Winchester Ranger

Hi All,

I'm Mike and I'm doing my first ever solo on Queen Mary 2 Eastbound on November 25th to visit my parents back in the UK.

Hoping to find some good dining company for the MDR so feel free to say hi :)

Got it - thanks.

Not that I will ever be shelling out $42,000 for an 8 day crossing but I did find myself watching some really good YouTube videos about life in the financial fast lane and the Grand Duplexes looked really amazing - with one exception, their location.

They are located towards the rear of the ship and their large open patio areas look directly down onto the pool and rear entertainment area of the ship - so not really a true Fantail Suite that looks directly over the stern, but a suite that looks directly onto party town.

Surely this makes the cabin a nightmare for noise especially during the Sailaway parties and suchlike.

Am I missing something here ?

 

I'll see what I can do about the others, prices of anything in particular ?

 

Spa treats would be the obvious one (if you indulge) and second would probably be any good deals on drinks packages.

Thanks

I just booked my first ever solo for Cunard on 11/25 and while there is a general roll call thread for that voyage it did make me wonder if we also have solo roll calls on CC ?

Hi Hattie, first question is what class of cabin will you be sailing in ?

Also:

1. What is the general condition of the ship - fresh and sprightly, or down and dingy ?

2. Is King's Court really THAT bad ?

3. Your meal choices and your assessment of the food quality.

4. Ditto 3. but for Todd English

5. Any useful information about onboard prices - good value versus not so good value

Above all, have a great time !!

Hmm interesting - I think you guys are going to bankrupt me :D

Congratulations - booking air via the line's arrangements makes huge sense - we did same for our Oct. flight to London. Just curious: have you a "hole-in-the-hull" lower deck balcony, or an upper deck one? Either way, the sunny side does make a huge difference. As a former solo cruiser I can confirm the desirability of a large table: having a regular nucleus to meet with each evening is one of the lesser-appreciated pleasures of cruising.

 

Have you decided whether to take a red-eye and arrive NY morning of embarkation?

 

Finally, on a ship - especially while the times are being set forward most days - dining earlier than is your habit is no problem: you may just want a lighter lunch than usual because the cumulative effect of a series of 23 hour days does need some addressing.

So I didn't go crazy with the balcony and booked an obstructed view on Deck 8 - still second guessing that one but an unobstructed view seemed unreasonably more expensive. I took the advice of the service agent and booked a room where the much smaller crew lifeboat is located so the view isn't quite so obstructed. I can still change it, but I was at least sure to book starboard.

As for the red eye versus overnight stay I'm still debating that one - the decent hotels in NYC are prohibitively expensive and I'm choosing to put that money elsewhere at least for now. My current plan (VERY changeable) is to catch a direct flight that will put me in New York at around 4am on sail day, with a back-up flight after it that puts me there for about 6am. If all goes according to plan I'll have a lazy breakfast at the airport and kill a couple of hours before heading to the cruise terminal to see if they will let me in early. In the event that a snow storm blows in (this being November) and flights become chaotic I figure I will have several days notice and I will change plans accordingly (less than a week before the sailing date).

On the dining question the one thing that is making me think about changing to a late dinner is the afternoon tea which I hope to indulge myself on - and having tea at 4.30 and then dinner at 6.30 doesn't make sense. So I may well switch.

As for the flights, that is one area where I don't mind spending a few extra shekels. So I'm already booked BA club world which they gave me for an incredible price (through Cunard) and with a flight time to Phoenix of almost 11 hours on the way back I'll need my creature comforts, so.....I discovered on BA's website that they re-configure the aircraft for a 4 class configuration in November, adding First class - true First class on BA is a bucket list item for me and when I noticed that the difference on BA's website between Club and First was only about $500 I got back on the phone with Cunard to ask them for their price - so my Club World ticket cost me $1,700 and I was therefore hoping that First would be about $2,200 - turns out it was actually $4,688 - so I'll pass on that one. Moral of the story - Business class is great value, First class is terrible value.

Feel free to re-direct me, I welcome any input as all of this can be changed if needs be :D

After asking all the questions and figuring out options I finally took some brave pills and made the reservation today - 11/25 New York to Southampton. It will be my first solo cruise - ever.

Thought I'd share some details.

I went with a starboard balcony stateroom as recommended, and used Cunard's free upgrade deal to snag one at the oceanview rate - pre-selection added a few dollars but the total including all fees was $2,587.71 including the 75% solo supplement and Cunard travel insurance. Their current promotional offer also includes the daily gratuity fee which saves me another what, maybe $90 ?

