Tom-n-Cheryl

Yep - it does not take much, especially with a leg up to begin with, to climb to the top of the MSC ladder. It's actually TOO easy ! Tom

On the Seaside, it was a CSM. Tom

Well, there's always the stairs for them! Tom

Yep - I'm not sure that critical thinking skills have been a priority in the education system. But, many students can be taught to take tests effectively... Tom

HERE'S a link to my (live) review - including the story of how our butler locked us out on our balcony... ! On the Celebration, in a couple of weeks, I won't even bother with the muffuletta.. sad... 😞 Tom

I'd never encountered a "smart" elevator until this past weekend, on the MSC Seaside. We were in the Yacht Club, so we were issued bracelets. Those would open our cabin door but, more importantly, you could wave them under the panel at the elevator banks where you choose the floor you wish to go to, and PRESTO, in (somewhere between) 10-50 seconds there was an elevator which arrived just for you (or others with bands if heading the same direction), and it would take you non-stop to your destination floor. We probably rode the elevator 15+ times, and perhaps 12 of those were just the two of us. I have a list of gripes with MSC, but at least on that point - I'll give them a big kudos! Tom

Celebrity used to send out periodic offers to me for free balcony cabins, and I could get 60% off (top) suites - so that's what we did. Now, for the last 8-10 months, it's crickets.... nothing at all. I guess they're keeping their ships full enough that they don't feel the need to lure me back! Tom

I think that would hit the sweet spot for too many people, in other words, I don't see that happening... LOL Tom

Thanks for the pointers/suggestions 🙂 Tom

Just off my first MSC cruise - three nighter on the Seaside. I was happy to see that, yes, surrender is still alive and well. Though I only utilized (remembered!) it on the second of the two nights I played in there. The dealer looked confused when I asked for it - I play two hands, and had a 16 and 17 vs. the dealer A. It turned out to be the right play. Of course, the next time I did that, my 16 would have pulled a 5. No use crying over spilt milk ! I will say that most of the players at that (almost always full) $25 table did not play basic strategy - but rather by the seat of their pants, hunches, and gut feelings. It was painful to watch. Early on I did ask if they had a $50 or $100 table, but was told "no". Even though there were two empty tables next to us - that were never used. Probably not enough dealers, if it was anything else like the rest of the ship !! Do they ever break out the purple chips? They had one guy at the table who cleaned out their blacks. He was sitting there with an (occasionally) full tray of black chips in front of him. Many times playing the table limit ($500). Tom

Ok - update... I've switched our 12-nt Rotterdam Thanksgiving sailing from '23 to '24, as it will be our 40th anniversary, and I noticed that the Pinnacle Suite was available for that cruise... so, something special! 🙂 I think that HAL's posted stateroom amenities/perks are the same for Neptune and Pinnacle Suites, but I was wondering if that's really the case, or if certain things are more likely to happen -- for example, would you be more likely to get preferred specialty dining times (with short notice) or such? I know that on Celebrity, for example, it seems like more things can "happen" for those in top suites vs. other suites - special request in room dining (buffalo wings for lunch one day), etc. However, I realize that HAL is not as focused on suite perks. THANKS, Tom

Now that is a twist I wasn't expecting ! Tom

Yes, when I was posting this I also had recovering alcoholics and others (religious reasons) in mind. It is what it is though! Tom

Indeed - yep, I'd hope that he'd be better off paying per drink than paying double for CHEERS ! Tom

That seems wrong - unless Carnival is condoning a pregnant woman drinking alcohol. Though, they probably know their guests pretty well, and figure that a number of them would fake/forge documentation. One of my staff members just discovered last week that she is pregnant. We're all going on the Celebration later this month, and she already purchased CHEERS for her and her husband. Oh well ! Tom

That depends when you ask me. I'll go for a few minutes thinking - NO WAY, why risk it again just because it's cheap (well, not the RS I have booked for the B2B). Then I think "perhaps this was just a one off/rare thing". Then, I remind myself of what so many on here have reported. Then I think, the YC experience was very nice ... even if their "deluxe" balcony cabin had a sorry balcony. If I'm paying $1,000+/night for the two of us, I'd like a lounger or two - preferably with nice cushions.. DARN IT... Tom

Correct, "free" was probably not the best word to use. Likely "highly discounted" or just taxes/fees. Imagine how much money MSC must be saving if people end up not drinking as much as planned (not for lack of trying) ! We stopped by the Champagne Bar on the last day (you know, the one with all the Veuve Clicquot displays/signage there. Well, they were OUT of any/all Veuve. So much for those plans as well... Tom

Watch your knuckles when you open the glass door (from the inside) near the stairs when heading out of your cabin. It's an easy place to really scrape/jam yourself. Even the handle hits the door jam when it's fully rotated. Also, beware the sliding door going out (to the front) from the Top Sail Lounge on the starboard side - we went out there once and it closed on Cheryl... didn't even pull back when it detected interference, it kept trying to close ! Did we inform anyone? Nope - my bad, but I suspect it's been that way. Tom

MSC kinda shot themselves in the foot here. Give away a ton of cabins, provide poor service, shut out paying guests from specialty dining.... and then you have the Expedia folks not being keen on selling the product. Lose, lose... There were a couple of standouts onboard - a couple of waiters (YC and Butcher's Cut) and the bar folks in the Top Sail Lounge. Tom

I'd say that's a safe bet, though I have spoken to people who have sailed with MSC without issues. From what I've seen, though, I'd say that issues with this line are more common than with others. Not sure why MSC can't seen to get staffing, or inventory levels, up. Other lines seem to manage (better). Tom

Yep - I started to realize that after I began posting. Tom

Honestly, I'm on the fence. In weighing out the pros/cons, I can't say I've had this many things on the "cons list" after first sailings on other lines (well, I didn't care for Princess, but that's another story). The elevators were mentioned.. We've never used this type before, but I must say that having that YC bracelet was like magic. There's something about (basically) calling your own, often private, elevator that takes you straight to your desired floor! Private restaurant - well, other lines have that too. I did like the fact that the drink package and Wi-Fi extends onto their private island. Would I even get off the ship next time there? I'm not sure! In three stops there, I have yet to get off at Coco Cay. Never tendered to Half Moon Cay... there's a pattern here! Office cruise on the Seashore next year, we're doing a 4+3 (staff on the 4-nt). Or, there are other options - I guess it doesn't even have to be a cruise, though we've done 10+ with them over the years... decisions, decisions... Tom

I probably would have kept the reservation (date was "right", etc), and I wanted to give it a try. Tom

It was a three night sailing, we were off the ship yesterday morning. Sorry. Tom

Sorry, no. We never dined in there, and only happed across the MDR once as we were exploring the decks - it was closed for a "private function" (Expedia) Tom