bobby1119

This discussion about conditions in Egypt prompted me to look at the website for Uniworld River Cruises, the tour operator I used for an amazing two week land/Nile tour of Egypt in April 2010.

There is a statement on the website advising that all tours to Egypt have been cancelled for 2014 and 2015.

I, too, pray that peace will return to Egypt, a beautiful country where I felt very welcomed and safe.

Very much enjoying your wonderful blog. Have a wonderful voyage!

Hi again,

 

Here's an update from somewhere off the Californian coast about six hours from San Francisco...

I am enjoying your updates - keep them coming and enjoy!;)

Down the slippery and soapy slope to shower gel & shampoo dispensers?:eek:

Banners on stateroom doors and balconies = tacky.

My travel agent finally pried us off QE2, and we embarked on a 14 night Med cruise of the ship in her reincarnation as Caronia.

What a jewelbox she was! It seemed that everyone got to know everyone else, passengers and crew alike. I loved her sleek, classic liner style, and her intimate, classy and clubby ambience. It was as if she were a miniature QE2, the greatest compliment any ship can hope to receive.

We struck up a nice onboard relationship with the wonderful and gracious captain, the late Ron Bolton, who hosted several parties in the ward room and in his private quarters to which we were invited.

Sad to see her go.

We just returned from 12 blissful days (Christmas cruise) on Queen Mary 2 in a Princess Grill suite.

If you can afford it, pay the extra for the upgrade.

You will enjoy a spacious cabin with storage galore, including a walk-in closet, a full bathroom, larger living area, a nice bar area, and a larger balcony with proper teak lounge chairs.

PG dining room has better service, and while the menu offers no gastronomic surprises (nor does QG), the food is prepared closer to order and arrives hot, rather than tepid as is the tendency in Britannia.

Good luck with your decision.

That's a nice recommendation. It's good when you have a nice maitre d, it makes a difference. That's one thing I noticed about the Britannia Restaurant, I never had any interaction with the maitre d, but in the Grills you do. Patu (btw) is very good.

 

I'm looking forward to my impressions of QE too! That probably doesn't make any sense, but yes, I am sure I will very much enjoy QE. My only concern is having a cabin way up the back. Don't get me wrong, I love the location, but I am slightly apprehensive about the movement.

Patu is great, too. He was replaced by Osman in NYC at the start of the Christmas cruise. We had Oliver and Ionel in PG - they were great to us.

I had 5195 for the Southampton-New York portion of the 2012 world cruise. It was a great stateroom with a large balcony. The crossing was very rough, however, and there was enough motion in the stateroom for an amusement park. I'm a good sailor who never gets seasick; in fact, I always welcome heavy seas on Queen Mary 2 and the great QE2. On QE, while I was fine and enjoyed the experience, I was keenly aware that the QE & QV were not meant for high seas passages as a norm. I remember watching QV struggle through the large sea swells from QE2 when QV sailed to NY for the first time in tandem with QE2.

Are you far aft as well? How far are you going on the cruise? Home to Australia? I did a full world cruise a few years ago, and most of the voyage from New York to Sydney was fairly calm, even the Tasman Sea. You'll be fine with the seas.

Bobby

Iko (sp?) Pranic is wonderful.

He was my maitre d' two Januarys ago in the QG on QE.

Looking forward to your impressions of the QE which I found to be quite pleasant.

The holiday cruise so exceeded my expectations that I am compelled to post a mini-review in the form of a few observations. The weather was great on the way to the Caribbean, throughout the Caribbean, and for most of the way back to New York. The ship was festively decorated, and the celebrations on Christmas and New Year's Eve were fun to be a part of. We had a perfect table for two (a banquette) directly next to the window at far end of the Princess Grill, looking out onto the aft decks. The dress code was respected in the dining room where many gentlemen, including ourselves, wore ties on informal nights, and in most of the public rooms, although Kings Court remains a different story no matter what time of day one ventures there. The service provided by our waitstaff team in the Princess Grill was superb, and the quality of the food was much improved since our last cruise in PG about a year ago. We were invited to attend the wedding at sea of the wonderful couple seated next to us in the dining room who also asked us to serve as their witnesses. The ceremony was lovely, and we enjoyed sharing the event with them and the Commodore who joined us for a reception afterwards. As we had been to all of the islands except Tortola, we took local transportation to our favorite beaches and a few new beaches, including Maho Bay in St. Maarten where we experienced the low-low-flying planes landing at the airport. In Antigua, however, we wanted to sail, so we booked a Cunard excursion of six hours duration that consisted of a terrific catamaran sail along the western coastline of the island with two extended stops for swimming, sunning on the beach and a beachside barbecue. The return journey to New York provided a leisurely respite from all the island-hopping until the Commodore informed us that the decision had been taken to increase the ship’s speed (from 17.5 to 22.5 kts) in order to berth in New York by 11pm Thursday night, rather than Friday morning at 6:30 am as scheduled, and thereby avoid the worst of the gale force winds and snow which were already affecting the ship by Thursday afternoon. Seeing decks previously bathed in warm Caribbean sunshine now blanketed in deep snow was a magical sight to behold and arguably a once in a lifetime experience. Yes, there is evidence of cut-backs just about everywhere, but this fact did not diminish our enjoyment of this very pleasant cruise.

