Seascape Next Week - First Time on MSC - Boarding Routine?

[surfjock27]

Hello there, fellow cruisers! We board Seascape next week, first time on MSC.
We've cruised other lines many times so we have those routines down.
As an example, when we cruise Royal it's Dining Reservations, Show Reservations, Muster, Cabin, DRINK.

What is the proper routine with MSC, so that we are getting as much done, when we initially board?
Thanks in advance. 

[Homosassa]

As soon as you board, register your credit card at one of the kiosks  and avoid the lines that will form (you have forty eight hours to do so).

 

Make sure that your credit card knows that the preauthorization will be coming in from a foreign bank (usually French) so that it is not denied.

 

Because all transactions on board ship are through the foreign bank, use a credit card with no foreign transaction fees if you have one.

[Tierun]

The muster is at a set time. They instruct everyone to go to their cabins, watch the video, call the verification line and the last step is to get your sail card scanned at the muster stations. It’s a process that takes about an hour. So after boarding the ship drop bags off in the cabin, then either explore the ship, hit the buffet (only food option), or visit a bar. After the muster the really gets going.

[Tierun]

As far as the credit card activation, I wait until later in the evening or day 2. Never any wait at that point.

[L1211]

4 hours ago, Homosassa said:

As soon as you board, register your credit card at one of the kiosks  and avoid the lines that will form (you have forty eight hours to do so).

 

Make sure that your credit card knows that the preauthorization will be coming in from a foreign bank (usually French) so that it is not denied.

 

Because all transactions on board ship are through the foreign bank, use a credit card with no foreign transaction fees if you have one.

Thank you!  I connected a credit card during check in. Does that do it?  Or have to do onboard too?  

[L1211]

2 hours ago, Tierun said:

The muster is at a set time. They instruct everyone to go to their cabins, watch the video, call the verification line and the last step is to get your sail card scanned at the muster stations. It’s a process that takes about an hour. So after boarding the ship drop bags off in the cabin, then either explore the ship, hit the buffet (only food option), or visit a bar. After the muster the really gets going.

Also first MSC cruise- Sunday!  What time is muster of sail away is not till 7pm?  They have boarding times till late. 

[Tierun]

If my memory serves me correctly, some time after 4.

[surfjock27]

5 hours ago, Homosassa said:

As soon as you board, register your credit card at one of the kiosks  and avoid the lines that will form (you have forty eight hours to do so).

 

Make sure that your credit card knows that the preauthorization will be coming in from a foreign bank (usually French) so that it is not denied.

 

Because all transactions on board ship are through the foreign bank, use a credit card with no foreign transaction fees if you have one.

This is great advice, thank you.

I already set up travel notifications with my bank, the credit card I will use is through my bank.
With that said, should I let them know further that there may be a European withdraw, since I only put in the notification for the islands?

This one actually stresses me a little because I don't want to be stuck and unable to pay.

[Homosassa]

11 minutes ago, surfjock27 said:

This is great advice, thank you.

I already set up travel notifications with my bank, the credit card I will use is through my bank.
With that said, should I let them know further that there may be a European withdraw, since I only put in the notification for the islands?

This one actually stresses me a little because I don't want to be stuck and unable to pay.

Absolutely tell the bank about the foreign request (I believe it is French). It will not only be the hold request for funds that is put on the card when the card is registered, but also the final bill at the end of the cruise. Tell them the cruise line is MSC.

 

I learned the hard way by notifying my card  of the travel dates and the countries to be visited.

 

My card was promptly rejected on board at the kiosk  because of the foreign transaction. 

 

I promptly called the help number for the card and got a notation about the foreign bank  The card was promptly accepted when I tried again.

 

This is the reason I said to do the kiosk first thing when boarding.  Any problems and you can still easily reached  the issuer of the card.

Edited March 9, 2023 by Homosassa

[Homosassa]

1 hour ago, L1211 said:

Thank you!  I connected a credit card during check in. Does that do it?  Or have to do onboard too?  

