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Having previously cruised four times with P & O, we were keen to try Cunard and thought a taster cruise would be an excellent way to sample and experience the differences between the two lines, even if they are both owned by Carnival. We also felt it would be a cost efficient way to become a ‘past passenger’ so we could enjoy the additional 5% discount if we booked with Cunard again.
Embarkation at the Ocean Terminal was slightly quicker than on our previous P & O cruise using the same terminal, but it still took us an hour and a quarter from leaving our car to arriving on board, so better than a typical airport experience, but I do hope it speeds up for future cruises. We were intrigued to see that our cruise card also incorporated door cabin entry, so we thought we had better not lose it then!
Arriving on board we went straight up to the Lido buffet and enjoyed an excellent lunch with plenty of choice. My husband thought it would be nice to celebrate our arrival on board by enjoying a glass of wine. The wine waiter took the order and disappeared with my husband’s key card, which horrified him as we had never experienced this before with P & O and we are well aware how vital this small piece of plastic is. He did eventually return with a glass of wine, presented a bill for $15 (!) and returned the key card. We were somewhat disconcerted about this – what would happen if a waiter muddled up passengers’ cards and returned the wrong one to someone? More on this later…
However, on finding our cabin we were impressed that not only had all our luggage arrived, but it had been placed inside our cabin rather than simply being left in the corridor. Our balcony cabin was what we expected and everything was spotlessly clean. We were however, surprised and rather disappointed with the size of the shower room having been told by several people that QV was a ‘Vista’ class ship, the same as Arcadia. Indeed, the cabin seemed virtually the same size as Arcadia’s balcony staterooms, but the bathroom was much smaller, with an absolutely weeny shower. Neither my husband nor I are large, but turning round in the shower was really quite difficult! It was nice however, to have fluffy bathrobes and slippers in a standard cabin. Again, having only P & O to compare to we were disappointed that there was no tea or coffee making facilities in the cabin. I appreciate that Cunard might be pitched more for the American market, which I understand expects room service for everything, but given that Cunard has a great British tradition, sails from Southampton for much of the year and attracts huge numbers of Brits, I cannot understand why Cunard do not put a hospitality tray in cabins on request. We much prefer to make our own tea in the mornings at a time of our convenience, it takes less than five minutes and the tea is piping hot and not over-stewed. I also value the privacy when I’m in bed! We were also surprised that on a ship as new as QV we could not track our on board spending through the TV as can be done with P & O. This meant that the last morning when we were trying to get out of the cabin as quickly as possible, we were also going through the reams of paper on our account to check that all was in order. Thankfully it was, but I would not have looked forward to queuing up at Reception with possibly loads of other passengers if there was a problem.
However, back to day one. We quickly explored the ship and were very impressed, in that we thought she was classy, elegant and beautifully designed. We particularly loved the Queen’s Room as we love to dance, as well as the Commodore Club and the spa. We took out the spa package to allow us to enjoy the relaxation suite and steam rooms but were disappointed that the hydrotherapy pool was closed for maintenance for the whole cruise. However, as the price to use these facilities was reduced to account for this, it didn’t spoil our enjoyment too much and we used the spa twice a day for the whole cruise.
We ate in the Britannia restaurant for three of the four nights as well as for every breakfast and thought it was a lovely restaurant. Breakfasts were fantastic, with a tremendous daily choice which included smoked salmon with scrambled eggs, eggs Benedict, pancakes with maple syrup, bagels, pastries etc. etc. as well as a typical full English. We tried to compensate by only having a light lunch in the buffet, but again the choice and quality of the food made it difficult to exercise enough will power! We were slightly disappointed with the evening meals which were a surprise. I missed the P & O silver service with a choice of vegetables, a soup course if required and the food tended to be rather bland and sometimes served only luke warm. Yes, we could have rejected the food and asked for it to be reheated, but then you have to wait while your dinner companions are tucking in, so we just accepted what we were given as it wasn’t ever so bad it was worth complaining about. It was something of a surprise however, as I was expecting dinner to be better than P & O’s given the higher cost of cruising with Cunard and for us it wasn’t as good.
