Packing & Pre-Cruise Day in Southampton before my Transatlantic on Cunard Queen Mary 2
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- čas přidán 25. 07. 2024
- Before I embark on one of my bucket list cruises, it’s time for my pre-cruise vlog! Tomorrow I’m embarking Cunard Queen Mary 2 for a transatlantic voyage to New York - I’m still pinching myself! So today, how do I pack for a cruise / voyage known for formalities as well as knowing I’ll be flying back with weight restrictions (my luggage, not me!)? It’s then full speed ahead as I make my way to Southampton, U.K., check in to my hotel, show you around, then head out to do some ship spotting, drinks and dinner at Ocean Village before an evening of entertainment, shots and dancing on Oxford Street! Enjoy and see you soon for my transatlantic!
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#southampton #cruise #cunard #travelblogjamie #hotel #cruiseship
Hi Jamie, it was nice bumping into you out front of the Corinthia just now. Glad you had a great trip 😎 ~Mike
Thanks for saying hi! 👋 have a great next leg of this journey
Omggggg it’s nearly bucket list cruise time!
What a great night you had, looks a lovely part of Southampton.
Enjoy your transatlantic cruise, looking forward to seeing it.
Thank you 🙏
OMG what a fun night out! You have shown me a Southampton I do not recognise. Will definitely have to look this up next time I sail from there. After my last experience, I swore I would avoid at all costs but, thank you Jamie, you have probably changed my mind. ❤😊
Oxford street is a lot of fun!!
Hey Jaime, You've caught my eye, another American, as you popped up in my recommended vlogs due to the QM2. I love that ship...and I'm thinking I'm liking watching you as well. I'm looking forward to the rest of your QM2 voyage vlogs!
My name is Rick. Jolene is my deceased doggy.
Welcome onboard 🙏
Great pre cruise day Jamie! Looking forward to the rest of the series.
Love a packing cube too !
Thank you 🙏
Lol at the Titanic picture a day before your cruise 😂 have a SAFE trip ❤😄
Eeeek
@@TravelBlogJamie I'm surprised you stayed in The Grapes without knowing about it's famous link to Titanic. Three brothers, Alfred, Thomas, and Bertram Slade, all signed on as boiler firemen for Titanic. When sailing day came on the 10th of April 1912, these boys had been present for the muster drill aboard the ship at 8am, but decided to pass the time in The Grapes until the 12pm departure time. They were joined by two other crewmembers, and all together, the group decided to drink until 10 minuets before departure. They were stopped by a freight train on the way down, and although one of the men made it, the rest did not. It seems that, in the end, reckless drinking saved their lives.
@@sebcat_04 why a surprise to stay here without knowing that?
@@TravelBlogJamie Also, about the White Star Hotel. Alongside being Titanic's owners, the White Star Line was pivotal to Southampton's growth as a port city. In 1907, the company started their weekly transatlantic service with two of their premier liners, RMS Oceanic and RMS Adriatic, alongside two older liners called Teutonic and Majestic, sailing from the newly built White Star Line dock at berth 44. The idea was to gradually replace these ships with the new Olympic-class liners. The first was the RMS Olympic in 1911, which put Adriatic back on the Liverpool run. A year later, RMS Titanic displaced Teutonic and Majestic, although this was of course tragically short lived. The Majestic and the Oceanic were actually laid up at Southampton during Titanic's departure, and you can see them in the backgrounds of some photographs. Oceanic was actually nearly ripped away from her moorings because of Titanic's wash as she passed by, and the liner moored next to her, the SS New York, which actually was ripped from her moorings and swung across the river toward Titanic. A collision was narrowly avoided. The third Olympic-class liner, RMS Britannic, was tragically lost in the war as the hospital ship HMHS Britannic.
After the war, the Olympic was the only surviving member of White Star's premier transatlantic fleet. She and the previously mentioned older Adriatic ran the transatlantic run from Southampton from 1919 until 1922. That year, White Star received a pair of German ocean liners to replace the lost Titanic and Britannic. Titanic's replacement was the Homeric, a ship that was much smaller and slower than her lost forerunner. However, the second ship was the enormous new RMS Majestic, which was much bigger and faster than Olympic and Titanic and, in fact, was the largest ocean liner ever built until the SS Normandie in 1935. These ships were joined on the Southampton run by their rivals at the Cunard line - the Aquitania, the Mauretania, and the Berengaria (who had been a sister ship to the new Majestic with her original German owners). It was also in 1922 when the White Star Line dock's name was changed to Ocean Dock, on account of it being used by other notable shipping lines like Cunard and Canadian Pacific.
