The trip
Overview
Twice a year the cruise fleets change hemispheres, and their repositioning voyages are the best-kept value secret in the industry: fourteen-to-eighteen-night crossings from the Mediterranean to Florida or the Caribbean, priced gently because the line simply needs the ship on the other side. This autumn westbound version leaves from Barcelona or Genoa, steps down through the Canaries, then settles into the main event — five or six consecutive days on the open Atlantic before landfall at Bridgetown and the run in to Miami.
A crossing is a different kind of holiday and we say so plainly: if you need a port every morning, choose another route. If, however, the idea of a week with no obligations — sea, books, deck walks, guest lectures, unhurried dinners, the clocks falling back an hour every second night so you keep gaining sleep — sounds like the rest you have been putting off, nothing else on our list delivers it. The eastbound spring mirror image exists too, and we quote either direction.
From Dubai the shape is a simple open jaw: fly out to the Mediterranean, sail across, fly home from Miami — with New York or Florida easily added at the far end.
Highlights
- ✦Five or six pure sea days crossing the Atlantic — the point, not the price of it
- ✦Canaries and Madeira calls as the ship steps down to the trade winds
- ✦Landfall at Bridgetown after a week of open ocean
- ✦Repositioning pricing — among the best value per night in cruising
- ✦Time zones unwind an hour at a time, so you land with no jet lag
Who it suits
- ●Readers, thinkers and the genuinely tired — people who want a week the world cannot reach
- ●Retired couples and long-leave takers with flexible dates
- ●Value-hunters who understand what repositioning pricing means per night
Why this journey works
- ✓Repositioning economics make this the most ship-per-dirham in our range
- ✓Gaining an hour every second night means arriving rested, not jet-lagged
- ✓The open jaw bolts neatly onto a Florida or Caribbean holiday at the far end
Day by day
Days 1–2
Barcelona or Genoa — the send-off
Fly from Dubai the day before sailing — we build in a pre-cruise hotel night as standard on crossings, because missing this ship means missing the Atlantic. A last European evening: tapas off the Ramblas or dinner in Genoa's old port, then board after midday.
Days 3–6
Stepping stones — Spain, the Canaries, Madeira
The first days keep land in sight: typically a Malaga or Cadiz call, then Tenerife or Las Palmas and often Funchal, as the ship drops south to pick up the trade-wind route the sailing ships used. Last chance to stretch your legs ashore — provision accordingly at a Spanish market.
Days 7–12
The Atlantic — the week of nothing
Five to six sea days, horizon to horizon. Ships programme these crossings properly: lecture series, dance classes, wine tastings, full spa days, and the simple luxury of a routine — breakfast late, a walk on the promenade deck, an afternoon chapter, trivia at six. The clocks go back an hour every second night, which is why crossings westbound feel like a rest cure.
Days 13–16
Landfall — Bridgetown to Miami
Barbados appears on the horizon at the end of the crossing — a beach or island day at Bridgetown — followed by a further Caribbean call on some routings, then two final sea days north-west to Miami. Disembark and fly home, or start a Florida stay. Ports depend on the sailing; the routing we confirm always matches it.
Possible ports of call
Repositioning voyage — each ship crosses once per season, so dates are fixed and limited. Line, ship and routing confirmed at quote stage.
When to go
Westbound crossings cluster in October and November as ships leave the Mediterranean for the Caribbean winter; eastbound mirrors run in March and April. The Atlantic on the southern trade-wind route is usually well-behaved in those windows, though a crossing is still an ocean voyage and the ship will move a little some days. Each ship makes the trip once per season, so specific departures are limited and firm.
Planning around seasons, regions and style? Read the full United States destination guide →
What’s included
- ✓One-way flight from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to the departure port city
- ✓Cruise fare for the selected sailing and cabin category
- ✓One-way flight home from Miami to Dubai
- ✓Transfers between airports and cruise terminals at both ends
- ✓PCT travel consultant support before and during travel
Not included
- —Shore excursions
- —Drinks packages and gratuities unless quoted
- —Hotel nights before or after the cruise unless quoted
- —Travel insurance
- —US ESTA or visa and other visas where required
Ways to extend it
- +Add three nights in Miami or Orlando after landfall
- +Continue with a seven-night Caribbean sailing from Miami
- +Start with two nights in Barcelona before the crossing
Gallery
