Neuhoftraveler

Cunard works in mysterious ways. Just the other day, we noticed that the Princess Grills cabin we'd booked some time ago is now being offered at a substantially lower price. When we asked to rebook the same cabin at the new lower price, we were told that this would require forfeiting the non-refundable part of our deposit, and giving up the promotional on-board credit that was part of our booking. But: as an alternative, we were offered an upgrade to Queen's Grill at no additional cost, with no deposit or OBC forfeiture. (We opted for the upgrade.)

Thanks to both responders for this happy information.

Is there any place I can find a listing of what exactly is available in the Captain's and Commodore wine package offerings on QM2? Thanks to anyone who can point me in the right direction.

I'm sure I recall seeing postings here with lists of speakers, shows, etc for specific voyages, but cannot now locate them. Nor can I find such lists on the Cunard (US) website, not even the Voyage Personaliser (which doesn't seem very personalised to me). Maybe it's just me, but would some kind person direct me to the relevant links?

The Queen's Grill perks are described differently at different places on the Cunard (US) website. At one point, the mini-bar is described as "complimentary spirits or wines, and soft drinks" with no quantity limit stated. At another point, the mini-bar is said to include "two bottles of spirits or wines, and soft drinks." My question is: Can anyone say whether the offering is a total of two bottles for the entire cruise, or constant replenishment so there always are two bottles on hand? (I realize that past performance is no guarantee of future results.)

Just a short addendum to the above: Some US credit cards that do charge a "foreign transaction fee" will also do so on a purchase made in USD if the merchant is located outside the US. Caveat emptor.

In addition to the Verandah credit, the current Labor Day promotion includes very substantial reductions on at least some of the cabin categories, and not limited to immediately upcoming voyages. E.g., for the 12/15-22 Westbound crossing, P1 is reduced to $2,999.

Even with forfeiture of non-refundable deposits, and loss of OBC from our originally booked promotion, we could have gotten a $900 net reduction (total for2 pax) by cancelling and rebooking. Instead, we accepted Cunard's offer of an upgrade from P1 to Q5. We hope the difference between Princess Grill and Queen's Grill turns out to be worth $450 pp. Will someone please assure us that we made the right decision?

We find the prospect of this menu simply mouth-watering. Everyone is entitled to their own food preferences, of course, and no one should be criticized for them. But it does seem to me that anyone who prefers NYC ethnic street food to the posted menu should seriously consider staying in NYC an extra seven days and getting to (or from) Europe the way most people do.

That seems strange to me as well. In case you haven't seen this, the Cunard UK FAQ states the formal wear rental prices as follows.

 

Black Tuxedo Packages

Includes Dinner Jacket, trousers, shirt, bow tie & handkerchief.

Not to nitpick, but does the package not include braces, cummerbund, and studs? To the OP: better bring what you own even if you do decide to rent.

I find it bizarre that anyone can advertise grain fed beef. Grass-fed dry aged is a different matter.

Anyone can advertise anything he or she wants, and be sure to find some who will respond. The famed circus promoter P.T. Barnum is said to have moved the crowds along in his side shows and "freak" exhibitions with a sign reading, "This way to the egress".

There is no food and service on the QM2 (or on any other ship) to justify $5,300 difference for anyone who is brave enough to mention the word "value".

A suite could be the way people live their life, could be a caprice, could be an adventure, but never "value" (unless you look for a larger cabin for a family, let's say).

Thanks to all responders for their opinions. They are useful to us.

Just to be clear, what I sought was opinions about "comparative" value, not absolute value. Some would say that $2,900 for a week's lodging and food plus one-way transportation to or from Europe for two could never be "value." Others might say that the cost differences are irrelevant, and the only rational question is whether at any given price level the experience offered is worth that price. And some (perhaps including Ronbe65) would say that the only rational approach is to compare incremental price differences with incremental differences in the experience, and decide whether the increment is worth the differential. Chacun a son gout.

