Thank you for all of the hints. I leave in the QE in 7 months and can’t wait! This will be my 13 cruise visiting all 7 continents. I love being retired!
Very informative. Likes button hitted. However waving gratuity is something I wouldn't do. There's a lot of back of the house crew which also contributed to my lovely holiday experience.
Rob and Ali, thank you for the honest review of the QE. We embark in 11 days for 25 nights. I am very surprised about the hard alcohol as Cunard's alcohol policy says No Liquor, only 1 wine each. We will be embarking in Japan,
Hi Carol. Sorry it's taken so long to reply but you should be boarding round about now. Not sure what the policy is for taking alcohol on board from Japan and we were surprised they allowed it in Australia but they did and it's in the FAQs that they do (We took a copy of that just in case). Anyway, have a fantastic cruise, 25 nights would be a dream but one that will have to wait until retirement for us I'm afraid.
Thanks for the very helpful video. I got excited about the no limit to the alcoholic drinks until I followed your link to the FAQ page which states one bottle of alcohol, which I guess is more flexible to just wine. It looks like it may have changed since you uploaded your video.
Cunard is a different level to other cruise companies it is full of tradition service and a calm atmosphere on all their ships it does not suit everyone. I remember when ships had the same ambience when I first sailed to England in the 60s shipping has evolved to a resort in a ship. Appreciate your comments.
Hi Diana. Thanks for watching and the comment. The ship was beautiful and we loved the tradition, which is why we wanted to go on the Cunard ship. We didn't say too much in this video but the attitude of the staff was actually quite unacceptable. We have never travelled or stayed anywhere where the staff actually treated the passengers/guests as if they were an inconvenience. There was lots of 'eye rolling' and 'huffing' even at things like just asking for cutlery. Ali asked for some dairy free spread and the waitress just pointed to a table and told her to get it herself. A friendly 'good morning' was generally responded to by silence. One other passenger commented to us that they felt like they were the uncouth Aussies on a 3 day joyride that was interrupting their usual routine. Traditional service is lovely, rudeness is not.
So sorry you had a unacceptable service that's a shame it takes the edge of the experience I think some Australians would find the line not for them we loved it but we are older have history with P&O going back to the 60s and 70s where worked so shipping is in our blood we celebrate 50yrs of marriage in July not bad for former P&Overs.
Although it took the edge off the experience we still very much enjoyed the trip, we always do. We love getting dressed up in the dinner suit/evening gown and having dress codes for dining rooms etc. as well as the other 'nicer things' about cruising. I think you are right though, Cunard and Australian cruisers (generalising here) are not the perfect mix and I wouldn't imagine that Cunard would consider Australia as being a suitable homeport. Anyway, congratulations on upcoming 50 years of marriage and hope there are many more to come.
Anytime dining is quite a new thing for Cunard. We always chose a dining time on our cruises. We like the 8.30 time so we can enjoy the afternoon tea and have time to work up an appetite for dinner!
Gday bloke and blokette, it’s been a while since I have watched and commented. Life has had me busy. First fully recovered now and only 16 days before Heather and I go on Coral Princess for 10 days up North to Exmouth, Broome, Kuri Bay and Geraldton. So looking forward to it. As usual a very informative video. Friends of ours who introduced us to cruising are staying with us and watched the video with us. They are about to cruise on Queen Mary 2 and we’re most interested in your observations. They also loved the pie video 😂. Have fun and catch ya later!
Hey Michael. We have been absolutely run off our feet with work, kids and family visitors so we are so far behind with comments. I'm sure you will have commented further as we work through the backlog but, just in case, great news that you're fully recovered, that took a while. Hope you had a fabulous cruise on the Coral. Would love to hear what you thought of it. We're back on Luminosa in a few days where there are snags and pies. Plan is to hit the pie stand hard on a few days and try out as many different ones as possible.
I have cruised several times on Cunard on all 3 ships. They are great, I have found the entertainment exceptional .the speaker’s excellent. The cabins ours was balcony fine. Shower area small & I am, so no problem, but noticed many larger people around the ship who would not have fitted inside the shower stall. In fact I spent a few amusing minutes wondering how they managed to actually did. The wifi service is awful. You pay big time for a Wifi which fails most of the time at sea. Cunard claims that the ship is out of WiFi area. And they do not credit you for lost time. Taking all of that into account I will still chose Cunard because I am an older person & they cater for older people very well. It is not at all a cruise line for families with young children. So if you a retired couple go for Cunard.
Hi Antonia and thanks for watching. We love to get dressed up to and always look forward to the formal or elegant nights. I made a mistake of forgetting to pack a tie on a Carnival cruise and felt really under-dressed on their elegant night. Next time we went on Carnival I made sure I had a selection to choose from.
