|
Queen Mary 2
World cruise sector Adelaide to Sydney
This ship is a purpose built ocean liner and the ship’s décor, the public rooms and the cabins are stunning and the most amazing ship we have been on
What we loved
The above mentioned public rooms
Our cabin was the best cabin in terms of fitout and comfort that we have had
The pillows
The library which is amazing and about 6000 books
Everywhere you turned there was something about the long history of Cunard
The single fresh red roses on every table in the Britannia Restaurant
The European waiting staff who fussed over us in the Britannia Club Restaurant
a friend invited us into this restaurant for dinner one evening
Afternoon tea in the Queen’s Room we could have been in the Ritz in London
Sailing into Sydney Harbour Tuesday morning with the Queen Elizabeth behind us an amazing couple of hours and something that we will never forget
What we liked
The passengers
The two of us are average aussies with average incomes and we both felt right at home
The bar and wine list prices The ship operates in US dollars so with our Aussie dollar being so strong we were very happy with our room account
What we did not like
The lack of recognition in the bars or Britannia Restaurant our names were never used once this is the first time this has ever happened on any ship we have sailed on and was not good
The service at breakfast and lunch in the Britannia Restaurant was robotic
The service for dinner in the Britannia Restaurant on Monday night was the worst that we have ever experienced
The dress code, either Formal, semi-formal or elegant casual in the evenings We had to wear jackets (a suit) for the elegant casual night Both of us can look just as well dressed in very nice long sleeved open neck shirts and slacks
The very tiny self service laundry
The two hour queue for a taxi at Glebe island after we cleared the baggage hall not Cunard’s fault but the Port of Sydney
Finally
Queen Mary 2 is large and as with the two other Cunard ships Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria has four restaurants of different standards
Where you eat is dictated by what cabin or suite grade you have paid for
Britannia Grade
The bulk of the ship’s passengers who have booked inside,outside or balcony grade cabins Two sittings for dinner either 6pm or 8.30pm
Britannia Club Grade
Single sitting anytime between 6.30pm and 10pm
AA grade balcony passengers On Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria this restaurant is a small part of the main Britannia Restaurant which has been sectioned off with its own entrance
On the new Queen Elizabeth they have created a completely separate restaurant
An enhanced menu with additional dishes available as well as flambé dishes offered More space between tables enhanced flatwear and plates
We dined here as guest of a friend on Sunday night and this was fantastic European waiters offering excellent service and we felt like we were somewhere like the Grill at the Savoy Hotel in London
Princess Grill Grade
Junior Suite passengers
A separate small restaurant with a further enhanced menu and better service
Princess Grill passengers can also use the Queens Grill lounge and Queens grill deck terrace us plebs couldnt!
Queens Grill Grade
Penthouses and luxury Suites
Another small restaurant beside the Princess Grill offering some of the finest food and service at sea
The Grill Class passengers also have a concierge lounge
On big turnaround days most ships leave empty cabins with the doors open after you have “checked” out so it’s a great way to have a quick look around at the different grades of accommodation
We did manage to have a look inside the Queen Mary Suite which costs about $450,000 for the 3 month world cruise!!! This has its own private lift a huge bedroom a dining room and a very nice living room however it still had an old box TV our lowly B3 cabin had a flat screen TV
To us the ship is a conundrum
Cunard market and advertise this ship and the two other Queens as about the best there is at sea
If you are in a Grill Class Suite and paying big dollarsit probably is but we both agree with many reviews that Britannia Class is 4 star comfort with 4 star service and food albeit in the most astounding environment
We have been told from numerous people that Cunard had moved their best staff to the new Queen Elizabeth which may explain some of the service issues that we had in the bars and the Britannia Restaurant however moving staff around should not impact service standards!
|
