QM2 post-refit TA log

[lemon tree]

Your right about the placement. All the main food service lifts up from the galleys and stores are in here..if you notice stewards are always pushing sealed carts thru kings court to the buffet serving areas as food is coming up those elevators...The placement of this restaurant was probally a compromise

and would be cut in half if a corridor to the pool was constructed. Cunard needs large clear signage in this area for pool access information and doors from the Veranda sealed as emergency use only

 

Unfortunately there is no access to the pool area for anyone in wheelchairs other than through the Veranda so this would not be a practical solution.

[Bostonjetset]

Have the table numbers stayed the same in the Britannia Restaurant? The last time we sailed (in Dec 2015) they were pretty much in line with this plan submitted by Whitemarsh.:)

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=36601903#post36601903

 

Off topic for just one sec, but WHERE IS Whitemarsh? I miss his wonderfully hilarious posts!

[Pushka]

Off topic for just one sec, but WHERE IS Whitemarsh? I miss his wonderfully hilarious posts!

 

 

Totally agree. I miss him and his wonderful wit. He has been very helpful to me.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Aussieflyer]

Totally agree. I miss him and his wonderful wit. He has been very helpful to me.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Yes, I agree; he had great information. A quick search shows he hasn't been on CC for over 2 years (2014). Maybe he is not cruising at the moment.

[Salacia]

Yum Godiva. And it's peanut free. My daughter will be able to eat her pillow chocolates. She's six and this will be s big deal. We've always had to take them away or ask the steward not to leave them at all. This little thing makes me smile and makes my day.

 

Perhaps I misunderstood, but Godiva is not the brand of chocolates used on turn down service, but rather Godiva is for sale in Sir Samuels. Please forgive me if I misread previous posts from current passengers, but I thought it might be important to question source of pillow chocolates. (In the past, Cunard brand chocolates have been much appreciated, although I have no information regarding potential allergic content).

Edited July 1, 2016 by Salacia

[pepperrn]

I understand, through a mutual friend, that Whitemarsh isn't currently cruising with Cunard (or others) due to personal commitments and changed priorities.

 

Like others here, I also greatly miss his posts.

[Salacia]

I understand, through a mutual friend, that Whitemarsh isn't currently cruising with Cunard (or others) due to personal commitments and changed priorities.

 

Like others here, I also greatly miss his posts.

 

Whitemarsh has my best wishes. Kudos to Whitemarsh for focusing on new priorities...no barnacles growing - that's the ticket! :) Cheers, Salacia

[Aussieflyer]

I understand, through a mutual friend, that Whitemarsh isn't currently cruising with Cunard (or others) due to personal commitments and changed priorities.

 

Like others here, I also greatly miss his posts.

 

Thank you pepperrn. I hope he gets to cruise again at some stage as his posts were always interesting and informative.

Whatever he is doing I hope it is fulfilling for him.

[Aussieflyer]

Perhaps I misunderstood, but Godiva is not the brand of chocolates used on turn down service, but rather Godiva is for sale in Sir Samuels. Please forgive me if I misread previous posts from current passengers, but I thought it might be important to question source of pillow chocolates. (In the past, Cunard brand chocolates have been much appreciated, although I have no information regarding potential allergic content).

 

In post#87 BlueRiband said that the turndown chocs are foil wrapped squares labelled as Godiva but not sure what kind they are or if indeed they are truly peanut free.

Godiva chocolates are also for sale at Sir Samuels. Maybe the idea is that you find how good they are from your turn down choc and then rush to SS to buy a heap more,

Edited July 1, 2016 by Aussieflyer

[Salacia]

In post#87 BlueRiband said that the turndown chocs are foil wrapped squares labelled as Godiva but not sure what kind they are or if indeed they are truly peanut free.

Godiva chocolates are also for sale at Sir Samuels. Maybe the idea is that you find how good they are from your turn down choc and then rush to SS to buy a heap more,

 

Thanks, Aussieflyer, looking back....my bad....I just kind of glossed over the details in BR's post #87 because Blue Riband's comments pertained to Grill accommodations. ("The turn-down pillow chocolates had been those with the Cunard 175 wrapping, but they are now two Godiva foil wrapped squares.")

