missfortune. Would I do it again? Yes. Later on down the line, when I need another long stretch to destress and "unplug" from the world. Finally, another nice thing about a cruise like this is that we had an opportunity to better get to know several passenegers, and even made a new friend!
One thing not mentioned in the video is that you'll generally see fewer kids on a repositioning cruise due to time of the year and the length of the cruise. Which can be a plus to many people. We have done our fair share of transatlantic and Panama cruises over the years and love those lazy relaxing cruises.
We did one TA from Florida to Barcelona that did coincide with a UK school holiday and had several children on board. But they were well behaved and hardly noticed, much more than some of the adults on board. 😂
As a former sailor of the US Navy, repositioning cruises seem like a good deal to me. I've crossed the Atlantic many times and sea days are not a big deal to me. I would love to have a low key cruise where I read a book, have a massage, drink a lot, and eat fine food all with less crowds and may be in a larger cabin! Sign me up!!!! Thanks Gary!
Both me and my wife are retired USN. We love repositioning cruises. There are people we met on these cruises who are 3 to 7 day cruisers and complain about cabin fever. I will tell these port to port cruisers, "that is not cruising, this is. and tell them about 100 days at sea without a pool, no liquor or any other amenities.". These are very relaxing and there are always things to do onboard. I think you would love it especially if the sea gets a little choppy and you are the only one walking in a straight line through the ship. Just do it!
My very first cruise was a repositioning cruise taking the northern route from Cork to Halifax and then NYC. I watched about 4 of your videos(I still remember you responded to me because I asked a question in the comments), did no other research and went. Best.Cruise.Ever. We even had the pleasure of our-racing a hurricane into the Atlantic with our ship going full throttle. It was cold, choppy, and glorious. If it wasn’t for the time off work and killer costs of those flights, I’d do it every year!
I am taking my second repositioning cruise next month. My wife and I really do enjoy them. This one is 20 nights, and only 11 ports. Most of the ports I have been to before and have plans only to walk ashore and maybe do a little shopping. We go on these longer cruises for relaxation and know that everything will be taken care of for us. A little planning will take care of the laundry issues, and the airfare was planned out far in advance. There are usually fewer children on board, and for the same size ship, fewer maximum capacity rooms. You have plenty of time to catch the shows, and sometimes the onboard entertainment will change partway through the cruise. (Not the big shows of course, but the comedy in particular.)
We’ve got one of those planned for the end of this year. We are booked aboard the Royal Princess for 29 nights, leaving out of Los Angeles stopping in Hawaii, French Polynesia, American Samoa, and New Zealand. We end up in Sydney Australia. Then up to Fiji for a week by plane and two or three other stops in Southeast Asia after that. Happy travels to you and all the best from San Diego California.
A 14 hour flight to Auckland and 39 days across the Pacific back to Vancouver, a bucket-list indulgence with friends and family. Lots of sea days. We booked 18 months out, stretched to 30 with covid closures, and the early-bird price (or was it please-come-back?) with have-it-all was excellent. We loved it.
We did a Canadian fall colors cruise from Montreal on Holland America a few years ago. 7 days in new ports every day then three days repositioning to Florida. Three days of sea days relaxation at the end was wonderful.
We've done multiple repo cruises on Disney Cruise Line. We're sailing from Honolulu to Vancouver, B.C. next week. We've crossed the Panama Canal both ways, and in both canals. We've crossed the Atlantic. There are no drinks packages on DCL - everything non-alcoholic is free. Their ships have self-service laundry rooms. Their repo cruises also have far fewer children aboard.
We love repositioning cruise! We typically use them either going or coming from our longer trips to Europe. For example, we did a Holland America cruise from Florida to Barcelona in 2022 and this year will use an Azamara repositioning cruise to come back from our three months in Europe. The great thing is arrive at your destination rested and already adjusted to the time changes for the most part. And it is actually cheaper than flying, particular business class.
Thanks Gary! Another great video. I did a repositioning cruise on Holland America Line in 2018. We sailed from Barcelona to Ft. Lauderdale. It was absolutely brilliant! Probably the most relaxing and stress free vacation I've ever had. I really enjoyed myself and would certainly consider a repositioning cruise again. With proper planning, these are great cruises!
I came at the repositioning thing a bit differently. We are spending the entire North American winter in New Zealand, taking a two month cruise down (LA-AK-Japan-Indonesia-etc.), then 4 months in NZ driving around, then a one month repositioning cruise back (Auckland-HI-LA). Having been on several river cruises and smaller expedition-like cruise ships, it will be our first on these larger ships. Your channel has given us an idea of what to expect and how to plan to get the most out of our new experiences, thanks.
You’ll be driving around NZ for 4 months? Or is that a typo and you meant 4 weeks? Because otherwise you won’t be spending just the winter travelling but 7 months, practically more than half the year. And NZ isn’t that big as previously pointed out.
We be driving around NZ for four (4) months. Originally it was five (5) months, NZ but we found a cruise down that stops at some places we had not been before and were of interest but took a month longer than we had originally planned. And yes, on the road for about seven (7) months... again. For us, NZ has that much and more to see. As I get wiser, (okay, older), winter here in NW USA gets longer and longer. @@mpb3481
Kia Ora - New Zealander here. There's a shite tonne to do & see in NZ. Our roads are often narrow & very, very hilly 8f not Mountainous. People think they can drive for 3 days & see all of the country - impossible. I am glad OP you are touring NZ.
Thank you for mentioning how BORING multiple days AT SEA can be for many people. You are the ONLY ONE who mentioned this. Most reviews I've seen say something disingenuous like "When the cruise was over, nobody wanted it to end." There are always people on board who start going stir crazy on the 3rd day AT SEA. Thank you for being honest!
We've done several repositioning cruises. We love the sea days and the added activities as well as the opportunity to just relax. We've done repositioning cruises in December and in May, so there's a little bit longer season for them.
Loved this video, very helpful info. Repositioning is on my next-up to do list as well as QM2 transatlantic, knowing they are 2 different things as you also stated. I solo cruise a lot so the value of a reposition cruise is attractive, and I love sea days! Had surmised many things already but your video put the finishing touches on it for me.
Top tip for one way (long haul) flights is to check what price is with a return light that you will never used. BA once wanted to charge me over £2000 for a one way flight to Miami but adding a return flight (which I did not use) the price lowered to £600
Just make sure that the segment you will be using is the first one, as if it is the 2nd one, the airline will cxl (cancel) the whole booking when you no show for the first segment. You actually are under contract with the airline by accepting terms and conditions by booking. I am a retired Travel Agent of 30 years.
We've done many repositioning cruises including Atlantic, Pacific, and Caribbean/Alaska and love them. It's generally a more relaxed pace and a chance to enjoy the ship.
Thank you Gary for sharing more great secrets. I have been doing repositioning cruises for years, I LOVE SEA DAYS! If I could find a cruise that simply sailed in circles in the middle of the ocean for a few weeks I would book in a heart beat. I have done most the regular port cruises over the years and rarely chose to get off the ship now, would rather enjoy the 5 star resort of the ship. And the price beats flying business class and the experience. From Arizona, USA
Doing a Transatlantic cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Barcelona in April. New Celebrity Ascent. For us, the ship is the destination! Can’t wait to explore her
Did a repositioning cruise in January with RSS from Cape Town to Rio. We got upgraded so even got free laundry. Bill at the end was zero. We used it to escape the winter weather. Two long flights included.
I've done three repositioning cruises; once from Florida to Europe (the wrong way), once from Europe to Florida (the right way), and one from Baltimore to Port Canaveral (visiting exotic Caribbean). As they tend to be longer, you get the side-effects of a higher average age, and few children on the ship. I'm fine with doing these, as I already have to fly to the port of embarkation and home from the port of disembarkation.
We cruised a repositioning from Hawaii to Brisbane last October on Royals Quantum , everything you’ve offered in the video is 100% correct! Its was cheaper, less crowded, we lost a few ports from adverse weather, restaurants weren’t nearly as busy- its was fabulous! Booked 1 way airfare 11 months out and got a fabulous business class deal, keep up the good advice Gary, ps, glad to see all enjoyed Perth recently! 😁
We've done 3 repositioning across the Atlantic with Holland America. Great way to de-stress and arrive at your destination without jet lag. One way to address the high cost of one way flights is to use your points/miles rather than $ to book your on-way flight as you can get a much better deal. We were sadly disappointed on Spring 2023 Holland America repositioning that several music venues (Lincoln Center, BB King..) were not in operation due to some contractual issue. Made for rather boring evenings on the sea days.
We used to cruise twice a year, 10-14 nights + 4-7 nights. We've cut our expenses by doing 1 reposition cruise every-other-year. We also purchased a couple resale timeshares and are traveling about 4 weeks a year @ $2,700 USD, Our budget has been cut in half, our days at sea halved, but we're traveling drastically more. As far as increased airfare, if I'm sailing to or from the US, I'm saving on airfare only having to fly one way to an exotic location I would want to travel to anyways. We've also got credit card points that can get us deals on business class flights home, often at not much more than flying to Miami.
