ew101

What about a multi way split screen - you could see if a washer was open and watch live as your clothes are dumped on the floor.  Who needs a rock climbing wall or cart-track.  

4 hours ago, ballroom-cruisers said:

  I doubt if Cunard has that level of technical expertise working on each ship, IT systems, but I would love to be shown to be wrong. However I guess this is moving to a very technical set of posts, that is perhaps beyond what the cruise critic admins would like us to discuss at this level.

Unless she was hosting an MI-6 convention this week, I would not think attackers want to attack the ship's modest servers or reach into the onboard network - they would need the ship's firewall address.  Most likely they attack the satellite service ground uplink station.  This makes the attack the problem of the service provider who has experts on staff.  

The idea the Edwardian Internet service on Cunard is a result of the current world conflicts seems implausible.  We now know the ship's Internet system may date as far back as the scone recipe.  

1 hour ago, TheOldBear said:

 the ship was wired for networking using the EIA768B standard [the so called CAT5 wiring] but was intended for relatively slow 10 mbps networking. It would be a fairly major rewiring job to install a fiber optic backbone and shortening some of the CAT5 wiring to allow for higher speeds.

 

So the fix for the Wi-Fi is to survey the ship, and put in more Ethernet switches and more wireless access points where the signal is weak.  These are getting cheaper and faster every year.  Category 3 to 5 twisted pair wire is fine to start with and a reliable signal everywhere at even 10-100 megabits per second may be better than what we have.  The gradual adding of more fiber as the ship is worked on (i.e. when you open a ceiling or replace a pipe down the hallway)- pull fiber- can add capacity to the wiring plant.   This would have been a good pandemic/lockdown project.  

The fix for the satellite is one or more faster dishes/services.  These can be expensive.   

On 7/9/2022 at 5:03 AM, exlondoner said:

 

And video any incidents to show in the theatre before the night's entertainment? 😀😀

Or a dedicated onboard channel?  

If the behavior of the Internet aboard has deteriorated since 2019, this sort of thing  viasat: Satellite firm Viasat probes suspected cyberattack in Ukraine and elsewhere, Telecom News, ET Telecom (indiatimes.com) could maybe, possibly be a temporary and random explanation for a little bad behavior.   However, denial of service attacks against a carrier tend to be time bound and build to a peak.  If you leave your attack going for days and days, the people running the Internet can eventually track down the sources and block the attacking traffic.  

On the QM2, I think there are two semi related issues.  One is the Wi-Fi, which may  (see P.139 of the Payne book) have been added after the ship was built.   This is tricky on a ship, as any metal (cabin walls, doors, bulkheads, decks) blocks signals perfectly. A repeater/access point/antenna in every room (at least) is the best answer.   The second issue is the satellite link.  Which can be full and or impacted by heavy sea conditions.  And the satellite head-end Internet service could be attacked.  But I think it's full.  

The excitement around newer mobile Starlink Internet is three fold.  The satellites are low earth orbit, so the latency (delay) is lower.    The technology is newer, and the satellites "see" less of the earth so get less interference from other earth stations on the uplinks.   PCMag Study: Starlink speed and latency top satellite Internet from Hughes and Viasat's Exede - Technology Blog (comsoc.org)

Serenity Beach at British Colonial Hotel Day Pass | ResortPass

A guess is the hotel building is closed.  They had an epic pool, that seems closed.  The beach had a small building with rest rooms and bar- no kitchen.  

On 7/6/2022 at 9:12 AM, exlondoner said:

 

I cant think of any three letter line beginning with C, though several,with a C in them. Am I being deeply dim?

Carnival (CCL) the Mother Ship.  Based on a recent very cheap voyage they seem to have missed the memos blaming others and have a jolly crew, tidy decks and served diner promptly.  There is in fact an active competition between vessels on who has the highest "Net Promoter Score" (MBA Speak for guest satisfaction) - passengers notice this.  

