QUEEN MARY 2 CANCELS TRIP TO MAINE DUE TO HURRICANE

This on the Boston Globe at: http://www.boston.com/news/local/maine/articles/2008/09/29/qm2_cancels_maine_visit/

PORTLAND, Maine --The Queen Mary 2 is cancelling a visit to Portland that was scheduled for Wednesday because of Hurricane Kyle.

Amy Powers of CruiseMaine, which markets the state's cruise ship ports, said the Queen Mary had to change its itinerary to avoid the storm. Powers said the Royal Princess cancelled a visit to Bar Harbor this week for similar reasons.

Hurricane Kyle blew through the Gulf of Maine during the weekend, drenching the Maine coast with rain and whipping up seas offshore before reaching Nova Scotia.

Five other cruise ships carrying a total of more than 8,000 passengers are still scheduled to visit Portland this week.

Med Sojourn 08

Med Sojourn 08, originally uploaded by Andy Fitzsimmons.

This can be found as part of a recent QE2 trip on Andy Fitzsimmons Flickr at
http://www.flickr.com/photos/andyfitzsimmons/2900906592/

Med Sojourn 08

Med Sojourn 08, originally uploaded by Andy Fitzsimmons.

This can be found as part of a recent QE2 trip on Andy Fitzsimmons Flickr at http://www.flickr.com/photos/andyfitzsimmons/2900906592/

ROUGH SEAS DELAY QUEEN MARY 2 LEAVING NEW YORK

This article was on the Staten island site at:

http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/09/qe2_anchors_off_staten_island.html

Guests on the Queen Mary 2 oceanliner were getting a long look at the Staten Island waterfront today because the ship anchored off Stapleton, delaying its departure from New York to wait for the North Atlantic to become calmer following Hurricane Kyle.

"The weather out at sea was a little rough,"said Gary Rives, a spokesman for the Coast Guard. As is a customary practice for such ships, the captain decided to postpone the journey, so guests do not have to ride over choppy water, he said. "It's no emergency; they are probably going to leave this afternoon," Rives said.
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The ship's course was due to intersect with the path of Hurricane Kyle. The Category 1 storm is churning up the northeast coast.

The Queen Mary 2 was supposed to have departed yesterday afternoon for its seven-day cruise of New England and Canada, but postponed departure from Brooklyn Pier Cruise Terminal 12, according to a representative for the Cunard Cruise Line. The delay forced the cancellation of Portland, Maine, from the itinerary.

"Obviously this is a big storm; for the sake and comfort of our pasangers, the commodore felt it made sense for them to delay the sailing," said Jackie Chase, a spokeswoman for the Cunard Line. "The ship is monitoring the weather very closely."

By this evening, Hurricane Kyle will reach the Gulf of Maine, according to Accuweather. The Maine/Nova Scotia border, southeastern Massachusetts, eastern Maine and the Canadian Maritimes will be in store for some rough weather because of the storm.

The Queen Mary 2, which cost $800 million and entered service in January 2004, is billed by Cunard as the grandest ocean liner ever built. The ship, which can carry 2,592 guests, is 1,132 feet long (that is nearly the height of the Empire State Building). The vessel has a crew of 1,200 people. It cruises at 28.5 knots and has an extra thick steel hull for strength and stability during trans-Atlantic crossings.

QE2: A Photographic Journey: Chris Frame & Rachelle Cross

This new addition to the many books written about Cunard's iconic and symbolic ship the Queen Elizabeth 2 is from 2 passionate fans of the ship.

The book has over 200 pictures that seem to largely be from their own collections that were taken on the many trips that they have taken on the ship, and there is very limited text and some short but interesting sections by William Miller and QE2 Captain Ian McNaught.

The thing that I liked about this book is that is does what it says!

I like the fact that it covers basically every public room and each of the accommodations in neat sections. with photographs showing what the ship looks like. I would love to have had this book before I did my first (and only!) crossing on the ship back in 2004. It is a simple idea for a book and one that will be of benefit to past and new fans of the ship. It may also prove to be an interesting record of what the ship looked like before it gets converted into its new use in Dubai. And if rumours are true, then changes to the ship may be drastic and dramatic to convert it into the new use.

The book covers: Accommodation, Restaurants, Bars & Lounges, Public Areas, Crew Areas and then some topics covering the external aspects of the ship. Every section has a photo or series of photos and as they are personal photographs they have a sense of real to them, versus glossy professional stylised photos. They show some of the warts of the ship!

There is some text with each section which is crisp and short, and later in the book some fun facts and things which do not work quite as well as there are many well told sea jokes/ anecdotes but are not a big distraction.

I enjoyed this book and was glad I have added it to my collection of Cunard books. I have a lot of Cunard brochures from over the years and when I sell them on eBay it seems the main reason want them is for the photos of the ship interiors - this book now solves that. Annoyingly!

If you want to buy the book or find out more you can buy it through the links below

BUY FROM AMAZON UK

BUY FROM AMAZON USA

QE2 prom deck shops 2004

QE2 prom deck shops 2004, originally uploaded by garybembridge.

Port to bid farewell to the Queen Elizabeth 2

This article appeared on the Mount Desert Islander site

An extract from the article follows:

"BAR HARBOR — The Queen Elizabeth 2 is scheduled to make her final stop in Bar Harbor on Friday, Sept. 19. The QE2 is expected to arrive at 7 a.m. and make her final departure at 6 p.m. The royal nautical legend is going to be revamped as a luxury floating hotel, retail and entertainment center at a luxury resort in Dubai after she arrives there in November.

