Anyone back from the 175th Anniversary crossing ?

[Solent Richard]

As has been said earlier, on a brighter note, New York was a dream.

 

Despite sailing in more times than I can remember I once again arose from my scratcher to record our entry...

 

 

 

 

 

 

It always feels like home...

 

[Solent Richard]

Yes, immigration was a shambles. Cunard comment "out of. Our control". We waited 2 hrs plus in line and missed our trip!!

 

Was this a Cunard excursion and if so, were you refunded? Just asking as we are on a B2B next month and hoping to do an excursion in New York.

 

Please take it from me, it was out of their control as i have explained earlier.

 

I was on the Salem excursion from Boston and the Tours Desk Manager (David) held our coach back almost 30 minutes. Two passengers still didn't make it.

[Olliesmum]

Here is a summery of the Liverpool concert. Non UK members can find information on the readers in Wikipedia.

 

A very special celebration Capt kevin Oprey

 

Blue Remembered Hills, The value of remembrance The clergy

 

Amazing Grace The Royal Liverpool Phil. Orchestra and Choir

 

You'll Never Walk Alone Speech by The mayor of Liverpool, then sung by Laura Wright, RLPO and Choir

 

Great oaks from Little Acorns, Cunard's early impact Hugh Paton

 

The Battle Hymn of The Republic RLPO and Choir

 

All The Queen's Horses- Cunard at War Roy Barraclough and Thelma Barlow

 

Pie Jesu Laura Wright , RLPO and Choir

 

Guided By A Greater Hand- The Carpathia Margaret Whitlock (Capt Rostron's great grand daughter)

 

Moving in Royal Circles Jennie Bond

 

Zadok The Priest RLPO and Choir

 

 

Floating Palaces Lord Prescott

 

I could Have Danced All Night Laura Wright and RLPO

 

The Pride of Scotland Lord Steele

 

The Song of The Clyde Jon Christos and RLPO

 

Keep Calm and Carry On

Cunard in WWII Micheal Buerk

 

Jerusalem The Cathedral Choir, RLPO and Choir

 

The Phoenix Rises- The QE2 Captain Ian McNaught

 

Time to Say Goodbye Singers and RLPO

 

The Fateful Journey South-

The Falklands War Carol Thatcher and Simon Weston

 

Sailing Band of The Welsh Guards

(I'm surprised that The Atlantic Conveyor wasn't mentioned: she was the last Cunarder lost to enemy action with the loss of several crew, including the Master.)

 

Don't Stop The Carnival David Noyes CEO Cunard

 

Then we all sang Rule Britannia and Land of Hope and Glory.

[Olliesmum]

The text seems to be all over the place, I didn't type it like that!!

[balf]

 

Was this a Cunard excursion and if so, were you refunded? Just asking as we are on a B2B next month and hoping to do an excursion in New York.

 

 

Yes we were refunded. Cunard slipped up as they fast tracked the earlier departing tours but not ours.

 

We just returned the tickets and the refund was in our account next morning

 

David.

Edited July 22, 2015 by balf

[3rdGenCunarder]

Please take it from me, it was out of their control as i have explained earlier.

I was on the Salem excursion from Boston and the Tours Desk Manager (David) held our coach back almost 30 minutes. Two passengers still didn't make it.

 

I just don't buy that. I've seen the queues from hell too many times. It happened several times on QE2 (various ports, both coasts). I can remember the queue from the Queens room wrapping around the library, past the Caronia entrance and all the way down the other side into the Lido.

 

It was a nightmare on QM2 when we went into the Westside and had Immigration inspection on board because the ports had been flooded by Sandy and there was no setup to use on the pier. We stood in line for more than 2 hours.

 

Yet, when we go through Immigration in the port terminal, it's smooth and easy. I have NEVER stood in line for more than a few minutes in Brooklyn.

