LittleFish1976

Very interesting, thank you. In an effort to understand what an azipod and mermaid pods are I started looking on the net and stumbled upon this article which others may also find interesting so I'm sharing it here. https://www.oldsaltblog.com/2011/01/the-tale-of-the-mermaid-pods-carnival-awarded-24-million-in-lawsuit-with-rolls-royce/

From what I can understand of your situation from your previous post, you have already left home and flown to the UK so your trip has commenced. You are mid-trip so your 'trip' itself hasn't been cancelled but interrupted. I can't see how you couldn't involve your travel insurance in that. You now have to make alternative arrangements for travel so surely you can claim for those? I know there's no compensation possible for disappointment and the feeling the money already spent has been wasted but surely there will be some compensation from your insurance for monies spent to cover the disruption and change of plans.

In my experience of claiming for a holiday which I had to cancel was that the insurance covers all aspects and elements of your trip which you were not able to attend or use due to a cancellation in your trip. For example, I claimed tickets to the National Theatre and Harry Potter world when I was unable to make a trip to London a few years ago as part of having to cancel a cruise, numerous flights and hotel accomodations in two continents. Get receipts as you go, or email organisations for receipts and proof of non-use of tickets or facilities. You should be able to claim for your bus and Eurostar tickets.

Also, it's useful to remember that the exclusion period for gastrointestinal diseases is 24 hours after all symptoms of vomiting and diarrhoea have ceased. (I'm sure you'll find a reference in the CDC guidelines).

https://www.uspharmacist.com/article/norovirus

That was a quote from a search regarding whether norovirus could be spread by airborne particles (droplets and aerolised particles). People sneeze and cough and talk loudly thereby expelling large volumes of air including wet particles of germs even if they don't have a particular condition which may cause sneezing and coughing. It can be spread by your breathing.

'Coughing and sneezing by infected people can spread the virus through the air. Eating contaminated food or coming into contact with a contaminated water source can also spread norovirus infection.'

You don't have to spend that much - I can see lots of bottles of white in the $30's. They also serve very good wines by the glass. There's quite a lot of choice as well as the ability to bring your own wine on board.

As far as the new port of Brisbane goes, Cunard put on a free shuttle for all passengers wanting to go into Brisbane when I was there in February. Very useful given the feedback I had read about the new port there being so inaccessible.

I was on QE recently and have sailed on her prior to covid so have some point of comparison. The ship itself is still lovely; I found her to be well-maintained and clean. My cabin was very well-presented and cared for with the strange exception of an amount of mouldy grouting in the shower. I was in QG. As I said I was in QG dining room so cannot comment on Britannia dining room. The food in QG was sometimes very very good. Sometimes it was perfectly acceptable and enjoyable and on occasion it was inedible. My main waiter was very attentive and always asked me if it was not to my taste even though I hadn't said anything. The faults were not acceptable for a kitchen with the QG's reputation - lobster being vastly over-salted (to the point of it being inedible); soup having so much star anise it was inedible (mouth-going-numb level and it was pea and ham soup so not a traditionally spiced dish). Some of the food was just not to my taste. Overall, acceptable but a little disappointing. Staff in QG dining room exceptionally good and will go out of their way to assist. My dear waiter searched the kitchen to find me some decent English mustard to go with my roast beef - he first brought French mustard, then an enormous tub of stuff with no heat to it until he found something decent. The choices in the buffet area seemed much diminished from pre-covid; less choice and lesser quality. Certainly still possible to find something to eat for breakfast or lunch or a very light dinner. Quite a number of wines out of stock. They apparently only replenish in Southampton which makes no sense when they spend months away from their home port. Having said that, there were still plenty of very good wines on board Service - mostly very good with some notable exceptions. Saw and experienced some odd behaviour from staff in a couple of the bars towards customers; a bit short-staffed in some areas but not in others; cabin staff very good; room service quick and efficient. There was one main bar/social area of the ship which seemed understaffed (or staff distracted and not attentive) at which there was always someone with a hacking cough in the kitchen area behind the bar - off-putting to say the least as you could hear it more than clearly when seated at the bar. Queens Room was a shadow of its former self. As a keen ballroom dancer who relies on the hosts I missed being able to dance and found the room very sad and quiet. However, I didn't feel like staying to 'enjoy listening to the band' as the lead singer was awful; unbearably so to my ears. I did however enjoy the zumba classes held there during the day. Entertainment is still provided; trivia, talks, music around the ship, performances in the theatre including comedians - good enough for what it is, which is entertainment on a cruise ship. Cunard more generous than other lines I read about on CC in terms of providing free shuttle buses into the port towns thereby greatly enhancing ease of passenger ability to go ashore. Is it good value you ask? Value is too subjective for me to answer that except to say that I have been happy to book again at the same per diem rate so that tells you something. Will it be good value to you - only you can answer that. I should mention Cunard's admin, both on and off the ship. You'll just have to hope you don't have to have any dealings with them is all I would say. If I were to have the sort of administrative fuss I had on my last trip, again, I would be very much put off booking with them again. Having said that I do already have three further bookings with them but I won't book again if I have a recurrence of any admin dramas. Give them a go. Where are the cruises you've booked for going?

