What MSC itineraries are on your to-do/bucket list?

[no1talks]

1 hour ago, Beamafar said:

"Wish MSC would do a regular itinerary to the ABCs."

I'm not a fan of the two-out-of-three many cruises do. Perhaps a UN resolution is in order, to force cruise lines to keep the set unbroken on future itineraries. 😆
 

1 hour ago, Beamafar said:

Also, would love to see them do cruises to Hawaii (another bucket list destination).

I would be skeptical of enjoying that many consecutive sea days on MSC, if it were to be a west coast embarkation and not an island-based cruise. There is also the issue of gambling being banned when close enough to the islands. It's my understanding some ships close the casino the whole time they are in proximity to the islands. If the ship were to model its practices after Pride of America, there would be no casino at all.

Edited March 31 by no1talks

[CruisingFox27]

9 hours ago, Beamafar said:

Wish MSC would do a regular itinerary to the ABCs.  Had to book Celebrity to re-visit (something we’ve been longing to do since we visited Curaçao and Aruba on Meraviglia’s repositioning from New York to Miami).  
 

Also, would love to see them do cruises to Hawaii (another bucket list destination).  Again, had to book another cruise line to sail there (one from LA on Princess Cruises). 

We have our first Princess cruise booked for that reason. Hawaii and New Zealand are both on the list so, we're sailing from San Francisco to Sydney and including both.

[Beamafar]

1 hour ago, CruisingFox27 said:

We have our first Princess cruise booked for that reason. Hawaii and New Zealand are both on the list so, we're sailing from San Francisco to Sydney and including both.

Just last week I saw an ad for 2 terrific itineraries from Sydney - one with Azamara and the other with HAL - both really tempting - but we’ve 6 booked up to Oct 2025;  I must remember to watch for the 2026 World cruise on MSC and see what it’ll offer in that region. 

[Beamafar]

9 hours ago, no1talks said:

I'm not a fan of the two-out-of-three many cruises do. Perhaps a UN resolution is in order, to force cruise lines to keep the set unbroken on future itineraries. 😆

👍👍👍

I would be skeptical of enjoying that many consecutive sea days on MSC, if it were to be a west coast embarkation and not an island-based cruise. There is also the issue of gambling being banned when close enough to the islands. It's my understanding some ships close the casino the whole time they are in proximity to the islands. If the ship were to model it's practises after Pride of America, there would be no casino at all.

We’ve done several MSC cruises which had many sea days included (one had 7 in a row - so funny to see passengers almost killing themselves to get off at the first port after that! 🙈), so that wouldn’t be an issue for us.

 

As for the casino being closed - that would be a Plus for me (I can resist anything but temptation 🙄😆). 
 

 

Edited April 1 by Beamafar

[morpheusofthesea]

1 hour ago, CruisingFox27 said:

We have our first Princess cruise booked for that reason. Hawaii and New Zealand are both on the list so, we're sailing from San Francisco to Sydney and including both.

One of my highlights I was looking forward to of sailing on Princess to New Zealand was having fresh New Zealand lamb for dinner on board the ship. I expressed my excitement to the maitre d and asked how many New Zealand lamb dishes can I expect this cruise in the dining room. He said several, but all the food on board is containerized and flown in from the states including the New Zealand lamb. So if one has any desire for anything New Zealand it is best to get off the ship. We had table mates that suggested the world famous Sails Restaurant in New Zealand which was right where we docked. When we got off, the four of us, made our way to make reservations at Sails for dinner that evening instead of eating on the ship. They were booked way in advance. Disappointed, our table mates suggested we go back at 6pm and try again and we were seated immediately. The consensus was, that for all our efforts, we missed a better meal on the ship. 

[alserrod]

On 3/30/2024 at 4:57 AM, no1talks said:

MSC doesn't have the deepest bench when it comes to itineraries. However, there are several I'm eager to book. Of course, one cannot be certain these particular cruises will be around from one year to the next. Nonetheless, here is my list, though somewhat tongue-in-cheek. What's on your list?

 

#4 10 nights: Las Palmas, Fuerteventura, Funchal, Santa Cruz de la Palma, Arrecife, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Casablanca, Valencia.
You can never have too many stops in the Canaries and this cruise has four, with Madeira and Fuerteventura islands thrown in. That's a lot of islands, but still not enough for salad dressing. The best part of the whole trip will be stopping for lunch at Rick's Cafe in Casablanca, if it's still in business at the time. I'll be taking my dinner jacket with me to don at the restaurant and pose for a picture near the piano with one of the staff. "You played it for her, you can play it for me!"

