Colin_Cameron

I love these ones that I saw at a bungee jumping facility in New Zealand.

1 hour ago, TouchstoneFeste said:

Are the rooms not marked at all, or is the signage just confusing? Pix?

Where the rooms are side-by-side the difference in signage is clear. Where they are not together the sign on the 'Gents' is ambiguous.

We were on this cruise and have been OK (so far). But we have taken the precaution of not visiting a friend in hospital until Monday.

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.

So, as we sit waiting to disembark what are my thoughts on QA after our second time aboard?

As expected there has been a huge improvement in the service levels. Throughout the ship staff are now working as a team. Our move to Britannia Club will have had an influence on that but it's also evident in the bars and elsewhere.

The Commodore Club seems like a different room from the one we saw three months ago. It's not just the bar stools, the huge empty space that separated the bar from the rest of the room now has seating in it and it now feels like a single venue rather than a lounge with a separate bar.

There are things that still need fixing. The food ordering system continues to cause problems. Working some days and not others and seemingly sometimes failing during meal service,  with the waiters ordering on the tablets earlier in the evening but reverting to pen and paper later.

They've called our disembarkation ahead of schedule so I'll finish this later. 

Things like this. Also spotted a stylised funnel in on picture.

Someone mentioned a while ago about the lack of ship pictures. I'm not sure if they've been adding them since the maiden voyage but there are a few around. Also, the 'modern' art has lots of Cunard references that I'm only starting to notice.

1 hour ago, Pushpit said:

Pushing the door open from the outside is easier than pulling from the inside, 

QA balcony doors open outwards.

My wife thought our's was locked as well. With the application of a lot of brute force I managed to get it open about 1/4 inch but no further. It was just the wind stopping it.

16 hours ago, BigMac1953 said:

If the illumnated arrows don't work, does the lift "ping"? 

It's taken a while to confirm, but no. When the lights don't work the "ping" doesn't work either. Nor does the little indicator on the digital floor display.

I've yet to work out if it's the same lifts on each floor or not.

We never sailed on her under NAC/NAL but a few years later we sailed through the canal in the opposite direction, LA, Acapulco, Fort Lauderdale. To this day she remains our favourite ship.

I think they're meeting the 5-6sec.min, if only just. The situation is exacerbated by a) the seat in the middle of the foyer, which I initially thought was a good idea and b) the direction indicators not working meaning you have to head for any door that opens and having to ask whether this one's going up or down, only to find the one you really want has now arrived, on the other side of the seat in the middle.

Other issues not yet resolved: The signs for the gent's toilets are still causing problems. Where the two are side-by-side the difference is clear. Where they are separate, the 'Ladies' is obvious but the 'Gents' is ambiguous. Even on day two of the Maiden Voyage management were aware, having been personally interrupted by female passengers walking in on them.

It seems we're destined to not see "Brief Encounter". Apparently it's only been cancelled twice, on the Maiden Voyage, because of bad weather, and tonight due to technical (sound) issues. They're going to try and reschedule later in the voyage.

It seems our waiter had a nasty fall just before we arrived for dinner tonight. There was a short delay but a replacement was drafted in (from Queens Grill) and he was asking which tables he was covering, etc. The maitre d' told him, "Just do what ***** (the assistant waiter) tells you. It's what I do."

I have to say that the restaurant service reminds me of Cunard, 25-30 years ago.

27 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

QA's lifts are standard at 9 secs.

They frequently close a lot quicker than that, as I've found out.

I was thinking that the lift doors weren't closing as quickly as they had been so did a little testing. 

If the lift is empty I've been pressing my floor and the one above (if I'm going up) and timing how long it takes the doors to close when I get out. Turns out it's anything from 5 secs to 9 secs. I haven't yet worked out if it depends on the individual lift or some other factor.

Just to add to the problems a number of the up/down lights aren't working.

