Back from Splendida! review coming... any questions?

[Capricruiser]

Catharina, you don't offend me because I'm not Italian - I just live here. The point I wanted to make is that if you don't understand Italian and really the southern European psych of getting agitated at a moment's notice, then how can you say they were telling you to get out of the elevator, they were coming back on? Maybe they were just agitated that they got out on the wrong floor and were saying let's get back on before the doors close? When I was on the Splendida in January Italians were in the distinct minority - about 170 out of almost 4000 if I recall. The big offenders that cruise were a group from Germany that did a lot of what you mention. I sometimes hear fellow English speakers aboard complain about something the Italians were doing when in fact the objects of their complaining were Brazilian. Some Russians and people from some East European countries can be fairly obnoxious at times as well. What about the Dutch guys coming to Capri to get drunk and walking around with open beer bottles in their hands??? I could go on and on.

In Italy, and maybe I'm blind, I don't see all this pushing and shoving and breaking in the queues to get a taxi before the others. I'm not saying I've never seen it, because unfortunately I have, but it's not an everyday thing here. People here do queue to get on a bus or taxi (maybe the queuing isn't as organized as in the north, but we do queue here). Young people do get up from their seats to let older people and mothers with babies sit down.

[Beauseant]

Last August while on the MSC Splendida, we too met some of these rude Pax and they were mainly Italians and French (I understand French,Spanish and Italian).Last month (March 2010) while cruising on the NCL Jade, we again met some of these Rude types, and mainly when trying to get in an elevator and while getting on/off the ship at ports.

 

The only difference this time was that about 75%+ of the Jade's passengers hailed mainly from english speaking countries (US,Canada,UK etc) and not from southern Europe. And unfortunately, a few of these Americans in the 60/70 years old age group seemed to think that they "own" the world! Good thing that we Maltese (southern European) have a respect for older folks :).

 

We just ignored these idiots, like we had done on the Splendida last August. Some of these unpolite/rude passengers were surprised when they heard me telling my wife and kids to just ignore them in "English".I let them hear me on purpose of course!.

 

So, what I'm trying to say is that every country has these rude and unpolite types, and so no need to be baised against this or that race/country or people. My opinion of course :)

[catharina]

Okay

 

let's just agree that it is annoying to encounter rude pax from ANY nationality, and in my and Amamondo's case, they were Italian, is other cases they are Russian or German or Dutch.

I do understand the language a fair bit. Of course i was not there when my parents were in the lift, but mom said they screamed Fuori to them and gestured wildly indicating with their arms to get out of the lift. I know, it sounds hard to believe that thete ARE people from any country out there who do such stuff, but unfortunately there are.

 

We come a lot in Spain and never encountered this behaviour over there. Also, our days in Sicily and Rome were wonderful. Maybe being on a cruiseship and using a few lifst together just gets the worst out of people!

 

I am working today but when I get back will continue my post on Malta etc

 

I am sorry, I did not mean to start a discussion, just to offer my experiences

[Beauseant]

Don't be sorry, you said nothing wrong. We're only exchanging views and opinions here. And don't forget that this site is called "Cruise Critic" :)

 

....so please, carry on with your lovely review. Bringing me nice memories!

[buggins0402]

Perhaps we can all say that having 4,000 people in such close proximity, vying for the same resources (elevators, buffet selections and taxi's) tends to spotlight those of any nationality that don't put manners in high regard. On a ship that is predominately Italian - more than likely the bad apple you encounter will be - Italian, by the law of averages. Also, the larger the ship, perhaps more of the "mob instinct" starts surfacing.

 

Catharina's parents are elderly, therefore do not have a choice whether to use elevators. However, if you are able bodied, one suggestion might be to make good use of the stairs to work off the enevitable cruise ship excess calorie intake. Before we left on our cruise, if was evident to me that Splendida had a design flaw in number of elevators (really might be a case that some banks of elevators are really hidden). After reading reviews decided we would take the stairs more often than not and search out the seldom used elevators. It's probalby why we never noticed any bad behavior.

