Shuffleboard Dude
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Posts posted by Shuffleboard Dude
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I think the question should rather be: "WHEN is your favourite cocktail?"
Every drink has its time. The Punch à la Romaine at 2300 is a wonderful thing at 2300, yet before dinner, I consider it an atrocity to my taste buds. The Stout Independence is a seriously good drink. Chieftain of the Clan is definitely on the list. The Bear's Guard would make a nice drink for a sunny afternoon in summer (I had mine on a rainy night in March.)
Then, there's also room for discussion. Should the Sazerac be as dry as they make them?
Do they have the right gin selection on board, and what about the vermouth?
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I hope your wife enjoys the surprise, although I do feel that the surprise would be the Cunard's job and not yours.
Nevertheless, bringing food to the QM2 is a lot like carrying a bucket of water when going for a swim in the ocean.
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It's probably worth remembering that the pound has lost 25% of its value since 2013, 10% alone since April 2018.
So what was once a good price has turned into a rip-off despite the fact that Cunard didn't change anything.
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There is absolutely no need to bring English books. Even for other languages there is a reasonably good selection.
Sadly there is no public catalogue. The library is one of the reasons I prefer the QM2 over any other vessel.
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As an alternative you can turn up at around 1600, then the first guests will leave and tables will become available again.
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Assuming you have a EU passport or a valid visa:
You pack your bags and go. That's it!
Still, I would drop by the purser's desk the day before, just to settle your bills and to tell them that you will vacate your cabin a few days early.
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I suggest to stick to the golden rule of Indian cuisine: If it ain't properly cooked, it ain't food.
Also, nothing says ''Welcome aboard'' like the two hand sanitizer stands at end of the gangway.
In my opinion, they should consider replacing the Pol Acker with hand sanitizer.
Would be a massive improvement in taste. ;p
To brighten your day: https://satwcomic.com/let-s-party
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The servers gather round and sing for me.....please not. :o
For a surprising experience like this, the most venerable RMS. ST.HELENA would have been the vessel of choice.
A ship where the birthday cake (for the ladies) or a bottle of bubbly (for the gentlemen) was a real gift from the line and not part of some cheesy package. In my experience singing was optional, but when it was done, it was performed by the whole dining room. :cool:
That said: Late sitting recommended. If this is your first cruise, try not to get a table for two but a table for about 8-10 close to the captain's table on the lower level (have a word with the Maitre D' in the afternoon). From personal experience I can tell that a British table will be more cheerful than a German one, where usually zeitgeisty weltschmerz prevails. American tables are so-so.
If you order a wine, I'd recommend you to get something that would be difficult to obtain at home. I like the Canadian Pinot Noir, for instance. Wine list (will download a pdf)
Before dinner, you should definitely go for a drink. I like the Commodore Club best, but the Golden Lion has Cask Ales which are hard to get in Germany. Commodore Club Menu (will download a pdf)
An inside cabin will leave you without a sofa. This means that having breakfast in your cabin is a difficult, if not impossible operation. I never missed that on short trips. IMHO Deck 5 is a good location, the QM2 is a very stable vessel, so I don't mind having a forward or aft cabin.
Also, have a look at the daily programmes, linked here:
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"Offer is available to residents of the 50 United States, Canada, Bermuda, Puerto Rico, Mexico and the District of Columbia who are 21 years of age or older"
I hate this....Greetings from Germany ;p
A German walks into QM2's bar......
Seriously: I would never go for a drinks or wine package. They make you drink more alcohol and/or sugar than you should. The interesting drinks in the CC cost more than $11 ad with the wine package, you will never get the interesting bottles (from Canada, Brazil or even India) and you will end up drinking what you could get at home.
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Our first cruise with Cunard on QE2 was on first sitting, but this clashed with some of the sailaways so we would eat in the Lido plus we found that as we came out of dining the people for second sitting were enjoying pre-dinner drinks, canopies and either a harpist or a pianist playing a completely different experience
When we booked the subsequent cruises we booked second sitting we could enjoy the sailaways, also have pre-dinner drinks, canopies and either a harpist or a pianist playing before dinning on a table for 6
I agree, I fail to understand why the first sitting is so popular. After all it's only two hours between afternoon tea and dinner.
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We’ll be spending a few weeks in Australia and NZ Seeing family either next year or year after. Some of the sectors on the world cruise have great itineraries (between 14 and 20 days) which would be good to tie in. Our daughter will be 3, just wondered on these world cruises if many children do any parts of it? Thanks.
The answer is no.*
*According to my limited experience. We used a Union-Castle replacement service (Southampton to Cape Town via the Canaries) and there was exactly one child (not including teenagers) on board.
That said, your daughter might become a star hand have about 1500 to 2000 volunteer part time grandparents to her service. ;)
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Using White Star as a brand name seems an incredibly stupid idea to me.It reminds me of the RMS TITANIC, every single time I hear the name.
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I always wondered how long it would take until a few bags were accidentally dropped into the (not so deep) blue sea.
Now I know, thanks.
Treating water damage is a difficult process and most often not worth the hassle for industrially produced items which can be replaced. In archives and museums they tend to freeze the wet items if air drying is not an option.
https://www.archives.gov/preservation/holdings-maintenance/wet-records
I don't think that the QM2 has any facilites for either laying out wet items or freezing them.
Who was the MC for your ceremony?
