LIVE (almost) from QM2 Transatlantic June 23 to June 29

[vieux_carre]

Curious if you have visited the Mareel Spa and aquatherapy center yet.  Before the refit last fall, there were reports of various areas not working or in need of a good sprucing up, but I suspect that this was addressed.  Do you know what the charge is for a full voyage pass to the aquatherapy center would cost?  I've heard that the price for such a package sometimes varies as Mareel, being a separate entity, sets their own rates...

[Kordy]

1 hour ago, Jim_Iain said:

You should have no trouble with Starlink and apps like Zoom.     Celebrity throttles their Starlink on Premium to 5 Down and 2.5 Upload and never had a problem at those speeds with Zoom.   Actually have no problem streaming Netflix.

 

I'm curious about Cunard.   Do they have both a basic and a Premium Internet?   Other question is whether you are able to stream with the internet you have.

Yes they do. Details here: https://www.cunard.com/en-us/the-cunard-experience/staying-connected

[Pushpit]

6 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

Do they have both a basic and a Premium Internet?   Other question is whether you are able to stream with the internet you have.

Yes, it is "Premium" for streaming, and "Essential" for non streaming.

 

Strangely when I've tested them there wasn't a lot of difference, or any difference, on test. But with Essential you certainly won't get far watching Youtube or the BBC (BBC Sounds, though, worked on Essential, as did secured Teams). So it seems to be the Essential throttling was at website level, not throttled at the specific ports, which makes it easy to use the Essential package if you know the workarounds - or just don't stream: the Essential package is still fast.

[Joe33472]

6 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

Other question is whether you are able to stream with the internet you have.

 

I just tried, and at least with the premium package, streaming is very possible.  Definitely enough to stream. We've actually have found the channel lineup on this cruise to be pretty good.  

 

Just keep in mind that some streaming services have geo-blocking for locations outside the US.  Right now the IP address that Starlink is using is still in England.  I'm using a VPN, which directs traffic through a US based server.  I'm sure at some point we'll change to IP addresses out of Canada or the US.  At least that's what happened on our way to Europe.  Everything was great with streaming as we were connected via a Florida IP Address.  Mid-way through the crossing, the IP address changed to a Spain location.  At that point, the Roku I had brought was essentially useless as most channels said that we couldn't watch from out of the States.   I connected an iPad to the stateroom TV and used the VPN and all worked great.   I'm sure that would work on Cunard too, but I haven't had to be the "tech guy" since we've found suitable US programming.  

 

 

This is Xfinity Stream of Modern Family just a few minutes ago.  Using a VPN. 

 

[Joe33472]

5 hours ago, vieux_carre said:

Curious if you have visited the Mareel Spa and aquatherapy center yet.  Before the refit last fall, there were reports of various areas not working or in need of a good sprucing up, but I suspect that this was addressed.  Do you know what the charge is for a full voyage pass to the aquatherapy center would cost?  I've heard that the price for such a package sometimes varies as Mareel, being a separate entity, sets their own rates...

 

I only been to the Spa to get a haircut, but it was really nice in there.  I also got a great haircut.  I arrived with some really big hair and left looking like a normal human. 😃

 

I'll do some investigation and see if I can find any pricing.  I think my SO wants to look at some products on sale there, so I'll inquire when we're there. 

 

 

[leyland1989]

The sea and wind had clam down a bit and we changed course to the great circle route. 

 

We are also doing 25 kts currently, possibly to make up lost time from yesterday.

 

[Mudhen]

Good Morning from the Hudson Valley, NY!

I've been enjoying all of the comments on this thread, although this is the first I've commented.

First off, thank you so much for all of the great info and comments. It takes time to do that, so it's greatly appreciated!

We'll be in the Princess Grill for a lengthy round trip, leaving NY at the end of July and returning in late August, so it's nice to read current comments.

First off, as many posters have mentioned, the QM2 is the VERY best to do any sort of TA. She sails beautifully!

Next on dining....I will often do a salad and then a couple of apps and/or soup if the mains don't suit me. Then I might actually have some room for either dessert or the wonderful cheese cart. Hoping that it's still there and hasn't been cut....

Last about laundry....in our experience, the BEST laundry is on Regent. It's included and is the most wonderful perk ever....well, adult beverages are the VERY BEST inclusion but I digress.

Turn around is usually 24 hrs, sometimes faster. Everything comes pressed, on hangers and other things come wrapped in tissue paper like presents...haha!

So keep on keeping on and enjoy every minute!

Thanks so much for all you're doing!

 

[Joe33472]

15 minutes ago, Mudhen said:

Next on dining....I will often do a salad and then a couple of apps and/or soup if the mains don't suit me. Then I might actually have some room for either dessert or the wonderful cheese cart. Hoping that it's still there and hasn't been cut....

 

Good morning!  Hope you have a great trip in July/Aug.  Sounds like a good amount of time on board.  

 

I'm thinking that it's probably the same in PG, but in QG there is definitely still a cheese cart.   There have been some comments in the forum about a downgrading of the quality and selection of the cheeses offered, but I can't comment on that because we've failed to make it to that course. 