 

The buffet on Splendida is set up pretty well - stations rather then lines, however they don't repeat some stations throughout the buffet area as other cruise lines do (omelot, hot dog, hamburger and pizza) thus somewhat defeating the benefits of the station set-up. If they repeated these stations at the back buffet, it would really improve buffet flow and the seating issues up front.

 

Looking forward to the next installment Catharina!

[catharina]

Well I am glad you all are not mad about it, just exchanging opinions. Good remark Buggins, off course the rude people would be most likely Italian on an Italian ship! Only by law of average, never thought of that! DOH!

 

MALTA

On the 3rd day we arrived in Malta and I was up at 6 to see us sailing into the Grand Harbour of Valletta. It was just breathtaking: on the one side we were closing in on the very surreal island of Malta, on the other side a sunrise over a practically empty ship. Those hours were beautiful, just me and the sunrise and the nearing new exciting harbour!

By the time we really sailed into the harbour, a lot more people had gathered on deck 15 and 16 and were watching it with me. It REALLY is like you are sailing back into time, into some kind of Tolkien world. Very bizarre and beautifull.

 

At breakfast we were enjoying our docking in Malta from the window and we must say: it is the most pittoresque docking place of this cruise, with the nice coloured doors and terraces We got out and walked along the dock, where we were greeted by people from the HoHo bus and taxi-service. The Hoho cost 10 euros per person, but we were not sure how comfortable it would be for dad, and how frequent, since it was a holiday (maltese liberation day I think)

So we decided to go with the white taxi service. at 80 euros for 4 hours for 4 persons, it was also not expensive! The person told us that we could visit such and such and make the drive al custom made as we wanted.

 

Full good vibes we got into a taxi with a big guy called Mario. It started out good. He took us to the presidential gardens in Valletta (I think) where we walked around for a bit. We even saw the president drive by with escorts. They were beautiful. Then he drove us to the church of Mosta, which was a nice place to visit, but very crowded with many MSC busses there.

After that we wanted to go and have coffee somewhere in Mdina, but Mario wanted to take us to the arts and crafts village first. That is where mom decided she was not liking this cab driver ;) In this so called village, tourists get dropped and pay hefty prices for handicrafts, of course the driver gets a commission I am sure. We saw a tile that cost 52 euros, which we once bought in Spain last year for 12 (and in Mdina, still a pricey tourist place, we saw the same tile later for 22). So Mario kind of wanted us to go to the glass factory as well in that village, and I said: no thank you, we want to go to Mdina now. He kind of instisted it was not to be missed etc etc, and I really had to put my foot down to skip the glass factory.

In Mdina, he dropped us and announced that we would need at least an hour and he was not expecting us any earlier. ?

We had coffee in Mdina and dad got tired of the steep streets very soon, so he had to go and sit down somewhere with Erik. They drank a Cisk beer, (proudly stating on the can that it was chosen australia's dfavoruite foreign beer in 1995 LOL) while mom and I explored the rest of Mdina. It was very nice.

After that we were supposed to be taken to the blue grotto and see some of the coast line but all of a sudden Mario did not think we would not have enough time for this. Then I said to just do blue grotto and skip the visit ti Valletta, and all of a sudden he said blue grotto was closed today because of wind. He obviously did not want to go there.

So, for our bit of coastline, he took us to see st Julians. I must say: not really what I thought we would see. I thought with coastline more in terms of cliffs and dramatic views.

After a rush through st Julians he rushed us back to the ship and dropped us there a half hour early! (after 3,5 hours of sightseeing)

I did not even bother to discuss this with him, as he had had enough of his way of working, but he even dared to give me an 'open' handshake. (pretending handshake, actually opening hand for tip) I cordially threw my hand into his open hand and shook it saying goodbye. He left grumpily.

Hey, I do not mind tippting if service was exceptional (as you will read later on in Sicily) but this time the guy had done nothing special

 

To the defense of white taxi service: we did see a lot of people with different drivers that had better luck than we did. I saw drivers going into the church with their people, explaining stuff and being a guide. But our driver was just that: a driver who wanted to make his own route and be done with it.

 

Well, we did not regret it because we saw the highlights of Malta I guess in a comfortable manner, and the rest of the afternoon was free for us to laze around teh pool once again!

