Queen Victoria Cruises

Life aboard Queen Victoria
Queen Victoria’s 2020 Grand Cruise from the UK to circumnavigate South America is completed late March 2020. The 2021 World Tour heads west from Hamburg/Southampton via Panama, Pacific islands, NZ and Australia (Auckland, Sydney and Brisbane), Asia, Indian Ocean, and Cape Town. There are many sectors available. The 2022 World Tour follows the same route, reaching Australia and New Zealand late February/early March. Meanwhile, for the other nine months of the year, QV sails from Southampton around the Baltic, Norway and Iceland, and south to Spain and the Canary Islands during the winter months.

MS Queen Victoria was launched in 2007 and last refitted in 2018. The vessel is very spacious. The ship offers a British travel experience, with formal dressing for dinner, liner-style décor, and world-wide itineraries, yet with international staff. What stands out? Edwardian/Victorian public rooms, British afternoon teas, Royal Arcade of shops (Harrods, Royal Doulton and Wedgwood), 6000-book library, Golden Lion Pub, and intellectual lectures. She is best suited to couples and single travellers who enjoy features of dressing up for dinner and a British ambiance. Guests feel comfortable in a cruise ship approaching that of an ocean liner. She was indeed built to cross the Atlantic and Pacific, and is the largest passenger ship to sail up the Amazon. Service at all times and in all locations is impeccable Cunard standard.

Accommodation
Cunard ships have three classes of staterooms (of which there are 32 price grades, depending on size and location). Most lavish are Queens Grill Suites, then the elegant Princess Grill Suites. Both come with many privileges, and their own Grill dining rooms and private lounges. Then comes Britannia Class for 83% of guests (Balcony, Oceanview and Inside). Of the 1046 cabins, 86 percent are outside, 71 percent come with balconies, and 12 percent are exclusive Queens/Princess Grill staterooms. Balconies are glass-fronted for good ocean views. Some staterooms accommodate third and fourth guests. All cabins reflect conservative British décor, and come with excellent bedding, universal electrical sockets, toiletries and hairdryer, bath robe and slippers, shower, 24-hour room and nightly turn-down services, interactive TV with multi-language film and music channels, telephone, refrigerator, safe, daily ship’s newspaper and fresh fruit. There are 20 cabins with good wheelchair accessibility.

Queens Grill guests dine in the Queens Grill restaurant, or in-suite, and have butler and concierge services. Princess Grill Suites come with in-suite dining, access to Queens Grill Lounge, dining in the Princess Grill restaurant, and the services of a concierge. Grills guests enjoy a range of niceties such as personalised stationary and access to exclusive deck areas. There are five classes of Grill Suites, ever more spacious depending on position, all with full bath and separate shower, extra in-suite entertainment, and so forth. The perks and increased service of Grill-class accommodation are worth it. In a minor addition to the Grills' areas, passengers in the loftiest accommodations have use of a strategically placed pair of telescopes that provide a bird's-eye view of ports, coming or going.

Food and Dining
QV offers traditional British dining for passengers who enjoy dressing up for dinner, either in formal or semi-formal attire. Single-seating dining venues include the five-star Queens Grill and Princess Grill (which come with the stateroom). Queens and Princess Grill guests also have access to exclusive al fresco dining on the top deck. The Verandah, the ship's fine-dining venue, serves excellent French cuisine with an à la carte menu, with cover charge and by reservation. The majority of guests dine in the two-tiered 878-seat Britannia Restaurant, with its grand sweeping staircase, at two seatings. The 24-hour Lido Restaurant offers a buffet service for breakfast and lunch, and come dinnertime, it transforms into themed dining (Asian and USA style menus) att additional charge.

Take afternoon tea in the Queens Room or al fresco in the Courtyard (for Grills guests). Cafe Caranthia serves coffees, special teas and pastries. Cunard host its "Supper Club" – afternoon teas, dancing, music and taster menus – in the Winter Garden conservatory beneath its retractable glass roof. The famed Golden Lion Pub serves up English fare like fish and chips and shepherd's pie. There is a range of magnificently presented bars and lounges available according to accommodation. Cunard host its "Supper Club" – afternoon teas, dancing, music and taster menus – in the Garden Lounge conservatory beneath its lofty domed roof. For sweeping views of the bow, and a martini, the Commodore Club welcomes you. The Chart Room offers cosy seating, good wine, and a dance floor. The Yacht Club offers cosy seating, good wine, and a dance floor.

Entertainment
In the Royal Court Theatre, with its blue and gold décor, The Queen Elizabeth Theatre Company Royal Court Theatre presents Shakespearean plays, contemporary drama, musicals, and film screenings. With its 20 private boxes (opera-house style available for an extra fee that includes Champagne, dessert and a prime view), it recalls the West End and Broadway at their best. Some shows are followed by theme parties. During the day the theatre stages a specially written panel quiz show. The two-deck-high Queens Room is one of the most beautiful rooms at sea and hosts activities from dancing and fencing lessons to costume balls and white-glove tea. Other rooms include the 6000 title two-tier library and the Empire Casino.

The ship offers large-screen movies, cabaret acts, bands, live jazz, small combos and solo entertainers. The Cunard Royal Health Club and Spa includes a beauty salon, large gymnasium, aerobics, thermal area, relaxation area and the Pavilion Pool. Revitalise with sports-deck games or chess, at the golf nets, learn the art of fencing, sink into four whirlpools, workout in the gym, or daily stride around the promenade deck. You’ll want to find out about the range of enrichment classes, view the maritime museum and Art Gallery, and keep up to date at the Internet Centre. There are inside and outside areas dedicated to children ages 1-12.

Explore the decks

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