QM2 not what it is made out to be

In Britannia the Cheese Dalek does not exist. The cheese comes out on a plate with no selection available.

In Britannia the Cheese Dalek does not exist. The cheese comes out on a plate with no selection available.

As with many others here I can only report facts as experienced, but posters who report everything as “perfect” presumably don’t have any knowledge of complaining because they don’t have anything to complain about.

DAVID

As with many others here I can only report facts as experienced, but posters who report everything as “perfect” presumably don’t have any knowledge of complaining because they don’t have anything to complain about.

Nothing is ever "perfect". It wasn't on QE recently for example.

And yes, I have had to complain about small issues, or point out minor errors, on several voyages. I always approach whomever I have to speak to about the issue with a smile, treat the crew/staff as human, and never with a "don't you know who I am?" attitude (and yes, I've heard that on occasion). Sometimes something is so trivial, I choose to ignore it.

But my glass is half full, not half empty.

I can have a great time without needing a good moan every day (unlike professional complainers).

I don't make a three-act drama (with curtain calls) over trifling & insignificant matters.

I've just gotta' jump in and applaud "Cheese Dalek," Pepperrn. I'm not a cheese guy, so I seldom order it, but I recall that the dalek in the QE2 QG was looking awfully scuffed-up in the later years.

(And I still say that Cunard has been resting on its laurels and has gotten comfortable on existing cruisers [who may not be existing, themselves, much longer] in its small niche and has been letting other lines surpass it in many areas at its own peril.)

- Mark

... And I still say that Cunard has been resting on its laurels and has gotten comfortable on existing cruisers [who may not be existing, themselves, much longer] in its small niche and has been letting other lines surpass it in many areas at its own peril. Mark

Sincere best wishes to you :)

As I said in the past, Cunard loyal followers would not say anything is wrong even if it is.

I disagree. Those who are truly loyal to Cunard - or any cruise line, hotel, etc. - are willing to admit that everything is not perfect. Cunard is currently my favourite line for a variety of reasons, but it has not always been so. My all-time favourite line went out of business in 1977, alas.

As with many "loyal followers" I want Cunard to do better and I don't hesitate to tell them where they could improve. If someone posts their negative experiences I don't doubt what they say. One type of complaint that causes replies is when someone takes their first voyage and something isn't up to their liking and they say: "The food was the worst" or "The crew was surly" or "The passengers were snobs" etc. and they say they will never again travel with Cunard.

Cunard loyalists are quite mild compared with some others. Two years ago I was taking my first Holland America cruise in a very long time so I had some questions. Some of the loyalists were quite nasty and replied with an attitude of: how dare you expect Holland America to do this or that.

What's a cheese dalek?

again have you read the blog on QM2's world cruise which gives a totally different perspective, how do you account for that difference?

Everyone has a right to their perspective, obviously we disagree, and so did everyone at our dining table. The couple we met at our hotel in Perth remembered us from the cruise, and stopped us to tell us they were very unhappy with Cunard and called it a SICK SHIP.

again have you read the blog on QM2's world cruise which gives a totally different perspective, how do you account for that difference?

Just because there is a blog of loyal Cunard people, doesn't make it right.

I disagree. Those who are truly loyal to Cunard - or any cruise line, hotel, etc. - are willing to admit that everything is not perfect. Cunard is currently my favourite line for a variety of reasons, but it has not always been so. My all-time favourite line went out of business in 1977, alas.

 

 

As with many "loyal followers" I want Cunard to do better and I don't hesitate to tell them where they could improve. If someone posts their negative experiences I don't doubt what they say. One type of complaint that causes replies is when someone takes their first voyage and something isn't up to their liking and they say: "The food was the worst" or "The crew was surly" or "The passengers were snobs" etc. and they say they will never again travel with Cunard.

 

 

Cunard loyalists are quite mild compared with some others. Two years ago I was taking my first Holland America cruise in a very long time so I had some questions. Some of the loyalists were quite nasty and replied with an attitude of: how dare you expect Holland America to do this or that.

Not everyone is the same as you.

This statement begs a couple of questions, namely how you define ambience (is it decor, is it grand public spaces, is it refined elegance?) and what lines you have sailed on that exceed Cunard's ambience according to your definition.