 

I've had onboard Immigration on other ships. OK, the HAL ships I've been on were a lot smaller. But I can't even remember Immigration the last time we were in Bar Harbor with HAL, so it must have been entirely painless.

 

Cunard has to take some responsibility for crowd control and logistics.

[Host Hattie]

 

Cunard has to take some responsibility for crowd control and logistics.

 

Exactly, the shortage of Immigration personnel may not have been their responsibility but what happened once it became obvious there weren't enough was.

 

Hopefully it wasn't enough to spoil the trip.

[balf]

Exactly, the shortage of Immigration personnel may not have been their responsibility but what happened once it became obvious there weren't enough was.

 

Hopefully it wasn't enough to spoil the trip.

 

 

It didn't spoil the trip, though missing a long anticipated tour wasn't exactly the highlight. Realistically the number of officers were just not enough to process all the passengers, divide 5 into the 2600!! And the few that were there didn't seem to be inclined to get much of a move on. Given that they weren't going to get any more officers what more could Cunard have done?

 

On the return crossing we had one British customs officer on board. That went a little better queue wise, but there was still a 30 minute wait, and unlike the Boston immigration where U.S. passengers were fast tracked through, Brits had to wait in line and were passed through in seconds with barely a glance at the passport. But at least none British passport holders were able to walk off the ship in Southampton without any delay.

 

David.

[Jimmys Chippy]

If you ever fly into Boston Logan you'll find their efficiency is just as appalling there too.

 

Good job they brought those ESTAs out to make our passage into the US smoother. And to think, at first some saw them as a way just to collect $14 off every visitor.

[3rdGenCunarder]

It didn't spoil the trip, though missing a long anticipated tour wasn't exactly the highlight. Realistically the number of officers were just not enough to process all the passengers, divide 5 into the 2600!! And the few that were there didn't seem to be inclined to get much of a move on. Given that they weren't going to get any more officers what more could Cunard have done?

 

On the return crossing we had one British customs officer on board. That went a little better queue wise, but there was still a 30 minute wait, and unlike the Boston immigration where U.S. passengers were fast tracked through, Brits had to wait in line and were passed through in seconds with barely a glance at the passport. But at least none British passport holders were able to walk off the ship in Southampton without any delay.

 

David.

 

US passengers were not fast tracked until they got near Britannia Restaurant. Then someone from the Purser's office would grab a handful and lead them to the Queens Room. That fast tracking came AFTER a long wait in the queue from the theatre until they got to the restaurant and were pulled out of the line. (MY DH stood in line for 2 1/2 hours, that's hardly fast tracking.)

 

Processing for US citizens into the US is faster than for other passengers. They should have had a separate line and fewer officers for us so there would be more officers to handle the longer procedures. They should have had a scanner in the Queens Room so that our cards could have been scanned while we were in the queue. Instead, we stood around waiting for the young woman to return with our cards.

 

Were you on board around 10:30 when the queue was still extended back to the theatre? Someone made an announcement that Immigration was taking longer than expected, and people should find a comfortable lounge to wait in until the queue got shorter. THAT announcement should have been made much earlier.

 

They should have announced that tours would meet on the ship and be processed as a group and then continued that procedure. It would have slowed things for independent travelers, but it would have meant that people wouldn't miss tours and that people who did get off and onto their bus wouldn't have had to sit and wait for people who were late. They could have had a member of the tour staff walk down the line asking people if they were on a tour and pulling them out of the line the way airport staff sometimes do when check-in is backed up. (Of course, this would have meant they'd need master lists so that people wouldn't simply claim to be on a tour in order to jump the queue)

 

They could have asked passengers who didn't have morning plans to please not join the queue right away, making it easier for people who did have plans. I do think part of the problem is that people get in the queue early "before it gets bad," which actually causes it to get bad. Not everyone needs to be first.

