Cunard World Club

[RJChatsworth]

When we first qualified, it was a pleasure to attend the World Club party, we could even sit down, but now there is little room to stand up. I am sure the Captains' opened up more on Cunard's future developments when it was an exclusive group rather than they do now. It is the same for the Officers' party.

 

In those days on transatlantics we also had numerous other parties e.g. The Chief Engineer's and the Hotel & Restaurant Manager's and I am sure the more elevated, in those days, Chief Purser also held one. Presumably they were all phased out when the numbers attending became excessive.

 

 

When they introduced Grills and World Club exclusive check in you'd sail through embarkation. Now if you catch it wrong the queue can be longer than the normal check in.

 

 

It seems that first time cruisers are a more exclusive category than World Club Members without the benefits.

 

 

Perhaps it is getting out of hand and time for a membership revision to make the benefits more exclusive, dependent on days/nights travelled, rather than it is with the current, bedlam situation.

[DT_PB_all_at_sea]

When we first qualified, it was a pleasure to attend the World Club party, we could even sit down, but now there is little room to stand up. I am sure the Captains' opened up more on Cunard's future developments when it was an exclusive group rather than they do now. It is the same for the Officers' party.

 

In those days on transatlantics we also had numerous other parties e.g. The Chief Engineer's and the Hotel & Restaurant Manager's and I am sure the more elevated, in those days, Chief Purser also held one. Presumably they were all phased out when the numbers attending became excessive.

 

 

When they introduced Grills and World Club exclusive check in you'd sail through embarkation. Now if you catch it wrong the queue can be longer than the normal check in.

 

 

It seems that first time cruisers are a more exclusive category than World Club Members without the benefits.

 

 

Perhaps it is getting out of hand and time for a membership revision to make the benefits more exclusive, dependent on days/nights travelled, rather than it is with the current, bedlam situation.

 

- As a Diamond WC Member I tend to agree - the ranks are so full now with more and more loyal and serious cruisers as members of World Club. The World Club Party feels far from exclusive or special, overcrowded, indeed we seldom go to it unless our favourite Future Cruise Advisor 'Dragona' is on board.

- even the Senior Officers Parties are not what they used to be and they seem desperate to move on to the next scheduled social gathering.

- Given the resent mess around the new HAL managers changing the dress code this Summer I think it likely that they will be chomping at the bit to get their teeth into the WC loyalty scheme - they could introduce a higher rank that Diamond, say Sapphire to start 'thinning out the ranks' hopefully not ruining it.

[RJChatsworth]

David - agree with you about Dragana. Whenever we take a cruise and she's onboard she calls us in our cabin before we sail. She scrutinises the passenger list.

 

In her days on QM-2 she was able to recommend passengers for the Captain's table and we had several entertaining dinners with different captains.

 

On QV earlier this year the World Club Party was split in two with both on the same evening. There must be a message there.

 

Reminiscing for a second, on QE-2, the Officer's Party was held in the Wardroom. I think it was the only non-Naval ship with a Wardroom. It was a small oak panelled room at the front of the ship, looking forward, with low lights and bags of atmosphere. Another perk lost, if QM-2 has a Wardroom, due to numbers!

[Queenvee]

RJChatsworth - I remember the parties in the QE2 Wardroom. Now, those felt exclusive and I feel as if the officers outnumbered the guests. Unlike the current state of World Club parties. I assume the Grills folks have their own parties?

[RJChatsworth]

Whenever we have been in the Grills there has been no separation from the other restaurants at the World Club or Officers' Parties. It is only the Captain's Welcoming Party where the Grills passengers have had their own.

 

When the Officers' Party on QE-2 was in the Wardroom the Officers mingled more than they seem to now. Generally, they now appear to spend more time talking to their colleagues.

[majortom10]

On our last cruise on QE in October we were in a Queens Grill suite and we had no seperate parties just for grill passengers at the Welcome Aboard, Captain's Cocktail or CWC.

[RJChatsworth]

Major Tom 10 - how do you know the Grills (sometimes includes Club Balcony) Welcoming Party included Britannia Restaurant? The giveaway is Grills' Passengers get a personal invite whereas the Britannia Welcoming Party is advertised in the Daily Programme. On recent cruises we have been on they have been on different evenings.

[wripro]

I stopped attending these parties years ago. Too long a line to get in, too many people crowding the space. All this for a lousy free drink? No, thanks.

[RJChatsworth]

I believe we are getting off topic. We'll have Host Hattie after us soon!

 

Is it time to make changes to the Cunard World Club? If so a higher level than Diamond - Plutonium?!!

[majortom10]

Major Tom 10 - how do you know the Grills (sometimes includes Club Balcony) Welcoming Party included Britannia Restaurant? The giveaway is Grills' Passengers get a personal invite whereas the Britannia Welcoming Party is advertised in the Daily Programme. On recent cruises we have been on they have been on different evenings.

 

Because nearly the whole ship was at the Welcome Aboard Party it was absolutely packed and we shared a table with a couple that were in Britannia restaurant.

[ExArkie]

...If so a higher level than Diamond - Plutonium?!!

 

Plutonium was, last I heard, around 80 times more expensive per gram than platinum, but only about one-tenth the cost of diamonds on a per gram basis. A related material to plutonium, though, californium-252 (a rare radioactive material used as a neutron source, largely in research applications) was running in the neighborhood of US$27 million per gram. Fortunately, microgram quantities are quite adequate for neutron sources.

 

Somehow, I doubt that a Cf-252 loyalty level would make others envious of one's elevated stature.

[Host Hattie]

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