Jamie7777

I don't remember which night was what but we had a Divas show, a tribute to Michael Buble, a Rock show, The Road to Nowhere, Encore, The Journey, and one other one I can't remember.  

7 minutes ago, Heartgrove said:

 

I had served in the Coast Guard so was accustomed to 30+ days at sea. My wife was reluctant at first so we initially sailed on an 18-day RT cruise to Hawaii. After that she cruise she now loves sea days as much as I do. We have an EB and two WB Transatlantics booked over the next 1-1/2 years.

Sea days are the best!

On 6/3/2024 at 8:36 PM, Heartgrove said:

For those that enjoy the ship as part of the destination, try a Grand Voyage Transatlantic. The MSC Grandiosa will sail on a Grand Voyage leaving Genoa on November 15, 2025 and reach Miami on December 5, 2025. It will then sail to Port Canaveral and arrive on December 6, 2025.

I can't wait for the day when I will have more time to travel.  A transatlantic cruise would be a dream come true!

On 5/16/2024 at 1:54 PM, Two Wheels Only said:

 

Although disappointing, it is understandable from an economic standpoint. If the newest ships had the best itineraries, the older ships with the less desirable itineraries wouldn't sell.

 

I would like to do a longer cruise that went further south on a brand new ship but I'd rather do "new ship/mediocre itinerary" instead of "older and smaller ship/better itinerary".

 

...first world problems, I know.

The ship is usually the destination for me anyway.  I don't even bother getting off the ship when we dock in Nassau.

2 minutes ago, Fishwife2016 said:

One thing about MSC, they are consistently inconsistent!  They keep us on our toes wondering if what we order one day (and like) will be the same the next time!

Part of the adventure, I guess! 😂

On 5/13/2024 at 10:01 PM, Fishwife2016 said:

I was on the Seashore last month.  It was the 1st week of starting the brunch.  First sea day was kinda chaotic, the staff was not expecting the amount of people that showed up.  Some orders were not complete.  But the items arrived.  Thankfully I packed my patience and all was well.  Food was hot and good.  I had an omelet, potatoes, bacon, and strawberry shortcake.  The 2nd sea day the staff seemed more organized and I didn't need to pull out my patience.  Another good meal with more shortcake.   The strawberry shortcake IMO was very good.  Fresh berries, shortcake was tasty, and the serving size was perfect.   We will be back on the Seashore over Thanksgiving in the YC.  I'm hoping they can get me some of that shortcake on sea days.  If not, I'm headed to the MDR!!

I ordered the Eggs Benedict each time I went to the brunch.  The day before, I had it when the brunch wasn't on.  The hollandaise sauce was very flavorful and had an extra zing to it.  The following day, the day of the brunch, it tasted bland.  The next day I ordered it again and the flavor was similar to that of the first day.  I could only assume that the chef who made them was off the first day of the brunch.  I prefer savory breakfasts over sweet ones but nothing else appealed to me.  I also ordered a side of fruit and the parfait with granola and it was very good.  I found myself eating at Central Park Restaurant (where breakfast was served every morning) because my 85-year-old best friend likes to be served breakfast instead of going to the buffet and doesn't like to eat by herself.

On 5/9/2024 at 11:52 AM, alserrod said:

Does anyone know in which ships is it available?

The same brunch menu was on the Seashore last week.  They did the brunch from 8:00-1:30 three times that week.  I went to two of them and skipped the one they had on Saturday because Butcher's Cut also had a brunch going on.

On 4/26/2024 at 2:42 PM, tofubeast said:

That was my problem on the Divina in March.  We called and couldn't tell if it went through. We went to the crew and had our cards scanned. The next day, we received a terse note saying we had missed the drill.  Yeah..no.

On our last MSC cruise, we did the drill and had our cards scanned at our muster station.  Got the missed drill note, too.

1 hour ago, JamieLogical said:

I just looked back at a few of the menus from my February cruise and I do not see any notations on the menus about items containing lactose. However, I do know that your servers at the MDR as well as every server in the specialty restaurants will ask you if you have any dietary restrictions. I do not recall seeing milk onboard at all (maybe in the buffet?), much less milk alternatives....

My parents and I had breakfast in an MDR on the Seaside last summer and they had milk as the creamer for our coffee.  Both Mom and I are lactose intolerant and took a Lactaid tablet before drinking it.  For some reason, it didn't occur to any of us to ask for non-dairy milk or creamer.  However,  I did see some non-dairy creamer at the buffet drink station where the coffee is located.  Hopefully, they'll have it at the Seashore buffet drink stations.

No line, really.  I don't even remember waiting.  We walked right into the spot where we got our passports and body scans.  There were a lot of people in the space but no line because people were constantly walking.  I was called right away to the window at the MSC counter to get my sea pass.  I had a family member who had mobility issues at the time so I only waited around for him to get a port worker to get a wheelchair so that he could get to the counter to get his sea pass.

