Cunard Transatlantic Talk

[NedRyerson57]

Strongly considering doing the Transatlantic thing next year and wanted to start a chat on the good and bad of sailing across the pond on the QM2.

Please feel free to share stories and experiences, both good and bad.

Would also love to know if the Club Balcony is worth the extra money.

[HelloKittysMum]

Can't comment on Club as we nust have insides bit we lobe transatlantic. We sailed home from a two week road trip in 2015 and it was a great way to relax after a hectic holiday. So much to do if you want (but if you are looking for ice rinks and climbing walls it isn't for you) - great talks, art classes, bridge classes, a great library, films, entertainment, fencing classes, dance classes, pub quizzes. But equally you can just chill and read a book or snooze.

 

We are joining on Friday to do a Westbound sailing and are looking forward to being back on board.

 

We are travelling with our 16 and 18 year old children and my 78 year old parents.

 

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[Bell Boy]

Re Club Balcony; The only main additional amenity Britannia Club offers, is the opportunity for a flexible dining time in the evenings only. Otherwise the staterooms are exactly the same as Britannia balcony ( with the exception of the new additions on deck 13) .

 

The Club restaurant is an intimate dining area, set almost within the MDR, it offers the same menu as the main Britannia restaurant, including a few additional extra items, e.g. an 'always available section,' table side flambé desserts and cheese trolley .

 

Club guests will be allocated a fixed table for all meals (i.e. breakfast/lunch & dinner) evening dining is between 6.30pm -9.00pm. If you opt to dine on a large table you'll be expected to dine with those same guests for all meals, unlike Freedom Dining (?) offered on other cruise lines, you are unable swop and change your dining companions .

[3rdGenCunarder]

The good outweighs the bad by a lot, so I'll get the bad out of the way first.

 

You could have bad weather. Some days of fog or rain are pretty common. So if you expect to lie out in the sun, you could be disappointed. We traveled east with a fog bank recently. Both QM2 and the weather system "sailed" in tandem. OTOH, in the past we've had some lovely sunny days on a crossings. Just be aware that weather is highly variable. And so are sea conditions. We've had crossings where the ship plowed through "heavy" seas and crossings where the ocean was like a millpond. The good news is that QM2 was built to do this and can handle anything the ocean gives her.

 

The other bad part is the opportunity to gain weight. The dining room is open for breakfast, lunch,and dinner. And the buffet has something available 24/7. I found desserts in the dining room to be just OK. But the buffet puts out a huge spread of gorgeous sweets at lunchtime, often with a theme--chocolate one day, choux pastry another day, cheesecakes yet another day. So despite my attempts to have a light salad lunch, those desserts kept calling out to me... And there's afternoon tea. I never did get around to going to the Queens Room for the full experience (if you do take a TA, you really need to do this at least once), but I would pop into the buffet for just a cucumber sandwich and a cookie. But often as not, something more caloric would find its way onto my plate. And they serve real Cornish clotted cream with the scones...

 

The good part of a TA is that Cunard provides activities and entertainment all day long. There always are lecturers on board. It's usually a mix of a historian, scientist, pop culture expert. They do try to provide something for everyone. There will be music in the lounges, a few classical recitals in the theater, planetarium shows, movies, and the many classes that HelloKittysMum mentioned. And that's just the daytime. At night there's dancing on the largest dance floor afloat, music in the lounges, a show in the theatre.

 

Britannia Club is a lot more expensive than the main Britannia. I do like the freedom to dine when I want, but I don't think the price difference is worth it. And on a TA, I like to be low and midships. The low cabins have a "sheltered balcony." I'm happy with those, but the view is limited. Do a search here and you'll see the pros and cons.

 

If you're planning to fly one way and sail the other, sail westbound. Those five extra hours are wonderful!

