QA Doing Alaska And The Caribbean?

[Victoria2]

56 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

I think it's the impression Cunard wants to make--leaning a bit more toward young and hip and fun. Adding a little bit of the parent company to lighten the image. That was what several people I spoke to felt about Cunard's intent in making QA different from the other ships. Of course, those people didn't particularly like QA, so their impression might just have been biased. 

Would more on the elderly side and with possible dodgy hip do?

 

I would say 'hip' certainly featured 10th May cruise although more dodgy than fun!

 

Never seen so many folk moving around with walkers/Zimmers with either dodgy knees or dodgy hips.

 

Edit

And can I say, apart from looking tired from yomping area to area and practising for the paralympic sport of  lift access, most passengers looked as if they were enjoying life.

Edited August 13 by Victoria2

[3rdGenCunarder]

57 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

Wouldn’t you have preferred a view, as on QE?

 

Oh yes, QE and QV have much nicer lounges. I think because I first saw the lounge mid-day on a sunny day, it seemed bright and cheerful. But I never felt any desire to sit there, except for a drink before dinner.  My biggest negatives on QA were the thermal suite, which was ridiculously small, and the Queens Room, which was ugly. With Lido furniture in the part across the walkway! I wish I had a picture of the corresponding area on QE or QV, where there are sofas and comfy chairs.

 

Edited August 13 by 3rdGenCunarder

[exlondoner]

40 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

Oh yes, QE and QV have much nicer lounges. I think because I first saw the lounge mid-day on a sunny day, it seemed bright and cheerful. But I never felt any desire to sit there, except for a drink before dinner.  My biggest negatives on QA were the thermal suite, which was ridiculously small, and the Queens Room, which was ugly. With Lido furniture in the part across the walkway! I wish I had a picture of the corresponding area on QE or QV, where there are sofas and comfy chairs.

 

Yes, I agree about the QR, it is just a nothingness with no coordination of decor, just a melange. As to the thermal suite, I wouldn’t know. 

[WantedOnVoyage]

I wouldn't take QA to Cowes and back. Maybe a one-way and Red Funnel back if there was an open bar and I didn't have to look at "the art". If she is sent packing to the hinterlands and QE/QV out of Southampton I'd be delighted. 

 

Meanwhile we are happy to follow QUEEN VICTORIA to the ends of the Cunard earth and back even if it means flying one-way and recognising locals in some of the ports we seem to keep returning to. Over and over again. I looked at the most delightful itinerary offered by Fred. Olsen in BALMORAL... 57 days in the Med and wonder why Cunard cannot think of something along those lines.  But Fred. Olsen seems to have lost the plot otherwise and their prices are delusional. 

 

QUEEN VICTORIA ex-Southampton on longer, more inventive itineraries like round trip to the St. Lawrence (with no New York!), two-months to the Med in spring and fall, etc. would be most appealing indeed.

 

But we are happily "booked up" with QV and QM2 through 2025 and "await developments".  Like folks booked on QA round the world and contemplating the wardrobe space they have for those three months....

[D&N]

1 hour ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

and the Queens Room, which was ugly. With Lido furniture in the part across the walkway! I wish I had a picture of the corresponding area on QE or QV, where there are sofas and comfy chairs.

 

 

31 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

Yes, I agree about the QR, it is just a nothingness with no coordination of decor, just a melange.

I've now watched eleven dance videos from the QR on Queen Anne.

In use for dancing with the lighting in operation, and looking at it from a dancers point of view, it seems very good.

I'm not really a fan of 'comfy' chairs that you lounge in. I prefer chairs that support my lower back and are easy to get out of quickly when I want to run on to the dance floor. I also prefer to drink my wine and water from a proper height table rather than a coffee table.

 

I suppose spectators might have a different viewpoint but I'm never likely to be sitting spectating beside a dance floor unless watching an organised competition, even then I'm just waiting for the gaps in proceedings when they sometimes allow general dancing.

 

And unless other dancers agree with me, you can ignore my opinions since I won't be on the ship unless it offers sailings from a port local to me. The dancers that published the videos and the many couples I saw on the floor with them seem quite happy with it.

 

[david,Mississauga]

4 hours ago, NE John said:

Remember that the Alaska overcapacity is from cruise ships diverted from the Red Sea/Eastern Med to Alaska and Caribbean. Once that situation gets resolved…who knows when…the amazing low prices we see now will go back up with less supply. I too was a beneficiary of the low Alaska fares. 

 

I noticed an overcapacity before the diversion of ships.  There were days in Vancouver when two ships had to take turns at  a berth because there is room for only three average or large ships. We have been to Juneau twice when there were five ships in port and one had to be at anchor.  The QE was one of those in 2022.  There was heavy discounting even before the pandemic.  

 

A few years before Cunard started the Alaska cruises with the QE we took a cruise on Holland-America.  Long before the final payment date there was heavy discounting.  We got a Neptune Suite (similar to a Cunard QG suite but with almost no perks) at a very good fare.

[david,Mississauga]

4 hours ago, DukeBeetle24 said:

...
Katie McCalister has stated that following the launch of Queen Anne, the business is focused on homeporting Queen Elizabeth to North America (so I don't think there's much chance of her being moved given she'll be West Coast in the Summer months, and East Coast in the Winter months), focusing on a new approach to marketing the "Cunard difference", and reviewing / promoting the Grills experience offered to guests.
...

 

 

When I first read that some months ago I cringed.  By homeporting in North America Cunard means in the U.S.  They have abandoned Vancouver for Seattle. I understand that will appeal to many people, but not everyone. 

 

I spoke to several people on the QE about this and was told by some that moving to Seattle is an experiment.  I suppose there is hope of a return to Vancouver.  I am glad we did the four cruises from Vancouver that we did.  I will never say never, but I am not pleased about this change to Seattle.  There are other voyages we can take - and have booked for the next two years - so if the QE is back to Vancouver in a few years we would love to take another one.  It is time for another Atlantic crossing and  have finally booked a cruise on QV. 

[3rdGenCunarder]

1 minute ago, david,Mississauga said:

 

 

When I first read that some months ago I cringed.  By homeporting in North America Cunard means in the U.S.  They have abandoned Vancouver for Seattle. I understand that will appeal to many people, but not everyone. 

 

I spoke to several people on the QE about this and was told by some that moving to Seattle is an experiment.  I suppose there is hope of a return to Vancouver.  I am glad we did the four cruises from Vancouver that we did.  I will never say never, but I am not pleased about this change to Seattle.  There are other voyages we can take - and have booked for the next two years - so if the QE is back to Vancouver in a few years we would love to take another one.  It is time for another Atlantic crossing and  have finally booked a cruise on QV. 

 

If they're trying to attract US passengers, they may think Seattle gives them an edge over ships leaving from Vancouver. My home airport is Newark, which is huge, but there are only 4 direct flights to Vancouver, two United and two Air Canada. There are many more flights to Seattle from Newark. I suspect it's similar from other major US airports. 

[techteach]

My Cunard TA said the decision to move to Seattle had a lot to do with air travel for passengers. Way more flights into SeaTac so people can disembark, be to the airport in 30 minutes and fly out close to noon.

[Clewgarnet]

18 hours ago, D&N said:

 

I've now watched eleven dance videos from the QR on Queen Anne.

In use for dancing with the lighting in operation, and looking at it from a dancers point of view, it seems very good.

 

Yes, when I was dancing on it, you really got the effect of the lighting and beautiful decor around the edge of the third deck. You got a similar effect when sitting right on the edge of the dance floor.

 

Sitting any distance back on deck two, however, you completely lost that.