We really got a bit of a tan there and I enjoyed the BEST Italian icecream, hazelnut flavour, it was SO creamy... JUMMM

 

That night we had decided to go to

 

THE TEX MEX RESTAURANT

Just for a change. I had heard high praise of it. I must say: the waiter was very friendly and nice, the setting was lovely and so peaceful compared to the MDR, but the food... Nah. Not as good as the dining room IMHO. We ended up with a bill of 71 euros for 4 people for 2 courses and a drink, which was not bad, but not really worth it also. We just got the food differently then we usually have Mexican. Quesedillas were not the flat tortillas with cheese melted in them but they were rather some fried pastry thing with cheese in them. And so on.

We decided to just use the MDR from that point onwards.

 

After dinner we sat around in the

AFT LOUNGE

A very nice spot with great view. We got some snacks with our drinks, which was a surprise to me. Nice and comfortable chairs and live music going on. probably dancing later in the evening.

 

After that we played at the

CASINO

Very nice, adequate for our liking and very shiny We all played on the machines and all of a sudden my dad's machine started the bells and whistles. He had won 180 euros! The picture I have of him next to that machine, with a HUGE smile on his face, I will cherish forever!

The 180 euros went towards the bar bill ;)

 

We finished of our night as usual in the cigar lounge and went to bed at 10 pm (I know, we sound like elderly!)

 

 

Day 5, we woke up in

MESSINA

For this day, I had arranged a private tour beforehand with Mario Astone on recommendation of somebody on this board. Mario quoted us 45 euros pp first for a trip to Taormina and some sightseeing, but if we could get more poeple price would be 35. He ended up mailing me that some american family also was on our ship and asking for his services, so we got in touch with each other and decided to share the ride. (35 per person, the 3 kids of the family for free)

 

We got out the ship at 8 am, and Mario was waiting for us. I had brought him butter from Holland on his request , and got a big hug for it immediately.

After a short while, the american familiy joined us: 4 adults and 3 kids. It was gonna be tight in his van! We all managed to get in the van and he drove us to the other side of the island, commenting on what we saw. What a difference with the other Mario!

He took us first to Castelmola, a place the ship's excursion does not because the busses do not reach there. It was BEAUTIFUL! I must say, the whole Sicily day was for us (and the americans, I heard later) the highlight of our cruise, due to the weather, good trip and guidance of Mario :)

From Castelmola we had stunning views on Taormina, the coastline and on mount Etna. The village was so picturesque, you would not believe it. And we were the only tourists there.

After this, Mario dropped us in Taormina where we had 2 hours of free time, as per my request. I just wanted time to do our own pace and own thing in Taormina. My dad had been there 30 years ago and wanted to go back, that is why I organised the whole tour. More meant as a transfer originally, although the day turned out like an excursion.

In Taormina, the american family went their way and we went ours. What a beautoful village once again, so unique and pretty. We wandered through the streets and ended up on what must be the BEST terrace with view in southern europe. We sat next to a view on Etna on one side and the coastline on the other side.

All this in a lovely 20 degree sunny weather!

We enjoyed an (expensive) cappuccino there and just sat there enjoying the whole atmosphere. We really could feel, smell, hear and see Sicily at it's best at that place. It is one of my fondest memories of this cruise, sitting there enjoying everything, and especially seeing my dad enjoy!

 

After our time in Taormina, Mario took us to a lookout point where the ship's bus does not go and we enjoyed yet another splendid view. After that it was back to Messina, where we saw a church and also a viewpoint from which to see the ship, and take pictures of it. He took us to the Big Duomo (e special church with astronomical clock) where I had like 5 minutes to get some souvernirs VERY fast; we needed to get back to the ship!

We said our goodbyes like old friends, paid Mario (with a good tip for this unforgettable day) and then scurried on to the ship. We entered it 2 minutes too late, and our american friends left something behind, so they were REALLy too late; I think the doors of the ship hit their butts on the way in! ;)

 

(funny fact: this almost-missing-the-ship experience made Erik as well as Shane (the american father) so nervous that the next day in Rome they were both, independently, nervous wrecks about getting back on time!)

