***** Qm2 July 3/2006

[cruiserking]

Greetings, July 3 QM2 Cruise Contingent. Just wishing everyone a safe trip down to the Brooklyn Cruise Piers. Hopefully, the sun will break through before the the trio of horn blasts that announce our departure.

 

Looking forward to seeing everyone tonight at the Commodore Club at 10 pm.

 

Happy Trails,

Happy Sails,

 

Aloha,

Jonathan

 

P.S. Karie, thanks for the compliment. We will toast your future Pub Trivia endeavors with a BBC at tomorrow's match. Hope you and Marc have a great fourth.

 

Jonathan

[sab490]

Thanks, Karrie for the encouraging words. We really are looking forward to the cruise and are going in without any preconceived notions (well maybe we are just ignoring them.) Truthfully, my only expectation is that this will be a different cruise experience and we plan to have a great time. Looking forward to meeting the CC crowd tonight.

[travel-to-go]

Well, in just TEN minutes, our cruising friends will be meeting in the Commodore Club.

 

How I wish it was me!

I hope someone will manage to take a digital photo of the gathering and upload it somewhere! I feel like I know all of you so well! Even the newbies!

 

Thinking of you all!

 

I'm exhausted and really wanted to hit the sack. But I was too excited to see if any of y'all have managed to post!

 

It's hot and muggy "back here in the states <G>" Wish I had some of those delicious sea breezes (and delicious food and delicisous mojitos!) on board!

 

Karie,

Who feels like she is riding right along with y'all... Well, not really, but a girl can dream, can't she?

 

(Only SIX minutes to CC: now!)

[travel-to-go]

Okay,

Let's try this again.

I think it will work this time <ulp> I hope...

[sab490]

We just arrived home and I must say this cruise was a different exprience. It was nice meeting those who showed up at the Commodore Club (can't believe CruiserKing was a no-show!). The ship is beautiful, but is very poorly laid out. It is very difficult to get from point A to point B. The Grand Lobby is anything but! How can a ship so big, have a main lobby so tiny? What were they thinking?

:confused:

We found the solarium pool to be very sterile...not at all on a par with the rest of the interior spaces and a far cry from the luxurious decor on the RCI Voyager and Radiance class ships. But the worst of all is the Kings Court....very limited selection even if you check out all four venues (if you can find them), no flow, and haphazard seating. Again, what were they thinking?

:confused:

I know this ship was desiged for transatlantic voyages, but that is no excuse for their extremely poor handling of shore excursions. They have a very sophisticated "interactive" TV system, but you can't use it to book excursions! And we discovered (to late) that tours for Halifax on Thursday had to be booked by 10 AM on TUESDAY! Once more I have to say, what were they thinking?

:confused:

On a more positive note, the service throughout the ship was superior. I had read reviews that said the staff was generally rude. That is definitely not the case. Everyone was exceptioinally friendly and attentive. We ate all of our breakfasts and dinners in the Britannia restaurant and the food was consistantly excellent...easily the best we have ever head on any cruise as were the waiter and his assistant.

:)

Disembarkation is usually my pet peeve, but this was by far the easiest and best organized we have ever encountered. Instead of herding everyone into a couple of areas (usually the theater), we were grouped by tag color and assigned to various lounges throughout the ship. The groups were small enough that there was no mad rush for the gangways, no searching dozens of aisles for the luggage, no fighting over porters, no long lines for customs. We were on the road by 9:45 and home by 10:30!

:)

So did my nightmare that this was going to be Carnival in a tuxedo come true? Not even close, but the Carnival influence is definitely present unfortunately. There is much more I could say, but I don't want to give the impression that this was a "bad" cruise...it wasn't. We had a very nice time. Let's just say this was not our cup of tea. And speaking of tea....well that's another story which I will not go into.

[GRIFFITH1]

Hi Sab430,

Sorry We Missed You In The Commodore Club . My Mom And I Went By At 9:45 And Only Saw One Couple . We Had To Meet Our Husbands So We Did Not Stay . How Many Showed Up ? I'm Surprised Cruiserking Was A No Show Since He Was Heading It Up . Well We Will Never Meet I Guess Unless It's On A Different Ship .

