Maria63

It´s not at all unusual for small hotels and b&b:s in Italy to not have elevators. Especially if the building itself is old and only later converted into a hotel. If an elevator is essential for you, it is best to make sure beforehand. I hope the situation works out for you, and perhaps it´s not too late to cancel the booking and look elsewhere?

Regardless of the season, I would recommend long pants for the gentlemen and something that covers the knees & shoulders for the ladies, if you plan to do city-sightseeing in Italy. Then you don´t need to worry about being properly dressed when you enter churches and cathedrals. As others have pointed out, it can rain in late October so bring an umbrella or a light rain jacket. The sidewalks and pavements in the historic centers can turn very slippery when wet, so you need shoes with a good sole grip.

We spent 14 nights in this kind of cabin back in 2022. The bathroom design is certainly very awkward, and one issue is that once you step out of the shower, you will inevitably make the entrance floor wet, unless you make sure to arrange towels to step on. We were lucky to have a cabin with the bed close to the balcony and the sofa next to the sink, and I would highly recommend that you pick this configuration. There´s slightly more space to move around and the bed is not quite next to the sink. Seems that every now and then, ship designers decide that it would be fun to play around with the bathroom and come up with new ideas. It seldom works out well in the end. For instance, the major Italian line Costa cruises (part of Carnival) has two fairly new mega-ships, the Toscana and Smeralda. These are great in many ways and have premium cabins with an extra outdoor space that is fantastic - but they have replaced the bathroom wall with a semi-see through glass panel, covered only by a curtain that is operated from the bedroom side.

I can understand your disappointment if you come from RCI and Celebrity and expect a similar experience. Still, MSC is very budget-friendly and appears to be steadily improving with their newer ships. We´ve only done MSC outside the US, in the Med and also a couple of Suez-repos pre-covid on their older ships. Imo, it is essential when considering MSC and doing your research, to keep in mind when reading reviews that the YC-experience in no way reflects the reality on the rest of the ship. Still, MSC can be a very good choice if you for instance want to do the Mediterranean on a limited budget (though I would caution against going during the summer months, but that goes for all cruise lines).

We did a B2B on Epic right after your sailing, and I was one of those who had to agree with your general assessment. We still had an enjoyable cruise overall though, the itinerary was great, the weather was lovely and as it was late October the ship was not at full capacity by far. The Ben & David video unfortunately indicates that there are still some serious issues with the general maintenance, and it is obvious that the person / persons responsible for these things on Epic do not care very much. Regardless of what you think of Ben & David and vloggers in general, the video-footage is what it is. Poor ship design and general wear and tear due to aging are one thing, but a serious lack of cleanliness in the public areas is another matter altogether. If they can´t be bothered to clear the tables, wash windows, and sweep the decks in a long while, then who knows what goes on in the kitchens with food hygiene & storage, and can they be trusted to properly monitor the bacteria levels in the pools? On land, I would not eat in a restaurant or stay at a hotel that appears to be severely neglecting general cleanliness, but on a ship you have no options once you are onboard.

We did World Europa non-YC last fall, and they did not have Starbucks nor Starbucks-style takeaway coffee. If I remember correctly, they have partnered with Segafredo which is a major Italian brand. We brought our own instant coffee and added it to the coffee I used to bring to our cabin from the buffet, their coffee mugs are of a decent size. I don´t remember the tea brands but bringing your own instant coffee and tea bags is certainly a good idea.

I can´t say for sure about Perrier or Pellegrino, but if unavailable I would recommend the local brand "Vichy Catalan". Last October they had it in 6-packs of 1 liter bottles. Tastes are subjective of course, but we found it to be at least as good as Pellegrino.

My DH & I are in our early 60s, and our favorite lines are Celebrity & RCI (due to loyalty benefits), but we have also cruised with Viking, Azamara, Cunard, HAL, Princess, Costa, and MSC (both YC and non-YC). To be blunt, I would recommend that you do a thorough research before booking, and you need to be aware that the YC-reviews and experiences do in no way reflect the experience on the rest of the ship. MSC is a very different product than Celebrity, and generally much more lively, noisy, and crowded. On the newer MSC-ships with the Galeria-design (for instance World Europa) you will struggle to find a quiet lounge, and as the YC takes up most of the front of the ship, there is nothing like an observation lounge in the front for non-YC. However, if the itinerary is port-intensive and you plan to do lots of excursions, MSC can be a very sensible choice budget-wise, as the experience on the ship itself might then be a secondary consideration. In the Mediterranean MSC allows you to embark in most ports along the itinerary, so you have lots of flexibility and choices in how you plan your flights and pre- & post-cruise travels

I´m no expert on the monsoon patterns by far, but if I´ve got it right it is somewhat complicated. For instance, in Thailand, Phuket on the west coast is usually fine in late December, while Koh Samui on the east coast gets rains and high winds until around February. Singapore also has more or less daily showers until at least February.

I would say it depends on your embarkation port. At least in Barcelona, on embarkation day your carryons are scanned by port security, and they do not (in our experience) enforce cruise line -specific regulations about bringing alcoholic- or non-alcoholic drinks onboard. Besides, after the security-scan at the terminal, there is a duty-free where you can buy soft drinks, wine & spirits, and bring them onboard without any interrogation or further checking of bags on embarkation day.

One thing to keep in mind is that December is in the middle of the rainy season in much of Indonesia, so it´s a less-than-ideal time to visit for instance Bali. The scenery in the interior is absolutely breath taking, but when shrouded in clouds & rain you don´t get to see any of it.

