Queen Anne

Nov 25th - Nov 30th 2025

Tuesday November 25th 2025

Home to Portsmouth

Had a very relaxing morning. Did some half-hearted packing and got Nikki’s Whill into the car. Finished the packing and loaded the cases before having an early lunch. 

Stuart arrived at 12:20. Got his case in the car and headed off around 12:40. Excellent drive down the A34 for once. We stopped at the services at Sutton Scotney for a coffee and a cake - you know, to get into practice for the cruise. Got to the roundabout with the M3 at the bottom where they were doing some big roadworks to finally fix that awful junction. Hit some traffic on the M27 so we were diverted around some back roads in Southampton and then eventually back on to the motorway for the final 5 miles. 

Got to the hotel around 15:20. Took me a while to figure out how the Whill went back together but got there in the end. Check in was quick. We were in Room 709 on the top floor - a very nice suite. Got settled and then had a drink and watched TV for a bit. 

Stuart came at 18:30 for the walk around to the Beefeater in the car park. Jeez it was cold. Very glad of my big coat. Had a really nice meal. They had the festive menu on so we opted for that after much deliberation on the various vouchers we had. Tomato soup to start and then a Christmas dinner with a carrot Wellington. Very good. Excellent servers and they helped with our vouchers so we ended up with about 60% off! 

Walked back to the hotel and then me and Stuart drove down to Tesco for some pre-cruise supplies (Pepsi Max). Bit of TV and in bed just before 22:00

Wednesday November 26th 2025

Portsmouth to Queen Anne

Not a bad night’s sleep. Awoke to a freezing looking morning - and it was cold in the room as well. We didn’t get up until 07:40! 

Met for breakfast at 08:45. Sadly it wasn’t up to much - no eggs because their cooker wasn’t working - and this was a Marriott! Lingered there awhile before going back up for a shower. 

Stuart joined us around 10:15 to see some webcams I’d found showing Southampton, The Solent and also Rotterdam. All 3 looked very cold! 

Got the car packed by 11:15 and departed. About 35 minutes down to the port via the Itchen Bridge. Dropped Nikki, Stuart and the cases off right outside before taking the car to Parking For Cruises. I was the only one there so a quick drop off with them. Walked back over to the terminal and got our passports and boarding passes out to get in to the terminal. 

Up in the lift and left to the disabled section. Very simple and, apart from a very officious woman just before the security check, very swift. We were on the ship by 12:20!

We went to the Golden Lion pub first. Eventually found a table but realised the food we fancied was chargeable. Nope! Relocated to the buffet via our rooms to drop off big coats. One of our cases was already there. 

Had a nice lunch at the buffet. I much prefer this to Queen Mary 2 because it’s food stations where you ask for things rather than a help yourself. Also it wasn’t as much of a bear garden. Got a nice table by the window and grazed there for a while. 

After lunch we had an explore of the ship. We checked out The Pavilion and briefly ventured out on to the deck at the back of Deck 8 for a quick look. 

By 15:00 we were ready for some downtime and some serious unpacking action. Spent a while finding a place for everything in our cabin 8150. Also met Mae, our cabin attendant. Nikki had a doze and I continued mooching around the cabin. 

I messaged Stuart and he and Matthew were up at the bar in The Pavilion on Deck 9 having a coffee so I went up and joined them for a while so Nikki could continue her dozing. Very cold in there so we moved down to the lobby area before going into the main dining room on Deck 3 so see where our table was for dinner. Sadly we were on Anytime Dining so we didn’t have a specific table allocated to us! 

Went upstairs to the Commodore Lounge and snaffled a table. Time was ticking on so me and Stuart stayed put while Matthew went to get changed before he came back to guard our table. I went down to the cabin to change and to pick up a fully refreshed Nikki. 

Back up to the Commodore Lounge for a beverage just after 18:00. Lingered there awhile before heading down to dinner just after 19:30. 

Nikki had the Porcini Risotto, Broccoli Soup, Pithivier of Spiced Cauliflower with a Warm Cherry Clafoutis Tart to finish. I had a nasty Asian-Inspired Carrot Tartare before the Broccoli Soup, Potato Gnocchi and the Vanilla Cheesecake. Most enjoyable - apart from the Carrot Tartare. 

After dinner we made our way down to the theatre to see a 3-piece Motown girl group called The Lavelles. Sound wasn’t great and it felt like they were just going through the motions a bit. And so to bed.

