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On 3/26/2024 at 5:40 PM, smilegirl07 said:

Hi, y'all!  I am traveling on Viva this coming summer(Aug) for 10 days through the Mediterranean and will be taking our three kids who are pre teens and a little 7 year old.  The itinerary that we chose are VERY port intensive starting from Lisbon - Gibraltar - Cadiz(Seville) - Motril (Granada) - Ibiza - Majorca - Barcelona - Provence(Marseille) - Villefranche - Livorno(Florence/Pisa) and then disembarking in Rome.  It is literally stopping everyday and I have started looking at all excursions and tours, but am not planning to do it every day.  There will be days we are planning to just stay on board and relax or just get off at the port and look around and then hop right back on the ship.  Since this is a trip with the kids, I want to do (and not do) things with them.  I want to hear from fellow cruisers who have recently done the Viva through the Med (or on any other ships, especially with kids?) that which ports were more exciting with kids, what are some excursions that you recommend and what may be some ports that are OK to skip and stay on board or just look around the port under just a few hours.

 

I always get so much information during the booking process/preparing for the cruise on CC and truly appreciate all your help and sharing the info!

 

Thank you so much in advance!

 

 

 

Marseilles it’s self is an obvious choice as it’s a port city, but if you’re planning to go to Provence that’s different. You could just have a couple of hours in Gibraltar ( kids might enjoy the cheeky Rock apes, that will steal cameras etc) and Cadiz is a lovely walled walking city. I’d skip Majorca it’s a mainly a beach destination although Palma is beautiful to walk around and admire. Rome needs a few days at the end of the cruise if that’s possible. 

Yes the crew are amazing in the Vibe on the Viva and they will now everyone in there by name and who has a cabana. We had a great time and were so well looked after. 

1 hour ago, dmwnc1959 said:

My very first time will be April 2025. Not sure I could do the Panama Canal fifteen times. 😉
 

And of all the full transits I've looked into none of the ships were larger than 60-90k tons. I'd most definitely prefer the smaller ships for this, just to hit the historic locks and see them (and the old lock gates) from the promenade deck at eye level while we are wedged into a 110-year old lock chamber. But that's probably just the beginner and me talking. 😁

 

 

I meant the Panama Canal cruise is our favourite cruise of the 15 cruises we have taken. 

On 4/10/2024 at 12:27 AM, MarkieMarkNYC said:

Good lord. I don't seem to encounter actual people on actual cruises who are so completely miserable.

Lobster.

Towel animals.

Enjoy your misery. I choose joy.

I had a lobster towel animal once. 

34 minutes ago, dmwnc1959 said:

Maybe that's an advantage of doing a full transit on one of the smaller NCL ships over the mega-ship, since it's more of a full 'daylight transit' even in January. Basically from just after sunrise to exiting well before sunset. 

Our transit Miami to LA on the Encore is our favourite cruise of all we have taken (15) A perfect mix of interesting ports and scenery combined with a fantastic ship. We had Vibe passes and the view as we passed through the locks was epic. Slightly off topic but yes we had a holding pattern in the lake too. 

2 hours ago, debenson0723 said:

We had this on one of my recent cruises but we met in the comedy club. Only about 10 people showed up and we were escorted as a group to the front of the tender line. 

And I second asking at the Cruise Next desk for the information. They were very helpful.

That’s our experience too.

I think the itinerary is first for us. Our next cruise is on the Sky because we want to cruise in the Far East. Our previous cruises have been on the newer ships both Viva and Prima and most of the breakaway class ships but also Spirit and Jade.
if both types were on similar itineraries than absolutely the newer ships. For the more choice in dining and entertainment and for the improved cabin/ bathroom design. Our favourite cruise so far is a Panama Canal transit Miami to LA on the Encore.

4 hours ago, ontheweb said:

I only had a seat once, and I gave it up. It's rock and roll; you stand and shake your old body to the music!

Yes you are right and my husband was Ok standing. He went every time it was on. I’m limited to the amount of standing I can do without pain. Especially after a busy day.

On 4/6/2024 at 10:09 PM, ontheweb said:

Don't know about the Viva, but that venue did not exist (at least this summer) on the sisiter ship, Prima.

Cruised on Prima and Viva and both had Syd’s pour house. Couldn’t get a seat but enjoyed the performances of Rumours.

On 4/6/2024 at 7:19 PM, RIvacationgirl said:

We are seasoned Caribbean cruisers, but this is our first cruise in the Mediterranean. We are curious as to what type of music is played on the ship and ports? We are used to the basic Calypso and steel drum type music on our other cruises. We were not sure if they played more classical type music?

Is there a charge to use the rest rooms in Europe? If so, how much is it?

What type of electric adapter for the plug sockets should we bring and how many?

Do you have any suggestions as to what type of headphones were the best to use for the excursions? We are told we must bring our own.

I know that you should bring some Euros with you. We are planning to use our credit card as much as possible for purchases. We are basically doing ship excursions. How many Euros should we have on hand to maneuver in the ports, or do we need them at all?

Thank you for your thoughts.

We were in Italy recently and have been to France and Spain many times. We cruised the Eastern Med last summer on the Viva. Toilets 50cents or €1 charge or free with an attendant to tip.,You often need actual cash for those public toilets. Toilets in restaurants and bars are free if you make a small purchase just as a bottle of water or a coffee. I think Italian law requires the toilets are available to all customers.
We used our chip and pin card and Apple Pay everywhere. We still like to have some Euros for tips/toilets and just in case we want to buy something where cash is the only way to pay.

