ANOTHER QM2 REVIEW 6/9-15

[buchanan101]

@Jack E Dawson On our 2022 crossing we had a medical emergency whilst still in the Solent...one hour in to someone's holiday and it was over...

 

(Great review...have you posted it in reviews?)

[Clewgarnet]

I'm really enjoying your review, Jack. Thank you so much for posting it.

[exlondoner]

8 minutes ago, buchanan101 said:

@Jack E Dawson On our 2022 crossing we had a medical emergency whilst still in the Solent...one hour in to someone's holiday and it was over...

 

(Great review...have you posted it in reviews?)

We once had somebody collapse outside the Grills restaurant before lunch in Southampton on the first day before a Med. Cruise. Rotten in terms of missing a holiday, but better in terms of easy evacuation than say out of helicopter reach in the BoB. 

[Pushpit]

12 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

But nonetheless, even if they are a single individual wearing two hats, immigration is concerned with humans and customs with stuff. Immigration is far scarier what with finger printing and the fear one may inadvertently have the same name as a wanted criminal. Customs checks tend to result in the confiscation of an apple. (Autocorrect automatically gave the fruit a capital letter. I think it is getting above itself.)

Fully accepted. The CBP has changed a lot in recent years, and I suspect that 90% of passengers are now unaware of the customs side, the agents themselves may not make a specific query about it. At one point CBP was very attached to every dollar of contraband, every lethal apple, now like the UK it's moving to a "risk based" approach. Fewer staff in other words. 

 

Airports are moving to a biometric model, so I'm on Global Entry, and if you use the GE app, at some airports you don't actually stop at immigration, you just get waved through without a word being spoken. So this distinction between immigration and customs is going to diminish further.

 

Australia has also something similar for trusted travellers, again biometric based. The UK has just started the biometric work for this, based on the Australian system, so that instead of the e-gates, you just walk past the camera and only go to a human if there is a query on your case, the tensa will shift automatically between people. 

[RK-NC]

11 hours ago, Jack E Dawson said:

Our efforts were rewarded with not 1 but 2 whale sightings. The first was a pod of 3 and the second was a group of 2. Yes it was a bit chilly but oh so worth it.

 

How wonderful! Perhaps that northern route made this more likely? Thank you for sharing. We enjoyed reading your review! Wishing you a speedy recovery ❤️‍🩹

Edited June 18 by RK-NC
addition

[Ray66]

Nice review. Thank you.  The captain on our Fjords cruise 2-9th June was Capt Andrew Hall so there must have been a changeover.  He told us on the medical helicopter alert not to go on your balcony or use flash photography.

[Jack E Dawson]

8 hours ago, safarigal said:

I hope you 2 feel better soon!

Thank you safarigal. You had a key role in the success of our trip. On the first night we ended up in the Commodore Club for a final final. Dee couldn't figure out what she wanted. Her usual go-to is an Old Fashion or sometimes a Manhattan but neither were appealing to her. So I went out on a limb and said, "safarigal likes the Chocolate Affair here in the Commodore Club". Now recommending to your wife about another woman's favorite drink can go terribly wrong, no matter how good your intentions. Dee responded with a  "hmmmmm" that I couldn't quite read but I went ahead and ordered her one anyway. When it came Dee took a sip, paused, then smiled said "that safarigal is one wise girl". After a second one, just to be sure, she announced that it was her new final final for the rest of the trip.

Jack

[Jack E Dawson]

4 hours ago, exlondoner said:

I have asked this before, but I’m still confused. Was it really US Customs agents there were 14 of, or was it US immigration? If it was customs, how was immigration handled?

Sorry exlondoner, out of my scope of knowledge. It was the folks who check your passports and make you look into a camera before saying "welcome home". 

Jack

[*Miss G*]

4 hours ago, exlondoner said:

I have asked this before, but I’m still confused. Was it really US Customs agents there were 14 of, or was it US immigration? If it was customs, how was immigration handled?

 

Passport Control is both Immigration- and Customs-focused.  As @Pushpit says, people will erroneously refer to them as one or the other, but they are both.  Albeit distinct and separate entities, they can also be connected.  A K9 is an agent but it isn’t going to process your visitor/resident status. 

 

I’m sure this hasn’t enlightened you any further.  😂

[exlondoner]

23 minutes ago, Jack E Dawson said:

Sorry exlondoner, out of my scope of knowledge. It was the folks who check your passports and make you look into a camera before saying "welcome home". 

Jack

I think they sound like Immigration, as they are concerned with people not things.