 

We Were Very Disappointed With The Kings Court Also . No Comparison To Royal Caribbean's Buffet . We Were Very Happy With The Britannia 's Service And Food . I Will Admit , We Thought The Service Much Better And Food Just As Good On Royal Caribbean .the Whole Experience Was A Disappointment . We Were Ready To Get Off The Ship The Second Day . We Heard A Lot Of People Say The Same Thing .

 

We Only Saw Our Cabin Attendant The First Day We Were On The Ship . We Called To Get The Safe Opened Because It Had Been Left Locked. Seemed Like That Would Have Been Checked Before We Boarded . We Had To Finally Call The Purser Desk After Several Hours Of Waiting For Someone To Come To Our Cabin .

 

We Were Celebrating Our 21st Wedding Anniversary . We Were Emailed By Cunard That We Would Have Flowers, Champagne , And A Card From The Captain Waiting In Our Cabin On Our Arrival. We Got The Card And A Cake On The First Formal Night . That Let Me Know They Were Aware We Were Celebrating The Anniversary . We Never Got The Flowers Or Champagne . We Never Saw The Cabin Attendant To Ask If He Knew What Was The Problem . It Really Was A Big Disappointment To Be Told They Were Going To Do Something Nice Like That And Then Nothing Delivered .

 

We Were Always Able To Book Our Excursions At Home On Line Before Our Trips . We Were Complaining To The Purser's Desk Because We Could Not Catch The Tour Office Open To Book . We Had To Put Our Request In The Drop Box And Then Wait To See If We Would Get The Tickets . Not A Good Practice .

 

The Practice Of Adding The Automatic Tipping Is Not Pleasing To Us . It Is Just Added To The Bill . On Royal Caribbean, We Had It Added To The Bill But Were Delivered The Vouchers So That We Could Hand Them To The Waiters And Cabin Attendant . A Much Better Practice Since We Are The Ones Paying The Tips .also Gives Us A Chance To Adjust The Tips Ourselves .

 

My Mom Had Been On A Cruise On Queen E In 1981 And Loved It . She Was With Us On This Cruise And Says It Was Nothing The Same . She Will Never Cruise With Cunard Again After This Cruise . Of Course, Neither Will We . We Were All So Disappointed . We Had Looked Forward To This Time For Months . I Will Be Booking All Future Cruises With Royal Caribbean . We Have Never Been Disappointed By Them And The Entertainment Has Been Much Better From Them Also . Live And Learn .

Very Expensive Lesson !

 

Linda G.

[bexxma]

Yes, we were disappointed, as well. I felt the QM2 was not worth the extra bucks for a cruise two days shorter than we've always taken. Service in Brittania was poor and food mediocre. And what happened to lobster tails on the last night as we were told? Boo.

 

Also, 24 hour Kings Court versus the fancy midnight buffets on other lines? I prefer the fancy midnight buffets, even if we don't eat and just look at the creations.

 

I liked the talent, thought it superb. And the tea was great. Except I had to hail waiters to get any treats. Service at high tea was very bad.

 

Overall impression: very mediocre for such a queen! And not for teens. My daughter and her friend were bored to tears. I was told by one of the captains that the average age is 65-70 on QM2, no matter the cruise. That says it all.

 

But I have to say it was the cleanest ship I've ever been on, the beds were the most comfortable, the balcony the biggest and the shower much larger than other ships. Library was impressive with all the bestsellers.

 

And despite its size, I never thought getting from bow to stern was that long a walk, as in other ships. Maybe it was just me. And it was the easiest disembarkation I've ever experienced, even if they did call us 30 minutes before they were supposed to!

 

And I agree, the tour office should be open more hours.

 

Also, after all the agonizing over what to wear on formal nights, the joke was on me. Especially the red, white and blue night. Half the people weren't even "gussied" up.

 

But being in Boston for the 4th was the best, with the Sousa music in the morning and the band and fireworks at night! One of the highlights. That and Bar Harbor. Loved that city.

 

But I, too, heard lots of complaints about the food and service and the general level of disappointment with the Queen in general.

[Andiamo]

Good evening all.

 

First, my apologies for not attending the get together. I had feared Michael was just yessing me to death and when the time came he would much rather stay in the Queen's Room. Of course, that it was happened. I spent the rest of the week asking people at random if they were from Cruise Critic to the point I was feeling silly so gave up.

 

My only reason for selecting this trip was to experience the "Queen". She did not disappoint with regard to her decor. She is the loveliest of any ship I have sailed (28 cruises). Her public rooms are calming and beautifully appointed. In that area, I got what I was hoping for.

