Underwatr

As I understand it, put it out on Tuesday morning, receive it back Wednesday evening (but perhaps not in time for dinner).

Commiseration is fine - it's when you discover that you don't share an opinion on some matter...

Having been in a truly obstructed room on another line (it was so obstructed it was sold as an inside even though it had an opening "french balcony" door), I thought the Deck 8 obstructed room we had (just once) was bright and airy.

Have you ever sailed in a Deck 8 obstructed? You basically don't see ocean but the sky is largely unobstructed behind the lifeboats (as opposed to the tenders). Of course there are those who insist the sheltered balconies are obstructed.

I received the notice when I was having trouble getting the emergency contact information to save (US booking) - probably related to state name/identification. Calling Cunard solved it. I tried contacting my travel agent and he called me and said they actually couldn't access that part of the booking and I was best off calling Cunard on my own. They answered immediately and fixed my issue.

There are promotions now and again that increase the OBC. In a Britannia Balcony we occasionally earned $600 per person OBC for a 12-night booking rather than the customary $300 per person.

You don't have to wait to reboard, though. 😏 All the more reason not to just turn around and ride back, since you've already been subject to the immigration pleasantries.

I don't see the point of a TA in either direction just to turn around and head back. We did a few TAs - the first was an eastbound followed by a week in SE England and a flight home from Heathrow. The second was an eastbound to Hamburg with five days visiting friends we had met years earlier on a QM2 Christmas cruise, followed by the westbound return from Hamburg to New York. My point is that there are other ways to do a QM2 TA than immediately flying or cruising home, and the meaningless hassle that you mention is eliminated. It's easy to research the year's crossings schedule to find the crossings in either direction that offer a return crossing 5-10 days later and these (or a return day or night flight a few days after the crossing) make much more sense to me.

Last time I was on HAL was 4 or 5 years ago, but back then they provided free online access to much of the NY Times via their WiFi. Did this go away?

I'm booked in a cabin with a round porthole in November. It's been almost 3 years since I've been aboard so I don't know what of the other items on your list disappeared since my last time. I bought the cruise DVD from a Panama Canal trip in 2011. It was fun to catch glimpses of ourselves or our (fixed dining) tablemates. I guess everyone's ability to record video on their ever-present smartphone was the beginning of the end for that tradition. I won't miss the muster drills. At least on Cunard they were inside and you could generally find a place to sit. On HAL it was like you were in formation outside on deck (and some of the passengers really couldn't stand very long.

My TA told me he couldn't access that information and that I'd have to call. I had intially assumed that since I had booked through a TA I'd have to use him as a POC for the booking but he said he could only access certain information. Since he took the trouble to call me in response to me email to him I believed his response.

Because it's the Cunard website, programmed by the good folks who programmed the rest of it. 😉 I had an issue where it would not accept my emergency contact info no matter what variations of input data I tried. Finally I called Cunard and the representative said that they were aware of the issue and working on it, and she took my information over the phone. Three days later I got the "Missing Immigration Information" email and assumed (after verifying that everything was complete) that it had been sitting in an outbox queue over the weekend.

The obstructed balconies have a good amount of light since the lifeboats or tenders still leave a significant amount of sky visible and sit about 6 feet away from the balcony railing. If you're around 6 feet tall or taller you can see the horizon over the top of a lifeboat (the tenders extend higher). Given a choice between an inside and any QM2 balcony I'd opt for the balcony. I've done several December cruises on 11 as well as on 5. Edit: If you're forward you'll have a lifeboat outside the window rather than a tender. This is a crop of a photo of the starboard/right side of QM2, the bow is off the right side of the photo. The seven orange boats are lifeboats, the four tenders that you can see in this photo have more glass.

I assume you mean QE (QE2 is now a floating hotel in Dubai). I missed "out of our home port" and originally thought you were on Queen Mary 2 to the Caribbean which is a popular December itinerary. Both Elizabeth and Mary occasionally get misidentified as QE2 or QEII so no big deal.

I'm not on your sailing but I am doing the November Caribbean itinerary. Here's some info from my experience this time and the December trips in the past. The website was actually more user friendly until they did a redesign or two to obfuscate it. (come to think of it, so did Cruse Critic 😉 ). - Port times are historically only stated vaguely and generally details are published in the daily newsletter a day or two after embarkation. Once or twice I've booked a private scuba excursion only to find that I have to contact the dive operator after embarkation to let him know I'd be a little late. Consider looking at the Port Authority websites for the ports of call to see when the ship is expected to arrive and depart. - Dining choice is made under the "Booking Summary" tab. Scroll just past the itinerary map and you'll find "Your dining choice" next to "Bed configuration." Click there and you'll be able to see your current selection (you should have been able to make a request at time of booking) and an opportunity to request a change. I think "register preference" is your current selection but I have no proof. - I'm currently able to book specific spa appointments (guest, day and time) via the website under the Wellness and Beauty tab. I'm a little over five weeks from embarkation. - I've been able to book shore excursions for my late November voyage since booking in August. Just in case you didn't find where they've hidden the selections, click Shore Experiences then scroll down to the red button labeled Discover More. You should be presented with a row of ports on the itinerary and clicking on any will show the available excursions. I don't know about the spa bookings but if you book an excursion before embarkation the (refundable) payment is charged immediately to a credit card you provide. If you have a significant amount of onboard credit you might need to weigh having the booking early vs applying the OBC toward the excursion.

If you buy 100 shares now you'll earn it back in OBC much faster than me - i bought somewhere in the upper 30s.

eMed is another option, yes. I have plenty of test kits and don't need to buy more for pre-embarkation testing, I just need to book the observed test session.

If you have your own tests (I think an individually packaged test might be best so they can watch you break the seal on everything - but no experience yet), there are services that will do a video observation of you taking your test and email you the required documentation. One example (which I plan to use in November) is Azova. US$20 per observed test, whether you're in US, Canada or elsewhere. Many commonly available tests are supported.

I'd welcome the opportunity to prove a test validity via a foolproof photo method rather than buying a video-monitored test, which is what I think I'll have to do in November. I suppose this watch would work for BrisbaneR's proof.

Is it just me, or could I take a test today and screen shot it in a month or two?

You're being literal again. 🙂 If you haven't tested you haven't tested positive. Frankly, I think Cunard asking embarking guests to confirm but not prove that they've tested presupposes that some people will prevaricate and indicates that Cunard is OK with that.

The TV movie "Don't Miss the Boat, " which aired in 1980 had Rip Taylor and Jay Johnson (the ventriloquist from soap) but rather than Jo Ann Worley had Vera Lockwood (lots of TV guest roles).

Certainly, but it takes a (courteous) village. Arrive near the appointed time for start of service. Don't discuss politics or the fares everyone has paid. Don't spend dinner disparaging the ship or your accommodation. If you're ordering soup, salad and appetizer and everyone else just one of them, maybe order a second appetizer "for the table." Don't be the one with the attitude of "I've paid my fare the same as everyone, I'm entitled to what I want."

Still Penhaligans? If so, perhaps someone somewhere will recognize the marketing value in stocking take-home sizes in the ship's store.

In November (Caribbean leg), fixed assignment as well as open dining are both available in the second seating time. Fixed only on the first seating. We'll see what's available at the time. And nothing prevents that table with good camaraderie from agreeing to meet at the same time in future nights. It does require having that spark of camaraderie as of the first meting, which may be difficult.