perakcruiser

This is a lie. But probably he don't even know how exactly his salary is sourced from, he just knows the amount MSC pays him.

Yes, but this is not a topic anymore as basically no guests except the US pax can delete or reduce the DSC. totally different than 3 years before when half of the ship deleted it reduced. At this time they certainly had to find a way that it not effects the crews salary which by the way is quite good at MSC.

I do not agree with you 😁 Regular price is 2796 CAD, so this sale with 1556 is a good price and I am pretty sure it never will get cheaper. Minimal maybe. Other sales will come for sure, but don´t expect you can get more than 50% off, I am following this for years already. I did it one time by booking two weeks before departure, but again, in Pentecost week there will be no last minute offers. Nowadays MSC can sell many cruises with the regular price and even raise the regular price when the ship is almost full. I have seen prices for INSIDE cabins in the last weeks so high I never thought this is possible. Yes, when you are flexible and go totally off season, we live in a totally different world in November, but there certainly also the regular prices are lower already.

Sure in October and November the chances for a better deal are much higher. But I am pretty sure that there is almost no chance to a get a balcony on Seaview during Pentecost for substancially cheaper than $1535 CAD. MSC has pretty full ships now, they are raising the prices in western and even more eastern med. See for example how often the Musica is sold out already in the next 6 months and what prices they ask for the last cabins. Ugly. By the way, US prices do not include taxes and fees, Canada prices do.

During the booking process you will read if it is Bella or Fantastica and if you have to pay a small surcharge for Fantastica or not. The only real thing you need to know, if you want to choose the cabin number by yourself and not let MSC do it then you have to take Fantastica. Often only Fantastica is available anyway.

For a balcony at this date this is a great price. I don´t think any future offer will be better except a last minute deal a few weeks before departure if the ship is not full.

Same with my wife and mom. Especially with my mom I thought if she goes on a premium line she will be unwilling to go back to MSC. Opposite was true, she insisted that this is not worth a higher price than MSC 😄 With the family, MSC is the clear choice for all generations. I am also cruising with good old friends, that is the time for Celebrity and others. I like diversity, but I also can understand "If I can have a holiday in Italy, why on earth should I go to Germany or USA" of the MSC only fans.

Difficult to say. Usually their sales are very good and worth it, but sometimes not. You should write which ship and which date, then it can be answers if the price is "unbeatable" or not. If you want to go during Pentecost holiday it is better not to wait too long.

Only WE.

They do have all the "speciality" coffees, but maybe not under the names you are familiar. A "mocha" for example can be many things depending on which country you are. Just follow the Italian standards for coffee drinks. All coffees on MSC are world class except the free one of cause 😄

I think it is per item, but this better should answer someone who used the service recently. Pizza definitely is "per item".

I am not fully understanding your question, but the service charge is 15%. So it does not matter if you order 3 things 5 $ each or 1 for 15 $. The service charge always will be these 15% which is in that case 2,25 $.

All mainland France ports are embarkation/debarkation ports, it would be very inconvenient for the French to embark in Zeebrugge.

If you go one time to the spa, the day pass is cheaper, if you go two times the cruise pass is already cheaper.

Yes, MDR will be open as many others have boarded the days before at other ports. But technically you are not allowed to use the MDR for lunch on your embarkation day. Before they were very strict on this, checking all cruise card at the entrance and sending the "newcomers" to the buffet. I have a feeling that it is not so strict anymore. By the way, also in the Caribbean the MDR can be open, just depends if it is a cruise with many embarkation ports or a close loop from the USA.

You're welcome. While dinner now is much faster than it was ten years before (where two hours were the minimum time) depending on the dish you would order as a "snack" I would not be surprised if it takes one hour. Anyway, a slice of pizza or a pasta or salad from the buffet at 6 when you have the second seating is there perfect solution to your needs 🙂

I guess no one of the millions of MSC guests did this before, but with Aurea it could be possible. But it not makes any sense, just for a snack you need to sit down, wait for the staff to take your order, wait for the food, this can take some time. So probably you will be finished after the rest of your party arrived already😄 For a snack before dinner the buffet is the much better choice.

Go for the one with double points. Nothing is more annoying than the last cruise with a few hundred points missing for diamond ("oh, I could have had it all").

On Seascape it should be no problem.

That depends on the route, not on the boat.

From my cruises with all mainstream lines in Europe for some strange and unknown reasons the most delays were by far at UK ports. From Invergordon to Southampton, from 2011 to 2022, there was always a delay. But maybe we two are just unlucky here, I don´t know.

I often have seen very large groups sitting together in the MDR, they make the arrangement. I don´t know if you have to inform MSC already before the cruise (I guess your bookings are linked together) or if it is handled after boarding. Better call MSC. Concerning the buffet, if you are willing to walk to the farthest away tables then you will easily enough tables to sit together🙂

Spa access, top deck solarium, priority boarding, mychoice dining. But the thing is that the best cabins of the ships are only available with Aurea, so if you want to get one of these you have no choice. If it is worth it that only you can know.

Excursions of European lines are usually cheaper than on US lines. This true for MSC, but I would not call them cheap. That depends on the extra price. MSC sometimes has great balcony offers. For this cruise I only would take a balcony if the extra price is really not too high, we had a Inside and a Balcony on our Middle East cruise, Balcony was not worth it as the extra price was too high. The local e-hailing leader is CAREEM. Download the app and set everything before you leave. As far as I remember you can use it in all countries during the cruise. Works exactly as UBER and the others and is so much cheaper and more convenient compared to the old taxis. Dubai has so much great things to offer, prepare yourself what you want to see. To go up Burj Khalifa (highly recommended) you have to book a time slot in advance, days in advance actually. Abu Dhabi has not so much to offer, but as you only have one day you also need to have a plan. The Grand Mosque of cause, the Louvre (we enjoyed it very much), Presidential Palace, you cannot do all. Careem is the way to go, but certainly if the ship offers an excursion that combines two or three things, thats an option as well. SBY will be a beach day or you do one of the safaris MSC provides. Note that you CANNOT go out of the port area without an excursion, no matter how attractive the islands looks for a "private" hiking. You have to book all activities on the ship already.

Because it is not the simple "A Schengen passport holder embarked at a Schengen port and leaves in another Schengen port anymore". This is now indeed to complicated, you need to talk with MSC what to book. Basically it should be possible as MSC offers cruises from Kusadasi to Genoa on some dates.