Has anyone ever traveled by cargo ship?

I know they take passengers, and the cost for a week's (more or less) crossing isn't a heck of lot more than one-way airfare. The fees cover the room, three meals a day, and, of course, the transportation. Since we're not in a hurry, we thought this might be a fun way to get back to the USA.  There's a ship that docks at Liverpool and runs to Newark (or we could get off at Halifax and fly the rest of the way, which might be better), and some that leave Le Harve (sp?) or Rotterdam and basically go to Charleston.

Barring bad weather, it would be very, very restful. 

I know they take passengers, and the cost for a week's (more or less) crossing isn't a heck of lot more than one-way airfare. The fees cover the room, three meals a day, and, of course, the transportation. Since we're not in a hurry, we thought this might be a fun way to get back to the USA.  There's a ship that docks at Liverpool and runs to Newark (or we could get off at Halifax and fly the rest of the way, which might be better), and some that leave Le Harve (sp?) or Rotterdam and basically go to Charleston.

Barring bad weather, it would be very, very restful. 

I looked into it a while ago, it looks like a lot of fun!    Go for it!

I've heard that space is so limited that it might be difficult to plan a move around it.  This was on a website's tips page: "Many ships only have 2 to 4 cabins so you will usually need to book up to 6 months in advance to get the trip that you want in the month that you want to depart in."  I've heard the wait for popular routes is much greater.

Yep, I read all of that. I am assuming that the Daughter will be going over earlier, so she'll be on the receiving end for the furniture and stuff. Once she's on the ground there and the stuff is collected from the flat, I, myself, have all the time in the world.  As long as I get within striking distance of the USA, I can jump on a regional air carrier to get the rest of the way "home". (I mean, "home" could end up being someplace like Wyoming, depending on where the Daughter is offered a job, so there's going to have to be creative travel involved anyway. Maybe a cross-country Amtrak sleeping berth. I always wanted to do that, too.)

There's also a company that will take you to like the West Indies in an actual three (four?) masted schooner sailing ship. 

Still hoping to hear from someone who's actually done one of those cargo container trips.