Then came the question of the return airfare to get me from my UK home (Manchester) back to my American home (Phoenix) - and they quoted me $446.81 for economy which is mind-bendingly cheap. Just for fun I asked them to quote me for business class and the very helpful customer service associate announced that she could get me into British Airways Club World for $1,700 all in - I couldn't say "book it" fast enough. For reference British Airways quoted me $11,332 for the same one-way fare.

I booked an early sitting for dinner at a table for 8 with other solos so hopefully there's some good company.

So that's it - here I come !!

PS - lots of questions likely to follow, so apologies in advance.

Cruise booked, balcony category DC starboard side, and I requested an 8 seater table with other solos at dinner.

The best part was that Cunard had absolutely amazing rates for first class airfares to get me back to Phoenix.

Now the preparation really begins !!

If you are going to "taxi it to the Airport" To London you might want to look up the posts on car services.

Will do - thanks !

So I live annd work in the US but regularly make the trip back to England to see my parents, and it seems like the older I get, the more I hate flying. Lately I have been paying extra for business class just to make the trip more enjoyable (which is just ridiculous because I'm spending most of my disposable income on 2 trips home every year) and suddenly one day the light bulb came on and I remembered that ships cross the Atlantic too, and I love cruising - what an idiot !!

I did the sums on my vacation days and figured I can make it work with a decent layover before flying back.

And so the solo excuses are already forming in my head - "no I really do have friends" "I cruised the carribbean last year with a girlfriend - no an actual real girl with teeth and everything - honest" and finally the one that gives me the biggest wall to hide behind "oh I'm just traveling from A to B to see my parents - this is just transportation, not really cruising" - pah, what a load of old cobblers !! The truth is that I would LIVE on a cruise ship if only I could find someone who liked cruising as much as I do. If I announce a trip to Vegas and I'm knocked over in the rush, mention cruising and I'm about as popular as a wasp at a picnic.

So this is going to take some adjustment for me, primarily because I am going to have to FORCE myself to come out of the shell I normally live in when cruising non-solo. I thought about reserving a 2 top table for dinner and sitting there solemnly munching on my food trying not to make eye-contact - but no, I'm going to sit at the big wagon wheel table in my tuxedo and see who rolls up, I can't decide if it's going to be a case of Red Buttons in The Poseidon Adventure (the sweet lonely old habberdasher) or David Niven in Separate Tables - but without the inappropriate behavior for those who know the movie.

So give me your tips and recommendations because I have some serious trepidation going on here - especially as I plan to book it this week.

We were in Deck 11 (Britannia) and disembarked around 9:10. Lower decks will be later unless you opt for self-disembarkation or book a Cunard transfer.

That's a good point - I think I'll do the self-disembark deal and just hop a taxi to the airport.

Perfect - thanks !!

Everyone has been so helpful with my questions planning for this cruise if you can just bear with me for a couple more :) I'm going to take a chance and catch a late flight to New York the night before the cruise (I know the risks but there are plenty of flights) and head straight to the cruise terminal early in the morning - it's not the $, it buys me an extra vacation day. I also need the scheduled arrival time in Southampton so I can plan flights at that end. I'm hoping the timings are consistent but if it makes any difference I'm doing the 11/25 sailing.

So if you can fill in the blanks I'd be very grateful.

Earliest check in for regular balcony guests in NYC -

Scheduled sailing time -

Scheduled arrival time in Southampton -

Thanks in advance !!

Having done several northern route T/A's in November I am aware that the breeze might be strong, but the Atlantic keeps its summer warmth through November - making that tine of year most likely to give you a warmer crossing than one in May or even June. If you are on the right side of the ship (port westbound, starboard eastbound) and there is any sun at all the balcony will be a valued asset.

Priceless information, many thanks.

Could you do one for me please? Obviously without naming any agents......solo inside TA 3rd January no flights etc

 

Many thanks

 

Scarlet

Absolutely, it's $1,816.13 all inclusive for class IF (Inside Forward - the cheapest) for a solo on Jan 3rd - NY to S/H.

At the current exchange rate I make that about 1,200 sterling.

Nobody seems to have answered that part of your question, so I will.

 

We cruised on all 3 Queens in the last 12 months, with a Med cruise coming in July. I am quite demanding on the level of service and ‘customer experience’ overall, and frankly I noticed nothing whatsoever that would substantiate any of that nonsense. Staff is universally professional and diligent, polite and and friendly. I suspect that those people who complain about bartenders etc. are misguided in thinking they are cheap slaves put at their disposal by Cunard, that one can use and abuse as part of the cruise fare.