We did a repositioning cruise from Hawaii to Brisbane. (It started in Alaska) Our cruise was 18 nights with only a few stops in French Polynesia. It was FANTASTIC!! We used it as an alternative to a flight as we were headed to Wellington NZ to visit family. We had never done a cruise with lots of sea days, and didn't know what to expect, but it was great. We got to know so many wonderful people and created routines of meeting up with them on a regular basis during the sea days. I would absolutely do something like this, especially if it fits in to a trip to a location we want to visit anyway.
Last October, my wife and I joined two friends on Anthem of the Seas for a 15 night cruise from Southampton to New York cruise. We're from the USA (two from each coast) so we met in London a few days earlier and enjoyed that. There were a lot of sea days, which were quite relaxing but still could be filled up with trivia, shows, eating, and Yahtzee in one of the friend's suite with wine we had brought on board. It was a bucket list trip, and extremely glad we did it. Sure, there were rough seas a bit and a hurricane meant we ended up in Halifax instead of Bermuda, but it was still great.
Did our 1st Repositioning & Transatlantic Cruise thanks to you, Gary. All six of us loved it. Went from Lisbon -Madeira (missed Azores due to weather), Bermuda, NYC. It was wonderful!! Inexpensive on NCL Jade last November with their BOGO airfare from Newark, NY to Lisbon. Cost us only $500 for both of us for the air!!! Still get to see the whole ship with 7 sea days. And our balcony had free 1 bag of laundry in the middle of our 12-day cruise.,🚢🚢🚢
We used repositioning cruises to help us travel right around the world. Starting in Sydney. No planes at all. We did however travel by motorcycle train bus more motorcyles car boat from Singapore to Helsinki to Fort Lauderdale and home across the Pacific. 18 months of travel and we still ride our Indian. Extremes in travel style and adventure.
We are moderate cruisers (fewer than 20) and are going on our 3rd repo cruise next week (Hawaii=>Canada). Price/day and variety of geography are plusses for us,, but caveats are worth mentioning - open jaw flights and packing for two regions. Works best if one of the ports is near home. Make or break, as Gary mentions, is "Will you love/hate the sea days?". Depends on the traveler(s) and the ambience/culture/amenities of the ship/line.
Something that you didn't comment on is that retired and/or budget slow travelers utilize these cruises as one way transportation to and fro their home base. For instance, someone in the US may cruise from Florida to, say, Europe for a reasonable price without all the hassle of flying, especially when dealing with jet lag on the way back home. When you factor room and board, skip the costly internet and drink packages, it's a great deal. Yes, you can get tired of the food after a couple of weeks but it's still worth it. Just relax and enjoy the ride home.
We love TA cruises and have done several on NCL Epic from Port Everglades to Barcelona or stayed on to Rome. We then tie them into a long holiday in Europe. Overall, we find Epic to be a bit of an odd duck ship but its Haven is terrific. I love at-sea days. Nothing beats waking up in the morning, knowing I don't have to be anywhere or do anything, other than my wife insisting we're at the Trivia contest. The ports we usually visit on the way have included Bermuda, Ponta Delgada, Madeira, Cadiz, Gib, Malaga, Palma, Barcelona, Livorno, Naples, and Rome. It's great to arrive in Europe already adjusted to the local time zone and not spend three days dragging due to jet lag. I do have the advantage of being a retired airline pilot, so we usually don't have to worry about getting a flight home. We're still aiming at TA to Europe in the spring and another back in the fall.
I specifically looked for a repositioning cruise so we could have those numerous sea days and just relax. 18 days from Civitavecchia to Ft. Lauderdale in a full suite. I knew the air fare to Rome would be pricey but I held off and kept checking. At one time I had quite a few tabs open in my browser figuring out the cheapest route and whether or not to book legs separately. Delta originally had their first class sleeper flight from Atlanta at over $13k per person - no way! Finally I had gotten it down to around $4k per person and then all of a sudden I decided to check one more time from my home airport and behold - just over $3k pp and I booked them. It’s an overnight flight and at our age there was no way I was going to try and sleep in business class, let alone coach. This is something you save for and plan for, book ahead, watch the fares and keep checking. It paid off for me and I cannot wait. BTW - thank you for all your tips and such. We haven’t cruised on a large ship for a few years but are very excited to get back to it.
Great video Gary! Connie & I like repositioning cruises, as we like sea days. The only real downside for us is the one-way airfare which can be quite expensive if it involves international travel. Lately we’ve been booking cruises on Holland America that start and end in the US, while visiting international destinations. Takes the high airfare out of the equation.
We love repo cruises, and typically book US to Europe in the spring and Europe to US in the fall. This enables us to purchase round trip air tickets, saving a lot on that expense. In my mind, the key to a repo cruise it to want the ship as the destination. If you don't love the ship, you probably won't like that repo cruise. In my experience, some cruise lines add extra entertainers and activities to keep passengers busy on board, I will not that we've rarely had weather issues. We have a great fare on an upcoming repo--about 1/4 of the cost per night on a normal Caribbean sailing on the same ship...but as you noted, our airfare is actually more than the cost of the cruise. But, even considering every penny it will cost, it is still much less expensive on a per night basis than the normal cruises on this line, If you don't love the line and the ship, don't do a repo!
We love repositioning cruises. Have done several on QM2, very nice! This year we will have two, one with RCL in 6 weeks , the other with Celebrity in the fall. For next year we have a TA booked, followed by a cruise through the Panama Canal.
We did an RCI repositioning cruise from Honolulu to Sydney for 19 nights in 2022. As you mentioned, only a few port days all up but that never bothered me. I'd certainly do it again.
I did a repositioning cruise & loved it! I knew full well it was going from the US to the UK & took advantage of the final destination to spend time at before flying home. It was also nice to be eased into the time zone of the UK, where flying somewhere you'll possibly get jet lagged.
I love the sea days! Took a transatlantic cruise from San Juan, Puerto Rico to Barcelona in March, the weather was glorious and the sea was smooth. Taking another repositioning cruise later this month from Ft. Lauderdale, through the Panama Canal and down the west coast of South America. Both on Viking.
We have done five transatlantic, the cruise lines usually have good airfare prices if you book the cruise and flight together. They are the most relaxing cruises, and go for the bundles with tips, drinks, and specialty dining included. Probably the best and most economical cruise out there.
I went on a repositioning cruise in 2012 and went on the same ship in the opposite direction 6 months later. I met a lot of the same people on both cruises. There were fewer passengers and no places to stop along the way. It was great!
A few years ago did a repositioning from Hawaii to Sydney, 28 days. There was a guy getting off in Bora Bora, grumpy "to many days at sea"? Personally it was an opportunity to see places I never thought I would see. A version of "Jetro goes to the south Pacific". Filled the sea days with working out, lectures and reading some of the many books I downloaded prior to leaving home.
3rd Repositioning cruise this October. After an 11 day land tour of Ireland, a short flight to Rotterdam and a 15 day transatlantic back to Ft. Lauderdale. A great way to decompress and talk about what we saw in Ireland. When you fly, tour and cruise during the shoulder season, the one way flights are lower than peak vacation times. Fewer kids, quieter ships and a relaxing pace for us retirees. Don’t tell everyone!
I have a repositioning cruise booked, we get to go through the Panama Canal for half the price of cruises where that is the intentional itinerary. I am very excited about it.
I saw a Windstar Cruises 14 day Lisbon - Barbados repo cruise that was 13-14 days with no port stops. That would be too much for me. A lot of people say they LOVE sea days BUT I can tell you that after four or five, you are ready to get somewhere.!!! Do realize that there are opportunities to take a portion of a repo cruise and not run into huge airfares. Last month, I was on Celebrity Solstice from Vancouver and stopped off in Honolulu. The airfare out of HNL was a lot cheaper than flying out of YVR. Also, we will be on the Regal Princess from Galveston to Fort Lauderdale run at a very good price while the ship continues on to Southampton. You are correct in noting that laundry can be a considerable cost. The two loads of laundry that will cost me $12 on Princess will cost me $40 on HAL and $80 on Celebrity.
We head out to Sydney on March 25th, 6 days in Sydney, then a 26 day cruise on the Grand Princess back to San Francisco. We chose this cruise for the stops in New Zealand, Fiji, Tahiti and Honolulu. Plus it meant not doing 2 20+ hour flights from VA
Would love to do this but I would be travelling alone and would like to take my bicycle for a tour when I get there , it’s hard to find info pricing if you travel alone
Being a solo cruiser, I find myself more drawn to the repositioning cruises because of every reason Gary listed. In seasons where I'm more interested in the ship being the destination, I'm mentally prepared to go with repositioning. True, the expense of a one-way flight back home is one of the things that pretty much wipes out any savings that repositioning cruises give you, but if you go into the deal understanding what a repositioning cruise is all about, it can be very enjoyable. I enjoy lots of sea days, rough weather, rocking ship being tossed in the waves, and fewer people. I noticed the Norwegian Encore was shown a few times in this video. While Norwegian is not my favorite cruise line, I think the Encore my favorite ship among all of the major cruise lines. It's very well-designed for a string of sea days.
