Iluvcruising2

I don't know how much you are being charged for pick-up. But indeed, there are many taxis, and the ride from Cruise Terminal to Airport shouldn't cost you too much, even if you take 2 cabs.

I made the below video to show visitors the Marina Bay cruise terminal, and how easy it is to take a taxi.

[YOUTUBE]-a5WI-KinVQ[/YOUTUBE]

Hi

Have been enjoying your posts over the years. We are finally coming in to Singapore in March for three days before a cruise. For now we are staying at the Fairmont. Do you think that it is central enough. Love all of your food recommendations, can hardly wait.

Janice

Fairmont is very central, with plenty of shops, eateries and well connected via public transport. The hotel is integrated with the Raffles City Shopping Center, and from there, you can walk to the Marina Bay area all via underground airconditioned shopping tunnels starting from City Hall MRT station.

If you haven't seen these videos, it would be useful for you.

In this video, I walk you through the basement level of Raffles City Shopping Center. Plenty of eateries here, as well as a pharmacy.

[YOUTUBE]0uCSKCX6kTA[/YOUTUBE]

For inexpensive local cuisine, head to the air-conditioned food court, which I recall is on level 4 of the Raffles City shopping center. This place can get crowded during lunch time - office crowds.

[YOUTUBE]npAX_Oqhezs[/YOUTUBE]

The entrance to City Hall MRT station. You can use the MRT to explore Singapore.

[YOUTUBE]K0Q_9npajWc[/YOUTUBE]

A word on the rain. We are 1 deg north of the equator, and we have tropical weather. There can be torrential rain in Singapore. When it rains heavily, wait it out, unless you want to get drenched. It usually doesn't last very long.

[YOUTUBE]l6ckQwm-EZw[/YOUTUBE]

Great thread....so much information:)

Looking so forward to visiting Singapore.

Welcome! Hope you enjoy your visit.

We are arriving in Singapore 5.30 p.m.; Thursday 15th February and staying at Fairmont Singapore. I believe this is Chinese New Year - Is this correct. Will it be easy to get a taxi from the airport. Also how many days/nights are shops closed for Chinese New Year. Have you any suggestions on what to do during these celebrations - We are cruising from Singapore on the Sunday 18th February. Thanks Judy

Chinese New Year falls on 16th and 17th Feb 2018. 15th would be CNY eve. There shouldn't be a problem getting a taxi from the airport, though you may have to wait a little longer.

I believe the major attractions are all open.

Many shops are still opened. What to do? Well, soak up in the festivities. Visit Chinatown!

This link to last year's celebrations.

http://chinatownfestivals.sg/

I think Royal is a decent cruise line, but I am in no way loyal to them.

My most recent cruise was on the MSC Meraviglia (2nd time in the Yacht Club for MSC), and loved it!

I don't usually drink on land, so had plenty of fun with the cocktails.

That said, would I sail on Royal again? Why not?

If the price is right and the itinerary/ship is attractive.

When my kids were 6, they were already eating off the adult menu mostly. But what helps is to ask for a plate of fries, or sometimes chicken nuggets. You can order as much as you want. We eat as a family (typical Asian-style), and we swop our dishes around.

Lunch on Embarkation Day

It was lunch time! YC guests have a dedicated restaurant. When we sailed on the MSC Preziosa, the YC restaurant was located at the aft of the ship, while the rest of the Yacht Club was at the front of the ship. Hence, walking to the YC restaurant on the Preziosa took a while. On the Meraviglia, all the YC restaurant is now located together with all the YC facilities, making it truly a ship within a ship. Our cabin was on deck 15. Concierge and Top Sail lounge on Deck 16. There is no Deck 17. Deck 18 is the YC restaurant and Deck 19 the pool deck. There is an internal lift serving Decks 14 to 19.

We headed to the restaurant, and we were seated at a corner of the restaurant, and there we sat for the next 7 Nights. For dinner, we were always served by the same waiter. For breakfast and lunch, the waiter could be different.

It was a sit-down lunch. Drinks (wine, beer etc) were also available. Here are some photos of the food. This was the Ahi Tuna, one of the starters.

This was some beef.

And this was one of the desserts, carrot cake. Check out the cute carrot on top of the cake.

