Markanddonna

I think a person needs to consider other health issues they have. I am quite healthy and only caught one cold from a cruise experience (pretty sure it was from a passenger sitting behind us on one of those large ship excursions.) My DH has COPD and picks up something about 33% of the time. When he catches something, it goes to his chest immediately, and he has to go on antibiotics. We work very hard at not touching the elevator buttons with our fingertips, trying to avoid obvious sick folk and all the other things people suggest. On our last cruise, my DH was quite sick, and it started with eating tainted scallops on the cruise (MSC.) His immune system was shot, and then he picked up a URI.

17 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

 

  I have heard since his fiasco that MSC will no longer charter their ships. 'Heard' there was too much destruction of the ship by the charter group. They would have been better off with mscdivina2016 traveling by himself on that cruise and putting him in both owners suites.

There was a recent full charter for a Rock Music group on the Divina on Feb 6, 2023.  According to people who were on the next cruise after that, the ship was trashed, and the crew told them about drunks passed out on the pool deck, rubbish was thrown all over, and that their liquor supplies were pretty much emptied. It took the crew quite a while to clean up. The passengers for the next sailing were delayed at embarkation because of this.

Seems like MSC didn't learn. I feel very sorry for their crew. Reading the recent Divina reviews, it is obvious things are not going well lately.

Not only might it be important to return to an interesting port, city, or region to see new things, it is sometimes important to return with fresh, better-researched eyes. The first time I was in Israel (on a cruise), the experience was overwhelming. I thought there was no way I could get around the old city of Jerusalem on my own. We did this past November, and intense research and great advice from others made it a much better-appreciated experience. Now, after more post-trip research, I want to return to some of the same places because I "didn't get" or appreciate some of the places we passed. Hezekiah's tunnel, Kidron Valley, etc. 

We are all very different. Others are happy with only what a tour guide might tell them. I research before and after a trip and find I want to return for more. 

The latest chatter is that many ships to all regions are close or at capacity now. The problem has been a shortage of crew coupled with supply chain issues that affect the food offerings. 

I wonder if cruise companies will note that some cruisers might get turned off to cruising if a more acceptable ratio isn't maintained. I was on a sailing in late Jan that was filled up with hundreds of last-minute casino club cruisers that pushed the ship beyond the breaking point. I have never been on a ship with such unruly, boorish people, and a fight at the pool area ensued. 

On TAs, most passengers want a relatively calm, controlled environment. I hope companies don't have fire sales to fill up a TA. 

In some countries, you are considered rather stupid and easy to deceive if you don't haggle somewhat. That said, I use the technique of just politely walking away.  If they offer a lower price, like Gwendy mentioned, then I accept it. I really hate the process of haggling.

4 hours ago, ready2cruzagain said:

"Were" the best and I agree. Unfortunately, not seen one since the Pandemic hit. 

I was very impressed with my first CC party on the Divina. Nice spread, lovely cake, welcoming, etc. This was about five years ago. I haven't seen anything that lovely since that first one. MSC's roll calls are often sparse on CC.

We were upgraded for free from I-9 (inside) to I-6 (Oceanview).

We made arrangements for customer service and chose the flavor, icing, etc.

Many comments from those who traveled in 2022 are no longer valid. The ships have been sailing quite full, and the cutbacks in food quality and variety are significant. The crew works so hard, but they are understaffed. Because of fewer and many new crew members, you will find at times that there are shortages. In the buffet, there were times when there were no cups, glasses, or silverware anywhere. The Divina is in need of more seating on the pool deck. A fight broke out over this on our 10 day Divina cruise. Pack your patience and maybe lower expectations. The Divina wasn't like this several years ago.

The Voyagers party offered something referred to as drinks and a small bowl of potato chips. The Diamond party was slightly better with wine offered and a few appetizers. We did a B2B and didn't go to either on the second cruise. 

27 minutes ago, sverigecruiser said:

 

I really agree with this. If the ports are the most important part, why cruise?

 

When I book a cruise the "ship part" is the most important thing and interesting ports is just a bonus. When visiting places is the most important thing, I don't book a cruise. 

Cruising allows a person to get initial exposure to a city or site. On my first time in Athens, we visited Corinth for the first part of the day (my favorite) and then the Acropolis in Athens in the afternoon. I've been back to Athens since then but getting to see Corinth was amazing.

I didn't see a 19 day journey on NCL, but there is 14 day on the NCL Sky that disembarks in Israel. Personally, at that time of year, Rhodes is much better than Santorini and a stop there would be better.

You could take a trip over to Jordan to see Petra from Israel and then leave from Jordan. That itinerary is pretty ideal and on one of NCL's older, smaller ships.

The port area can be gridlike traffic as mentioned by many locals. One of the best ways may be to find a guide who meets you at the port, escorts you to the tram, and walks around the sites of Istanbul.

I recall only one Christian tour with GTI, and that was to the Galilee.  Your guide will likely be Jewish, so I would just ask for a standard tour. Any tour that goes to Yad Vashem is inherently Jewish.

11 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Did you know you can still order 4 free rapid antigen tests via the USPS. My DW ordered a set and had them delivered to our PO Box and I ordered a set and had it delivered to our home address.

