Excitement is building, help with two questions please!

[pratt2]

Our first QM2 trip is due to depart NY Oct 7 for the transatlantic sailing to Great Britain.

I called our cruise planner today and asked if my boarding time could be linked with my sisters.

She advised that boarding is done by deck (with of course exceptions for those in PG/QG and I suspect past Cunard passengers) and she could not link this.

Curious if anyone on this board knows if they start boarding lower deck to top deck or vice versa? 

Secondly, we have been given a Promo special buffet at Kings Court and our choices include Indian, Italian and Asian. (we have great Mexican Restaurant  here)

And though food is subjective, any recommendations?

Finally, a thanks to all of you here who post reviews and answer questions. I have been following along since we booked and rebooked over the past two years.

In addition the  videos of the QM2 posted here and on you tube are wonderful

 

By the By

My cruise planner suggested a look at the Cunard web site on Tuesday 9/6 for "Updates" 

 

Edited September 1, 2022 by pratt2
wrong date

[gengens]

I'm going on QM2 on Sunday and our boarding time is 3.30pm for deck 5 so definitely one of the later ones. I expect they must do it top to bottom. 

 

In terms of the food, you'll find sample menus for Bamboo, Coriander and La Piazza (the Asian, Indian and Italian evenings you mention) in the useful links topic which is pinned near the top of the board 😊

Edited September 1, 2022 by gengens

[pratt2]

Thank you@gengens for your information 

we are on the observation deck, keeping fingers crossed for an early boarding

have a wonderful time on your trip!

[Jack E Dawson]

2 hours ago, pratt2 said:

She advised that boarding is done by deck

With all due respect to your TA, based on our 3 QM2 Crossings and the experience of friends, boarding is not done by deck. On the other hand, I haven't been able to see any rhyme or reason to the boarding time assignments (other than QG & PG). But the good news is that you and your sisters can all show up at the same time and board together. Assigned boarding times don't seem to be strongly enforced, if at all. We have never been asked about our boarding time during embarkcation.   

Hope you will share your Crossing experience with the rest of us and get ready for an amazing experience.

Jack

[3rdGenCunarder]

8 minutes ago, Jack E Dawson said:

With all due respect to your TA, based on our 3 QM2 Crossings and the experience of friends, boarding is not done by deck. On the other hand, I haven't been able to see any rhyme or reason to the boarding time assignments (other than QG & PG). But the good news is that you and your sisters can all show up at the same time and board together. Assigned boarding times don't seem to be strongly enforced, if at all. We have never been asked about our boarding time during embarkcation.   

Hope you will share your Crossing experience with the rest of us and get ready for an amazing experience.

Jack

 

I agree about the times. Whether I'm in steerage or Grills, I don't see any pattern. Disembarkation times do seem to be top to bottom. 

 

[LittleFish1976]

3 hours ago, Jack E Dawson said:

Assigned boarding times don't seem to be strongly enforced, if at all. We have never been asked about our boarding time during embarkcation.

 

Presumably people arriving to check in at the time they've been asked to do so minimises the crowding and waiting that people dislike so much.

 

Is 'not being sent away' the reason you're suggesting it's okay to arrive at your whim at the port?

 

[BigMac1953]

A few months ago, my son and his (new) wife were given boarding times 2 hours apart!

 

They arrived at the earlier one and had no problems.

[exlondoner]

As to your other question, over the years we have had very nice meals in Coriander and La Piazza, both with enormous portions. I would certainly recommend each of them.

[PORT ROYAL]

12 hours ago, pratt2 said:

Our first QM2 trip is due to depart NY Oct 7 for the transatlantic sailing to Great Britain.

I called our cruise planner today and asked if my boarding time could be linked with my sisters.

She advised that boarding is done by deck (with of course exceptions for those in PG/QG and I suspect past Cunard passengers) and she could not link this.

Curious if anyone on this board knows if they start boarding lower deck to top deck or vice versa? 