 

Comments follow quite randomly, as they come to mind.

 

Embarking and Disembarking have already been discussed and I felt they were competently executed.

 

The restaurant was lovely and, since Michael is Italian, and our Maitre 'D Italian, we had no problem with the service, including Italian ham and parm cheese every night waiting for us at our table. Our wait staff was excellent and, other than the first night, wine service as well, with our chosen wines waiting for us every evening. I did not, however, think the food was excellent. Certainly okay, but not top shelf. I also thought the menus were a little out there. But this is strictly personal taste. Please, no bashing.

 

As I mentioned in a post some time back, we are major Costa Cruisers. Just for the record, food is no better on Costa. Actually, I never expect the food to be good on any cruise. It is almost impossible. (Please, no bashing). One of the differences I did find that really surprised me between the two lines is that on Costa we enjoy cocktails and dancing before dinner every night as well as after dinner. There are several venues to accommodate this pleasure. The first night on the QM2 there was no pre-dinner venue for this and on two evenings after dinner the poolside band was in the Queen's Room. We found this very odd as we thought the QM2 catered to the old time dinner/dancing mentality.

 

With regard to dress, boy was I surprised at the informality. It would not have changed any of my clothing choices, and I certainly do not judge others' , but I have seen on ships of less stature folks being turned away from high tea who were wearing shorts.

 

Regarding high tea, that was the only time in the entire week where we encountered rudeness--and it was on the part of passengers. If anyone reading this is familiar with the Queen's Room, if you enter on the left, and continue left toward the windows, that is the smoking section. For tea time, the staff, kindly, put a very large "Smoking Section" sign at the entrance. Well, wouldn't you know it, two women and two teens sat right next to us and the teen (obviously not instructed by her parents in proper behavior in front of strangers) proceeded to make loud remarks about second hand smoke. We were terribly upset at having been in the right place and yet be exposed to an ill mannered child.

 

After embarkation day, I stayed clear of the King's Court. Reading about this fiasco of a setup did not prepare me.

 

Not sure if this will make sense, but the QM2 and the Dynasty were my favorite ships--just not my favorite cruise experiences. We have had aft suites on other ships for seven days for a good deal less than the price we paid for the Independence Sampler for five days. My personal take is that unless I can travel Grill on the Queen, I don't think I would sail her again. And, there is no doubt, I will never, be able to "Grill" it.

 

Closing out my ramblings, I want to emphasize that I had a lovely trip and this is not a complaint post (boy, some people have me paranoid, ya think?). I will never forget how special the Fourth was in Boston. I believe Cunard did a wonderful job in keeping our American Holiday.

 

Jeanne

(Michael's still in the doghouse)

[2cruisers in Georgia]

Hi Everybody. We will have to say "ditto" to all the other posts. Overall, we were very disappointed in our QM2 experience. We were especially disappointed in the Kings Court. I guess 17 Royal Caribbean cruises and the "Windjammer" have spoiled us for that. I did enjoy dinner in Brittania and twice in the Todd English. I thought the service and food were great in both places. I would love to have the Todd English Lobster & Corn chowder again.

 

We also enjoyed the entertainment. We met Craig Dahn afterwards and bought his CD. The CD, however, has been a disappointment. We expected piano music since he was such a great pianist.

 

Sailing into Boston was one of the highlights of our trip -- everybody out on deck in their red, white, & blue, some waving small flags, some with their hand over their heart, and the patriotic music playing all the while. I felt like I was coming to America for the first time.

 

Our favorite port was Nova Scotia. Loved the greeting & farewell by the Bagpipes. We even saw a submarine from our balcony and were told by our tour guide that there are only 4 in all of Canada. Our Lobster & Lighthouse Tour was GREAT. We really enjoyed Peggy's Cove and the stop at the Titantic cemetery. I bought a book written by a Halifax author about the Titantic and read it on the plane coming home. Now I want to see the movie again.

 

In Bar Harbor we did the Grand Tour of Bar Harbor which included a Lobster lunch. Although the Lobster Lunch in Nova Scotia was nice, the one in Bar Harbor at the beautiful Asticou Inn was beyond our expectations. Really an enjoyable experience with beautiful scenery. On that tour, we talked our tour guide into bringing us back to town an hour early so we could have the shopping experience there. We missed Cadillac Mountain but I'm told it was too foggy to see anything there anyway.

