renji

5 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

I’ve known this happen twice (on P&O). Most recently I was chatting to the ORCA representative on the promenade deck when a member of the entertainment team came flying through the door out of breath saying that she had been looking for her everywhere as her talk was due to begin 15 minutes earlier. The poor girl had been oblivious of the clock change. As I’d known this to happen before, it struck me that if I was a member of the entertainment team I would make contact with my guest speakers the night before to double check that they were aware of the clock change!

I’ve now realized I have a NY conference call during dinner rather than an hour before!  I wish they just gave the exact time and clock change information at embarkation…

1 hour ago, exlondoner said:

Yoga is there. Dance classes and lessons and Zumba seem to be in the Queens Room, according to the DP. I doubt the Wellness (how does that differ from health as a concept btw?) Studio floor is suitable.

Only private lessons happening.  Some tunes it’s the only space onboard. 

1 hour ago, exlondoner said:

Our neighbours at dinner said this is now their favourite ship. In contrast, a man in front of me in the queue for the Purser’s yesterday said to the man in front of him that this ship was just like a P&O ship, only not as good. This was clearly a pejorative comment, but its exact nuance was unclear to me, as I have never been on P&O.

 

I think most of the ship is gorgeous, and the crew lovely, though I wish more passengers would acknowledge them. The only place I complete detest is the Grills Lounge. I can solve that problem for them. The Wellness Studio is barely used in proportion to its large area. It is adjacent to the Grills Terrace and would do fine if converted to a Grills Lounge. The current lounge could become an outdoor dining courtyard, and, if the Wellness Studio is really necessary, a corner of the Grills Terrace could be sacrificed.

I think the issue with this is that Wellness space is available for all passengers as is all the surrounding seating.  There is no seating on the deck 3 promenade. There are yoga classes and dance lessons there given the lack of other spaces available. 

14 minutes ago, Host Hattie said:

Does that mean there aren't any Cunard employed Dance hosts on this sailing?

I believe I saw one gentleman last night. 

On 5/11/2024 at 6:30 AM, exlondoner said:

I agree the lifts are a hazard. They have the same capacity as the Vista lifts, I think. That is a highly fictitious 18. But the doors are hyperactive, and given the general decrepitude of Cunard passengers, many will be squashed. I have had several fights with them already, for they are quite determined.

I’ve been trying to do my civic duty and run to hold them for older passengers.  The best trick is to watch the numbers and try to get there in advance but it’s an imperfect system.  

9 hours ago, TowandaUK said:

We are not dancers but have been loving watching the ballroom dancing in the Queens room. Last night was particularly good. There was the usual host who danced with a variety of ladies. There also appeared to be a couple more gentlemen fulfilling that role - passengers maybe?  Early on in the cruise we watched one lady have a dance lesson - last night she was tripping the light fantastic like a pro. Lovely to see. 

Hi, that’s lovely to hear, I appreciate your grace towards those of us still learning! it’s a private dance group where we pay extra to the organizer who hires a few pros (2 male/2 female) and some hosts (3 additional men on this one) to dance with the guests in the evenings, and we can hire the hosts for private lessons as well. 

Bright Lights Society starting at 10:30 is far better than the Yacht Club and even somewhat better (although smaller) than G32.  Like G32, it’s a low floor, right by Queens Room but DJ is right there with you and it’s hopping!  Love it.  

Hello. Anyone have the current bar menu and onboard purchase price for the premium non-alcoholic package?  It’s jumped from $36 to $40.5 online…

12 hours ago, TowandaUK said:

I think it’s a very individual choice as each persons’ habits can vary greatly. For us what helped us to decide is the temperature of the area we are visiting. I don’t cope very well in the heat and will drink much more bottled water, juices and soft drinks in warmer climates. As with D & N I will drink water with every meal to keep hydrated. The 15% service charge is also a factor. I really think it pays to spend half an hour doing the maths before deciding. 

We find the $36 a day for non-alcoholic to be great value.  So am spending that thousand on a 14-day.  The question is whether to double it or to put the thousand dollars to 5 or 6 nice bottles of wine we actually want and a few cocktails.   

4 hours ago, LittleFish1976 said:

 

Yes, it does include soft drinks as well as specialty tea and coffee. The package price is inclusive of the 15% gratuity which would otherwise be charged on the listed menu price of each drink. As such, the package is better value than people give it credit for. As someone who has bottled water with each meal as well as a glass of wine with each meal, and maybe even two with dinner if I have a dessert wine as well, and the odd soft drink and non-alcoholic cocktail as well as a couple of alcoholic cocktails during the day, I find it reasonable value. I also like being able to try out drinks I'm not sure I'll like and feel okay about not finishing them.