DH & I did the Indonesian Discovery in 2023 on Westerdam, and I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in history & culture as it takes you to places you would not normally get to visit on a holiday trip to the region. In Jakarta we took a private tour with a local guide, and had ample time at the Jakarta History Museum and the Old Town. The cultural tour of Lombok was also fascinating, to name just a few of the interesting places. Komodo dragons on the other hand are perhaps somewhat overrated, but the scenery in these parts is very beautiful.

It´s true that rude and inconsiderate people exist in all cultures. But as for the "who is the last one?" -system, I had it explained to me by my native Spanish language teacher when I lived there. I then also experienced it in real life for instance in the post offices in Spain.

DH & I went through the Suez the first week of this December on Costa Toscana and did not notice any unusual security arrangements. Later on, some 2 weeks ago, we witnessed NCL Dawn being grandly welcomed into Doha, Qatar, with water cannon salutations. We are currently in Dubai and tourism is in full swing, though there appears to be significantly fewer American or Western European visitors than before.

There´s no need for a taxi or other form of transport if you just want to have lunch in town. There are very good food courts within easy walking distance from the cruise pier.

If your embarkation is at the Marina cruise terminal, there are duty free shops that sell both wine and spirits, so taking alcohol onboard is not an issue for the local authorities. Dubai is nowadays not very restrictive regarding alcohol, you are for instance allowed to bring some 4 liters into the country for personal use and the law that allowed drinking only at licenced venues (not for instance in private apartments) has also been dropped for now. On embarkation day, cruise ships do not usually scan your bags when you enter the ship itself, but the scanning is handled by port security. I would recommend you carry the alcohol in its original bottle in your hand luggage. If the cruise ship does not allow it, they will confiscate it and give it back to you at the end of the cruise.

No, only for sushi.

We were on World Europa in November as diamond. The complimentary dinner only includes Hola Tacos, Butcher´s Cut and the Sushi place, but not Chef´s Garden or the fish restaurant. We did Chef´s Garden as part of the dinner package and had the limited menu, and found it to be a bit overly fussy and only so-so taste wise. Our preferred choice would still be Butcher´s Cut.

My DH & I have during the past 15 yrs crused a lot with RC (our preferred line due to the loyalty benefits) & Celebrity, but also with everything from Viking, Azamara and Cunard to the older MSC and Costa ships. Last November we did a b2b on World Europa and were actually pleasantly surprised regarding the food. In our opinion MSC is steadily improving food-wise, though crowd management is still something of an issue. If you do book Aurea you get to dine in a more peaceful MDR-environment, but if not, speciality dining is worth considering if you want a more upscale feel to the dining. We had a dining package and did Hola, Chef´s Garden, Sushi and Butcher´s Cut and enjoyed them all. The package-menu in Butcher´s Cut is limited but this was not an issue in our opinion and we were quite happy with what was included in the package. We found it to be at least as good as Chops on RC. One thing worth noting if you want a good table inside and not in the rather noisy Galeria, is to book a time as soon as they open at 18.30 and be there a few minutes before opening time. They don´t do reservations for specific tables but operate on a first come, first serve -basis. Chef´s Garden is the most upscale experience in our opinion, but we found it to be a bit overly fussy regarding the food presentation, though the taste of the food was fine. In Chef´s Garden the limitation of the package-menu is also more noticable than in Butcher´s Cut.

I would say yes, because Hambantota is not very densly populated but the roads are still surprisingly well developed in this part of the country. There is much less traffic than if you start your trip from Colombo. However, I would advise you to discuss your plans in detail with a local tour operator and ask their opinion.

This is very good & sound advice. Personally, having once had my shoulder handbag snatched from me in Spain (won´t go into details, but I was lucky to get it back with the help of some young, alert, and fit locals who caught the perpetrator) I always carry a PacSafe bag and wear it across my body. I also try not to come across as an attractive target by avoiding wearing expensive-looking clothing & accessories while sightseeing and city touring. Other than pickpockets and petty thieves though, I can´t see that there are any other safety issues to be concerned about in Europe if you travel as a cruise tourist.

My DH & I had CO on Westerdam last February. The dining arrangement for us worked more or less like this: At the entrance to the MDR there was a separate CO-concierge and a separate line. We got a very nice window table for 2 and had the same table every night. My impression was that this area in the MDR was designated for CO, but I can´t be sure whether non-CO guests also at times dined in the same area as it did not matter to us. We were very pleased with the dining experience and happy that we had the CO as the MDR generally could get rather noisy and crowded.

Sorry, I have never visited Sri Lanka on a cruise, though my DH & I have stayed there for extended periods of time during the past 20 years. If you mean Cinnamon Island on Koggala Lake in the very south, it is quite a long drive to get there and back, and the traffic in Colombo and its outskirts (if your cruise stops in Colombo and not in Hambantota) can be pretty horrendous, frankly. If you stay overnight in a reputable hotel or B&B, I can´t see that there would be any exceptional safety issues to worry about. But this is of course a very personal matter and not something someone else can decide for you.

Currently on Toscana. The lunch in MDR is until 13.30 and in the buffet on port days/embarkation day until 16.00.

I don´t recall any stairs either. The wait to get back on the tenders was very long though and required standing in the sun without any shade. My recommendation would be to be prepared with an umbrella against the sun and a water bottle.