Cunard Queen Mary 2 Britannia Dining Room

Best Things About a Cunard Queen Mary 2 Cruise

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Life aboard a Cunard ship was once a class-conscious, microcosmic society. From the very wealthy in First Class to the poor schlemiels in steerage, life on some of the worldโ€™s grandest ocean liners was not much more than a maritime caste system.

Best things about being aboard a Queen Mary 2 cruise.
It’s exciting to sailaway from New York City. Vibes plays as the Queen Mary 2 cruises down the Hudson River.

Queen Mary 2 tries to adhere to time-honored Cunard traditions.

Sailaway from New York City to England is always a festive event. Even the staff has fun.
Sailaway from New York City to England is always a festive event. Even the staff has fun.

A Bit of Background

Iโ€™ve been a Cunarder (a repeat Cunard passenger) for over 10 years, beginning with the launch of the flagship Queen Mary 2, in 2004. Because I donโ€™t fly, I rely on the QM2 for my transportation across the North Atlantic to Europe and back. A transatlantic crossing in seven days.

To get a better understanding what life is like aboard a Queen Mary 2 cruise, I want to point out that Carnival Corporation owns Cunard, not the Samuel Cunard family nor the House of Windsor.

When building this ship, once the largest, tallest and longest ship in the world, Carnival chose modular sections to put together much of the shipโ€™s accommodations, spanning several decks.

My favorite space is the cozy Boardroom. It’s adjacent to the Commodore Club Lounge forward on Deck 9.

Conversely, public rooms, suites and dining areas were uniquely designed to mirror the grand scale of Cunardโ€™s former ocean liners. Expensive fabrics and plush soft goods, plenty of elevators, spacious cabins and a throwback, wraparound promenade escalated Cunard high above other premium cruise lines. The Queen Mary 2 could have been built to hold at least 1,000 more passengers. But that wasnโ€™t the plan.

Carnival wanted to preserve much of the original Queen Maryโ€™s reputation and elegance. By building a larger ship with more passenger space and less crowding than all of the other cruise lines, Carnival paid homage to Cunardโ€™s past while looking towards the future.

Passengers board the Queen Mary 2 in Hamburg. Nice that they dressed to match the ship's colors.
Passengers board the Queen Mary 2 in Hamburg. Nice that they dressed to match the ship’s colors.

It’s actually NOT a cruise ship!

Important to note, the Queen Mary 2 is a true ocean liner, not a typical cruise ship. Built with a double hull and four stabilizers, the bow was designed to slice through the seas like a hot knife through butter. The Queen Mary 2, like its historic predecessors, can comfortable and safely traverse the rugged North Atlantic year-round.

I think thatโ€™s the appeal for me. Itโ€™s throwback travel at its finest; like stepping back in time on a grand liner. White-gloved attendants still escort you to your stateroom. The staff is courteous, efficient and non-obtrusive. You donโ€™t hear any bingo hawking or gold-by-the-inch promotions blasted over the intercom. But you can play bingo and buy the โ€œgoldโ€ chains; information is in the daily planner.

Who are your fellow passengers

But getting back to your fellow passengers and the class system. Accommodations range from a duplex suite in Queenโ€™s Grill class that sells for $20,000 on a 7-night transatlantic crossing to an inside stateroom on the same voyage for less cost than a weeklong Caribbean cruise.

Because the Queenโ€™s Grill and the lesser expensive (but not much less) Princess Grill passengers have their own lounge and dining rooms, Iโ€™ve never really interacted with them other than at evening cocktail time in the elegant, Chart Room Lounge.

Youโ€™ll always find passengers who fancy themselves a little too highly, stiff upper lip and all that. I think they may have watched too many Upstairs Downstairs episodes. For the most part, guests aboard the Queen Mary 2 are mostly from the United Kingdom, America, Germany, France and Australia.

How Queen Mary 2 began

When I first started my crossings aboard the Queen Mary 2, room attendants were a mix of Asian and British women, sporting pale grey uniforms with tidy white aprons. Ten years later, the room attendant staff is now predominately Filipino men, still well-trained and efficient.

Even the front desk staff has gone international. At the inception, the staff was made up of very prim and proper British twenty-somethings, groomed to have an attitude.

Now, youโ€™ll find a mix of Eastern Europeans, Brits and Aussies that comprise the majority of the front desk staff. Theyโ€™re there to help and you feel like they truly care to assist.

I guess what Iโ€™m trying to say is there is absolutely nothing intimidating or inherently snobbish anymore aboard the Queen Mary 2. Of course there are some guests that cling to their class-minded, old ways and mindset. But they are now the minority and tend to stick to their own ilk.

While Afternoon Teatime may sound a bit stodgy to Americans, it's a nice break in the afternoon. And who can pass up those delicious scones with butter creme?
While Afternoon Teatime may sound a bit stodgy to Americans, it’s a nice break in the afternoon. And who can pass up those delicious scones with butter creme?

Sitting in the Queen’s Room at Afternoon Tea, Iโ€™m surrounded by younger (30ish) couples, middle-aged honeymooners, moms and daughters, grandparents with teens and the nearly ancient. Itโ€™s a wide variety of passengers for sure.

One of 2.7 million scones served at Tea time in the Queen's Lounge aboard Queen Mary 2.
One of 2.7 million scones served at Tea time in the Queen’s Lounge aboard Queen Mary 2.

But thereโ€™s one thing that everyone on board has in common; a love of the sea, a desire to experience the Cunard tradition and to relive a kinder, gentler mode of travel that was on the brink of extinction.

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Sailaway from New York on Cunard Queen Mary 2

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4 Comments

  1. Hi Helen,
    Thank you for reading my blog and taking the time for your question. I’ve seen people bring small instruments onboard. I would suggest that you phone Cunard and that someone will direct you to the correct department. Their reservation people are well-trained but if you don’t like the first answer, call back and start over. As long as it fits through security or can go into a suitcase, I don’t see why not. As far as playing in public, I’d think that someone on board (hotel manager?) could arrange for an empty room for your daughter to practice or play. Good luck! Thank you again for writing.
    Sherry

  2. My daughter and her husband plan to celebrate their 10th anniversary in April of 2020. She is an excellent bagpipe player. Is there anyway she could play the pipes aboard the Queen Mary 2?

  3. Hi Di, thanks for your comment. Sure, you can contact Cunard and arrange for room decorations for your sister’s stateroom. You might also be able to prepay and sign them up for the Behind the Scenes Tour. Simply phone Cunard (here in the USA it’s 1-800-7-CUNARD) or check their website for their phone number if you’re in the UK. How nice of you to want to surprise them!

    Sherry

  4. My sister Susan Johnsin and her husband Gordon Johnson have book a trans Atlantic cruise from Southampton on 20th September to New York as there 30th wedding anniversary and her 50th Birthday celebrations. Is there anything that can be added to there room as a surprise to help them celebrate? Also I’m interested in the behind the scenes tour, engine room etc, as he used to work at the ship yards Newcastle? I look forward to hearing from you ref the above.

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