FTLcruisers

Thanks Mike,

but have tried to find prices on MSC but they have no packages which include the Divina on Grand voyages which leaves on 26th to Rome.

There is no information on pricing or if you can buy more than one package IF you HAVE to buy the More for less package.

Because we booked it in USA and not NZ we cannot get any info here and the agents in USA quoted as $US 45 per person per day, which is $60 NZ and as the wife does not drink wine or beer, limits us to what we can take out.

The two persons per cabin can sometimes be a disadvantage.

Are you just doing the short Carabean leg? or continuing on to Rome?

Cheers

Thomo

We are on the grand voyage on Apr 26 and have booked 2 different beverage packages (one alcoholic, one not). We found a listing of all things available on their website.

Marianne

We sailed on Majesty many times and never brought formal attire with us. You would probably stand out more if you DID dress formal!

Marianne

email CEO Adam Goldstein's office at agoldstein@rccl.com. Someone from his office should contact you (leave a phone #). You may still not get a resolution but someone at the top should know about customer service problems that are causing them to lose customers. I would definitely let them know that this employee's mistake cost you money.

Marianne

Yes they will keep your wine and the next time you come to the dining room will ask if you want it.

sorry you didn't know more about cruising before you went on the ship but you certainly didn't offend me. As most people here said it is not required that you wear a tux on formal night. My husband and I have gone on more than 60 cruises and no longer take any formal outfits when we cruise the Caribbean. We still go to the main dining room for dinner and do not feel out of place since there are others who also are not in formal attire. We do bring formal attire on European cruises since it seems that those passengers generally "dress up" more. By the way, someone mentioned Celebrity requires men wear jackets but my husband has not done so on our Caribbean cruises without any problem.

I'm glad to hear that your one awkward evening did not turn you off from cruising. Now you know to do a little research before you go on your next one. Cruise Critic is an awesome place for a new cruiser to get answers to just about any question you can think of (and some you wouldn't think of!) so don't be afraid to come here for help.

Marianne

We cruise almost exclusively with Royal Caribbean and Celebrity (about 50 cruises between the 2 cruiselines) and did a 7-day Caribbean cruise on the Divina out of Miami back in October. We loved the ship so much that we are scheduled to depart on their grand voyage later this month. The entertainment was much more enjoyable and the activities staff much friendlier than on any of our other cruises. My husband is Italian so, of course, so many selections of Italian food had him in heaven during the entire cruise. I think I had pizza or pasta every day on the ship.

I think you will be pleasantly surprised by a cruise on MSC.

Marianne

we still use travelers checks and have never had a problem cashing them on the ships. we also bring them along just in case we need extra funds since we can get whatever we need on the ship whether it is USD or euros.

Marianne

Our least favorite was an 11 night on Norweigian Pearl several years ago. Crew was not friendly and none spoke if you passed them in the hallways - we never even met our cabin steward. We had a noise in our cabin and my husband is a light sleeper so we went to guest services and asked if someone could check it out. They told us they couldn't help us and we'd have to go back to our cabin and call them!! Several days later, they called to find out if problem had been resolved but no one had come to the cabin.

Marianne

Check out Bernard's Tours - his tours include stops on both sides of the island including a stop at the famous beach where jets fly in over your heads!

Marianne

we stayed at Hotel Royal Ramblas - same place??

I did it several times on a F-M cruise - worked 1/2 day on Fri, picked up my husband and headed to the ship. On Mon, after getting off the ship, dropped my husband at home and headed to work. Since it's such a short cruise, not overly tired and since it's basically just a long weekend, no problem getting back into the swing of things

Marianne

we have done the Baltic twice.

For St Petersburg, both times we used Alla Tours and were very pleased with the tours. Actually the 2nd time, the ship stayed 3 days so we were able to go to Moscow on the high speed train.

Berlin - we docked in Rostock the first time and did a ship's tour (which wasn't that great) but the 2nd time, we used Alla to get to Berlin and we were really glad we got to see that historic city.

Tallin - as most said, can be done on your own.