 

We generally are so full that we barely finish our desserts.  And no room for even coffee or tea.  We don't see a lot of things on the dinner menu tonight that we like, so we'll probably order off the a la carte menu and I'm going to ask for some cheese either for my appetizer or after the appetizer course.  I realize that it's not the proper timing, but I'd like some cheese 🙂 I'll report on my success.  If I remember, I will pop into PG to scope out the cheese situation. 

 

As far as appetizers and salads for entrees or whatever.  Yes, the wait staff has been really accommodating and bring us whatever we want.  Last night I had two appetizers (along with my entree) and the waitstaff sequenced the food really well.

 

[alc13]

On 6/24/2024 at 6:04 PM, Joe33472 said:

 

lifestyle creep

What a great expression.  Personal example, the Grills...

[stan01]

We are also in QG for this 23-29 June cruise. We booked while it was still 7 days before being shortened to six. 
 

Suite: it is a 20 year old ship so folks expecting modern design will be disappointed. I travel with a few adapters and a 10 foot USB cable. There were a few minor issues with the room that we reported to the butler and he quickly fixed.  Very happy with the suite. 
 

Dining: agree embarkation day was not quite up to standard. Our waiter apologized on his own initiative and said it would be better the next day (and it was). We have enjoyed all meals and the service has been attentive. We did have to ask for coffee refills several times but I think they’ve figured that out. There have been times where service has been a little slow so they may be slightly understaffed. But at same time it is QG and if I wanted quick service I would have saved my money.
 

Entertainment: mostly good, the 70s band was awful (out of tune rendition of Dancing Queen).  The dancers put their hearts into their first show. 

[Joe33472]

Just noticed this this morning.   The butler places a white towel bedside each night.   We thought that was a nice touch.  What I noticed this morning is that on one side it says, "Good Morning" and the other side "Good Night".  The words are positioned the way you would enter the bed.  How cute is that? 

 

 

 

I also forgot to mention that the water is super hot and almost instantaneous in our stateroom.  Our neighbors at dinner also commented on this same thing.   They must use a recirculating pump or something.  It's really great.  At home, we have to wait about 5 minutes in our master bedroom for hot water as the water heater is far away.  

 

 

 

[Mudhen]

I too loved the little mat next to the bed....

We've only encountered that in a lux hotel in Luxemburg. 

I keep looking for that at home, but I guess the elves haven't gotten the message....no mat!

[stan01]

The biggest things Cunard needs to work on are IT issues. The bartenders use the contactless payment built into the room key to tap their tablets, so why do we also need to sign a paper slip and write in room number?  Service charge is included. This also seems to be inconsistent between bars and maybe servers. Maybe some servers are hoping for more tip or some passengers are demanding paper receipts?  The duplicate work slows everything down. 
 

Internet requires logging in again about every five hours which is annoying. Navigating through the internet login and my voyage sites is tedious with unnecessary form filling. They need an app with a persistent login.  
 

[Kordy]

4 hours ago, Joe33472 said:

 

I only been to the Spa to get a haircut, but it was really nice in there.  I also got a great haircut.  I arrived with some really big hair and left looking like a normal human. 😃

 

I'll do some investigation and see if I can find any pricing.  I think my SO wants to look at some products on sale there, so I'll inquire when we're there. 

 

 

This is great - if you don't mind, how much is a men's haircut on-board?

[Judyrem]

57 minutes ago, Mudhen said:

Good Morning from the Hudson Valley, NY!

I've been enjoying all of the comments on this thread, although this is the first I've commented.

First off, thank you so much for all of the great info and comments. It takes time to do that, so it's greatly appreciated!

We'll be in the Princess Grill for a lengthy round trip, leaving NY at the end of July and returning in late August, so it's nice to read current comments.

First off, as many posters have mentioned, the QM2 is the VERY best to do any sort of TA. She sails beautifully!

Next on dining....I will often do a salad and then a couple of apps and/or soup if the mains don't suit me. Then I might actually have some room for either dessert or the wonderful cheese cart. Hoping that it's still there and hasn't been cut....

Last about laundry....in our experience, the BEST laundry is on Regent. It's included and is the most wonderful perk ever....well, adult beverages are the VERY BEST inclusion but I digress.

Turn around is usually 24 hrs, sometimes faster. Everything comes pressed, on hangers and other things come wrapped in tissue paper like presents...haha!

So keep on keeping on and enjoy every minute!

Thanks so much for all you're doing!

 

Are you on the July 27th sailing. we are on that QM2 TA to Hamburg.

[Joe33472]

QG menus for today.  6.26.24 Queens Grill Menus.pdf

 

 

[Joe33472]

2 minutes ago, Kordy said:

This is great - if you don't mind, how much is a men's haircut on-board?

 

This was including a gratuity that was auto applied.  I tipped on top of the auto-gratuity.  

 

The BEST money I ever spent.   The time says 7:34 on embarkation day, but it was really 4:30 p.m. 

