Streblo

MSC Musica docked in Durban, at exactly 12.00 Monday 28 January, 6 or 7 hours later than expected. Captain Pinto had the pedal-to-the-metal. I'm sure to the relief of many cruisers.

6 hours ago, JoPublic said:

We are booked on Orchestra next January. Never heard of issues with wind before. 

I would suggest you consider joining a Facebook Group called Friends Of MSC which is set up in South Africa. It has loads of feedback from members who sail in SA waters. There, you will find all the info you need on how Orchestra is doing, in real time in local waters.

MSC Musica departed Cape Town for Durban at 13.30 Saturday. She made two unsuccessful attempts to dock during the early hours. The winds finally calmed enough at 07:15. She is reported to have excluded a stop at Port Elizabeth and is heading, full steam for Durban to arrive on Monday in the afternoon. Captain Pinto is the man in charge having previously captained MSC Sinfonia over the years that she was in SA waters.

Due to high winds, the cruise from Walvis Bay, Namibia by MSC Musica has been unable to safely dock in Cape Town, South Africa port. She arrived Thursday 24th January around 07:00 and has been bobbing off Green Point ever since. Latest reports say she will most likely only dock in the early hours of Saturday morning. Unless you're a retired Cape Town resident, with nothing else to do and no connecting flights to catch, the free extra days on board must be wearing patience thin by now. I also feel for those who were supposed to board yesterday for the trip up to Durban for her last portion of her South African positioning. She returns to European waters in April. The real kicker is that this happened this time last year too. The Cape Doctor, as the winds are called, always come knocking to blow the ills away this time every year.

In November, Musica's sister ship, MSC Orchestra will position in SA waters. I wonder how MSC regards future Cape voyages?

We were on Preziosa for 23 days in Aug Sept 2018 and had 4 dinner companions however on several occasions the others did not come to dinner and sometimes we did not either, it was a good balance. The Maitre D' seems to try and group people by language so we had Australians, Americans and South African couples, we are from New Zealand.

 

Sent from my SM-A320Y using Tapatalk

Did you speak rugby (union) at all? I'm a die hard Springbok fan myself but confess am in awe of the skill, composure and dedication to the code shown by the All Blacks. Much deserved respect. We did beat you guys at The Cake Tin though. I'm hoping we can get our act together in time for the world cup next year and give you another run for your money. We are two of the greatest rugby nations with the strongest rivalry. But, lets see what happens this weekend first!

Hi, 2 adults on MSC Divina this Oct/ Nov. Doing Ocho Rios - Cartagena - Colon - Puerto Limon - Costa Maya - Nassau. We'd love some good quality snorkelling at one of these ports of call. Which would ya'll recommend? It would be a bonus if you knew of a reliable operator to use too. We'd hate to take our gear half way round the world for nothing. Thanks a bunch.

We are on MSC Divina on Halloween too. I don't think the Italians are as into Halloween as the Americans. I do recall seeing a vlog where Divina was 'decorated' one year during the night on Hallow-eve, but that was about it. It would be awesome if there was a Halloween theme night especially since it falls on a sea day for us!

My friend is sailing soon on Meraviglia soon from Hamburg and I'd like to ask him to buy me a new MSC peak cap. Anybody who sailed on her recently have any idea how much they cost in Euro?

Thanks everybody for the advice. So far the best deal I have found is a 99c Sim, 30 Minute airtime at $9.99 and then 1GIG data pre paid plan @ $10 from TracFone through Walmart, valid for 21 service days. I can buy it when we arrive in Tampa on the 23rd October and it will expire on 11th November. I can buy more airtime and data at the same rates if I need. Verizon was significantly more costly with limited options. Their smallest plan was a $20 sim and $40 4GIG data pre paid.

We will disembark at POM Thursday November 8th and have a full day to get to FLL for a flight back to South Africa via Dubai at 8.30pm.

Can anyone recommend a cost effective way to get SIM/DATA combo for at least one day's use? We want to be able to check online for tours, bookings etc. Uber, GPS etc. Budgetary pricing would be a big help.

Some, if not most usage will be on the go, so free WiFi is not really doable.

Thanks.

Pre Bought drink packages do not incur any sales tax as an extra on your bill, any individual drinks bought by customers who do not have a package incur the sales tax and the 15%.

THANK GOODNESS! :tropical-drink::wine-glass::cocktail::beer-mug::beer-toast:

The tax is applied on all drink packages while In port.Can add up if you board early and drink often . Ship doesn't leave until 7pm.. BUt hey, your on vacation. enjoy

So, if I'm on the all inclusive package and have a few cocktails and beers before sailaway, will it be detailed on my onboard billing at the end of the cruise?

In South African waters on board Sinfonia, there was no real class separation or experiences on offer as such, other for those who could afford the suites over standard cabins. They enjoyed access to the reserved restaurant, but were served the same meals as MDR. My first cruise (Mozambique) was a cabin with a window which was nice for the 4 days onboard. My next was longer, 11 days to Mauritius in an inside cabin, which sucked because I battled not being able to orientate to a horizon. What these experiences did for me, was to decide that each cruise will be better / bigger than the previous. This October on Divina - 12 days Caribbean, I have a balcony cabin and Fantastica experience. The next one will have to be in at least Aurea or maybe YC - once I've saved enough!

