Live From the QM2--July 29-August 5 Westbound

[taxatty]

Now that the Internet here is finally working decently (maybe because we’re near the US coast), I can finally do a “Live From…” review.

 

DW and I are recent Medicare qualifiers, first-time Cunard cruisers, but over 35 cruises in total on RCI, Princess, Celebrity, AMA, and Silversea. Today is the last full day of the cruise to NY and the first one with decent Internet, hence this review.

 

Some random notes:

 

1.       The weather is sunny and gorgeous, as was embarkation day in Southampton. Everything in between has been overcast, foggy and windy, with the foghorn constantly blowing, except for two hours one day after lunch. The outdoor pools and decks have been mostly empty until now except for walkers on Deck 7 like us. I feel bad for the poor Brits expecting to enjoy the sun loungers, but they’re out in force today.

 

2.       We have a Deck 13 Britannia Club stateroom and have been very happy with space, the balcony, the glass shower door, our cabin steward, and the much more intimate BC dining area versus the giant regular dining room. Even on Deck 13 at the top and very forward, there has been very little discernable movement because the seas fortunately have been calm the whole time.

 

3.       We took the train from Oxford (where we spent a couple of days pre-cruise—very interesting and enjoyable, an easy bus ride from Heathrow) to Southampton and arrived at the port around 10:00 (too far to walk there with luggage from the train station, and a cheap taxi ride). We were able to drop off our luggage shortly after 11:00, entered the comfortable departures area soon after, and were on the ship before 1:00. All in all, very smooth and organized.

 

4.       This ship must have the longest straight corridors of any ship at sea. We have found it beautifully and tastefully decorated--by far, the most attractive ship we have ever sailed on. Most importantly, I found Homer Simpson in a lovely mural.

 

5.       The presenters, especially Gary McKechnie on rock and roll legends and Nikki Chapman on her TV shows have been uniformly excellent. The other entertainment (the QM2 singers and dancers, a very funny British comedian, the 4 Tunes and others) have been good and worth seeing. We gave the dance sessions in the Queen’s Room a shot on the Black & White and Masquerade nights (I’m guessing most of the men were wearing tuxes and the women were dressed to the hilt), and it was great fun to watch the talented dancers. On the other hand, at least IMHO, the band played very forced and convoluted arrangements of songs by Coldplay, the Troggs and Lady Gaga, and the attempt to make them fit ballroom dances didn’t work. It was almost like imagining Richard Cheese & Lounge Against the Machine playing Holiday in the Sun as a tango or Highway to Hell as a foxtrot.

 

6.       Various reviews here have complained that the ship’s maintenance isn’t up to snuff. Frankly, the broken seats in Illuminations, the non-functioning machines in the fitness center and the rust spots around the ship haven’t ruined our cruise. Upon boarding, I noticed that our veranda wooden railing looked terrible with large white spots. Without us saying anything, while I was reading a book the next day on the balcony, several crew members arrived with a new railing and replaced it in a few minutes.

 

7.       We have found the dining to be better in choice and taste than every other line we have been on except Silversea—which isn’t a fair comparison. At most, our BC dining room has been half-full at any meal. We did one dinner at the extra-charge Veranda restaurant and found the food to be superb and well worth the money.

 

8.       Our first three times having afternoon tea were years ago in London at Fortnum & Mason, Harrods, and the Ritz, so anything else isn’t a fair comparison. Be that as it may, on this cruise we have done both the regular afternoon tea in the Queen’s Room and the extra cost Godiva version at Sir Samuel’s, both of which were far superior to Princess and Silversea’s versions.

 

9.       The service has been uniformly excellent. Almost every crew member greets us when we pass by. When we had an issue with the location of our BC table, we were moved to a table we liked much better at the next meal.

 

10.   DW is a retired librarian and is of course very impressed with what must be by far the best library at sea. There is no longer a full-time librarian however—just a regular crew member—another cost-cutting measure.

 

11.   Finally, hardly anyone has been wearing masks except the crew, even though there are requests before every show to wear them. No reports of any COVID cases on board.

 

Overall, both of us have greatly enjoyed this cruise and we would definitely sail on a Cunard ship again. Although there has been plenty to do each day, however, it may be awhile before we can handle this many consecutive sea days again.

 

I can hopefully answer any questions you may have after we disembark tomorrow morning.

 

[Host Hattie]

Thank you very much for taking the time to post, enjoy your last night on board.

[BklynBoy8]

46 minutes ago, taxatty said:

Now that the Internet here is finally working decently (maybe because we’re near the US coast), I can finally do a “Live From…” review.

 

DW and I are recent Medicare qualifiers, first-time Cunard cruisers, but over 35 cruises in total on RCI, Princess, Celebrity, AMA, and Silversea. Today is the last full day of the cruise to NY and the first one with decent Internet, hence this review.

