Queens Grill – a suite without a Balcony???

I have recently been to Southampton to visit the Queen Mary 2 and have lunch on board – we have a very hard job having to do this all the time – ha ha!

It is a great way to see the ships though and get an idea of the cabins and public areas.

I must admit I wasn’t blown away by the QM2 like I have been with other ships, I much preferred the Queen Elizabeth when I visited her back in May. I suppose we can’t love every ship we go on and I know that is true by reading some of the reviews on our website.

My first view of QM2 from the car park…

The QM2 disappointed me really as I expected her to be WOW but that’s not the feeling I got when I walked on board. She looked a little tired in areas and is ready for a refurbishment I thought along with my colleagues that joined me.

Some of the furniture could do with updating especially on the balconies.

I got dizzy walking around as you cannot walk from one end of the ship to other without going up a deck then across then back down – we passed the same place 3/4 times to get to different areas on the ship.

Saying that though some of the public areas are beautiful & very spacious, I did get the feeling it wouldn’t feel crowded as lots of space. I especially loved the ‘Planetarium’ & ‘The Royal Court Theatre’. The layout was fantastic.

One thing we noticed that there were no tables upstairs to put your drinks on so if taking a drink in with you sit at the front downstairs. Maybe this can be sorted when she is refurbished next year after her World Cruise. Hint hint Cunard!

The size of the cabins was ample and they were very beautiful, with soft furnishings and lighting. Princess Grill cabins are only slightly bigger than a balcony cabin but I suppose you pay for the dining experience. The balcony was a good size though.

We also saw an obstructed view balcony, these are grade DC/DA on board where you have a lifeboat or part of outside your balcony, I didn’t think these were too bad as you would still get some sun (weather permitting), you just can’t see over the lifeboat.

And also a sheltered balcony as I have so many customers who are not sure what they are so here you go, the picture shows exactly what it looks like, full balcony but an opening rather than a open balcony. The reason they have these is because the ship is built for sea going and they are quite low down on decks 4,5 & 6.

We also looked at Queens Suites and I was very surprised to see a Queens Suite without a balcony, I must admit I had to look twice and triple check and there was definitely no balcony. Imagine booking a guarantee Queens Grill on a long sailing and having no balcony. See the deck plan for the cabins with no balcony….. they overlook the front of the ship with large windows across the front of the cabin. Some people may not mind this but I know I would want a balcony for sure.

How would you feel if you didn’t get a balcony? I would love to hear your views.

The Queens Grill cabins are very spacious and lovely. Also interconnecting if travelling with friends or family which is a great idea. You can see the interconnecting doors on the picture below behind the chair near the TV.

The disabled wheelchair accessible cabins were a great size and ample to get around when confined to a wheelchair with a large wet room and plenty of space to get around. You need to book early though if you need one of these cabins.

We also visited the ‘Canyon Ranch Spa’ where you can have your hair done, nails, false eyelashes, massages & many other treatments. This was a lovely place as I do love to visit the Spa as a treat when I’m on a cruise. Even the gym – I always take my gym stuff but to this day have never used a gym onboard, maybe one day I will.

There are 2 pools onboard, one outdoor with a retracting roof as QM2 does a lot of transatlantic so at least you can still use the pool whilst at sea on a cold day, this was a lovely area but the pool wasn’t very big so could be quite busy if lots of people wish to use it at the same time.

The other pool is at the back of the ship on deck 8 but is more like a splash pool, this was also one of the smoking areas on the ship. On this deck was Todd English restaurant, one of the speciality restaurants which carries a cover charge of $25 per person. We had lunch in here and it was very nice but wasn’t sure about Shepherd’s pie being served with Lamb Chops, maybe this was to give us an idea of the different food – I hope so anyway.

Not many ships have a Deck 13 – but this one did. Are you superstitious? This is the sports deck will a small splash pool also.

There is a nightclub on board also which is next to the Queens Room called G32, there is live music on here every evening and you can also smoke upstairs inside, this is because the ship sails transatlantic and if the weather is bad they have to close the outside deck areas so the smokers have somewhere to go.

The Queens Room is the ballroom and has the biggest dance floor at sea, here you can ballroom dance away the night. There are even hosts to dance with if you are travelling alone so great for those singles to have a dance & meet new people.

Overall we did have a great day and it was interesting to see another Cunard ship, we are going on this ship in December for our annual conference for 3 nights so will be interesting to see if my views change once I’ve sailed and spent more time on board – I will let you know.

A few more pictures of the ship:-