Lynnewob

We had 2 recently on QM2 - into Vietnam, clocks were changed overnight.

Out of Vietnam, the next sea day, they changed at midday to 1pm.

It may be that if it's a sea day, they do it at noon, if it's a port day next, they change overnight.

Great shot. Looking forward to joining QM2 tomorrow.

We have never had Eduardo on any of our trips. It's always nice if you recognise someone and they recognise you.

We have not been in the gin bar as neither of us like it I'm afraid, so miss the Veuve bar that was there. It does seem popular though.

Looks like you are having a god time and your posts are very informative. Never heard of the captain. Who is the head waiter, quasi maitre d in Club?

Have a lovely time. Have a look at the Britannia Club restaurant, it is very nice.

Cunard do their costings on a basic economy fare and will quote you for upgrades to PE, business or first.

I have booked with Cunard on a cruise only price initially and when airfares get released, check with their flights dept to see what they are offering for the specific cruise and do my own comparisons.

For the Far East, I find it cheaper to do my own bookings, especially as I want minimum business class. They always seem to offer me a direct BA flight, but this can be expensive when trying to upgrade. I am happy to go with 1 stop to adjust the price - some of the Middle East airlines offer good deals. If you are staying overnight before boarding, it's never an issue arranging your own flights.

An example for my upcoming trip is Cunard offered BA to HK, returning from SIN with a 1 way outbound WT+ upgrade at £590, Club at £1880. If I wanted a round trip upgrade it was £790 in WT+ on BA and £3780 in business on Singapore Airlines. I got the whole trip for £1700 in business from BHX with Lufthhansa (changing in Germany) which uses Lufthansa metal outbound and Singapore Airlines metal on the return, so a much better deal than Cunard can offer. The only thing you don't get is transfers, but for the massive saving, I can afford a taxi!

The only time we used Cunard's BA flight was when we flew to Tokyo and boarded the ship on the same day. Using their flight meant they would ensure we got the ship if the flight was delayed. We came back from Hong Kong using Virgin Atlantic frequent flyer miles. Cunard have no issues with you mixing and matching if you want to do it this way.

If flights have been released for your cruise (11 months in advance), do some price comparisons and then call their flight team to see what they are offering. If not released yet, do a dummy booking for this year just to give you a ballpark figure.

This of course can all go out of the window when airlines do sales as BA do around the Christmas period!

Happy New Year to you.

You are doing a marvellous job as host.

Enjoy your 2018 travels.

Lynne and Mark xx

Room 112 has the tender platform right outside. It was a surprise to see a crew member coming down on the platform on ropes the first morning we woke up and were at a tender port.

People don't walk past as it's a crew only section - I would imagine you could see passengers legs if you were in 110.

Hi

We did this trip on the QE in 2014 with the QM2. We had a little meet and greet with other Cruise Critic members where we met Maggiemou and Scrapnana. It's great if this happens and you see each other around the ship for a little catch up.

We are 40 and 50 somethings and had a great time. There were 6 of us - 2 in Britannia, 2 in PG and 2 in QG. We were the lynchpin as the others hadn't met before, as we had met on different cruises - thankfully everyone got on so well and we had fun.

We were all tired after flights to Dubai, 2 had only flown in that morning so were shattered in the evening, whereas we had a night before so felt a little better.

Suez Canal - we got up really early as we were joining the canal but were held in a queue waiting to go through. On the QE, they opened up the front deck (5 I think) where the crew have a jacuzzi, so everyone could see everything. I recall it being very cold and wore a vest top, shirt and jacket and still felt the chill. It got warmer as the day went on thankfully. We sailed through all day and Cunard put on a knowledgeable speaker throughout the trip. It was lovely to see people on shore waving at the ships, especially as there were 2 Cunard ones going through in close succession. Honestly though, there wasn't a lot to see through the canal, it was quite deserted, with a few houses at the side, the odd road that crossed the canal and had to wait for the ships to pass by before letting them cross and a bridge. There were a lot of military on the banks but they wave as well.

Egypt's port of call was cancelled, so we docked at Haifa, Israel instead overnight. We did a Dead sea trip with Masada fort which was really interesting and had the next day just mooching around Haifa.

We did the Cunard trip to Petra. I would rather have done this on my own as the guide took so long to get to the library (the "main feature") that 1 person fainted in the heat. We decided to leave the guide after that and wander on our own and found it better to do it at our own pace, ie. a lot quicker. We then returned to the hotel and were offered a buffet lunch and drink and returned on the tour bus. It was a long, hot, tiring day but I wouldn't have missed it for the world. If you can leave your guide and do it at a faster pace, I would recommend it. It was a full day, but there was still plenty of time and you didn't need to scamper back to the ship for dinner - we were anytime dining which helped - I don't know if the 6pm diners might have found it a little tight. If they did, I am sure the Lido would have worked that evening.

