Can't fly to Europe - other travel options?
July 12, 2011 10:38 AM Subscribe
My sister just learned that she can't fly for three months (lung condition), which means she can't make it over to Ireland for a big family reunion in late August. Or can she? Any suggestions?
We can travel out of anywhere on the eastern seaboard.
I've looked at the Queen Mary 2, which takes 7 days to make the crossing (after it arrives in Southampton, she could take a train and ferry to get over to Ireland).
But I'm wondering if I'm missing any other ships, options, etc. Are there slightly faster journeys by boat available? I wouldn't want her bunking on a tramp steamer but we're open to suggestions. Thanks!
We can travel out of anywhere on the eastern seaboard.
I've looked at the Queen Mary 2, which takes 7 days to make the crossing (after it arrives in Southampton, she could take a train and ferry to get over to Ireland).
But I'm wondering if I'm missing any other ships, options, etc. Are there slightly faster journeys by boat available? I wouldn't want her bunking on a tramp steamer but we're open to suggestions. Thanks!
I looked into transatlantic passenger travel last spring, and at that point the QM 2 was the only ship offering regular transatlantic passenger service during the summer. Other cruise ships sometimes make "repositioning" voyages at the beginning or end of a season (such as moving from northern Europe to the Caribbean at the end of the summer).
It's possible to book passenger cabins on many cargo ships, but those trips tend to be slower and the schedule is unpredictable because freight takes priority. Most of the schedules I've seen for transatlantic freight crossings tend to be 2-3 weeks long. I'd say the QM 2 is your best bet. I would have taken it this summer but it had only one eastbound crossing in June which didn't work for my schedule.
posted by brianogilvie at 10:48 AM on July 12, 2011
It's possible to book passenger cabins on many cargo ships, but those trips tend to be slower and the schedule is unpredictable because freight takes priority. Most of the schedules I've seen for transatlantic freight crossings tend to be 2-3 weeks long. I'd say the QM 2 is your best bet. I would have taken it this summer but it had only one eastbound crossing in June which didn't work for my schedule.
posted by brianogilvie at 10:48 AM on July 12, 2011
According to this site, it looks like 7 days is the fastest you can do by sea (at least, on a cruise ship).
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 10:48 AM on July 12, 2011
posted by Conrad Cornelius o'Donald o'Dell at 10:48 AM on July 12, 2011
7-8 days is pretty much as fast as you are going to get.
Freighters will be cheaper but are often slower, expect closer to 8-14 days per crossing. Also most of them are limited to a small number of passengers and many will not stop in the UK but rather travel to and from the Netherlands.
This would likely tack on a pretty good amount of time and be a logistics nightmare.
I think QM2 is really the only reliable alternative.
posted by vuron at 10:53 AM on July 12, 2011
Freighters will be cheaper but are often slower, expect closer to 8-14 days per crossing. Also most of them are limited to a small number of passengers and many will not stop in the UK but rather travel to and from the Netherlands.
This would likely tack on a pretty good amount of time and be a logistics nightmare.
I think QM2 is really the only reliable alternative.
posted by vuron at 10:53 AM on July 12, 2011
While we're brainstorming here, what if she chained together a bunch of small hops from Newfoundland->Greenland->Iceland on planes that didn't fly above problematic altitudes, like they used to do back in the pre-Lindbergh days? One time on an episode of House they flew low to save a guy who had the bends, and as we all know, House is an exact proxy for real life medical decision-making. Airliners used to be pressurized to around ~8,000 feet but the newer ones are getting lower. However, if you fly on those seaplanes that take off from Seattle, sometimes they never fly higher than 150 feet, which has gotta be safe, that's like an upper floor in a not-particularly-tall building. This is probably insane, but figured I'd throw it out there in case you guys haven't considered it yet.
posted by jeb at 11:12 AM on July 12, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by jeb at 11:12 AM on July 12, 2011 [1 favorite]
Is it wrong to ask what will happen if the cysts burst? Discomfort? Death? Perhaps the risk is acceptable to fly.
posted by shew at 11:36 AM on July 12, 2011
posted by shew at 11:36 AM on July 12, 2011
Response by poster: Thanks so much for your responses!
@shew -- Believe me, if it was only discomfort she was facing, she'd put up with it. If a cyst bursts, all manner of complications, infections, and so on are possible.
@jeb -- I love your attitude! Almost like going on the flight from the beginning of Raiders of the Lost Ark. I don't think this will work out.
I think we're going to evaluate the QM2 and see whether that works for her. I wonder if they have decent Internet now -- might make working possible. (Usually it's ferociously expensive on ships, if I remember right.)
posted by teedee2000 at 11:45 AM on July 12, 2011
@shew -- Believe me, if it was only discomfort she was facing, she'd put up with it. If a cyst bursts, all manner of complications, infections, and so on are possible.
@jeb -- I love your attitude! Almost like going on the flight from the beginning of Raiders of the Lost Ark. I don't think this will work out.
I think we're going to evaluate the QM2 and see whether that works for her. I wonder if they have decent Internet now -- might make working possible. (Usually it's ferociously expensive on ships, if I remember right.)
posted by teedee2000 at 11:45 AM on July 12, 2011
Best answer: Call a travel agent. This is their area of expertise. Good luck; I hope she can make it to the event.
posted by theora55 at 11:56 AM on July 12, 2011
posted by theora55 at 11:56 AM on July 12, 2011
Response by poster: Thank you Theora, I hope so too. =)
posted by teedee2000 at 1:53 PM on July 12, 2011
posted by teedee2000 at 1:53 PM on July 12, 2011
If you do decide to go by the QM2, Seat 61 has a good page on the ins and outs.
posted by caek at 3:32 PM on July 12, 2011
posted by caek at 3:32 PM on July 12, 2011
My parents dislike flying, so one summer we went to Europe via the QE2. It was hands down the best vacation ever, because the ship was so interesting, novel, and relaxing. It didn't end up costing all that much more than plane tickets, per person.
posted by charmcityblues at 5:57 PM on July 12, 2011
posted by charmcityblues at 5:57 PM on July 12, 2011
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by teedee2000 at 10:42 AM on July 12, 2011