theEvilQueen2

If wearing a mask is all it takes to get the hell out of this house and go on a cruise or vacation, I will gladly wear it. Being in a few high risk catagories, I'll probably wear it the rest of my life anyway. It's become second nature, like putting on my seatbelt.  We're cruising in August (hopefully) so should be vaccinated by then, but that is no guarantee since at this point we really don't know how effective it will be long term. I've survived a lot of stuff in my life and I'm not going to get taken out because of ignoring sound medical advice. Just wear the damn mask. 

We took the tour on Edge and were told that they make the gelato on board, different flavors, every day. So you can usually get the same gelato at the buffet or MDR's for free that you may have to pay for in other venues. Just ask. There's also the soft serve on the pool deck, free. The snacks at al Bacio are free. 

Buy what ever is on sale in the logo shop and re-sell it on ebay. Larger t-shirts, tote bags. glass ware, you can make a few bucks for sure. 

5 minutes ago, mayleeman said:

Time to schedule Oasis class for an 2 day eco-excursion on Coco Cay. 6000 pax can pay $50 for a day to help clean it up, and if they get it clean enough they can pay $175 to use it on the 2nd day.  BYOC, however: build your own cabana.

They can't do it. Liability issues, plus they'd be taking jobs away from the locals and their own employees. 

We were on the Liberty right after the earthquake in Haiti. Many people thought RCL should cancel Labadee because they were afraid of.. who knows... I guess they thought the locals would over take the ship and storm the Windjammer or whatever. RCL's opinion was they've had a long term partnership with the people of Haiti and they don't desert their friends when they need them the most. The Liberty brought food and supplies to help and did so for a long time after. The vendors that RCL uses donated tons of the food and other things. We went to Labadee, which really wasn't affected by the e.q. anyway, had a lovely time and spent a little extra money at the flea market. 

My point, the best way to help all the islands is to go there and spend money. Or FL, Hatteras, Charleston, where ever people will need to rebuild. All these places depend on tourism. So be a tourist, no guilt required.   

Don't worry about Coco Cay. RCL has plenty of money to rebuild and will do it in a hurry.  

We're in Boynton Beach, which is just south of West Palm Beach. If you look outside right now, it is a bright, beautiful day. Except the wind is really picking up. We're all boarded up, geared up and ready for what ever happens. We're sailing next Saturday on Symphony and I really don't foresee any problems.  Miami isn't going to take a big hit at all. From what I've read, St Thomas and St Kitts came through it pretty well. Per RCL, no changes in itinerary as of now.  The Bahamas will be devastated, no doubt about that, so if you were going there, not now.  I have no idea about Coco Cay.

I've lived in Florida since the 80's and DH has been here all his life. Make no mistake, this is a huge storm and will leave a lot of destruction in it's wake.  We have to board up every few years now and it's getting worse and more often.  For those of you who think it's some kind of 'hoax', I say you need to wise up and face reality. IMHO we have passed the point of no return. 

Be Safe. 

If you always want 5:30 you should change to fixed dining. I'm sure they'll do it for you. Many people want My Time and can't get it, so they'd be happy to free it up for people on the wait list.

But if you do fixed dining you really need to be on time. Otherwise it throws everything off and you may get turned away if you're too late. Just like a real restaurant on land.  

The alternate time is a suggestion. The real purpose is to give the 'tourists' staggered times so everyone doesn't show up at one time.  (I have this on very good authority). 

1 hour ago, moneeman said:

While the view is good on both sides, in Alaska we highly prefer to face the mainland where (some days) you can see huge snow-covered mountains from your bed.  Going South, that would be the port side.  Enjoy your cruise.

I booked starboard out of habit, but I think you're right. I may need to call CS and change that.  

I had made all my reservations for MDR, but then upgraded my cabin to Aqua class when the prices went down. All of my MDR reservations still stand. That would make sense, just because I can eat in BLU doesn't mean I'll want to, at least not every night depending on menu.  