 

Having done a couple of cruises on Holland America in the past year I'd say one area where Cunard beats HAL hands down is in ambience (whether her defined by decor, grand public spaces or refined elegance), so my curiosity is aroused when you offer a (one-sided) comparison of Cunard to some unnamed line with nicer ambience.

A persons choice of décor varies substantially. My opinion is just that. I find most better lines have décor, and public areas more to my taste. I have been on almost every cruise line. The ambience is not what makes it good or bad. It's the crew, other passengers, activities, food, entertainment, comfort, etc. Cunard passed on crew, entertainment, and comfort, but in my opinion flunked on all the other aspects.

What's a cheese dalek?

Now imagine it stocked with cheese.

Just because there is a blog of loyal Cunard people, doesn't make it right.

It represents his opinion, just as this thread represents yours.

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Just to clarify, the blog is from a first time Cunard cruiser.

It represents his opinion, just as this thread represents yours.

 

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Yes, still it is inappropriate to draw a final conclusion just from one and the first experience.

What defines a loyal Cunarder? Someone who will only sail with Cunard and can see no wrong?

With six crossings/cruises under my belt and two more crossings booked I would consider myself a loyal Cunarder BUT I'm not tied just to the one line and if something is 'not right' on the Queen I will call it. Having most recently sailed on the NCL Breakaway, which (much to our surprise) we absolutely loved and a cruise coming up on the Regal Princess I can see why some people may 'grumble'. Comparing sailing with NCL and the QM2 is almost impossible.

For anyone interested here is a link to my review of a trip involving both the QM2 and the Breakaway https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2444188

It will be interesting to see how the Regal Princess compares. But at the end of the day when we look to book a cruise we always look to Cunard first. Why, quite simply we just love Cunard but if there is a better deal out there we will take it.

A Dalek (from Dr. Who):

 

 

Now imagine it stocked with cheese.

The Christmas New Year cruise 2017/2018 was not up to scratch. It was a very disappointing cruise. Firstly our cabin had a disgusting broken stained shower tray. I was absolutely shocked when I saw it. I could not believe that this was allowed to be sold as a decent cabin.

Long story as I refused to set a foot inside it. We were given the use of a second cabin nearby for one week and the guys did an amazing job of either replacing it, or patching it up. Whatever, it looked good afterwards.

Why was this allowed to get in such a bad condition?

The food in Britannia was not up to standard. Boring bland, and not always warm.

Pillows in our cabin were awful. Filled with cut up pieces of foam rubber and not the usual quality of pillow slips.Steward disinterested and never replaced toiletries unless I asked him to do so.

He never cleaned behind the TV for a whole four weeks

Another thing were the passengers.

Travel agents sell this as a four-week cruise and a two-ship destination. One week crossing from Southampton on QM2. Two weeks on Norwegian Gem. Then get back on QM2 in New York to sail back to Southampton.

Totally different passenger types. Hundreds of kids. People not dressed in the dress code on a formal night. Bar staff ignoring this and serving people in anoraks and hoodies.

The worst thing was the large groups of people who were travelling in large family groups up to 30 in some groups. All there to celebrate Hannukha. Often rude .

They took over half of deck 8 every day. Blocking out 27 sunbeds with towels, hand bags, books. Items if clothing, but never using the sunbeds till late afternoon. Many people upset by this and even after many peoples complaints were made to deckhands and the front desk, nothing was said to them or towels removed.

Other main issues were the number of people using Britannia restaurant as if it was free dining. They turned up at the table one night and then requested another for the following night. So they were changing daily. The poor wait staff were upset, annoyed, found it totally unbelievable

The Maitre D was been driven crazy by these people.

We had around 22 different people come and go on the cruise. One elderly American couple, very nice left after two days as they said they were told to do this as they wanted to meet new people each day. 10 days later, and after finding themselves sitting alone for two nights they decided

they would come back and stay.

I have never know anything like it in my 40 years if cruising.

Kings Court was like a railway station. People walking through as decks were closed. Carinthia was like Gods waiting room, people sitting in the same seats all day reading, knitting, sleeping.

It was not the best cruise and I have actually done a few hundred nights on QM2 , plus a world cruise on her. Not to mention hundreds of nights on the other Queens.

I firmly believe this particular cruise was the problem and it is the same each year from what people told me. Regular Cunarders saying they would never do it again. Same here, never again in the Christmas Caribbean cruise.

