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FYI, current QLD storm track forecast as of 10a local time on Wednesday 24 January. Cunard was probably wise to reroute QE. The earlier forecast of category 3 (wind speeds of 118–159 km/h) has been downgraded to category 2 (89–117 km/h), but still probably not something that QE would want to be sailing towards.

Rats - I was going over to the Brisbane terminal on Wednesday to have a look and get some photos. Sympathies to all QE passengers and crew for missing out on the Queensland barrier reef trip they were expecting. The current track of the storm is shown in the below screen shot from ventusky.com. Current wave heights are shown in meters, and winds are 40-60km/hr, not too bad at the moment. Landfall is expected between Mackay and Townsville later this week. The only forecast impact on Brisbane is some rain expected on Friday and Saturday. Townsville is approximately 1,300 kilometers north from Brisbane.

We've been in 5.001 and for us it was excellent. We'd happily do it again anytime. Pros Cabin size and layout. Feels more spacious than regular PG cabins. Forward looking window over the bow. You can also peer around the balcony divider to see forward from the balcony. End of hallway location is quiet (except for occasional crew using the deck 5 forward outdoor area during daytime). Good wifi connectivity. Access point is nearby in hallway. Cons Mechanical noise from line equipment when docking. You will definitely know when you have arrived in port in the morning. We're early risers so are always up anyway. Hull banging noises from the bow plates in moderate to heavier seas. Can be disturbing at night. Not a problem when seas are calm to moderate. A lively ride in heavier seas, especially in the pitch axis. Not a problem for me - I like being at sea - but I can understand how it might be an issue if susceptible to sickness. Curtains must be closed at night, and no lights outside on the balcony. The cabin is forward of the bridge and you have to keep a darkened ship for bridge visibility. Let me know any questions.

This anecdote isn't directly relevant to the OP's question, but a few years back we were doing a short weekend getaway on QE from Melbourne to Brisbane via Sydney. Out of curiosity I investigated the Cunard options for the one way airfare from Brisbane to Melbourne to start the trip. The offer was for flights from Brisbane to London to Melbourne, for approximately A$12,000 in economy class. I'm sure it was just the typical Cunard IT bug, but in general I've never seen the sort of good airfare deals here that UK and US passengers enjoy. Anyone in Aus/NZ experienced differently?

@Host Hattie's link has some great photos of the Frontier fare. @martinmct also posted the actual Frontier menu from the 2023 sailings. It is on post 329, page 14, of the "Queen Elizabeth Position" thread. I wish they had Frontier during our 2019 Alaska trip - looks very tasty.

As @bluemarble says, the Sydney Overseas Passenger Terminal (OPT) is a very capable berth for its location right in the city. Maximum beam and length is 50m x 375m. For comparison, QM2's beam at waterline is 41m and length is 345m. Alternatives for any ship unable to dock at the OPT either because of size or occupancy (OPT is only the single berth) are Athol buoy (500m radius) which requires tendering to the OPT, Woolloomooloo at the Navy's Garden Island facility, or White Bay Cruise Terminal on the other side of the Sydney Harbour bridge. While White Bay can accommodate ships up to 35m by 333m, the major limitation is fitting under the bridge clearance of 49m. QE's air draft is 56.6m. There was talk pre-covid of building an additional cruise terminal in Botany Bay, near the airport, but that scheme seems to have been scrapped.

Yes, a rather wet morning in Sydney for QE's passengers and crew, and the forecast is for much the same all day. Current weather radar shown below. Sydney is in the centre.

There are some reviews and photos on the below two Cruise Critic threads in the Alaska Ports and Princess boards. We've only done standard class ourselves. Apparently the luxury class can only be purchased through cruise ship excursions, as it is not mentioned on the White Pass and Yukon Route web site. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2601333-skagway-white-pass-scenic-railway-luxury-class/ https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2283767-luxury-car-white-pass-railroad/

I haven't been to these Japan ports with Cunard, but there are several regulars here on the Cunard Cruise Critic board who have, and hopefully they will be able to help. In Busan Korea, there are two cruise terminals, as shown in the below google maps screen shot. The Busan International Cruise Terminal, at the lower right of the map, is on the seaward side of the Busan Harbor Bridge. Ships like QM2 cannot fit under the bridge and must use this terminal. QE can fit under the bridge, and sometimes will use this seaward terminal and sometimes will use the Busan Port International Passenger Terminal, at the upper middle of the map, depending on availability. If using the lower right terminal, Cunard supplies shuttle buses into the city. If I recall correctly, shuttles drop off near the Lotte department store, at the middle left of the map. If using the upper middle terminal, you are already in the city and a shuttle is not needed. Best wishes for your voyage!

