jimmybean

Congratulations, fantasy51, on having the right attitude (not allowing this huge inconvenience ruin your voyage) and finding some humor in the ever-offered bottles of merlot.

DH and I also pack flashlights (torches), but have never been forced to use one (as yet). It was a good thing you were prepared!

What cabin number (or even deck number) was involved? I drink merlot and never buy drink packages AND am sailing on the Equinox in December. ;)

Jimmybean

We will board in UK on October 18th for the westbound sailing. This will be our 46th cruise but first on Cunard. Love all the suggestions since we only have 7 days to enjoy all of it!

You will be passing the baton to us, boarding on the 25th.

After 46 cruises, you will have no problem discovering the joys of the QM2. Have a wonderful voyage, gacruisergal!

See you in NY ;)

Thank you, The-Inside-Cabin, for this great thread :) DH and I also find Cunard's speakers outstanding. This has been true both during crossings and segments of world cruises.

Jimmybean

I believe there is a set hour, when jogging can begin, because there can be noise generated that disturbs balcony cabins on deck 6--- but I can't remember what that time is.

Similar to comments about consideration of others on the promenade when jogging, the time one jogs should also be considered, remembering people trying to sleep in cabins below.

Happy Sailing to All !!!!

Thanks for answering my question, andhow.

For those not yet platinum or sailing in the Grills, take heart: priority boarding isn't always an advantage.

We sailed on a segment of a world tour, boarding in LA, and the queue of those boarding with priority included more people than those comfortably seated and waiting for "regular boarding."

Each voyage is unique in terms of the mix of passengers sailing. Sometimes, those with priority boarding outnumber those without (at a particular point in time in the boarding process).

As Salacia points out, there are a number of benefits for cruise line loyalty beyond priority boarding. Some free internet time (when gold) was my favorite :)

Happy Sailing!

I know this topic has been discussed in the past, but I can't seem to use the correct search terms to find previous threads to answer my question.

If one couple has priority boarding status and is traveling with another couple who does not (and these others are not sharing a stateroom with the priority-status-people) will the party be allowed to board together in Southampton? Has anyone had experience with this situation?

Thank you for clearing this up for me.

Happy Sailings to All!

In the past, we have had excellent response asking for something (specifically cookies) that we knew were behind the scenes at the King's court, but not set-out at that particular time. If you request a carton of milk from King's Court staff, I believe someone would go to the storage area and fetch it for you.

None of the bars require purchases in order to sit amongst other passengers. You won't be made to feel uncomfortable, if you order nothing. You can even ask for some "nibbles."

Like others on this thread, I believe going with the flow on the promenade deck is in everyone's best interest.

Have a wonderful voyage, mainewoods!

Jimmybean

I can't compare the QV and QE, because we have only been on the QE. But, I can tell you how I felt sailing on the QE...

Initially, I nervous there would be disappointment, because the QM2 stands head and shoulders (IMO) above all other passenger ships. I wondered how the QE could possibly measure-up. I remember that Lanky Lad wrote a very reassuring response to my posting, when I asked this board how the QE compares to the QM2.

Happily, there is a Cunard-ness that translated wonderfully, so that our 36 days on the QE were absolutely marvelous. Yes, we do prefer the QM2, but the atmosphere, style of service, food, enrichment programs and entertainment were really on a par.

Hawaii is great, but I think (depending on the itinerary) you would be satisfied sailing on either the QE or QV.

DH and I are current booked on the QV, sailing in 2018---and looking forward to her.

Happy Sailing to you !!!

Jimmybean

Thank you for your comprehensive review, ClanMcLean. It has been fun anticipating your voyage (through your postings) and, then, hearing how much you enjoyed being on-board. Even with a few service flaws, it sounds like the QM2 captured your heart! Here's to many happy sailings in your future!

Jimmybean

Thank you for the great photos! I enjoyed each and every one!

One of the many things we love about sailing on Cunard ships! Unwanted, loud background music is a non-issue.

Happy Sailing to those new to Cunard!

Thank you for sharing your experience. Have a wonderful voyage in September!

Jimmybean

Just re-reading this thread from last year and I realised that I never ever said how it went! He loved it! There was me thinking it would be room service every night but no, he wanted to dress up and go to the MDR which he also loved. We had some great food, made good use of the gym and came back healthier and happier! QE was a superb ship, very spacious, usually always room except once on the transit home when there seemed to be limited sunbeds set out. Heres to the next one!

Thank you, so much, for letting us know how things turned out! I agree with Pepper: sailing becomes addictive. Hope to see you both on-board in the future :)

Jimmybean

In the past, we've found the list of speakers started months in advance (at the beginning of the year), but sometimes some-spaces on the list have stayed undesignated until just weeks before the voyage. It depends when speakers are available and which speakers agree to a particular voyage. Also, sometimes plans change and speakers need to back out of their engagement. The list, even after it appears, isn't written in stone.

Also, there may be more challenges, finding speakers who want to sail on segments of the World Cruises vs speakers willing to do a transatlantic. Or the reverse. My understanding is that speakers travel first-class, in the Grills, but don't recent monetary compensation (correct me if this is wrong).

Not-knowing the speakers can be an inconvenience, since many of us would choose one voyage over another on the basis of speakers. On the other hand, Cunard does an amazing job with daytime enrichment and doesn't always have the ability to provide an accurate list months in advance...

