exlondoner

6 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

Sadly, due to 'the ship's architects' and possibly passengers who take advantage etc, I can't see a thoroughfare being possible if the deck is to remain 'Grills'.

 

One of the issues in May were the passengers using the hot tubs who weren't supposed to be there but as far as I was concerned, it wasn't the usage because how did I know who should/shouldn't be there, it was the bottles of beer [glass] being consumed in the hot tub with empties on the ledges.

Joy sorted both issues  out.

Wonderful, wonderful staff member [concierge] and I am SO glad for her she's now on Mary as an officer.

Well, if they took the pools away, at least on one side, there could be a pathway. I suppose, if you are using amenities you shouldn’t, you are more likely to break other rules, even safety ones to do with glasses. But I can see not being able to walk through is really annoying.

Yes, Joy was excellent and really nice. I hope her replacements are equally on the ball.

25 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

and I suppose if a particular area of a larger space carries a premium in order to be there, I guess you could say it's not all that public.

 

Quite, but I do think people should be able to get through somehow, without lingering or rudeness. Wanting to use the facilities, such as they are, on the other hand is just daft or rather deliberate badness, as there are lots of other nice outside spaces. Anyone caught in the pools (which I can really see the point of anyway) should be thrown over the side forthwith to enjoy the sea water instead. I reckon they wouldn’t have to do that too often for the practice to stop.

3 minutes ago, vsbc said:

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!

That is rude and really such a bizarre argument. Would they use it to crash a party or use the Spa or protected single sex spaces or, and perhaps this is a good idea after all, to sunbathe in the area being used for archery? Anyway, what they have paid for is a particular set of facilities on the ship, no more. Just as, if you have paid for a drinks passage, it has (often rather opaque) Ts and Cs, it does not entitle you to free Château Pétrus at breakfast every day.

5 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

THERE ABSOLUTELY WAS A BRITANNIA GRILL. A mirror image of the PG.

 

and if you still don't believe me, here it is:

 

Thanks. That’ll save me getting out the brochure.

6 minutes ago, paulco said:

I think Cunard is just saving money with the lack of table cloths in the for fee restaurants 

It saves money in terms of laundering and also has environmental benefits. On the other hand the noise level is invariably unpleasantly increased.

9 minutes ago, NE John said:

Like many others, my experiences sailing in Cunard’s three classes (except Club) certainly has the Grills dining experience rated much higher than Britannia. Food, and the overall dining experience, is very important to us and that’s why I believe Grills is worth the premium. That is my opinion: others may not place that premium on the food experience. Some would rather go on more cruises in a less expensive cabin grade; I’d rather go on fewer cruises in the Grills experience. But again, that’s just my feeling. 
Also, the Grills “experience” is not just defined by the food but also that we “own” our table for each meal for the duration of the voyage and can then build an excellent rapport with the staff. I have no interest in dining arrangements offerings where I need to choose where to eat every night or make a reservation to eat somewhere. I’m too lazy on vacation to think about stuff like that!

I like the consistency of being greeted by name by the M’d and the wait staff as we arrive at the Grills restaurant and lounge. No stuffiness/no pretension - just great service. 

Yes, one of the great things is that the waiting staff know you, greet you by name, and learn your preferences. For instance, I’m always thirsty, and need my water glass constantly filling, while my husband only wants half a glass of water. It is so relaxing not to have to keep explaining this. As you say, no pretension, just efficiency and kindness. I’m still trying to work out what colonial service is - which was mentioned somewhere, possibly another thread.

21 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

 I think you're right. Because they were both for the PG staterooms, I tended to think of them as two halves of PG. But one may have been Britannia. 

I’ll have a look in the 1997 brochure when I’ve a moment. Yes, tragically, I’ve still got it!

51 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

QE2 didn't have Britannia Grill. BG is the current version of QE2's Caronia. 

I think at one time there were two PG restaurants, one smoking, one not. The other was called the Britannia, wasn’t it? Possibly?

1 hour ago, BigMac1953 said:

Always local time, no matter where.

I think twice when it has only been for one port they haven’t bothered changing, when I have been aboard. Amazingly, everyone caught the ship. But for several ports in Norway, they certainly will.

4 hours ago, Colin_Cameron said:

After an eleven hour drive we're home.

 

Now where was I? Things still to be fixed: The food ordering system and the logo for the 'Gents'. The former will have to be fixed, and the latter is easy enough to do over time; The lift doors are still too quick for a lot of people, not just the infirm, and the now failing up/down indicators just makes things worse. And having to take 50% of the passenger lifts out-of-service at the busiest time, embarkation day - and on the last night- is just crazy. First and last impressions people!

 

I mentioned that we were 'underwhelmed' by our visit to Sir Samuels and I heard similar from other people. One of them summed it up, "It's amazing the difference something as simple as tablecloth makes." This is billed as a fine dining experience and although the food and the service are excellent, as far as the setting is concerned, you could be in the Lido - sorry, Artisans' Foodhall - and it could be argued that has a better view. The same applies to the other speciality restaurants.

 

However, it's the things that can't, or won't, be fixed that make Queen Anne our least favourite Cunard ship. The promenade deck, I don't use it but my wife does; The Queen's Room, 'cheap' with poor sightlines; and the theatre, a perfectly functional space but bland when compared with the other ships.

 

Will we sail on her again? Probably, but it would have to be the right itinerary, on the right dates, and at the right price. The problem is that now that Cunard have just-another-cruise-ship she has much more competition than the others.