Thank you all for the input. Since it didn't matter as far as spotting marine life, I booked based on distance from the Spa. Deck 9, fore.

FYI, Celebrity is having an amazing sale. I booked an Aqua class, 4 perks included, so with all that it's almost like being all inclusive. This would usually be above my price point. Booze and a steak upgrade, DH is very pleased.

Happy cruising. 

Which is the best side to be on for an Alaskan cruise? We're looking at the one way, Seward to Vancouver (or the other way). So should we book a cabin that will face east (land) or west (sea) to optimize possible whale spotting? 

Thank you.

Which is the best side to be on for an Alaskan cruise? We're looking at the one way, Seward to Vancouver (or the other way). So should we book a cabin that will face east (land) or west (sea) to optimize possible whale spotting? 

Thank you.

12 hours ago, Love PalmTrees said:

Are you allowed two bottles of wine per cabin regardless of length of cruise?  (We are booked on an 8-day.)  

How many and what size bottled water are allowed to be brought on at embarkation?  Thanks so much!!

 

I'm not sure I understand your question, but I'll answer regarding water. It's not like the airport where you can't have a bottle of water from outside. If you have a bottle or two in your bag, no problem.

Before there were drink packages like they have now, we used to bring our own water, a case for the whole cruise. We'd slap a luggage tag on it, hand it to the porter and it would show up in our room. Those days are gone. Even in the good old days, it would depend on which port you were in and the whim of the porters. We never had a problem in Ft. Lauderdale, but Canaveral was a whole other story. Once we ended up putting the case of water inside a suitcase (per the porters suggestion), then we got called to the naughty room and they wouldn't let us have it until the end of the cruise. Their reasoning was, if we sell it onboard, you can't bring it onboard. (I asked if that also applied to the flip flops I brought with me... big fight... whatever). Anyway, we just buy the drink package now and eliminate the hassle.   I don't even use my Rum Runners anymore. 

8 hours ago, eel said:

We are currently booked on a Celebrity cruise that is scheduled to arrive at 7 AM. On that same day we are booked on a Royal cruise that departs Port Canaveral at 4:30 PM. I suspect we will need to arrive no later than 3 PM.

 

Our plan is to carry our luggage off the ship as soon as we are allowed, go pick up a rental car, drive up to Port Canaveral, drop off the car and board. It is about a 3 hour drive.  Assuming we can hit the road by 9 AM, it seems like we should have plenty of time even if we hit some delays or snags.

 

Do you think this plan holds water?

 

 

It's doable, but Ft Lauderdale to Cocoa is going to be more like 4 hours. I've breezed in and out of car rental places, but some have had me standing around for 20-30 minutes, then an inspection, etc, 

There will be taxi's waiting right outside the terminal, so that's not a problem, but I wouldn't call an Uber. Security is tight in Ft Lauderdale and they might not let an Uber just breeze on in. 

I used to work at the port in Ft Lauderdale and have seen people who planned badly and ended leaving their rental car in the pay lot for a week, paying for the rental and the parking fee.  But that won't be you. 

Best wishes. 

What is the escape room?  

We've always eaten dinner in the MDR, but haven't always been happy with the food.. and I think it's gotten worse. So when I gave DH the option to have a decent steak every night, he jumped at it.  Hopefully I can get him out of Chops and into something more exotic. We're on Symphony in September so they should have it all worked out by then. As a retired insurance agent, my advice is even if it says 'unlimited' there's always an 'exclusions' page. First World problems. 

Happy Cruising. 

Btw, we were on Oasis the week Cats began. Over half of the audience (including some of my travel buddies) walked out at the break. I wasn't crazy about it on Broadway, but it was really bad on the ship. There were bad technical problems (evidently they had to use the original 1960's soundtrack). Anyway, if you can last, the 2nd half is actually better. I'm very glad it's going away. Chicago is still the best. Grease is getting really old. everyone has seen it and the story is dated. I don't like Abba, never have, but that's just personal taste   

I would say that going with the newest ship is always a good idea, although it might cost more. They tend to make improvements with each one, correcting old mistakes and adding cool new stuff. We've been on 3 of the Oasis class. going on Symphony in Sept. so we'll see how that works out.   I haven't kept up with new builds lately, so I don't know what will be new in 2021. 