Helsinki - we used the ship's shuttle into town and then explored the markets, churches, etc on our own. Went into the supermarket and got some things to eat and ate in a nearby park

Copenhagen - We did a 'free' walking tour with Sandeman's New Europe (we used them in Amsterdam also). The tours are fabulous and you tip at the end whatever you feel the tour is worth. They are in about 15 different cities - check out their website.

Enjoy!

Marianne

European cruises usually require a bit more research. When you are stopping in some of these fabulous ports, you'll need to know a little bit about them so you can decide what you want to see or do. Along with that research is whether you'll need any special visas - for instance for visits to Russia.

When going to Europe for the first time, I discovered Cruise Critic and learned so many things - such as making sure your credit card companies know you'll be using them abroad - carrying toilet paper (or tissues) in your bag just in case and also being prepared to pay for using toilets. Be sure to read posts in various sections of CC - ports of call, ask a cruise question, your specific roll call - skim through, you never know what little tidbit of information you might find. And don't be afraid to ask questions, there are so many wonderful people that are willing to share their experiences.

I didn't want to go to Europe until I did - now I wish I had the financial means to go several times a year!!

Marianne

It sounds like you're savoring the pizza already Mike. Have a great cruise!!!

I'll be on Divina in 3 weeks (the Grand Voyage) and the pizza is one of the things I'm really looking forward to. On our last Divina cruise, our group met up in the buffet at 11:30 each evening and there would be a line waiting for pizzas to come out of the oven! Once a pizza hit the pan, the 8 slices would be gone in minutes. Generally they put out 6 or more different kinds of pizza but the pizza chef will take your request and make one of your choice as long as he has the ingredients.

Just think, I'm going to have 20 days to enjoy pizza, pasta and great entertainment onboard the beautiful Divina!!

Marianne

Downey winkle release, or you can make you own using 1 part liquid fabric softener to 3 parts water. Buy a trial size empty spray bottle and you're good to go.

The ships also have irons in the laundry rooms for tough wrinkles.

many cruise lines do not have laundry rooms.

hot dogs and burgers? how about the awesome pizza? Best on any cruiseline; actually better than what we can get at home! And don't forget the international section of the buffet where they have fresh cheeses made on the ship and too many other yummy things to name!

Marianne

Definitely have local currency in Copenhagen. As a tip, Sandeman's New Europe does free walking tours (you tip at the end what you think the tour was worth). We did the tour last year and it was really good - here's their website

http://www.newcopenhagentours.com/

Enjoy Copenhagen and your Baltic cruise!

Marianne

We have never received that particular email and we are Diamond Plus members with RCL so cruise a lot with them.

Marianne

Anyone booked on the Transatlantic from Miami 26th April?

 

So looking forward to this - my 4th MSC transatlantic.

there are a bunch of us going --- go find our thread under MSC ROLL CALLS.

Marianne

the porters will have tags for your luggage

you'll need to post this on your roll call - go to MSC Roll Calls where you can find the roll call for your sailing.

we have not brought formal clothes on a Caribbean cruise in years and we still go to the MDR for dinner. We do not feel out of place since there are many others that are not "dressed up" either. My husband dresses as you do - Tommy Bahama shirt and a pair of dockers. However we do bring formal clothes when sailing in Europe as it seems more people do dress up for dinner.

Marianne

I'd recommend Bernard's Tours in St Martin - we always have booked ahead so not sure if you can just walk up - check out their website

Marianne

I've used the Transderm patch for about 20 years - I do not get groggy nor have a metallic taste in my mouth as someone else mentioned. I do get a very dry mouth so drink a lot more water.

Marianne

Don't worry about other people's reviews - you really don't know where they are coming from - are they frequent cruisers or first timers; what part of the country are they from - or are they international travelers; are they loyal to one cruise line and just decided to try the Connie - all of these factors and more can influence how they felt about the cruise.

We sailed on the MSC Divina in October and read mostly negative reviews - well we couldn't have loved it more. So much so that we are going on their grand voyage (20 nights) at the end of April.

We have done more than 20 cruises on Celebrity and have sailed on the Connie twice. We always enjoy our cruises - after all, we're on vacation, meeting great people and visiting interesting ports. Go and enjoy!

Marianne