A Mystery

[exlondoner]

As some may know, I am perennially depressed by some of the reviews of Cunard voyages I read, which seem to be about different ships from the ones I sail on. But now I am baffled. There is a rather lukewarm review of a voyage on QM2 in July, which is described as British Isles and Western Europe. According to my brochure, QM2 didn’t do such a voyage in July. Was there a last minute change or what? Can anyone elucidate?

[DaisyUK]

I can't answer your question about the July cruise, but I do wonder if some reviews slip through the net as I submitted a review several weeks ago (not lukewarm) and it hasn't appeared, at least not yet.

[Host Hattie]

From our guidelines 

 

If you are concerned with the authenticity of a particular published cruise review, e-mail us at community@cruisecritic.com. We'll research it and take appropriate action. Tell us the date, title of the review, and any other information that may help us with the particulars of your situation. We value your help and appreciate it when you alert us to a potentially fraudulent situation.

[exlondoner]

2 minutes ago, Host Hattie said:

From our guidelines 

 

If you are concerned with the authenticity of a particular published cruise review, e-mail us at community@cruisecritic.com. We'll research it and take appropriate action. Tell us the date, title of the review, and any other information that may help us with the particulars of your situation. We value your help and appreciate it when you alert us to a potentially fraudulent situation.

Thanks, HH. I wasn’t really thinking about lack of authenticity, more about confusion, and what that says about the reliability of the review. It is easy enough to get a date wrong, or perhaps there was an itinerary change, though I thought they were earlier in the year.

[exlondoner]

12 minutes ago, DaisyUK said:

I can't answer your question about the July cruise, but I do wonder if some reviews slip through the net as I submitted a review several weeks ago (not lukewarm) and it hasn't appeared, at least not yet.

That sounds strange. Mine have always appeared within a week. Can you resubmit?

[DaisyUK]

Stupidly I didn't keep a copy, but I will rewrite and see what happens.

 

[Winifred 22]

3 hours ago, exlondoner said:

As some may know, I am perennially depressed by some of the reviews of Cunard voyages I read, which seem to be about different ships from the ones I sail on. But now I am baffled. There is a rather lukewarm review of a voyage on QM2 in July, which is described as British Isles and Western Europe. According to my brochure, QM2 didn’t do such a voyage in July. Was there a last minute change or what? Can anyone elucidate?

I was intrigued by this so looked up the review for myself. I don’t recall seeing any British Isles and Western Europe Itineraries either  I thought she had been doing the fjords, the med and an extended TA over July 4th. I was on a fjords cruise in June and sadly didn’t recognise the reviewers experience with mine. As someone who is no stranger to the soft serve ice cream machine there were definitely no issues on my trip. 

Edited August 6, 2023 by Winifred 22

[bluemarble]

I find it interesting that the review in question does not show up in the results when I do a search of reviews for the destination "British Isles & Western Europe". It does show up in the results when I do a search of reviews for the destination "Mediterranean".

 

QM2 is currently on a Mediterranean cruise that departed Southampton 28 July. The reviewer could possibly have been on the 7-night cruise that disembarked in Civitavecchia on 4 August. That's very quick to have a review posted for a cruise that ended only two days ago. Perhaps they posted the review while still on the cruise, although they do discuss the luggage collection at disembarkation, so that doesn't seem likely.

Edited August 6, 2023 by bluemarble

[Pushpit]

Here is the URL for the review in question to help others:

https://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=703942

 

It's odd because some details of the ice cream machine are correct, so s/he must have been on QM2, but there are two machines and I've never seen them out of service for more than a few minutes, plus when the meal service time is over, which may be the issue here.

 

The way it comes across is that s/he had a sub-par experience or two in Kings Court /elsewhere and stretched that over the whole week. So yes the salads and side dishes don't change much but the main hot dishes do change every day. 

 

If s/he wasn't willing to dress up - hardly an imposition on Smart Attire nights - then I'm note quite sure why they chose Cunard to complain about their own decision to limit themselves.

