Muushka

I can't answer your question OP, but your question brought up a wonderful memory for me.

It was my first cruise on Chandris Britanis.  We went through (Buzzard's Bay) Cape Cod Canal.  It was right around the 4th of July and many people were at their smaller summer homes, campfires lit, colorful lights strung out.  We went by so close we were able to talk with them!  It is one of my favorite cruise memories.  I hope you go through it!

5 hours ago, Ladys Mom said:

From what I am reading on the Regent site the next big NCLH announcement will be on Sept. 14 when they announce the 2023 World Cruise and cancel the Nov. sailings.  They may even cancel the Dec. sailings.  I don't know.  There seems to be some rumor afoot that Royal Caribbean may start sailing in November, but who knows.  We cancelled our Dec. Oceania sailing to SA, but we have deposits on future cruises in late March, July, and August.  I would think nothing will happen until they resolve the health protocols, which were supposed to be announced at the end of August, with nothing yet.  All we can do is hope.

I hope you are right that they do the cancellations on 9/14.  Our final payment is due 9/17 and I really don't want to tie up that much $$ with Oceania with a FCC.  But ultimately I hope it isn't cancelled, of course.

1 hour ago, Paulchili said:

Sorry but it was meant as a joke - hence the emoji 😀. Apparently not very funny.

I thought it was funny!😉

Interesting thread!

My first cruise was on the Britanis circa 1984.  Having never been on a cruise I was impressed.  Due to finances we had an oceanview cabin in the belly of the ship.  2 beds, one on top and one on the bottom.  Teeny cabin.  And no bathroom.  You had to go to a large bathroom gender specific.  There they had private areas for showers and toilets.  Thank goodness things have changed since then!

I remember seeing the big X on the stacks and wondering what they stood for.  Funny that X became our favorite (for now) cruise line!

And sadly,

One thing we look forward to in a PH suite is the ability to have a wonderful meal in a comfortable setting.  With the Wuhan virus still being front and center when we (hopefully) cruise this Nov, the last thing I want to do is sit with other people, masked, talking about the virus.

We were in a suite over Thanksgiving last year.  We were looking forward to experiencing the Suite departure lounge.  But our experience was to go to the suite area (outside of the lounge) and stand in line for about 30 minutes and then board the ship.  Not sure what in the world happened with that one!

On 6/25/2020 at 1:11 PM, woldridge said:

Unless you are a top level with HAL their perks have no comparison to Celebrity.  However, HAL's  laundry program is much better than Celebrities even if it is a paid option!

Yupper, agree 100%.

I would rather pay for laundry on HAL and what that entails than have it for free on X as Elite.  And I am pretty frugal!

On 5/29/2020 at 9:14 PM, MamaFej said:

A couple of the episodes of Mighty Ships are also about cruise ships. The non-cruise ship episodes are fascinating in their own way. 

 

I believe that the Oceania Marina episode was Season 3. Currently, only Season 2 is available on my Hulu subscription.

 

A bit OT:

Another very interesting show on Smithsonian is Mighty Trains. I'd love to travel long-distance that way someday. 

 

Even more off topic:

The Aerial (place) shows are fascinating and visually stunning!

We love this channel and the Mighty Trains and Ariel shows. 

Being a lover of trains and part bird, winners!

Thank you so much for your wonderful review.  Feeling kind of low these days, what a pleasure it was.  I shared it with my husband and he also enjoyed it.

We have our first Yacht Club experience coming up in October and are looking forward.  Thanks again!

9 hours ago, bearette said:

That's a bummer, I have kids and can't stand the smell.  We know it kills us so they shouldn't be allowed to do to it anywhere.  I would be the person calling them ten times a day, in an hour even, to stop them, since it is against the rules.  Your rights aren' allowed to impede mine, which is kind of why we are in this mess now...

That would be me too.

Thank you BB2014.  Now that I think about it, we won't be using the balcony as often because it is a Canada cruise, mid October...cold!

But if it were a Caribbean, that would be an issue.

Can you complain to anyone to stop the smoking? 

2 hours ago, Beardface said:

 

They don't allow it, and I never noticed it.

 

But that doesn't mean it won't happen.  I've seen it happen on ships with far more stringent rules than MSC.

OK, good.  Thanks!

16 minutes ago, Beardface said:

We were a starboard YC1 on the Seaside on Deck 16 and the smoke never made it to us.  It really dissipates quickly, unless your neighbor is smoking on theirs.

Wait....I thought they didn't allow smoking on balconies.  If they do allow it, is it only on starboard?  I will be switching if yes.  We were on a RCI cruise before the no smoking on balcony was allowed rule and our next door neighbor rendered our balcony useless.  And there was nothing we could do about it, she wasn't breaking any rules.

Thanks!

Thank you Beardface, for your fair and balanced reporting.

