Luxury Retail Concepts to Entice Cruisers on New Cunard Ship

As the countdown begins to the May 2024 launch of Cunard’s new luxury ship, Queen Anne, details are emerging about the upscale shopping concepts being prepared for guests. Chic brands, a new gallery-style display space, and a personal shopping concierge are among the experiences guests can enjoy.

Jewelry, Other Treasures Await Queen Anne Guests

Cunard, a Carnival Corporation brand, is pulling out all the stops when it comes to high-end shopping onboard its new-build Queen Anne, set to launch in May 2024. The 3,000-guest ship, soon to become the fourth in the Cunard fleet, will feature new retail spaces and more than two-dozen new brand partnerships sure to tempt guests.

Guests can shop in a boutique by Garrard, the UK’s first official crown jeweler, founded in 1735, and browse goods by top brands such as Hugo Boss, Raishma, Chapel Down, Whittard, and 886 Royal Mint — all among the new partnerships with Cunard.

Other brands to be featured on the ship include members of the prestigious Walpole group, reflecting the top-of-the-line in British goods, such as Burberry; Fortnum & Mason; Gleneagles; Harrods; The Macallan; The Savoy, and Wedgwood, among many other notable names. 

French designer Sybille de Margerie, known for her design projects at top hotels, restaurants, and spas, created Queen Anne’s retail spaces to link seamlessly together through a series of pathways from one area to another.

The focal point of the retail space is the Grand Lobby Boutiques, where guests will find the ship’s Cabinet of Curiosities, and the Experience Lounge. The Cabinet of Curiosities promises to be a highlight of the space, with its rotunda-style gallery design showcasing nearly 40 display cases of high-end jewelry, clothing, art, and collectibles.

“Nowhere else will travellers be able to find such a beautifully curated collection of luxury brands at sea, or learn about heritage brands in such an engaging way as with Queen Anne’s Cabinet of Curiosities,” said Katie McAlister, President of Cunard.

In the Experience Lounge, Queen Anne’s guests can embrace the luxe treatment from dedicated shopping hosts, or personal shopping concierges, who will offer expertise and knowledge of the goods for sale and the brands behind them. A personalization desk will assist guests who wish to personalize a product with an engraving or embossing.

Final Prep Under Way as Ship Launch Nears

Queen Anne reached one of her final construction milestones earlier this month, when she completed her sea trials, a set of rigorous tests that evaluate a ship’s speed, navigation, safety, and other systems.

The 113,000-gross ton ship was built at the Fincantieri shipyard in Marghera, Italy. She will make her debut as she arrives in her homeport of Southampton, UK, in late April 2024, ready to sail her maiden voyage on May 3, 2024. The inaugural cruise will be a 7-night sailing to Lisbon, calling at La Coruna, Spain.

Queen Anne’s naming ceremony will be held a month later, on June 3, 2024, in Liverpool, following a 14-night British Isles cruise that will visit Edinburgh, Invergordon, Greenock, and Belfast.

The ship will spend the summer and fall of 2024 sailing a mix of voyages to the Canary Islands, the Norwegian fjords, and other Scandinavian and Northern Europe destinations, plus the Mediterranean.

Read Also: Cunard Details Wellness Spaces on New Cruise Ship

Luxury amenities and services aboard Cunard’s new ship will extend to accommodations and dining. Like the other Cunard vessels, Queen Anne will offer four cabin categories: Britannia, Britannia Club, Princess Grill, and Queens Grill.

The line has partnered with two Michelin star chef Michel Roux, best known for his former restaurant in London, Le Gavroche, to create a unique menu for Queen Anne‘s Queens Grill restaurant, the most exclusive dining venue onboard. Roux will also revamp the Golden Lion pub’s menu, retaining the comfort of a pub meal but with an upscale twist.