Half of my cruisers have been repositions. Love, love, love sea days - no stress, spend some time in the sun, catch a movie out on deck or in the theater, take a nap, read some on the balcony, play trivia, shake the headboard a bit with the wife, hit the disco for some drinks and music late night... if you look at the vacation as a place to relax - then repositions are wonderful. Never had a bad one. Be sure to go on a line that has good food - you'll be eating all your meals on board, so...
We have taken 2 Repositioning Cruises and find them relaxing and a great value. We are flying to Ireland this fall for a guided land tour. After that, we are flying to Rotterdam to board the HAL Rotterdam for a 15 day trans Atlantic repositioning cruise to Ft. Lauderdale and then a short flight home to North Carolina. That 15 day cruise home allows us to unwind and talk about our Ireland journey. We have no jet lag and arrive relaxed and refreshed. A bonus is to see places on the way home that we might not have visited before. We booked our flight over way in advance to get a good price. Last year, I found a TA cruise for an unbelievable rate to Amsterdam that was cheaper than flying, even with the tips and drinks. We transferred to another HAL ship and cruised through Norway then flew home. Hopping a ship to go over or back is a super way to avoid flying both ways. We make the ship part of our vacation as we can “eat out” every night, have maid service, go to shows together and play lots of 500 Rummy! TA’s or Repositioning Cruises are not for everyone, but it suits us retirees to a T.
Took my repositioning cruise as an extension to my Alaska cruise on the original Island Princess in 82 to Los Angeles stopping at Seattle and San Francisco, transitioning to it's Trans-Canal itinerary (which I also took the previous year!)
I went on a repositioning cruise from Barcelona to Port Canaveral. Loved it! Loved sea days! Had five port stays. Price was very reasonable. Will try to go on more repositioning cruises.
Have you ever looked into tips for booking back to back TAs? My husband had to fly so much in his career that he now resists any trip that requires a flight. We have retired to the east coast of Florida, so driving to Miami, Ft Lauderdale, and Canaveral for a cruise is easy for us. We love TAs and are always looking for opportunities to cruise both ways. We are loyal HAL Mariners with high status, and it is easy for us to scan all HAL ship movements because we are now so familiar with line. We have had 2 great b2b cruises to Europe by hooking up with the last leg of a Grand World Voyage. In 2013 we cruised to Rome on the Eurodam and then changed over to the Prinsendam, which was parked right next door. (Getting your bags moved that short of a distance is another story.) We were able to enjoy the last leg of this Grand Med in luxurious comfort. In 2023, we took the Rotterdam 150th celebration cruise to Rotterdam and then got on a HAL bus to get to Amsterdam where we joined the Zuiderdam for its Grand World final leg back to Fort Lauderdale. We plan to do this in 2025 when the Nieuw Statendam takes us to Dover. After a few days in London, we take a short flight to Barcelona where we could hook up with either the Zuiderdam's Grand World or the Volendam's unique Pole to Pole Grand Voyage to get back to Fort Lauderdale. We could spend longer in London and take a CUNARD ship to NYC but that is not as convenient for us as a Florida port. I am always looking to see what the other cruise lines are offering but it is a long, tedious process and I never have any luck. Do you have any secret tips or inside knowledge of how to do b2b TA cruises? I have joined the Repositioning forum on FB and have learned there are other cruisers out there who are trying go do the same thing. Any ideas?
As you well know, some cruises are heavily curated (like Viking) and often times we come home exhausted but enriched. Repositioning cruises are times where we can relax, read, casually dine and have an occasional interesting stop as a diversion. We typically ocean cruise where we can have a few sea days to just relax. Repositioning cruises offer that in droves and can be as active and relaxing as one chooses. Great video.
Terrific video as usual, Gary. We have found that Cunard seems pretty good at securing very reasonable one-way airfares keeping the one-way airfare from blowing up the cost of a combination ship over / air back trip, This is probably because their regular and frequent transatlantic business on QM2 creates a need that, I am guessing, prodded them to secure, good pricing for their passengers flying only one-way from one or more airlines.
We took 2 repositioning cruises in 2023. The first one was a 20-day Miami - Seattle, obviously through the PC. It had many stops (we had to skip 2 of them due to unrest in the country & the other because our ship broke down) until we left Mexico, then it was 4-days to Canada. Our second one was a 16-day cruise from Rome to NYC. We had just completed a Med cruise and decided to cruise home to the US rather than fly. This one had several stops, France, Spain, Portugal, Azores, and Bermuda. Being in mid-late November we did experience some bad weather. We were forced to miss the Azores due to weather - this caused us to run low of some foods which upset many people. We had 6 straight days. We have been on dozens of cruises and this one was our absolute worse - not because of the weather but the very sub-par service, food quality, and entertainment.
I've taken two so far: one from Vancouver to LA, and the other from Miami to Seattle--loved them both for several reasons. One of the biggest was in fact the sea days (my favorite). The other was getting to know the passengers and crew a little better. In truth, the wait-staff seemed more like family than providers.
Wife and I are doing our first repositioning cruise in April 2025, did our first sea day intensive cruise in January going from NYC to the Caribbean and back. For us the ship is the destination so we are beyond excited.
I did a repositioning cruise from Southampton to Barbados on the P+O Azura a couple of years ago. 15 days of heaven. Loved the ship and the sea days were brilliant It was time to chill and check out the ship.
I have taken one cruise in my life and it was a repo. We ran from Alaska down to LA so the ship could change from Alaska cruises to western Mexico cruises. We got a great Alaska cruise followed by a west coast cruise including a stop in San Francisco before she collapsed. All for a great price. Loved it.
Yes!!!! Loved it October 2023; going San Diego - Hawaii - Vancouver 22 days on same Kiningsdam HAL April 2024; then same Vancouver to Hawaii and back October 2034. LOVE IT!! Lots of sea days but fabulous relaxing trips! Beautiful
We love sea days so we booked the Sun Princess transatlantic cruise for September and are so excited to explore this new ship and to have 8 sea days in a row!
i have been on two repositioning cruises and will go on more in the future. my last repositioning cruise was 10 days from Miami to Southampton had had zero stops.
Your videos are great, Gary. Thanks so much! Can you possible do a video or blog post on how to choose a travel agent - how to find someone who will have your best interests in mind? Thanks again!!
We've got a great deal coming up in May on a 'repositioining cruise' - we fly from UK to Tokyo for a couple of days and then join Cunard's Queen Elizabeth for a cruise up the side of Japan (stopping at 2 islands) and then over the Pacific (and International dateline) to North Alaska. 19 nights on the boat - flying home from Vancouver. Can't wait! Totally agree with the concept of the ship being the destination - we love the Queen Elizabeth, such a beautiful ship and can't wait to spend more time aboard her. Doing a tranatlantic on QM2 next year.
Doing our third HAL repositioning cruise from Canada to San Diego, this time we're snagged an aft balcony cabin which we'd never usually want to spend the money on but at the price we could not resist
We have an epic 29 night repositioning cruise booked for next year. Seattle to Singapore taking in Alaska, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Vietnam. We love sea days and this voyage includes nine consecutive sea days crossing the north Pacific. It was offered at a great price including flights and hotel stays and we added the drinks and WiFi package. Really looking forward to it and it will be the longest cruise we have ever taken.
We have done quite a few repositioning cruises and always enjoyed them. These are great points and should be taken into account Gary. You do need to love sea days! We like using the cruise to move one way, have a holiday say in the US, Canada or Japan and then come home. This works out well for us. Thanks...
We took our first ever repositioning cruise this spring, from Florida to Amsterdam. After a few days in Amsterdam, we've been exploring in France since then, and will go on for more European travel until our next repositioning cruise, which will be in fall. From Southampton back to Florida. It was a great way to get to Europe, and compared to one way flights, a great bargain to go back.
We’re doing a 21 night repositioning in a couple of months. One of the selling points for us was that it had several port days at both the beginning and the end of the cruise.
We did a 15-day repositioning from the Canadian season to the Caribbean at the end of the fall. We actually stopped at several out of the way Canadian ports. And there was more free time on board to enjoy the ship. This was one of my favorite cruises.
Doing one in Australia later in the year. Booked it more than 12 months ago because the prices were so good. Short, sharp & sweet. Paid a small amount extra to upgrade to a bigger balcony room. Using Frequent Flyer points for us to fly back from Brisbane to Sydney. Perfect!😎😎😎
As a solo traveller I take a repositioning cruise at least once a year. This year it will be Norwegian’s Viva’ 16 day crossing from Lisbon to Puerto Rico. In this instance there is a number of interesting stops including Morocco and Cap Verde as well as a couple in the Carribean. I enjoy fewer people but I also find people on these cruises are more inclusive. I particularly like the sea days. The ocean is all encompassing and makes you realize what a small speck we are in the grand scheme of things. As for costs, don’t let anyone mislead that this is an inexpensive outing. I have to fly from Toronto to Lisbon and from Puerto Rico back to Toronto aside from all the taxes, gratuities and other must haves on board. There is no single supplement on NCL. To me it’s worth it for the unique experience. I’ll do another Viva cruise in the Greek Islands come May but it will have all the raw Le dazzle of a full ship and holiday atmosphere. Totally different but just as much fun 🤩
Single solo here: Please tell me what website you used to booked this cruise….I have never taken a cruise before but as a newly retired single female,,,I think this will be my first cruise adventure
Thanks, Gary. Very informative video. Now that we're retired, we're starting to look at repositioning and transatlantic cruises for future sailings. We LOVE sea days, so I'm sure we'd enjoy a reposition cruise.
