we were promised a free stay in Hong Kong but it never eventuated. Our second trip was a let down compared with our first around NZ. The ship is a floating incubator of disease. I am still off sick a week after getting off, after contracting a head an chest infection on board. My last 2 days were in bed in my cabin. the infection control on the ship is not very good. It reminded me of a floating nursing home more than a cruise. As great as it is made out to be it vibrates constantly and is worst when when you are trying to sleep. It is showing its age and the dress codes are for the 1800's. we wont be back. that's for sure. It would be nice to come off the ship in the same health I went on the ship in.

liked the ship itself,sailed transatlantic in very rough weather & she was brilliant. Lovely lounges to sit in, a bit confusing getting around ship but you get there eventually. Ate in buffet as don't like eating formaly,it was huge,grubby,very poor selection of food & always cold.Like a greasy spoon caf. Crew were mostly very miserable everywhere on ship. Cabin(inside)small but adequate. Entertainment pretty poor most nights. Didn't like the fact that if you ate in buffet even though we changed into evening clothes on Formal nights you were not supposed to use the rest of the ship out of respect for diners in black suits in formal dining rooms. You were meant to use the one lounge next to buffet felt like second class citizens. Men had to wear jackets after 6pm everynight & women formal clothes. Sailed from Southampton to New York on Independence of the Seas,completely different experience,it was excellent in every way would certainly sail with them again. QM2 NEVER AGAIN WOULD NOT RECCOMEND MANY PEOPLE FELT THE SAME WAY !!!!!!!!!!!!!

i was very disappointed in the channels. Since we were sailing in the u.s. For most of the 12 day cruise, I wish I could have watched my soap operas or the talk shows. Too much politics.

Wife and myself early fifties quite lively. The ship is superb and very stable. We love art deco and this ship has plenty of it. We don't like to waste money on expensive cabins (state rooms) so we chose the modern equivalent to steerage. We were given an inside cabin on the 4th floor. It was quite roomy and plenty of storage. We don't much see the point of balconys, when your at sea all you can see is well, sea! The only time it's worth having is when your coming in or out of port but even then the view on deck is miles better, also the tv channels show outside views so you can check out what's happening there. The food and service is excellent. We were in the Britannia dining room (not the top class) and it was stunning. My only complaint is that the food wasn't always as hot as I would have liked. I didn't complain while on board. The planetarium was fun and educational. The entertainment was not the best I have seen but very good overall. We had Richard Farley (Dragons Den) giving a couple of lectures, great! The swing band was brilliant. It may be my personal preference but I was dissappointed with the late night pub etc. On previous cruises we have stayed up late in the pub, casino and nightclub. On this cruise these areas were devoid of people most nights it was a bit like looking for a good night out in Blackpool on a Tuesday in February. Having said that we loved all the dressing up and formal nights. My wife thought the cruise was brilliant.

We had a table for 6 people, going to New York, there was, only 2 of us on it, coming back to Southampton, there was 6 of us, 4 people from the US, and we all got on fine. We had a balcony cabin which had plenty of room. There was such a lot of food, to much for me, I loved the afternoon tea, I have written this review and going on the QM2 again next year says it all. Also If you use a wheel chair, the service is very good.

The embarkation is like clockwork, the food exceptional the only negative apart from the spa is that the tours are overpriced and be organised for a fraction of the cost by the yourself.
Example; Cunard organised Sorrento and Pompei from Naples
$150.00 per head
Under own steam using train stops in Pompie gardens 9 euros return admission 10 euros train to Sorrento from Pompei 9 euros return cost total 28 euros.

The Queen Mary 2 is ideal if you like the smell of cigarette smoke. I waited over year before posting a review to see if the passage of time would dim the memory of poor food, the smell of cigarette smoke, the truly terrible temporary captain who seemed to think that his main task was to promote his upcoming book of anecdotes. We were in the Princess restaurant class - not cheap and not good. The door lock key card system doesn'twork, the route information system on the cabin tv doesn't work, the internet is expensive and unreliable and for pity's sake don't waste your time complaining. Cunard are very efficient at ignoring complaints.
Pray for bad weather so the smell of vomit and disinfectant will overpower the tobacco smell.
It was awful at the time and time has not dimmed the memory.
I assume now that the Southampton - New York leg of a world cruise was just a delivery trip with the second string crew and third rate entertainers. By the way, don't expect a decent expresso on this ship. I have better espresso machines at home!

