1kaper

We sailed last thanksgiving. 
 

This was our meal. I do know there were complaints on other ships about the meal. It may have been that they ran low and meals didn’t have as much. 
 

It’s been awhile - I was pregnant with my now 9 yo when went to St Thomas. I booked an excursion for my husband and I with St Thomas Scuba and Snorkel. 
https://www.stthomasadventures.com

he picked us up, took us on a private boat ride. Took my husband scuba diving while I snorkelled, stopped at Megan’s Bay beach and back. It was a super reasonable price. 
I had booked again with them for our March 2020 trip but as you can imagine, that didn’t happen.  They were great with the refund. 
 

Theybhave different options - not just scuba. You can do beach breaks or snorkel ling. We had planned to take our 6 yo snorkelling with them. 

I sailed with a friend during covid and we had an overnight in Ocean Cay. I rented an umbrella for both days. 
We have a cruise next month and have an overnight on Ocean Cay again (day 2 and 3). 
I went to book the umbrella and booked day 3. When I went to day 2 and tried to add it on, it said it was already in the cart. 
I bought the one day and went back. On day 2 I don’t have the option to buy it. Ok day 3 it says already purchased. 
 

Do I have the umbrella both days? I absolutely need to have shade for a medical reason. I guess I could buy it on board but would rather do it ahead. Plus it saves at least a couple dollars. 

My CCL pet peeve - John Heald. 
I’ve actually sailed with him before I even knew who he was. I initially liked him and his page on another social media. Maybe it was because I was following it closely during and post covid that I started noticing thing. I truly believe he either exaggerates the messages he receives in order to inflame people. Or he intentionally chooses to share the worst, knowing full well it doesn’t represent the majority. Or maybe both. I dislike the rage farming. But I guess it gets him read and clicks so who am I to criticize. 
 

I enjoyed the other posts with information, pictures from different trips and such. But I can’t follow it anymore because the baiting drives me crazy. 

On MSC I honestly don’t know. 
For comparison, my husband and I went on a Carnival cruise and flagged with them it was our 10th anniversary. They did nothing and they have a spot specifically where you can flag special events. 
We actually sailed on our honeymoon with them and 10th anniversary. 

12 hours ago, davy jones said:

My theory is that they use minimal amounts of sugar to keep costs low.  Bread uses little or no sugar.

 

BTW - I find this to be the case on many cruise lines.

I have only sailed Carnival and MSC but before I even sailed MsC I have said it is amazing how Carnival can make a cake without flavour. 
I have rarely in my life met a cake I didn’t like but Carnival introduced me. 

I would absolutely not. I believe the recommendation is at least after 12. 
I assume you are flying out of Orlando. It’s an hour drive - assuming no traffic for any reason. 
that doesn’t include the time it takes to get a ride. 
7:15 is the earliest if everything goes right.  You need to arrive in port and be cleared by customs. There can be delays in that. 

The last time I sailed MSC into Port Canaveral my mother, friend and her niece were flying out around 12. They did the earliest departure, carry off their own luggage. There was some sort of delay - I heard maybe the system went down. There was a HUGE line to get off. It was not a quick disembarkation. 
 

Orlando is also a busy airport. 
 

scheduling their flight for 12 was a big risk. There is no way I’d ever risk 10:30. 

4 hours ago, joe/jack said:

Wife just read many Covid cases being reported on several cruise ships

I'm not surprised.  It is rampant here right now. 

I would assume it is doing like an out and back.  It stops there, goes out to a further port, then comes back past and stops again.  

1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

The 15 a day limit applies whether or not someone has Cheers so I'm not sure why he would say that, unless he was trying to get on your good side. 

I believe the 15 limit on everything is relatively new.  Years ago thag used to be the get around. Start paying for drinks before you hit the limit. I’m not sure how strictly it’s enforced now. 
Buying buckets or bottles of wine doesn’t count against you though. 

1 hour ago, Johnny60 said:

Me too.   Just like the itinerary on this 11 night Divina cruise.   After some reviews having second thoughts!!!

We had a Carnival cruise booked and friends of ours booked the Seascape. We were debating switching our trip to go with them. I wrote a list of pros and cons. The beds were on the list. My friend were teasing me.
(we did end up choosing to book with them but ended up not being able to take the cruise anyway).  

10 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

I don't know if they have different beds across the fleet or not, but the Meraviglia has VERY firm matresses.

I've sailed the Divina and Seaside.  I found the same thing on both.  
For comparison though, I LOVE the beds on Carnival.  I find them soft and comfortable.  

1 minute ago, Scottdalfonso said:

Normally I sail with Royal and this is the case almost everytime...I figured it may be the same with MSC. Call three times and get three different answers

I can 10000% confirm that is the case.  
 

in fairness I sailed with Carnival before and found the same thing as well. It’s frustrating. 

I thought your comparison to Carnival for value for money was interesting.  I’ve sailed Carnival and MSC twice each since the restart. I had sailed Carnival prior. 
On Carnival, we were getting $100 per person with $200 on board credit and $200 freeplay deals. We paid taxes and port fees. 
When my friend and I were looking to take a cruise, we were looking at MSC free drinks and wifi promo or my $100 pp Carnival promo. Carnival was cheaper up front but once you factored in the drink package, they were essentially the same price. What sold it was they both stopped at a private island. On MSC drinks are included on the island. On Carnival they were not. So additional money. We opted for MSC. We found the same when booking a 7 days with friends. 
 