Disembarkation what a riot. Diamond members and Grills were called to leave first. It was ten deep and most people leaving the ship were not diamond. Then when they got off their luggage was still on the ship. People complaining but it was their own fault .They should have got off when directed, but on the other hand Cunard allowed this to happen.

I will be back onboard in August and I am sure it will be a different ship.

Hundreds passengers got ill with chest infections.Myself included.

Oh, yes, must not forget to tell you all that the warm canapes were never served the whole cruise. What they did serve in the Commodore and other bars were olives, nuts, popcorn and pork scratching!

When we asked the hotel manager where were the warm canapes he ignored the question.

Not Cunard standards IMO.

I did let Cunard know my feelings as they sent me an email to give feedback. They must have read it as they contacted me.

I was told the stewards no longer replenish toiletries unless you require them restocking as most people bring their own.

They were looking into the food issues as others had complained.

On the upside the ports were nice, staff nice, some lovely people inboard and the Christmas decorations were nice.

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Sorry to hear that you had a bad experience this time. We were on the Dec 8th crossing just like you, but we continued on the QM2 back to NY. I can't say that I noticed these crossings being much different that our other crossings. The cabin steward don't seem a personble this time as some we've had on past crossing, but he kept the room just as clean and made up just as well as in the past. I did have to ask for some toiletries when they ran out, but I got them immediately without question.

We always ask for (and have received) a table for two on the first sitting. We didn't find the food any better or worse than on other crossing. However, the wait staff was wonderful and treated us like royalty and we plan to ask to be seated with this waiter on our next crossing. We tried the Smokestack specialty restaurant on one night and found it to be very good, but far too much food for us to eat. Lunch in the Veranda was somewhat better than I remember when it was Todd English and again the wait staff was great.

We always try to plan our trips so that we are not not on the ship during holidays when the children are out of school. As a result, we seldom see children while on board. Most everyone seemed to dress according to the dress code in both directions. However, we noticed that there were fewer gentlemen wearing tuxedos on the westbound crossing than on the eastbound crossing, but always had an appropriate suit and tie on formal night. Unfortunately, some of the women didn't try very hard.

All in all, it is amazing that two (or 4) people can have entirely different experiences on the same ship at the same time.

BTW - We love your book and learned some new tricks from it (that we used) ;)

I've just received an email from friends on board QM2, their first time on Cunard.

They are on the Sydney to Singapore sector and I've been anxious to hear how it has been going considering some negative comments on CC.

I was delighted to read they are having a wonderful cruise so far. The food has been delicious, they are in the Britannia restaurant, their cabin very spacious with the most comfortable bed and they can't speak too highly about the attentive staff.

I hope it continues to be an enjoyable cruise for them, so far so good.:)

Our group of 6 pax recently cruised to NZ on the QM2, overall we were very disappointed with the cruise.Accommodation was reasonable in a Balcony, bathroom has a-shower curtain,Pillows were not good and limited choice.Food was very average and in the Britannia Restaurant it was very ordinary, the last night on board was the best meal,service in the restaurant was very pedestrian.Kings Court food was the ok for Brekky, terrible at lunch time ( same burgers and sandwiches everyday)and at night time the pasta and pizza ( thick bases yuck!)were the same .Service in the Kings court was hard to find. In the Corinthian room they serve food but it is the same choice Everyday!Beverages are expensive.Entertainment was reasonably good.

The Queens room was nice and Afternoon tea was well done .

Dress code was no problem for our group , but not always policed , Cunard should stay on top of the dress code.

NZ ports were great and the weather was very warm.

My cruising background is almost 600 days on many cruise lines, but Cunard for the basic passengers is not as good value ,as Holland America or Celebrity in my opinion .

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The Christmas New Year cruise 2017/2018 was not up to scratch. It was a very disappointing cruise. Firstly our cabin had a disgusting broken stained shower tray. I was absolutely shocked when I saw it. I could not believe that this was allowed to be sold as a decent cabin.

Long story as I refused to set a foot inside it. We were given the use of a second cabin nearby for one week and the guys did an amazing job of either replacing it, or patching it up. Whatever, it looked good afterwards.

Why was this allowed to get in such a bad condition?

The food in Britannia was not up to standard. Boring bland, and not always warm.

Pillows in our cabin were awful. Filled with cut up pieces of foam rubber and not the usual quality of pillow slips.Steward disinterested and never replaced toiletries unless I asked him to do so.

