no1talks

You might be surprised to find out how small the security teams are on many cruise ships. There are too few to have them ready to respond to every belligerent passenger called out for rule breaking. So, ships just let violations slide to avoid escalation. Carnival is a notable exception. When videos of passengers brawling with each other became regular viewing, security was increased.

Cruise staff not confronting passengers who are doing what they shouldn't is not just an MSC Yacht Club issue. I read all the active cruise line boards on CC and there are many reports of staff/management turning a blind eye and not enforcing their own policies. If this is because cruise lines want to minimize social media video posts of verbal confrontations during enforcement, things won't improve.

If gatecrashers are blending in and ordering drinks in the lounge or on the deck, they are slowing the service to a lesser or greater degree for those who paid an increased fare to legitimately receive the service. (Not to mention to possible connection the lunch moochers had to the elimination of the once-a-cruise seafood buffet. I'll let @morpheusofthesea explain that one.)

I assume those without a drink package could seamlessly make a purchase. MSC needs those impulse buys to offset the low-cost fares.

Have seen this and can verify. (It was sooo tasty.)

All the better to drive gelato sales. It is my considered opinion that MSC relies heavily on passenger spending on the ship and close-to-the-bone staffing levels to make their business model work. Whatever they give that most other cruise lines don't (honoring drink packages on their private island and letting you convert OBC to cash in the casino, as examples) has to be made up elsewhere.

Preparing for the larger World group of ships, I think. It would be nutty to have two ships call on the same day. Imagine 11k passengers swarming Ocean Cay from two full ships. 🤯

This is an excellent point. No one wants to unwittingly say to a crew member, "By the way, that mustache-twirling villain who made your life difficult three cruises ago says, 'Hello.'"

Oddly enough, T. Tim's peculiar rendition was not the most successful release of this song. The original was released in the late 20s by Nick Lucas, a performer not unlike Rudy Vallée and the song was #1 for more than ten weeks.

Going out on a limb here... They are not very good. Clearly not MSC house musicians. Probably brought on board as a trial gig. Based on the looks of the passengers, I'd say this is a Med cruise. MSC's Med cruises embark and disembark throughout the cruise, so even better for a quick on-and-off for some trial entertainment. How did I do, Stockjock?

To this day, I'm still shocked, shocked about that. 😉

Barbra Streisand Streisandish, or Robin Williams Streisandish?

That's the "psychotically affected" thing I mentioned earlier. 😉

Either that or psychotically affected. 🤪

''Tis a rock!... a peak!... a cape! A cape, forsooth! 'Tis a peninsula!"

Good one!

Modesty forbids me any affirmation as such. Even though ol' Cyrano would have had the upper hand at crossing swords, I have bested him in one significant way. He didn't even make it to middle age, the poor fellow.

You flatter me, kind sir. However in mindfulness of your observation, I must admit to owning a genuine rapier. (For ren faires, not dueling.)

Not to take away from Victorian sensibilities, Morpheus, I think the Greeks of antiquity had the right of it when it comes to understanding love. They defined seven types of love, from the juvenile to the sublime, which I will leave for interested readers to investigate. (Some scholars say the ancient Greeks recognized eight types, adding mania.) Accordingly, both the tulip and the rose can shine in their respective significations of love, neither being superior to the other.

I quite agree with your take on the issue, Morgsmom. Unfortunately, the loss of those overnights will be one more example of discontinued things that allowed MSC to stand out from other lines.

But, objectively speaking, these are not the same suites. The suites on luxury lines have much better stuff. I could not recall whether you stayed in a Grand or Grandeur Suite, so I watched tour videos for both. Those suites have many features lacking in both the Owners and Royal Suites on MSC. Of course, it is perfectly reasonable if full-suite features existing on Regent or Crystal or Seabourn are not wanted and therefore not missed in an MSC full suite. However, Regent and the rest will still charge a fare reflecting the availability of those features. If we were currently retired and spending the nest egg, we'd find that room more than satisfactory. We won't be quite so well-heeled to stay in that level of accomodation frequently. However, for a particular itinerary or special occasion, count us in. Out of curiosity, I did a test booking for a Grandeur Suite on Grandeur, one-week Miami round-trip, early December of this year. Total for the two of us was $17,193.10.

I know YC Royal and Owners suites have devoted fans. That being said, these suites are just not equipped in the manner I would require for a real suite. I'd only want an actual suite if the itinerary is suitable for entertaining guests for before-dinner cocktails, a meal at table, or a card game. Unfortunately, Royal and Owners suites lack a guest bathroom. I would not dream of having guests without a tidy bathroom free of all the stuff we all generally leave on the vanity during a cruise. The real gems from my point of view are the YC duplex suites. One can keep the lower half-bath free of toothpaste tubes, mouthwash, and razors and have the butler put things in "entertaining mode" with a stack of hand towels, a diffuser air freshener, and the proper liquid soap & hand lotion I'd pack if planning on having guests. (MSC's is okay, but I think we can do better.) The duplex suites on World Europa are even nicer, since there is an upper level on the balcony providing enough outdoor space to take a small party outside as well. I assume World America's duplex suites will be similar.

Thank you, Morpheus, for adding color to my analytical musings.

I, too, find the increasing "Americanization" of food and entertainment offputting. However, there is an itinerary I want to try as soon as the timing can be made to work. MSC has a Lesser Antilles run in the Caribbean that equally splits the embarkations in 2025 between Martinique and Guadeloupe. Americans have a harder time getting to those two islands than Europeans might. Three French airports have direct flights to Martinique and Guadeloupe, but in the US, there is only Miami. (In the case of Guadeloupe, New York has seasonal direct service.) This difference in direct flight access causes me to hope those cruises still maintain more of the original MSC experience.

We've not been on a river cruise, but I've studied the subject a bit. I get the impression the small area of these boats makes for a somewhat regimented experience until one is off the boat and seeing the sights.