barb in ga

We recently returned from the Divina 12/30 -01/09 10 day. This was our first MSC cruise; we were in an Aurea suite with fixed window, no balcony. We rarely sit out on a balcony, but love the natural light, so this was fine for us. Our cabin steward was very helpful and gracious. It was a beautiful cabin with loads of closet and storage space, a comfortable sitting area with armchair and loveseat, and a bathroom with tub and shower, similar to Royal's Junior Suite. There were no USB outlets, and no electric outlets except at the vanity. Our cabin was at the bow, and both our Dining room and buffet were from midship to aft, so we did a lot of walking going to meals. We lost 2 pounds each during the cruise, but it wasn't just from walking. We found the dining room meals just "meh" and the buffet a total disappointment for lunches. A huge percentage of what I saw on plates at lunch was pizza, cheeseburgers, hot dogs and french fries, with usually 1 meat and 1 fish entree. We didn't go hungry, but the food was not a highlight of the trip. The shows were entertaining, but mostly just song and dance variations from night to night. The pools and whirlpools were lovely, but very crowded even on port days. The gym was full every time we tried to go. The departure experience was difficult. After getting off the ship ramp, USA passport holders were held back, while foreign passport holders were sent down to claim luggage and clear border control. When we were finally allowed after a 40 minute wait to go claim luggage, we found that our bags were not in their numbered zone, but spread out through 3 number sections. We had purchased transfers to Miami International, and had to wait until our bus filled up before heading to the airport. I wish we had taken a taxi, as we had to sit on the coach for 15 minutes more at the airport while luggage was unloaded. We expected some differences from our usual cruises, but we did not find the value or the pleasure and I would say I would be unlikely to cruise MSC again. Barb

Junior suites usually have a walk-in closet big enough for a pack n play, but maybe someone familiar with Brilliance can be more specific. I don't know about the availability of the p n p; you might check with customer care by emailing them at special needs. Someone on this board will give you the exact email address. I have also seen online toddler size blow up beds, which might be easier than hauling the pack n play. Best luck, Barb

You can link their reservations in your cruise planner "add a reservation" you will need booking number and names, possibly birthdates. Be sure the names are exactly what's on the reservation. Barb

We're on the Dec 30 10 night Southern Caribbean. We've cruised before, but never on MSC. Is entertainment something that can be reserved once on ship or is it first come, first served? Are there several shows? Thanks, Barb

I have done the all access tour and thoroughly enjoyed it. I know it was pre-covid, so we got to see a lot. I especially enjoyed seeing the crew area and the storage rooms, freezers, and coolers. Also loved seeing the galley, especially the bakery area. It is just mind boggling! I'm pretty sure we did it on Allure. Engineering, Bridge and entertainment areas were also fascinating. Barb

We're sailing the Divina Southern Caribbean10 night on December 30th in an Aurea SLS suite(no balcony). My confirmation says Dining MY CHOICE. I get that this is anytime dining, but can we reserve a fixed time, or do we have to just wait in line for an available table? We usually cruise Royal, so we're asking newbie questions. What are the fixed dining times? Can we change to fixed? We enjoy having the same table and dining with others. Thanks, Barb

What day are you traveling, and from what location? How many hours do you prefer to drive before stopping? I live in Atlanta and we often drive to our cruises, I can offer some suggestions. Barb in GA

I was going to book the 5 photo package, but when I went to checkout, it stated that we have to have a package for each person. I get that we can't include anyone not in our cabin, but I'm surprised that I have to purchase 2 packages to get both of us in the photo. How much does a single photo cost? Barb

Styles27--Thank you so much for those links! I'm really getting excited now! DH and I are newbies to MSC, so we're very interested to try her out. I was disappointed that our day at the beach wasn't going to end in fireworks, but this sounds even better! Barb

Same here... Barb

The price difference is the 18% that gets added to the total price for the surf and stream 1 person, 2 devices. Barb

On boarding day, guests may bring onboard two (2) 750 ml bottles of personal wine or champagne per stateroom in their carry-on luggage. If more than two bottles of wine or champagne are brought onboard, including any alcoholic beverages purchased in ports-of-call or in our onboard shops, they will be stored by the ship and delivered to your stateroom on your last day onboard.

I vote for the 5 day on Independance. I'm a huge fan of Oasis class, but I also love Freedom Class. They both have the awesome ice skating show as well as other entertainment and music. DH and I are seniors and we love both ship classes, but 5 days is way better if the travel logistics works for you. Have a great cruise! Barb

We are fans of the entertainment and music options on the big ships. Favorites are Aquashow, Ice Skating, and adult comedy. For the most part, the shows in Royal theater are just OK, especially since our last three cruises post covid didn't include the production shows, ie: Blue Planet, Columbus, etc. Hopefully with cruises sailing full they will include options that were temporarily stopped due to staff shortages and illness. Barb

