stan01

Multiple cruise lines such as Holland America, Celebrity, Princess, and MSC have dining areas, lounges, and outdoor spaces limited to higher paying suite customers or frequent customers. Specifics may vary by ship but it is definitely there. Other cruise lines like Viking Ocean have a very specific hierarchy of who gets to make reservations for dining and shore excursion first. Again, the people paying low fares go last. It's not referred to as "lower class" on those lines. By no means are different dining rooms for different passengers unique to Cunard. I guess the American term would be "you get what you pay for". Frequent customer perks are much more obvious on airlines than on cruise ships. To answer your question with a 2:30 PM embarkation time I think if you show up around 1:30 PM you'll be on pretty quickly. Since you are a diabetic, I'd recommend taking a snack in your carry on since there can be delays in boarding.

Things happen behind the scenes all the time that only Cunard knows about. They will almost certainly have ways to fix this so that everyone is happy. If Cunard offered you a $300 on board credit to switch cabins to a different one would you take it? You may say never, but other passengers would say sure. The travel agency and Cunard can get creative to solve this problem rather than taking the easy way out which is to say "no, so sorry". For OP's situation I certainly hope the travel agency and Cunard explore all available options to get OP back on the cruise they booked and paid for.

The travel agency should be working with Cunard on SOLUTIONS and what is possible. Would some passengers switch rooms if offered a $300 on board credit? Absolutely some people would. You might not, but many would. That's one way the agency and Cunard could get the original room back. While hopefully not common, I'm sure it happens often enough that Cunard knows what's possible. We don't know what happens behind the scenes, but people do get complementary upgrades. Is that because they are lucky or is it because Cunard is trying to fix a problem? OP doesn't need to solve the problem for the agency and Cunard. They will figure it out, and since the cruise is still weeks away there will almost certainly be things that can be done that none of us have visibility into. People are assuming the cruise is fully booked; maybe so but that doesn't mean Cunard doesn't have rooms "on hold" for many different reasons.

This is not the PCC team or the customer facing call center reps, it is the team of sales people who work with travel advisors. Previously travel agents would have had two reps: one from HAL and another from Seabourn. Now their HAL rep will cover Seabourn as well which the linked article spins as a "good thing" although I'd guess few would agree with that. I think the most impacted travel agents will be "luxury" travel agents who do a lot more Seabourn than HAL business. If your travel agent says "let me call my contact at Seabourn" it is most likely that person who is gone and they will have to build relationships with the new person. For customers, if the advisors value proposition to customers is contacts at Seabourn to fix problems they've lost the primary person they would rely on. The HAL sales people who are adding Seabourn will need to get familiar with the new product which will take time and will be frustrating especially to luxury advisors who want fast and high quality service for their customers.

Now that you know the problem is that the travel agency did not pay Cunard there really isn't anything a Cunard Australia phone rep will be able to do for you. The travel agency, which you said is large, has a lot of work ahead of them to coordinate a resolution with Cunard around the world. They may need to move other passengers for example. The answer you got back from the travel agency that said "many of us here are working on it" is the right one for a few more days. The travel agency can't fix it without a lot of help from Cunard, which they should be able to leverage because they are a large agency. I'd be clear on your expectation: you are on for the full 28 days with your friends and matching what you already have air and lodging arrangements for. Make sure they understand that's what you expect. Keep in touch, but it could take days (not counting weekends when key people are not in the office) if not over a week to fix it.

This is where it helps to have a travel agent who is an advocate and fighter, not a pleaser. They should be calling Cunard directly and escalating to get this resolved in your favor so you are made whole. At 28 days it is likely a multi-segment cruise making this harder to pull off. You may need to change cabins but should be compensated for that inconvenience.

There is no special dress code for afternoon tea. People wear their normal daytime clothes, you can wear what you want. On formal night a straight tie with a dark suit is fine, or even a modern tuxedo with a tie. Bow tie is not required.

