LIVE (almost) from QM2 Transatlantic June 23 to June 29

[Pushpit]

13 minutes ago, *Miss G* said:

 

GE is a component of facial recognition, so the kiosks would expedite entry.

Yes, and visa checking is the slow bit. GE Mobile means I just walk through with a nod. Sadly Brooklyn takes a lot longer.

[Covepointcruiser]

We will definitely sit on the ship until we are forced off.   No need to join the crowds.

[leyland1989]

Not everyone had the same luxury of waiting around unfortunately. We had a flight to catch, and the 4 hours delay didn't help. 

[jollyjones]

15 hours ago, Covepointcruiser said:

We will definitely sit on the ship until we are forced off.   No need to join the crowds.

 

That's all very well if you don't have to get to some sort of transport 'at the other side' - ie past CBP.

Having heard about possible taxi queues or shortages, and not wishing to be stuck in the back end of Brooklyn, I had booked the Cunard bus transfer to Manhattan so I was forced to go with the time on my tour ticket. And stand for an hour in the CBP queue. Fuming.

It's the lack of up to date tech in the Brooklyn terminal that is the problem. When I finally got to the head of the queue, it was just a quick photo, a glance at what his screen showed, and I was through - ten seconds. I have GE with my UK passport.

If there were GE kiosks, the line for those without GE would be much, much shorter. 

 

Ah well, to protect myself from this, I will in future only cruise into NYC on ships that use the Manhattan piers - then I can sit and wait and avoid the crowds as I always stay overnight in Manhattan and walk to my hotel.

 

 

[Mudhen]

Unfortunately for the most part, the only ships going out of Manhattan are the monster mega ships or what I would call the party ships. Occasionally in the fall there will be a few “upscale “ boats that go out, but the pickings are slim!

[exlondoner]

19 minutes ago, jollyjones said:

 

That's all very well if you don't have to get to some sort of transport 'at the other side' - ie past CBP.

Having heard about possible taxi queues or shortages, and not wishing to be stuck in the back end of Brooklyn, I had booked the Cunard bus transfer to Manhattan so I was forced to go with the time on my tour ticket. And stand for an hour in the CBP queue. Fuming.

It's the lack of up to date tech in the Brooklyn terminal that is the problem. When I finally got to the head of the queue, it was just a quick photo, a glance at what his screen showed, and I was through - ten seconds. I have GE with my UK passport.

If there were GE kiosks, the line for those without GE would be much, much shorter. 

 

Ah well, to protect myself from this, I will in future only cruise into NYC on ships that use the Manhattan piers - then I can sit and wait and avoid the crowds as I always stay overnight in Manhattan and walk to my hotel.

 

 

Wouldn’t it work the same if you took the ferry from Brooklyn and stayed overnight?

[jollyjones]

43 minutes ago, Mudhen said:

Unfortunately for the most part, the only ships going out of Manhattan are the monster mega ships or what I would call the party ships. Occasionally in the fall there will be a few “upscale “ boats that go out, but the pickings are slim!

 

 Silversea is my usual cruise line and I will be out of and in to Manhattan in August. The Silver Shadow is sailing a season of cruises up to Quebec City and back.

 

I've been through the Manhattan terminal a number of times and have never had such a problem as at Red Hook.

 

I don't do big ships - the QM2 was much too big for me - that was probably the source of all my dissatisfaction with her.

But no worries, I'll not be sailing Cunard again.

 

Edited yesterday at 11:47 AM by jollyjones

[jollyjones]

29 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

Wouldn’t it work the same if you took the ferry from Brooklyn and stayed overnight?

 

 Quite probably, but the bus transfer should have been the simplest and most convenient way to get to my hotel, if it hadn't been for the CBP problem.

[Jack E Dawson]

On 6/30/2024 at 8:56 AM, jollyjones said:

I am entirely sure I will not be bothering Cunard with my business ever again. 

All the best to you Jolly

Jack

[Jack E Dawson]

On 6/30/2024 at 8:19 PM, Joe33472 said:

if you wait for the queue to clear in 10-15 minutes, you could probably walk right off the shop

Joe,

I have to admit, that after telling you disembarkation was not going to be a "mad house", I was a little worried about you. But, it sounds like you experience was about the same as ours 2 weeks earlier in which we also arrived 4 hours late. 

Thank you so very much for taking the time to post your wonderful reports. 

Jack

[RK-NC]

On 6/30/2024 at 11:09 AM, leyland1989 said:

t's definitely worse than any airport experience but I rarely fly economy so my experience maybe a little bit biased in favour of air travel, and disembarking 2000 passengers is also a lot more difficult than ~200-300 on a transatlantic flight. 

 

Would you choose air travel or ocean liner next time you need to cross the pond? Curious as our initial attraction to QM2 was to avoid flying. 

[Pushpit]

8 hours ago, jollyjones said:

 

 Quite probably, but the bus transfer should have been the simplest and most convenient way to get to my hotel, if it hadn't been for the CBP problem.