[Jack E Dawson]

Wife and I completed E-W TA in May on QM2 and loved it. We were in Balcony Club. Here are some after-thoughts:

Travel East to West, most days are 25 hours long versus West to East where days are 23 hours long due to time zones

E-W also moves you through rough weather quicker

Loved the dining flexibility Balcony Club offered. No need to rush through afternoon activities to make dining time

Britannia Club dining much quieter, better alternate selection to daily menu and other perks

You don't have to eat every meal at assigned table. We ate breakfast at window table for 2 in regular Britannia area

QM2 is a grand ship, even 7 days at sea wasn't enough time to fully explore and enjoy

Cunard currently offering free drink package on balcony bookings. That would be about a $1K saving for us

BC passengers attend Capt's cocktail party with Grills group. MUCH better selection of complimentary food/drink

Our May crossing had only one rough weather day. Enjoyed outside activities all of the other days

Cunard/QM2 exceeded our exceptions. Looking forward to next voyage

[Solent Richard]

Strongly considering doing the Transatlantic thing next year and wanted to start a chat on the good and bad of sailing across the pond on the QM2.

Please feel free to share stories and experiences, both good and bad.

Would also love to know if the Club Balcony is worth the extra money.

 

Good afternoon Ned.

 

Though reporting on a slightly higher level of accommodation my latest trans-Atlantic review covers many other aspects of sailing the Atlantic on Queen Mary 2.

 

Here's the link if you are interested, there are over 70 photographs...

 

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2017/01/02/queen-mary-2-remastered-trans-atlantic/

 

 

 

You really are following a good line in researching your voyage before you book.

 

 

Hand on heart, unlike some I couldn't find anything 'bad' about Cunard.

[Bell Boy]

Quite right SR ! That's why Cunard have been busy ( refits 2016/2017) adding 'additional staterooms' across their fleet , they can't fill em quick enough.

[Trevor Fountain]

Here's a thing. Say you do a t/a b2b, can you stay on board whilst docked in NY, and if so do you still need a visa. Also my DW is a Malaysian national and wondering if she can travel on UK visa, or would she need a visa for USA, even if staying on board?

[Host Hattie]

Here's a thing. Say you do a t/a b2b, can you stay on board whilst docked in NY, and if so do you still need a visa. Also my DW is a Malaysian national and wondering if she can travel on UK visa, or would she need a visa for USA, even if staying on board?

Unfortunately in New York you will have to get off the ship and go through Immigration even if you are reboarding immediately.

You will need ESTAs or visas if appropriate.

[Trevor Fountain]

Unfortunately in New York you will have to get off the ship and go through Immigration even if you are reboarding immediately.

You will need ESTAs or visas if appropriate.

 

Thanks Hattie, I thought that was probably the case.

[TheOldBear]

Here's a thing. Say you do a t/a b2b, can you stay on board whilst docked in NY, and if so do you still need a visa. Also my DW is a Malaysian national and wondering if she can travel on UK visa, or would she need a visa for USA, even if staying on board?

The ship needs to be cleared [down to zero passengers] before any passengers for the next segment can board. I recall reading that there can be accommodation in the terminal - but that is a bare functional space - not a comfortable lounge.

 

For the visa issue, check with the US State department - online or at a consulate or the Embassy.

[Trevor Fountain]

The ship needs to be cleared [down to zero passengers] before any passengers for the next segment can board. I recall reading that there can be accommodation in the terminal - but that is a bare functional space - not a comfortable lounge.

 

For the visa issue, check with the US State department - online or at a consulate or the Embassy.

 

I will take your advice on board, and thank you for taking the time to respond.

[3rdGenCunarder]

The ship needs to be cleared [down to zero passengers] before any passengers for the next segment can board. I recall reading that there can be accommodation in the terminal - but that is a bare functional space - not a comfortable lounge.

 

For the visa issue, check with the US State department - online or at a consulate or the Embassy.

 

I believe intransit passengers wait in the waiting "lounge" for Grills, Diamond, and Platinum. It's the same warehouse look as the rest of the terminal, but at least you can get coffee or tea while you wait. And there are restrooms. That's the limit of the amenities.

