Cruising Photographer

I've been trying to log onto the app for my cruise on Meraviglia out of Miami 8/13/21. 

Booking Number (copied from paper exactly)

First Name

Last Name

"Incorrect log-in"

I suspect this wont be working when I get onto the ship Friday.  ;-(

We did Empress a couple of years ago when they were doing Cuba cruises.  It is a wonderful ship.  The crew is excellent.  The shows and food were great. It's nice being able to walk from the restaurant to the theater in about 3 minutes.  We will sail on her again.

Is one of the  pools covered/indoors on the MSC Poesia?  We are debating on taking our swim suits, but it wouldn't make sense in to fall if both of the pools are outdoors.  Sailing from Copenhagen to Genoa, Italy, end of September.  Being a Florida boy, I like my pool water warmer.  Thank you in advance for your answers!

I've called twice in the evenings after dinner.  20-30 minute wait on hold each time. 

They definitely need to improve their skills here.

No promises, but I booked our MSC cruise in January.  I also applied for status match at that time.  In April, I saw someone posted they had called MSC and had the 5% Status Match discount applied to their cruise.  So I called and they applied the 5% (and the port charges had dropped).  So, in total, I saved 10% off the  original price of my cruise.  The only negative:  I called in the evening and it took 25 minutes on hold listening to a repetitive 30 second sound track until customer service picked up the phone to help me.  Once I reached them, they were wonderful!

We booked directly with MSC for a Sept. 18th Cruise. Made my Final payment May 31st, filled in the online check-in info and receive our E-tickets!  Over 100 days before our cruise.

I think your preference of ships to cruise on may be the deciding factor. RC is pulling Majesty of the Seas out of Tampa leaving Carnival Paradise as the only ship from Tampa to Havana. If you don't like that ship/cruise line, you'll probably want to go to Ft. Lauderdale or Miami. RC Empress is going out of Miami is a lovely classic small ship, Majesty is moving t Ft. Lauderdale and is one of the larger ships going into Havana. You also have Norwegian Cruise going out from the east coast as well.

Most old cars don't. We were in a 1954 Bel Air. No seat belts.

We also had her guide us for our tour August 13th. Very nice and knowledgable!

We checked full day 3rd party tour. That is the response RC wants to see on the form. I also printed 2 copies, leaving the reason blank on the 2nd copy in case of questions when checking in.

We also used them Aug. 13th. Similar tour. Excelent job. Requested car with a.c. and they provided!

Majesty is moving to Ft. Lauderdale in November, 2018. It will be sailing to Havana fro there.

Empress, which home ports in Miami, is going into dry dock in February. They have canceled most (if not all) of their February sailings.

Sadly for us in Tampa, no more Royal Caribbean cruised from Tampa to Havana.

How much rum/alcohol can we bring back?

I believe it's 1 liter per person. The last trip, my wife and I brought back 2 bottles.

You can bring back more, but customs asks that you declare it on the customs form and pay taxes on the extra bottles.

(A lot of people may put an extra bottle into their suitcase and simply smile, if you know what I mean).

Rum is sold by government stores, so it will probably be at a fixed price.

For more information about Cuban rum than you may want to know, check this website:http://ultimaterumguide.com/cuba/

I had originally filled out my forms, checking #4 as NETOPR did. I have seen a couple of posts saying RC isn't allowing you to fill out the form this way any more if you have booked a private tour in Havana, that you must check #2. So I printed out and filled out another set of forms. On one form, I have checked #2, and on the 2nd form, I have left the "reason" blank, to be completed at check-in if things change again. Perhaps ICE felt too many people had just switched from "people to people" which is no longer allowed to "In Support of the Cuban People".

Thank you for sharing your review. Will be on Majesty to Key West & Havana in August.

I was on Empress to Cuba last year, but we were three only for 1 day and left at 4:00 PM. So no opinion on night-life in Havana. If you've been to other Spanish Forts (San Juan, etc...) El Morro is just another fort. Our RC tour took us to the fort where we shopped for cigars and rum, but weren't allowed into the heart of the fort to explore.

We will be leaving out of Tampa in August on Majesty of the Seas. This will be the first time cruising out of the Tampa port. We're considering valet parking; as much as we hate our vacation ending, we'll need to hit the road shortly after returning!

The parking terminal is directly across the street from the cruise ship dock and is very easy to access. You will be able to leave quickly either on your own or with valet parking. The best thing to speed up your departure is being able to exit the ship carrying off all your luggage with you. You will have priority in departing the ship.

I booked, then transferred my reservation to my TA to help support a local business. When you transfer to a local company, the local agent will receive the commission, That is money they will spend in the local economy.

We were on Empress in May 2017 when it was going out of Tampa to Key West & Cuba. Absolutely loved the ship!!! We're going back again in August to Cuba on RC, but on Majesty of the Seas this time. Sorry the moved Empress to Miami, but good for you all.

Per US Customs, you are allowed to bring back 1 bottle per adult back into the United States.

Enjoy!

I'm not sure, but I believe I remember them x-raying my bag in the terminal as we exited the ship as well as when we were re-boarding the ship. No big deal. They also look over your passport, take your picture, then stamp the passport. "Welcome to Cuba".

Do take some time to explore San Juan and spend some money with the local vendors. It will really help their recovery efforts a lot!

I was fortunate to go on a cruise to Cuba in May 2017. We did a 4 hour tour through the ship, then walked around Old Havana. It is very interesting, and a very safe country for tourists to walk around. Go with an open mind, understand that everything is changing for the people who live there, and enjoy their warm hospitality.

When I was in San Juan, PR, I did a tour with Debbie, "Legends of Puerto Rico". She does an excellent tours of San Juan. She has a website and email, but I just saw a post from her on Facebook that she is still without electricity, so it may take time for her to respond. Like other tour guides, she has been without work since Hurricane Maria. Hope she will work out for you.