And that is why I sometimes get the drinks package even though it’s a terrible value for me because I primarily buy bottles of wine for dinner and maybe have 1 or 2 cocktails at most. Just so I can try whatever I want and abandon it without feeling like I have to finish. My other alternative is to do the non-alcoholic package ($36 a day) because we drink a lot of latte, sparkling water and virgin Bloody Mary’s, and just pay for the occasional cocktail. 

50 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

as well as a glass of wine with each meal

 

Don't you get funny looks at breakfast?

Mimosas are very popular at breakfast!

I love Cunard.  That said, the drinks package on Cunard is absolutely awful unless you’ll drink anything.  Unlike any other line I’ve been on, they don’t just upcharge the extra (ie, don’t even give you credit for the $13.50 allowed on the package), but they also deliberately overcharge on any decent wine glasses and cocktails to take them out of the package.  If they increase the package allowance, they increase the glass price.   There is no premium package and the bottle discount is half what it is on other lines and the amount it applies to is capped. Both RCCL and NCL have better options.  
 

go on Cunard for everything else and allocate X to  your alcohol…

18 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

I suppose it partly depends on the quality of the air conditioning.

Exactly! The kilt is heavy but comes with its own air conditioning 😂

2 hours ago, BigMac1953 said:

Kilts are perfectly acceptable on any occasion.

 

Most of us would not be happy with a drop in dress standards. I have seen nothing to suggest that will be the case.

 

There are plenty other Lines catering for those who like to dress as if they've just finished an afternoon in the vegetable plot.

Thanks everyone.  We will go with the kilt especially since he’ll have it.  Will also have two jackets for smart attire but I suppose  if jackets are scarce he might lose his some nights….

Hello, we’ve been on all the other ships and several men wore kilts (with Prince Charlie jacket and bowtie) as formal wear. (And jackets on smart attire night even though they aren’t required). I’ve heard that Queen Anne is intended to be less formal—we’re on the May 10 voyage so curious if there’s a different expectation.  (He’s going to St Andrews for several days before so will have his kilt anyway, it’s quite heavy so would hate to also have to take a tux).

35 minutes ago, LittleFish1976 said:

 

The 20% discount is almost worthless as they add the 15% gratuity on to the list price so it ends up being roughly 5% discount depending when they calculate the pluses and the minuses.

That’s a great point. I’m so used to Royal Caribbean where they only charge the excess…and it’s 40% on bottles under $100.   Maybe I cancel the package until I see the wine list.  

41 minutes ago, D&N said:

Sadly I think you will be disappointed.

Any menu that shows wine in 150ml small glasses or spirits in 1oz (29.574ml) or 2oz (59.147ml) measures is out of date.

Cunard now serve most small glasses of wine in 175ml and spirits in 25ml & 50ml measures.

It clearly tells you that in the current terms and conditions for the drinks package: https://www.cunard.com/en-gb/my-cunard-tcs

The most recent prices for wines that I would like to see included in the package are: Chablis $15.40, Whispering Angel Rosé $15.40, Rioja $14.40, Chianti $14.20.

It’s especially ridiculous since those are not even pricey bottles. Do you know what bottle dollar amount the 20% discount applies to now?  

48 minutes ago, LittleFish1976 said:

 

 

Thanks very much for those rakkor. Interesting to see the Rioja still within the package despite the comment by @D&N above.

 

It’s an old menu from April almost a year ago—the Chablis was at $13.50 and also within the package.  I’ve seen menus where they upped the pricing. 

4 hours ago, benel204 said:

Speaking of food on the Haven, I have a question about how to arrange a dish being served in the MDR.

We are primarily fish eaters (no shellfish, so if you see us in the Haven DR, you can have my lobster tail)....

I see Tuna and Trout on the Haven menu as the only fish options.

In the MDR, I assume like many cruise ships they will regularly serve either Branzino/Seabass or Salmon (all farm raised of course).

If I request either of those fish options a day in advance, does the Haven dining staff prepare it? Or is it prepared in MDR and then they just bring it upstairs? 

 

I’m in the same boat (pescatarian but no shellfish) and stayed in the Haven twice.  I wound up doing the specialty dining a lot for dinner because I had friends outside the Haven.  I found egg whites and smoked salmon the perfect breakfast and did fall in love with the squash for a light lunch.  But most dinners I ventured out.  (I found more salmon and branzino availability on Royal Caribbean and Cunard).  But it is worth asking your concierge at the beginning of the week (or in advance) if they would get it for you, perhaps even prepare it there.  