Secondly, we have been given a Promo special buffet at Kings Court and our choices include Indian, Italian and Asian. (we have great Mexican Restaurant  here)

And though food is subjective, any recommendations?

Finally, a thanks to all of you here who post reviews and answer questions. I have been following along since we booked and rebooked over the past two years.

In addition the  videos of the QM2 posted here and on you tube are wonderful

 

By the By

My cruise planner suggested a look at the Cunard web site on Tuesday 9/6 for "Updates" 

 

One’s suggestion would be on taking La Piazza, look towards the bottom of menu under mains.  There you’ll see a special Cunard pasta dish.  Take it, as the meal is prepared with seafood on one’s choice and prepared (flambé) table side by the HW.  
Enjoy…

 

[Jack E Dawson]

11 hours ago, LittleFish1976 said:

Is 'not being sent away' the reason you're suggesting it's okay to arrive at your whim at the port?

The short answer LittleFish1976 is YES, although I'm not sure who you are quoting above. And since confession is good for the soul, I will tell you that I also bring on board more that 1 bottle of wine because I can get away with it despite Cunard's stated restrictions. 

Actually I'm not suggesting anything to the OP but am telling them the fact that, in my experience, on Crossings, assigned boarding times are not checked or followed by the Cunard terminal agents other than for Grills passengers.  In effect, Cunard is giving tacit approval to arrive a the terminal anytime you want in the same way they are giving tacit approval to bring on as much alcohol as you want.

LittleFish1976, I love sailing on Cunard but as I have said many times before, there are 3 things they do poorly; website, embarkation and WiFi. On my first crossing in 2017 it took Cunard 4.5 hours to board ~2200 passengers. In May of this year it took Cunard 5 hours to board ~1600 passengers despite the fact that there was no more at-terminal testing, I had uploaded my photo, uploaded my credit card information and the cabin keys were already made up and waiting at the cabin. That's a little over 300 passengers per hour with a staff I estimate at 40-50 people. Really! Football stadiums can seat 70,000 fans in an hour. I've seen a single gate agent board a flight holding 300 in 30 minutes. But forget the in efficiency, Cunard has a responsibility to develop a logic for assigning boarding times, communicating that logic to the customer and then upholding that process. It seems to me they have failed at all three. The problem is not that passengers show up when they want, the problem is that Cunard does this part of their job poorly and they don't seem to really care that they do so.

Sorry Pratt2, didn't mean to hijack your thread. Carry on.

Jack

[exlondoner]

It’s not Cunard. It’s the port people. At Soton it’s a company called Intercruises. I must say only twice have I had an awful embarkation. At Manhattan in 1999, and at Southampton in April.

[Bell Boy]

Pratt2, With all due respect take no notice of what your cruise planner/TA may have told you. Boarding Cunard Line is Not done by deck and never has been. Boarding is called by the 'Category of the Stateroom' ....ie  QG/PG the Grills - Diamond/Platinum/Club dining -  Britannia. This is the standard procedure both at Southampton ( home port) and Brooklyn USA.  For Britannia category 'occasionally 'boarding might take place by a colour  coded boarding card . 

 

If you are travelling with a 'family member' and travelling in the 'same category' then Cunard check-in agents are accommodating. Common sense prevails  eg, one could be travelling in a party with their 80 year mother , a similar question was posted on this board some months ago.

 

Travel agents/cruise planners often have no experience of what actually the procedure is  ,half of them may have never stepped foot ( as a guest)  on the cruise line you/we may have booked.

 

[Bell Boy]

Just to re clarify to my post above re, 'Britannia category boarding'.

To enable a staggered embarkation, occasionally Britannia guests will be given either a colour coded card or a card indicating a letter  eg A-B-C-etc , When boarding/embarkation is ready the terminal staff will use this method.

 

Pratt2, Your cruise planner needs to avail her/him self with Cunard corporate awareness, 😉  for example boarding 'By Deck number' would defeat 'QG priority boarding', as on deck 9 ( QM2)  there are also some Britannia category staterooms .