2irisheyes

BA usually very expensive for one way flights at least when booking your own flight. Re 23 kg cabin bag, you need to be able to lift it into overhead locker and it has to conform to their size limit.

balf - I have had heart valve replaced twice plus other probs and have used All Clear and Able2Travel in the last few years. Able2Travel is my latest discovery. Saga didn't want to know or so I thought as their quote was so high.

Some insurance companies have refused to cover me and some have been extremely expensive. For my last few trips (outside Europe) I have used Able2Travel. In my case they were about half the amount quoted by most other insurers/brokers. It's a bit of a minefield. As I get older and reach certain age milestones it may well become prohibitive. I hate having to keep going through the same list of questions with each different company. I keep a list in front of me when phoning in case I forget anything and can anticipate their next question. Good luck.

When I have come across Australians or Americans who like to moan/whine about the British (or nationals from other countries) I find it entertaining to ask which country their ancestors hailed from and then watch their faces as they sheepishly reply. I would think there are bigots (or ignorant people)amongst all nationalities but as I haven't met them all I could not say for sure. As Salacia says, it is not on to bash passengers from other countries. It certainly isn't clever either.

Hi Capn - sorry to hear you are back on crutches. Our son had the same injury in August and had to use the cast until end October. At least nowadays they use the removable boot type. On the downside of that, people can be tempted to do things they shouldn't - re the foot I mean. Enjoy your trip but don't trip.

Pikkewyn - indeed, perhaps you did pick a quiet time. Just as well everyone didn't pick that time. As quite a few people, like us, were in hotels and had to check-out late morning/noon it made sense to head to the Good Hope Centre on leaving hotels.

Ha ha:)

Pikkewyn - You were more fortunate than many others in that you had such a smooth embarkation. Our experience at the Good Hope centre in 2013 was quite chaotic.

bill p - sounds like you have calmed down. Enjoy your cruise/voyage. Perhaps I was hasty in my comment about repeated posts.

Well it's a clever plan but misguided I suggest. If you remove the auto tip, any cash that you give to any crew member will be handed to their supervisors to be included in the tip pool that is otherwise fed from the auto tips. They are duty bound to do this as to not do so puts them in breach of their rules and will probably result in their contract not being renewed.

Ditto to that.

Bill P - you will have to think of another way to get back at Cunard. If I were so disgruntled with Cunard I would be sure to take my future business elsewhere.

I will make sure not to repeat each post - once is quite sufficient to make a point.

When I was young (many years ago) you often heard the question "what's for pudding". In those days many puddings/desserts were steamed suet or sponge puddings. Other puddings/desserts on offer were pies/tarts. As time went by and more people ate in restaurants the general term dessert became more common. Over time the usage of words change. For example some people call dinner "tea" or "supper". Some people still call the radio "wireless". Getting back to the coffee issue, I assumed in Britannia that the waiters tried to serve the coffee asap so that they could get the meal over more quickly and get cleared up and off duty. We just say we want it after dessert. Petit fours have been served to us with tongs from a plate held by the waiter onto individual plates. We are just lucky to enjoy it all no matter what they call it or when they serve it.

abo - You have quoted parts of Cunard's marketing talk which I, being a cynic in my old age, never for one minute believed. If you booked a Vantage fare you would only be eligible for whatever compensation Cunard chose to give if the later fare was also a Vantage fare. How easy it is for Cunard to introduce fares with new names at the drop of a hat. If you get a good deal out of them - well done. They now seem to have "early saver" and "saver" fares. We have a sector of QM2 world cruise booked and I have no idea what sort of a fare we have. Nowhere in our paperwork is the type of fare stated. My head hurts - I need a lie down.

I doubt that there would be hosted duplicate bridge as this would need a director to organise sessions. If a director has been employed and is starting before the longer world cruise there could well be bridge on the sea days. Check out the daily events sheet. Some lines have unhosted bridge organised by one of the passengers. If a time, place is set aside for this it will be listed.

Capnpug - ooh you are awful. What's the saying, careful what you wish for:)

ausethanol - At least you have the advantage (or not) of knowing what to expect - chaos. We were not expecting chaos and were somewhat surprised. Have a great trip. We are doing the final leg again this year but this time it is from Dubai to Southampton. How organised embarkation will be in Dubai, who knows.

Cunard and other cruiselines will give you a poor exchange rate. Although they can convert your account into sterling when charging it to a card, I am not sure if they would be interested in accepting cash sterling as they do not deal in sterling. The exchange rates used by mastercard/visa are the bulk rates so always better than available on the high street even for the best places in London.

ausethanol - I would say from arriving at the Convention Centre to boarding the ship took about 1-2 hours. Pre-cruise we stayed at the Best Western Cape Suites which turned out to be just up the road from the embarkation point. If we hadn't had luggage we could have walked it.

ausethanol - (mentioned earlier) embarkation in Cape Town in 2013 took place at the Good Hope Convention Centre. Check your final paperwork/tickets.

The main delay was at the Convention Centre. As an earlier poster advised, it might be better if you arrive later. At least there are seats and refreshments.

For those who wonder why Cunard and other cruiselines use ports without proper cruise passenger facilities my answer, in the case of Cape Town, is that it is a great place to visit (not just pass through) and it was part of the attraction in booking the sector. Smaller ships are able to dock at the V&A port area which I am sure would have decent facilities.

ausethanol - We boarded QM2 in Cape Town for the final sector of the 2013 world cruise. Because there is not a proper cruise terminal where the ship was docked embarkation took place at the Good Hope Convention Centre (from memory I think that was the name). It is an older building with domed typed roof. After being dropped off there getting into the building was fine (up steps after handing over luggage not sure if there are lifts). We then went into a large hall where tea/coffee/cookies were available free. When it came to the actual checking in process that was when the chaos was evident. It was badly organised and there appeared to be no proper system. The instructions on who should check in when was not being adhered to - a bit of a free for all. We were then bussed to the port where we went through the tented area. The parking area was on rough ground. Once we were on the ship all was well and we soon got over the chaotic process. It is possible that Cunard will have learnt something from this year's experience and will attempt to improve things for the next time. I am not telling you of our experience to depress you, I am just telling you how it was this year. Just go with a handful of patience and a sense of humour. Enjoy your trip.

Joy R - if using a UK hairdryer you would need a dual voltage hairdryer that can be switched to the correct voltage. There are many available.

Thanks for posting and for the tip re duvet being too warm. We have had the same problem on another cruiseline.

njhorseman - I read of the increase in Bermuda press. I assumed it had come into effect. If it isn't in effect yet that is good news for me as I will be there in November. In the articles I have read an implementation date is not mentioned. I posted an apology after my earlier post correcting the $50 + 25% to $62.50 (not $65) but the post has disappeared.

The price of taxis with blue flag (licensed guide) has increased by 25% so now $50 per hour 1-4 persons and $65 per hour 5-6 persons.