First Cunard Cruise?

A friend of ours is a travel agent and shared a great deal with my GF and me for a QM2 cruise to Canada from NYC. We can't do it this year but we're hoping we can next year (she's pretty sure she can get us the same deal again) so we're looking at doing our first Cunard cruise next year. That said, we want to know what this experience will be like. A bit about us:

• We're in our young 30's.
  
• We love food.
  
• We love ballroom dancing (a big appeal of QM2); I teach professionally while GF is an enthusiastic hobbiest.
  
• She tends to be very active, while I'm on the "hang out by the side of the pool with a book" sort.
  
• We've cruised four times before: three times with RCCL as working vacations teaching dance classes, and once with Celebrity as a pure vacation.
  We enjoyed both experiences, though Celebrity more so.
  
• We like getting dressed up and are happy to participate in formal nights.
  

How will the Cunard experience differ from Celebrity? What should we know about shipboard activities or other passengers? How does dining compare to RCCL and Celebrity (yes, it's a subjective question). What do all the different dress up nights mean? I've looked at the Cunard website but those are always positive and enthusiastic and in our experience may or may not reflect reality. Anything else we should know.

Hello Cruise Dancer.You and Cunard are made for each other.All buttons pressed.

Rodger,

.

You're 30 ish, You are very comfortable with Formal evening , but most of all you are both Ball Room Dancers !

It's a No Brainer, Cunard Line, especially the Queen Mary 2 is made for you !

Do not look any further !

I'm not going to give any input into your other questions, other than to say, Cunard is poles apart from RCCL ;)

See you both on the Dance floor. :)

My only caveat, are you comfortable with fixed dinner seatings? (I assume you would be Britannia when the word deal comes up).

If so, I think you will have a wonderful time.

Roy

Hi Cruise-Dancer,

I think you will be delighted with the QM2. It is a magnificent ship! Beautiful inside and out and a pleasure to sail on her.

Dear Husband and I had taken one Celebrity cruise and one RC, so my comparison is based on limited experience on those ships. I think the food on Cunard is fine, but maybe is a tad better on RC and Celebrity. This is, of course, subjective.

We stayed in inside cabins on all three lines and all were comfortable. The Celebrity cabin was larger and we liked the fact that RC had the curtains to keep the bed area dark.

Since you are dancers, I think you will really enjoy your time on the QM2. There is nothing to compare on RC or Celebrity. What fun for you!

Next year will roll around quickly. Something for you to look forward to doing. Have a wonderful voyage!

I am wondering; since you are dancers why you do not try and get a free cruise later on if you like it.

Regards John

I would say it's a match on all points, but sadly not the food. The buffet is very mediocre, and the breakfasts and lunches in the dining room the same. Dinner was very good though. I look forward to my next QM2 crossing, but the food is the one thing that is not calling me back. It's a possibility that the food was just too British for my taste, which is a personal thing.:)

The only Theme Night that gets significant participation is the Black and White ball, which typically is the formal night of the first sea day. With the majority of the men in tuxes and women in black/white ensembles it makes for nice ambience onboard.

The other theme nights are primarily post - dinner in the Queens Room so you generally don't see the theme reflected in the atmosphere in Britannia.

We generally like all of the meals in Britannia but breakfast and lunch tend to be more leisurely there than in Kings Court. Generally it takes a little over an hour (I guess it's faster if you request a table for two) but we like sharing a table to meet the broadest cross section of other passengers.

Agree about sharing tables. We insist on it. Meeting others is the best part of travel for us!

We think the food and service is fabulous on Cunard. Have met lots of really fun and interesting people on our dinner tables. As dancers its a no brainer for you!

Thank you for starting this post. We will be on QM2 in March, regular cruisers on celebrity, RCCL and a few princess but first time on cunard.

I have been wondering about the afternoon tea. I thought I read somewhere it is an extra charge but I can't recall where and I havent seen anything since. We tend to have breakfast, and skip lunch, have a light afternoon tea and dinner. Just cant have a lunch as well.

Could you please clarify if it is extra charge and also if there are any other things on the ship that are included on the other ships but a charge applies for cunard. The extra charge dining in specialty restaurants I am familiar with. I do have a nice OBC to use but don't want to show myself up as being a first timer.

thanks and happy cruising.

I can echo what others have written, having traveled on both Celebrity and Cunard. Given how you have described your interests, I think you will find Cunard, especially QMII, superior to Celebrity. Lots of chances to dance. Much higher level enrichment program (does X have any enrichment program?), and the food in the Britannia dining room is comparable, maybe superior. The Cunard ships are way more beautiful, enjoy the gorgeous public rooms. Lots of dress-up opportunities. Celebrity has more party experiences, but reading between the lines of your post, I think Cunard is a better match for you. Happy travels!

Thanks for the advice, everyone. It looks like we're gonna go for it!

... I have been wondering about the afternoon tea. I thought I read somewhere it is an extra charge but I can't recall where and I havent seen anything since. ... Could you please clarify if it is extra charge ...

QM2. There is no charge for afternoon tea in the Queens Room on Deck 3 (or for "Grills" passengers, in the Queens Grill Lounge Deck 7).

