80sGal

We did our first European itinerary in 2022 and loved it so much we went back (from KY) last summer. The first time we really enjoyed Portugal and France (Lisbon and Porto, Le Harve and La Rochelle) where the ship offered fantastic excursions at every stop. Brussels was also unique and Spain was nice too. Of you choose that area of Europe, I'd recommend itineraries that include Portugal and France. Agree 100% with other posts that planning ahead for excursions is essential in Europe!! The second time we did Rome pre-cruise and then sailed to various Greek islands. Crete (Chania) was beautiful but we focused more on the Greek historical sites with the excursions in Athens and Rhodes. Santorini gave us the classic blue domed photo but it is SO heavily tourist .... I would recommend Athens, early excursion before the crowds get too heavy .... and Sounio for some breathtaking scenery along the way. Lindos in Rhodes .... and if you choose Rome as your home port, a great hotel I found thru CC is Hotel Barocco. It was a wonderful boutique hotel in reasonable walking distance of every major tourist site in Rome except the Vatican. We are booked to go back to Europe for Round 3 in 2026.

Count yourself lucky! Sounds like you got the best of both worlds by booking both offers on the same trip! We have yet to get ANY good offers except the early post-Covid Cheers deal and a one-time 100/pp offer that was only good on an Australian sailing even though we have cruised enough to be Platinum. We are now trying out the other lines to compare since the algorithm doesn't seem to favor us, although so far we actually still prefer Carnival. Have a great cruise!

Wondering which is the best option for tendering at Cabo .... we are Platinum so I guess there's a priority line ... but we also chose an excursion. Are excursion tix groups first or Platinum? Just looking for the least crowded/crazy option!

Interesting. Okay good to know. I'm imagining any YC would be better anyway ... but I'm sensitive to noise so I like to choose what's over and under my cabin. Thanks for the reply!

When this happens for free, do you still need to accept it or are you automatically moved? And if it is by acceptance, you know the cabin before you commit? First time on MSC coming up. Currently have Aurea balcony in a preferred location to my liking, an upgrade would be nice though!

We did the Horizon at New Years and didn't get off the ship til around 1030. Previous times we were off by 9 or 930. But, that sailing, debarkation was slow-going so we hung out on Lido and waited.

They will make other drinks found on the ship if you ask, assuming they have the right ingredients there. We like the Pirate Punch, found throughout the ship.

We are booked for the week of the 12th of October. Stops are Newport, Bar Harbor, Portland, St. John and Halifax. Rethinking that I need to change to the week of the 5th. Thoughts on the timing of fall colors at those ports? This is likely a one-time cruise to these ports as DH prefers warmer climates.

Reviving this thread! Although I know there are no guarantees of weather -- is it still generally warm enough to do the long walk to the mansions in mid-October or has it become chilly and unpleasant by then? (Temp tolerance varies based on what one is accustomed to ... Kentucky gal here). TIA!

Wait, what? Our status match went through about a month ago and our 1st cruise is in October. My account still shows the same balance due as before we got bumped to Gold. Do I have to call to have the discount credited?

It doesn't look like you're getting many good vibes here. Maybe you need some positive news which I can report. We've only tried it once on Celebration in late 2022 but it was excellent. We had the lobster mac n cheese appetizer which was delicious, and to be honest I'm not even much of a Mac n cheese person to begin with. I would have had that dish every night of the cruise if I could have! The seafood was also very good -- I prefer scallops and crabmeat or crab cakes, but DH prefers steak and "suffered" thru the seafood restaurant like a good sport. Happily, he said the steak that night was as good or better than the steakhouse. I'm sure we ordered dessert but I don't recall which and I was likely too full to have more than a bite or two anyway. I wish Rudy's would be added on more ships. Compared to Emerils, which we tried on Celebration and from the MDR favorites menu on Horizon, it was a hands-down winner. Enjoy!

You were VERY lucky with that dice roll. We were supposed to land in Rome this past summer around 4 pm on Saturday, with only one connection out of Chicago. Thanks to a bad tire on the plane in originating city we missed connection, were rebooked and now connecting thru Chicago and Heathrow. That Chicago flight was delayed by HOURS, actually rebooked a second time automatically by airline to make Heathrow ... and nope, it was late too. Missed Heathrow connection ... and FINALLY saw Rome at noon on Sunday.

You can put the cruise on hold at the end of the booking process then view the available excursions on that itinerary while it's on hold. Go back into the booking and search Shore Excursions just as you would on a paid booking.

Can someone explain to me how this is booked? Do I book this in advance like excursions on the app? Or on board? I recall seeing something about "2 days prior to sailing" but I can't find that on my booking anywhere. Thanks!

Thanks to all who responded. After another round of emails the issue has been fixed and status matched. Perseverance pays, I suppose.