archer_310

Thanks! I'm going to write it down this time!

I should know this from other cruises we've done, but the mind gets blurry with age. I've searched the forum but can't find any topic that matches. Our check-in date is this Wednesday. What time does check-in start? Is it 6 or 7am?

We've booked our first cruise with MSC, then did a status match with Disney and were awarded Diamond. We booked the current offer which gives free drinks, wifi and $50 OBC. My question is this: Reading the perks you get with Voyagers Club, it says that if you book a cruise that departs between 12 months and 9 months, you get the 5% discount, plus double points, plus a $50 OBC. I know we got the discount, but should I qualify for an extra $50 OBC - or do I only get it once from the offer? Also, regarding points. If I'm now Diamond even though I haven't even sailed MSC yet, is there any advantage to further collecting points as Diamond seems to be the highest you can attain with MSC?

OK, I can do that. Two of us are Platinum on Disney, our son I think is still Gold.

Thanks - that helps!

I took a screenshot of my number and status, so hopefully that will do. Anyone know if I have to do this for each person in my party, or just me?

I don't have a booking, that's why I'm asking what the price is.

Do I need to submit a status match sheet for each person in my family, or do I just do it once? Also, it seems that I need to attach a picture of my membership card from the cruise line I'm trying to match. I don't have a membership card, so what do I submit? Is it necessary for the submission, or is the number good enough?

Ignore the second half of my question. I found the small print - no videos. Still would like to know the cost per day.

Just wondering if anyone knows the daily cost of this plan with MSC? Also, does this level allow any videos, or is it just social media, email, etc. checking?

Does the Seashore have a mini golf course on one of the decks? I can't seem to find a definitive answer on this question.

Wow - that's expensive! That would be $26/day/person. That's a lot of pop to drink to make that worthwhile. RC is less than $10/day and everyone doesn't have to purchase the plan.

I guess my original questions didn’t get addressed: 1) Does anyone know what it costs to add a basic package that includes pop? 2) Can one person buy it in the cabin, or does everyone have to buy it if 1 person does? Thanks

Thank you for the replies - they were helpful.

We've mostly sailed Disney and RC, but are looking to maybe do an MSC cruise with friends next December. I've been pricing some cruises, but for the life of me can't find some info on the website. My wife and I are not really drinkers, so buying the alcohol package doesn't make sense. However, we may like to have the package which includes pop. There are descriptions on the site, but no prices. As I haven't booked a cruise yet, how do I find out how much it would cost to add this? Do I have to add this for everyone in the cabin, or can I just choose 1 person? Other questions: 1) Not sure what the deposit is for MSC cruises, but if I were to cancel before final payment, is the deposit refunded? 2) Friends were just on an MSC cruise and said it would have cost $18 to attend entertainment. From what I read on the website, entertainment is included. Which is true? 3) I've also been told that once you book a cruise you can't get a partial refund if you see the price has decreased. Should I wait for one of their sales before booking? 4) If we don't purchase a pop package, what does MSC provide free? 5) Are you allowed to bring pop/water, etc. onboard at embarkation? That's all I can think of for now.

We'll already be in the US. I was going to purchase some US tests, but of course free is better! I just got off the phone with RC and they said the same, but they also seemed to agree that they're more concerned with the "type" of test, not the name. I just don't want to get to the port and have my results turned down -- that's my worry. I'm checking with WM Life Centres to see if they even list the name of the test on the results, or just the type.

Under the Canadian cruiser's section? I saw one saying that people used them for Celebrity (I think), but I'm asking about Royal. I just got a Twitter response from them and they still say they have to be FDA approved, even though they've removed that wording from their requirements.

I have an upcoming cruise with RC in the next couple of weeks. Up until I checked again today, RC was requiring any proctored RAT to be FDA approved or emergency use authorized. I can no longer find this wording on their site. My question is - have any Canadians recently sailed RC and used the free green tests to get onto their cruise? Were there any issues?

Wow. 4mbps is NOT streaming speed. Thanks for the info.

If I purchase a single internet connection, do you have to specify which device is going to be used, or can you vary devices as long as it's only 1 device at a time that's using the internet? Further question for those who have done this: The streaming package says that you can stream shows. Does anyone know what the general speed of this type of internet on the ship comes in as (i.e. 10 mbps, 15 mbps, etc)?

