showingdiva

I absolutely concur with this. Lovely man, frequently around the ship, engaging. I miss the upward inflection at the end of his sentences and his awful attempts at a Welsh accent when passing the coast. He would also quite often enjoy a late night visit to Kings Court. I hope he's enjoying his retirement. I've only had one "bad" captain, and by "bad" I mean lack of engagement .. as long as they're qualified, that's all that matters .. and it was also on a P&O ship.

Definitely I've seen three separate Go Fund Me appeals this week alone. People (all young in these cases) who have ended up in hospitals due to falls, illnesses etc they never thought they would have). with no insurance. I do, of course wish all three of these people a good recovery

Yes

Not long after I started working on cruise ships in my home port, I was propositioned by an old salty sea dog on Braemar, who wanted to take me back to his cabin for a drink. I told him I don't get paid enough for that .... in fact, I don't get paid at all. The crew were helpless laughing (mainly at the look on my face).

I wouldn't be surprised if your cruise is sold out. MSC Euribia, which has been doing a more or less constant 7 night multiple pick up in Europe over the winter has been running between 91-97% full, and that's to countries with inclement winter weather at this time of year.

Isn't it still the case that if wishing to transfer a deposit, the new cruise has to be within a 12 month period of the original booking?

You will be fine and have a lovely cruise. Yes, she's a big ship with a lot of people, but once everything settles down after the first evening - because the majority of passengers are trying to find their cabin, their restaurant allocation, the theatre and their new favourite bar, it settles down. I would never have considered such a huge ship, or MSC, prior to the pandemic, but having now booked no's 4 and 5 on Virtuosa and having not long returned from Euribia, I can't have been too traumatised by the experience. I really am quite confused by some of the reviews. It's how a ship deals with an issue that is the crucial thing, not necessarily the issue itself (because things happen).. Crew on Virtuosa and Euribia have always been lovely. The Marketplace buffet gets busy around 1pm and for some reason, everyone congregates next to the food. I've always opted for self-disembarkation and never waited on either ship. The rest of disembarkation is done deck by deck working from the bottom to the top = all of which is explained in the information sheet delivered to the cabin.

Enjoy. She's a lovely ship. Prior to the pandemic shut down, I would never have considered a ship the size of Euribia / Virtuosa. If you have been to Bruges before, don't discount going to Blankenberge instead. Assuming you're embarking / disembarking in Southampton, you will likely be in Hamburg on a Sunday. Be prepared for there being nothing open, other than museums and Starbucks. As you say ... all weather dependant

Adonia, now Azamara Pursuit, arriving in my homeport in Scotland. I've worked extensively as a port guide on the Azamara fleet over the last decade. Lovely ships and crew. Pleased to hear you're going for it. I wouldn't have hesitated either.

Sorry to read this It must be pretty much up there with anyone's worst holiday nightmare, cruise or otherwise. I hope your husband has a good recovery.

Oh I don't know. Anyone who has stayed at West Quay will have witnessed a game of someone not realising the key card has to be scanned before the lift doors open on the way up.

Stayed at the PI West Quay for £58 a few weeks ago pre-cruise.

Thanks for all the photos. Safe journey home

I was on Euribia's first sailing out of Southampton mid-October. The ship was never scheduled to go to Zeebrugge on that sailing We had two full days in Rotterdam instead, then on to Le Havre.

From what you see from your cabin door, it's a wall with pictures. If you have a look on the Deck 12 deck plan, I'm not long back from a studio cabin 12106, which is on that side of the corridor. I heard absolutely nothing. I suspect it's a crew corridor. Delightful stewards all along that corridor, friendly, polite and smiley. You've also got passenger cabins below and above you. You'll be fine. Enjoy.

Sorry, I meant the MSC cruise ex UK

Others on here will be able to explain how to cruise with a baby. I happen to know from the P&O forum that you're cruising from the UK, and quite possibly on Virtuosa. There's a UK cruisers thread on this MSC forum (near the top of the page).for anything specific to the UK. However, if you haven't seen this ... https://www.msccruises.co.uk/blog/cruising-with-infants

Delighted to hear all going well so far. I'm not sure why the next few Euribia cruises are leaving from the City Terminal instead of Horizon. Maybe some repair or maintenance work. As for the fruit, I don't do YC, but had noticed on Euribia in particular that the range everywhere was more than the usual suspects of apples, oranges, bananas etc. They seem to have a very large supply of kiwi fruit 🤣

Most of the trains in and out of Southampton Central were on time today, a few were a few minutes late arriving / departing. Mainly Great Western services. The only real delays were to freight trains. Have a great holiday. She's a lovely ship,

They won't deny you it (except for trying to bring it on board).

I think asking at the buffet the first day, then adding it to your room service - order a couple of glasses and put it in your fridge. Buffet is your best bet. There's milk beside the coffee machines in the buffet (sorry, I'm not a tea / coffee drinker) or one of the drink waiters will help.

You can't get a bottle in port, as MSC do not allow any liquids to be carried on board. There's a paper breakfast list in your cabin that you hang on the door handle the night before if you wish continental breakfast (and the time you want it). If you've booked Bella, they will make a small charge for delivery, but Fantastica and above it's free. I'm pretty sure milk is on it. Either way, I can't imagine they would be petty and deny a small child a drink of milk at any time if you ask either the cabin steward or the buffet for it.

The ship in the video, MSC Virtuosa, sails out of the UK in the summer, and a Meraviglia-plus class ship sister to MSC Grandiosa and the new LNG MSC Euribia. I've done three on Virtuosa and one on Euribia. Two further booked on Virtoosa. Pre-pandemic, I would have laughed (nervously) at anyone that suggested these ships to me Yes, they're huge and there's a lot of people, and a very wide age range. However, I've found that the only real chaos is the first night. As most passengers will be new to the ship - and some on a ship for the first time ever, they're getting lost / confused because they can't remember where their cabin / restaurant / soon to be favourite bar is. It settles. I've often found myself on my own in lifts, and found a quieter spot to eat. If you want to dance with the crowds in the galleria, fine, but if not, there's another 300 odd metres of ship that's quieter. I've never been in Yacht Club because I can't justify the cost given I'd never use the facilities to the maximum and I'm teetotal. Loved the cabins I've chosen in Fantastica grade, always had great room stewards and quiet time on the balcony if necessary. I have PTSD, so if Virtuosa (and Euribia a few week's ago) were that bad, I would be first not to cope.

Norovirus is running rampant round hospitals up and down the country at the moment. Like the latter cases during the covid pandemic, it mainly seems to be patients with co-morbidities arriving with it, rather than contracting it whilst there, but it's horrendous to contain. Our Reactive cleaning teams have been very busy these last few weeks. With cruise ships, it may sound like all too familiar advice, but try to only use the cabin toilet, keep washing hands with soap and water (because alcohol gel isn't going to help here) and don't touch your face.

I hope the person evacuated makes a full recovery. Never an easy decision to medivac, especially involving a helicopter.