On 4/14/2024 at 6:28 PM, dbrown84 said:

I hope not.  I'm going on my first MSC cruise and I was assigned a boarding time on my booking document.  The booking agent didn't actually ask me about a time.  My plan is to just show up whenever.  I'll show up around noon even though my time says 1:30

That's what we did.  The MSC employee at the port told us to ignore the time on our boarding passes and just get in line for embarkation.  Our embarkation time was 2:30.  We showed up at 11:30.

On 4/12/2024 at 10:18 PM, dbrown84 said:

if I had a MSC account, I would

Opening up an account should get you some additional points toward the next level.  At least if it's done before a cruise.  I think they gave me 100 points for joining the Voyager Club before I sailed.  

5 hours ago, Jay Es said:

Got a new eTicket today, and my embarkation time is now 12:00. Great!

Yay! 😁

17 hours ago, Jay Es said:

Cool...I guess I'll just go early. Hopefully, they let me in. If not then I wait.

You shouldn't have any problems.  Enjoy your cruise!

My first cruise with MSC was in June 2023 as a solo cruiser.  I was part of a group so I don't know if that made a difference.  My TA (also my friend who was part of the group) did everything so I didn't know about any of this.

On 2/29/2024 at 12:46 AM, Stockjock said:

Recently, we've discussed the fact that MSC will apparently soon be sailing out Los Angeles.  I was engaged in a conversation here and elsewhere (Facebook) about this.  I was contacted by a social media spy (my term) from MSC, who asked that I delete my comments on the topic, as they haven't yet announced that they'll be sailing from L.A.  I didn't do so, as the cat is pretty much already out of the bag, in my view.

Now if they offered me a free drink package, everyone has their price, right?

You'd think they would come here first and ask folks to stop talking about their secrets.  It is called Cruise Critic.  What do they think we talk about?  Cruises!😂

1 hour ago, Jay Es said:

@Jamie7777 What was your scheduled time? Mine is 4pm. I don't want to have to sit outside for hours, but you're right, there's no where else to go once you've checked out of your hotel with your luggage.

Our scheduled time was 2:30pm.

The docs say not to arrive earlier but many people arrive early because area hotel check-out is usually 11 am and there's usually no other place to go.  When we got to the port at 11:30, the MSC agent told us to go through and not worry about boarding times.  He was telling everyone to move along and get checked in as people were standing around waiting for directions.

15 hours ago, Pizaz said:

Yes,  the app has a messaging service it’s quite useful and easy to use!

I wish it worked for us.  If a family member is on their balcony with the door closed, they can't hear when you knock on their cabin door or hear the room phone when you call them.  The messaging app is inconsistent and goes offline.  So you spend much time frustrated because you can't use the app to reach them to meet up.  I'm seriously considering getting a battery-operated doorbell to bring on my next family cruise to get their attention on my next MSC family cruise.

On 2/14/2024 at 3:38 AM, cublet said:

Don't get me started on 'wash cloths' either - they must be important to many as three threads on their availability were running here concurrently a couple of months ago.

I'd really like to know how they clean their bodies over there.  Do they just use their bare hands?  If people don't use a washcloth over here they may use a loofah.  Do they use those?  I've never not used a washcloth and tend to bring my own even if they're supplied at my resort.  I'm not being facetious.  I just don't know what people use to get in all the "nooks and crannies." 

They don't ask for the questionnaire at the port.  

On 2/8/2024 at 10:16 AM, Jeep Driver said:

Pretty sure I've seen that you've been a Yacht Club cruiser before. We just came off Seasore YC on Jan 28. I asked for a frozen Blue Hawaiian in Topsail Lounge and was told it wasn't on the menu, but that the bartender would be happy to make one for me. Which he did, and it was sweet and delicious—only had the one, just to try it. Hope this helps.

No, I only sailed with MSC for the first time last June and had a deluxe balcony on the 11th floor.  I wish I could say I've done YC.  I would like to do so in the future. 

5 hours ago, Best Cat Mom said:

I have had both rocks and frozen preparations of a Blue Hawaiian. You're on a cruise! Do a comparison at each bar -- and every different bartender you meet at each bar. You might be surprised by the variations. And then you can tell us where the best one is. 🙂

Great idea!  I didn't even know about variations in the drinks.  I could swear I asked for my first Pina Colada on my last cruise at the Jungle Pool Lounge on the Seaside and the bartender gave me one that wasn't frozen.  A few days later, I went to the Seaside Bar, and not only did I get a frozen one, but it was much stronger.

20 minutes ago, Ed342 said:

MSC has been testing dining options for Fantastica.  That being My Choice. Originally when booked, reservation showed “complimentary restaurant”. Now I have been changed to My Choice - any restaurant.  Sailing on Divina.

I'm sailing on the Seashore in May.  I was prompted to update the app on my phone but it still has complimentary restaurant under My Cruise Info.  I guess they're rolling this out a ship at a time. I did notice that the ship is leaving Port Canaveral at 5pm instead of 6pm as previously listed.  

I don't do too much drinking so I'm not an expert on what is out there.  I've heard a few people say they've ordered a Blue Hawaiian on their cruises and I figured I'd like to see what one tastes like.  Is it a frozen drink?  Where can you get a good one on the Seashore?