Se1lad

Patisserie tray is still going strong - it’s done by the team of wait staff who serve your specific section in QG.

Premiership matches are normally shown on the televisions in the staterooms and also in the pub. was anyone onboard for the last World Cup - did they show any matches in larger venues like the theatre etc?

The extras do sound like a genuine upgrade to the BC, however I don’t think I live a bleak life at home without them. For example I don’t normally have flambé dishes served at my table - it would play havoc with the paintwork on the ceiling! I wasn’t aware that the serving of rolls and butter was gender specific, however on my previous trips in BC and grills rolls and butter were replenished as requested by the waiting staff serving my table. I have received a finger bowl in BC and grills when the main course required it - for example after Peking Duck. In BC and grills there were different spoons for different soups and the appropriate cutlery was provided with any fish course. Pretty much every restaurant I’ve been to provides dessert spoons so I don’t understand what your comment here refers to.

Fixed late dining was removed for a while when crushing restarted after Covid - the second sitting was open with a bit more flexibility on when you could arrive.

I think what Lakesregion is saying that if adding back fixed late seating dining is considered an upgrade to Britannia, then why wouldn’t adding it to BC and Grills be an upgrade too? There’s no need to offer fixed time seating though as every guest in BC and Grills had their own table for the duration of the trip.. As per my previous post there’s nothing stopping you eating at the same time each night - however if you are part of a shared table there is no guarantee that you will be eating at the same time as your table companions. Saying that, there aren’t many shared tables in QG/PG. On my last TA there was a shared table of 6 - it looks like they coordinated between themselves so they arrived at more or less the same time.

Hopefully they didn’t make the costumes pre-Covid - some of the male performers appeared to have put on a few pounds during lockdown!

There’s nothing stopping you eating at a fixed time in BC and Grills now - simply turn up at 6.30 or 8.30 every night?!

I hope it will result in improvements to PG/QG. The cheese for example in QG could really do with improving - some decent Comte and Époisses for example. Offering a drinks package would also be appreciated. Cunard may have been really smart here of course - often the only cabins available near sailing date are Britannia - by enhancing the experience here they may be able to fill Britannia and still fill Grills without offering any additional benefit.

Cunard have already confirmed there will be changes to club - I received this yesterday: Britannia Club updates. Enjoy more choice than ever before with our elevated Britannia Club experience. Look forward to an enhanced menu and special, theatrical table side service celebrating some of our feature dishes, all of which you can enjoy from your own private, reserved table. The luxury continues in your stateroom with brand new complimentary mineral water, your own espresso coffee machine, sumptuous bathrobes, and other amenities.

I imagine one of the challenges is that there are only a limited number of BC staterooms available - though maybe a number of BC guests will book Britannia in the future now that flexible dining is on offer.

Do you think Cunard will add any extra benefit for Grills now that Britannia has the open dining option, and Club has enhanced dining options?

You also get the benefit of afternoon tea in the Grills Lounge and ability to to order off the PG menu fir delivery to your stateroom. I agree with MajorTom though that the marketing description of the enhanced BC dining does appear to significantly narrow the gap between BC and PG. Maybe Cunard will start to offer all Grills passengers a complimentary drinks package - they already offer it on some booking made in America already.

Yes - you can still bring your own alcohol on board for in cabin consumption. You can also take your own wine for consumption in the restaurant, subject to a corkage fee.

The requirement for jackets remains on Gala nights, however it has been dropped on other nights - this applies to all Cunard cruises/crossings, not just Alaska ones.

You may stand a better chance as your husband is diabetic - when requesting the different packages make sure they are aware this is the reason.

One tip is regardless of which plan you choose, to not buy the whole trip option on the first day. If you wait to the second morning then the price comes down by either $15 or $20 depending on the plan. As you can normally pick up a mobile signal for the first couple of hours on departure you can save a bit on the package.

I think it's the way it asked sometimes - when people say 'How many cruises have you had - this is our 215th!' it feels more like they are trying to show off. I normally reply by saying I've never bothered to count how many I have been on : )

I suppose the problem is that nearly always seem to sell all the Grill cabins, so why would they sell them at a lower price with a reduced single supplement, plus lose out on additional revenue from on board spend?

If it is £300 in total I would go for it. If you search on Cruise Critic you will find several threads that will give you an idea of some of the things you can order off menu in Queen's Grill.

On my TA in May when mask wearing was also in force, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Once you were sat down in a restaurant/bar etc you could take your mask off and there wasn't an expectation to put it back on between courses or between drinks etc, so long as you were remaining seated. I did initially struggle to see the logic however, as I am sure you are as likely to catch COVID being sat near someone in a bar as you are walking past someone if you are unmasked in both scenarios, though I suppose the point is you reduce the number of infections by eliminating some of the transmission opportunities.

£300 per person or £300 in total? If it's in total I would go for it. You'll get a bigger suite, free bar with wine or spirits in your suite and also have the ability to order off menu in the restaurant if you want to.

A pain that there aren't any - I expect Cunard think they can make more money through the single supplement! I've always thought it a shame on the other ships that the single cabins are only for Britannia. I've always thought it would be a good idea if they could sell the single cabins for any grade - I'd quite happily pay say 45% of a Q6 fare for a single cabin if it allowed me access to QG.

Makes sense I suppose but it does have the unfortunate effect of looking like a Health & Safety binder that you file on a shelf when you’re finished with it!

It looks more like a Binder of Condolence rather than a Book of Condolence!

On a UK booking I have the contact number entered as 11 digits with no spaces - eg 07777123456