Britannia Club Questions - First Cunard Cruise

[Selbourne]

Good afternoon. My wife and I have cruised many times with P&O (ex U.K.) but today we have booked our first Cunard Cruise, on Queen Anne in 2024. We have booked a Britannia Club accessible balcony cabin (my wife is a wheelchair user).

 

Apologies for the basic questions, but I have searched the forum and can’t quite find the clarity that I’m seeking. My main questions relate to table allocation in the Britannia Club dining room. We were attracted to this as it is described as having ‘your own table for breakfast, lunch and dinner’ and you can dine whenever you wish within the restaurant opening times for each meal. I understood this to mean that the first time we enter the restaurant we would be shown to a table for 2 and that would become ‘our’ table for the whole cruise. In other words, nobody else would ever sit at that table at any time during the cruise, so we can turn up for breakfast, lunch or dinner whenever we like and go straight to that table. Have I understood this correctly?
 

The reason that I ask is that having now had our first choice cabin confirmed and paid our deposit a day before we thought we would be able to (which is great news), I have now studied the deck plans for Queen Anne in some detail. I appreciate that the deck plans may just be indicative rather than 100% accurate, but there appears to be around 100 covers less in the Britannia Club dining room than there could be Britannia Club passengers. I appreciate that not everyone will dine at the same time and some passengers will use other dining venues on occasion, but surely if it works as I understood it would, there would have to be the same number of covers in the restaurant as there are Britannia Club passengers? Am I missing something?

Edited December 6, 2022 by Selbourne

[exlondoner]

29 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Good afternoon. My wife and I have cruised many times with P&O (ex U.K.) but today we have booked our first Cunard Cruise, on Queen Anne in 2024. We have booked a Britannia Club accessible balcony cabin (my wife is a wheelchair user).

 

Apologies for the basic questions, but I have searched the forum and can’t quite find the clarity that I’m seeking. My main questions relate to table allocation in the Britannia Club dining room. We were attracted to this as it is described as having ‘your own table for breakfast, lunch and dinner’ and you can dine whenever you wish within the restaurant opening times for each meal. I understood this to mean that the first time we enter the restaurant we would be shown to a table for 2 and that would become ‘our’ table for the whole cruise. In other words, nobody else would ever sit at that table at any time during the cruise, so we can turn up for breakfast, lunch or dinner whenever we like and go straight to that table. Have I understood this correctly?
 

The reason that I ask is that having now had our first choice cabin confirmed and paid our deposit a day before we thought we would be able to (which is great news), I have now studied the deck plans for Queen Anne in some detail. I appreciate that the deck plans may just be indicative rather than 100% accurate, but there appears to be around 100 covers less in the Britannia Club dining room than there could be Britannia Club passengers. I appreciate that not everyone will dine at the same time and some passengers will use other dining venues on occasion, but surely if it works as I understood it would, there would have to be the same number of covers in the restaurant as there are Britannia Club passengers? Am I missing something?

The position you describe in the second paragraph is accurate. Don’t worry about the deck plan. I hope you both have a lovely time.

[BklynBoy8]

If you don't mind me to go off subject a bit....but we booked Britannia Club on the Queen Mary 2 several times as well other restaurants over our sailing history.

 

Our experiences are....when you arrive for your first meal most likely dinner on embarkation night, you will be shown a table assigned by the M'd. This would be the table you would use for the duration of the cruise.

 

If you have any difficulty with it you can speak to the M'd and see if he can accommodate you with a change of table location to your needs. Hopefully it can occur that evening. You can also on boarding attempt to see if anyone is around the Club Dining Room and see if they can assist you.

[Host Hattie]

The table number will be on a card in your cabin. At dinner on the first evening you will be shown to it and then you will be able to use it whenever you like during restaurant opening hours.

[BigMac1953]

On our November trip, there were no cards in the cabin. You just had to turn up to find out your allocation.

 

Selbourne will find a huge difference, for the better. Enjoy!

[Selbourne]

Thank you to those who have replied so far. A few more questions if I may?
 

We stated that we want a table for 2 when booking. Is that guaranteed in Britannia Club?

 

Also, there are obviously good and bad tables for two. A window would be nice, but probably a stretch. We don’t like ‘rows’ of tables for two where they are so close to each other you might as well be sharing with your neighbours. Are tables are allocated randomly, or is there any preference given to those with high loyalty tiers (in which case we’d be at the bottom of the pile) or date of booking (in which case we’d be at the top)?
 

In any event, we will certainly go to the restaurant before the first dinner and see what we’ve been allocated and, if we don’t like it, speak nicely to the maitre’d.

[BklynBoy8]

24 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

On our November trip, there were no cards in the cabin. You just had to turn up to find out your allocation.

