phissy

Remembering another port many were unhappy about. Ketchikan. NCL has built its own port 8 miles outside of city. No more docking right at the dock in front of town. Nothing else around there. It is a very short port stop. Many on our sailing did not get notice that last bus to town left at 9:30 (it may have changed this year) They came down to building hoping to catch shuttle to town after late breakfast. Received big NO for answer. Had to buy souvenirs from vendors set up in building. Also, last shuttle from town was 11:00am This is a shame as we always enjoyed walking off ship and visiting with friends who have art galleries. Then, Wandering around town before leisurely heading back on to the ship.

Sorry, not a typo. This port is necessary for requirement for “foreign “ stop . The late arrival is due to the tremendous distance the ship must cover to get to Victoria. If seas are rough, they must slow down, which adds time to arrival. Depending on time of year, it will most likely be dark upon arrival. We have sailed in September and it is still light out and nice. Other times of year, it has been dark, cold and rainy.

Just a quick note….in PNW , we don’t use umbrellas. Water resistant Anorak style jackets with hood work best for rainy days. I wear baseball hat under hood to keep rain off face while on excursions. On cruises to Alaska, umbrellas can be a liability to you and others . . (Been stabbed many times ) It is hard to use binoculars or camera while holding umbrella. In towns, sidewalks very narrow , hard to navigate with so many cruise passengers in port. Have a great cruise !

Not sure what MSC Canada T and C’s are. Here are MSC USA Terms and Conditions paragraphs that seem to apply to this situation. In case of a partial Booking cancellation whereby one or more Passengers have cancelled their Cruise Package, leaving one Passenger to occupy the cabin after the cancellation of the other Passenger(s), the remaining Passenger occupying the cabin for single use will be assessed a 100% single surcharge. No refund will be issued if a Passenger voluntarily or involuntarily does not show up for their cruise, is denied boarding for any reason including failure to provide required travel documents, passport or visa, terminates his/her cruise before the scheduled disembarkation date, or is disembarked pursuant to Section 7 or 18. Cruise contracts are non-transferable.

Wow, Steve! What an amazing last minute adventure. I was surprised when you reported this new cruise. Looking forward to your daily posts on this cruise. Hope you both can get some ballroom dancing in on this cruise. Have a great time. Pat

Hegosej438. welcome to Cruise Critic. As confirmed by Kellherdl, this is possible. The question is should you do it. cashing out $9,000 will send up a flag to casino and cashier. If you are intent on going through with this plan, I would do it in increments, below $1,000. I wouldn’t want to travel with that much cash. I am more concerned that MSC will close this use of casino, just like NCL did.

YC deposits are non refundable. But, not always the case. We had a YC cruise booked and received notice that itinerary had a change. It was one port that changed . One of the options given was cancel and receive refund of deposit. This was before final payment. We had 20 days to notify them and/or TA notify them of our decision. With the one change MSC is now offering, you could move deposit to another cruise. Move must be within 3 months of original cruise. As to you deciding between two options you listed…..? I only know what we value in a vacation and we would choose the YC.

Bea, I also want to thank you for this wonderful travel log. It really feels like we are “onboard” with you.

Jack 159 Welcome to CruiseCritic. This is good resource for those researching a cruise and having questions answered before cruising. Tempering one’s expectations may help to make cruise more enjoyable.

We have enjoyed our meals in Butchers Cut. Steak and lamb chops are our favorite. You get an appetizer, main with side(s) and dessert. We were in YC so our drinks were included. Reminder, since meal is comped, we tip server(s) after meal . Enjoy your cruise, and Butchers Cut.

I just looked up their destinations…. Alaska may be on back burner..not available (yet) This is what they have for US West Coast/ Canada Our US & Canada Pacific Coast & Hawaii Spread the aloha as you admire the Polynesian people, heritage, culture and cuisine – where only the head-high surf resists the laid-back lifestyle. Immerse in tropical island tranquillity to thrilling adventure and a buzzing nightlife.