[NE John]

As from what I can check out, the reviewer MPCorcoran doesn’t show up as a User name on these boards to even ask follow-up questions. I didn’t know one can write a review without signing up on CC site. Or the reviewer already deleted his CC account. 
I find it odd that the Captain would be down with baggage during debarkation, unless he was debarking too. Because we all had to vacate our rooms by 1pm and didn’t leave ship many hours later, I will admit that the Carinthia Lounge did look like a bus terminal on the day of our medical emergency delayed debarkation in Brooklyn on the afternoon of June 30! 
Bottom line, the reviewer chose not to fully participate in the Cunard experience and received a sub-Cunard experience, what a surprise…
 

Edited August 6, 2023 by NE John

[RalphWiggum]

Aren’t the itinerary names provided by the Cruise Critic website?  When you write your QM2 review, you get asked what sailing you are on. If you select July 28, the site populates the itinerary automatically, with 14 day “Europe - Western cruise”, even though it sounds like this cruise sailing date could be taken as a 7 day.  I did not complete this test review but it is likely that the site later converted it to the itinerary title you see now.  Perhaps the reviewer was able to override it but I don’t see how.  
 

At any rate, this reads like a pretty standard disgruntled review.  I personally wouldn’t give it much attention because the things mentioned usually wouldn’t bother me. Although I was on the July 14 sailing and remember thinking how limited the buffet selection was in contrast to prior sailings (that was on the only day I tried the buffet for lunch as I usually went to Golden Lion but that day it was packed and couldn’t find a seat). 
 

Again I wouldn’t doubt this reviews veracity solely due to the itinerary name, unless the reviewer specifically mentioned visiting ports not included in their review, which is not the case.  I also don’t think it’s unusual to write your review so soon after your cruise ends. For me, if I don’t do it right away, like on train home, for instance, I will never get around to it. 

[Essiesmom]

This would not be the first time a ‘Member’ with no posting history submits a disappointed -or worse… review.  EM

[3rdGenCunarder]

31 minutes ago, NE John said:

As from what I can check out, the reviewer MPCorcoran doesn’t show up as a User name on these boards to even ask follow-up questions. I didn’t know one can write a review without signing up on CC site. Or the reviewer already deleted his CC account. 
I find it odd that the Captain would be down with baggage during debarkation, unless he was debarking too. Because we all had to vacate our rooms by 1pm and didn’t leave ship many hours later, I will admit that the Carinthia Lounge did look like a bus terminal on the day of our medical emergency delayed debarkation in Brooklyn on the afternoon of June 30! 
Bottom line, the reviewer chose not to fully participate in the Cunard experience and received a sub-Cunard experience, what a surprise…
 

 

I don't like the lack of information about the posters who write reviews. I rarely recognize the name of  the poster, and I'm on the HAL and Cunard boards a lot. A review posted on this board is likely to come from someone I recognize, so I have some context for the review--are they moaners or are they cheerleaders or are they somewhere in between? 

 

I wonder how many people who post a negative review had never looked at the specific boards BEFORE the cruise to ask questions. 

[bluemarble]

2 hours ago, NE John said:

As from what I can check out, the reviewer MPCorcoran doesn’t show up as a User name on these boards to even ask follow-up questions. I didn’t know one can write a review without signing up on CC site.
 

 

I'm pretty sure MPCorcoran is a registered user although you can't find him using the member search function in the boards section of this site. I just ran a little experiment to search for the names of the last 50 members who have submitted Cunard reviews. Only 29 of those 50 reviewers can be found using the member search function in the boards.

 

I'm not sure what the criteria is for a user to show up in the board's member search function. It's definitely not posting history in the boards as I first suspected. Several members with 0 posts in the boards show up via a member search. Another mystery, I suppose.

