rog747

I agree with the poster above and would self disembark carrying all your own luggage off the ship if you have a 12.50 flight. The ship normally clears by 7.30am. So a car booked for 8am or 8.30am is fine. It should normally be a ride of around 90 minutes, and Terminal 5 is the first drop, and the quickest. If you are going from T2/T3 or T4 it may take 10-15 minutes more. But the journey could take more if traffic is bad or there is an accident on the M3 or the M25. Friday can be busy but traffic usually builds up later in the day. The airline check-in closes out at one hour before your flight (ie:11.45) That is the last moment you can arrive at the Desk and get on!

BTW if you are looking for a lovely small family owned hotel right on the lagoon just down from S.Marco then the Pensione Wildner is a treat. Great food, and breakfasts with a view. Its old,quirky and charming with no lift, and it's cheap! Book a lagoon view room. Water taxi stop 1 minute walk away, the hotel is right on the promenade of Riva Degli Schiavoni and almost next to the San Vidal Church near the Accademia Bridge, the Church where Vivaldi practiced and now concerts are held. Rick Stein ate at the Hotel on his Venice to Istanbul TV series.

My choice is: If the Ship offers a coach transfer to the Venice Marco Polo Airport then you can book a shared speedboat shuttle from the Airport to any of the Venice Hotels, or those on the Islands with Venice Link. Shared Speed Boat Transfer I'm not aware of any cruise ship transfers going in to Venice itself, but since the Ships no longer dock in Venice then there could be coaches now, but more likely on trips and tours only. Or there is FlixBus (coach transfer) that runs from the Trieste bus station to Venice Mestre Station, where you can take a train or a Taxi across the lagoon causeway to Venice S.Lucia station, or the P. le Roma main square, then take a water taxi or walk to your hotel. Some Flix buses drop you at Venice Tronchetto which has a pier for the water buses Vaporettos. If you travel as a couple, or with group of friends - the private or shared water taxi service is a most comfortable and affordable way to get from Tronchetto Car Park to Venice. FlixBus from Trieste FlixBus also runs direct to the Airport! There are also a few trains that run from Trieste to Mestre, where you may have to get another train to S.Lucia, then you need to take a water taxi, or walk to your hotel. The problem with the morning departure off the ship is getting to the Trieste bus or train station. With thousands of pax disembarking, there can be quite a line for taxis. The bus and train stations are about a 15-20 minute walk from the cruise pier. Personally, I would take the cruise ship transfer to the Airport. From the airport you can catch a taxi to Venice (P. le Roma) for 45-50E for the 20 minute ride, or to book (which would be my choice) the speedboat shuttle direct to the nearest pier for your hotel, as it is the only way to arrive in Venice! Be very aware of the Santa Lucia Train Station and Piazzale Roma, both of which can be problematic, especially in the evening. Have your wits about you. The beggars and pickpocket gangs of Venice will be around.

Dress code must haves? Oh yes. Since 2017 I am now travelling Solo, thus on a Formal evening, I need my personal Butler/Valet to help tie/fasten my black tie, and put my cuff links in LOL ! But when sailing in Steerage (Britannia, but of course, I jest) then my very helpful Room Steward always assists.

What was Cunard's famous tagline? “Getting there is half the fun” was Cunard Line's famous advertising slogan in the 1950s, intended to lure Americans away from flying across the Atlantic.

BTW, I forgot to book a cabin for my Valet....

Thank you for that ! In 1912, the liner SS Amerika was the first ship to warn Titanic of icebergs. The SS Amerika went on, as such part of War reparations (seized by the USA in 1917) as the United States Lines liner, the SS America. Reconditioned after her War service and Troop repatriations to resume her place in the Transatlantic passenger trade, she commenced her maiden voyage as an American passenger liner on 22 June 1921, sailing from the former Hamburg America Line piers at Hoboken NJ (New York) for Bremen, Germany, with stops at Plymouth, England, and Cherbourg, France, en route. The SS Vaterland of the Hamburg America Line was another liner interned by the USA, and she was handed over to become the SS Leviathan for the United States Lines. She was one of the trio of large 'Ships of State' built by the Hamburg Amerika Line to compete on the North Atlantic with Cunard, WSL, NDL, and the CGT French Line. In 1919 Vaterland's sister ships – Imperator and the unfinished Bismarck – were handed over to the Allies as war reparations to Britain. They were sold to the Cunard Line and White Star Line respectively, and renamed Berengaria and Majestic. Along with NDL's SS George Washington, also interned by the USA in 1917, she too joined the newly created United States Lines. Hamburg America Line and Norddeutscher Lloyd NDL; would eventually merge and become known as Hapag Lloyd. United States Lines was the trade name of an organization of the United States Shipping Board (USSB), Emergency Fleet Corporation (EFC) created to operate the German liners seized by the United States in 1917. The ships were owned by the USSB and all finances of the line were controlled by the EFC. One of the founders was Kermit Roosevelt, son of US President Theodore Roosevelt. Among the notable ships of this period was the Leviathan, a contender for largest ship in the world for a time. In addition though, there was to come, significant competition from new Italian, French, German, and British superliners. Eventually the line was sold and went private to continue operating as a Transatlantic shipping company with ocean liners until 1969—most famously, The SS United States.

