drsel

Thanks ldubs, it would be either 7+7=14 nights on the same MSC Fantasia or 7 nights on MSC Fantasia, 7 night in a hotel (land tour)  and then 7 nights on MSC Poesia, departing from a different port 3 hours away 

We have the option of 2 back to back 7 night  Cruises with different itineraries (Norwegian fjords and Baltics) on the same ship MSC Fantasia,  which is very convenient;

OR

2 Cruises (of 7 nights each) with 2 different itineraries (again Norwegian fjords and Baltics) on 2 different ships MSC Fantasia and MSC Poesia in 2 nearby (different) ports, with a 7N land tour in between the two Cruises

In the 2 back to back Cruises, the same shows, same entertainment, same activities and same cuisine will be repeated in the second week (2nd cruise) , whereas on a different ship there will be different shows, activities, entertainment and cuisine. Also a 7 nights land tour in between.

so which option should I choose?

1 hour ago, Nunagoras said:

Yeah! I know. I was talking about specialty full charter nude cruises which are a very specific niche market, only occupied by AIDA, Costa and as far as I know TUI.

58 minutes ago, SirWolf said:

 

Carnival Pride (chartered cruise) 14-Nights Caribbean in February 2023.

Is nudity compulsory or optional?

55 minutes ago, SirWolf said:

 

Carnival Pride (chartered cruise) 14-Nights Caribbean in February 2023.

Is nudity compulsory or optional at the poolside on this nude Cruise ?

If optional, it may lead to voyeurism.

1 hour ago, juancarlosgarciasanchez said:

Hello -

Can anyone direct me to where I can read exactly what is "currently" covered under the EASY PLUS PACKAKE onboard the Meraviglia for a cruise in January? Thanks 

See the beginning of this thread

Another Major difference--

MSC is the only cruise line to have never sold or scrapped any ship during the entire Covid pandemic. On the country, they built and launched more new ships.

Almost all other cruise lines including Costa have sold ships or scrapped them.

Costa sold neoClassica, neoRiviera, Mediterranea and neoRomantica ( later scrapped by Celestyal without using it)

Costa scrapped Victoria.

Right now Costa has 13 ships

Some more differences--

 MSC has got many new ships--Meraviglia, Bellisima, Seaview, Seaside, Grandiosa, Virtuosa, Seashore, Seascape, Euribia, World Europa and even more being constructed; 

Whereas Costa has only 4 new ships--Venezia, Toscana, Firenze & Smeralda.

MSC is right now the fastest growing cruise line and is expected to overtake both Royal Caribbean and Carnival in the near future.

Another Major difference--

MSC is the only cruise line to have never sold or scrapped any ship during the entire Covid pandemic. Instead they built and launched more new ships.

Almost all other cruise lines including Costa have sold ships or scrapped them.

Costa sold neoClassica, neoRiviera, Mediterranea and neoRomantica ( later scrapped )

Costa scrapped Victoria.

Right now Costa has 13 ships

7 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

MSC has cleaned up their onboard experience quite a lot, imo.  They still have a ways to go in terms of the offshore customer service and a lot of that could be fixed with empowering local customer service agents, instead of requiring them to go to Italy (or wherever) to solve problems.

As much as some of us bag on MSC from time-to-time, there are a lot of things that they do very well.  Especially at their price point.  They are sometimes cheaper than Carnival, especially when drink/wi-fi packages are considered, and I'd take MSC over Carnival in a heartbeat. 

Actually I have not even contacted the MSC customer care for a long time, because my agent is quite efficient and does all the work for me.

TA also gives me 6.6% of the fare as a discount, which is better than OBC.

MSC is usually much cheaper than Carnival, especially considering the Wi-Fi and drinks package; but I really love Carnival also.

Some more differences--

 MSC has got many new ships--Meraviglia, Bellisima, Seaview, Seaside, Grandiosa, Virtuosa, Seashore, Seascape, Euribia, World Europa and even more being constructed; whereas Costa has only 4 new ships--Venezia, Toscana, Firenze & Smeralda

MSC is right now the fastest growing cruise line and is expected to overtake both Royal Caribbean and Carnival in the near future.

16 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

There's no way I'd do Costa at these prices.  
So at this stage, I just don't see any advantage to booking Costa.

Exactly what I am thinking.

But don't worry, Costa bargains will come.

As the sailing date approaches,  the prices will keep falling and you may actually get some last minute deals

5 hours ago, Stockjock said:

I can tell you that the price has increased by at least 50% on the least expensive comparable cruise.

I would be willing to try Costa at some point, although it doesn't appear to me that some of their cruises are quite the value that they were as recently as last year.

You are correct on both counts.

I also noticed that Costa 2023 fares have gone up substantially for no apparent reason.

Hence I mentioned earlier that I cannot find many bargains on Costa right now.

The only bargain is a Transatlantic from Santos to Barcelona.

