“Just get on the ship and go!” has become my philosophy for cruising. I love ship life, no matter what the itinerary. My husband, Carl, and I have been on 33 cruises over the past 20 years—ranging from eight to 27 nights. For me, the longer the better, especially if there are sea days.
We recently took a 12-night British Isles cruise on Cunard’s Queen Victoria, which is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year. This was our first Cunard cruise, with 1,800 passengers (including 1,300 British and 231 from the United States, including us), starting and ending in Southampton, England. Its itinerary included a few stops we had visited several times before: Edinburgh, Glasgow, Belfast (where we toured the amazing Titanic Belfast exhibit for the third time), Liverpool, and Cobh, Ireland (which also has a Titanic Experience that is much smaller but very good).
On previous trips we had loved visiting several Scottish islands: Mull, Iona, Eigg, Skye and the Shetland Islands. So we especially looked forward to visiting tiny Kirkwall (population 9,000) in the Scottish Orkney Islands. There we walked around on a crisp, sunny day and enjoyed touring its massive landmark St. Magnus Cathedral, founded in 1137.
And the itinerary included five sea days. More time to relax!
On past cruises our favorite thing to do upon boarding—a glass of welcoming Champagne in hand—was to head to the library and grab some books to read on the balcony or at a pool. But several years ago—even before COVID-19 hit in 2020—we were sadly surprised to see that libraries had been eliminated onboard some ships, or if some books were set out on a shelf cart they were often in German.
So we were greatly surprised after boarding the Queen Victoria to see that the ship not only had an elegant library but it covered a massive two floors with books on every subject.
This time—alas—there was no welcoming Champagne as we boarded, but our gracious and efficient stateroom attendant quickly pointed out a complimentary half-bottle with two glasses chilling in the fridge. I was thrilled to see that the bathroom had a set of my favorite Penhaligon’s products.
Another difference I noticed from recent cruises that have been downplaying formal nights is that this cruise had three dress-up “Gala Nights” with themed attire: black and white, red and gold and the Roaring ‘20s. When Carl and I first started cruising, he packed a tux; this time, he wore a coat and tie. With a more formal ship atmosphere onboard, about a third of the men donned tuxedos.
On many previous cruises, Carl and I booked numerous shore excursions as we didn’t want to miss a thing. The past few years we have spent more time venturing out on our own or relaxing onboard the ship and enjoying massages and facials and even haircuts for Carl at the spa.
We splurged ($80 each) one sea day for a private three-hour delicious wine-pairing “Lunch and Learn Menu” hosted by the chief sommelier, with other passengers filling tables in the Verandah Restaurant. Although the ship has several dining venues from which to choose, normally we dined early each night in the Britannia, opting for open seating with a table for two.
Often the tables were close together, so we enjoyed chatting with other passengers, including Pat and Tony Pritchett from Bournemouth, England. A retired couple, the Pritchetts were enjoying their third cruise, and like us, this was their first one with Cunard, a cruise company that has been around since 1840.
“We traveled by taxi from our Bournemouth hometown to Southampton—about 40 miles—on a beautiful, sunny day,” Pat told us. “As we approached the cruise terminal the magnificent Cunard Queen Victoria ship came into view. As the taxi came to a halt, our cases were whisked away and delivered to our comfortable stateroom. The adventure on our first 12-night Cunard cruise had begun!”
The couple enjoyed the daily “fun” afternoon tea, the interesting guest speakers and the fabulous musical entertainment in the elegant three-level Royal Court Theatre, which reminded me of a smaller version of London’s Royal Albert Hall. For most productions the private boxes are available—for a fee—with Champagne and chocolates served by an attentive waiter. Next time!
“The passengers we met were all friendly and interesting, and we heard many life stories,” Pat said. “Many guests had traveled many times on various Cunard ships—some as many as 40 times.
“After dinner, Tony and I loved to have a drink in the Winter Garden, listening to the music as the ship gently glided past the various environments in the early evening. Then off to the theater to watch amazing shows.
“All of the shore trips were greatly enjoyed, and we had fun exploring new ports. We have visited Edinburgh, Liverpool and West Scotland previously. We booked two shore excursions through Cunard: Edinburgh Castle and Kinsale, Southern Ireland. We did our own tours on the other stops. One of my favorite journeys was the slow, majestic sail on calm seas into Cobh Harbor in the early evening with the beautiful village before us.