We didn't have any wind issues when we paid for the Aurea sundeck on Divina, but that might be just down to luck. The bar service is very basic though. The only YC area you can access is Le Muse restaurant, all other YC areas have card key access.

Also you can't access the elevators and bar areas hidden behind the mirrors but it does amuse the other passengers when you try.

Noted: Don't try the hidden elevators!, thanks.

You can go there and it's adults only.

Thanks Riclop, but I'm still unclear which you mean. Do you mean just the Garden Pool? Or all the places I mentioned in my OP.

I see on deck 15, the Le Muse Restaurant labelled as Yacht Club, but is the Garden Bar and the Garden Pool Zen Area a no go place for us humble Fantastica Experience pax? I figure if I know I'm not permitted beforehand, I can psyche myself up not to gatecrash :cool:. I'm guessing The One Pool and Bar on deck 18 and Top Sail Lounge on Deck 15 are to be avoided. Anywhere else?

Beamafar is spot on with his reply. Cruises to nowhere are designed for those who wish to have a big, fat party. They have no destination where you can disembark and explore etc. You don't even need a passport. The crew lay on all sorts of entertainment and fun throughout the day and well into the night. If you want to relax and take things slow you might be annoyed by the party animals busting loose on these cruises. By South African standards, they are relatively inexpensive. The durations are short. No real time to be leisurely. If you want a peaceful cruise, rather save and book for longer trips, like the 7 day Christmas and 11 day New Years eve cruise, or try back to back legs. Depending on which side of the fence you are on Cape_Town_Cruising, the above can be pros or cons :)

When we've had 5-6 hours at JFK, we have a nice meal outside the lounge, go to Xpress Spa and enjoy mani-pedis and/or a shoulder/neck massage, then go to the lounge for the remaining hours. Lounges are nice, but even the nice ones can start to get old after 3 or 4 hours.

I hear you Waterbug. When you consider that we will fly 1hr from DUR to JNB, wait 7hrs then fly 8hrs over night from JNB, 3 hrs layover then 14 hours from DXB, I'm pretty sure the novelty of flying will have worn thin before arriving at JFK. The little comforts you've suggested could make things a heap more pleasant. I also saw there is a lounge called Moroso where you can watch planes arriving and taking off. Ever been there?

Using the lounge is a good idea, a shower will make a world of difference, but don't expect much from the Airspace Lounge. It is tiny and the few times I've used it very busy. Sadly there isn't much choice of lounges in T5....The $25 does include a $10 credit towards food/drink for purchase in the bar. T5 does have some decent dining options within it though.

I saw the images on the website and thought it looked a little bit pokey! I'm hopeful that a Sunday afternoon wont be as busy as a mid week morning, but then again, this is JFK! Nothing ventured, nothing gained!

Is your entire trip on one ticket or is your B6 portion on a separate ticket? If it is all one there is some hope that you will be able to drop your bags at a re-check point once you clear customs so you don't have to haul them over to T5 on your own.

Yes, I have a single through ticket, so I will try to re-check once cleared, although its not much of a hassle to wheel them between terminals, like you said.

Is that if you pay to enter? I've never had a SLOW lounge throw me out after 2 hours!

I was with an associate in Cape Town 2 weeks back and had around 3 hours before our flight to Durban. We went to the the slow lounge which serves British Airways, FNB and a few other corporates. He used his credit card rewards which got us both in, but we were told to come back in an hour because of the 2 hour limit. Maybe they need to keep traffic thru the doors manageable. I did find that when I researched flights through Heathrow, this was also the practice for some of the paid lounges.

Thank you Hank and Globaliser for the advice.

We are EK764 JNB - DXB, arriving around 05:25 to depart next leg 08:30 to JFK. I don't know if I would fit a shower in at DXB, even though we will be in transit only. So maybe a wet-wipe freshen up is in order here. The idea of a more leisurely shower at JFK makes more sense. I've emailed T5 to ask about the duration of the lounge use. In South Africa, you are generally limited to 2 hours in their domestic slow lounges. We will certainly check out the restaurants to see what catches our fancy.

So my flight EK201 arrives at JFK (my first time ever) from Dubai at 14:25 Sunday 21 October 2018. My next leg to Tampa B6225 was originally scheduled for an 18:30 departure, but now Jet Blue has moved it to a 20:30 departure. No real biggie; it does reduce any issues about arriving late at JFK, getting through immigration, customs, TSA etc. but if it is early or on time, I've got quite a long wait ahead.

I'd appreciate any suggestions on what to do to kill the extra time? What do y'all do? We will have 2 x checked cases, so lugging them about is our only other concern.

So we're booked on the 10/28/18 cruise and our itinerary is still showing Colon and Limon, but interestingly enough no excursions are shown for Colon in Panama. Now I'm wondering what this means.

We are also booked on this cruise. I'm curious if anyone is booking private excursions (non MSC) for Colon. How long do we wait and see if the itinerary changes again before booking a private tour.

Thanks Globaliser! It is as I thought. I've selected my seats. Tried a tip I was given where you book seats A & C leaving B empty hoping that if the flight is not full, you and your partner get to share the empty space. But, if it's booked, then you simply offer the aisle seat to the lone traveler. Who'd say no to that?