Age: 45
Number of Cruises: 5
Cruise Line: Cunard
Ship: Queen Mary 2
Itinerary: Mediterranean

My cruise began on the 30 August 2004 in Athens, the day that followed the closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games. It would end on the 11 September in Southampton. The name Cunard gave to this cruise was ‘Mediterranean Passage’. The itinerary would lead us to Civetavechia (near Rome), Livorno (near Florence and Pizza), Marseille, Barcelona, Malaga, Gibraltar, Lisbon and La Coruna. The first and last days were days at sea, and so was one of them between Barcelona and Malaga.

I have to say the itinerary did not appeal to me. Obviously the places we were to visit are quite interesting, but one can not appreciate them during the short length of time the ship is docked. The huge publicity around Queen Mary 2 (QM2) conveyed an overwhelming amount of curiosity that made me book this cruise. Also, I had read reviews of the Queen Elisabeth 2 and the Caronia, the other two ships belonging to Cunard, and they all stated height standards of luxury. Obviously since the QM2 is the biggest cruise ship (even if there are others with greater passenger capacity), I was very curious to know how such a big ship as this, could still provide luxury. This constitutes in my point of view an inconsistency. I was under the feeling that luxury was the privilege of a few, and not the prerogative of a crowd of 2620 passengers, the full capacity of the QM2.

THE PEOPLE
For this particular cruise the guest count was 2,509 passengers with an average age of 52 years. The break down by nationalities stated the United Kingdom to have 459 passengers on board, United States 445, Greece 213, and Germany 205. These four nationalities accounted for almost 53% of the total number of passengers. All the rest was scattered among 50 other nationalities. By the way, I asked for this figures at the purser’s office and they promptly provided them. It was the only time I needed their services and judging from this short experience I was well impressed. I still got the complete breakdown with me.

In fact the most commonly heard language was English, but also Greek, German, Russian and French. I particularly like the fact of being surrounded by many nationalities, since it gives me the opportunity of people watching. In fact, observing this bunch people from a secluded spot on the restaurant, theatre or swimming pool, was in its own, extremely interesting and an enriching experience. Observing the way people eat, speak, laugh, salute friends and family, and dress, was pretty much like sitting in front of the TV at home and watching a documentary of the ‘National Geographical Society’.

They all seemed well to do people, very few children and an overwhelming majority of elderly folks. However I would caution people with walking impairment, that this ship involves considerable amount of foot work. People on wheel chairs must bare in mind that there are elevators everywhere but the carpeting is heavy padded and depending on your weight, it may be difficult to get the wheels moving on. The ship was built in modules that were assembled together. Here and there around the alleyways I found surges on the floor that I suspect were the places of encasement of two different modules. Use caution not to stumble.

THE SHIP
Impressive, either from the outside or the inside. Whatever port we were docked at, there was people looking at it.

In my point of view, the designers of this ship were particularly happy, when they conceived the stern. In most modern ships I have been, this spot has several cabins with balconies and the impressive views that can be seen from this place is the tribute to the few passengers paying for such cabins. Obviously this is done in order to turn these spots into profit centres. The QM2 however has an amphitheatre like design on the stern, where they managed to accommodate two out of the five swimming pools the ship is provided with, three whirlpools and still lots of place for sunbathers, a terrace bar and a play zone for children. This place is also protected from the wind, during sailings. The only other ships where I have seen this design before are the remaining fleet of Cunard Line and in part of the fleet of the P&O. What a pity no other cruise lines turn this spots into the advantage of the majority of the passengers. The QM2 has also two other swimming pools placed on deck 12 midship, as in other ships, but obviously with no views to the outside. One of them has a retractable glass-roof, which was always shut, even if we only had rain in the last three days of the cruise. Floor on decks 7 (wraps entirely around the ship), 12 and outside aft areas of decks 8 through 12 is teak.

The interior is grandiose and tastefully decorated. Lots of paintings, the most part portraying the ships belonging to Cunard line since it was founded 160 years ago. Also lots of chandeliers that probably have cost fortunes.

Moving vertically around the ship is done through four stairways with elevators close to them. The stairways are identified by letters A (patrons of the carpeting on the stairs and elevators are green), B (red), C (grey) and D (yellow). Stairways A and D have banks of 3 elevators with the capacity of 20 passengers each, but I have to say I never saw them crowded. Stairways B and C have banks of six elevators with a capacity for 12 people each. Nevertheless they seemed already crowded with eight passengers. Probably the purveyor of such appliances thought, the QM2 passengers would very probably belong to some sort of undernourished and underdeveloped country from the sub-Saharan Africa. Whenever an elevators stops at a given deck, a metallic voice coming from an inside microphone and endowed with mechanical stubbornness, insists in announcing the number of the deck in overhenced decibels. This is particularly annoying when elevators are crowded (they often are on stairways B and C) and stop at almost each deck to let people pop in and off. From the second day on I was already prone to scream profanities to those microphones every time I heard ‘the voice’. There are also four other panoramic elevators forward and mid ship but they do not cover all the decks.

Since the QM2 has 13 decks and also deck 3L (L stands for lower and is located between decks 2 and 3 and consisting of 4 alleyways 2 starboard side and other 2 portside), lots of people would loose their way going from one place to another. The most common phrase I heard from those wondering around the maze or looking at the deck plans scattered around the ship was: ‘How my God! Am I lost?’

I am not going to describe all the venues around this ship since there are so many, however I will state those that much impressed me.

I have to say the library is stunning. They say it is the biggest aboard a ship. Very complete with travel guides, which were very requested during this cruise, but obviously other themes can be found as well as magazines and newspapers. There are also sections of books in German, Spanish, French, Italian and Japanese. Situated in deck 8, forward close to stairway A, it is beautifully appointed; shelves and walls have the same pattern of wood. There are also 6 computers to browse the internet or using the most common software from Microsoft (obviously this is paid, half a dollar per minute). The room is exceptionally well lit and exudes an ambiance of serenity and comfort. At night when everybody else is slumbering at the theatre or watching a movie at the Illuminations or even loosing money at the casino, this is the best place to be. Nearby, there is a small bookshop.

The Royal Court Theatre is disappointing. I’ve seen more grandiose in smaller ships. Columns scattered around the room are a source of annoyance for those sitting behind them and wanting to see the stage. On the upper deck and apart from the columns there is also the hand railing in front of the first row, obstructing the views. I tried seating in more than one row on this level and look at the stage and in every row the railing was an obstruction to see the stage entirely.

However the theatre Illuminations, located just in front of the Royal Court Theatre has a better conception and is much more beautiful as far as decoration is concerned. Lectures and movies can be seen there as well as a movie about astronomy projected in a retractable dome. Very interesting.