Hi Gary, just came back from the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Adventure of the sea Easter Caribbean. I wish I had a video camera at the going on in the My time dining room interaction between the waitstaff and the people having breakfast. Waitstaff have no etiquettes, No Good morning as they seat you, no table manners no pulling the chair for a lady, they seem to be upset that you showed up. First question they ask you is what do you want? They don’t want to even show you the menu. There is tremendous amount of bickering between the Chinese waitstaff behind the wooden podium where they clear the silverware. All this going on within earshot of all the people who came to have breakfast. Waiters are playing boss and pushing around younger waiter around. Royal Caribbean wants everyone to be healthy as they join the cruise but what about the Chinese wait staff are coughing & walking around the dinning room. Me & my wife were seated @ the table & had to ask the waiter twice if my wife can have a cup for coffee as it was missing from the table setup & the waiter looked at us with. as we may have asked for extra egg, he believed that it was some other waiters’ job not his. The Chinese headwaiter comes over between our breakfast and continuously moan and want 8 STARS on the survey by customers, he starts his Royal Caribbean corporate mantra how important the survey is for at least 5 minutes, while our breakfast goes cold & no offers for refilling our cold coffee cups. Finally, he leaves us in peace. The 8 star survey on board the Royal Caribbean ship is a joke in Dubai Burj Khalifa is a 5 star with excellent service, but not the Royal Caribbean, its all very sad.
We did repositioning from Miami to Barcelona, then toured Europe. About as cheap as a flight over and no jet lag. I talked to a Canadian couple that was meetng friends for a cruise from Barcelona back to U.S. It was cheaper for them to take the repositioning cruise than fly
I did a cruise on the Norwegian Star from Lisbon to Rio then made my way overland for 26 days to Buenos Aires picking up the ship to Antarctica. This is last month when the Star visited Antarctica, not anymore😅.
Good to hear. When I first launched memberships people were less interested in that, but things have changed as was clearly seem as a bigger perk now - maybe as there are many more ads run on UA-cam and creators now have less say on where and how they are run (e.g. I can no longer set as default "clickable" pre-roll ads and YT can run non-clickable if they decide that best)
A repositioning cruise is on our bucket list once I graduate. I enjoy the ad-free video. WINNER!!!!! QUESTION: do you control the ads or does UA-cam? See you in April.
Good to hear you like the ad free early release. When I first launched memberships people were less interested in that, but things have changed as was clearly seem as a bigger perk now - maybe as there are many more ads run on UA-cam and creators now have less say on where and how they are run. Until end of last year creators did have more control but no longer s just opt in to ads running and YT have total control (e.g. I can no longer set as default "clickable" pre-roll ads and YT can run non-clickable if they decide that best)
If you are determined to cruise both ways across the Atlanta without having to wait months until the next repositioning season, try one of Cunard's regularly scheduled Transatlantic cruises between Southhampton and NYC.
I took a Transatlantic cruise on Princess in November from the UK to Florida, not as a standalone trip but because I was going to be in Europe anyway and it was an attractive way to get back to the US. It was a fine voyage with I think five port calls in the Caribbean. The only disappointment was missing the Azores (the only destination that isn't really reachable any other time) not due to weather but because of a pilots strike that day.
My friend has just done a repositioning cruise from Australia to Hawaii. It was 17 days but she loved every minute. I was going to do it but, as you said, factoring in all of the other costs made it too expensive for me.
The exception to this is repositioning from Australia to Alaska via Tahiti and Hawaii. Super expensive and books up early. Typically through both Royal Caribbean and Celebrity.
I'm a solo cruiser who has taken the same repo cruise from NY to FL every fall since 2017 (minus 2 years for Covid.) It's awesome! All the sea days are wonderful. I love them. Unfortunately, this is not a cheaper cruise because the demand is high. Many people go year after year, especially "snow birds" who use the cruise to get to their summer home in FL rather than flying or driving. The return flight can be pricey. This year I booked a flight which departs at 4pm. Earlier flights were exorbitant. We have an active Facebook group with a lot of activities. It's always nice to see friends I've made in years past. Love your videos! ❤
I am going solo on a Princess repositioning cruise this Sept from LA to Sydney. I'm moving to the PH, and I originally was going to fly Business with a cost around 3K. Upon hearing about repositioning cruises, I found a perfect cruise matching my schedule. So yes I am paying double occupancy going solo, but the 10K I spent allows me 29 days on the cruise adjusting to the time change, I can see 9 ports that I haven't seen before, and I can eat as much as I want. So the 7K extra I think is well spent. Once in Australia, a 3 week drive through the country before flying off to PH.
We're looking forward to our 1st repositioning cruise in the next couple of years. I've heard to avoid the ones that are repositioning to Europe to go into their scheduled Dry Dock or when they've just finished in Dry Dock time as many of the venues of the ship are closed down during the crossing as repairs/upgrades begin early or are still continuing after.
I always do Repo cruises with Marella as they are fully All Inclusive and adult only . Being a solo cruiser as well i have built up a fantastic circle of cruising friends who do the same trips . I am currently booked on the Discovery from Barbados to Turkey via Tenerife and a few other ports on route a trip that will take 18 nights . Just before the troubles started in Middle East i was on Discovery 2 from Cyprus to Oman via Suez Canal and it had more crew than passengers which was fantastic
As a retired person, I did a repositioning cruise to Europe. I got a nice relaxing trip over, then spent 2 months in Europe and flew home. I wasn't tired when I arrived in Europe and enjoyed the land portion there from the start w/o having to recover from jet lag and all the stress of a flight. Perfect way to travel if you have the time.
this sounds perfect 😊
Never taken a cruise in my life, but I am considering a transatlantic for the same reason. I have been spending many months in Europe each summer. This seems like such a civilized and relaxing way to get there. Or back.
absolutely--given the cost of airfare, not spending time in Europe afterward (especially if retired) is a missed opportunity in my opinion.
This is exactly what we’re planning to do when we retire. I’m hoping spring 2026 will be our year.
Hope you have a great trip. @@lisadee1623
I did the repositioning from Los Angeles to Sydney in 2022. After ten days in Australia I continued to Dubai and spent a few days there with my niece, then returned home. I traveled around the world in one shot, so to speak. The initial cost for an interior cabin was low and I was upgraded to what some might think an inferior balcony room, but the view was unobstructed, and the cabin suited my needs. The sea days were fine by me. The passenger load was about 2/3 capacity and most travelers were NOT Americans. I had a delightful time. Gary, I have been following your vblogs since early '22 and have found them accurate and helpful.
I am a duck of a different color, and LOVE LOVE LOVE sea days! I can sit with a book and just watch the blue water go by. I’m not that social, so this sounds like a perfect adventure!
Yes, I understand you need to take a flight to get to where you’re leaving from, and another to return home. This sounds like the perfect time to use a Travel Cruse Agent. They can save you allot of money and smooth out all the small details. For me, the smaller and quieter the ship, the better. I don’t need planned activities all day long. I have no problem keeping myself amused ❤
I absolutely love sea days. Never bored. It’s so nice being out at sea. I marvel at the vastness of the open sea. Regards from Australia 🇦🇺
Me too! I adore the real relaxation of sea days.
Right back at ya from Ireland.
How wonderful to relax or explore the ship. Greetings from California
Sea days are the best. They are what cruising is actually about. 🇦🇺
yes😊
Fellow Aussie here, my husband and I concur 👍
My husband and I love repositioning cruises. For my husband, who hates flying, it has become a less stressful way to travel to Europe by air (stressful for him, even in business class), spend a little time and see the things he wants to, then take a cruise back. We have even taken a repositioning cruise that was Mediterranean port-intensive (that was really wonderful). It minimizes jet lag and we explore the ship and get to know fellow passengers on our way home. In today's world it seems we are always rushing somewhere. A repositioning cruise is a wonderful way to slow down.
My husband and I took our first ever cruise, a trans-atlantic crossing, on Viking, in Dec of 2023. It was the perfect opportunity to test the theory of "your ship as a destination". I had had a very stressful end to my semester, and was looking forward to 10+ days of unwinding including a nap every afternoon.
Viking did a superb job of making sure there was always an activity to go to on the ship as well as oodles of books to read. However, I will admit that after our last official port (Hamilton, Bermuda) was canceled due to rough seas, everybody was getting a bit tired of the ship, it being 8 days straight of sea. It made me appreciate what my ancestors had endured -- and they were certainly not on luxury liners, but had weeks at sea in 3rd class. Also, it makes me appreciate what crew go through. They are on ship for the next several months.