As of today I was 95 days out from my Empress cruise (9/7)), so was able to cancel and put the money towards going on the Symphony the same day. If I can't go to Cuba, I really don't want to float around the Caribbean in a small ship in the middle of hurricane season. It looks like this time 'great leaders' order is immediate and there will be no grandfathering, certainly not 95 days out. So I'm out and, although very disappointed, feel lucky that I got to change just  under the wire. 

This would have been our 2nd time to Havana, so I feel lucky to have gotten the chance at all. Maybe we can try again in 2 years (if you catch my drift). 

Happy Cruising. 

They don't let you pre-book the thermal spa on any ship we've been on. We do it on the first day for the week. They'll give you a complete tour so you can determine if it's for you.   

We've only started using the spas, but have done so on our last 5 cruises on 5 different ships, so I had to check with DH about the spa on Harmony. Their thermal spa doesn't over look the ocean, it is inside. There is one hot spa and one wet steam spa, which we never had a problem with over crowding. There are, I think, 6 hot tables and generally we had no problem getting one, but sometimes we had to wait. There are changing rooms for both men and women, with showers.  I think we paid a little over $200 for the week for both of us, which I felt was fair because we used it every day. They provide towels, and robes if you ask.  

The adult pool area is next to the spa, so you can go straight there to the hot tubs.   I don't think I'll ever take a cruise again with out using the Thermal spa. 

We just took a cruise on another line which turned out to be a pretty bad experience. About the only thing to recommend it was the Thermal spa. The whole area is co-ed, so no funny business going on. They have dry, wet, salt saunas and a salt water hot tub that cures a variety of ills. Really nice (but not worth changing brands over).

I've been on ships where they have a dry sauna separately in the mens and womens dressing rooms (I think on our Serenade cruise) , so I'm guessing this is where the sex stuff happens.  

I started using the spas on ships about 5 cruises ago and have become addicted. I really hope this is something they don't discontinue, although I'm guessing the spa doesn't generate much additional revenue and the 'bean counters' always seem to win out when these decisions are made. They'd close the spa and turn it into a casino if it gives them a penny more income.  

A lot of people are really missing the point. It wasn't one thing, it wasn't the status match, it wasn't the rude bartender(s), it wasn't even the horrible woman we kept getting at GS who had a 'NO' attitude and was full of misinformation. Any one of those things I could shrug off. It was the fact that so many things went wrong and once it started it just kept snowballing. Just one thing after another. After another, After another. 

And no, I do not think the people who post on CC are responsible for anything. All I was saying is that I would hope that the people here are honest with their reviews, good or bad, so the rest of us can make an educated choice about where to spend our vacation money. 

Seems that the consensus is if you go YC it's a good cruise, but anything else, average or sub-par. And I think we can all agree that MSC really needs to get it's act together when it comes to their IT, Guest Services and Customer Service. They also need to just stop selling one thing and saying that it's changed the program once you've purchased or are onboard. This isn't just a one time thing, it's a systemic fault. It seems quite deliberate. If anyone starts a class action suit, count me in.

Happy Cruising. 

1 minute ago, eroller said:

 

 

 

Thanks for coming back and summing up a few things.  I do think you encountered a series of blunders, and it's no secret that MSC get a failing grade on service recovery.  Probably a one and done for you which is fine, but at least you got to experience it.  

 

One thing I don't agree with is your expectation regarding the status match perks.  You should not expect them to be the same as Celebrity, Royal, or any other cruise line.  I'm at the highest tier of many cruise line, and they are all different.  Some are better than others but I don't sail on NCL and expect the same perks as Princess, even though I'm at the highest levels on both.  MSC clearly states what their benefits are, which is quite fair.  Now you should not have to fight for them.  That is a problem.  

