Grandiosa from Marseille 10-17 January 2020

[alicat58]

I plan to do a brief review of our cruise and will try and help with info if I can.

 

DH and I are regular Costa cruisers but sailed on the Seaview last June and really enjoyed it. We are late fifties/early sixties, not the fittest people in the world but when we cruise we walk lots. I will add a few photos but unfortunately I did not take many of the ship itself so I apologise for that.

 

We booked this cruise a bit spur of the moment as we have a Costa cruise at the end of February. I noticed that MSC had a deal with tips included, a social media WiFi package and the premium drinks package as well. We ended up booking through a TA as we got this deal at a better price than with MSC directly. We arranged our own flights with Ryanair. We live near Stansted (40 minutes or so) and it makes it very easy though the flights (and the airport) are truly the pits.

 

On 9 January I got a WhatsApp from DH to call him urgently. I was at work and did not notice it till I was leaving. Panic stations! No, he will tell me when I get home he says. 30 minutes of suspense. Our TA contacted him to advise the ship is not going to Marseille due to industrial action but will berth at Toulon. No worries, we still go to the port and they will have coaches to take us to Toulon. Phew!

 

We got up way before the crack of dawn as our flight was at 06h50 and we had 2 large bags to check in. It was the most smooth experience yet. Just short of two hours later we were at Marseille airport. We managed to get a taxi and with the help of google translate we were on our way to the port. The driver was very concerned about this. Minutes into the trip DHs mobile rang. TA calling! Don't go to the port, it is too dangerous! Go back to the airport. MSC will lay on transport from there. €20 later we were back at the airport. We eventually found the coaches. There were also coaches for Costa and NCL as all these cruises had the same predicament.

 

Toulon has a teeny-weeny port terminal so it was a little chaotic. We were fortunate as we have Diamond status and had priority boarding. We were on the ship in next to no time. I think we boarded on deck 5 midship. They usually do it in the dome area I noticed. For a very good reason as it is an absolute "wow" moment. I was going to try and add a photo but noticed media attachments still need to be a URL. If anybody can suggest an alternative I will be glad to hear from them. I am working from my desk top.

 

I am going to leave it there for the moment.

 

Till later.

 

Alicat(Riana)

 

 

 

 

[CelebrationFamily]

We are scheduled to sail out of Marseille on the Grandiosa in March...looking forward to reading every word of your report. TIA for taking the time to post!

[tcmagnum]

Wow!!

What a start to your trip....

[alicat58]

Still no joy trying to add photos. I have used both Flikr and Photobucket in the past but they do not continue to offer a limited free option. I do not want to store my photos with them. Also back to work tomorrow.

 

I will give a little port information next.

 

Marseille: As we embarked/disembarked we did not visit this time. A taxi from the port to airport(T2) was €40. I noticed the free shuttle when we disembarked. It was raining and it was some distance from the ship. This is one of the few ports I would suggest using the ship transfer into the city. (Steps 14450)

 

Genoa: You can walk from the cruise port building into the city with ease. I am very slow and I think it took us about 20 minutes from the aquarium back to the ship. We(read I) decided that we will visit the Monumental Cemetery of Staglieno this time. It was a sunny day and about 15 degrees Celsius. The light was perfect for photography. I just use my phone but DH has a fancy camera. The art work is amazing. I would love to share a few photos. Getting a taxi from the port was easy. Do not go out the front of the building, go downstairs to the left to the lower level. Total rip off! Charged us €24 but it is too far to get there otherwise. There were taxis outside on our return and we paid €11 back to the Aquarium. Some people might think it is creepy to walk around a cemetery but this one is all about sculpture. We did not eat in town but walked back to the ship and had a lovely lunch. (Steps 14034)

 

Civitavecchia: We are back there in 6 weeks and decided not to go to Rome. I made a print out of a walk but cleverly left it at home. There was no tourist info in the cruise terminal that I could see. You can walk from the ship(new I think) but there is a free shuttle bus that stops just outside the port perimeter. We ended up wandering around aimlessly, had a beer in glorious sunshine and wandered back to the shuttle.(Steps 13703). Another lovely lunch aboard.

 

Palermo: This was our third visit. The first time we took the HoHo bus. We are not keen on those but we saw the catacombs. Macabre, but interesting. The second time we took a cruise excursion to Cefalu and another village. Pretty but we are not keen on being herded about in tour groups. I found a website with suggested walking tours(also left at home!) but remembered the name. We wrote down a few places we decided to see and discovered others on our walk. I saw a lot of cannoli and arancini the size of cricket balls. Alas did not have any. The city is pretty flat mostly and very easily walkable. (Steps 21504). We were back on the ship for lunch. Once again a sunny day, temperature was about 13 degrees C. We did not take jackets or coats.