 

We were disappointed in the "Balls" also. I agree that we really shouldn't have worried about our attire. It was our impression that this would be a very formal ship but guess not. The balls were not planned to accommodate 2nd Seating guests because by the time we arrived at both, games were being played and/or dance lessons taught. I had expected to see people in their finery waltzing around the dance floor.

 

Our final determination is that we will not plan another cruise with Cunard, however, we are glad to have experienced it one time. Royal Caribbean and Holland America are still our favorites. Oh, but the QM2 did have the best library at sea and we really enjoyed the Planetarium.

 

All of that said, we had some disappointments but did enjoy our cruise and brought home great memories. Oh, and I really enjoyed sailing out of the NY Harbor -- the Statue of Liberty and the Verazano Bridge.

 

I've participated in several posts but I've enjoyed this one the most of all. Thanks everybody!

 

Was it really just last week?

[Malinda1229]

Jeanne

 

This was my 3rd cruise on the QM2; I know we are taking a 2 year break for now and we will sail on her again, however, we will NEVER do a short round trip from New York again. The experience was completely different.

 

The passengers on the transatlantic were a great mix of Americans, Europeans with smatterings of Aussies, Kiwis and Asians. I was able to enjoy educational lectures, quite time in the libaray, cooking classes, RADA workshops, dancing lessons and more. Passengers were much more tolerant and did not test the staff with demands; for example...I was in the gift shop with my QM2 Transatlantic polo shirt on. A woman passenger DEMANDED that the clerk get her a polo shirt just like the one I had on, "how come she has one, you can tell me that I can't get one if she did". I spoke up and informed her that I had purchased it on a previous trip. That calmed her down but she had worked herself up pretty good!!

 

Now for the teens on the trip, I travel with my 15 year old daughter, she too has been with me on all 3 QM2 cruises. She too was appalled with the kids on the ship. One rather large boy found it ammusing to go into other teens cabins jump on the bed and break it. He broke 3 on the 5 day cruise! The kids were all looking for trouble and my daughter is not that type and more often than not she kept me company and only went with the teens on a limited basis. Another problem she had on this cruise was the teen club did not have many activities planed due to the many port stops.

 

I could go on but, please don't take this as a negitive; I just prefer the relazation, peace and civility of the transatlantic over the hussle and bussle of the port stop cruise. Maybe you would too???

 

Just my humble opioion!!

 

Malinda

[Andiamo]

Good evening Malinda.

 

Thanks for making me feel better.

 

I thought a Cunard cruise would be a Cunard cruise as touted. I guess a five day on this ship is a horse of a different color. At close to 54 years old, I certainly did not need this type of casual party cruise, but understand more now thanks to your kind post.

 

However, it was still worth having experienced the send off by the NYPD helicopters and the wonderful July 4th music that Cunard provided.

 

Safe journeys to you and all the other kind folks on this Board.

 

Jeanne

[bexxma]

Malinda, are you talking about the preppie boys that were always at the gaming tables and/or in the bar across from the casino? They were the only pack of teen boys I saw on the ship. Overall, nice kids, but the last night one purchased a bottle of champagne and they were really partying! Told my daughter to stay clear of them that night.

 

And, Jeanne, I too loved the police escort out of NYC. Did anyone ever figure out if they do that for all ships or just the QM2 or because it was the holiday weekend and they were guarding against attacks??????

[Malinda1229]

Bexxma:

 

Heavens no!! I saw them they were the exception not the rule on the ship. I also think they were a bit older than my 15 year old. The boys and few girls my daughter had the luck to meet were always dressed in t-shirts, short and ball caps. In fact. the last night of the cruise they kept walking thru the dining room dressed like that passing in front of our table to tease my daughter who was properly dressed for dinner in the dining room. Mind you we had 1st seating they had second. They thought it was silly that my daughter had to dress for dinner!

 

Malinda

[msk68]

Jeanne

 

This was my 3rd cruise on the QM2; I know we are taking a 2 year break for now and we will sail on her again, however, we will NEVER do a short round trip from New York again. The experience was completely different.

