JT1962

It seems they are strictly enforcing Shareholder OBC more now than in the past. If they give $ 250 for two 7 Day B2B, even with different booking numbers, giving only $ 100 for a 6 & 7 day B2B would seem to be consistent with their chart.

On 7/3/2023 at 8:15 PM, debnjoe1438 said:

 

When we booked the cruise we choose early dinning and this is reflected on the confirmation. Well, looking at my account on MSC it states "Your dining preference is not set."

 

Anyone know why the dining time would not be set when the time has already been selected.
 

You should have Early Dining. This  is another common glitch on the MSC website / app. I have been on six MSC Cruises in the past 18 months and had that same message online each time, however my confirmation showed Early Dining and I was assigned Early Dining on each cruise.

7 hours ago, cruiseguyinorl said:

 

Unfortunately, that info is not exactly correct. It is problem as the cruise line can get fined as mentioned in another post. However, if you go to Guest Services and claim an emergency at home, then they can try to get approval from CBP so they do not get fined. I definitely would not proceed there immediately as if it was pre-planned as it could be denied. The form you have to sign says you have to pay the fine if CBP decides to issue one. At least it used to.

 

By the way, this info is from upper management in Port Operations with MSC Cruises USA, not a random employee trying to get you to book a cruise to get their bonus.

 

Bret

That would be true if the ship was not already scheduled to disembark passengers in Miami. But MSC already has numerous passengers scheduled to disembark in Miami, so getting off there instead of Port Canaveral will not need an emergency, CBP approval or cause a fine.  Customs agents will be ready and waiting for a few hundred scheduled to disembark. 
 

13 hours ago, dandanthecruisinman said:

Our MSC cruise ends in Port Canaveral Florida. The 2nd last stop is in Miami Fla. It would be advantageous for us to disembark in Miami. Would MSC allow such a request ?

Is this on the Seashore in October? I am on the same sailing and plan on disembarking in Miami, since they added that port after I booked originally to Port Canaveral.  I spoke with the MSC Future Cruise consultant on the Divina T/A in May about this and he said there was no issue. He said to inform Guest Services after you board, sign a form and you will be set for a normal departure in Miami. 

On 6 MSC cruises I have never seen a sale on excursions. Purchasing before you sail is the cheapest option I have seen. Once onboard the excursions have always been more expensive.  
 

I have canceled a pre-purchased excursion prior to sailing and it was refunded back to my credit card within 3-4 weeks. One pre-purchased excursion was canceled by MSC during a cruise. It was credited to my onboard account and refunded shortly after the cruise ended since I did not use up the full amount of the cancelled excursion.

27 minutes ago, EllieinNJ said:

Looking at some of the ship excursions for our cruise, some say there is a minimum number of participants.  Do most excursions reach this number?  I would hate to reserve an excursion in advance and then once on the ship find out it's cancelled because lack of interest.  On the other hand I would be disappointed if I waited to book on board and find out that it is sold out or prices are higher.  Any thoughts?

Most excursions have enough people sign up.  Of the 6-7 excursions I have booked through MSC, only one was canceled due to not enough people signing up. It was to Kennedy Space Center for Back to Back cruisers, so a limited number of passengers (200 or so) taking the B2B and needed 25 for the excursion. 
 

Prices will be 15-20% higher onboard compared to booking prior to sailing, from my experience. If you see a ship excursion that you really want to do, I would book before you sail, but have a back-up plan in the rare case that it is canceled.

Length of cruise, home port, holiday weekend / spring break and pricing of the cruise, have more to do with the passenger make up than the specific ship. The shorter, cheaper cruises and those around a holiday or spring break will usually have a more “rowdy” crowd. 

It depends on the cause of the “failure” and what actually failed.  They may be able to repair it either before you sail or while sailing. They may also divert to a closer port to re-stock bottled water, if needed. 
 

It may be similar issue to what happened on Elation recently: 

https://www.cruisehive.com/carnival-cruise-ship-diverts-due-to-lack-of-fresh-water/103819

1 hour ago, dolphinsfan246 said:

I read somewhere that MSC will match your loyalty status with other cruise lines. Does anybody know if that’s true? I definitely wouldn’t mind trying them after I turn platinum on Carnival this year. 

Yes, they match to other cruise line and many hotel programs. You only get one match, so make sure it’s your best option. You maintain your status as long as you cruise once every 3 years. 

Check the top of the MSC board here for a discussion / chart of the current matches. Note that it can vary as to which match you get and it may take more than one submission to get a reply (Customer Service / website is MSC’s weakest point).
 

Here is a link to to status match request website: 

https://www.msccruisesusa.com/manage-booking/msc-voyagers-club/status-match

I have sailed the Meraviglia (7 Day), Seascape (7 Day) and Divina ( 7 & 12 Day B2B, 7 Day and 17 Day Transatlantic) in the past 18 months and would rank my preference as 1. Divina 2. Meraviglia 3. Seascape. I found the Divina to be easier to navigate, felt less crowded and I enjoyed the bars / music venues being closer together. The Divina is well maintained, is large enough to have everything you need and the buffet was much less crowded than the other ships. 
 