 

Selbourne will find a huge difference, for the better. Enjoy!

 

In September on the QM2 we had a card but no table number assigned. Assigned when in the restaurant.

[exlondoner]

4 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Thank you to those who have replied so far. A few more questions if I may?
 

We stated that we want a table for 2 when booking. Is that guaranteed in Britannia Club?

 

Also, there are obviously good and bad tables for two. A window would be nice, but probably a stretch. We don’t like ‘rows’ of tables for two where they are so close to each other you might as well be sharing with your neighbours. Are tables are allocated randomly, or is there any preference given to those with high loyalty tiers (in which case we’d be at the bottom of the pile) or date of booking (in which case we’d be at the top)?
 

In any event, we will certainly go to the restaurant before the first dinner and see what we’ve been allocated and, if we don’t like it, speak nicely to the maitre’d.

I don’t know whether they actually guarantee a table for two, but you will be given one. I don’t know what gets you a window table. Neither booking early nor a high loyalty tier has ever worked for me.

[Selbourne]

23 minutes ago, BigMac1953 said:

Selbourne will find a huge difference, for the better. Enjoy!

 
I hope so. Like many long standing P&O customers, we have become a little disappointed in the way that P&O have changed their market position over the past 10 years or so. We still have a couple of cruises with them next year (booked ages ago), but based on what we are reading about their post Covid cutbacks we fear that our days with them may be numbered.
 

In all honesty, I think that their move to a low cost mass market line makes a great deal of sound business sense, but that’s not what we are after. We have decided to try Cunard and Saga. We are paying as much for a Britannia Club balcony cabin as we would for a suite on P&O, but are hopeful that it may be more akin to the ‘traditional’ cruise experience that we enjoyed on the P&O of old. Maybe that’s wishful thinking, but you don’t know unless you try it!

[BklynBoy8]

13 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Thank you to those who have replied so far. A few more questions if I may?
 

We stated that we want a table for 2 when booking. Is that guaranteed in Britannia Club?

 

Also, there are obviously good and bad tables for two. A window would be nice, but probably a stretch. We don’t like ‘rows’ of tables for two where they are so close to each other you might as well be sharing with your neighbours. Are tables are allocated randomly, or is there any preference given to those with high loyalty tiers (in which case we’d be at the bottom of the pile) or date of booking (in which case we’d be at the top)?
 

In any event, we will certainly go to the restaurant before the first dinner and see what we’ve been allocated and, if we don’t like it, speak nicely to the maitre’d.

 

We always get a table for 2 as requested at booking. Location is the question and you'll take care of that on board. 

 

M'd's are there to make sure you will have a memorable experience on your trip.

 

You are right about the booking date and allocation. We have always been told that earlier bookings do help to placement. I found this with our last sailing. Loyalty and History does help we've experienced also.

 

Tables at windows are interesting in assignment.

 

I know on the QM2, there are two sides for Club Restaurants. One is the original and very large and different table placements and the other that belong to Britannia Restaurant and has tables in row

 

So you will see when you once on board. You'll get to see it personally.

Edited December 6, 2022 by BklynBoy8

[BklynBoy8]

18 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

We stated that we want a table for 2 when booking. Is that guaranteed in Britannia Club?

 

BTW.... I don't know the layout of the tables on the new QA but they will need room for the Flambe Tables to move around. You do want to leave room for those Flambe dishes being served.

[Victoria2]

17 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

I don’t know whether they actually guarantee a table for two, but you will be given one. I don’t know what gets you a window table. Neither booking early nor a high loyalty tier has ever worked for me.

I think cabin selection has a lot to do with ''table hierarchy''.

[BklynBoy8]

1 minute ago, BklynBoy8 said:

 

BTW.... I don't know the layout of the tables on the new QA but they will need room for the Flambe Tables to move around. You do want to leave room for those Flambe dishes being served.

 

Was in the Princess on the QM2 and enjoyed those Flambe's dishes especially prepared tableside.

[Selbourne]

1 minute ago, Victoria2 said:

I think cabin selection has a lot to do with ''table hierarchy''.

In Queen and Princes Grill there are quite a few cabin grades, but with Britannia Club there are just two. We are in the highest, but I doubt it makes any difference!

[BklynBoy8]

1 minute ago, Selbourne said:

In Queen and Princes Grill there are quite a few cabin grades, but with Britannia Club there are just two. We are in the highest, but I doubt it makes any difference!

 

Though our sailing history is quite extensive...we were happy this past sailing to have the "Upgrade Fairy" up us to Princess.... this has happened several times before but not guar......all the time.

[exlondoner]

14 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

I think cabin selection has a lot to do with ''table hierarchy''.

