Selbourne

1 hour ago, Megabear2 said:

Selbourne the OP of this thread HAD completed his Questionnaire, received no reply so resubmitted it to then be denied.  He was not a full time user of a chair so was not denied boarding but the fact remains his form was not acknowledged or actioned.

 

P&O need to acknowledge these submitted forms by more than the note on your personaliser stating formsubmitted on X date as that does not confirm they have actioned the request for assistance.

My response wasn’t to the OP, but to a new poster with a similar experience. 
 

I agree however that with all the problems and bad PR at present, it is ludicrous that P&O don’t issue proper acknowledgements. It’s always been a frustration to me, even before the current problems. 

1 hour ago, Mareblu said:

we realised the fireworks pontoon was to be positioned only yards from our aft balcony.

We thoroughly enjoyed the fireworks but, as with the naming ceremony, we felt that the info provided by the ship about viewing was lacking. It simply said that viewing was from the aft open decks or Pavillion. As the Pavillion is a side only view, we assumed that all the fireworks were shoreside, so stayed on our balcony. We had absolutely no idea that there was a fireworks pontoon behind the ship so, consequently, when the fireworks started we realised that we couldn’t see the ones at the back at all, but it was then too late to move. How hard would it have been to say “Fireworks will be along the shoreside and from a pontoon at the aft of the ship”? 
 

Anyway, we still thoroughly enjoyed what we saw and I’m pleased that you had pole position - deservedly so after having been pushed a bit too far back from the naming ceremony!

3 minutes ago, new to cuising said:

Was being a little tongue in cheek to be honest. I’m not on board this time. I do wonder why Cunard note these sail bys in the itinerary. I’ve experienced the same with various fjords and headlands around Norway coast, and even a promised sail by of lizard point, eddystone rock lighthouse and lands end, all obscured by fog and at least ten miles away although we did see Bishop Rock light house, or at least the light from it in the gloom! We now treat sail bys as a route marker/ time slot as opposed to a viewpoint.

 

Having said that only one sailby in nearly thirty cruises comes to mind which was successful and that was north cape with captain Clarke on Aueen Elizabeth. Reaching the cape just before midnight in the June sunshine, he stopped the ship, and did a full clockwise rotation “on the spot” followed by a counterclockwise rotation. It meant everyone had the opportunity to get great shots from all parts of the ship

We’ve learnt our lesson with this cruise and will ignore any claims of ‘scenic’ cruising days in future! Our November cruise on QA just has normal

ports only and, if we still decide to go, we will do so knowing that the accessibility features (cabin and theatre) may still be poor and the promenade deck still won’t have a decent outlook 😂

Thankfully, whilst these have been big disappointments, there’s an awful lot that we really like about Queen Anne and I guess that we have the benefit of not being able to compare to QV and QE. 

22 minutes ago, Cruise Puss said:

Having cruised on P&O for 20 yrs, until recently, I can tell you that Cunard is superior in every way. The staff used to be on a parr, but the staff who have been with P&O for years are not happy bunnies, and the younger staff go around with faces like a wet week (this is obviously a generalisation, some are great). 

We are not returning to P&O in the foreseeable future, and are cruising with Cunard, Princess, Celebrity and, when we can get the courage up to fly again (we haven't flown since 2006!) we will be going on Silverseas and Seabourn.

I'm not quite sure how anyone can compare Cunard with P&O IMHO. ☺️

You clearly have your mind made up, but I don’t agree. Over the last year alone we have been on 4 P&O cruises (on 4 different ships) and 2 Cunard ones (QM2 and QA). Naturally we have been making comparisons. Whilst overall we feel that the Cunard experience is better (as it should be given the price differential), there are quite a few areas where we feel the two are comparable and, dare I say it, a few where P&O are better (ducks for cover 😂)

16 minutes ago, new to cuising said:

Judging by the online mapping QA appeared very close to some of the Scottish Islands especially on the starboard side. Obviously some of these charts may not be as accurate as can be expected, but equally shipping channels must be adhered to. Could it be that people were looking out of the wrong side! We did a round Britain in 2009 on QM2 and someone tried to tell me they hadn’t seen the land. They were rather surprised when I showed them photos of the vast numbers of cars and people on the Yorkshire coast! Yes my fellow passengers had been looking towards Norway!

