Homosassa

The information is quickly and easily found on the MSC website in the Conditions of Carriage. It is there in Section 13 Alcohol and Section 14 Minors From Section 14: " For voyages that include a port in the USA, persons under the age of 21 may not order or consume alcoholic beverages or participate in gambling. For voyages that do not include a port in the USA, persons under the age of 18 may not order or consume alcoholic beverages or participate in gambling." If you have not read both the Terms and Conditions and Conditions of Carriage on the MSC website, it is a good idea to do so.

We had such a terrible time on the Constellation that we have another cruise booked on her for this January....

We have cruised from Tampa many times over the years on various cruise lines (NCL, HAL, RCCL, Celebrity, MSC). We have never had any problems with embarkation or debarkation. It is a very compact cruise port area with near by on site parking.

You probably will not have a problem as it appears that this will be a one off for you on MSC. I would be more worried if there is a record of this being a repeat action. However, if MSC does decided to followed their published Terms and Conditions, it won't be something that is a surprise.

On an easy to find deck plan for the Constellation, you are below the Spa (ladies' changing area) and above other passenger cabins. The only drawback to your location is that you will feel more rolling and pitching if there are rough seas than in a location more amidship and lower down.

No idea. There have been some posts stating it has happed here on this forum.

Yes, that part of the fare is assessed a100% cancellation penalty fee leaving the rest of the fare for the cabin being owed by the remaining passenger plus the additional money charged for a solo passenger to make up the loss of on board revenue by the second passenger. MSC has the option to collected the additional fare if it wishes.

Mark_T has the correct reasoning. MSC caught onto the fare cheaters for solo passengers that routinely booked a ghost second passenger. There was a poster on this forum whose name I do not remember. She use to boast that she got around the solo fare by routinely booking her niece with her in the cabin with no intention of the niece cruising. Because of passengers like her who thought they were being slick with repeated "No Show," the additional fee was added in the T&C and also has language in the "Conditions of Carriage" as follows: 3. OCCUPATION OF BERTHS AND CABINS 3. A Passenger shall not have the right to exclusive occupancy of a cabin with two (2) or more berths unless he has paid supplement for exclusive occupation. The Carrier reserves the right to transfer the Passenger from one cabin to another and may adjust the fare accordingly. The Master or the Carrier may, if it becomes advisable or necessary, at any time transfer a Passenger from one berth to another. For HLR who is confused about the additional charge, MSC makes clear in the T&C that the "No Show" on the day of embarkation is considered a cancellation with an 100% penalty fee for that passenger's fare. The remaining passenger than may be responsible for the payment of that part of the fare and also be assessed the additional monies for the expected loss of on board revenue for the second passenger. So for anyone who does not have a "No Show" history, MSC may let the additional fees slide, however, a passenger with a repeat history of booking games may find themselves with additional money being owned (and keep in mind, MSC does have your credit/debit card information to make the charge or has a way of obtaining the cash for those who decide to have a cash on board account.

I thought about posting about the US invention of peperoni as a cheaper, fattier substitute for salami, but I am glad 8420PR did so. I am surprised there was peperoni on the ship as MSC usually has a good quality salami on board.

Did you read the already posted information in this thread before posting?

On the other hand, the US is a nation of immigrants which means that one can find authentic ethnic cuisine from any culture in restaurants that are run by those immigrants and served to their fellow immigrants and those who appreciate food from different cultures. By the way, I have indulged in fried pickles at times, and yes, they can be sour dills, half sour, or sweet depending on the restaurant and the dipping sauce that is served with them. Just because one has been limited to heavily breaded dill slices doesn't mean lighter breading, pickle types and dipping sauces are not served in other locations. I recently enjoy lightly breaded fried new pickle slices served with a green chimichurri sauce - fabulous.

We did this for a family reunion cruise. The number of people dining together each night varied . You can do it through the app once on board as long as you know the cabin number and names or arrange a larger table the night before you want one at the check in tables at the MDR entrance.

Not odd at all. People forget they are on an Italian cruise line that has embarkation ports around the world. Passengers are an international mix and expect some consistency of the MSC on board experience on whatever itinerary they chose. In Italy, meat is not used on pizza. Occasionally some prosciutto may be used. Hot dogs are a form of sausage and was probably the only available sausage available for "sausage" pizza.

Sometimes I go out and look up to watch the rocket pass over ....

There are times when I read a post and I am not sure if it is a serious question or if the poster is being provocative, or is travel naive or entitled. This is one of them, especially in light of some of the previous posts by this member....

Maybe you started at the wrong end of the line....

This. Shortly after 911, my husband was on out of the country official US government travel (red passport). He and a woman in line, also with the US red official travel passport, were pulled from the security line for a full luggage check and pat down in full view of the other people on line. They both realized that they were pulled to be examples. On the other hand, I was pulled many times for a pat down(invasive) of my bust area. I was overly blessed in that area and I think they were looking for things like trafficked children, gold bars, bricks of drugs, etc., that could be hidden in my bra. Bilateral mastectomies ended that problem.

He would know if he ever asked for lox and actually received lox that was brined in the high salt solution used for the thick slab of salmon belly from which lox is made, not smoked, and then cooked at the higher temperatures used for the thick slab of the salmon belly.

I don't know if you are aware that Celebrity was originally a Greek cruise line before Royal Caribbean brought the line, Fabulous Greek food was always available in the MDR. The holdover from that time before Royal Caribbean bought the line is the preponderance of Greek officers on board. The food you had in Luminae was probably available in the crew mess that night and was not specially prepared for you.

A Cuban Sandwich is layers of pork, ham, cheese, pickles and mustard. The Tampa area adds a slice of salami (a nod to the Italians and Cubans who came to the area to work in the cigar factories). Marie Rose sauce is also served on shrimp cocktail on many other cruise lines besides MSC.

Those special off menu ethnic meals that are sometimes made available on a cruise ship in a passenger dining room are available because of the ethnic composition of the crew and what is on the menu in the crew mess. Example: On HAL, Fillipino and Indonesian food are available because those cuisines are available in the crew mess. If your ship has a large number of ethnic Chinese on the crew, you stand a good chance of having the crew mess menu item made available to you.

Does it have to be lox or will cold smoked salmon be acceptable? If it must be lox, it may not be available. Also keep in mind if it is truly lox and the brined salmon is then cooked (may or may not be smoked) after brining, the texture will be that of baked salmon. On my Celebrity cruises, there has been a section in the buffet at breakfast where there is smoked salmon (not lox) available, Sometimes the offering has been limited to gravlax and no smoked salmon is available.

I cruised on the Joy immediately after the ship was brought back to the US, so my observations may no long hold true. Seven is also an unlucky number in China so none of the staterooms also did not end in seven. There was no Deck 7. What would have been Deck 4 was labeled by a name, not a number. On one of the decks, there was a shrine to Buddha. China red was used in the decor around the ship. A fast check of the Joy deck plans show that none of the cabins still do not end in 4 or 7. The exception appear to be cabins that were added in dry docks after leaving China.

We have had such a "bad" time on the Constellation that we are booked again for January 2024.

Very strict. MSC has rules and they are followed - just as those who have tried to circumvent booking and fare rules. And by the way, don't bother going to Guest Services to complain about the carry on soda policy and starting the complaint off "On Carnival...." The response I have witnessed is "You are not on Carnival. Next guest in line."