The bar stools in the Commodore Club have finally arrived (a couple of weeks ago) so all is right with the world. 😁

The standard of dress is as high as it has been for years, with the exception of the Maiden Voyage which was very dressy. Looks like the passengers are fighting back against Cunard's intentions for this ship. The same could be said for the ballroom dancers. Only two nights so far but the too-small floor has been crowded both nights, and also at this afternoon's tea dance.

Our asst waiter from the Maiden Voyage in Britannia has had a well deserved (sort of) promotion and is now our asst waiter in  Britannia Club, and has the maitre d's job firmly in her sights. The service has been outstanding and again our BC experience (QE and now QA) has exceeded our QG experience (QV and QM2) as far as the restaurant service is concerned.

We had our diamond lunch in Sir Samuels today and although the food and service was excellent the experience was a little underwhelming, as was the wine list. 

Probably not much use for the OP, but for anyone travelling from the north or the west I'd recommend Battlesteads Hotel in Wark. It frequently has two night deals available on Secret Escapes and excellent food. And at around 1 hour from the port it allows for a leisurely breakfast and even morning coffee before heading to the ship without too much hanging around waiting for check-in to open.

6 hours ago, safarigal said:

It is such a shame that the QE2/QM2 book got lost during the COVID clean up of the library on QM2.

I guess the QV book got lost as well? Haven't seen it for a few years either.

Those were still the prices on QA Maiden, this month.

On 5/11/2024 at 2:53 AM, Germancruiser said:

I am not sure if my question is already answered- well here it is anyway- the littel Specialities in the Carintha Lounge still free as on board QM2?

On 5/11/2024 at 9:02 AM, Bell Boy said:

Yes, charges are only for beverages.

I'm afraid not Bell Boy. It appears that while the food is free in the daytime there is a charge in the evenings! The cheese was $2.50 for a portion equivalent to canapes for 2. The oysters were $2.50 each.

Perhaps part of the reason there are no free canapes in the Commodore Club, if they're charging for them elsewhere.

A couple of small points I haven't seen mentioned. 

The 'do not disturb/please make up my room' signs are now magnetic. You just stick them to the outside of your door.

There is a really useful nightlight, at floor level opposite the bathroom door.

The casino isn't listed on any of the lift signs.

17 hours ago, Lakesregion said:

Couple of questons that have not be addessed.

1. Black Jack table minimum bet

Roulette: $5 min.

Poker: $5 min.

Blackjack: one table $5 min., one table $10 min.

These are all on video displays so would change easily. 

3 hours ago, Pushpit said:

... cropping your photo to reduce the portrait effect, trying to get more to a square, will be a quick fix here.

Cropping,  however minimally,  seems to do the trick.

6 minutes ago, Lakesregion said:

Couple of questons that have not be addessed.

1. Black Jack table minimum bet

2. Staterooms being serviced once or twice a day and by how many assigned stewards?

3.Chocolate on the pillow and turndown every evening?

4. What is available for lunch on embarkation day?

1: 2x blackjack, 2x poker, 2x roulette.  Will check minimums.

2: Twice a day. Not sure what you mean by how many stewards. We’ve only ever had a single steward. I'm sure if they were unavailable for some reason someone else would cover but in 30+ years of Cunard  cruising I've never known that to happen.

3: Yes

4: Depends on your check-in time and cabin grade. Probably Lido/buffet or Golden Lion.

Queen Anne's newest crewmember has now taken up his position.

His final training session.

Try as I might I cannot get portrait photos to post properly from this phone.  HH could you pls work your magic.

25 minutes ago, tacticalbanjo said:

It’s a beautiful day here, the Pavilion Poolis packed. So of course they’ve decided to shut the bar at 3.30pm. No one seems to be taking much notice of the little signs saying the bar is shut because it’s so nonsensical. Edit: Now quite shut at 3.55pm despite plenty of people round the pool. Bizarre scheduling. 

I guess they're getting it ready for the cocktail parties.