 

Well, just a GREAT day!

The ship sailed at 2 pm and we sailed along the coastline of Italy. Beautiful weather, but strong wind so we had to look for a wind free spot on board. It was crowded with people sunning.

 

Dad and I had something special planned this afternoon. I had written a polite letter to captain Mattia Manzi, explaining the special nature of our trip, and asking if we could see the bridge. We got a reply that we were expected on the bidge that afternoon!

It was very fun to see the briidge and how it all works (can you believe it, such a BIG ship is mastered by a little joystick of 5 cm long???) although too bad the captain was not there. I guess the guy needs to rest sometimes LOL

Our luck was that we were on the bridge at the moment that we were sailing right onto Stromboli (or so it seemed). Unique sight!

 

That evening was the

SECOND GALA NIGHT

Everyone got dressed up again and we had a lovely dinner, this time with a very special dessert. The lights were dimmed and with music the waiters came in a row with flaming desserts (baked alaska) Then when this music finished, the music of VOLARE started, and the whole dining room was waving their napkins; very nice!

And, I must say, the baked Alaska tasted JUMMMMM

I still regret that I did not have seconds...

 

We strolled around the ship after dinner and visited our 'usual' hangouts: the piazetta (untill 9, when all the 2nd seating fols would go to dinner) and then to the tranquil cigar lounge. Went to be again at 10 for our big day in Rome!

 

Day 6 of our cruise, we woke up in

CIVITAVECCHIA, port of ROME

We had breakfast and watched the first 1000 people orso get off board to ctach their excursion busses. We got off the ship at around 8:30 and took the FREE shuttle bus to the end of the port area. (a good 1,5 km i think)

From there, we walked along the water towards the station of Civitavecchia, about 1 km. There was a long line at the station, but I remembered reading on CC that you can also get the BIRG tickets inj the newspaper kiosk at the station. I quickly got 4 birg tickets there at 9 euros each. a BARGAIN compared to the rome on your own excursion from MSC at 45 euros, which is basically a transfer only.

We took the 9:41 train and were in rome at 10:50. We got out in Roma Termini and bought 4 tickets for the hop on hop off bus. The only thing that would allow us to see the most of Rome above ground, within the limited time that we had.

The bus (was another 1 km walking) took us past all the major sights. We could not get out everywhere, but we went out at St Peter's square and later at the Trevi fountain. There, we had lunch in a local taverna. Spagetti bolognese, what else when in rome?

At the fountain, I guess 5000 people were there wanting to see it or throw a coin in it. We had to throw from a distance (hope nobody got it in the eye! ;) )

And who did we see there? Our american friends from the day before! Unbelievable.

After Trevi we finished the rest of the HoHo loop and went back to the train station.

We got the 15:39 train back which was overcrowded. Dad was VERY tired after all that walking (i was so proud of him!) but luckily he could sit, and my mom a bit later also. Erik and I had to stand the entire way, pressed together with 20 other people in a tiny hot compratment, and the train was getting delayed and standing still...

We arrived at Civitavecchia around 17:00, with a delay of 30 minutes. Then the long walk back to the port entrance, the shuttle bus back to the ship... PHEW what a long day! But again: sunshine and 18 degrees and VERY nice, not to be missed.

We had a nice dinner once again in the dining room and we were hopefull for a last fun day in Genua

 

well

GENUA

was a disspointment, mainly because it was raining cats and dogs when we got there! We did not even go out, so much rain was pouring down. A bit of a let down after all that sunshine ;)

Mom and I ventured out in the rain, but we were soaking wet and did not find iot attractive at all. Maybe we saw the wrong part of town. It seemed rather seedy.

The rest of the time we filled up by playing cards, visiting the lounges and bars, having icecream and doing a nap. We enjoyed our last supper on board and were kind of sad. But I was also happy to get back the next day to my kids!

We bought some sweets for them at the Caramella sweets shop on board, and some souvenirs from the Logo shop and had alast cocktail in the cigar lounge. Then it was time to pack our suitcases and put them outside.