The ballroom Queen’s room is also very elegant. Two stunning chandeliers above the dancing stage. This is the place where the commander would have met us for a cocktail during the first formal day, (he never showed up, withheld as he was at the bridge, since on that very moment we were crossing the Messina strait). I only got a sight of him, latter in the cruise when he materialized at the library for a pre-lunch chitchat with people wanting him to sign a book about the QM2 sold in the adjacent bookshop. The Queen’s room appeals to a lot of lonely and elderly ladies. They sit in tables close to the dancing stage. I don’t know if they left their husbands sleeping in the cabins, or wondering around the countless bars or even if they have already buried them. However, Cunard offers this ladies the services of well educated, well mannered and as I could see extremely competent male dancers. Whenever a new tune starts, they pop in from I don’t know where, and invite those unfortunate lonely ladies for a dance. The invitations where never refused as far as I could see.

If you are a husband, would you feel anguished to see your beloved wife in the arms of another man? Angered to see him dance better than you? Worried with the thought she could start an affair on the cruise? Well, don’t, there’s absolutely no reason for that. Cunard thought about it too. Your wife’s eventual adventure with another man will not go beyond the confinement of the dancing stage, because the men they engaged must all be older than 70. Anyway I think the Queen’s Room is an excellent alternative on those nights, when the program on the Royal Court Theatre does not appeal to you. I enjoyed immensely seeing people dance, especially tango but I’m not a dancer myself. This is the right place to came and see other people while tasting an old port wine.

The Empire casino spans in partitions of deck 2 and 3. I guess they are good profit centres for any ship. I don’t gamble myself. I went there once just to feel the ambiance and was told that gamblers were there every night in full force. Lots of people, lots of smoke, lots of drinks, lots of hysterical and brief shrills from young ladies teased by gambling. While I was there, a short but very massif and arrogant passenger, walking as if he was the king of the world, shoved me. I had seen him coming in my direction, a superior look, a big cigar tightly trapped in his meaty fingers, and a mouth expelling locomotive curls of smoke. No I’m sorry, no excuse me, nothing. He just continued his track and a few feet away, his cigar missed for a few inches the butt of a young lady bent forward while throwing dices on a table. I never set a foot there again.

Let me say that smoking is not allowed in many venues such as the library, the dinning rooms and theatres and some bars. Some of the bars have reserved tables for smokers. There is also a room in deck 9 forward, called Churchill’s cigar lounge, close to the Commodore club (which is another bar) reserved for them.

CABIN AND SERVICE
I must say I was extremely lucky. I made my reservation five months in advance of this cruise and I had asked for a standard oceanview cabin. I received a 5% discount because of the early booking. Observing the deck plans, and if I am not wrong, there must not be more than 50 cabins with this specification aboard this ship and they are all located forward in decks 4, 5 and 6. I consider this to be a very limited number for such a big ship. I don’t know wheatear this category of cabins was already fully booked at that moment, or if the representatives of Cunard in my country decided to offer me a gift, (since I have already booked with them several other cruises), or even if Cunard itself decided to pamper me, even if this was my first time with them, but the fact is I was immediately upgraded. I have to thank them for that. I received instead a deluxe balcony (cat. B3) located on deck 8, but with partially obstructed views, since lifeboats are just in front. Here again I was lucky since mine, which was cabin 8046 had in front of the balcony, not a cumbersome lifeboat but just a small zodiac and was close to stairway B.

Upon embarkation no escort service was provided to the cabins. This was no problem since I had seen the deck plans in advance and easily found my way. My luggage was already waiting for me on the corridor. When I stepped in I immediately found a chilled bottle of champagne waiting for me, another very nice touch from Cunard. Since I am not very found of bubbling beverages, this bottle is now lying on a shelf of my refrigerator at home, waiting for a moment to be savoured. It was a 23 square meters stateroom (248 square feet, I hope I’m not wrong with the conversions), two beds that could be converted to queen size bed, sofa for two, small coffee table whose height can be adjusted. There was more than enough closet and drawer space for my needs and I am one of those who tend to over pack. The safe is operated either by means of code or any card provided with magnetic band. The cabin had lots of light and was reasonably well decorated. The interactive television was extremely useful. I tried out almost all the possibilities it provides. Describing them all would be time consuming, however those I found most useful were the possibility to see your shipboard account, to check the menus, to send e-mails (but you must pay for them), the GPS to locate exactly the position of the ship, its bearing and speed, the graphs with temperatures and wind from the beginning of the cruise, etc. I have to say I did not use it to see the news or movies. That is something I do at home and I require a complete cut with my habits while on vacation. It also had a small but space consuming refrigerator, which was left on and empty during the entire length of the cruise. I wonder why it was installed there in the first place. Sound proofing seemed to be OK, since I never heard my neighbours from inside the cabin, not even the noise of a flushing toilette.

However, I found three major drawbacks on that cabin:

The temperature of the air conditioning could be adjusted, but there was no switch to turn off ventilation. I checked it with the steward and arrived to the conclusion that he could call maintenance and turn it off definitively. This was very annoying because if I sat on the sofa, the flow of air would come directly on my back and shoulders, therefore turning the sofa unusable.

The door to the balcony when opened takes a lot of room. It only has two positions, completely open and completely shut. I found this a cheap solution not in line with the luxurious standards of Cunard. I would have preferred a probably more expensive solution consisting of the middle section of the glass, sliding to one of the sides.

My electrical appliances were not compatible with wall outlets of this ship (photo 3). But I have never had any problem on other ships with the same appliances. The only way out, was using one of the two outlets in the bathroom (one 110V the other 230v) even if there was a note saying ‘shavers only’.

The bathroom had a correct size. There are two corner shelves and lots of space under the sink. Two green towels to use around the pools were to be found here and not to be collected near the swimming pools as it is the use with other cruises. The shower is spacious enough for anyone to bend over if the soap bar falls on the floor. The curtain is thick enough not to get with intimacies with your back, since this is what thin and light curtains do, but it prevents light from coming to the shower. I would have expected from a Cunard ship a plexiglas door. There is an extensible line cloth that I found extremely useful. Water pression was OK in the morning but scarce in the afternoon while I bathe for dinner. The vacuum flushing system of the toilet never went broke. This is a first time for me, since in every other ship I have been on, there was always (I say again, always) a moment when the system for any reason stopped working with no apparent cause.

The balcony has two plastic loungers with cushions and small coffee table. The back rest of these loungers can not be put in complete horizontal position, since the balcony is not enough depth.

Passengers have to ask for drinking water to be delivered to their cabins, therefore it was charged on the shipboard account. I can easily guess that in a foreseeable future, they are also going to charge us for the air we breathe.

