Summer 2025

[tring]

3 hours ago, Megabear2 said:

Then I shall be in the minority as I've always worn ballgowns on formal nights on Cunard.  It's part of the fun and I've no intention of stopping now.  I haven't sailed on QM2 since my 2019 world cruise so if I'm out of place so be it. I love my fishtail trains along with my long evening gloves and they will be as ever having an airing in the Queens Room!  Elegant formal evening dresses and I don't mix very well as they're extremely hard to buy in both my size and I tend to look like a sack of potatoes.   

 

Now that I can't even dress formally for Royal Ascot I've every intention of carrying on regardless. It's all part of the fun, each to their own.

 

Enjoy while you can, formality is constantly being watered down.

 

We are over in Liverpool which is getting quite busy as the weekend approaches.  Signs of Eurovision appearing, so city will be buzzing when you arrive.  Not sure of events, but I do know there is a light installation in The Albert Dock, 10 pm until midnight, which could be a pleasant evening stroll after dinner and perhaps a drink there if you can find a seat, though seats may be difficult to find.

[Megabear2]

5 minutes ago, tring said:

 

Enjoy while you can, formality is constantly being watered down.

 

We are over in Liverpool which is getting quite busy as the weekend approaches.  Signs of Eurovision appearing, so city will be buzzing when you arrive.  Not sure of events, but I do know there is a light installation in The Albert Dock, 10 pm until midnight, which could be a pleasant evening stroll after dinner and perhaps a drink there if you can find a seat, though seats may be difficult to find.

Thank you. That sounds great.  I've only been to Liverpool twice, once in the 80's to deliver some court documents and once to visit Anfield with a friend who wanted to buy a shirt there. I'm hoping to see as much as possible, I'd forgotten about Eurovision, how exciting.

[yorkshirephil]

12 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

 once to visit Anfield with a friend who wanted to buy a shirt there. 

I hope they were not thinking of wearing it on formal night

[Megabear2]

Just now, yorkshirephil said:

I hope they were not thinking of wearing it on formal night

No, he lives in Dubai.  Next time I visit I'll ask him to take me to dinner on the QE2 and he can wear it there instead.

[wowzz]

17 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

I was hoping for an overnight in Liverpool (to see the historic waterfront illuminated) which I believe was the original intention (arrive 1130 Wed 3rd, depart evening of Thu 4th), but the schedule shows that we arrive and depart on 4th, so we will only be there in daylight now. 

Cutting down on port costs ?

[Selbourne]

1 hour ago, wowzz said:

Cutting down on port costs ?

I had thought that it might be that an evening in port means people being ashore and not spending on the ship, but P&O seem to be doing a lot of overnights now although, in their case, I think that is cost saving as it’s less fuel used by not going to an additional port. 

[zap99]

On 4/27/2023 at 10:49 AM, Selbourne said:

Comparisons with P&O are very relevant though when weighing up options. Sounds as though trying to get answers on the Saga thread may be a bit futile though 😉 

It seems you may get an answer if the question is about art classes. One or two post in the last week or so.

[daiB]

2 hours ago, wowzz said:

Cutting down on port costs ?

Are port costs more than fuel costs. I suspect there is not much in it but no one knows and the company are not going to say.

[yorkshirephil]

For those booked on the Coronation cruise; someone posted on facebook that they got the shares OBC added to their account.

[Selbourne]

1 minute ago, yorkshirephil said:

For those booked on the Coronation cruise; someone posted on facebook that they got the shares OBC added to their account.

Yep. Got mine. $50. Half a bottle of wine on Cunard 😂 

[Host Hattie]

I've moved the recent Cunard posts to the thread on the Cunard board 

 

 

 

[Megabear2]

Just now, Host Hattie said:

I've moved the Cunard posts to the Cunard board 

 

 

 

Thank you, not sure what they'll make of my paragraph about reserving my Arvia dining though.

[zap99]

14 minutes ago, Megabear2 said:

Thank you, not sure what they'll make of my paragraph about reserving my Arvia dining though.

You may well be black balled.🤣

[wowzz]

1 hour ago, daiB said:

Are port costs more than fuel costs. I suspect there is not much in it but no one knows and the company are not going to say.

Good point.

