MelbTone

Went to Aldi yesterday and for the first time ever bought a pack of salmon wellingtons (a meat pie if you stretch the definition) and very good it was too. Just a pity that they're importing them from Poland.

10 hours ago, mcloaked said:

There have occasionally been posts which suggest that there should be less ballroom dancing on cruises, and on Cunard in particular. One recent thread included the same suggestion. However that is a preference that some people will request and argue for but let's have a look at some facts about cruises, activities and dancing.

I'm a solo traveller and not into dancing (60 years ago we did country dancing at school and I was one of those who had a ribbon tied round my left leg as I could never remember which was left and right) but I do get a lot of pleasure from watching those who take to the floor (especially the gentleman hosts doing their stuff) and listening to the music.

I've cruised with Cunard three times (1 x QM2; 2 x QE) and have had a great time - twice I've been upgraded to PG, most probably because they wanted a single man to fill out a table! For dining I've been on larger tables and have had some wonderful dining companions, people I would never have come across otherwise. On my last QE cruise I joined the solo travellers group and our crew host Cordelia did a brilliant job. Hopefully next year's QM2 cruise will happen, though week by week I get less optimistic.

15 minutes ago, Docker123 said:

There was some reporting of how clubs in NSW could skirt the regulations to get many more people into their venues.

 

This included opening more table service areas, even where they were not regular dining rooms. Reception rooms, large meeting rooms etc.  Some ideas of creating “smaller” rooms by putting in dividers into large spaces to meet the max per room allowed. 

Might be OK in NSW but the Victorian regulations won't allow this:   Each dining area must be separated by permanent structures or be a discrete area of the premises that is sufficiently separated from any other area of the premises. Walls separating areas should be either reach from floor to ceiling, or be at least 2.1 metres high for the space to be considered sufficiently separate. Temporary structures should not be installed to create separate areas

.https://www.business.vic.gov.au/disputes-disasters-and-succession-planning/coronavirus-covid-19/coronavirus-business-support#hospitality

I'm not a dress-up person but really wanted to cruise on QM2. The reality is that some people do really go to town: tuxedos for men who wives have spent months (and $$$ probably) deciding what to wear. But nobody has to do this and lots don't: smart dress (suit for men: mine's a $99 Target special) such as you'd wear to a wedding or executive job interview is all that's required. And unless you're really unlucky you won't find any snobbery ; on the contrary, on my Cunard cruises I've been seated with a wonderful assortment of people I'd never have met otherwise.

TL;DR: Relax. Enjoy.

I've got bookings for 2021 and 2022, made pre-virus, and I hope to do both. They're both Australia-only. My best guess is that Cunard won't be running its QM2 world tour so we won't see her here (so 2021 ???) but they'll hopefully bring QE here, quarantine the crew off shore for two weeks, then run cruises to Australian and NZ ports only.

I wouldn't have the time, patience or ability to do this, but I am more than a little tempted to buy a ready-made display model, something like this Queen Mary 2 . Anyone bought this or similar. I have also looked at ones from non-Australian suppliers, but just have that nagging doubt about damage in transit, though no doubt they know how to pack them.

Just musing here, but I wonder if us solo travellers might get a better deal in the future? Up to now we're generally charged the same as what a couple would pay - I understand why: we only buy one excursion per port, spend less on drinks and extras, and are generally commercially less desirable. But if the issue is that in future the issue is occupancy of public spaces such as dining rooms, theatre and bars, then perhaps having fewer people in the same number of cabins might be helpful?

Out of interest, does anyone know what occupancy level cruises have run at in the past (actual versus theoretical capacity)

18 minutes ago, Lakesregion said:

Between the seven pages here and the 50 plus pages on the previous thread concerning refunds etc. one thing is apparent. very few people have a clue as to how the real world of business works but they are learning just as they have learned that vegetables do not grow in the back room of their supermarket. OPM (other people's money) is what makes the world go round and when the entire world stops due to panic induced lock downs it tends to unravel.

In lots of business areas money paid up front for something to be delivered at a later date (e.g. OTP apartment) would go into a trust account or would otherwise be ringfenced. If this isn't the case re cruise deposits I would expect the auditors to be taking a keen interest.

On one of the TV current affairs shows last night (can't remember which) they had a piece about cruise ships and CV. It was alleged that cruise companies regard their medical facilities as a profit centre: the interviewee had run up a bill of $8K+ before being taken off the ship. I've also heard reports here of Australian cruises and locals with minor ailments waiting until the next shore visit so they can then find a bulk-bill (no charge) GP. Perhaps cruise companies should be required to run their medical facilities as a no-cost service to encourage prompt reporting, though that could well lead to people then saving up their medical issues until they get on board.

I did the behind-the-scenes tour on my last QE cruise and to my non-medical eyes the facilities looked good: two doctors, several wards and an intensive care unit, though this is obviously set up for the one at a time heart attack, broken limb etc, not an epidemic.

ABC Nightlife last night, 55 mins. https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/nightlife/nightlife/12175114

Cruise ships have become almost synonymous with Covid-19 after a spate of outbreaks onboard them. So what does the future hold for his beleaguered industry once this crisis is over?

Melbourne Age today says that on current information Australia will be closed to incoming and outgoing international tourism until at least the end of this year. Queen Elizabeth's first Melbourne visit is scheduled for Nov 25th. It would be good if, assuming we stamp out the virus here (shocking contrast in stats between UK and Australia) we could have QE return to service with a quarantined crew after our winter for Australia-only cruises, but after the Ruby Princess debacle there might be a continuing resistance to interstate travel. 

