A taste of traditional luxury on board Queen Victoria
Recently, I had the wonderful opportunity to explore Cunard's Queen Victoria, focusing on her fantastic wellness facilities. Upon stepping on board, I was greeted with luxury, elegance, but traditional feel.
The day began as we got our passes to board the ship. We were greeted by the wonderful staff and had a welcoming hot drink and some pastries.
Cabins
We started the ship tour by exploring the different types of staterooms. The first stateroom we looked around was The Caronia Suite (stateroom 7085). Belonging to the Queen's Grill Suite collections, this Master Suite will leave you wanting for nothing and I was truly wowed. Located mid-ship and mid-deck makes all the difference! I always strongly recommend that my customers consider a mid-ship stateroom, as these are where you will feel most stable if the sea is a little rougher. This suite is designed with magnificent marbles and warm woods which gives you a home away from home feel. There is an appointed living space with a bottle of Champagne and box of chocolates to celebrate your arrival. The luxury of having one of these beautiful suites is that you have a separate dining room where you could host a special dinner with friends or family, and your discreet butler is available to ensure your evening is perfect. Heading into the bedroom, the beds can be made up as a king-size or two single beds. You have all the choice in the world when it comes to pillows with seven pillow types to choose from on the pillow concierge menu. The luxury doesn't stop there. I loved the stunning marble bathroom. The bathroom has twin washbasins, a walk-in shower, Penhaligon's toiletries, and a bathtub with sea views - this is where you'll find me! You also receive luxury bathrobes and slippers which can be found in your walk-in wardrobe. Stepping outside, you can enjoy your spacious private balcony with seating and sea views.
Some more of the luxuries you will experience with the Queen's Grill Collection are:
- Access to the exclusive Queens Grill restaurant, where you can dine any time at your reserved table.
- Satellite TV with movie and music channels in the bedroom and lounge areas.
- Feature vanity with hairdryer.
- Writing desk with a set of personalised stationery.
- Fresh flowers.
- Binoculars and world atlas to track your travels.
- UK, USA and European power sockets - no need to worry about packing adapters!
- Complimentary mini bar stocked with your choice of beer, wine, spirts and soft drinks.
- Speciality tea and coffee making facilities.
- Daily fresh fruit.
- Pre-dinner canapés.
- Exclusive access to the Grills Lounge and outside Grills Terrace.
- Concierge service for on board reservations and shore experiences.
- Priority embarkation and disembarkation - your holiday begins straight away with no stress or delays.
The Queen's Grill Suite collection also includes the Queen's Suites, Penthouse Suites, and the Grand Suite, which in particular, took my breath away. Perfect if you're really celebrating something special!
We also looked around an accessible Britannia Balcony stateroom (stateroom 7087) for those guests that are full-time wheelchair or mobility scooter users or require the use of their device inside their stateroom. All accessible staterooms have wide doorways into the stateroom and bathroom (86cm for this stateroom), sufficient floor space for manoeuvring a wheelchair or mobility scooter, wet-room-style bathrooms, grab rails for shower and toilet, pull-down shower seat, flush thresholds between bathroom and stateroom, and ramped access to the balcony (for balcony staterooms). This accessible stateroom had a fantastic spacious balcony. I found this was a great opportunity to really inspect the layout of an accessible cabin and to understand what my customers will be experiencing.
I was surprised by the standard inside staterooms as it still felt very bright and spacious, regardless of not having the windows. I thought it was a nice touch that even though it was one of the lead cabins in stateroom categories, you still have a taste of luxury as you still get your bathrobe and slippers, a welcome sparkling wine, the choice of complimentary breakfast in your stateroom, and tea and coffee making facilities.
The Lido Pool
Just before our lunch, we explored the two generous sized pools and Jacuzzis. There were plenty of sun loungers by the Lido pool on deck 9 for the guests to relax and enjoy the sun. The Pavillion pool is located on the same deck, next door to the winter garden.
On deck 11 and 12 we explored the Grills Terrace and the Grills Upper Terrace an exclusive area for grills guests to relax on the comfortable cushioned sun loungers.
