Tattycoram

D&N and buchanan101, I seem to be typing too fast (I see there's a grammar error in my last sentence too--I must have edited and left a ghost behind): I normally would say BA or British Airways. The suitcase wrinkle was the switch from our BA flight to regional Aer Lingus flights which had a smaller allowance (maybe not as draconian as Ryanair, but I definitely didn't want to push it). A few times on international flights I've had problems with bags that did not keep up with me--once from Paris to Carcasonne where my suitcase didn't catch up with us on our canal boat until we were almost in Marseille. Also: I hate waiting at carousels! Some non-negligible amount of times, they announce the wrong number and we're all waiting at the wrong one, or, it seems, one family bag is the absolute last one, etc. With a cushion of time and a good eye on my luggage, I'm a completely calm traveler, happy to entertain myself with a book. But if I were trying to catch a ship that won't wait for me with a dicey transfer, I'd be a pretty taut wire.

My husband loves to give planes a sporting chance of getting away, but I don't! The whole point of a TA (I think) is being elegantly unhurried. Last year my teenaged daughter and I were headed to a small island in Ireland for a recuperative stay after a tough few years. She was dreading people, crowds, noise, bustle, no sleep, jet lag . . . But to get to there we had a crazy fast switch from JFK-Heathrow-Dublin. Normally we travel light with a bag small enough to carryon (even for two weeks with hiking boots and wedding outfit), but the European non-check bag is too small even for us. Since I was in sole charge, I had swirling questions: Where or even how often would we have to clear customs? Immigration? Could we check our bags through? Would we have to wait for them? Would there be enough time for checked bags to catch up with us? How long to dash from one terminal to another? And this would all be on basically no sleep for us and about 5 in the morning in London--how often would the shuttles run? etc. etc. I couldn't get through to British Air for weeks, and so forth and so on. I memorized maps and running routes! As it happened EVERYTHING worked smoothly--in fact the Dublin flight was delayed so I even had time for a little breakfast from Leon. Our Dublin to Cork train was fine. Our Cork to London flight to meet up with the rest of the family was fine. Our London to JFK flight was delayed but fine. We're headed back to the same island against this summer, BUT the thought of all that stressful switching is just so unpleasant is the reason that we booked our (first) TA on QM2 this summer!

I feel like a total idiot, but I just read a thread about the perils of disembarking in Brooklyn--and it reminded that I'd never even given a second's thought to the fact that we'll need to clear immigration in Southampton! How does that factor into the Cunard transfer? (We're American, so I'm assuming it'll be slower)

If you're a lowly Britannia person, what's available to you?

Oh my, Winifred22--that sounds so discombobulated. I'm definitely feeling happier about shoving money in Cunard's coffers for transferring this July. But I've taken note of everyone else's advice for what I am already anticipating will be the next time.

I'm having my morning coffee, enjoying reading through these comments* on the train service and have some vaguely related reactions. Background: In the States the Northeast Corridor of Amtrak between Boston and DC has been the backbone of my adult life, and now I live in MetroNorth territory to get between CT and Manhattan. These lines are convenient and subsidized but very limited in territory and they basically duplicate the long highway, I-95. Long, long ago in my 20s I traveled cheaply all over England (and bits of Scotland) on BritRail passes. I loved the romance of changing at tiny stations and seeing the traces of historical lines (like GWR, etc.)--my specialty is the long 19th century, so I possibly get more excited by infrastructure like the Embankment and old sewage stations than other people --and I loved the flexibility since there were so many trains all the time--it was obvious how many people used trains to travel all over the country rather than drive. And if I had to wait for connections, I happily read my book. Obviously it felt cheap because of my BritRail pass, but even when I didn't have one and just traveled between Huntingdon and London I could afford weekend jaunts on my college money. Now that I'm older with more money and less time to spend, I'm finding British train travel weirdly expensive especially for relatively short hops if you don't want to commit to a particular time--or perhaps just bewildering on the number of different prices for the same trip. For instance, we often go from London to Portsmouth for the day to the Dockyards to see the Victory and the Mary Rose, etc. We like to leave the return time open in case another interesting thing turns up and we stay longer or one of us just gets pooped and wants to go. Last year a day open return was a bit more than $50--which was the same price as my son's round trip on Eurostar from Paris to London! Ok, that was not an open return, but since that's international travel I think of the scheduling as being in a different category in my head. On our TA, we arrive in Southampton on a Sunday, and I was definitely wondering if I should be worried about strikes or stoppages etc. based on recent news and anecdotes from friends. I certainly didn't want to commit to a specific time because of the uncertainty of when we'd get off the ship. The one-way Sunday fare varies so much--from 28 to 90 pounds! Part of me wants my 16 year old to get the feel for the kind of potentially uncomfortable and uncertain travel that will be in her budget as a young adult, but the other part of me . . . !