[david,Mississauga]

There is no easy answer as to whether Britannia Club is worth the extra fare. As much as I like the single-seating restaurant with the extra à la carte items, there is a limit as to how much I'm prepared to pay for it. For our voyage last October we had booked a modest balcony stateroom. There was a significant fare reduction well before final payment date. As we always do when there is a fare reduction, we don't ask for the lower fare but we have our TA upgrade us to a higher category. So it cost us about Can.$400 each more than our original booking and that was a great deal.

 

For our upcoming two voyages the difference between a mid-range balcony stateroom and a Club balcony was about $2000 pp for each of the two one-week trips. (There was no fare reduction this time; in fact the fares went up substantially since we booked.) There is no way it is worth double what we have booked. But we will miss it.

 

If you book an A2 in the Club I recommend the new deck 13. The showers have a glass door and there is a sliding door to the balcony, which we prefer to the usual type.

[Scrapnana]

I was upgraded to Britannia Club on my last Cunard cruise. Although the small dining room was nice (and I had fantastic tablemates), I would never pay the extra to be in Club.

[seacruise9]

Hi,

 

I have done five transatlantic crossings on Cunard ships (QE2, 1984, 2001 and 2003), QM2 (2014), and Queen Victoria (2015). Also, I have sailed aboard the QM2 twice following its major refurbishment last year (Canada / New England in late September 2016 and Hong Kong to Singapore in April 2017). I highly recommend taking a transatlantic crossing aboard the QM2. The ship is better than ever following its "remastering" last year.

 

In my experience, the weather during transatlantic crossings can vary tremendously. If the weather is bad, however, there is plenty to do inside the ship. Also, the ship is very well constructed and can handle rough seas. Cunard has many interesting lectures on a variety of topics during the day. Also, I greatly enjoy the afternoon tea every afternoon in the Queens Room. I also like the dining options and the entertainment during the evening.

 

After sailing on crossings in both directions (three westbound and two eastbound), I prefer westbound crossings (with the 25 hour days).

 

I also enjoy meeting the other passengers on Cunard ships. They usually are very well-traveled and interesting.

 

Although I have never booked a Britannia Club stateroom, I have always been pleased with the main Britannia Restaurant.

 

A Cunard transatlantic crossing is a wonderful and unique travel experience.

 

Chuck

[resistk]

The only potential downside is bad weather which is unpredictable. I don't get seasick but the Mrs. takes to her bed when the waves are three meters or more. The stabilizers on the QM2 are awesome so I can't understand those who go green. I would say the nothern crossing does have more weather potentilal than say a Miami crossing along the southerly route. But bad weather can strike anywhere, the worse I ever saw was on the old Discovery Sun doing the Pt. Everglades to Freeport run with waves breaking over the top of the old ship. People were praying for divine intercession, rolling around in the hallways and passed out. But the QM2 is a solidy built liner, it can take anything.

[abefroman329]

But bad weather can strike anywhere, the worse I ever saw was on the old Discovery Sun doing the Pt. Everglades to Freeport run with waves breaking over the top of the old ship. People were praying for divine intercession, rolling around in the hallways and passed out.

 

My parents' first cruise was a Caribbean cruise whose initial path was through a hurricane. The crew of that ship wisely chose to go around the hurricane and skip a port or two. Another ship went through the hurricane. When both ships arrived in port, the passengers who were on the ship that went through the hurricane all but kissed the ground on arrival.

[BlueRiband]

On my first TA the ship was pitching. On the next crossing it was so calm that one didn't even feel that the ship was moving. I'm wait listed for what will be my ninth crossing.

 

Whenever anybody asks if a higher accommodation is "worth it" nobody here can answer yes or no. We can tell you our experiences but we don't know what is important to you nor do we know your finances. For me a balcony of some kind is "worth it" because access to fresh ocean air at any hour is very important to me. Others find inside cabins a tremendous bargain and the extra money to book a balcony isn't "worth it".

 

The main selling point of Britannia Club is the restaurant within a restaurant. If having the same table for all mails, and flexibility in when you show up for dinner along with the extras are a priority for you then it may be "worth it". However all Britannia Club cabins are in the forward part of the ship and are therefore most prone to motion in rough seas. But if you want sun that's not obstructed by lifeboats or decks above that's the way to go.