 

The passengers on the transatlantic were a great mix of Americans, Europeans with smatterings of Aussies, Kiwis and Asians. I was able to enjoy educational lectures, quite time in the libaray, cooking classes, RADA workshops, dancing lessons and more. Passengers were much more tolerant and did not test the staff with demands; for example...I was in the gift shop with my QM2 Transatlantic polo shirt on. A woman passenger DEMANDED that the clerk get her a polo shirt just like the one I had on, "how come she has one, you can tell me that I can't get one if she did". I spoke up and informed her that I had purchased it on a previous trip. That calmed her down but she had worked herself up pretty good!!

 

Now for the teens on the trip, I travel with my 15 year old daughter, she too has been with me on all 3 QM2 cruises. She too was appalled with the kids on the ship. One rather large boy found it ammusing to go into other teens cabins jump on the bed and break it. He broke 3 on the 5 day cruise! The kids were all looking for trouble and my daughter is not that type and more often than not she kept me company and only went with the teens on a limited basis. Another problem she had on this cruise was the teen club did not have many activities planed due to the many port stops.

 

I could go on but, please don't take this as a negitive; I just prefer the relazation, peace and civility of the transatlantic over the hussle and bussle of the port stop cruise. Maybe you would too???

 

Just my humble opioion!!

 

Malinda

 

You hit so many of my sentiments exactly! We will never do another short cruise on Cunard again - crossing was wonderful, this fell far short of being wonderful. Most of the staff I encountered were absolutely amazing - I cannot complain about them but the lack of, I don't know, there was just something that was really missing for us. I cannot complain about the Playzone as my two are just 3 and 5 - they loved it! Wanted to be there every chance they got. I guess it was, like someone else mentioned, that they started the balls to coincide with the first seating of the Britannia when the Grills didn't get out until much later and the overall seeming lack of enthusiasm for anything. I know I wouldn't have minded hearing that July 4th was Cunard's birthday but I didn't hear it mentioned once.

 

I'll stick to crossings from now on as well.

[ESLO]

Hi All & Malinda1229,

 

Hi Malinda1229, it was a pleasure to have met you at the met and thru out the ship. I truly enjoyed the opportunity to meet many of the CC's on board especially yourself, Clecat, Cruiseshelly, Cruiseking/Cq6, 2cruisers from Georgia and msk68 to name a few. All your suggestions that were passed around on our meets on thru the deck were very valuable and thank you.

 

I am sorry that all the other CC's were unable to join us at the meet in the Commodore Club but we did have a intimate gathering that was great. Too bad we hadn't setup another meet since so many people online stated that the first day was very busy getting use to the ship itself and also very tired from the long day.

 

I am sorry that on this thread and others I have read many negative and disappointing statements or remarks in their reviews. We personally except for one thing in the dining room experienced a picture perfect cruise with the room, tours, entertainment, food, staff in all. I (we) do question myself (ourselves), "Were We On The Same Ship?". True everyone sees and views things differently.

 

As I had said, we have over 18 cruises under our belt and maybe some things we take for granted and other are very noticeable. Our Waiter/Asst Waiter, Wine Steward, Asst DR Capt and Room Steward were exceptable and flawless. We really could not ask for anything more. Was it that we were Platinum Level? But we were in Non Grill Cabin & Restaurant.

 

The only problem we had was in the Dining Room as noticed by my father. He had two cocktails. One a favorite - Rob Roy and the other another day - Classic Old Fashion Manhattan. He found both to be inferior in taste and looks. We did not try another bar on the ship to compare. The Wine Steward said that this was the formulas they used in the Kitchen Bar. Maybe Europeans have a different method. I know each bartender has their own touch. Now my drinks were proper.

 

From all the reviews that I read from the other's, it would take to much time to response to each of their postings or their particular negative experiences. I feel bad that many will not return to Cunard for personal reasons.

 

As for we are looking forward to returning to the QM2 in the future but not for a 5 day Party Cruise but to a 10-13 day cruise with quite a number of days at sea. This is when you can take full advantage of the ship and their activities which we were kept from. I know the Daily Programme would be 2-3x's more things to do.

 

Granted, do we hope to have the same luck in all like this last cruise, I hope so.

 

Well that is why Cruise Critic's are very important with different opinions and views.

