Review of QM2 Transatlantic crossing, Apr. 28th

[seasprite]

Hi everyone,

Now that we are back on home turf, I wanted to take a minute to thank everyone who helped us plan our trip, especially "English Rose" and her husband Brian who provided such a warm welcome to England with their wonderful chauffer company. Everything went off without a hitch; hotels, transportation, tours and the cruise. When I started it seemed like such an enormous undertaking, but everyone's advice and assistance made it all come together beautifully! I'll try to keep my review brief, as I've read the others of the Queen Mary 2, and don't know how much I can add to the thorough jobs of my predecessors.

As everyone has stated, she is a majestic, enormous ship. I found the cruising experience of our transatlantic crossing quite different and more relaxing than my previous cruises from port to port. The international nature of the passengers (many French, German and English on board), as well as the diverse entertainment available was unique.

First, a quick review of the entertainment. It included lectures featuring 4 different Oxford College professors on 4 diverse themes, performances and workshops by RADA (Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts), solo musicians (harpist, concert violinist, pianist, and Broadway star), comedian, ballroom dancing, disco, art auctions, wellness and fitness, passenger participation (karioke, horserace, PMS party for those with "packing blues", game shows, bingo, sport competions, card games, casino) as well as the usual (but wonderful) song and dance extravaganzas--I loved "Rock the Opera". My husband, a former department chairman and social studies teacher, enjoyed the talks by Professor Robin on the Battle of the North Atlantic. As a nice little touch, they even awarded an Oxford University "certificate of attendance" to those attending 5 or more lectures. I'm sure I may have forgotten something, so I apologize in advance! What struck me overall was the contrast. One evening we were sitting in the Queen's room surrounded by ballroom dancing, complete with dance hosts....then we walked around the corner and found ourselves in a disco party with conga lines and a "New Years Party" celebration! It was like being in two different worlds but just steps apart...amazing! Then we would go to another area of the ship and be entertained by a harpist and dramatic readings of Shakespearean love sonnets, called "Hearts and Harps". It was simply astounding. I have read other's concerns that the ship is losing her British flavor, but from an American point of view, I would say she is still jolly good!

The food could not be beat. We ate in the Britannia dining room (upstairs) at a table for our party of 4 (as requested) and our staff (from South Africa) couldn't have been more accommodating. The selections were varied and prepared artistically and to our specifications. I couldn't have asked for more. We chose the earlier seating and found it perfect for the transatlantic crossing, as we never had to miss any of the evening entertainment. We ate at a relaxed pace and our servers never made us feel rushed or hurried. Surprisingly, the two times we went to the buffet, it was also fairly high quality, and better than I have come to expect on other ships. We were so happy with our dining table that we didn't try the Todd English Restaurant, which was also highly rated. I enjoyed the high English tea, served in the Queen's room every day....I only missed it once! I found that by skipping lunch I had room for tea and dinner lol. We also used room service breakfast daily (filling out the card the night before). I like a light breakfast with fruit and cereal or pastries, and they always delivered the order on time and to our exact specifications. The hot water for tea was in a container that remained hot for hours, so I could even go back to bed for a bit if I wanted! It was a relaxing way to start the day.

Accommodations....what can I say, we got lucky! We had a "to be assigned" cabin in the lowest category (since it was a super special I took the chance). I fully expected to be placed next to the laundry, ship's engines, children's playroom, etc. but instead we were on floor 6 at the very front of the ship in a HUGE handicapped cabin. It was even an OUTSIDE cabin! I couldn't believe our good fortune. The lowest category began inside on the 4th floor, so this was quite a surprise. I loved our porthole....it had a fiberglass molded area below it, just the right size for a "window seat". So I took the cushions off the couch (which was right in front of it), and made myself a little perch looking out on the sea. My husband laughed his head off at me! Prior to this experience, I had always thought that portholes were not that great, but stretching out in my cozy little spot by the ocean was one of the highlights of my trip. Surprisingly, the porthole also let in a lot of light from outside. Prior to this we have had balcony cabins. Also, it was our first experience being in the very bow of the ship, and I discovered that the motion of the ship was much more noticeable there...which I love. It rocked me to sleep! By the way, we had a very smooth crossing.

Our cabin stewardess, Deidre, was a delight. She was much more unobtrusive than our past stewards, but couldn't have been more efficient. I think she just remained "invisible" so as not to disturb our space. When we needed her, however, she was right there to help. One of our adventures was that we "adopted" one of the wooden racehorses that were auctioned off before the Ascot Races at the Royal Ascot Ball. After receiving our horse, I found that we were expected to name him and decorate him (gulp!) Deidre came to our rescue with her personal supply of glitter glue and markers which she uses to correspond with her family at home. After this initial contact, we ended up getting to know her and even took her picture with "Mr. Ed" (our horse). On the last day she gave us a huge heartfelt hug, and said she had really loved having us and enjoyed our "enthusiasm".

The beauty of the ship herself has been covered completely with past articles, but suffice it to say, I agree! There were so many wonderful, private places to relax with a great view of the sea. The paintings, photos of the old Queen Mary and murals, were super. I visited the library (huge!) and signed the Cruise Critic book. With the librarian's helpful hints, we even found the hidden "Homer Simpson" on board in one of the murals!

