Pingus

We did Quest in August and found the best QPR with:

Chsmpagne: Perrier Jouet Belle Epoque

France/Alsace: Cuvee Frederic Emilie 

Spanish red: Flor de Pingus

 

My 2cents worth. 

 

 

Riviera 27th of July: 708 pax. 

21 hours ago, marazul said:

Here is the latest on vaccines in Greece:

https://www.ekathimerini.com/news/1159197/j-amp-j-one-shot-vaccines-to-start-on-monday-in-greece/

 

Greek friends tell us that the government will emphasize vaccines for island residents in order to open up those ports to cruises.

Most likely not:
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/us-halts-johnson-johnson-covid-vaccine-rollout-over-six-blood-clot-cases-s8fggt3f3

Another setback for the more traditional vaccine approach, ref. this aricle in the NEJM:

https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa2104882?query=featured_home

1 hour ago, Paulchili said:

How did you escalate the matter?

Our wording was: 

"

Thank you for a swift reply.

However I do question the legality of your decision. This voyage has been booked through your EU-office and as such EU-rules do apply. We therefore ask you to either reconsider immediately or escalate it internally. 

If we have to escalate this ourselves, further costs at € 180/hour will be added to our claim to compensate for valuable time used. "

A European touch:

We (12pax/6 cabins, booked through the Rotterdam office)) had our 27th of June cruise from Venice cancelled and were initially offered only FCC and no refund options, even when requesting this specifically in a separate mail. 

We had to escalate the matter, and last week received confirmation of a full refund, albeit to expect up to 90 days delay. 

Having booked 5 cabins on this sailing in the lower V's and A1's suddenly two more couples want to tag along. But, as usual, prices fluctuate and pricing is now prohibitevly 150% of ours; €6,500.-/7 days for a V6 which has made them halt a bit.

Tried some mock searches, and by my estimate about 13-15% of the cabins are shown as bookable, 15 of those in the V6 category.

From those of you in the know and that do have the experience: How likely are prices to (hopefully) plummet slightly as we close in on the departure date? Are there any statistics available? Optimal moments to wait for? 

Great to hear from you "live Bemafar, and I particularly share your disappointment regarding items not being available at the YC grill. We're int total 10 pax off in 2 weeks from Genoa in YC.

A couple of particular questions (As we're wine-buffs):

1. Is there a "special wines" list on board, and in YC restaurant? (Pictures?)

2. What is MSC policy regarding bringing wine on board if we find a particularly interesting buy in one of the ports?

3. How does MSC handle YC guests in ports where there is congestion to get on/off the ship?

4. Do YC guests have priority regarding reservations for shows, speciality-restaurants etc., or do we need to rush our reservations once we're onboard?

Great of you to take the time to answer and report!

There seems to be a considerable difference in the amount of time MSC takes to respond. Guess it is just "wait and see"!

I sent the request through my TA, updated the same day.

Thank you very much for linking my YouTube video Bea, appreciated. Hope the cabinvideo it's helpful. Just one week left for you now :):cool:

Great videos, also of the YC cabin, we're sailing with her in 3 weeks time, YC on deck 14. And like any "true" Norwegian; I see that you brought some Wasa...;)

Why do you think there will only be one show running? According to the info:

 

"Each show will span 40 minutes, and both will be available six nights a week".

 

up until recently the second show was not premiering until mid-July, but alas this has now been changed. :D

Same here, this goes for both local wines bought along the way and exclusive Burgundies. If it's popped and poured (or decanted) by a sommelier we will more often than not offer him/her a taste, seems to be well appreciated.

Alas, we won't have the possibility to choose as we sail on 2nd of July, but are booked to the one show running at that time.

We're departing from Genoa early July on the Meraviglia, and it being one of their "home ports" I gather that they'll have YC boarding privileges well sorted out?

Having booked all my former SB cruises as an OB category I'm looking to do the same for a cruise both later this year (Encore) and next year (Odyssey or Encore), but the OB seems to be gone? Any knowledge?

As a general rule, all alcoholic products will be far cheaper in Germany than any of the Scandinavian countries of Denmark, Sweden, Norway or Finland.

As a winebuff, and living in Oslo I only partially agree. Wines in the USD 6-20 segment might fall into this category, but high-end wines (USD 50+) are far cheaper here in Norway than most other countries in the world due to the fixed markups of the Wine Monopoly. Copenhagen has a nice selection of wines in different speciality shops, top cuvées are slightly more expensive than in Norway.

When receiving the CU do you still get all the YC privileges? I do believe that there is a disclaimer regarding this in the T&C.

An officer in reflective thought

 

Medical officer waiting for the first cardiac arrest :P

We've got a booking for Yacht Club, deck 14. Looking at the deckplans and layout for decks 14 & 15 I'm wondering how they'll be able to cordon off the YC area, to establish controlled access, particularly regarding to/from the elevator banks.

We were also looking forward to the Cirque de Soleil for our June 2nd sailing, a bit disappointed of course. Will this venue be used for some other show instead, and what other productions will be showing for our sailing?

Going on the Odyssey the 25th from Piraeus (IF the airportstrike is cancelled and IF the port strike cools off, whew!) Are there any of you that have copies of the TK menu inserts (since thee seems to be a limited offering each night)?

Friends of us are tagging along; vegetarians. Any offerings on the TK menu for them?

Any updates on the Piraeus strike situation? 11 days to go and may have to change our transfers. :(

Slightly OT:

If flying with TAM out of Sao Paulo do not prebook the emergency exit unless you speak Portugese. TAM is totally rigid regarding this, and I was literally forcibly reallocated to a middle seat in the back of the bus even though I do understand Portugese well and have proficient training in emergency evacuation procedures on various commercial aircrafts including the A320 we were on.

Palamos is world famous (at least in Spain) for their giant gambas rojas/red shrimp, justly so. Do NOT miss! Either as al ajillo or simply grilled and served with som sea salt on the side.. Simply hedonistic, or alternatively: Hedonistically simple!

Just off the Odyssey, they have one spinningbike With click pedals.

2 years back we did a 15-nighter from The Amazonas to FLL and had great fitness classes both morning and afternoon nearly every day (Great way to counter the effects of the delicious meals). Particularly the Boot Camp and Kinesis exercises did wonders.

Are there any organized classes on the cruises in the Med this summer?