Music at the European ports just doesn’t seem such a thing as the Caribbean. I read the question and honestly couldn’t remember if there was any music. There’s hot towels and cold water and that’s it. I can’t remember any welcome back fan fare like we’ve had in the Caribbean. No adaptor needed as explained. 
Headphones that’s a personal preference if you don’t use them for anything than those ones like the HOHO buses use are a good suggestion. I use headphones on the flight to drone out to the noise and to listen to music, movies and Audiobooks so have a Bluetooth pair. They are obviously more expensive.

On 4/2/2024 at 8:59 PM, zqvol said:

Of course they temp it. 

It might be the food is at the correct temperature going into the Bain-Marie’s but  isn’t holding its heat. The food is cooling down too quickly maybe the equipment isn’t working properly.

15 hours ago, n4w said:

I just completed my first cruise with platinum benefits and did not use the laundry voucher (7-day, Caribbean, no deviation).  Does anyone know if I would I be able to use the saved coupon on my next cruise (10-day, European, 2-day deviation prior) in addition to the fresh one I'll receive upon boarding?

Wouldn’t have thought so but if there is two platinum or above in the cabin you get 2 bags of laundry.I just write on the bag clearly that’s its platinum. Also mention it to the room steward too. Also on the behind the scenes tour that is what the laundry supervisor emphasised black marker clearly written on the bag. Never been charged. 

We enjoyed both the behind the scenes and the wine tasting. I guess it depends on who’s running the wine tasting. We had some cheese, crackers and breadsticks to enjoy with the wine. There were 4-5 experienced wine waiters from specialty restaurants and we learned a few things.(Viva)  We bought a bottle of wine at Cagney’s when we usually have wine by glass that’s included in our package because we both enjoyed it so much at the tasting. From that point of view it was a good marketing tool. 
the behind the scenes was very interesting. The laundry was so automated and the guy in charge there was so proud of the operation it would be hard not to be impressed.
Cruise next desk also gave us our pins.

1 minute ago, CroozeNoob said:

What was the charge to use the Sauna/steam room?

 

Thank you for the info.

I’m not sure. I think it was $29 per day. It may be worth a search online to be sure. Sorry

There isn’t a Thermal suite like you get on the newer ships. With lots of loungers, great views, steam, sauna,infrareds saunas, hydro pools with an access charge. There was a men’s and women’s sauna and a steam room. 

No everyone is safely back aboard an observation tongue in cheek - they were the only passengers that got to Gambia. 🤣

On 3/31/2024 at 8:25 PM, complawyer said:

ok, uk stages, where can i find the different benefits that MSc matches to ncl latitude status. By the way, we're diamond

There is a form on MSC website to complete and they will calculate your equivalent status. We were credited 4000 points and Gold before we sailed. You need 10,000 for the top level. 
Gold gave us some discounts which I don’t remember in detail but there was a free hour in the spa and priority tendering.

Just saw this from NCL

"Despite the series of unfortunate events outside of our control, we will be reimbursing these eight guests for their travel costs from Banjur, Gambia to Dakar, Senegal," a cruise line spokesperson said. "We remain in communication with the guests and are providing additional information as it becomes available."

1 minute ago, mjkacmom said:

An island where they chose to take an independent excursion? They weren’t in any danger that I’ve read about. Apparently some felt so safe that they didn’t even bother to bring a credit card, which is crazy.

I may be wrong but I think she said theirs was the only credit card accepted on the island. In general credit cards are only accepted in large hotels and debit cards are useless as ATMs do not accept foreign cards. Euro is the preferrred currency to exchange.

6 hours ago, Hamwen3839 said:

Can any Australian passengers help me ? We have paid a deposit for a similar cruise later in the year and now find we have to get Visas for Cape Verde, Ivory Coast ,Senegal,Ghana, São Tomé and Toga. Just wondering if any Aussies on this cruise found they had to do the same and if so was the process easy or did the ship do the Visas for you at your cost ?

Can I also ask if you had a Yellow Fever Exemption Certificate and has that worked ok ?
Thanks so much in advance.

Might be better to ask this on the roll call for your cruise or in the relevant port section. You will have more chance of someone in the same situation seeing the post. Hope you get some valuable advice. 

13 hours ago, complawyer said:

ncl offers NO reciprocity to any other lines, or even oceania or regent

You can get loyalty matched on MSC. They matched our platinum status without issue. 

We’ve been on many private excursions but always with a back to ship guarantee. That means the tour operator pays to get you to the next port if you miss the ship. In reality we are always back with plenty of time to spare. No way I would take a tour without that guarantee, especially in an island not so familiar with cruise ships. 

On 3/25/2024 at 11:52 PM, Distinctive-Destinations said:

I’ve been to Greece and I assure you they will take USD for tips. Now for regular purchases, yes obviously Euros are preferred (required in many/most places).

 

 

Surprised they did probably just being polite as it was a tip. But they have to take them to a bank and get the $ exchanged into their € Euros.

Whenever I see a question about US$ being used in Europe. I just imagine trying to buy something in the US using my currency £ I think people would laugh at me. 

You can’t walk outside on the deck where the lifeboats are but there quieter spots in Deck 8.

The sprinklers went off last night in the theatre on the Viva. I have an upcoming cruise and wonder if anyone has any experience as to what might happen.