I had never any problem with my steward, Jonathan. He always kept the cabin clean and towels changed morning and afternoon. I found him very often on the corridors. Very smiling, saluting and addressing me using my name. Still, I would have preferred that he did not salute me so personally and instead had cleaned my balcony in a more thorough way.

I never used room service, but the choice of items seemed very limited, nor did I ever have breakfast in my cabin. Therefore I do not hold an opinion on these matters.

As a word of advice and if you are planning to book a cruise on this ship, avoid what they call premium balconies belonging to class B4 to B7. I met a couple with one of those cabins and they told me that it was a complete fraud, pretending they have balconies. In fact, what Cunard calls a balcony is no more than a very narrow room and on one of the walls of this room they cut a rectangular shaped hole on the hull of the ship. As a consequence, the cabin is very dark and if they sat on the lounger of the so called balcony, the only thing they could see was the sky through the hole. And the fact is that most of decks 4, 5 and 6 have this class of cabins, all in all there are 470 cabins of this class aboard this ship, that’s to say the most numerous. I am not a naval engineer but I think it would have been easy for Cunard to cut the hole further down to the floor in a square shape and filling half of the height with a glass thus giving the cabin more light, making people who stand in the so called balconies less enclosed around walls of metal and finally giving the QM2 much more attractive looks, when seen from the outside.

DINNING ROOM EXPERIENCE AND SERVICE
The most important restaurant is the Britannia. Entrance is through deck 2 and 3. The room is in fact very elegantly decorated. Still I have to say that I have seen more grandiose and well lit restaurants in smaller ships.

Upon arriving to my cabin for the first time, my table assignment was nowhere to be found. As soon as I finished unpacking, I headed to the restaurant. The maitre d’ seemed extremely affable and accommodating, in opposition with others I had met in other cruises. He told me that for an unknown reason some passengers had their table assignments on their cabins upon embarkation and others hadn’t. I was also informed that for the first day, dinner would be open sitting from 6:30 pm to 10:00 pm and that on the following day I would receive the assignment in my cabin, which in fact I did.

The first dinner caused me a very good impression, I was seated on the lower floor in a room they have further back of the restaurant (table 49). The waiter, that I am pretty sure, must have come from a country in Eastern Europe (maybe Ukraine), since there was a Russian couple in the next table and he talked with them in what seemed to me like Russian. Not the smiling kind of being, but refined, skilled, with impeccable English and above all terribly efficient. I could ask for no more.

From the second day on I was granted a table for seven, number 134 on lower deck second sitting, (dinner starting at 8:30pm). I was not particularly lucky, since I prefer small tables but I got the seating I wanted since the first seating is too early and interfering with the time the ship sailed away from the ports we were docked at. Also, it was situated in a place back of the room. I prefer upper deck or even lower deck but closer to the centre of the room where I don’t fill so confined and can easily watch all the movement of people and staff. This kind of table generally is laid for six, but there was an elderly gentleman, 92 years old, if I am not wrong and he was coming alone. Obviously he was already a little deaf, but his speech and above all his reasoning were impeccable for his age. There were other two couples seated on this table, but from the third day on they vanished, never to be seen again at the Britannia restaurant. The maitre d’ must have noticed the two other couples never came again, so he began sitting different people every day in our table. Most of the times they were Spaniards. This was terrible for me since neither I nor my father, who accompanied me on this cruise, speak any Spanish. This people did not seem inclined to speak any other language than their own.

Dinner consists of five courses. We had an appetizer (there were five options to choose from, including soup), salad (2 options), entrée (5 options) and dessert (5 options). The Canyon Ranch SPA had also options they suggested as appetizer, entrée and dessert. So, there was much to choose from. The presentation was almost always good. Concerning the flavour of the preparations I must say we had good experiences and other times not so good, and I will say no more except that as far as food is concerned, I have seen better in other not so expensive cruises. Timing from the moment we ordered till we were served was not more than 10 minutes and gaps between courses were non-existent in my table. I found the portions of the entrees too large, but I also have to say that I do not eat much and rather prefer quality over quantity. People who see me eating on a regular basis often ask how can I live and work eating so few. I always answer the same way: I don’t eat, I simply nourish myself.

The wine list was conspicuous and extremely well organized. I only asked for it once to choose a red wine. It was organized by countries and in each country there were the different brands. As far as red wines are concerned, prices ranged from $24 to $2’650, although most of the bottles were between $30 and $50. Wine could be ordered by the glass, but here the choice was more limited. This is the way I prefer to drink. The sommelier was efficient and our orders never came late or even at the end of the meal as I heard other cruise mates complain.

Our waiter was Mariano from Goa, in India. Since Goa was up to the beginning of the sixties a Portuguese colony, he always saluted us in our language. He was always efficient and attentive. Never had we to ask for a refill of water or bread. Sometimes, he would get the help of another waiter from an adjacent table, Roy, who was also very efficient. I never understood exactly how the service is organized in this restaurant, since I also saw Mariano serving in other tables he didn’t usually serve.

Classical music could be heard during dinner. But every night, they played the same tunes. Almost every night I recognized the same track of what I think was a recorded CD. The summer, an excerpt of the ‘The Four Seasons’ of Vivaldi, one of my favourite composers, was played every night of the cruise. It would have been preferable to prepare a 15 different CD’s with varied music and play one every night. This way, the same passengers in a 15 day cruise, for instance, would not have to listen the same CD more than once. Obviously this is just a minor detail, but I have seen less expensive cruise lines that pay more attention to details than Cunard did for this cruise.

Very unfortunately I have to make another nasty remark concerning the service at this restaurant. One of the members of the other two couples that had sat on my table on the second day of the cruise, told me that their first dinner at the Britannia had turned into an almost unbelievable experience as far as the service is concerned. When they sat they immediately noticed a spot of dirt at the towel on their table and one of the spoons was also dirty. They called the attention of their waiter, and he simply replied that other passengers had already dinned on that table, as if to say that it was absolutely natural that it was spotted. After some discussion the towel was in fact reluctantly removed, but while he was laying the utensils on the table again, he made a cynical smile and took care to put the exact same dirty spoon again, exactly in front of the same lady who had it in the first place. After hearing this story, the only thing I can think of, is either Cunard does not have their waiters properly trained or not properly supervised. Or even both. But in any case what I thought was an impeccable ‘savoir faire’ as a luxury cruise brand, is no more.

I had Breakfast once at the Britannia Restaurant. Variety was not so good and it took a lot of time to be served. I also had lunch there twice and it was a good alternative on those days at see when everybody else prefers the lido buffet.

I can only say that, aboard this ship the service you will get is a question of luck.

