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One of the waiters told me that they sometimes rearrange the tables on embarkation day depending on what seating preferences the passengers of the next cruise have asked for.

I wouldn’t say I was underwhelmed by my experience in Sir Samuel’s. However I was in Queens Grill and didn’t think the extra cost was worth it compared to the food and service in the QC which I thought was excellent

I was on the July 28th Med cruise when they introduced the lanyards and door locks. The day after the locks were fitted I was at the Sky Bar and a couple of men saw my lanyard and started grumbling about how they could no longer walk through. One said “We have all paid to be on the ship so we should be able to use all the public spaces.”. i probably should have been more tactful with my response of “Well some have actually paid a lot more than others to be on the ship.”. It wasn’t well received!

My disembark off QA last Sunday was on time. We opted for a later time at 10:00am so that our driver didn’t have too early a start as he had a 3 hour journey to Southampton. It only took a couple of minutes to find our luggage.

I got off QA yesterday and the scones that were served in the Queens Grill Terrace were definitely irregular. Enough cream for my tastes and I thoroughly enjoyed them!

I am on QA now. We had a guaranteed Q6 forward cabin. About two weeks before sailing we was upgraded to a Q5 at the stern.

This is my first ever cruise and I am thoroughly enjoying it. Ok I can’t compare it to other cruise lines or ships. We stayed at the Harbour Hotel the night before and had a relaxed and easy embarkation. We had booked an excursion in Cadiz about 15 minutes before the captain announced that we were not going there. I have quite enjoyed the sea days. We enjoyed the two shows we saw in the Bright Lights Society and the Royal Court Theatre. The food and staff in the Queens Grill have been outstanding. We tried the buffet and it was reasonable. Going to the Steakhouse tomorrow night. The Grills Terrace has been very busy with most of the sun beds taken at times. After a couple of days we were given lanyards with grills terrace passes. Yesterday staff asked to see them. I mentioned that the only way to stop people going in who shouldn’t, would be to fit locks. A member of staff said they were on order but didn’t know when they would be fitted. The only slight annoyance so far is that our cabin is right at the very stern of the ship and my partner smokes. The only smoking area is right at the front of the ship on the top deck. Literally the furthest point away from our cabin. Had a pleasant afternoon in Barcelona but it was very hot. Glad to be back on the ship.

Having made your choice to not dress formally did you still expect to have full access to all parts of the ship? As I see it, it is not so much what someone is wearing, but whether or not a person dressed casually should reasonably expect to be able to go into all of the public areas on the ship.

I’m not the sort of person who dresses up regularly. However I firmly believe that if you set a dress code, it should be clear what is acceptable and what is not and enforced consistently. Or just don’t bother at all with a dress code Perhaps the bar staff and waiters should politely refuse to serve those who do not adhere to the dress code. And then be backed up by their managers. i can see how some staff would be reluctant to do that as not everyone is comfortable or willing to deal with conflicts.

We are also on this cruise, my first one ever. Never done “black tie” before either. Looking forward to wearing a tuxedo for the very first time.

Out of curiosity, i presume black tuxedo jackets are the norm, but do you occasionally see white jackets or other colours?

Thank you for the informative responses. I expected expensive but wasn’t sure about the plentiful! Yes, I’m sure the hotel will be well used to organising taxis.

On a slightly different note. I will be boarding QA in Southampton for my first ever cruise on the 28th with an arrival time of 12:30. We are staying at a local hotel the night before. What are the local taxi services like? I can imagine it could get pretty busy if there are other ships also embarking.

I have a laminator so will make my own.

I have been reading this thread with interest. In three weeks I am on QA for my very first cruise. I am aged 65 and have never ever done black tie. I used to wear a collar and tie for work, but not in the last 20 years or so. Normally I wear jeans/chinos and a polo shirt. Occasionally I will wear a nice shirt and jacket if we go out for a meal. And I do have a couple of nice suits, which don’t get worn very often. My first thoughts were that I’m not all that bothered about dressing up. However my partner is really looking forward to the gala nights. So I’ve bought a tuxedo, shirts, bow tie, new shoes etc. So I will definitely be adhering to the dress code, and will probably wear a jacket much more than I normally do. But dressing “to the nines” or “channeling my inner James Bond”? No definitely not!