Qm2 Refit.

[transatlantic fan]

I am aware the Qm2 has another refit in November of this year, but wanted to know if anyone thinks they may bring this forward due to what is going on with the virus and the fact they may well be out of action till August or September time.

 

[Calliope]

I have no doubt that in an ideal world Cunard would love to do this, but the shipyard might not have space, the materials to complete the job might not be available yet, and the schedule for the ship is already blocked out for the revamping. So no, I don't think Cunard will be able to move up the QM2's planned November facelift.

[Bell Boy]

There are some parts of the refit , 'let's call it a refresh', that can be undertaken whilst her (QM2) future itineraries have been cancelled  For example, refreshing the staterooms, new carpeting and  french polishing etc. All this can be undertaken in advance whilst the ship is laid up in her home port.

 

I mention this only because I've recently disembarked from  Queen Victoria ( after our 78 days sojourn) during our return to Southampton (ex FFL)  I noticed maintenance  was already underway replacing new carpets and soft furnishings in those corridors,  staterooms & suites that were unoccupied . 

 

 

[Guest SilverHengroen]

An opportunity to do all the little jobs that can't be done with passengers on board should hopefully mean some very smart and well polished ships to go back to once this is all over 🙂

[beaveh]

10 hours ago, Bell Boy said:

There are some parts of the refit , 'let's call it a refresh', that can be undertaken whilst her (QM2) future itineraries have been cancelled  For example, refreshing the staterooms, new carpeting and  french polishing etc. All this can be undertaken in advance whilst the ship is laid up in her home port.

 

I mention this only because I've recently disembarked from  Queen Victoria ( after our 78 days sojourn) during our return to Southampton (ex FFL)  I noticed maintenance  was already underway replacing new carpets and soft furnishings in those corridors,  staterooms & suites that were unoccupied . 

 

 

Nice to know! 

 

We are currently listed as the first cruise back on the ship ( at the moment). I nice thought that it will be refreshed a bit.

I think the chances of my cruise going ahead  are about 5% at the moment lol

[Bell Boy]

Small correction to my above post  , should read  FLL (typo) 😉

[57eric]

I was thinking exactly the opposite of the OP.  Assuming all goes well and cruising resumes, how anxious will Cunard be to have QM2 out of service in November for 22 additional days while spending a large sum on refurbishment?  My guess is: not very.

[Germancruiser]

beaveh- when does you cruise start? I considering some Transatlantics in late sumer! The chance for a reopening in sumer get slimer by they- at the moment at least.

[BlueRiband]

14 hours ago, 57eric said:

I was thinking exactly the opposite of the OP.  Assuming all goes well and cruising resumes, how anxious will Cunard be to have QM2 out of service in November for 22 additional days while spending a large sum on refurbishment?  My guess is: not very.

Doubt if Cunard has a choice.  While they would dearly love to get this work done while the ship is laid up the scheduling of Elbe 17 and delivery of engineering items and decorative furnishings were all targeted for November.  (How the pandemic affected production schedules is anybody's guess.)  The ship last went into drydock in 2016 so she's due to get her bottom tidied up. 

Edited April 16, 2020 by BlueRiband

[newjoisey]

wow....not too much concern here for the workers that would do the tidy up ....i doubt they are immune or expendable  

[BlueRiband]

1 hour ago, newjoisey said:

wow....not too much concern here for the workers that would do the tidy up ....i doubt they are immune or expendable  

That's a pretty harsh comment.  You do realize that workers who are not working are not getting paid.   These economic shutdowns have caused their own sufferings.  Many people will try to return to their old jobs only to find that their former employers have had to close their businesses. 

[Bigmike911]

While it would be ideal to move the refurb up, I doubt they could do it with all the moving parts of the activity. Supplies, drydock space, workers have been scheduled for November and it will be very difficult to move the schedule forward. 

[Trevor33]

In the probably unlikely event that ships are cruising in November , do you think it likely that Cunard would want to take the ship out of service again? I expect they may want to retain the money involved and see what happens to cruising for a year or so 

[BlueRiband]

16 hours ago, Trevor33 said:

In the probably unlikely event that ships are cruising in November , do you think it likely that Cunard would want to take the ship out of service again? I expect they may want to retain the money involved and see what happens to cruising for a year or so 

The sailing schedule is already blocked out for the planned time in drydock.   Cunard would have contractural obligations to all of the suppliers and workers involved.  The only thing that would prevent he refit from going ahead would be some governmental action that prevents the ship from being moved to Hamburg.

[exlondoner]

48 minutes ago, BlueRiband said:

The sailing schedule is already blocked out for the planned time in drydock.   Cunard would have contractural obligations to all of the suppliers and workers involved.  The only thing that would prevent he refit from going ahead would be some governmental action that prevents the ship from being moved to Hamburg.