THE KINGS’ COURT (Lido buffet)
This is usually where people have breakfasts, lunch and also dinner as an alternative restaurant. Prior to go through any description, let me tell you this was my biggest disappointment aboard this ship.

This room stands on deck 7, that is to say, there are almost the same amount of decks with cabins above and below. Its localization seemed to me correct. However the room does not have views directly to the sea, since the rap around outside deck is here. As a consequence it is quite a dark venue and lamps have to be constantly turned on. Around the stands of food the floor is covered with tiles and there is carpeting on sitting areas. If someone drooped coffee, milk or any other beverage on the floor the tiles would become immediately very slippery. I witnessed two heavy falls from elderly passengers. It is quite a dangerous occurrence, since this people have high levels of osteoporosis; therefore they are prone to break bones easily.

On see days when everyone had breakfast at different times the service was OK. On every other day when people were in a hurry to go to the tours, it was a complete mess. Queues to get to the stands were never too long, but they are formed on the path of the servers when they need to go to the kitchen. The stands run out of items very frequently. Some desperate passengers even cut tips of the baguettes that were lying there as decoration, with their bare hands while the stands ran out of sliced bread, a danger at times when we hear so much talk about the Norwalk virus. The waiters run back and force to the kitchen to refill the stands that are constantly going out of items. They carry empty trays of food and have to ask permission to cut the queues of passengers who are trying to get a tray and get to the first stand. They come out of the kitchen with the trays full and again have to ask permission to cut the same queues.

After you get everything you want from the stands, another adventure begins and this is trying to find an empty table to sit, with a tray in your hands and without bumping into someone and without spilling your cup of coffee. Obviously there is no one to help you to carry the tray. When you sit, odds are that you have already spilled your cup of coffee on the tray. Once, while I was searching for a place to sit for breakfast, I lost my father from sight. We had our breakfasts alone in separate places and only met again half an hour later in the cabin for our toothbrush.

The utensils are folded around the napkins that are on the tables. But if someone was on that table before and he has already used the napkin and utensils, you have to run back near the stands of food and try to get another set (if they have not already run out of napkins). The utensils are large and extremely stylish. They are ok if you eat sausages, eggs, bacon or any other kind of food that require fork and knife. However if you want to spread butter or jam on your bread with that kind of knife, it is simply unfit because of its length. Trying to peal an apple with those knifes is virtually impossible. People would look like very young children when for the first time, parents try to train them with the utensils that are still too big for their tiny and unskilled hands. There are little sticks of wood to stir coffee and tea, but these sticks are nowhere to be found during lunch and tea time. The only way to stir is using one of your fingers or the mammoth sized spoons fit only for soup.

The prime concern of waiters when they are not running back and force to the kitchen for the refills of the stands is collecting trays from the passengers already seated. I am sure they do this because they are told to. The consequence is they become interruptive while we are eating. They return to collect the plates already on the table that you are not using anymore. And they return finally once more, when you leave the table to collect napkins, used cups and clean the table. That’s too much walking around the same table. I did never understand why the service was not organized in a different manner, for example collecting the trays only when passengers have finished their meal, since this way they have no need to go to the same table more than once. As it is, the service seemed to me an entire joke.

If you leave your place unattended to get something more from the stands, they took your empty plates along with the utensils. It happened to me once, precisely the day I had breakfast separately from my father. I got up of the table to get some more orange juice and a pear. Arriving back, I found that my plate on which I would peal my pear had already been collected along with the knife I would also use. I left the pear and orange juice on the table and went again to the stands for yet another folded napkin with knife and fork in it, even if I only needed the fork (but you can not get them separately). I only could get one after a wait of about two minutes, when I spotted a waiter bringing an all bunch of them from I don’t know where. I promptly grabbed one more napkin and headed to my table. I found that my orange juice and pear were gone and a couple was seated there and beginning their breakfast. I told them nothing and just went to the stand where they have the juices, grabbed one more glace, poured one more orange juice which I consumed standing near that same stand, grabbed another pear that I took to my cabin along with the folded napkin I still had in my hands. All this seems taken from some movie of Charles Chaplin.

At lunch time, when passengers from some of the tours came, they immediately crowd the room. Again, lots of people walking around the stands in ellipses of hunger and gluttony.

The food is almost everyday the same for breakfast. Lunch is just a little bit more varied. Preparation is nothing out of this world. However there is a stand on the section of the Kings Court called La Piazza that serves pasta, and it is a little bit better than the other stand. The plates one gets at the beginning of the queues are always very hot (be attentive not to burn your hands), and if you put a leaf of lettuce on, it looses immediately its freshness.

Let me tell you that I am a very diplomatic kind of person. I am more a contemplator than a protestor and if something does not suit me, I try to smile and eventually (and only eventually), give my opinion about what I do not like. In this particular case, let me be blunt and plain: Around this place, nothing is right. In every cruise, food matters have always been considered as ‘la pièce de resistance’. With this ship, Cunard made a terrible first impression as far as the Kings Court or lido buffet is concerned. And let’s not forget there is no second chance to make a first good impression. Everything has to be redone. They will need to rethink the room, to replan and to reimplement the organization of work from top to bottom.

Since Cunard is owned by Carnival Cruise Lines, I would like someone to explain me, why they did not call someone from this company to help them with the planning of work around this place. Carnival has been on the mass market for a long time, I assume they know better how to deal with crowds. Still I have never cruised with them.

ALTERNATIVE RESTAURANTS
The most touted is Tod English. They charge $30 for dinner (it is also possible to have lunch there and be charged only $20). Reservation is mandatory. The decor of the room is nothing extraordinary, the service is good and performed by an efficient and smiling staff. As to the food, the most important in a restaurant, everything depends on the luck you have when you choose. I was not particularly happy with the options I choose, but my father who had different options was very glad with his. The price seemed to me correct, considering what we received.

For dinner the Kings Court brakes into four different venues: La Piazza, Lotus, the Carvery and The Chef’s Galley, this last one is charged $35 per person. They say it is advisable to make reservations. From my experience during this particular cruise I can say that reservations are absolutely necessary, since I could never get a reservation done for the same day, but just for the following. Reservations are easily done by phone from 10:00am till 5:00pm.