Thank you.  It's a start.  

I do see a Lido Grill on the QE deck plans.  Any ideas on hours or menus?  

1 hour ago, rafinmd said:

On QE and QV I think there's a burger place on the aft pool deck but in any case it's easy to pick up food in the buffet and carry it through the automatic doors to aft pool deck to enjoy.  I think there's also semi-open space in Winter Garden forward of the buffet and then some tables on the pool deck.  Pretty sure I've done all 3.

 

I expect Queen Ann will be much the same.

 

QM2 is more problematic.  I especially notice it now since I prefer to eat outdoors for greater safety from a covid standpoint.  If you're looking at a Caribbean cruise the Boardwalk Cafe MIGHT be open but I think the odds are against it with the crew being saddled with other covid prevention duties (like actually serving all the buffet food). 

 

Well we all remember the days of "Hygiene Theater" - closing the self-service buffets and spraying the corridors with tanks of poison.  I wonder who has the authority to re-open the Boardwalk Cafe with re-directed staff?  On the other hand there may just be three or four of us who prefer this on every voyage.  

On 7/3/2022 at 11:38 AM, cook68 said:

  Also NO food anywhere not till 6 no pub food at all any day and no lido till 6pm and I’m starving 🫣

On another, lesser line (hints- ships are full, cash flow positive, three letters, starts with C), the Hotel Directors have stepped up in a big way after the lockdown.  The bridge officers are cloistered, but the HD and Housekeeping Manager are walking the decks and picking up trash and making sure there is food for the guests and finding and fixing process breakdowns.   

Based on the recent reports (not to get too dramatic) it seems the shutdown/layoffs broke the Cunard culture and they need to recover it.   

All please- I am sniffing at choices/options for fall.  

After a recent warm weather cruise where we took most meals poolside, is such a thing possible on Cunard?  We will be in steerage, so the room service /balcony thing may not be possible.  In the past some lines have had a branch office of the buffet outside, or lately small specialty booths.  I recall on the QM2 an upper deck dining venue near the funnel?  Would it be open on a trip to the Islands?  

20 hours ago, jaga04 said:

Just to clarify for anyone reading this for future plans--the OP already visited:

 

Ships dock near the northern end of Duval Street and the Southernmost Beach Cafe is at the southern end, so it's roughly a 1-1/4 mile walk.

There was a free trolley or there are some pay ones also.  

The former British Colonial Hilton seems to be still selling beach passes.  It is close to the ships and was not over-run with vendors.  

The Southernmost Beach Cafe.  On a beach, you can pretend you are in the Bahamas.  Just past the painted round marker.  

18 hours ago, RobertandEileen said:

Dump the pay seafood.  

 

Yes.  We preferred to chill on the pool deck vs indoors - so more outdoor (free) food choices would be good.  Could there be the old "buffet branch office" seen on many lines or another Guys or Mongolian Wok location or ? 

30 minutes ago, At Sea At Peace said:

The real question being "how did you still lose almost $4B with current operating revenues of  $4B on 6-month YTD when you lost $4B in the prior comparative period on operating revenues of $75M (million). 

 

With all the gloom and doom, we have to remember CCL is providing essential services, and is recession-proof.  In the old days, people needed soap, canned soup and shoes.  Now we cannot live without:  Smiling butlers.  Grilled red meat.  Beverage packages, gambling and lying in the sun.   

But the new bond interest is real money, as are expensive airfares from Manila and rising fuel costs.  We'll have to see.  

2 minutes ago, mz-s said:

 

You are forgetting about Costa, Cunard, Princess, all the other lines Carnival owns. CCL might be sailing full - but those other lines are not.

Yes.  I would not want to be the President or CFO of a line with low occupancy calling HQ for more cash...

We can do our own math here.  If Carnival was at Carnival Earnings: What Happened with CCL (investopedia.com) 69% occupancy in or by the end of Q2 2022 and still losing money, the real breakeven occupancy number has to be higher, closer to 80%.  