He never cleaned behind the TV for a whole four weeks

Another thing were the passengers.

Travel agents sell this as a four-week cruise and a two-ship destination. One week crossing from Southampton on QM2. Two weeks on Norwegian Gem. Then get back on QM2 in New York to sail back to Southampton.

Totally different passenger types. Hundreds of kids. People not dressed in the dress code on a formal night. Bar staff ignoring this and serving people in anoraks and hoodies.

The worst thing was the large groups of people who were travelling in large family groups up to 30 in some groups. All there to celebrate Hannukha. Often rude .

They took over half of deck 8 every day. Blocking out 27 sunbeds with towels, hand bags, books. Items if clothing, but never using the sunbeds till late afternoon. Many people upset by this and even after many peoples complaints were made to deckhands and the front desk, nothing was said to them or towels removed.

Other main issues were the number of people using Britannia restaurant as if it was free dining. They turned up at the table one night and then requested another for the following night. So they were changing daily. The poor wait staff were upset, annoyed, found it totally unbelievable

The Maitre D was been driven crazy by these people.

We had around 22 different people come and go on the cruise. One elderly American couple, very nice left after two days as they said they were told to do this as they wanted to meet new people each day. 10 days later, and after finding themselves sitting alone for two nights they decided

they would come back and stay.

I have never know anything like it in my 40 years if cruising.

Kings Court was like a railway station. People walking through as decks were closed. Carinthia was like Gods waiting room, people sitting in the same seats all day reading, knitting, sleeping.

It was not the best cruise and I have actually done a few hundred nights on QM2 , plus a world cruise on her. Not to mention hundreds of nights on the other Queens.

I firmly believe this particular cruise was the problem and it is the same each year from what people told me. Regular Cunarders saying they would never do it again. Same here, never again in the Christmas Caribbean cruise.

Disembarkation what a riot. Diamond members and Grills were called to leave first. It was ten deep and most people leaving the ship were not diamond. Then when they got off their luggage was still on the ship. People complaining but it was their own fault .They should have got off when directed, but on the other hand Cunard allowed this to happen.

I will be back onboard in August and I am sure it will be a different ship.

Hundreds passengers got ill with chest infections.Myself included.

Oh, yes, must not forget to tell you all that the warm canapes were never served the whole cruise. What they did serve in the Commodore and other bars were olives, nuts, popcorn and pork scratching!

When we asked the hotel manager where were the warm canapes he ignored the question.

Not Cunard standards IMO.

I did let Cunard know my feelings as they sent me an email to give feedback. They must have read it as they contacted me.

I was told the stewards no longer replenish toiletries unless you require them restocking as most people bring their own.

They were looking into the food issues as others had complained.

On the upside the ports were nice, staff nice, some lovely people inboard and the Christmas decorations were nice.

 

 

 

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That does sound kind of awful. We always stayed away from those Christmas voyages. On the other hand, I will guarantee you had the best shoes on board :cool:

We will be on the Elizabeth for Alaska next summer. I'll still bring my stilettos for the QR

HI. Three QM2 crossings. One (crossing) each on QE and QV. If anyone chooses to sail with Cunard based on food, know this - you have not made the best decision. CUNARD is not known for its culinary excellence in Britannia. However, the Grills offer a different dimension of dining at sea. I did have the privilege of crossing in a PG suite on my QE crossing - it was nearly flawless. Oceania does deliver great food, some of the best. Cunard's buffets on QV and QE are average at best, serving the same fare each day and in limited fashion. Very limited. QM2's Kings court is good with much more variety and fare than the twins.

Now, the QM2 is like no other ship. Period. Sail on her for the legacy, the tradition and the greatness of this fine ship - she is an ocean liner as we all know. Don't expect an experience anything near that of a cruise ship. On QM2, you can walk around the promenade in 25 foot seas at 22 knots. On any other ship - forget about it. Even the pools are open in really bad weather, in January.

Cunard has done the best job with the Vista/Signature class platform (QE & QV). The Interiors are awesome and carry on the Cunard tradition offering a wonderful array of lounges and spaces that are far superior than any other ships (and there are many) using this footprint of ship. It will be intriguing to see how Cunard outfits their new ship, comparing that to the Koningsdam which I have sailed on and was seriously disappointed with the fragmented design and layout of that ship.

