3rdGenCunarder

Thanks for that info. Does Brooklyn still have the separate priority lounge? The last time I boarded in Brooklyn (maybe 5 years ago) it was crowded because they held the in-transit people there as well as embarking grills/diamonds.

further boarding question. Does Brooklyn have a priority line for grills/diamond passengers?

I was disappointed to learn that the hop-on-hop-off bus in Saguenay isn't running any more. I was hoping to go to Chicoutimi to see the Pulperie and wander around the town. We did this a few years ago, and were able to use the bus to get around. How available are taxis and Ubers in Saguenay? Also, which is better/more available in Quebec City, Uber or taxis? How easy is it to get a taxi or Uber back to the ship if I go somewhere a few miles away? How about buses? Would I have to get a transit card, or can I pay for each ride with cash or a credit card?

There isn't a lot to do in Sydney. Your ship probably offers some of the tours I've done on past trips. If you like history, Fortress Louisbourg is excellent. There's an Alexander Graham Bell museum in Baddeck. This time (QM2), I'm going to a Celtic village. Most tours will involve an hour drive or so each way.

Yes, please! I loved the Neptunes. And the hands-on cooking classes with lunch afterwards.

Another hijack question. How was check-in and boarding in Brooklyn?

I agree about the times. Whether I'm in steerage or Grills, I don't see any pattern. Disembarkation times do seem to be top to bottom.

Which ship? I've been in a corner aft on three of the four Vistas and loved it. Once, on Zuiderdam we had rough weather and it wasn't bad. That said, I'm a pretty hardy sailor. If it's Koningsdam or Rotterdam, I wouldn't do it. K'dam was an uncomfortable ride in the back and it wasn't bad weather.

I think that's a good choice. You can have the partition between the verandahs opened so you can share the outside space more easily.

My cruise to Quebec City arrives at the end of September, and I've been checking to see where we will dock. Probably won't know for a week. But I did find out that the new terminal can handle more passengers than the old one can. That's why they built it, to manage larger ships better. On busy days, they can have 4 or 5 ships in port now. Google maps gives the terminal address as 300 Rue de l'Estuaire. Do not go to Dalhousie Street. If you look at Google maps, you'll see that the terminals are not near each other--not terribly far as the crow flies but separated by water.

You can have only one entry at a time. Check with Holland America to see if they're checking for the second entry when you board the ship (Cunard did this in June) or if it will be checked before your return to Canada from Alaska at Prince Rupert.

Thank you all for the answers!

Cunard has been sending emails about my upcoming cruise. telling me how wonderful it will be and suggesting ways to make it special (by buying extras, of course). The latest was about dining. it said that afternoon tea is in the Britannia Restaurant or Kings Court. So have they stopped using the Queens Room, or is this another example of Cunard's inability to keep track of itself? (Tea was in the QR on QE in June, so I'm inclined to think this is an error.) Does anyone have recent experience with vegan menus? The website says to choose the night before, but does not say to make arrangements in advance of the cruise, as people do for severe allergies or medical conditions. Are there still "always available" items in Britannia? And finally, what production shows are they doing at the moment? Please, please, please, don't tell me Apassionata!!! .

We were aft of K'dam, deck 7. The balcony was not as deep as the balconies on the Vistas. I love the corner afts on the Vistas, but I wouldn't do it again on the K'dam. That ship banged and slapped the water in "following seas" (waves approaching at the back). Terrible ride at the back of the ship. Forward and midships were fine. We had very rough weather on Zuiderdam one time, and there was motion at the back, but it wasn't the horrible bang and shudder we had on K'dam in weather that wasn't very rough at all.

I find it odd that they specify full transit as an exception to dropping the test requirement, but there's no mention of partial transits. People who work there come onboard for a partial, too. And there are shore excursions, so passengers will be going into Panama.

I agree about the internet. I don't use it a lot on any given day. In fact, I rarely used all my Diamond minutes. I check email, maybe the weather for an upcoming port. I have better things to do on vacation than be online. But now I have to "pay" for the whole day in order to use 20 minutes. I'll be on QM2 next month. I hope they will have the alternative restaurant in the Lido because nothing will get me into the Verandah again. In all my cruises, the worst dinner by far was in the Verandah. Service was slow, food was overcooked and dry, and the Maitre d' was obnoxious. I enjoy the cocktail parties because they feel like a festive occasion. It's fun to see everyone dressed up on a "gala" night.