[Solent Richard]

There was a large amount of conflicting stories about those who wanted to depart from Liverpool and were told by Cunard that it was a sell out and wasn't possible, when in fact up until the day before you could book and board there, albeit it for an extra £700-800 per person. The numbers that Cunard quoted to passengers that Liverpool could handle ranged from 100-400. The amount of interest this cruise generated in Liverpool would have filled the ship from the North West alone, instead there seemed to be a few empty tables in the Brittania dining room which indicated the ship was not full. It seems that someone tried to keep the prices deliberately high by drip feeding cabin releases and it looks like they slipped up somewhat.

 

One more problem that those who wanted to board in Liverpool might have suffered is that we never knew when we left Southampton just when we'd be arriving there.

 

You are correct in that the ship did not sail full as per its passenger capacity.

 

I obtained a 'passenger by nationality list' from the Purser's Desk to include in my blog. The total passenger count would indicate it being some 200 short.

 

But, and this was not just a casual observation, there were more than one hundred 'solo' travellers: two in my small group of 10.

 

Things aren't always what they appear.

Edited July 24, 2015 by Solent Richard

[Solent Richard]

Regarding my post above and for those who may be interested the following is a breakdown of guests by nationality ( Largest groups only):-

 

United Kingdom 1353

 

United States 433

 

Germany 241

 

Australia 106

 

Canada 54

 

Switzerland 28

 

Portugal 11

 

France 11

 

And again, just for interest, the 'Top Sailor' on the voyage was...

 

 

Now if my maths is correct Maxine has spent 8¼ years of her life sailing on Cunard's ships.

 

Cheers.

 

Edited July 24, 2015 by Solent Richard

[Solent Richard]

US passengers were not fast tracked until they got near Britannia Restaurant. Then someone from the Purser's office would grab a handful and lead them to the Queens Room. That fast tracking came AFTER a long wait in the queue from the theatre until they got to the restaurant and were pulled out of the line. (MY DH stood in line for 2 1/2 hours, that's hardly fast tracking.)

 

Processing for US citizens into the US is faster than for other passengers. They should have had a separate line and fewer officers for us so there would be more officers to handle the longer procedures. They should have had a scanner in the Queens Room so that our cards could have been scanned while we were in the queue. Instead, we stood around waiting for the young woman to return with our cards.

 

Were you on board around 10:30 when the queue was still extended back to the theatre? Someone made an announcement that Immigration was taking longer than expected, and people should find a comfortable lounge to wait in until the queue got shorter. THAT announcement should have been made much earlier.

 

They should have announced that tours would meet on the ship and be processed as a group and then continued that procedure. It would have slowed things for independent travelers, but it would have meant that people wouldn't miss tours and that people who did get off and onto their bus wouldn't have had to sit and wait for people who were late. They could have had a member of the tour staff walk down the line asking people if they were on a tour and pulling them out of the line the way airport staff sometimes do when check-in is backed up. (Of course, this would have meant they'd need master lists so that people wouldn't simply claim to be on a tour in order to jump the queue)

 

They could have asked passengers who didn't have morning plans to please not join the queue right away, making it easier for people who did have plans. I do think part of the problem is that people get in the queue early "before it gets bad," which actually causes it to get bad. Not everyone needs to be first.

 

The first tours were fast tracked.

 

My wife and i were in the queue early (Sensible precaution) and as we came out of the Britannia Restaurant and approached the Queens Room the excursion's passengers were being guided from their muster position through the Clarendon Art Gallery.

 

Only if you were in the position I was at would you have seen or known this.

Edited July 24, 2015 by Solent Richard

[balf]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They should have announced that tours would meet on the ship and be processed as a group and then continued that procedure.

 

 

 

 

 

They did, for tours departing before 10am. Why they didn't do the same for later morning tours I don't know. Maybe they thought all would be clear by 10. At 10.30 we were outside the terminal being told our tour had left.

 

It was noticeable that there were very few Cunard staff on view.

 

David.

[Solent Richard]

They did, for tours departing before 10am. Why they didn't do the same for later morning tours I don't know. Maybe they thought all would be clear by 10. At 10.30 we were outside the terminal being told our tour had left.

