What time can we board QM2 in NYC?

[kinshasa]

We are booked on the April 29 voyage. The night before we are catching a red-eye from California arriving at JFK around 8 a.m. We are arranging a driver for the morning due to the luggage--- we are stopping by the nearby Old Montefiore Cemetery to visit my grandparents. How early will we be allowed to board the ship? Is 11 a.m. or noon feasible?

 

We sailed on QV previously and loved it. We love all the formal nights and pomp and circumstance of Cunard. Last time we traveled with our parents and had a table for five in the Princess Grill. This time we asked for a table for two. I saw several twosomes so I know it's not an unusual request.

 

Hope to see some friends of Bill W. that week.

[safarigal]

In October our driver got a bit lost, so we only arrived in Brooklyn a 11:30, but we were able to check in immediately, and boarded just before noon. The Grills people get to board first. Sailing out of New York is an incredible experience. Our cabin was on the starboard side, and the Statue of Liberty was very visible from our balcony. It was fantastic to arrive in the cabin (especially after the hard work of a red eye from the West Coast), open up a bottle of champers, and relax on the balcony with that view. I do hope the weather is kind to you!

 

Have a great time!:)

[kinshasa]

Thanks so much for your reply. I thought we might be able to board by noon but it's nice to have it confirmed.

[Salacia]

We are booked on the April 29 voyage. The night before we are catching a red-eye from California arriving at JFK around 8 a.m. We are arranging a driver for the morning due to the luggage--- we are stopping by the nearby Old Montefiore Cemetery to visit my grandparents. How early will we be allowed to board the ship? Is 11 a.m. or noon feasible?

 

We sailed on QV previously and loved it. We love all the formal nights and pomp and circumstance of Cunard. Last time we traveled with our parents and had a table for five in the Princess Grill. This time we asked for a table for two. I saw several twosomes so I know it's not an unusual request.

 

Hope to see some friends of Bill W. that week.[/quot

 

Kinshasa, if your flight arrives on time at 8am, and if you are able to collect your luggage soon after and meet your driver, visit Montefiore, continue to the Brooklyn Port, unload your luggage, clear security... Nope, I don't think you have a thing to worry about in terms of getting to QM2 too early. Quite the opposite.

BTW, isn't your boarding time specified on your Cunard travel documents? I always note the latest time to board in case of delays.:)

 

Wishing you the best,

Salacia

[rm3]

Boarding time is specified on the E-Ticket. At the bottom of the "Booking Summary" it says

 

"Note: To ensure a relaxed and organised start to your voyage, we operate a staggered check-in schedule. We kindly request that you arrive for boarding at

or shortly after the check-in time given above, in order that your stateroom may be suitably prepared for your arrival."

[Classiccruiser777]

We arrived in Brooklyn at about 11:00 AM and were aboard by noon for our Caribbean cruise last October. And we were D8 (steerage passengers). Also, our luggage was delivered to our cabin by 1:00. Early arrival is the only way to go!

[Salacia]

We arrived in Brooklyn at about 11:00 AM and were aboard by noon for our Caribbean cruise last October. And we were D8 (steerage passengers). Also, our luggage was delivered to our cabin by 1:00. Early arrival is the only way to go!

 

I don't know about 'early arrival being the only way to go'. If you arrive for boarding prior to the time specified on your travel documents, you might be asked to have a seat in the waiting area until your specified check-in time. More importantly, if passengers don't follow the staggered arrival arrangements, boarding will not function smoothly and will disadvantage everyone. Standing at long lines in the terminal is not a fun way to start a voyage. So in my opinion, it's best to arrive at the specified check-in time (or later), not only for your own benefit but also out of consideration for fellow passengers. Just a thought. ;)

[Bigmike911]

Kinshasa, You can arrive about before noon, check in and get on as soon as your called. One thing to keep in mind is that this crossing is absolutely full from the Transatlantic Air problem, so there may be a bit more confusion than normal, so be patient, you will be on quickly with plenty of time to settle in before the lifeboat drill and the sail away party.

 

Enjoy.

 

Mike

[capnpugwash]

Salacia, your point is well made but in fact there is never any problem arriving early at either NYC or Southampton. The staggered times are a good idea but don't get adhered to by staff or passengers. Get on early, shoot up to your cabin and dump hand luggage then go to Deck 7, King's Court for quick lunch before it becomes a zoo. Then relax and enjoy the trip.

[Salacia]

Capn, thanks for the info. My six embarkations in NY always went so smoothly; I thought that must be due to the staggered arrival time. I've never been early but maybe I'll give it a try next voyage. Hopefully, traffic will cooperate.:)

 

Salacia

 

“Frodo: Your Late. Gandalf: A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to” - Lord of the Rings (film)

[The Real PM]

Capn, thanks for the info. My six embarkations in NY always went so smoothly; I thought that must be due to the staggered arrival time. I've never been early but maybe I'll give it a try next voyage. Hopefully, traffic will cooperate.:)

 

Salacia

 

“Frodo: Your Late. Gandalf: A wizard is never late, nor is he early, he arrives precisely when he means to” - Lord of the Rings (film)

We were very early when we boarded in Brooklyn. We were with a couple who had booked a Grills cabin and who had a 12:30 boarding time. We were all prepared to wait until our 2:30 boarding time, but were admitted even before our friends were, almost immediately upon arrival. It was very nice.:)

[keithm]

You'll see plenty of folks from "Bill W" as well as "Friends of Dorothy" Just remember to check your daily programme. The meetings will be listed & the room(Board room ETC.)where they are to be held.