Hi, your saying we can take much wine and spirits on Cunard queen elizabeth cruise from Melbourne to New Zealand….I read somewhere on the internet that you can only take 1 bottle of wine each and no spirits…..can you verify this please….
Hi and thanks for the comment. Sorry for the delay. Yes, there was no limit on the cruise we took and as far as we are aware it has not changed. Have a look at this from the Cunard Australia website - www.cunard.com/en-au/frequently-asked-questions.All.faq390.summary. We were skeptical about this too given other cruise lines stance on this so we called them before we went on the cruise and they confirmed that this was correct. Sure enough we had no issues taking our own alcoholic drinks on board the ship. Hope this helps.
Just booked Queen Elizabeth for our first Cruise. Singapore to Fremantle in November. Can't wait. These tips are fantastic. Curious about the cash side of things for onboard spending as well as shore excursions as we don't have a credit card. Should we exchange AUD to USD before we leave home or can we use AUD? Trying to justify adding a drinks package but it looks like we both have to take one and for 8 nights it just doesn't seem worth it. Are any drinks included at the restaurant or the buffet? Is the tap water drinkable? Thanks again. Off to look at more of your videos.
Hi and thanks for watching. That sounds like a great cruise. You can attach a debit card instead of a credit card if you wish but if you want to just add cash onto the account either AUD or USD are fine. From memory they will take most major currency. There are juices at breakfast and, I think, other meals in the buffet and there is always water at the bars and in the buffet. You can drink the tap water but maybe take some empty drinks bottles and fill these up from the buffet to keep in your fridge. Also, not sure about emabarkations from Singapore but from other countries, including Australia, you can take unlimited quantities of your own drinks on board sop that might be worth looking into. Maybe give Cunard a call to check that one out, we did and they were most helpful. Hope this helps but let us know if there is anything more you need to know.
Hi and thanks for watching. Suit and/or jackets not required for casual dress nights but they did like the men to wear one on Gala Night (formal night). I'm not sure if they would have turned anyone away for not wearing a jacket but most people did on Gala Night.
One point in answer to the dining dress requirements, most nights seated dining is smart casual gala nights is jacket & tie not necessarily dj. We fly long distances to get to our cruise & decided the weight flight restrictions didn’t warrent taking heavy suit & pants for the 2 or 3 gala nights so just gave them a miss. You can hire on board if you feel like spending $75 US. On all of the cruises I have been on buffet was excellent
I really appreciate the information! My cruise on the QE is next month. You didn't cover what was covered in the soft drinks/coffee package though. Any limitations? Also, what's the cost? Thank you so much.
Hi Lisa. Sorry about that. Because we were on a short cruise there were no drinks packages available so we weren't able to take one out. If you've already booked though, have a look on your cruise planner as it will give you the prices and inclusions on there. You can then book online. Remember though that you can take your own drinks on board, not just wine but beers and spirits too.
great video guys :) im not sure why, but the video after your room service one is showing up for me saying 1 unavailable video is hidden...... not sure what that video is but sadly i cannot see it
Boy. We’re we lucky. No line for afternoon tea whatsoever on our sold-out cruise on the QE! Went for tea earlier during the cruise but then dropped it ‘cause didn’t want to spoil our appetites for the delicious dinners. Breakfast buffet and dinner enough for the day. Especially enjoyed the enrichment program. Missed most of the shows as had late dinner seating (no open seating then). Loved the cabin but regret not making it to the disco. I’m boring.
When I looked at Cunard my page for our cruise in September 2023 it said you could bring one bottle of wine only. How come you say you can bring more? Can you please clarify? Xx
Hi Liz. Thanks for the rely and so sorry for the delay in getting back to you. We are in Australia and different rules apply to different countries but if you are in Australia there is no limit on alcohol you can take on board - www.cunard.com/en-au/frequently-asked-questions.All.faq390.summary. If you are sailing from a different country then different rules will apply.
I think I heard you say somewhere that we could have the gratuity removed and pay our own…..where do I have this removed, before sailing or once on the ship?
Not sure if queueing is normal on Queen Elizabeth. We cruised Queen Victoria to Norway from Southampton last year and literally only had at most 2-3 people in front of us.
Thanks for another GREAT video. It prepares me for my cruise especially since is different in some areas compared to some of the other cruise lines.
Thank you for all of the hints. I leave in the QE in 7 months and can’t wait! This will be my 13 cruise visiting all 7 continents. I love being retired!
Very informative. Likes button hitted. However waving gratuity is something I wouldn't do. There's a lot of back of the house crew which also contributed to my lovely holiday experience.
Great info! Thanks!
Thanks Gary
Jumping on board QE to Tassie in January, so your info has been very worthwhile, Thanks. BTW Liked & Subscribed
Thanks Linda, we really appreciate your support.
