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Cruise:
Northern Europe
and Fjords... July 11 - 22nd, 2004.
Itinerary:
Southampton (England) - South Queensferry (Scotland) - Geiranger (Norway) - Alesund (Norway)
-
Bergen
(Norway) -
Hamburg
(Germany) -
Rotterdam
(Netherlands) - Southampton (England).
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First
impressions last, and I was very very impressed with the size
of this mighty vessel as we drove up to the Queen Elizabeth II
terminal at Southampton. No photo does her justice, she really
is amazingly large. I have been aboard QE2 numerous times so I
know what a big ship looks like but this ship's size took my
breath away. The layout at the
Southampton
terminal is very functional and worked well. Photo ID, and
then boarding by time card – a good and orderly way to organize
2,600 passengers. Once aboard I was amazed by the
lack of help offered – no one offered to show us to our
cabin, or carry the hand held luggage – something I was
accustomed to with QE2. Never the less the ship's interior
left a lasting impression – she is a very grand ship.
I
was in cabin 8.097, which was an obstructed view balcony cabin
on deck 8. Originally booked on Deck four, I was upgraded and
appreciated the gesture after a decade of loyalty to Cunard
Line. The cabin was fantastic – very comfortable and had all
the amenities that you could ever ask for.
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The interactive QM2
TV works very well, especially for ordering shore tours, as
the queues were long at the cruise sales desk. The cabin
was tastefully decorated and had plenty of room in both the
closet and the bathroom. I was traveling with my family, and
two members of my family were in cabin 4.145, which was an
inside stateroom, also tasteful, plenty large enough and
included all the amenities that were in 8.097.
The
vessel slipped out of
Southampton
virtually unnoticed and lifeboat drill was conducted where I
met fellow QE2 fans. My
muster station was in the Kings Court, and I only hope it functions better as a muster station then it
did as a restaurant. Although functional during quiet times and
attractive to look at, Kings Court
’s multiple entries and disjointed layout makes it chaotic during
meal times (excluding dinner when it breaks into smaller individual
restaurants.) None of our family frequented Kings Court
(unless we missed the times for Britannia) due to this hectic
atmosphere. Never the less – the food was of good standard in Kings Court
and the elderly could have assistance from the floor staff.
After
boat drill we explored this mighty vessel. The features are
fantastic. Illuminations – the ship's planetarium is absolutely
brilliant. There were three shows the best of which was “Search
for Life”, narrated by Harrison Ford. Illuminations also acted as
a lecture hall where I met, and listened to Bill Miller, noted
maritime expert and author, talk about the great ship's. It also
holds the ship's cinema which works well in the theatre seats. Just
aft of Illuminations and accessible from decks two or three is the Royal
Court Theatre
of the Performing Arts. This room is far superior to any show lounge
I have seen – it is fantastic! It has a sunken band pit (that
raises if needs be), a rotating stage and
an extra special feature whereby the stage “grows” stairs in the
middle. These can rotate and form a one sided pyramid. This allowed
for some real 1st class shows that were thoroughly
enjoyable.
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The
Britannia Restaurant is stunning to look at. Our table was
112, on the lower level near the stairs. Our wait staff –
Romolo and Edwin, looked after us very well. They were
fantastic, prompt, polite and a lot of fun to talk to. Where
this restaurant fails is in the kitchen which is slow due to
the huge demand of such a large restaurant. The food was of
good quality (although not as high as experienced on other
Cunard ships). I think this is mainly due to the lack of
“warming” stations whereby food can be kept hot while the
whole table’s main course, or starter, arrives so that a
family of four can be served at the same time. The result of
the design in Britannia was that one or more of the table was
left waiting while others had to eat in order to have a warm
meal. This is NOT the fault of the staff, but rather an
oversight on the designer’s part and should be rectified on
the next refit. The atmosphere in Britannia was fantastic –
soft music was nice, playing Tubular Bells – one of my favorites, added to the friendly and relaxed, yet regal
atmosphere. There were only four formal nights on our 11 night
cruise and they were the best. A restaurant such as Britannia
is in its element on a formal night – it is so grand that
one must wear a suit and tie so as not to clash with its splendor.
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The word
Cunard often is associated with the older cruise passenger but
I was surprised to see that there was a higher number of young people aboard QM2 then
experienced on QE2, however the majority of the passengers are
over 50.
The
ports of call were amazing. First South Queensferry where a short
train ride would result in a daytrip to the centre of the beautiful
city of Edinburgh, a city that has kept its ancient buildings and really is a very
special place to visit. Norway embraced QM2 as if she was their own. They loved her. Being on QM2
in the Fjords was something else – it really was a very special
occasion.
