{"id":11426,"date":"2011-02-02T06:00:12","date_gmt":"2011-02-02T12:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/?p=11426"},"modified":"2016-12-15T13:47:10","modified_gmt":"2016-12-15T19:47:10","slug":"family-vacations-by-sea-cruising-on-the-queen-mary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/2011\/02\/family-vacations-by-sea-cruising-on-the-queen-mary\/","title":{"rendered":"Family vacations by sea: Cruising on the Queen Mary 2"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_11913\" style=\"width: 510px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"http:\/\/cruises.orbitz.com\/shipdetail.do?c=18&amp;v=420&amp;i=&amp;d=&amp;d2=&amp;tab=ship&amp;dsc=y&amp;IncludeAlumniRates=&amp;IncludeSeniorRates=&amp;state=&amp;zipcode=\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-11913\" class=\"size-full wp-image-11913 \" title=\"Queen_Mary_2_shinya\" src=\"https:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/Queen_Mary_2_shinya.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/Queen_Mary_2_shinya.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/Queen_Mary_2_shinya-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-11913\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Queen Mary 2 sailing into New York Harbor. Credit: shinya.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><em>By John George<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Years ago, Cunard Lines promoted its transatlantic crossings with the slogan, \u201cGetting there is half the fun.\u201d\u00a0 In our case, the opposite was true. As we topped off our recent trip to Europe with a cruise on the 9-year-old <a title=\"Queen Mary 2\" href=\"http:\/\/cruises.orbitz.com\/shipdetail.do?c=18&amp;v=420&amp;i=&amp;d=&amp;d2=&amp;tab=ship&amp;dsc=y&amp;IncludeAlumniRates=&amp;IncludeSeniorRates=&amp;state=&amp;zipcode=\" target=\"_self\">Queen Mary 2<\/a>, getting <em>home<\/em> was truly half the fun.<\/p>\n<p><!--more-->After a week\u2019s sojourn in France, we made our way to Southampton, UK, to board the flagship of Cunard\u2019s fleet for the ultimate <a title=\"cruises\" href=\"http:\/\/cruises.orbitz.com\/\" target=\"_self\">cruise<\/a> and <a title=\"family vacation\" href=\"http:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/App\/PerformMDLPDealsContent?deal_id=family&amp;cnt=OVItype=blog\" target=\"_self\">family vacation<\/a>.\u00a0 What can match the thrill of embarkation day?\u00a0 Ours was beautifully sunny and cool for August.\u00a0 The stately lines of the QM2 came into view over the busy Southampton docks as our taxi approached from our nearby hotel.\u00a0 Before boarding the boat, though, we used the opportunity to replenish some depleted sundries and replace a couple worn-out clothing items for our son Zeke at the stores within a short cab ride of the docks.<\/p>\n<p>We also took advantage of the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.southampton.gov.uk\/s-leisure\/artsheritage\/maritimemuseum.aspx\">Southampton Maritime Museum<\/a>.\u00a0 Housed in an old trading building near the docks, the attraction houses three floors of exhibits depicting the maritime history of one of the world\u2019s busiest ports.\u00a0 Ironically, just before we launched from the docks, we visited the in-house exhibit relating to doomed maiden voyage of the Titanic in 1912. Did it dampen our excitement for the trip? No way.<\/p>\n<p><strong>The ship<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>QM2\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/www.qm2.org.uk\/\">classic lines<\/a> exhibit much less of the \u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.shipsandharbours.com\/picture\/number810.asp\">shoebox<\/a>\u201d effect found with some modern ships.\u00a0 Among the many interesting technical aspects of her design: Dimensions were tailored to the average or typical size of the swells on the Atlantic.\u00a0 At more than 1,100 fees, she was for a time the largest passenger ship at sea.\u00a0 We found that our floating home had remarkable stability even when clipping along at almost 30 knots.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Accommodations<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The cabins are standard for their category.\u00a0 Our stateroom on Deck 5 was a good size for our family of three.\u00a0 The third bed was a fold out couch; when the mattress was stowed, we had a nice sitting area with a coffee table.\u00a0 The balcony was less functional, owing both to the design of the solid metal railing, and the cool weather we encountered on the North Atlantic.\u00a0 One of the best features was the generous storage space \u2013 we had no trouble unpacking everything for our week at sea.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Programs<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Six days at sea, no ports &#8212; what to do?\u00a0 Plenty.\u00a0 We two adults loved the options.