I’m sure it does in QG, but that doesn’t really apply in BC.

[Bell Boy]

20 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

I think cabin selection has a lot to do with ''table hierarchy''.

Unlike the Grills,   Days at sea 'in BC' has a lot to do with it 😉

 

[majortom10]

1 hour ago, BigMac1953 said:

On our November trip, there were no cards in the cabin. You just had to turn up to find out your allocation.

 

Selbourne will find a huge difference, for the better. Enjoy!

Yes that was happened to us in PG on the same cruise.

[majortom10]

44 minutes ago, BklynBoy8 said:

 

BTW.... I don't know the layout of the tables on the new QA but they will need room for the Flambe Tables to move around. You do want to leave room for those Flambe dishes being served.

There isn't enough room for flambe dishes at tableside on QV in PG. Cunard are very economical with the tableside flambe dishes advertising. We recently had a la carte meals and flambe desserts and it was a very stretched decision to call them tableside.

[BklynBoy8]

5 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

There isn't enough room for flambe dishes at tableside on QV in PG. Cunard are very economical with the tableside flambe dishes advertising. We recently had a la carte meals and flambe desserts and it was a very stretched decision to call them tableside.

 

On these smaller ships the space maybe a premium. On our last sailing in PG on the QM2 the Flambe Tables were at Dinner Time flying around the dining room. Each night for 14 days like Planes Landing at JFK or Express Buses on 5th Avenue in NYC as well as the Cheese Trolley...

 

There was no fear to mention Flambe to the M'd's..... "And They Were Off" like at a Race Track...

[Victoria2]

1 hour ago, Selbourne said:

In Queen and Princes Grill there are quite a few cabin grades, but with Britannia Club there are just two. We are in the highest, but I doubt it makes any difference!

My apologies.

I don't know how many grades there are within BC.

[Selbourne]

1 hour ago, BklynBoy8 said:

 

Though our sailing history is quite extensive...we were happy this past sailing to have the "Upgrade Fairy" up us to Princess.... this has happened several times before but not guar......all the time.

As we have to have an accessible cabin, there are only 4 possible cabins that we could be upgraded to - 2 in Princess Suites and 2 Queen’s Grill Penthouses. I should think that the chances of that happening are negligible to nil. That being said, we are keen to try Britannia Club and compare it to P&O, so although we have said ‘yes’ to upgrades, we won’t be at all disappointed if we stick with our allocated cabin. If we got upgraded we would never know what it was like and, whilst we like cruises, I don’t think we like them enough to pay grille prices, so we wouldn’t want to feel that subsequent cruises were a ‘come down’ 😂 

[BklynBoy8]

16 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

As we have to have an accessible cabin, there are only 4 possible cabins that we could be upgraded to - 2 in Princess Suites and 2 Queen’s Grill Penthouses. I should think that the chances of that happening are negligible to nil. That being said, we are keen to try Britannia Club and compare it to P&O, so although we have said ‘yes’ to upgrades, we won’t be at all disappointed if we stick with our allocated cabin. If we got upgraded we would never know what it was like and, whilst we like cruises, I don’t think we like them enough to pay grille prices, so we wouldn’t want to feel that subsequent cruises were a ‘come down’ 😂 

 

Honestly, since we started to book BC we have been very happy with the service and experience of a Pre Grill Experience. Once you do experience it a gift of a Upgrade would be a treat. But we are this coming cruise in 6 months will be BC and looking forward. Even our friend who is trying QM2 for the first time will be with us in BC. I can't see us ever returning to Britannia Grade..

 

I can tell you are as excited as us were to board.

[Jack E Dawson]

3 hours ago, Selbourne said:

We don’t like ‘rows’ of tables for two where they are so close to each other you might as well be sharing with your neighbours.

Unfortunately, I suspect there will be rows of tables for 2 close to each other on the QA. However, because Club is anytime time dining, our experience has been that people arrive at staggered times. So the problem of being close to the next table is not as big a deal as you might think. On the other hand, if you find that you do enjoy the company of the next table, it is possible to easily carry on a conversation. 

Jack

[buchanan101]

18 hours ago, BklynBoy8 said:

 

Was in the Princess on the QM2 and enjoyed those Flambe's dishes especially prepared tableside.

In QG on QM2 recently a lot of flambe-ing went on some way from tables. I was in an area that seemed to be for lots of first time cruisers so was generally tables for 2 quite squashed in. Good for talking to neighbours* but not quite what you expect in a top notch restaurant.

 

(*was visiting Katz diner in New York - yes, the one with THAT scene from When Harry Met Sally - and in walks the Swiss guy who'd been on the adjacent table in QM2 to say "hi". He'd seen me through the window - what are the chances of that in all of Manhattan...)