Re: entertainers - we rarely bother as we spend our time in the casino and not keen on the Cunard shows. If there's an entertainer that appeals, we will make the effort to go and see it, but stand at the back and leave if we are not enjoying it. I cannot remember a repeat of entertainers as this is sold as one segment, so they have different offerings throughout the journey. It is mainly Brits on this segment but you will get a lot of other nationalities on board which is refreshing. A lot of the South Americans on this trip disembarked in Lisbon for some reason. This voyage was remarkable as the 3 Queens met dockside in Lisbon making it very special.

If you are going QG, you will not regret it. You can have a nice casual lunch in hotter climes in the courtyard. If you are too shattered to go to the dining room on the evening, your butler will bring you dinner off the evening's menu in your suite (as long as you are within dining hours). No need to dress up then, you can eat in your robe!

Off the top of my head, I think we had either 5 or 6 formals whilst on board and they were always on sea days so no worries about getting back in time to dress up.

We do not like long voyages and find 7-10 is about right, especially with work commitments, but as there were 6 of us on board, we enjoyed it all the more.

Hope this helps a little

Lynne

On our October 7 night Athens to Venice, we did not have a senior officers party and enquired and was told they were not done on 7 nights. I thought this was odd as we have had them before on the fjords 7 nights. Perhaps it is just the Med fly-cruises as they can be relatively port intensive, I really don't know and they didn't embellish when I asked. I think they make it up as they go.

Let's wait and see what happens at Easter, I could be pleasantly surprised with 1 party (I hope).

I have just returned from a 3 night trip and was surprised there was no welcome aboard party on the formal night and thought I'd missed it the details, so called the pursers ofice to enquire.

I have been advised that they will no longer be doing these for trips of under 6 nights. I do think this is a shame as I feel it is part and parcel of a cruise and encourages people to mix and mingle.

I appreciate a lot of cruisers don't bother going to them, but it is good for new people to see the captain and senior staff and find out a little about the line when sailing.

My next trip is only for 5 nights so looks as if I won't get one again which is a shame.

Because of work commitments I can only get away for short bursts and I seem to be losing out on some of the perks, diamond lunch in Verandah for example. 7 night cruises also do not offer a senior officers party, altough you stil get the World Club party. I wish they would stop some of the cost cutting (the tiny pillow chocolates) as they do need to ensure they retain their loyal customer base and encourage new people on board. C'est la vie.

I got off the cruise to nowhere on QE yesterday and I think everyone on board accepted it due to weather conditions. At least the captain forewarned us the evening before that this might be a possibility. My inlaws were on a previous cruise to nowhere when nearly the whole ship were up in arms about it and I think it was because the captain was not very forthcoming with information. The morale of the story is to keep passengers informed at all times, and it gets accepted a little easier.

I enjoyed this trip and for the first time travelled solo and but knew quite a few people on board. It is a shame there was no meet and greet on this trip - i couldn't even find a roll call. It would have been nice to meet a few more people.

I felt sorry for the crew as they thought they would be getting a restful day without the passengers being around (and even a day off for some) and they all had to work extra hard to make sure everyone was happy.

It was a nice short trip with a lot of first timers on board and I do hope it gave them a taste of what Cunard can offer.

I can now officially say I a member of a very special "cruise to nowhere" club. It is very elite you know!

Please keep posting as it's lovely to read about the transatlantics on the QV rather than QM2.

My husband's parents are on board at the moment and they have late dining (in the "naughty" corner on the left as you walk in (lower level) by the window) which they love and are also enjoying the casino, which is usually quiet on this voyage as they did it last year too.

Look forward to reading the next instalment.

Cunard usually put you in economy on the cheapest fare code they can, but they can offer you upgrades. If you contact their flight department, and give them your booking ref, they will give you the price.

We did a flight to NY in Sept from LHR to JFK and the one way upgrade fee to World Traveller Plus (Premium Economy) was £190pp. This obviously fluctuates depending on what seats are available and the fare code Cunard can get from BA. I can't recall what the Club World (Business class) upgrade fee was but it was in the region of £1200-£1800pp.

We love the formal nights and dress code on board. If you want casual, use another cruise line.

The ability to bring on board your own champagne to enjoy on the balcony at sailaway - no, we don't abuse the policy and still drink in the bars.

The fact that there's no rowdiness on board even on the short cruises.

The staff on board, who always make you feel welcome.

Perhaps they are trying to attract the US market.

The inside cabin prices on the UK site are showing as £2349, £2649 and £2699, the earliest date being the first of those prices.