By 1934, the White Star Line was on it's knees financially thanks to the Great Depression, and a long chain of shady business decisions. They were pressed to merge with the similarly financially ruined Cunard line, to pool their profits into the British Admiralty and fund the completion of the brand new superliner, the first RMS Queen Mary. By the end of the decade, the Pre-WW1 liners of the White Star and Cunard lines had all been sent to the scrapyard, save for the Aquitania which would go on to serve in World War 2 as a troop carrier. By this time, the world's most revered liners were the British and French giants SS Normandie and RMS Queen Mary, both over 1000ft long, and battling each other for the Transatlantic speed record, each capable of a service speed in excess of 30 knots. But the clouds of war loomed dark and heavy, and Hitler's invasion of Poland saw Queen Mary drafted into service as a troop carrier, alongside the newly completed RMS Queen Elizabeth. The Americans wanted the Normandie for trooping service in the Pacific ocean, although she caught fire and sank in New York harbour during conversions.
In the Southampton Blitz, the original passenger and cargo sheds, which had lined the original White Star Line dock at berth 44 since 1907, were bombed and burnt in an enormous blaze. With the war's end in 1945, construction began on a brand new Ocean terminal at berth 46, across the quay, which became famous in the city for it's striking art deco design. Opened in 1950, this building would service the famous superliners Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth, alongside the brand-new American speed demon SS United States. However, the dawn of transatlantic flight saw the end of the transatlantic liners in the 1960's, and by 1970, you could get about 400 passengers from London to New York in 6 hours on a fully loaded Boeing 747, or about 100 passengers in 3 hours on a fully loaded Concorde. Soon enough, the Queen Elizabeth 2 (better known as the QE2) was the only purpose built ocean liner still running regular transatlantic crossings, having been introduced in 1969.
In 1983, the Ocean Terminal building was demolished. The QE2 was moved down river to berth 39/38 and used the purpose built Queen Elizabeth 2 terminal, until she was retired from service in 2008. However, 2009 would see the opening of the brand new Ocean Cruise Terminal at berth 46, which is today where most cruise ships tie up to. This is where Iona is tied up to at the beginning of the vlog, making her far more visible to people taking a leisurely stroll in Queen's park. I was lucky enough to visit Southampton last year to see the glorious P&O Iona tied up at berth 46 for myself, though I could only imagine, just for a moment, taking a trip back through time. The QE2, for a while, the last ever transatlantic ocean liner. A little further back, you'd see the Queen Mary, the Queen Elizabeth, and the SS United States. Back before the war, you'd see the glorious SS Normandie, and then the Berengaria, the Majestic, the Mauretania, the Olympic... and still to this day, at berth 44, the exact same bollards that the Titanic moored up to are still standing.
so yeah thats where the white star hotel got its name from :3
Omg your rats are so cuteeee 🥹 I used to have one called Socks, he was my best friend 😭 they're like little doggies, so clever! ❤
They’re very clever and a part of the family
Brilliant video Jamie as always, your American friends certainly enjoyed themselves making new friends. Can't wait for your transatlantic videos x
They did! A memorable evening
Love your content Jamie, keep up the good work & stay awesome
Thank youuuu
Your fur babies are absolutely gorgeous - so cute!! Have a fantastic time, looking forward to seeing the view as the ship arrives in New York next weekend it'll be amazing 😊🐀🗽 x
Thank you so much ☺️
White Staŕ looks beautiful hope your having a nice time on Queen Mary ❤
Very nice thank you
Transatlantic on QM2, my favourite voyage on my favourite ship! So looking forward to finding out what you think. I love sea days, always so much to do and enjoy on a Cunard TA, I hope it is everything you hoped it would be.
🙏🙏🙏
Watched it and your food the big ball 😂 I hope it was yummy
🙏🙏🙏
Thanks for another brilliant video Jamie 🤩 Fantastic to see you partying with some of your patrons too! You've got a really great community followed you 😊
We will definitely give The Grapes a try once we are pushchair free (that price and location are a wimming combo). Have you tried the greek restaurant/tajeaway next door? We have some bloomin lovely souvlaki there ahead of our last cruise 😋
Really looking forward to watching your whole QM2 transatlantic series 😀
Yes the Greek restaurant next door featured in one of my previous vlogs it was so good lol 😂
@TravelBlogJamie ah, it was probably your vlog that lead us to eat there then 🤣
God I'm getting old 🤣
@@MarinaAndJoeGo it’s amazing souvlaki
Hi Jamie enjoyed this vlog ha a great night out in Southampton had by all x can’t wait to see the vlogs on your crossing to New York 😊
Thank you 🙏
Hi Jamie you are so lucky I really want to go to New York maybe one day what a lovely bunch of people great atmosphere aww your fur babies are adorable ❤️ I hope that you have a fantastic time 😊
Thank you so much ☺️
Have a great tour of duty, I'm looking forward to upcoming vids 👍🏻
🙏🙏🙏
I'm planning my first on the Queen Mary but in reverse New York to Southampton, have a great cruise 👍
Thank you 🙏
Happy Sailing Jamie, I went on the QM2 from NYC to Southampton after getting Married in the Big Apple. I loved it! Enjoy! Xxx
Thank youuuu
Hi Melissa & Kat 😊 x x
👋
What a fun night. I’m going to check out the London Hotel pub next time I’m in Southampton xx
It’s great fun there!
