Sunbed reservation wars spreads.

[WantedOnVoyage]

Nope.... deck chairs on QE2, First and Tourist, were always reservable.  At least every trip I made I made in her through the 1990s. Except for around the pools.  It was one of the first things one did on embarkation.  You paid at the bureau and brought the chit up to the deck steward and picked your preferred spot.  All proper lines did that and library books were for reading not artfully displayed on a deck chair to "reserve" it all day. 

 

And yes, you could have tray lunches in First Class certainly when Mr. Dawson was in charge and choice of tea, real leaf tea, too, in the original 1920s pattern square pots. The rugs were off QUEEN MARY as were the cushions under new covers.  

 

Seemed to work for most everyone who fancied being a deck chair commodore.  

Edited Wednesday at 05:13 PM by WantedOnVoyage

[Bell Boy]

1 hour ago, WantedOnVoyage said:

Come back, Dennis Dawson, all is forgiven.

 

You pay a deck chair charge (I think it was $10.00 a day at the end), you and Dennis pick out your favourite spot and he has YOUR chair, with cushion and steamer rug all ready for YOU in the same spot.  Even tucks you in.  Deck chair service, tray lunches and teas.  All part of the service. And he'll move the chair in or out of the sun, too.  Nary a worry in the world.

 

This worked just fine for oh about 160 years with Cunard. Then someone decided to "improve" things. 

 

What do they call it again, "The Good Old Days"??

 

For all good reason, too. 

Dennis Dawson ! I can see it now,  Queen Annie's 'New Vibe' are scratching their heads wondering what on earth you are talking about. 😅 

[Planning to cruise]

36 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

With you Planning to cruise

Buy your own sun bed for the cruise duration?

 

No, No No

 

and did I say NO!!!!!!😅

I am not a sun worshipper, V2.  I soon get bored, a sun lounger is an alternative place to read.  Anyway they give you cricks in the neck when trying to people watch.

 

As for bringing your own, I do know someone who took a (small table top) ironing board on the       world cruise.  She was fussy about ironing, it was her thing.  Potential to take in ironing to partially offset the price perhaps?  

[Victoria2]

22 minutes ago, Planning to cruise said:

I am not a sun worshipper, V2.  I soon get bored, a sun lounger is an alternative place to read.  Anyway they give you cricks in the neck when trying to people watch.

 

As for bringing your own, I do know someone who took a (small table top) ironing board on the       world cruise.  She was fussy about ironing, it was her thing.  Potential to take in ironing to partially offset the price perhaps?  

Could start a whole new enterprising venture.

 

Can I put our fridge fairy into the mix?

 

I'll undercut the bars with G&Ts and Sauvignon Blanc. Oh and beers too.

 

Butler might think we have a right pair of winos here but what the heck. To quote a rather well known slogan over here 'every little helps'!  🍷

Edited Wednesday at 06:11 PM by Victoria2
quote, not quite!!!

[Host Hattie]

Just now, Bell Boy said:

Dennis Dawson ! I can see it now,  Queen Annie's 'New Vibe' are scratching their heads wondering what on earth you are talking about. 😅 

No, we can remember the first time he was brought up in this thread....

[Jonem2001]

29 minutes ago, Bell Boy said:

Dennis Dawson ! I can see it now,  Queen Annie's 'New Vibe' are scratching their heads wondering what on earth you are talking about. 😅 

One can be a student of history and still enjoy what QA has to offer, differently, to her sisters. Variety is the spice of life, after all.
 

Personally I wouldn’t have thought the idea of hanging around in a chair all day that attractive, when there are lectures, entertainment etc. to take in, but I can see the merits for some. Princess offer a similar model with designated sun loungers in their Sanctuary spaces, so there’s obviously still a market.

[WantedOnVoyage]

50 minutes ago, Bell Boy said:

Dennis Dawson ! I can see it now,  Queen Annie's 'New Vibe' are scratching their heads wondering what on earth you are talking about. 😅 

Nothing would give some of us more relief if they did.  Then again, even Dennis Dawson did not have to lock gates to access his First Class Boat Deck deck chair area, either.  How's that for a "vibe"... right out of 1910!

Edited Wednesday at 06:38 PM by WantedOnVoyage

[majortom10]

7 hours ago, TouchstoneFeste said:

Just returned from a Ponant cruise, and there was a notice in the daily program to the effect: "Items left unattended on deck chairs for 30 minutes will be sent to lost and found".

Notices to that effect have been in daily program on P&O for some time and because no action has been taken it has in general been ignored. It is only recently where staff have actually started doing something but not sure it is on all ships.

[3rdGenCunarder]

2 hours ago, Jonem2001 said:

One can be a student of history and still enjoy what QA has to offer, differently, to her sisters. Variety is the spice of life, after all.
 

Personally I wouldn’t have thought the idea of hanging around in a chair all day that attractive, when there are lectures, entertainment etc. to take in, but I can see the merits for some. Princess offer a similar model with designated sun loungers in their Sanctuary spaces, so there’s obviously still a market.

 

What are they charging for the Sanctuary these days?

 

[Jonem2001]

4 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

What are they charging for the Sanctuary these days?

 

I popped over to the Princess boards to check my memory - we were quoted $20 for a half day, but apparently you can pay $40 for a whole day, or $30 per whole day if you book the entire cruise length.

 

I like the idea of the different time options as we wouldn’t want a whole day on deck, but would welcome the opportunity to spend a few hours with a book, with the opportunity to pop back and forth if we needed to without giving up and then having to search for a new lounger.

 

The other attractive benefit was that it was adults-only, and peaceful, but that’s hardly an issue of the same magnitude on Cunard. And I can’t say I’ve seen many. If any, queues for the loungers on any of the Queens, so maybe the capacity/turnover is sufficient enough that implementing a reservation system - or even frequently patrolling - isn’t as justifiable as it would be on one of the large Princess ships.