Rob and Ali, thank you for the honest review of the QE. We embark in 11 days for 25 nights. I am very surprised about the hard alcohol as Cunard's alcohol policy says No Liquor, only 1 wine each. We will be embarking in Japan,
Hi Carol. Sorry it's taken so long to reply but you should be boarding round about now. Not sure what the policy is for taking alcohol on board from Japan and we were surprised they allowed it in Australia but they did and it's in the FAQs that they do (We took a copy of that just in case). Anyway, have a fantastic cruise, 25 nights would be a dream but one that will have to wait until retirement for us I'm afraid.
I asked about bringing alcohol and all that is permitted is one bottle of wine each.
Thanks for the very helpful video. I got excited about the no limit to the alcoholic drinks until I followed your link to the FAQ page which states one bottle of alcohol, which I guess is more flexible to just wine. It looks like it may have changed since you uploaded your video.
Cunard is a different level to other cruise companies it is full of tradition service and a calm atmosphere on all their ships it does not suit everyone. I remember when ships had the same ambience when I first sailed to England in the 60s shipping has evolved to a resort in a ship. Appreciate your comments.
Hi Diana. Thanks for watching and the comment. The ship was beautiful and we loved the tradition, which is why we wanted to go on the Cunard ship. We didn't say too much in this video but the attitude of the staff was actually quite unacceptable. We have never travelled or stayed anywhere where the staff actually treated the passengers/guests as if they were an inconvenience. There was lots of 'eye rolling' and 'huffing' even at things like just asking for cutlery. Ali asked for some dairy free spread and the waitress just pointed to a table and told her to get it herself. A friendly 'good morning' was generally responded to by silence. One other passenger commented to us that they felt like they were the uncouth Aussies on a 3 day joyride that was interrupting their usual routine. Traditional service is lovely, rudeness is not.
So sorry you had a unacceptable service that's a shame it takes the edge of the experience I think some Australians would find the line not for them we loved it but we are older have history with P&O going back to the 60s and 70s where worked so shipping is in our blood we celebrate 50yrs of marriage in July not bad for former P&Overs.
Although it took the edge off the experience we still very much enjoyed the trip, we always do. We love getting dressed up in the dinner suit/evening gown and having dress codes for dining rooms etc. as well as the other 'nicer things' about cruising. I think you are right though, Cunard and Australian cruisers (generalising here) are not the perfect mix and I wouldn't imagine that Cunard would consider Australia as being a suitable homeport. Anyway, congratulations on upcoming 50 years of marriage and hope there are many more to come.
I am shocked and saddened to read this! Went on her pre-COVID and the service was warm, friendly.
Anytime dining is quite a new thing for Cunard. We always chose a dining time on our cruises. We like the 8.30 time so we can enjoy the afternoon tea and have time to work up an appetite for dinner!
Gday bloke and blokette, it’s been a while since I have watched and commented. Life has had me busy. First fully recovered now and only 16 days before Heather and I go on Coral Princess for 10 days up North to Exmouth, Broome, Kuri Bay and Geraldton. So looking forward to it.
As usual a very informative video. Friends of ours who introduced us to cruising are staying with us and watched the video with us. They are about to cruise on Queen Mary 2 and we’re most interested in your observations. They also loved the pie video
😂.
Have fun and catch ya later!
Hey Michael. We have been absolutely run off our feet with work, kids and family visitors so we are so far behind with comments. I'm sure you will have commented further as we work through the backlog but, just in case, great news that you're fully recovered, that took a while. Hope you had a fabulous cruise on the Coral. Would love to hear what you thought of it. We're back on Luminosa in a few days where there are snags and pies. Plan is to hit the pie stand hard on a few days and try out as many different ones as possible.
@@robandalicruisetravel The cruise was fan freaking tastic. I shall do a longer reply or a video anon.
I have cruised several times on Cunard on all 3 ships. They are great, I have found the entertainment exceptional .the speaker’s excellent.
The cabins ours was balcony fine. Shower area small & I am, so no problem, but noticed many larger people around the ship who would not have fitted inside the shower stall. In fact I spent a few amusing minutes wondering how they managed to actually did.
The wifi service is awful. You pay big time for a Wifi which fails most of the time at sea. Cunard claims that the ship is out of WiFi area. And they do not credit you for lost time.
Taking all of that into account I will still chose Cunard because I am an older person & they cater for older people very well. It is not at all a cruise line for families with young children.
So if you a retired couple go for Cunard.
Question. What is the price for the soft drink package?
I'm Australian and grew up dressing for dinner which is why Cunard appeals to me.
Hi Antonia and thanks for watching. We love to get dressed up to and always look forward to the formal or elegant nights. I made a mistake of forgetting to pack a tie on a Carnival cruise and felt really under-dressed on their elegant night. Next time we went on Carnival I made sure I had a selection to choose from.