 

https://special.usps.com/testkits
 

We ordered some in the fall and used them. I just tried the above link and they indicated no one at our address can order any more for the time being.

1 hour ago, ssmea03 said:

No, Fantasia class ships and older do not have USB ports, you need to take your phone charger.

The Divina is not "a smart ship."

In Rome, decide which sites you want to tour and then book a hotel within walking distance to a few and then taxi to the others. Of course, you can book a private driver, but that adds $$$ to your trip. Look up RickSteves.com and also buy his book on Rome to learn how to navigate on your own.

I think a discussion on this topic needs full disclosure as to the name of the cruise line, the number of days, and the cabin category. Otherwise, it is really a huge apples-to-oranges comparison. 

4 hours ago, lynncarol said:

Now that is impressive! Maybe YOU should be a travel agent.

Our last TA was on the RCL Anthem for $340 pp for a balcony- 11 nights in May 2022. That was a fabulous cruise. Like many of you, I stay on top of my bookings and what is available. 

The rules for April transatlantics almost seem like COVID testing that is honor's based. I can just show my two-day-old COVID test with no real verification?  Why bother?

I was surprised that our last cruise on Feb 6 had rather late times for debarkation, almost to 10:30 or 11:00. Usually the last call is around 9:00 AM.

20 hours ago, Best Cat Mom said:

I know from our own cruises that Fantasia and Divina both have libraries in the Yacht Club.

Four years ago, Divina had a library that is now (Jan 2023) empty. Was the library kept in the Yacht Club only?  I thought books from cruise ships were removed during the time we thought touching objects could give us COVID.

8 hours ago, Hlitner said:

All the cruise lines sell excursions operated by local contractors.  The cruise lines do not actually operate any of the excursions, so in a way, they are simply a third party booking agency.  It even gets crazier because these days most cruise lines hire a private third-party company to operate their on-board excursion desks.  

 

So now we get to the issue of cruise line excursions versus private tours versus Do It Yourself (DIY).  While I will admit to being a DIY person (all over the world for more than 50 years) there are certainly good reasons to book excursions or private tours.  DW and I truly dislike cruise line excursions because we do not get excited about being in a group of 50-60 and moving at the pace of the slowest person.  Just having a rest room stop for 60 folks can take a half-hour and watching some excursion groups get on and off the tour bus is sometimes like watching the turtle race the tortoise.

 

We are bigger fans of very small group private tours, and this is where being active on your Cruise Critic Roll Call (this is specific to each cruise) is a good thing.  You can join with a few others and find yourself in a group of 4, 6, 10 etc.  

 

DIY is a terrific option for folks who are willing to do their pre-cruise homework, have some "spirit of adventure," and also have a degree of travel common sense.   Being on your own gives you maximum flexibility, but the price is you need to do the planning and choreograph your plans so that you are always back to the ship on time.  We have been doing this all over the the world and never (knock on wood) missed the ship.  If you are simply exploring an area near the port (such as in Kotor, Montenegro) than DIY is easy.  When you want to go some distance from the ship (such as from Livorno to Florence), than you need to be somewhat more careful with your planning to make sure you get back to the port (one tip is to allow yourself some extra time and never rely on the last train).  I should add that DIY can save you an awful lot of money.  Just consider a family of 4 who books a walking tour of Kotor.  They will likely spend about $200 to simply walk around a compact town that is within spitting distance of their ship.  They could do that same walk on their own for zero dollars!  In many ports, instead of paying hundreds of dollars for a guide and bus, one can use the local buses for a few dollars and download an app that will direct them on a local DIY tour.

 

Hope this helps the OP.  On any cruise you are going to find plenty of folks who do all three options (excursions, private tours, and DIY).  

Exactly. You can often find free audio apps and diy walks for many places. Rick Steves has some great ones on his website. 

Even with small groups, you need to have an agreement that none of you will be "that couple" who are always late, holding up the group. The ship excursions always seems to have that couple. Also, be honest wirh yourself if you have physical limitations. Most private groups assume you can keep up with the group. 

24 minutes ago, ldubs said:

 

"This is classic if you are booking a less expensive cruise. The agent has a much smaller profit margin which is where the perks come from. Really, from their point of view, they will likely make a very small amount of money on your booking and there is the possibility they will need to spend a lot of time on problems if they arise. It is almost always better to book with the cruise line if you book a less expensive cabin."

 

If this has nothing to do with the first part of your comment, then why?  

 

 

   

 

  

The OP's issue was that the agent's offer was more than the cruise line, which I don't think is typical. The issue is: is their minor discount for an inside cabin worth the trade-off?

44 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

For me, the secret is booking with a multi-person agency. If I can't get my specific agent, I can talk to another one who can deal with any urgent issue, pricing or otherwise.

 

To be frank, I don't need an agent who knows the industry -- I know it probably better than 90% of agents do after many years of cruising. I am the one who will put together itineraries, watch for price drops, etc. My agent just needs to be able to implement those changes -- and in post-COVID times here is where I see value: often he can get through to the cruise line and has clout (as a large agency) to get those changes made. I don't have to park myself on the phone for an hour or two to do it.

 

Edit:  And that's also not to say that there aren't times when I do my own booking because the deal is hot and I don't want to wait.

 

 

In total agreement.  I hope I meet you on some cruise and you can tell me your agent's name.