Truthfully, the speakers, in general, are typically so good and the mix is usually a good variety, so DH and I have never been disappointed (even if there is no time to read someone's book before sailing).

Thank you, Cap't for all your postings !!!!!!!!

Thank you for sharing your family's (positive) experience. I'm not surprised. Older folks have more time for ship travel, but that doesn't mean it is something ONLY older people (or people of a certain generation) would enjoy.

I know my children and grandchildren would react the some way your family did---IF they ever find the time (which I hope someday will come).

Again, thank you for your posting!

Jimmybean

Here by the by is the description from the Carnival Corp & PLC website for their corporate description:

 

Headquartered in Miami, Florida, and London, England, Carnival Corporation’s stock is dually listed on both the New York Stock Exchange and London Stock Exchange under the symbol CCL, and is the only group in the world to be included in both the S&P 500 and the FTSE 100 indices.

They should know! :) Thank you, jburton59 for bringing in the horse's mouth.

Thanks, Pepper, for your explanation of "why in dollars." Makes sense to me.

Sorry to disrupt this lovely thread and great posting with nationality discussion. Sailing on her is truly an international experience for any and all of us.

Jimmybean

Thank you for sharing your "happy ending."

Thank you for the great review!

I'm jealous, never having experienced any significant tilting on the QM2. Sounded like you had the E-ticket (a Disneyland reference, for those not old-enough to remember). Captain Wells, along with the ship of course, would have given me confidence in any weather. What an experience it must have been!

Again, great review!

Here is explanation of my confusion. Cunard is based in California---not Carnival.

I'm not saying this is correct, but Wiki states Cunard is an American Company.

http://cunard-whitestarline.wikia.com/wiki/Cunard_line

P&O are also owned by Carnival Corp. Does that make them American too?

In my mind, yes…. But, ExArkie brings additional information to the question. It does sound complicated in terms of stock and stock ownership, in ways I was not aware. (Thank you for sharing this information, ExArkie)

But, if Cunard is umbrellaed by the UK Carnival (instead of US Carnival), why are dollars used as the on-board currency? My guess is that Cunard ships spend less time in US waters than they do in non-US waters---so, it can't be because Cunard ships are mostly populated by US citizens. Cunard ships travel far and wide and serve passengers from many countries.

I've never sailed on P&O. I'm curious: are charges for drinks, tipping, and purchases on-board made in dollars or pounds?

Again, Gazeroberts80, a great posting!

Since you "hate to nit-pick", shouldn't you have stated that Carnival is headquartered in Miami, not California?

I stand corrected. For some reason, I had in my mind that Carnival had corporate headquarters in California. I appreciate the correction, nfcu. I must have confused Carnival with Princess sometime in my distance (foggy) past.

I've now had time to slowly read and digest all of your wonderful review. Especially appreciated is the time you took to make comparisons and show both before and after photos. Your food photos are out-of-this-world and made me want to book immediately (which unfortunately isn't in the cards---but your review tells me there is much to look forward to seeing, at some point, when I am able to sail in person).

After all your work, I hate to nit-pick and hope you forgive one correction. When describing the casino, you said it was smaller than on "American ships."

Actually, Cunard is owned by Carnival, whose headquarters is in California, USA. Despite its wonderful British history and an atmosphere that springs from that history, I don't understand how Cunard isn't "American." Note: any additional expenses on the ships are expressed in (American) dollars, even if fish and chips (instead of french fries) is served in the Golden Lion.

Character/ambiance of different American cruise lines varies appreciably, but both Carnival line ships (which I don't find appealing) and Cunard (which I love) are American.

Again, thank you for your wonderful review! Cunard could use your descriptions as an advertisement! You make us all want to book a voyage on the QM2.

Happy future sailings!

Jimmybean

Good to see your posting, Captain! Your name comes up periodically in the context of how much your messages are missed on this board. Lovely to hear from you on-board the QM2 :)

Thank you for sharing your impressions, experiences, and insights! Have a wonderful crossing (and good luck with those quizzes)!

Jimmybean

I hadn't seen this article and appreciate that you posted it, Scrapnana.

DH and I have cruised on all the other ranked lines except Disney and agree that (in our opinions) Cunard comes out on top!

Jimmybean

After doing a lot of research I chose Aloft in Brooklyn for my overnight stay before cruising - and you really need to do the overnight, it removes all the stress of trying to make a same day departure.

 

The hotel is only a 15 to 20 minute drive from the docks depending on traffic and it was very clean and modern - most important of all it has a 100% bed bug free rating, something that is absolutely critical to check when staying in New York (there is even a website set up for this purpose). I thought the rate was amazingly good for just over $120 (I think I got lucky with some type of reduced price) and I enjoyed a nice meal from room service before settling in for a great night's sleep. The next day reception organized a really nice car service to take me to the docks, not just some awful NYC taxi, it was a fantastic way to start the trip.

Winchester Ranger makes an excellent point regarding the potential problem of bed bugs.

Check a bed bug registry website before booking (and re-check just before checking in). http://registry.bedbugs.net or http://www.bedbugreports.com or http://bedbugregistry.com/search/

It's not just a nuisance in less-expensive or less-desirable hotels, but there are certainly accommodations without bedbugs.

DH and I have gotten in the habit of pulling back sheets and mattress pads for an inspection, whenever we travel, in addition to checking the registry.

Bedbugs are not the kind of souvenir any of us want to take home (ever) !!!