This offer is only on cards that offer Membership Rewards, so no co-branded cards for hotels, airlines, etc. I found it on my Amex Gold and I am an authorized user on my son's Amex Plat. It was also in those offers. I added the offer to my Gold Card, then went back to my acct with Plat offers and it disappeared! So it looks like 1 offer per person. My son will try his card tonight. Sea Dog--you won't get an email notice . To see these offers, log into your Amex acct and drop down the list of offers. Click on travel to sort it quickly, then click to add it to your card. Thes offers sometimes disappear once a certain number are claimed, so add it soon and use it by Dec 31. Barb

Whichever one I'm currently booked on is my favorite! We've done 25 cruises on Royal; 12 on Oasis Class ships. We haven't cruised Wonder yet, but we've been on the other 4 and loved them all! We cruise these ships for the wide variety of experiences, especially entertainment and dining options. There are certainly differences, but now that I'm retired I look at departure port(Florida) and pricing. We are both excited to try Icon when she is released. Barb

We were in a deck 14 1BR aquasuite on Symphony last fall. We got a Royal Up upgrade from the CLS we had booked. The cabin was wonderful, with a lot of space and DH was thrilled not to have stairs to the sleeping loft. The tradeoff is the long walk to the aft of the ship. I am a huge fan of the Aquashows and was excited to be able to see it from our balcony, but it's really not the same as being seated in the AT seating. Maybe for the lower decks with wider balconies, but it didn't work for me. Barb

DH is celiac, so he must eat gluten free. His favorite off-menu items: spaghetti bolognese in both MDR and Windjammer Seafood linguini in the MDR made with GF penne pasta Cupcakes not all ships do these pancakes MDR Barb

We were on Allure Sept 25th and requested the Compass when our cabin steward knocked to introduce herself. She brought one that day and everyday. I'm fine with using the app for many things, but still prefer the paper compass, so I mark interesting activities with a highlighter. Barb

When do you plan to sail? There are currently some Kids sail free, but that promotion has a list of exclusion dates. What type of cabins are you planning to book--inside OV or balcony? What ship are you looking at--some ships have a family cabin with a bunk area and sleep 5 or six, but with only 1 bathroom. We booked 4 cabins for 6 adults and 2 girls 6 and 12. We had 2 connecting cabins and 2 adjoining, all balconies. We booked the connecting cabins with 1 adult each room and one girl each room. Worked out great. We also thought about inside cabins across from balconies, but wanted the connecting cabin for the kids. Barb

Fruit is the big no-no because of the risk of non-native fruit fly infestation.

Thanks everyone, this is the kind of input I'm looking for! The train sounds very appealing, but we will have more luggage than usual to allow on the cruise for cold, rain, multi shoes, changes for dinner, etc. We might do well to think of the rental car. For our 20 day, European trip in April, we packed very light, but the logistics of a cruise demand more clothes and shoes. Still, it's all good and we do have some time to figure it all out. Barb

We have booked a family cruise roundtrip from Seattle from 5/29/23 to 6/5/23. Eight of our 10 people will arrive in Seattle 2 days pre-cruise, returning home the day of disembarkation. DH and I are seniors and retired, so we can take more time than the others. We live in Atlanta and are looking at RT flights on Delta, which are pretty expensive right now, but we both have some flight credits from our cancelled Baltic cruise flights. We want to have a 3-4 day visit to Vancouver plus 2-3 days in Seattle and are looking for options to get from Seattle to Vancouver, then back to Seattle before the cruise or after. There aren't direct flights from ATL to YVR, most options have a layover in SEA. Train seems like a good option; we visited Europe in April of this year, taking trains from AMS, Berlin, Prague, and Vienna. We are pretty frequent travelers, but looking for a little input on this vacation. DH is 6'7" tall, so he won't want to be on a motor coach or in an economy airplane seat. So sounds like our choices for a Vancouver visit are train, rental car, or short? flights from SEA rt to YVR. All ideas welcome, thanks, Barb in Georgia

We were on Allure last week. We had the early dining in MDR deck 3 at 5:15 pm. Most nights, we finished between 6:30 and 6:45 and there was always a huge line; actually 2 lines, one for reservation guests and one for walkups. We usually eat at home between 6:30-7pm, but we like having no wait line, so we eat early and go to the earlier shows. We asked our cabin attendant for paper Cruise Compass and got it every night. We ate in Windjammer everyday but one for breakfast and everyday for lunch. Solarium Bistro is a great breakfast choice if you are having eggs cooked to order(less wait, hotter eggs). We were very satisfied with our food choices. We ate in MDR 4 nights and Chops once and Samba Grill once. Chops is lovely as always, but we were very glad we used our D+ bogo as it's now $65/per person. We used our 2nd BOGO for Samba Grill. Samba is a great value at $41.99/person regular price and the BOGO made it a deal. Barb

Good feedback! We have booked Quantum for the last week of May and I think our group of 4 seniors, 4 40+ and 3 girls will love it. DH and I sailed Anthem from Bayonne to Bermuda and found we highly prefer Oasis class over Quantum class, but we do like that Quantum is newer and bigger than Radiance or Brilliance. Barb