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Robkat

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Everything posted by Robkat

  1. Omigoodness! This is exactly what we were hoping for! Did you book this through Princess? Where was it available to book? Is there a specific code for booking this shuttle? We've looked on the Princess site in Shore Excursions, and we can only see the longer 6-hour excursion. Is this a bus shuttle? Does it pick you up right at the QC cruise port and drop you right at Montreal airport? Are there time options, or is it one fixed time? Lol ... sorry for all these questions, but we're excited because this is what we really wanted. Thanks for posting!
  2. Thanks so much for this info. We've already read most of the thread and we're seeing so much useful info. We're still a little unclear about the train, where we catch it, the schedules, etc. but hopefully when we finish reading the thread we'll find that info. We are normally really good doing our own research, but we needed this info fast as we have to decide soon, so pointing us to the info was invaluable. So ... Thanks again, and if anyone else would like to chime in with details/more info, we appreciate tremendously.
  3. We are looking at a repositioning cruise on the Caribbean Princess, in July, from Fort Lauderdale to Quebec City. We want to fly back to Florida from Montreal airport. The best situation for us would be if Princess offers shuttles/transfers from the Quebec City cruiseport directly to Montreal airport. Does anyone who has disembarked in Quebec City recently know whether this is possible? We'd also be interested in hearing any other recommendations. We know about Via Rail, for the train, but can't find info about where we'd catch the train and where it would take us, and how far that would be from the airport. And what about other independent shuttles that would do cruiseport pick-up, with a drop at Montreal airport? Really, any insight or experienced info would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
  4. LOL, JL ... You beat me to it!!! 😂😂
  5. Oh, I guess I should have been a little more descriptive about what I was referring to ... What I meant is that it was sad that MSC's reputation of handling passengers' various requests/changes/calls to CS for info or help, etc. are quite often met with ineptitude or misinformation or, in some extreme cases, actual problems created with the bookings. I'm not saying that this is universally the case, but it happens and gets reported upon sufficiently often enough that a first time MSC cruiser, like the OP for example, feels that in order to make a fairly common cabin change, the best way to mitigate potential detrimental changes happening is to outright cancel the booking and start over. In my opinion, this is a reputation issue that MSC should address.
  6. Oh my goodness! Isn't this a sad commentary about MSC's inept (factually and perceived) customer service and back office? We've cruised with MSC 4 times in YC. We are considering, for the first time, booking a regular balcony Fantastica, on Meraviglia. We had asked for a couple of quotes from TA's, and 2 of 3 said that they will not book MSC unless it's YC. That has us a little nervous. We saw that you've got a couple of cruises on Mera coming up, so we'll be following your Live From posts avidly, to get your impressions and pov. Saw also that you're doing Aurea and then a Fantastica balcony ... for the cabin move in Sept, did you move within the same category, or was it to move to an entirely different category and experience? We're hoping that your refund comes quickly, and that nothing else comes up that will force you to have to make any further changes!
  7. Thanks, mvh, for the reply, but I'm not sure what you're referring to. Promos are only used once on the cruise, and somewhere in the Terms & Conditions I'm sure it says that they have no monetary value. But are you saying that your deposit is now non-refundable? We had another conversation with our TA and he swears up and down that his MSC DM told him that all deposits are non-refundable from time of booking. But then this morning, without any other explanation or referencing our discussions, he sent us a new quote, which did not have the notation about the deposit. We're not feeling very confident in why he did it. Did he find out that he'd been wrong, or was he just appeasing us? This why we'd like to hear from others who have recently made deposits on cruises... to see whether your deposit was refundable. Thanks.
  8. I'm sure a thorough search on this forum would provide some answers here, but we are in a bit of a time crunch, so I'm asking for confirmation/information from US residents, who have recently booked cruises, NOT in YC. Our travel agent has provided us with a quote for a cruise in September, and is holding a cabin for us, in a balcony cabin with Fantastica experience, for a 10 night Canada/New England cruise. His quote states that "The deposit amount is $xxx and is non-refundable from time of booking". The final payment is in June '23. We had heard that deposits for YC are non-refundable, but everything we've seen tells us that other than YC and suites, deposits are refundable up until final payment. Are we wrong about this? We've called MSC and asked the question "generally, and have been told that deposits for these circumstances are refundable (until final payment). When we re-questioned our TA , he told us that his District Sales Manager had told his agency that ALL deposits we're going to be non refundable. Anybody from the US who has made a reservation very recently, (and not in suites or YC), can you confirm whether or not your deposit was noted as being non-refundable. And, of course, if anyone has heard any confirmation of this info, we'd love to hear about it. Thanks in advance for any info/help.
  9. Thanks for your reply. What a great system, and we envy you having TG as your "MDR" ... nice! We've got to just be happy with a specialty thrown in every now and then! Hope you enjoy your afternoon and evening in Fort Lauderdale, and hope your upcoming Beyond and Reflection cruises are wonderful.
  10. Really enjoying your review and we are absolutely envious of your multiple B2B's, especially since we're just a few days off our Reflection cruise. We did a 12 nighter on Equinox this past November, so we're getting a kick out of seeing all your ship photos. Have to ask though ... you often mention that Tuscan Grill is your "MDR" and you've been in there most nights. If you don't mind the question, how are you managing this? Do you have crazy OBC and decided to use it this way? Or is it just a personal preference to be in there for most evenings? If you feel this is nobody's business, I understand, but my curious mind is wondering! In the meantime, we're looking forward to your ongoing review. Thanks.