The 40-year old ship first visited Bar Harbor on July 23, 1981 and has been here almost every year since with the exception of her involvement in the Falklands War and another year when there was a plan to decommission her that didn’t materialize.

Earlier this year, the ship’s owner, Cunard Line, announced that it was nearing time for the QE2 to retire. The ship was sold for $100 million to Istithmar, the investment arm of Dubai World, a company owned by the government of Dubai.

The QE2 will be delivered to Dubai World, where she will relinquish her assignment as an ocean-going passenger vessel and be refurbished and customized for her new home in Jumeirah, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. In 2009, the vessel will be berthed at a specially constructed pier at The Palm Jumeirah, the world’s largest man-made island.

Palm Jumeirah was opened in 2001 and is the centerpiece of a series of man-made islands off the coast of Dubai. Palm Jumeirah has been called the eighth wonder of the world. The complex of reclaimed lands was created by state-owned development company, Nakheel.

The island has doubled Dubai’s existing coastline and also doubles the number of beachfront hotels in the city.
For 35 years QE2 was the flagship of the Cunard Line until replaced by RMS Queen Mary 2 in 2004. Built in Clydebank, Scotland, she was considered the last of the great transatlantic ocean liners prior to the construction of the QM2. Before the QE2 was upgraded with a diesel power plant in 1986, she was also the last oil-fired, steam passenger steamship to cross the Atlantic in scheduled liner service.

The ship has a gross weight of 70,327 tons and is 963 feet long. She had a top speed of 32.5 knots using her original steam turbine powerplant, which was increased to 34 knots when she was refitted with a diesel electric powerplant.

In her civilian capacity, the QE2 carries 1,900 passengers and 1,015 crew.
The QE2 participated in the Falklands War in 1982, carrying 3,000 troops from the British Fifth Infantry Brigade and 650 volunteer Cunard crew to South Georgia Island in the south Atlantic.

Read the full article:
http://mdislander.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7297&Itemid=37

Lovely weather for QE2 sailaway

Lovely weather for QE2 sailaway, originally uploaded by Rob Lightbody.

Britannia Grill Restaurant, QE2

Britannia Grill Restaurant, QE2, originally uploaded by Rob Lightbody.

QE2 Cabin 3093

QE2 Cabin 3093, originally uploaded by Rob Lightbody.

Final farewell to QE2’s distinctive red funnel?

This article appeared on Daily Echo today.

Part of the article says:
"QE2 has been sold for £50million to a Middle Eastern development company which will transform the Cunarder into a floating hotel at the centre of Dubai.

Fears are growing among shipping experts and former passengers that QE2, regarded by many as the last remaining true ocean-going liner, will be altered to such an extent that her style and classic lines will be lost forever.

This also comes amid disappointment that QE2 will arrive and depart on her last day in her home, shrouded in darkness.

QE2 will leave the port on November 11 when the liner will fly the longest paying-off pennant ever by a Cunard liner.

Once moored at her new berth in Dubai, QE2’s new owners are expecting to spend millions on refurbishing the liner and changing the lay-out, turning it into a hotel, tourist destination and shopping complex.

The new owners are examining schemes for QE2 including removing the funnel and repositioning it on the quayside where it would be converted into a reception and information centre.

Plans also exist to remove the liner’s engines and create a new glass-fronted mock funnel that would be seven decks high and contain ten luxury suites.

John Lillywhite, chairman of the Southampton branch of the World Ship Society, said: “We have also heard that it is likely all the ship’s davits and lifeboats are to go. "



Read the full article at: Final farewell to QE2’s distinctive red funnel?

QE2 Stern crossing the Atlantic 2004

QE2 Stern crossing the Atlantic 2004, originally uploaded by garybembridge.

Sailaway: World Cruise 2010 On Sale Today

Cunard has put the 2010 World Cruises on the Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria on sale from today.

 

They have a virtual brochure at:

http://publishing.yudu.com/Anzjl/CunardWorldCruises10/resources/index.htm

 

There is a link there to download a PDF version.

 

The email Cunard issued today says:

 

World Cruise 2010 On Sale Today

At Cunard we pride ourselves on offering legendary voyages to legendary places and our World Cruises 2010 will be no different.

Departing on 11 January 2010, Queen Mary 2 will visit 33 places over 101 nights. This is her first World Cruise to start and finish in Southampton. Her unique itinerary takes her east through the Mediterranean to India, the Far East and on to Australia and New Zealand, returning westbound via South Africa, South America, North America and home. Her itinerary includes 19 Maiden Calls to places such as Shanghai, Mumbai and Mauritius. In response to the wishes of our guests we have included overnight calls in Hong Kong, Sydney and Cape Town.  

Queen Victoria's World Cruise itinerary also offers the convenience of sailing from and returning to the UK on a full circumnavigation of the globe. Visiting 38 places in 107 nights, her voyage begins on 4 January 2010. This itinerary includes 11 Maiden Calls plus overnights in New York, Sydney, Hong Kong and Dubai.

Book by 28 February 2009  to receive the following Complimentary Benefits:

• On board credit of up to $1,000 per person*
• Inclusive Hotel & Dining charges to the value of up to $1,391 when booking a full World Cruise on either Queen Mary 2 or Queen Victoria*
•  A range of flight upgrades*
• Up to 5 complimentary shore events*

To book call Cunard reservations on 0845 071 0302 or contact your travel agent

Alternatively book your Full World Cruise online here

QE2 Tastes of the Med I, August 2008

QE2 Tastes of the Med I, August 2008, originally uploaded by Rob Lightbody.