DadTheBigKid

I have left off the review of New York which will be on our blog if required. As I am new to this I will post each day as its own thread and I hope with pictures will be easier viewing.

 

Tuesday May 17th 2016

 

We boarded the QM2 in Brooklyn very quickly. Our embarkation was 3pm and we arrived 14.50. Within 10 -15 minutes we had filled out our health questionnaire , gone through security and given our credit card details to receive our room card.

We went straight our stateroom 5141 which had a sheltered balcony. It was just as we had hoped and we had a box of chocolates and champagne as part of our Bon Voyage Package.

"Two small niggles to mention now as all else went perfectly, our room steward was not sure how we ensured we got our champagne with our breakfast the following morning for our Anniversary and obviously nor did we so we went to the pursers office and it was much clearer. We also had some trouble with leaving our champagne in the Britannia restaurant as it took 30 minutes to find it."

 

Our bags arrived about 45 minutes after we did.

Went on deck for going under the Verrazano bridge with a glass of champagne. We knew the cost of the champagne but it was fantastic to see the mast and funnel just clear the bridge with a glass and this was a great start to our voyage.

Back to room for changing and then a drink in the Chart bar and our first cocktails.

Went for our first evening meal which was informal at 8.30pm in the Britannia restaurant lower level (table 56) for 8 by the window.

Our co-diners were a group of 4 new Cunarder's from the Midlands UK and an experienced Cunard couple from South Carolina ( formerly New York).

Throughout the trip they were great company and this was a lovely meal. Each evening we never left the table before 10.30!

We retired after dinner and arranged for our champagne breakfast in bed on Wednesday for our anniversary . It was lovely to have the next day's itennary in our room and this was a lovely routine to go through before bed.

We also enjoyed watching the morning show from the Entertainment Director every morning while dressing.

I have just come off the QM2.

My first and not last time I hope.

The surroundings and dress code are important of course but the holiday is made by people.

I would give more tolerance in dress code than people's attitude any time.

We met great people dressed in various ways at various times of the day.

The decorum would be lowered much more by bad attitude than dress and I am glad that on board, as many people have stated on here, the people are impeccable and made the holiday while the environment and dress code was overall as requested but not always and NEVER in a way that upset anyone

Happy holidays to all.

[quote name='pepperrn']Hi DadTheBigKid

I think that reviews posted in the review section are indeed moderated and appear after a few days.
Reviews posted here on the main board (which many have done, incl myself a long time ago) do, of course, appear instantly.

The other difference, unless I am mistaken, is that reviews posted formally cannot be commented upon, praised, further questions asked, or critiqued. Whereas reviews posted here on the main Cunard board do allow all those options of course.

I apologise if I'm mistaken above, hope this helps. VERY much looking forward to reading your words and seeing your photos :)[/QUOTE]


Thank you Ill post a review on here as a new thread as you and Host Hattie suggest.

I will build the bog over the next few days also. :)

Hi all
I have tried to post a lengthy review with photos.
Does it need to be moderated first as I cannot find it yet?
Many Thanks

Hi,

 

I am looking forward to seeing the changes to the QM2. I am booked on the September 27, 2016 Canada / New England cruise. This will be my fifth time on the QM2 (previously sailed on ship in 2004, 2006, 2009 and 2014). It is always interesting to see how the ship evolves over time.

 

Chuck

 

Two American evening table companions of ours left the ship yesterday as we did and are spending time in London and Paris and then returning home on the first westbound from London after the refit!

Very nice indeed I think

Interesting but hardly innovative breakfast selections. I thought there already was a coffee lounge where one could obtain free pastries of the likes of those shown where one had to pay for decent coffee.

 

As for the other items, they are easy to produce for photos but when there are 100 dinners in the queue at Verandah they may not be so easily reproduced in artistic nor taste quality. I shall keep an open mind and most likely an adherence to the Britannia dining room for all of my meals other than a few in the pub. Loved the mashed peas.

 

Hi

That's interesting

My wife and I just got home and we had two lunches in the Golden Lion but she didn't like the mash peas. I think as Brits we are used to the mass produced mushy peas which are much more liquid as such and probably very unhealthy!

However other than mashed peas it was virtually faultless.

So lucky to have lived onboard for 8 nights.

Ohhhh I was just about ask if you were back :D Will you be posting a full review?

 

Hi

Yes I will.

I'm taking Mum back home today and hope to complete our blog and post a review by Monday.

It was fantastic, never a dull or boring moment and the evenings were unbelievable.

