QuestionEverything

Thanks for your post. I do not know your cruising history. I agree with you regarding the class system comment. Do you sail on Celebrity? Celebrity's class system is far more overt, structured than Cunard.

Thankfully each of us are blessed to be able to have $ to travel. 🙏 This is not the case for the majority of our world. Sigh. With CC and other sites, we are able to get much information that can assist us in purchasing the cruise that best meets our needs. There is no one size fits all and that is good. What we should all be able to agree on is that there is only one (1) ocean liner in the world, and that is the QM2. Long may she sail, blessings QM2! 🤲

Great posts everyone on the QM2. We use her for a one way return from Europe. Have not done a cruise voyage on the QM2 yet, but soon. We like Oceania but since the Simply More, we have no more cruises booked as we do not support mandatory drinks and excursions, both of which we do not use. The QM2 is unique in the world and Cunard assumes their passengers to be intellectually curious and engaged. Like HaveDogWillTravel said, the lecturers are top notch and not focused on itinerary - have had a former British Ambassador to Russia, a Concorde pilot, a retired M16 spy etc. And the library is not to be surpassed by any other vessel and highly used. People who book the QM2 are ship people and the large numbers of people walking the promenade and sitting on the promenade is amazing. The beverage and food carts go up and down the promenade in the afternoon. My spouse and I are ship lovers, we have sailed on many Great Lake bulk carriers as guests of the line - so we know the inner workings of ships and sailing. What many people do not know is the QM2 is much booked by people moving from and to Europe and the US - particularly the military. The QM2 can take a vehicle, storage items and your pets, indeed! That is why the kennel is booked over 1 year in advance due to demand by those moving. The QM2 is everything a big cruise ship is not - she has a reinforced hull, promenade, many, many vistas of the ocean, high level open, like open, vista watching areas because Cunard presumes you are an adult...... Now the history of Cunard remains a bit, the class system, but it is limited to the dining areas, not the awful "ship in a ship" configuration of Celebrity, MSC etc. Those lines I refuse to patronize. The best ship on the ocean, no question. I was in Miami last month and the Icon was docked. I was mortified at the size and immediately I compared the size, density of passengers to the QM2. I would never set foot on the modern cruise ships. Important, the Cunard line provides guests with much linkage to the ocean which the mass lines are increasingly doing away with (Celebrity Edge class has no forward viewing area....). Oceania provides a forward view as well. Everyone has different wants and needs, so good we have a choice. But the QM2 is at the top of the passenger ship food chain indeed. My favorite vessel.

OP thank you for your assessment. We have cruised O quite a bit and been on the QM2 6x, the 7th is in June. The QM2 was not designed as a cruise ship, it is a ocean liner. QM2 is a formal experience, O is a less formal experience QM2 is about the sea and history, O is a cruise ship On both lines, guests are presumed to amuse themselves and are considered adults. On QM2, many passengers focus on the ship part of the experience, not entertainment, pool deck etc. The QM2 has a viewing window where you can watch the bridge. There is an open air bridge with wings below the bridge. There is the ocean liner museum and well, then there is the best part of the QM2, the kennel! Staff are more formal on QM2, they are warm and friendly on O. Your description of the staff looking "sad" and not engaging is correct, I have been told that it is by design as not to interfere with guests unless the guest requests. I have been in the Grill 1x, disliked it as we eat little and the formality and fancy is not our style, we do not want or need a butler and lots of space and not interested in the price. We go regular Britannia class with an in hull balcony. Regular balcony is not needed due to the terraced stern area with amazing sitting, reading and viewing venues, way better than a balcony. We eat in all the alternative dining venues which are amazing custom food of various ethnicities and beats the food in the Grill by a mile and much less $. This eating experience is not widely known by guests, but it is really the best at sea we have every had. Not sure one can compare the lines - they are very different by birth and objective. I value both.

Vineyard View. I appreciate your analysis and thoughtful posts. Total silence on a skipped port is not acceptable. The minimum I expect is the usual bull excuses we hear all the time. But nothing, demonstrates, contempt for the customer. This does not surprise me considering it is O.

Cancelled ports for dubious reasons...... Here is a NCL thread on the same issue. Oceania is part of NCL................ Cruisers are asking questions and getting suspicious like I am. For those who book for the destinations, like me, take care.......................

Interesting pic of the ship from above, how so? Looked like a drone pic. Go to the basics of navigation: If you are using both bow and stern azipods - you are in close quarters. Enough said. Big error here.