 

Some random notes:

 

1.       The weather is sunny and gorgeous, as was embarkation day in Southampton. Everything in between has been overcast, foggy and windy, with the foghorn constantly blowing, except for two hours one day after lunch. The outdoor pools and decks have been mostly empty until now except for walkers on Deck 7 like us. I feel bad for the poor Brits expecting to enjoy the sun loungers, but they’re out in force today.

 

2.       We have a Deck 13 Britannia Club stateroom and have been very happy with space, the balcony, the glass shower door, our cabin steward, and the much more intimate BC dining area versus the giant regular dining room. Even on Deck 13 at the top and very forward, there has been very little discernable movement because the seas fortunately have been calm the whole time.

 

3.       We took the train from Oxford (where we spent a couple of days pre-cruise—very interesting and enjoyable, an easy bus ride from Heathrow) to Southampton and arrived at the port around 10:00 (too far to walk there with luggage from the train station, and a cheap taxi ride). We were able to drop off our luggage shortly after 11:00, entered the comfortable departures area soon after, and were on the ship before 1:00. All in all, very smooth and organized.

 

4.       This ship must have the longest straight corridors of any ship at sea. We have found it beautifully and tastefully decorated--by far, the most attractive ship we have ever sailed on. Most importantly, I found Homer Simpson in a lovely mural.

 

5.       The presenters, especially Gary McKechnie on rock and roll legends and Nikki Chapman on her TV shows have been uniformly excellent. The other entertainment (the QM2 singers and dancers, a very funny British comedian, the 4 Tunes and others) have been good and worth seeing. We gave the dance sessions in the Queen’s Room a shot on the Black & White and Masquerade nights (I’m guessing most of the men were wearing tuxes and the women were dressed to the hilt), and it was great fun to watch the talented dancers. On the other hand, at least IMHO, the band played very forced and convoluted arrangements of songs by Coldplay, the Troggs and Lady Gaga, and the attempt to make them fit ballroom dances didn’t work. It was almost like imagining Richard Cheese & Lounge Against the Machine playing Holiday in the Sun as a tango or Highway to Hell as a foxtrot.

 

6.       Various reviews here have complained that the ship’s maintenance isn’t up to snuff. Frankly, the broken seats in Illuminations, the non-functioning machines in the fitness center and the rust spots around the ship haven’t ruined our cruise. Upon boarding, I noticed that our veranda wooden railing looked terrible with large white spots. Without us saying anything, while I was reading a book the next day on the balcony, several crew members arrived with a new railing and replaced it in a few minutes.

 

7.       We have found the dining to be better in choice and taste than every other line we have been on except Silversea—which isn’t a fair comparison. At most, our BC dining room has been half-full at any meal. We did one dinner at the extra-charge Veranda restaurant and found the food to be superb and well worth the money.

 

8.       Our first three times having afternoon tea were years ago in London at Fortnum & Mason, Harrods, and the Ritz, so anything else isn’t a fair comparison. Be that as it may, on this cruise we have done both the regular afternoon tea in the Queen’s Room and the extra cost Godiva version at Sir Samuel’s, both of which were far superior to Princess and Silversea’s versions.

 

9.       The service has been uniformly excellent. Almost every crew member greets us when we pass by. When we had an issue with the location of our BC table, we were moved to a table we liked much better at the next meal.

 

10.   DW is a retired librarian and is of course very impressed with what must be by far the best library at sea. There is no longer a full-time librarian however—just a regular crew member—another cost-cutting measure.

 

11.   Finally, hardly anyone has been wearing masks except the crew, even though there are requests before every show to wear them. No reports of any COVID cases on board.

 

Overall, both of us have greatly enjoyed this cruise and we would definitely sail on a Cunard ship again. Although there has been plenty to do each day, however, it may be awhile before we can handle this many consecutive sea days again.

 

I can hopefully answer any questions you may have after we disembark tomorrow morning.

 

 

Thank you...

 

Glad u enjoyed BC, our favorite.

 

Get ready arriving in the Big Baked Apple tomorrow..We are in a High Heat, Humid trend till Sunday. Could be uncomfortable tomorrow near 100 temperature not including Heat Index. Different than crossing the Pond...

[D&N]

13 hours ago, taxatty said:

On the other hand, at least IMHO, the band played very forced and convoluted arrangements of songs by Coldplay, the Troggs and Lady Gaga, and the attempt to make them fit ballroom dances didn’t work. It was almost like imagining Richard Cheese & Lounge Against the Machine playing Holiday in the Sun as a tango or Highway to Hell as a foxtrot.

There have been several posters agreeing with this.  We experienced it and had a friendly word with Jack & Esther (assuming they were still onboard). But we got impression that their playlist was approved by Cunard and they had limited scope to deviate from it.

 

Strictly Come Dancing and it's various international spin-offs do it as well.

 

It's one of my pet hates.  It doesn't make us instinctively want to jump up on the dance floor.

[Cdogg]

I agree with most of the above. However we got all cov pos in my group (3) last night and test after leaving so draw your own conclusions about lack of problem. It’s likely that those most likely to be unknowingly positive wore no mask. We’re fully vaccinated and wore masks practically as much as possible. Older group wore masks but still low overall like 10% and reducing over time. In my opinion the honor based system for reporting test result at boarding is a disaster. A mid trip 100% test would also be nice. I.e. The way it used to be. 