I don't recall the YC restaurant being crowded at all. We got our food quickly. After lunch, we headed to the Top Sail lounge for coffee and drinks, and there more finger food was waiting for us. There would be plenty to eat and drink on this cruise.

Here is a video of the lunch we had when we embarked at Genoa, followed by some footage from the Top Sail lounge. As the weather outside was raining and windy, we were informed that the YC pool deck was closed. Otherwise, there would be a buffet spread there too.

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This picture shows you the complimentary cocktails. More than enough for me! In fact, I didn't get the chance to try all. I liked the Long Island Iced Tea. Rather potent. You could ask for any cocktail, without the alcohol. Good fun for the kids, as they could choose any cocktail they liked, sans the alcohol.

In this video, I do a quite run-through of the drinks list in the Top Sail Lounge of the MSC Meraviglia. Oh, too much to drink!

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Hijacking my own thread again.

Check out my latest review - Royal Suite 15008 in the Yacht Club of the MSC Meraviglia, 7N cruise out of Genoa to the Western Med - https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=54830977&posted=1#post54830977

I'm optimistic for your review. I will be cruising on the Seaview on a near-exact itinerary, just with Messina instead of Palermo. I have ideas of what to do in each port, but I am not solidified yet, so I look forward to seeing your port pictures/videos to help with planning. Thanks in advance for your commentary! :)

 

 

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Thanks for your comment. If you have not already done so, you could read my MSC Preziosa review from 2 years ago, where I covered the same ports - https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2288693

This time round, we did different things, which I will cover in this thread as it progresses.

We took the free public port shuttle in Marseilles when we sailed on the Preziosa 2 years ago. The walk is far.

Here is my video of the experience.

[YOUTUBE]o6kf_QSX7JQ[/YOUTUBE]

This Dec, when we visited Marseilles again on the MSC Meraviglia, we took a taxi to Aix-En-Provence instead.

Taking on Passengers at Every Port of Call

An interesting aspect of MSC Meraviglia cruises out of Genoa is that the ship takes on passengers at every port for this repeated itinerary. I found out that the busiest ports were Genoa, Barcelona and Marseilles. Some said almost half the pax disembarks at Genoa. For us, it was troublesome to get to Genoa, but because we wanted the Royal Suite, it was only available for sailings out of Genoa. If we were more flexible with cabins, we would likely board in Barcelona instead.

Kids Sailed Free

In case you are thinking that we are lavish creatures, only wanting to sail in the Royal Suite, the reality is that the Royal Suite cabin on the MSC Meraviglia was one of the few types of YC cabins where our kids stay for free (only had to pay daily service fees). When I divide the cost of the Royal Suite by 4, it made a lot of sense, since all 4 of us get YC privileges. Plus the fact that this was a sailing in winter, and prices were generally lower. I decided to book my parents in an interior YC cabin (obviously that is the most cost effective YC option), so that 3 generations could enjoy the cruise together, in the Yacht Club. Good fun!

The butler escorted us all the way to the Yacht Club concierge, which was located on Deck 16, front of the ship. As this was my second time in the YC, I knew what to expect. It was the first for my parents, so it was certainly very novel for them. At the concierge, we were asked to open an account (either with cash, or credit card) as well as which newspapers we wanted, and I chose the Straits Times (a Singapore paper). At first, the concierge staff said that she didn't have such a paper (she was looking at a printed list), but then I said that this option was available two years ago, when I sailed on the MSC Preziosa. Anyway, I know for a fact that the Straits Times of Singapore has a digital version. So the staff kindly checked her computer system, and indeed, there was! So, it was good fun to receive a printed copy of a Singapore local paper every day of the cruise. I even featured the Straits Times in some of my videos, as you will see.

All this was done very quickly, and then we were ushered to our respective cabins. My family took the Royal Suite Cabin 15008, while I had booked my parents in an interior YC stateroom, Cabin 15007, which was just around the corner from our suite.

Cabin 15008

We entered our cabin for the first time, with great anticipation. Our seapass cards were waiting for us on the table inside our cabin. The published size of the Royal Suite was 700 square feet (interior). It certainly felt large. Here are some photographs.

Master Bedroom in Cabin 15008. Classy looking.