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/borders-to-stay-closed-travellers-urged-to-see-australia-first-once-curbs-ease-20200410-p54iw4.html

On 2/15/2020 at 9:33 PM, exlondoner said:

What is so bizarre is that every time they alter it (upgrade is clearly not the correct word), they make it worse

Hutber's Law at work - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutber's_law

Sad really because it's down to virus-related rescheduling and thousands of people will have had their holidays spoiled: QM2 is now doing a 17 night Perth-Sydney cruise (M006A) round the top end of Australia. Cheapest internal cabins $933pp twin share - that's $55 a night! Only snag is that she sails Tuesday. 

What sort of things interest you? Last month I spent most of my day in Adelaide at the railway and air museums (anyone who knows me would expect no less) and in Hobart did the Cunard-organised tour to Port Arthur - lots of history, and would definitely do this again.

From my recent QE cruise, the no jackets relaxation definitely changed things over my previous Cunard cruises. I'd taken it to mean that as a man you'd be dressed as you might at the office on a summer day, i.e. white/monocolour/pinstripe shirt, no tie, but plenty were complying with the code as written but wearing collared shirts that would be more at place on the beach, not dissimilar to the one on page 1 of this thread. On formal nights though everyone did fall into line.

I've just come off a 7-night Cunard Queen Elizabeth cruise. For the first time I joined the Solo travellers group and it made the cruise a much better experience. Across four sea days (we had to skip Kangaroo Island for obvious reasons): 3 x coffee mornings, 2 x lunches and 1 x afternoon tea all enthusiastically hosted by Cordelia. Great company on my MDR table too. The one time when I felt very solo was having one dinner in the Verandah restaurant. Very leisurely pace would be great if you're a couple or are in company but not so if looking at an empty chair.

Was all excited this morning to scan my emails and see '.. Upgrade notice' - hadn't expected such a thing so close to departure. On my other two Cunard cruises I've been lucky enough to be upgraded from balcony to PG - I put this down to being an older single man and they need such men to balance the PG widows :). But it's from BB to BA (deck 8 to deck 6) so not so exciting. Went to Voyage Personalizer (four logins to get there!) to reprint eTicket and label and the change has yet to ripple through. I am amazed at such a massive organisation having such poor IT.

Not unexpected was to hear on TV in the last hour that this week's cruise ship visits to Kangaroo Island have been cancelled. Minor disappointment for us on board, tragic for those who are seeing such destruction on their island, with the economic hit of losing so many visitors as collateral damage.

Thanks all for your comments - I won't add anything except perhaps on the last night if I recognise a regular server.

Yes, but IIRC the chit you sign has a suggestive space for tip

What do you do if you get a waiter to bring you a drink/coffee whilst you're watching the dancing or whatever? Round up the $5.20 on the chit to $7 ($6 would look a bit cheap), add $2, do nothing because he's recompensed via daily gratuity. Last time round on QE I did all three at different times. Money doesn't matter, just a case of what is appropriate.

8 hours ago, LittleFish1976 said:

Fascinating list. Thanks, abo. I personally think that the name Queen Anne is the most boring on that list although I like the Queen naming convention.

Queen Adelaide? - consort of William IV and aunt of Queen Victoria. Good nod to Cunard's increasing Australian trade: QE is making 11 visits to Melbourne in 2021-22 plus one from QM2.

Today, having been given the details over the phone yesterday and paid, they email me a flyer:

Credit or debit card
The easiest way to make a payment is by credit or debit card. You can do this by calling our Customer Sales
& Service team on 13 24 41 in Australia or on 0800 543 431 if you are calling in New Zealand. The payment
will be applied to your booking on the spot and a new booking confirmation showing your updated balance
will be emailed to you.
When paying your deposit by credit or debit card, you can also set up an auto-charge so that when it is time
to make your final payment, it is automatically charged to your credit or debit card, without needing to
contact us again. Paying for your voyage couldn’t be easier!
We accept Visa, MasterCard, and AmericanExpress (excluding pre-paid cards).
Please note a 1.1% service fee applies to Visa and MasterCard transactions; whilst AmericanExpress will
incur 2.3% service fee (subject to change). There is no fee for debit card transactions.

The last (my emphasis) is not what I was told over the phone. Followed by ....

Direct deposit into our bank account
You can make a payment by making a deposit directly into our ANZ bank account or by transferring funds
from your bank account into ours. When doing this, please use your 6 digit alpha-numeric Cunard Line
booking reference as your payment reference  ... [account info follows which I won't post here]. 

Original point stands: just put the payment info on the reminder and save all this messing around.

I'm booked (direct with Cunard) on a January cruise so, as expected, the balance due date has come round. Cunard helpfully send me a reminder that this is so. What it doesn't show is any payment information though here in Australia virtually any request for payment includes a BSB (bank sort code) and account number, or, for larger firms, a BPay number and reference.

So I phone up Cunard. If I want to pay by card, debit card in my case, they want to charge me 1.25% (of course we're talking several thousand dollars) although the cost to them will be a fraction of this (when I had my own business in UK we were charged a flat 35p for debit card transactions). After an email and three phone calls I finally get the required information to pay by bank transfer. Totally unnecessary waste of my time though the amount saved justifies it. I may be too cynical but can't help thinking it's a ruse to get the extra when people just swallow the card fee. Anyone else had this experience or does everyone else go through a TA?

I’ve spent many hours enjoying the 50 (?) Stephen Card paintings of the Cunard fleet over the ages. Have tracked down book of same from AbeBooks but IMO Cunard are missing a trick by not getting this reprinted and selling it on board.