Posh ..is that a sailing from England or US.

Far be it for a mere American to lecture a subject of HM The Queen (even a Canadian subject) on such a matter as this, but of course "Home" can only refer to England.

I'm less certain of the reason for the Rule, but believe it has to do with avoiding the sun's heat on voyages to and from India before ships were air-conditioned (wooden ships and iron men and all that). So the Rule must be applied today with care, having due regard for the compass direction of travel and time of year as well as the starting point of the voyage, assuming it still makes any sense at all.

For practical purposes, I respectfully propose that on winter transatlantic voyages from England the rule should still be POSH, because in the northern hemisphere the sun will be on the south side of the vessel and its warmth might (especially on the balcony) be appreciated.

Critiques of this rationale are welcome. Bring it on.

I should have stated in my original post that I'm referring to QM2, for a transatlantic crossing in December 2018.

I realize that value is subjective, but we'd like to hear what those with experience feel is the value -- or lack of value -- of the Princess Grill, compared with balcony cabins.

Along the same line, we'd like to hear this group's thoughts about Club Balcony vs. Balcony (Sheltered) cabins.

Please give us the benefit of your opinions, no matter how distinctive or even quirky.

The Cunard website says the Sheltered Balcony cabins (BU) are 269 square feet, while Club Balcony cabins (A1) are 248. The accompanying photos look the same to me. Can anyone tell me where in the cabin the additional space is found, and how it's utilized?

Further, I would have thought that the more-expensive Club Balcony cabins would be larger than Sheltered Balcony, not vice versa. What am I missing?

The visas obtained for you when doing either a private shore tour or a ships tour are dependent on you staying with the tour guide at all times.

This has been a much-discussed topic on the CC St. Petersburg board and on TripAdvisor, with much confusion and a vast amount of misinformation. I can only speak as of 2012, and the situation may have changed since then. But at that time, at least, under an official exception to the usual visa requirement for entering Russia, cruise ship pax visiting St. Petersburg on either a private shore tour or a ship's tour did not need to "obtain a visa" at all (nor, contrary to common belief, was there such a thing as a "ship's visa" covering pax on ship-sponsored tours). The exception was available only to customers of a licensed tour guide, and one of the requirements was indeed that the visitor had to be accompanied by the guide at all times.

This latter requirement was not rigidly adhered to. We used Alla Tours for a two-day custom-designed tour for two, including a self-booked evening performance ("Eugene Onegin," fittingly enough) at the Mikhailovsky Theatre. The evening's "guide" was simply a driver who picked us up at the pier, dropped us off at the theatre, and collected us after the performance for a return drive to the ship. He did not "accompany" us into the performance. It appeared that this was routine practice. But I have no idea if things are different in today's political climate.

Let me add that we thought our guide from Alla Tours was terrific, and the cost (both the actual tour and the opera tickets) was a fraction of what the equivalent "ship's tours" would have cost, not to mention being tailored specifically to our wishes.

If you do book with Alla or one of their competitors, however, be aware that your fluent English-speaking guide may not be the innocent young woman she appears to be. A friend of ours with connections to the U.S. intelligence community commented to us that there is only one foreign language school in Russia that teaches its students to speak flawlessly unaccented American English, "and it ain't Berlitz."

May I add to the debate by suggesting that dress shoes shoes should be accompanied by dress socks.

I do not believe the dress code either requires or requests socks of any description.

Similar omissions have been the bane of every legislative or rulemaking body throughout human history.

If you usually pay around $35 for a bottle of wine in the US, then there are one or two wines onboard in the region of $45.

The question is, are the $45 on-board wines comparable to the $35 US wine shop wines? I doubt it -- most likely they're $10 wines, if Cunard markups are anything like on-shore restaurant markups.

