Utopia62

On 6/22/2022 at 10:39 AM, thejonesmob said:

Hi, we have just booked this package also, leaving from Perth. Just starting to get all the info we can about each leg of the journey. Would love to hear what you have found out! Cheers Sal & Greg

Hi, sorry for the late reply, didn’t get notification even though it is ticked. I booked with Mycruises and have just received an email regarding flights so things are starting to move! I have requested departing from Sydney but will have wait and see. Would be lovely to catch up onboard. Warm regards Helen 

Hi, what great comments! I am Australian, from the tiny island of Tasmania, I am booked on this cruise, fly to Dubai and board the ship there and disembark in Genoa, then do a 7 day tour of Italy which is part of the package. So looking forward to it as Covid put a stop to my Bellissimo cruise. Hope to meet you all on board 🤞

On 4/6/2022 at 8:49 AM, Nunagoras said:

Hi!... Welcome to the MSC boards!...

 

If you read the MSC Boards, you'll find pretty much most of the info you're asking for. If you need some info about the ports of call, please be free to go to the ports of call CC boards.

 

MSC is an Italian line, so, first advise: Expect a very multinational crowd aboard, and in result a very multilingual one as well. English won't be the most spoken language aboard, though, both crew and most of the well traveled MSC clientele will have some English speaking level at least to a certain degree that more than covers the basics.

 

At the time of your sailing, the World Europa will have just a few months in service. Considering it is the first on its class, expect a few small "bugs" to be ironed out with the time. The World Europa will just to be a little smaller than an RCI's Oasis Class vessel, so bear in mind with its size.

 

Otherwise what can I say? As far as I know, all your ports of call will to be within the confines of the Schengen Agreement, that said once you'll enter in Barcelona till you exit from Barcelona, you'll to be like if you were at the same country. Currency here and at the cruise will to be the Euro. I suggest you choose a card with no international fees associated with. Transaction currency change used by MSC will to be Bloomberg quote of the time of transaction, if by then they don't have an option to give you the bill directly in Dollars.

 

Barcelona is a very nice city to visit for some 2 days before the cruise, if you have that possibility. It is advisable to purchase the Sagrada Família Church entrance online to avoid the ques if you so want to go inside. Plenty of taxis running the city even though sort of on the expensive side of the pound. The "official" HOHO bus lines daily tickets are reasonably priced though, as well as their public transportation system.

 

If Rome is on your itinerary take the visit as just an opportunity to have a glimpse of what it has to offer. No time for more than that on a regular port day, considering the huge distance from port to city center.

 

Private shore excursions may be slightly less expensive than MSC sponsored ones, but if you don't feel comfortable with going on your own, pick the ships sponsored ones. In Rome, I think it is the best choice in any case. You won't like to be left behind the ship in case of a delay...

 

And more? Well: I think I've covered most of the basics. Read the most negative reviews in these boards with a grain of salt. MSC is surely different. I've covered that earlier on my post, but that doesn't mean they're worse than the others. If you have some experience with the likes of CCL, RCI or NCL, you'll know that you're on such a similar standards cruise line. MSC's website is not the best on this world for sure. Their call centers do have such a bad reputation on these boards for sure, but the onboard experience is usually consistent. Personally I'm not a fan of what I'm watching about the World ship class, but that may be subjective. Let the product to land out later in the year and we will see.

 

Have a nice day and a nice sailing!...

Hi, any Australians booked on this cruise?