[TouchstoneFeste]

22 minutes ago, Jack E Dawson said:

4 hours ago, exlondoner said:

I have asked this before, but I’m still confused. Was it really US Customs agents there were 14 of, or was it US immigration? If it was customs, how was immigration handled?

Sorry exlondoner, out of my scope of knowledge. It was the folks who check your passports and make you look into a camera before saying "welcome home". 

Jack

"Customs" always felt like the right word to me, too, especially when returning home to the U.S. The vast majority of people arriving (anywhere other than our southern border) haven't any intention of changing their nation of residency. (That's how my brain works, anyway.)

 

Plus of course that "immigration" has become a seriously loaded word.

[Pushpit]

5 minutes ago, TouchstoneFeste said:

"Customs" always felt like the right word to me, too, especially when returning home to the U.S. 

That is indeed the area where two countries are divided by the common language. Immigration applies to immigrants, not lawful residents, and that word is currently a politically loaded term in the USA, But it's just you still have to prove you are a lawful resident. It's a better word than some alternatives, such as aliens. But either way Americans tend to refer to "customs" to mean "all the official stuff we have to do before we get into our taxi", whereas Brits tend to be a bit more precise.

[exlondoner]

6 minutes ago, Pushpit said:

That is indeed the area where two countries are divided by the common language. Immigration applies to immigrants, not lawful residents, and that word is currently a politically loaded term in the USA, But it's just you still have to prove you are a lawful resident. It's a better word than some alternatives, such as aliens. But either way Americans tend to refer to "customs" to mean "all the official stuff we have to do before we get into our taxi", whereas Brits tend to be a bit more precise.

For me, as a non-US citizen, there is all the difference in the world. Immigration is intimidating and frightening. I mean fingerprints? Customs tends simply to mean a rather cute little dog sniffs your hand luggage. By the way, I’m sure UK Immigration is just as bad for many.

[Clewgarnet]

24 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

For me, as a non-US citizen, there is all the difference in the world. Immigration is intimidating and frightening. I mean fingerprints? Customs tends simply to mean a rather cute little dog sniffs your hand luggage. By the way, I’m sure UK Immigration is just as bad for many.

 

I once had the fun of going through US Immigration with a recently broken finger. I'd only taken the splint off the day before I boarded QM2, and the finger still didn't sit straight. (Still doesn't, many years later!) Immigration bloke didn't listen to my explanations of why I was struggling to get my fingerprints to scan - just reached across and physically slammed my hand straight.

 

At which point I screamed in pain.

 

Turns out that, at the point they've physically assaulted you, they stop fussing about non-blurry fingerprints and just get you out of Immigration and into the country as quickly as possible. (Well, they do if you're the sort of small, white, unthreatening person who's arrived on a Cunard liner. Probably not for many other people.)

[exlondoner]

2 minutes ago, Clewgarnet said:

 

I once had the fun of going through US Immigration with a recently broken finger. I'd only taken the splint off the day before I boarded QM2, and the finger still didn't sit straight. (Still doesn't, many years later!) Immigration bloke didn't listen to my explanations of why I was struggling to get my fingerprints to scan - just reached across and physically slammed my hand straight.

 

At which point I screamed in pain.

 

Turns out that, at the point they've physically assaulted you, they stop fussing about non-blurry fingerprints and just get you out of Immigration and into the country as quickly as possible. (Well, they do if you're the sort of small, white, unthreatening person who's arrived on a Cunard liner. Probably not for many other people.)

How unnecessarily discourteous. I once had a problem that I was such a weed I couldn’t press hard enough to get them to register, but the man was very nice about it and we found a way. My greatest dread was having a criminal name. 😀

[techteach]

Great details in your review @Jack E Dawson and it sounds like you had a grand time. Sorry to hear about the positive Covid tests and hope it doesn’t last long.

[Jack E Dawson]

6 hours ago, Wagtail adventures said:

Cruise with Ben and David gave a very poor review and I wonder if you were on the same crossing?

We were not on the same Crossing as Ben and David, they sailed two weeks earlier. However, I did watch their YouTube video and respect their point of view. Each of us have different touch points that define or determine our impressions. 

Jack

[exlondoner]

15 minutes ago, Jack E Dawson said:

We were not on the same Crossing as Ben and David, they sailed two weeks earlier. However, I did watch their YouTube video and respect their point of view. Each of us have different touch points that define or determine our impressions. 

Jack

I haven’t seen the video, but presumably it reflects their experience, and everyone’s experience of food and service is different. On the other hand, there are things that are matters of fact. To say in a review Cunard blocks certain websites, when according to all others who have commented on the matter it does not, is surely not acceptable.

