Cunard Grills: Is It Really Worth The Upgrade?

We've now sailed every ship in the Cunard fleet — Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth and the newest arrival, Queen Anne — and there's one question we get asked more than almost any other: “Should I upgrade to Grills?”

It usually comes from someone who's cruised Britannia, loved it, and then read something online suggesting they've been missing out on a hidden, glamorous First Class experience just a few decks up. So let's clear this up properly, based on what we've actually seen on board rather than what the brochures imply.

Cunard trades on its ocean liner heritage, and that comes with a class-based booking structure that dates back to the days of the Titanic. Queens Grill sits at the top, Princess Grill just below it, then Britannia Club and Britannia for everyone else. It sounds like a strict hierarchy, and the marketing leans into that.

The "Grill" name has its own maritime pedigree. It traces back to the Grill Room aboard Cunard's RMS Aquitania, launched in 1914 — an intimate, extra-tariff restaurant serving grilled fare as an alternative to the grand first-class dining saloon. London's hotel grill rooms, like those at the Savoy and the Ritz, were part of the same Edwardian dining fashion, but Cunard's own Grill Room is where the shipboard tradition — and the name that survives in Queens Grill and Princess Grill today — actually began.

What we've found on board is more nuanced. Cunard's Grills areas are nowhere near the scale of the exclusive enclaves other premium and luxury lines build for their top-suite guests. If you've experienced something like MSC Yacht Club or Celebrity's Retreat — with their own pool decks, bars, restaurants and card-controlled access covering a huge chunk of the ship — Cunard's Grills space will feel modest by comparison.

On Queen Mary 2 in particular, the Grills deck is little more than a quiet stretch of deck 11 with one hot tub and no bar service most days. Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth and Queen Anne do better, with a proper card-access lounge, bar and concierge desk up top, but it's still a fraction of the ship rather than a resort-within-a-resort. On Queen Anne there are also hot tubs in the reserved Grills area.

This is the bit that surprises most people: Grills guests don't get reserved theatre seats, priority booking for shore excursions or specialty dining, or a fast-tracked escort off the ship.

Everyone on board — whatever grade they're in — goes to the same balls, plays the same trivia, and queues for the same tenders, except for Queens Grill guests, who do get boarding priority at tender ports. Even embarkation priority is watered down in practice, since the Grills line doubles up with Diamond and Platinum loyalty guests, and Cunard has plenty of those.

If you're booking Grills purely to be treated differently around the ship, you'll be disappointed.

The crew's warmth and service standard is consistent everywhere on a Cunard ship, Britannia and Britannia Club included.

Two things make the extra cost worthwhile, in our experience.

The Dining.

Queens Grill and Princess Grill restaurants offer open seating with the same table and waiters for every meal, which builds a level of rapport you simply don't get with fixed or Anytime dining in Britannia.

The menus are extensive, and the kitchen will go well off-menu for Queens Grill guests in particular — we've watched neighbouring tables order steak tartare and curries that never appeared on any printed menu, and we've had a Baked Alaska remade as a dairy-free sorbet version without a second thought.

Queens Grill guests can also order caviar freely; in Princess Grill it's a paid extra, and we found the maître d' noticeably steering us away from the daily special-order dishes rather than offering them.

The cabin.

Grills suites are bigger, generally better located — midships on Queen Mary 2 matters if you're doing a Transatlantic crossing — and come with proper extras: a butler, a stocked mini-bar, two bottles of spirits of your choice, embarkation champagne and personalised stationery. None of that is available at all in Britannia, whatever grade you book. On Queen Anne we were disappointed with the suite size and in particular the tiny ensuite shower room.

Not if you're chasing an exclusive “ship within a ship” experience — Cunard simply isn't built that way, and we'd point anyone wanting that toward a line that specialises in it like MSC with their Yacht Club, Norwegian Cruise Lines "The Haven" or Celebrity Cruises "The Retreat".

But if what you're after is a noticeably better dining experience and more room to spread out, Grills earns its premium. What it won't buy you is a different Cunard. The Britishness of it all — the formal nights, the Golden Lion pub, the enrichment talks, the orchestra in the Queens Room — is identical whichever restaurant your cabin grade puts you in.

Having sailed on every ship in the fleet in a range of grades, from a cabin to a full-blown suite, our honest take is that Britannia guests aren't missing the Cunard experience. They're just eating in a different restaurant and enjoying slightly different accomodation.