 

All 3 ships are very well maintained, certainly not tired-looking. The Cunard shows are what they are, not to everybody’s liking (not to mine, mostly), but there is enough choice between all the musicians performing in various bars and public areas to compensate for that.

 

I concur that a Westbound TA is a better choice, if possible. My impression is that on QM2, there is no compelling reason to splurge for expensive grade staterooms. Naturally, bigger is better, but restaurant-wise, Britannia Club is a relatively unexceptional part of the MDR, and PG and QG are not quite the special places that their counterparts are on the other 2 Queens. For a winter crossing, even a balcony might be overkill. A simple outside, with daylight, might be all you need, especially if you are on your own.

 

But naturally, it is a case of value for money.

Thanks Normandie, and that is really good info on PG and QG even though I didn't plan on splurging on this trip, because if it goes well I could be tempted in the future.

Morning, I have had a quick look for you, and unfortunately the supplement is alive and well for all classes except the inside, so the DC balcony is about £2260 so of no use to you whatsoever!

 

I think you get a better deal often in the usa on the standard fares, with the dollar and sterling figures being not so far apart, but you seem to get less of the specials.

 

 

Anyway. Happy to look stuff up, if price is important you might want to consider how much time you are likely to spend on your balcony in mid adlantic mid November? What with weather and the fast speeds of the crossing, it's liable to be not very much

 

Cheers

Thanks Scarlett - that UK price is almost 50% higher than the US price, or put another way "us Americans" get about $1,100 of extra onboard credit !!

I agree about the balcony, having breakfast out there is a hilarious thought at the end of November, but I'll still enjoy spending some time wave watching albeit wrapped up like an arctic explorer.

Thanks again for checking that price for me.

If you talk to cunard direct, ask about the cunard fare ie the full undiscounted fare, because they have quietly dropped the solo supplement to about 10 percent on a few winter crossings. I was lucky to pick one up here in the UK, maybe you can do so in the usa. I looked at your crossing on their UK website and it came up about £1400 with the return airfare, and £1100 without. Hope this might be useful for you

Great advice - I used a proxy server to access Cunard's UK website to get pricing in sterling and it was a bit of an eye opener. The cheapest DC class balcony on the US website quoted $1,349 (for double occupancy), while the cheapest DC on the UK website was £1,359 which is roughly $2,065 ?!?

Due to the proxy restrictions I couldn't do a full fare comparison (for me travelling solo) but it does make you wonder.

Just so I can do a true apples to apples comparison, could I presume on you to price a DC class Brittania balcony for me as a solo passenger - with no flights, the US price on that is $2,422.75 (roughly an 80% solo surcharge).

If the UK surcharge is only 10% it will be quite a bit cheaper, and I'll just book it when I'm over there in June.

Many thanks !!

Has anyone ever sailed this route solo before, this will be my first "loner" cruise. Are you allowed to sit at a 2 person table in the MDR or is it the big circle ?

To be honest between the bar, casino, and spa I'll be pretty much set.

The painful part is that I'm flying over for 2 weeks next month - why didn't I think of this earlier :rolleyes:

I confess I like the notion that cigarette smokers are not allowed to smoke in Churchill's.

But then I'm a cigar puffer :D

I'm sure that Winnie would have had something very adroit to say about it.

The two hotel managers who generally rotate on QM2 are male. I couldn't figure out this person's comment. The majority of crew on the ship are not British and are some of the nicest people I have ever met.

According to an earlier post it was this employee :confused:

http://www.beyondships.com/QV-Hodgson.html

Ok, I'm getting really excited about this now, that old cruise "twitch" has returned to my left eye.

So I'm afraid it's going to have to be Eastbound on 11/25 because the Thanksgiving break buys me 2 extra days of vacation and that makes it work with a nice break in the UK before flying back - but I would have preferred to do westbound, oh well, the dates just didn't cooperate (I really need to retire - work gets in the way of cruising).

So working on the basis that I'll just be cruising in a regular non-fancy balcony stateroom what will be my assigned boarding time slot in New York - I'm trying to figure out some flight options.

I'm going to start researching the westbound cruises, you guys convinced me, plus there is something special about seeing Lady Liberty as you enter New York harbor.

Great advice - thanks guys !!

PS - what's with all these negative reviews of Cunard - I'm seeing lots of "rude crew members, lazy bartenders, bad shows, tired looking ships" type of remarks. I haven't seen so many negative comments since I visited the Carnival forum? Very unusual for Cruise Critic.

It's a bit off-putting, but to be honest not that much ;)