[NE John]

38 minutes ago, bluemarble said:

 

I'm pretty sure MPCorcoran is a registered user although you can't find him using the member search function in the boards section of this site. I just ran a little experiment to search for the names of the last 50 members who have submitted Cunard reviews. Only 29 of those 50 reviewers can be found using the member search function in the boards.

 

I'm not sure what the criteria is for a user to show up in the board's member search function. It's definitely not posting history in the boards as I first suspected. Several members with 0 posts in the boards show up via a member search. Another mystery, I suppose.

Thank you.
Like many, I believe registration should be required for an opportunity for follow-up questions and prevent fake/flame throwing reviews - - “Worst Cruise Ever!” // “Cunard is now a nudist colony” type hysteria. 

Edited August 6, 2023 by NE John

[Host Hattie]

No idea sorry.

I know they are read before publication, unlike posts here !

 

[rmsEtruria]

15 hours ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

I don't like the lack of information about the posters who write reviews. I rarely recognize the name of  the poster, and I'm on the HAL and Cunard boards a lot. A review posted on this board is likely to come from someone I recognize, so I have some context for the review--are they moaners or are they cheerleaders or are they somewhere in between? 

 

I wonder how many people who post a negative review had never looked at the specific boards BEFORE the cruise to ask questions. 

A lot, I suspect . . . .

[Winifred 22]

2 hours ago, rmsEtruria said:

A lot, I suspect . . . .

Or studied a brochure, checked and read their emails and acquainted themselves with applicable  T and C’s !! 

[WoorimBeachLady]

19 hours ago, Pushpit said:

Here is the URL for the review in question to help others:

https://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=703942

 

It's odd because some details of the ice cream machine are correct, so s/he must have been on QM2, but there are two machines and I've never seen them out of service for more than a few minutes, plus when the meal service time is over, which may be the issue here.

 

The way it comes across is that s/he had a sub-par experience or two in Kings Court /elsewhere and stretched that over the whole week. So yes the salads and side dishes don't change much but the main hot dishes do change every day. 

 

If s/he wasn't willing to dress up - hardly an imposition on Smart Attire nights - then I'm note quite sure why they chose Cunard to complain about their own decision to limit themselves.

Damn I accidentally clicked “helpful” had my thumb on the button😂

[exlondoner]

32 minutes ago, WoorimBeachLady said:

Damn I accidentally clicked “helpful” had my thumb on the button😂

I once did that by mistake too. Embarrassingly, it was my own review.

[sandjango]

Reviews ?...We love Queen Mary 2... we aren't at all interested if the ice cream machine doesn't work...or there is a little bit of rust here and there...she is and always will be the most graceful ship at sea...it's the way she was put together....end of ramble....:))

[D&N]

I found the review in question when exlondoner started the topic.

 

I got to mention of the "buffet" and thought, nothing to interest me here.

Edited August 7, 2023 by D&N

[exlondoner]

Just now, D&N said:

I found the review in question hen exlondoner started the topic.

 

I got to mention of the "buffet" and thought, nothing to interest me here.

What’s this hen, then? Scottish vernacular? 🙂🙂

 

It does seem bizarre to book a cruise line where you know you will be limited to the buffet because you don’t want to dress even to the fairly ordinary standards of non-formal nights in the MDR. I should have thought there were better choices.

[D&N]

6 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

What’s this hen, then? Scottish vernacular? 🙂🙂

 

It does seem bizarre to book a cruise line where you know you will be limited to the buffet because you don’t want to dress even to the fairly ordinary standards of non-formal nights in the MDR. I should have thought there were better choices.

Thank you. I still had time to edit.

It's a term I absolutely detest. Relatives sometimes address Nora with it, and I usually react with a loud cluck-cluck.

[DaisyUK]

I did re-write my review and it has now appeared. I think I must have made an error when I submitted it originally because I've now realised I never received an email from CC the first time to confirm receipt, but I did this time. Agree that it's hard to understand why anyone would choose to cruise with Cunard if they weren't prepared to dress at least reasonably smartly for dinner!