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@BermudaBound2014

Cheryl,

We hope you enjoy your Hawaii time! You're missing all the daffodils and tulips here in Michigan...and the snow! Yup, a light flurry Saturday afternoon! Give us a shout when you get home. We'll get together and share pics a beers!

Jim and Pam

(FYI...we live only 20 minutes from Cheryl!)

On 3/23/2024 at 10:39 PM, DJ Cruisers said:

We went back to the BW Yacht Harbor.  We waited an hour for the shuttle. 

 

Anybody that remembers Jasmine who was on the desk before the cruise, well she's gone.  She was quite helpful.  Evidently too helpful.  The fellow on the desk said "she promised people things she wasn't supposed to and she's gone".

 

In case you can't tell yet, I'm just now trying to finish reading all the posts. I have 8 pages to go! 

I remember Jasmine and when we got to BWYH (after the hour shuttle wait), I was surprised that I didn't have to pay for parking. The desk guy said, "Nope! If it wasn't on your bill when you checked out, you don't have to pay." Nice! But that could also be the reason Jasmine is gone. Although I didn't know the backstory on that and was totally willing to pay what I thought was due and had agreed to (which was $5 day for 34 days), I didn't argue with him and just said "Thank you."

On 3/19/2024 at 8:01 PM, Riversedge said:

Here you go

 

Hey, we'll be on that cruise... and the next one and the one after that! 71 days at sea - but no driving to the port this time! In case anyone is interested, final mileage Michigan-Miami-San Diego-Michigan was 7,491 miles. We sure saw a lot along the way! And thanks to all of you for helping to make it a fun adventure! Keep on cruisin'!

Jim and Pam

6 hours ago, Homosassa said:

Maybe you started at the wrong end of the line....

Ha ha! Nice thought and easy solution but alas, MSC directs the line by making cheese the first thing you arrive at when entering and pointing you in that direction.

Last year, the Cruella movie and about a dozen others were free on Meraviglia. This year, $10. Even documentaries!

Enough negativity. We're looking forward to our next cruise on Holland America in February.

11 hours ago, lcpagejr said:

Just grab a blanket and watch the movie shown up top on the Pool deck. 

No blankets are available on Meraviglia. Only towels. They showed Top Gun Maverick 5 times on our cruise. When they finally changed to Beetlejuice, the LED screen malfunctioned and 20% was a black bar in the middle.

I found no free on demand movies. All were $10 each.

It is way too easy to be critical of MSC. The ships are beautiful, the dining and cabin staff are excellent but management is unyielding.

If cruisers would just let MSC tell you how to enjoy your cruise, everything would be fine! Here's one example:

The MSC way of making a hamburger in the Marketplace is to first, get in line with your plate. When the line has moved sufficiently for you to reach the tongs, pick up a piece of cheese and put it on your plate. Shuffle to the next station and add lettuce and tomato. Next, put a meat patty on your plate or on top of the tomato and move forward where you have to reach way under the glass for a hamburger bun, which is behind the hot dog buns. Then, stand there and reassemble your burger while holding up the line. If you're lucky, no one will cut in front of you because "they only want fries." Add mustard and ketchup and you're done! 

It would be so simple to reorder the items - bun, burger, cheese, lettuce - but no, MSC knows best! 

1 hour ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

Last week I also spoke directly to Linda who represents the insurance company that Chase Sapphire Preferred trip insurance runs thru. She was very specific that gift cards would not be reimbursed in the event I needed to enact the trip insurance coverage thru Chase Sapphire Preserve.

I believe that is true for any credit card insurance coverage. Before my card eliminated their coverage for travel insurance, I recall that they required me to pay for the entire trip using the card. That would support your logic and the representatives statement.

Do you have any opportunity to view cabin 12192? It's an interior and on the deck plans, it looks bigger than all the others. More the size of a handicapped cabin but it is not designated as such. Just curious since we are looking to put 3 in a cabin. 

On 2/23/2023 at 8:53 AM, GeorgeCharlie said:

 

Are you also doing at 31-day cruise?

 

I'm sure you'll have a great cruise - please let us know how it went.

Yes, along with a few folks who have posted here. My wife and I leave Monday for Rio and a 12 day land trip before boarding the Oosterdam for 31 days on her return to FLL. Really looking forward to it and experiencing SA and the Canal for the first time. We have a great Roll Call going and thanks to your posts and pictures, we are more aware of what to expect. Thank you!

Following all your reviews. We will be arriving in Ushuaia on 17 March when doing your cruise in reverse!

