Queen Mary 2 17 may 2006 HELP!!!!!!!!

[pongo]

Hi this will be our 1st ever cruise.

We would love to know the following what are the bar prices like on board the Qm 2:confused: we have been told all soft drinks and tea and coffie are free :confused:

 

we have booked a B1 room with balcony what service should we expect?

 

If we use room service for food must we pay?

 

must we still tip on board if we want to be served good???

 

we have booked in the Nederlands for the QM 2 and the only things we know is the food is free and to dress smart in the evening.

 

We feel we dont have enought information we have phoned the main office but that was over 2 weeks ago and we are still waiting for the information.

hope you can help

Thank you :)

[Threadfin]

Drinks are 4-5 dollars. Tip is included in the price. Tip for better service. I do. Coffee and tea are free, sodas cost extra. If you drink a lot of soda, buy a soda sticker. Room service is free on B cabins and above, I think. Of course, all thinking is subjective. I'm sure someone more in the know than I will help you. I have only been on one QM 2 transatlantic cruise. I'm a neophyte cruiser. Threadminnow

[patwell]

Hello and welcome to our board. I just posted to you but I think cybersapce ate it so I'll try again. If you read back on some of the old posts I think you will find a wealth of info about the QM2. Many of our posters have sailed her frequently and have shared all sorts of good information. I will be taking my first QM2 cruise later this year and have learned so much just from reading the older postings. There is also a great thread called "what not to miss on the QM2" which you definitely should read. I'll bump it up to the top so you can find it easily. All sorts of QM2 travelers have posted their favorite things about the ship and it will tell you so much about what to enjoy while you are onboard. Congratulations on your first cruise. You picked a most memorable ship for the first and I'm sure you will love it. And I'm sure you will get lots of help from my fellow posters so check back often. Cheers, Penny

[pongo]

thank you :)

what is the advantage of a soda sticker and what does it cost?

[mufi]

Pongo - welcome.

 

You can always get coffee tea etc. free on QM2.

 

Also basic juices, hot chocolate etc free.

 

Canned, bottled, ie bar drinks you pay for.

 

You will have a room steward who will service you cabin etc. There is room service available 24 hrs which is free. Any other problems or queries are handled by the Pursers Offise.

 

Tips are added to your account. There are many opinions about tipping on these boards but my advice is do not be influenced too much by our American friends. They look on tipping very differently from Europeans. Remember that you will have paid your tips on your account, any extra is your decision. I have not found that tipping makes much difference to the service you receive, which is as it should be.

 

You should have received or will soon a full guide to life aboard from Cunard. Don't worry about very smart dress. QM2 does not have as strict a code as QE2, but you will feel more comfortable if you conform to the dress code, although it never applies over the entire ship, only the main dining rooms.

 

You have never cruised before! You will be impressed. Enjoy it.

 

David.

[coy860]

We have cruised 19 times. We always tip the room service waiter, as he comes from the kitchen, and we may have a different one every time. It has never been our own room steward who delivered for room service.

You will have an ice bucket in your room, and the tap water is just fine for drinking. Juices, coffee, tea, milk is available and there is no charge.

Drinks from the bars, or soda you pay for.

 

There is interactive service from the TV in your room for ordering room service.

There are many places to choose from as far as meals go, of course, the Britannia Dining room, Golden Lion Pub, Broadway Cafe plus others on board, the choice is yours. You will receive a daily planner every night, for the next day, listing times all places are open, plus suggestions for dress of the day, activities, etc.

[travel-to-go]

Pongo,

Hoe gaat het met jou?

 

Don't expect any more. It took my friend Michiel 6 months just to teach me how to pronounce that right, and I was floored when Captain Hans van Biljouw responded! (Which meant he actually understood what I said!)

 

Now don't listen to those Brits!

<G>

 

Enjoy your meals in the Britannia Dining room. Your tablemates will get you acquainted with the customs. I realize there are a lot of threads with a lot of posts here. Remember most people like to hear themselves talk (me, most of all) and discount half of the whining things we say. For all of our whining, we are all here becasue we love cruising, and love the Queens. You could not pry our cold dead hands off the aft (rear) railing for all of the tea in Istanbul!

That said, read through the threads. Tipping is de rigeur on a ship. The suggested tips covering your room steward and wait staff will be added to your cruise account, which you will set up using a credit card, cash or debit card when you check in the day of the sailing. All charges while on board for drinks, shore excursions, wine at dinner, gift shop purchases, beauty salon appointments, spa appointments and other extras will be billed to this account (it adds up- They no longer automatiacally give receipts, so ask for them if you want to keep track. You can also view your account online on your TV in your room.) You can settle up with cash or travelers checks at the end of our cruise, or leave it on your credit card to be billed to you. If you feel that your wait staff has been extra-special in seeing to your needs and desires, it is customary to tip them extra at the end of your cruise. If you remove the automatic tips from your account, and tip them in person totally, they must pool those tips. If you leave on the automatic tips then give them extra personally, it is their to keep. They do not get paid much, and work long hard split hours, getting thier sleep 2 and 3 hours at a time! Remember they must be there for all meals, plus other duties. Stewards work equally hard and long. Bar drinks and drinks fromthe sommelier at dinner have the tip added in already, but you may add extra. In the US it is traditional to tip everybody. Not so in Die Nederlands and most Europeans countries.

 

You will have a marvelous time. If you are discreet it is possible to bring booze or even sodas on board with you (put in carry-on) and your ice will be replenished at least twice daily, more if you ask. We always bring something on board to drink in our cabinmbut the sip gets plenty of our money too! Sometieme I just want a Diet Pepsi Diet Mountain Dew or Fresca, which you can't get on board (Diet Coke is all) Kings' Court is a cafeteria style restaurant for lunch and breakfast and late night snacks. It is sit-down restaurant at night. Most people do not use room service that much. It is also possible to get your breakfast or lunch, for instance on a tray at King's Court and bring it back to your room balcony to enjoy.

 

Read over the threads. You'll feel like an old pro by the time you go.

 

welcome to the crew here, and I know you will have a marvelous time !

 

Karie, who tries to sign off with something pithy, though it started as a way to let people know who I was!

 

(P.S. I'm in the US)

[Bollinge]

A "soda sticker" is a label they put on your room keycard if you have prepaid - about $25 - for unlimited soft drinks (sodas) such as Cokes, Sprites etc.

 

Sadly they don't allow you to prepay for unlimited beers and Champagnes.

[pongo]

I would like to thank you all for replying!

 

My husband and I have been going through the internet site for 2 weeks for the information with no luck.

I came across this site from my sister ( she was looking up for the same information for my mum who is doing the queen mary 2 in june with her friends) so I decided to give it a try and I was very pleased to get the respond I got so thank you you have all help plus I can send a link to my mum so she will also have the information too.

 

I will add this is a great website and I think this has a lot to do with the great people thet reply to the questions people are asking so well done!!!

 

Johanne