This was our first cruise ever, and what a way it was to start! I traveled with my wife and 4yo son. We are Americans, although I am of European origin, and my wife is of far East Asian origin. We had an inside cabin on the 6th floor, and it was adequate. My son had a bunk bed, and loved it.

The ship is magnificent, and the entire experience is very British. I loved it! The lectures and shows were very intellectually stimulating. The children care is first class, and we used it every day both morning and evening. This allowed my wife and I to have a more relaxing dinner with the wonderful couple we were seated with.

We loved this cruise so much, that we later booked another cruise with RCI. What a difference between the two. Both were amazing, but Cunard is by far more elegant and more glamorous, whereas RCI is more laid back. The food is first class on both, but on Cunard is more refined. Personally I prefer Cunard, but I can tell you the cuisine and the wine selection is definitely tailored towards a more European crowd.

I heard several Americans complaining about formal nights, having to wear a Tux every other day, and the formality of the staff. This is what I loved about it, but if you are looking for a more laid back, RCI might be more tailored towards what you like. Do not make mistakes about it. Formal nights are really formal, more than the average black tie event in the USA. Some people hated it, I loved it. Looking at my wife dressed like a princess was truly great.

I also heard some Americans complaining about the food, and the lack of 'American' food (e.g. Chimichangas, Burritos, Burgers, etc). Although you can get some of these expressions of fine American cusine in the buffet section, you will not find the aforementioned items in the main dining hall (maybe in the kid's menu).

I believe that the enjoyment of the cruise is a factor of set expectations. I think Cunard does not have a very relaxed atmosphere, and it aims at a more elegant experience. I feel it is tailored towards an older (I am 33), mainly European, crowd, but youngsters and youngest can also have lots of fun.

What also made our experience amazing were our table mates, who were truly fantastic, about our age and with a son of the same age (our sons played together in daycare and became friends). The pairing was excellent, and I think it takes the experience only Cunard can offer to look at these details. But to be honest, also our table mates on RCI were truly great.

I consider the transatlantic crossing one of the nicest experiences I was lucky to have. I would love to do it again.

I was very disappointed with the QM2. The food was terrible with a very limited selection. We ate one night in the Todd English resturante and the food was very bland. The average age of the patron was 80 years old. This ship is rated 5 stars but in my opinion it should be 3 stars at best. On other thing, the ship had an electrical problem in Canada and as a result the ship was six hours late returning to New York.

A smooth transatlantic crossing although we were in fog for most of the time. The ship is immaculate and the service excellent. The Royal Court singers and dancers are energetic, professional and entertaining with superb costumes. This was the first time we had a glass balcony rather than in hull and it was nice to sit out and watch the sea go by but it did mean huddling in the forward corner since these balconies are a lot more windy than the in hull balconies on decks 5 and 6.
The Queen's Room is always popular with the big band orchestra blasting away and lots of 'formal' dancing. The G32 disco tucked away behind the Queen's Room was busy on both this crossing and the one two weeks earlier except on the first nights. We ate in the Britannia Restaurant every night and found the menu to be varied and the food well prepared and presented. At lunch times we tried out the light lunches in Sir Samuel's and the Golden Lion pubs and they were a nice break from the food mountains. The Commodore's Club is a nice place to relax with a cocktail and read or chat. Great value for a luxury product and so much better than flying!

This cruise was very expensive and poor value for money. The food was very bland and waiting staff hovered over me the whole time waiting to clear the tables. The stateroom was very basic with a big gap under the adjoining door so every sound could be heard from the adjoining cabin.
The Canyon Ranch Spa was small and crowded and could do with a good revamp.
I had a hot stone massage which left me in agony.
Customer service was dire, rude unhelpful staff who just demanded more and more money and added lots of extra gratuities to my account without authority.
Entertainment was the same boring dancers/singers night after night yawn!
I was pleased to arrive home and will never travel with Cunard again, P & O were much better.