It's possible they have to "make do" with fewer musicians. There was jazz a few nights in Commodore Club on QE in June. I enjoyed them more than the string trio (out of tune!!!) and the pianist (not as good as others I've heard on Cunard). One afternoon at tea, there was a solo guitarist who was excellent.

That's correct. The only train option this year was up and back on the same train. The White Pass Railway website was very clear about it early on, after the decision was made (by Canada, not the railroad). But cruise lines lagged behind, still selling other options even though they wouldn't be running. There were a lot of confused and unhappy posts on the Alaska board about it. The rock slides--I think it's now up to 3 or 4--are going to be an ongoing issue. That slope is very steep and it will be difficult to stabilize it. With both berths on that dock unavailable, Skagway has only two berths. They were allowing a ship to dock at the end of the railway dock and tender passengers over to the ferry dock, but I don't know if that's still an option after the newer rockslides.

I recommend a sheltered balcony, midships. Low and middle gives you the best ride if it gets rough, and you never know with the north Atlantic how it will be. I second the advice to get a cabin on the south-facing side. It gives more light and it can be warm, even on a cool/cold day. I would not go for an obstructed balcony. Those lifeboats are VERY ORANGE and on a sunny day, they can give the room an orange glow. . Just be aware of what you're getting. The sheltered balcony is actually in the hull of the ship and is not glass-fronted. The minus is that you can't see the ocean when you're sitting. But if you stand and look out, you get a great view of the sea. Don't worry about being on deck 6 under the open promenade deck. I've never had noise issues being under there, or under the buffet.

If the deck plans are anything to go by, there will be no chairs on the "promenade deck." The plans look exactly like K'dam, with narrow stretches and lots of turns. The only place to sit on K'dam's "promenade deck" (and they know better than to try and call it that) is on the benches that hold extra life jackets. I hope this pic comes through. This is one of the narrow sections of K'dam's version of the "promenade decck."

I have several comments. First, every time Cunard puts out information, I see more similarities to HAL's Koningsdam. I had to laugh about the "specially designed" sliding glass roof. That is not a new concept. QE2 had one, although it was rarely opened because it tended to get stuck. But every HAL ship has one, and they do use them, especially in warm climates. I can also tell you that they can be closed quickly, as we discovered in a sudden rainstorm in St Lucia. The enclosed pool is a large area, and the double height makes it a pleasant space. Yes, there's a huge screen. But that isn't necessarily awful. It depends on how it's used. Admittedly, my only Princess cruise was more than 10 years ago, but I hated that they had movies and LOUD soundtracks during the day. OTOH, on the K'dam, the screen showed abstract shape-shifting designs during the day, and no or minimal sound. It was easy to ignore. I think they showed a nature video for an hour in the afternoon. My favorite thing on K'dam (and it's a short list) was the evening movie by the pool, with fresh popcorn. I found that very relaxing (and better than their awful shows in their too-small "world stage"). The rendering of QA's aft pool screams "chair hog!" It shows about two dozen loungers. Those and the ones by the covered pool will be claimed early. So much of the deck space is uncovered and away from a pool that poolside seats will be at a premium. I don't care about access to a pool, but I very much want shade.

What about boarding in Southampton for a TA? Currently, Cunard is saying I need an observed covid test to board in NYC before a Canada cruise. What about the people on the TA before the Canada segment?

That depends on which dock you're at. On both of my QE Alaska cruises we were at the Broadway Dock at the end of the main street, not at the "railway dock," part of which is closed because of rock slides. I would book through the cruise line because if there are changes to the itinerary, you'll get a refund easily.

No one thing was so bad that it was worth the trouble. It was the cumulative effect. I was very happy on my cruise as long as I stayed away from the front desk and tour office.

I did the online test using Rapid Test and Trace. Not too expensive, and very easy using hotel wifi with my phone.