CruizinSusan70

That's what happens when you have a dynamic pricing policy.

Just tried to buy eCards @1000 each. The system only allowed me to get 3 and said no more could be bought for 7 days.

Would you recommend going to Hola for lunch or for dinner? It seems like the all you can eat option is a bit much for lunch, but then again, on a port day, the buffet is your only option for lunch as compared with multiple options on every other line. I assume making a reservation on day one for whichever day we choose would be the way to go. Thanks. Did all of the dinners on the app line up with what the actual menus were?

Michael Aday....RIP.

If you decide to do the group cruise this year and put Alaska on the back burner, here's something you may not know. NCL and Royal both have solo cabins on their newer ships that you don't have to pay the 200% supplement on similar to other lines. The Bliss on NCL and the Quantum on Royal are two examples of solo cabined ships to Alaska.

From what I read, yes you can. It will cost you the difference in price from what you paid for the Plus package (40, 50 or 60) to what the Premier is (80 per day). It's the same price whether you do it now or then. The positive is that you can use OBC to pay for it. The negative is that if your reservation is through a travel agent, then the discount or OBC from them would be less since your dollar volume paid for the cruise would be less.

No, I will imply that there is a roped off section of seats reserved for those that have the Premier package, occupying less than 5% of the seats, while everyone else as usual is seated on a first come basis.

Only concerned about the evening menu at Good Spirits and whether there are any drinks that are between 16-20 that would only be covered by the Premier package and not with the Plus package, which we have and tops out at 15.00. We're not gonna be drinking JW Gold or Blue.

Every drink was covered for us last year at Good Spirits. We are not wine drinkers so unless the 530 PM specialty drinks at Good Spirits are now over 15 bucks, we are good to go.

You mentioned that those who like to imbibe at Good Spirits at Sea should invest in the Premium. We sailed on the Discovery for 14 days last April and enjoyed Good Spirits every evening enjoying their post 530PM menu. Are you saying that the Plus package would no longer cover these drinks?

You're comparing an apple to an orange with your itineraries as well as your ships. The Caribbean was built in 2004, while the Majestic was built in 2017. Alaska is also a whole different puppy compared to Canada/NE. In a nutshell, I would choose the Majestic because she is 13 years younger, is larger and is going to Alaska. We'll be on her for 14 days in May & June. There will be some on CC that will choose the Caribbean because they hate the Royal Class and won't even think about sailing on the upcoming Sphere Class. Best of luck with your decision and enjoy your first cruise.

The only edgier show I have heard of was Kinky Boots on the NCL Encore, whose contract expired a few months ago. Some may or may not consider it edgy depending upon where your line is.

My DH will have it all 7 nights on our upcoming Mera cruise in July.

Since it will be the second ship in the Sphere Class, it makes logical sense that just like the Sun, the name should be spherical in nature, such as Moon or Star. But of course logic is sometimes thrown out the window with marketing ( ie. The New Love Boat)

Cry me a river. 😭😭😭 You still have 15 other ships in the fleet to cruise on as well of course all of their competitors ships.

It's MSC... that's their "European spin" on a US product.

Looks similar to the Fantasy Class.

Every casino in the Celebrity fleet is smoke free.

Definitely drive in the day before, but don't stay in Galveston since hotels are at a premium there. I'd stay somewhere about an hour or so from the port in a solid hotel choice like a Hampton Inn. Stayed at one near IAH last October for about 75 bucks before our NCL Prima cruise.

But there will be a major difference between the Venezia and the Firenze from Carnival with what MSC offers. The two new Costa imported ships will be your typical Carnival ship, just with an Italian flair. Announcements will be in English only, there will be comedy shows aplenty, there will not be any opera shows on board, there will be a piano bar and the menu will not be seafood forward. It's a smart marketing move by Carnival. It gets your typical Carnival cruiser on the east and west coast to try something different, yet is still part of the Carnival experience. When it comes time to cross the pond and take a cruise, instead of narrowing in on the one or possibly two ships that Carnival has, that cruiser may choose a Costa ship or even a P&O ship like the Iona or Arvia that are similar in size to the Excel Class ships on Carnival (Mardi Gras, Celebration & Jubilee).

Lose a few to gain thousands.....you could still pay to cross the pond to get the product you love.

27/37 are either vodka or gin based. Would agree about the other 10.

Thanks. Thought I was gonna have to fly to Australia and bring a mirror to read the menu.

Then if it stays that way, they will stay a niche market on this side of the pond. There is nothing wrong with catering to Europeans and trying to bring a European flair to the US. But at the same time there are basic things like excellent customer service that they are lacking in as well as their woefully bad web site. They can offer rock bottom prices in order to attempt to get more cruisers that have never sailed on them before to try them out or offer Yacht Club cabins at a cheaper rate as well compared to the Haven on NCL, the Retreat on Celebrity or the Star Class on Royal. Only time will tell what happens. At least they have financial security versus their major 3 competitors.

Fully aware of the fact MSC is a European based cruise line that caters to an international clientele. But even with this being true, their website and customer service are an absolute joke compared to all of their competitors on this side of the pond. Until they improve on these aspects it will take awhile for them to become a household name in the US. Until they do, they will remain in the number four slot, albeit having the most new ships in the pipeline, a new upscale division blossoming soon with Explora and financial stability because of the parents company shipping division.