[majortom10]

We should have been on this roundtrip TA Sou-NY-Sou but we pulled the plug on it a while back and moved it to May next year.

[taxatty]

We also liked the very good performance by the young RSC members on the ship (it was a little disappointing that there was only one such performance) and the interesting Queen's Room workshops that they conducted. We learned a lot about how they prepare for a show.

[taxatty]

2 hours ago, Cdogg said:

I agree with most of the above. However we got all cov pos in my group (3) last night and test after leaving so draw your own conclusions about lack of problem. It’s likely that those most likely to be unknowingly positive wore no mask. We’re fully vaccinated and wore masks practically as much as possible. Older group wore masks but still low overall like 10% and reducing over time. In my opinion the honor based system for reporting test result at boarding is a disaster. A mid trip 100% test would also be nice. I.e. The way it used to be. 

Sorry to hear about the positive tests. I absolutely agree with you that the "honor system" is a copout and a rapid antigen test during the cruise would be a cheap and easy way to separate out the infected.

[TheOldBear]

Mrs Bear and I were wondering if the Britannia late seating has returned to fixed table assignments?

[taxatty]

17 hours ago, TheOldBear said:

Mrs Bear and I were wondering if the Britannia late seating has returned to fixed table assignments?

I can't help you on that one--we were in Britannia Club.

[moses0]

17 hours ago, TheOldBear said:

Mrs Bear and I were wondering if the Britannia late seating has returned to fixed table assignments?

It had not as of 4th AUG ‘I did ask if they were going and was told they would soon. I actually prefer it the way it is now

[Lakesregion]

21 hours ago, TheOldBear said:

Mrs Bear and I were wondering if the Britannia late seating has returned to fixed table assignments?

For the 2024 world cruise there are three choices. Early assigned Late assigned and anytime dining/

[Lady Hudson]

Thank you for your report.  Can’t wait to book another transatlantic crossing.  Katherine 

[BklynBoy8]

25 minutes ago, Lady Hudson said:

Thank you for your report.  Can’t wait to book another transatlantic crossing.  Katherine 

 

Hi Lady Hudson....Keep Safe......

[GonzoWCS]

Thanks for this review.

 

Cheers

[Cdogg]

Just a latish FYI that other family with us also tested, post crossing, 100% covid pos. Very small sample but 100% positivity. Spread between family likely in Britannia restaurant but spread to at least one initial member somewhere else most likely. Spread within family likely via asymptomatic carrier within same state room.

This is self report (honor based) pre board testing in action and what you get. Self report isn't good enough (Cunard / CDC policy) for east bound TA but it is for west bound from Southampton. For those wondering why we didn't cancel / defer (good question), the policy changed on 21st July - i.e. too late (already traveled in opposite direction and little appetite for finding a late flight out of London mid summer and mid season plagued with cancelations). Since we want to keep this within bounds of the board's rules, I continue to think Cunard's policy change is backwards. They should revert to certificated based pre boarding testing and/or terminal 100% testing plus a 100% testing around every three days during voyage until proven to be unnecessary. Masks mandatory in public spaces - only exceptions being outside and during dining / drinking - and then ideally with better spacing.

What is tolerable ashore (mask recommendations, not mandates) isn't sufficient aboard. (Masks are far from perfect - but we are talking disease spread statistics here - not whether every individual is 100% protected.)

"We may be finished with COVID but COVID isn't finished with us".

[ballroom-cruisers]

Let's face it, even with the strictest protocols there will always be some level of risk that you could be infected whilst on board, at least it would seem that way for the voyages in the past month or two. In fact it looks from the figures that I have seen that there are fewer cases per 100 people on Cunard cruises, than on land (in the UK it is around 1 in 20 people in the population who are infected at any moment in recent months, varying a little either side of that, and currently in the UK gradually going down).  It looks like there is less than 5% infected on recent Cunard cruises if the information I have seen is correct. Whatever happens, we all accept that risk is not zero.  Hopefully no new nasty variants will emerge that change the situation.

[Mortalgroove]

Thank you for your review. We are just starting to research options for our 30th anniversary in 2025 (I enjoy the research/planning of a trip almost as much as the actual trip). Thinking of flying from US to London, 7-10 days in land, then taking QM2 back to US

[taxatty]

23 minutes ago, Mortalgroove said:

Thank you for your review. We are just starting to research options for our 30th anniversary in 2025 (I enjoy the research/planning of a trip almost as much as the actual trip). Thinking of flying from US to London, 7-10 days in land, then taking QM2 back to US

I have the same addiction to planning trips on my own. If you aren't already aware, presuming there are no transit strikes going on, it's quite easy to get to the QM2 in Southampton by train or bus from many places in England. Alternatively, some people we know have rented a car and dropped it off in Southampton before a cruise. This website has always been helpful for planning our trips to and around London: https://www.londontoolkit.com/