North America to Europe by Sea?

Freighters sometimes take passengers. I can't give you a website but maybe you can find something if you google it. Some older friends of mine did this, leaving from Savannah or the Florida East Coast, going across, I think the first stop was Spain or Italy, through the Mediterranean, the Suez Canal, all the way to Singapore. They were the only passengers and had a wonderful time. Freighter travel does not happen on an immutable schedule. Sometimes they have to wait for cargo or make a detour. Freighters also stop in New York City and possibly other harbors closer to your neck of the woods....Hope you find something....

Most of the cruise lines run "repositioning" cruises between North America and Europe in the spring and fall. Routes like Miami to Barcelona, NY to Dover, etc. These aren't "basic transportation" by any means but they usually cost less per day than round-trip cruises in the Caribbean, Mediterranean, Baltic, etc. They typically involve a few port stops and a lot of days at sea. We took a Norwegian Cruise Line ship from Dover to New York a few years back, 11 days including the Shetlands, Iceland, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia stops. It was a great way to return from a longer visit to England. The freighter suggestion is another option, though I don't think those are inexpensive. Otherwise, all I could suggest is join the merchant marine or the Navy, or find a zillionaire looking for crew for his oceangoing yacht!

You can look here: www.freighter-cruises.com
And of course, Cunard has regular trans-atlantic crossings on the Queen Mary. You might be surprised-the inside cabins on the Queen Mary are close to the same price as travelling on a freighter, which often charges per day, like a hotel.

Thanks all for the tips. I'll explore them and share if I find anything worthwhile. Harry

Take a look at www.cruisecritic.com, which will have lots of information on transatlantic cruises. To do the whole trip without flying, you could take a train or bus from Buffalo to New York City, then the QM from New York to Southampton. The ship won't be "basic" transportation, but as said, an inside cabin needn't break the bank. If you don't have to take the ship both ways, Cunard used to have deals (don't know if these are still available) with taking the boat one way and flying the other, for a greatly reduced price over a typical one way flight (of course, you can take the boat both ways if you prefer and have the time).