mnpurple

@Georgia_Peaches For a night or two before a beautiful cruise it would be fine I'm sure - especially if the price is right! We had driven from MN and through Texas and it just wasn't my favorite state - too dry overall. We've gotten more used to being in Florida and would spend some of the winter there too. However, we really enjoyed our drive from Galveston to Panama Beach afterward.

Well, you have me searching! Wondering how it is going out of Galveston. We were there a few years ago for a land vacation and I didn't love it...but new YC!

We boarded our first MSC cruise in Naples and I would agree it did seem a bit chaotic, but once they got things opened up and staffed the embarkation was fine. Just don't show up early! We got into Naples the day before and stayed at a hostel that was across the street from the port. It was an easy (I had help with my bags-kids) walk to the port. We were surprised on our ride from the airport to the hostel with the amount of graffiti. I had watched an Anthony Bourdain episode where he described Naples as "gritty" and he wasn't wrong. I kind of liked it though and knew that going in. Pizza was wonderful and we had a fun experience at a restaurant the night before because I ordered swordfish, but the waiter took my outside to their fresh catch fish, basically picked one for me and sent it back to the chef. I had no idea how it would be prepared, but it was really good! We were in a family group of six on the ship and it wasn't too long after the restart, so I didn't intermingle a lot, but I'd say most of the passengers were European. Our kids enjoyed that a lot when they went to the club in the evenings.

@Best Cat Mom When we were on the Divina last year, we dropped our rental car at the Miami airport and were so excited, we just wanted to grab a taxi to the port. One of the drivers approached us and we just went. It was the most beat up taxi and we laughed how were would be dropped off at the YC tent in this awful ride! Just a funny memory for us now, but you are right that Ubers are generally much better.

If you like pistachio, try the pistachio ice cream for dessert one day! Our server on Euribia brought it every night once he knew how much we loved it.

You know they are really fresh if they squeak on your teeth when you eat them!

Re-entry into "normal" life is hard! Glad it will be short-lived.

Thanks for sharing your trip! I never picked up on having the porter help getting through customs faster. I'll have to remember that because the only time we had a terrible wait was Miami and the facial recognition was down. It was a looong wait. What's next on the travel agenda?

I think it sounds like you want variety, so I'd say mix it up. I've been on Getaway, but with in Haven and with my family. It was a great trip, not sure if it was my favorite ship, but I think it was more that the Haven wasn't quite what I hoped for. We love YC now. We were in an interior on Euribia and it was good. It was a cool weather itinerary, but the space in the YC is so nice. I think I might go a little stir-crazy with two weeks of the same thing, even if it was a lot of pampering! Or, you could just change up what you do at each port to make things new. Always something new to find in many places.

Sorry for your loss @JAGR I'm sure they were honored to help plan that ceremony.

My DH and I are traveling to Maryland, with a stop for a few days in Virginia Beach soon. Any recommendations? We'll also be in Ocean City, MD and Baltimore a few days. The white party looked like fun. After 3 YC cruises, I don't recall ever seeing any parties by the pool or lounge. Just the typical musicians that were "quieter".

Great report! I've been planning on booking Eden for our cruise and wondered is any of the sales had better pricing there. I've only seen 5% off so far. I think it will be our one splurge for our cruise because everything looks really good.

The Carbonara looks delicious! I asked the Chef on Euribia to make Amatriciana and it was so wonderful! We were only expecting one portion for me, but of course, they made two. He was a wonderful chef. The best of our three YC cruises.

It will be wonderful! Our first MSC cruise was Seaview in YC with almost the same itinerary. We stopped at Malta and not Palma. After being on Divina and Euribia, I think Seaview is my favorite. We didn't explore too much outside YC because being port heavy, we made the most of stops. Our kids however, enjoyed the night life and partying with the young Italians they met!

There really is nothing better than a cruise sunset! Enjoy it all

Enjoying your report. Greece is on our list. What a wonderful relationship you two have!

While on Euribia, we were told by the concierge that we could not use the non-refundable OBC in the casino. That however proved to be wrong. We tried anyway and started out with a small amount. Lucky for me, I won on a couple spins! We then went back a few more times to continue getting our OBC, which we also use for extra gratuities.

My husband and I were on Euribia in YC in March on the Northern Europe route. I did a somewhat live you should have found when searching. Let me know if you have any questions, but not sure I'd be able to answer about too much outside YC.

When I told my server on Divina I liked a tiramisu with rum in it, he brought me a very large shot of rum to pour over it. I gleefully poured it over and enjoyed it, although not quite the same.

That is so beautiful. I'm still sad we weren't able to dock there on our cruise. I don't love the heat, but LOVE the ocean, so sitting outside with that view would be amazing for me. I keep looking at upcoming cruises on Seascape because of you and @Best Cat Mom. My desire to travel a lot means I need to hold back on some things. However, there is a window of time when I could "squeeze" something in at the end of an already planned visit to Florida. Who wants to be stuck in snowy Minnesota if I can avoid it!

Yes, it is always a bit awkward when I stare at their chest to try to read the name tag or pull out my glasses and it's even more obvious. Even if I ask, I need to process by reading too. DH and I are both terrible with names.

It all looks so wonderful! Our first experience was Seaview (assuming a sister ship) and that room was very nice and spacious, which was maybe why when we went to Divina I was a little let down. Although then after being on Euribia, I realized the size of the actual lounge and dining room made that part feel more cozy. @Georgia_Peaches FYI, the AC in the inside YC room on Euribia was terrible and never something that was resolved. The only saving grace was in Northern Europe, the weather was still pretty cool. If we had been in the Caribbean, I probably would have been adamant about a room-change.

@MonsterJoe This is what the terms of the Amex Platinum say regarding the travel insurance: "If you purchase a round trip entirely with your Eligible Card and a covered reason cancels or interrupts your trip, Trip Cancellation and Interruption Insurance‡ can help reimburse your non-refundable expenses purchased with the same Eligible Card, up to $10,000 per trip and up to $20,000 per Eligible Card per 12 consecutive month period. Terms, conditions and limitations apply.* *Coverage is provided by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.‡" There is also a trip delay section. My trouble is that I spread some of the spending around on a few travel cards, so I'm not sure if it would work well. We have a yearly Allianz policy too.

@zitsky None of our cruises had repeated ports. Caribbean was an 11-day, the Med and Northern Europe were 8 days.

As @RichYak said, people can start or end their cruise at any of the ports along the route. I can only speak to being in yacht club, and never saw it as an issue. First cruise we embarked in Naples fairly early on the re-start. Not a big deal, other than the port operated on their "own" schedule. We embarked this past March in Southampton, which was a breeze. There are ports that are busier than others, but getting on an off to visit a port was really no different than when we've been on Caribbean cruises. I would say our cruises on NCL were far worse returning to ship after visiting a port, even when we were in the Haven.