On 5/1/2022 at 5:24 PM, AAB760 said:

Couple from Palm Springs boarding Oosterdam after 6 weeks touring South America for 31 days back to USA.   Our 3rd attempt to travel here. Any others on this cruise?

Are you still sailing on this cruise? The current Roll Call is very active and I don't see your name on it. Click HERE for the link to the Roll Call. Please post a reply there as no one is checking this Roll Call.

Jim

Very Cool (literally!) Nice video. Can't wait for our March sailing thru this area. Hoping there is still some glacier left for us to see since there appears to be an amazing amount of meltwater runoff in that waterfall!

On 1/1/2023 at 8:27 PM, Mike07 said:

 

 

It's best to follow what HAL's passenger contract states and then hoping for the best but preparing for the worst ($20 corkage fee) when the time comes. I guess other options are that you check the wine into HAL's holding area and pick it back up after the cruise, or simply dumping/tossing the wine prior to embarkation.

 

The following is directly from HAL's website FAQ...

Can I bring alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages onboard?

Revised Policy effective June 1st, 2021

Guests are not allowed to bring alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages on board for consumption or any other use except as follows:

Guests 21 years and older may bring Wine and Champagne onboard, however a corkage fee of USD $20.00 (which is subject to change without notice) will be applied to each bottle (max 750 ml in volume or less). Limitations apply. Wine brought in quantities deemed to be excessive by the vessel or security will be refused.

Wine purchased during company-sponsored shore excursions that visit local wineries are exempt from the on-board corkage fee (offer limited to one bottle of wine per person).

Note: The policy continues, but no more about wine.

3 hours ago, GeorgeCharlie said:

I will cover our visit to the Cross in a separate post.

My plan is to take a cab to the Cross and then walk down the hill and back to the ship, seeing what we can on the way. Do you think that is doable? The way up to the cross look steep and difficult to navigate. Is there anything near the port that is interesting? It seems there are no beaches close enough to walk to.

3 hours ago, GeorgeCharlie said:

We were met at 9 am at the dock by Lucio (our guide) & Martinez (his helper) from Secrets of Peru in a nice new large comfortable bus for 40, but there were only 20 of us. We had booked the Islas Bellastas & the Paracas Nature Reserves tour with them. 

Once again, thanks for posting about your excursion! We will also be with Lucio on the same tour. I was wondering how close we would get to the Paracas Candelabra geoglyph. Looks like pretty darn close!! Since we are there in March, I'm wondering if the wildlife will be more, less or the same. Guess we'll have to wait and see! 

We are booked for a two day Lima tour that will visit these places. Thanks for the hint at what we will hopefully get to see if our ship docks in Lima at the end of March.

On 1/16/2023 at 9:41 PM, Ashland said:

It didn't start out that way. However "clearly" not surprised at the turn just a simple question can take with some poster's.

The Canadian OP was happy to hear it wasn't a tender port. Holy Donuts sounds like a stop I will make while enjoying my aimless wandering in a new port of call! We'll be there October 16.

2 hours ago, lockefloyd said:

How can I find your blog  from the SA cruise to Antarctica?

Maybe you mean the "Somewhat Live" report? Click HERE

Bill, your port review is full of information! I appreciate the detail, especially since we will be visiting the same ports in a few weeks! Thank you! 

Jim

We have the same tour booked for our cruise in March! Thanks for the preview!

Thankfully, at this time, HAL is allowing an antigen self-test where we just have to take the test and then present a photo of the negative result with a background of our personal information. Seems ripe for cheating but I'm not going to argue! We debark from Buenos Aires on 10 March.

Read GeorgeCharlie's detailed review HERE

Looking forward to hearing about your cruise in detail. I followed your Almost Live blog as well. We are sailing the opposite of your cruise and depart BA on 10 March 2023. I would like to know how the passage was for Cape Horn, Glacier Alley, Beagle Channel and that whole area as you recall your voyage. Thanks for doing this! It is a great help in our preparation!

Jim

We'll be sailing on Oosterdam starting 10 March 2023 and it will be the reverse of your sailing. I'm interested to hear all you have to report about the ship, ports and excursions! Thanks for doing this!

Jim

Very helpful. Thank you!

We are planning to walk from the ship to the station at the end of our September cruise and catch the 9:16 train through Rome and Venice all the way to Trieste. We will have wheeled luggage (1 each). Are there any barriers (steps are okay) on the way to the station that would prevent us from taking luggage? Is there enough room by our seats on the train for the luggage or is it stored somewhere? We plan to purchase our tickets 90 days in advance (anytime now) to ensure a seat. Is the trip to Rome reserved seating or open?