We did have an unscheduled stop in Nassau due to a sick passenger and I must say it was quite funny to watch everybody (including crew) cheer when it was announced, but then look abashed when we realized it was due to someone's missfortune.
Would I do it again? Yes. Later on down the line, when I need another long stretch to destress and "unplug" from the world.
Finally, another nice thing about a cruise like this is that we had an opportunity to better get to know several passenegers, and even made a new friend!
One thing not mentioned in the video is that you'll generally see fewer kids on a repositioning cruise due to time of the year and the length of the cruise. Which can be a plus to many people. We have done our fair share of transatlantic and Panama cruises over the years and love those lazy relaxing cruises.
Yes. But..be wary of dates like April Sydney to Hawaii and school dates and easter can see many kids on board who are..bored
We did one TA from Florida to Barcelona that did coincide with a UK school holiday and had several children on board. But they were well behaved and hardly noticed, much more than some of the adults on board. 😂
I live sea days! Often interesting presentations on a range of topics.
As a former sailor of the US Navy, repositioning cruises seem like a good deal to me. I've crossed the Atlantic many times and sea days are not a big deal to me. I would love to have a low key cruise where I read a book, have a massage, drink a lot, and eat fine food all with less crowds and may be in a larger cabin! Sign me up!!!! Thanks Gary!
Both me and my wife are retired USN. We love repositioning cruises. There are people we met on these cruises who are 3 to 7 day cruisers and complain about cabin fever. I will tell these port to port cruisers, "that is not cruising, this is. and tell them about 100 days at sea without a pool, no liquor or any other amenities.". These are very relaxing and there are always things to do onboard. I think you would love it especially if the sea gets a little choppy and you are the only one walking in a straight line through the ship. Just do it!
Thank you for your service, all of you!
My very first cruise was a repositioning cruise taking the northern route from Cork to Halifax and then NYC. I watched about 4 of your videos(I still remember you responded to me because I asked a question in the comments), did no other research and went. Best.Cruise.Ever.
We even had the pleasure of our-racing a hurricane into the Atlantic with our ship going full throttle. It was cold, choppy, and glorious. If it wasn’t for the time off work and killer costs of those flights, I’d do it every year!
I am taking my second repositioning cruise next month. My wife and I really do enjoy them. This one is 20 nights, and only 11 ports. Most of the ports I have been to before and have plans only to walk ashore and maybe do a little shopping.
We go on these longer cruises for relaxation and know that everything will be taken care of for us. A little planning will take care of the laundry issues, and the airfare was planned out far in advance.
There are usually fewer children on board, and for the same size ship, fewer maximum capacity rooms. You have plenty of time to catch the shows, and sometimes the onboard entertainment will change partway through the cruise. (Not the big shows of course, but the comedy in particular.)
We’ve got one of those planned for the end of this year. We are booked aboard the Royal Princess for 29 nights, leaving out of Los Angeles stopping in Hawaii, French Polynesia, American Samoa, and New Zealand. We end up in Sydney Australia.
Then up to Fiji for a week by plane and two or three other stops in Southeast Asia after that. Happy travels to you and all the best from San Diego California.
That sounds like an amazing cruise. Good for you.
A 14 hour flight to Auckland and 39 days across the Pacific back to Vancouver, a bucket-list indulgence with friends and family. Lots of sea days. We booked 18 months out, stretched to 30 with covid closures, and the early-bird price (or was it please-come-back?) with have-it-all was excellent. We loved it.
We did a Canadian fall colors cruise from Montreal on Holland America a few years ago. 7 days in new ports every day then three days repositioning to Florida. Three days of sea days relaxation at the end was wonderful.
Good job doing " 7 days in new ports every day"
We've done multiple repo cruises on Disney Cruise Line. We're sailing from Honolulu to Vancouver, B.C. next week. We've crossed the Panama Canal both ways, and in both canals. We've crossed the Atlantic. There are no drinks packages on DCL - everything non-alcoholic is free. Their ships have self-service laundry rooms. Their repo cruises also have far fewer children aboard.
We love repositioning cruise! We typically use them either going or coming from our longer trips to Europe. For example, we did a Holland America cruise from Florida to Barcelona in 2022 and this year will use an Azamara repositioning cruise to come back from our three months in Europe. The great thing is arrive at your destination rested and already adjusted to the time changes for the most part. And it is actually cheaper than flying, particular business class.
Thanks Gary! Another great video. I did a repositioning cruise on Holland America Line in 2018. We sailed from Barcelona to Ft. Lauderdale. It was absolutely brilliant! Probably the most relaxing and stress free vacation I've ever had. I really enjoyed myself and would certainly consider a repositioning cruise again. With proper planning, these are great cruises!
I came at the repositioning thing a bit differently. We are spending the entire North American winter in New Zealand, taking a two month cruise down (LA-AK-Japan-Indonesia-etc.), then 4 months in NZ driving around, then a one month repositioning cruise back (Auckland-HI-LA). Having been on several river cruises and smaller expedition-like cruise ships, it will be our first on these larger ships. Your channel has given us an idea of what to expect and how to plan to get the most out of our new experiences, thanks.
Wow 4 months driving NZ. It isn’t that big 🤣🤣🇦🇺
You’ll be driving around NZ for 4 months? Or is that a typo and you meant 4 weeks? Because otherwise you won’t be spending just the winter travelling but 7 months, practically more than half the year. And NZ isn’t that big as previously pointed out.
We be driving around NZ for four (4) months. Originally it was five (5) months, NZ but we found a cruise down that stops at some places we had not been before and were of interest but took a month longer than we had originally planned. And yes, on the road for about seven (7) months... again. For us, NZ has that much and more to see. As I get wiser, (okay, older), winter here in NW USA gets longer and longer. @@mpb3481
For us, NZ has that much and more to see.@@xr6lad
Kia Ora - New Zealander here. There's a shite tonne to do & see in NZ. Our roads are often narrow & very, very hilly 8f not Mountainous. People think they can drive for 3 days & see all of the country - impossible. I am glad OP you are touring NZ.
Thank you for uploading with substitles again! Please be assured that's really helpful. Grateful for the effort!!
Thank you for mentioning how BORING multiple days AT SEA can be for many people. You are the ONLY ONE who mentioned this. Most reviews I've seen say something disingenuous like "When the cruise was over, nobody wanted it to end." There are always people on board who start going stir crazy on the 3rd day AT SEA. Thank you for being honest!
We've done several repositioning cruises. We love the sea days and the added activities as well as the opportunity to just relax. We've done repositioning cruises in December and in May, so there's a little bit longer season for them.
Loved this video, very helpful info. Repositioning is on my next-up to do list as well as QM2 transatlantic, knowing they are 2 different things as you also stated. I solo cruise a lot so the value of a reposition cruise is attractive, and I love sea days! Had surmised many things already but your video put the finishing touches on it for me.
Good to hear it is on your list and you plan to do one soon. Keep me posted on what you decide!
of course! One of my friends just mentioned repositioning cruises to me and then you drop this video! Great timing!
Repositioning is still on my cruise-bucket-list. Glad I found this video before!
Top tip for one way (long haul) flights is to check what price is with a return light that you will never used. BA once wanted to charge me over £2000 for a one way flight to Miami but adding a return flight (which I did not use) the price lowered to £600
Super tip!
Just make sure that the segment you will be using is the first one, as if it is the 2nd one, the airline will cxl (cancel) the whole booking when you no show for the first segment. You actually are under contract with the airline by accepting terms and conditions by booking. I am a retired Travel Agent of 30 years.
@@chriswilliams6568 that’s good to know I did wonder.
We've done many repositioning cruises including Atlantic, Pacific, and Caribbean/Alaska and love them. It's generally a more relaxed pace and a chance to enjoy the ship.
any tips on when and how to book flights home at a good price
No. We fly standby.
I’m hooked on them now. I won’t even look at shorter cruises anymore.
Bonus of meeting other great travelers.
Thank you Gary for sharing more great secrets. I have been doing repositioning cruises for years, I LOVE SEA DAYS! If I could find a cruise that simply sailed in circles in the middle of the ocean for a few weeks I would book in a heart beat. I have done most the regular port cruises over the years and rarely chose to get off the ship now, would rather enjoy the 5 star resort of the ship. And the price beats flying business class and the experience. From Arizona, USA
Doing a Transatlantic cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Barcelona in April. New Celebrity Ascent. For us, the ship is the destination! Can’t wait to explore her
Doing the same this year on the Apex. So excited to try it. I love the sea days but have only been on 4 and 6 day cruises.
Did a repositioning cruise in January with RSS from Cape Town to Rio. We got upgraded so even got free laundry. Bill at the end was zero. We used it to escape the winter weather. Two long flights included.
I've done three repositioning cruises; once from Florida to Europe (the wrong way), once from Europe to Florida (the right way), and one from Baltimore to Port Canaveral (visiting exotic Caribbean).
