QM2 Schedule Changes?

[Leucothea]

In light of the crazy weather lately, is it likely that QM2 would change schedules for the Transatlantics?

 

I'm not sure how it has been on the Atlantic, but it has certainly been horrendous in both the Northeast US and in the UK, particularly in South West England, Southampton's location.

 

How has the weather been on the last couple of crossings, does anyone know?

[Cats2010]

In light of the crazy weather lately, is it likely that QM2 would change schedules for the Transatlantics?

 

I'm not sure how it has been on the Atlantic, but it has certainly been horrendous in both the Northeast US and in the UK, particularly in South West England, Southampton's location.

 

How has the weather been on the last couple of crossings, does anyone know?

 

As far as I can see (I am following her cruises all the time), there has not been any change of QM2's transatlantics so far.

 

Don't forget that she has especially been built for rough seas, and in particular for transatlantics, which she does on a regular basis. I have done a couple of transatlantics with her without the slightest problem. She is made for it, so why worry? :cool:

[welshgirl001]

In light of the crazy weather lately, is it likely that QM2 would change schedules for the Transatlantics?

 

I'm not sure how it has been on the Atlantic, but it has certainly been horrendous in both the Northeast US and in the UK, particularly in South West England, Southampton's location.

 

How has the weather been on the last couple of crossings, does anyone know?

 

Here is a clip from a blog of her current crossing to NY;

Nov 21st

The wind has increased as has the sea state and I can hear the swells pounding against the side of the ship, there is a few degrees of lateral roll and quite a lot of fore and aft pitching. It is beginning to be a lot more fun!

The pitching continued throughout the evening and walking the corridors was a climb followed by a short run downhill, the waves are larger at about 6 metres which is classified as Very Rough, we have a force 8 gale blowing straight towards us from the south west.

 

Sunday November 25 and the steel grey sea has small swells rather than waves and the sky is overcast. There is a westerly force 7, near gale and it makes walking the deck very interesting.

[Austcruiser84]

Here is a clip from a blog of her current crossing to NY;

Nov 21st

The wind has increased as has the sea state and I can hear the swells pounding against the side of the ship, there is a few degrees of lateral roll and quite a lot of fore and aft pitching. It is beginning to be a lot more fun!

The pitching continued throughout the evening and walking the corridors was a climb followed by a short run downhill, the waves are larger at about 6 metres which is classified as Very Rough, we have a force 8 gale blowing straight towards us from the south west.

 

Sunday November 25 and the steel grey sea has small swells rather than waves and the sky is overcast. There is a westerly force 7, near gale and it makes walking the deck very interesting.

 

Incredible! Love it! (I know many wouldn't though)

 

And to think back in the hey day of Transatlantic travel, shipping lines maintained weekly (and sometimes bi and tri weekly) services across this stretch of ocean.

 

This was without modern stabilisers and on ships far smaller than QM2!

[Salacia]

In light of the crazy weather lately, is it likely that QM2 would change schedules for the Transatlantics?

 

I'm not sure how it has been on the Atlantic, but it has certainly been horrendous in both the Northeast US and in the UK, particularly in South West England, Southampton's location.

 

How has the weather been on the last couple of crossings, does anyone know?

 

Hi Leucothea. Good question. As we know, Red Hook port was rendered unoperable as a result of Hurricane Sandy, and it appears the QM2 will dock in Manhattan until the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal is repaired. My sense is that ships at sea fare better than landlubbers when the sea over-takes the shore.

 

Ships float much better than houses. I'm not sure where I want to be when the next really bad storm hits, but I do have a row boat - and, being an experienced Cunard rower, I know how to use it :D Cheers, -S.

[AstroExeter]

I can see there being any problem with the weather at sea at this time. Oh, and Southampton is NOT in the South West of England! It is on the South coast about 75 miles from London. Here in the South West we are currently experiencing terrible floods with whole communities isolated, railways flooded and roads closed. We have also had a tragic fatality when a 21 year old homeless girl was killed by a falling tree.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Hi Leucothea. Good question. As we know, Red Hook port was rendered unoperable as a result of Hurricane Sandy, and it appears the QM2 will dock in Manhattan until the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal is repaired. My sense is that ships at sea fare better than landlubbers when the sea over-takes the shore.