The only one I managed to get reservations was the Chef’s Galley. Quite a small room, it accommodates around thirty guests. There is no menu to choose from, so you have better check in your interactive TV the menu for that night, consisting of an appetizer, entrée and dessert. Inside his kitchen with a balcony to the dinning room, the chef explains everything from the utensils required to work to the way of preparing each one of the three courses, not forgetting to mention all you need to know about the ingredients. Upon arrival, I was immediately served a flute of champagne and with the appetizer and entrée they also serve red and white wine that matched the courses. A considerable number of Japanese passengers had also reserved for that night. Very disruptive, since as usual, they all came armed with their cameras, aimed and shot everything that moved or made a sound. The presentation had to begin with a small delay and it lasted for two hours, but in the end and since it was the birthday of one of them, we were all served a piece of his birthday cake. While blowing the candles, again the machine gun like sound of cameras going all off all the same time and the lightening of the flashes all over the walls of the room. I considered the $35 per person very good value for what I received: champagne and wine poured freely, amusement, advices about cooking and above all a delicious meal. In my opinion a better deal than Todd English.

The Golden Lyon pub serves lunch, but I never ate there nor did I use the Boardwalk café on deck 12 (an open air area), serving hot dogs, hamburgers and pizza for lunch. I’m certainly not booking with an expensive cruise line like Cunard and be fed hamburgers or hot dogs. This is the kind of stuff that can be found almost everywhere around the world. In my country that is what parents generally give to kids on those days they don’t want to endure the burden of cooking. Although unhealthy, this kind of food is adapted to the unsophisticated palate of children.

ENTRETAINMENT AND ACTIVITIES
There was a good assortment of activities to choose from and suited to the mixture of people on board. I have still got with me the daily programmes, but I am not going to mention or describe them all since I only attended a few.

I found most interesting the performances given by the Royal Cunard group of singers and dancers. They were very much applauded therefore I assume they were correctly adapted to the audience.

The Planetarium show’s which last 25 minutes, are not to be missed.

One night while on a stroll before retiring to my cabin, I went to deck 12 and close to the Boardwalk café, there was a movie being shown at the open air. I have never seen this before but I think that weather allowing, it is a very pleasant idea to seat people at night on the loungers, project a film on a wall and have the stars as your ceiling.

There were also lectures that are later repeated in one of the channels of the TV. There were fitness classes, bridge classes, beer tasting, etc. A lady playing harp at the lobby was very well attended and applauded.

‘Salus per aqua’ (or health through water) treatments were provided by a totally unheard club, at list for me and probably for most of the passengers, the Canyon Ranch SPA Club. I have got with me their ridiculously priced menu of services. On sea days, their prices were even higher. However I have always seen high prices in other cruise ships as far as SPA treatments are concerned. As I do not like to make descriptions of what I did not experience, I made an appointment for one of their skincare treatments called ‘Men’s Fitness Facial’. Those 50 minutes cost me $109. A waste of money, since at home I could get that same treatment for less than half the price, as I have already confirmed. The girl that performed my treatment had a soft voice and even softer hands. She asked me if that was my first time for that kind of treatment, which in fact was and what did I usually use to clean my face. I told her soap bar and it was a lie. I always use a kind of free cleansing gel, but I wanted to see how she was going to respond to the looks of my face. Unfortunately she reacted with verbal parsimony, making more questions than providing answers. I remember having asked her wheter I was going to loose my 100% natural suntan with this treatment. She seemed amused with the question but just answered ‘absolutely not’. In fact I wanted to give the impression that I do not take care of my skin, and that I was the kind of person who values a good looking suntan. But nothing of this is in fact true, I am very conscious oriented with my health. Food is a primary concern but sun is also to be avoided. I live in a country with a large number of sunny days per year and I drive a convertible. In summer, a sun blocker, a t-shirt and a cap must never be forgotten. In spite of my watchfulness, I have to say that I get a tan very easily I think I got it from my genetic ancestry.

Lots of sunbathers around the best located pools of the ship, Terrace pool and Minnows pool. Towels had to be brought and taken back to the cabin (two green towels were to be found for this purpose under the sink in the cabin) since they are nowhere to be found around the pools. This is probably a way to prevent people from reserving deck chairs with them.

Shopping areas are uninteresting, at least for me. There was expensive logo wear and jewellery, wine, champagne and other items which are always useful for gifts back at home. All of the items were very expensive. Nevertheless, I saw lots of people nosing labels but I don’t actually know if they just saw or if actually bought any items.

On sea days the scope of entertainment was enlarged.

SHORE EXCURSIONS AND PORTS OF CALL
As in other cruise lines, my feeling is the shore excursions were not worth the price I paid. Still I booked four tours, since I had no time to prepare for the visits I wanted to make in the different ports of call. The description of tours is nowhere to be found on Cunard web site. I only received a booklet with their full description when I got all the embarkation documents. The ladies at the shore excursions desk on board were very smiling and affable. I never went there for any reservation or information, so I can not say more than what I have seen. There was always a queue for this office when it was opened. I really can not understand the reason for this, since reservations could be made through the interactive TV on the cabin or simply dropping a form in a letter box.

On our first port of call, I saw next to the port entrance of the Royal Court Theatre, where passengers booked on tours would gather before leaving the ship, bottles of water being charged. I can not remember the exact prices now, but I remember it was expensive and that during the length of time I queued to get in the theatre, no one asked for one. I do not know if on the following days someone was still offering them, however I saw lots of people during breakfast filling bottles of water from the water dispensers at the kings Court.

Our port of embarkation was at Piraeus ATHENS. I had arrived the prior day (29th of August) and since it was the last day of the Olympics, my travel agent told me that rooms were nowhere to be found in Athens or surroundings. I myself managed to book one very easily through the net on a newly refurbished three star hotel for the price of EUR 300 (around $383) breakfast excluded. Quite expensive but I had no alternative. When I arrived, I felt immediately cheated since that establishment was so old and uncosy that it was not even worth one star, left alone three. The room was in fact clean and so were the sheets and towels, all the rest was old and I saw no signs of recent refurbishing. That room was not worth more than one tenth of what I paid.

On the day of embarkation I still had time for a pleasant stroll around the Plaka, but in fact August is not the best month to visit Athens because of the heat. My bad experience with that hotel and the fact that many roads in Athens need more care as far as cleanliness is concerned, left me with no intention to return to this place, even if this was a brief stay and I recognise there was much more to be visited, in a placed considered by many to be the birth of civilization.

CIVITAVECCHIA was our first port of call. It is possible to go to Rome from here. Lots of passengers choose the tours organized by Cunard. All those people were told to meet at the Royal Court Theatre entering through the starboard side entrance in order to be given a coloured sticker with a number and wait for it to be called. All the different tours were due to depart from pier between 8:30am at 9:00am. Obviously it was not possible to master those crowds, all of them leaving the ship during the short period of 30 minutes. The consequence of this were hordes of passengers making their way to the theatre at the same time and a queue snaking all around the starboard entrance and sideways to the port side entrance of the theatre. There were lots of unruly passengers already late for their tours, cutting the queue and not enough people to supervise them.

