QM2 Transatlantic Crossing

[Kolo]

I'm undertaking the annual pilgrimage to Edinburgh to see the family, and as usual combining a holiday in the Northern summer. This time, my partner and I are crossing the Atlantic on the QM2, then having some time in New York.

I've written on earlier trip reports about the J experience on Etihad, so don't plan to go over old ground, unless there's something unusual to report (one of the EY flights is on a Jet Airways plane). I've also reported on cruising with Holland America, which which we have done four cruises. Pushka has also written extensively about the QM2 in one of her reports, so my plan is to compare the offerings of Cunard against Holland America, and cover things that may not have been reported in other trip reports, such as the stays at the Novotel Southampton and the Sheraton Times Square.

 

[Kolo]

HBA-EDI

My EY ticket is SYD-AUH-EDI, then JFK-AUH-MEL-HBA. For all the reasons unknown about international ticket pricing, I could not add the HBA-SYD leg without adding a few thousand dollars, so my first flight is on a separate PNR, flying whY. And for the same unknown reasons, the CI officer at HBA says she can't check my luggage through to EDI. I am a VA WP and connecting to the VA service from SYD. When I say that its been done before, she says "oh, you're transferring to EY. We can do it for other airlines, but not VA." WTF?? "Oh, and I can't give you boarding passes for your EY flights, so you'll have to get them from the EY CI in SYD." So she does manage to check the bag to EDI and I wasn't going to upset the apple cart by pointing out that the flight to AUH was VA metal.

From then on its all good. Standard flight to SYD (row 3), easy connection at SYD. Of course I went to the VA CI at SYD to get my onward BPs.

A nice mezze plate lunch in the EY lounge then onto VA. Managed to score the rockstar row 5 this time; I'm presuming it will disappear when the new seating layout is installed. It is a great location and very private when the curtain closes over. The meal was excellent with the beef, although a little plainly presented, being the most tender and melt in the mouth meat I've ever had, let alone on an aircraft.

The only (minor) downside to flying VA to AUH is that the plane is parked on the tarmac at AUH and the bus transfer is a bit of a pain. So it will be good when the new terminals open in a couple of years time. The EY F lounge is being refurbished and the premium lounge is very busy but we don't care to eat so after a shower we go for a walk and some shopping for the obligatory family gifts.

EY started the AUH-EDI service only a couple of months ago so we're delighted to be able to fly directly into EDI for the first time, bypassing LHR or other stops (I did MAN last year). The service is an A330 so no F. I settle in for sleep and pass on dinner (its 2am; about 7am body time), but the baked eggs breakfast in good, although turkey bacon just doesn't cut it. Also this time, its good to see that EY have not seen the need to ignore our seat requests, which they seemed to have a habit of in the past.

 

[Kolo]

Edinburgh

We're in EDI for the week and this time staying at a B&B near family in Port Seton, so nothing much to report. But if you are looking to stay out of Edinburgh on the east side The Anchorage is worth a look.

We hired a car from Europcar for a few days. As an Elite I usually get an upgrade. I book a compact (eg i30) and get a manual Peugeot; a bit bigger, not auto as I hoped, but still a good drive. Both the computer and the agent wanted to charge me for the second driver despite this being free for Elites, so after getting advice from the back room she has to process a £40 manual refund to counter the cost.

 

[Kolo]

Southampton

We fly FlyBe from EDI to SOU on a Dash 8. I flew them last year and they are perfectly fine for short hops. Whilst I had access to the Priority Pass lounge (courtesy of my terrific Citibank Signature card) it would have been $35 for my partner so we gave that a miss. The terminal is not particularly crowded so its relaxing enough to buy a wine from the bar and then wait in the general area.

As a newly minted Accor Le Club Gold I choose the Novotel for the night's stay. Although there are Executive Rooms I don't get an upgrade (only an outside chance, really) but we each enjoy a complimentary drink, with few limitations on what we can choose (i.e. not limited to house wines).

The room is basic and, as a reminder of when I once lived in England, is not air-conditioned; instead they blow air through the rooms. The weather in EDI was lousy and the day in SOU is also cloudy so the air temp is not a problem. We eat at the restaurant which is acceptable but that's all, as is breakfast the next morning. The stay is fine for a night but you wouldn't want to be there any longer.