 

Of, I forgot! That Genua day we had a life drill at 5:15 pm! A bit late for us, who disembarked the next day. But hey, we participated anyway/

 

 

DISEMBARKATION

We had breakfast and were outside the ship at 9 am. We took a cab to the TGV train station in Marseille (30 euros) but it was easter sunday so everything in Marseille was closed. Therefor we had to wait at tha train station till 1:30 pm for our train. We found a cafe to wait it out and unfortunately the train was delyed by 1 hour. When we finally WERE on board, there was no coffee and tea and the bar closed in the middle of the trip, so no food for us. And to make things worse, the train did not stop at Lille Europa, weher our taxi driver was waiting, but made an unscheduled stop at Lille Flandres. Long live mobile phones! The taxi driver picked us up there and in 1:45 hours he took us home. I think it was 10 pm when we finally got home.

 

It was a GREAT cruise, with GREAT memories! I do not know what I enjoyed more, the cruise, of seeing my dad enjoy it so much!

 

Favourite port day: Sicily

Favourite dish: Pumpkin Risotto

Favourite dessert: Baked Alaska

Favourite cocktail: Strawberyy Daiquiri

Favourite Icecream: Coconut flavour

Favourite part of ship: La Piazetta for me and Cigar lounge for dad.

Favourite person on Board: My smiling and ejoying dad, who forgot all about being ill this week!!!

[Capricruiser]

Catharina, if your mom says they screamed "fuori" that definitely means "out" so I can only say you met some really rude and ill-educated animals - no excuses for their conduct. But again in my experience of 30+ years in Italy I assure you these people are in a very tiny minority of similar types.

Buggins, just because the ship is Italian doesn't mean the majority of the passengers will be Italian. We're talking about the Splendida here, and the numbers I quoted in my previous post are wrong. I got out my notes, and found that on my Splendida cruise in January, there were 3150 passengers aboard, of which 1500 were German, 700 were French, and only 370 were Italians. On my second cruise this year, on the Costa Marina, there were 780 passengers: 360 Germans, 150 French, and 70 Italians. If these two cruises are indicative, then it blows your theory about Italians predominating. Unfortunately the uncouth types stand out like sore thumbs while nice people are always in the silent majority.

[I&MsMom]

Catharina:

 

Thank you SO much for your terrific review. I'm glad you all had a nice time, especially your Dad. What a special trip!

 

I appreciate your honesty about the positives and negatives. It helps to know what I might expect. Even though we'll be sailing a different ship and a slightly different itinerary, your review was very helpful, not to mention quite enjoyable. I know it must have taken considerable time to prepare, and I wanted you to know your efforts were very much appreciated.

 

Enjoy your next cruise!!

[Satincruz]

Hi Catharina,

 

It is SO good to hear that your family (and especially your dad) had such a great time! And that is really a special thing that you got to see the bridge, too--most cruise lines won't allow this anymore, and the ones that do like to charge extra for it ...

 

Did you also get to take your "Titanic pic"?

[buggins0402]

Catharina,

 

Your review was so sweet and special, it brought tears to my eyes. I'm so happy that your father had a great time. So cool that you were allowed up on the bridge!

 

I hope you go onto the Taoromina board every so often and give Mario #2 a plug. I wish I would have found about him prior to our cruise. He sounded great! Sorry, that the weather didn't co-operate in Genoa. We really liked that port (we also had a few early raindrops to contend with but then it cleared).

 

You did your homework and researched well! And, the result was a wonderful cruise. Good Job! But, isn't planning half the fun?

 

Capricruiser, don't know if all my theory is blown - part of it rests on the fact that so many people are in such small place that the bad apples just really stand out. I have no idea what the composition of my cruise was, but it seemed heavily Italian (after 20 years of International lending, I'm pretty good at differentiating languages). Maybe Hat knows - she was on it too. Actually, we had a good number of Asians on board.

[cruisebabe666]

Thank you for this greatreview.

 

We are going on Splendida in June, and have been a bit worried after reading some really negative reviews, but now we are looking forward to this vacation again.

 

We are also soooo very satisfied with the NCL from earlier cruises, so it's scary trying something new, specially since we are travelling with 4 kids

AND we are used to the freestyle, with free food, roomservice etc 24-7 ;)

 

 

But, I just have to make a comment about the rudeness...