I choose a short tour to the historical village of Viterbo (only 5 hours of duration when compared with the 9 hours of duration of most of the other tours). The architecture of this village dated back from the Middle Ages and Renaissance periods. I was unlucky with the tour guide. His conduct of English was average with long breaks in the flow of her speech. The village was only slightly interesting in my opinion.

LIVORNO was our second port of call. There were lots of tours to the very interesting city of Florence, all of them with lots of hours of duration. Cunard learned a lesson from the experience of the previous day, and wisely decided to scatter departures of the tours through one hour long period, from 8:00am to 9:00am. I choose the medieval towns of Lucca and Pisa (5 hours). Lucca seemed to be very interesting but Pisa was too much touristy.

I was under the impression that MARSEILLE was nothing more than an uninteresting port with a small city. In fact I was completely wrong. It is big but pleasant to walk around. There were tours to other renowned and interesting cities close to Marseille, such as Avignon, Aix-en-Provence and Arles. I choose the Marseille city tour, departing at 8:45am and lasting only 3 hours. At the end of the tour I remained in the city centre around ‘le Vieux Port’, now a marina with yachts, for a stroll on my own. I boarded a touristy small train to visit a basilica (Notre Dame de la Garde) located at the top of a hill and with excellent views to the sea, city and its surroundings.

Instead of returning to the QM2 for one more lunch at the Kings Court I decided to try one of the many cafes scattered around the Vieux Port and surrounding roads for a light meal. I choose a good looking esplanade but was unlucky with the neighbours on the next table, a group a three old ladies.

One of them was giving an account of her recent widowhood. The sad story was being ‘served’ with full details and ‘seasoned’ with abundant tears and unavoidable sniffs, while the two others tried to comfort her with expressions like: ‘Allons, allons… du courage Madame Germaine’, or little taps on her back. The new widow complained about her late husband, who reluctantly accepted the confinements of a coffin, after a long season in an expensive clinic, among cocktails of drugs and surrounded by an escort of voluptuous nurses, only to leave her in state of financial distress and with a trail of insensitive creditors at her doorstep. I’m kind of sensitive. Such a troubling story began to pick on my stomach who decided to accept with bitterness the salad I had chosen. I left the place as soon as possible but disturbed as I was, could not find the place where the shuttle bus to the pear was stopping. At least I waited for half an hour close to the place designated by the tour guide, but no bus came nor did I see any other passenger waiting at the same place. Withered on the back seat of a taxi, still affected by the misfortunes of that poor old lady, my mind was by then bordering depression. After all, it might have been a better idea to return to the ship earlier and have endured one more meal at the Kings Court. Quite frankly, I can not prevent myself to think, there are a considerable number of inconsiderate husbands, who refuse to understand that nowadays the cost of life is running for the price of death. Justice can be retarded, but it never fails. For all the pain that husband caused to his wife, I can well imagine that selfish soul is now undergoing an apprenticeship of second degree burns, around the barbecues of the purgatory, before being fit for the utmost heats of hell.

BARCELONA is a very interesting city. I have been here before so I decided to tour on my own. There was a shuttle bus from the pier to the beginning of Las Rambles one of the most famous places in Barcelona, a very short distance. However, it was arranged by the local airbus system and very expensive for such a short run, EUR 2,50 (around $3.20) four a round trip.

MALAGA is quite uninteresting in itself. The Gibralfaro castle located at the top of a hill and the cathedral were the only highlights. Still, there is a not to be missed place within a two hours drive: The palace of Alhambra near Granada.

We were told that the QM2 was the first British cruise ship to touch GIBRALTAR. For obvious reasons Spanish authorities never liked to heave a portion of British land, squeezed in their territory and forbade every ship that touched Gibraltar to dock at any other Spanish port. This regulation has now been abolished. Since the facilities of this port are not enough big, the QM2 was anchored and passengers had to tender to shore. I saw no chain or anchor being drooped to the sea and instead while aboard I felt some vibration caused by the side propellers and jumped to the conclusion the ship was being kept at the same place by their movement. The only highlight of this place is called ‘The Rock’ at the top of a short cable car ride. The views are magnificent and I even got to see the Atlas chain mountain in Africa. Gibraltar’s main street has lots of shops since it is a free port, but window-shops lacked good presentation and were not at all appealing. I had also been warned that many of the shopkeepers would try to cheat on me. Finally, I do not know what is the point of making a stop around here, it is a rather uninteresting place. Still I could see how the British members of the crew were filled with proud, to be able to bring the QM2 to this place, probably after a long pleading with the Spanish government over the unpopular above mentioned regulation.

Close to the hour of departure of the ship and while I was already at observation deck, an interesting place to be when the ship leaves a port, the sound system began to play “Rule Britannia! Britannia Rules the Waves” and also “Land of Hope and Glory” almost on continuous loop. As said before, there were only 459 British citizens aboard close to 18% of all; that is to say, all the other 2050 had to listen to it probably without knowing why. After a while the system began to send out ‘La Marseillaise’, a request from one of the 72 French passengers on board, I presume. For those who do not know ‘La Marseillaise’ is the French anthem. God knows why they did it. The guys in charge of the microphone completely forgot that Cunard belongs to Carnival Corporation, so the QM2 also belongs to this corporation and if it was not for its financial support they would have never had the means to build such an expensive ship. By the way, the currency aboard was not the British pound but rather the American dollar. I think they should leave their pride aside and further concentrate on the service they provide.

LISBON is my hometown and the place where I live. A quaint feeling, having your home as a port of call. We arrived on a rainy morning, not very common at this time of the year, but the skies would clear soon after. I grabbed a few items I would not need any more along with laundry, took a taxi at the port terminal and twelve minutes later I was at my doorstep. Close to noon I took the underground, which is a ten minute walk from where I live and headed to the place where the daily programme of the QM2 said the shuttle bus would be. Downtown, I found lots of passengers with stickers on their shirts. Some from Cunard, but others from Princess Cruises (the Royal Princess was docked there too) and others from Costa, I assume they had also a ship there on that day. In fact, I remember having read on the press some time ago that Lisbon was the most requested port, as far as cruise ships are concerned, along the eastern cost of the Atlantic. It is a pity we do not have better facilities for cruise liners, but along with Greece, Portugal is one of the poorest countries of the European Community and there are always other priorities when there is money to invest.

