…il 2015) ** 34: P&O Britannia Naming (March 2015) ** 33: Queen Mary 2 Transatlantic Crossing New York – Southampton (January 2015) 32: Queen Mary 2 Caribbean (December 2014) 31: Queen Mary 2 Bruge Christmas Market (December 2014) 30: MSC Armonia (post stretching dry dock) (November 2014) ** 29: Seabourn Sojourn “Autumn Isles” Mediterranean (October 2014) ** 28: Crystal Cruises “European Cachet” (Rome to Southampton) (August 2014) ** 27: MSC Lirica…
…der guests, and this improves and speeds all that up. Crew of Queen Mary 2 Crossing The Line Ceremony Tipping point Another odd aspect about cruising and cruise ships is how gratuities, or tips if you prefer to call them, have changed over the last 15 years since I started cruising, from a discretionary reward I gave to selected crew members for great service, into a compulsory charge. I no longer am left to decide how much, and which crew members…
…travellers.com/solocabins/. They fill up fast, especially when you do Transatlantic crossing on Queen Mary 2, that’s a good starting point, but plan way ahead and focus on lines that have solo cabins. I update it often as more lines add solo cabins, including Celebrity and Holland America on all their new ships. But they are still limited, so I also use aggregator sites, like Vacationstogo.com, which have a specific tab listing all the solo deals…
…e Passage heading to the Antarctic Peninsula. Or perhaps, on a winter Transatlantic crossing on Queen Mary 2. Does being on the middle deck mean I am giving up the best views? Best views In my experience on the scenic cruises, I’ve been on, I can see I would get fantastic views on the middle deck. In Alaska, it’s more eye level with the glaciers. Going through the Panama Canal it’s closer to the walls and the mules that help guide the ship through…
…st ‘What Cruise Crew Want Cruise Passengers To Know’. Crew of Queen Mary 2 Crossing The Line Ceremony Kindness A friend of mine in the service industry (not a crew member) once said to me, never be unpleasant or rude to someone who’s alone in your bathroom with your toothbrush or prepares and brings your drinks or makes your food. The images that conjured up has never left me. Now, I am not saying crew do anything suspect along those lines, but th…
…or me is special events. When I got married, we booked a Queen Mary 2 Transatlantic Crossing for our honeymoon. Our travel agent let the line know that we were going on our honeymoon and were upgraded to a Penthouse Suite. The Agent had good relationships with the cruise line, makes many bookings for them and so was able to get us on an upgrade list. So, if you have a big event coming up, especially your wedding, let the line know. It’s not going…
…lising their significance. For example, on that recent Cunard Queen Mary 2 Crossing there were many. There’s a Homer Simpson buried in one of the art deco panels near the Golden Lion Pub. Sir Samuels coffee shop is named after the original founder of Cunard. The Carinthia Lounge is named after the very first ship to ever do a world cruise, which Cunard operated on that ship in 1933. G32 the nightclub is the name of the hull of the ship when it was…
…quirky entertainment. Cunard with the only ocean liner at sea, boasts Transatlantic crossing, Grills suites options, an Insights programme and white glove afternoon tea. Medallion-class The thing Princess have chosen to be what sets them apart from others is making all their ships what they call Medallion class. This uses a technology entwined with the cruising experience with a wearable medallion, an app linked to it and supposedly better Wi-Fi….
…ls were too low. #7 Queen Mary 2 Transatlantic Next is a Queen Mary 2 Transatlantic between Southampton and New York. I have done this 5 times now because it’s the only true ocean liner sailing today. It’s a truly unique experience, harking back to the glory days of crossing before aeroplanes, and no other line or ship replicates it. The highlights for me are dressing up and the balls, although dressing up is much less of a thing than it used to b…
…e bit outside cruising, but I enjoy going to the US. I love doing the Transatlantic crossings on the Queen Mary 2. Danielle: Where in the world are you still looking forward to visiting for the first time? Mark: I have done very little of South America. We’ve been on a cruise where we’ve been to Columbia and that’s about it. So, I would love to explore that more. I’d love to explore more islands and more obscure places, but I think South America h…
…first explore the Canadian Arctic. But the sea ice in the Baffin Sea made crossing there impossible, so we stayed in Greenland sailing North with the line having to hastily reschedule or find places for us to visit along the way. Storms To Consider Once we could find a way to cross into Canada, a massive storm passing by and thick ice forced us to scrap most of the advertised itinerary for the region and take refuge first in Eric Fjord. Where the…
