Cunard vs Holland America

[lenquixote66]

15 hours ago, BklynBoy8 said:

We enjoyed from the QE2 to the current QM2 many long voyages with Cunard.

 

Long Caribbean's, Norway, several Panama Canal's, part of World Cruise, Transatlantic's and back to back NYC/NYC (Quebec).

 

And we keep coming back to what we feel is "Home" with Cunard.

 

Never disappointed with any of the sailings that are always memorable and have met many special people. We are still in contact with. 

We were at the Brooklyn harbor in 2019.The area was so much nicer than the last time I was in the area in 1968.

[BklynBoy8]

1 hour ago, lenquixote66 said:

"Things were different in 1973.There were Bon Voyage parties.Passengers were allowed to have guests on the ship before it sailed."

 

"We were at the Brooklyn harbor in 2019.The area was so much nicer than the last time I was in the area in 1968."

Hi lenquixote,

"Yes, Those Were The Days My Friend......."

We too miss those day when we first experienced Cunard on the QE2.

 

It was even before Cunard we remember the Bon Voyage Parties and people chancing the " Last Warnings" to leave the ship before sailing. People on deck waving and throwing streamers to those on the Pier.  Top of the Pier visitation more since 9-11. 

 

Yes and now we have Brooklyn (Redhook) instead busy 12th Avenue (West Side Highway). We like it better since we are only 12 minutes and battle the Manhattan traffic. Granted we do miss sailing down the Hudson the way Old Time Ships sailed down.

 

We also miss the other activities Cunard Entertainment Staff offered in the past. Now we have new Gala Nights Themes. But we would not still change from Cunard since we like the product and service they offer.

 

[lenquixote66]

1 hour ago, BklynBoy8 said:

Hi lenquixote,

"Yes, Those Were The Days My Friend......."

We too miss those day when we first experienced Cunard on the QE2.

 

It was even before Cunard we remember the Bon Voyage Parties and people chancing the " Last Warnings" to leave the ship before sailing. People on deck waving and throwing streamers to those on the Pier.  Top of the Pier visitation more since 9-11. 

 

Yes and now we have Brooklyn (Redhook) instead busy 12th Avenue (West Side Highway). We like it better since we are only 12 minutes and battle the Manhattan traffic. Granted we do miss sailing down the Hudson the way Old Time Ships sailed down.

 

We also miss the other activities Cunard Entertainment Staff offered in the past. Now we have new Gala Nights Themes. But we would not still change from Cunard since we like the product and service they offer.

 

I lived in Brooklyn most of my life .

[navybankerteacher]

4 hours ago, BklynBoy8 said:

Hi lenquixote,

"Yes, Those Were The Days My Friend......."

We too miss those day when we first experienced Cunard on the QE2.

...

4 hours ago, BklynBoy8 said:

 

Granted we do miss sailing down the Hudson the way Old Time Ships sailed down.

...

 

Sailing down the Hudson is THE ONLY way to do it -- if you want to experience a sailaway from New York, it should be from New York County (Manhattan) -- and not King's County (Brooklyn).

[david,Mississauga]

19 hours ago, lenquixote66 said:

Things were different in 1973.There were Bon Voyage parties.Passengers were allowed to have guests on the ship before it sailed.

 

Indeed, most ships allowed visitors in the 1970s - and many right up to the end of the century. We had our first Cunard voyage on the QE2 in 1973. Visitors were definitely not allowed. We were told that policy changed after the mid-Atlantic bomb scare in May of 1972.

 

Visits to the bridge were also not allowed after that, although there were some exceptions. A friend was on the QE2 in 2002 (a Québec - NY voyage) and  bridge visits were allowed whilst  in Boston. On none of my Atlantic crossings were bridge or engine room visits permitted.

[lenquixote66]

4 hours ago, david,Mississauga said:

 

Indeed, most ships allowed visitors in the 1970s - and many right up to the end of the century. We had our first Cunard voyage on the QE2 in 1973. Visitors were definitely not allowed. We were told that policy changed after the mid-Atlantic bomb scare in May of 1972.

 

Visits to the bridge were also not allowed after that, although there were some exceptions. A friend was on the QE2 in 2002 (a Québec - NY voyage) and  bridge visits were allowed whilst  in Boston. On none of my Atlantic crossings were bridge or engine room visits permitted.

We were on the Cunard Ambassador.

[BklynBoy8]

4 hours ago, david,Mississauga said:

Visits to the bridge were also not allowed after that, although there were some exceptions. A friend was on the QE2 in 2002 (a Québec - NY voyage) and  bridge visits were allowed whilst  in Boston. On none of my Atlantic crossings were bridge or engine room visits permitted.

We had the opportunity to visit the QE2 about three times after writing a letter to the Captain. The visits were always during a day at sea with proper weather.  We were once to see the Engine Room with the Chief Engineer but the sea did not cooperate on that day.

 

Also once during a Sea Day with proper weather we toured the QM2.

 

It was great to have had those opportunities.

[njpln]

We have been on both cruise lines in the past few years.  We really like Cunard, especially the suites.  The perk of a separate lounge and smaller, quieter dining rooms is truly elegant, fine dining and merits dressing up.

 

We haven’t been on HAL ship that has a separate  dining  room for suites, not sure if any do, but that’s a huge drawback.  The food in the grilles dining rooms is superb.  If you sale HAL and pay for a suite, you get to eat the same food as everyone else, and it’s just OK.

The other big difference is dancing.  Cunard has two nice spaces to dance. They have the night club dance floor and they have the ballroom dance floor. So whatever suits your dance style you have a place to dance. HAL only has a small nightclub dance floor, and the bands tend to play too loud for the size of the room.

 

Other than those two issues, they both have good activities, shows and speakers, in my opinion.  
 

The dress code is definitely more rigid on Cunard, but that’s what makes them stand out. They have no problem filling up ships with people who are willing to dress up every night.

 

Hope this helps you in figuring out which is better for you.

 

[navybankerteacher]

Until about 2007, Cunard and HAL were fairly comparable: real music in several venues, at least a couple of dance venues, quite good food and service quality in main dining rooms, dress codes which were observed, etc.   

 

Of course, Cunard always had premium “first class” service in addition to what was provided to all passengers on both lines. But starting about 2005 (perhaps in an effort to fill all the bunks on the newer and larger Vista class ships  which carried many more passengers (2,000+/-) than the R and S class (1,200+/-) and the smaller, really special Prinsendam, HAL started to “Carnivalize” itself and dropped down to mass-market competition.

 

Now, while both have waned in quality of the experience, Cunard still retains many of the traditional trappings which HAL has dropped

[tv24]

While we have enjoyed several very pleasant voyages on HAL, IMHO HAL does not sail any ship that can compare to Cunard's QM2.  It's because of the QM2 and its elegant public rooms and spaciousness that we will return to Cunard more frequently than HAL.