Victoria2

Dare I say, Vegan is generally a life style whereas dire allergies are most definitely health issues. I have a mild shellfish intolerance but I manage that myself by limiting the amount I consume [a real hardship for me!] but I would hope Cunard shoreside, when informed of issues mentioned by abdullahhoneymoon, would be sure to cascade the info up to the relevant ship and I would expect the hotel staff concerned to be very careful once informed. I would follow the belt and braces approach though and make the restaurant and thus the M'd one of the first ports of call ion embarkation.

or a note in the fan. Often quicker than a voicemail message.

We have no issue with disembarkation as, like yourselves, the timing is of our choice and our luggage tags coloured accordingly. A few years ago, we experienced mayhem in the disembarkation process as so many thought they could just get off and collect their bags, not realising their bags hadn't been offloaded at that time and so were told 'to wait' at the entrance to the hall. This cause a log jam and those whose bags had been put out, couldn't get to them and there were some 'frayed' tempers. It was also a H&S issue as some elderly/infirm were literally in danger of being knocked off their feet. So if tags, and therefore timings, are being monitored before disembarkation, that is a bonus to safety and the smooth running of the process.

You beat me to it! Plus some folk could have started their own wine cave with the amount of bottles carted onto a Cunard cruise so apart from it apparently being now 'official [?] nothing has changed there either.

I thought that was part of the Butler's remit. Keep their passengers happy - in both senses of the word!!! 😀

Trouble is, it's Nov! We haven't sailed Canary Islands, yet,but from what I have seen, the prices are lower than other itineraries. Enjoy. QV is wonderful.

Don't worry Two bottles of wine or spirits or a combo of both. and breath! 🙂

Interesting to see what effect any 'force majeure' clause would have on insurance claims.

If cost isn't an issue, I'd go for the Q3. The wider view is better and it's very handy for the lifts up to decks 11 and 12 and the Lido buffet if you want to grab a bit to eat to take back to the cabin. It's also a bit lower down so theoretically more stable but then we book deck 7 and don't have a problem.Other than that, no difference. Now if it was deck four Q3, that would take a bit of thinking about as the balcony is more appealing with its extra depth. You lose a bit on the cabin but on sunny cruises, I would pick deck 4 Q3 over 5, 6 &8. edit Just reacquainted myself with deck 7 Q4s. If you really do mean mid ships and not mid aft/forward, then just be aware your balcony might partially be seen by the cabin on the end of the hump due to its balcony shape.

Logically, I hope any staff members who need to access our room, will do so without the need of us being in the vicinity and if we are, they usually knock first. If we don't want them to enter, the do not disturb tag works fine. .

and that's one of the reasons we continued cruising after our first one. A holiday at sea was a real holiday.

I would make sure I have later disembarkation tags because call me paranoid, but to have my cases on their own in the early disembarkation area doesn't sit well with me. Yes easier to find but also easier 'to pick up' should anyone be so inclined as [and this is not knowing e&mcruise's itinerary and so which port is pertinent] no one in our experience has ever checked folk have the right bags.

OOPS, disembarkation.

I remember with alarming clarity, the incident when it occured. It was so sad and doubly so for you.

There's no 'ass' at all about QG. None whatsoever. It's a wonderful way to travel and we feel very, very privileged to be able to do so. Go to the Concierge and request a later embarkation. Simples.

We booked on board through the Grills' concierge as it wasn't possible to do so online when we wanted to before but interestingly, the excursion offerings have changed and I notice you now can book a private excursion online but as you say, pretty useless as far as extra info for the disabled traveller is concerned.

I can't help there as we booked our own private transport if we didn't take a Cunard excursion or stay on the ship but if taxis are available and it works for you, great but a few words of caution, and this is possibly a silly thing to say, as I have no idea of your itinerary, do make sure it's safe to do so. 🙂

If going on a Cunard tour, I would ask to go a little earlier so you can get a seat near the front to save any shuffling to sit. It's quite amazing how some of those who are disabled and use sticks/zimmers etc can almost sprint to the coach to bag the front seats or their partner do the sprint for them. I remember a really disgusting occasion when this happened and a chap who carried his wife up the coach steps was almost last onto the coach and NO ONE at or even near the front would yield a seat. 'My wife/husband /partner is disabled [yeah, right but they manage the disabled sprint] and I am going to sit next to her/him/them!!!' scenario. We were quite a few rows back but I got up and she sat next to my husband and he and I went to the back. The member of the Ents staff who was the Cunard rep on the tour said he would make sure their cabin number was on the front seat if they went on any other tours.

All Cunard tours are graded by activity levels, and as long as passengers can somehow get on a coach, either being carried on by their partner or carefully climbing up the steps, then the low activity tours won't be a problem. Our wheelchair folded up and went in the luggage compartment of the coach. These are usually sightseeing 'panoramic' tours by coach with, photo stops and usually a drink at an appropriate stop. No need to get off the coach at all although the refreshment stop can be as much as an hour. We started booking our own tours through the tour office and that involved a half or full day, car, driver and guide. The wheelchair packed up into the boot and we had excursions tailored to our own requirements.

Main tip is the one ace2542 has given. You'll get assistance to board and will get taken to your cabin and assistance at ports and eventual disembarkation. You used to get priority embarkation at the start of the cruise but I have a feeling that might have gone and embarkation now is through cabins and/or loyalty levels. If there are any tenders on your cruise, 'you' will have been invited to a 'step over the yellow lines' meeting. If a passenger can't complete the step test, then no tendering as crew are not there to carry passengers on/off the tender. They will assist but only in a general way. They will however assist a passenger in their wheelchair down the gangways. Can be a bit hairy but I don't think they've lost a wheelchair passenger yet down/up those ramps! 🙂 QM2 has annoying [for wheelchair users] half decks which means using the wheelchair lifts at those points. There are also designated spots in the theatre for wheelchair users and companions so get to know those but apart from avoiding other passengers toes when entering/exiting the lifts, as long as the wheelchair user has an able companion, not much else to write about. We have embarked at Singapore a few times and all I will say is, ENJOY. It's a wonderful way of seeing the world.

If folk want to search for ducks, go ahead but not having looked, I wouldn't have a clue if there are any ducks onboard. Personally, I like mine served crispy, with pancakes. plum sauce, cucumber sticks and shredded spring onion. 🙂

Jolly good and thank you for generating a healthy debate. I know it's a way off, but have a wonderful holiday in a magical part of the world. We have a couple of cruises to our name in Alaska and each one, was fabulous. Enjoy. 👍

I'm no connoisseur so wouldn't know a great caviar from a so so but I always order it for the first dinner onboard and as far as I know, White Sturgeon rings a bell.

Penthouses on deck seven are all Q4s and as far as I know, are all the same size but what that area is, I don't know. We cruised '22 and '23 on QV and whilst I'd say the initial cruise in '22 had one or two very minor issues but nothing which in any way spoilt our holiday, the rest of our cruises have been the usual top notch experiences.

One of our most favourite routes, is Colombo to Cape Town. Lazing onboard with the beautiful Indian Ocean gently aiding our way, is heaven on sea! We've 'done' it a few times with QV and have yet to experience anything other than pure, relaxing, wonderful bliss.