D&N

I hate flying east. Although last year's Delta flights from Nice to New York and back were remarkably good in economy. I prefer not to fly further than London or Edinburgh. And I only go north of London if it's unavoidable. I worked in public transportation for over forty years and I would never attempt two weeks of hard travel in Europe. Perhaps three relatively close capitals; Paris, Brussels, London? Better still, two weeks on the Cote d'Azur! Mandeville, LA seems very similar to our town in terms of population and proximity to sea. Towards the end of our fourteen nights on QM2 I was desperate to get home to our town and our ageing cats.

Hope that those with Covid feel better soon. We had cold's in November. Nora brought one back from Scotland then gave it to me. Tested and not Covid. We've both had our sixth Covid jab and annual flu jabs and don't really mix in large groups. Our biggest problem is that we decided to get Coco sterilised on January 9th as the vet is taking some time off at Christmas and New Year. Not having been in the situation of having a female cat who could go into season for over forty years I forgot about that possibility. Coco is quite vocal about her desires! If I'd taken that into account she would have been in for the op at beginning of month.

Nora won't have that dilemma next time. She has two jumpsuits and one pair of trousers that she would consider taking on QM2. We only think one of the jumpsuits is dressy enough (the green one she wore last time) for an evening outfit. But they've all been excluded for 2025. The jumpsuits are heavier than most other outfits so better taking a lighter dress or skirt and top anyway.

We used this version: https://www.amazon.co.uk/GreatShield-Cruise-Luggage-Weather-Resistance-8-Pack/dp/B074Q35ND1/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=GreatShield&qid=1703427184&sr=8-1&th=1 Only from Amazon France since that's where they were being delivered.. The side shown just has sailing ref, deck and cabin no. The flip side shows name and mobile number.

I imagined a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle standing laughing at folk.

@rj1227 Just read your post in QM2 crossing review. That adds a bit more context and It's a shame that the overall package was not your "cup of tea". I was brought up about seven miles from where QE2 was built and have been aware most of my life what to expect from a Cunard crossing. On our first (once in a lifetime) B2B crossing in 2022 we dressed for six gala nights of fourteen as that was what was advertised when we booked. It was subsequently downgraded to four. But we felt like it wouldn't be a problem to dress like that every night and that's what we'll do in 2025 and each year until something stops us. We eat three light meals a day in the MDR and dance as much as we can in evenings and exercise (mainly gym) during the day. QM2 and it's package is just ideal for us, but we can appreciate that won't be the case for everyone.

I'm unlikely to note what most folk are wearing. The main exceptions being ladies wearing really stunning outfits and men looking really scruffy. My wife's only lasting memory of what others wore in 14 nights on QM2 was a woman on a nearby table in the second week. She wore loose fitting jeans and a jumper most nights. I noticed her too. I noted that she seemed to be drawing disapproving looks at those that were dressed up. My wife felt that too. Neither of us are experts in body language so we could easily have been mistaken. I think she wore a skirt of some sort on gala nights. My wife thinks she didn't appear on the second gala night and assumed the Maitre D had a word on the first. Anyway, enough of that; it just illustrates that we don't pay that much attention to anyone other than ourselves. What I do find slightly concerning though is a general disregard of dress codes. If we're invited to a black tie event or pay to go to a black tie event, we expect to dress to that standard and would hope that everyone else would do likewise. And if Cunard say that in certain venues you should wear trousers and a collared shirt, then it would be nice if everyone would regard that as a minimum standard. If they then wish to add a tie and/or a jacket, or dress in a Tux/DJ even though it's not a gala night, then so be it. But there always seem to be folk that want to challenge the dress code because they like wearing particular outfits and don't want to conform. We're not really that bothered. As long as we are permitted to overdress as much as we like and get to dance from Southampton to New York and back, we don't really care. If we encounter someone dressed in a way that looks out of place we may have a 30 second chuckle between ourselves about it over dinner or drinks and then go on to more important things. A "light mock turtleneck" is unlikely to attract our attention. Thanks for the education. I wasn't aware of such a garment before. I haven't possessed a jumper of any sort for at least 30 years.

@rj1227 "my dress looked just as nice as that of anyone wearing a collared shirt". That's your opinion. It's possible others wouldn't agree. "my dress was never questioned" and "others wore a turtleneck". That doesn't mean it complied with the stated dress code. You can wear other garments repeatedly if you don't sweat much, wear under garments and don't spill food down them. If you need them cleaned there is a cleaning service and free self service laundries. What is the difference between cool-weather months and others? The ship has climate control, it won't be any different than other times of year. We probably wouldn't have noticed you either.

However one needs to look at what was quoted in a wider context. The same blurb appeared on the programme for a Gala Evening that Pushpit posted from a few days ago. It follows the Gala Evening advice. It would be hard to argue that non-ripped, jeans are appropriate outside the venues highlighted as being for casual dress on a Gala Evening.

There are regular dress code questions. This one is effectively; are smart jeans frowned upon on smart attire nights? Some are folk who want to avoid carrying certain clothing for one reason or another. And a variety of other variations on the theme. I think "frowned upon" is a bit strong. It's debateable whether they comply with the dress code for all venues. But they are likely to stand out more from what the majority of other passengers are wearing. What others wear makes no difference to us either, we'll still enjoy the event. It's a two week cooking free, dressing up and dancing every night event for us. Since we're retired and living in a holiday region we are on holiday all the time. We come back from QM2 to relax, if our cats allow us to.