We have already been on many Costa cruises, most were really good bargains.

Like the 29 night grand voyage for $1017 + €290 service charge.

But right now, they are not quite the value they were till as recently as October 2022

6 hours ago, Steeler Nation At Sea said:

Not directly above the heat, but, directly on the bench, no towel.  😳

 

That isn't even the grossest thing I ever saw in the thermal suite, though.  😂

Even the naked man in the Costa Firenze sauna was sitting on the bench without a towel .

But what was the most gross thing you saw?

1 hour ago, Steeler Nation At Sea said:

 

Have had the same in NCL co-ed sauna.  One was sitting directly on the bench.  😱

You mean a naked man on the bench with hot coals beneath?

MSC is the only cruise line which offers a status match.

MSC will match the highest status you have achieved in any of the major Cruise lines or major Hotel chains.

Costa does not offer any such status match, nor do most of the other Cruise lines

MSC is the only cruise line which offers a status match.

MSC will match the highest status you have achieved in any of the major Cruise lines or major Hotel chains.

Costa does not offer any such status match, nor do most of the other Cruise lines.

Another major difference is in their loyalty system.

In Costa club, even if you sail with them every year, your accumulated points have to expire after 3 years, and the status level  you have achieved will change (fall) accordingly.

Whereas in MSC Voyagers club, you will always retain your lifetime accumulated points and highest status if you sail them at least once every 3 years.

In the American Cruise lines, your points and status never expire, even if you stop sailing with them.

On 7/25/2021 at 11:52 PM, drsel said:

In simple and short terms, MSC is a four star cruise, while Costa is a 3 star budget Cruise.

 

MSC has 6 grand shows on a typical 7 night Cruise, while Costa has only 4 Grand shows.

 

The MSC buffet is open for 20 hours a day while the Costa buffet is open for 7-8 hours a day.

 

Costa is very very Italian,  while MSC is more multinational.

 

With MSC, you usually get the best prices when The Cruise is first announced in the beginning,  and the prices gradually go up with time.

Costa is the reverse, the prices fall with time and four to six weeks prior to sailing they are usually the lowest.

 

MSC offers a status match, while Costa does not.

In fact no cruise line offers such a status match.

 

MSC offers up to 50% discount on the basic fare for healthcare workers with hard copy proof.

No other cruise line offers this and certainly not Costa

 

Costa has some excellent bargains for Cruises coming up later this year 2021, while MSC prices for 2021 Cruises have already gone up significantly.

 

There are plenty more differences and I could go on and on, but this should suffice

Another major difference is in their loyalty system.

In Costa club, even if you sail with them every year, your accumulated points have to expire after 3 years, and the status you have achieved will fall accordingly.

Whereas in MSC Voyagers club, you can retain your lifetime accumulated points and highest status if you sail them at least once in 3 years

On 10/29/2022 at 8:03 AM, Double hull said:

Thanks to everyone for their feedback!!

I bit the Bullitt & did the full shebang!

Will inquire on board about upgrading drink package.

How much did you pay per person per night and for how many nights?

What is your deal breaking price point for unlimited alcohol and unlimited Wi-Fi?

If I wanted to cancel or change a cruise in 2023 which was booked using a FCC (future Cruise credit,), I would first choose a new Cruise in 2024 and then ask my travel agent to transfer my FCC from the 2023 cruise to the 2024 one.

7 hours ago, At7Seas said:

I understand! A classic violin concert deserves a bad review, because there was no dance…
 
Personal preferences have absolute nothing to do with quality. The statement “only three shows” is completely misleading. I for my part have seen Costa music-only shows with absolute first class singers. Definitely quality entertainment, not non-existent.

 

There was no classic violin or piano concert.

If you compare a good acrobatic show 

Vs

a spectacular grand production show featuring outstanding performances, fabulous costumes and elaborate sets,

both on the same Costa Firenze;  you will see a clear difference!

Right now Costa Favolosa has a cheap 15 night transatlantic cruise from Santos to Barcelona on 13 Apr 2023

Prices starting just from 339 pounds + 165 euros service fees.

Costa Firenze had 3 spectacular production shows & guest artists (acrobats, singers, etc) on the other 4 nights.

53 minutes ago, At7Seas said:

 