I think you are confusing Thursday with Friday, but actually neither were as advertised. Our cabin is on the starboard side BTW. 
 

To clarify, our transit around the top of Scotland was a considerable distance from the coast. That’s fine. 
 

On Thursday the itinerary advertised “Isle of Skye - Sail By”. In reality we spent most of the day passing Lewis and adjacent islands on the starboard side. Again, these were too far away to be described as particularly scenic, other than around an hour or so when we came closer to them at one point, but it was OK and as this hadn’t been advertised that was also fine. 
 

The issues really started thereafter. By the time we reached Skye the light was fading and we were also a considerable distance from the shore. Other than a very distant view before we got there, we just didn’t see Skye at all and even if it had still been completely clear we were just too far away for it to be described as scenic. 
 

Then comes Friday which was described as “Scenic Scottish Isles Cruising”. I am not exaggerating when I say this, but we did not see land for the entire hours of daylight and almost the entire day wasn’t even in Scotland. We basically had a full sea day heading out past Ireland and then coming back again. I stress, nothing scenic about it at all (just sea) and certainly not Scottish Isles. By the time we got back to the Scottish Isles, it was nighttime and dark. 
 

What was particularly irritating was that we considered this cruise alongside other British Isles cruises, including one on Britannia (a ship we like) that was less than half the price. The reason that we chose Queen Anne was partly to try the new ship but also because of the two advertised scenic cruising days, as this aspect hugely appealed to us. 

4 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

But you might reasonably have expected a more helpful cabin than you have.

True, and it would have been nice had Cunard delivered the itinerary that was advertised, with Friday being the promised “Scenic Scottish Isles Cruising” rather than a sea day where we didn’t see a speck of land all day! These are the two major disappointments for us and, in truth, we expected better in both respects. 
 

However, promenade deck aside, we really like the ship. We think she is classy and upmarket, and if my wife was able bodied I think she’d become a favourite for us. Service has been excellent and food has, in the main, been very good. We have really enjoyed Britannia Club and would recommend it. The staff and managers have all been superb. 
 

Whilst we’ve had mixed weather, we have been blessed with calm seas and we haven’t felt an inch of movement from the ship the whole cruise. We have some white caps today for the first time and she’s still completely stable. 
 

Anyone who is able bodied and gets the itinerary that was sold to them would have a superb experience IMHO. 

2 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

We have the meal this evening which is to be based on British food.  Hopefully it will be very good.

 

One of the gripes today is that the guests in the seated area all left with a Queen Anne goodie bag.  The passengers had a copy of the souvenir programme but nothing to mark the occasion apart from this.  The remainder of upset revolves around no Royal and the five ladies who operated the switch.  I find both very amusing but particularly the grumble about.no gift.  Clearly the Liverpool naming was intended to be a marketing campaign as much as anything else. 

 

It would be hard for me to complain due to.my bargain basement fare but really and truly yesterday is not something to have a major problem with.

Well we paid top dollar and didn’t expect a gift, although the souvenir programme was sort of one!

5 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

I must say that, as a group, Cunard passengers seem to me to include a rather high percentage of people who are looking for something to moan about, as is evident from some of the reviews.

 

What could there be not to enjoy yesterday (unless of course one were trying to watch from the Grills Lounge😀😀)? Even the weather seems to have been cooperative.

 

Did you get a nice celebratory meal?

We’ve heard a lot of people saying that they prefer QV and QE but not necessarily in a complaining way. We can’t offer any view having not been on either. 
 

Conversely, as with any cruise line, there are also those who wear rose tinted spectacles when it comes to their beloved cruise line and are incapable of acknowledging shortcomings, so it can work both ways. 
 

We have a naming gala dinner this evening. I just asked to see the menu in case we wanted anything a la carte but it’s still being finalised apparently. 