I spent many years in a marching band and no years in a mariachi band. This, despite the Sousa, is nothing except an abomination: wrong instrumentation, too loud, shabby playing, and no marching!

bluemarble, THANK YOU! This information is so helpful! I really appreciate you writing them all out. I had been wondering if I should cancel and book privately so we could arrive more quickly and reliably in London, but now I'm feeling comfortable just leaving everything in place and not having to plan a single more thing! (I had also thought of walking to the station and taking the train . . . but that seemed maybe to be coming back to earth with a bit too much of a bump!)

I'm delighted to know more details about disembarking. Maybe this is a good time to ask a tangentially related question. Partly out of decision fatigue with the absurd logistics from our complicated family meetups this summer, I decided to pay for the Cunard transfer from Southampton to Victoria (then we'll hop a cab to Kensington) rather than booking our own even though I suspect it would cost about the same (for 2 people) or less. So given that we are getting some kind of bus transfer through Cunard: If there's one London-bound bus, when does it leave? Do all London-bound buses (if there's more than one), leave at the same time? Do the buses usually leave on time? (Since all it takes is one late person to make a whole group late . . . ) I guess it boils down to: We wake early and travel light: Would self-disembarking get us to London any earlier with Cunard's transfer or should we let them move our bags as well as ourselves since it wouldn't make any difference?

Thank you, Jim_P! What a wonderful mistake on my part!

I was once on a 2-week Hawaii cruise on Crystal that had a group booking attached to a college. They were perhaps ¼ of the ship? It was actually lovely because on all the sea days during the day they were at lectures in the big auditorium, so the rest of the ship was emptier: the spas, the pool, the Crystal-sponsored speakers' talks. They wore lanyards to identify themselves by, but were quite unobtrusive en masse. The group didn't attend dinner or shows or anything as a group, so none of the evening activities were compromised. In fact, they loved talking about books and ideas with anyone who felt like doing so.

It's our first trip on the QM2 and we aren't picky, so I'm mostly asking this question out of curiosity. I booked a cabin fairly late for a July TA this summer, and there weren't many Oceanview cabins left. We'll be in 6025 which according to the deck plan I've been looking at seems to be pretty much right under the fitness center. I saw a CC thread from 2017 where people were trying to figure out if the fitness center opened at 6 or 8 am, and the commentators there seemed to think there were NO cabins under the fitness center. Am I reading the deck plan wrong? Were they? Did something change between 2017 and 2024? Obviously it would be nicer not to hear people more energetic than I am dropping weights early in the morning! But I'm not planning to complain--I'm just puzzled about this discrepancy.

NE John, I promise! (I'd already read posts from unhappy pub customers, and I completely agree with their unhappiness.)

Oh, wow--that looks like such an elevated place to read and look out. While the space is stunning, I sense Linda's command of it. She looks like a boon companion. I will make sure to raise a glass to her and you on our trip. Thank you.

I just post this same question at the general board because--after searching for over an hour--I couldn't find Hapag-Lloyd anywhere! In my second hour of searching, I found I could search H-L ships individually. Then I found this question and realized I was not alone! I certainly would like to add my American vote. (I speak French but not German although I read and understand a bit, mostly with an Austrian rather than German or Swiss tinge.) (I see the Spanish line Pullmantur still has a board even though it no longer exists.)