Misself

Deleted last post as realised it was a stupid comment

Scrambled eggs at breakfast - I suppose the carton-eggs are just as healthy - but there is something about seeing your egg come out of its shell ... And then, of course, there are those incredible Brewers' yeast extracts which Brits and Aussies seem to go for ...... wow!!!

Yeast extract (Marmite) is lovely spread on toast. Although the advertising slogan is 'you either love it or hate it'! ;) Good for repelling mosquitoes too apparently....not sure if they mean by eating it or spreading over your body!!

I somewhat follow the "3 Bite Rule" especially when it comes to the desserts and bread. If what I am eating is not fabulous, I have 3 bite and leave the rest.

 

http://countyourbites.blogspot.com/2015/02/3-bite-rule-tool-in-portion-control.html

I love this theory! I did try this sort of technique on my last cruise...particularly at lunchtime if I fancied a dessert. Just one bite to see if it was as nice as it looked (most of the time it wasn't!!)

I read the attached article as it is so true. How many times I have sat trying to munch my way through a tube of Pringles just to finish them :eek:. Next time I will leave them for another day to enjoy the 'first bite' another day. ;p

Did you book through an agent or NCL direct? They are adamant I can't use both unless I book a balcony. Likewise they are adamant I can't transfer them either.

 

Can't see any way of transferring them on NCL site either on My NCL as advised in another post. Maybe the T&C are different in the USA to the UK.

 

Thanks

Bernipops. I'm in the UK and booked through a TA. I did call NCL direct first for a price, and they confirmed for the Epic I could use two CruiseNext credits on cruises before end of October on ANY cabin. However when I went to book through my TA (as they were giving me a 5% discount) they were told NCL said only one could be used. But she rang again and this time I could use two. So think it depends who you get on the other end of the line!!!

I must admit when I bought them last year I was aware you could usually only use one per cruise (unless they have certain promotions). I just called on the off-chance last week as was pleasantly surprised to be allowed to use both.

We bought two future cruise certificates and went to use them today and were told we can only use one against an interior cabin and if we want to use the two for the same cruise we have to buy a balcony or above.

 

Shame they never told us that was in their T&C when we bought them. Shame their all inclusive prices are so expensive now especially as neither of us drink alcohol.

 

Hey ho you live and learn.

I was allowed to use 2 for a studio cabin this October so very happy (and amazed :p). I was starting to panic NCL were getting too expensive so glad to be able to use both my credits .

We have booked 2 inter-connecting cabins on Explorer for next year (2 in each cabin)....I hope neither of us gets bumped bearing in mind we have both paid £45 for the cabins. I don't want to have paid £45 to have an inter-connecting cabin to a total stranger ;-)

Yesterday I booked a cruise for this October on the EPIC and was allowed to use 2 credits. I originally called NCL direct and was told I could use 2 on all Epic sailings up to end of October. Then my TA called them and was told only one could be used! Another phone call was made and 2 credits were allowed. Used for a studio as well which differs to the advertised promotion.

Drink wine and prosecco too, that stirs things up nicely. I've never had a problem being 'one of those drunk people'....

Hi Smileygirl :D. Misself here from Epic in October. Prosecco and wine was going to be my suggestion too ;p. Just about to book my Epic adventure for this year x

If you are looking for something fun to do in Vigo I would highly recommend the Segways. They do 3 different length tours (think we did the middle one). If you book online, they meet you at the port, but you don't pay them until after the tour. It was a great way to see the sights...we went around the old town and up to the Fort.

http://en.segmovi.com/routes

Hi,

Yes we flew from EDI on Jet2, as the flights were free with RCCL. We landed into Venice at 11.20am on the day of the cruise. Venice airport is poor. Took about 45mins to get through passport control, then once you collect your luggage its about a 10min walk to the coach. We arrived at the dock about 1pm.

 

Checkin at the dock took a while, maybe thats because we have been on the Anthem twice and it flows and you are onboard within about 10-15mins. Not so here.

 

Got on about 2pm. So NO time to see venice. Muster drill was at 4pm.

 

Formal nights were Monday & Thursday.

 

We did no RCCL tours. Did our own thing. Normally we would do private tours, but not on this cruise. Just wanted to relax, and do our own thing on shore.

 

Kotor - (12-8pm) Been here before, tender port. Took about 20mins to tender to shore, which was longer than last time. We got off after the rush at about 2pm, and did the hop on hop off bus tour €20 and lasted about 90mins. Good tour, then walked around the old town again. Was back on board for about 5.30pm.

 

Corfu - (9-2.30pm) Out of all the ports, this was our least fav. Did the hop on hop off bus tour, not really worth it. Took you around the main areas of interest.

 

Athens - (noon - 8pm) Had been here before so stayed on ship and had the ship to ourselves.

 

Mykonos - (7-4pm). First time here, and our fav port of call. The CD said the peak times for tenders would be around 9-10am, so we left at 8.30am. They were another 5 ships in Mykonos that day. Had a walk around, lovely town, had food in a side street bakery, as the front is full of cafes, however I find going up the side streets and getting lost is better.

In the evening when speaking to someone who did a RCCL tour, when you get dropped of by tender you then had to walk around the bay to get on the coaches (maybe about half a mile walk!!)

 

Kefalonia - (noon - 7pm) First time the Rhapsody had been there. About a 10min walk into town, looked in a few shops and had a coffee. We also did the Yellow Train City Tour, lasted 25mins €5. Not worth it, dont do it. Others did RCCL tours and enjoyed the day.

 

 

Park Cafe on the ship was good, never really busy. Windjammer food was of a high standard, for lunch and evening meal. Went to Giovanni's twice.

