cunard cruise News

On the 4th February 2012 the newest ocean liner in the Cunard fleet, Queen Elizabeth, will bring a maiden visit to San Francisco – her only inaugural visit to a U.S. city this year.

Cunard Line has decided to focus on a combination of good value for money, quality service and trustworthiness to counter the challenges that lie ahead during 2012. Just to sweeten the deal a little bit, the cruise line will also give anyone that makes a cruise reservation before the 29th February a 10% discount.

From third party reports it seems as if the New Year’s Eve party on board Queen Elizabeth 2 (where she lies at anchor in Dubai) was somewhat of a weird affair, with guests barely allowed inside the cruise liner – they even had to use portable toilets on the outer decks.

While most of us probably spent Christmas and New Year at home or at a holiday resort, eating and drinking as if the world would really end in 2012, others had to work to prepare for the new year.

A while ago we reported about the fact that, although the QE2 was still being maintained meticulously, there was little, if any, sign of her being converted to a luxury hotel – which was the plan when she was sold for $100 million a few years ago. By now the grand old lady must be getting very bored with Dubai, where she has been sitting idly for the last three years.

Readers of Porthole Cruise magazine once again chose Cunard line, with its luxurious cruise holidays on board Queen Victoria, Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth, as the cruise line offering the “Best Transatlantic Itineraries.” Cunard line was also once again – for the 9th successive year – awarded for offering the “Best on Board Educational Programmes” and the “Best World Cruise Itineraries.”

Although the name “Hamilton” – the ship’s new port of registry – may now be emblazoned on the hull of Cunard Line’s flagship Queen Mary 2, in the Grand Lobby there is a new reminder of the ship’s British heritage: a large portrait of the Queen.

Both the Queen Mary 2 and the Oriana are currently undergoing upgrades at the Blohm and Voss shipyard in Hamburg. The Queen Mary arrived on the 26th November and the Oriana on the 16th November.

Whether you want to experience the beautiful scenery and fascinating culture of Northern Europe, visit the Norwegian Fjords, explore the many marvels of the Mediterranean or simply delight in the evergreen mystique of Europe, Cunard Line has something for you next year.

Last week we reported about the Queen Mary 2’s pending visit to the dry dock in November/December. She is due for a major refurbishment, including new carpets and upholstery.

Cunard Line has published details about the planned refurbishment of the company’s flagship, Queen Mary 2. The grand lady of the seas, of course, turns eight in January next year and the company felt the time was ripe to spruce her up a bit.

It is sometimes difficult to predict how the general public will react when a company changes something people have become used to. Sometimes they accept it without much ado – but now and then there is an unexpectedly severe backlash.

We can now confirm the sad news that Cunard will soon no longer be registered in the UK. Soon the name Southampton will also no longer appear on the company’s lifeboats or be emblazoned across the sterns of their cruise ships. An era lasting 171 years has come to an end and within the next few months Queen Victoria, Queen Mary 2 and Queen Elizabeth will bear the name of Hamilton, the capital of Bermuda.

Cunard’s Princess and Queens Grills Suites are renowned throughout the world. The latest Berlitz Complete Guide to Cruising and Cruise Ships recognised this fact by awarding Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in the category for Top 10 Large Resort Ships. This firmly establishes Cunard as the leader of large luxury ships worldwide.

It is now nearly a year ago that the Queen was taken on a tour of the Cunard ship that carries her name. Afterwards, she smashed a bottle of wine against the ship’s hull, thereby christening her.

A hundred years ago a volcanic eruption was something that just happened apparently out of the blue, with no advance warning. Fortunately we know today that these eruptions can be predicted with a remarkable degree of accuracy.

The development company created to regenerate the economy of Liverpool has been in secret talks to provide a final resting place for the QE2 on Merseyside.

Cunard Line’s latest arrival, Queen Elizabeth, is still on her inaugural New England and Canadian Adventure voyage. The grand lady of the seas recently brought a maiden visit to Boston, Massachusetts.

Cunard Line’s cruise ships have been flying the UK flag for 171 years. Even after the company was taken over by the American Carnival Corporation 13 years ago its ships were still registered in the UK and they sailed under the British flag.

The argument over whether bigger is better or not in the cruise industry will probably never be settled in favour of one side or the other. The fact is, some of us prefer super liners such as the Queen Mary 2 and others prefer a smaller, more intimate cruising experience. For the latter a cruise line like Compagnie du Ponant is the perfect option: with less than 300 passengers on board each ship one will certainly never feel crowded.

The good people of Scarborough got a closer look at the biggest cruise liner in the world as she cruised along the East coast recently.

It seems less and less likely that Cunard’s cruise liner Queen Elizabeth 2 will ever be converted into a five-star hotel as promised when Dubai World bought it three years ago for £70 million pounds. Meanwhile the forgotten queen is sitting rather forlornly in Port Rashid, Dubai.

One of the biggest cruise liners sailing the seven seas has cruised into Liverpool harbour, marking the end of the yearly Mersey River Festival. Queen Mary 2 is also one of the biggest cruise ships to ever dock in Liverpool.