I am not sure.

 

I have read on this forum that it doesn't matter if a card was entered during on line check in and that it still needed to be done at the kiosk on board.

 

In any case, make sure your card  knows that the hold for credit will come from a European bank. (French, I believe).

 

As far as your question about the muster drill time, the drill will be held sometime  around 4 PM.

 

Guests that arrive late will have a muster drill either after sail away or early the next day.

[Homosassa]

Surfjock 27, have fun!

 

Depending where you live, your biggest challenge will be the Highway 19 slalom/mogul course on your drive to port.

[surfjock27]

58 minutes ago, Homosassa said:

Absolutely tell the bank about the foreign request (I believe it is French). It will not only be the hold request for funds that is put on the card when the card is registered, but also the final bill at the end of the cruise. Tell them the cruise line is MSC.

 

I learned the hard way by notifying my card  of the travel dates and the countries to be visited.

 

My card was promptly rejected on board at the kiosk  because of the foreign transaction. 

 

I promptly called the help number for the card and got a notation about the foreign bank  The card was promptly accepted when I tried again.

 

This is the reason I said to do the kiosk first thing when boarding.  Any problems and you can still easily reached  the issuer of the card.

I have one more question, if you don’t mind. What if we want to forgo the credit card altogether, and just put cash on the account? Are we able to do that at the kiosk as well? Also, if at the end of the cruise we have cash remaining, how do we cash that out? 
 

Thanks again for all the help. 

[Gatordad1967]

49 minutes ago, Homosassa said:

I am not sure.

 

I have read on this forum that it doesn't matter if a card was entered during on line check in and that it still needed to be done at the kiosk on board.

 

In any case, make sure your card  knows that the hold for credit will come from a European bank. (French, I believe).

 

As far as your question about the muster drill time, the drill will be held sometime  around 4 PM.

 

Guests that arrive late will have a muster drill either after sail away or early the next day.

correct, you still need to re do your card onboard.  takes 2 minutes at the kiosk.

 

[RudiRatlos]

7 hours ago, surfjock27 said:

What if we want to forgo the credit card altogether, and just put cash on the account? Are we able to do that at the kiosk as well? Also, if at the end of the cruise we have cash remaining, how do we cash that out?

Instead of registering a credit or debit card, a cash deposit can be made at guest service (reception). In that case, you also have to go to guest service for the settlement of the final bill before disembarking.

[perakcruiser]

13 hours ago, Homosassa said:

I am not sure.

 

I have read on this forum that it doesn't matter if a card was entered during on line check in and that it still needed to be done at the kiosk on board

The confusion is because BEFORE the kiosks came, the CC had to be registered at check in. Now it cannot be registered at check in, only at the kiosks. 

 

The possible cash deposit at the reception I personally would avoid thinking about the notoriously long lines there. Especially when it come to the settlement of the final bill. 

[heatherb1958]

6 hours ago, RudiRatlos said:

Instead of registering a credit or debit card, a cash deposit can be made at guest service (reception). In that case, you also have to go to guest service for the settlement of the final bill before disembarking.

 

This information is incorrect,  if you try to deposit cash at Guest services they will more than likely redirect you to a kiosk machine . Been there , done that. 

 

@surfjock27 - depositing cash at a kiosk machine and retrieving any credit balance is the most simplest thing . We have done several cruises with MSC on multiple ships and have a cash account every time .

There is no need to do it as soon as you board , just wait for a quiet moment . You can top up the account as you go along if needed at the machine too. Any credit balance can be retrieved on the last evening or last morning from the machine . We usually do it as we go to bed on the last evening. 

Our last trip was B2B on Grandiosa in YC out of Barcelona in Jan/Feb so the YC Concierge did the actual cash for us but like I say so simple to do at the kiosk machine . 