As they tend to be longer, you get the side-effects of a higher average age, and few children on the ship.
I'm fine with doing these, as I already have to fly to the port of embarkation and home from the port of disembarkation.
We cruised a repositioning from Hawaii to Brisbane last October on Royals Quantum , everything you’ve offered in the video is 100% correct! Its was cheaper, less crowded, we lost a few ports from adverse weather, restaurants weren’t nearly as busy- its was fabulous! Booked 1 way airfare 11 months out and got a fabulous business class deal, keep up the good advice Gary, ps, glad to see all enjoyed Perth recently! 😁
We've done 3 repositioning across the Atlantic with Holland America. Great way to de-stress and arrive at your destination without jet lag. One way to address the high cost of one way flights is to use your points/miles rather than $ to book your on-way flight as you can get a much better deal. We were sadly disappointed on Spring 2023 Holland America repositioning that several music venues (Lincoln Center, BB King..) were not in operation due to some contractual issue. Made for rather boring evenings on the sea days.
We used to cruise twice a year, 10-14 nights + 4-7 nights. We've cut our expenses by doing 1 reposition cruise every-other-year. We also purchased a couple resale timeshares and are traveling about 4 weeks a year @ $2,700 USD, Our budget has been cut in half, our days at sea halved, but we're traveling drastically more. As far as increased airfare, if I'm sailing to or from the US, I'm saving on airfare only having to fly one way to an exotic location I would want to travel to anyways. We've also got credit card points that can get us deals on business class flights home, often at not much more than flying to Miami.
We did a repositioning cruise from Hawaii to Brisbane. (It started in Alaska) Our cruise was 18 nights with only a few stops in French Polynesia. It was FANTASTIC!! We used it as an alternative to a flight as we were headed to Wellington NZ to visit family. We had never done a cruise with lots of sea days, and didn't know what to expect, but it was great. We got to know so many wonderful people and created routines of meeting up with them on a regular basis during the sea days. I would absolutely do something like this, especially if it fits in to a trip to a location we want to visit anyway.
Last October, my wife and I joined two friends on Anthem of the Seas for a 15 night cruise from Southampton to New York cruise. We're from the USA (two from each coast) so we met in London a few days earlier and enjoyed that. There were a lot of sea days, which were quite relaxing but still could be filled up with trivia, shows, eating, and Yahtzee in one of the friend's suite with wine we had brought on board. It was a bucket list trip, and extremely glad we did it. Sure, there were rough seas a bit and a hurricane meant we ended up in Halifax instead of Bermuda, but it was still great.
Did our 1st Repositioning & Transatlantic Cruise thanks to you, Gary. All six of us loved it. Went from Lisbon -Madeira (missed Azores due to weather), Bermuda, NYC. It was wonderful!! Inexpensive on NCL Jade last November with their BOGO airfare from Newark, NY to Lisbon. Cost us only $500 for both of us for the air!!! Still get to see the whole ship with 7 sea days. And our balcony had free 1 bag of laundry in the middle of our 12-day cruise.,🚢🚢🚢
For us who love sea days, repositioning cruises are ideal!
We used repositioning cruises to help us travel right around the world. Starting in Sydney. No planes at all. We did however travel by motorcycle train bus more motorcyles car boat from Singapore to Helsinki to Fort Lauderdale and home across the Pacific. 18 months of travel and we still ride our Indian. Extremes in travel style and adventure.
We are moderate cruisers (fewer than 20) and are going on our 3rd repo cruise next week (Hawaii=>Canada). Price/day and variety of geography are plusses for us,, but caveats are worth mentioning - open jaw flights and packing for two regions. Works best if one of the ports is near home.
Make or break, as Gary mentions, is "Will you love/hate the sea days?". Depends on the traveler(s) and the ambience/culture/amenities of the ship/line.
Something that you didn't comment on is that retired and/or budget slow travelers utilize these cruises as one way transportation to and fro their home base. For instance, someone in the US may cruise from Florida to, say, Europe for a reasonable price without all the hassle of flying, especially when dealing with jet lag on the way back home. When you factor room and board, skip the costly internet and drink packages, it's a great deal. Yes, you can get tired of the food after a couple of weeks but it's still worth it. Just relax and enjoy the ride home.
We love TA cruises and have done several on NCL Epic from Port Everglades to Barcelona or stayed on to Rome. We then tie them into a long holiday in Europe. Overall, we find Epic to be a bit of an odd duck ship but its Haven is terrific. I love at-sea days. Nothing beats waking up in the morning, knowing I don't have to be anywhere or do anything, other than my wife insisting we're at the Trivia contest. The ports we usually visit on the way have included Bermuda, Ponta Delgada, Madeira, Cadiz, Gib, Malaga, Palma, Barcelona, Livorno, Naples, and Rome. It's great to arrive in Europe already adjusted to the local time zone and not spend three days dragging due to jet lag. I do have the advantage of being a retired airline pilot, so we usually don't have to worry about getting a flight home. We're still aiming at TA to Europe in the spring and another back in the fall.
I specifically looked for a repositioning cruise so we could have those numerous sea days and just relax. 18 days from Civitavecchia to Ft. Lauderdale in a full suite. I knew the air fare to Rome would be pricey but I held off and kept checking. At one time I had quite a few tabs open in my browser figuring out the cheapest route and whether or not to book legs separately. Delta originally had their first class sleeper flight from Atlanta at over $13k per person - no way! Finally I had gotten it down to around $4k per person and then all of a sudden I decided to check one more time from my home airport and behold - just over $3k pp and I booked them. It’s an overnight flight and at our age there was no way I was going to try and sleep in business class, let alone coach. This is something you save for and plan for, book ahead, watch the fares and keep checking. It paid off for me and I cannot wait. BTW - thank you for all your tips and such. We haven’t cruised on a large ship for a few years but are very excited to get back to it.
Great video Gary! Connie & I like repositioning cruises, as we like sea days. The only real downside for us is the one-way airfare which can be quite expensive if it involves international travel. Lately we’ve been booking cruises on Holland America that start and end in the US, while visiting international destinations. Takes the high airfare out of the equation.
Yes, the airfare can be a killer! Unfortunately many don’t factor it in until too late!
If the return fare is cheaper than one way you could book that and throw away the return leg or book it months out to use on a later journey.
We love repo cruises, and typically book US to Europe in the spring and Europe to US in the fall. This enables us to purchase round trip air tickets, saving a lot on that expense. In my mind, the key to a repo cruise it to want the ship as the destination. If you don't love the ship, you probably won't like that repo cruise. In my experience, some cruise lines add extra entertainers and activities to keep passengers busy on board, I will not that we've rarely had weather issues. We have a great fare on an upcoming repo--about 1/4 of the cost per night on a normal Caribbean sailing on the same ship...but as you noted, our airfare is actually more than the cost of the cruise. But, even considering every penny it will cost, it is still much less expensive on a per night basis than the normal cruises on this line, If you don't love the line and the ship, don't do a repo!
We love repositioning cruises.
Have done several on QM2, very nice!
This year we will have two, one with RCL in 6 weeks , the other with Celebrity in the fall.
For next year we have a TA booked, followed by a cruise through the Panama Canal.
We did an RCI repositioning cruise from Honolulu to Sydney for 19 nights in 2022. As you mentioned, only a few port days all up but that never bothered me. I'd certainly do it again.
I did a repositioning cruise & loved it! I knew full well it was going from the US to the UK & took advantage of the final destination to spend time at before flying home. It was also nice to be eased into the time zone of the UK, where flying somewhere you'll possibly get jet lagged.
I love the sea days! Took a transatlantic cruise from San Juan, Puerto Rico to Barcelona in March, the weather was glorious and the sea was smooth. Taking another repositioning cruise later this month from Ft. Lauderdale, through the Panama Canal and down the west coast of South America. Both on Viking.
We have done five transatlantic, the cruise lines usually have good airfare prices if you book the cruise and flight together. They are the most relaxing cruises, and go for the bundles with tips, drinks, and specialty dining included. Probably the best and most economical cruise out there.
This November I will be doing my eighth repositioning cruise. I love the sea days, a wonderful time to relax. luckily every crossing was very smooth
Are you doing it with someone or alone ?
I went on a repositioning cruise in 2012 and went on the same ship in the opposite direction 6 months later. I met a lot of the same people on both cruises. There were fewer passengers and no places to stop along the way. It was great!
A few years ago did a repositioning from Hawaii to Sydney, 28 days. There was a guy getting off in Bora Bora, grumpy "to many days at sea"? Personally it was an opportunity to see places I never thought I would see. A version of "Jetro goes to the south Pacific". Filled the sea days with working out, lectures and reading some of the many books I downloaded prior to leaving home.
3rd Repositioning cruise this October. After an 11 day land tour of Ireland, a short flight to Rotterdam and a 15 day transatlantic back to Ft. Lauderdale. A great way to decompress and talk about what we saw in Ireland. When you fly, tour and cruise during the shoulder season, the one way flights are lower than peak vacation times. Fewer kids, quieter ships and a relaxing pace for us retirees. Don’t tell everyone!