I have a few questions. 

About that smoke.  We will be starboard on the 15th deck (YC1).  Can I assume the smoke won't make it all the way up there?

One of the reasons we love suites is because of the special treatment.  In real life we do not get any special treatment, we are pretty frugal.  But on a cruise, once a year, we love it.  We typically cruise with Celebrity where they have Luminae for the suite restaurant.  The attention they give is amazing and they always remember your name.  We wonder about MSC, dining room, do they have awesome staff that gives excellent service?  Or butlers who often open your door with a smile?

We look forward to the Yacht Club experience (providing that this "C" mess will be over by October).

What a great way to start the day! 

Nothing like a good butter thread.

Thanks OP!

In a word, NO. 🙂

I can't imagine going through all of that trouble (packing, transport...) for a cruise less than 7 nights. 

Great diversion from the "C" word!

OP, what a great bunch of questions! 

We are also new to MSC and  Yacht Club so I will be paying attention to this thread.

And very helpful answers.  Thanks!

I used to scoff at my husband for his desire to not leave the ship.  I used to get off at every port just to do a power walk (solo of course) for some exercise and get a flavor of the port and then get back to the ship.

As the years go by (and I get older, sadly), I found myself staying with him on the ship.

Our last 11 night cruise we left the ship once at a port we had never visited.  We got off the ship for about 30 minutes.  If that port had been one we had already been to, we would have gone the entire 11 days without touching terra firma.  We are not fans of crowds, so it is perfect for us.

19 hours ago, jkgourmet said:

If the divina is the same choices as the mera is (Carribean), this is what they had this morning in English.

 

* CNN And BBC.

* TMC 

* FoodTV, HGTV - Both curated to show only certain programs.  Commercial free.

* Two other channels (forget the names) that were curated that only showed stories of paranormal experiences and ' Naked and Alive.'  Commercial free.

* Except for CNN and TMC, everything was infomercials during the night.

 

Pretty dismal.

 

Is it TMC (the movie channel) or TCM (Turner Classic Movies)?

Boy you're not kidding.  That lineup (other than the ? movie channel) is pretty dismal.

Thank you for all of that information rka!  I guess we need to make a choice before we cruise in Oct!

18 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

My stateroom on Meraviglia was 15016 and was very pleased with its location.  Nothing to obstruct my view from the veranda.  Easy access to/from the other areas of the ship and being able to watch and hear the Sound and Light Show at Ocean Cay from my veranda was really appreciated by me.  That Show was one of several highlights of my first MSC cruise. 

I haven't switched yet, but we currently have 15014.  Did you find it cumbersome to always have to go upstairs for a drink or 2 flights for a meal?  I didn't use to mind stairs and I would never take the elevator for 2 flights up, but it does seem more appealing!

On 10/26/2019 at 9:37 AM, EMc&DrS said:

We have 16003 on an upcoming cruise.  We switched to that one from 18005 when it opened up for the reason you mentioned--to be close to Top Sail.  We were just a few doors down from Top Sail on Divina and loved it.  So convenient to be able to pop out of your room to grab a drink or a snack.  Can't comment about the view.  Will know in a few weeks!

How did you enjoy your cabin?  We are looking at 16002.  Thank you.

8 hours ago, js said:

 

There is not a minimum age on the YC.  Although my children are adults, I have booked in the Haven on NCL without giving it a thought since we do parent and if they were getting too loud or misbehaving, we took them out of that situation.  If you can book the YC, you should.  If you can expose your children to all different experiences, why shouldn't you if you are following the rules?

 

 

 

I am not familiar with Mera but if that cabin is next door to the YC lounge, I think it is a fabulous location. I can tell you on the Seaside, no one ever used that door, I'm not sure if the people on my side of the hall knew that is where it let and I didn't mention to anyone LOL

 

 

Well, perhaps I should switch cabins!  Thank you.

On 2/10/2020 at 11:58 AM, js said:

 

This is 100% correct, since last year I had the second cabin in from the door and in two weeks have the same cabin again.
It is, IMO, the absolute best location for the YC1 cabins.

We are new to MSC and not sure about the cabins/deck plans, what is good and what is not.  Right now we have (on Meraviglia) a YC1 on the 15th floor.  We wanted the 16th deck but the only one available is 16002 (looks like it is right next to that door?).  Would that be a good choice?  We don't like to be that far forward, but they are all forward!  Thank you

1 hour ago, lifeasme123 said:

Although our daughter is well behaved, we still would not book YC with her.  I feel people book the yacht club for peace and relaxation.  We look forward to the day we will sail YC.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you.🙂 

1 hour ago, RICCruisers said:

 

I guess the point is it makes more sense to post this on a cruise forum than an African Safari Forum. 

I knew there would be a good answer to that question!😃