Arriving just before 9:00 PM and chatting until 10:30 PM while the crew cleans up and gets ready for breakfast is fine, but I'd read the room and see if your waiter is keeping busy just because you are still there. Yes it is their job to provide great service and in the QG they take pride in it, but at the same time passengers can respect their personal time to eat, talk to their families, and sleep so they are ready to do it again the next day.

Some people (myself included) do not want a room right at the bow which may have more pitching than in the middle or rear of the ship. QA has Q3s on multiple decks bow and stern, 5001/5002 are at the front of the ship so may have more motion and wind while at sea. I don't see the benefit they would have over the stern Q5 OP already has. Preferences will vary.

Q3s 5001/5002 are what I'd be cautious about at the bow. I would not want either.

Thanks for the review, great to hear. We are likewise of a similar demographic to you and find the smaller and older ships like all of the Windstar ships and Seadream yachts to be enjoyable. Some people want full balconies and a fully modern decor but we enjoy the smaller scale, amble public spaces, and itineraries with smaller ports to be compelling.

On our June 2024 transatlantic a fellow passenger reported that a crew member in the Commodore Room politely reminded him he was wearing shorts there after 6 PM. So there can be some attempts at enforcement of the dress code when a crew member takes on the cop role.

If it is a six night crossing I would not do the 1:50 departure, but I think there is only one of those left on the schedule. For a seven night crossing or Caribbean/Canada you should be fine.

It's online. Go to seabourn.com and login. You should see your cruise listed. Click Manage My Cruise. Then click Guest Registration. Then click Docs. You download/print your own luggage tags and get your final documentation from there. Final docs may not be ready yet, sometimes its closer to 3 weeks than 4 weeks. Make sure you have your passport and other information current.

If scuba was high on my priority list I would not be booking on Seabourn. FInd a dive ship or resort. For the cost of this cruise one could find a lot of options and be able to keep expectations in line with business providing services. Scuba is not a high priority to Seabourn and never will be.

At least their ships weren't stuck in port with blue screens because CloudStrike. Could be worse. Enjoy your next cruise!

So many places! I would only go to these on a small ship never on a large ship. This should give you about 10 weeks of cruising! Croatia - Korcula, Hvar, Trogir, Dubrovnik + Kotor Montenegro French Riviera + Corsica - Antibes, St. Tropez, Monte Carlo Spanish Riviera + Balearic Islands Malta, Sardinia, Sicily, Amalfi Coast Corinth Canal (and I'd defer to others on Greek Islands and Turkey as I have not been yet)

Yes, almost all of the two tops on QM2 QG are close together. The room is not big enough to do something different while accommodating all of the passengers who want two tops. Princess Grill tables are spaced out a little more than QG.

The first time I used MyVoyage on-board I was surprised it was reasonably OK given how basic MyAccount and MyCunard are before the cruise. I think pre-voyage its an old HAL platform that Seabourn and Cunard also use?

Definitely not required for men or women.

Now that would be interesting. Per Seabourn's website I think you could wear a jeans jacket or even a puffer jacket with your slacks to argue your point. You also apparently don't have to have a shirt on underneath the jacket either, or heaven forbid you could wear a t-shirt under the jacket to dress like a billionaire tech founder. Seems like Seabourn has some more editing to do.

My goodness! I hope you and everyone else on your cruise are enjoying themselves.

Seabourn's website has been updated and it is made clear that elegant jeans are welcome in main dining room on elegant casual nights, but not formal nights. And the elegant jeans can be worn by men and women. Formal night: minimum is jacket and trousers for men and "other formal wear" for women. Seems like many women feel a sparkly top and a black skirt/trousers pass as "other formal wear". I don't see minimum compliance as an issue for anyone. Those who prioritize wanting to see everyone dressed formally might want to consider Cunard Queen Mary Queens Grill where they will see many tuxedos and gowns on formal nights.

No Cunard employee will kick you out. If you were in shorts and t-shirt they might.

What would you like to wear?