5th March, 2013 Santos, Brazil to Venice, Italy we will be your Cruise Critics aboard

[Skipper Tim]

We are the magnificent 13 Cruise Critics members who have engaged in a rather lively roll-call discussion for this 17-night repositioning cruise aboard the MSC Fantasia from Brazil to Italy, departing 5th March. Apart from partners (who should have known each other already), we have mostly met here, on the Cruise Critics roll call for our cruise:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=37138304

 

As it is little over two weeks away, I thought I would invite any questions here on the general MSC forum for any of us to answer while we are onboard.

 

Between us, separately, we will have every category of accommodation. We will eat, dine and sit in every venue, we will do every activity and we will meet up occasionally and share views and experiences. Please pick our brains by asking us your questions now before we set off.

 

This is the value of Cruise Critics. Please use it!

 

You can post questions as a reply here. Please keep the questions as targeted to us as you can. There may not be a reply until after our cruise which finishes in Venice 22nd March.

 

Tim.

[AmoMondo]

Hope you all have a ball Tim. That really is a lively and fun roll call for a MSC sailing...maybe a first! Truly wish I were joint you all. Still I'll make the best of the Atlantica in 5 weeks around the Arabian Gulf!

[sidari]

Tim .... Still time yet for people to join the roll call ... :)

[Skipper Tim]

Tim .... Still time yet for people to join the roll call ... :)

 

Indeed Sidari, I have just checked and there are inside guarantees available at £425 with no sole supplement and an excellent chance of an upgrade to an outside. Avios redemption flights from Madrid to Sao Paulo are also still available at 25,000 Avios (£104 in Tesco Clubcard vouchers) plus £50 taxes. Flights are cheap to Madrid and from Venice if you are flexible to a night or two.

 

Roll on up!

[teddymouse53]

Hi Tim

 

Hope we get the chance to meet, before we embark on to our selected ships. What time is yours sailing?

 

Angie

[Griller]

Good Luck Skipper with the 13 of you keeping all these europeans and south americans in line, by all accounts the cruises out of Santos have a lively crowd, drinking heavily, getting nekkid, falling overboard etc.

Tell me more about these Avios flights, sounds interesting, how does it work, I often need one way flights and have never ever found any decently priced ones to the Americas.

[Skipper Tim]

Hi Tim

 

Hope we get the chance to meet, before we embark on to our selected ships. What time is yours sailing?

 

Angie

 

We sail at 7pm, I believe on hour before you. We will certainly be on deck to wave you off.

[Skipper Tim]

Good Luck Skipper with the 13 of you keeping all these europeans and south americans in line, by all accounts the cruises out of Santos have a lively crowd, drinking heavily, getting nekkid, falling overboard etc.

Tell me more about these Avios flights, sounds interesting, how does it work, I often need one way flights and have never ever found any decently priced ones to the Americas.

 

Yes Avios makes the whole thing possible. The best place to start is headforpoints.com. You can collect enough Avios for a flight to South America by getting the right Amex card and spending so much on it in a certain amount of time. Then you can collect Avios on a regular basis with ordinary expenditure, especially at Tesco.

 

Currently the American Express Preferred Rewards Gold card offers 20,000 bonus points (1 point = 1 Avios) when £2,000 is charged to the card in the first 3 months. If an existing member refers you, this is increased to 22,000 points. With one point per Pound on all spending, double points on supermarket, fuel & travel spending, this quickly becomes the required 25,000 Avios for a one-way flight to South America. Email me with your full name if you wish to be referred (I get a bonus too): tim @ millea 'dot' com.

[Norwegian Cruiser 73]

Would love to join you folks on this voyage:) Take a lot of photos, enjoy this magnificent ship and I'm looking forward to the reviews.

 

I'm boarding Divina for a 11 night cruise at the same time:)

 

HAPPY CRUISING TO YOU ALL:)

[earn]

Have to agree on the benefits of using Avios for one way flights or european flights. We are about to do our third transatlantic and have used airmiles (now avios) each time. They are fantastic for european flights. I think the best is 9K +£30 tax return from Edinburgh to Prague.

 

I was interested to see you had a flight from spain. I have never really tried to look for flights from Europe. Do you use avios or BA avios, and do you usually do it on line or call?

[JoLoca2208]

Enjoy it Tim and please take a lots of photos of the ship and post it here, if possible. We are sailing on Fantasia on 28th of April, can't wait! :)

[Skipper Tim]

I was interested to see you had a flight from spain. I have never really tried to look for flights from Europe. Do you use avios or BA avios, and do you usually do it on line or call?

 

Airmiles, BA Executive Club and Iberia Plus are now thoroughly merged with the common Avios currency. You can have an account for free in each and freely move Avios between them. The advantage of using Iberia Plus and using Avios to pay for a long-haul flight from Spain instead of the UK is that you don't get hit by the horrendous UK passenger departure tax. Hence £50 taxes and fees instead of getting on for £300 to South America.

 

If your local airport is not in London, changing at Madrid instead of London but without a through ticket (as the long-haul taxes would apply then) makes litle difference to convenience but a big difference to the pocket.

 

Tim.

[earn]

Tim, thanks for that tip. I have just registered for Iberia plus. We have avoids with BA executive club and the old Airmiles. Because we have household accounts it seems it is a little more tricky to swap them across.

[sidari]

Does anyone know if you can claim flight miles on BA via the EXec club if you booked via a travel agent ?

[Skipper Tim]

Does anyone know if you can claim flight miles on BA via the EXec club if you booked via a travel agent ?

 

It does not matter how you book. If you fly BA you can collect Avios with the BA Executive Club. You need to join first:

 

http://www.britishairways.com/travel/execcr/public/en_gb#

 

Then either a) give your BAEC no. when you book; or after booking b) select 'manage my booking' on BA.com, supply the booking ref. (a mix of 6 letters and digits) then add your BAEC no. under passenger details. If you do the latter it will also tell you how many Avios your will earn from the flight(s). You only receive Avios after a flight is flown.

 

For detailed information about the BAEC see the ultimate guide:

 

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/british-airways-executive-club/1362974-your-guide-executive-club-attaining-status-earning-avios.html