 

We travelled with NCL's GEM 2 years ago, with nearly only European onboard, and hardly ever see any rudeness ;)

Last year we travelled NCL's JEWEL, and there was almost ONLY American and Canadian guests, and we where totally SHOCKED by the behaviour a lot of them had, they even TRAMPED on our (then 2 year old) to get to the buffet, and I got so angry my husband had to quiet me down... -LOL-

I could have hit that old lady, who acted like she had never seen food before, he he..

 

So we figured that the US/Canadian people are a strange people, hehe..

 

BUT, I think this has nothing to do with nation actually.

It has to do with the individual.

And sometimes you run into some rude people, but most of the time you mingle with nice people, from all over the world ;)

BUT, the rude people are the ones making a lot out of them selves, and that's way we notice them SO well

 

And let's pretend 2 % is rude, well then it will be 80 rude people on a ship with 4000 people, so clearly, during 1 week you MUST run into them, but why bother with the 2 % instead of the 98 % rest???

 

 

Anyway, last year i even quiet

down a angry pushing man in the elevator by asking:

Wow, pore you; are you in a hurry??

Well, that’s a shame, I really feel so sorry for you and hopes you get wherever you’re going in time, it would be terrible to miss it.....

And I wish you a great day and vacation though ;)

 

-He smiled then and looks down, before he runs out, because everybody else in the elevator started laughing….-

 

 

But then, to my questions:

 

- Are kids allowed in the indor pool???

 

- And are the free icecreem ? (Like free icecreem machins you can get it yourselves on)

 

- And how does the drink-deal work??

(On NCL and RCCL you get a sticker on your card to show everytime you want a soda, is this possible here? We need the easiest deal for our kids at lest you know....))

 

- The NCL and RCCL have different way to handle pool towels, how does that work here??

 

- Is any restaurants open 24 hours??

We have booked the 1 seeting, and we know that when we are on our way to bed then around 23, both we and our kids need a nightmeal (!), so is that possible??

(We usually orders roomservice then, but I understand that's not possible at MSC)

 

 

Big Hugs ;)

[catharina]

Hi Guys

 

well capricruiser and hat; maybe we are all wrong. I just offer my opnions based on my personal experience. I do not know exact numbers, but this cruise it seems like i almost ONLY saw and heard Italians on board. I did hear that Italy and spain had a spring break that week! So that might explain the full ship, the mani Italians and the many families.

Anyway, we hade rude experiences and needed to learn to calm down about them.

 

 

BUGGINS yes I will plug Mario 2 when someone asks me. I posted a good review on the italy board, but it was removed. apparently you can only make a good review of someone ASKS for a tip

 

SATINCRUZ LOL :) No the Titanic picture did not work, we really could not get on to that part of the ship. Oh well, we had 400 other nice pictures! ;) Just wish I could paste on here to show you all

 

I&M's MOM

Thank you! I do enjoy reviewsa myself so I figured the least I could do was make one myzelf. I'll try and glue it all togther somehow and post on the review board

 

 

CRUISEBABE666

Well, how nice that my reviewq was able to give you back your looking forward to your cruise. I think if you do your homework and know what to expect, MSC can also offer a GREAT cruising experience, especially keeping in mind the nice prices and kids free!!! The lower price makes up for some of the things that are missing, that are not missing on american lines. Now to your questions:

 

-YES kids are allowed in the indoor pool. The only pool they are NOT allowed is the Playa del Sol zen area in the back of this ship.

 

-SORRY no free icecream (except at dinnertime) But you can buy a icecream coupon book if you like for your kids so that they can get them whenever they want. Just not sure if that is only for soft serve or also for the REAL good italian balls if icecream. I got an icecream now and then, it was not overly expensive at 1,20 I think for a HUGE ball.

