showingdiva

That will be our fabulous Forth Belle. One of two used to help tender passengers on board the larger ships from Newhaven Harbour and South Queensferry. Both she, and the other one - Maid of the Forth - are primarily local excursion ships which run sightseeing tours and jazz cruises in the Firth of Forth. Both popular with cruise passengers compared to the usual cruise ship life boat tenders, for the very smooth journeys you mention.

And here she is ... my work for today, anchored outside my house window. My wonderful Arcadia at Newhaven Harbour, Edinburgh.

She's definitely on the way to Edinburgh .. well, the Newhaven Harbour anchorage anyway. Tendering. We - the Leith / Newhaven Harbour port team, including our volunteer team - were told yesterday lunchtime that she's heading our way. She's too big for Leith, and apart from anything else, we also have The World in there for two days. We're hoping everyone has a lovely day in Edinburgh / Lothians (and possibly further afield), and we're happy to help the passengers and crew with any information.

Nice balcony. I've never felt any movement on Virtuosa on either cruise I've done on her, on two different decks 9 and 13. The cabin you've identified is midships. At the end of the day, the sea is the sea and cannot really be predicted, but you're looking at a good cabin location on a fairly low deck.

They also showed one of the F1 races on the big poolside screen

Did my previous comment about the F1 simulator on Virtuosa finally persuade you? 😂 FWIW .. I booked my first (round UK) MSC cruise online, but had to contact them anyway about my NHS discount / proof, so they status matched my Cunard level at the same time, then emailed me a new invoice with everything included.

I feel similar, but with a realistic price because any quoted, it's always a guarantee basis inside cabin, assuming two people sharing. By the time you do a dummy booking, wanting to choose your cabin, as a solo passenger, on your preferred deck / position, the price has rocketed to the point you would be expecting to charter the ship for sole use for that amount of money.

I've only done two excursions that have included food - both were with P&O (but admittedly a few years ago now). One was in Vigo, where there was a buffet lunch provided at a yacht club and the other was in Brest, which was a wine / cheese type thing, but also introduced me to Breton cake, otherwise known as kouign amann.

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy some aspects of Virtuosa. Having just returned from a cruise on her a few weeks ago, I would agree that embarkation / disembarkation is quick. It's a shame the food fell below your expectations. I agree that the general MDR portion sizes are small, but never had any difficulty if I wished extra vegetables, or in one case in deliberating between two starters, the waiter brought both. As a vegetarian (well, pescatarian), I can't comment on the British roast dinners, but my travel companion said those served in the buffet were very acceptable. Oddly enough, whilst I'm a good "sailor", I've never once felt any movement on Virtuosa (admittedly, the weather was kind on both cruises). I hope, despite everything, you had a good break and you find a cruise line / ship you prefer.

I don't think you are easily pleased ... you've just had some great and much needed holidays with P&O. As have I. Some lovely memories. Personally, I just need them to transparently sort some of their issues out, and be a bit more accommodating with the solo traveller supplements.

No, you won't regret it. I don't have children, but I get the impression that they have a great time on MSC ships. That said, the kid in me loved the water slide on Virtuosa (!) and I'm getting a bit competitive on the F1 simulator.

Virtuosa this year, Preziosa over the winter and Grandiosa next year are only cruising to / from Southampton. Last year's UK pick up from multiple ports only mimicked what MSC do in the Med. Not helped by the plan of embarking in Greenock being scuppered at the last minute by differing restrictions in Scotland and England. Virtuosa was intended for warm weather cruising. She was built for the Dubai / Mediterranean market, which is where she's going back to this autumn. When MSC originally joined the UK "staycation" market, they had intended to use the smaller, older Magnifica, but decided to send Virtuosa instead. I thought their covid measures were as appropriate as possible, given the changing scenarios everyone was facing, and all eyes on cruising given the negative publicity it received at the beginning of the pandemic. Four (one in each corner) of lifts, no buttons needing pressed etc. The majority of the problems - certainly in last year's UK cruising - the fault lay with passengers, not crew doing the best they could. Visible incidences of lack of personal responsibility.

You booked. I answered your initial query on the P&O thread. All your ports are dockside. Water is available all the time in the buffet, along with ice. At breakfast in the buffet, orange / pineapple / grapefruit and some strange tropical stuff called ACE is also available.

I've just had a look at the upcoming October one I booked on return. The ports are : La Rochelle 7am - 6pm Bilbao 8am - 6pm La Coruna 9am - 6pm Le Havre 8am - 10pm I'm sure that's about comparable with P&O port times, although the last time I was in Amsterdam on Arcadia, that was an overnight stop.

On Virtuosa, it's available in the bar opposite the grab and go on the right as you enter the pool deck 15. I can safely say that strawberry with lemon sherbet and sprinkles goes down well 😁 .. as does vanilla with passion fruit sauce

My bad - I got my soft serve free as part of the non-alcoholic drink package I had. It's also included in the Minors Package.

My most recent two port stops were Rotterdam (full day) and Cherbourg (12pm - 9pm). I believe you all have to have the drinks package. I don't drink alcohol at all, but it's amazing how quickly I would amass on a day between mocktails and soda, as the bill showed the debit amount offset by the credited package (£43 in a day was my most). As for the bad reviews, yes there are a few, but when you compare it on here to P&O's port changes, Iona's late departures, speciality restaurants being closed, the widening difference between Saver / Select fares etc etc, it's really only that person's subjective view. I suspect the school holiday timing is a good deal, certainly according to people I spoke to on mine, which was over an English school half term.

