Cruises can be great vacations. Have that great first experience and you keep coming back. You often choose a favorite cruise line and stick with it. The officers and crew onboard are professionals, many choosing to make their lives at sea, moving up the ranks as they build their careers. You might run into them on future voyages. Not everybody is gregarious. Some people travel to literally get away. The prefer to be left alone. Assuming that …
So many ships! So many ports! So many routes! Let’s assume you have a favorite cruise line. Why should you choose one itinerary over another? Before we look at itineraries, let us consider three factors that transcend destinations: A really great price. You have a favorite cruise line. You have status. They treat you well. The destination is secondary. The price is incredibly reasonable, they will give you a substantial cabin upgrade and you get a great …
There are people who think cruises are boring. They rationalize you are confined by the railings on the ship. Here are plenty of things you can do, especially on a sunny day. It helps to have some imagination. This article is not ship specific. You can’t say: “There is no water slide” or “They don’t have a golf simulator.” You should be able to do all of these on any ship, large or small, ocean going or …
The Britannia Dining Room is the main dining room for the approximately 85% of Cunard passengers booked into Britannia category cabins, the major category aboard the ship. Dining is organized into two seatings at 6:00 PM and 8:30 PM as I recall. Here are my overall impressions after 17+ voyages. The Britannia Dining Room All three Cunard Queens feature a Britannia dining room. It’s located at the stern of the ship. On the Queen Mary 2 it …
If you are sailing from England, it’s highly likely your port of embarkation will be Southampton. You can catch an evening flight from New York, arrive in the early AM the next day and take your cruise line’s connection to your ship sailing the same day. This is almost a guaranteed way to raise your blood pressure if there are any delays in your journey. You don’t want to miss your ship! You will likely plan to …
In 17 voyages with Cunard, we have never booked in the Queens Grill category of accommodations. On our March 20th Queen Mary 2 Westbound crossing I was determined to learn how it’s different from sailing in Britannia grade. The Purser’s Office was able to unlock an empty cabin so I could look around. Cunard also arranged a meeting with Nicolas Oldroyd, the Operational Executive Chef on Queen Mary 2. What Does It Cost? Many people want to …
After 2+ years we finally embarked on an overseas vacation! My wife and I are fans of Cunard. In my opinion, the transatlantic crossing is Cunard’s signature voyage. This was our 17th trip with Cunard. We paid our own fares, but Cunard gave me perks like a cabin upgrade within Britannia class, unlimited internet, dinner in the specialty restaurant and a spa treatment for each of us. Full disclosure is important. Overall Score out of 100: 97 …
Sunday, March 27th – The day we return home Today is the day we disembark. How will it be different? On Saturday we got our luggage tags along with instructions to be ready to disembark at 8:10 AM on Sunday. The ship docks at 6:30. Breakfast in the Kings Court buffet starts at 6:00. In the Britannia dining room it’s 6:30. Sometime after 6:00 AM we received a notice slipped under our stateroom door. On Carnival Corp …
Saturday, March 26th – Our 6th and final day at sea Up about 5:00. Oops! It’s really 6:00. This wasn’t a day we set the clocks back. That’s happens after we go to bed on Saturday night. The weather was gale force 9 last night. The Beaufort scale goes up to 12. We felt a rocking when we were in bed, but it wasn’t bad. On the QM2, you don’t really feel the motion of the ocean up …
Friday, March 25th – Our 5th Day at Sea Friday is our second formal night. We set the clocks back again early Friday morning. I was up about 5:00 AM and at the gym at 6:00. Although the heavy door was shut, once you open it you see several people are already working out. The gym is pretty large. It has lots of cardio equipment, free weights and various exercise machines around the rooms. You wipe the …
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