 

[Kordy]

1 minute ago, Joe33472 said:

 

This was including a gratuity that was auto applied.  I tipped on top of the auto-gratuity.  

 

The BEST money I ever spent.   The time says 7:34 on embarkation day, but it was really 4:30 p.m. 

 

That is pretty good... I pay $40 on land + tip, so this is only around $20 more!  Not overpriced, which is great.  And probably a good quality barber - thank you.

[Joe33472]

7 minutes ago, stan01 said:

The biggest things Cunard needs to work on are IT issues. The bartenders use the contactless payment built into the room key to tap their tablets, so why do we also need to sign a paper slip and write in room number?  Service charge is included. This also seems to be inconsistent between bars and maybe servers. Maybe some servers are hoping for more tip or some passengers are demanding paper receipts?  The duplicate work slows everything down. 
 

Internet requires logging in again about every five hours which is annoying. Navigating through the internet login and my voyage sites is tedious with unnecessary form filling. They need an app with a persistent login.  
 

 

Up until yesterday, the Internet has been working fine for us.   I've been using a remote desktop program to access my computer back home since Sunday, but yesterday that stopped working.  Uploads and downloads became difficult.   But, there was a big storm, so maybe that had something to do with it.  I'm wondering when our IP address will change to something on the east coast of the US.

 

Totally agree about the antiquated IT system.   Drinks on the Grills Promo are charged to your onboard account and refunded the next morning.  That's weird to me.  Signing all those receipts is a little old school.  I feel funny not putting a tip on the receipt.   But I always tip in cash and never add a tip to a tab.   

 

Y

[Joe33472]

3 minutes ago, Kordy said:

That is pretty good... I pay $40 on land + tip, so this is only around $20 more!  Not overpriced, which is great.  And probably a good quality barber - thank you.

 

Yes, I thought the price was very fair for on board.  I pay $35 on land + tip, but I get my hair cut in FL and not NY.    And YES, he did a great job.  I couldn't have been happier with the cut.  I was  little concerned when he started, but in the end it was perfect.  Rohit was the guy who cut my hair. 

[Jim_Iain]

6 hours ago, Joe33472 said:

 

I just tried, and at least with the premium package, streaming is very possible.  Definitely enough to stream. We've actually have found the channel lineup on this cruise to be pretty good.  

 

Just keep in mind that some streaming services have geo-blocking for locations outside the US.  Right now the IP address that Starlink is using is still in England.  I'm using a VPN, which directs traffic through a US based server.  I'm sure at some point we'll change to IP addresses out of Canada or the US.  At least that's what happened on our way to Europe.  Everything was great with streaming as we were connected via a Florida IP Address.  Mid-way through the crossing, the IP address changed to a Spain location.  At that point, the Roku I had brought was essentially useless as most channels said that we couldn't watch from out of the States.   I connected an iPad to the stateroom TV and used the VPN and all worked great.   I'm sure that would work on Cunard too, but I haven't had to be the "tech guy" since we've found suitable US programming.  

 

 

This is Xfinity Stream of Modern Family just a few minutes ago.  Using a VPN. 

 

 

 

 

Perfect.    I use VPN and verly familiar with Geo Spoofing.     I should be all set.  

[Joe33472]

We just went to Britannia Restaurant so I could take some photos of the menus to post here and when passing Sir Samuel's we noticed that they had pistachio macaroons available.  These happen to be one of our favorite desserts, but since we just finished lunch we figured that we would ask for a couple to take away and have the macaroons this afternoon.   We were told by the staff that we must eat the macaroons in Sir Samuel's and that we couldn't take the macaroons with us.  They said that was the rule.   We said to yourselves, we'll just sit down, order the macaroons and walk out with them.  But, we're definitely not rule breakers and if that's the rule that's the rule.  Seems like a really dumb rule.   I haven't seen a single macaroon anywhere on this ship since we've boarded and I'm sure if we wait until later this afternoon, all of the macaroons will be gone.  

 

So, at this point in the cruise, I've just had it with food services, so I went to the front desk to find a manager.  The usually long line was there and I gave up.  There were about 10 or so people in the queue, I think all needing tech support.   As I'm walking away, a man comes from the area in what appears to be an officer's uniform.  I look at his name tag and it indicates that he's the food service manager.  Perfect.  I discussed the "rule" with him. He says there is no rule, and shakes his head.  I say, "What would they do if I ordered the macaroons and took them to go?  Would they tackle me for the macaroons?".  He apologizes and says that he'll have some sent up to our room.  1/2 hour later, still no macaroons.... Not that we could eat them yet, it's just the point. 

[exlondoner]

Isn’t life too short for all this? Just enjoy your cruise.

[vieux_carre]

Just to make a point, since you’re in QG, I’d ask your butler to bring you a couple of the Sir Samuels macaroons every day!  Do they charge for the macaroons in Sir Samuels?

[Mudhen]

2 hours ago, Judyrem said:

Are you on the July 27th sailing. we are on that QM2 TA to Hamburg.

Yes we are, and even further. The fjords and then sailing back to NY!