 

[Pushka]

Enjoy! The other Dame is off flying so probably just me watching for a while. Keen to hear where your cabin is too. I was going to say this: "Email and request Britannia for a hosted table - you will have a wonderful time. Email [email protected] and request that you are placed on table 75. Unless of course you stumped up for Grills! :shock::mrgreen:" but think you have already travelled?

 

[Kolo]

Hi Pushka, yes, I've already travelled so this report is on delay. And yes, we went for the Grills - all to be revealed soon!

 

[Pushka]

And yes, we went for the Grills - all to be revealed soon!

:mrgreen: :mrgreen:

 

[Kolo]

Embarkation

A short taxi trip gets us to the Ocean Terminal where QM2 is berthed.

All cruise ships have differing levels of service attached to the suites you choose. The Cunard ships go a step further by allocating a specific, exclusive dining room or area to certain suites. It’s very much a reminder of the class system, but instead of First, Second and Steerage, they call it Queens Grill, Princess Grill, and Brittania. We have selected the Princess Grill Suite.

Our first privilege is priority boarding and this works well. We have little waiting for CI and before long we are boarding the ship and into the grand lobby.

On Holland America (HA) we usually choose the Deluxe Suite (the top class) so my comparisons from now on will be to that standard of service, even though we are in the equivalent of second class. HA offers priority CI but my memory is of having to still queue to board the ship. By contrast there is no queue for us to board QM2.

The entry is impressive as you board straight into the grand lobby, and then directed along an impressively wide passage to the lifts. The ship seems much bigger and wider than the largest HA ship we've been on (Niew Amsterdam).

 

[Kolo]

Our suite on level 10 is a good size with a sitting area and balcony. There's a dressing room, more like a walk in robe, which I don't think is designed well and they could have made better use of the space. The bathroom is functional with shower over the bath, and one sink. The room is marginally lesser than the HA Deluxe but probably a little better than the HA Superior (second class) room. But the QM suite is still an excellent room.

 

[Kolo]

Its time for lunch. We have access to the Princess Grill, where the same table will be waiting for us each meal time, at the time we choose to arrive (within the overall meal times). This is a brilliant benefit. On HA, we eat in the main dining room, and unlike other classes, we have to, and can, pretty much book the time we prefer to eat, and we can always get our own table. On QM, this is already taken care of. We can also choose to go to the casual buffet if we wish, or any of the other several eateries including a pub and a burger bar, or book the specialty restaurant.

Our table is in a row of tables which allows us to interact with our neighbours if we wish, or have a private conversation if we wish. This suits us perfectly. It turns out that our neighbours on either side are excellent company so we have been lucky with our allocation.

We have always been happy with the HA meals but QM is clearly a step up in class. From the extensive wine list I am surprised to see the availability of good, reasonably priced (restaurant prices) wine - that is, similar, perhaps better, than HA.

 

[Kolo]

There are many public rooms and areas on the QM and on our first day at sea we wondered where everyone was. The cruise is full, so 2,800 people on board, but with so many areas and so much on we rarely see an activity full. This is of course necessary as we will be at sea for seven of the eight days, so no port stopping (except one day in Halifax) and no day tours to take people off the ship. So there needs to be lots of activity choices to keep people occupied, if that is what they want.

What makes Cunard different, as far as I am aware, is its guest speaker program. On this cruise, the keynote speaker is Robert Gates, who was Secretary of Defence to both Bush and Obama. We find his lectures and discussions interesting and informative; at first we were concerned that we would get a one-sided defence of US foreign policy, but he is a wise man and spoke diplomatically about the failures and mistakes of the various wars he oversaw.

 

[Kolo]

Other speakers included a US ex-Ambassador and white house staffer, a musical theatre historian and an astronomer. Which leads me to the other QM feature, the Planetarium, when a dome is lowered over seats in one of the theatres and a multi-projector film is played, telling the story of Earth's place in the universe. It is quite spectacular, with the experience enhanced by the gentle rolling of the ship, at times feeling as though you are floating through space.