We are new to Cunard(very excited about cruising on the Queen Victoria July 30-Aug.13) and want to properly dress. We have cruised

on many lines including Oceania, Azamara, Celebrity, and others, but I am hearing the dress codes on Cunard are more formal that those cruise lines. Not wanting to offend anyone and break any dress code rules, I am asking for your help and it will be greatly appreciated. I know for dinner that my husband should wear a jacket and tie and formal nights, a black suit or his velvet jacket. I should wear a dressy blouse and long skirt on formal nights. Is that correct? During the day on the ship, is my husband OK to wear black jeans(no rips or tears in them) or long Bermuda shorts and print shirts or does he have to wear slacks and a polo shirt? Last, when going on tours, can he wear the black jeans or Bermuda shorts and print shirts or does he have to wear slacks and polo shirts? Many thanks for your time.

 

Donna Jean and Ron

We have just got home yesterday from our first ever cruise / crossing and we're lucky enough to have been on the QM2.

During the day the dress code is relaxed and we saw shorts, jeans and chinos and t- shirts, polo shirts, blouses, dresses and suits. All looked great and there was the odd stand out outfit from national dress to some almost pagan style robes!

Most people we encountered were relaxed, happy and enjoying themselves first with dress code a definite 2nd place as it should be whilst still generally following guidelines.

We saw one gentleman pass through the Golden Lion pub in the evening in, I think , shorts and T shirts and we assume he was on his way somewhere. One other night a couple went to the bar for a drink and he had no jacket on. The bar staff politely remindered him of the dress code. He got a little annoyed and left with his wife but that was that.

Relax and enjoy yourself as you will both be fine.

In our limited experience it's all about enjoying yourself and while we enjoyed the evening dress coded and elegant experience it seemed that our pleasure came well before any tightl enforced dress code with 99.9% of people respecting each other and the general ship rules.

Have fun , Cunard and the QM2 are fantastic

I'm looking into a longer (>14 nights) cruise and I'm wondering how many formal outfits women usually bring. Is three enough? Four?

 

Thanks.

 

Hi

I will first admit three things

1. I'm a guy!

2. We have only done one 8 night crossing which finished Yesterday sadly.

3. We were in the Brittania restaurant ( lower level , late sitting , table 56).

My wife had a dress for each of the four formal nights BUT it wouldn't have mattered if she took one less or if we were on a longer cruise and wore some twice or more.

While it is an extremely elegant and wonderful evening experience every night it isn't run by the fashion police.

Enjoy and relax. If you can afford and accommodate many many outfits bravo but if for whatever restrictions you can't that is fine also. I was impressed by the great mix of elegance AND in our limited experience adult realistic attitude.

It's a wonderful experience and enjoyable and flexible for all the right reasons.

We met experienced cruisers / crossers and novices. Everyone looked great and we wouldn't have cared in the least if outfits were repeated.

Enjoy x

Frankly, I'm more concerned about the 'pot holes' in the Grand Lobby that keep reappearing. Hopefully that problem will finally be resolved during the refit rather than just a surface repair such as another new lovely carpet, blue or otherwise :) -S.

 

Hi

Just back home from the May 17th crossing and we did notice a few "soft carpet dips" around the ship.

Odd but what a ship!!

A wonderful 8 days and feel very very spoilt 😀

I have just booked a WC sector on QM2 for next year and have booked an obstructed view balcony. Although not ideal, the position is great as it is midship and deck 8 with the pool at the end of the corridor. I am undecided whether to opt for an upgrade if available as that would probably be a sheltered balcony and the position wouldn't be as good on a lower deck and could be far forward or aft.

Another question. ..is there going to be easy access to the Terrace pool when the new Verandah restaurant is there?

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

 

Sent from my SM-T230 using Tapatalk

 

Hi

We are on QM2 in less than one week. We have a deliberately booked a sheltered balcony for space and we are mid ships on Deck 5.

We will let you know what we think soon.

I've posted my first ever cruise blog following sailing on the first segment of Queen Victoria's voyage, Southampton to Fort Lauderdale on 10th January 2016.

 

I think it's a bit rambling and started as more of a personal diary. If anyone has the time to read and offer feedback I would be grateful. Then I will know how to do it better next time.

 

Thank you.

 

http://cruisewithgary.wordpress.com/

 

Hi Gary

Ice read a few entries as short on time for now.

I've just stated a blog for our crossing.

I can't see anything wrong at all. I find the detail I interesting and I'm concentrating on your sea days as we are doing a TA crossing on QM2.

I'll read more soon

Thank you for your comparison.