[safarigal]

34 minutes ago, Jack E Dawson said:

Thank you safarigal. You had a key role in the success of our trip. On the first night we ended up in the Commodore Club for a final final. Dee couldn't figure out what she wanted. Her usual go-to is an Old Fashion or sometimes a Manhattan but neither were appealing to her. So I went out on a limb and said, "safarigal likes the Chocolate Affair here in the Commodore Club". Now recommending to your wife about another woman's favorite drink can go terribly wrong, no matter how good your intentions. Dee responded with a  "hmmmmm" that I couldn't quite read but I went ahead and ordered her one anyway. When it came Dee took a sip, paused, then smiled said "that safarigal is one wise girl". After a second one, just to be sure, she announced that it was her new final final for the rest of the trip.

Jack

Dee clearly has good taste 🙂

[Queenvee]

Disturbed to hear about the dogs in common areas, particularly the larger barking dog on Prom deck.  If dogs are booked into the Kennels on Deck 12, I don't know if their owners can take them on a walk around the Prom deck. 

 

If that barking white dog was in a cabin next to me, and barking ensued, I'd be at the Purser's Deck in no time requesting to be moved.  I understand the rules about "support/comfort" dogs and recognize that some people seem to abuse the concept or mislead the cruise line about their dogs.  But that would not stop me from being a persistent, but polite, presence at the Purser's Desk until it was resolved.  The separate issue of people on the Prom deck having to listen to a barking dog or avoid possible nipping is harder to solve but I would be a regular reminder to the Purser's Desk of any incidences of poor dog behavior I saw.

[Jack E Dawson]

3 hours ago, Queenvee said:

I understand the rules about "support/comfort" dogs

Queenvee, if you click on the link in Host Hattie's post (#23), you will see that Cunard does not allow "support/comfort" dogs.

"Emotional support dogs are not recognised as an assistance dog by the above organisations and are not permitted on board. "

 

Jack

[Queenvee]

Jack - thank you for pointing me to Cunard's rules in Host Hattie's post.  I'm glad that Cunard doesn't permit "emotional support dogs" so I wonder if the two dogs you saw were officially designated & trained "assistance dogs" and had the required paperwork.  If so, I guess they would be allowed in public areas but would have to behave in the manner that seeing-eye dogs, etc do, which does not include barking and nipping.  Their stated policy provides guidelines and a structure to prevent unofficial assistance dogs from boarding the ship and certainly gives the ability for Cunard personnel to speak with the owners about misbehavior.

 

Other than that, your review was interesting because it provides a counterpoint to the recent negative QM2 posts. Everyone has different expectations and things that are "the last straw" for them, so it's important to have a variety of reports.

[D&N]

I've never come across a restaurant in France that didn't allow dogs, ranging from toy to enormous.

Almost all of them are impeccably behaved, usually staying under their owner's feet throughout the meal.

 

[Jack E Dawson]

I wanted to post one more bit of information that I forgot to include in my review.On one evening we had a bottle of wine that we had brought onboard served to us in the MDR. The total cost of the corkage fee, including the automatic tip, was $25.16. Earlier that day I had brought the bottle of wine to the MDR and gave it to one of the lunch time sommeliers. He recorded my room number, table number and seating time. At dinner our sommelier brought the perfectly chilled bottle of wine to our table without me having to ask for it. We drink about half of the bottle that night and the next night he served us the rest. I don't think he even made a reference to the fact that we had brought our own wine although I did have to sign the bill. This was a $20 bottle of wine so probably not a wise move on my part but it is one of our favorite wines and we certainly enjoyed it over the 2 nights.

Jack

[exlondoner]

1 minute ago, Jack E Dawson said:

I wanted to post one more bit of information that I forgot to include in my review.On one evening we had a bottle of wine that we had brought onboard served to us in the MDR. The total cost of the corkage fee, including the automatic tip, was $25.16. Earlier that day I had brought the bottle of wine to the MDR and gave it to one of the lunch time sommeliers. He recorded my room number, table number and seating time. At dinner our sommelier brought the perfectly chilled bottle of wine to our table without me having to ask for it. We drink about half of the bottle that night and the next night he served us the rest. I don't think he even made a reference to the fact that we had brought our own wine although I did have to sign the bill. This was a $20 bottle of wine so probably not a wise move on my part but it is one of our favorite wines and we certainly enjoyed it over the 2 nights.

Jack

Can you talk us through the arithmetic? How does $20+15% come to more than $25?