Live(ish) report: First real cruise this year - Greece with TUI Cruises Mein Schiff 6 - 9/27

[kernow]

Thank you for a lovely review, it's so nice to see people cruising in a 'near' normal way and enjoying it.

I hope that the UK arm of Tui, Marella will be able to start cruising soon too. After reading this we may well book if they do.

[bettyboop16]

On 10/5/2020 at 3:48 PM, riredsox said:

Hopefully passengers will conduct themselves according to Celebrity protocols.  And if not hopefully they will be dealt with.  Room confinement or a one way ticket home.  I’m pretty sure there will be some who will push boundaries and seeing them booted off the ship would make others think twice.  I so want to cruise again...

I'm American, & I can see my fellow Americans making an a$$ out of themselves because they think the rules aren't for them. They can't get on an airplane & follow the rules. 

[ReneeFLL]

6 hours ago, bettyboop16 said:

I'm American, & I can see my fellow Americans making an a$$ out of themselves because they think the rules aren't for them. They can't get on an airplane & follow the rules. 

I'm with you on that. The rules only apply to others. 😡  I always get a kick when passengers get kicked off flights. I've got some good stories on that. 😁

 

The OP did very good for us by stating how things were without exaggerating and all the wonderful pictures. Thanks to the op for taking time to inform us while you were on vacation. 🍻

[deliver42]

Thank you Miaminice for the wonderful trip. I really felt I was on board with you. Hopefully, Royal and Celebrity handle the idiots the same way as TUI and MSC, If the people have a problem getting home from the Caribbean for any reason, they have only themselves to blame.

[riredsox]

On 10/8/2020 at 4:16 PM, bettyboop16 said:

I'm American, & I can see my fellow Americans making an a$$ out of themselves because they think the rules aren't for them. They can't get on an airplane & follow the rules. 

Definitely true!  It’s like the Wild West here in Florida when it comes to masks. 

[Miaminice]

Hi guys!

 

To further underline our answer to the question “would we do it again?” I want to share some news with you.

 

As mentioned we would have booked with TUI again. However, they have not come up with itineraries for Christmas yet. Behind the scenes rumors say,  they are planning Canary Island cruises without stops and Dubai. 
 

The destinations and the personal preference of a more international flair have now led us to put aside our reservations against MSC. We just booked a Christmas cruise on MSC Grandiosa. 
 

The design, size and hustle and bustle on MSC isn’t really what enticed us - but we definitely prefer Italian food over German food 😂

 

Edited October 10, 2020 by Miaminice

[bama4cruisin]

21 minutes ago, Miaminice said:

Hi guys!

 

To further underline our answer to the question “would we do it again?” I want to share some news with you.

 

As mentioned we would have booked with TUI again. However, they have not come up with itineraries for Christmas yet. Behind the scenes rumors say,  they are planning Canary Island cruises without stops and Dubai. 
 

The destinations and the personal preference of a more international flair have now led us to put aside our reservations against MSC. We just booked a Christmas cruise on MSC Grandiosa. 
 

The design, size and hustle and bustle on MSC isn’t really what enticed us - but we definitely prefer Italian food over German food 😂

 

Wonderful!  I look forward to another of your delightful, informative reviews.  I also look forward to your perspective on another cruise line.

[Miaminice]

38 minutes ago, bama4cruisin said:

Wonderful!  I look forward to another of your delightful, informative reviews.

 

Thanks! However, I will probably have to report on the MSC board... 

 

39 minutes ago, bama4cruisin said:

I also look forward to your perspective on another cruise line.

 

Us as well 😉... although there are many things we are not really fond of in regards of MSC, 2020 is the year of:

We´ll take what we get 🙂 

[dani negreanu]

40 minutes ago, Miaminice said:

However, I will probably have to report on the MSC board... 

 

Just drop us a hint.... and we'll be there....😁

[hcat]

2 hours ago, Miaminice said:

 

Thanks! However, I will probably have to report on the MSC board... 