I'll assume you are departing from Southampton. If so, MSC Virtuosa this year, the smaller, older MSC Preziosa over the winter months (mainly doing Christmas market type places) and then MSC Grandiosa in 2023 (Virtuosa's slightly older sister, both Meriaviglia Plus class ships). First of all the ship (currently Virtuosa) is stunning. She's big ... 181,500t big. I did a UK float last year and just returned from her four weeks ago from Europe. As my signature below shows, I was barely home and I've booked a sneaky week to France / Spain in October. The food. Is good. MDR portions aren't huge, but the waiters don't flinch if you want to eat your way down the whole menu (and someone at the next table did). The buffet restaurant is just that - I have to say that the cheese, pizza and panna cotta (as one would expect on an Italian ship) is amazing. Speciality restaurants are all open. I can't comment on the steak one as I'm pescatarian, but stand out - for me anyway - is the Hola! cantina, which does all you can eat for £16.99. The salted caramel churros and fish of the day tacos are the highlight. Entertainment is bright and sparkly (the female lead has a great voice), and are geared to a diverse, continental audience. All the other usual features of a cruise ship - casino, show lounge etc. The light show (played three times daily) in the Galleria worth stopping to watch. The planet show is mesmerising. The drinks package - often included in the fare - is well worth it (again I am teetotal, but have acquired vast knowledge of the mocktail range). All cocktails /mocktails and drinks up to $10 (I think) are included, which actually covers the vast majority of drinks. Also soft serve ice cream from the pool bars included in the package usually offered. Excursions are priced around the same as P&O. Usual shopping - Tommy Hilfiger boutique, shop selling MSC merchandise, another with toys, chocolate and electronics plus the chocolate shop itself, which makes its own). Cabins are a good size, balconies deep. Just had the nicest steward on any cruise ship. You are likely to also get the opportunity, a few months before sailing, to bid for an upgrade to Yacht Club. Other levels are Bella (akin to Saver on P&O, cabin allocated), Fantastica (free room service) and Aurea. However, on booking, aside from Yacht Club, there's not a huge difference - especially to choose your own cabin at Fantastica level. Tips are included on MSC. MSC's website can be a bit flaky as can customer services on the phone, but once past that, it's all okay. Embarkation / disembarkation at Horizon went smoothly. MSC will status match to P&O, Cunard etc. I won't go on and on any longer, as I do still have a bit of loyalty to P&O (they own my lovely Arcadia after all) ... but my 7 night Iona cruise in 2023 is currently around £450 cheaper with MSC (Grandiosa) a week later, and I am poised to jump ship. MSC don't seem to be doing port jumping like P&O in the Fjords.

I've twice done exactly the same thing on Virtuosa (not costing as much though). Loved the latest cabin so much I've re-booked it for October. I also booked my Iona cabin on a Select for next year. Like to be somewhere mid-ships on any vessel, and especially on a Fjord cruise. I would never opt to be "upgraded" as I suspect very few on a popular cruise would actually constitute such, and certainly wouldn't be happy to either book or be placed in one of those Iona / Arvia Deck 8 ones.

I spoke to some staff last September, during my first time on Virtuosa, and they were still in the experimental stage of "British" cruising (and also why some of the theatre shows go off on a bit of a tangent). "Afternoon tea" - they either need to go all out, or change the name, but I noticed that whilst still self-service (this may change in time with other buffet restrictions), it had made strides in the right direction.

Thanks for the photo memories. I, too, was on this cruise and also loved every minute. Your afternoon tea photo contains my absolute favourite MSC dessert .. the raspberry panna cotta in the black tea cup. Wouldn't expect any less on an Italian ship.

The way to do that is to book a balcony, then wait for the upgrade bid fairy to email you. To be fair, wasn't my cup of tea either ... too big, too many, too party, too everything ... I couldn't have been more wrong (I work on board a huge range of ships in my home port .. I'm fussy!). Just disembarked three weeks ago for the second time. Probably one of, if not the, best cabin stewards I've ever had. Attentive but inconspicuous when needed to be. Nothing was too much trouble. The cabin was spotless. The ship is stunning. In defense of the Italian ship, some of the posts on this P&O forum would be enough to put people off. However, P&O do still have Arcadia. For now.

Won't I get shouted at for mentioning it?? My signature gives the clue of the Italian ship (well, her identical sister in 2023) So, basic details are equivalent balcony cabin, almost identical itinerary, much kinder single supplement (this is what's doing my head the most about P&O), an included drinks package and whichever out of past passenger / status match is the most advantageous.

I am hoping P&O keep Arcadia a few more years for a number of reasons, not least that mid-size ships are still popular (I work with a lot here in Scotland), she's adult only, has a good layout, and from a personal point of view, she has a very special place in my heart. But .. aside from currently booked on Iona next year, - I say currently, because another cruise line can offer me an identical cruise a couple of weeks later for hundreds of pounds less, so a swap may be on the cards - P&O as a brand aren't doing anything for me now. Either way, and despite their previous record with Oriana and Oceana, I do think (hope) Arcadia will fulfill at least her 2022 and possibly 2023 season with them.

Relieved that it's not just me that finds English opening hours and Scottish opening hours wildly different, especially on a Sunday.