Living room, with a large Samsung Smart TV. There was another Samsung Smart TV in the master bedroom.

Two large sofas and the coffee table in the living room. The sofa on the right would be converted into a bed, where my kids would sleep.

Bathtub in the toilet. It came with jaccuzi features as well as very interesting 'disco' lights. I'll show that to you in later videos.

Video of Cabin 15008.

Ok, here come the videos. The first video, a brief one (only 1 minute), was taken when we first stepped into the suite. This allows you to see some of the suite in the condition when we first entered the ship. Looked very good.

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This next video, taken late in the cruise, is a much more detailed walk-through of Cabin 15008. By that time, we had slept more than a couple of nights in the suite, hence you can see the difference (i.e. see the mess lol).

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Privilged to stay for 7N in this cabin. Thank God for this awesome experience.

Embarkation Day!

We had a good night's sleep at the Holiday Inn Genoa. The next morning, we woke up in good time for breakfast. Breakfast started at 7AM, as it was a Sunday. We got to breakfast slightly past 7AM, and there was a good crowd.

The spread for breakfast was decent, as you can see in the video below. In particular, my parents enjoyed it (they spent more than 1 hour eating!). The emphasis of the spread was more on cakes, pastries etc. There was sufficient hot food to meet our needs, though no live egg station (e.g. no fried eggs).

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After breakfast, there was still plenty of time. When we looked out of our balcony, we could see the Meraviglia coming in. Excited!

Anyway, there was no point heading to the cruise port so early. So, my family decided to try the subway to get into Genoa. The nearest metro station to Holiday Inn was called Dinegro, about a 400M walk. The entire light rail system only has 7 stops! Here is the map.

I bought a family ticket from the self service machine (9 Euros, 4 pax can travel) and took the metro to De Ferrari, and walked around a bit (to exercise the legs), and then we took the metro back to Principe (which is the train station), where we went to buy our return train tickets (i.e. Genoa to Milan Centrale). This time round, we opted for First Class. And finally, we took a slow walk back to the Holiday Inn. Despite all the walking, we managed to get back to the hotel before 10AM.

Back in the hotel balcony, we could see the 172,000GT MSC Meraviglia docked. Excited!

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We packed up and left our hotel around 1030am. As there were 6 of us, with 5 large bags and numerous smaller ones, I asked the hotel reception whether there were any taxis big enough for us. The reception recommended an 8-seater van, which I agreed. The van came in 5 minutes, and he could take all our luggage, which was cool. The ride to the cruise port took only 5 minutes (it is 1.5km away) but it would not have been feasible to walk given the luggage, and the fact that it was starting to drizzle. The cost of the transfer was about 20 Euros.

Yacht Club Boarding

At the cruise terminal, we followed the signs to the boarding area. We were directed to the baggage drop off area, and right there was an MSC Yacht Club tent, with a butler waiting. Similar to our 2015 cruise on the Preziosa, the Yacht Club experience starts right from baggage drop-off. Once our bags were settled, we were escorted by a butler to the check-in area. Remember, you have to print out all the forms in hardcopy in order to do the check-in. That part was done quite speedily, and very soon, we were escorted by the butler to board the ship. In doing so, we bypassed all lines of passengers waiting to check in. That was part of the YC experience.

Video below consists of some GO PRO footage from boarding the MSC Meraviglia.

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Unfortunately, I did not capture comprehensive GO PRO footage this time round. Must have forgotten to keep the camera running! So, here is our boarding experience from Dec 15, on the MSC Preziosa trip, for reference.

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Holiday Inn GENOA

Checking in for the Genoa Holiday Inn was a breeze. We arrived just after 1pm, and our rooms were ready, so we could get access to our rooms. (Official check in time was 3pm).

For my family of 4, I booked a normal family room, and the hotel very nicely upgraded us to an Executive Family Room. Very pleased. This is the video of what the room looks like.

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It was time for lunch! After putting down our bags and washing up, we asked the hotel reception to call a taxi for us. We were headed to downtown Genoa, to get lunch at this restaurant called Yuan Restaurant Genoa. I had found the restaurant on Tripadvisor (https://www.yuansushigenova.com/). I showed the taxi driver the address of the restaurant and he knew the way. In fact, he dropped us right at the restaurant door, which was convenient. The fare was under 15 Euros. All properly metered.

