On board QE

[mat5664]

Start of 12 night Canary Islsnds cruise with my 82 yr old mother.

 

Arrived 1pm even though our official time was 2.30pm (no traffic) and they were only too pleased to check us straight in and straight on board.  Check in was pretty deserted.

 

My first Cunard experience.  So far so good.  Our 2 cabins are decent, lunch in the buffet was nothing special but ok and we have been allocated our requested table for 2 in the Britannia.

 

Off to the drill.....

[Host Hattie]

Have a great time

[zider]

Just of the 2 nightery and apart from new carpets all-round  visually nothing has changed, They have a new spa Franchise  and the new Shops are the same  apart from the staff in  some of the shops which now are Chinese and their understanding of English is not that good,  The Grills top Terrace  the padded Chairs some of the covers are badly stained  and some very Frayed and the paintwork is a disgrace chipped paintwork on the stairs to deck 10 ,Bars out of stock of everything or still in bond  New Carpets still bedding in lots of fluff everywhere.    

[Aspidestra99]

We were recently on QE and I'm surprised the cushions on the lounges on the lower terrace haven't been replaced. They were thinner and scruffier than those on the upper terrace. However while we were on board in October the handrails on the terrace were refurbished. I took this to indicate further work was planned.

 

I was concerned that QE would be a bit shabby prior to her refit but was pleasantly surprised. She was spotless as far as I could see and very comfortable.

 

We've booked a short cruise next year so we can get our QE fix and see what has changed.😊

 

I hope you have a fab time on board.

[Paulpgr]

Hi mat5664,

 

Could you please do us a favour and let me know what time you arrive and depart Madeira tomorrow 6 Dec.

I need the information for when we arrive their on our cruise 21 Dec.

 

All Cunard will say it will arrive early morning and depart late afternoon.

 

Thanks for any help you can give.

[durante]

Hi Paulpgr ,

Cruisecal shows provisional schedule for QE at Madeira on 21 December from 8am to 5pm.

[sogne]

2 hours ago, Paulpgr said:

Hi mat5664,

 

Could you please do us a favour and let me know what time you arrive and depart Madeira tomorrow 6 Dec.

I need the information for when we arrive their on our cruise 21 Dec.

 

All Cunard will say it will arrive early morning and depart late afternoon.

 

Thanks for any help you can give.

http://www.apram.pt/site/index.php/en/ports/wharf-reservations

 

Madeira Port Authority times are 0800-1700

[Paulpgr]

Thank You durante and sogne for your replies most helpful.

[mat5664]

have arrived back.  Self disembarkation as easy as the embarkation.

 

Overall, Cruise was excellent.  Ship is very nice - cabin was clean and comfortable.  

 

Staff were very good and fellow passengers (mostly British) were friendly, although average age was 70+ and I felt rather young at 54!

 

Some points:

 

- Food in the Britannia was very mixed and portion sizes were at times ridiculously small.  Towards the end of the cruise (although we hadn't said anything) we were routinely offered double portions of the main course  - so I guess they had received complaints.  

 

- Internet prices are absurd. As someone who had to check work emails on board, $49 for 2 hours was just crazy and not justifiable, especially as it didn't work very well some of the time.

 

-Drink prices are similarly high and can easily add up.  I would recommend if on a budget taking wine on board and paying the $20 corkage fee.

 

On the other hand, we ate in the Veranda (now a Steak House) and it was pretty decent.

 

I would definitely avoid both the soft drinks package and the coffee package.  You can get unlimited coffee/tea and some fruit juices any time of day or night in the buffet.  

 

I think next year we will go back to P&O which I think is better value but I would go Cunard again.

[majortom10]

1 minute ago, mat5664 said:

have arrived back.  Self disembarkation as easy as the embarkation.

 

Overall, Cruise was excellent.  Ship is very nice - cabin was clean and comfortable.  

 

Staff were very good and fellow passengers (mostly British) were friendly, although average age was 70+ and I felt rather young at 54!

 

Some points:

 

- Food in the Britannia was very mixed and portion sizes were at times ridiculously small.  Towards the end of the cruise (although we hadn't said anything) we were routinely offered double portions of the main course  - so I guess they had received complaints.  

 

- Internet prices are absurd. As someone who had to check work emails on board, $49 for 2 hours was just crazy and not justifiable, especially as it didn't work very well some of the time.

 

-Drink prices are similarly high and can easily add up.  I would recommend if on a budget taking wine on board and paying the $20 corkage fee.

 

On the other hand, we ate in the Veranda (now a Steak House) and it was pretty decent.

 

I would definitely avoid both the soft drinks package and the coffee package.  You can get unlimited coffee/tea and some fruit juices any time of day or night in the buffet.  

 

I think next year we will go back to P&O which I think is better value but I would go Cunard again.

According to Cunard's website corkage is now $25.

[mat5664]

9 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

According to Cunard's website corkage is now $25.

 

It was $20 on our cruise.  

[Host Hattie]

Thanks for reporting back, good to hear that your cruise was excellent.