KINGBOBOFTHENORTH

As I mentioned above, I showed up at a cruise terminal as a single (in a cabin booked for two) and there was no fare recalculation and nothing said about it. MSC used to offer some really good fares for singles but with the huge demand for cruising, they no longer do. In the few cases where they do offer a fare for one person, it's twice the fare of two people like every other cruise line does. So if the fare for two was $500 per person x 2 = $1000, they now charge $1000 for one. So they're really not losing any money by sailing with 1 person except only taxes for 1, gratuities for 1 and perhaps less on board spending.

And that's my concern. A few months ago my wife became ill ahead of a cruise and could not sail. I sailed anyway but did not inform MSC until I showed up at the pier. They deleted her off the manifest and that was it. I think that if I had called MSC Reservations ahead of time that they more likely would have recalculated the fare.

If you call them now to report the elimination of one passenger, you might get a refund of the part of the fare based on the refund schedule. What scares me though is what if they recalculate the entire cruise fare based on just one passenger? And on many sailings, they're not allowing cabins with one passenger. What do they do then? That's why the advice I gave to helencw above was not to report that one passenger is not coming until you arrive at the cruise terminal. The people at the check-in desks have no power to redo fares. They just check-in who is there and delete the missing person. But I don't know the above will happen but it concerns me that it could happen. Once on board go to Reception to assure gratuities for only 1 person in that cabin will be billed. That's where you will save some money. If anyone has called Reservations ahead of sailing to delete a passenger, I'd like to hear what happened. My fears might be unfounded.

I moved a booking from11/9/23 to 9/28/23 and then again later to 8/31/23. So unless this is a new rule, simply call back and speak to someone else and try again. PS- Just thinking the above information through: it may be necessary to CANCEL the current booking and have them process a refund. Your new date would be a new booking with a new deposit. Terms of the refund vary depending on what you originally booked and how far out from your original departure date is.

Yes, inform the person at the check-in desk that Passenger X is unable to make it to the cruise. I don't recommend you call Reservations ahead of time and inform them. Also, once on board, double check with Reception that they only show 1 passenger in that cabin so that gratuities are only charged for 1 person.

The risk with any upgrade offer is you don't know where you're going to end up.You can bid on a balcony upgrade but they might put you right under the pool deck or buffet. You can bid on an outside/window cabin and end up under the main theater. So I don't do it. The only time I will do it is once onboard the ship. I've not tried that on MSC but I did do it on NCL a few months when I told the person at Reception that I wanted Deck 10 starboard only. They took the information and called me about a half hour later to confirm my offer was accepted.. But it's not possible to set these kinds of terms ahead of time and there is no number to call to negotiate. Check the cabin map a day before sailing to see what cabins are still showing available and then try to negotiate on board.

The advantage of a regular taxi is that there's a line of them waiting to take passengers away. The advantage of Uber/Lyft is you know what it's going to cost you ahead of time even if the traffic situation along the way deteriorates.

Yes, the port schedule shows Terminal 10 for upcoming Seaside cruises.

Most places will accept Euros if that's all you have but as suggested above, just use a credit or debit card for nearly all your purchases. I was recently in numerous foreign countries and never once needed the local currencies.

On cruises out of the United States, MSC has free ice tea in the buffet machines for Lunch and Dinner. I've been on MSC cruises out of Europe, Dubai and Saudi Arabia and there you have to purchase canned Lipton ice tea from a bar. (Please, no critique of my food choices!)

Your best bet is to go into your booking every so often to see if a cabin was assigned. Essiesmom received an email (above) because of the upgrade but otherwise I don't recall being informed and only saw the cabin number by going into the res.

We don't know what hotel you're staying at.

I've only sailed for Port Everglades twice and both times our ship returned to a different berth from where we sailed from. I don't know if this still happens there since it's been ten or so years.There's a free shuttle to take arrivals to the garage where you parked but you're fighting with everyone else to get on it. On my second cruise I parked offsite at an Airport/Cruise Parking facility which is just 5 minutes away. They have a shuttle to take you to your departure terminal and pick up at your arrival terminal. While it's still a hassle, very few people from your ship are going to this facility so you're not competing with every passenger on your ship. Much better, and cheaper. That said, if nowadays the ships return to their original cruise terminal, it's a moot point.

Some of the best rates of the year are in September because of hurricane risk. I wouldn't worry about it. Obviously keep an eye on the tropical weather forecasts.

IMO, the area around the stadium is not a safe area. For 1 night, why not just stay in a hotel? But not on Dale Mabry which is in that same area. Check closer to the airport. Lots of brand name hotels. Residence Inn hotels often have rooms that support 5 people.

By making him use his name twice on the same reservation, you also got charged double taxes. They used to book singles at a higher price (with only taxes for 1) but it seems of late if you try to book 1 person, it tells you there are no cabins available forcing you to book the same name for two. You could try to call MSC Reservations and try to remove one of them and see what happens. If they can't or won't remove one name, you'll have to input all his information twice at Online check-in (T-20 days) in order to get the needed Embarkation Docs to be emailed to you. When you check-in at the pier, make sure they remove one name and then double check at Reception on board to assure the cabin is only billed for Gratuities x 1, not Gratuities X 2. On my last MSC cruise in the Caribbean, there was something called a "Romeo & Juliet Game Show" searching for the most perfect couple on board. That's as close to a Newlywed Game as they offered.

On some MSC ships you pay the difference between the higher price and $10. On other MSC ships the package is ignored and you pay the full price for the drink choice. The best way to find how this ship operates will be to ask at a bar once you're on board.

On Seaside Deck 13 is all cabins and Deck 15 is all cabins. So you should be in good shape from a noise perspective anywhere on Deck 14. Can't tell you anything about your specific cabin choice though.

The Easy Plus package includes frozen drinks and fresh fruit cocktails, something the Easy package does not. All beverages up to $10 are included and gratuities are also included. If you click on the button for each package, it tells you what is included. As for cabin 14198, you didn't specify what ship you're talking about. But the key to me is whether you have another cabin above you and below you, so that it's quiet. You don't want to have the pool deck or the buffet above you.

Also take a look at fares into Orlando. Orlando International Airport will soon be directly connected with downtown Miami with the BrightLine higher speed trains. Get off the plane and hop on the train. Might be better than the hassle of renting, returning the rental and then renting again after the cruise.

Sounds like you should fly into Fort Myers.

Good luck calling. I don't think you'll reach anyone that can give you an accurate answer. Your best answer is asking at the Reception Desk on the day you get on the ship. They will give you an accurate answer.

Exactly. I had paid for a 7-night cruise and giving up some nights was "painful". Nonetheless, I had a more important need to be in Helsinki and this was the best way to accomplish it.

I did it because I had a connection to a different ship in Tallinn Harbour headed to Helsinki, Finland.

I don't have AT&T but I do have Verizon with the same $10/day plan. Cell service was coming from nearby Bimini which is about 20 miles away. I don't recall any service issues.