What areas of the ship's operations would you like to hear about?

From memory there's a very polite, very sensible sign beside the ironing board on QE requesting guests not iron many items at once as it holds up others.

Looking at Cunard's Australian website, I can't see any mention of 'all shore experiences will be on organised excursions only using vetted operators'. What I can see is that each country visited on the ship will have their own requirements for entry. Can't find any mention of organised excursions as only way to access ports from the ship. It was not that way when I was on board in Australia in February. As for mask wearing, in February, and apart from a requirement for wearing masks during embarkation and disembarkation, the requirement for mask-wearing was only made on board in response to rising numbers from about day 8 or 9 onwards. Prior to that there was very little mask wearing but very good compliance once the Captain ordered it. As Lissie says, above, if you are thinking about going to Japan it's more likely that mask wearing would be expected, certainly at least from a cultural perspective.

Perhaps it was more that she wanted to take up the offer of the cruise line to wash her clothes every day rather than an actual need. I must say it's odd they didn't just throw them in the washing machine at the end of the day and put straight away into a dryer. She could have had then back by 6am each morning instead of sitting around until mid-morning or mid-day or whatever it was waiting for clothes.

She could have gone to the supermarket at the first port and got a 5-pack of cheap knickers. Ditto socks.

Ah, the paradox of the 'second sight'!

They're definitely not present on shorter voyages (dance hosts, that is). I even spoke to the entertainment 2IC (I think he was - the memory dims) to ask if they would be reinstated and he said he had had no word from Cunard as to if nor when but the entertainment team were as keen as anyone for their return. Like you, I think I was wrong...once...a long time ago I believe it might have been.

As far as dancing shoes go, if you require the partnering of a dance host be warned that they are a covid casualty, to this point in time at least, unless they have been returned to World Voyages only? There absence on normal voyages is a great loss to the Cunard experience.

You could bring your Grand Marnier on board and keep it in your cabin and take a hip flask filled with the said GM to your evening activities. If the bar is unable to fulfil your request for a GM then you could request glasses (with ice if that's how you prefer it) and pour your own from your hip flask. I think giving them the opportunity to sell you a drink is fair and offer to pay for the use of their glasses etc (effectively corkage). I cringe at the idea of carrying a drink around a ship but I did it last time I was on board (from a bar to my cabin; or from one bar to a less crowded area) because everyone does it these days and etiquette 'ain't wot she used to be'. Sadly.

@roscoe39 I have to make a decision and book return flights soon (either Melbourne or Auckland to Santiago) for a cruise to Antarctica. Would you suggest 3 days in Santiago or in Buenos Aires as being the more interesting for those interested in museums, architecture and restaurants (maybe a bit of music and dancing thrown in for good measure). Seems Santiago is possible as a direct option from those points of origin but we have to get to BA anyway. Would love to have th ebenefit of your consoderable experience in those parts. The around SA trip on QV sounds fantastic - do Cunard do this every year?

January is during summer here and Darwin and Cairns, being in the north of Australia, are tropical. January is during the monsoon season for Darwin.

Hurtigruten

That's a very impressive story about how Viking handled the situation. Certainly beats a company making promises regarding compensation they don't keep and then forcing passengers to have to battle at length to get any resolution. Wish Viking were in my price range!

I've never been in a cabin that was big enough for 4 people to store an extra suitcase (that didn't belong to them) without someone asking the obvious question. Even two people in a cabin are not going to have that much space, even under the bed, let alone just hanging around against a wall or something. Very strange.

This device was previously there, before the refit. I'm sure I've also seen it played by a human being so that gives its existence some justification. Personally, I think it's a bit tacky.