This topic is acutely important to us as we prepare for our very first QM2 crossing next Winter (Soton-NY). Our tentative plan is to bring aboard some high-quality medium-priced Berry Bros. & Rudd house-label clarets acquired in London (we think they're the best value going), and happily pay the $20 corkage. Any comments or suggestions on this plan would be most welcome.

As another native (but a long time ago) NY'er, I'd suggest combining elements of the various suggested itineraries. The parts that appeal most to me are (1) the walk across Brooklyn Bridge, (2) the boat ride down the East River to the Red Hook Cruise Terminal, and (3) the Cunard bus from Macy's Department Store on 34th St (obviously the last two are alternatives -- can't do both).

Be aware, though, that although both Macy's and the ferry pier are both at 34th St, they're on almost opposite edges of Manhattan Island. That's a pretty long walk. And the worst traffic is on the crosstown (east-west) streets that a cab would need to use in getting from one to the other. Note also that the ship presumably will wait for the Cunard bus, but not for the ferry from 34th St, which could always encounter an unforeseen delay (even assuming the Saturday schedule shows a departure time that would work).

If it were me, I'd be inclined to do the Bridge walk and take the boat back from 34th St if the schedule looks workable, but allow lots and lots of time to get across town to the ferry pier.

As for lunch, keep in mind that Lower Manhattan and the Garment District (around 34th St once you're east of Macy's and towards the East River piers), most of the simple lunch places are closed on weekends. These are business neighborhoods, not tourist areas. But on Saturday or any other day you couldn't keep me away from the Second Avenue Deli at 162 E. 33d St (not on Second Av), en route to the ferry pier, which is one of the last two or three classic East European/Jewish deli's in NY (and just about in the whole US too). If you like, and/or have never had, a really good hot Roumanian pastrami sandwich, not to mention other "Jewish" foods, this is your place. Eat like a local (or like the locals used to eat, anyway).

Busted!

And vindicated! (It happens so rarely, I can't pass up the chance to crow just a wee bit.)

I would assume the answers were provided by him because this entire "visit" to Cruise Critic specifically states that he would be here to answer questions. It's not like he is well known or anything, or too high up to answer questions on CC. If this wasn't the case, Cruise Critic could have simply stated "Cunard's Marketing Department" will be here to answer questions. Perhaps we would have received better answers if it was the lower ranking marketing employees, but honestly I don't think it makes any difference when dealing with Cunard.

Eroller, evidently you have a lot of faith both in Cunard and in Cruise Critic. For myself, I'm skeptical.

Why would anyone assume the "answers" were provided by Mr. Struthers personally, rather than by the same Marketing Department (or PR staff) who create all Cunard's other marketing materials?

To commemorate this thread reaching the 700-posts mark, I have a (potentially im)modest proposal: On every voyage, one of the "Gala" evenings should be an "Anything Goes Ball," in tribute to the 1934 Cole Porter musical of the same name,which -- some here may be old enough to recall -- is set on a transatlantic ocean liner. Having one officially-sanctioned opportunity to express their evening sartorial preferences in all venues might appease the "casuals" (or miscreant lemmings, if you prefer), while also driving home the point that differing dress specifications for different evenings call for differing evening dress. In line with the theme, that evening's theatre performance could be the complete show.

The appropriateness of the "Anything Goes" theme is reinforced, one might say, by the first couplet (after the introduction) of the title song's lyrics. Caveat: The last eight lines of the same stanza could prove troublesome.

If you don't quite remember the lyrics, ask Google.

In London, an alternative to hotels for that long a stay is to rent a furnished flat (apartment). Even in the high-rent districts, the space is much larger, the cost can be much lower (depending on the flat, of course), and you can feel like a Londoner.

There are many short-term rental agents, with properties of all sizes all over London. We have stayed happily many times at flats offered by an Anglophile agent based in Ogden, Utah (of all places), www.londonconnection.com.

Must one pay extra to view the miscreant lemming migration or is it included in one’s fare?

This could be the best post on the entire thread.