QV Best spot for Southampton Sailaway

[VIRGINCRUISER1066]

Hi There

 

I am on the short trip this weekend from Southampton to Zeebrugge / Le Havre.

 

Having never seen the southern coastline before could someone tell me where the best place is to view the sailaway? Also what time we could expect to leave as would like to view as much as possible.

 

I am looking forward to experiencing QV as I have previously sailed on QM2 for 11 days from NY to the carribean and absolutely loved it.

 

Regards

 

Jennie

[Cruachan]

Hi There

 

I am on the short trip this weekend from Southampton to Zeebrugge / Le Havre.

 

Having never seen the southern coastline before could someone tell me where the best place is to view the sailaway? Also what time we could expect to leave as would like to view as much as possible.

 

I am looking forward to experiencing QV as I have previously sailed on QM2 for 11 days from NY to the carribean and absolutely loved it.

 

Regards

 

Jennie

 

Jennie

 

A great shame your post went unanswered and I fear that, as it is now Saturday morning, it may be already too late for you.

 

I would strongly recommend that you find a spot on 11 Deck. The difficulty with QV is that a lot of the outdoor areas (eg, the promenade deck) restrict you to one side of the ship only. On 11 Deck, the sports area at the forward end allows you to move freely from one side of the ship to the other but the view is somewhat restricted (especially in photographic terms) by the plexiglass "windscreen". My personal choice would be a small area of open deck, aft, called "The Terrace" on the deck plans. Note that this is not the Grills Terrace which is restricted to Grill passengers only - it is immediately below and forward of the Grills Terrace. From that area you have a clear view to either side of the ship and also a certain amount of view forward.

 

Once you are clear of Southampton, the starboard side of the ship is likely to give you the most interesting views. If you are interested in ships (as I am) you can see the ships on the berths at the Fawley Oil terminal and, later, You can view the coast of the Isle of Wight (including Osborne House and a couple of other local landmarks). Look out for the Isle of Wight ferries that criss cross The Solent and that you will also see in Southampton Water. If you are on second sitting for dinner you may also want to stay on deck until the ship passes the Nab Tower pilot station and watch the pilot being dropped off.

 

Once you are out in the Channel itself, the view of the south coast is a little distant but I enjoy the view of the coastal lights when it gets dark.

 

I'm certain you will love Queen Victoria - she's my favourite ship of the current three. But please go with an open mind and be prepared to cut Cunard a little slack in terms of service and so on - the short cruises have often been reported to be a little bit lacking in that regard as the waiters and other crew member don't really have time to get to you know you as they would on a longer cruise.

 

Have a great time.

 

J

[VIRGINCRUISER1066]

Jennie

 

A great shame your post went unanswered and I fear that, as it is now Saturday morning, it may be already too late for you.

 

I would strongly recommend that you find a spot on 11 Deck. The difficulty with QV is that a lot of the outdoor areas (eg, the promenade deck) restrict you to one side of the ship only. On 11 Deck, the sports area at the forward end allows you to move freely from one side of the ship to the other but the view is somewhat restricted (especially in photographic terms) by the plexiglass "windscreen". My personal choice would be a small area of open deck, aft, called "The Terrace" on the deck plans. Note that this is not the Grills Terrace which is restricted to Grill passengers only - it is immediately below and forward of the Grills Terrace. From that area you have a clear view to either side of the ship and also a certain amount of view forward.

 

Once you are clear of Southampton, the starboard side of the ship is likely to give you the most interesting views. If you are interested in ships (as I am) you can see the ships on the berths at the Fawley Oil terminal and, later, You can view the coast of the Isle of Wight (including Osborne House and a couple of other local landmarks). Look out for the Isle of Wight ferries that criss cross The Solent and that you will also see in Southampton Water. If you are on second sitting for dinner you may also want to stay on deck until the ship passes the Nab Tower pilot station and watch the pilot being dropped off.

 

Once you are out in the Channel itself, the view of the south coast is a little distant but I enjoy the view of the coastal lights when it gets dark.

 

I'm certain you will love Queen Victoria - she's my favourite ship of the current three. But please go with an open mind and be prepared to cut Cunard a little slack in terms of service and so on - the short cruises have often been reported to be a little bit lacking in that regard as the waiters and other crew member don't really have time to get to you know you as they would on a longer cruise.

 

Have a great time.

 

J

 

Thank you so much for providing the information x unfortunately as you thought, I had already left for Southampton. On the sailaway I started viewing from my balcony, then moved down to deck 3 and finally went to deck 11 where as you said you can see all around, wonderfull, I just wanted to view as much around me as possible.

 

Queen Victoria was lovely and I still cant make up my mind if I prefer QM2 or QM??

 

The bathroom was better on QM2 than QV (unless I have just increased in size)

 

I preferred the look of the Brittania Restaurant on QV than QM2, our waitstaff was wonderful and so friendly but unobtrusive, where on the QM2 there was no smiles or interaction.

 

Golden Lion better on QV and was a joy to sit in and listen to the piano player. QV was also easier to find your way around.

 

I found the Lido buffet a lot easier to navigate than the Kings Court on QM2 and would highly recommend the made to order pizza for lunch it is ready in 7 minutes which gives you chance to obtain a salad and a drink the find a table and just go back to the pizza station, they were soooo tasty.

 

The service provided, even though my trip on QV was a short 3 nighter was excellent throughout the ship and could not be faulted. Room service forgot the milk on one occasion but a quick telephone call soon bought another tray.

 

Another highlight for me (only beause I am one of those dreadful smokers) was that I could smoke in Churchills which was really handy instead of having to go down to deck 3 or even having a few nightcaps in my cabin and balcony and therefore spent more money and time in the Comodore Bar!!!

 

All in all I had a lovely break and think on the whole I prefer QV to QM2 but wonder about QV stability on a translantic (which I would love to do) .

 

Once again thank you for your reply, your expertise is invaluable.....

 

Jennie xx

[Cruachan]

...The service provided, even though my trip on QV was a short 3 nighter was excellent throughout the ship and could not be faulted...

 

I am so glad to hear that. We hear a lot on this board about poor standards of service on the short cruises. Maybe, with all the fleet changes now in the past, things have entered a more settled period and the standards on the short cruises are rising.

 

J