We have cruised with Cunard once before, this would be our first time on Queen Elizerbeth, and our first Christmas and New Year cruise. Because of Covid the ship was only half full and (vaccinated) adults only. It was fourteen nights in duration, and calling at Fuerteventura, Lanzarote, Gran Canaria, Tenerife, Madeira and La Coruna. All these places we have visited many times before, this meant there was no need to take any ship excursions, and the weather was going to be better than in the UK.

Embarkation/Disembarkation

We had already completed all the documentation requirements on the My Cunard website, and the Government Passenger Locator Form and ordered our Day 2 PCR test. We had printed everything they could possibly want, rather than fiddling with a phone at check-in, make sure that you have enough ink for your printer. In the end all they wanted to see was the COVID vaccination pass and the Boarding Pass. Our arrival time was 12:15, seems like a lot of others had that time as well. There was a bit of a queue for the lateral flow test, then back to the terminal for the nervous wait for the text message with the negative result. The result took about 25 mins, check-in was then very quick. We reached our cabin by 12:50, our cruise cards were in a sealed envelope in the mail slot outside the cabin. Our luggage was already there waiting for us! It was not too painful, but it paid to be well prepared. Read more