 

It was noticeable that there were very few Cunard staff on view.

 

David.

 

Hmnnn.

 

I was sat on a coach scheduled to leave at 11.00 am. It's departure was delayed some 20 minutes while we waited for 4 passengers.

 

Two eventually turned up and the Cunard Tour's Manager made the decision that we should go.

 

So that was some 38 passengers who managed to get through immigration on time.

 

While waiting there was a constant stream of passengers being led to the trolley buses.

 

What tour were you on?

[3rdGenCunarder]

The first tours were fast tracked.

 

My wife and i were in the queue early (Sensible precaution) and as we came out of the Britannia Restaurant and approached the Queens Room the excursion's passengers were being guided from their muster position through the Clarendon Art Gallery.

 

Only if you were in the position I was at would you have seen or known this.

 

The daily program had a list of early tours and where to meet, so I did know about this fast-tracking. I've seen this done before, on Cunard and other lines.

 

Unfortunately, when things backed up, they didn't make an effort to extend this fast-tracking to the tours leaving in the hour or so after that. It wouldn't have been difficult. They could have announced "If you are on a morning tour, go to [specific some location] with your tickets and we will make sure you are cleared in time for your tour."

[Solent Richard]

The daily program had a list of early tours and where to meet, so I did know about this fast-tracking. I've seen this done before, on Cunard and other lines.

 

Unfortunately, when things backed up, they didn't make an effort to extend this fast-tracking to the tours leaving in the hour or so after that. It wouldn't have been difficult. They could have announced "If you are on a morning tour, go to [specific some location] with your tickets and we will make sure you are cleared in time for your tour."

 

You raise a fair point 3GC.

 

However, looking at the broader picture, there was, to the best of my knowledge, no feed back as to numbers on later tours who had already used their initiative and were already off the ship.

 

As I have previously mentioned, the Tours manager, David, was himself marshalling stragglers outside the terminal.

 

 

I myself ensured I was processed in good time. Thank God I did. Thirty years in the Royal Navy has its benefits sometimes. :rolleyes:

Edited July 24, 2015 by Solent Richard

[balf]

 

 

 

 

 

What tour were you on?

 

 

Kennedy Museum. We joined the queue at 8am. We didn't expect to still be there at 10. While I must congratulate you on being smarter and more street wise than me, the fact is that the written instructions stated that for tours leaving after 10 passengers should assemble ashore as soon as cleared by customs. Also stated was that no one would be allowed to go ashore until all passengers had been cleared.

 

Of course Cunard could easily have sent someone along the line and fast tracked passengers on the 10am onward tours. And of course they didn't. So they were losers as well of the tour revenue from refunds.

 

David.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Kennedy Museum. We joined the queue at 8am. We didn't expect to still be there at 10. While I must congratulate you on being smarter and more street wise than me, the fact is that the written instructions stated that for tours leaving after 10 passengers should assemble ashore as soon as cleared by customs. Also stated was that no one would be allowed to go ashore until all passengers had been cleared.

Of course Cunard could easily have sent someone along the line and fast tracked passengers on the 10am onward tours. And of course they didn't. So they were losers as well of the tour revenue from refunds.

 

David.

 

I think tours were the exception and were allowed to leave before everyone had cleared. They've done that before to allow early tours to get going. However, my understanding was that tours were a special exemption, and everyone else would have to wait until all passengers had been cleared. But now I gather that they didn't hold back any passengers, and people just walked off with their little blue cards as soon as they got through Immigration?

 

Was there ever an officer collecting landing cards? We went out for a brief walk, and there was nobody to collect our landing cards. At the time, I thought that was because everyone had been through immigration by then. Except for ship's security scanning our cards, it didn't feel as if anyone was paying attention to passengers going through the terminal.