However, the most serious problem we had was with our wine waiter. Service was slow every night, with wine sometimes not arriving until half-way through our main course, but the worst thing that happened was that one night our fear of our card disappearing actually happened. We had reluctantly accepted not having our card for the whole duration of dinner, with the card only re-appearing at the end of the meal. (Back home you would never accept your credit card being taken away on ordering in a restaurant and not being in your possession for two hours, would you?). However on our second night the waiter confused our wine order with two of our table companions. He gave us each the right order so the bill was correct, but put the order against the wrong cards so returning the wrong card to each of us. Because the bill was correct, I never thought to look closely at the card and it was only the next morning when I tried to get in to the spa that I realised I had someone else’s card! We had used my husband’s card to get back into the cabin (he wasn’t going to let his card out of his sight after day one!) So all our drink orders went on my card and if we hadn’t known the cabin no of our table companions, we would have had to have gone down to reception and wait who knows how long to get the problem rectified and in theory if this had happened in one of the bars a lot of extra expenditure could have been loaded onto our account. Frankly I think this is unacceptable and I am shocked that Cunard operate this system. On P & O the card is never out of your sight as the waiter simply notes down the cabin number and leaves the card with the passenger.
Anyway, on to a more positive note although the weather wasn’t on the whole kind to us (well it was the last week in October, so we weren’t expecting it to be great), we had a great first day in Cherbourg despite the rain. We had a very simple croque Monsieur in an Irish bar and got back on board in time to sample the legendary Cunard tea. I have read that some passengers have been disappointed with this, but our experience was that it was excellent and everything we had been led to believe. You’ve got to do it at least once!
We also ate once in Todd English. Again, like our experience of The White Restaurant on Ventura, it was fine but not worth the additional cost. I know this is a Cunard review, but I have to say that the best specialist meal we have ever had on a ship was on Oriana Rhodes which was unbelievably good (and we have eaten at a fair few 2 Michelin starred restaurants).
We thoroughly enjoyed the experience of being tugged up the river to Rotterdam, we watched the whole procedure from when the tug line was attached until we docked, even though it was pouring with rain and freezing cold. We hadn’t booked a tour and as the rain lashed down all day we decided to stay on board and enjoy the facilities of the ship. We had a lovely time in the Commodore Club after dinner, finding a window seat just as we slipped our berth so sat and enjoyed all the lights along the river as we sipped a cocktail.
The next day we woke up expecting to be berthed in Zeebrugge, but although it was a lovely morning we appeared to be well out to sea with no land in sight. An announcement was made that the Captain considered the sea too rough to dock safely so we spent the whole of our last day sailing up and down the English Channel. Although it was quite fun to sail past our home town of Eastbourne in daylight and even just be able to make out where we lived, it wasn’t what we had thought we would be doing that day. A great many people have commented about the apparent regularity of not docking in various ports due to rough seas. I quite agree that the safety of the ship is paramount and it has to be the Captain’s decision in conjunction with the advice he receives from the Pilot, but Zeebrugge is a major port and I find it hard to believe that huge container ships as well as all the ferries that use this port couldn’t get in when the waves were not that high (force 8 and 6 feet waves we were advised). Why are cruise ships so different? Ferries have paying passengers too and it’s incredibly rare that a ferry doesn’t dock. This is the fourth time in two years that we have missed a port of call.
To end on another positive note, disembarkation was a doddle. Yes we had to wait to be called, but there was ample seating and once the process began it went far more smoothly than any of our previous cruises. We were off the ship and through the baggage hall in no more than ten minutes – unbelievably good!
So all in all another wonderful (albeit far too short) cruise. We would certainly cruise with Cunard again and are looking forward to crossing the Atlantic on QM2 next year. However, is it wishful thinking that Cunard might rethink their policy on relieving passengers of their precious ID/cabin entry/credit cards for long periods? Of all our criticisms this is by far the one that bothered us the most. However, I’ve read many reviews of Cunard now and I’ve never ever heard anyone else even mention this, so maybe we are just being paranoid?
Quality of Food
Mostly ate in the Britannia Restaurant for breakfast and dinner. Lunch in the Lido buffet
Entertainment
The shows we saw in the theatre were to the standard we have come to expect, the standard of the dancing was particularly high.
Shore Excursions
n/a
Didn't book any shore excursions this time
Staff
Cabin steward was very good. Restaurant waitress was OK, but a bit scatty. Wine waiter was poor. Drinks service on the whole in any of the bars was not that quick, except in the Verve Cliquot bar which was excellent.
Children's Facilities
n/a
Onboard Activities
Tremendous choice, how anyone could ever say they were bored on a cruise ship is beyond me. As we enjoy dancing we absolutely loved the size of the Queen's Room dance floor compared to other ships we have been on.
Cabins
The cabin was fine, the size of the bathroom was a major disappointment, particularly the size of the shower
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