Good morning everyone! Australia has a few more Brighton Beaches in addition to the Melbourne VIC one. One is nearby to me in Brighton QLD, just north of Brisbane near Redcliff. Another is out in WA, in Scarborough just north of Fremantle/Perth. A third similar one is Brighton-Le-Sands beach, in Botany Bay near Sydney airport. A pity that no Cunard ships were nearby to any of these at the time. A popular name indeed for a beach.

From the Australia FAQ: Sounds like the problems some have encountered may be a steward or laundry availability issue rather than a Cunard policy change. Or possibly too the FAQ may be outdated. On our last QE voyage (in PG) our bed linens were changed quite regularly.

Wow - four new locations added within a little over a day. 638 New Plymouth, NZ 639 Nordfjord, Norway 640 Hrisey, Iceland and pending confirmation from @Colin_Cameron, 641 Dusky Sound, Fiordland, NZ

Here's another New Plymouth webcam of QE's departure this evening. By the time of the next refresh, she was out of view.

D'oh! A pity that my memory, like the Cruise Critic search function, only goes back for a limited time! Sounds good. I will do so in my PowerBI dataset.

The New Plymouth chimney, part of the local electrical power station, is a rather prominent local landmark and can be seen from many parts of the town. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Plymouth_Power_Station I was last in New Plymouth in 1988 (gasp - over 35 years ago) while doing a work project in nearby Wellington. I drove up one weekend and had a look around. It was winter in NZ, and I remember the town as rather pleasant but with a biting cold wind and rain coming in off the Tasman sea that day. Today doesn't look too much warmer for QE's pasengers and crew. Only 22c and light rain.

New Plymouth is port number 638, and number 11 in New Zealand. Nice to have another new port in our southern lands. 105 are South of the equator, 40 of which are West longitude and 65 East. When I was looking at our seen and unseen lists to verify New Plymouth, I noticed that the unseen list includes Milford Sound as a NZ cruise-by, and the seen list includes Fiordland NZ. Fiordland is the overall name for the national park encompassing Doubtful and Milford sounds. @bluemarble, should your recent Christmas post of QE in Milford Sound count as a new port, or should we remove Milford Sound from the unseen list given that we have Fiordland? I tried a search for Fiordland to see what photo put it into the seen list, but there are 0 results so the post must be too old to not be searchable anymore.

I had made a note for this port also when I saw it on the itinerary, and found the same webcam covering the piers as you did. This port isn't included n the typical schedules. I've been there once many years ago while doing a work project in a nearby city. A pleasant town.

Correct! Cunard has come close, as near as Ny-Alesund Norway in Svalbard, which at 78°55′ is I think the northernmost Cunard port in our seen list. Icebreakers and submarines have made it to the north pole, but it is still a bit out of reach for the current Cunard fleet. Perhaps someday...

In the spirit of the holiday season, here's a public domain photo of a destination not on any of our lists. You can get here by certain kinds of ships (and allegedly by sleigh). However, while Cunard has come close and has occasionally hosted a famous resident onboard, it is not yet a Cunard port or cruise-by. Happy/Merry Christmas everyone!

You did very well to capture QE as it went by. It didn't look like those webcams had a rewind feature. I looked for QE's arrival earlier that morning, but she had already docked by the time I got online here in Brisbane.

QE at Wellington NZ?

My dilemma also! The only things that work for me: 1. I try to board a few kilos light, to have a chance to come out even at the end.. 2. I use stairs instead of lifts all the time, and roam the decks in the early mornings and before dinner when the ship is quiet. I'm not much of a gym person, so these activities are my exercise. In the mornings, I typically have the ship mostly to myself (Mrs sfred likes to sleep in) and it is very enjoyable to watch the sunrise outside with a coffee. 3. I limit myself to only having desserts that catch fire. Baked Alaska, Cherries Jubilee, Crepes Suzette, etc. This cuts out dessert most nights, but then the occasion of the flambes, typically on formal nights, makes for a special treat. 4. Both the Mrs and I love really long walks on port days, particularly at places we haven't been to before. Although I admit we then offset the walks at lunch to sample the local cuisine and spirits. But hey, we're on holiday! We had 36 nights on QE recently, and I managed to disembark at my usual displacement. Good luck - best wishes for your QM2 voyage!

Safe onward travels back to the UK, @Pushpit. Thanks for all your updates.

I thought it might be Hamburg from the cranes, but then I didn't see the tall'ish buildings (which are in google views and in your hint photo) in the webcam, so I moved on to other potential locations and tried Belfast. Perhaps the Hamburg buildings are behind the rain in the webcam, or just obscured in the low light..

Belfast? There's a potential match for the cranes and angle of the cruise ship pier. Except that I can't find a live webcam with this view. QV was there twice in 2023.