Afternoon tea is also available in the self-serve buffet (Kings Court Deck 7).

(In the past it has also been served in the Winter Garden Deck 7, but not I think recently)

There is a charge if you want a "champagne afternoon tea". When I was last on board a steward wheeled a large trolley around the Queens Room trying to get people to "up-grade", I didn't enquire as to cost as this doesn't interest me.

My advice is to get there early (or late, see below). People start queuing, waiting for the doors to open, sometimes fifteen-twenty minutes before.

If there is a string quartet or harpist set up on the dance floor, a table near the floor is nice.

If it is to be a "tea-dance" with a band playing for dancing, then a table near the windows is better (so you can hold a conversation above the noise). Avoid tables with a lamp on it, that merely gets in the way of plates and cups etc.

The room fills quickly, and then you'll see people arriving ten minutes after they have opened the room, searching for an empty table. Several times I've seen these late comers staring at tables, willing people to stop eating and leave so they can have the table. One lady I esp remember... I overheard her saying "oh they're leaving, no damn, they're having more scones".

However, if you do arrive later (a little while before they stop serving of course), then you'll time it right for the queues to have vanished as the early people (like me) are leaving and tables are becoming vacant.

Hope this helps. There are many photos taken on board QM2 on transatlantics and cruises, and a "tour" of the ship, via the link at the bottom, including some taken during afternoon tea. Here are links to two of my personal favourites taken when tea was being served.

Have a wonderful time :)

Thank you so much Pepperrn,

As a non drinker of alcohol I am happy to partake of the regular no charge afternoon tea. very interesting that it is so popular, the afternoon teas I have attended on other ships have been extremely under patronized.

I will make sure we get in line early.

A friend of ours is a travel agent and shared a great deal with my GF and me for a QM2 cruise to Canada from NYC. We can't do it this year but we're hoping we can next year (she's pretty sure she can get us the same deal again) so we're looking at doing our first Cunard cruise next year. That said, we want to know what this experience will be like. A bit about us:

 

• We're in our young 30's.
  
• We love food.
  
• We love ballroom dancing (a big appeal of QM2); I teach professionally while GF is an enthusiastic hobbiest.
  
• She tends to be very active, while I'm on the "hang out by the side of the pool with a book" sort.
  
• We've cruised four times before: three times with RCCL as working vacations teaching dance classes, and once with Celebrity as a pure vacation.
  We enjoyed both experiences, though Celebrity more so.
  
• We like getting dressed up and are happy to participate in formal nights.
  

 

How will the Cunard experience differ from Celebrity? What should we know about shipboard activities or other passengers? How does dining compare to RCCL and Celebrity (yes, it's a subjective question). What do all the different dress up nights mean? I've looked at the Cunard website but those are always positive and enthusiastic and in our experience may or may not reflect reality. Anything else we should know.

I'll use the Eclipse 14 day Caribbean trips as an example. We've done 6 Cunard trips & 2 Celebrity trips. Now doing one this Feb. on Regal Princess(hope it goes well) Celebrity is quite close to Cunard in many areas..Food was to me quite a bit better in the MDR on Celebrity. Celebrity "favorites" is an "Al a Carte" addition to the main menu. Escargots/Shrimp Cocktail/Ceasar salads erc. featured here.Entertainmaint about the same good shows overall. Much better speakers on Cunard. Far better tea service on Cunard. Dresscodes fairly similar. Cunard pax follow shipwide dresscode more than Celebrity. Bathrooms far better on Celebrity in "Steerage" Glass enclosed showers instead of curtains on Eclipse. Better storage in bathrooms on Celebrity. Far more drawer space on Cunard. Closet space about equal. The "balls" on Cunard are quite nice. You do not have to dress the part. Standard formal wear is fine. As to dancing...If you really like ballroom style then Cunard is the clear winner here. Best dance floors afloat!

Keithm, you will LOVE the Regal Princess. Enjoy!

Regal Princess is a beautiful ship.

Pepperrn,

For the afternoon tea and tea/dance--is there an expected dress code for either event?

Pepperrn, For the afternoon tea and tea/dance--is there an expected dress code for either event?

No, there is no dress-code for afternoon tea or tea-dance. People attend in whatever they are wearing at the time (usual "no swimwear" rules of course)

Very occasionally I have seen people very smartly dressed, esp it seems, amongst those who wish to take to the floor when the band are playing for a tea-dance (but there is no rule, individual choice). (I wore a jacket and tie for afternoon tea in the Queens Room on QE2).

However, as I said, most turn up in ordinary casual clothes.

Hope this helps.

Yes, thank you Pepperrn. I am trying to learn all the ins and outs of sailing with Cunard. One more question. Are the shipboard bills in pounds or USD? I was trying to find that in the website but, so far, didn't see it.

If you have anything else you think a first timer should be aware of, we'd appreciate it.

Everything is in USD, and charged to the CC that you register at embarkation..

Stewart

We like getting dressed up too. For us formal night means white tie. Black tie for informal. Nobody minds, and there are others who do the same! - Barbara

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