• When booking both websites prove that they are bad. Regarding information Costa has an advantage, but in total both have the least working systems I‘ve seen on the cruise market. Costa - -, MSC - - -
• Customer care of both is slow and not really well informed, while Costa recently improved a lot. Difference is that Costa always was service orientated and friendly, while I have too many mails from MSC following a blame-the-customer policy. Costa - (could change to positive if tendencies go on), MSC - - -
• Embarkation. Costa was in the most cases not overly time consuming and relatively well organised, I can‘t blame a cruise line for emigration officers having not working computers during passport control or for bad weather. Delays caused by waiting times connected to covid testing during embarkation I exclude as well. The honour of performing my longest and most chaotic embarkation ever belongs to MSC. Costa +, MSC - - -
• Both lines have very thoughtfully designed ships, Costa +++, MSC +++
• Service aboard is performed in both cases very well by the staff you are serviced from. Hard working, friendly people. Costa +++, MSC +++
• If you need the back office Costa can be a bit confusing, but staff is interested in sorting out things and to have a happy customer, MSC has also here a culture of blocking everything. Costa +, MSC - - -
• Food can lead to enormous discussions about personal taste. What a person doesn‘t eat or loves has no impact on quality. That everybody can get a meal that fits to personal tastes is a factor of quality of course. And not to repeat the complete menu during a cruise that doesn‘t exceed a couple of weeks. So I reduce this part to the quality of preparation and selection of meals in the MDR. In this limited meaning food has a huge plus on the side of Costa. Deliciously prepared meals with a huge variety I value much higher than junk food and flat tasting, uninspired meals with the intention to fit every course with average food the average taste of all nationalities aboard. Costa +++, MSC o
• Cleanliness is definitely a weak point of MSC, while Costa fulfils all expectations completely. Here I don‘t give a + as I regard this as being essential. Costa o, MSC - - -
• Another negative point of MSC is that they treat a part of the guests as super special, because they booked in a separate part of the ship. If one feels the need having a butler and is willing to pay for it‘s fine, also Costa offers this service. But MSC makes the ordinary guest feel being 2nd class human already at the moment you are not allowed to enter one of the reserved elevators. Costa sells additional services, but a guest is a guest. Normal behaviour towards guests is not positive so no + given. Costa o, MSC - - -
• Add ons are hard to compare, since both offer different things included in the fare or at additional price. At least the drink packages with not too much differing prices (my last Costa booking at 30 € higher price a day for My Drinks compared to the cruise only price, MSC Easy according to their website 32 €) gives Costa a plus again for offering much more choice. Not to forget that MSC excludes a lot of cruises from this offer, while always available on Costa cruises. Costa ++, MSC o
• While Costa excursions are sometimes overpriced and sometimes at about the same rates as local companies offer MSC‘s prices can cause heart attacks. Costa o, MSC - -
• Entertainment is about the same quality level, but much more varied on Costa. Costa ++, MSC +

 
Some cruises both Costa and MSC offer more or less identically, on other routes only one of them sails. Even if Costa offers a cruise with the same itinerary at a higher price, I‘d choose value for my money and go with Costa!
 
While the Swiss with chocolate or watches are unbeatable, MSC however performs way worse than Italian Costa. The problem is that you have expectations that are not connected at all to quality. Aren‘t you aware that quantity, personal preferences, or price aren‘t the same as quality? You claim that ice cream for free twice a day would be quality, your preferred language must be used first for offering quality, what you want to watch in the theatre (which ends in the claim that things you don‘t want to see wouldn‘t exist at all) would be quality. All this is not the same as quality!
 
You are entitled to be happy if a language is spoken by a minority of guests is the one used fist. You are free to be happy with MSC for serving free ice cream. There are people happy with Mc Donalds, but this fact doesn‘t result in Mc Donalds being a gourmet restaurant. Like this calling Costa‘s desserts fat, just because they don‘t serve fat ice cream for free. It doesn‘t make sense.

 

I agree with you regarding the respective websites,  customer care, beautiful ships and  onboard service.

But I disagree regarding the embarkation time.

On one of the excellent Costa bargains, which was a 29 nights grand voyage from Venice to the Greek Isles, Suez canal, Red Sea, Jordan, Oman, Maldives & Bombay for just $1017 plus €290 service charge; the embarcation took over 2 hours and the ship was also late by two and half hours.

Which meant we were waiting for 4.5 hours in Venice.

On all MSC Cruises we embarked within 20-30 minutes.

I also think that both Cruise lines are extremely clean, no problem at all regarding cleanliness or hygiene.

I agree with you that the Yacht club passengers on MSC are given VIP treatment, and they well deserve it considering how much more they are paying.

The MSC Alcohol and Wifi package is  extremely low priced if you buy it along with your Cruise, at the time of booking your Cruise.

I also agree with you that the MSC excursions are very expensive but  it doesn't matter to us, because we always go out on our own.

Regarding the grand shows--

although  MSC had 7, the 3 grand shows on Costa Firenze  were truly top class with outstanding performances, fabulous costumes and elaborate sets.

These shows were in the same league or even better than those on the premium cruise line Celebrity 

37 minutes ago, drsel said:

Well I am getting Costa last minute Dubai and Abu Dhabi Cruises for just 152 pounds, including all port fees and taxes, excluding service charges.

Costa Transatlantic cruises to South America were also very cheap, around 30 pounds per night

Costa Cruises are worth buying up to 40 pounds per night.

I got many excellent bargains on Costa in the past, which is why I sailed with them so often.

but nowadays I cannot seem to find many bargains on Costa, unlike MSC.