When the £350 million Cunard cruise liner Queen Elizabeth visited the port of Liverpool a few days ago, it provided renewed momentum to the city’s drive to have its cruise port declared a turnaround cruise terminal. At the moment Liverpool is not allowed to serve as an embarkation or disembarkation point for cruises.

In a clear indication of just how competitive the cruise industry has become, Cunard has announced a three-day sale of selected Queen Victoria cruises lasting from the 7th to the 9th September 2011.

Those of you who happen to be in Southampton on the 1st September might be attending the opening of the new QE2 Mile, a pedestrian walkway linking the waterfront at Town Quay with the city’s Cenotaph.

Cunard Cruise Line is really going to roll out the red carpet with Transatlantic Crossing sweepstakes, special cruise offers and an invitation to sail on board a Cunard ship and feel famous.

If you want to go on a P&O cruise holiday in 2012/13, you have chosen the perfect time. The company will offer free coach travel, domestic flights and valet car parking as well as 20% discounts in an early-bookings drive for the 2012/13 season.

If you love cruise holidays and you also love good music, you can now experience the two together: Cunard has announced a brand new 4-night winter cruise on board the company’s flagship Queen Mary 2, where none other than the award-winning four tenors of the pop group Blake will be performing.

Even Queens need to freshen up from time to time and Cunard’s flagship Queen Mary 2 is no exception in this regard. She will visit the dry dock in November 2011 to undergo unspecified upgrades. Originally this was supposed to take three weeks, but a few weeks ago Cunard announced it would take only 13 days. This has now been further slashed to seven days.

During the prime of ocean liner travel a large number of films were released that used the exotic background of the open sea for smart comedy, high drama and some of Fred Astaire’s most famous dance numbers.

Whether you are looking for a relaxing adventure or celebrating a special occasion, Cunard Cruise Line’s Queen Victoria has something to offer you. For the 2011/12 season there are updated itineraries which include cruises to the Hawaiian Islands and the Panama Canal. With fares starting at $1,295 per person sharing a double cabin, these cruises are priced to suit most people’s pockets.

Those who would love to explore New Zealand in comfort and style will have the opportunity to do just that in 2013: Cunard Line has announced that their Queen Mary 2 will sail from Sydney on a grand New Zealand Royal Circumnavigation cruise holiday in March 2013. On its way the ship will dock at Christchurch, bring a visit to Milford Sound and visit Wellington and the Bay of Islands as well as Auckland.

Cunard Line has announced the company’s world cruise itineraries for 2013 and it seems these cruises will once again offer travellers the ultimate in luxury cruise holidays.

The Queen has been given a rather bad rap on the knuckles by the American Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. In a surprise inspection they gave her a score of 84 out of 100.

If you were to announce a range of exotic cruise holidays, many of them to the South Pacific, you would probably also do it in a Polynesian tiki bar. The heart of London is maybe not the best place, but if it is the Mahiki Club where the likes of Prince William, Prince Harry and Kate Middleton used to hang out, you can be sure a lot of journalists will turn up – even if it is only out of curiosity.

Not all of us are fortunate enough to enjoy a cruise on a luxury cruise ship. Although cruising has become relatively affordable lately, many of us still find it beyond our means. For those on a budget there is now the opportunity to at least have lunch on board one of these luxurious hotels of the sea.

Cunard joined a long line of well-wishers on board Queen Mary in Long Beach, California on Friday to mark the 75th anniversary of the legendary cruise liner’s first transatlantic journey between Southampton and New York in 1936.

Although many regular cruisers are nowadays youngsters, the industry still gets a lot of support from mature travellers. This is the generation of people who are likely to still remember Woodstock, hippies and the Who.

When you embark on a cruise holiday, the last thing on your mind is to fall ill or to hurt yourself while on board. Fortunately incidents like these are actually quite rare in the cruising world, but it is nevertheless reassuring to know that should something go wrong, there will be help available.

Queen Mary 2 The Daily Mirror’s cruise correspondent, John Honeywell, recently embarked on a cruise to Hamburg on board the Queen Mary 2.

Cunard Cruise Line does not only offer cruise lovers the opportunity to live through the New Golden Age of Cruising; the company is also adamant that it wants to stimulate guests’ intellects by offering a range of special lectures and presentations on subjects as diverse as entertainment, politics, science, literature and history. The speakers are all well known in their areas of expertise.

It seems that Cunard’s celebrations of the Royal Wedding were so successful that the company decided to extend the festivities until the end of June – with nothing other than a cocktail programme fit for Royals.

We recently reported about the unseasonably quiet (for Cunard) departure of Commodore Bernard Warner when he retired after many years of service at the cruise line. At the time his successor had not yet been named.

Cunard line is not known for doing things silently. When they bring in a new ship, or launch a new feature on one of their ships, the press is usually the first to know. This was definitely the case a couple of days ago when the company announced three-dimensional films and songwriting workshops on board their cruise ship the Queen Mary 2.