6 hours ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

where does one get the information on what the break even point is? Your reply says around 80% while wheres walter said around 35% which I think is way to low but since I have no idea where to gain the information I'd thought I'd ask.

This came from this report ROYAL CARIBBEAN GROUP REPORTS FIRST QUARTER 2022 RESULTS AND PROVIDES A BUSINESS UPDATE (yahoo.com)  ..."The Group expects to operate approximately 10.3 million Available Passenger Cruise Days (APCD) for the second quarter with load factors of 75% to 80%. The Group also expects cash flow from ships in operation to be positive in the second quarter. Operating cash flow significantly improved throughout the first quarter and is turning positive in April."

The 30-50% was possibly for a brand new 3500+ passenger mega ship which has similar fixed operating costs to a smaller one.  But we are talking fleet average here.  

3 hours ago, mz-s said:

 

I can't fathom how they're still losing to much even while every ship is sailing full. But then I realize there is a lot more to Carnival Corp than just CCL in the US.

Occupancy was expected to be pushing up toward 70% across the entire global CCL owned fleet this last quarter.  Which is still slightly below the new, 2022 breakeven- around 80%.  The magical "over 100%" thing starts when all the cabins are sold- hence the $25 offers.  Why would they get rid of the shareholder benefit?   Every booking raises occupancy, pays into the tip pool (hopefully) and makes onboard purchases.  The food was ordered six weeks ago, the fuel is already paid for and crew wages are already contracted.  

Wars, illness, flight cancellations and inflation are headwinds.  

17 hours ago, RJChatsworth said:

In answer to HH, the Wi-Fi hasn’t been too bad albeit a little slow at times.  The router box is fixed to the ceiling outside our cabin so that must help.  However, today was the first time I tried sending emails but they wouldn’t go from the cabin.  I spoke to the lady in the library and she said that sometimes the signal through the heavy cabin doors is the problem with sending.  The emails went perfectly on my iPad in the library.

Yes there are two unrelated issues.  Your device in hand needs to see a strong Wi-Fi signal.  Usually if you can see a good signal the path back from your computer is good also.  Radio waves are blocked by steel walls and doors.  So seeing a router/access point box is good.  In any given cabin/venue one can open the Wi-Fi app and locate a place where you might have a usable signal.  It will be random.  Microwave radio behaves a lot like light.  A bit can get in under the door, etc.  The other consideration is how full the satellite connection to space is from the ship.    That is outside of your control.   If you are trying to download a book, it might be faster at 4AM etc.  

The good news is cruise lines have a well organized supply chain.  The containers arrive on time and you have your food and beverages and local, geographic shortages are unimportant.  But, there is limited storage aboard and you have to order weeks in advance.  We talked to a Bar Manager about a rumored lack of limes on a voyage.  They try to trace food and beverage purchases so there is not a "jump in a taxi and go to the store" process.  If you get a run on an item, they can be out.  

In the world of MBA programs there is the "Beer Game" - if everyone over-orders and panics the supply chain explodes.  Beer Distribution Game: MIT Sloan Students Learn About Supply Chain - Bloomberg

Trader Joes recently got kudos.  Early in 2020 they switched their ordering system from "pull" (stores decided what to order) to "push"- the computer sent them what they ordered last week or last year.  This kept their "in stock" percentages amazingly high.  

On 6/24/2022 at 4:09 PM, RJChatsworth said:

 

This evening's meal in Club Balcony took 2 hours, far too long.  We got there at 6.30pm to catch the 8pm show but missed it by 30 minutes.   The late show was too late for the first evening.

 

Thanks for the report.  This seems too long.  One cannot blame staff shortages or the supply chain here.  This is a broken process- track down the Hotel Director.  Serving dinner aboard was perfected by Cunard in around 1840. 

I would avoid our beloved tables for eight for the moment.    Loud talking and singing in groups is still not recommended.