Honestly I found the food in the buffet and MDR on Carnival so terrible on my last two cruises. I do like the pizza (also love MSC) and the Blue Iguana so I don’t go hungry. But I have found I really wouldn’t be sailing Carnival if it wasn’t for the deals I was getting. My $100 deals seemed to have dried up and I can’t seem to justify the costs of a carnival cruise now. I feel their quality has gone down quite a bit. 
 

I will say the beds on Carnival are much more comfortable. 
 

I do find people feel the service is different on MSC.  From what I’ve read it’s more European style. So your cabin stewards aren’t always out and around and chatting. They aren’t over the top friendly. I think a lot of people consider that lower service. I just think it’s a different expectation. 

 

What did you think of the itinerary? 

It has to be done at least 30 days prior to sail date. That’s all I can see
 

Honestly I’d try calling back. We originally booked a cruise in March. Due to health issues we had to move it. 
I was on the phone no less than 10 times. 
I was told I couldn’t move it (even though I was fantastica). I was told I could change it to any departure. I was told it had to be same departure. I was told it has to be same itinerary. I was told it would cost money. I was told it would be free. 
 

in the end I was able to make the first change at a slightly increased cost because of the difference in fare to a totally different itinerary.  We ended up having to move it a second time and paid a little more. 
 

I guess what I’m saying is it seems the answers can vary depending on who you talk to.  I’d rather get it changed now like you said. 

I finally got to the part where I can take my selfie for check in. Except it won’t take the picture until I start to close my eyes. 
 

And I keep getting an error when I enter the credit card. No idea why. 
 

it’s actually hilarious at this point. 

3 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

I have several other cabins linked to my reservation for my cruise next week. When I go to the web check-in and click to edit passenger info, I can see all their rooms listed with a big "Remove" button next to them. Do you not see something like that?

I do. But when I click it it just freezes. 
 

I’ve tried on laptop and my phone. Someone on a social media site said you have to call 

34 minutes ago, mscdivina2016 said:

Make sure after you cancel they double check their reservations, prices ,dates, and everything else as they could have issues.

Be safe and check it!

Im going to roll the dice and just leave it. Not worth the frustration and risk of dealing with customer service. 

27 minutes ago, peder said:

 

What do you mean their cabins are linked to your reservation? Just in terms of seats at dinner? Or do they have another way to view their reservations alongside yours?

For dinner. 

On 10/13/2023 at 6:00 PM, mz-s said:

 

So by the book, no, they are supposed to open all drinks served under beverage programs like Cheers. This is to discourage hoarding.

 

But in practice many times waiters are happy to give you an unopened beer or can of soda. Just don't be surprised if some tell you no, they're just following the rule.

This has been our experience. 
They also get really strict with it the night before and day of docking at Half Moon Cay.  They want to discourage people taking drinks onto the island. 

Not just you.  
I'm trying to check in and it is testing my patience. 

I had originally booked this cruise for March with a group of friends. We were not able to go and moved the cruise to next month.  I still have all their cabins linked to my reservation. It is impossible to remove them.  
Yesterday I couldn't even get into the app to try to check in. 
So frustrating. 

6 hours ago, john91498 said:

Not an argument, just stating my position.

Been cruising for over 20+ years and have never thought about getting insurance. That's not going to change anytime soon. Millions cruise every year and there's maybe only a handful of medical instances.

I'm not arguing with your decision. But I have to say a handful?  I would wager good money that there are medical instances on every single cruise.  Now, again, out of a few thousand people on a ship does that change things?  Probably not.  But even deaths occur fairly regularly.  
There was a smaller ship in a port the same day we were. I witnessed a medical emergency involving a passenger from that ship.  I creeped that ship's Facebook group to find out if the person survived and there were two other deaths on that same sailing.  I found out through other means that the person I witnessed did not survive.  People on the group didn't even know about that incident.  I'm sure we only know a small fraction of what goes on. 

21 minutes ago, Eli_6 said:

I enjoy most of these "arguments."

 

At least they aren't about dinner attire in the MDR and the steakhouse.

 

And, no, I am not trying to start a debate about dinner attire in the MDR and the steakhouse.

Same same

21 minutes ago, Babr said:

PP is aware of those cards but does not consider the $2,500 emergency care as adequate for foreign travel. 
 

A premium card with a nearly $600 annual fee is more appropriate for someone who travels often, not a couple of young people on a lark to Mexico.

Mine is not a $600 a year annual fee.  $120. 

From my policy - "unless otherwise noted in this Certificate of Insurance, the maximum benefit of this medical insurance is unlimited". 
Hospital and medical treatment does not have a maximum benefit otherwise noted.  Dental is max of $2000.  

Another one (basic Amex) has up to 5,000,000.

On 9/18/2023 at 2:58 PM, rizkeeper said:

I drink what I want, and usually more than I should, but on a 7 day cruise, which includes 1 half day and 3 ports...it's impossible to see the value in getting cheers, it's priced 50% too high.  Now with Casino DoU, it's even harder to justify.   

For you.  

Even with port days, it is worth it for us if we buy just regular drinks/non alcohol drinks.  But we also enjoy the Alchemy Bar and will order top shelf whenever we can.  I also like the idea that I don't have to worry about the price at the end.  I would buy fancier drinks if I was paying per drink.  
The price of Cheers kills me and I run the numbers every time.  

We also get DOU in the casino but that just doesn't work for me.  I want to be able to order drinks where I am relaxing.  I also figure I'll spend more money waiting to order and waiting for the drink than I would just buying the drink outright. 

IN the end it all comes down to what your personal preferences are.