 

Godiva chocolates in Britannia at turn down would be lovely. Looking forward - Salacia

[Aussieflyer]

Thanks, Aussieflyer, looking back....my bad....I just kind of glossed over the details in BR's post #87 because Blue Riband's comments pertained to Grill accommodations. ("The turn-down pillow chocolates had been those with the Cunard 175 wrapping, but they are now two Godiva foil wrapped squares.")

 

Godiva chocolates in Britannia at turn down would be lovely. Looking forward - Salacia

 

Oh but maybe I got it wrong Salacia and the Godiva chocolates are only provided in Grills and we in Britannia have a different brand. :p

I assumed they would all be the same but I may well be mistaken.

[Pushka]

I understand, through a mutual friend, that Whitemarsh isn't currently cruising with Cunard (or others) due to personal commitments and changed priorities.

 

Like others here, I also greatly miss his posts.

 

 

The update is greatly appreciated pepperrn. Like the rest here I wish him well. He organised a social meeting on my first QM2 short leg which is where AussieFlyer and I first met. And gave us some valuable tips for our second trip. The roll call for the first voyage was a lot of fun, as was his live TR.

Edited July 1, 2016 by Pushka

[BlueRiband]

I have not been able to update this log due to abysmally slow on board internet speeds. Last night I burned up 47 minutes just trying to read a couple of emails. I'll give some updates now that I'm temporarily on a land based connection.

 

The potholes are gone, as well they should be.

 

The windows along the passage way to Illuminations on decks 2 and 3 also appear to have been replaced. The glass is clear and the frames appear to be new metal. When it got a bit rougher the other day the sea was washing against the deck 2 windows like a front loading washing machine.

 

I've been in PG to I cannot know the service in Britannia, but I understand that has not changed table configuration. As for Godiva, that it for sale by the piece in Sir Samuels, and that appears to be the only change there except for some freshening up. The PG pillow chocolates switched from "175" to Godiva in mid voyage, either milk or dark chocolate so far.

 

The new deck 13 Britannia Club cabins will have paying passengers as of July 13th. I haven't found out if the solos were occupied by passengers yet. In the June 23-July 1 roll call somebody did say that she was booked on deck 2.

 

I did inquire about bathers cutting through Verandah. A person who is reasonably high on the hotel staff said that in the daytime they allow people to pass through provided they are "properly dressed". In the evening they are stopped regardless of how they are dressed. He said shore side approved of their turning passengers away under those circumstances.

 

The D stair doorway to Kings Court is closed in the evening to keep pass through traffic out of the specialty restaurants. Last night it was not only closed but also had one of those blue tension ropes across it and two pedestal stands requesting that one use decks 6 or 8. Obviously some passengers tried to open it and pass through anyway, thus the added stuff to drive home the point.

 

In general the "remastering" provides some welcome improvement on QM2. The buffet is now a casual dining space yet has the class befitting an ocean liner. The Corinthia Lounge is a very inviting and appealing place and far more lively than the former Winter Garden. The PG staterooms are a freshened up version of what was before except that the television is bigger and much easier to view. While some will mourn the replacement of the teak balcony loungers the new chairs recline flat and are therefore much more comfortable for dosing off. I wouldn't sail another 8-day TA however. Much as I enjoy being on QM2 it feels like we're piddling along.

Edited July 1, 2016 by BlueRiband

[sfbearcat]

After reading posts and seeing new youtube videos I think this refit was worth the big changes of lobby and Kings court. I dont like the small casino

thou. How was the casino in the evenings? Also getting to the Queens Room for events? The whole ship looks really nice thou It seems really BRIGHT..they must have replaced all the lighting with LED so hopefully they have installed some kind of dimmers in the cabins/suites! And how was this new food menu?

Also next years crossing schedule has no all 8 sea day crossings.Yea!! NYC has only 7 days and Southampton has 2 or 3 8days that have a port stop (Halifax). I am booked for the Nov12 crossing and cant wait and I hope you had a nice crossing.

Edited July 1, 2016 by sfbearcat

[Bell Boy]

Thanks for taking us along with you, have enjoyed your up to date postings.