 

Valetta: We have been once before but was unable to go up the Barraka lift and see the gardens and the ship from the area. It cost €1 to go up and is free down. We actually went up twice and was not charged the second time.It is very pretty and the view from the gardens is lovely. Not quite sure whether that was luck or not. We walked around the cobbled streets. It was a lovely sunny day despite a forecast for rain. We sat outside at a cafe and had a beer.We did not go into the cathedral this time. It is absolutely worthwhile. There is a charge and it can get very busy. Try and be on deck for sail out this time of year because everything is lit up and it is stunning. I had a restaurant earmarked. I found them on Tripadvisor, the were supposed to be open but after standing outside for some time I tried booking a table and they were only open in the evenings. Their website is clearly wrong. Back to the ship. (Steps16224)

 

Sea day: We are not overly keen on sea days but parked ourselves off in the Edge bar. I read a book on my Kindle and DH was watching a Netflix series he downloaded at home. The usual lunch time restaurant(Purple Crab) was full and they opened another. It was quite hectic but the food was once again good.(Steps 5718)

 

Barcelona: We have been many times but we have never visited the Picasso museum. We invariably end up being there on  a Monday when it is closed. Hallelujah! open this time. It cost €12 pp and is a bit higgledy piggledy but we enjoyed it. If this is your first time visiting I would suggest you book timed tickets for Sagrada familia. It is the most wonderful place. You can just wander around the outside but the inside is a truly spiritual experience even if you are not religious. We had lunch on a square.  A word of advise about getting into Barcelona. You will be offered a transfer to the World trade center (by MSC) for €9.99. The blue port bus cost €4.50 for a return  and stops at exactly the same place.(steps 16158)

 

I will comment on the ship when I next have an opportunity.

 

Bye for now.

 

 

[alicat58]

I just discovered I can copy and paste photos. This was one of the sculptures in Genoa

 

 

Not to over do it but you can see the detail. I tried the test page and the test picture showed. Hope you can see them.

 

More later in the week.

 

[xcell]

Thanks for your review -- we have the same stops in Dec 2020 and glad to read your thoughts.

 

Questions: did you find it safe just to walk around? Worried about pick pockets?

[alicat58]

I see the photos are now not showing! I truely give up on CC making it so difficult to post photos.

 

Felt pretty safe to walk around even in Palermo. A local lady gesticulated that I should wear my rucksack in front rather than on my back. Like all world cities, be mindful and keep your wits. We don't wear our fancy watches. I have my mobile in a leather case which makes it easier to hold on to. DH was walking around with his large fancy camera and was fine.

 

We got mugged in Buenos Aires so are now extra vigilant.

[Cruiseswithfamilyornot]

Don't know if you're able to post the Daily Planner/Schedules?   Thanks for the review

[alicat58]

Hi Cruiseswithfamilyornot

 

I am sorry but I never photograph the planners and I put them in the recycling at the end of the day. We don't participate in the games etc so does not hold any interest. I usually look to see what the show is, what the dress code is and what time bars and restaurants open. I do take it ashore for the contact numbers. That's it though.

 

Maybe someone else on the forum scanned or kept them.

[alicat58]

Can anyone tell me whether they tried to right click and "load image" of the photos I added? If it works for people I will post more photos of cabin, food and ship.

 

Riana

[tjwa]

Didn't work for me but wait until others comment

Thanks for trying.

[xcell]

3 hours ago, alicat58 said:

Can anyone tell me whether they tried to right click and "load image" of the photos I added? If it works for people I will post more photos of cabin, food and ship.

 

Riana

 

Sorry, didn't work for me either.

[alicat58]

I am still battling to find a free hosting place and this thing is not going to beat me. I'll go on trying on the weekend.

 

In the mean time something about the ship.

 

She is beautiful and very gee whizz. We never felt crowded even when they had a performance in the dome area. I was concerned about seating place on the sea day as there are not many bars with seating space. It was not a problem for us. Some brave souls might have been out on the pool decks but it was a little too chilly for us.

 

There are three bars in similar areas on decks 5-7. Deck 5 is Infinity, 6 is Edge and 7 is champagne. The champagne bar was never full due to drinks available on the packages I think. We spent most of our time at the Infinity bar but on the sea day we were at the Edge bar because of seating. There is also bar service at the Bistro, Hola Tapas and the Pub. The Skybar is lovely in the evenings. It is an adult only space with a view over the pool deck. The Grandiosa lounge is next to the Chocolate place where they serve coffees and chocolate drinks. It is also the are where they do all the games, dancing lessons etc and is usually noisy and crowded. We did not go to either of theses. We went to the Horizon bar just above the back pool deck a couple of times. It would be a great place if the weather is a bit warmer. The one half has tables for smokers. Other than the casino  and the smoking lounge close to Skybar, this was the only place I noticed smokers. We don't smoke so I did not really look any further.