I'm sure everyone is tired of seeing review after review of the Mardi Gras, but after 14 cruises (2 on Carnival), I felt I had to let people know my view of this new ship. Especially after having read reviews leading up to our cruise which painted this ship as the best thing since sliced bread. As I said, I'll keep it short and won't do any in-depth reviews like other people have done. I feel that after 14 cruises, our family has a good idea as to what is good and what is not. We have cruised a majority with Disney and 2 with RC. The good: 1. Chris Williams (The Flying Scotsman) - his energy and enthusiasm made the performances much better 2. The look of the ship - it's a beautiful looking ship and still clean - unfortunately more about this later under the not so good 3. Theater - finally something of decent size to host entertainment. Now get some quality shows to put in here. 4. Plenty of deck chairs. This has been a problem on other ships - not being able to find a lounger to enjoy the sun. There seemed to be plenty of space on this ship and we apparently had 6000 on board. 5. Muster - quick and painless 6. On and off the ship was pretty quick and painless Not so good: 1. Entertainment - Some of the entertainment in the center stage and theater were well done, but I found that the performances went on just a bit too long. Some of the entertainment was just boring, but everyone likes different things, so I won't comment more on this as it is a personal preference. 2. Cabins - small. We had an extended balcony. It was OK, but the rooms are smaller than other cruiselines we've been on. Why no more curtain separating adult bed and kid's bed anymore? Does anyone test layout of bathroom ahead of time? You have to be a contortionist to get at the toilet paper.Bolt 3. Bolt - only ran 2 days out of the entire cruise. I understand that weather might have affected some days, but only 2 days out of 7? Bad: 1. Food - we never ate in the Palm as we never saw anything , on the menu, so I can't review the food there. We did do the Marketplace breakfast and dinner buffets. We also did Cucino del Capitano a few times which was decent. Food generally was bland. No taste to the pizza at Pizzeria del Capitano which was very disappointing. Not much choice at buffets and hardly any variation in breakfast options. I can't stress how disappointed we were when comparing to previous cruises. 2. Marketplace layout - terrible. Buffet setup was puzzling as you would have lines forming where people needed to walk. People getting omelets would block access to toast and bagels. It was not a good setup. For such a big ship, I don't understand why they laid it out like this. I have seen MUCH better on every other ship we've been on. 3. No garbages - ANYWHERE. This was a big peeve. If you wanted to throw something out that wasn't recyclable, good luck on finding somewhere other than your cabin to do it. 4. No where to put used dishes. Other cruises have had places to discard plates, cups, utensils, etc so that they can be retrieved by the staff. There was no where on the Mardi Gras to do this. You had to find a table that someone had been eating at to get rid of something. As a result, glasses, plates, etc. were being left everywhere on the ship - elevators, stairs, etc. It was a terrible look. 5. Bad layout of perimeter of ship. If it's not the glass being too high, you have a double railing at the edges of the ship which prevent you from looking out over the side of the ship. I've never seen this on any other ship and it was frustrating trying to look out and down from anywhere on an upper deck. Are they that afraid of jumpers now? 6. Stores - 2 small stores each about the size of my living room for a ship this size??? Can't stress how disappointed we were in the shopping options (not referring to the jewelry shops). If you wanted a t-shirt and were male, good luck finding anything. My son wanted a model of the ship, which he has collected from every ship we've been on, but they sold out in 2 days and could give me no options for purchasing post-cruise. Still waiting to hear back from Carnival. I'm not going to go into the 2 for $20 sale and the mess that caused. I can't think of anything else at the moment. Please understand it's not my intention to malign the Mardi Gras, but we have done a fair number of cruises and we all agree that this was the worst ship we have been on so far. We were SO looking forward to this cruise as we had high expectations for this brand new ship. To me, it just seems like more thought should have been put into some aspects of the layout of things on the ship. My wife tells me that we're done with Carnival for the foreseeable future and I can't disagree with her. Did I hate the cruise - no. Would I recommend it to others - probably not. It was my sister's first cruise and I don't see her doing another given she didn't really enjoy this one. It's not my intention to to turn people away from the Mardi Gras, but if you've cruised before, beware that you might be disappointed as well.