Thursday November 27th 2025

Queen Anne

Sadly we lost an hour overnight - damn you Europe! We were both a bit knackered and bleary-eyed when we woke up. Had some coffee in the room and showers before going down to breakfast on Deck 2 for 08:45. Good decision. Once we were seated the floodgates opened with people pouring in for 09:00. 

Really nice breakfast in a beautiful setting. I had some Special K followed by an omelette, hash browns, beans and toast. Lovely orange juice and coffee too. Most enjoyable. 

We lingered there before heading straight to the theatre for a talk on the mechanics of running an election - not the political side - more the setting up of polling stations etc. Mildly interesting at best. 

By this point the coast was in view so we headed to The Pavilion for some lunch. We’d clocked the burger place and both me and Nikki fancied trying the vegan Bratwurst with mustard and sauerkraut. I scraped the sauerkraut off though! It was delicious. Thoroughly enjoyed that. I then had some vanilla ice-cream with sprinkles and Nikki had what they called Bronte Pistachio. Even though the roof was closed it was a bit cold in The Pavilion so after watching our progress down the river towards Rotterdam we decided to go back inside. 

Back in the cabin I videoed some of the journey and saw a few windmills. We then met up in the Queen’s Room nice and early for Afternoon Tea. Earlier after a quick drink in the bar, I’d nicked a sign that said “Reserved - single travellers only” which had been used for a 09:30 event in the bar. As we’d walked through the Queen’s Room, I plopped it on a table - hoping that nobody would sit there for Afternoon Tea and we could nab the table. When we got there, I noticed an old chap sat at our reserved table so I sidled over from our table and quietly nicked the sign back again. He clocked me and followed me back to our table and asked for his sign back - but because he’d moved someone nicked his table! Whoops! He did find one near us though and continued to glare at us all afternoon while prominently displaying his single travellers sign!!

After a while they started laying the tables and, just before 15:00, the parade of waiters started - all in their white gloves. We were first up for the tea, sandwiches, scones and cakes so we’d obviously nabbed the best table. Most enjoyable. Even Matthew tried some tea - a beverage that hasn’t passed his lips in more than half a century. He wasn’t impressed so it’ll be another 50 years before he tries it again! I didn’t manage a scone but I certainly managed everything else - including a delicious Coffee Cream Choux. 

We decided to have some down-time after the tea so went back to the cabin and heaved our now-corpulent bodies onto the bed for a nap. Nice!

Met back up in the Commodore Club just after 18:00 and enjoyed a drink plus the copious amounts of nuts and crisps they bring you. Nice to be moored up in Rotterdam and to know the damn boat isn’t going to move for over 24 hours! 

Used the online queue for dinner and ended up on a table with the same waiters we’d had the night before. Most pleasant. They also appeared with a secret veggie menu - plus a separate vegan one. Another excellent dinner. 

We’d planned to go to the show at 22:00 but the LED screens had packed up in the theatre. We wandered down to see what was happening but it was the same group as last night - who obviously didn’t need LED screens. Shame. They’d moved the show to the lobby so we called it a night and were in bed by 22:00 - I was glad of an early night after such a busy day! Eating and sitting down really does take it out of one.

Friday November 28th 2025

Queen Anne

Woke quite early and wandered off to find a coffee to start the day. I was hoping for a coffee shop like Wonder/Symphony of the Seas. Sadly not. Found a place just opening at 07:00 in the Corinthia Lounge and got a couple of coffees to go. Certainly not the weather to sit on the balcony so sat on the bed and watched Sky News. 

Had our usual breakfast in the main dining room and then retired to the Commodore Club - hoping to see glorious views of Rotterdam through the picture windows. Quite a misty and drizzly day - to the extent that you couldn’t actually see the tops of the nearby buildings. And the view down the river was non-existent. 

We’d planned to get off and have an explore. Matthew and Stuart voted to stay in the warm so me and Nikki went back to the cabin for our coats. 

Getting off was very simple. I took our passports with us but wasn’t asked for them once. Scanned out with our cruise cards and went through the deserted terminal building. 

Once outside we were directly opposite the Food Hall which we’d seen on YouTube videos of Rotterdam Port. Sadly there were steps at every entrance so we went into the hotel next door which apparently had a corridor leading through to it. Steps there too! I asked someone and he took us through a back door for deliveries which had a ramp in it. 

Food Hall was cool - very funky and lots of different options. Didn’t stay. Came back out and nipped to the supermarket on the next street. Didn’t buy anything and by this time the wind was biting so we went back to the ship! What an excursion!! 