Great video and nice to see your pre-cruise shenanigans. We cruise Cunard every year (mainly Queen Vic) but have a B2B transatlantic next year on QM 2 so we'll be interested in your experience 🎉
Thank you 🙏
Amanda luvs scrambled egg on toast. Have a great trip across the pond and enjoy NYC
Simple food done well is great 👍
I could definitely do with you packing for me in 16 days time for our cruise Sky Princess. Looked a fun night in Southampton with the American ladies. X
Enjoy your cruise
Hi Jamie, I got home on the 22nd from a 19 day cruise on the aurora went to the med it was a lovely cruise apart from the food I was so disappointed I it not very good. The journey was smooth and visited all the stops.the staff was so lovely and polite. I don't think I would choose a p n o again
You might remember we weren’t overly pleased with our food onboard our last Aurora cruise 😔 such a shame
enjoy the QM2
Thank you 🙏
Love all of your videos and share them will all my friends. Keep it up as you are awesome. How’s Matthew.
Thank you 🙏 He’s very well
Will be sailing on QM2 in just over two weeks time! First ever cruise and my daughter will be getting married on board! So excited! 🎉
Congrats to you daughter
Those scrambled eggs looked much, much better than what Melissa got at the Hilton or on board. She’s gonna be jealous.
Maybe a night at the White Star next time you’re in town?
This was a fun vlog. Was the pink stuff tequila rose? The ladies enjoyed themselves 😂
No idea what it was! 😂
Hi Jamie we are in Southampton today Wednesday. Also staying at the grapes next may be interested to hear what it’s like.
👍👍👍
Thanks for another informative fun packed video… I don’t know how you do it 😂🤗 I am looking forward to watching the rest of the series…. Couple of questions if you get a chance to answer…. Do you have a link for the packing cubes you use please? I am going to try some for our next cruise. Also, any pointers on where to find a masquerade mask? We are going on our first Cunard cruise this November and there is a masquerade evening. Big thanks… don’t stress if no time to answer. Stay happy…😘
Bought mask from Amazon and packing cubes link is on my webpage beacons.ai/travelblogjamie ❤️
@@TravelBlogJamie please forgive me I’m almost 70 years of age….. are you saying I need to subscribe and be a paid subscriber to your channel to open the links and answer my question? I totally understand if this is the case,,, I’m not sure if this a scam or I need to pay to get more information… apologies is this is all bonafide sadly none of us know anymore….
@@ninam3255 hmmm no. Direct links to the site you asked for plus a discount code is available on my webpage which is free to access. And I mentioned getting my mask on Amazon. I think that’s more than answering your questions.
@@TravelBlogJamie thank you Jamie for the information and replying… love watching your channel… I’m not the best online.. but do my best… I think I made a mistake clicking on link. Not sure what I did… that’s without a vodka in hand 🙄😂 Apologies.. . Please know no offence was meant.. I am huge supporter of your channel and tell so many friends and family about your amazing work….
Very interested in seeing this. Ben and David wasn't very positive...so will be great to see an alternative opinion
👍👍👍
I think QM2 is my favourite (and Queen Elizabeth)❤
Beautiful ship
They were very good scrambled eggs, I could tell 😅
Nom nom nom
PLEASE Enable Captioning for us hearing impaired fans. ❤from🇨🇦
I’m afraid it didn’t allow me to do so on publishing
I don’t think I could stay at the grapes… the room is quite small. But is does look quirky👍
It won’t be for everyone
After a heavy night did you end up leaving those sun glasses on all day ? 🙂 ... have an amazing time
Most of it
I was looking at packing cases on Amazon this week as I'm on a 31 nighter in september and hoping to condense it down to save on space.
Can anybody recommend any?
I honestly don’t think it matters which ones - level8 cases do great quality ones but equally the cheaper ones on Amazon are fine
You must have boarded on 23rd. You probably avoid some of what Ben & David experienced by getting fixed dining in Britannia and wearing at least a shirt and jacket to dinner. Most men wear jacket and tie. If you want wine with your meal, insist on ordering that before you place the food order.
I’ve been on Cunard / QM2 a number of times and always enjoyed with no issues. I don’t have fixed dining but went in last night and seated immediately. I ordered wine within 10 mins. I’m not wearing a jacket and tie to dinner on smart attire night - dress code states collar / trousers as appropriate and I’m happy with that. Not most men onboard were in tie / jacket last night for smart attire. Some, yes.
@@TravelBlogJamie Great that things are ok so far! Problems have mainly been 5 or 6 weeks ago due to staff transfers to Queen Anne. In background of B&D's 1st night dining disaster all men seem to have jackets. They wore creased casual shirts. Perhaps they got tucked away in a corner due to that?? I prefer at least a suit with tie every night. I'm doing 14 nights formal next twice and save packing with no casual wear .😀
@@davidhouston3946 sorry I don’t know what happened with those vloggers. Of course, people can wear suits if they prefer, i don’t personally like wearing them much but I do when needed.
If you are not allowed to flush anything other than toilet paper, than are are you supposed to do with your.... er... ? never mind
Goes into a little box and wrapped in a bow
@@TravelBlogJamie😂
@@TravelBlogJamieah homemade souvenirs