[terrierjohn]

3 hours ago, Selbourne said:

I had thought that it might be that an evening in port means people being ashore and not spending on the ship, but P&O seem to be doing a lot of overnights now although, in their case, I think that is cost saving as it’s less fuel used by not going to an additional port. 

Of course it might be that there is another ship due in Liverpool the day before, so that an overnight is not possible.

[Megabear2]

2 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

Of course it might be that there is another ship due in Liverpool the day before, so that an overnight is not possible.

It is overnight but she arrives at 11.30pm.

[Bill Y]

14 hours ago, daiB said:

Are port costs more than fuel costs. I suspect there is not much in it but no one knows and the company are not going to say.

I wondered that, some years ago we were due to sail overnight from Kirkwall to Scrabster a very short distance. I them days often on the small ships the Captain used to talk to guests in the crows nest early evening. Someone remarked that the ship was sailing in the wrong direction. The Captain replied that it's less that two hours away and if he stopped sailing we would bob up and down all night and people may feel queasy, so he planned to sail up and down all night at 10 knots which he considered to be the optimum speed. I should have asked him about fuel costs v port charges.

[terrierjohn]

5 minutes ago, Bill Y said:

I wondered that, some years ago we were due to sail overnight from Kirkwall to Scrabster a very short distance. I them days often on the small ships the Captain used to talk to guests in the crows nest early evening. Someone remarked that the ship was sailing in the wrong direction. The Captain replied that it's less that two hours away and if he stopped sailing we would bob up and down all night and people may feel queasy, so he planned to sail up and down all night at 10 knots which he considered to be the optimum speed. I should have asked him about fuel costs v port charges.

I suspect the issue is port workers and pilot availability, if they are not prepared to work overtime, then there is no way any ship can safely leave port.

[Presto2]

Just been told by TA we can not move a cruise from May 24 to one in Sept 25 even though it is longer and more expensive due to PO amendments policy. Surely this isn't right. 

[happy v]

18 minutes ago, Presto2 said:

Just been told by TA we can not move a cruise from May 24 to one in Sept 25 even though it is longer and more expensive due to PO amendments policy. Surely this isn't right. 

I think it needs to be within 12 months 

[terrierjohn]

1 minute ago, happy v said:

I think it needs to be within 12 months 

You need to read clause 15 of the T&Cs, anything over 12 months will be treated as a cancellation and new booking.

[tring]

21 minutes ago, Presto2 said:

Just been told by TA we can not move a cruise from May 24 to one in Sept 25 even though it is longer and more expensive due to PO amendments policy. Surely this isn't right. 

 

Yes, as mentioned by happy v you can only change to a cruise which sails within 12 months of the original cruise.  You should be able to find the criteria for changing a cruise on the P&O website, but I think that and price are the only restrictions.

 

 

[tring]

Just going back the the topic of this thread we have booked a two week Azura cruise sailing late Sept 2025.  Prices did not look that good compared to what we paid for last October, but the cruises going in May and June this year are more expensive on a select price and we do not do savers.  Also means we have a large Deck C balcony, which we did like last October.  There were things we were not happy about on Azura, but we cruise for the ports so that cinched it.  As a fly cruise there are 9 port stops during the cruise and they are good ones as well, including four ports we have not been to previously:-  Trieste, Zadar, Villefranche and Ajaccio, so pretty happy about that. 

 

We will be looking for a good priced translocation to follow it when they are released, so will get a  further 10% discount off both cruises and have a nice long hol at a time of year we always find a bit depressing at home.

 

Edited April 29, 2023 by tring

[Presto2]

26 minutes ago, tring said:

 

Yes, as mentioned by happy v you can only change to a cruise which sails within 12 months of the original cruise.  You should be able to find the criteria for changing a cruise on the P&O website, but I think that and price are the only restrictions.

 

 

Thanks. Was trying to find terms etc but having to use the phone so not easy to find at all. Thanks for the help.

[terrierjohn]

56 minutes ago, Presto2 said:

Just been told by TA we can not move a cruise from May 24 to one in Sept 25 even though it is longer and more expensive due to PO amendments policy. Surely this isn't right. 

 

34 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

You need to read clause 15 of the T&Cs, anything over 12 months will be treated as a cancellation and new booking.

It might be worth asking your TA if it would be cheaper to change it in 2 steps, the transfer fee for two changes may be less than losing your deposit. But you need to be certain that would be allowed.