Queen Anne Grills Terrace access

[Stu UK]

Grills Terrace now has access locks. Code is in letter in suite upon boarding. 
 

Also call buttons to order drinks is on the terrace. 

[BigMac1953]

All good!

 

Thanks for the pics

[exlondoner]

This is going to disrupt my strolls. I’d rather have people passing through than have to do this twice a rotation.

[rog747]

1 hour ago, exlondoner said:

This is going to disrupt my strolls. I’d rather have people passing through than have to do this twice a rotation.

You might not have said this on the July 28th Med cruise LOL!

The 'Through Traffic' was actually beyond a joke, it was like Holborn Tube in the rush hour, OK not quite LOL!
and then of course 'sunbed wars' broke out from all of the many non-Grills guests who took up daily residence on the Grills Terrace. 
BUT, it was all finally sorted out OK, first with Lanyards, more sterner No-Entry signs, and finally the 4 digit key code and door handle was a very easy but long awaited solution for peace and tranquillity to return.  

You will be fine on your next trip, I'm sure!
Plus, this was a high season school holiday time very busy cruise with 2882 pax on board!

BTW I see you are local to me in Dorset - if you ever would like to meet up to say hello that would be a pleasure, perhaps fish' chips at Chez Fred lol!

Edited August 29 by rog747

[DukeBeetle24]

I don't think non-Grills guests should use the facilities there (I certainly wouldn't dream of it!) but I really don't see the issue of people passing through given it blocks access either side. I certainly hope they redesign that space to allow access on one side in one of the first refits - even if it means decreasing the Grills Terrace slightly. 

[sogne]

For those non Grills like me who likes a good view 4 departure and scenic areas such as the fiords or Dalmation coast the lack of through access on deck 11 in particular is a total pain.

[Victoria2]

21 minutes ago, sogne said:

For those non Grills like me who likes a good view 4 departure and scenic areas such as the fiords or Dalmation coast the lack of through access on deck 11 in particular is a total pain.

Blame the designers.

 

I would have no issue with folk 'passing through' as long as deck 11 it didn't become a deck to gawk at but the plain fact is, not every passer by will, pass by and some folk can get quite unpleasant when asked to leave.

 

[Jonem2001]

Whilst I think the door control is a sensible approach to the problem of people creating a non-tranquil atmosphere (through heavy traffic), or abusing facilities they have not paid for, I do think this is a problem of Cunard’s own making. This should never have been ‘designed in’ from the start.

 

I echo @DukeBeetle24’s hope of a refit which resolves the issue, but I won’t hold my breath…

[NE John]

1 hour ago, Victoria2 said:

Blame the designers.

 

I would have no issue with folk 'passing through' as long as deck 11 it didn't become a deck to gawk at but the plain fact is, not every passer by will, pass by and some folk can get quite unpleasant when asked to leave.

 

Add alcohol and things go downhill from there. 

[Stu UK]

Cunard need to learn from The Retreat and Yacht Club (Celebrity & MSC). They have nailed it. Front of ship, no passing foot fall ohhh and drinks included. 

[DukeBeetle24]

There will always be bad apples, whether they are Grills guests or not. Not all of us lowly Britannia guests will be rude, polo shirt wearing, drunken interlopers intent on ruining the experience for others. I jest on that sentence, but it's not fair to tarnish the majority with the actions of a few. There will always be a few ruffians - in every grade. 

 

If it's not a comment about Queen Anne being a generic ship copying every other ship from every other line, it's a comment about wanting to bring features from other lines onto Cunard making it more generic as a line. They're damned if they do and damned if they don't. If you wanted to experience The Retreat or Yacht Club, why wouldn't you just choose go on Celebrity or MSC? 

[watsonbeau]

Ill thought out design (like a few other issues onboard) and doubtless it’s a permanent fixture.  Given deck 3 being somewhat limited for walking, it would have been sensible for deck 11 to allow a full circuit,  To have to go up/down stairs to get from one end to the other is bad enough if you are mobile, but even worse for anyone who has to use a lift. 

[vsbc]

I was on the July 28th Med cruise when they introduced the lanyards and door locks.
The day after the locks were fitted I was at the Sky Bar and a couple of men saw my lanyard and started grumbling about how they could no longer walk through. One said “We have all paid to be on the ship so we should be able to use all the public spaces.”.

i probably should have been more tactful with my response of “Well some have actually paid a lot more than others to be on the ship.”. It wasn’t well received!

[exlondoner]

3 minutes ago, vsbc said:

I was on the July 28th Med cruise when they introduced the lanyards and door locks.
The day after the locks were fitted I was at the Sky Bar and a couple of men saw my lanyard and started grumbling about how they could no longer walk through. One said “We have all paid to be on the ship so we should be able to use all the public spaces.”.

i probably should have been more tactful with my response of “Well some have actually paid a lot more than others to be on the ship.”. It wasn’t well received!

