BethV114

The buffet is open 20 hrs, is it not enough hours???

Plenty for me! Just wanted to make sure we can get a snack between meals or even after dinner it our meal in the MDR wasn’t satisfying. The one evening we went to the MDR on our last cruise on Liberty of the Seas, the buffet was shutting down by the time we got out, and we had to look around for other options since we were still hungry!

I would also like to know if they have a place for late snacks.

Great question! Where can one get snacks outside of the main dining hours? The buffet on 8 and/or 16? Any place else?

Does Seaside have a place to get made-to-order pizza similar to Divina? We quite enjoyed the yard of pizza on Divina last year and would love to do that again for lunch on a sea day when we are on Seaside next year.

Too late for that

If you were able to travel with the naturalization certificate in the past, it's probably going to be okay to do so again. But a passport is still your best (and safest) bet. There are passport centers where you can make an appointment and get either an expedited or same-day passport. Have you looked into that?

Thank you for your review. Your experience on Seaside sounds quite similar to our experience on Divina. We have cruised Royal and Celebrity a lot, but tried Divina last year based on the great pricing. We went on Liberty this year because we wanted to combine a cruise with a trip to visit family in Texas.

We quite enjoyed Divina, although DD did love the splash zone and water slides on Liberty. We are now booked on Seaside for next spring, with our family from Texas looking at joining us for their first cruise. I think Seaside will be a good combination of the things we loved from Divina with a bit more in the way of fun for DD, and is a good choice for introducing our family to the fun of cruising!

They have pizza at the buffet that is free and changes daily. They even have a breakfast version in the morning. It's actually pretty good, although we enjoyed the for fee pizza better. We ordered a yard of pizza for our group late in the cruise, and were sad we hadn't stopped by to do it sooner. We would have done it every day!

You will also find a range of foods at the buffet, that varies by time of day. Breakfast has typical pastries, cereals, pancakes, eggs, omelets, hash browns, breakfast meats, fruits, etc. There was also miso soup with add-ins, which I enjoyed frequently.

At lunch and dinner, there is a salad bar, prepared salads, prepared sandwiches, cold cuts and bread, etc. to make your own sandwiches, pizza, pasta, carving station, seafood/fish, burgers, fries, often a prepared to order pasta station. There was also an "ethnic" section and a vegetarian section. Not to mention cheeses, fruits, and desserts.

My tip if you like a busy salad is start with the salad bar, but then keep looking around. I found many options to add to my salad that made it quite interesting by visiting the other stations!

I got the email, answered the demographic questions and was allowed to proceed on to the remaining questions. The survey was quite lengthy, but it gave me something to do while taking a few extra minutes of "me time" when my 8 year old thought I was upstairs taking a shower. ;p

We have sailed a lot of Royal and Celebrity, and took our first MSC cruise on Divina last year. It was probably one of the least expensive cruises we have ever been on, and one of the best. The ship was beautiful and immaculately clean, the staff were friendly and helpful, entertainment on the nights we weren't too exhausted to go to the shows was wonderful, and the food was amongst the best we have enjoyed at sea. We sailed in an Aurea balcony, and quite enjoyed our cabin, as well as the included massages and classic all-inclusive beverage packages.

Based on our great experience with Divina, we've decided to go ahead and book Seaside for next spring. The Aurea class balcony was a bit out of reach for us this time, but Fantastica pricing was good. Even after we upgraded from the drinks on us included package to the deluxe package, it came out to be about $1,000 less than our balcony cabin on Liberty of the Seas this year, which did not include any type of a beverage package (that ran at least another $500 for all three of us).

Divina is a lovely ship. We have sailed Royal and Celebrity, and found the food on Divina to be the best we have had at sea. We had a free dinner at Eataly through the Voyagers Club, and I had the best pasta dish there I have ever had, either on land or sea. Please make sure you go to the pizzeria and get a yard of pizza. It was wonderful!

We also booked iwth drinks on us promotion dec. 09 Divina. How did you upgrade to premium package? I'm new to MSC, so this is all Greek to me!!

