Sizing Up Cruise Ships: Queens vs. Crystals

The Grape Vine

By Merv Hecht Since 1975 my wife and I have taken about a dozen cruises on small ships to many interesting places: Alaska, Indonesia, canals in Burgundy, rivers through East Germany, even to Yemen and a group of Arab countries. These trips were primarily ‘destination’ oriented. Suddenly last year we discovered a very different cruising life’cruising on large ships where the destination is secondary to the ‘on-board’ life. Our first experience was on the Queen Victoria, part of the Cunard line. While there were interesting destinations, for us life on-board was the highlight of the voyage. When the trip ended in Southampton, we immediately boarded the Queen Mary II and sailed for a week to New York. And that really was the highlight of the vacation! Think of living with your own chef, maid, butler, masseuse, golf pro and a big staff of others dedicated to your every need’plus movies and Broadway Las Vegas-style shows every day and night. Add a duplicate bridge tournament a short walk away every afternoon, and several sommeliers with whom I discussed our selection of the wine of the evening. For some (not us) the fully equipped exercise room and afternoon dance lessons were a draw.   We met a large group of ‘professional cruisers’ out there. On each cruise there: people who go on a long cruise once or twice a year. Some had racked up more than 30 cruises on the same boat. On the Cunard line, a number of retired people from northern England typically take a month-long cruise each winter: it’s cheaper for them than to stay at home in the winter and pay to heat their homes.   We took the Queen Mary once again as an alternative to flying back to the U.S. from Europe, and again loved the six days at sea. But after hearing a number of friends say that Crystal Cruises was even better, we journeyed on the Crystal Symphony from San Pedro to New Zealand, via Hawaii and Australia. That meant about 15 days at sea without seeing land, a pretty good test of life on board.   And we loved it. But, our friends ask, which line did you like better? So I thought about it and here are my thoughts:   Cost. The first lesson I learned was that no one with a decent travel agent pays anywhere near the listed price. We ended up on both lines getting ‘two for one’ pricing, an upgraded cabin and thousands of dollars of shipboard credits to cover the cost of wine (mostly), tips, and various purchases on board. In spite of that, we found that we ended up paying about $600 per day in total for the two of us. That’s more than we spend when traveling on land. But we don’t live as well on land. Food and wine   This seems to be the most interesting feature of cruising for many people. Especially the drinking. While each group of dedicated devotees claims that his cruise line has the better cuisine, both are so excellent that it hardly matters. On the Cunard line there are two classes of passengers (although they carefully never say this: the first-class passengers eat in one dining room, and all the others eat in another much larger room.   Through connections we were able to eat in the first-class dining room once, and to our amazement we read the same menu and were served the same food! But the service was a bit better and there was tableside preparation of some dishes. On the Crystal there is one class which can only be described as first class. Nothing on the menu that appeals to you this evening? ‘Bring me another chateaubriand then, please Anthony.’ The Queen Mary has a bigger variety of food destinations, a pizza and pasta bar which the kids love, and a much larger buffet. But how much can you eat?   One significant difference: on the Cunard ship, there is an alternate premier restaurant, the Todd English (a famous British chef), but, passengers pay a surcharge of $30 per person to dine there. On the Crystal there are two alternate premier restaurants with no surcharge (except a recommended extra tip of $7 per person), one Italian and one Asian/sushi bar operated by the famous Nobu. Although we didn’t care for the Italian restaurant Prego, we LOVED the Japanese restaurant. For us, because of this, the Crystal line wins this competition. The wine list on the Queens was mediocre and over-priced. The list on the Symphony was excellent, including a number of reasonably priced wines, along with an expensive list of top Bordeaux selections. The ‘wines of the evening’ on the Symphony were well selected, and there was always something of interest by the glass. Although there was only one Armagnac and one Calvados, each was excellent and reasonably priced. There was more selection of liquors on the Queens but the pricing was not as favorable. Stability   That’s where size matters! In any event, don’t go on a cruise until you’ve tested yourself on a short cruise for a couple of days. Some people are unaffected by motion, and others are demobilized for the duration. Most feel some discomfort in rough weather, and on both cruises we experienced some rough going. The stabilizers on both vessels make a big difference, but because of her size, the Queen Mary took the waves much better, and there was less vibration. On the other hand, we never heard the engines. One tip: Get a cabin that’s low and central; on the Symphony the rooms in the bow were really rockin’ and rollin’. Culture   On the Queens there was a string quartet playing (somewhere on the boat) morning, noon and night. And, when asked to ditch the Hayden they would play some of the native tunes from their homeland (these musicians were from Eastern Europe). There was a terrific Spanish guitar player. And during dinner there was a harpist playing classical music. On the Symphony there were two piano players who are just what you find in an American hotel bar, a ‘Spanish’ guitar player from Italy who played the guitar much like a mandolin with canned music accompaniment, and a South American harp player with the volume of the canned accompaniment turned up so loud that a number of people walked out’even those, who like me, are hard of hearing.   On the other hand, both ships had good lecturers. The language class on the Symphony was a big hit with my wife, and both of us profited from computer classes. Both ships have excellent dance instructors, and dancing is very popular. But again, size matters: the library on both Queens was extensive; the library on the Symphony was very limited. Staff   The staff on both ships was very good, but the staff on the Crystal was better trained and they enjoy working a lot more than those on the Queens. The average passenger on both vessels was about 75 years old, with grey hair (if any) and about 50 pounds overweight. The people working on the cruise, particularly on the Symphony, were thin, very attractive young people, so it was no problem to tell who was who. Ambiance    In general, the people on the Symphony seemed more pleased with everything. A number of British people on the Queens were unhappy with the cost of beer. Seventy percent of the people on the Symphony were repeat customers who knew what to expect, and were happy with it. With almost 3,000 people on the Queens, there were lines and sometimes it was hard to find a table at lunch at the buffet. And to walk from one end of the ship to the other was quite a hike. The Symphony is much smaller, everything is close by, and with only 950 passengers there were never lines. On the other hand, the Queens are much more luxurious and refined’and just more beautiful.   Perhaps the biggest difference for me was the populations. On both Queens there were people from at least 25 countries. There was one dinner table where only Spanish-peaking people sat together. We sat at a table where French was spoken much of the time and at the ping-pong table we spoke German, since the top three players were from Germany.   On the Symphony there were a few Hawaiians and a few Japanese and a sprinkling of Canadians but almost everyone was from upper-middle class continental America. Personally, I prefer the international mix on the Queens. Technology. Both ships had electronics that made the cell phones work as if we were on land, and allowed for Internet access in the cabins. The cost was a bit pricey, but with a program to instantly download e-mails and work with them offline, such as Outlook, the cost was nominal. There were excellent movies on both ships, available both in the movie theaters and in the cabins, but the sound system on the Queens left much to be desired. So which is the better cruise? Bonnie preferred the Symphony. I preferred either of the Queens. I especially like the idea of returning from Europe after a stay there on the Queen Mary 2; it’s a relaxing way to end a tour or business trip in Europe, returning without jet lag. If you’ve never cruised, you might want to try it; it’s like a fantasy world.