ellie1145

We always go to the dining room for lunch on embarkation day but last year departing from Southampton this was not available. We.board Enchanted Princess on Saturday in Rome and wonder if Princess have stopped doing this lunch?

Thank you so much for that information. We will try it! I’ll let you know how we get on. 👍🏻

Unfortunately the latest shared shuttle is 12.30 and our flight doesn’t land until 1.30 pm Thanks all for your help. Seems like a taxi from the airport may be the best option.

We fly in to Rome but are going straight to Civitavecchia and would welcome any suggestions about how to get there please? We have visited Rome several times so decided to stay near the port this time. Many thanks.

Hope you find my review helpful. It’s a lovely itinerary and I’m sure you will enjoy a similar one. Best wishes!

Thank you ConnieTact. You win some, you lose some! We will enjoy it regardless 😉

Thank you heatherb1958, I’m sure we will have an amazing time. Looking forward to it. 😊

Well we made the call and got nowhere as expected. They came back with a figure of £285 to upgrade to a balcony cabin. As they are now selling balcony cabins for £50 less than we paid for an outside it’s not really an option. MSC has also emailed us with an upgrade offer of £220 per person for a balcony which again is really not a runner. Of course we know you just have to decide what is an acceptable price when you book so I’m not moaning. This will only be our second cruise with MSC but we were agreeably surprised at how good it was in comparison to all the other cruises we have taken.

Prices have now dropped on our cruise. We booked via a TA. Is there any point in asking if they will upgrade us from an outside to a balcony cabin which are now cheaper? Many thanks.

We did our first MSC cruise on Virtuosa in December and did not find we were hassled at all. Much better than on RCI where it’s constant.

Oh brilliant SirWolf. Thank you very much. Will be happy to see some light so that’s great. This was a last minute bargain and we normally choose a balcony but this was too good a deal to turn down on an obstructed outside. Many thanks.

Many thanks. Does that mean you can’t see anything? Or can you see the horizon or a bit of sky?

We have just booked this cabin but can’t seem to find out exactly what the partial obstruction is. Does anyone have any information please? Many thanks

Thank you, Whitla42. We think she’s rather gorgeous, but then we are just a little bit biased!😊😉

Aloha dear Cruising Adventurer! How lovely to hear from you again. I hope you are keeping well. Are you in Hawaii at the moment? We long to return to those wonderful islands. They captured our hearts. Things have been a bit hectic for the last 18 months, with a return to lots of cruising, and spending time with my lovely little grandson. Early on Monday morning we had the joyful news that his mummy had given birth to our first granddaughter so we’ve been busy looking after Thomas. However, I have started planning my next ‘adventure’ which will chart our journey back to cruising during Covid. We’ve sailed on lots of different ships - Royal, Sky, Enchanted, Ruby plus Wonder of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Jewel of the Seas, Anthem of the Seas, QM2 and MSC Virtuosa. It’s been fascinating to see how things have changed and evolved over the last 18 months and we’ve enjoyed every one of those cruises, despite mask wearing, vaccinations, testing and more testing. We have been thrilled to have had the opportunity to sail on half empty ships with crew who greeted you with genuine warmth and gratitude. It’s been an amazing experience. So hopefully it won’t be too long before I am able to welcome you to join me on another cruising adventure. Mahalo Thomas meeting Rosie Florence on Monday

Hi there Whitla42. Thank you for your kind words (well mostly kind 🤣🤣) So glad you found the review helpful. Better late than never! 🤣🤣. Hope you enjoy your Sydney trip. It’s a wonderful place to visit, and I’d love to return one day. If you do happen to find the Hawaii thread I would be most grateful if you could post the link to it as I’ve been unable to find it despite numerous searches. I want to send it to a friend who is planning a cruise in the near future and wants to read it. Many thanks and have a fantastic trip!

The big difference is that on the tour you learn about its fascinating history and we saw a rehearsal in the main auditorium and a smaller theatre being set up, plus outside areas not usually accessible. You would not have access to all these areas if you just booked a concert. But I’d love to do a concert if we go again. I’m sure you will enjoy it whatever way you visit.

We used Anderson’s Tours very professional and well worth the extra cost for a small group tour. Everything was sorted - all admission tickets, the lunch, the boat tour. We’d love to do it again.

We have also experienced a cruise with the group. We were also shocked at the way they treated staff and their sense of entitlement. They were incredibly demanding in the dining room and so rude to the poor waiters. There is no excuse for any group to be rude. The staff work so hard. It costs nothing to be polite.

It would be very sensible to book your tour well before you depart Canada. It is very popular. We did this tour just before Covid struck and it was brilliant. We really enjoyed it. We also did the Blue Mountain tour in a small party. It was amazing and well worth the cost. Our guide was fantastic and we saw such a lot. We ended up at the Zoo and then did a boat trip back to Sydney. Here is a link to our time in Sydney. We did a lot in the four days we were there. There are lots of photos and it’s a bit wordy but it might help. We also went to Paramatta on the train and visited the Old Government House which was fascinating. Had a nice cream tea there too. https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2753611-come-sail-with-me-on-a-virtual-cruise-on-majestic-princess-to-fiji/page/13/ Hope I’ve done that link correctly. The Sydney Opera House Tour actually starts at the bottom of page 11 if you want to start at the beginning. There are also lots of photos of Sydney and places to go. Hope that helps.

Thanks everyone. I appreciate the feedback. We have changed to E230. Not the best choice but there is very little availability.

Am looking at booking Emerald 104 which is right at the front of the ship. Apart from movement issues is there any problem with this location as regards noise etc? There is just a blank on the map which is behind the theatre. Wonder what is below it? many thanks

We had a fantastic time thank you. We absolutely loved Virtuosa although we had read so many bad reviews. Can’t wait to go back on her. I spoke to a very helpful lady who applied our 5% discount as OBC. Very impressed with their service. It was a last minute booking about 8 weeks before sailing. We’ve done over 70 cruises and are pretty fussy now but Virtuosa exceeded all expectations. When I have time I’ll do a full review. Hope you enjoy your cruise too.

So far we are impressed with our dealings with MSC. We sail on Friday and I called today to ask if our Status Match discount could be assigned as OBC as we hadn’t had confirmation of status when we booked. My hopes were not very high but I was very agreeably surprised. An extremely helpful young lady managed to do this despite the short time frame. She resent our tickets with our Diamond status on them and was exceptionally polite and helpful, and even stayed on the line to ensure the new tickets had arrived. MSC also answered the phone quickly. Our experience with both RCI and Princess have been utterly appalling with very long wait times of over an hour. So frustrating and for such large companies, inexcusable. So far it’s a thumbs up for MSC. Let’s hope this continues. We are sailing with an open mind and recognise it’s a very different cruise line, but we’ve always enjoyed new experiences and new ships. Roll on Friday! Many thanks everyone for your advice and suggestions.

Hamburg - yes, although you don't need it and it was pay extra per person. You can walk off the shop and it's 10min walk to theferries. Hamburg by ferry was great fun! The ferry sounds interesting. If you have time could you possibly tell me a bit more about it please? Can you just turn up and get on without pre-booking? How long does it take to get to the city? Approximately how much does it cost? Sounds an interesting way to travel. Many thanks in advance. 👍