Glad you are having a nice time. Not been on QV for some years now (Nov 2016 Rome to SOU in QG) and never noticed any serious vibrations and our Suite was right at the stern on Deck 7. I did find that when the ship cruised ''at speed'' ie: say over 21 knots, I would say there was a noticeable rumble but this did not affect us. We did eat one evening with friends in the Britannia MDR lower level, and never noticed any such issues. I assume your short passage at the moment from AKL to Wellington will not be made at high speed... Look forward to more posts from your Voyage.

Super post _ I will reply with my thoughts later after a good read.... Yesterday I was shown some colour photos of the Interiors of the RMS Aquitania of the first class lounges and dining room it was quite spectacular. A nod to the WSL Olympic Class Liners, she had a Grand Staircase and the interiors were luxury personified. Compared to the older Mauretania which looked very bland, these were luxurious. I did notice from the old photos that the colour palette hues used on the Aquitania are similar to some of those being used on the new Queen Anne. Whilst not an Art Deco ship, the Edwardian Aquitania inside was breathtaking for that period. Her features included a Caroline smoking room, a Louis XIV dining room, a Palladian lounge and a swimming pool inspired by the Egyptian architecture in the British Museum. The gracefulness of the liner and her exquisite interiors earned Aquitania the name 'the ship beautiful'. Regarding alternate Dining: This was a first on Liners: On the WSL Olympic Liners there was in addition to the First Class Dining Room, the Café Parisien, and an A la Carte restaurant that was run as an independent concession by Luigi Gatti, the manager of two Ritz restaurants in London. Unlike the Verandah Cafe, (Palm Court) the Café Parisien was run by Mr Gatti as a sideline to his a la carte restaurant with his own waiters. Sadly Mr Gatti died in the sinking in 1912. This extra dining option was similar to Queen Mary (of 1936) which had the now famous Veranda Grill (which are on all of the ships today) Both AFAIK back then were ''chargeable'' for diners to eat there.

I have had a few pairs of those hand made by Trickers in Jermyn St. I have one black pair left, size 8 made for me around the late 1980's....cannot get em on now sadly

Please send the QA down to Oz and Asia, and please let us have back the QE in the UK so we can sail on her again from SOU and in the Med... Loved the QE summer Med Fly/Cruises... I agree the cruises offered on QA are mostly pretty bland, and of course sadly we are running out of destinations due to conflicts, hoo hahs, and increasing security concerns. Cunard have stayed away from much of the Eastern Med and the smaller Greek Islands, Istanbul and Kusadasi, Malta, and we do not not have many GIB calls. I do like a GIB call. Tangier and Casablanca I guess fit the ''areas of concern'' for a large UK Vessel. What to do? Rose is displeased....

Yes, I always take (carry on the ship) a 6 pack of 1.5L's, and usually also a pack of small bottles, either a 6 or an 8 pack. I take Meds daily, and one needs to be mixed in water. I put the bottles in one of those big, strong handled shopping carrier bags that you get from Waitrose or Sainsbury's (although Aldi do a fab one LOL) which then pack flat and weigh nothing when you take them home. Once in your cabin your room steward are usually most helpful with a bigger ice bucket and extra ice if you ask... Then during the voyage we might stock up with extra at Ports, and bring it on board OK. Never had a prob.

No, not at all, I am with you, right up there lamenting that a new Cunard ship comes without a true Prom Deck. Sitting on a deck chair, or nodding off in a steamer chair on the Prom deck of a Liner is the one thing that I love...and why I cruise. Sadly it seems the bigger you go, then you fall into the latest Solas Reg's for big new large capacity Lifeboats and where they are placed. The Costa Concordia rescue debacle was partly pivotal in this change too.

