Germancruiser

Well I cam from RCCL moved to X- then - Cunard, with a few cruises with MSC- in their wonderful Yacht Club. So the OP´s question was - what cruise line to turn to- so I would recommend Cunard- very refinded- very different in style, excellent service. Food comparable to X ( I never sailed in the Grills- so I can only comment on Britannia Class) Cunard offers a very " British" cruise experience. What I never encountered where Kids on Cunard ships. Wheras on MSC ships there ( outside of Yacht Club) are - well i felt that way- 1000´s of kids.

If you loved Beyond I think you can not go wrong. Maybe the music on board Beyond did not disturb you at all. So I would not be to worried. People have different noise level they can stomach. My noise level seems to get more sensibel the older I get. In my mid 50´s now, but enjoyed the calmness and great guest, crew and everything about Celebrity when I did my first cruise with them 22 years ago ( the then brandnew Millenium) All the complains about loud music- standards a bit slipping- cutbacks all over- are true- but - STILL CELEBRITY IS OFFERING A GREAT CRUISE EXPERIENCE!

I only have Arthur - and that for the Name only - Captain Sir Rostron did deserve a bear to bear his name.

So calm weather means no creacking - rough weather a bit ( or a bit more) creacking! I found that out since my very first cruise back in 1983. I can not imagine that there is a design flaw in the ships themself. ( There some with the E- Class ships, but that has nothing to do with the creacking noise.. )

Thank you Host Anne- I could not agree more.

@daveandkathy- that is exactly what i thought, when I first read the topic. Cooking one´s own rice in the cabin... !

That was indeed a great idea- to act as you did. So she saw for herself. Perfectly done. I agree- and really don´t get it- there so many venues on board this otherwise wonderful Ship ( in this case it was the Apex) why ist so important to have that Partything going on in the middle of the ship. The crew and service where really really great- there so many great restaurants and lounges. Eden is a wonderful spot- in a few years - after the first major refits - it is quite possible that they change the interiour - away from this gastly 70´s style, with the impossible chairs and tables. One can still hope. LOL.

Oh yes- X- ships seems to get louder by the year- Party Party Party- thats the new goal- and to attract a younger clientel. The Martini Bars on board the Solstice Class of ships are loud, but compared to the Martini Bar on board Apex it seemed like soft music playing in funeral home. The location of the Martini Bars on board E- Class ships are IMO rather cathastrophic. No excape from the Party - all through 3 or so decks. The Captain deems it neccecarry to stand on bar and entertain.

I always come early to the pier- better safe then sorry. My boarding time for June 9th is 2.45- I am there at noon- or a bit later, depending on the traffic from London to Southampton. Car will pick me up at 10.30am. So that should work- if I have to wait a little - so be it- I don´t care.

Uhh, I am not sure I really like what I read about them let alone to sail with them.

I suppose the main goal/ target, now for Celebrity - or any other main stream cruise lines are the Millenials. I hear that a lot of the old X- loyals are turning slowly but steadly to Cunard or the more luxury brands. I count myself among those - booking more and more cruises with Cunard. Don´t get me wrong Celebrity still delivers a very nice cruise experience, depending on the destinations and therefore the age group. They might keep Millenium Class a little longer- it seems the Baby Boomers or Generation X ( my Generation) are more in favor for those ships.

What- they did nothing against it- that is not the Celebrity of the olden days- those golden days. They would have tugged that other ship away ASAP.

It is really BEYOND me how on earth those cruise lines can not get their windows cleaned- get their act together. One can´t possibly expect passenger enjoy their meals while looking- or trying for that matter- out of a dirty window. Spoils the whole meal. The meat turns tough, the Salad turns green, the soup turns cold, the bread get´s dry, the ice creams melts. The passengers get´s into histerics, the waiter cries- but let´s keep quite about it, yes- we should keep in mind: Loose lips sink ships.

Mine for the June 9th voyage says 2.30- I will leave the hotel in London at about 11 and see how it works out.

No wirstbands for me- I can not stand them. The cards are fine with me. Toilets are mentioned. Noooo- let them not touch the Champagne Bar- one of my favorite bars. Ah a major refit in 2026, well I hope they change not tooooo much then.

There is not much I wanna see changed- I love QM2 as she is- the remastering of 2016 was hit. 1. Replace those ugly shower curtains 2. Public toilets - they NEED a TOTAL make over- all over the ship. For the rest- only cosmetic changes - maybe- like new carpets.

Okay- that was a very different noise then Sumbum, at least they could fix it- whatever the problem was. Probably sloopy craftmanship at the shipyard- Beyond is brandnew- well almost.

The whole area around the Martini Bar and the Martini Bar itself is, in my opinion, the worst part of the ship. Loud- noisy and in the middle of everything. Most passengers seem to love it that way- so I am aware that I am in the minority here. The Martini Bar of the Millenium Class was a classy, elegant place, even after their Solistication, with the intro of the S- Class ships the MB become louder and more noisy. Edge Class topps them all - it even ruins Al Bacio one deck up. Edge Clas has wonderful spots no dout about it. ( I only know Apex- but they are all the - or almost the same layout) SV- Verandah Cabin on the E- Class are the best balcony cabins ever. They are rare and sell fast. Since they are almost the only REAL balcony cabins.

Of course it was Pol Acker - keeps the rust away.

The only way to sail on board an Edge Class ship is a booking a SV- my opinion, of course. I sailed on the Maiden Voyage on board Apex- a really stunning ship- some area´s more, some less. Those SV ´cabins are sold out pretty quick- so I stick with M- Class- or S- Class. M- Class still beeing my favorit class of ships with X. I fear after all Edge- Class ships are out and about- they will get rid of the M- Class ships one by one.

I never, ever had a problem changing a 50€ bill anywhere in Europe. 100´s is a different story though- as there are a lot of fake 100´s and 200´s around.

You can change at the pursers desk on the ship or even in Rome- or whatever European City you will visist. 50€ bills are accepted all over- just pay for example a little Cappuchino in Rome with a 50 Bill and you will get the change. I don´t thing you will get higher bills then 50´s!

Well, it is not every year the England prepares for the Coronation of a new monarch, so bit of " formal" is quite appropriate. The last century saw 4 Coronations.

Thank you Richard- very much appreciated.

I totaly understand you feeling cagefreewill- the whole dreadful situation should have been handeled different from Cunard: 1. Let about 2000 stranded passengers on board the Mary for the time until their journeys home could be arranged. 2. More help to arrange said journeys home. 3. A bit more empathy for those ca. 2000 passenger who where eager to board the QM2. Some look forward to this very day for a long time- some even years- a nice mail and 20% FCC is by far not enough. THAT WAS NOT UP TO SCRATCH CUNARD!