For those of you who don’t know, Lisbon stands to the north and east banks of the Tagus River. So, any ship demanding the port of Lisbon has to sail for about 15Km (close to 10 Miles) inland and go under a bridge that crosses the Tagus River. Whenever we want to leave town and head south of the territory, this bridge is one of the options. The structure is in shape pretty similar to the famous Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. I am accustomed to wandering along the banks, but what was new for me was having a look at the city from a different place I usually do, that is to say from the observation deck of a big ship. The highlight of this moment was when the funnel of the QM2 seemed to touch the structure of the bridge. When it came for the first time to Lisbon, there was concern that it would never be able to go under it, because of its height. In fact and depending on the tide of the sea, still strongly felt upstream, the funnel misses the bridge only for 4.5 meters (around 15 feet). Lots of cameras from passengers recorded this moment and so did mine.

LA CORUNA was our last port of call. The port is right on the centre of the city, so no shuttle bus would be needed. The Costa Marina and the Windsurf were also docked there. Somehow, port authorities managed to squeeze them along with the QM2 in such a tiny place. The QM2 immediately dwarfed the other two and changed radically the framing of downtown La Coruna. Probably out of humiliation, the Costa Marina left the place, even before we were cleared by port authorities to disembark. I did not go on any tour. It was my first time here and the city seemed very pleasant for a stroll. Upon returning to the QM2, I noticed it had turned into an attraction for the locals and much more would attend our sail away, in spite of the rain that began to fall by the end of the day. Along with Lisbon, leaving La Coruna is interesting, since it stands in a sort of gulf the ship has to cross to get to the open sea. It provided us with interesting views. I found the surroundings of La Coruna, pretty similar to the landscape of northern Portugal, that is to say, very hilly.

EMBARKATION / DISEMBARKATION
Well organized as far as I could see in this cruise. Before leaving home, my travel agency warned me that for security measures, cars and taxis would not be allowed to go inside the port and close to the place where the QM2 was docked at the Piraeus terminal. The travel documents from Cunard stated that embarkation would begin at 2:00pm. I arrived at the port of Piraeus some minutes before 1:00pm and in fact at the entrance there was a representative of Cunard that checked our luggage to see if it was duly labelled and directed us to the Greek security officers at the entrance of port and to a shuttle bus driving passengers to the terminal.

There were 20 members of Cunard staff and the same amount of laptops to take in charge the check in at the terminal. As soon as I got off the shuttle bus I was immediately lead to one of those laptops. There were already lots of passengers, but no queues. The girl that proceeded to the check in immediately looked at my embarkation documents, took us photos and promptly issued our passenger cards. The all process did not take more than three minutes, including the registration of a credit card. Then, I had to wait for about half an hour before the embarkation began. The terminal is rather bland but they did provide water and orange juice before beginning to call people to board the ship. One more control of passengers and their carry-on luggage, the unavoidable photographers and finally aboard.

Disembarkation also went well in Southampton where we arrived on schedule. A flier had been distributed, which was no more than a guide concerning every aspect of the procedure. Quite thorough, it advised passengers on when to leave the baggage outside the cabin, the different transfers to railway stations and airports of London and private transfers they could organize. It was also possible if people wanted no help with their luggage to be among the first to disembark, but on this case one should announce it in advance. Booking transfers was done in the same way as were done bookings of tours and were also as expensive. I took the transfer to Gatwick airport and it was quite expensive, $75 since it did not even last two hours. As a comparison, the two and a quarter hour flight from Gatwick to Lisbon cost the equivalent of $163. People were also given a disembarkation card telling them were to wait for disembarkation.

Passengers were also told to free their cabins by 9:00am, if I am not wrong, even if some transfers began earlier than that. We were told to have breakfast and then go and wait in one of the rooms of the ship, according to the location of their cabins and wait for our disembarkation card number to be called.

The amenities at the Southampton terminal where the ship docked seemed very good to me. There were some porters to take luggage from the terminal to buses or taxis, but I really did not see enough of them. We were also told they expected tips.

On the morning of disembarkation some passengers not having registered any credit card, hadn’t still settled their shipboard account. The cruise director had advised before their names would be announced and summoned to the purser’s office. In fact, while I was at the Royal Court Theatre waiting for my disembarkation card number to be called, the internal sound system of the ship went on. An amused trachea, on the brink of breaking into laughers, blew into a microphone some desperate murmurs. A few seconds of silence ensued and a second trachea in anguish proceeded with the same undecipherable guttural sounds finishing the announcement with a more intelligible ‘…are requested to proceed immediately to the purser’s office’. I promptly realized the first voice was amused by its own inaptitude to pronounce foreign names and the second feared cheaters would flee through the already installed gangways, without settling their shipboard accounts. However I don’t think the people whose names vaguely resembled to those whiffs ever recognized them. I also hope the owners of those two tracheas, ever read these lines, because in this case and from now on, every time she or he will be placed in front of an utterly unfamiliar combination of letters and told to read them to an expectant and severe microphone, it will be an even harder accomplishment, not to mention the puzzlement of people around the ship trying to understand what is being said.

MISCELLANNEOUS THOUGHTS
The public areas of the ship were always immaculately clean.

The temperature of air on the corridors that led to the cabins and on the Royal Court Theatre was always too cold. Getting out of my cabin I always experienced a sharp change of temperature. I also witnessed lots of people coughing. Probably, this was the consequence of the cold temperature inside the ship. But I have seen this before in other ships.

Photos were being taken in every possible event: embarkation, every port of call, formal nights, etc. They were then exposed around the photo gallery on deck 3L and proposed for ridiculous high prices. No wonder that a great number of them were never bought.

We only used tenders once, in Gibraltar. To get to shore one had to get a numbered ticket and wait for that number to be called. The service began with same delay on that day, but since there were 5 tenders always circulating, there were not long waits. The tenders tend to shake a bit even with calm seas, but that is nothing that I am not accustomed to. On the previous day, the daily programme made some safety announcements concerning the tender service. One of them was for passengers to remain seated inside the tenders until it was safely attached alongside the shore or ships pontoon. I witnessed a group of three or four elderly passengers getting up and heading to the exits of the tender before they were cleared to do so. An officer began to shout at them to remain seated and he repeated the same order more than once every time in higher decibels while staring at them with furious glances, as they were not complying. I don’t know if the passengers in question did not understand English or if they were in panic and wanting to run away (I’ve seen panic before in tenders). I was nevertheless infuriated by that officer’s despicable attitude shouting at old people as if he was giving orders to non complying soldiers. Someone as to teach that officer, he is not dealing with soldiers but rather with people who pay his salary. By the way, since he is on the tourism market, it would also be a good idea to learn some foreign languages as he would get more easily understood. Obviously, this implies that his brains have the same ability for learning than they have for shouting orders.

I never experienced any sense of motion aboard this ship. We did not encounter rough seas and I was expecting to get to the Atlantic where in fact the seas were just a bit rougher but the QM2 still behave like a queen. During the crossing between Barcelona and Malaga I experienced a light vibration during dinner at the Britannia Restaurant (close to the propellers) while we were doing 25 Knots as I later confirmed in the interactive TV on my cabin.