Levanah, I did a post above in response to another person above, enjoy. Normandy is beyond awesome and so much history. Please do the Land Trip approach. Cruises have no ability to do this area justice do to time and geography. Not the cruising fault, it is just reality. Please do Mont St. Michele, you will be amazed. Let me know if you have any other questions. Travel well!

Indeed I know the Overlord code name. The land trip I described was one of the highlights of my travel in my life. I want to say the US Cemetery; we escorted dear elderly friends, he is a purple heart US marine, shot down over Vietnam. We walked along the reflecting pond and saw two men working on the lawn. I went over and said "Bonjour" "Merci" I pointed to their work. Both men stood up. I pointed to myself and my spouse and said "Canadian", then pointed to my friends "American". Silence, then one of them said these MOST amazing words: "THANK YOU FOR OUR FREEDOM". YES, that is what the man said. I almost fainted with the intensity of his words. Everyone reading this thread - I saw more American and Canadian flags in the Normandy area than I see in Canada and the US. The dear people of France have NOT forgotten our sacrifices. Please do your land tour and thrive. Over Lord was outstanding. Blessings.

Greetings njkate: I have done the great DD beaches 2x - once on a part day excursion from Le Havre off a Celebrity, and the other from Paris, a drive trip. If you Really want to see the DD beaches and Normandy area, which is gorgeous, - DO THE DRIVE TRIP. Rental vehicle easy, drive north on freeway to Bayeux, many hotels, inns and great restaurants. Hire Over Lord tours. They will drive you to each of the beaches, the US cemetery. The guide is full time with you, the guide has a customized book for each beach with photos, historical presentation etc. Very important to get to the DD Museum, it is the essence of understanding what happened.... https://www.bayeuxmuseum.com/en/memorial-museum-battle-of-normandy/ Our tour was 2 full days, outstanding and our guide took us to the Canadian cemetery as well. Was not expensive at all. You see what you want on your time not on a tour. After DDay beaches, go to Mont St. Michele, OMG, a total amazing castle on top of a hill in the tidal flats, built 1,100 AD. No cruise line takes people to this amazing place. https://en.normandie-tourisme.fr/unmissable-sites/the-mont-saint-michel/ Can drive to Honfleur which is a wonderful spot with an amazing harbour and then go to Le Havre, wonderful location and stay at the newish Hilton Garden Inn on the waterfront, great hotel and great restaurants. Hope you find this helpful.

Morning Jordan61. Both Trafalgar and Globus are upper middle level companies that focus on North American guests, so they know the expectations. Their tours are comparable in itinerary and close in pricing. I have done Globus extensively. The buses are Not full, so not crowded, they rotate seating every day so no one hogs the front. Your main luggage is picked up at your room and taken to the bus. About a 1/3 of the time, you remain 2 nights in one location, so it is not moving every day. Always free afternoons or mornings in the schedule and depending upon location they may include a regionally specific meal with 2 included drinks. All one's attraction admission costs are included in the price. In June, we are doing a 24 day Globus tour of all of Great Britain, all 5 countries including ferry to and from Ireland. Once back to London, going to Southampton, doing the Ise of Wright, then taking the QM2 back to NY!!!!. A most fabulous trip. This itinerary is very complete in terms of seeing the main cities/towns and attractions. I know that many cruise addicts diss bus tours, however, if you want to Really see and experience the world, it is the only way to travel. Bus travel and vehicle travel is by far my favorite way to see the world, cruising not so much. There are some places best seen by ship, South America/Panama/ Alaska etc, but not everywhere. Hope this is of assistance to you. We are not guaranteed our next breath, so Get R Done indeed whatever mode of travel works best for You - it is all about You.

Thank you Travelling2Some, and many of the following posters - Well done. It is obvious you are NOT sheeples, well done indeed. There are many sheeples out there who get "processed" by corporations, we see them here on CC. 90% of consumers are Sheeple. Important - correspond with NCL, Oceania, Regent management and advise that they have lost your patronage due to their bull S cancel port decision. Remember - you leaving has no value unless management gets much pushback. You all notice, the most nasty creatures on a ship are the Guest Relations and the Excursions desk - all deliberate of course. Get out of the NCL group and explore cruising and frankly, like I am doing now, customized land tours and Really see the world. My travel $ have mostly left cruising and is moved to Globus, Trafalgar and a brand new Porsche to drive around North America. There is an old saying from Ann Landers: "No body abuses you with out YOU giving them your permission" What ever you choose, analyze, and enjoy. Blessings to all.

