I explored an exclusive deck on a luxury cruise ship, where guests have their own butler and a private bar that's off-limits to other passengers

Cunard, the popular British cruise line owned by Carnival, returned to sailing in October with a five-night Western Europe voyage to Amsterdam. I was one of 1,248 vaccinated passengers on the voyage, which took place on board the Queen Elizabeth cruise ship.

As someone who had never been on a cruise before, I couldn't wait to see what the ship had in store. Especially since Cunard is known for luxury, having previously won the Best Luxury Cruise Line award at the British Travel Awards 2019.

The Queen Elizabeth ship has a variety of accommodation, ranging from the windowless inside stateroom that I stayed in, to the more luxurious Queens Grill suites.

My stateroom cost £628, or around $856, for five nights and had a king-sized bed, a TV, a closet, tea and coffee making facilities, and a small bathroom that had a shower and a toilet.

Throughout my voyage, I noticed that there were deck plans inside and around each elevator. The majority of these displayed what was on deck 1 to deck 10 — even though there are 12 decks on the ship.

Later, I learned that you need a key card to access deck 12, which has a private bar, restaurant, and lounge area exclusive to guests staying in the Queens Grill suites.

The Queens Grill suites are considered some of the most luxurious suites Cunard has to offer. Guests are provided with their own personal butler, pre-dinner canapés, and a complimentary bar, among many more freebies, according to its website.

On my last day of the voyage, I asked a member of the Cunard team if I'd be able to take a tour of one of the Queens Grill suites, but was told that all of the suites were occupied.

I later met Wendy Townshend, a fellow guest who was staying in a Queens Grill suite with her husband, Peter. She kindly offered to show me her suite, which was on deck 7, as well as all the exclusive perks she had access to on deck 12.

We needed Wendy's key card to access deck 12 on the elevator. The deck has a private bar, restaurant, and lounge area that is only offered to Queens Grill guests.

As I took photos of the cozy bar area, I kept expecting someone to question why I was there. But with Wendy by my side, that wasn't a problem — she seemed to know most of the staff members personally, and nobody asked to see my key card.

If I had ordered a drink, however, it would have been a different story, as guests are required to show their key card when purchasing items.

Since the rest of the ship could be quite busy at times, I could see the allure of having a private lounge area exclusive to just a handful of guests.

All guests have access to the ship's Britannia restaurant on deck 2, but only Queens Grill suite guests can dine in the Queens Grill restaurant.

Wendy said it's unlikely that Queens Grill guests would want to alternate between the two, because the food in the exclusive restaurant is "exceptional."

I dined at the Britannia restaurant or the Lido buffet every night during my voyage, both of which are accessible to all guests. The Britannia was my favorite, as the food was delicious and the service was excellent.

The Britannia usually offered a choice of four appetizers, six entrees, two salads, two soups, and six desserts on its dinner menu. The options changed every evening during my voyage.

The Queens Grill menu, meanwhile, had both a dinner menu and an A La Carte menu to choose from. The items on the October 18 menu included lobster, roast duck, and beef wellington.

Unlike deck 12, we didn't need a key card to access deck 7 — it was only required to get into Wendy and Peter's suite.

The hallway looked pretty similar to the one where my room was located. However, Wendy said you can tell that they are Queens Grill suites by the long gap between one door and the next.

The Queens Grill suites can span up to 2,249 square feet, according to Cunard, and are described on the cruise line's website as an "exclusive sanctuary." Prices for a suite on an upcoming Amsterdam cruise start from £1,049 per person, or around $1,400, as per the Cunard website.

There are four types of Queens Grill suites: Q1 (a grand suite), Q2 (a master suite), Q3, and Q4 (both penthouse suites). The difference between these suites is mostly due to size, with Q1 and Q2 suites being slightly larger and with dining areas, Cunard's press team informed me via email.

Peter and Wendy's Q4 suite had a living room, a minibar, a bedroom, a dressing table, two TVs, a private balcony, and a bathroom that had both a shower and a bathtub.

Queens Grill suites get complimentary champagne upon arrival, and a stocked minibar with spirits and soft drinks of their choice.

I initially declined Wendy's offer to pour me a gin, but then she said: "Why not, darling? It's all free."

It was hard to argue with that.

Wendy told me that she wouldn't usually tell other guests that she had a Queens Grill suite, for fear of people thinking she was "snobbish."

After spending just five minutes with Wendy and Peter, I couldn't see how anybody could make that assumption. They were both down-to-earth, and treated me like an old friend despite only meeting me a half-hour before.

Wendy and Peter had several personal butlers throughout their five-night voyage. Their job was to deliver pre-dinner canapés to the couple every evening, which was included in the price of their suite.

The butler was dressed smartly in a tuxedo suit and wore a face mask (which was only removed for the photo).

Since my stateroom didn't even have a window, I considered this to be the height of luxury.

There were a couple of fake plants and paintings on the walls, both of which added a splash of color to the suite.

The stationery included Wendy and Peter's full names and their suite number.

The personalized stationery is a perk that I would have enjoyed, but it wasn't offered to guests who had inside staterooms on my voyage.

Just like the pillows in my stateroom, the pillows on the bed had the Cunard logo on them, which features a lion rampant, a crown, and laurel leaves.

The lion rampant was chosen "because of its association with the Royal Standards of English and Scottish Monarchs," Cunard historian and the cruise line's former PR manager, Michael Gallagher, previously told Insider.

Gallagher said the lion rampant was also considered to be the king of beasts, "which fitted with Cunard's Atlantic supremacy."

Having a window added some natural light to the room that I wasn't able to get in my windowless stateroom.

This bathroom was so much bigger than the one in my stateroom, which just had a shower.

Wendy and Peter's shower had a screen and marble tiling, whereas my own shower had little space and a rather flimsy shower curtain.

As my tour of the suite came to an end, Peter told me that they chose to sail with Cunard because they're "traditionalists." Wendy said she liked the cruise line's smart dress code, saying you can "never be overdressed on Cunard."

While I thoroughly enjoyed my windowless stateroom, I can see why some guests would splash out a little extra for the Queens Grill suite. It seemed to represent the traditionalism, luxury, and formality that Cunard is known for.