That is rude and really such a bizarre argument. Would they use it to crash a party or use the Spa or protected single sex spaces or, and perhaps this is a good idea after all, to sunbathe in the area being used for archery? Anyway, what they have paid for is a particular set of facilities on the ship, no more. Just as, if you have paid for a drinks passage, it has (often rather opaque) Ts and Cs, it does not entitle you to free Château Pétrus at breakfast every day.

[Victoria2]

13 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

That is rude and really such a bizarre argument. Would they use it to crash a party or use the Spa or protected single sex spaces or, and perhaps this is a good idea after all, to sunbathe in the area being used for archery? Anyway, what they have paid for is a particular set of facilities on the ship, no more. Just as, if you have paid for a drinks passage, it has (often rather opaque) Ts and Cs, it does not entitle you to free Château Pétrus at breakfast every day.

and I suppose if a particular area of a larger space carries a premium in order to be there, I guess you could say it's not all that public.

 

[exlondoner]

25 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

and I suppose if a particular area of a larger space carries a premium in order to be there, I guess you could say it's not all that public.

 

Quite, but I do think people should be able to get through somehow, without lingering or rudeness. Wanting to use the facilities, such as they are, on the other hand is just daft or rather deliberate badness, as there are lots of other nice outside spaces. Anyone caught in the pools (which I can really see the point of anyway) should be thrown over the side forthwith to enjoy the sea water instead. I reckon they wouldn’t have to do that too often for the practice to stop.

[Victoria2]

1 hour ago, exlondoner said:

Quite, but I do think people should be able to get through somehow, without lingering or rudeness. Wanting to use the facilities, such as they are, on the other hand is just daft or rather deliberate badness, as there are lots of other nice outside spaces. Anyone caught in the pools (which I can really see the point of anyway) should be thrown over the side forthwith to enjoy the sea water instead. I reckon they wouldn’t have to do that too often for the practice to stop.

Sadly, due to 'the ship's architects' and possibly passengers who take advantage etc, I can't see a thoroughfare being possible if the deck is to remain 'Grills'.

 

One of the issues in May were the passengers using the hot tubs who weren't supposed to be there but as far as I was concerned, it wasn't the usage because how did I know who should/shouldn't be there, it was the bottles of beer [glass] being consumed in the hot tub with empties on the ledges.

Joy sorted both issues  out.

Wonderful, wonderful staff member [concierge] and I am SO glad for her she's now on Mary as an officer.

[exlondoner]

6 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

Sadly, due to 'the ship's architects' and possibly passengers who take advantage etc, I can't see a thoroughfare being possible if the deck is to remain 'Grills'.

 

One of the issues in May were the passengers using the hot tubs who weren't supposed to be there but as far as I was concerned, it wasn't the usage because how did I know who should/shouldn't be there, it was the bottles of beer [glass] being consumed in the hot tub with empties on the ledges.

Joy sorted both issues  out.

Wonderful, wonderful staff member [concierge] and I am SO glad for her she's now on Mary as an officer.

Well, if they took the pools away, at least on one side, there could be a pathway. I suppose, if you are using amenities you shouldn’t, you are more likely to break other rules, even safety ones to do with glasses. But I can see not being able to walk through is really annoying.

 

Yes, Joy was excellent and really nice. I hope her replacements are equally on the ball.

[DukeBeetle24]

1 minute ago, exlondoner said:

Well, if they took the pools away, at least on one side, there could be a pathway.

 

This is pretty much what I think will happen too. 

 

If they move both hot tubs to one side, so there will still be sea facing views for those in Grills, the other side can be screened off to allow flow of passengers from one end to the other without intruding on those in Grills and vice versa.

 

To be honest if they did this I hope they'd plump up and introduce a bar for Grills guests up there. It seems like an odd omission, and installing a wall (privacy glass or other) on one side would provide a more than adequate backdrop for a bar whilst making drinks service much easier.

 

All passengers would win with such pie in the sky thinking!

[Victoria2]

12 minutes ago, DukeBeetle24 said:

 

This is pretty much what I think will happen too. 

 

If they move both hot tubs to one side, so there will still be sea facing views for those in Grills, the other side can be screened off to allow flow of passengers from one end to the other without intruding on those in Grills and vice versa.

 

To be honest if they did this I hope they'd plump up and introduce a bar for Grills guests up there. It seems like an odd omission, and installing a wall (privacy glass or other) on one side would provide a more than adequate backdrop for a bar whilst making drinks service much easier.