These DO include airfare and transfers when you click further, and also say not available to book until 31 October (30 Oct for existing cruisers)

For similar dates (on a US travel agents website) and voyage length for a suite: Silversea, Azamara, Regent, Crystal are all cheaper.

I accept these are without flights, but still, Cunard are going over the top as far as their pricing is concerned.

Wow, I've just seen the lead in prices for the 10 night Alaska cruises in June 2019

After all the waiting, I don't think we will be going with Cunard and will now look at other lines instead :( :loudcry:

I appreciate the full price list isn't available until next week, so do not know if this includes flights or not, but regardless, they still seem expensive.

That's absolutely wonderful. So envious thinking of those still on board that we met on the NY-Quebec segment.

Sad to have left but had to return to work to pay for the next one :')

Back at work now :eek:

Return journey was not as bad. Westjet flight between Quebec and Toronto was only 10 minutes late.

In Toronto couldn't find a BA person so thought the lounge would be the best option. The lady on the desk managed to change our flight class which was great, but we were separated (not so great). I wanted to sit next to hubby as I had I wasn't feeling well due to a cold starting and very lethargic, but had no chance as the flight was full due to the end of the Invictus games. It probably didn't matter anyway as once on board, I declined all food and drink offerings and went to sleep. Thankfully the headphones worked their magic as there was a very loud baby in the row in front :loudcry:

Arrived on time into LHR and slept the 2.5 hrs back home.

After unpacking, I went back to sleep again and woke up 17 hours later :o, ready for work today.

What a nightmare. Arrived at Quebec airport, everything fine.

Then saw all the Air Canada flights delayed to Toronto which didn't to bode well. Then ours went to delayed. A storm in toronto was the issue.

We were told not to board the flight if international as we would miss our Heathrow connection and no hotels were available. They booke us into a Quebec hotel instead but didn't get there until 9.30pm. We'd been kicked off ship at 10am so a very long day.

We're now sitting in the airport again awaiting the flight, but our BA seats are in economy which is not what we paid for. This can only be sorted out in Toronto so let's wait and see what happens. Very shatter d now and just want to get home. Hubby was supposed to have been working on Sunday but that's obviously impossible now.

I will report back when I know more.

Had a lovely day in Quebec yesterday. Weather had a little chill in the air but a mixture of sunshine and cloud. Two days before it had been 30+ degrees, wow!

Walked around the high and low old town areas and the chateaux and did some shopping and had lunch. Love the city and more pleased as the ship docked close to the centre. We are on the starboard side and have a perfect view of the chateaux so very pleased.

It was very quiet on board last night as I guess a lot of people went on shore for something to eat. We saw lots of crew getting off bout 11pm for their night out.

We will be having our last breakfast in board before leaving our room and will chill out on the ship until our transfer to YQB at 3pm for a 6.30 flight to YYZ and then finally to LHR.

Another lovely trip over 😟.

2 weeks back at work and look forward to joining the QV in Athens. Will try to lose a little weight between now and then 😬

A lovely warm morning despite the fog and again able to out on the balcony to enjoy it. The fog just disappeared at about 5pm to at long last reveal the horizon.

Had a small meet and greet at noon with BlueRiband and others from the Facebook group from Aus and UK. It was lovely to meet everyone.

The captains cocktail party was held in the evening and was very full in the Grills and Club session and Capt Philpott confirmed the majority of guests were from the USA and the next largest group were from the Uk and over 40 other nationalities.

The raffle was held in the casino but we didn't win this time though. Played Blackjack until 2am with the usual people who I am now getting to know quite well and hubby enjoyed his 3 card poker win too.

Tender into Sydney NS today and looking forward to a massage when returning to the ship later.

Weather high is reported to be 19 degrees.

Had a wonderful day in Boston. The weather was perfect at about 24 degrees.

Went to the Prudential Skywalk Observatory and did a Duck tour. It's now 6pm and we're back on board eating canapés with some fizz on the balcony. What more could you ask for.

Woken up to sea like glass and what looks to possibly be a nice day in Boston weather wise. Let's hope the weather stays like this as the fog yesterday was bad and the foghorn was used.

Scheduled to dock at 11 as the ship needs the high tide. No tour planned for us, just looking to hop,onto one of the duck tours as we have done the trolley tour previously.

Temp currently showing on the TV is 19c or 66f.

Had afternoon tea in the Queens room yesterday which is a first ever for us. A lovely couple joined us fro Seattle and we had a good chat about Alaskan cruises and Crystal cruise line, which is now in our radar.

Blue Riband - hope you pop by to meet and greet at 12 tomorrow. We have lunch in the Verandah scheduled at 1.30 as our Diamond freebie which I'm looking forward to and certainly know what you mean about the clunky internet which I'm on whilst waiting for our breakfast in the room to be delivered.