3rdGenCunarder

Wow, what a disappointing experience! And not to doubt the OP, but my cruise on Eurodam last winter was not like that at all. The ship was always clean. I had breakfast at the Lido most mornings, and I did not see detritus from the previous day. I do agree that waiter service by the Lido pool was slow, but I just went to the bar to get drinks instead of waiting for a server to be available. Service at the Explorations coffee bar was less than wonderful the few times I went there. But I discovered that I could get my mid-morning coffee treat at one of the midship bars (Pinnacle Bar, maybe), where the service was better. Beef portions at dinner were very large. It was the fish portions that were small on my cruise.

I have one of the oversized QE2 plans, bought on ebay. I would love to have one from the Norway! I think those were given to travel agents so that they could tell their clients the details of the cabins. Years ago, there was an online agency that had QE2 deck plans with the square footage of each cabin. My first cabin on QE2 was on 5 deck forward, upper/lower and only 98 square feet. And that's when we had the roughest crossing I have ever experienced. It's the only time I've been seasick and it was my own fault--I looked at the view from the bridge on the TV, and that only reinforced the up and down motion!

oops, error!

The current flag pins look cheap. I think the nicest pins were the crests. I have a Platinum one (yes, it's real platinum, don't tell me it isn't!!!), and the even nicer Diamond pin, which is black with a diamond on it. (Do not tell me it isn't a real diamond. 😜) Mom gave me her collection of blue and gold pins and I dumped out mine, and I managed to make two matching pairs. I had cufflinks made for DH and earrings for me.

On the HAL page it says "when booking your next cruise," which sounds like new bookings only. Too bad, I have two cruises long enough to qualify for $200. I don't see "new bookings only" in the "fine print," although that does end with "Other restrictions and exclusions may apply,"

I think the need to scan or photograph the card is because you may not have an online account. I noticed when I dug out my card, the "create an online account" sticker was still on it. It took about 4-5 minutes for it to be verified from the photo.

I've been sailing with Cunard since 1988. Back then all we got was a pin--very pretty gold lion on a blue background. I don't even remember if it was called World Club, and if there were levels, we were too lowly to know about it. Then there were levels--bronze, silver, gold. I think gold was 7 voyages. Whatever it was, when they set the levels, we were already at gold. I don't remember WC parties from then, but there may have been. I do remember that gold got a bottle of Dom for sailaway. I think Silver got Perrier Jouet or Veuve. I remember we took a cruise with my parents, who were only Silver, and we enjoyed comparing our champers. Over the years, the levels and pins and perks changed, but we always had enough voyages and days to sit in the top level. My goal is to have 365 days on Cunard. I'm getting close.

Having been far forward in rough weather on a crossing, I'll happily take low and midships. I like that I can get fresh air any time without being blown around by the wind. And the price is good.

I did the same thing. I tend to book early, so there's no problem getting the upgrade I want. As a solo, I would have paid double the difference in fare because of the single supplement, but CO does not have a single supplement. One of the few bargains for a solo!

I thought there was a minimum length for a cruise (5 or 6 days?) to count toward World Club status. Unfortunately, I can't find anything about WC tiers on the US site, and the UK site does not mention a minimum cruise length. I think the little 3-nighters could count for days, but they shouldn't count toward the 15 voyages.

I was on Eurodam this past winter for a partial canal cruise. They showed some documentaries about the construction of the canal in the main showroom, usually afternoon on a sea day. The CD read a narration for much of the time on the way into Lake Gatun, but it was quiet on the way out. I am suspicious of the quality of the script, since she mentioned that we might see alligators in the canal. There are no alligators in the canal. Crocodiles, yes, but unlikely to wander into the locks. Once I hear an error, I begin to doubt everything.

I love that sign! Is it new? My last "normal" boarding in Vancouver was in 2017, and I don't remember seeing it. I do remember the very long walk and turning lots of corners. I felt like Dorothy starting out on the spiral of the Yellow Brick Road! My last time boarding in Vancouver was June 2022, and not at all normal. They still were requiring tests and ArriveCAN, so the process started upstairs in the convention center. Very complicated, and we entered the process at a different point with almost no signage.

Comment on the return. If your last port is Victoria, you will have done Canadian Immigration before that port. Just a form to hand in, very few people get called for a face-to-face interview. So when you get to Vancouver, you do not have to go through Immigration there, which makes things faster.

If you booked through a travel agent, he/she can add it to your booking. Otherwise, call HAL directly. You'll have to pay for it at that time.

I thought about that train before my QE Alaska cruise last June, but the price was so high, and another travel option popped up, so I decided against it. With access to several major east-coast airports, my connections wouldn't have been as complicated as yours, but it just looked like too much hassle. Ohh, now you know the scenery looks better in person! 😜

I'm curious, what was it that put you off that trip?

I hate that diamonds international and its ilk are in every port. I know they're popular, but I can think of much better uses of my time and money. At this point in life, I don't need a lot of 'stuff,' so I'm not buying souvenirs. But I do try to find a small bar or coffee shop or bakery to spend some money in a local business.

Not surprising, although I'd like to know if that data includes port fees and taxes. Cruisers don't say in local hotels, and a lot go back to the ship for lunch instead of eating in local restaurants. So maybe paying for a tour or a few souvenirs? That doesn't help the local economy. And ports that get a reputation for being overwhelmed with tourists may lose land-based travelers during peak cruise season.

Well, you can go back, but it's a modified version, just as you experienced on the Norway. I sailed on the Norway late in her life. People kept saying that if I liked QE2 so much, I should sail on the Norway. What a disappointment, NCL was sailing her on the cheap. The teak open promenade deck had been replaced with some sort of foam jogging track material that was crumbly and patched. The upper sun deck had astroturf that never dried out after a squall. Yes, there were a few bits of her days as the France--the dining rooms, the bar with the neptune statues, the kids' playroom, the hidden "secret patio." But she was not loved and it showed. Your last paragraph sums it up beautifully. My last memory of QE2 is standing at Battery Park watching her final departure from NYC. Lights on, full of passengers, doing what she was born to do. I have no desire to see her as a static hotel.

It sounds like the companies with larger ships have found a way to make embarkation of 5000 passengers doable. For me, aside from simply not wanting to sail on a mega is the itinerary challenge as more ports are limiting cruise arrivals--Bar Harbor, Key West, Venice, and now Amsterdam. I like the resort-type amenities on a cruise, but I can't imagine staying at a resort. The itinerary and destinations (and the sea!) are why I cruise. Entertainment is a bonus. If I want to travel for entertainment, I will go a city that has a good variety of theaters and museums and architecture to look at.

Four is reasonable for Juneau, especially in these days of mega ships. Last year, there were four ships docked, plus Queen Elizabeth tendering. Almost 12,00 passengers if ships were full at double occupancy. Maybe ports should consider passenger count. There were five ships when we were in ketchikan, too, but two were small (200 pax and 700 pax).

I block out every account detail except my name.

Yes, take hard copy with you. If you go the email route, print the email as well as the stock proof, so that you can show that you did make the request. HAL has never failed to give us the credit, but best to be prepared. In the past, I have used an online fax service. Now that they're accepting emails, it's better. I just requested shareholder OBC on Cunard and got a reply to my email the same day.

Oh yes, and for years the Cunard episodes had their own channel on QE2, running continuously, or so it seemed.

I would try that. I've eaten reindeer before, once in Canada and a few times on QE2. It's gamier than lamb, but not as strong as venison. The first time I had reindeer was on a group trip in Canada. I sent my SIL an email titled "Rudolph" Her reply was "When you said Rudolph, I thought you MET him, not ATE him!"