Bar soap???

[Sweetpea711423]

I know this will seem like a very strange question, because it is.  My husband and I are booked on a cruise on the Silver Moon for late July.  We haven't been on Silversea for a number of years.  A few weeks ago we were on a transatlantic crossing on the QM2 in Queens Grill.  To our surprise there was no bar soap in the cabin -- only shower gel and hand gel.  We have made many transatlantic crossings over the years in Queens Grill on both the QM2 and the QE2, and this was never the case.  We found it quite annoying.  So now we're wondering if other ships are making a similar change.  What about Silversea?  Is bar soap still something that is standard in the cabins?  Thanks for your help.

[RachelG]

Yes, it is there.  And very nice.

[Sweetpea711423]

39 minutes ago, RachelG said:

Yes, it is there.  And very nice.

Many thanks!

[skleeb]

On 5/22/2022 at 8:06 PM, Sweetpea711423 said:

Many thanks!

Will you do a comparison between the 2 lines? I was planning a QM2 crossing(NY to Southampton and back)and I have done 2 transatlantic with Silversea. Enjoyed Ss immenseley (sp?) but want to look at other possiblities.

 

[Host Hattie]

It's too late now but bar soap is available on Cunard, your cabin steward would have provided some.

[Sweetpea711423]

On 5/24/2022 at 12:40 PM, skleeb said:

Will you do a comparison between the 2 lines? I was planning a QM2 crossing(NY to Southampton and back)and I have done 2 transatlantic with Silversea. Enjoyed Ss immenseley (sp?) but want to look at other possiblities.

 

Sorry I didn't see this until now.  I'll try to give you my sense of both lines (while of course recognizing that this is all subjective, and both have good and bad points).

 

My husband and I have done many cruises on Silversea over many years (starting in 2004).  We have truly enjoyed them all.  Generally felt that they had great food, service, cabins, etc.  Shows and "enrichment" have been a mixed bag, but often have been outstanding.  We are sorry that they started including excursions, since we have always arranged our own private tours.  So we'll see how that goes.

 

We have done many crossings on Cunard (first on the Queen Elizabeth 2 starting in 2000, then on the Queen Mary 2).  Other than a cruise on the new Queen Elizabeth that went from Japan (with various stops) across the Pacific to Alaska (with various stops), we have never done any cruise on a Cunard ship.  Only crossings.  For us Cunard ships are too large to take if there are port stops.  (We chose to do the Japan-Alaska cruise on Cunard because we thought a larger ship would do better crossing the Pacific).

 

Now a transatlantic crossing is another story.  It is an experience onto itself.  It is not a repositioning cruise, as it would have been with Silversea.  It is 7 nights on the water.   Westbound you get the bonus of gaining an hour almost every day, as opposed to losing an hour almost every day on the eastbound crossing.

 

Historically crossings were more formal than other cruises usually are.  That has changed a bit in recent years (a change that I am not happy about).  It used to be that the first and last night of the crossing was casual, while all other nights were formal.  And that meant men in tuxes and women in gowns, or similar attire.  On our last 7 night crossing, there were only 2 formal nights.  People still dress up for that, but not as much as before.  And on the other nights, people still dress "nicely"; just less formally.

 

Often there are excellent "Enrichment" speakers, who you also have an opportunity to interact with if you desire.  For example, off the stop of my head, we've had P.D. James; Geoffrey Howe, former Deputy Prime Minister to Margaret Thatcher; Tom Parker Bowles, food writer and son of Camilla Parker Bowles; someone whose name I can't remember who had been press secretary to Queen Elizabeth II; and John Sebastian and Donovan (singers from the 60's). 

 

There is always lots of live music in different venues, shows in the evening (quality varies), sometimes shortened versions of Shakespeare plays by actors from an English acting company I can't remember, sometimes nighttime stories by the same group of actors, and things like that.  There is a large and excellent library.  There are lots of classes (bridge; dance; painting; needlepoint, I think; napkin-folding; etc.) There is a Planetarium with a number of different shows during the crossing.

 

Mainly there is a sense of this being something different. You're just there watching the ocean go by, relaxing, reading, etc.  There are plenty of spaces to do that -- even though there are obviously many more people onboard than on a Silversea ship, it doesn't feel crowded.  Oh, don't assume you'll be spending a lot of time on your balcony or sitting on a deck chair outside -- you are crossing the Atlantic and you should assume it will be too cold for that most of the time, regardless of the time of year you cross.

 

As to food, I would say that Queens Grill is very good, but not as good as my memory of Silversea.  Our most recent crossing in May was our first on Cunard post-this Covid business, and I would say that the food wasn't quite as good as we had remembered.  However, you can order off-menu in Queens Grill and they are happy to make anything for you if they have the ingredients onboard.  Just be sure to ask by lunch on the day you want it for dinner.  I would say that our best meals were, for the most part, the ones we ordered off-menu. 

 

Please keep in mind that much of my description was pre-Covid, and things during our crossing in May seemed at times to be a bit "off", like my description of the food.  The enrichment lecturers seemed more "B"-level speakers rather than "A" level.  Same with the shows.  The butler we had in our Queens Grill suite was not very good at all.

 

All that being said, we still had a wonderful time, and would definitely do it again (as we have in the past).  You should remember that Silversea is a luxury line, and so essentially everything you come in contact with is at a luxury level.  The Queen Mary 2 (or any Cunard ship, for that matter) is not a luxury ship.  If you are in Queens Grill (or Princess Grill), your cabin will be larger and you will eat in one of the Grills restaurants, with better food.  You will also have access to the Grills Lounge and the Grills Concierge.  However, other than that, your experience will be the same as everyone else onboard, which means at more of a "premium" level, rather than luxury.  

 

Hope this helps, and I would be glad to try to answer any specific questions you might have.  And again, sorry for the delay in responding to your question. 

[saminina]

Nice review on the Cunard crossings.   Top deck, outside......it's a kick watching people and their dogs.

 

[skleeb]

Thank you, sweetpea, for the excellent comparison of the 2 lines.I have a couple transatlantics in the pipeline with Ss(Dec.'22 and Nov.'23), so I'm not sure when I could try the Cunard crossing money-wise.The classes and guest speakers sound delightful, though.I'm sure I would partake in as many of those as possible on the QM2. There's not as much going on with Ss during the sea days.I may be spoiled for Ss, though, you are right, it is pure luxury all the time. This is a wonderful problem to have, isn't it? Deciding on which beautiful ship I want to take me across the ocean!!!

[ronrick1943]

Thank you, we are planning a crossing on Cunard, your review is great.  My idea is relax and do nothing—just relaxing for 7 days.

[yayoye]

There were 2 bars of soap in the bathroom on Silver Cloud (May 14 to June 1 cruise).