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The
vessel is, as I said, stunning. One of our favorite spots was
the open deck just aft of Todd English. There was a very nice
pool there and a bar service as well as a fantastic view. The
ship has a fantastic amount of deck space and one can actually
get fitter being aboard, if you walk. A pet hate of mine is
people who abuse the elevators. (For example, I get in on deck
13 and want to go to deck 2 – and someone will get on deck 7
to go down to deck 6. Now if they are unable to walk stairs
due to health reasons etc. that is fine but these are not
disabled people they are healthy 50 year olds who are just
lazy – so in short I avoided the elevators as much as I
could. Hint: If you want to get from Deck 2 or 3 to deck 7 use
the Grand Lobby elevators. People seemed to avoid them
probably due to their glass walls. Ladies with skirts –
beware!!
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The
excitement really peaked in Hamburg where close to 1 million
Germans lined the shores at 7:30am to see QM2 enter
the harbor. Now this was amazing enough as it was but then they
threw a festival on the parkland near the docks. The shore tour
guide told us there had been a count down in the newspapers for 14
days and we saw the car park that was being used for motor homes and
caravans of those who had traveled in from other cities. The party
lasted all night and at 23:00 there was a fireworks display and laser
light show which was acknowledged by QM2, blowing her magnificent horn in
thanks to the city. The next morning some 600,000 lined the banks as
we sailed out, we had air force jets fly over and a Luftwaffe escort
(helicopters) out of German territorial waters. WOW.
Before
we get to our last port, let’s talk bars. Commodore Club was by
far the best bar on the ship – sophisticated, elegant and quiet
with a forward view it really is fantastic. I met a barman who used
to work on QE2 in Crystal
Bar
and he remembered me by name – a nice touch. In fact most ex QE2
staff remembered me which was fantastic; it really makes you feel at
home on this beautiful city at sea. The Chart Room on ‘Mary’ is
by no means as good as that on “the other ship”. One really
should not compare QE2 and QM2 because they are so different. There
is no better or worse, just different, but that said, if the line
insists on using the same name for two totally different bars, then
I must say QE2’s is far superior. However, Chart Room on QM2 is
very nice during the day when it is quiet. It gets very crowded and smoky
in the evenings. The Golden Lion is also very different to
that on its namesake but is a typical English style ocean going pub
and is very nice. There is a live band and draught beer, the best
being Bass – by the pint of course! I saw a few eating the fish
and chips – typical English fare. Sir Samuels Wine Bar looked
nice, but seemed empty almost all the time. I never did drink in the
Atlantic Room, but it was visually pleasing.
Rotterdam
gave a small greeting, but a fantastic send-off.
The shore tour taken was to The Hague
(or Den Hague) and our arrival back to QM2 was prolonged due to the
masses of people who had made it to the docks by 13:00. Throughout
the cruise many passengers including myself took some time out to
visit the stunning Library and Ocean Bookshop. Located at the
forward end of Deck 8, these beautifully decorated rooms, with their
rich wood paneling and tasteful lighting, allow for the perfect
setting for one to select a book. There are forward facing windows
which add to the charm, and an elevator that leads up to the
Observation Area. What makes this elevator so unique is its glass
wall, whereby one can see over the side of the vessel while inside
the elevator - a real novel idea.
The
ship has a very unique interactive television system that is superb.
Its best feature is the ability to book shore tours through the TV
thus bypassing the lengthy queues at the Tour Sales Office, located
next to the Pursers Office. The system is easy to use and also has
access to your personal QM2 email address. Passengers can send and
receive email (at a cost) which is great as it is sent from
"Your name @ QM2" so everyone knows you are off having the
time of your life!!
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Just before we depart QM2, lets talk aft – the
Queens
Room Ballroom & G32 nightclub. What an odd combination. G32 is one room that
I never really used. It seems so strange to me to have G32
accessible only through the grand ballroom. In my opinion,
disco music and a ball room just don’t mix and neither do
the dress codes. G32 was visually very much a state of the art
night club with plasma screens, smoke machines and a good bar.
The
Queens Room is visually stunning – absolutely fantastic in
design and appearance. It is one of the most fantastic rooms I
have ever seen; it really is a work of art and is delightful
for afternoon tea and the Ascot Ball. Access is via deck 3L
– which houses either the art gallery or photo gallery
depending what side of the vessel you choose to walk down. If
the photo gallery wants to make more sales they should reduce
the US$27.50 price tag on the personal portraits.
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I
rate QM2 5 stars. Although a few minor design issues that I
pointed out, the over all product is FANTASTIC – she truly
is a wonderful ship. Queen Mary 2 is a ship I would love to
get back aboard. The ship at first stuns you with her
“wow” factor, and then after a few days wraps her gigantic
arms around you and becomes your home away from home – the
hallmark of a great liner. Long live Queen Mary 2.
Note: ** This
review is the opinion only of the reviewer and is not a guarantee
that the service or experience aboard this vessel will be exactly
that which is reported in this review. Every cruise differs from the
one before it. Images on this website may be subject to copyright
– do not reproduce images or text from Chris’ Cunard Page. |