Very informative
Hi, your saying we can take much wine and spirits on Cunard queen elizabeth cruise from Melbourne to New Zealand….I read somewhere on the internet that you can only take 1 bottle of wine each and no spirits…..can you verify this please….
Hi and thanks for the comment. Sorry for the delay. Yes, there was no limit on the cruise we took and as far as we are aware it has not changed. Have a look at this from the Cunard Australia website - www.cunard.com/en-au/frequently-asked-questions.All.faq390.summary. We were skeptical about this too given other cruise lines stance on this so we called them before we went on the cruise and they confirmed that this was correct. Sure enough we had no issues taking our own alcoholic drinks on board the ship. Hope this helps.
Just booked Queen Elizabeth for our first Cruise. Singapore to Fremantle in November. Can't wait. These tips are fantastic. Curious about the cash side of things for onboard spending as well as shore excursions as we don't have a credit card. Should we exchange AUD to USD before we leave home or can we use AUD?
Trying to justify adding a drinks package but it looks like we both have to take one and for 8 nights it just doesn't seem worth it. Are any drinks included at the restaurant or the buffet? Is the tap water drinkable?
Thanks again. Off to look at more of your videos.
Hi and thanks for watching. That sounds like a great cruise. You can attach a debit card instead of a credit card if you wish but if you want to just add cash onto the account either AUD or USD are fine. From memory they will take most major currency. There are juices at breakfast and, I think, other meals in the buffet and there is always water at the bars and in the buffet. You can drink the tap water but maybe take some empty drinks bottles and fill these up from the buffet to keep in your fridge. Also, not sure about emabarkations from Singapore but from other countries, including Australia, you can take unlimited quantities of your own drinks on board sop that might be worth looking into. Maybe give Cunard a call to check that one out, we did and they were most helpful. Hope this helps but let us know if there is anything more you need to know.
Thanks for the information. One question. Did you have to wear a suit jacket/sports coat to all the dinners in the dining room?
Hi and thanks for watching. Suit and/or jackets not required for casual dress nights but they did like the men to wear one on Gala Night (formal night). I'm not sure if they would have turned anyone away for not wearing a jacket but most people did on Gala Night.
One point in answer to the dining dress requirements, most nights seated dining is smart casual gala nights is jacket & tie not necessarily dj.
We fly long distances to get to our cruise & decided the weight flight restrictions didn’t warrent taking heavy suit & pants for the 2 or 3 gala nights so just gave them a miss.
You can hire on board if you feel like spending $75 US.
On all of the cruises I have been on buffet was excellent
I really appreciate the information! My cruise on the QE is next month. You didn't cover what was covered in the soft drinks/coffee package though. Any limitations? Also, what's the cost? Thank you so much.
Hi Lisa. Sorry about that. Because we were on a short cruise there were no drinks packages available so we weren't able to take one out. If you've already booked though, have a look on your cruise planner as it will give you the prices and inclusions on there. You can then book online. Remember though that you can take your own drinks on board, not just wine but beers and spirits too.
great video guys :) im not sure why, but the video after your room service one is showing up for me saying 1 unavailable video is hidden...... not sure what that video is but sadly i cannot see it
Boy. We’re we lucky. No line for afternoon tea whatsoever on our sold-out cruise on the QE! Went for tea earlier during the cruise but then dropped it ‘cause didn’t want to spoil our appetites for the delicious dinners. Breakfast buffet and dinner enough for the day. Especially enjoyed the enrichment program. Missed most of the shows as had late dinner seating (no open seating then). Loved the cabin but regret not making it to the disco. I’m boring.
When I looked at Cunard my page for our cruise in September 2023 it said you could bring one bottle of wine only. How come you say you can bring more? Can you please clarify? Xx
Yes please clairify
Hi Liz. Thanks for the rely and so sorry for the delay in getting back to you. We are in Australia and different rules apply to different countries but if you are in Australia there is no limit on alcohol you can take on board - www.cunard.com/en-au/frequently-asked-questions.All.faq390.summary. If you are sailing from a different country then different rules will apply.
Do you know if you get the drinks package , the gratuity is included or do you have to pay that separately?
Hi Barbara. We were only on 3 days so couldn't get a drinks package so we don't really know, sorry
gratuities are included
Thanks Suzi.
I think I heard you say somewhere that we could have the gratuity removed and pay our own…..where do I have this removed, before sailing or once on the ship?
Been asking this question without an answer. What is the weight or bag limit for a cruise?
Never heard of any restrictions on any cruise line . None . Ever .
@@richardg8651 thank you.
Went on a 22-day trans Pacific cruise on the QE and packed large. Real large. No extra charge. Fabulous ship.
@@CapriciousCapricrn thank you
I'm going to be hungry or get room service. I do not queue.
Not sure if queueing is normal on Queen Elizabeth. We cruised Queen Victoria to Norway from Southampton last year and literally only had at most 2-3 people in front of us.