My partner and I just completed our six transatlantic sector and, sadly, on board standards are slipping somewhat. Cabins are tired, entertainment dull and lacking in imagination. Canyon Ranch is in a shocking state of repair. We've written twice now to Cunard to share my thoughts; neither letter was dignified with an answer. It's debateable whether we cruise on QM2 again.

Travelled American Airlines Business Class to JFK from Heathrow and transferred to Hilton Hotel. Separately pre-booked tour of New York - 'Onboardtours.com' from UK independently (cant do this through Cunard). Flight fine, though noisy in front seats. Transfer to Hilton by private taxi and hotel room spacious and clean. Breakfast worked out about a third more than menu by the time local taxes and tip added. The tour was a nightmare. Bone-shaker bus, air-conditioning worked from the back of the bus and constantly sprayed the back passengers with water - bunged up half way through the tour with dirty duster and tape! The windows rattled and the tour guide had to use the strength of his voice to convey information. Tour lasted from 10.30-3.30 pm and stopped at various well-known places with a short trip around the bay - total cost around £114 for two. The Queen Mary is an impressive looking ship, but the signage is poor. The ship map on each floor does not inform you that some decks span two floors and you have to go up and across to reach some rooms. The entertainment is out of the 1980s - old fashioned and no sign of anyone well known. The food was good and you could order anything you wanted in advance. However, the service and making you feel special was not up to that experienced on the Victoria and the vegetarian options has a lot to be desired. The cabin was spacious and very well serviced by the cabin boy. There were quite a few options to go to such as bridge, water-colour painting, acting, talks, bingo and the casino. However, many of the most unusual and interesting such as painting, needlework, bridge, dance lessons, computing and acting were put on at the same time, so you had little choice - painting incurred about $35 cover charge for the materials and was on every day for two hours with some additional drawing lesson in the afternoon. Poor satellite signals led to a lot of frustration when using computers and people were constantly asking for re-credit of time paid for. Concierge room pleasant and full UK newspapers and refreshments, but could do with a couple of computers in there to save people in Grills going elsewhere for their email. Disembarkation was smooth at Southampton. Preferred the Queen Victoria - service, quality of food and cabin design superior.

This is the most disappointing cruise my wife and I have ever been on (we've completed 11 others). The food service was horrible in the Britannia dining room. Our waiter responded as though it was his first job ever on a cruise ship. The food was horribly prepared, usually cold, and always served 15-20 minutes later than surrounding guests. I received on fish entree that couldn't be cut with a knife. Incredibly poor overall and we will NEVER sail on Cunard again. Buyer Beware.

This is our 7th cruise with Cunard the second on Queen Mary 2 The ship,crew, food and service was fantastic as usual. The only down side of the cruise was that the daily and evening entertainment was poor.Not everybody likes classical piano and harp music or Shakespears plays and the singing and dancing routines in the theatre at night were not very good either.Also why most there be an art auction in the grand lobby everyday?.
But we still love Cunard cruises and we have already booked a trans atlantic crossing on Queen Mary 2 for 2011.

The ship board experience was fablous not a single complaint. However it had a lot of the gloss taken off it by the post voyage experience. Our itinerary was arrive new york early morning, transfer to marriott hotel on hospitality package then transfer late afternoon to airport for flight. Up last morning at 0415 to experience verrazano bridge statue of liberty etc, transfer to marriott about 0845 arriving 0930. Hospitality consisted of being dumped in a meeting room no food, no drink, nowhere to wash or change and ignored till the coach transfer to airport at 1530. Newark airport experience horrid, flight on continental awful, hot cramped, uncomfortable, vile uneatable food, couldn't care less flight stewards. Attitude seems to be we'll look after you on board then as soon as we get your money we dont care. Very sad - on any other holiday this would have spoiled it - so good was the QM2 that it managed not to do that but it certainly tarnished it.