 

Departure - Since our flights were through RCCL, we had luggage tag 21, and left at 8.30am, was at the airport by 9.15am. Then it went downhill. Checkin took about 40mins, then the queue to go through security took about 30mins, with no real queue. Airport was busy.

Finally got to airside about 1030am. Grabbed a quick bottle of water, then through another passport check to get to the gate for about 11.30am.

 

I hope ive covered the basic's for you.

Any other questions please ask away.

 

Steven.

Hi Steven

Thanks for that. We are on this cruise this coming Saturday as well and really excited.

One thing I'm curious about is how 'formal' the formal nights are. I know with P&O cruises people like to dress up and it's expected in the MDR to follow the dress code, but my (little) experience with RCL is maybe that it's slightly less strict. As we are flying and it's going to be hot (hopefully!!) I was thinking of packing quite light.

Thanks

Great post!!! I totally agree. I cruise every year with my sister and a friend but also have done 2 cruises on my own. I can't say I don't enjoy the cruises with my group, but I have so much fun on my own and plan to continue doing a solo trip every year.

As the OP says it's great being able to do your own thing, meeting new people and the feeling of independence can't be beaten. :D.

When I was on Epic last year I recall a couple of the numbers were shortened, such as the 'cake in the rain' song didn't have the full dance number, but it still it was a fabulous show. Can't remember if we had an interval or not but definitely saw the whole show.

I think it depends on server. I ordered a wine and a sprite in one order as I was thirsty but not sure about 2 alcoholic drinks at a time.

Can you eat while seated at a bar in many cruise restaurants (specifically NCL Epic)? I tend to prefer that. If there are others around, small talk is available, but then you don't have to sit at a table by yourself. Plus, I enjoy watching bartenders work.

O'Sheehans on Epic has seating overlooking the atrium, which is great if you are on your own rather than being seated at a table. I sat there for lunch one day, watching a dance class below, and struck up a conversation with a woman whose husband had gone off somewhere.

Has anyone had experience of these? Shuttle from port to Pisa for 15 euros.

http://shorebee.com/en/italy/pisa/cruise-excursions/low-cost-transfer-from-livorno-to-pisa-tower

Thanks for all the comments. Perhaps if the price was really good I may think about it, but at the moment I'll keep my options open. Not sure I want to gamble unless I was saving loads.

There are a few cruises I've got my eye on for October time. What are the chances of a fantastic last minute deal if I leave it till nearer sailing date eh? :D:D...

Oops, just scrolled down and seen another thread about MSC! Apologies. Will read this but if anyone has anything to add....:):)

Hello

Has anyone had any experience of cruising (particularly solo) with MSC. I've had a fairly good deal for October (Southampton to Genoa) which I'm considering.

I'm assuming with that itinerary it will mainly be UK/USA passengers but I could be wrong!

The dining arrangements seem to be traditional fixed which I quite like but would be worried I'd be sat at a table with all non English speaking passengers, which although could be interesting it may not be the best for conversation! :D.

Also seen some very bad reviews in general of MSC. Are they really that bad or is it just because they aren't catering so much to the UK/USA market?

Do they hold solo get-togethers?

Thanks for any feedback...good or bad.

I just booked my 1st Solo cruise on the EPIC. I've thought about it for well over a year and decided "Yes! Just do it." I'm so excited!!!!

I've just come back from my 1st Solo cruise on Epic and LOVED it :D The Epic is great for entertainment.

On embarkation day I joined in the NCL ship tour which was a nice way to chat to people, and also we had a CC Meet & Mingle arranged for the 1st day. I did go to the Solo meeting on the 1st two nights, but then found it was too early and I was busy doing other things, so never made it there again. But I know they organised group dinners, or a group visit to the Ice Bar for people if they wanted it.

I met a few people to hang around with and we ended up going to Bliss (nightclub) late every night. Now I'm not usually a nightclub person but was up until 4 in the morning some days! As you got to see the same people most nights I felt I could easily get up and dance on my own if I wanted to.

I will definitely be booking to go by myself again.

Have fun :)

I do ask to leave the bathroom light on at night whenever I'm away as I am easily disorientated. I was on one holiday sharing with two friends and the room was so dark I actually tried getting into the wrong bed after going to the loo!

Got disorientated during the night and ended up in the corridor?

I managed this last year on the first night of cruise. Woke up during the night needing to visit the loo and opened the wrong door. I realised as soon as it closed behind me that I wasn't in the toilet! Fortunately I WAS wearing my nightie and had already woken my sister (by banging into the bunk ladder!) so she heard my tapping on the door to get back in. Ok maybe the bottle of wine we had won in the quiz was partly to blame ;-)

Thanks for the reply Trish :)

 

Are P and O strict with embarkation times? With Royal Caibbean I arrive as soon as the terminal opens :D

We've never found them strict and always turn up quite some time before our embarkation time. We just get handed a check-in card and have never been told off at the check-in desk for being too early :p

What a good Question! And I like the answer :)

I've got Thermal Spa for the week and the UBP so will be nice to be able to enjoy a glass of wine on one of the loungers. As someone on another post said, it's a shame they don't have a bar in the Spa! (or at least waiters) :D

I don't know about these cabins, but on my last cruise we did 4 in a cabin (outside but not balcony), and it was ok. We were all girls so didn't really need to do shifts as happy to just lounge around on beds while getting ready, although we did naturally start staggering getting back to cabins to start getting ready.

We've done 3 in cabin lots and sometimes asked the steward to leave the bunk down so we could all nap before dinner! This time we ended up top to tail if we wanted a nap ;-).

It may be cosy but it don't half bring the cost down doesn't it!

I think it's $5 a day more if booked onboard. I would have thought bought from guest services.