elmsliebev

I read this as an antigen test will do for your daughter (I agree the wording is not clear!) as long as it is certified (not a self-test NHS one). I've not had to do this yet (needed a PCR last year) but I understand Lloyds Pharmacy and Randox offer ones that you can do yourself, send them the results straightaway (by email) and you will get an official certificate back within 3 hours. Lloyds also offer instore at some locations. We're in Blackpool and can get them done here. I'm sure someone with direct experience will be along shortly to provide more info. Hope you get sorted and have a great time, we are on in March.

We are on Virtuosa in March. Not sailed with MSC before & understand we have to pay for shuttle buses. How does it work? Do you buy in advance or is your cruise card scanned when you get on the bus? Hamburg - we are there on a Sunday so no little ferry across to the city so we will take the shuttle bus Zeebrugge - will probably go to Bruges on the coach you can get from outside the port entrance (20e pp return?) Rotterdam - is a shuttle bus needed or can we walk? Le Havre - I think I read somewhere that it's a 30 minute walk which we might do if it is a nice day, otherwise is a shuttle bus provided? In Marseille with Costa once we found that Costa wanted to charge 10e pp but the town council provided free shuttles once you'd walked through the duty free etc - is this the case on any of these ports? many thanks

I do cross stitch which of course uses small sharp needles. I packed them in my hold luggage without issue.

I found it here https://www.msccruises.com/en-gl/Manage-Your-Booking/Special-Needs.aspx if you click on Informing us of special needs, the form is there. It was a pain to complete and I ended up scannng it and emailing it that way, but we got there in the end!

oh boy, sounds right up my street! I do love my ice cream. I love a Mojito Zero too.

Reading this with interest as we go early March. We got a great deal on a balcony cabin on Deck 12, and have booked the Speciality dining package of 4 different venues (thought we'd try lots!) and have also booked the Alcohol Free drinks package so I'll try the Strawberry Daquiri. My huband is lactose-intolerant so I've completed the form on the website and been assured there will be lactose free milk available. I'll report back of course.

We did the Caribbean with Marella (the Celebration) and had a great time. I would definitely recommend upgrading the flight. Premium Economy was a real treat and definitely worth it - we were probably the 3rd or 4th people onto the ship from our flight! We flew into the Dominican Republic - first off the plane, onto a coach and straight to the ship!

I'm guessing Smart & Premium are the same as Saver and Cunard fares? We have done both - on our last QE cruise in July/August we booked Saver/Smart and had no problems. Our cabin was lovely (inside deck 8), we got our preferred choice of dining time, we only used a shuttle bus once and there was no charge for it. We are booked for QA in June 24 and have taken the Cunard fare as it included the choice of return coach from where we live in the UK to Southampton and the difference in ££ was less than the coach fare so it worked in our favour. Unless you really want to choose your own cabin, or the deal is good I'd happily go with the Saver/Smart fare. Happy New Year to you too! We are sailing with another line in March and go to Hamburg - first time in Germany!

thanks, will have a look. Enjoy Rotterdam - I think I've worked out which is our cabin from your photo!

plenty there for me. Unlike Jean, I love gnochi, veg curries and pheasant! The one thing that makes me sad in a nostalgic way is the "cheese plate" I have very fond memories a few years ago of being on Oriana and my husband being served vast amount of port-soaked Stilton from a whole cheese on a trolley!

looks lovely? Did you do a ship's tour or on your own please?

tbh, I've not been with MSC before so wasn't sure, but it seemed good to me and we both love to try different foods so we thought we'd give it a go. I'll report back afterwards, only 2 months to go!

£104pp is what we've paid for 4 meals plus a Carousel show with a cocktail. This is for Virtuosa in Northen Europe in March. The restaurants are Butcher's Cut, Indocine, Kaito & Hola. That's about $126US. As far as I know you can dine anytime, just book when on board.

thanks for posting, looks good. Bon appetit!

Have a wonderful time! We are on in early March. If you get chance to post the occasional dinner menu that would be lovely, and also if you could see they have any alcohol-free wines (no worries if not). We are intending to do our own thing in the ports so any tips would be gratefully received. But mostly - have a great time and Happy New Year!

I've status matched to Cunard and we are now Silver. Can I ask what status discount you got (5%) - my TA said I couldn't have anything as I'd booked less than 9 months before departure. How was the cruise?

Can I ask what personal details you block out? What's the minimum they need to check? Thanks

you can ask for crystallised ginger after dinner too - it's delicious!

My husband is lactose intolerant and they were excellent. If you let them know you can see the following day's menu at dinner, and choose from it and they will adapt accordingly where possible. There was always lactose free milk in the buffet and we ordered some from room service for the cabin. In addition, lactose free cakes & desserts were clearly marked in the buffet.

The menu for the Indian option for Dinner at the Lido looked wonderful but we didn't get chance to try it. We did go to Verandah and tbh, weren't that impressed. The service was excellent, to the point of being OTT; maybe we made the wrong choices but didn't feel it was worth the extra money. I would definitely try the Indian another time. There was no problem booking mid-cruise.

We got 2$ to the £ on our honeymoon TA 14 years ago. Happy days!

We were on QE in July/August. We tried the Golden Lion (good fish & chips), Buffet (great salads), outside grill (very good and a daily special eg crab cakes), Cafe Carinthia (delicious small plates eg seafood, charcuterie) and the Verandah. We weren't very impressed with the Verandah, maybe our choices were wrong but just didn't feel it lived up to the hype. The food in the Britannia was generally good, though I did have a very poor steak one night. The Indian and Chinese selections were particularly good.

many thanks Wally, yes I've seen the "dining experience" menus - they look excellent. Very much looking forward to trying them, there's certainly enough choice for me.

thanks Ryan, we'll do it as soon as we get on board. We go March 3rd but the offer has been up for a couple of months. Maybe April is the start of the new season?

another question: we've booked the 4 restaurants and show speciality dining package. How does that work once we are onboard - do we have to book each one or will we be pre-booked? thanks