Review: Queen Elizabeth Southampton to San Francisco 2018

Journey down was probably the slowest coach driver ever. We seemed to be stopping every 5 minutes and as a result we were the last coach to arrive at Southampton. On the plus side embarkation was even quicker than usual as we had missed the rush. Our inside cabin was on the deck 7 aft and for 29 nights the wardrobe space was fine, but I'm not sure how we would have coped for the whole cruise. This was our first time on the Elizabeth and she is a fine looking ship. As we've only sailed the QM2 it took a little while to get used to the ballroom being in the middle of the ship but otherwise we quickly got orientated. (Actually, that bit's not true as I was still getting lost 4 weeks into the trip, but that's me). The shops were nice and bright with a proper book shop (!), the spa area also looked nice and bright. First impressions were and remained mainly favourable. However, she seemed to be the noisiest ship we've ever sailed on. Lots of creaks and groans; other passengers also commented on this.

Our crossing was the roughest I have ever experienced; bad enough that even DH commented on it. Our wonderful Captain Hashmi did his best to try and avoid the worst of the weather but I'm afraid it was a losing battle. As a result our first port which should have been Bermuda was cancelled and replaced with The Azores. Lots of rumours swirled around as some people refused to accept the weather explanation, preferring to go with the 'let's save money and go to the Azores theory' I also heard that the Queen Victoria with whom we had been sailing in tandem had developed a problem which necessitated the change of port and we were shadowing her in case of further problems. I have been unable to verify this latter rumour. What ever the truth, the Azores it was and for a few hours we were able to walk on land that did not move and were also able to sit in the sun. (The outer decks were closed). Although we were aft the movement in the cabin was not too bad. The drawers of the bedside cabinets and underbed storage kept flying open but we solved that by putting our carryon cases in front of them.

Back on the ship the Captain announced that there were 1900 people on board and that 1700 of us had got off in the first hour - proving how desperate some of us were in the search for steadiness. This stop also created another rumour - one passenger had hated the crossing so much that she had decided to debark and fly home.

Sadly the weather did not improve and by the time we reached New York I think a lot of us were definitely going 'stir crazy' at being cooped up all day. Cunard do day activities very well, but to not be able to stick our noses out for some fresh air was difficult.

New York is quite simply New York. It was cold, it snowed but it was fun. After that as we started to head south the weather started to improve. Fort Lauderdale was the next stop and we chose to do a ship excursion to the Everglades for a ride on an airboat. Once again some people complained that it wasn't what they expected, but when you asked them to clarify what they meant they just shrugged their shoulders. There really is no pleasing some people.

The only trip that I perhaps should have complained about was the one in Jamaica. The blurb said it was approx. a 1 hour drive to a stately home and gardens and gave the impression that there would be a chance of photo stops on the way. The reality was that it was a good 2 hours each way, no stops and time so short at the house that we couldn't fully explore. The saving grace was that the lunch provided was excellent. I do know that official complaints were made but don't know the outcome. I did speak to one couple who claimed that they didn't even know they were going to a house and gardens - did they not read the blurb at all. How on earth can you book a trip when you have absolutely no idea what you are going to see? Extraordinary.

Aruba was brilliant. And onto the prize ; the Panama Canal ; oh my word it was simply unbelievable. It lived up to its hype and more. A truly magnificent feat of engineering and one that I never ever dreamt I would be able to visit.

Guatemala was a maiden call. Again we chose to do the ship excursion into Antigua the original capital. An absolutely delightful place with a lot of beautiful buildings.

Cabo San Lucas was our one big disappointment. We had booked a whale watching tour and when we tendered ashore the weather was beginning to look rather nasty so Cunard took the decision to cancel all trips and, in fact, ours was the last tender ashore for over 2 hours. It didn't just rain, it poured down and we decided to go back to the ship (not realising that at this point there were no tenders) but decided to stop for a quick drink. As we finished the sun came out and the whole place took on a different look. Seals in the harbour, pelicans and other birds were in abundance and although we never got our whale watching tour we decided we liked Cabo. Getting back on the ship later in the day I did manage to catch some whales in the distance, but it wasn't the same.

The weather between Mexico and San Francisco collapsed again, being caught for a few hours in hurricane force winds. We were then informed we would be late arriving in SF but the plus side of this meant that we went under the Golden Gate Bridge in daylight which was a treat.

I've already mentioned the dress code so won't repeat that. The other thing that was really odd was that although the ship was full there was never ever many people around. We never had problems finding seats in the buffet, or inside or even sunbeds on the days we were blessed with glorious weather. So where was everyone? It was truly baffling. After the 2nd sitting's show the ship was to all intents and purposes empty. I know that demographically the passengers were on the 'older' end of the spectrum but did everyone go to bed at 10 o'clock? We had really good table companions which always helps. I understand there were a lot of first time cruisers who were doing the whole world trip. We couldn't decide if the were foolish or very brave.