 

I really enjoy going on Cunard ships, QA as much as the others, but I really think, if it involved an eleven hour drive, I would never ever sail on them. You must be pretty dedicated. I find the drive from here to Southampton stressful enough (as a passenger).

37 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

 

There was a time about 14/15 years ago, when although unpublicised, you got $2 = £1 if you purchased OBC in advance.

 

Unfortunately, this perk was ruined by greedy numpties who bought thousands and withdrew the cash on board, thus making an immediate 25/30% profit.

At that time, because the exchange rate was so favourable and the wine list price quite low, NZ Cloudy Bay was discernibly less on board than in our local supermarket. Bizarre.

13 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

 

There was a time about 14/15 years ago, when although unpublicised, you got $2 = £1 if you purchased OBC in advance.

 

Unfortunately, this perk was ruined by greedy numpties who bought thousands and withdrew the cash on board, thus making an immediate 25/30% profit.

Yes, I remember that. It was great, but I wouldn’t have dreamt of misusing it.

This is going to disrupt my strolls. I’d rather have people passing through than have to do this twice a rotation.

48 minutes ago, Harters said:

Small and user friendly, according to my nephew. He used it from time to time to get home for holidays when he was at university in Bournemouth. Sometimes it was cheaper and/or more convenient than the train. 

Often almost anything is more convenient than trains that get tangled up in Birmingham New Street. I cry every time I change trains there.

There is a bar and coffee shop airside with an excellent view of the runway, so you can watch the planes. Most airlines seem to have 45 minute checkin times.

51 minutes ago, tv24 said:

Many mass market lines offer special exclusive areas for those who spend more money.  Unfortunately the word "class" has been imprinted on Cunard for a long time and it will take a long time for it to be erased from consumers' impressions.

Unless they actually travel on the ship, of course, when they won’t notice it, unless they look very hard, though a few undoubtedly do. There was someone who thought because he had paid to be on the cruise he should be entitled to go everywhere. 

Southampton Airport is very small. They claim it takes a max. of 10 minutes to get through security, usually less. So once you are inside, things should progress quickly. How long to get there depends a bit on the cruise terminal and time of day, but should be easily less than half an hour once you’re in a taxi.

Why not just ring them up?

1 minute ago, NE John said:

Technically Jack Daniel’s isn’t Bourbon but Tennessee Sour Mash. Cunard still hasn’t corrected this egregious oversight…for those from Kentucky. 

On QE, they offered Jim Beam and not Jack and not as much gin selections. 
BTW, the bottles served in QG suites are not small sample-sized nor 500 ml bottles but full liters of booze. We took home the remaining Jim Beam and Campari. 

I haven’t had to buy any gin for years, thanks to Cunard and my not drinking vast amounts.

13 minutes ago, mking8288 said:

Stand corrected, 😑 "apologize" as it was a long day posting, at least we had referred to the area 😁

 

Feeling strange on Cunard, outside our NCL comfort zones and bringing other CC'ers along with our "codes"  Glad to bring some smiles & humors. Thanks 👍 

Honestly, I’m sure you won’t feel strange once you step aboard, unless you really do have three heads each above the other. 😀 Once you are on board, it is now your ship.

1 minute ago, John Bull said:

 

Wasn't clear to me

Hence my comment  "If overniting in Southampton, a train which arrives by about 7pm, in time to check-in & get an evening meal, or even later if you have dinner in London, would give you more time in London"

 

JB 🙂

 

 

I assume that is not what the OP wishes or s/he would have asked a different question, like ‘What time is the last train?’.

6 minutes ago, John Bull said:

 

"We need to get to the Waterloo Station to catch the train to Southampton for our cruise departing on Tuesday, October 8^th"

No problem if travelling down on 7th, but OP is unclear whether they're travelling down on 7th or 8th

 

JB 🙂

Seemed clear to me, particularly as there is a concern as to which train they can catch from Waterloo. This is relevant if they are travelling the day the arrive from Paris, but not the next day.

4 minutes ago, artvlay said:

Does anyone have a contact email address or phone number for the Dining department? My wife has some dining restrictions and I would like to address them prior to boarding.

Thank you 

Have you filled out the medical requirements form?

5 minutes ago, NE John said:

Lots of Aussies and a fair amount of East Asian pax in Alaska. 
As for British snobbery, I’ve found most Brits I know well and have met the opposite: self-deprecating humor and liking to share a few laughs. Especially after a few beers…

Anyway, shyness is often confused with “snobbiness”. 

I think inverted snobbery is currently much more prevalent in the UK.

Just now, rog747 said:

One thing I thought I could mention is just how much longer QA is versus QV/QE.
She's over 30m longer, and just 20m short of the QM2's length.

Whilst the QV/QE are still big ships at over 900' long, the QA is way bigger (at almost 1060') making her longer than both of the original 1930's Queens, SS France, SS United States and the Normandie.

I really sensed this immense length when I was onboard and being in midships (near B Lifts) which was very handy for the Grills 10, Chart Room 2, Tour Desk 2, Carinthia Lounge and Prom on 3, and Grand Lobby 1, 2 and 3, she was quite a long walk to go forward or go aft for anything else -
the passageways seemed endless!!

Note to self was that if I ever return on board for another cruise on QA, I would likely go Britannia and have an aft area cabin for ease of access to the MDR and the Panorama Pool.





 

Yes, the length was a surprise. Other of course than the dreadful Grills Lounge, which I may have mentioned occasionally before, it was probably the thing I found most difficult about her, and I am fully ambulant, just lazy. Still, it was good for the memory, as, of course, is QM2.