 

Pat

Hi Pat,

I asked my TA to make upgrade the beverage package when we booked. However, from reading these boards, I believe that you can also ask your TA (if you have one) or MSC (if you booked direct) to upgrade after you've made your booking. The cost to upgrade from drinks on us to the deluxe all-inclusive package is $26/day per person. We like the thought of having the minibar included, not to mention that I enjoy champagne and would like a bit of a better wine by the glass selection. I believe that the cost to upgrade to the classic all-inclusive package is somewhat less, around $21/day per person.

I'm still trying to figure out what the cost to upgrade from drinks on us to classic non-alcoholic all-inclusive is, as our invoice reflects that we were charged $23/day, and that is the full package price.

According to Website it is $26/day per person.

Yes, $26/day is the price to upgrade to the deluxe all-inclusive. I'm trying to find out the price to upgrade to the non-alcoholic all-inclusive for my daughter, who will be 9 when we sail. The price I was charged amounts to $23/day, which is the full package price for the non-alcoholic all-inclusive package, so it seems like I might have been overcharged.

Does anyone know the cost to upgrade from the drinks on us promo to the all-inclusive non-alcoholic package? I received my invoice from my TA, and it shows that we were charged $161 to upgrade DD, which works out to $23/day or the full package price. On the other hand, DH and I were each charged $182 or $26/day to upgrade to the deluxe package, which sounds correct. I put an email in to my TA, but wanted to see if anyone here can shed some light on the situation.

We booked with the drinks on us promotion, but upgraded myself and DH to the deluxe all-inclusive, and DD to the non-alcoholic all-inclusive. In the comparison guide, it says that protein snacks, crepes, and snacks for kids with gadget are included. Can anyone explain what the heck those are?!

Only two posts before the judgement started, is that some sort of record?

I saw the post you are referring to, and it made me sad that the person went that route, rather than trying to offer some guidance, which is what many of us come here for.

To the OP, we have not sailed MSC with a baby, our daughter was 6 1/2 on her first MSC cruise. However, we have sailed both Royal and Celebrity with her since she was about 15 months old. My best suggestion is to go prepared to make use of the baby center during whatever limited hours it is available, so you can get some adult time. You could also divide and conquer, which we have done and still do - taking turns doing "me time" at the spa, gym, wherever. I would also look into whether in-cabin babysitting is available. I'm not sure whether MSC offers that, but we used the service several times on Celebrity, with great success.

If possible, I might also suggest seeing whether any family or friends would like to join you. While we clearly survived our first cruise with DD at 15 months, the subsequent ones were took with her were a bit easier, as we traveled with family who pitched in when we needed. They didn't watch DD so we could have alone time, but it was definitely helpful to have the extra sets of hands at the pool, dinner, on excursions, etc.

I know there is a thread the is supposed to contain photos of the Seaside drink menus posted by moderator Ashley. However, none of the photos are visible when I try to view the thread, either on my computer or phone. Therefore, I was wondering if anyone has any photos of the Seaside drink menus they would be willing to share. We are likely booking for next spring, and I am contemplating upgrading the drink package included in the current promotion to the deluxe all-inclusive drink package. We had the classic when we sailed Divina, but some of the posts I've read on here suggest that the range of drinks included with that package has lessened since we sailed in 2017.

Thank you!

I would avoids cabins like 10064; 10066; 10067; 10069 and any other cabins in that same vertical column through the decks eg 11062 ;11066; 11067; 11071; as you will be over looked on your balcony by the two cabins on the bump out wall. and the corresponding cabins on the back wall of the bump out 10216; 10218; 10223; 10225

 

I'd also be wary of most of the cabins on the rear section of deck15 as there are large overhangs. unless you prefer a shady balcony,

 

Pete

Pete - Thanks so much for getting back to me so quickly! One last question, I'm looking at the available cabins and some have a triangle symbol, indicating a sofa bed, while some have a diamond, indicating a double sofa bed. Our daughter, who will be 9, will be sailing with us. Do you happen to know what the difference is between a standard sofa bed and a double sofa bed?

