Sue-B

Here’s a photo of the QV lunch menu from July 2023 - the fish and chips was fabulous 😂

@Bedruthen Just gone back through photos to try and look, and deck 5 corner balcony definitely had sunshine on it (this photo was on QE but it’s the equivalent cabin). I’m pretty sure we still got sunshine on the balcony in the middle suites too on deck 5 (will try and find photos for you) but it will depend on which way the ship is sailing (or docked). If the med is as hot as last year you may definitely want some shelter from the sun on your balcony. The grills sun terrace is full sunshine friendly for those that love the sun with some very well placed shaded areas for those that don’t like full sun! Have a fabulous trip with whatever suite you choose 😀

@Victoria2 Yes I think you’re absolutely right - if you are in the Q1s on deck 6 you won’t be able to see any of the actual balcony of the Q5 or Q6 suites on deck 5 (you definitely used to be able to until they changed the tiered back of the QV) - having done a before and after in those aft suites I’d say I prefer the additional privacy now afforded in the deck 5 aft suites vs those on deck 4 (but the ones on 4 are slightly bigger room/balcony) 👍

Just adding a few more pictures in case they’re useful - I had to go back through my sail history but found we stayed in 5191 QV in 2018 - couple of photos from when we first boarded (never my best shots as I’m always too excited to be cruising again!)

We’ve done most of the QG aft suites at some point or another on QV and a number of different ones on QE. Once you’ve stayed in Grills it becomes rather hard to do anything else! I can honestly say all of the suites are fab, and I’m sure you’ll love whichever you choose. On QV it’s only the ones on deck 8 that have been refurbed differently (we really liked those, but there’s a lot of glass and shiny wood to polish which I’m sure is much harder for the staff so probably better they’ve not rolled that decor out across all the QGs). On deck 5 we would typically go for the larger room vs the corner aft - but it’s purely personal choice and depends on the destination. For med cruises we typically find we go up to the top deck for the very comfortable loungers, so mainly use the balcony for pre dinner drinks and sail aways etc. We’ve always found lots of space on the Grills deck and table service for drinks (and fresh fruit, sandwiches, cold towels etc often brought round) so it suits us. The aft corner suites are an odd shape (as previous posters have said) but they are still a good size and we found them perfectly comfortable for a few weeks! So whatever you choose I’m sure you’ll love - couple of photos here for the aft corner suite 5195 (apols - not the best photos had just moved from a different aft suite to that one) - this was QE April 2022 (you’ll spot the face masks which date it!) but the room layout is the same from memory on QV (albeit a few years since we’ve done aft corner on QV). Hope you have a lovely time and thoroughly enjoy the Grills experience 👍😀

You can transfer but it’s subject to the booking conditions and what fare you’ve booked - if you’ve booked through a travel agent you need to contact them, but if you booked direct you can contact cunard customer service. Transfers typically have an associated admin charge (think this is still £100), but you can only transfer if you booked a cunard fare (and the new booking needs to be within a certain timescale). If you’ve booked on a saver fare I don’t believe you can transfer according to the booking conditions, but a call into cunard will be able to confirm any options available for you. (Addition: this is for UK bookings, it may differ from other country booking conditions)

No problem @MissSarahB What a lovely girls trip it will be - I’m sure you and your friend will make some lovely memories, and sorry to hear of her loss. You can always ask for different spirits from the butler, but definitely not guaranteed to get something you like, there are no fruit gins on the list - I love them too and would remember if they were available! I would suggest that you take a bottle or two of whatever you like to drink on board to have in your room, and just use the mini bar for sodas etc. Malibu and pineapple juice is a classic - I always order fresh orange from the breakfast menu in the morning and have in the fridge to go with the vodka! 👍😀 I can’t remember if there’s a rose wine on the list you can choose from, but there should be a lovely bottle of LP champagne on ice in your room when you arrive 😀

I keep meaning to take a photo of the menu but forget every time! No doubt someone will post one on here for you. I’m sure they’ll be something on there that you’ll like - from memory there’s a choice of spirits - options are limited but have brands like like grey goose vodka, Bombay sapphire gin, or options of wine, think there are 4 different red and 4 whites on the list - we tend to choose the merlot after testing them all over the years, that’s the best one suited to us! The fridge in your room will already be stocked with mini tonic/soda waters, cans of Pepsi, Diet Pepsi & lemonade, along with a couple of cans of Heineken beer. You can have any soft drinks you want in there - just ask the butler and they’ll sort - we always take everything out and ask for Diet Coke and diet lemonade/sprite, along with slimline tonic - so you can easily adjust the soft drinks to your taste etc. they restock the fridge drinks frequently, both in the morning and at turndown each night. You also get large bottles of sparkling and still water, again just ask if you prefer just sparkling for example. We’ve also found the wine gets replenished too - as soon as a bottle is half way down another to replace it magically appears - never got through a whole litre of spirits so not sure they’ll replace those in the same way! The perfume is not available in most QG suites - we had the pleasure of a Q1 sailing once, and we got them in there, but typically go Q4-6 and you don’t get them in there. Pre-covid there were lots of amenities already in the bathroom, like cotton buds, nail files etc, but they’ve stopped putting them in as standard, you can ask for them and they normally arrive quickly. I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful trip, once you’ve been in QG I’ve found it’s ever so hard to book anything else! Happy holidays 😀

Beautiful picture @bluemarble I’ll make a guess for Innvikfjorden, Norway…not convinced I have matched the landscape but at least it discounts that cruise by location for everyone else if it’s not right!

Thank you @sfred 😀 @bluemarble I believe the port is Ishigaki, Okinawa, Japan 😀 Have my fingers crossed now 🤣

Think I’ve finally solved it but given I’ve already guessed earlier today I’ll leave it until tomorrow in case anyone else is also playing 😀

Yes Davao was what I was looking at - the hill peaks sort of match in the distance but not an exact fit! The search continues…. 🤣

Well I might as well have a guess and see if I can get even close to the right part of the world! Lovely images @bluemarble thinking maybe somewhere in the Philippines?

Sandeman ‘94 was definitely onboard last November 👍 if in doubt or you really want a certain one then I would take your own and pay for corkage in restaurant to have after dinner 👍😀

I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. We were QG in April aboard QV and the service and food in the restaurant was as good as ever. Some of the ‘Covid’ changes, like limited amenities in the suite bathrooms are still there, so you have to ask for the cotton buds, nail file etc rather than them already being there when you board. The hot canapé selection is still (in my opinion) a hit and miss affair in the Grills Lounge, and some nights it never appeared at all - but not exactly a hardship! Back to the restaurant selection, I didn’t notice anything missing from the a la carte, and they are still changing the menu over each week. We ordered ‘off piste’ a number of times - no issues at all, and everything was delicious. Lots of table side options like the rack of lamb, dover sole etc as well as crepes suzette, flambé cherries etc. The caviar was better than when we were aboard in 2021 and 2022. The one thing I think is definitely not as good is the cheese trolley - very limited selection (compared to say 5 years ago). The petit fours are now served by the head waiter from a plate (or they were when we were aboard) and so presumably less wastage than they used to have. Overall we had no complaints at all, service was fantastic as always, food equally good. We can’t wait to go again 😀