The restaurant clearly lived up to the recommendations on tripadvisor. It was very good and inexpensive! They had awesome lunch sets, costing about 11Euros each. I got this mixed sushi for 11 Euros.

My parents took the Chinese menu, which was 10Euros per pax, and it even came with two courses! It was very good value, as you can see in the video below. We had 2 large bottles of beer, costing 4 Euro each. Take note, there was a rather steep set of stairs to climb up to the restaurant.

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After a good lunch, it was time to take a walk. Need to combat jet lag! We were in downtown Genoa, and it took us about 5 minutes on foot to get to the famous Piazza De Ferrari. From Wiki, Piazza De Ferrari is the main square of Genoa. Situated in the heart of the city between the historical and the modern center, Piazza De Ferrari is renowned for its fountain, which was restored in recent years along with a major restyling of the square. Today next to Piazza De Ferrari are numerous office buildings, headquarters of banks, insurances and other private companies, making of this district the financial and business centre of Genoa, so that Genoeses popularly refer to it as the "City" of Genoa. At the end of the 19th century Genoa was the main financial centre of Italy along with Milan, and Piazza De Ferrari was the place where many institutions were established, like the stock exchange, the Credito Italiano,[1] the branch offices of the Bank of Italy, founded in 1893.

After taking some photos of the piazza, I headed towards Piazza San Lorenzo, where the Genoa Cathedral is. Along the way, we passed a nice Christmas market.

We kept walking beyond the Cathedral (it was downhill) and ended up near the water. We could see the aquarium. Took a taxi back to the hotel from there.

Here is some Go Pro footage of the walk. It was not warm, and coming from tropical Singapore, we soon felt cold!

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Now you may be wondering, where was my family? How big was my party? The answer is that my wife and kids were not yet with us at this time. They were fact on a Ryanair plane, flying towards Genoa! Wife and kids were in London for a pre-cruise holiday. My parents and I would meet them in Genoa.

So back in Holiday Inn Hotel room, I managed to snag this footage of the Ryanair aircraft approaching Genoa airport. How cool is that?

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The Genoa airport is very near Genoa city. The Ryanair flight touched down at 4pm (I was using my flight aware app to track it) and within 30 to 35 minutes, my wife and kids had appeared at the hotel in a taxi. It was really fast. They told me that immigration clearance was speedy, they got their luggage very quickly, hopped on a taxi and the ride was say 15 minutes max.

We didn't do much later that evening. Tired. We had some food at the McDonalds (inside the Co-Op) opposite the Holiday Inn. And it was time to rest and sleep. Tomorrow we would board the MSC Merviglia.

Steps up Italian Train

Before I end the pre-cruise day, here is a picture and a short video clip of the steps up a typical Italian inter-city train. The reason I am showing you this is because you have to carry your luggage up and down the train, if you intend to use the train for inter-city travel. Therefore, heavy pieces of luggage could prove to be a challenge. Truth be told, my parents would not have been able to manage to haul up and down their luggage (each piece was 20kg) without my help. And this being Italy, I'm not sure if it is wise to ask strangers for help. You could be an easy target for pickpockets.

Here is the short clip.

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Take note, the Malpensa Express trains (at least those we took) were of a different configuration. More importantly, there was hardly any gap between the train and platform, and definitely not steps. You could almost roll your luggage on and off those trains. Hope this is helpful for travellers.

I am once again enjoying your cruise review Christmas tradition :) Merry Christmas to you and your family!

 

 

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Thank you! Best wishes to you and family too. We don't have any cruises planned, so I shall savour the memories from this one.

Arrival at Milan Malpensa

The airport was very quiet as we disembarked. I think our flight was the first to land that morning, which was helpful because immigration lines moved quickly. I noticed that they had only 2 counters in operation at that time in the morning. After clearing immigration, we waited for a short while and got our luggage. Take note that the trolleys cost 2 Euro (using coins from the machine). I had to get a trolley since we had big luggage. Fortunately we had some Euro coins from our previous trips to the EU.

Once we got to the public area, we headed to a cafe to get some coffee and food. Here is a video of us walking in Milan airport, then on the train, and finally arriving at Milan Centrale.