One word of warning , deposit the currency the ship is using onboard . MSC onboard prices are Euros, Dollars or  Sterling depending on where they are sailing from  . If you use a different one to what is onboard you will get a rubbish exchange rate , fell foul for that one last Autumn only because we thought they were still using Sterling and had reverted back to Euros for our sailing .

 

Edited March 10, 2023 by heatherb1958

[perakcruiser]

59 minutes ago, heatherb1958 said:

This information is incorrect,  if you try to deposit cash at Guest services they will more than likely redirect you to a kiosk machine . Been there , done that. 

Probably there are different "generations" of kiosks around depending on how new/old the ship is.

Edited March 10, 2023 by perakcruiser

[RudiRatlos]

6 hours ago, perakcruiser said:

Probably there are different "generations" of kiosks around depending on how new/old the ship is.

 

Maybe. I cannot remember of any kiosk on board that could handle cash money (but Meraviglia some years ago was the newest ship I have been on).

msccruises.com seems not to know about this option:

 

ON BOARD PAYMENT

All on board purchases can be made with the personal cruise card, eliminating the need to carry cash or credit cards on board. After embarking and collecting the Cruise Card from your stateroom, You should activate it for onboard purchases by self-registering your credit/debit/prepaid card at one of the Cruise Card Activation Points. You can do this independently, at any time from embarkation until 11:00pm the following day, at any of the Cruise Card Activation Points located around the ship. These new devices let you register your card simply, rapidly and securely. Please note that you will be asked to enter the PIN number. Alternatively, you can leave cash deposit at the Reception – Guest Service.

Settling Your Final Bill

 

You can settle your final bill in any of the following three ways:

By credit card

The following credit cards are accepted: Visa, MasterCard, Diners, JCB, Discover and American Express. If you choose to pay by credit card, your account will be closed automatically at the end of the cruise, so there is no need to go to the Reception – Guest Service.

By debit or prepaid card 

You should make sure that your debit/prepaid card is enabled for use abroad. The following debit cards are accepted: Maestro, Visa Debit, Visa Electron, MasterCard debit Any amount debited to your card and not spent during your cruise will be reimbursed in cash at the Reception - Guest Service on the final morning before disembarkation.

In cash

Any amount deposited in cash and not spent during the cruise will be reimbursed in cash at the Reception - Guest Service on the final morning before disembarkation. Please note that personal cheques are not accepted. For cruises in the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, Antilles, Dubai, the Emirates and Oman, as well as MSC Grand Voyages departing from Europe, the onboard currency is the Euro (€). For cruises in the Caribbean, South America and South Africa, as well as MSC Grand Voyages going to Europe and to Australia, the onboard currency is the US Dollar ($).The onboard currency for MSC Virtuosa summer season cruises through October 2023 will be the British Pound (£).

[Juicebuster]

Hi does MSC take the Caxton prepaid Mastercard ? 

[texangal39]

On 3/9/2023 at 2:38 PM, Homosassa said:

I am not sure.

 

I have read on this forum that it doesn't matter if a card was entered during on line check in and that it still needed to be done at the kiosk on board.

 

In any case, make sure your card  knows that the hold for credit will come from a European bank. (French, I believe).

 

As far as your question about the muster drill time, the drill will be held sometime  around 4 PM.

 

Guests that arrive late will have a muster drill either after sail away or early the next day.

I am trying to figure that out too. I just completed my online check in for my cruise in a few weeks and it asked for my credit card and I got a message back saying my card was registered for onboard use and that if I wanted to change it to go to Guest Services on the ship.

[Two Wheels Only]

2 hours ago, texangal39 said:

I am trying to figure that out too. I just completed my online check in for my cruise in a few weeks and it asked for my credit card and I got a message back saying my card was registered for onboard use and that if I wanted to change it to go to Guest Services on the ship.

 

Your card information might carry onto the ship or it might not. Either way, it's not a big deal to register a card while on the ship. There are kiosks throughout the ship and you can register a card there. You don't have to do it immediately so if the lines are long, just wait until later in the evening or the next day.