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If you go: Queen Mary 2 cruise to Bahamas

BY MARJORIE ROBINS | marjorie.robins@newsday.com

April 20, 2008

The ship

The Queen Mary 2 first sailed in 2004 and is 1,132 feet long, the equivalent of 41 London buses lined up end to end. There are 13 public decks and a crew of about 1,300 from 54 countries. When full, the ship carries about 3,056 passengers. On the shorter cruises out of Manhattan, there are more children aboard than usual (about 400 over the Easter getaway). QM2's facilities include 15 restaurants and bars, five swimming pools, a casino, a ballroom, kennels, a nursery, a theater, more than half a dozen stores and a planetarium.

Parking and driving

The ship leaves from the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal in Red Hook, across from Governors Island. An adjacent 500-car outdoor lot costs $22 for the first night, then $19 each additional night. The lot has security but is not fenced in.

For Long Islanders driving to the terminal: Take the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway to Exit 26- Hamilton Avenue onto the service road. Continue west along the service road until its end at Van Brunt Street. Turn left at Van Brunt, proceed two blocks, then turn right onto Bowne Street to enter the terminal. If friends or family are dropping you off, be advised they will not be allowed to board the ship to see you off because of security regulations.

Attention, travelers

If you plan to take a seasickness pill, better pop it before you leave home; the roads and streets leading to the terminal are in disrepair, and jostling up and down is like a day on rough seas.