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How far were the train rides? Well, it was two train rides. First, you need to take the train from Milan Malpensa Airport to Milan Centrale station (about 1 hour), on the Malpensa Express. Next, from Milan Centrale to Genoa (Genova Principe). The second leg is on an inter-city train. Snapshot below from Google Maps.

Milan Centrale

In this video, I show you some scenes of Milan Centrale station. The pickpocket situation in Milan is so bad, the first thing the machine tells you is to 'Beware of Pickpockets". We arrived in Milan Centrale earlier that morning, from Milan Malpensa, after flying in from Singapore. (Singapore Airlines!) At Milan Centrale, I had to buy tickets for the next leg, from Milan Centrale to Genoa Principe. I used the Self Service machines. They accepted credit cards, but required a PIN. Thankfully I remembered my PIN. The second class ticket cost 21.5 Euros per adult.

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It was quite a nightmare for us when we boarded the train to Genoa. First we had to get our luggage on board the train - pretty high steps. Then, we discovered there weren't proper areas to store our large bags. Worse, some pickpockets made an attempt on one of us, thank God she didn't manage to steal anything.

Beware, they work in groups of 2-3. One of them will try to distract you. In our case, she pretended to be a train passenger and appeared overly helpful with our luggage. The other(s) will then try to pick from your pocket, handbag or bagpack. As the train was quite crowded and busy, people were in close proximity.

We also discovered that we boarded the wrong carriage. When we took the train from Milan Malpensa to Milan Centrale, there were no assigned seats. But for this inter-city train (which went all the way to NICE), there were assigned seats and carriages. My video shows you a picture of the ticket, and more importantly how to read the ticket (CARROZZA means carriage). Remember to board the correct carriage. You can find the carriage number outside the train.

After all that excitement, we made it safely to Genoa Principe. Phew! Thank God.

The earlier video also shows you our arrival at Genoa Principe and how to walk to the exit. From there, we took a taxi, to bring us to the Holiday Inn Genoa, where we would be staying for a night, pre-cruise. The hotel wasn't far away, but there were some surcharges. The bill came up to under 20 Euros. ( I think it was 17)

Hi Luv2,

 

I have just spent most of the day reading and watching your incredible review. It has to be the best travel log I have ever seen!! Keep up the good work and we can't wait to see your next masterpiece here at CC.

"The Spirit be with you."

Thank you. I have returned from my MSC Meraviglia cruise, and now very busy trying to put the review together. I have started the thread on cruise critic - https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2576899

It will take some time to complete. Asking for your patience. :):)

Greetings and blessed Christmas to everybody. It has been a (long) while since I posted a review, and I am excited to share with you pictures/videos from our most recently completed cruise on the MSC Meraviglia out of Genoa in December 2017.

Some of you may remember my MSC Preziosa review some time back - https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2288693

That time, we also sailed from Genoa, in a Yacht Club suite, to the exact same ports. Now, two years later, we are doing it again, but this time on the MSC Meraviglia!

The itinerary as follows:

Where is Genoa? Quoting from Wikitravel - Genoa (or Genova in Italian) is a historical port city in northern Italy, the capital of the Region of Liguria. Genoa today, as a tourist attraction, is often shadowed by cities such as Rome or Venice, even though it has a long history as a rich and powerful trade centre. However, with its multitude of hidden gems behind cozy alleyways, excellent cuisine (notably fish and seafood), renovated old port, beautiful sights (including one of Europe's biggest aquariums), and its position as the European Capital of Culture in 2004 have made the birthplace of explorer Christopher Columbus an enticing place which is gradually becoming more included in the touristic market. With pastel-coloured terracotta-roofed houses, artistic churches, lovely seaside villas, and also several luxurious boutiques, Genoa is a must see if you want to experience the "quintessential" Italy.

In short, what the above description is saying that Genoa is a historical city, and we were told that her economy isn't doing very well these days, having been overshadowed by other bigger Italian cities. Fortunately, tourism continues to be a big money puller. They have a decent cruise port, and it is good that MSC ships call at her ports very frequently (in fact, some are home-ported here).