 

 

 

They are five islands, not just four: Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, La Palma, Lanzarote and Tenerife.

Madeira (for Funchal) is not part of Canaries, nor part of Spain.

 

I would want to know why they have chosen that order for calling. If you line up them they would be La Palma, Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, and even in next winter, cruise among all Canaries by MSC seems to not repeat almost any itinerary (each week you can have one different island more or less).

In addition, when departing from Fuerteventura one evening at 18:00 and arriving Lanzarote next morning by 08:00 I would want to know what will the ship will do. Both ports are in different islands but with just 65 km away.

 

Good to know.... Canary islands are seven islands (officially eight after a small island with one village is considered the eight island).

Each one is different to the previous one.

 

Just over those five islands where MSC will call

- La Palma has the best national park with forest and mountains

- Tenerife has some bustly areas and Teide (it is the highest peak in Spain, a bit taller that two ones in mainland)

- Gran Canaria has a cosy inner area and bustly beach area

- Fuerteventura is so big, has few population and... it is known after its beaches (all people in Canary say best beaches, by far, are in that island)

- and Lanzarote could be the island that has preserved the best heritage

 

(and two more islands are missed in that list)

 

 

[morpheusofthesea]

52 minutes ago, alserrod said:

Funchal,

The best time to visit the Bay of Funchal is New Year's Eve. The only thing I remember to this day 30 years ago watching from the deck of a cruise ship. Don't remember the ship but do remember the fireworks. 

"The best view is probably from one of the many boats,

which are anchored in the bay with a view of the amphitheater on New Year's Eve. Whether private yacht, party catamaran or pirate ship - there is something for every taste."  "The New Year's Eve firework show, takes approximately eight minutes, and is spread over more than 30 burning fire stations located in the amphitheatre of Funchal, on the waterfront and down town area. Madeira holds the Guinness World Record for the Largest Pyrotechnic Performance in the world."

[morpheusofthesea]

On 3/29/2024 at 11:57 PM, no1talks said:

one cannot be certain these particular cruises will be around from one year to the next.

So it is important to do ones homework. This sort of reminds me of a Carly Simon song.

"You walked into the party like you were walking onto a yacht
Your hat strategically dipped below one eye
Your scarf it was apricot
You had one eye in the mirror, as you watched yourself gavotte
And all the girls dreamed that they'd be your partner
They'd be your partner and

You're so vain
You probably think this song is about you.

Well I hear you went up to Saratoga
And your horse naturally won
Then you flew your lear jet up to Nova Scotia
To see the total eclipse of the sun

Well you're where you should be all the time
And when you're not, you're with some underworld spy...."

P.S. Please substitute 'You' for 'I or I'm.'

Edited April 1 by morpheusofthesea
ps

[perakcruiser]

On 3/31/2024 at 7:05 PM, morpheusofthesea said:

Here is another bucket list site to watch out for, walking the Great Wall of China.

I could not agree more, but unsurprisingly there a great, mediocre and disappointing parts. Even less surprising, the easier it is to go there, the more unattractive it is. 

[CruisingFox27]

5 hours ago, Beamafar said:

We’ve done several MSC cruises which had many sea days included (one had 7 in a row - so funny to see passengers almost killing themselves to get off at the first port after that! 🙈), so that wouldn’t be an issue for us.

 

As for the casino being closed - that would be a Plus for me (I can resist anything but temptation 🙄😆). 
 

 

 

That's funny and reminds me of our last repo. We had 8 straight sea days when our 2 stops in Egypt and 1 in Jordan were cancelled. I'd settled nicely into a relaxed sea day routine and was actually a little put out that i had to disembark and undertake an excursion on arrival in Oman 😂

Fortunately, after that 'interruption' there were then another 5 sea days before Mauritius. Sun, pool, book and a butler with drinks and snacks. Perfect 😁

[no1talks]

18 minutes ago, CruisingFox27 said:

"Sun, pool, book and a butler with drinks and snacks. Perfect"

 

All great for a few consecutive sea days.  For a long stretch on the sea, I want more activities to consider, such as lectures, organized cardplay, etc.

 

That's why I'm looking forward to doing an over-and-back transatlantic with Cunard in '26.

[morpheusofthesea]

1 hour ago, perakcruiser said:

I could not agree more, but unsurprisingly there a great, mediocre and disappointing parts. Even less surprising, the easier it is to go there, the more unattractive it is. 