 

All passengers would win with such pie in the sky thinking!

I don't think anything will happen. Not until a refit anyway. As for the bar, it's a stroll to the deck 11 aft bar [where there's a loo by the way] or use deck service.

 

Even when it was -8C with windchill [and boy, was it chilly] there was deck service. I can vouch for that as we were kept supplied with lattes. 🙂

 

Edit

There won't be a Grills bar added to deck 11. No need and that would entail extra staff anyway. The deck 10 lounge will be the 'service' area

Edited August 30 by Victoria2

[DukeBeetle24]

4 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

I don't think anything will happen. Not until a refit anyway. As for the bar, it's a stroll to the deck 11 aft bar [where there's a loo by the way] or use deck service.

 

Even when it was -8C with windchill [and boy, was it chilly] there was deck service. I can vouch for that as we were kept supplied with lattes. 🙂

 

Edit

There won't be a Grills bar added to deck 11. No need and that would entail extra staff anyway. The deck 10 lounge will be the 'service' area

Hence calling it pie in the sky thinking.

 

I am glad to hear there are those pleased with the space and service up there. Looking forward to boarding in a few weeks (albeit, not in Grills)

[exlondoner]

15 minutes ago, DukeBeetle24 said:

 

This is pretty much what I think will happen too. 

 

If they move both hot tubs to one side, so there will still be sea facing views for those in Grills, the other side can be screened off to allow flow of passengers from one end to the other without intruding on those in Grills and vice versa.

 

To be honest if they did this I hope they'd plump up and introduce a bar for Grills guests up there. It seems like an odd omission, and installing a wall (privacy glass or other) on one side would provide a more than adequate backdrop for a bar whilst making drinks service much easier.

 

All passengers would win with such pie in the sky thinking!

Very good. Your next problem: find a way to give the Grills a lounge with proper light and a view. 😀

[DukeBeetle24]

1 minute ago, exlondoner said:

Very good. Your next problem: find a way to give the Grills a lounge with proper light and a view. 😀

Hah, I am hoping on embarkation day (if it's quiet) we might be able to poke our heads in and have a look for ourselves providing we don't interrupt or disturb anyone.

But, I do love a bit of pie in the sky thinking, it's fun if nothing else!

 

It is a funny shaped layout (of which I am sure there are technical, mechanical and practical reasons for the crew for it being the way it is).

 

Either they might look at using the upper area of Princess Grill to create a new lounge (Red), it would afford much greater views and light, though it would reduce the amount of window seating for Princess. It would also probably require an additional entrance by the lifts, stairs and toilets. Princess Grill could expand back some way into the lounge to reflow the lost seating (Green), the concierge area remains the same and Queens Grill could be expanded a little too (Blue).

 

Though if you wanted to be radical, if they redesigned in this way you could switch Princess and Queens, let the Queens Grill have the domed skylight. As there currently seems to be, there are trade offs, I guess it'll be feedback of guests in Grills who influence what happens with the space (as beautiful as this entire area of the ship is, the layout is flawed)

 

[Victoria2]

We had no real problem with the lounge area apart from some of the low seats [oof] when we used it.

[exlondoner]

36 minutes ago, DukeBeetle24 said:

Hah, I am hoping on embarkation day (if it's quiet) we might be able to poke our heads in and have a look for ourselves providing we don't interrupt or disturb anyone.

But, I do love a bit of pie in the sky thinking, it's fun if nothing else!

 

It is a funny shaped layout (of which I am sure there are technical, mechanical and practical reasons for the crew for it being the way it is).

 

Either they might look at using the upper area of Princess Grill to create a new lounge (Red), it would afford much greater views and light, though it would reduce the amount of window seating for Princess. It would also probably require an additional entrance by the lifts, stairs and toilets. Princess Grill could expand back some way into the lounge to reflow the lost seating (Green), the concierge area remains the same and Queens Grill could be expanded a little too (Blue).

 

Though if you wanted to be radical, if they redesigned in this way you could switch Princess and Queens, let the Queens Grill have the domed skylight. As there currently seems to be, there are trade offs, I guess it'll be feedback of guests in Grills who influence what happens with the space (as beautiful as this entire area of the ship is, the layout is flawed)

 

Very ingenious. It seems almost beyond belief that Cunard managed to make such a mess of this, when they did it so brilliantly on the Vistas, also an adaptation of an HAL design.

 

As you may know, my solution is to pinch the wellness studio, which surely doesn’t need to be that large or actually need daylight and a view. It could use a part of Deck 12, next to the Boardroom, assuming it is necessary at all, which it certainly wasn’t on our voyage, but I am assuming younger and fitter passengers subsequently. A short covered way would enable passengers to reach the lifts and stairs to go to dinner.