 

-DRINK PACKAGES I can highly recommend, it is easy savings,. You buy them and you get coupon booklets. So every time you just rip out a coupon when you order a drink. A bit of a hassle for your kids maybe. We had no problem with it, my husband keeps his coupon book always with him in his wallet. But if your kids wander around alone, they must keep one themselves or just use their card for what they want

 

-POOL TOWELS there is a pool towel man at the main pool on deck 14. You show your card and get a towel (free), you can change it for a clean one when you want or you can give it back when you are done with it. They register this on your card but it is for free

 

-There is no FREE restaurant open for 24 hours. Nothing really for 24 hours. I do know about midnight they serve something to eat every day, but I never made it that late LOL. One day it was pizzaslices that were handed out in the lounges, the other day it was a mignight buffet ( i hear the magnifico buffet is not te bo missed! unfortunately, I was peacefully snoring at that time ;) ) Also, some of the pay options are open till late, like 2 am. I think the sports bar is one of them, where you can get breasonably priced snack items like chicken wings etc. Also the piazetta is open late, where you can buy icecream and very nice sweets things not too overly expensibve either. There is also roomservice of course, i think that IS 24 hours, but as you know, for a fee also. And the menu is slim (sandwhich or 2, salad, soup, cheese platter, dessert and not much more) I never used it. By the way, roomservice breakfast was free (but limited) Never used that either

 

WOW, on an american line, you really have free room service and 24/7 free food? Man I would burst my seams getting back from one of those cruises. I better start losing weight, I really would like to try the JADE next spring :)

[AmoMondo]

Hi Catarina

 

Really enjoyed reading all your inastalments. the Splendida sounds so very similar to the Fantasi (but then they are meant to be sisters lol).

 

So glad they allowed your dad to visit the Bridge. Nice to know that in this day and age of all the security rules and precautions, they can be a wee bit flexible in special circumstances.

[cruisebabe666]

Thank you so much for responding.

 

Yes, we always do a lot of research, both of ship and ports, cause we never use the organized tours, we want to go on our own ;)

So I think this will be great anyway.

 

Know we would miss somethings from NCL and RCCL, but I guess there will always be somethings on Splendida that is better too..

 

On both RCCL and NCL there is always free roomservice with food.

On NCL there is one restaurant that's open 24-7, and both food and desserts are free.

Both ship has also icecreem-machines (self-service), coffee, wather, tea etc for free 24-7.

 

If you want tips for theese ships sometimes, just ask ;) hihi..

[drblue]

Hello Catherine,

I have enjoyed your review of your recent MSC experiences. I am also glad that your father enjoyed the cruise and visited the bridge.

On recent cruises with Celebrity Cruises, ADULTS were not allowed to tour the bridge. However, we had a 2 year-old son, and the kid's program had a visit to the bridge scheduled and they require that some parents attend the event. So, we got lucky as well. It is a nice experience.

You are right about the food on American-based Cruise companies such as Celebrity, Norwegian, and Royal Caribbean. They always have food available 24/7 without extra cost. It is not necessarily to overstuff yourself (but some people do), but to offer CHOICES, which is critical for a lot of passengers. We liked that the Celebrity Equinox had a casual restaurant and buffet opened during all the meal times, so we could go there with our son. It was much easier. Families usually prefer the informal settings to eat, but the ships also cater to the traditional-style clientele. The differences in preference is more clearly marked on the formal gala evenings. Many people I know who wear a suit to work everyday of the year do not want to dress up on vacation whith their kids; so, they use the informal dining facilities. In addition, the informal buffets or restaurants also offer some snacks at that ackward time of the day when many people return from an excursion and they want something to eat, and not wait until their late sitting at the restaurants. So, CHOICE is the key factor for many passengers who do not necessaarily like being limited to dinners offered only in the main Dining Room. like MSC does.

[PC168]

Thank you very much for the long, long review, I enjoyed reading them all...One good thing is that you have a chance to share a vacation with your parents, especially when your father is ill, I wish I have that opportunity in my life.

 

As we will be doing the Splendida in July, the step by step review is so wonderful.

 

Once again, very appreciated.

 

Next time if you have an opportunity, try out other cruise lines, they are all different.

