Queen Mary 2 (QM2) Review

Just So-So

Review for Canada & New England Cruise on Queen Mary 2 (QM2)
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sgill1125
First Time Cruiser • Age 50s

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Sail Date: Jul 2014

Just returned from five nights on the QM2. It was our first time on a cruise ship and my reaction to the experience is "so-so". The ship is certainly grand, and there were many activities planned. It is definitely aimed at a more mature and sedate crowd, with lots of options for things like ballroom dancing, knitting parties, and intellectual talks happening daily (sometimes several times a day). Those are fine options but we wished there were more things for younger folks too (we are in our 40s!). We did enjoy the trivia games several times a day. The food was pretty good; not fantastic but certainly not terrible. That was all fine with us. Sadly, however, there were some major issues we had, probably the worst of which being that our stateroom carpet was soaking wet, as was the carpet in the hallway outside our stateroom. And the entire corridor smelled of raw sewage (at varying times it was stronger and/or less noticeable). We asked them what was wrong and they pretended not to understand what we were talking about (as if we were the only ones to notice it; unlikely). They did send a wet vac to dry our rug but it just was re-wet within a day. There were staff up and down our corridor with wet vacuums (about 10-15 vacs) daily. Clearly something was leaking and I shudder to think what it might have been. Thankfully our room did NOT smell bad, only the hall. And in general the ship is showing signs of age all over. Finally, the QM2 is clearly in the business of making money, and I don't fault them for that. What I didn't like, though, was that if I ordered, say, a glass of wine, without even asking they would pour me a glass of their most expensive of that type (about $15/glass plus mandatory 15% gratuity), and not offer the "house" brand ($10) or even ask which kind I prefer. It took me a few days to realize I had options. This was the case with all kinds of drinks and services available; if you didn't know to ask they would automatically give you the most expensive. As first time cruisers this was disappointing and resulted in quite the bill upon departure. Similarly, the excursions at ports were extremely (!!!) overpriced for what they offered. Example: there was a tall ship docked in Halifax that we wanted to take a day-sail aboard. The QM2 was charging something like $50 or more pp for this excursion (it did include a bus to the dock of the sailboat and back). We looked up the sailboat's website and the same sail was $20pp. It did not include a ride but the ship was a 10 minute walk to the sailboat. So we saved $40pp by walking 10 minutes. Also, perhaps the kicker, was their NYC excursions (we live there so didn't need them but we still saw what they offer). They were charging $60 pp to "walk across the Brooklyn Bridge". Really??? It is FREE to walk across that and any other bridge. The only thing this excursion included for $60 was transfers from the Red Hook terminal (also in Brooklyn) which is not all that far from the bridge; no meal, not even an ice cream. Very very expensive to the point of being laughable. I personally would NOT take this cruise line again, at least not for another 20 years when my age group more closely fits the activities offered and when they update the ship's accommodations/amenities. All in all it was a nice few days away and I did enjoy the cruise ship concept, but I don't think Cunard will get any more of my dollars any time soon.

Cabin Review

Did not mind having an interior state room from the perspective of darkness. It was a nice size for the two of us and it made sleeping wonderful and quiet. However as I mentioned in my general review, Deck 5 has a problem with wet corridor carpets (and our room carpet was wet in the area by the door) and an almost oppressive odor of sewage which is VERY noticeable at times. Other times it is just vague. When we spoke to staff in and around that corridor they pretended they didn't smell it. Ridiculous. There is no way you wouldn't smell it. The ship was full so they told us they could not change our room. I intend to contact them to let them know we were displeased but I don't know if it will have any affect.

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