11 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Well the mood on here is very down.  Virtually everyone I've spoken to today is moaning about something!  Very tiring after the long day and night just past.

 

After being up from 5.00am yesterday to see the sail in, wandering the steets of Liverpool, being escorted round a fascinating vessel called The Danny and then standing through the ceremony and back onboard at 8.25pm I'm not really in the mood for all the doom and gloom so have retired with a good book to a chair away from everyone after watching the lovely Celia Imrie In the theatre.

 

My opinion only. The send-off was lovely, the people of Liverpool very welcoming and I didn’t go to bed until 2.00am so the party must have been good.

 

A large number were enjoying the Pavillion, still going strong at 11.30pm when I decanted to The Bright Lights with my table companions.  We enjoyed the day enormously and no matter what you make of some of the decisions it was a unique and memorable occasion that I for one am very glad I had the opportunity to enjoy. 

 

I've even made a new friend, a lady I met ashore last night who does three jobs as a cleaner and bar person who wanted to know all about cruise ships and travelling around the world seeing sites she said she could only dream of.  She's 73 and our conversations made me appreciate even more how very lucky I am to be travelling on this lovely ship no matter who her Godparent is or how she compares to her predecessors. It very humbling to receive profuse thanks for something as simple as a handful of photographs of the occasion.

 

 

Perhaps you’ve been unlucky MB. We’ve not encountered any of that. Thought of you this morning when I went to the Pursers desk to get some envelopes for end of cruise tips. There was a couple sat nearby with an officer. Both wearing face masks. I wondered if it was the offending couple from yesterday. 

18 minutes ago, tring said:

 

Glad to be of help, since you are so helpful to others.

 

Just wondering if you are sailing solo on Aurora.  As upgrade prices are pp for two people, I think a single traveller has to pay both of those, hence double the upgrade cost charged, if successful.  DH just found that written in the T&C's, so was correct for us.  It also says if you do not pay for the upgrade (they do not take payment automatically), then you will not get your own cabin back, but would still get a cabin of the same grade.  We were toying with not paying if we did not like a location offered as we would have been happy with any in our initial grade, but we felt there was a chance they could have put us in a cabin of a different grade, but a bad one.  Worth reading all the gen about the bidding system.

 

 

I’ve not really looked into the bid to upgrade Ts and Cs, as the ones that we’ve been offered have never been good value, but I was under the impression that if you made a bid you lodged your payment details at the time and, if you were ‘successful’ then you were locked into having it. I didn’t realise that you could pull out of it if you didn’t like the ‘upgrade, that was allocated? 

1 hour ago, wendover said:

I should have been enjoying our first evening on Aurora. A Mediterranean cruise to celebrate my 77th birthday. We were very much looking forward to our cruise especially as it was on Aurora. We have had so many lovely cruises on her. However, this cruise was not to be. There was an unpleasant feeling when we went to get help with boarding. Something just wasn't right and everyone knew except us. We were deftly handed from one person to another and then told that I wouldn't be allowed on board because I hadn't been allocated an evacuation chair and staff to help me. We were astounded. We book our cruises very much in advance as I need an adapted cabin and they seem to get booked very early on. I am a full-time wheelchair user and have always found it very easy to get around Aurora on my own, so it is a real holiday for both of us. I had spent days researching every port, to make sure we didn't miss any accessible places. We were (in short) prepared for the cruise, more than ready for a holiday, and looking forward to it all SO MUCH! Now, back at home, we are unravelling all the complicated arrangements we had made with friends and family who were going to look after/use our house while we were away, it is so complicated, I can't explain. We are completely devastated, beyond words.

I am truly sorry to hear about this. As others have said, it should be obvious if you have been allowed to book an accessible cabin that you need assistance.  
 

However, may I ask one critical question? Had you completed and submitted the “On Board Needs Questionnaire”, which is now compulsory, and on that form ticked that you would need 1:1 assistance?
 

Up until now, it seems that those who have been denied boarding had failed to do so. If we start to hear about people being denied boarding who had correctly completed and submitted the form then that’s a whole new issue. 