I found it very interesting.

We have never cruised / crossed and will do so in 9 days time from New York on QM2.

It's all about what makes you feel most comfortable / relaxed within a budget I guess.

All tastes should be a covered in any industry.

We have got three wonderful young adults and are setting out on "couples" holidays"

Haven't felt so young and carefree in years 😀

Before I reply I must state I have my holiday head on, 2 more days of work and then Pack, travel to New York and then back on QM2.

On this subject.....

Open minds, common sense, NO JUDGING and...... Smile people, smile 😀😀😀

Our first ever crossing is in 9 days.

We will leave auto gratuities on and we will tip for services.

We are on holiday and I can't be bothered to overthink this subject.

Smile people , smile 😉😉

Thanks for all the replies :D

 

We'll definitely give it a go. We're not 'serious' quizzers, but we are competitive, so like one that's organised well :)

 

Enjoy the quizzes , whatever the quslity or outcome 🍻

We are on QM2 in 9 days and my wife and I will be partaking.

If we do well that's nice, if we don't who cares but what we will be doing is ... Having a laugh and some fun

My wife tried to order a Wine Package today and was told the ordering line is down, it should be up at the end of the week but "don't hold your breath!"

 

I think Poseidon is saying " order on board" :)

 

It seems Cunard with the website and ordering line are not top of the IT leagues.

I would never pre buy wine. I have dined at tables where fellow diners have, and many times the wines on the original list were unavailable and substituted. How do you know if you will like all the wines you have bought? Much better for me to drink as you go, then if you alight on one you really like you can order it again.

 

Ok it might save you a little cash, but compared with the total outlay for the cruise it's peanuts.

 

David.

 

 

David

Thank you for an alternative opinion.

We will think on that and let you know what we do and how it turns out.

but why so many people care about what others are wearing? :confused:

 

Hi Mario

We are only going on our first cruise / crossing in two weeks.

We chose Cunard because we liked the idea of dressing up for evenings, it's not something we ever normally do but as we are celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary it was appealing.

But!!

I understand why people may feel protective of the formal wear and respect that totally , however the way some opinions are expressed on this subject make me feel uncomfortable.

The dress wear is a personal choice and should not be commented on as superior social statements.

I. bought the pass as soon as possible after boarding. I'd been told that they only sell so many due to not wanting to overcrowd. I used it every day of my crossing - I'd say that the mornings were quieter than the afternoons which got very busy. In the afternoon It could be a struggle to find a seat & the pool was crowded. Having said that It was easy for me to work round this & i loved the spa! Have a great trip!

 

That's great advice

Many thanks, I'm sure we will be able to work around busy times as you did

I'm not sure easy it would be for the Commodore Club staff to access the wine storage, it is quite a long way from the restaurant. I don't think the wines in the package are the same as those sold by the glass in the bars. The package specifically mentions that wines are available in the dining room or your storeroom.

 

If you are worried about waiting, it's probably easier to call the wineline number, details will be in your Daily Programmes, and order ahead of time. The first night can be a bit hectic while the Sommeliers are finding out who needs wine. We ordered a bottle during the afternoon and it made things much smoother.

 

The package price includes the 15 % service charge so there is a saving if the wines are to your taste.

 

 

Hattie

Perfect thank you. I understand things a bit better now

So if we order before we get onboard and then onboard in advance of the evening let them know what we want?

Well, our experience, as of 2015, was that the wine package was not a good buy. We purchased bottles of wine as we wished. And as to the question regarding the speed of delivery by the sommelier in Britannia, it's pretty good. Comparable to ordering in a good restaurant. Not perfect, but pretty good. I've had no experience ordering bottles of wine in the bars; we have simply ordered wine by the glass in the bars. Bottoms up!

 

Thank you, as ever useful to know

We were thinking of getting a wine package but when we checked the prices of the wines included in the Captains collection it didn't seem that much of a bargain. We found each of the wines on the wine list and it was more expensive to purchase the package than buy the wines individually. It is possible that the wine list was not up to date, in which case the package might be worth buying.

 

Thank you for your input

I think we've decided and are going for it 😀

7 cruises on the QM2 , buy the Spa Day Pass every trip for most of the days , and never once turned back because it was too crowded .

 

 

Really, that's great news.

Thank you, without ever crossing before I wasn't sure of the 2,000 odd people how many use the spa passes.

Hi Cunarders again,

In your experience on the QM2 , how easy is access with the Spa Day pass.

I assume at times the aqua therapy pool and saunas get very busy?

Thanks in advance.:)