10 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

@Treasure Hunter Please share your review after your trip.  Crystal seems to be coming back stronger then they were.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

I’ve been on old Crystal twice and loved it.  Curious to hear as well…

For what it’s worth, I find the new policy an extreme turn off and it actually will keep me from booking the Haven. And the kicker is, I don’t even order lobster. So you might think that’s crazy, but when I pay for the luxury of a suite experience or deluxe drink package, it’s the experience of being treated a certain way. 
 

I just don’t trust NCL’s offering remaining consistent from the date of booking to the date of sailing anymore—I signed on for a drink package that included Moet and when I traveled, it was no longer included.  Things like that are diminishing of the experience—when you are spending $20-30k on a trip, being “nickel and dimed” is unpleasant.  
 

And I am also happy on certain lines in an inside cabin with no frills—but I’m getting what I paid for and my expectations are set.  
 

That’s my personal take…I totally respect the other views.  

1 hour ago, D&N said:

Given where we live, we normally only drink French wine. Although there is a local deli with an eat in facility that serves Basque cured meats and cheeses and does have a nice Rioja. And we'll consider a few Italian wines, although I'm only confident in my knowledge of a few of them. That might change in May when we visit Rome for several days. The other couple we're meeting there are looking forward to visiting all the old relics, and I just want the food and wine! 🙂

I would only drink New World wines in exceptional circumstances.

The Sancerre was just within the package when the limit was $12. I don't think they are likely to price it above the package. We'd be very happy if the Chablis was included.

 

I love Italian reds, especially Amarone, Tignanello and Bolgheri Superiore but they are so pricy.  If you find an Argentiera it is the best value for money of the high ends.  But French seems to have better moderately priced wines.   

14 minutes ago, D&N said:

 

This might be the Chart Room menu rakkor was looking for. I found it a few weeks ago. It claims to be May 2023.

It doesn't list the Cunard own label wines, which are fine for refreshments. I don't know if the Chart Room stocks them.  We'll drink the white and rose over an evening of dancing, alternated with gulps of still water. We drink lots of similar wine in France (mainly red) on a daily basis poured from boxes. The Pinot Grigio and Sancerre were ok as well.

For dinner we're looking for decent Burgundy Chardonnay or Bordeaux reds and you probably need to be looking at between $60 and $90 for them. We had a Paulliac over two nights that was delicious.

 

qm_chart_room_menu_may_23.pdf 188.69 kB · 0 downloads

Thank you!  My concern is that I mostly drink French white, and they seem to be raising the by the glass prices over $13.50 even on $22-30 bottles. So that Sancerre in the chart room is now at $13.40.  Given that they raised the basic Chablis in the Commodore Club over $15 just to keep it off the package, I have to wonder what they’ll do here.  So expect I’ll just be having cocktails outside the dining rooms.

29 minutes ago, rakkor said:

I thought I had an up to date menu from the chart room but I was mistaken and have now to post something as I can't delete it

Thank you for trying!  My mad calculations are that I’ll treat the 20% discount to bottles as the equivalent of a drink for each of us that night. Then 2 more alcoholic drinks and we’ll be “even”.  (I would have gotten refreshment anyway as we drink several lattes, Virgin Bloody Marys, and bottles of sparking water). 

and really I don’t need to be even. I’ll pay something extra for the package just for the psychic ease with which I’ll abandon a drink I’m not loving.  

7 hours ago, Zeg said:

We did both.- paying corkage and buying a the Commodore Collection. The corkage fee recently on QM2 was $25 and a few cents and no additional service charge. (even the Sommelier didn’t know what the few cents represented). 
 

The Commodore Collection was available to us at a useful discount before sailing but involved a phone call to Cunard. The CC makes a significant difference to wine list prices making the wisdom of paying.a corkage charge debatable. 
 

it’s not difficult to do the maths and the decision really depends on your personal love of particular wines. Be advised though particularly wines in the CC do get replaced. 
 

 

 

 

Thanks! I’ve done the Commodore Collection twice. Loved it the first time, not as much the second time, so think if I prefer the variety of the full list. But they didn’t have several of the wines on the full list that I requested on the last voyage…so maybe I’ll bring a few. 
 

To me it’s bizarre that they now charge over $15 a glass to remove from the drink package a Chablis that is essentially a $30 retail bottle.