Cunard Line extended its "operational pause" through March 25, 2021 for Queen Elizabeth, April 18, 2021 for Queen Mary 2 and May 16, 2021 for Queen Victoria.
It also cancelled nearly all of Queen Elizabeth's scheduled 2021 voyages after the pause ends—replacing those with U.K. and Mediterranean voyages. And, it cancelled QM2's first quarter 2022 voyages and will offer a new 2022 World Cruise during that time frame.
Queen Elizabeth Changes, Beyond the Pause
In a website statement, Cunard said that “with Queen Elizabeth having returned to the U.K. during the pause, and with ongoing uncertainty over the reopening of ports and countries on her intended routes next year, it is sadly not practical to continue as planned.”
Therefore, Cunard cancelled all Queen Elizabeth’s sailings scheduled to depart between March 26, 2021 and December 13, 2021; that includes all sailings around Australia, Japan and Alaska. Those cancelled voyages will be replaced with a program of shorter European vacations from Southampton, U.K., and a series of Mediterranean voyages sailing from Barcelona.
Highlights will include scenic cruising around the coasts of England, Ireland and Scotland, and a maiden port call in Genoa, Italy. Queen Elizabeth also will overnight in such ports as Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Lisbon.
Port calls in Singapore and Sri Lanka await those on the ship’s repositioning voyage, as Queen Elizabeth will return to Melbourne, Australia in December 2021. Reservations for the new Queen Elizabeth schedules will open on September 29, 2020.
2022 Changes for Queen Mary 2
In addition, Cunard's statement said: "We recognize that COVID-19 has now impacted two consecutive World Voyages for our guests, causing a great deal of disappointment. Given how popular these routes are, we have made the decision to cancel all planned [Queen Mary 2] voyages departing between January 3 and April 3, 2022, including the voyage to South America, and replace them with our much-loved classic World Voyage to Australia via the Suez Canal.” This new 104-night itinerary will be available to book from September 8, 2020.
In the big shebang, on January 2022, Queen Mary 2 will depart on the line's 118-night World Voyage roundtrip from New York. Guests will visit 16 countries and 27 ports in Asia and Australia. Six individual segments are available to book as well.
FCCs and Refunds
For bookings impacted by the cancellations/changes, Cunard said: “We will be crediting your guest account with a 125 percent Future Cruise Credit (FCC) on monies paid to date on your booking, which you may redeem against any voyage on sale now or on any new voyage that we introduce in the future. You have until December 31, 2021 to use your FCC.”
If guests prefer a refund, they must fill out this form. Any request for a refund must be made via this form no later than November 30, 2020 Any shore experiences, dining, gifts or drinks packages purchased for the voyage via My Cunard or Cunard’s Customer Contact Center will be automatically refunded to the credit card used for those purchases.
For additional details, visit www.cunard.com.
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