As an FYI, my 7 & 12 day B2B cruises were like being on two completely different cruise lines. The first 7 days was a typical Western Caribbean and the passenger mix was around 75% US and 25% International and very laid back. The 12 day that followed was to Jamaica, Aruba, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica & Costa Maya. There passenger mix was around 75% International and 25% US and was much more of a late night / party crowd. Both were enjoyable, but were a totally different experience onboard the same ship. 

Lower rates for solo cruisers. Even with the low (0-20-%) solo supplements gone on most itineraries now, the solo rates are still substantially below most other cruise lines. The downside is they now seem to be tightening the limits on solo cruisers allowed on each sailing.

I would stay at a hotel near the airport and fly the next day. That’s what I did last month. The Ibis Budget hotel was around $75 USD. Basic, but clean and served the purpose. McDonald’s, Aldi, shopping and other restaurants nearby.

I’ve always gotten a final bill under my door the night before departure.

3 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I was also glad to read that Vantage put millions of dollars from recent bookings into an escrow account that will go to the new owner and be applied to the booked cruises or refunded to the customers.

I believe that will only benefit those who booked after May 12, 2023. 
 

“Vantage's bankruptcy filing says customers who booked and made payments on or after May 12, 2023, for future travel will either have those trips take place as scheduled or customers will receive refunds. Those funds were put into a separate account, totaling $2.1 million, but that's a small fraction of the total amount Vantage says it owes customers.”

https://www.wcvb.com/amp/article/vantage-travel-bankruptcy-customer-credit-proposal/44400033

Try calling 1-833-286-5159. 
 

It seems odd that they would automatically move your sailing by a month. Did you check your Spam & Trash email folders to see if you had received a previous email that you may have missed? My May 8 Divina cruise was canceled and I received an email with my options, which included moving to a different sailing date and / or ship or getting a refund. If I did not reply by a specific date, the default option was a refund. 

2 hours ago, marielco said:

My first MSC cruise was soon after cruising restarted after the pandemic.  Then we were given an embarkation time.  Is this still the case or can you now arrive whenever you like on embarkation day?  

For my MSC cruises from the US in the past 18 months, no one ever looked at the scheduled boarding time.

Maybe staying on the ship with less crowds onboard would be a nice option if everything else is good? There is no guarantee the ship will actually dock at Half Moon Cay, since it is a tender port and weather / wind can cause them to skip the port. 

Snorkeling at Mahogany Bay is good if you go off the pier at the far end of the beach.

Refunds for most don’t look promising, based on this article: 
 

https://www.wcvb.com/amp/article/vantage-travel-bankruptcy-customer-credit-proposal/44400033

I would wait. Don’t forget they status match to hotel reward plans also. I matched through Hilton Honors.

20 minutes ago, pzsdd6 said:

I am wondering if anyone has encountered difficulties trying to make a booking for a single cruiser? I’m hoping that’s is just me an a user error, however every booking I have tried for the next 4-5 months in the Caribbean gives a pop up message stating the cruise is fully booked. If you try with 2 people, no problem. Again, I hope it’s something I’m doing incorrectly, otherwise I’m going to be really offended that they have chosen to treat single cruisers this way, definitely not the right thing to do. I will add this for clarity, I have no issue with paying the usual single supplement, but to purposefully exclude singles…..not right, just my opinion.

It’s not just you. MSC apparently limits the number of solo cruisers on each sailing. Up until a few months ago, there were lots of cruises with solo options available. Now they are limited and the solo supplements have increased from 0-20% to 50-80%, when available. 
 

I’m not sure you can even book solo by paying double by calling MSC or using a travel agent. Some have reported adding someone to the booking and having them be a “no show” at boarding as a possible option to not being able to book solo originally. You would obviously be paying double, but may get reimbursed the taxes / port fees for the 2nd person who didn’t board.

I booked some great solo rates (0 - 20% solo supplement) with free balcony upgrades in 2022 for sailings in 2022 &

2023. Those promotions no longer exist and solo supplements are 50 - 80%. MSC is still cheaper than other lines in most cases, but not the bargain it was just a few months ago. 
 

As far as the “Free Drinks & Wifi”, I’m not sure how they get away with that promotion, since it obviously isn’t free when you compare it to the cruise only pricing. They should change the wording to “Wifi & Drinks Value Package”, since it is cheaper than adding those items to the cruise only fare.

13 hours ago, GT38 said:

  Are reservations required for the shows? I'm sailing on the Seascape in November.

Reservations were required for most of the main theater shows on the Seascape in May. You could reserve on the MSC for Me app or at the touchscreens near the elevators. There was a standby line for those that did not make reservations.

23 hours ago, sue gill said:

Dear msc ,     please work on your website and customer service.we want to buy airport transfers,shore excursion,post shore excursions etc. I think maybe your added to Orlando's shore excursion  and can't wait to see what they are 

     

you can book airport transfers by calling customer service. You can also book transfers at the end of the Krews after you board the ship.

1 hour ago, bones774 said:

 

PS- Just checked r/t flight prices and non-stop to Anchorage is way more expensive and less frequent than Vanc. So looks like YVR will be my choice. Airport  and cruise port easy transfer?

I believe NCL uses Seward as their port for Anchorage. Seward is 120 miles (2 1/2 - 3 hours) South of Anchorage, so most recommend booking a 4:00 PM or later flight. Many return flights are overnight from Anchorage and leave at 10:00 PM or later, from my experience. There are several options for transfers - cruise line bus, private shuttles or my favorite, the Alaska Railroad.