I have a repositioning cruise booked, we get to go through the Panama Canal for half the price of cruises where that is the intentional itinerary. I am very excited about it.
I saw a Windstar Cruises 14 day Lisbon - Barbados repo cruise that was 13-14 days with no port stops. That would be too much for me. A lot of people say they LOVE sea days BUT I can tell you that after four or five, you are ready to get somewhere.!!!
Do realize that there are opportunities to take a portion of a repo cruise and not run into huge airfares. Last month, I was on Celebrity Solstice from Vancouver and stopped off in Honolulu. The airfare out of HNL was a lot cheaper than flying out of YVR.
Also, we will be on the Regal Princess from Galveston to Fort Lauderdale run at a very good price while the ship continues on to Southampton.
You are correct in noting that laundry can be a considerable cost. The two loads of laundry that will cost me $12 on Princess will cost me $40 on HAL and $80 on Celebrity.
We head out to Sydney on March 25th, 6 days in Sydney, then a 26 day cruise on the Grand Princess back to San Francisco. We chose this cruise for the stops in New Zealand, Fiji, Tahiti and Honolulu. Plus it meant not doing 2 20+ hour flights from VA
Would love to do this but I would be travelling alone and would like to take my bicycle for a tour when I get there , it’s hard to find info pricing if you travel alone
Being a solo cruiser, I find myself more drawn to the repositioning cruises because of every reason Gary listed. In seasons where I'm more interested in the ship being the destination, I'm mentally prepared to go with repositioning. True, the expense of a one-way flight back home is one of the things that pretty much wipes out any savings that repositioning cruises give you, but if you go into the deal understanding what a repositioning cruise is all about, it can be very enjoyable. I enjoy lots of sea days, rough weather, rocking ship being tossed in the waves, and fewer people. I noticed the Norwegian Encore was shown a few times in this video. While Norwegian is not my favorite cruise line, I think the Encore my favorite ship among all of the major cruise lines. It's very well-designed for a string of sea days.
Half of my cruisers have been repositions. Love, love, love sea days - no stress, spend some time in the sun, catch a movie out on deck or in the theater, take a nap, read some on the balcony, play trivia, shake the headboard a bit with the wife, hit the disco for some drinks and music late night... if you look at the vacation as a place to relax - then repositions are wonderful. Never had a bad one. Be sure to go on a line that has good food - you'll be eating all your meals on board, so...
We have taken 2 Repositioning Cruises and find them relaxing and a great value. We are flying to Ireland this fall for a guided land tour. After that, we are flying to Rotterdam to board the HAL Rotterdam for a 15 day trans Atlantic repositioning cruise to Ft. Lauderdale and then a short flight home to North Carolina. That 15 day cruise home allows us to unwind and talk about our Ireland journey. We have no jet lag and arrive relaxed and refreshed. A bonus is to see places on the way home that we might not have visited before. We booked our flight over way in advance to get a good price. Last year, I found a TA cruise for an unbelievable rate to Amsterdam that was cheaper than flying, even with the tips and drinks. We transferred to another HAL ship and cruised through Norway then flew home. Hopping a ship to go over or back is a super way to avoid flying both ways. We make the ship part of our vacation as we can “eat out” every night, have maid service, go to shows together and play lots of 500 Rummy! TA’s or Repositioning Cruises are not for everyone, but it suits us retirees to a T.
Took my repositioning cruise as an extension to my Alaska cruise on the original Island Princess in 82 to Los Angeles stopping at Seattle and San Francisco, transitioning to it's Trans-Canal itinerary (which I also took the previous year!)
I went on a repositioning cruise from Barcelona to Port Canaveral. Loved it! Loved sea days! Had five port stays. Price was very reasonable. Will try to go on more repositioning cruises.
Have you ever looked into tips for booking back to back TAs? My husband had to fly so much in his career that he now resists any trip that requires a flight. We have retired to the east coast of Florida, so driving to Miami, Ft Lauderdale, and Canaveral for a cruise is easy for us. We love TAs and are always looking for opportunities to cruise both ways. We are loyal HAL Mariners with high status, and it is easy for us to scan all HAL ship movements because we are now so familiar with line. We have had 2 great b2b cruises to Europe by hooking up with the last leg of a Grand World Voyage. In 2013 we cruised to Rome on the Eurodam and then changed over to the Prinsendam, which was parked right next door. (Getting your bags moved that short of a distance is another story.) We were able to enjoy the last leg of this Grand Med in luxurious comfort. In 2023, we took the Rotterdam 150th celebration cruise to Rotterdam and then got on a HAL bus to get to Amsterdam where we joined the Zuiderdam for its Grand World final leg back to Fort Lauderdale. We plan to do this in 2025 when the Nieuw Statendam takes us to Dover. After a few days in London, we take a short flight to Barcelona where we could hook up with either the Zuiderdam's Grand World or the Volendam's unique Pole to Pole Grand Voyage to get back to Fort Lauderdale. We could spend longer in London and take a CUNARD ship to NYC but that is not as convenient for
us as a Florida port. I am always looking to see what the other cruise lines are offering but it is a long, tedious process and I never have any luck. Do you have any secret tips or inside knowledge of how to do b2b TA cruises? I have joined the Repositioning forum on FB and have learned there are other cruisers out there who are trying go do the same thing. Any ideas?
As you well know, some cruises are heavily curated (like Viking) and often times we come home exhausted but enriched. Repositioning cruises are times where we can relax, read, casually dine and have an occasional interesting stop as a diversion. We typically ocean cruise where we can have a few sea days to just relax. Repositioning cruises offer that in droves and can be as active and relaxing as one chooses. Great video.
Terrific video as usual, Gary. We have found that Cunard seems pretty good at securing very reasonable one-way airfares keeping the one-way airfare from blowing up the cost of a combination ship over / air back trip, This is probably because their regular and frequent transatlantic business on QM2 creates a need that, I am guessing, prodded them to secure, good pricing for their passengers flying only one-way from one or more airlines.
We took 2 repositioning cruises in 2023. The first one was a 20-day Miami - Seattle, obviously through the PC. It had many stops (we had to skip 2 of them due to unrest in the country & the other because our ship broke down) until we left Mexico, then it was 4-days to Canada. Our second one was a 16-day cruise from Rome to NYC. We had just completed a Med cruise and decided to cruise home to the US rather than fly. This one had several stops, France, Spain, Portugal, Azores, and Bermuda. Being in mid-late November we did experience some bad weather. We were forced to miss the Azores due to weather - this caused us to run low of some foods which upset many people. We had 6 straight days. We have been on dozens of cruises and this one was our absolute worse - not because of the weather but the very sub-par service, food quality, and entertainment.
I've taken two so far: one from Vancouver to LA, and the other from Miami to Seattle--loved them both for several reasons. One of the biggest was in fact the sea days (my favorite). The other was getting to know the passengers and crew a little better. In truth, the wait-staff seemed more like family than providers.
Wife and I are doing our first repositioning cruise in April 2025, did our first sea day intensive cruise in January going from NYC to the Caribbean and back. For us the ship is the destination so we are beyond excited.
I did a repositioning cruise from Southampton to Barbados on the P+O Azura a couple of years ago. 15 days of heaven. Loved the ship and the sea days were brilliant It was time to chill and check out the ship.
I have taken one cruise in my life and it was a repo. We ran from Alaska down to LA so the ship could change from Alaska cruises to western Mexico cruises. We got a great Alaska cruise followed by a west coast cruise including a stop in San Francisco before she collapsed. All for a great price. Loved it.
If you LOVE sea days then I highlly recommend HAL 17 day Hawaiian departing Vancouver or San Diego. 5 sea days out and another 5 coming back.
Yes!!!! Loved it October 2023; going San Diego - Hawaii - Vancouver 22 days on same Kiningsdam HAL April 2024; then same Vancouver to Hawaii and back October 2034. LOVE IT!! Lots of sea days but fabulous relaxing trips! Beautiful
Ooops typos sorry - Oct 2024 same Vancouver round trip cruise and Konningsdam is the ship. Lovely mid sized FUN and relaxing
We did that on Princess - Vancouver - Hawaii - Vancouver. Loved it
We love sea days so we booked the Sun Princess transatlantic cruise for September and are so excited to explore this new ship and to have 8 sea days in a row!
i have been on two repositioning cruises and will go on more in the future.
my last repositioning cruise was 10 days from Miami to Southampton had had zero stops.
Your videos are great, Gary. Thanks so much! Can you possible do a video or blog post on how to choose a travel agent - how to find someone who will have your best interests in mind? Thanks again!!
My mother and I took a repositioned 7 day Caribbean cruise in July, on the very same NCL ship we were on last summer in the Mediterranean.
We've got a great deal coming up in May on a 'repositioining cruise' - we fly from UK to Tokyo for a couple of days and then join Cunard's Queen Elizabeth for a cruise up the side of Japan (stopping at 2 islands) and then over the Pacific (and International dateline) to North Alaska. 19 nights on the boat - flying home from Vancouver. Can't wait!
