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Queen Elizabeth Visits QE2

For the third time since Queen Elizabeth II’s maiden voyage, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II visited the ship for the last time prior to the ship’s final departure from Southampton, England. The QE2 will make its final voyage in October, after which it will become a floating resort in Dubai. As part of the visit, a private reception of 300 guests was held. Also, the ship’s newest crewmember, Jennifer Haynes, was present to sound the ship’s whistle. This was done to salute the Queen Mary 2, which was also in port at the time.

While I’ve never sailed on Cunard, it’s sad to see such a famous ship nearing its end. It was very fitting, however, for The Queen to visit her before her final voyage. Her Majesty was also present before the QE2’s maiden voyage as well. So it seems it has come full-circle.

New Cruisers Tip #2: Dining Requests

Another common misconception for new cruisers is with dining requests. I’m not sure if this applies to all cruise lines, but it does with the ones I’ve been on. When you book your cruise, you can specify if you want “early” or “late” seating. The cruise lines call these “requests.” And there is a good reason for this. That’s all what these specifications are. They are simply requests, nothing more.

The reason I bring this up is because I’ve seen too many new cruisers get upset because they requested one seating and got the other. The cruise lines do everything they can to fulfill your requests, but this is not always possible. If everyone on the ship requested early seating, clearly this wouldn’t be possible. Of course this doesn’t happen. But if enough people request a certain seating, someone’s going to have to be turned down.

So what do you do if this happens to you? When you embark, you will receive your room key, which should have your dining room, table, and time listed on it. If the time is not what you requested, go to the Maitre’d and ask to have your seating time changed. You can try slipping him some money to help “get something done.” Even if you slip him a 20, there’s still no guarantee you will get your requested seating. But if you don’t at least ask, nothing will change. I suppose you could also try going to the purser’s desk and putting in the request there as well if the maitre’d cannot help you. We’ve never done this, so I’m not sure if it would work. Has anyone had any experience doing this?

I must also stress that it seems that medical excuses don’t expedite the process either. I read a story online of a family who had a diabetic and needed to eat at a certain time. They were placed at the other seating, and requested a change. They were never moved. So they ended up at the buffet every night since the diabetic passenger had to eat around a certain time. This might have been a fluke. Who knows. Of course, I would assume medical excuses would be given priority, but that might not be the case, based on stories like this.

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Similarly, you can request a table change as well from the maitre’d. Let’s say you’re a family of four, two adults and two kids. You requested a booth, but was put at a table for 8 with two older couples. This isn’t ideal for anyone. You don’t feel comfortable sitting with these older people, and they don’t feel comfortable with your younger kids. If this happens, you can go to the maitre’d and ask for a table change. This change might happen in several ways, if at all. First, you might just be moved to a different table. You could also be moved to the other dining room, if the ship has two main dining rooms. You might also be moved to a different seating as well. Or any combination of the above. So when you make your request, try to be as specific as possible. “Can we get moved to a booth, this seating, please?” or “I don’t care where/when we are moved, we need to have a booth.”

So when you’re booking your next (or first) cruise, be sure to specify your seating arrangements (time, table type/size) when you make your reservation. And keep in mind, it’s only a request, not a guarantee.

Why the Hate?

Being active on several cruise forums, there is one complaint I’ll never understand. The complaint is when the person complains about children being on the cruise. First, let me explain why I don’t understand this complaint. Okay, first of all, one thing I don’t get is why these complainers cruise on family-oriented lines. Carnival for example. Or even RCCL. If you’re going on a cruise on one of these lines and expecting to get away from kids, you’re dead wrong, even in the school season. These cruise lines cater to families, hence their cheaper prices and plentiful kids’ programs/areas. If someone doesn’t like kids, then I believe a cruise line like Cunard or Crystal is for them. Their response: they’re too expensive.  Well then, it looks like cruising isn’t for you! If you’re not willing to pay a premium to get away from kids, you can’t complain about them.

Another thing, they are fully paid guests as well. They have just as much right to be on the ship as the complainer does. “They’re kids, they probably won’t even remember the cruise!” That’s a typical argument from one of these complainers. In my opinion, it doesn’t matter whether the kids remember the cruise or not. The parents are taking the kids because they want them there. It’s their (the parents’) memory. That’s what counts.

Finally, if you’re that up tight that you let some kids ruin your entire vacation, you definitely have problems. You either absolutely hate kids, or you let even the smallest things get to you. These are the same people who will vow never to go on a particular cruise line again because the room steward forgot to put mints on their pillows each night… These people are nuts.

Now, I will have to agree with the complainers on a couple points. Kids can be annoying when they run up and down the hallway all night. When they sit (literally) in the elevators and ride them all day. Even worse, when they push all the buttons. Even worse then that, when it’s a group of them and they talk about you or try to make you uncomfortable during the ride. Or when they cut in line at the buffet. Or when they do stupid things like throw deck chairs overboard. Even from someone as tolerant toward kids as I am, these things can get annoying. So I can see where these complainers are coming from.

But even still, there are much worse things on a cruise. Toward the top of the list: drunk adults. Here we go, the complete opposite end of the spectrum. Personally, I can’t stand drunk adults. Perhaps that’s because I’m not a drinker and I don’t understand the purpose of getting completely trashed, but either way they’re still annoying to be around. Let’s see. I’d say most of the man-overboard cases we see in the news each year are alcohol related, whether directly (jumping off after getting drunk) or indirectly (marital spat after becoming intoxicated). Or how about the loud ones that you just want to punch in the face? They’re pretty annoying. Or the ones at the comedy shows that literally laugh at every word the comedian says. I can’t stand that. Yes, they’re funny, but not that funny!

Okay, I know I’m sounding like a complainer myself, but I just wanted to say this because it’s something I just don’t understand. If someone could explain this to me, it would be greatly appreciated!