 

 

Us as well 😉... although there are many things we are not really fond of in regards of MSC, 2020 is the year of:

We´ll take what we get 🙂 

 

While we are not fans of MSC, glad you found something that works for Christmas, we will look forward to your review!

[FionaMG]

6 hours ago, Miaminice said:

The destinations and the personal preference of a more international flair have now led us to put aside our reservations against MSC. We just booked a Christmas cruise on MSC Grandiosa

We usually go with Royal but have sailed on two occasions with MSC precisely because Royal had nothing suitable on the dates we were able to go. Both cruises (one on Poesia and one on Divina) were very enjoyable and we would have absolutely no qualms about going with MSC again.

 

[Luckynana]

7 hours ago, Miaminice said:

 

 

 

The destinations and the personal preference of a more international flair have now led us to put aside our reservations against MSC. We just booked a Christmas cruise on MSC Grandiosa. 
 

The design, size and hustle and bustle on MSC isn’t really what enticed us - but we definitely prefer Italian 

 

 

 

Good for you guys!!  Since you won't be able to be in Florida for the Holidays this year, cruising for Christmas sounds like the next best thing!!!🌲

[Miaminice]

1 hour ago, FionaMG said:

We usually go with Royal but have sailed on two occasions with MSC precisely because Royal had nothing suitable on the dates we were able to go. Both cruises (one on Poesia and one on Divina) were very enjoyable and we would have absolutely no qualms about going with MSC again.

 

 

We "left" Royal many years ago and switched to Celebrity. We prefer the more modern, loungy design and the quieter ambiance without water slides etc. on smaller ships. So that´s what we are not looking forward to on MSC. But as I once said: every cruise is what you make of it. And we always make the best of it and newer had a best cruise. 

We just booked a few days at a spa hotel in Abano Terme after the cruise and two nights in Venice for New Years - so overall it will be a great escape 👍 

[bettyboop16]

3 hours ago, Miaminice said:

 

We "left" Royal many years ago and switched to Celebrity. We prefer the more modern, loungy design and the quieter ambiance without water slides etc. on smaller ships. So that´s what we are not looking forward to on MSC. But as I once said: every cruise is what you make of it. And we always make the best of it and newer had a best cruise. 

We just booked a few days at a spa hotel in Abano Terme after the cruise and two nights in Venice for New Years - so overall it will be a great escape 👍 

Sounds wonderful!

[Miaminice]

3 hours ago, Miaminice said:

And we always make the best of it and newer had a best cruise. 
 

oh boy, I shouldn’t type on the phone 😂

It was supposed to say: We always made the best of it and never had a bad cruise.

[Shadow9612]

14 hours ago, Miaminice said:

Hi guys!

 

To further underline our answer to the question “would we do it again?” I want to share some news with you.

 

As mentioned we would have booked with TUI again. However, they have not come up with itineraries for Christmas yet. Behind the scenes rumors say,  they are planning Canary Island cruises without stops and Dubai. 
 

The destinations and the personal preference of a more international flair have now led us to put aside our reservations against MSC. We just booked a Christmas cruise on MSC Grandiosa. 
 

The design, size and hustle and bustle on MSC isn’t really what enticed us - but we definitely prefer Italian food over German food 😂

 

Congratulations 👏 

 

Looks like I'll be spending Christmas virtually with you - I hope you'll do another live review 😉

[TeaBag]

Thank you Miaminice for taking the time out from enjoying your cruise to help us enjoy it too.  These reviews are special to those of us who are not cruising now and are keeping out fingers crossed for a cruise in the future.

[Germancruiser]

I am impressed Miami- you booked MSC- I really really can´t wait to read your report and your opinons. Did you book into their Yacht Club?

For the time beeing I wait and see what comes up. My cruise fix was very nice and i would book Tui - even after Covid. Not exclusive - just for some in between cruise.

Some fellow Germans where- well- hard to bear- and my eyes got all confusedso  busy they have been rolling my eyes- mentaly.

It started while checking in,  an elderly lady bickered at her husband, because he seems to have choosen the line which took them two seconds longer to check in.....!