 

Or the dockyard and suppliers being behind schedule because of coronavirus, presumably.

[rafinmd]

6 hours ago, exlondoner said:

 

Or the dockyard and suppliers being behind schedule because of coronavirus, presumably.

I think really this is the key.  I'm pretty sure the suppliers have already been mostly paid, so there's very little to be saved by deferring the drydock.  As I understand it QM2 is very close to the limit of time between drydocks so if deferred she would not be permitted to sail.  Finally, trying to schedule a cruise in the time the ship would be in drydock (either the scheduled time or a deferred time once the shipyard can accommodate her) would not get much revenue as I expect demand to be quite soft for a while.  I can't see the drydock being moved up but it could easily be delayed because of shipyard backlogs.

 

Roy

[BlueRiband]

FWIW, Carnival's 2Q earnings report stated:"... The company also reduced its administrative expenses,  non-newbuild capital expenditures by $1.3 billion for 2020..." (Full report here.)  Cunard has mentioned very little about this upcoming refit in contrast to the huge "Remastering" publicity campaign in 2016.  One area that had been mentioned among crew members was that the Canyon Ranch Spa was to get a major overhaul as it was essentially unchanged since the ship first went into service.  I'll speculate that it will get a re-do anyway because it's already looking very worn and dated. 

 

What we know so far is that her time in drydock is cut at least a couple of days.  Pre-Covid the ship was to have been dry docked Nov 5-28.  But her first sailing is a 3-nighter Christmas Markets out of Southampton on the 28th rather than resuming service out of Hamburg right after leaving Elbe 17.

[bluemarble]

24 minutes ago, BlueRiband said:

... What we know so far is that her time in drydock is cut at least a couple of days.  Pre-Covid the ship was to have been dry docked Nov 5-28.  But her first sailing is a 3-nighter Christmas Markets out of Southampton on the 28th rather than resuming service out of Hamburg right after leaving Elbe 17.

 

I don't believe that represents a change in QM2's refit schedule. The documentation I have from as far back as August/September 2018 had QM2 scheduled to be in Southampton on November 28 following the dry dock. Here is what my records indicate for the voyages originally scheduled around the dry dock.

 

Voyage M035 =  Oct 23-Nov 1, 2020: New York-Southampton-Hamburg

Voyage M036 =  Nov 1-5, 2020: Hamburg-Stavanger-Oslo-Hamburg

(Voyage M037) =  Nov 5-28, 2020: (Refit) Hamburg-Southampton

Voyage M038 =  Nov 28-Dec 1, 2020: Southampton-Zeebrugge-Southampton

Voyage M039 = Dec 1-8, 2020: Southampton-New York

 

In other words, my understanding is that the original plan would have been for the dry dock to be wrapped up by November 26 or thereabouts to allow time for QM2 to sail to Southampton for the voyage commencing from there on November 28.

[Germancruiser]

I am booked on one of the first cruises out of Hamburg on board Mein Schiff 2 starting at July 27.th. Just four days- all sea days with one technical stopp in Oslo. Only Germans allowed to board as far as I know! Sailing at 60% capacity.

The call them " The blue journeys"!

l have my eye on the first back to back Transatlantic on QM2 - starting Dezember 1st. I very much dout that it will go, with the US still in the frying pan about Corona!

I was thinking that Cunard might be doing similar short cruises out of Southampton with only English passengers.

It is a very small start - but a start nevertheless!

[transatlantic fan]

This years dry dock now pushed back till October or November 2021.

[beaveh]

I’ve just seen that some airlines are offering flights that go over antarica then land back at the same airport, so people can still enjoy the buzz of flying. Scheduled Cunard cruises are now cancelled till May 2021, so as that date approaches do you think Cunard will offer day or weekend cruises? They could do it with a very reduced capacity offering a day experience with meals and a show. They could even do it with the boat still tied up. what do you think?

[Germancruiser]

Interessting transatlantic fan- where di you hear that?

[transatlantic fan]

 

Its about 5 mins from the end of the video.

[sogne]

http://www.southamptonvts.co.uk/Live_Information/Shipping_Movements_and_Cruise_Ship_Schedule/Cruise_Ship_Schedule

 

this may give a clue or maybe not

 

refit will depend on two main criteria

 

yard availability and any mandatory inspection of hull and machinery

 

she will have a major 20 ,year refit in 2023

 

 

 

 

[MCC retired]

The sailings for Oct-Nov 2021  show a couple weeks gap between the Canada/NE sailings in Oct 2021 and the Europe/TA/Caribbean cruises in Nov 2021.

Sad news for the  Spa which was to be redone this Nov 2020 for the first time since 2004.

 

Edited August 29, 2020 by MCC retired