First trip & cruise on Cunard - looking for tips

[FNFantastic]

Hello, CruiseCritic Community! 👋😊

My husband and I are choosing Cunard as a trip from Cape Liberty to Europe to visit family since the pandemic hit. It will both be our first time cruising and first experience on the East Coast. We're choosing lodging a few days ahead of time and within at least 20-30 minutes of Cape Liberty, Newark, NJ.  I am concerned on being able to get an Uber XL or similar as he's a tall guy. Trying to find airline seats are a nightmare due to how much legroom he needs to be comfortable. I am disabled and hoping to be courteous to my fellow travelers by making good decisions. 

Are there any tips/wisdom/trusted services/travel agents anyone can share to help make this experience better for us? This trip will also serve as a mini-honeymoon and anniversary gift to see if we like cruising. 

Thank you all for your advice in advance! 

[TheOldBear]

You may want to visit the Cunard forum https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/32-cunard-line/ for discussion and answers.

 

One important thing is the QM2 usually sails from the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal - Cape Liberty is primarily for Royal Caribbean & Celebrity sailings.

There are infrequent occasions where QM2 will use the Manhattan piers - Brooklyn is also used by MSC,Carnival & Princess, and cannot be 'double booked' as there is only one berth.

 

Forgot to mention - Welcome to the Cruise Critic Forums 🙂

 

Edited April 27, 2023 by TheOldBear

[Brighton Line]

I'm 6' 7" you can use Uber or Lyft and pay for their higher class service that would get you a bigger vehicle UberXL, Uber Black, or Uber Black SUV (Lyft has equivalent types) but I find that even in the standard UberX if the driver pulls up the front passenger seat I have enough room. 

You might need UberXL depending on how many bags you are taking as well. 

 

As handicapped Uber also has Uber WAV or Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles as well. 

[njhorseman]

8 hours ago, FNFantastic said:

My husband and I are choosing Cunard as a trip from Cape Liberty to Europe

It's very unlikely that your cruise is departing Cape Liberty. As was already stated almost all Cunard cruises sail from Brooklyn, with an occasional departure from Manhattan.

What ship are you on...QM2?  What is your embarkation date?

[FNFantastic]

Hi there  @TheOldBear @Brighton Line @njhorseman! Thanks for the welcome and helpful info!

Our embarkation date on the QM2 is Sept 11, 2023 if that helps? This is the cruise we booked: https://www.cunard.com/en-us/find-a-cruise/M328A/M328A

I did a bit of reading here in the posts and Googled "Brooklyn Cruise Terminal." We initially chose Newark, NJ as it was much cheaper to fly into than New York and similar and it gives us some time to be in the area a few days to relax before going onboard. I may bring some anti-nausea medication in case of sea-sickness. 

Great idea on the UberXL and UberWAV as that will play a factor with deciding on how much luggage to bring. 

[TheOldBear]

Are you booked for just the eastbound crossing, or doing the round trip?

 

I've noted that this is the 2023 crossing with Anthony Inglis and the English National Symphony - that means two special concert nights [featuring American and English composers] plus an afternoon concert where the orchestra is joined by Cunard musicians.

 

Do you sing? There is a passenger chorus for the English night [theme "The last Night of the Proms"] with several daytime rehearsals. That is one reason we will select the NSO crossing [hoping we have picked the right sailing for 2024] 

 

If you have questions about 'life on board', what to pack [and what not to pack] and anything else about the cruise - please visit the Cunard forum.

[njhorseman]

11 hours ago, FNFantastic said:

Hi there  @TheOldBear @Brighton Line @njhorseman! Thanks for the welcome and helpful info!

Our embarkation date on the QM2 is Sept 11, 2023 if that helps? This is the cruise we booked: https://www.cunard.com/en-us/find-a-cruise/M328A/M328A

I did a bit of reading here in the posts and Googled "Brooklyn Cruise Terminal." We initially chose Newark, NJ as it was much cheaper to fly into than New York and similar and it gives us some time to be in the area a few days to relax before going onboard. I may bring some anti-nausea medication in case of sea-sickness. 

Great idea on the UberXL and UberWAV as that will play a factor with deciding on how much luggage to bring. 

OK...your cruise definitely boards at the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal as we suspected, not Cape Liberty as you thought. You can see it on the official port schedule for Brooklyn: https://nycruise.com/brooklyn-terminal/schedule-bct/  .

It's fine to fly into EWR if the airfare is significantly cheaper than flying into LGA or JFK, but be aware that ground transportation by Uber or car service from EWR into NY City will likely be higher than from LGA or JFK due to tolls,

Since you're flying in a few days before your cruise I strongly suggest you stay in Manhattan. There's nothing much to do in that area of NJ and if you were to stay near EWR you'd have to spend a lot of time and money traveling back and forth to NY City...and particularly because you say you're disabled that travel may not be easy for you to undertake.