How to get the most out of the Queen Mary 2?

huoat · July 25, 2007

My fiance and I are traveling on the Queen Mary 2, departing from Southampton on 9 August. We just got our tickets today! We have a room with an obstructed view balcony on the 8th deck.

We are getting married in Princeton, NJ on August 18th and are using the Queen Mary 2 to transport ourselves and also my wedding dress from London (where we live) to the wedding.

Neither one of us have ever been on a cruise before, and it really is a fluke that we're going on the Queen Mary 2... This is mostly because it seemed like the easiest way to get the dress across the Atlantic and having a pre-wedding honeymoon seemed like the perfect way to combat wedding planning stress. We are very, very excited.

I do have a couple of questions, and I hope that you can help.

What can I do to make the trip very special for us? Are there things that I should/could sign up for ahead of time? And most importantly: what is the best way of dealing with my dress? Do I carry it on, much like in boarding a plane?

I've read here that the food is passable -- which worries me. I used to review restaurants for a living etc and really appreciate food with intention. I recognize that it's a very big boat with lots of people, but I had been convinced by a couple of family members that it would amazing regardless of the volume. (I am also allergic to cilantro, so worry about anyone attempting "fusion" food. Though my impression is that this should be a very old school experience.) Can you give me an idea of what to expect with the food and the wine? (How marked up is wine? How much a wine list is there with dinner? Is it all by the bottle or is there a selection by the glass?)

We've decided to embrace the dressy thing. My fiance is renting a tux and I've had my mom post me a couple of my old formal gowns. The thing is: will we feel ridiculous? We're not even 30, so if the only people who get dressed up are 80, it would be nice to know ahead of time. Any insights?

Thanks so much for making it to the bottom of this rambling post. I am very excited, and a bit overwhelmed. Mostly, I can't wait! (Of course, I have to get the seating chart and every wedding thing done before we get onboard, so the stress level is a bit high at the moment. ;))

-Emily

Ol39Capt · July 25, 2007

Welcome to CruiseCrazies Emily....Congrats on the upcoming wedding....

I'm a newbie to crusing also, but my T/A and the cruise line has ask me if I have any spiecal dietary needs or conditions....your allergy is something you need to let them know about asap.

Between the Crazies and the TroubleMakers groups here you will get some of the best information on getting the most out of your cruise..... :biggrin:

Dan · July 25, 2007

I haven't been on this ship yet, although I really want to. Cunard has a higher-grade reputation than the other members of the Carnival family of cruise lines. You will be fine getting all dressed up. Even on Carnival I've seen a wide range of dress with people in tuxes and gowns.

I don't think you'll have a problem with the food. True that it's not typically top of the line land restaurant quality, because of the number of meals they put out in a day, but the sit-down meals should be very good to excellent (depending on your tastes of course).

Regarding your wedding dress, how do you have it packaged up? They generally are similar to airlines as far as carrying your luggage goes. I know my wife's dress was in a garment bag that I think would have had to be checked. You can try to carry it on, and explain to whoever asks that it's a wedding dress, and they want to have a look at it.

Have a great journey and congrats on the wedding.

Princesslover · July 25, 2007

Congrats on your upcoming wedding and ofcourse your first cruise! I'm 16 and my brother is 13 but even us both go in tux and formal dresses..! So don't worry about that one! As Dan said you can give your allergies and requests to the cruise line and they'll take care of it. Even though I never sailed Cunard it seems like a fantastic cruise line and I'll hope you take the max out of it!

Chiara

GalaxySilver · July 25, 2007

Id put the wedding dress on a plastic or wooden hanger as they're going to run it through the metal detector and having a metal hanger will mean they'll have to remove it. With a plastic hanger that'll mena less people handling your dress.

As for the wine Im not 100% sure but on my cruise beers/cocktails were $4-$8 depending on what you drink. You're not supposed to, but I smuggled my drinks on board. Again you're not supposed to do that but I took my stuff and put it in a plastic liter soda bottle and wrapped it in a towell in my suitcase.

Again you're not supposed to do that though. :wink2:

cruisetarp · July 25, 2007

Emily - What a wonderful way to start your married life. I have never sailed on the Queen Mary but have sailed on Cunard many years ago. I'm sure you will be right at home in your gown and DF in his tux.

Please make the cruise lines or your TA aware of your diet needs right away. From experience I know they will go out of their way to accommodate you.

Please feel free to ask any and all questions you may have. We were all cruise newbies at one time or another.

Again, welcome and make yourself at home here.