Totally agree with the concept of the ship being the destination - we love the Queen Elizabeth, such a beautiful ship and can't wait to spend more time aboard her.
Doing a tranatlantic on QM2 next year.
Doing our third HAL repositioning cruise from Canada to San Diego, this time we're snagged an aft balcony cabin which we'd never usually want to spend the money on but at the price we could not resist
We have an epic 29 night repositioning cruise booked for next year. Seattle to Singapore taking in Alaska, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Vietnam. We love sea days and this voyage includes nine consecutive sea days crossing the north Pacific. It was offered at a great price including flights and hotel stays and we added the drinks and WiFi package. Really looking forward to it and it will be the longest cruise we have ever taken.
We have done quite a few repositioning cruises and always enjoyed them. These are great points and should be taken into account Gary. You do need to love sea days! We like using the cruise to move one way, have a holiday say in the US, Canada or Japan and then come home. This works out well for us. Thanks...
We took our first ever repositioning cruise this spring, from Florida to Amsterdam. After a few days in Amsterdam, we've been exploring in France since then, and will go on for more European travel until our next repositioning cruise, which will be in fall. From Southampton back to Florida. It was a great way to get to Europe, and compared to one way flights, a great bargain to go back.
Booked on the 1st Norwegian Aqua sailing from Southampton to Boston in 2025. A great way to be the 1st to experience a brand new ship.
😉👍
We’re doing a 21 night repositioning in a couple of months. One of the selling points for us was that it had several port days at both the beginning and the end of the cruise.
We did a 15-day repositioning from the Canadian season to the Caribbean at the end of the fall. We actually stopped at several out of the way Canadian ports. And there was more free time on board to enjoy the ship. This was one of my favorite cruises.
Doing one in Australia later in the year. Booked it more than 12 months ago because the prices were so good. Short, sharp & sweet. Paid a small amount extra to upgrade to a bigger balcony room. Using Frequent Flyer points for us to fly back from Brisbane to Sydney. Perfect!😎😎😎
As a solo traveller I take a repositioning cruise at least once a year. This year it will be Norwegian’s Viva’
16 day crossing from Lisbon to Puerto Rico. In this instance there is a number of interesting stops including Morocco and Cap Verde as well as a couple in the Carribean. I enjoy fewer people but I also find people on these cruises are more inclusive. I particularly like the sea days. The ocean is all encompassing and makes you realize what a small speck we are in the grand scheme of things. As for costs, don’t let anyone mislead that this is an inexpensive outing. I have to fly from Toronto to Lisbon and from Puerto Rico back to Toronto aside from all the taxes, gratuities and other must haves on board. There is no single supplement on NCL. To me it’s worth it for the unique experience. I’ll do another Viva cruise in the Greek Islands come May but it will have all the raw Le dazzle of a full ship and holiday atmosphere. Totally different but just as much fun 🤩
Single solo here: Please tell me what website you used to booked this cruise….I have never taken a cruise before but as a newly retired single female,,,I think this will be my first cruise adventure
We took one from Japan to Seattle last year. Excellent. Booked on one from NZ to Vancouver imminently.
Thanks, Gary. Very informative video. Now that we're retired, we're starting to look at repositioning and transatlantic cruises for future sailings. We LOVE sea days, so I'm sure we'd enjoy a reposition cruise.
The best repo we have ever done was on Celebrity. A 8 day from San Juan to Bayonne NJ with intermediate stops in the Caribbean.
Hi Gary, just came back from the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Adventure of the sea Easter Caribbean. I wish I had a video camera at the going on in the My time dining room interaction between the waitstaff and the people having breakfast. Waitstaff have no etiquettes, No Good morning as they seat you, no table manners no pulling the chair for a lady, they seem to be upset that you showed up. First question they ask you is what do you want? They don’t want to even show you the menu. There is tremendous amount of bickering between the Chinese waitstaff behind the wooden podium where they clear the silverware. All this going on within earshot of all the people who came to have breakfast. Waiters are playing boss and pushing around younger waiter around. Royal Caribbean wants everyone to be healthy as they join the cruise but what about the Chinese wait staff are coughing & walking around the dinning room. Me & my wife were seated @ the table & had to ask the waiter twice if my wife can have a cup for coffee as it was missing from the table setup & the waiter looked at us with. as we may have asked for extra egg, he believed that it was some other waiters’ job not his. The Chinese headwaiter comes over between our breakfast and continuously moan and want 8 STARS on the survey by customers, he starts his Royal Caribbean corporate mantra how important the survey is for at least 5 minutes, while our breakfast goes cold & no offers for refilling our cold coffee cups. Finally, he leaves us in peace. The 8 star survey on board the Royal Caribbean ship is a joke in Dubai Burj Khalifa is a 5 star with excellent service, but not the Royal Caribbean, its all very sad.
We did repositioning from Miami to Barcelona, then toured Europe. About as cheap as a flight over and no jet lag. I talked to a Canadian couple that was meetng friends for a cruise from Barcelona back to U.S. It was cheaper for them to take the repositioning cruise than fly
I did a cruise on the Norwegian Star from Lisbon to Rio then made my way overland for 26 days to Buenos Aires picking up the ship to Antarctica. This is last month when the Star visited Antarctica, not anymore😅.
Excellent and informative video Gary regarding repositioning cruises. Absolutely love the ad-free perk with the channel membership
Good to hear. When I first launched memberships people were less interested in that, but things have changed as was clearly seem as a bigger perk now - maybe as there are many more ads run on UA-cam and creators now have less say on where and how they are run (e.g. I can no longer set as default "clickable" pre-roll ads and YT can run non-clickable if they decide that best)
A repositioning cruise is on our bucket list once I graduate. I enjoy the ad-free video. WINNER!!!!! QUESTION: do you control the ads or does UA-cam? See you in April.
Good to hear you like the ad free early release. When I first launched memberships people were less interested in that, but things have changed as was clearly seem as a bigger perk now - maybe as there are many more ads run on UA-cam and creators now have less say on where and how they are run. Until end of last year creators did have more control but no longer s just opt in to ads running and YT have total control (e.g. I can no longer set as default "clickable" pre-roll ads and YT can run non-clickable if they decide that best)
If you are determined to cruise both ways across the Atlanta without having to wait months until the next repositioning season, try one of Cunard's regularly scheduled Transatlantic cruises between Southhampton and NYC.
I took a Transatlantic cruise on Princess in November from the UK to Florida, not as a standalone trip but because I was going to be in Europe anyway and it was an attractive way to get back to the US. It was a fine voyage with I think five port calls in the Caribbean. The only disappointment was missing the Azores (the only destination that isn't really reachable any other time) not due to weather but because of a pilots strike that day.
My friend has just done a repositioning cruise from Australia to Hawaii. It was 17 days but she loved every minute. I was going to do it but, as you said, factoring in all of the other costs made it too expensive for me.
The exception to this is repositioning from Australia to Alaska via Tahiti and Hawaii. Super expensive and books up early. Typically through both Royal Caribbean and Celebrity.
I’ll be on one of these in Celebrity in May. I can’t wait!
I'm a solo cruiser who has taken the same repo cruise from NY to FL every fall since 2017 (minus 2 years for Covid.) It's awesome! All the sea days are wonderful. I love them. Unfortunately, this is not a cheaper cruise because the demand is high. Many people go year after year, especially "snow birds" who use the cruise to get to their summer home in FL rather than flying or driving. The return flight can be pricey. This year I booked a flight which departs at 4pm. Earlier flights were exorbitant. We have an active Facebook group with a lot of activities. It's always nice to see friends I've made in years past. Love your videos! ❤
How do you go with payment wise ? Everything iv read indicates that singles pay near double for a room or do you have a workaround ?
I am going solo on a Princess repositioning cruise this Sept from LA to Sydney. I'm moving to the PH, and I originally was going to fly Business with a cost around 3K. Upon hearing about repositioning cruises, I found a perfect cruise matching my schedule. So yes I am paying double occupancy going solo, but the 10K I spent allows me 29 days on the cruise adjusting to the time change, I can see 9 ports that I haven't seen before, and I can eat as much as I want. So the 7K extra I think is well spent. Once in Australia, a 3 week drive through the country before flying off to PH.
We're looking forward to our 1st repositioning cruise in the next couple of years. I've heard to avoid the ones that are repositioning to Europe to go into their scheduled Dry Dock or when they've just finished in Dry Dock time as many of the venues of the ship are closed down during the crossing as repairs/upgrades begin early or are still continuing after.
I always do Repo cruises with Marella as they are fully All Inclusive and adult only .
Being a solo cruiser as well i have built up a fantastic circle of cruising friends who do the same trips .
I am currently booked on the Discovery from Barbados to Turkey via Tenerife and a few other ports on route a trip that will take 18 nights .
Just before the troubles started in Middle East i was on Discovery 2 from Cyprus to Oman via Suez Canal and it had more crew than passengers which was fantastic