 

We had most of our breakfasts in the buffet and except for disembarkation day always found a table easily. On disembarkation day we had to share a table for 4.There was a fair variety of dishes available. Omlette station where you can also get fried eggs and the usual hot stuff. This was also available at the hot breakfast section. The bacon was nice and the sausages not too bad. There were pancakes, waffles, sticky cinnamon buns(yum), fruit, salads, cold cuts, breads and pastries. We ordered fresh orange juice on out drinks package as well as coffees rather than have what is available. We had breakfast in the MDR one morning and it was good. I had Eggs benedict and DH had kippers. Not the way we would serve them in the UK but he thought they were pretty nice.I cannot recall all the dishes but it was fairly comprehensive. The servers came round with juice, coffee, bread and pastries. Of great importance to DH, he got decent toast with his kippers.

 

I an going to have to leave it there for now as I have a starving cat howling for his supper.

 

Riana

[mef_57]

Enjoying your report.  Thanks.

My first MSC will be in April.  I am looking at Grandiosa for next winter repositioning from South America, but right now the reviews are so bad for this ship I am questioning the consideration.  I most likely won't book until after the April voyage - or perhaps onboard, but I would like to see some improved reviews before I do.  As it is a repositioning with a lot of sea days, it matters to me about sitting and reading spaces.  I rarely inhabit the bars and as a budget travelers, I only plan an inside cabin at this time.

The difficulty to manage a full ship with the buffet design seems to be a negative comment.  Did you find the flow worked for the number of passengers, or did you manage to go off hours?  (I do prefer MDR as I serve my own meals the rest of the year. I consider it a pampered break from my kitchen).

[alicat58]

Hi mef_57

 

We are not keen on sea days as we do not do the games and stuff.A transaltantic repositioning would be a bridge too far for us. On sea days I read my Kindle and DH watches programs or films he recorded(on the ipad). He uses his noise cancelling head phones. We usually sit in a bar to be able to get coffees or tea, and if you get bored you can people watch.

 

We used the buffet for breakfast and even in the busy times I did not kind excessively long queues. We had most of our lunches in the MDR(not our assigned one) and found them to be extremely efficient. Lots of tables for 2 though they are quite close together. I cannot comment on the evening meals in the MDR as we never went.We thought the lunch time options were good. We took a speciality dining package and ate in the pub twice.

 

I noticed you sailed with Costa in the past. There are not as many lounges on this ship. There are plenty places where you could go and sit and read. The bistro, hola tapas and the pub has service during the day. I think the Skybar would be a lovely quiet spot too. I am sure there would be no issue if you don't want to order any drinks.

 

We noticed that the ship had lots of inside cabins. A double row. I peek inside walking past and they looked pretty roomy.

 

I love cruising so much I have yet to find one that I hated.I was a bit miffed on one Costa cruise when we could not change our dining time to early sitting and ended up eating pizza in the pay restaurant every night on a 10d cruise!

 

Riana

[mef_57]

2 hours ago, alicat58 said:

Hi mef_57

 

We are not keen on sea days as we do not do the games and stuff.A transaltantic repositioning would be a bridge too far for us. On sea days I read my Kindle and DH watches programs or films he recorded(on the ipad). He uses his noise cancelling head phones. We usually sit in a bar to be able to get coffees or tea, and if you get bored you can people watch.

 

We used the buffet for breakfast and even in the busy times I did not kind excessively long queues. We had most of our lunches in the MDR(not our assigned one) and found them to be extremely efficient. Lots of tables for 2 though they are quite close together. I cannot comment on the evening meals in the MDR as we never went.We thought the lunch time options were good. We took a speciality dining package and ate in the pub twice.

 

I noticed you sailed with Costa in the past. There are not as many lounges on this ship. There are plenty places where you could go and sit and read. The bistro, hola tapas and the pub has service during the day. I think the Skybar would be a lovely quiet spot too. I am sure there would be no issue if you don't want to order any drinks.

 

We noticed that the ship had lots of inside cabins. A double row. I peek inside walking past and they looked pretty roomy.

 

I love cruising so much I have yet to find one that I hated.I was a bit miffed on one Costa cruise when we could not change our dining time to early sitting and ended up eating pizza in the pay restaurant every night on a 10d cruise!

