small ship repositioning cruises

Repositioning cruises from Canadian ports to Europe are as scarce as umbrellas on an iceberg. I checked cruisetimetables.com for next year for both QC and MTL, and it only shows 2 sailings, both on the QM2.

You might try asking on Cruise Critic to see if any of the veteran cruisers there have any ideas.

What is your definition of "small ship?" The QM2 holds 2,691 passengers, which nowadays, is "small" as compared to the 4,000+ Royal Caribbean-type ships. I've heard great things about the Disney Magic crossing (1,700 passengers), but it only goes twice a year, and from Miami going over and back to New York coming back. Also, I would be somewhat hesitant crossing the Atlantic on a very small ship due to the rough seas factor--I'd rather have a larger ship for stability's sake. Curious as to why you don't want Cunard, as that is the quintessential way to cross the Atlantic, and their liners are specifically built for transatlantic crossings. Agree with the PP that the crossings from Canada are rare; you'd do better to try to catch one from NYC. Are you open to a trans-Atlantic on the way back or do you only want a cruise on the way over?

Small ship: We prefer ships with less than 1,000 passengers.

Either direction would work.. The advantage would be booking RT tickets from Canada or US, I think.

Repositioning means moving a ship for the season. For the Atlantic that could be anywhere in Europe, depending on the summer route, to most likely Florida or the Caribbean for winter cruising. Repositioning, by nature, is one way. You’ll have a lot more luck if you’d consider Florida or the Caribbean.

Lines with smaller ships: Oceania, Azamara, Viking Ocean, some of the Holland America, and of course Windstar. There are European companies, but I don’t know them. Check Vacations to Go under repositioning.

Try Vacationstogo and look at transatlantic as well as repositioning cruises. Good luck in your search.

A quick search looks like Seabourn, Regent, and Viking have westbound repositioning cruises from Europe to Montreal in the summer 2020 (London Southampton or Bergen).

Have you checked with a cruise specialist travel agent? Sometimes they can use search parameters on their computer systems that a consumer might not have access to.

Check Holland America Line.

Veendam (1350 pax) and Zaandam (1432 pax) have cruises from Boston to Europe and the return at the end of the season.

Crossing the North Atlantic I would not be looking for a small ship!

“Crossing the North Atlantic I would not be looking for a small ship.”

So true! Especially almost off season, which is when repositioning takes place. The only time I have been sea sick was on a Holland America repositioning from Florida to Barcelona. On a QM2 crossing once, not off season, there was a four day gale which had even a few crew members looking a little green, but the ship was built for crossing, as well as cruising. As long as we did not venture to the top decks we were fine. A smaller ship in such a storm would have been very unpleasant, if not unsafe.

I love it when the ship is rocking and rolling! Our last Transatlantic was so smooth - I felt cheated!

indeed, I wonder about all the folks signing up for “Voyage of the Vikings” cruises in October. The main dining rooms won’t be too crowded.

Thanks to all of you. I was not familiar with one of the links and will add that to my resources. Not yet ready for a cruise travel agent; need a better handle on which itineraries are top of the list.

“I love it when the ship is rocking and rolling”

Well, you would have really enjoyed the crossing when we had four consecutive days of a Force 9 gale. Or maybe not.

I know it doesn't directly relate to modern ships but when I was much younger we regularly crossed the North Atlantic between Southampton and New York. Most boats - we were usually on a Cunard boat travelling in Cabin Class which was about half-way up the boat, we usually were one deck below Promenade Deck - would slow down or avoid big storms.

Not the SS United States. Nope. Just kept the revs up and ploughed straight on. Regardless. Always. I remember one early winter trip towards England when we found ourselves in the middle of a huge storm. I don't know what Force it was I just know there was a lot of water and even more wind. We pitched and rolled like crazy - I distinctly remember seeing walls of water crashing over the bows - but our fearless Captain just kept pushing forward. And the noise was pretty amazing, the SS United States being made in large part of aluminum. But we made it, still in 4 days and some hours, because we hadn't slowed.

What a ride that was!!

Norma, maybe not. I always think about the cabins on decks 3, 4, and 5 when the seas are churning, and their portholes completely covered in water. That would freak me out a bit. We cruised in an inside cabin on our first cruise, and balcony every cruise since.