We will really have to wait and see, of course. It has to be said that both QV and QE are similar in many respects that are all based around the original Vista Class, of which P&O have Arcadia, and HAL has the 4 ''sisters of the Compass''. Cunard added their 'touch' on the QV and QE with the Grills decks and with other enhancements like the Queens Room, Royal Court Etc. The newer HAL pair being Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam are slightly bigger (known as the Signature Class) and all are still based on the Vista, as are the new HAL Pinnacle Class ships, and of course Cunard's Project Halifax ie: The Queen Anne. Yes, the Vista and Signature ships all have the rather nice Prom Deck, whereas the latest Pinnacle Class of which Queen Anne is a hefty larger version of, adapted for Cunard with the Grills Etc, unfortunately now have the large Lifeboats placed right on the Prom Deck (not hung above) which not just restricts the width of the Deck, but alas, hardly now has any views, nor any deck chair seating. I've not sailed on the HAL Pinnacles as yet (Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam, and the Rotterdam) but in 2017 I was on the Nieuw Amsterdam and we followed the brand new Koningsdam around the Caribbean, and I have to say she probably was not for me. From seeing the Queen Anne's interior decor plans and heard the comments from her Designers, and seen the initial Promo Photos (she is seemingly very fresh, with cool Art Deco, beiges, teals, black, and steel) I have to say she looks very nice inside, and I think many folk could well be wow'ed. I will take a 'taster' Voyage on her once the dust settles, and then decide for myself if the trade off of no real Prom Deck to relax or sit on, versus the cool Deco interior design, wins me over, or not. As a Cunard loyal passenger, just an aside, I never liked nor wanted the name, Queen Anne. I've always wished that the name could have been more of a traditional nod from Cunard's past Liners, say Mauretania or Aquitania. Much more 'sexy'... You could say to the neighbours ''Oh, we're sailing on the Aquitania...'' But that's just me LOL.

Yes, that is so, and Cunard will supply you with a Cancellation Invoice detailing your financial losses to include with your claim. So, If you have to cancel your cruise if you are too unwell to travel (even as late as 'on the day') all you need to do is inform Cunard you will be not now be going (or you will be down as a 'no show'). Then let your GP know you have cancelled your holiday so he/she can note it, and if you are that unwell then they may want to see if you need any treatment. Then call your Insurers for a cancellation claim form, or in the case of my Insurance (Nationwide) there is a Travel Claim Portal to do it all online. Your GP will be required to sign off** your claim form, but he/she would have no issue in doing that for you as any GE or Flu bug will be covered (**you may have to pay for this as some Surgeries charge for form filling)

Not so, it will be your own GP as the one signing off your Travel Insurance claim form. If you are sick before sailing (right up to departure day) especially with Noro, or any GE or Flu Bug, then it's a no brainer that your GP will be able to confirm to the Insurers that you were unfit to travel... Trust me - Had to do it sadly before several times. I didn't even have to go to see my GP, he took my word for it that I was too unwell and could not fly/sail. I just called the Surgery to advise them for my records, and submitted my claim form later. Plus, you don't go toddling off down to the Surgery with a GE or Flu bug unless you need treatment. You do not have to tell Cunard anything except you are not travelling. If you are that unwell then you would not be going down to the ship on the day to try to get on....

As fully outlined further by our kind other Posters here after my earlier post-----> The Maitre D will be at his podium/lectern just outside the MDR entrance doors, probably on Deck 3 (the upper tier of the MDR, but just maybe by the deck 2 entrance doors) and he will be there until around 3pm; So, unless you do get a confirmation from your TA and Cunard that you now have First Dinner confirmed prior to sailing, then get yourself up to the MDR on embarkation day PDQ and join the line to see him. He will help you, and you can reconfirm the special dietary and Allergy needs, although on the first night you may have to go 'Open seating' I have every confidence you should get a table for First seating eventually. They will handle the food allergy needs, and ensure you also fully outline them to Cunard in advance. Apart from the Maitre D, you will also have your Head Waiter too who will look after you, along with your 2 waiters. As mentioned in other posts, First Dinner on Alaska cruises (and on some others, location dependent) seems to open earlier at around 5.30/5.45pm. If your parents need constant grub then obviously the Lido Buffet is open all day, plus there is afternoon Tea served there, and in the Queens Room, plus there is the all day room service menu. We used to go up to the Lido Dinner Buffet as soon as they opened (before our Late Seating dinner) and grab some nice hot and cold nibbles to take back to the Cabin to have with some drinks on our Balcony, if we did not want to go to the Commodore Club for pre-dinner drinks and canapes. I am sure all will be OK.