I began my cruising life at age 10, 50 years ago on the SS Rotterdam. I like old world, old style, traditional voyages and today, I find that it is only CUNARD that can deliver those memories in any type of manner or fashion. I tolerate mediocre food and shower curtains. I sail CUNARD because they still produce what this whole business was founded on - a seafaring experience. No rock climbing, no skating rinks, no neon. It's about the only pure, authentic ship line left and that said, it is a stretch. It requires a certain level of tolerance and CUNARD is not for everyone. The trade off is worth it. I love CUNARD.

HI. Three QM2 crossings. One (crossing) each on QE and QV. If anyone chooses to sail with Cunard based on food, know this - you have not made the best decision. CUNARD is not known for its culinary excellence in Britannia. However, the Grills offer a different dimension of dining at sea. I did have the privilege of crossing in a PG suite on my QE crossing - it was nearly flawless. Oceania does deliver great food, some of the best. Cunard's buffets on QV and QE are average at best, serving the same fare each day and in limited fashion. Very limited. QM2's Kings court is good with much more variety and fare than the twins.

 

 

 

Now, the QM2 is like no other ship. Period. Sail on her for the legacy, the tradition and the greatness of this fine ship - she is an ocean liner as we all know. Don't expect an experience anything near that of a cruise ship. On QM2, you can walk around the promenade in 25 foot seas at 22 knots. On any other ship - forget about it. Even the pools are open in really bad weather, in January.

 

 

 

Cunard has done the best job with the Vista/Signature class platform (QE & QV). The Interiors are awesome and carry on the Cunard tradition offering a wonderful array of lounges and spaces that are far superior than any other ships (and there are many) using this footprint of ship. It will be intriguing to see how Cunard outfits their new ship, comparing that to the Koningsdam which I have sailed on and was seriously disappointed with the fragmented design and layout of that ship.

 

 

 

I began my cruising life at age 10, 50 years ago on the SS Rotterdam. I like old world, old style, traditional voyages and today, I find that it is only CUNARD that can deliver those memories in any type of manner or fashion. I tolerate mediocre food and shower curtains. I sail CUNARD because they still produce what this whole business was founded on - a seafaring experience. No rock climbing, no skating rinks, no neon. It's about the only pure, authentic ship line left and that said, it is a stretch. It requires a certain level of tolerance and CUNARD is not for everyone. The trade off is worth it. I love CUNARD.

I can agree with most of your post. Although there are still some of the older traditions still around on Holland America ships. They still have the working bellboys, still play the chimes to announce dinner. Still have teak decks.

I have been sailing for many years and actually started out my cruise life working on the SS Rotterdam. I did my first world cruises on her in 1981.

I have always loved all things Cunard and have clocked up hundreds of nights onboard various Cunard Ships. I love what Cunard offer.

I have three cruises booked for the coming year, two in Britannia, one in the Grills. I do not care where I stay as long as I am onboard.

Unfortunately, there were too many things that were not a Cunard style on my last cruise.

Even Cunard customer services told me they had been many complaints and they were looking into this.

Good that they do as they need to keep one step ahead of the game as cruisers are now a different breed to the ones that sailed on the ships like SS Rotterdam. They do not have the same style of the glamour of the old style ships. Wearing anoraks into the bars on a formal night etc is not what one expects.

As a point of interest. This time last year we took a cruise on the MS Rotterdam. Sailed on her repositioning cruise from Fort Lauderdale to Rotterdam. The ship is 20 years old. Has a wrap around teak deck and. Still has portholes. I loved her!

Plus the food was far, far superior to what we had on QM2.

Stephan Payne who designed QM2 took his idea if the wrap-around teak deck from the SS Rotterdam, plus the Staircase in G32 is his modern take if the stairs in the Ritz Carlton.

He told me this himself .

The SS Rotterdam is now a floating hotel and conference centre in Rotterdam harbour.

We stayed onboard last year after disembarking the present day Rotterdam. She is in incredibly good condition and it was wonderful to step back in time to what had once been my home. Fabulous dining rooms and other rooms still in tact in their original state of design, well worth the visit.

One has to wonder what QM2 will be like when she reaches the grand old age of 60 like SS Rotterdam.

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I took my very first cruise on the Rotterdam, but it had been bought by the Premier Cruise Line and was renamed the Rembrandt.

Happy memories :)