Add this to your vision. " “Traveling is a fool’s paradise. Our first journeys discover to us the indifference of places. At home I dream that at Naples, at Rome, I can be intoxicated with beauty, and lose my sadness. I pack my trunk, embrace my friends, embark on the sea, and at last wake up in Naples, and there beside me is the stern fact, the sad self, unrelenting, identical, that I fled from…my giant goes with me wherever I go.”  Ralph Waldo Emerson 

"A fool's paradise is a happy state one inhabits for foolish, unfounded, delusional reasons". " That those who travel to escape will only be disappointed to find that they cannot?" 

  “Life is still just life, no matter where you are”. “Don’t be disappointed if it’s not everything you dreamed.”

Edited April 1 by morpheusofthesea

[mnocket]

On 3/29/2024 at 9:57 PM, no1talks said:

#1 14 nights: Hamburg, Bergen, Molde Fjord, Longyearbyen, Honningsvag, Hammerfest, Tromso, Leknes, Stavanger, Hamburg.

I'm doing this one in August.  I was so looking forward to Longyearbyen, but strangely the excursions there are a bit disappointing. It actually seems like despite the cold, winter may be a better time to visit.  Still it's Longyearbyen!

[no1talks]

39 minutes ago, mnocket said:

"I'm doing this one in August."

 

It will be much appreciated if you post your cruise comments, when the time comes.

[morpheusofthesea]

2 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Our first journeys discover to us the indifference of places.

Just like life itself...It's the journey and not the destination. It is how we get to where we are going. It can be doubly frustrating to be disappointed with both the cruise ship and the destination.

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

For those of you contemplating a cruise from Australia, usually overlooked is P&O Australia and their cruises to South Pacific nations. Please note when viewing their website that prices are in Australian Dollars and there is no tipping culture there.

https://www.pocruises.com.au/

[sverigecruiser]

On 4/1/2024 at 1:38 AM, no1talks said:

I would be skeptical of enjoying that many consecutive sea days on MSC, if it were to be a west coast embarkation and not an island-based cruise. There is also the issue of gambling being banned when close enough to the islands. It's my understanding some ships close the casino the whole time they are in proximity to the islands. If the ship were to model its practices after Pride of America, there would be no casino at all.

 

Your first cruise was on Norwegian Wind from Honolulu. We went to Fanning Island so we didn't just cruised around the Hawaiian Islands. We had four seadays but I think that NCL had cruises with Norwegian Dawn to Fanning Island with only one seaday in each direction. 

 

The same itinerary we did then on one of the newer MSC ships should be perfect for us.

[sverigecruiser]

On 4/2/2024 at 7:52 AM, sverigecruiser said:

 

Your 

 

Of course in mean Our! I blame autocorrect! 

[peder]

I'm interested in the cruises leaving from Hamburg because the ship comes so far inland on the Elbe. I'd love to know if there are any other sailings that come far inland. Maybe on the St Lawrence?

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

5 hours ago, peder said:

I'd love to know if there are any other sailings that come far inland. Maybe on the St Lawrence?

Holland America has some cruises that begin and end in Montreal, QC. That's VERY far inland.

[clydecruiser]

On 3/30/2024 at 3:57 AM, no1talks said:

#2 11 nights: Tokyo, Muroran, Sakata, Kanazawa, Busan, Yatsushiro, Kochi, Osaka, Tokyo.

 

October this year for us all going to plan. Very difficult to find any groups on this cruise. Looking forward to the adventure.   

[Arizona Sunshine]

2 hours ago, clydecruiser said:

October this year for us all going to plan. Very difficult to find any groups on this cruise. Looking forward to the adventure.   

We were on the Bellissima last fall on a similar itinerary. (Yokohama, Osaka, Hiroshima, Jeju (SK), Kagoshima.) The ship is beautiful. Weather very hot and humid. 

 

This year's itinerary looks better. We wish ours had included the ports in Northern Japan. Flying fourteen hours each way (in economy!) for an eight-day cruise wasn't great planning, but I had a meeting I couldn't skip 48 hours after disembarkation. (And it's the meetings that pay for the cruises.) We did have two days in Tokyo on arrival.

 

You're correct, the cruise primarily attracts the domestic Japanese market.

 

AS

[peder]

8 hours ago, clydecruiser said:

October this year for us all going to plan. Very difficult to find any groups on this cruise. Looking forward to the adventure.   

Probably some groups in Line app? Or maybe there's a group WhatsApp?

[ready2cruzagain]

I just want MSC to put out the 25/26 winter schedule for the Caribbean. I am sure it will be the same ole thing but missing MSC.