Obviously if you are unwell and unable to travel on any day up to your embarkation day then your own Travel Insurance Cancellation Cover will kick in surely >? Regardless of what ailment you have that would prevent you from travel.....

Top Tip - if you cannot get Cunard to confirm an early sitting for you and your parents prior to sailing. On embarkation day go straight to the MDR podium and see the Maitre D before 3pm and ask for a table on first sitting. You may not get one on the first evening, but they will do all they can to get you seated for the rest of the cruise. I recommend that you do this rather than have the stress for your parents of not knowing their own table or at a set time, or not having the same waiters know about any food allergies.

Yes, on both QE and QV the Deck 4 Balcony cabins are around a foot or so deeper. Also the very forward 17 cabins on each side of the ship on Deck 4 have a metal fronted balcony but are very nice and sunny.

I think lucky folk will see both the QV and QM2 docked together at Cape Town this April. Cape Town Thu 11 Queen Victoria arrives for an overnight stay Fri 12 Queen Mary 2 arrives for an overnight stay, Queen Victoria departs Sat 13 Queen Mary 2 departs

Thanks, Yes what a lovely read, and I loved the photos. I think I've mentioned in the past here, that when I lived in Cape Town when working for Virgin Atlantic, we, at the end of the 'season' used to go off down to the Waterfront breakwater to see the QE2 sail out of Cape Town harbour on the last leg of her winter world cruise sailing back to Blighty, with very jealous eyes, wishing we were on-board too. Brought a tear to the eye... I think lucky folk will see both QV and QM2 docked at Cape Town this April. The writer did make a small error in the size of the Union Castle Line ship, RMS Windsor Castle, she was actually over 37,000 GRT, and she was the largest passenger and cargo liner operated by the Union-Castle Line on its Cape Mail service between Britain and South Africa. She sailed the route until 1977, alongside the Pendennis and Transvaal Castles (she became SA Vaal) being the last trio of new large Ships built for the line. If you're in Cape Town on the Cunard ships docking there this Spring, and if you would like a taste of the past then do try to take Afternoon Tea at the famous Mount Nelson Hotel which was built over a Century ago to accommodate exclusively for the Union-Castle Line’s First Class passengers before they continued their onward rail journeys across Africa. Now, a Belmond Hotel, (with eye watering room rates) she became known as the 'Pink Lady' having been painted in this colour in 1918 to celebrate peace at the end of World War One. There was a trend for luxury hotels throughout the World that could be said to emulate the ‘Mount Nelson Pink’ and Reid's Palace Hotel in Madeira was one, and The Royal Hawaiian at Waikiki, known as the “Pink Palace of the Pacific'' was another, along with The Beverly Hills Hotel, Los Angeles. Afternoon Tea, Mount Nelson Hotel

LOL No need to 'sneak'... Cunard do not 'frisk' for booze... No corkscrew? wow, that's a very poor show, never had an issue for off-piste 'in-cabin supplies' ie: extra Ice, bigger ice bucket, more glasses and....dah dah a corkscrew... I think as you say, the slightly uppity, nee lazy Steward (which is very rare in my experience on Cunard) was not a happy bunny. Same sheets for a week - yikes! Note to self, pop a corkscrew in my luggage if taking the clinking stuff and vittles aboard LOL.

Did you take your own Ikea blind with you LOL..😅

Yes, its GIB of course, but the lovely Caleta Hotel on the headland there, built over 60 years ago and a Fav with Brit Holidaymakers, got pulled down sadly. The Caleta Hotel, an iconic Gibraltar landmark which has dominated the Eastern cliffs by Catalan Bay for nearly 60 years, is now gone. The Hotel, owned by the Callaghan family, closed its doors in January 2022 ahead of its demolition in order to make way for a new five star hotel and residential development. My photo taken here in NOV 2015 when visiting GIB on QV sailing from Rome to SOU. Our first Grills experiences which was rather nice. We took afternoon tea at the other icon, The Rock Hotel before going back to the ship.