"Pre-Voyage Documentation" - I am quite impressed!

[T5LHR]

Now, I am sure they are no where near as luxurious and posh as they used to be, and having not seen anything different before, I am quite impressed.

 

I was expecting more of an A4 sheet of printed paper, with details and a bit dull and boring really.

 

Just had the envelope arrive with the details for my short Hamburg trip in May, and I think it looks lovely. I almost thought it was a brochure when I opened it, until I looked more closely.

 

What did they used to be like? In the "good old days"?

 

T5

[Cruachan]

Now, I am sure they are no where near as luxurious and posh as they used to be, and having not seen anything different before, I am quite impressed.

 

I was expecting more of an A4 sheet of printed paper, with details and a bit dull and boring really.

 

Just had the envelope arrive with the details for my short Hamburg trip in May, and I think it looks lovely. I almost thought it was a brochure when I opened it, until I looked more closely.

 

What did they used to be like? In the "good old days"?

 

T5

 

Well, the main difference was that you used to get your printed tickets in a "leatherette" wallet affair embossed with the Cunard logo. I've still got three of the things somewhere. We still use them - when we've printed our "E-tickets" we put them in the wallet and take them with us to check-in where nobody asks for them. :D:D:D

 

J

[Norfolk Brit]

What did they used to be like? In the "good old days"?

T5

 

The wording was spelt out in diamonds, embedded in solid platinum, and bound with the skins of several ex-pandas.

 

Those were the days.

 

Sir Martin

[Cruachan]

Now, I am sure they are no where near as luxurious and posh as they used to be, and having not seen anything different before, I am quite impressed.

 

I was expecting more of an A4 sheet of printed paper, with details and a bit dull and boring really.

 

Just had the envelope arrive with the details for my short Hamburg trip in May, and I think it looks lovely. I almost thought it was a brochure when I opened it, until I looked more closely.

 

What did they used to be like? In the "good old days"?

 

T5

 

Oops - and I should have added, if you want to go on receiving it, don't ever press the "Go Green" button the voyage personaliser. :eek:

 

J

[T5LHR]

The wording was spelt out in diamonds, embedded in solid platinum, and bound with the skins of several ex-pandas.

 

Those were the days.

 

Sir Martin

 

Ha ha... Good one. Although, diamonds and platinum I have a plenty... ;)

[T5LHR]

Oops - and I should have added, if you want to go on receiving it, don't ever press the "Go Green" button the voyage personaliser. :eek:

 

J

 

No... don't worry. I won't.

 

If you book through an agent, do you automatically get the "Go Green" option?

[Norfolk Brit]

If you book through an agent, do you automatically get the "Go Green" option?

 

I've been told various things by assorted Cunard shoreside bods, but the consensus seems to be that some of the late deals automatically make the booking 'go green'.

 

Mary

[capnpugwash]

I never press the Go Green button but I only then print the luggage labels as the rest of the documents are seemingly unnecessary.

[Cruachan]

Ha ha... Good one. Although, diamonds and platinum I have a plenty... ;)

 

Sir M lies in his teeth as usual. They weren't covered in Panda hide. It was the skins of dead orange cats!

 

J

[pepperrn]

The wording was spelt out in diamonds, embedded in solid platinum, and bound with the skins of several ex-pandas.

 

Those were the days.

 

Sir Martin

 

My "leather" wallets have no diamonds or platinum, but are lined with domestic moggy fur (that is use No. 101 I think) :D .

[Norfolk Brit]

They weren't covered in Panda hide. It was the skins of dead orange cats!

J

 

Were you in a Q1? Thought only they got cat hide and the peasants got panda.

 

Sir Martin

[pepperrn]

Now, I am sure they are no where near as luxurious and posh as they used to be... What did they used to be like? In the "good old days"? T5

 

Hi,

 

The older style "leather" wallet were "upright" in design (I've two of them) with a booklet inside containing full details of your voyage, hotel and flights plus luggage labels, and your ticket of course. This arrived with with an A4 sized booklet with shore excursions and other details listed. You were also, in the early days of QM2, given a personal onboard email address, this was also printed on three business cards, so you could pass them to family and friends.

Later the "leather" wallet became more like an envelope (I've three of these), containing most of the useful things you needed like luggage labels, tickets and voyage details booklet. This came with two additional booklets, one general one about Cunard voyages, one specific to you containing shore excursions.

Both wallets were embossed with the Cunard Logo.

 

I still take my tickets and other details in one of them to the terminal, but as has been said, all they want is a passport and credit card.

 

Please tell us all about your cruise, BON VOYAGE!

[Norfolk Brit]

but are lined with domestic moggy fur (that is use No. 101 I think) :D .