 

[Kolo]

All the other usual cruise ship entertainment is on offer, including cabaret shows in the theatre, a string trio, a harpist, a jazz trio and various pianists. Plus there is a pop/rock band and a big band on board, the latter of which plays in the large dance hall each night. With all these options, QM beats HA hands down for entertainment. HA does not fail in this area, it’s the sheer number of options on QM that puts it ahead.

The public rooms on QM are quite spectacular, with numerous performance venues, bars, dancing options and restaurants. Our favourite is the Chart Room, beautifully and tastefully decorated, where we relax on some afternoons and some evenings listening to the strings. From the Grand Lobby to the numerous bars, once again QM outshines HA in this area.

 

[Pushka]

Is Sammi still head tender in the Chart Room? He is from Mauritius. Used to clean our sunnies and glasses with vodka. As you do. This too was the Older Dame and my favourite place on the ship. Hanging out at the bar with other people we met enjoying the atmosphere.

 

[Kolo]

Is Sammi still head tender in the Chart Room? He is from Mauritius. Used to clean our sunnies and glasses with vodka. As you do. This too was the Older Dame and my favourite place on the ship. Hanging out at the bar with other people we met enjoying the atmosphere.

Not sure. I couldn't name the staff but all nationalities seemed to be there. Unlike HA, this liner also had a lot of staff from eastern Europe.

 

[Kolo]

One area where HA has it over QM is the spa’s thermal room. We buy the spa package which allows us to use the thermal rooms whenever we want over the course of the cruise. QM has a large thermal spa pool, with a central point, and water couches at one end, both of which run with more powerful water jets. It also has two steam rooms - herbal, aromatic - and a Finnish sauna. But its aromatherapy shower sprays do not work, and the whole spa is run down and desperately in need of refurbishment. It is also on the inner part of the ship, so no sea views. By contrast, HA has just a standard steam room and sauna, but it also has fantastic thermal couches on which you can relax and watch the sea go by, and its large thermal pool looks out over one of the outdoor pools, so you are seeing plenty of daylight. HA wins the spa competition hands down.

 

[Kolo]

A couple of times, we hear announcements asking some staff to report for duty. On one morning, an announcement is made for a chef to report; the first time over the public areas PA, and then second time the PA includes the guest suites. When the announcement is made a third time, we suspect that there is a problem, and after a fourth announcement, the Captain comes on to say that a crew member is missing. Soon after he advises that it has been confirmed that the crew member has gone overboard, several hours earlier, and we are turning around to retrace the route. We eventually retrace the route over 6 or 7 hours before starting a search, which continues until nightfall. Sadly we are in thick fog and with the time passed and poor visibility, there is little hope of finding the chap, who we later hear from our waiter that he had jumped. This photo was taken during the search.

 

[get me outta here]

That's terrible for everyone. Were the staff sombre after that? I wonder how often they 'jump'.

A couple of times, we hear announcements asking some staff to report for duty. On one morning, an announcement is made for a chef to report; the first time over the public areas PA, and then second time the PA includes the guest suites. When the announcement is made a third time, we suspect that there is a problem, and after a fourth announcement, the Captain comes on to say that a crew member is missing. Soon after he advises that it has been confirmed that the crew member has gone overboard, several hours earlier, and we are turning around to retrace the route. We eventually retrace the route over 6 or 7 hours before starting a search, which continues until nightfall. Sadly we are in thick fog and with the time passed and poor visibility, there is little hope of finding the chap, who we later hear from our waiter that he had jumped. This photo was taken during the search.

 

[Kolo]

The culmination of the crossing is soon upon us and we will be arriving in New York in the early morning. The arrival entails sailing under the bridge over The Narrows, which links Staten and Long Islands. This has to be done at the right time for tides, and the funnel will clear the bridge by just a few metres. So it’s up at 4am with a few hundred others to stand on the top deck and hold our breath as we sail under. Then onward to see the sun rise on the Statue of Liberty and lower Manhattan.

 

[Pushka]

That is just sad Kolo. Not sure if he was onboard but one of the officers we met was responsible for this area.

Thankfully it doesn't happen often. But deaths from natural causes do. On one recent QM2 trip to Australia there were 12 in 23 days.

I wonder which is better - an East or West TA?