We only used lifts on embarkation/disembarkation to get to and from deck 12 as we have 10kg+ backpacks and a small bag each. We need to fly to Heathrow so wouldn't risk luggage being lost and not having everything we needed on boarding. Otherwise we walk down and up 10 decks 5 or 6 times a day. We did over an hour in gym each day in first week but cut that to every second day after that as we were losing weight. We have a one plate breakfast plus yoghurt. We rarely have more than two courses at lunch or dinner but have sliced orange after lunch. At home we just peel and eat but Cunard insist on presentation which annoys me a bit as I get upset about food waste. We do have wine with lunch and then pre-dinner drinks, dinner and evening finishing with Grand Marnier before doing the last 9 floor climb. Having as long a fasting period each day helps too. Breakfast as late as possible and dine early. Here we often finish eating by 4pm. That was the biggest element in my wife dropping from a size 18 at 103.3 kg to a 10 to 12 between 69 and 72 kg in just over a year. We've both been just above midpoint in our healthy BMI range for nearly two years.

I think I tried bread and butter pudding on QM2 made with bread and butter. I can't think where else I would have tried it. I didn't particularly enjoy it. We've only had it with brioche or fruit panettone and thick cream, and we've made the panettone version a few times. Croissant based might suit my tastes as well. Bread and butter seems a bit like school dinners. I've never had one of them either, always went home for lunch.

I haven't posted previously on this thread. We don't have any mobility issues so I don't feel qualified to do so. Could you perhaps add this to your final thoughts?: Some of the folk who have responded negatively in your opinion, may in actual fact already have the disability issues you mention, and been carefully following Cunard's rules themselves for many years.

If you take the FCD into account on @bluemarble's QG calculations along with the inclusive meal and drink offers the UK still gains by at least $67/day. I'm sure there must be a very odd time that a deal will favour the US, but consistently anyone making a direct comparison finds it to be the other way round.

OK that would narrow the gap in favour of UK to £686.18.

Thanks to Hattie for the UK offer. I've found a US agents site that claims the Explore with More includes; $100 OBC p/p total $200; One speciality meal (I believe not Verandah) $20 p/p pre-booked total $40; drinks 7 days for two (up to $12.00) pre-booked $980; gratuities included 7 days for $231. I believe UK would be; $1,100 OBC total; meal $40 extra; drinks $980 extra (up to $13.50); gratuities $231 extra. I've converted everything to GBP at same exchange rate and result is: From UK: £7524.14 From US: £8843.09 So I suggest if anyone thinks they will get a better deal from the US they should go ahead and contact a US agent or call Cunard on their US number. If anyone knows that the information given by that US agent's site is wrong, please let me know. I'm not even sure you would get the offer as that site gives validity up to May 2025.

At 8:25pm on December 20th 2023; I could book Q6 suite 10005 on M515 June 13th 2025 NYC to SOU on 2 sharing basis. For £7,398 with triple onboard spend from UK. Gratuities of $231 would be additional. For $11,398 with "Explore with More offer" from USA. That equates to £9,001 at the 8:25pm exchange rate. £1,603 cheaper from the UK. I don't know how much the onboard spend for a Q6 on M515 is. Perhaps someone could add that information (that I can then triple) to help the comparison? I don't know what the "Explore with More offer" includes for a Q6 on M515. Can anyone provide that information?

Can you quote like for like packages available for purchase today from the US in USD and from the UK in GBP that illustrate that claim? I did a comparison recently between our 2025 booking and buying the same from a US agent and I think US travellers were being asked to pay about 20% more. It looks to me as if they actually pay for their so called free packages in the overall price.

We don't wear masks in most settings now, but still put them on in medical environments where we think we could be close to vulnerable people and feel we should try and protect health workers. Some places ask for them to be worn. We usually wear them on crowded public transport as well. We always have them with us just in case. We had quite bad colds/coughs in mid November and tried to stay in as much as possible but wore masks when we had to visit shops. We would never have thought of doing so before but now we have stocks of the things, we think it makes sense to try and contain our germs. I also discovered during the pandemic that the soft cotton masks that weren't allowed by most airlines are very good for shopping on a cold day in London. I wear one to keep my nose warm when outdoors and take it off when in shops. I think some of the security staff at the doors were a bit puzzled!

And here are recent portraits of Coco-Canel and Ursel.

Our Christmas card this year was printed in September before Carmel died. It's not really practical to leave it any later. I titled it "Daredevil Kitten". I need to think up a theme for next year now. I should have plenty of photos of Coco and Ursel to choose from.

Following on from the comment: "Just shows how opinions can vary on the same subject eg food..." I've never been keen on potatoes and wouldn't have chips if they were "proper chips" rather than French Fries. I hate them being peeled as well. Why remove the part with the most flavour and nutrients? I only eat fillet steak and would order rare if in UK and keep medium for France. I do like dauphinoise now and again but Cunard's were dry and not very tasty. We cook ours swimming in UHT Cream (a recommendation from a French lady) on the odd occasion we treat ourselves.

@Host Hattie is first. I think you were all going there. Brother in law had got a promotion and unexpected early reposting from Cyprus to Europe and wanted to do an Israel and Egypt trip with 3 kids under 6. So we made the trip at same time in May 1992 so there would be plenty of adults for supervision. I'd imagined that we would be travelling on a ferry with a self service cafeteria. I was quite surprised that although the ship was originally built as a ferry the levels of service were quite impressive. The trip included full day guided tours so it was breakfast and dinner in the restaurant and the staff were really attentive particularly regarding the children, keeping them occupied while we got to eat our meals. It was three nights from Limassol with calls at Ashdod for Jerusalem and Bethlehem, and Port Said for Cairo. Quite a marked difference in class to Cunard, Princess and others but it was what gave us an appetite to try cruising.

Probably giving it away, not Alexandria but it is Egypt.

I know my reply is not very sympathetic, but trying to be practical; at today's exchange rate that's about £83 more than you expected. What else can you do with it? Can you take it with you? Would you have luggage fees if you did and would they exceed £83/$105? I'd be inclined to be annoyed and pay up.