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Hilarious :') and to think, this is someone who was elected to run our country .
Oh, I would be happy if some active politicians would miss the boat....
Also, I think that most of the quotes must have been invented. Newspapers do this regularly in these days.
I cannot imagine someone describing missing the QE as the most depressing moment in their life.
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Britain is an Island and like all islands it has a dry and a rainy side - although not in a prototypical manner like on smaller islands.. Have a look at the climate charts on Wikipedia (at the article for the city). If you are in Fort William it will be most probably rainy, if you are in Edinburgh it will be drier.
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Uber is your best bet. They will come right to the door you have exited after US Customs.
I have no intention to criticize anyone for his or her behaviour, but I'd rather be a generous steerage passenger (i.e. inside cabin) than a penny pinching first class guest. So, I'd recommend you to take a regular cab (with a regularly paid driver) and leave the driver (and your steward, and your waiters) with a generous tip.
That said: I'm the most penny pinching guest of all - arriving by NYC city bus at Pioneer/Van Brunt but this is a question of principle rather than money.
Also,he NY city council has voted to limit the numbers of Uber drivers and get them a minimum wage.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/02/nyregion/uber-drivers-pay-nyc.html
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No, these two suites have no balcony.
I seem to remember reading that George Bush had travelled in one of them some years ago. I guess good security with no balcony.
Because there are these dangerous sniper fish on the Newfoundland Bank?
It might be interesting to get an answer from Stephen Payne whether there were public rooms planned there.
IMHO the Atlantic Room on Deck 11 isn't exactly a busy venue, so I guess there might have been other reasons than passengers' opinions.
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Ah, finally someone with a clever choice of stateroom. The main difference to a balcony cabin is that you have to get out of your cabin for breakfast, because there is no couch in an inside cabin and not enough space to have a proper brekkie for two.
Deck 10 is close to the Commodore Club (Deck 9) which is a nice lookout during daytime. Also, I recommend you to get a spa pass for at least some days, the spa has a nice relaxation area with an excellent view. Also, do make use of the lookout underneath the bridge (Deck 11) and the deck chairs on Deck 7. Hanging around in the corridors, however, will be a pretty lonely experience.
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On our last cruise the waiter set down our soups and announced them as Spa soups. Puzzled looks from us. Because it's a bit watery today, he said
Well, whatever floats his boat. :D
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It will be like a British summer. There will be rain (particularly in the south), but it won't be cold. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubrovnik#Climate
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Well the QM2 is an ocean liner- not a cruise ship - therefore the layout is totaly different- and that is one of the reasons we like her so much- I don´t really want another layout! We have enough of that on the other liners- ships- whatever they may be called!
Shoeboxes, the other ones are called shoeboxes.;)
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11:45 @ Heathrow is definitely too tight. I would go for an afternoon connection.
The first train I usually manage to get on in Southampton is the 10:00 service to London.
Btw: Have you considered taking the train to Amsterdam? It will take about 4hrs (+1 Change from GMT to CET) and at least as fast as when going by plane. Also, it might be slightly cheaper.
There are two direct trains a day but you can take any train to Brussels and change there for a Thalys or Intercity service.
Also, the luggage allowance on trains is far more generous than with any airline.
Eurostar: https://www.eurostar.com/rw-en/train/netherlands/amsterdam
Trainline (for tickets with a change in Brussels): https://www.trainline.eu
The Man in Seat 61: https://www.seat61.com/trains-and-routes/direct-eurostar-london-to-amsterdam.htm
If you wish to travel the leisurely way: There's a ferry from Harwich International to Hoek van Holland. It's the largest ferry in the world and quite affordable: https://www.stenaline.co.uk/ferry-to-holland
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Our first impressions on entering the foyer/lobby was lukewarm - we were expecting...wow!!!
You have a point here. This is the general problem with the most famous vessel in the world. Some people are expecting an out of this world luxury experience at a middle class price. Cunard's - quite brilliant - advertising strategy helps a lot in creating this misunderstanding.
A trip on the QM2 is very much a middle class experience, and anyone who seeks absolute luxury should think about chartering his own yacht instead.
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Not a problem. Some ultra-traditionalists may tut that you're not in the tropics, but it IS a vacation and you are on a ship. I have worn and seen many ivory DJs on crossings through the years. [Actually, I've only owned two, but you get the point :)]
I agree - rules on wearing white don't apply if you aren't perfectly sure about your current location.
So don't even think of bringing a sextant. ;p
Cunard drinks are such a rip off..
in Cunard Line
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I assume in case of the Carlsberg you get £2-49 for drinking it?
Let's use the Big Mac index method. Apparently Cunard charges $6.50 for a pint of Guinness at the moment.
While today, £3-29 equals $4,30, five years ago it equalled $5. Ten years ago £3-29 would have equalled about $6!
I agree that Cunard adds 15% tip and there is no VAT included, but then it's worth remembering that a considerable amount of supplies have to be transported from Southampton around the globe in order to reach the ship. I think this is done with the beer too. Your pub is at a shorter distance to the brewery. Probably the pub chain also has a higher bargaining power than Cunard.
So yes, Cunard is more expensive than your local chain pub, but a considerable part of the margin exists due to fact that the pound has lost a lot of value against the dollar. This is of course for political reasons. Eventually you might want to hold HM Government and/or the Bank of England accountable for it. Also, I remember that there has been some referendum, which had quite an impact.....