Storm chasers
As it turns out, there are quite a few Cunard fans who prefer winter crossings — and the stormier the seas, the better.
“So much of the magic of the ship and a winter crossing is the heritage; they used to operate transatlantic sailings 12 months of the year,” said Ben Lyons, a former chief officer for Cunard Line and current CEO of Eyos Expeditions, a company that arranges luxury yacht charters. “On a transatlantic cruise, there’s the extra element of nostalgia and history, carrying on a tradition of ships crossing the North Atlantic from the Old World to the New World in all seasons; it’s almost the antithesis of your typical Caribbean cruise.”
Lyons and his family regularly book the December crossing, due in part to a December birthday in the family. He says that the sailing is more popular now with bookers seeking cozy, holiday decor, and was much harder to sell 20 or 30 years ago.
Back then, Lyons said, the Queen Elizabeth 2 would take the shortest route across, a five-day journey, at times forcing the ship to sail through inclement weather. Now, with a seven-day crossing, there is more flexibility to avoid particularly rough seas.
“I would book the QE2 crossing hoping for bad weather,” Lyons recalled. “The captain at the time would make comments during the daily noon announcement, specifically addressing the crowd who was looking for a bit of a storm.”
Lyons admits the storm-chasing cruisers are individuals familiar with being at sea. “It’s a self-selecting audience,” he says of passengers who book a winter crossing. “The appeal is absolutely the weather. It’s fantastic to witness the seascape in a big storm; the raw power of nature is extraordinary to see, and the QM2 is built for this. It didn’t skimp on the hull or the design — the factors that make the ship a true ocean liner. For those of us who have sailed a transatlantic on the QE2, the QM2 is so stable in comparison.”
He said that expecting a bit of motion in the North Atlantic during the winter season should be obvious and added that for the most part, the ship avoids the worst of it.
“Anyone considering [a winter crossing] should do it,” Lyons said. “It’s a unique and wonderful maritime experience that captures a bygone era. A warmly lit ship against a cold, dark exterior. … A sailing on QM2 is the pinnacle of transatlantic crossings.”
Another group of travelers on winter crossings are those who can be found on Cunard ships year-round: people who don’t fly.
Sherry Laskin, a writer who focuses on cruise, is one of them and is part of a group of passengers who use the ship just as much for transportation as a vacation. Laskin has completed 22 crossings in all seasons, including a winter crossing on the Celebrity Constellation that endured what she called a “perfect storm” sailing from Dover, England, to Newfoundland in Canada, arriving with windows smashed and paint peeling from the bow.
“I slept in the lobby with a flashlight and a book,” she said of that cruise. “But don’t let the thought of rough seas in winter deter you from a crossing, especially on Queen Mary 2. This stellar ship can slice through 30-foot waves and 60 mph winds like a warm knife through butter.
“How bad can it be if the Brits on QM2 cheer whenever there’s a big wave?” she added.