\u00a0 We balanced a watercolor class, several lectures, dance lessons and time for reading or quiet contemplation of the wonder of the vast Atlantic.\u00a0 Jenny and I also can wholeheartedly recommend the children\u2019s programming on QM2.\u00a0 Zeke easily fell in with the other pre-teens in the group.\u00a0 The morning-to-bedtime kid\u2019s activities gave us anice balance of \u201ctogether\u201d and \u201capart\u201d time.\u00a0\u00a0 The planetarium with star shows each day was a big hit with us all.\u00a0 Tip:\u00a0 The free tickets for this show are distributed each morning and go quickly.\u00a0 Get there on time to be sure of seeing the show later in the day.<\/p>\n<p>An unexpected plus to the west-bound crossing is that five of the days are 25 hours; the ship\u2019s clock is retarded an hour at midnight to synchronize with the time zones crossed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Dining<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>No commentary on life at sea would be complete without mentioning the dining.\u00a0 So much time &#8212; so much food!\u00a0 QM2 may be the only vessel in operation today with separate dining based on the class of cabin or suite booked.\u00a0 Essentially, guests booking into Suite accommodations dine in one of the Grill rooms, and others enjoy meals in the Britannia Restaurant.\u00a0\u00a0 Our cabin had us in Britannia, and after a bit of confusion, we were seated with a delightful family from England on their way to America for their summer holiday.\u00a0 Their daughter was the same age as our Zeke, and it was great to be able to share experiences with a family similar to ours.<\/p>\n<p>As with all cruises, it is important to both make your preferences known when booking and to confirm with the dining staff the first day.<\/p>\n<p>The ship also offers the now-standard alternate dining options, as well as a branded restaurant with a supplemental charge for reservations.\u00a0 With the wealth of children\u2019s options aboard, these present nice opportunities for mom and dad to enjoy a quiet dinner.<\/p>\n<p>Among the many attractions of cruising is having a wonderful restaurant meal every day, with no check to pay!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Our fellow passengers<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We enjoyed the company of many other families; there were some 700 children among the 2,900 guests \u00a0on our sailing.\u00a0 There was a balance between Americans, British, and travelers from other lands.\u00a0\u00a0 Over dinner one night, we had a lively discussion on the relative merits of peanut butter, Marmite and Nutella.\u00a0 The kids finally agreed that there\u2019s no accounting for taste on this question.<\/p>\n<p><strong>America the Beautiful<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Topping everything off was our glorious arrival into New York harbor.\u00a0 The ship\u2019s berth at the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.brooklyncruiseguide.com\/cruise-terminal.html\">Brooklyn Cruise Terminal<\/a> gave us a nice view of Lady Liberty in the distance.\u00a0 What a nice welcome home.<\/p>\n<p><em>John George is a full-time working dad to his 11-year-old son. After visiting every continent, save Antarctica, he was domesticated by his wife Jenny. Their family enjoys cruising, beach vacations and getaways to the Big Apple.<\/em><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/pixel.newscred.com\/px.gif?key=YXJ0aWNsZT1kM2U1N2RlMTFiMzIzZjk3NWZjOGZmYTdlMTFlM2RkYw==\" alt=\"\" height=\"1\" width=\"1\" class=\"nc_pixel\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After a week\u2019s sojourn in France, we made our way to Southampton, UK to board the flagship of Cunard\u2019s fleet for the ultimate cruise and family vacation.  What can match the thrill of embarkation day?  Ours was beautifully sunny and cool for August.  The stately lines of QM2 came into view over the busy Southampton docks as our taxi approached from our nearby hotel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[84,28,5,32],"tags":[1449],"class_list":["post-11426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cruise","category-europe","category-family-travel","category-new-york","tag-england"],"acf":{"api_active":null,"api_title":null,"api_excerpt":null,"api_featured_image":null,"api_lob":null},"posts_api_cpm_point":"","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Family vacations by sea: Cruising on the Queen Mary 2 | Orbitz<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.orbitz.com\/blog\/2011\/02\/family-vacations-by-sea-cruising-on-the-queen-mary\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Family vacations by sea: Cruising on the Queen Mary 2 | Orbitz\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"After a week\u2019s sojourn in France, we made our way to Southampton, UK to board the flagship of Cunard\u2019s fleet for the ultimate cruise and family vacation. 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