How to get to Genoa? Turns out that Genoa isn't that easy to get to, at least from Singapore. She has a small airport (Genoa Cristoforo Colombo), with limited connected to Europe. (Most flights are to other Italian cities). The last time we flew into Genoa, using Ryanair from London Stansted. (They only fly 3-4 times a week). This time, we decided to fly from Singapore to Milan Malpensa, and then find out way via public train to Genoa.

Flight from Singapore to Milan

We flew on Singapore Airlines SQ 368, Singapore to Milan direct and non-stop. The aircraft departs Singapore close to midnight, and would arrive in Milan Malpensa Terminal 1 around 6AM in the morning, local Milan time.

At Singapore Changi Airport (which to me is the best airport in the world), I spotted this Christmas magical display of Sanrio characters. Added greatly to the festive mood!

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Priority Pass Lounge - SATS Premier Lounge

Since I had to use up some complimentary passes, I decided to visit a Priority Pass lounge at Changi. I chose the SATS Premier Lounge, as they are quite reliable. Many airlines (those without dedicated lounges) also use this lounge for their business class pax. Here is a video of the lounge experience

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Singapore Airlines SQ 368 to Milan

Singapore Airlines operates their Airbus A350 for the Singapore to Milan route. The plane I flew on was very new, I think about 6 months old. Even though I have flown with Singapore Airlines many times (both in Economy and Business), this experience is still novel for me. Why? As I was flying in Economy, and it was a red-eye flight, I decided to spend an additional USD 90 to purchase what is known as a Preferred Seat. Other names include Emergency Row, or Exit Seat. This is what my seat, 47J, looked like. On the left of this picture.

Here was the seating plan of the SQ Airbus A350. My seat was 47 J.

Verdict? Was the USD90 worth it? It depends.

The Pros.

No doubt that the legroom was plentiful. I could stretch my entire leg horizontally, with no issues. This allowed me to have a very good sleep. But take note the disadvantages below.

The Cons

1. Preferred seats are right next to the toilets. Hence, this place could get very busy indeed, especially during peak hours for toilet use (e.g. after meals, before landing).

2. At 47J, you will hear a 'ding', 'ding', 'ding' (9:26), and a blue light coming on. What was that all about? Turns out that whenever a passenger presses the call button for a flight attendant, the ding sound will happen, and a small blue light will be activated. (9:26). The ding beeper and blue light is located right above the aircraft door, near 47J. You can imagine the 'ding', 'ding', 'ding' throughout the night. Fortunately, they gave me ear plugs, and I managed to sleep through. I think this wasn't an issue for 47B and 47C (i.e. the preferred seats at the other aisle), although I'm not sure.

3. Preferred seats have no space to put your backpack under your seat. Everything must go overhead.

4. The inflight entertainment screen can only be deployed when the aircraft is in the air. So you don’t have access to movies when the plane is on the ground, during take off, and during landing. Other passengers in normal seats have access to the IFE throughout.

Conclusion

Overall? Given that I had a good sleep (which was very important to me), the USD90 was worth the money. However, if I flew again, I would try 47A, 47B or 47C next time. (i.e the other side of the aircraft)

Seats-aside, the rest of the flight was good. We were served supper shortly after takeoff from Singapore Changi. I chose the Beef with Noodles option. I found the beef a bit tough, but it didn't bother me too much as I wasn't hungry. We were given a Magnum mini as dessert - that was nice. I slept a lot and woke up about 3 hours before landing. Breakfast was ok. I chose the noodles again. Everything went like clockwork and we landed in Milan safely.

Here is a video of my flight experience.

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Our plane landed uneventfully in Milan, and that is a blessing.

I went to Langkawi on a separate trip, not via cruise. Some of the videos I made going up Skycab.

Part 1- going up via SKycab.

[YOUTUBE]kqG0bJ2fNQU[/YOUTUBE]

Part 2 - going right up to the Top Peak station.

[YOUTUBE]EpuMdSZI3mw[/YOUTUBE]

Part 3 - Rollercoaster on a hill? No, this was called the Inclinator.

[YOUTUBE]Ri0ETb28WK0[/YOUTUBE]

Part 4 - Walking on the Langkawi Curved Bridge. Weather was good when I got there.