[phillipahain]

Just returned today from Cape Town to Southampton via New York on QM2

 

The passengers boarded her in NYC anytime from midday

[Salacia]

Thanks, TheRealPM, that's good to know. BTW, I just watched your posted Smilebox slide show. It was rather like being back on-board, albeit all too briefly. Thanks for posting it--you have some great photos there.

 

Cheers,

Salacia

[Salacia]

Just returned today from Cape Town to Southampton via New York on QM2

 

The passengers boarded her in NYC anytime from midday

 

Wow, philpahain, that must have been some voyage! What was it like? How many days were you on board? Details, please :)

 

Also, regarding boarding in the Brooklyn port: perhaps it varies by voyages. For example: my first experience sailing on QM2 was a short cruise to Eleuthera Island. It seemed to me that everyone arrived at the same. Lines of passengers snaked around the terminal.

 

Anyway, after that experience, we simply arrived later in the afternoon, and after proper clearance, walked on board without delay. No waiting time at all. I also noted that prior to boarding, security was not relaxed in any fashion, and was in fact, top notch. Granted, Kings Court was closed by the time we boarded, but I did not feel starvation was imminent.

 

Regards,

Salacia

[phillipahain]

Cape Town to Southampton ..............hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

 

Very badly disorganised in many areas

with multiple mistakes in Daily Programme and poor quality Entertainment and food choices /quality

Standards definitely not what one would expect from Cunard especially on its flagship QM2 and not what we have previously experienced in 2009 on QV

 

Guess Carnivals cut backs/economies have bitten rather too hard as many many passengers were removing Gratuties as their only viable form of protest and many World Cruise Passengers saying they will never go back to Cunard

 

We had arrived at Cape Town Airport at midday after a truly lousy and very cramped sleepless overnight flight which was part of the package booked by Cunard on Luthansa transfered to the port only to then spend

2.5 hours standing outside going nowhere on what was an apology for a dock in Cape Town waiting to embark with not one ounce of communication or consideration let alone refreshments from Cunard Staff as to what the delay was :-------

 

Just one lovely young Waiter who lived in and should have had his precious day off in Cape Town with his wife and 2 small boys was so upset at seeing this chaos voluntarily gave up his day off and ferried Wheelchair Passengers over 1inch chunks of gravel

 

His reward was to be nominated by the Captain for Employee of the Month

 

However this was trounced and won by a Chef who simply did Cookery Demos and actively canvassed for "Your a Star " cards to be completed which most would consider to be a total abuse of a system

 

If thats the way Cunard treats such an unselfish staff member

who like 250 others was due to fly home from Southampton but because of the "ash cloud " and with new staff not being able to fly in most had to stay onboard and will now loose either 7 or 15 days of their leave time as return rosters will not be accordingly adjusted

 

I would have to seriously question just how much Carnival Plc cares about either its crew or its passengers

[Salacia]

Philliphain, yikes! How disappointing that voyage must have been for you and your fellow passengers. Isn't there some other viable form of protest rather than for passengers to remove gratituties? Seems to me that disadvantages crew when it's the Corporation that should be held accountable.

Perhaps you have found the better way with your posting here:)

 

Thanks for sharing your experiences.

 

Regards,

Salacia

[phillipahain]

I believe those who removed Automatic Gratuitiesdid actually tip the staff who directly served them

 

Many removed Automatic gratuities as their only way of making a point to Cunard since polite requests etc for simple things got them nowhere

 

For eg ...............you could have Smoked Salmon till it came out of your ears at Lunchtime in Kings Court but dare to ask for Blue Cheese or Stilton instead of tasteless "soapy" cheese and you got a big NO

 

Same thing at Dinner even in the Dining Room unless a Head Waiter could be persuaded to sanction it

[Salacia]

But if you only give gratuties to the staff you see...what about the rest of the staff you don't see? Like the folks who clean the ship while passengers are safe in their bunk. They scrub, and we sleep. Acutally, they are always scrubbing. Thankfully.

 

With respect, removing the per diem 'Hotel and Dining Charge' is not a effective form of protest. May I suggest that those concerned start a new thread to address this issue in the hopes of improving conditions.

 

Regards,

Salacia

 

P.S. Please Cunarders enlighten me on this issue: I thought that the auto-tip was distributed amongst crew/staff members, some of which passengers are unlikey to have the opportunity to meet (or to tip).

[phillipahain]

Salacia

 

I agree with you that its my understanding that the Hotel Charge is distributed amongst all the staff inc backroom ones

 

Personally i would not remove the Auto tip

 

I am simply reporting what was being said and done by many passengers onboard whose concerns/requests /difficulties were not being addressed by "management " onboard

 

I also understand that letters expressing concerns to Head Office have never in the past received the courtesy of a response

[kinshasa]

Is the Princess Grill open for lunch on sailing day, or is King's Court the only dining option?

[phillipahain]

Kings Court is the only option and even then theres little between 3.30 and 4pm when they change sectors

 

Its one thing that causes plenty of comments on Port Days too

 

If on a B2B or a multi sector like the World Cruise

 

Get back from a tour and you can find a late lunch is difficult to get

 

Chefs Galley is also closed on QM2 on Port and Embarkation days

[Valentino]

Is the Princess Grill open for lunch on sailing day, or is King's Court the only dining option?

 

Kinshasa, you'll be pleased to know that both Queens and Princess grill are open at lunch time on embarkation day. It was the first place we stopped when we arrived on board at 1 pm. (by the way, dress was very casual, all our family were wearing jeans, boots and thick jumpers due to the very cold conditions).

 

Enjoy your first meal aboard. :)