  11. Yes!!! 🤦🤦 Thank you! Our last few cruises this year have had a Saturday departure, and I just defaulted to that automatically. BUT ... we are making our way down to FLL the day before, so it could be said that we're leaving on Saturday! 😂
  12. Oh boy! 👏👏 We are also so excited and happy to read your review! We board next Saturday (we're also in Aqua), and honestly, all the recent reports and CC threads have been making us nervous. We were on the Edge in Sept '22 and the Equinox in Nov '22, and it was wonderful being on those ships with such reduced occupancy. We loved the E-class ships 4 MDRs, but didn't have a great experience being in the Equinox MDR. Felt understaffed and the service wasn't up to its usual standard. So, for this upcoming one, we're giving Aqua and Blu another try to see if the evening dining will be better. Very happy to hear your report about ordering from the MDR menu in Blu. Enjoy the rest of your cruise, and thanks again for this good news!
  13. Enjoying your Live From tremendously! We love the S class ships, and are looking forward to our own cruise in 3 weeks on the Reflection ... albeit, not in the lavish, luscious RS, we will make do with an Aqua cabin. Our first MSC YC cruise was on the Divina. We loved it. We decided to try the new (at the time) Seaside next, and we loved it even more! Our subsequent YC cruises have been on the Seaside again and the Seashore. If, after your cruise, you really like the YC experience and would consider more, we'd highly recommend also trying out the newer MSC ships. On those, everything is located within YC, so you really, truly get to experience the "ship within a ship" model. On Divina, the dining room is at the other end of the ship. We didn't mind it at all, but truly love and appreciate having all the amenities together. Have loads of fun, living the Champagne Wishes and Caviar Dreams cruise life!
  14. If you go into MSC, you'll find lots and lots of YC reviews.
  15. Since you say that you're got specific times that you want, it's definitely best to get your dining booked at the 125 days-out. Even though NCL doesn't make all reservations available at that time, you'd risk not having your preferred time available on embarkation day. Can I just suggest that you call to get a Rep to help you get your times. I know lots of people swear by doing it online, but lots of other people find that they run into issues that way. As long as you find a time when it's not too a long a wait on hold, a Rep can (usually) go through the process with you in quick order.
  16. We've been on most of the other cruise lines, and we've always felt that NCLs entertainment has been excellent, and quite a bit better than the comparable lines. We were just recently on the Escape, and we saw 4 fantastic shows. We saw Nashville Tenors, Choir of Man (this was our second time seeing this show and liked it even more!), Shadow and Black Light, and Malevo. The last two had been finalist contestants on America's Got Talent, and they were phenomenal! This is not to say that every sailing has so much variety (this particular cruise seemed especially stacked!), but we're never disappointed with the offerings.
  17. This! Well and appropriately pointed out, @Morgsmom! Anyone who has looked at MSC pricing, or dealt with MSC more than once, is pretty cognizant and aware that many of the featured promotions don't apply to YC. And I wish the promo was still on so I could find the T&C's, as I find it hard to believe that the YC exclusion to this promo is not written somewhere, even if it is in itsy teeny print. However, even without seeing it written out, and never having pursued this promo, I was aware that it didn't apply to YC.
  18. This!!! All day long ... and more! Love the outfit, love the sentiment, and love the respect and patriotism! Couldn't have been more impressed with this particular post! It gives me the warm fuzzies ❤️🇺🇸🇺🇸
  19. Following! Looking forward to your impressions as we'll be on the Apex next year. We've also been on the Edge, so interested to hear how you think they compare. Smooth sailing!
  20. Hi CGE, We've cruised several times on the Jewel and love that ship. We've cruised several times on the Getaway and we love that ship. Yes, you will notice differences, and hopefully you'll enjoy most of those differences. However, since your last cruise (which was your first cruise) had a lower passenger count, your upcoming cruise on the Getaway will most likely feel significantly different since there will probably be a higher passenger count (mainly since the ship is larger and this would be a popular itinerary). And obviously, this will make for a pretty different vibe throughout the ship. However, the Getaway is a great ship and can't believe you wouldn't enjoy cruising on her. Hope you have a great time!
  21. Enjoying your review tremendously so far. Terrific pics. We're back on the Reflection in Feb for the first time since 2015, so will be eager to hear all your reporting. Thanks and enjoy your TA!
  22. We feel like we've had more misses than hits at Le Bistro ... sometimes good, but a couple of times recently, very meh ... wished we hadn't wasted a meal there. Will totally concur about La Cucina ... we love Ocean Blue but love La Cucina even more. The beef tenderloin there, which we've had many times, has always been done beautifully. And we like the ambience in the restaurant. Have a great holiday cruise!
  23. Lots of good suggestions ... we use most of these. One item we use that's indispensable and hasn't yet been mentioned: Collapsible cloth hanging shelves With NCL's lack of open shelves and drawers, we use these plus the scant few shelves the closets do provide. We like these better than the cloth storage bins since we can actually see what's on each shelf. Love these.
  24. We sail on both Celebrity and on NCL, and really, we don't feel that NCL is a "downgrade" from Celebrity at all. The Escape is one of our favorite ships and is a beauty. There are definitely way more activities for the kids on NCL than on Celebrity. NCL ships have a greater variety as far as specialty dining, and we think the food overall is on par with Celebrity. Just be aware, though, that the vibe is quite different on the two lines. NCL is much more casual, and while you're still very able to dress up for meals whenever you want, you'll find more people choosing to be considerably more casual. And since there are generally more younger people on NCL, it can get a little loud and, can we say, a little less "laid back" than Celebrity. However, we love them both ... it's just good to know what to expect when getting on either one.
  25. Concur and concur with @hcatabove. Also, depending on how minimum your bid, suite benefits and amenities are always going to be great. Given how wonderful the SV's and the 4 MDRs are though, why bother with spending even more. Maybe save bidding on a suite for when you haven't been able to score a SV?
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