[Satincruz]

Hi Catharina,

 

Too bad no Titanic pic, but maybe on Aida Bella ;)

 

As for your other 400 photos, you may be able to show us some (5 at a time), if you have them on your computer (or on a memory stick or CD) already? When you post another reply, just go down the page past the comment box, and click "manage attachments". That pops up a little box, and you can then browse for the photos you want to post. It'd be nice to see them :)

 

Also, I think you'll really enjoy the Jade, too. I've been on the Gem, and the nice thing is that there's a lot of "freedom". You can literally eat whenever you think of it (but with different foods available at different times, and 1 or 2 24-hour restaurants), so you don't have to plan everything else around strict dining times. And you probably won't gain any weight--since you know you can always find food, you won't ever feel like you need to overeat.

[catharina]

I will try to post this review on the website as well so that future travellers can read it if they like

[craftygran]

Hi Catharina,

My husband and I are taking our first cruise in October 2010 on RCI ... thank you so much for this wonderful review, I have really enjoyed reading it.

I think what you did for your Dad is fabulous - he's a very lucky man to have a daughter who cares so much for him.

Cheers & thanks,

[Ocean55]

Hi Catherina,

Do you know if they have an iron in the room on MSC Spendida ship? I don't know if I need to bring one!

Thank.

[cruisingcanadian]

Irons are not allowed in cabins on any cruise line-fire danger.But check with your cabin attendant if you can send your items for ironing/pressing. I know that there is this service on Princess and Celebrity lines.

[Capricruiser]

They have excellent laundry and pressing service on the Splendida and all MSC ships. If you're a member of the MSC Club you get 10 pieces laundered free of charge.

[AmoMondo]

Irons are not allowed in cabins on any cruise line-fire danger.But check with your cabin attendant if you can send your items for ironing/pressing. I know that there is this service on Princess and Celebrity lines.

 

You will find a laundry bag and form in your cabin. The form has the prices on it for all services including just iron only. there is a normal servic - returned the next day and an express service - returned that day as long as it is collected by 9am. I've known them to do an emergency one off as a favour quicker if needed. I discovered a few hours before a formal night that packing creases had not dissappeared whilst hanging up in the wardrobe overnight, so I called housekeeping and asked them very nicely if they could help me, and my cabin steward arrived within minutes to collect my dress and got it back to me, perfectly pressed, in time for the gala.

[hat776]

Catharina went on her cruise with the right attitude - not to let any rude or badly behaved person spoil it for her and her family.

I can't understand how the Italians can behave that way when they are usually so polite and complimentary (although queues are not their strong point). The majority of passengers on our cruise were Italian , however, we must have been very lucky as we didn't come across really bad behaviour.

On the American ships we found the Americans to be very friendly but we also came across some who made it so obvious that they thought the Europeans were of an inferior race. We were speaking a mixture of Maltese and Italian and when we suddenly started talking English their face was a picture

At Civitavecchia train station there were loads of people waiting for the train, When it arrived EVERYONE irrespective of nationality rushed to board.

[camillu]

Hi

 

In two days time my wife an I will be taking a cruise from Malta visiting Messina, Rome,Genoa, Marseilles, Barcalona and Tunis.

 

I have not yet booked may excursions as ours was a very late booking (last week) and I am not sure as to whether to take an organised excursion from the boat or just going on our own.

 

Have you got any suggestions?

 

Messina - we are only stayingh a few hours. Taormina is a great place . We have been twice and it is apparently about an hour and a half away so its three hours travelling which probably does not make it worth the hassle

 

So we are still unsure what to do.

 

Rome: MSC offer (at a cost) to drop you off somewhere in Rome and then pick you up later so probably we will do this. We have just been to Rome 2 months ago and we know our way around (at least thats what we think!) .

 

Genoa: Portfino seems nice . One of my colleagues told me that she walked to the Aquarium which was only 30 mins away and then took the ferry to Portfonino.

 

 

Mareilles: still not decided

 

 

Barcallona: Probablky we will gop on our own as teh city cente (I think) is probably only 30-mins away.

 

 

Tunes: Probably will not go down except for a quick tour in the port if its nice. Probably just enjoy the boat whilst most of the passnegers are away!

 

 

If you have any suggestions/tips let me knwo.

 

Thanks.

 

 

Mark