 

With Warm Regards,

:) ESLO

(Ed & Bev)

[atticus]

Although it definitely had a different feel, we had a wonderful time on the Independence Day Sampler and are mulling over booking next year's Independence Day cruise. I do enjoy the vibe on a transatlantic sailing or longer cruise - much more formal and everyone really works at getting into a routine, on these short cruises everyone works so hard to cram everything in that the pace is much different. I am sorry to say that my long cruising days and TAs are over as my husband likes the quick, port intensive trips (this is only his second cruise, so I am slowly trying to ease him into more serious ship travel).

 

We were on a RCCL cruise in the Spring and my husband thought that the QM2 cruise was so much better. We will not be returning to Royal Caribbean.

 

As for the teenage boys in the casino and Golden Lion on the last night..... looks like one of the boys finally got served after trying twice (and being shot down) at the pub and in the disco. Apperently there was some "mix-up" on his passport and his birthdate was wrong. Whatever, son.

[cruiserking]

I have to agree with Ed. We had a terrific time on the QM2. We enjoyed very much meeting everyone at the Commodore Club, Ed and Bev, (Eslo) Mallinda1229, Cleacat, msk68, CruiseShelly and 2 Cruisers from Georgia.

 

Atticus, although we missed the chance to chat we do remember exchanging trivia sheets with you guys in the Golden Lion. I also ran into Mr. Atticus on deck 8. We much prefer the longer voyages on QM2. The short hops seem to go by in the bat of an eye lash, oop there goes one...there goes another.

 

As I mentioned in the QM2 Journal thread, I prefer to consider the sampler cruise as a greatest hits cruise. It's a chance to enjoy an abbreviated version of our favorite past times on the great ship. We had great service at dinner. The Pavillion Pool was definitely more crowded, lots of kids floating around unlike this past January when it was busy, but more quiet.

 

The absence of a Captain's Cocktail party was a shame. They could have squeezed one in Bar Harbor. Captain Rynd must be very shy, I didn't see him any where. I have read that he is quite the task master. His boat drill instructions were very detailed. Certainly, it's good to be prepared, but, I found some of it a tad unsettling.

 

All in all though a superb trip. Perhaps our sailing paths will cross in the near future. See you on the Observation Deck Ed.

 

Jonathan

[Betsy's Mom]

Betsy's Mom and Betsy's Dad enjoyed a wonderful cruise. So much so that we are booked for the 9 day Canada for next year. That will make 3 on the Queen Mary 2 an one on the QE2. Enjoyed putting faces to names, but next time we need a sign or some such! It will be difficult to wait until Sept. of 07, but will manage with a trip to the Panama Canal in October on HAL, but it will not be the QM2! I cannot imagine how anyone would not have enjoyed this cruise! Oh well! By the way, we self embarked and it was a piece of cake, pack light and enjoy!

B.

[njguy_south]

Sorry I did not meet up with everyone the first night.

I thought the cruise was great, as usual for Cunard. However, they had previously assigned my cabin to a Mr. & Mrs. Shubert. When my friend John & I arrived, we checked with the desk to be certain the Mr & Mrs would not be showing up to our cabin, and they confirmed that all was fine. But the dining room was expecting Mr & Mrs, so we had to find another table (which was in a great location, center, almost directly under the tapastry in the Brit. Rest).

Also, I was a bit startled (as was another friend who had sailed QE2 over 40 times and QM2 twice) when we inquired as to why there was no captain's party (past passenger recog.) and was informed by the Hotel Manager and Purser that "this jaunt is a party cruise" (their exact words), and there would not be such a party. ADDITIONALLY, this short cruise would NOT count toward gaining further status in World Club. This is contrary to their web-site which states:

GOLD (3rd-7th voyage)

 

Once a World Club member has completed two Cunard voyages they enjoy even more benefits on their third through seventh voyage, giving them even more ways to enjoy a cruise to exciting destinations around the globe. In addition to the benefits offered to Silver World Club members, Gold World Club members are invited to our onboard World Club cocktail reception - available on sailings of more than four days

Does anyone else find that a bit strange, that this "sampler" did not count toward further status?

 

 

[msk68]

I just got off the phone with WorldClub and they said that yes it will count towards your WorldClub status. They said they have received numerous other complaints about the lack of a WC reception and other issues and are investigating them.

 

They encourage anyone with issues to put them in writing and send them to:

 

Passenger Relations Department

24844 Avenue Rockefeller

Santa Clarita, CA 91355

 

Be sure to include either your booking number or the ship and date of sailing.

 

Morrie

 

Sorry I did not meet up with everyone the first night.