 

Ships float much better than houses. I'm not sure where I want to be when the next really bad storm hits, but I do have a row boat - and, being an experienced Cunard rower, I know how to use it :D Cheers, -S.

 

Captain Wells said that it could be a couple of months until Red Hook is ready to go. Apparently, the floodwaters destroyed a lot of electrical systems, so they can't run the computers to check people in.

 

West side has one pier that is functioning (88), but it had damage, too. This morning, the porter showed us how high the water had been--about 4 feet above the lower level. We had to collect our bags at the bottom level because they were having trouble with the elevators. And there was no self-help this morning, probably because Immigration inspection had to be done on board, not on the pier, also due to storm damage.

 

We did have some rough seas on the 21st. It didn't bother us, but one woman at our dinner table didn't show up that night. It was her first voyage, and will probably be her last. The north Atlantic isn't for everyone.

[Underwatr]

A recent report says that the Brooklyn Terminal is still on track to open "by New Year." Hoping that this means Dec 22.

[concordepa]

A recent report says that the Brooklyn Terminal is still on track to open "by New Year." Hoping that this means Dec 22.

 

Personally I'd rather go into Manhattan than Brooklyn. I'm hoping that it is still out of service til January :)

[Underwatr]

Parking is more of an issue in Manhattan - either pay $8 more per day or park in Weehawken and take the ferry across.

 

If we board in Manhattan I just hope we disembark there also...

[Salacia]

Personally I'd rather go into Manhattan than Brooklyn. I'm hoping that it is still out of service til January :)

 

If the Red Hook Terminal is out of service until January, there will be many people who service that port without work for an extended period of time. And if their homes were in the area, their homes also suffered damage. For their sake, I hope the Red Hook Port is restored as quickly as possible.

 

May I suggest a Circle Line tour around the city for those who wish to see the Manhattan skyline.

[Austcruiser84]

If the Red Hook Terminal is out of service until January, there will be many people who service that port without work for an extended period of time. And if their homes were in the area, their homes also suffered damage. For their sake, I hope the Red Hook Port is restored as quickly as possible.

 

May I suggest a Circle Line tour around the city for those who wish to see the Manhattan skyline.

 

I just hope they make a decision soon.

 

But I thinks it's testament to the American spirit that Redhook is being attended to so quickly.

 

If this happened in Sydney, the terminal would be out of commission until at least Summer 2056.

[gentlemancruiser]

.

 

May I suggest a Circle Line tour around the city for those who wish to see the Manhattan skyline.

 

I would sooner take a circle line tour to see Manhattan then have to stand in line for 45 minutes again just to enter the Manhattan cruise terminal building.....

[3rdGenCunarder]

I would sooner take a circle line tour to see Manhattan then have to stand in line for 45 minutes again just to enter the Manhattan cruise terminal building.....

 

One big problem with the Manhattan terminal is frontage. The way the piers stick out, ships dock perpendicular to the street access roads. If there are multiple ships in port, each ship's street/sidewalk area is just the bit of the street that's in front of the ship. How wide is QM2? That's about the length of the street and sidewalk available to serve her 2600 (?) passengers for drop-off and pick-up. It will always be a bottleneck and there's no way to fix it, unfortunately.

 

And remember that when these piers were built, QE2 was the largest ship to call there, and most were much smaller. The space inside worked fine back then. Now it gets overcrowded quickly.

 

That's why Red Hook works so well. The terminal is larger and doesn't have to handle as many ships at one time.

[concordepa]

If the Red Hook Terminal is out of service until January, there will be many people who service that port without work for an extended period of time. And if their homes were in the area, their homes also suffered damage. For their sake, I hope the Red Hook Port is restored as quickly as possible.

 

May I suggest a Circle Line tour around the city for those who wish to see the Manhattan skyline.

 

And there will be just as many people that will be at work supporting the Manhattan Terminal. :rolleyes: So that is really a terrible argument meant to make me feel guilty, which I certainly do not. Did you complain about the people that must have lost their jobs when Cunard moved from Manhattan to Red Hood?

 

Edited to add: not to mention all of the people that are put to work fixing Red Hook.

Of course, not everyone believes that.