I could not help myself an turned around and just said- " really"?

[Miaminice]

@Germancruiser

Again I need to emphasize that our decision not to choose another TUI cruise (at the moment) had little to do with the German passengers in general!!! I am not joining the complaining about Germans complaining 🙂 

Let´s face it - all nationalities have their peculiarities. No need to glorify one or diminish another...

Let´s take a humerous look at the situation you mentioned by doing a bit of stereotyping.
While a German might have complained about having chosen the slightly slower line, an American would have loudly mentioned that he is entitled to be in the faster line because "they want their $" and the British would have mentioned to lower the gratuities right away... We are ALL special 😉 

 

And it´s exactly that what we have been missing on the cruise. DW and I are very international. A vacation for us means feeling "away" - away from a language we hear every day, away from food and dishes we can have every day and yes, maybe a little bit, also being away from behavior we see every day. That´s the only thing we really missed on TUI - we felt like being at a (very good) hotel in Germany.

Another reason are the itineraries. First of all they have not come up with any. Second, behind the scenes talk seems to verify the rumors mentioned on board. They are aiming at Canary Islands with no stops or cruises to Dubai. Besides the fact that both destinations are on the list of risk areas, we are not pulled.

 

The cruise on MSC provides a more international flair (all residents of a Schengen country can book), more diversity in regards of food and an itinerary which does not only offer better opportunities for excursions, but also enables us to reach the port by car and to add a week in Italy after the cruise. So we decided to put aside our reservations and looked at the big picture.

 

No, we haven´t booked Yacht Club. Only YC insides or YC suites available. We don´t do inside and the suite price for a week is ridiculous. Plus, I really don´t like the extreme "ship within ship" concept. We booked an Aurea balcony which comes with beverage package, a massage etc. etc. 

 

 

[BCHappyGal]

Thank you for taking the time to provide us with your cruising experience in this the NEW NORMAL ...

 

I too cannot wait to get back on the high seas but alas not looking like it will be in the near future!

[cruisingxpert]

Like Dani said " Give us a hint when you start your live and we will be there with bells on.😄

[Miaminice]

I will post an information here when I report from the cruise 🙂 

For now I have to let you know about a first experience prior to the cruise which was pretty impressive...

 

On Sunday afternoon I applied for a loyalty status match from Celebrity online. Today (Monday!) I received the Gold membership. So I called my TA and asked her to link the numbers to our booking. One of the Gold perks is a 5% discount on future bookings. So our TA said, she´d see if MSC would apply the 5% discount on the cruise already booked since it´s practically been on the same day. She came back to me saying MSC did not only apply the 5% but worked it into a promo and applied a 5 + 5% discount plus 100€ OBC per person.

Not bad! Not bad at all!

Edited October 12, 2020 by Miaminice

[steamboats]

2 hours ago, Miaminice said:

On Sunday afternoon I applied for a loyalty status match from Celebrity online. Today (Monday!) I received the Gold membership.

 

Unfortunately MSC has changed the status match more than a year ago... When I matched I still got Black for Diamond,RCI / Elite,X. And as I´ve cruised with them I kept the status. BTW, the MSC Grandiosa is a great ship. You can find more about the ship on my website.

 

steamboats

[NBliving]

@Miaminice thank you for an informative review.  My DH and I are so looking forward to the day we can cruise again.  We have been thinking about what we would and would not be agreeable to as far as the "new normal".  Everything you have reported is very agreeable to us as we have gotten used to wearing masks out and about and social distancing, etc.  One question we had, which I hope I didn't miss in your report, was at the pool - did you notice any grumbling about not getting a seat?  Maybe because your cruise was only around 35% everyone who wanted one could get one?  We love to relax by the pool so that would be a big question of ours is how the cruise line handled pool chairs.  

[Germancruiser]

@Miaminice- I am bit confues here- how does the loyality staturs with Celebrity Cruises can be transfered to MSC? I did not know that. How are they linked? They are not even connected through ownership?