Just to reiterate my point that those reporting no noise disturbance in cabins is most likely down to the fact that they have been fortunate to have had considerate neighbours both sides of them, rather than the construction of the ship, I was woken after 1am this morning by our inconsiderate neighbours. It’s always the same side and it’s not crashing and banging, it’s talking. What they find to talk about incessantly after 1 o’clock in the morning is beyond me 😡

5 minutes ago, richard_london said:

I don't know if the textured wall/headboard behind the bed helps deaden the sound a bit, or I was lucky, but couldn't hear anything from the other side.

It doesn’t sadly. The side we get noise disturbance from is the side behind our huge padded headboard. 
 

It all depends on the cabin neighbours that you end up with. If they are considerate, talk in hushed tones when neighbours are likely to be asleep, and don’t have their TV on too loud, then people will assume that the sound insulation is brilliant. If, however, you have an inconsiderate person next to you (as we do on one side) then you realise that it isn’t. 

Well I’m very glad that we stayed on the ship. We had clear (albeit distant) sight of the stage from our balcony and could hear the music clearly (although I use that term lightly with the DJ). 
 

Andrea Bocelli was brilliant, although I can’t believe that they flew him over for just 2 songs! As for the rest of it - not for us I’m afraid. We’ve had better quality entertainment on the ship!
 

As for the presenters - I just dismay at the appalling diction that so many people use nowadays. They sound so illiterate when words like ‘bottle’ are pronounced ‘Bo-all’ 🙄

42 minutes ago, MylesS said:

Seems to be a common reply to various people commenting on no royalty from Cunard:
"Following the media reports of ill health and the royals not wanting to distract from the recently announced election, we weren’t expecting any members of the royal family to attend the naming event, and we fully support their need to prioritise these matters."

Except that a Royal attendee would have no conflict with the general election at all and they are still doing engagements. Maybe Cunard asked and none of the top team was interested?

1 minute ago, molecrochip said:

cough.. google....

Hilarious. At least it costs nothing and requires no security or helicopters. Glad we stayed on board! 

2 minutes ago, molecrochip said:

Godparent....

 

I can confirm.... it's nobody Royal... and most people will hate it.

 

I'm not allowed to mention what it is until 4pm. Strict embargo.

“what” it is? Not even a human? 😂

The music that this DJ is playing could not be more out of sync with the average Cunard customer 😂

4 minutes ago, Host Hattie said:

And can you see anything?

This is the view from our balcony. Unless we move again, my theory was correct 🤞

4 minutes ago, MylesS said:

Maybe they've called in sick 😉

Or more likely in this day and age, working from home 😂

Less than an hour to go and we still don’t know who the Godparent is? With this level of secrecy I can only assume that we are getting The King, The Queen, The US President and the Pope - all at once! 

Two police rib boats now patrolling, each with multiple officers. Has to be a senior royal 

Just now, Mareblu said:

Any helicopters landing for a pick-up at Gatcombe Park?

I heard a helicopter earlier and my wife spotted a Police boat. 

4 minutes ago, Bell Boy said:

It appears the Cat is now out of the Bag !  Taking the centre stage at todays ceremony It has been reported up in Liverpool that Roberta Mundula who is already the 'Godmother' is truly thrilled and humbled by her role on the quayside .

 

So if Roberta is  Queen Anne Godmother she is also a Godparent  I would think 🤔

May not be a Royal after all 🤷‍♂️

I read that article but assumed it just referred to the shipyard? Whilst it would be an enormous anticlimax, it would be quite funny if after all the secrecy it was someone that nobody has heard of. Just rejoined the ship and walked the red carpet, so I’m still optimistic 🤞

12 minutes ago, jay1283 said:

 

It's always a lady as far as I know, and that applies to all ships not just Cunard.

I thought so too, hence my theory that it would be The Queen. I was just wondering, as they’ve used the term Godparent rather than Godmother. Perhaps it’s to do with all this gender neutral nonsense. It will be a they / them! 😂

If it’s not The King or The Queen then I am at a loss as to why all the secrecy. Princess Anne’s engagements are publicised well in advance.