Thread: QM 2 Experiences

Hi Everyone,

I am interested in hearing from anyone with QM2 experiences. I believe I read that early in its life the service was not was expected from such a prestigious line. I am thinking of a transatlantic crossing can anybody compare that to a more conventional cruise ? Is this ship much more formal than other lines ?
I have only cruised Royal C. , and Norwegian so far.

Tony

Hey Tony

I moved your post down from the Roll Call board to the general Cunard section so more folks will see it

Originally Posted by tonylinsdell

Hi Everyone,

I am interested in hearing from anyone with QM2 experiences. I believe I read that early in its life the service was not was expected from such a prestigious line. I am thinking of a transatlantic crossing can anybody compare that to a more conventional cruise ? Is this ship much more formal than other lines ?
I have only cruised Royal C. , and Norwegian so far.

Tony

Hi Tony

I have never sailed on QM2, but I have been on QE2 many times including a Transatlantic. It's 6 days with nothing to see but sea, and some wildlife I loved it.

Cunard in general is more formal the other lines and a transatlantic you will have at least 3 or 4 formal nights (black tie).

I understand from those who have been on her that now she is a few years old, they have sorted out the small problems they had with service.

I am sure there are others who will be able to give you more information, but I hope my contribution is helpful.

We were on the QM2 for a Caribbean cruise in 2005. There were some good and some bad.

We booked with a promotion that upgraded us from the higheset balcony cabin to a Princess Grill cabin. So, our experience was not what one would have in the Britannia restaurant. The Princess Grill seats only about 170 and the food is cooked to order and shares the kitchen with the Queens Grill people.
We boarded on Judy's birthday and the first evening she requested caviar as an appetizer every night. From then on, whenever we sat down at our table, the caviar appeared within 30 seconds. I'll explain more about the Princess & Queen perks if you want.

Good things: Best library on any ship, the planetarium, the pictures of the past in the hallways, the Queens ballroom and the pub.
We ate lunch in the pub a couple times and really enjoyed it. Real British pub fare - bangers and mash, plowman's lunch, shephards pie, etc. They also had a real dart board.
The Queens ballroom is spectacular. The Black & White Ball is not to be missed.

Not so good: Very little usable deck space, narrow hallways, the buffet area, the casino, very few windows and the entertainment.

The buffet area was broken down into 4 different areas as they turn into different restaurants in the evening. We ate breakfast in the buffet one morning and didn't bother any more. Food stations were in no particular order and finding a place to sit was difficult as the area consisted of closed in alcoves.
Since the Princess Grill was open every day for every meal and we always had the same table and wait staff, we stayed there.
The upper deck was not really usable. the helipad took up the whole center.

The main thing to remember is the QM2 is an ocean liner and not a cruise ship. It does the crossings very well as that is it's mission in life.
Just do not expect the same atmosphere as on any mainstream line.

We enjoyed the experience, but once was enough for us.

I'll try to answer any questions you have.

I've done crossings and cruises on the the QM2.
Crossings are wonderful for doing as little or as much as you wish. On crossings they have lectures, the planetarium, movies, concerts. You can be very busy all day everyday depending on what you want.
There's also an excellent library if you want to spend the week vegged out doing little but eating, reading, etc.
I dine mainly in the Britannia dining room. Breakfast can sometimes be a long affair as well as lunch but then what else do you have to do?
I enjoy dinners most because you have your assigned waiter and I've always had great luck with terrific waitstaff.
I find the food excellent.
I use the King's Court (buffet) mainly for snacks and just the occasional meal. I like being waited on since nobody offers that service at home.
I also enjoy the cruises. Sometimes because of the size of the ship you might tender more than dock but it's done very efficiently and the shore excursions are very well run also.
On crossings daytime wear is casual but the majority of nights are formal and if you're not into that then room service or the buffet is your option.
On cruises there are less formal evenings and the dress is elegant casual in the evening and again in the daytime all forms of casual dress since people are coming and going from daytrips.
Anymore questions, please ask.

I've been on QM2 twice, and thought the service was exceptional!


There have been teething problems in her maiden year, but it was corrected very swiftly.

I'm going again in 9 days, and can't wait!
(That says it all .... )


Happy New Year!