When researching Long Beach Hotels, the first property I looked at was the Queen Mary. I had heard good things and I knew it was an easy walk to the cruise port on embarkation morning.

I typically book my hotels on Hotwire and save a lot of money doing so.

I received a coupon code in an email from Hotwire that offered an additional $15 off of a $100 or more hot rate hotel. The code was only good for 24 hours. I decided this would be a good time to research hotels.

My search didn’t last long. The first hot rate hotel I found in Long Beach turned out to be the Queen Mary which I thought was out of my price range since the cheapest room on their website came to $280 after tax.

On Hotwire the hot rate version came to $152 after taxes. The $15 coupon brought it down to $137 which is right in the range of other Long Beach hotels. You can walk to the terminal from Queen Mary so that would also save me port day transportation. I went ahead and booked the Queen Mary on  Hotwire.

Sometimes I’m able to pick my room type. Other times I’m not. When I’m not I’m usually prepared for the worst room type they have. In this case an inside room with twin beds and no window.

When I checked in they informed me their inside rooms don’t have air conditioning. I didn’t even know you could legally sell a hotel room that doesn’t have air conditioning.

They told me if I was lucky I might be able to get a fan. Of course the inside rooms on their website look better than this and make no mention of a lack of air conditioning. I have asked them to change their website to reflect that. They ignored my request. This room type isn’t on their accommodations page but it is listed when you book a room.

This is the description they have on their website:

About this room:

Sleeps 2. 2 Twin Comfortable, windowless room allows for uninterrupted relaxation in the heart of the ship.

Here is the room they gave me.

You can imagine how warm it is in there with no air circulating. It was like an old storage locker. Even most of those have air conditioning these days. There was no way I could stay in this room.

I spent an hour on the phone with Hotwire. Most of that time was spent on hold while they contacted the hotel…twice. Finally they got the manager to move me to a room with A/C at no additional charge. Hotwire also issued me 40 hot dollars which can be used on any future booking with them made in the next year.

I feel comfortable saying I’ve made hundreds of bookings with Hotwire. I’ve only had three problems and they have always taken care of me.

Thank you Hotwire. But I can’t recommend anyone book this particular Hotwire deal. If I return to Long Beach I will likely look for a different hotel.

Here is a look at the new room. Really neither of these rooms are as nice as the ones they show on their accommodations page. but this one has a working air conditioner which will get me through the night.

Before bed I had a beer in the Queen Mary’s observation bar. The prices seem high in this bar. They are actually comparable or slightly higher than the pub in the Las Vegas airport. A Guinness here is $11 before tax. At the Vegas airport a Guinness was $11.80 after tax.

The bottle beers here range from $7-8. Draft beer is $9-11. Cocktails are $14. Glasses of wine are $14-15.

This is a local beer called Hanger 24. It cost $11.

I slept pretty good here. I did wake up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom and struggled to find the bathroom light switch. It’s actually in the proper place but it’s a little lower than I’m used to and it’s a button instead of a switch.

Let’s take a look around the ship.

This is the back of the ship. Up ahead is a gazebo if you want to have an outdoor wedding here.

A look back. Through those windows is the Veranda Grill which used to be the first class nightclub and restaurant. Now it’s a space that can be booked for events.

That is the former home of the “Spruce Goose” and current Carnival port.

Downtown Long Beach

This is a good spot to watch ships come in.

The Lido Marketplace opened at 6am. This is where you can get coffee.

A little history on what is now the Lido Marketplace.

They have grab and go food options here along with Starbucks coffee.

Coffee prices seem to be pretty close to Starbucks.

They do also have a couple of restaurants where you can eat dinner. Chelsea is one of them. The other is Sir Winston’s which offers a more upscale dining experience.

I’m heading to the front of the ship and up to find the bridge.

It looks like an uncomfortable ride in that life boat.

That looks like an even more uncomfortable ride than the last one!

This is a look forward from up here. To the left is a Soviet B-427 Submarine.

Here’s a better look at that sub.

Here’s a look back from up here.

And we found the bridge.

I found the officer’s quarters on the starboard side just behind the bridge.

Moving back a little further we come to the communications rooms.

Moving down a couple of decks I found the Royal Salon which is closed for a private event. The Salons here are what most hotels call banquet rooms. The Royal Salon was originally the first class smoking lounge.

This is the Queen’s Salon. It was closed for a private event when I walked by last night.

The Queen Mary has three other Salons. The Grand Salon which hosts a Sunday Brunch from 10am until 2pm, The Britannia Salon which was originally the second class lounge, and the Windsor Salon which was originally the first class dining room.

Next you come to the Royal Wedding Chapel. If you want an indoor wedding you can do that here. If you want an outdoor wedding you can have it at the gazebo we saw earlier.

Moving to the front of the ship they actually have a piece of anti-aircraft artillery.

We are back all the way in front of the ship now.

Looking back you can see the bridge of the ship up top and the observation bar down at the bottom.

Heading back inside to the interior portion of the promenade deck.

This is the Observation Bar where I had the beer last night. It was originally the first class lounge.

This is the music room.

Through those doors is the Promenade Cafe which is a casual restaurant that serves breakfast and lunch.

Heading downstairs the fitness center is actually between floors here.

This is room B-340. It is supposed to be the most haunted room on the ship. The door is unmarked but you can book this room for a fee.

Right round the corner from room B-340 is the Caronia Room which was originally the third class cinema and is now a banquet room. Caronia is actually the name of the Queen Mary’s sister ship which was built in 1947 and sold for scrap in 1974.

Right by the Caronia room is the third class nursery which is said to be haunted by a man searching for his missing child.

B-340 and the Corona Room were all the way at the front of B-Deck. All the way at the back of B-Deck is the Isolation Ward where they would keep anyone onboard who has a disease that could spread.

Check out was quick and painless. They slid this under my door.

And if you just walk outside from the lobby area, That line is the port entrance.

Parking at the Queen Mary is $20 for the day. You can get that reduced to $10 with validation from one of the restaurants. Valet is $30. Overnight parking is $25.

Across the parking lot you can catch the free passport bus downtown. I was excited about that and used it the night before my cruise. But I had to wait a long time because the driver was taking a break when I was ready to go. I probably had to wait 20 minutes. Then the bus didn’t go exactly where I wanted to go so I had to walk a few blocks. I just took a Lyft on the return trip to avoid all of that.

I came in with high expectations for the Queen Mary. I enjoyed my little self tour and the convenience of being walking distance to the port. That said, I don’t think I would ever stay there again. The prices were high from rooms, to alcohol, and food. I thought the passport bus would make getting downtown convenient but it was more of a hassle than it was worth.

Then obviously I have a problem when a place is trying to sell rooms without air conditioning without letting the guest know prior to the purchase.

If you are going to stay at The Queen Mary I would say go for the full experience. Eat your meals here. Do your drinking here. If you want to explore downtown Long Beach I would recommend staying downtown and just taking an Uber or Lyft to the port on embarkation day.

You could always arrive at the port early, drop your bags off with a porter, and take a short walk over to the Queen Mary for a tour.

You can download a copy of the Queen Mary guide here when their website is back up.

• hotel
• Long Beach
• Queen Mary