The shows were mainly very good but the sparcity of audience was at times embarrassing. Whether the early shows were fully subscribed I don't know.

Disembarking at SF was an absolute nightmare. We were standing in a queue for over 2 hours. I do know it's out of Cunard's hands but surely the US Immigration people can organise themselves better.

In conclusion (although I'm bound to think of things the minute I press the submit button) we had a great time. The Queen Elizabeth is a wonderful ship and we would happily sail on her again; but hand on heart we both decided we preferred the QM2.

Thank you so much for a great comprehensive review. I'm sorry that the weather didn't cooperate, but it sounds like you were able to make the best of things.

I have come to the conclusion that QE/QV and QM2 are totally different experiences and I simply have to stop with the comparisons which were driving me mad, and just feel blessed when I get the chance to sail on any of the 3 :).

Thank you babs135 for an interesting account.

I did the equivalent Soton-NYC segment on QE in 2017; I was also astounded at how quiet the ship was in the evening. The most unsociable people I have ever encountered on Cunard.

While I was very disqppointed in the restaurant service, the buffet for quality, variety and availability was the best I have encountered for a long time.

Babs

We were on the QV, but the “tandem” journey to Bermuda soon went by the board, as we lost time to the QE when there was an airlift for a sick passenger just a few hours out of Southampton, south of the Isle of Wight. There was only 1 day when we could see the QE sailing about 1/2 mile from us in very rough seas, after we had caught up.

For us, it was announced that the ships would never make Bermuda due to the very slow passage, a result of the constant storms, and the decision had been made to make a stop, at different islands in the Azores. We heard QE managed to sail on to NY as scheduled (this from crew who were in contact with friends on QE) but we were stuck after overnighting in the tiny port in Terceira as not able to leave due to the conditions. The first attempt to leave at breakfast was aborted. Like yourselves we had a few more days of incessant storms and 9 meter waves before we got to calmer and warmer waters.

Yes, people were disappointed not to land in Bermuda but just accepted the situation. At no time did we hear any rumours that we were being “shadowed” because we were in trouble. The original itineraries had us both in Kings Wharf on the same day, which would have been a lovely spectacle if it had come to fruition.

Anyway, pleased you were able to report that the voyage was not so bad, even with the Atlantic storms. But then these ships were taking on winter crossings, so one just has be stoic, and have a few extra glasses of champagne (and Prosecco was not in short supply either) and enjoy being on holiday during the winter.

Thanks for the clarification LadyL.

Uhhh- not able to get out for a breath of fresh air- I can imagine how bad that is! Did nobody venture outside anyway? What did the smokers do- smoke in their cabins? LOL! Great that you made lemonade out of lemons!

We were also on this cruise and it's interesting to read your review Babs. Whilst agreeing with what you have written on the whole, there were a few points I'd like to add.

The Everglades tour was absolutely terrible, by far and away the worst tour I have ever been on. I could go into details but suffice it to say that we were given a large refund as there were so many problems with it, just one example being that the airboat trip on the Everglades was less than 20' rather than the hour we had been told it would be. So many people complained we were told we didn't need to give details of our complaint by the tour desk!

Our Jamaican tour on the other hand was brilliant, we did 'The Best of' and thoroughly enjoyed it, thought it was good value for money and felt we'd had a good overview of the local area as well as a (very!) invigorating walk up the Dunne Falls.

We also enjoyed the other tours we did, in Aruba, Guatemala, and especially San Francisco.

We thought the ship was beautiful, the food great and most of the staff were very friendly and professional. Our table mates were lovely and we enjoyed most of the productions in the theatre. The insight lectures were fine though not always to our taste and did seem a little 'heavy' on occasion.

Having said all this, we have decided that Cunard is not for us in the future mainly due to the heavy emphasis on ballroom dancing. Sadly I am completely uncoordinated and it's just not an option for me, though I do like a bit of a boogie now and again! I'm not blaming the ship for this, we knew before we embarked that this would be the case, we just didn't realise that there would be only two evenings during our cruise that we would we be able to dance in the ballroom to more contemporary music. The yacht club was too small and noisy for us to find it enjoyable.

We certainly have no regrets about our holiday, seeing the Panama Canal was amazing and worth the whole trip on it's own!

Uhhh- not able to get out for a breath of fresh air- I can imagine how bad that is! Did nobody venture outside anyway? What did the smokers do- smoke in their cabins? LOL! Great that you made lemonade out of lemons!

Decks 10 and 11 were open. There were quite a few people out and about up there.