 

I will gladly restate, with emphasis:

 

Personally I'd rather go into Manhattan than Brooklyn. I'm hoping that it is still out of service til January :)

[Salacia]

And there will be just as many people that will be at work supporting the Manhattan Terminal. :rolleyes: So that is really a terrible argument meant to make me feel guilty, which I certainly do not. Did you complain about the people that must have lost their jobs when Cunard moved from Manhattan to Red Hood?

 

Edited to add: not to mention all of the people that are put to work fixing Red Hook.

Of course, not everyone believes that.

 

I will gladly restate, with emphasis:

 

Personally I'd rather go into Manhattan than Brooklyn. I'm hoping that it is still out of service til January :)

 

It appears that there has been a misunderstanding.

But in answer to your question "Did you complain about the people that must have lost their jobs when Cunard moved from Manhattan to Red Hood?" No I did not complain, because there were no reports of people losing their jobs in Manhattan when the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal opened. I follow the local media here in NY closely, and to the best of my knowledge, the Manhattan piers have experienced an upsurge in cruise ships dockings. That QM2 and some Princess ships dock in Red Hook has lead to no loss of jobs at the Manhattan piers, but rather has lead to a moderate increase in employment at Red Hook, according to the accounts I have read. Please correct me if my understanding is incorrect.

 

Certainly, everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not their own set of facts. You stated your opinion, and I stated mine with explanation. As regards to the comment that "destruction can be good for employment", I have also read that war can be good for the economy. I've seen the results of both war and destruction, as well as the 'glory days' of the good economy, but that's a whole different topic...

 

I wish you a good voyage, and hope you have a wonderful time in New York and a happy Holiday Season. Regards, Salacia

[concordepa]

I wish you a good voyage, and hope you have a wonderful time in New York and a happy Holiday Season. Regards, Salacia

 

Thanks. :)

[Cruise Liner Fan]

One big problem with the Manhattan terminal is frontage. The way the piers stick out, ships dock perpendicular to the street access roads. If there are multiple ships in port, each ship's street/sidewalk area is just the bit of the street that's in front of the ship. How wide is QM2? That's about the length of the street and sidewalk available to serve her 2600 (?) passengers for drop-off and pick-up. It will always be a bottleneck and there's no way to fix it, unfortunately.

 

And remember that when these piers were built, QE2 was the largest ship to call there, and most were much smaller. The space inside worked fine back then. Now it gets overcrowded quickly.

 

That's why Red Hook works so well. The terminal is larger and doesn't have to handle as many ships at one time.

Actually those Manhattan piers which are Piers 88,90 and 92 were constructed long before the QE2 entered service in 1969.They were built in the 1930s to accommodate the new breed of super ships which were the first Queen Mary,the first Queen Elizabeth and the Normandie.ALL 3 of those ships were larger than the QE2 though the QM2 is larger than the first 2 Cunard Queens and the Normandie. Regards,Jerry

[loubetti]

Actually those Manhattan piers which are Piers 88,90 and 92 were constructed long before the QE2 entered service in 1969.They were built in the 1930s to accommodate the new breed of super ships which were the first Queen Mary,the first Queen Elizabeth and the Normandie.ALL 3 of those ships were larger than the QE2 though the QM2 is larger than the first 2 Cunard Queens and the Normandie. Regards,Jerry

 

Yes indeed.

 

While they were rebuilt decades ago, they are historic piers. You could sail from where Normandie capsized, and where QM and QE (the originals) used to sail from. Many great ocean liners sailed from them, such as the "Big U".

 

QM2 pushed the limit, and when she docks there, her stern is hanging out over the river. However, I would sail from those piers anytime. It's all about history for me.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Yes indeed.

 

While they were rebuilt decades ago, they are historic piers. You could sail from where Normandie capsized, and where QM and QE (the originals) used to sail from. Many great ocean liners sailed from them, such as the "Big U".

 

QM2 pushed the limit, and when she docks there, her stern is hanging out over the river. However, I would sail from those piers anytime. It's all about history for me.

 

You're right, they are older, but I tend to think of them as built in the 70s, which is when the buildings were renovated (rebuilt?) and the tiered ramps were done. At that time, there weren't a lot of big ships, and the piers worked fine. I can remember sailing out of there on QE2, and seeing other ships much shorter than she was.