I was hoping to hear some news regarding MSC moving to West coast . It would be great if MSC did Alaska cruises. 😁

I agree with the recommendation to get Global Entry.. Many premium credit cards have Global Entry fee covered . It also includes TSA Pre Check here in the US for domestic air travel. We just renewed ours. We had to list all countries visited during last 5 year span of our GE. I was surprised there were 22 countries listed. Good memories. We are good for another 5 years 😁

Here are current MSC USA policies regarding deposits. Main ship deposits are refunded up to final payment -YC- non refundable -World Cruise- non refundable For all cruises (excluding Yacht Club and World Cruise), a deposit equal to: cruises 4 nights or less - $99 per adult; cruises 5-14 nights - $199 per adult; cruises 15 nights or more - $300 per adult, is due and payable by the Passenger at time of Booking. For Yacht Club, a non-refundable deposit equal to: cruises 4 nights or less - $99 per adult; cruises 5-14 nights - $199 per adult; cruises 15 nights or more - $300 per adult, is due and payable by the Passenger at time of Booking. For World Cruise, a non-refundable deposit equal to 15% of the price of the Cruise Package is due and payable by the Passenger within 7 calendar days starting from the date of the Booking confirmation. Children 17 and under sailing as the 3rd or 4th Passenger in a stateroom do not require an additional deposit.

The question should be which promotion do I choose if I want drinks and WiFi. All promotions cover level of accommodations, balcony cabins come with different levels . Bella, Fantastica and Aurea. ( I think) Aurea is the most expensive balcony level. Current promo is Easy Plus drink package, WiFi 2 devices per cabin-Browse level and OBC.

We. have sailed YC 4 times and have never paid extra for a speciality dining meal. We are diamond so, we do get a meal outside YC with that status. We actually passed on it a couple of times as the food in YC was just as good. I should also mention ....on our last cruise, there was a gentleman who arrived at YC restaurant upset. His family had long day with excursion and he just wanted to go to Main Dining room for quick dinner. He was not allowed entrance and told to have dinner in YC. He kept ranting how he could not believe that a YC guest was not allowed in main dining room. Lesson learned. To answer the question regarding cost...it can be about $100 per person not including drinks.

It was a Cruise Critic article dated January 2019. It mentioned an UK based MSC ship and although MSC had not disclosed the exact ship, they surmised it would be the Preziosa. This article was before covid, I think what plans MSC had were put on back burner until they could see how the pandemic played out.

Correction. Looks like in 2019, MSC was going to “stretch” and refurbish the Preziosa.

I am with you on this one Bea. I definitely want Champagne when I order it not Prosecco.

Check in times for YC embarkation work nicely with hotel check out times. We checked out of hotel around 10:30 and went to ship. Arrived around 11:20 and were onboard by 11:45. For YC, the earliest we have been able to do check in was 11:00. They are busy trying to zero out the ship before starting embarkation, YC has nice lounge area before being escorted on to ship.

YC balconies are all pretty much the same size, except the RS and OS. Those already have loungers. Removing chair(s) makes adding a lounger possible. Our attitude is that it never hurts to ask ( nicely) but, do not force the issue. Hope for ,the best but accept the results.

I have sailed 4 MSC cruises. My gender is listed incorrectly. I have never been able to change it online with MSC. This has never been an issue when boarding or going through Customs while on a cruise. I almost forgot about it until I read your post. Go ahead and have a fabulous cruise.

Thanks for such a thorough review, very helpful.

It was reported,that NCL asked MSC if they were interested in acquiring NCL. Answer from MSC was No Thanks.

We have received the pre- cruise email Basically, not worth the time to fill it out. When we arrived at embarkation, YC butlers said they don’t get any of those forwarded. They asked at YC lounge for choices mentioned in form. Request for newspaper ( choices on form), Which bottle of liquor for cabin. First three I asked for were not available. Possibly when we would like to eat dinner. As far as mini fridge, just talk to Jr. Butler and tell them what you would like to continue receiving. All in all, small gesture that does little to assure passengers they will have a good experience in YC.