I thought the cruise was great, as usual for Cunard. However, they had previously assigned my cabin to a Mr. & Mrs. Shubert. When my friend John & I arrived, we checked with the desk to be certain the Mr & Mrs would not be showing up to our cabin, and they confirmed that all was fine. But the dining room was expecting Mr & Mrs, so we had to find another table (which was in a great location, center, almost directly under the tapastry in the Brit. Rest).

Also, I was a bit startled (as was another friend who had sailed QE2 over 40 times and QM2 twice) when we inquired as to why there was no captain's party (past passenger recog.) and was informed by the Hotel Manager and Purser that "this jaunt is a party cruise" (their exact words), and there would not be such a party. ADDITIONALLY, this short cruise would NOT count toward gaining further status in World Club. This is contrary to their web-site which states:

GOLD (3rd-7th voyage)

 

Once a World Club member has completed two Cunard voyages they enjoy even more benefits on their third through seventh voyage, giving them even more ways to enjoy a cruise to exciting destinations around the globe. In addition to the benefits offered to Silver World Club members, Gold World Club members are invited to our onboard World Club cocktail reception - available on sailings of more than four days

Does anyone else find that a bit strange, that this "sampler" did not count toward further status?

 

 

[ESLO]

Sorry I did not meet up with everyone the first night.

I thought the cruise was great, as usual for Cunard. However, they had previously assigned my cabin to a Mr. & Mrs. Shubert. When my friend John & I arrived, we checked with the desk to be certain the Mr & Mrs would not be showing up to our cabin, and they confirmed that all was fine. But the dining room was expecting Mr & Mrs, so we had to find another table (which was in a great location, center, almost directly under the tapastry in the Brit. Rest).

Also, I was a bit startled (as was another friend who had sailed QE2 over 40 times and QM2 twice) when we inquired as to why there was no captain's party (past passenger recog.) and was informed by the Hotel Manager and Purser that "this jaunt is a party cruise" (their exact words), and there would not be such a party. ADDITIONALLY, this short cruise would NOT count toward gaining further status in World Club. This is contrary to their web-site which states:

GOLD (3rd-7th voyage)

 

Once a World Club member has completed two Cunard voyages they enjoy even more benefits on their third through seventh voyage, giving them even more ways to enjoy a cruise to exciting destinations around the globe. In addition to the benefits offered to Silver World Club members, Gold World Club members are invited to our onboard World Club cocktail reception - available on sailings of more than four days

Does anyone else find that a bit strange, that this "sampler" did not count toward further status?

 

Dear njguy_south,

So sorry to see all that you have experienced since before the cruise occurred. WOW, and some of us got off clean with a very enjoyable cruise.

 

That name incident was most likely due to a computer error or the information that was relayed by pouch to the ship was not corrected. Computers are fun and useful but can also cause harm and hard feelings if not used right to correct errors.

 

Also, my wife and I were surprised not to see the Captain's Party not occurring. We do enjoy the experience attending one. But, we figured out even before we left home with the listing of the landings we were expected to do that it was not meant to happen. Too many days at port and only one day at sea. I also could not image how they would have pulled it off with so so many people and all those Captain pictures that would have to be processed. It would have been a zoo, I would not have wanted to attend.

 

Also, hello & thank you msk68. Yes, every time you step onboard a Cunard ship you should be given credit especially 5 days long. It was a published cruise that took place and should be but on all our tabs for future credit in our WC membership listings.

 

Wishing you a better next cruise.

 

Regards,

:) ESLO

(Ed & Bev)

[Andiamo]

Not sure if this will make sense, but the QM2 and the Dynasty were my favorite ships--just not my favorite cruise experiences. We have had aft suites on other ships for seven days for a good deal less than the price we paid for the Independence Sampler for five days. My personal take is that unless I can travel Grill on the Queen, I don't think I would sail her again. And, there is no doubt, I will never, be able to "Grill" it.

 

Jeanne

 

 

I was doing my usual Cruise Critic visit today and came across my own quote (above) regarding not sailing the QM2 again. I am still laughing at myself. Since this trip, I have been on this year's Independence Day Sampler, am booked on the January 23rd Caribbean trip, and booked on next year's Independence Day Sampler. Wish I could remember exactly what changed my mind, but glad I did.

 

So, be careful what you say. The magic of her will bring you back.

 

Regards,

 

Jeanne