My final review is of the Canyon Ranch Spa. I spent much of my last day onboard there, and found it very relaxing. All during the vacation, I had been suffering from back problems, so I opted to try accupuncture and massage (one of their newest treatments). I was completely happy with the treatment I received, but unfortunately it didn't provide lasting relief. The spa facilities are truly unusual and well worth a visit if you like that sort of thing. I especially loved the huge swimming pool size whirlpool and waterfalls and the herbal sauna...yummy!

Now for a FEW constructive criticisms. We did have problems with loud music disturbing our rest in the cabin during the cruise. Three different nights we were awakened numerous times with music that seemed to be "blasting" from another area of the ship. The second night we called the Purser's Office and within 5 minutes the music stopped (what a relief). However, the next night it began again (at 3 am) and this time the Purser's office said they couldn't locate the source, and that there was no notation from the previous night's staff. After over an hour it finally stopped, and we were informed it was coming from a private suite area on the ship. On the last day of the cruise, when they were loading the luggage, the door to the suite area was opened, and we could indeed see that there were private cabins directly underneath ours. My guess is that they belonged to some of the entertainers on board, but who knows? I intend to let Cunard know of the situation, for all the good it will do. So beware of cabin 6002 unless you are a sound sleeper! lol

The second comment concerns the immigration procedure for Americans. We were required to get our passports and declaration forms stamped on the last morning onboard, starting at the ungodly hour of 5:30! The ship picked up customs officers at the Veranzano Bridge and having taken care of this matter on board, we could just walk right off the ship. This was supposedly to make the immigration process go smoothly (which to be honest, it did) but it was a hell of a way to end a relaxing cruise.

The last negative comment really concerns the passengers and not the ship or the crew. There were many times when we actually felt sorry for the performers, due to the lack of response from the audience. They would try so hard to get us clapping with the music or laughing at their jokes, and it was one of the toughest audiences I have ever seen! Perhaps that was because many of the passengers were elderly (70's and 80's), but even my 81 year old mother-in-law put most everyone to shame! The cruise staff had difficulty getting anyone to participate in events (horse auction was a bust and only 4 people wore hats for the Royal Ascot Ball). I've reflected on this and wondered if part of this might not have been the lack of enthusiasm from the cruise staff in building up and encouraging these events, but I don't know. I spoke with someone who had cruised on QM2 before and she said there was much more participation and the Ascot Ball was completely different, so who knows? We certainly enjoyed it, including our "owners' seats" ringside at the ball, complete with complimentary champagne! I find that the more you put into something, the more you get out of it, but didn't see much of that philosophy on board.

I took numerous photos on board and would be happy to share! If there is something of specific interest, just write me and I will see if I photographed it! Thanks again to everyone for helping to make this fabulous cruise possible! Happy journeys!

 

Pam

Cruising since 1995 on Carnival, Premier, Celebrity, Holland, Norwegian and now Cunard!)

[ciaobella]

Thank you for sharing your trip with us! So much good information on this board!

[guernseyguy]

SeaSprite,

 

Thankyou for taking the time to share your thoughts - its valuable to get differing perspectives & I'm delighted you enjoyed your crossing. I wonder if we had the same wait-staff? We were second sitting - middle section upper level, Starboard - South African (and one Anglo-French) and fast, friendly & efficient. I too noticed that the Cruise staff tried to get people to 'singalong' - some find that fun, others think it a bit incongrous - did you stay for the Hokey-Kokey the night of the New Years Party in G32? I guess your American passport meant you were up for arrival in NY! What did you think of the sail up the Hudson? Will you Cross on the QM2 again, or a Cruise next time?

 

Peter

[signman]

Seasprite, Thoroughly enjoyed your review. Thanks for taking the time to post it. Now I urge you to read Peter's journal of his crossing. Very entertaining.

[gracecarmo]

Seasprite: re the Ascot Ball: do we bring our own "hat" to wear? Or can you make one on board?

We will be on the Oct 8 sailing out of NYC and I am now looking for a nice hotel for 2 nights pre cruise in NYC. Any suggestions?

 

Grace

[carlmm]

... a disco party with conga lines

...

One of our adventures was that we "adopted" one of the wooden racehorses that were auctioned off before the Ascot Races at the Royal Ascot Ball. After receiving our horse, I found that we were expected to name him and decorate him

...

We did have problems with loud music disturbing our rest in the cabin during the cruise.

..

They would try so hard to get us clapping with the music or laughing at their jokes, and it was one of the toughest audiences I have ever seen! Perhaps that was because many of the passengers were elderly (70's and 80's), but even my 81 year old mother-in-law put most everyone to shame! The cruise staff had difficulty getting anyone to participate in events (horse auction was a bust and only 4 people wore hats for the Royal Ascot Ball). I've reflected on this and wondered if part of this might not have been the lack of enthusiasm from the cruise staff in building up and encouraging these events, but I don't know.

 

Thank you for sharing your experience. It highlights how different perspectives can be. For me and at least a number of Cunard lovers it used to be advantages of Cunard that there were no strange, supposingly funny things like conga lines or horse racing going on. I do not want to be annoyed by an enthusiastic cruise staff who tries to make me clap or participate in any game/"fun" event. And IMHO often cruise comedians jokes are just tasteless.

 

Just interesting how you and other passengers received it and reacted. I wonder what this indicates for the further direction of Cunard.

 

Anyway, I am glad you enjoyed your crossing!

[fastship]

I have seen many an old Cunard photograph showing horse races and have always assumed it was a tradition cast aside by Cunard in the seventies. On my past two QM2 crossings they were well attended and seemed to be enjoyed by all.