What prevents docking at CC?

[Luvmypetz]

Hello. Visiting CC next week. Current forecast shows windy. Is this a bad sign that we may miss stopping there? Thank you

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Hello. Visiting CC next week. Current forecast shows windy. Is this a bad sign that we may miss stopping there? Thank you

Maybe yes, maybe no.

Only the Captain can make that call at the time.

 

[TXDCLfan]

Hello. Visiting CC next week. Current forecast shows windy. Is this a bad sign that we may miss stopping there? Thank you

Yes can play a big part in docking as wind affects water curents

 

[JM_97]

Hard to know until the day of. Wind and water currents are the main reasons. If it's not safe to dock then it'll become a sea day.

 

[DCL58]

We were at CC with some outer bands of Melissa a couple weeks ago. We were on the Treasure and the captain docked us without issue. It was so windy that no umbrellas could be open on the island. We wondered if the Wish class ships were easier to dock - not sure an older ship would have made it in with the wind.

 

[Drfate102]

We had a trip once and it was so windy with rough seas, that the Captain went full throttle to get us to Castaway that we were docked and there overnight. But with the wind and choppy seas, the island was pretty much closed the next day. So it was a sea day with exterior photo ops and not moving.

 

[happycamper47]

Wind direction is also key. If it's blowing fore and aft usually no issues, broadside could cause issues.

 

[tvguy]

We were at CC with some outer bands of Melissa a couple weeks ago. We were on the Treasure and the captain docked us without issue. It was so windy that no umbrellas could be open on the island. We wondered if the Wish class ships were easier to dock - not sure an older ship would have made it in with the wind.

Not a ship Captain, but I think the older, smaller ships would be easier to dock in the wind. Less ship means less impact of the wind.

 

[dad of 3 addicted to DCL]

Retired Naval Officer here; conned aircraft carriers, cruisers and so on. The biggest impact is the current, as the ship is in the water & the current will take you where it will. That is easily overcome by timing your approach to the pier. For ships with as much air sail (amount of the ship above the waterline) wind direction & speed can make the approach tricky, but not necessarily impossible. The below picture is from a visit to CC back in 2016. In the end, you won't know until you get there, but the Captain is quite familiar with the approach, the thrusters and bridge wing controls make it much easier than I've experienced. If they can't make the approach safely, you're better off not going and have a great day at sea.