 

Personally I think it's quite generous to offer the status match.  No other cruise line does this.  I have to agree with sidari though and say it's probably a mistake.  It sets the wrong expectation and also it's a great way to piss off your loyal client base.  I know if  Royal, Cunard, NCL, Carnival, etc. offered a status match to some other cruise line I would be pissed.  I earned my status the hard way, one cruise at a time.  For this reason I was grateful to have to Black Card benefits with MSC.  In no way did I earn it, so I certainly cannot complain about them, and I certainly don't begrudge those that actually earned them to feel betrayed by the line.  I know I probably would.  

I can't disagree on most of your points. I would not be happy to share the Diamond Lounge with first time RCL cruisers, especially since there are so many Diamonds these days that the venues are already over flowing. But I didn't expect a perk by perk match, just some small things, like a bathrobe or some kind of priority debark. Anyway this is another thing that MSC has down graded, swapping Diamond for Gold, not Black. I got a $149 refund on the fare, which they got right back when I upgraded the drink package, which, as previously stated, was a rip off due to the excluded products. 

In short, the status match is just a gimmick by MSC and in no way should be a deciding factor when choosing what cruise line to sail on. 

And I have never in my entire life booked a cruise, hotel, resort, whatever, and been told that what I purchased is no longer included, oh well, you should have been here 4 weeks ago, without any kind of rebate or adjustment.  

46 minutes ago, sidari said:

Ernie ... Many cruisers in Europe are experienced cruisers and for you to make out any different is wrong in saying that they are likely first time cruisers. 

Many of these people likely do not cruise the Caribbean and choose to stay and sail in Europe with Costa and MSC. There are however large numbers of Europeans and those from the UK who do cruise the Caribbean.

I consider the two of us to be experienced cruisers/ holiday makers having visited many countries outside of the UK on land holidays and cruises.

Many North American cruisers have never cruised outside of their own backyard and it seems have difficulty when it comes to other Nationalities.

Yes I know there are those who have cruised and holidayed within Europe and are usually the ones who do not have such issues with MSC or how they run their business and know how to deal with other Nationalities.

The status match may well have attracted customers but it is the worst thing MSC have ever done apart from removing the 20% Black card discount.

There does appear to be a sense of entitlement from some people on these boards which have sadly gone downhill over the last four or five years.

 

DH and I have worked hard for our money  all our lives and, yes, when we spend our hard earned American dollars on a vacation we do feel a sense of entitlement … entitled to getting what we paid for, getting what was advertised and yes, being treated with respect and pampered by our 'hosts'.  We go to relax, not to stand in line and argue with untrained and snarky hired help.

I agree, status match was a bad advertising ploy, especially when it was in name only and MSC had no intention of delivering in any way on that expectation. I should not have to buy the most expensive cabin or 'experience' on the ship in order to have an enjoyable time, whether it's my first cruise or my 100th. I have booked inside cabins on the smallest ships in the fleet on other cruise lines and been treated better and had a better 'experience than on Seaside. 

I was looking forward to being on a ship with a 'continental' vibe. We've been to Italy, France, the UK, and have had great times there. We've even dealt with the 'Paris attitude' (which is a very real thing) and had a good laugh about it.  But never, in any of those countries, have I been treated badly by the staff of a hotel, bar, or restaurant. I've never had so may glitches on land or sea due to probably the worst IT in any market.  I have never been told 'that's an outside vendor, not our problem' when purchasing a product on a companies website. There is just no excuse and MSC has really got to get it's sh*t together or you'll be reading a lot more negative reviews from a lot more 'entitled' people. 

So maybe the decline in the people on these boards is not due to a sense of entitlement, but due to inferior products coming to the market. I would hope the people on these boards would be honest and not let the rest of us get sucked in by false advertising and hype. Some things are subjective, some things are just a major fail. 

Happy Cruising.