We will be on the Christmas cruise in Princess Grill in less than two weeks. My eyes and ears will be open for any changes, for the better or for the worse, and notes will be taken. :rolleyes:

In no particular order, following is my perception of changes, both significant and inconsequential, in Queen Mary 2 over the years since her debut in 2004.

• Relaxation of the dress code and related onboard ambience
  
• More discounting/promotions
  
• More onboard revenue-generating programs and fewer “give-aways”
  
• Slower speeds
  
• Failure to complete aspects of the 2011 refit/refurbishment (i.e., replacement of sofas in Britannia class cabins, as stated by former director Peter Shanks).
  
• Ship-wide decline in the quality of food, especially in Britannia
  
• Increasingly understaffed and overworked serving crew (dining rooms, cabins)
  
• Replacement of Cunard logo/crest pool towels with ordinary beach towels
  

In addition, one cannot ignore the damage inflicted by the re-flagging to Bermuda on the overall culture of the ship and Cunard’s storied heritage.

Nonetheless, and in spite of the above, I continue to sail often with Cunard, particularly Queen Mary 2, because the experience, however diminished or homogenized, is still the next best after the incomparable QE2.

My understanding is less ports = less fuel. When your not stopping, you can travel slower with the extra day at sea between ports.

 

Don

Exactly. The bean counters have done the sums and have concluded that sailing slower saves fuel.

In addition to savings on fuel, overall docking fees are reduced, while onboard services (bars, photography, Spa, shops, casino, specialty dining, etc.) increase onboard revenue.

It pains me to see an impressive transatlantic liner the likes of Queen Mary 2 reduced to dawdling about at speeds anywhere between 15-18 knots.

Nice video.

The Deck 12 overhang, however, is a feature of Deck 11 that I find annoying.

 

Am I exaggerating?

You are not exaggerating.

My partner was there visiting his parents when the typhoon struck, although he and the family were spared the worst of the storm.

I have also heard from a member of the ship's crew whose house was almost completely destroyed, but his family, thankfully, went unharmed.

Donations to reputable charities, wherever possible, and prayers, always possible, are the best response we can make.

I accepted an upgrade for the upcoming Christmas Cruise from a Five Deck oceanview to a sheltered balcony on Six Deck forward, starboard, category BB, between the A & B stairways.

How much noise can from Deck Seven above can I expect to hear, especially those walking and jogging on Boat Deck?

Nonetheless, I was delighted to have this early holiday present from the Cunard Upgrade Fairy.

Thanks for the feedback,

Bobby

Not I. I will be in New York. I sailed on the Breakaway

And it was great. The Ship made for New York

I'm planning on a NB or NG cruise for the experience. Good to hear from you that you enjoyed it. My travel agent, who is a Cunard specialist, had nice things to say about NB.

I just need to be far away from the spillover effect of Super Bowl on the city. Salacia's got it right.

Imagine what that will do to traffic on the Westside, especially if there's a snow storm :eek: -S.

LOL. Spoken like a true New Yorker! :D

Am I imagining this or did I hear that Norwegian Getaway (or Breakaway) will be chartered by Budweiser Light to serve as a hotel during the Super Bowl?

I plan on being so far out of town as I can get.

My partner is there right now visiting his parents. It's quite devastating.

You weren't rude. They are neanderthals.

now it feels more like the Staten Island Ferry than an ocean liner!

Spot-on Capn. Staten Island ferry actually goes faster.

Keeping up with these Cunard Anniversary Celebrations is becoming a bit of a challenge. Google "Cunard Anniversary". If there is an anniversary, Cunard will market it.

Spot on, as usual!

Just read through this interesting thread courtesy of Cornus who copied it to me. Have been on many crossings and cruises, mainly Cunard, including a full world cruise in 2007 on QE2.

My first ship was Italian Lines' Raffaello, crossing to Italy and back for a college summer program in the mid 70's.

If I am back in the city on the 20th, I plan on joining the group.

I wonder if a single person would have a good experience on a Cunard cruise? I'm not talking about the TA, which likely draws a diverse crowd, but the longer cruises.

I have sailed several times solo with Cunard, including a full world cruise on QE2, several transatlantic crossings and Northern Europe cruises. Cunard is not as stuffy by any means as the brochures would like us to think. The formal dress code in the evenings does create a very civilized ambiance.

When traveling solo, I have always requested to be seated at a table for 8, most generally a table for eight hosted by the QM2 hotel manager and his staff whom I know very well from my QE2 days.

My suggestion is to request a large table, preferably for 8. I do not like the open seating for breakfast and lunch in Britannia and sometimes ask to be seated at a table for two by myself. While the open seating can make for socializing and meeting fellow passengers, I find that this arrangement can promote the kind of small talk I find tedious, especially if you land on a table with blowhards or complainers.

In the Grills and Britannia Club, you dine with the same tablemates for all meals. While I have never dined solo in these venues on QM2, QE2 offered a similar arrangement in the Caronia Restaurant where the tablemates were the same for all meals. As a single, on the world cruise particularly, this was very reassuring and promoted a convivial atmosphere at the table and the development of strong relationships that extended beyond the table to other areas of the ship such as the shows, movies, the lounges/bars, the lectures, and even some shore excursions. Strong relationships also developed with passengers at surrounding tables.

You will be fine in Britannia on a large table, and there is much to be said about opportunities at least to meet other passengers during the open seating meal services.

Good luck and Happy Sailing!