[YOUTUBE]O9YutXfEEQE[/YOUTUBE]

Beware that the place could get very crowded. Worthwhile to get those VIP tickets that allow you to jump to the front of the cable car queue. However, if you are on the ship's tour, then you should be very safe since the ship won't leave without you.

Have a great trip.

Some more random videos. First on food.

This is from a fried hor fun store at Ghim Moh Food Center. Hor Fun is a type of Chinese wide noodle made from rice.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shahe_fen) The taste was very good. This serving for $5. Ghim Moh Food Center is a local food center, nearest MRT station is Buona Vista.

[YOUTUBE]4wroCD6tc-c[/YOUTUBE]

Fried Carrot Cake and Fried Rice from a food court. Decent stuff.

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Now for some fun - food delivered on a movable tray. Cutting down the need for wait staff. Serve yourself from the tray!

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Boat Quay (nearest station Raffles Place MRT) is a very popular place with both locals and tourists. I walked through the restaurant area one evening. Check it out.

[YOUTUBE]Q1voMtFaeI4[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]8Y3PPm3lQr4[/YOUTUBE]

This pub called Penny Black Victoria Pub looks rather popular. I don't think I've dined there before. This is their website - http://pennyblack.com.sg/

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I went cycling!

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Also plenty to eat.

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The Singapore Tourism Board just launched a new tourism tagline for Singapore, with a whole host of attractive marketing videos. Sharing them here for our foreign friend!

Singapore - Where Passion is Made Possible

[YOUTUBE]BJE3HIkQ4zU[/YOUTUBE]

Singapore for Foodies

[YOUTUBE]EClVy6sMBhY[/YOUTUBE]

Singapore for Explorers.

[YOUTUBE]bJClaApzj88[/YOUTUBE]

Enjoy!

Thank you so much. I really hope we're not disappointed. Apart from cruising, we're not experienced travellers at all, so I don't really know what I'm doing when I book things....I'm just having fun doing it!😂😂

May I please ask a few further questions?

What would you suggest is the best and cheapest way to get from Changi to the hotel? And then from the hotel to the cruise terminal?

Is the MRT the best way to see the city? Or would you suggest the hop on hop off tours?

If we're not staying in the usual tourist spot, what is the best way to get to the usual tourist spots?

Thank you!👍

 

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Here is our Tourism website which has tons of good information - http://www.visitsingapore.com/en.html

A good number of tourist spots you can get to by MRT. Otherwise, just take a taxi, or use Uber or Grab. Singapore is not a big place, though try to avoid the peak evening hours if you can.

To get to Chinatown, just take the MRT to ChinaTown MRT station. Here is a video I made recently, walking through the Chinatown Food Street. I was behaving like a tourist in my home country.

[YOUTUBE]ENvSZzR9YAc [/YOUTUBE]

Hi! Thank you for all your information! Have had a quick glance through this thread, but will look more thoroughly in coming days.

We will be in Singapore for 2 nights in Feb 2018, before we board Mariner of the Seas. I have booked the 2 nights at the Village Hotel Albert Court, and also for 1 night after the cruise. Could you please tell me if it's a good place to stay? (I really hope so....I won't get my money back if I cancel....)

 

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I'm not familiar with the hotel so I can't vouch or its quality, but seeing that it is run by Far East group (which is one of the large property developers in Singapore), it shouldn't be too bad.

In terms of location, it is a very interesting location. You are very near Little India - http://www.visitsingapore.com/see-do-singapore/places-to-see/little-india.html

In fact, the Little India MRT station is just a few hundred meters down the road. Little India MRT station has both the Downtown (DTL) and North East (NE) lines, so you would be able to get to many places using the MRT. Alternatively, take a public taxi, or use Uber or Grab. Singapore is easy to get around and your location, while not exactly at the usual tourist spot, is pretty good. Download local maps on your smart phone and take a walk around the place!

Here is our review on Singapore (where we started our cruise via the Celebrity Millennium). The review includes the transport service we used (for airport pickup to hotel; from hotel to cruise ship terminal, and then for a private shore excursion).

 

Also, reviews our hotel (The Club) and a few things we did while in port.

 

Singapore Blog Review -

 

Heather

Very nice pictures! Thanks for visiting my country. Hope you had a great stay.