Queen Elizabeth to get major refit and refurbishment ahead of 2019 Cape Town cruises

Cunard Line’s art deco cruise ship Queen Elizabeth to receive a major refurbishment this coming November before her annual Cape Town cruise departures in 2019, according to reports by Cruise Critic.

The Royal Arcade will be redesigned to be more contemporary and “immersive”, according to Cunard, while the spa and staterooms will be redeveloped and new outdoor spaces, in particular a new afternoon sun deck, will be created.

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Cunard Line says the most work will involve the staterooms, all 1,000 will be remodeled to bring Queen Elizabeth up to the standards of fleet mates Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria, which were refurbished in 2016 and 2017, respectively.

The redevelopment of the spa, meanwhile, will introduce a new wellness and beauty proposition to the Cunard Line, ahead of its introduction across the rest of the fleet.

According to Cunard, the spa will be “more holistic,” concentrating on wellness, as well as beauty treatments.

“We are excited about the enhancements that we are making to our youngest ship, particularly in the staterooms and suites, which we think will delight our guests,” a spokesperson said.

Queen Elizabeth is due to enter dry-dock on November 14^th in Brest, France, and will spend just over two weeks on the blocks before setting sail again on November 30^th.

Queen Elizabeth will cruise twice from Cape Town in 2019. The first cruise, on January 19^th, will be a 16-night Cape Town to Fremantle, which can be booked as an individual leg of her longer Southampton to Australia grand voyage, departing the UK on January 3^rd, 2019.

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Queen Elizabeth will be based in Australia until March 30^th, 2019, and then reposition to Tokyo, Japan, for two voyages exploring the cultural delights of the island nation.

On May 5^th, 2019, Queen Elizabeth will embark on a trans-Pacific voyage to Vancouver, where she will be based for a maiden season cruising Alaska until June 30^th, 2019.

Queen Elizabeth will then head back to the UK via the Panama Canal to spend the summer cruising roundtrip out of Southampton to the Canary Islands and Northern Europe.

In November, she’ll leave Southampton once more bound for Australia via Cape Town. Her second Cape Town cruise of the year will depart on November 20^th, a 24-night crossing to Melbourne that can also be booked as a 22-nighter ending in Adelaide, or a 16-night cruise from Cape Town to Fremantle.