The NYC Ferry is under-publicised, even many NYC natives don't know much about it. But it's a short hop along from the Cruise Terminal, 150 metres from the Terminal building, and goes to a long list of places, but the obvious one is Wall Street Pier 11, and there are heaps of hotels within walking distance. For a bargain ride of $4 you also get a great view of QM2. By changing ferries the list of locations expands, right up to a surfer beach resort, yes there is such a thing just a few miles away.

 

There are also quite a few brand name hotels in Brooklyn too, close to the terminal, a short taxi / Uber / Lyft arranged on spec. will be fine for that.

 

Whereas the Manhattan Cruise Terminal is on a bit of a limb really. The Lincoln Center area isn't too far off, I guess, but I wouldn't say it's much better than Red Hook. But you need not put yourself at hostage to Cunard's transport services, it's there for those who need reassurance and consistency, but there are plenty of self service options.

[leyland1989]

1 hour ago, RK-NC said:

 

Would you choose air travel or ocean liner next time you need to cross the pond? Curious as our initial attraction to QM2 was to avoid flying. 

 

I'd never consider the QM2 as a practical way of crossing the Atlantic for me if my sole purpose is to get to the other side of the pond, e.g. if I am planning a holiday in Europe, I won't be looking for QM2's crossing schedule and book my trip around it. 

QM2 was a novelty for us (funny how Ocean crossing had come a full circle and becoming a novelty after ~50 some years) and we choose to take QM2 not because we had no other options but we wanted the experience. 

 

My wife and I had a good time on board, I wouldn't rule out any future crossings if it happens to fit our schedule.

[BklynBoy8]

10 hours ago, jollyjones said:

 

 Jollyjones,

So sorry to hear of your various disappointments with you crossing on the QM2.

 

Queen Mary 2 is our favorite ship to sail after disappointments with HAL in the past that we once enjoyed to sail on till changes took place on that line.

 

We enjoy sailing out of Brooklyn Cruise Terminal since we live in the Boro of Brooklyn. And happy not to have to sail out of Manhattan after we found it to be stressful to travel to in the past.

 

Having sailed with Cunard Line from the QE2 to now the QM2, we would not think of not continuing after decades of Cunard service.

 

We too do not like or think of sailing on these now a days Mega Ships because of the size and number of passengers on board. Even though we don't think that the QM2 is oversized or classed as a Mega Ship, we enjoy how they used the space to design her and all that is offered to us to enjoy. Just enough activities to keep us busy,

 

Out of all the sailings we did on the QE2 & QM2 we too had situations that occurred and we dealt with it in the operations of the ship or the terminal operations.

 

For instance, we were part of the 4th of July Sailing on the QM2 last year and never thought we would experience a embarkation like that. Yours were 4 hours delayed and our 6 hours. And much more chaos you can imagine. We didn't leave till 230 AM in the morning. But we still looked forward to the cruise and enjoyed.

 

See if you wouldn't give Cunard another chance. On another Cunard ship, on a different itinerary and out of another port.

Edited 21 hours ago by BklynBoy8

[King Amo]

If someone normally sails on Silversea, it is no surprise that Cunard fails to suit. It's a totally different product.

 

This shouldn't be interpreted as an attempt to make excuses for any poor performance or service on behalf of Cunard, by the way, it's just that the frame of reference will be totally different for the passenger. It's like if someone was used to sailing RCI and loves everything that those ships come with, I'd never suggest for them to try Fred Olsen. 

[jollyjones]

3 hours ago, King Amo said:

If someone normally sails on Silversea, it is no surprise that Cunard fails to suit. It's a totally different product.

 

 

This is essentially my problem with Cunard.

I booked the crossing at a time when I was tired of flying across the pond and was disembarking another cruise in Southampton on a suitable date.

Cunard is often described as 'luxury'.

 

However, I have learned that for me :

The QM2 is a mega ship and far from luxurious.

Heathrow and JFK provide a preferable experience given that I have Global Entry and am Oneworld Emerald.

 

It was a learning experience, glad to have completed it, happy to never repeat it.

 

 

BTW, while nothing beats having the actual experience, I do want to say thank you to everyone posting on these boards who are an endless source of useful information for when one is trying something new.

 

 

Edited 8 hours ago by jollyjones

[Mudhen]

When we are on vacation, if we're going to Europe, we try, if possible to fly business class.

Lately, in general, it's become eye wateringly expensive. It's now almost possible to sail rt in a low cabin catagory. for about the same price. Yes, I'm counting tips, drinks, etc. I realize that this arrangement wouldn't suit folks who are doing transport with business affairs.

What I'm trying to say is that I'd much rather do the QM2 rt, even in a low catagory, than pay just as much to fly.

A weeks worth of fun for the same price as flying, is a no brainer for me!

Your milage may vary!