 

I fear that isn't lining; it's the moulting season - have you checked your booking is genuine?

 

Mary

[pnhmrk]

Well, the main difference was that you used to get your printed tickets in a "leatherette" wallet affair embossed with the Cunard logo.

 

If you go back far enough you got a ticket that was about six pages of NCR paper long, your details were filled in with a mixture of typing and handwriting; Tours couldn't be booked in advance so there weren't any tour details; Information about joining the ship came of half a dozen sheets of badly photocopied paper and luggage tags were great big cardboard things that you had to fill in by hand.

 

Before the imitation leather wallet tickets came in a grander imitation leather wallet and, before that, I think it was just a cardboard wallet!

[pepperrn]

I fear that isn't lining; it's the moulting season - have you checked your booking is genuine?

 

Mary

 

Good point... I'm worried now... must double check... just paid the balance for a QE cruise... to an address in Norfolk...

[Davidonaboat]

Oops - and I should have added, if you want to go on receiving it, don't ever press the "Go Green" button the voyage personaliser. :eek:

 

J

 

NOOOOOOO ive clicked GO Green!! Ohhhhh Nooooooo!

[Cruachan]

NOOOOOOO ive clicked GO Green!! Ohhhhh Nooooooo!

 

Uh Oh! You will lose out on the brochure thingy with the shore excursions now. It doesn't matter all that much in practical terms, as you can book all the excursions on line anyway but, personally, I really enjoy having the thing drop through the mail box and then sitting down with a cup of tea and deciding which excursions to book.

 

If you want one as a souvenir then I suggest you get on to your roll call and beg somebody on the cruise to let you have theirs when they're finished with it.

 

J

[shinyshoes]

I must say I am rather surprised and not a little disappointed at the very temperate tone of the replies to the OP.

In the ‘Good Old Days’ any discussion of the withdrawal of the ‘Special’ Cunard plastic envelopes (price a h’penny per gross from all good wholesalers) would have brought forth a veritable flood of fulminating posts from affronted and incandescent Cunardeers. And when the company began to retain the ID cards at the end of the voyage the screams of outrage and the drumming of tantrumming heels was heard nationwide. Now those were the G.O.D's

 

Personally speaking I welcome the cessation of all the falderols at one time associated with getting on a Cunard boat. And as the good Cap’n says, all one needs today are labels and passport and strictly speaking even the labels need not actually be printed at home as they always have spares at the terminal for you to fill in with cabin number etc. though obviously it makes sense to spare oneself that little chore. No, passport in pocket, credit card in wallet and there you go.

 

Linking to the Australian passport thread, if people did not encumber themselves with so many unneccessary appurtenances at the check-in the likelyhood of them being unable to remember what happened to their important stuff would be vastly decreased.

 

And another thing while I’m in the groove as it were. No-one should be allowed near a check-in counter wearing a garment with more than two pockets and especially not one of those damn fool fishing/outdoor vests with more snaps, velcro, zips and buttons than a haberdasher’s storeroom. Guys, have you any idea how naff you look stalking around indoors in a cruise terminal dressed as if you have a bit part in 'Deliverance'? Every time I see one of those ridiculous garments I hear the faint strains of banjo music. Handbags also should conform to rigid (Quite small) dimensions.

Why should anybody who has spent at least half an hour sitting in the terminal with nothing to do, then queued up for a further 15 minutes be allowed to hold up everyone else up while they search through all these dozens of pockets or fooster around in the depths of a handbag the size of a coal sack for the stuff that should have been in their hot sticky little hands at least 5, at the very least, 5 minutes before going to the desk? Once there the camera cases have to be rearranged, the laptop put down carefully, rucksac adjusted, suitcarrier handed to partner, and then -- TA-DA let the search begin. How those girls on the desks restrain themselves from leaping up and beating these people about the head and body with the web cam I do not know.

Shiny.

[Cruachan]

...No-one should be allowed near a check-in counter wearing a garment with more than two pockets and especially not one of those damn fool fishing/outdoor vests with more snaps, velcro, zips and buttons than a haberdasher’s storeroom. Guys, have you any idea how naff you look stalking around indoors in a cruise terminal dressed as if you have a bit part in 'Deliverance'? Every time I see one of those ridiculous garments I hear the faint strains of banjo music. ...