Oceania, part of the NCL company, is well known for removing ports. In 2024, the corporate messaging was that all port times would be reduced by 1 hr minimum for the same BS environmental.. I travel only for the ports. I am done with Oceania because every voyage has a minimum of 1 or 2 ports that are cancelled early or during the voyage for "weather". News flash NCL, Oceania - with the AIS ship and port app, any guest can see what the weather is going forward, what ships have just arrived or are at pier. I know what ships are supposed to be at each of my ports, so I know who got there and whom did not, Oceania. Oceania cancelled Nuuk on Greenland on my last August trip. So we spent 2 days going back and forth in the ocean. Humm. The AIS showed the approach to Nuuk had good waves but there was no messaging that a ship could not anchor in the bay. We showed many guests the AIS app and it became well appreciated by guests. Yes there are circumstances where a ship can not approach, anchor or dock. I spent many years on many Great Lake ships as a guest of the line, so I am well aware of wind sheer, currents etc. But all this NCL and Oceania PC messaging is garbage.

Hi TheHawk1. Exactly to each their own. I despise the E class vessels, sailed once and never again. I sail for the vistas and destinations; the onboard is far down in importance. Other folk have the opposite priority. Many ships have a forward view lounge with food and drinks to facilitate amazing all day sailing to and through amazing places, as I described earlier. Leaning over the balcony will not facilitate the outstanding forward vista photographs on the walls of my house to be sure. Hence why I patronize now the premium and luxury lines as they have the forward view high lounges that provide, every guest, with a panorama of where we are going. The Connie and the QM2, the QM2, with her fully open to the air extended viewing area under the bridge, are my favorite vessels. I have been spoiled as I have travelled much on Great Lakes freights as staff of the line and enjoyed being right at the front of the vessel going under bridges and through the thousand islands in Ontario. Seeing where one is going is important.

Marne! Thanks so much. I always check visa requirements well before I leave to ensure I have a hard copy and copy on the device. The situation does not in any way speak well of Oceania. Especially when the ports of call are in foreign countries with limited English. Obviously Oceania did not care enough to protect their passengers and/or the Oceania staff are incompetent. Sigh, the more I hear of Oceania and ports, the more I lose confidence. Sail well dear Marne!

Thanks for your post. Helpful. Could you elaborate on the O issues at the embarkation ports - I cruise for the ports, not the onboard, so port issues are very important to me. Thank you Marne.

Thanks for your review. Most welcome. Glad you had a good time. Q - what O ships did you sail on? I ask because the O ships are not comparable to the big Celebrity ships due to size, entertainment etc. Thanks.

Like ya. Do you have pictures of Venice rising out of the sea from the Sky Lounge? Do you have pictures of the bow going through the Panama Canal locks with the mechanical donkeys rising to the top of the locks, with a wonderful beverage in your hand, sitting at the front of the Sky Lounge? Do you have pictures of Cape Horn, on approach, and going around the Horn with video being made sitting in the Sky Lounge so you can get a 180 degree vista? There you go dear. Have a great day!

Hi D. B. Hope you are well. Did this most amazing geology venue in 2015 in January, their summer. I was so hot there were nurses parked along various walkways with blood pressure machines! Ig Falls is the most amazing physical geography experience. As Elinor Roosevelt said "Poor Niagara"! Well worth the extra time and expense. For Everyone - check, you might need a yellow fever shot.

Forward, yes indeed. Evidence Celebrity newer classes. Enough said. Have a great day.

The consumer will decide, as always.

D. B. I have done that on the Oceania Insignia, amazing indeed. I started cruising in 1989 on the Sovereign of the Seas, I am aware of all the changes in cruising. One key decision by Celebrity in their new ships is to reduce venues to the sea. This is to keep the passengers looking Inward and SPENDING. The mass cruise lines are all about this configuration. Move to the premium lines and above, this is not a big item. We are ALL well taken care of irregardless of our "status". Enjoy your voyage indeed!

100%, I agree. I will not patronize any ship that does not have a great forward view for all passengers. I think of going through the Panama and observing the mules working and the lock staff. I think of being in the Sky View on the Millie watching Venice rise out of the sea!! Oh my. Humm, would not see that on Celebrity's newer ships. The Connie is my favorite ship on the seas, next to the QM2. Easy for me to eliminate many ships from consideration - size and forward view. Have great travels D. B.!

Certainly many posters on this thread not complimentary to Luminae.

Well said. 100%