Security was high around the QM2 whenever we left the ports of call. Lots of small boats would try to approach her. Probably fearing a terrorist attack like the one that hit the USS Cole some years ago in Yemen, port authorities riding other boats had also a hard time trying to avert them.

Tipping around this ship is very easily made. An amount of $11 per passenger/day is automatically charged on the shipboard account. This amount is higher for passengers booked on expensive suites. I think it is possible to change the amount if required by passengers. A gratuity of 15% is already added to the bar expenses. I did not understand why the checks they gave me to sign for beverages had all a place for tip amount.

Portions of beverages on the bars were rather petty. Not a problem for me. But some passengers, I presume would rather have a bigger portion or a lower price for them.

During the cruise there were 3 formal nights, two informal and the rest were casual. As far as I could see, passengers compelled with the attire. Smokings (or tuxedos) were scarcely seen on this cruise during formal nights. Men would prefer dark suit.

At this point, I have to make another nasty remark and it concerns the practice of attributing passengers having more expensive suites, another venue for their meals (Princess grill and Queen grill) and a private deck with more expensive lounges and a private bar. I know this is a practice aboard one of the other ships of Cunard (QE2), but this ship was built a few decades ago. This is an attitude of the past. Frankly, I felt as if I was a third class passenger or a member of the populace while a few others on the Princess grill or Queens Grill were the nobility. Someone has to remind Cunard that we are already on the twenty first century and Queen Mary 2 should be run according to this unavoidable fact.

LAST WORDS
I remember when for the first time the QM2 came to my hometown, on the beginning of April 2004. Even if I did not get to the pier to get a glance of her, one of the local networks of TV went aboard, shoot some images and interviewed a few passengers. Stretched on a lounger, a lady made a summary of what her typical day was, as a cruise passenger of this ship. His husband seating next to her, made another curious remark concerning the various number of nationalities aboard and the possibility of interacting with different kinds. Another passenger, a French gentleman but speaking in English with an unmistakable accent (a rarity, since finding a French speaking other languages than his own, is as uncommon as it is finding a Japanese without a camera), told the reporter how this ship was big and ‘extraordinaire’, probably full of pride due to the fact the ship was built in France. The introduction to this report, stated the QM2 as the longest, the widest, the tallest, the heaviest, the most expensive and the most luxurious cruise ship ever built.

That same day, I was having dinner while I watched the evening news, something I usually do. The unexpected report, the enticed voice of the reporter and the trail of superlatives, frozen my hand with a spoon full of soup, midway between dish and mouth and glued my eyes on the screen of my TV. I always pay attention to cruise news. Curiosity made me book this cruise, mainly because it was said to be the most luxurious cruise ship. I have to say the size of the QM2 did not impress me, but rather the amenities and the service. I have never sailed on any other ship from the Cunard fleet, but heard saying service was exceptional. In this moment I am ready for a diagnosis. The reporter I heard was only 83.3% correct when the remarks concerning the ship, were made. I am now sure the QM2 is not the most luxurious cruise ship I have already sailed, and I do not consider myself a seasoned cruiser. Whenever a new ship is launched I follow with inquisitiveness all the available details. In fact I have already two other reviews on this same website: the Millenium, from Celebrity Cruises and the tall ship Royal Clipper, from Star Clippers Cruises. When I wrote these reviews, all these ships were brand new and so is the QM2 right now. It is probably not the best moment to make a review, since the crew has not had enough time to adapt to their new tasks. I am sure that in some aspects, the bad remarks I stated concerning the service on the QM2 will in fact not be applied in the future. At least I hope so.

If you are searching for the experiences of other passengers in order to make your mind about booking a cruise aboard this ship, maybe I can be of some help. If you are a curious as I was and have enough money to spend on a caprice (if they are not recurrent, caprices are a common characteristic of human behaviour), or even better if you have never gone on a cruise before, my advice is: Do it. Odds are that you will get a very good time, but go without expectations and bear in mind what I said about balconies on decks 4, 5 and 6. If you are considering an ocean crossing bare also in mind that balconies are of no use while the ship is moving. Even during the summer days of the Mediterranean I never managed to stay for more than a few minutes on the balcony whenever the ship was moving because of the wind, left alone the Atlantic.

On the other hand if you are someone accustomed to first class service, if you are a seasoned cruiser or if you demand value for your money, than the QM2 is not for you. In fact, masses of people and luxury are two irreconcilable concepts. It may be advisable to wait some time and let the crew adapt to their new tasks before considering a booking.

With this new ship, Cunard is repositioning its target market. Not anymore the well to do elderly people requiring good cuisine and luxurious service while on ocean crossings. The QM2 is mass market business, still for well to do families, since it is much more expensive than other mass market ships. In fact the ship is very family friendly; there are pools for kids, a nursery and video arcade. It is also my opinion this first step into the mass market business was a clumsy one. If I was the top decision maker at Carnival, I would have placed this ship in its own fleet (Carnival Cruise Lines) and wait for the move of the competitors as the Royal Caribbean. I read they have already announced a stretched version of their ‘voyager class ships’ that will overthrow the QM2 from her throne just because it will be 10’000 tons heavier. I guess it will be another extravagant and kitschy decorated ship, in circles around the already crowded Caribbean and punching the health of its 3600 passengers, through greasy servings of hamburgers, french fries and hot dogs.

Making such a dramatic adjustment to the market strategy of Cunard seems to me a risky endeavour. In any given business, the goodwill is a notion very hardly quantified in figures, but undoubtly a valuable asset. I just hope, the guys in Cunard are not playing dummies, very proud of having the biggest cruiseship ever built, but at the same time loosing the most important for their business: Their identity as a luxury liner. Obviously, my judgements are prone to discussion. My business is quite a different one from the cruise industry or tourism.

Undoubtedly I had a good time aboard, especially around my preferred venue, the library. Inside this ship both me and my father would go each one his way, but he told me more than once the only place he should look for me was the library, because nine out of ten times he would surprise me there. As to decide weather I would book another cruise on the QM2 and again pay the same price? I confess, it is not an easy answer. I would tend to answer with a ‘yes if’ or with a ‘no but’. I can not forget that I paid an expensive price for a mass market ship, even if I had a 5% discount and an upgrade of cabin. Sometime ago, I heard an interesting expression in English, which once more, is not my mother tongue and I do not use it on a daily base, forgive me for any misspelled words. It was said in a completely different context, but it suits me very well as an answer to the above mentioned question: Seen it done it.

Sadly I could not include in this review a few photos I had made to illustrate my points of view, but I still got them with me.

Further questions and comments arising from this review will be welcomed.