 

Riana

Thanks for the feedback Riana.  Good to hear some positive aspects of this ship and the buffet. Perhaps it is still undergoing some growing pains, or just the wrong passenger / target market experience.

I dread the thought of late seating, so can commiserate on your Costa experience. Pizza every night! Shame.

 This April trip will be the longest cruise and most sea days experienced, so I'll know from that just what I can tolerate, but I do appreciate the forced down time.  I have taken up cruising again for that very reason.

Looking forward to the next installment. Thanks again.

[alicat58]

Hi

 

I want to have another go at photos. I will post a few and if anyone can respond I would appreciate it.

 

Some food pics.

Starter in the MDR lunch on the first day

 

.

 

Dessert lunch on the first day.

 

Excessive breakfast on the 2nd day.

[alicat58]

I read a post on the MSC board about the fact that breakfast is the same every morning. Whilst that is true there is so much available that you can have something different every day. 

 

We had the premium plus drinks package and had freshly squeezed orange juice every morning. We followed this by a bowl of fruit. The selection was a little less than our June cruise but I think to be expected in the Med this time of year. There after we had either pastries, omelette, sausages +/- bacon, grilled tomatoes, lovely breads and as you can see(I hope) waffles, sticky buns or pancakes. I think I have mentioned this in a previous post as well.

 

I'll wait and see if anyone responds regarding the photos.

 

Riana 

[tcmagnum]

35 minutes ago, alicat58 said:

Hi

 

I want to have another go at photos. I will post a few and if anyone can respond I would appreciate it.

 

Some food pics.

Starter in the MDR lunch on the first day

 

.

 

Dessert lunch on the first day.

 

Excessive breakfast on the 2nd day.

I left the pictures included so you can see we see them. 

And now I'm hungry....

 

[alicat58]

Excellent news. Thanks for responding tcmagnum.

Ship in Toulon

 

Balcony cabin on deck 12 from the balcony end. You can see the shelves in the wardrobe as well as the drawers and those at the desk. There were also a reasonable amount of shelving in the bathroom.

 

And from the opposite side.

 

This is the Sky bar where they have the fancy cocktails which are included in Premium plus. Did not like the smoked ones and the molecular ones were truly unremarkable. It is an adult only area and would be nice to sit in on sea days I think.

 

Ship in Valetta from the upper Barrakka gardens.

 

The Dome.

 

The pool deck at night.

 

In the champagne bar. The yellow label Veuve is not included in the Premium plus. Only sold by the bottle. Those silver bottles of Veuve at the back is demi sec and included. Not usually my cup of tea but I actually liked it.(Pun intended)

 

Look, no chair hogs. Wonder why.

 

One of the Lego things outside Do-re-mi land. Maybe I should call it a sculpture.

 

Gin display in the Infinity bar.

 

In the Masters of the Sea pub.

 

In the central area of the ship with the sparkly stairs to the sides.

 

These are all photos taken on our mobiles. Some courtesy DH. I will see whether I can upload some of the proper camera photos but there is a file size limited.

 

Hope these photos make you even more excited about your upcoming cruises.

 

Riana

[floridian1]

Thanks for the review!

 

Did you see a cirque de soleil show?

 

Did you see donuts in the breakfast buffet? They were sooo good on the seaside.

[alicat58]

Neither I am afraid. We only went to 2 of the normal shows. I might have missed the donuts but definitely did not see any on the side of the buffet we went to. We only went in the mornings and one evening.

[alicat58]

I am going to try and post a few port photos but I already mentioned in a previous post what we did and made some  suggestions so I will note repeat those. Below a few photos of the sculptures in the cemetery in Genoa.

 

 

 

I am no artist but I think the detail on some of these are absolutely amazing. So even if you think it is creepy to wander around a graveyard, this is more of an art gallery.

[alicat58]

Palermo next:

Theatre. Can only visit outside.

More theatre

 

Fountain. Sculptures not quite like the Genoa ones.

 

Just for fun in a wedding shop window as out daughter got married last September.

 

Inside one of the churches. We did not go to the main cathedral this time. There is a fee to go into the churches but if you show your ticket at the next one you get a discount. It was not expensive.

 

Also in one of the churches.

 

I did not take too many photos but need to share one last one of Palermo with you.

Actually two. My Sicilian boss told me the cops don't need big cars, they shoot first and ask why later. Lol.

[alicat58]

Valetta:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I really like Valetta. We did not do any trips this time. It is really easy to get the municipal bus to Mdina and worth it if you've not seen it. MSC had HoHo tickets in the cabins for sale. Not sure what sort of cut they get but as mentioned before we get hives if we go on HoHo. Just a joke.