[balf]

I think tours were the exception and were allowed to leave before everyone had cleared. They've done that before to allow early tours to get going. However, my understanding was that tours were a special exemption, and everyone else would have to wait until all passengers had been cleared. But now I gather that they didn't hold back any passengers, and people just walked off with their little blue cards as soon as they got through Immigration?

 

 

 

Was there ever an officer collecting landing cards? We went out for a brief walk, and there was nobody to collect our landing cards. At the time, I thought that was because everyone had been through immigration by then. Except for ship's security scanning our cards, it didn't feel as if anyone was paying attention to passengers going through the terminal.

 

 

Yes, agree entirely. The problem with the tours was for those, like us who were on the 10am ones. The previous poster boasting how he made his tour on time was on an 11am one. We would have easily made that.

 

I've sailed Cunard many times over the years and find it hard to understand why, when they do so many things so well, they cock up so badly at times like this.

 

David.

[Solent Richard]

Yes, agree entirely. The problem with the tours was for those, like us who were on the 10am ones. The previous poster boasting how he made his tour on time was on an 11am one. We would have easily made that.

 

I've sailed Cunard many times over the years and find it hard to understand why, when they do so many things so well, they cock up so badly at times like this.

 

David.

 

In matter of fact my wife and I were 'off' the ship at 09.46 just minutes after it was announced that passengers were able to proceed ashore and no longer had to wait for full clearance.

 

Using my iPad I took this photograph inside the Terminal Building which clearly shows the time as 09.53...

 

 

I utilised the free wifi in the terminal and uploaded my arrival pictures to Facebook while waiting for my excursion to depart.

Edited July 27, 2015 by Solent Richard

[Jimmys Chippy]

I think tours were the exception and were allowed to leave before everyone had cleared. They've done that before to allow early tours to get going. However, my understanding was that tours were a special exemption, and everyone else would have to wait until all passengers had been cleared. But now I gather that they didn't hold back any passengers, and people just walked off with their little blue cards as soon as they got through Immigration?

 

Was there ever an officer collecting landing cards? We went out for a brief walk, and there was nobody to collect our landing cards. At the time, I thought that was because everyone had been through immigration by then. Except for ship's security scanning our cards, it didn't feel as if anyone was paying attention to passengers going through the terminal.

 

 

Our landing cards weren't collected which meant that we could have gone ashore without having cleared immigration at all. In spite of all the bluster that seems to come from the U.S. with regards to immigration it never fails to be a complete shambles.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Our landing cards weren't collected which meant that we could have gone ashore without having cleared immigration at all. In spite of all the bluster that seems to come from the U.S. with regards to immigration it never fails to be a complete shambles.

 

What time did you leave the ship?

 

What I don't understand is why Immigration is so smooth in the terminal/pier and such a mess when on board.

[Jimmys Chippy]

What time did you leave the ship?

 

What I don't understand is why Immigration is so smooth in the terminal/pier and such a mess when on board.

 

We were on deck six and were given a time from, I think, 7.45am onwards to go to the immigration check. When we got down the queue was close to the Purser's Desk and took no longer than an hour as we were in Boston centre by 9.00am. I said earlier on in the thread that because no one took our landing card it made the entire process pointless, if we'd have wanted to enter the U.S. illegally we could have done so by simply walking off the ship at the first opportunity and not returned, and if we so desired we could have returned to the ship and carried on until New York for as far as immigration knew there we had been checked in Boston.

 

In the last twelve months I've been through Chicago, Boston, Orlando and all three New York City airports, plus Boston Port's, immigration and everyone of them has been an experience in one hand not knowing what the other one's doing. It's a bit of a mess.

[Solent Richard]

Our landing cards weren't collected which meant that we could have gone ashore without having cleared immigration at all. In spite of all the bluster that seems to come from the U.S. with regards to immigration it never fails to be a complete shambles.

 

Ours weren't collected either when we proceeded ashore at 09.46.

 

I can only assume that this was to cover multiple entries and exits.