Cunard Line is preparing for the 7th transatlantic season of their flagship the Queen Mary 2 on the 26th April this year. To celebrate this event, the company has announced that it will soon add a new dimension to its entertainment options. In partnership with RealD it will now offer passengers the option of 3D films on board its ships. There will also be “street theatre” performances by RADA (the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art), as well as interactive songwriting workshops.

For the first time in history two Cunard Queen Elizabeth's met in the same port this week. It happened under the scorching desert sun of Dubai when both Cunard’s new Queen Elizabeth and her predecessor QE2 met in the port of Port Rashid.

Inger Olsen, a Danish lady, has the honour of being the first female captain in the 171 year history of Cunard Cruise Lines.

Dubai’s dream of becoming a preferred destination for luxury cruise liners has just come one step closer. On Thursday a 12-storey luxury resort floated into Port Rashid as part of its inaugural world cruise.

The Cunard Queen Victoria, one of the most luxurious cruise ships in the Cunard fleet, arrived at Port Canaveral on Monday for a day visit. It departed again at 6pm.

Eco-conscious cruise lovers will no doubt welcome the fact that Cunard Cruise’s Queen Mary II will take part in observing “Earth Hour” this year.

Cunard Cruises Queen Elizabeth will bring a visit to Halifax in Canada later this year. The company’s latest luxury liner will be on her inaugural visit to Canada when she docks at Halifax on the 25th of September 2011.

A survey conducted by YouGuv and commissioned by Carnival Cruises, polling more than 2,000 adults, holds some interesting results for the cruise industry.

At least two cruise lines have decided to avoid Japanese ports after the massive earthquake and tsunami that hit this country recently. All Japanese ports are currently closed for traffic.

The super luxurious cruise ship Queen Elizabeth docked at the Malaysian port of Kota Kinabalu for the first time in history on Monday. The ship had 1 899 guests and 996 crew members on board. The passengers consisted of 800 Australians, 300 Americans and 899 Britons.

With its luxurious three cruise ships, Cunard Cruise Lines will offer a record number of 84 cruises in 2012. A total number of 129 ports in 48 countries will be visited in the process.

The port authority of Guam announced that the largest and most luxurious cruise ship ever to visit the port of Apra docked there for a couple of hours on Monday 7th March 2011. The Queen Mary 2 arrived on Monday morning and departed again in the late afternoon.

Clydeport has launched a new Cruise Glasgow website as part of a campaign to provide more information to both cruise passengers and cruise lines about the Greenock Ocean Terminal.

The latest addition to Cunard line’s fleet of cruise ships, the Queen Elizabeth, sailed into the harbour of Fremantle for the very first time on 1 March 2011. It was joined by another cruise ship, the Pacific Princess.

Two stately queens have met in the harbour of Sydney. Cunard’s new cruise liner, Queen Elizabeth, sailed into the harbour early the morning of 22 February 2011. Her sister ship, the somewhat larger Queen Mary 2, was already waiting for her. This is the first time that the Queen Elizabeth brings a visit to Sydney.

The biggest cruise ship ever to visit Australia, the mighty Cunard Queen Mary 2, docked at the Australian harbour of Fremantle on Thursday 17 February 2011. The visit will boost the local economy with an estimated $500 000. The ship will embark again on Friday the 18th and continue to Adelaide and Sydney.

A royal visitor will bring a brief visit to Wellington’s harbour tomorrow when the cruise ship Cunard Queen Elizabeth docks there for a couple of hours.

For followers of Cunard Cruises the question isn't all that cryptic. The vessels, Queen Mary 2 and Victoria are being joined by the new Queen Elizabeth in October of this year. She will be the second largest liner in the company's history and of course she will be following in the wake of all the other Queens in providing luxury ocean travel.

Popular cruise company Cunard Cruises has revealed that they are to offer a new dining option on their Queen Elizabeth cruise liner. Announcing that they were re-launching one of their previously most fashionable restaurants, Cunard explained that the Verandah Grill would be introduced with an a la carte menu.

Popular cruise company Cunard Cruises has revealed that they are to offer a new dining option on their Queen Elizabeth cruise liner. Announcing that they were re-launching one of their previously most fashionable restaurants, Cunard explained that the Verandah Grill would be introduced with an a la carte menu.

Popular cruise company Cunard Cruises has revealed that they are to offer a new dining option on their Queen Elizabeth cruise liner. Announcing that they were re-launching one of their previously most fashionable restaurants, Cunard explained that the Verandah Grill would be introduced with an a la carte menu.

Those taking a cruise holiday on the Queen Mary 2 can enjoy some relaxing new spa treatments.

A new poll has revealed that millions of Brits long for luxury cruise holidays.

Cruise holidays are proving to be more popular than ever, despite the economic downturn.

The port of Galveston in Texas has been awarded a $10 million grant for improvement works.

Taking a cruise with the Cunard Line has never been more affordable.

The former Cunard ship, the Queen Mary, could sail again, it has been revealed.