 

Hey Shiny, how did you know that's what I wear to embark in. I find they're a huge help because I can organise everything properly. Mine has 9 pockets altogether and I can put my credit card in one, my ticket in another, my passport in a third, my car keys in a forth, my camera memory cards in a fifth, my money in a sixth, my pens and pencils and a little notebook that I use for recording the names of ships that I've seen in a seventh, my little GPS gizmo that tells me where I was when I took a photograph in an eighth one, and the great big one at the back holds my little folded up rain jacket with the Cunard logo printed on it. When I get to the checkin desk it rarely takes me more than an hour to remember which pocket I've put my passport in.

 

J

[capnpugwash]

Hey Shiny, how did you know that's what I wear to embark in. I find they're a huge help because I can organise everything properly. Mine has 9 pockets altogether and I can put my credit card in one, my ticket in another, my passport in a third, my car keys in a forth, my camera memory cards in a fifth, my money in a sixth, my pens and pencils and a little notebook that I use for recording the names of ships that I've seen in a seventh, my little GPS gizmo that tells me where I was when I took a photograph in an eighth one, and the great big one at the back holds my little folded up rain jacket with the Cunard logo printed on it. When I get to the checkin desk it rarely takes me more than an hour to remember which pocket I've put my passport in.

 

J

 

I was concerned that this post was serious, but then praise the Lord I realised that it was humorous. What gave it away I hear you ask? It was the money in pocket 6, a Scot would never give away the hiding place unless it was in jest. :)

[david,Mississauga]

The documentation sent in the post is actually more impressive now, notwithstanding the lack of imitation-leather ticket wallet, than it was in the 1970s and 80s. Our tickets for that period came from the travel agent in a Cunard paper envelope, although in 1985 we also received a large plastic ticket wallet with Cunard logo. This was not meant to look like leather. Embarkation information was sketchy, just one piece of paper. The tickets resembled airline ticket stock.

 

On one ticket, the remaining coupon was so faint it was illegible. Fortunately I had made a photo-copy of the actual ticket before it was lifted at the pier. I say "fortunately" because the current version of the Cunard club did not have our earlier crossings recorded and we had to prove them in order to get to our Platinum level.

[safarigal]

Our Pre-Voyage Documentation & Shore Excursions for our QE June 5th trip arrived today. It's a real keeper with the 3 ships logo and JUBILEE Celebrations written on the front cover. I am soooo glad I didn't GO GREEN. It is a true work of art as far as I am concerned. (It takes very little to impress me though)

 

The only issue is that they are offering shore excursions to the Hermitage in St Petersburg. We are in St Petersburg on a Monday and the Hermitage is apparently closed on a Monday. Maybe they are opening especially for us, although somehow I doubt that!:confused:

[Cruachan]

I was concerned that this post was serious, but then praise the Lord I realised that it was humorous. What gave it away I hear you ask? It was the money in pocket 6, a Scot would never give away the hiding place unless it was in jest. :)

 

Ah ha - you rumbled me. The truth of the matter is, Cap'n that a true Scot's wife would never allow him out of the house with money in his possession anyway - just in case he might do something stupid like donating it to charity or giving it to a passing beggar! :D

 

J

[cunardqueen]

I remember the days when the ticket folders had the name of the ship on the front,your tickets were of the old airline style, and the check in person actually removed a copy,and believe it or not they spoke and engaged in conversation, the onboard guide book and port information were combined into a lovely berlitz guide book for that voyage, and the lovely thick cardboard colour coded baggage tags were something you could affix to the cases when you left home, and all and sundry could see where you were going, the tags stayed in place throughout the voyage and were still safely attached for the journey home.

Every suitcase had priority delivery and was always awaiting inside you cabin when you embarked. The checkin desks were situated upstairs in the QEII terminal, they only had a few desks back then, and everyone was happy,It appeared that back then everyone was dressed suitably for embarkation on a ship that expected such standards and they turned up at the appointed checkin time, unless you took the boat train..

But then those WERE the days...

[capnpugwash]

I remember the days when the ticket folders had the name of the ship on the front,your tickets were of the old airline style, and the check in person actually removed a copy,and believe it or not they spoke and engaged in conversation, the onboard guide book and port information were combined into a lovely berlitz guide book for that voyage, and the lovely thick cardboard colour coded baggage tags were something you could affix to the cases when you left home, and all and sundry could see where you were going, the tags stayed in place throughout the voyage and were still safely attached for the journey home.

Every suitcase had priority delivery and was always awaiting inside you cabin when you embarked. The checkin desks were situated upstairs in the QEII terminal, they only had a few desks back then, and everyone was happy,It appeared that back then everyone was dressed suitably for embarkation on a ship that expected such standards and they turned up at the appointed checkin time, unless you took the boat train..

But then those WERE the days...

 

If every suitcase had priority delivery, doesn't that just mean that every suitcase arrived at the same time for everybody? I can't see what advantage there was! :)