We are looking at booking the Seaside for next spring. The pricing on Bella and Fantastica cabins looks quite good. I am leaning toward Fantastica over Bella, with a price difference of about $90 per person for the week. Are there any cabins in the Fantastica category on Seaside that I should look to avoid? I see from the deck plans that a few have combo metal/glass balconies, so will stay away from them. But would love to know if there are any others I should skip, or whether there are any that I should try to get if available.

Thank you!

Are there any "experiences" you can book where you get your dining time ahead of boarding? Is there a way to pre-book shows before boarding, as you can with some ships on Royal, or is it something everyone must wait until boarding to do?

All Caribbean sailings are currently offering the "Drinks on Us" package. It is very basic but offers a few choices of beer, like Bud, Coors & Heineken. a few wines by the glass. One or two choices of vodka (Seagram's) or gin. One basic choice in a category. Can be ordered neat or mixed with soda or juice, but nothing blended or with a shaker, and also included is canned or fountain soda. You are responsible to pay the 15% gratuity for any drink ordered under that basic package.

 

 

We felt it is a great offer if you are happy with those basic offerings. Then we researched and for $18 pp/per day ($126 for the week x 2) we decided to add the classic package which will satisfy almost all/any drinks we feel we must try, and will have no added 15% gratuities to our orders. If you have to "have it all" they offer the deluxe beverage pkg for $26 pp per day which offers top shelf as well as in room mini bar as well as gelato etc.. Although it would be nice to go all crazy, we opted to upgrade to the classic and are very happy with our decision

Just to clarify, if we book with the Drinks on Us promo, we would only need to pay $18 pp/per day to upgrade from that very basic package to the classic package? Could we do that before sailing or does that need to be done on board?

If we can upgrade in this manner, Seaside is looking like an excellent value for a trip with our daughter next spring!

Yes, the price is steep, but we decided to book it anyway for our upcoming cruise. We embark on Easter Sunday, which is the day of the event, and thought it would be a fun way to spend the holiday. DD has also been asking about attending a murder mystery dinner, so this seemed like a good way to get our vacation started.

When I first started cruising, I used to bring an insulated tumbler with a lid and a straw to pour my adult beverages into. This would keep them cold longer by the pool and, as you mentioned, limit spilling. I haven't done this in several years, and now I'm kind of wondering why!

I would rather spend the $500 on drinks, specialty dining and/or excursions. There are really no great benefits to a JS on Liberty. Some like the extra space and the bathtub, but we are used to a shower stall at home and were lucky enough to get an oversized balcony cabin for our upcoming sailing, so I definitely wouldn't take it even if they did offer it to us!

Kudos to you on taking charge of your health and sticking to it post-surgically! Unfortunately, I doubt that Royal will discount the fee for the specialty dining, which makes sense to me. Some people don't eat much, so probably don't "get their money's worth," while others view dining on a cruise ship as a challenge to make sure they do! I think it would be too difficult for the cruise lines to start varying their prices based on little or how much you eat, and I don't mind at all that I eat in moderation, but pay the same cruise rate as those who make it their mission to make at least ten trips to the buffet.

If you'd like to spend time with your friends, and at least sample the cuisine at the specialty restaurants, then I say just go ahead and do it. One (or two) specialty dinners generally do not break the bank for most who are lucky enough to be able to cruise. If you are looking to cut down on costs, look at pre-booking through your cruise planner and possibly purchasing a dining package. It can be less expensive to go that route than to pay individually for each restaurant.

There will be some kind of identifier on your sea pass card, either a sticker applied to the card or something printed directly onto it. You will collect your sea pass card when you check in and use it to board the ship. You should be able to use your drink packages as soon as you board. However, you should be aware that the alcohol selection is a bit limited until the ship reaches international waters due to Texas tax laws.

DH, DD (8) and I are sailing on Liberty 4/1 (Easter!). As a family, we have had a rough go of things over the past year, and poor DD just broke her wrist skiing on Sunday. This cruise can't come fast enough!

I am loving your review. It helps pass the time until embarkation :D