Food and Drink
We had a wonderful 3-course meal for lunch in the Britannia Restaurant, which is two-tiered. If you have a preference on which level you would like to sit at, we can put a special request in for you. This is the main restaurant for breakfast, lunch and dinner, where you will find a varied a la carte menu that changes daily, including some dishes inspired by the ports of call. The restaurant has an elegant feel, and the tables are linen-dressed. The staff were very attentive and gave a warm welcome.
Buffet dining can be found in the Lido Restaurant on deck 9. This restaurant felt very bright thanks to the large panoramic windows offering stunning sea views all round. Here you can enjoy breakfast, lunch, dinner, or just a snack with easy access to the pool area. I found there was something for everyone to enjoy and loved the idea of the pizza and pasta station - great for the whole family!
Moving onto Alternative Dining, Queen Victoria offers "Steakhouse at The Verandah" on deck 2. Their impressive menu offers the highest quality grass-fed and dry-aged beef and specialty seafood. It was good to know that there's still plenty of choice for those who don't eat meat or fish, which is great if there's a group of friends or a family who wish to dine here without excluding anyone from the party! This specialty restaurant is open for lunch on sea days, otherwise, for dinner every evening – with reservations required.
My favourite specialty restaurant on board was "La Piazza". Located on deck 9, the outdoor Lido buffet area transforms to a waiter-service Italian Restaurant. I can only imagine being sat there in the evening over a candle-lit dinner whilst enjoying the discreet entertainment.
At Miles Morgan, we can book alternative dining before your cruise for a 10% discount, otherwise there's a cover charge on board.
Not forgetting the Princess Grill and the Queen's Grill restaurants, exclusively for guests staying in these stateroom grades. These two restaurants offer a White Star fine-dining experience, separate from the main Britannia Restaurant. Guests dining here have a more intimate experience and I loved that the tables have uninterrupted sea views. There's also a beautiful courtyard area - The Grills Courtyard. It reminds me of parts of the Mediterranean! Here you can sit and enjoy breakfast, a chilled drink, a lantern-lit dinner, or even a delicious cream tea.
Queen Victoria has many options for a chance to relax and enjoy a tipple - The Golden Lion Pub, Midships Bar, Winter Garden, Pavillion Bar, the Chart Room, but my personal favourite was the Commodore Club. Located at the bow of deck 10, the impressive panorama windows offer the best sea views. As a cocktail lover, I was impressed by the selection of specially created cocktails.
Entertainment
To finish the evening, you can enjoy the Casino, the Queen's Room, or even the Yacht Club, where the party goes on with a DJ. Not forgetting the main event - The Royal Court Theatre. It gave a true, traditional West End feel, decorated with red and gold. The seating area felt very spacious and the seats were like sitting on a cloud. If you feel like treating yourself, or there's a special occasion, you can book one of the private boxes. A Cunard bellhop will escort you to your seat where you’ll be served a fine selection of chocolates and desserts alongside delicious champagne. Reservations can be made onboard up until 3pm on the day of the performance, and are available at an additional charge, plus a 15% service charge, per couple.
Health and Wellness
What blew me away most about the Queen Victoria was the spa and wellness. It was out of this world! The gym consisted of treadmills, bikes and other cardio machines lined up facing out to sea. There is a generous space for exercise classes including yoga, and a whole weights section. Walking through the gym, you will find the Mareel Wellness and Beauty centre. Here you can really spoil yourself. There are massage/treatment rooms with a whole range of treatments to choose from, a huge hair and nail salon, including a foot spa, and relaxation rooms where you can relax in peace whilst looking out to sea.
The Aqua Therapy Centre was very spacious and there were more comfortable beds to relax on and an inviting spa pool. The special part about the spa for me was the heated loungers looking out the large panoramic windows. You will really come out feeling relaxed and refreshed. All the staff were so friendly and provided a relaxing atmosphere.
I had such a great time on board. If you’re interested in a Cunard cruise, pop into Miles Morgan in Wells - I’d be happy to help!