 

Did have to smile at your post re the response and out come (from an officer) re the 'Verandah saga'... ....that's cos almost 90% of us dining there at Lunch time, are considered as freebies .;):D

[Solent Richard]

As a first time Cunard passenger this summer, we are awaiting the review from your trip. Thank you.

 

Hi there, this may help give you an insight, we crossed last July...

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2015/07/24/queen-mary-2-anniversary-voyage/

 

Of course the Winter garden is no more.

[Solent Richard]

Thanks for taking us along with you, have enjoyed your up to date postings.

 

Did have to smile at your post re the response and out come (from an officer) re the 'Verandah saga'... ....that's cos almost 90% of us dining there at Lunch time, are considered as freebies .;):D

 

Grrrrr. That is the one thing that really spoilt Todd English and now they appear to have blown the opportunity to correct it again.

[turquoise 6]

Reading the feedback about 8 day Transatlantic , it appears most people don't care for it.

I wondering how one would feel about a "Back to Back" or round trip Transatlantic .?:confused:

[rsail203]

[QUlOTE=lemkook oon tree;50375737]Unfortunately there is no accesjs to the pool area for anyone in lkwheelchairs other than through the Veranda so this woul ::) k o od not be a practical solutijon.

 

K

[tv24]

We are off the QM2 this morning and now resting in our temporary NYC digs. I too have been unable to post regularly while on board due to the dismal WIFI. In fact, most times I tried, I could not even get to Cruise Critic at all! I intend to write up a full review and will try to find some time to give feedback to some of the questions posed here. We had a great crossing, not without its issues, but on the whole, very good. And we'll be back in October...so that tells you something.

[david,Mississauga]

...

Also next years crossing schedule has no all 8 sea day crossings.Yea!! NYC has only 7 days and Southampton has 2 or 3 8days that have a port stop (Halifax)...

 

 

I have a particular fondness for the w/b crossings that call at Halifax which gives a six-day voyage from Southampton. The on-line information for the two crossings next year (7 June and 4 August) has been changed recently to downplay the call in Halifax. Halifax is not mentioned prominently and it no longer shows on the map. When I click for detailed itinerary information it does show the call at Halifax. I will have to look into this further before I get too excited.

 

There was to be a w/b crossing on the QV in May of this year that was to call in Halifax, but that crossing was cancelled in early July of last year just after the brochure was printed.

[pmb1]

...

In general the "remastering" provides some welcome improvement on QM2. ...

Welcome back, BlueRiband, and many thanks for sharing your observations and insights with us. I know how much time and trouble it takes to provide real-time reports while on board (which is why I'm always months late with my own Photobucket updates).

 

As I said in Post #5 above, I'll rely on your information about the changes to guide our re-acquaintance with our one and only liner when my wife and I are aboard from July 24 through August 9. Thank you.

[canoncruiser]

Hi all,

 

Just saw QM2 sail out of NYC-she looked shiny and new-and the new Deck13 cabins didn’t look too bad. I remember when QE2 lost the beautiful Look Out Bar and then later acquired the Penthouse apartments to nearly universal horror; but we got used to it all and applauded when she went from steam to diesel and got her Cunard colors back; and a grander profile.;)

[colonialinnkeeper]

Hi there, this may help give you an insight, we crossed last July...

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2015/07/24/queen-mary-2-anniversary-voyage/

 

Of course the Winter garden is no more.

 

Thank you for the lovely travelogue. I thoroughly enjoyed it and am really looking forward to boarding a month from today.

 

Did the Fab4 tour with our 17 year old son about 30 years ago and we both loved being in the midst of it all.

[BlueRiband]

I thought the designer did a good job of making the deck 13 cabins look like they had always been there. The inside alleyway and signage matches the other QM2 staterooms.

 

However, when I reboarded the ship at 2:45PM on Friday the Redhook terminal was a sea of humanity. Usually by then anybody arriving checks in and boards the ship quickly. As one couple summed it up: "Forty five minutes to drive from West Chester. Two and a half hours waiting in line to check in."

 

Cunard has had three consecutive service failures with embarkation in Hamburg, Southampton, and now New York. An experience like this is bound to turn many first time passengers into last time passengers.