We went up to the buffet for some lunch. Neither of us massively hungry so just had a sandwich and small bit of pasta. 

Met up with Start and Matthew in the Queen’s Room in time for Afternoon Tea. Same table but today we were last with the sandwiches etc. Managed a scone as well - gorgeous. 

After some afternoon downtime, we met up again in the Commodore Club for pre-dinner drinkies. We used the virtual queue again which was very useful. Same table as last night so the waiters have got to know us. Plus we’d ordered off the secret veggie menu! Another superb dinner. 

After dinner we went up to Deck 8 to the pool area at the back of the boat for a look at Rotterdam by night. Stayed for a couple of pictures and went swiftly back inside! 

Down to the theatre nice and early for the comedian. We were there about 30 mins early and managed to get seats. By 22:00 it was rammed. We were at the back with an aisle in front of us. Had to get people to move who’d decided to stand in front of us. 

Comedian was excellent - a mix of comedy and piano routines - a bit like Victoria Wood. Lots of cruise jokes. He did go off on some Richard Clayderman routines a few times which were quite boring but the humorous stuff was very funny. 

After that - off to bed.

Saturday November 29th 2025

Queen Anne

Woke up around 06:30 and mooched around in the cabin. Hadn’t been too disturbed by our departure from Rotterdam just before Midnight but was aware we were moving when I woke up. 

Had some coffee in the room before showers and general coming around. Message from Stuart at 07:10 to say he had a touch of food poisoning and was going to stay in bed. 

Met Matthew for breakfast at 08:45. Today they put us on the other side of the dining room and service wasn’t as good. Nice breakfast though. I had Special K and some cooked. Coffees and juice very good. 

We went back up to the cabin while Matthew went to the 10:00 lecture on the mystery of MH370. We met him in the theatre when that finished and managed to get seats for the Louise Minchin lecture. Very engaging speaker. Self deprecating and with lots of stories about working on BBC Breakfast over the years. Thoroughly enjoyed. 

After the talk she was selling her new thriller book near the pub so we went and met her and got two signed. Very pleasant morning. Relocated to the buffet on Deck 9 and got a table near the window. Sea wasn’t too bad and we had glimpses of sunshine. I had a pasta dish and we grazed a few of the desert options. We decided to give Afternoon Tea a miss and do the pop quiz instead. 

Went to the Golden Lion and managed to get a table - very busy. Amazed by the number of people that turn up to an event with 2 minutes to go and are surprised when there are no seats! 

Did OK in the quiz but struggled with song names from The Killers and Dua Lipa. We ended with a score of 23 out of 30 while the winners got 28! Good fun though. 

Had a wander through the shop and decided to have some downtime. Back to the room and found a box set of How I Met Your Mother on the ship TV so had a doze on the bed to that! 

Our room attendant Mae had put a full ice bucket in our fridge so I had a steady supply of ice for my back! Lifesaver!

Packed the big case and left it outside the cabin door with the appropriate labels. Got dolled up and met Matthew in the Commodore club at 18:15. Everyone all poshed up and glam. Stayed there talking about cruises and then did the waitlist for dinner. 

Tonight they moved us to the other side of the dining room so not our usual waiters. Did well with the mix and match veggie options. Finished around 21:20 so left Matthew to go to the theatre and we called it a night.

Sunday November 30th 2025

Queen Anne to Home

Didn’t sleep so well. There were funny noises from the ship throughout the night which intensified when we started docking around 05:00. 

Got up around 05:45 and put the kettle on. As we’d put out the big case the night before we didn’t have much to pack, so it was quite a relaxed start to the day. 

We were meeting for breakfast at 07:30 but we were ready so went down at 07:15 assuming the lifts would be very busy. Nope - very quiet. Got a table and waited for Stuart and Matthew. 

Wasn’t sure if Stuart would be joining us after his food poisoning but he did - just some melon and dry toast though. 

After breakfast we went back to the room for teeth cleaning and to pick up our small case and the suit carrier and we were off. Matthew had legged it straight from breakfast to get a train back to London, so it was just the 3 of us meeting in the Queen’s Room. 

No queue to get off and once in the terminal, spotted our bag right by the exit. We walked over to the drop off area - Nikki got lost and ended up in the taxi queue on her own! Rescued her and left her and Stuart while I went for the car. Drove back around and got the car loaded up. 

We were on the road by 08:50 - very efficient. Easy drive up the A34 and we were home at 10:30 despite a stop for milk and sandwiches on the way. Exhausted though so there was much sleeping on the couch.