Mark_T

Start from the default position, which is there is no need to tip everyone as you are already doing that through the daily service charge. Beyond that, MSC policy is not to tip individually, but of course we know that isn't going to stop people, especially on a cruise out of a US port, so we focus on those that go above and beyond, which narrows the field somewhat. As explained above, the envelopes are readily available, and although not expected you will not find anyone actively refusing a tip 🙂

Only seen it reported from one ship so far, so a 'trial' I'd say, rather than a fleet change...

It is true for everyone now though, the Covid extensions will be no help to anyone matching now. Also important to realize the cut-off is the date the cruise completes, not the date it starts, so a subsequent cruise must end within 3 years of the end of the previous cruise to maintain status.

Go read one or two of the excellent 'Live' threads from @JamieLogical then set your expectations accordingly. You don't have to pay for Yacht Club to get a good cruise on MSC.

The web updates are up to the usual standard, they added the 'MSC for Me' badge to the image of the Divina, but didn't add her to the text description further down the page.

It works fine, it didn't in June last year but it has been added since then, and was working fine in February when we were onboard...

Certainly lemon when we got them on Divina in Feb.

So Pepe has moved on elsewhere?

If it helps, I took this photo on Divina in February this year...

It isn't usually particularly noticeable, especially when the ports are all inside the Schengen zone, as there are practically no formalities around boarding or leaving the ship. When we disembarked in Sicily our Butler took our bags all the way to the taxi.

Yes, Elite on Princess or Zenith on Celebrity would both match to Diamond.

Same for us, I matched to Gold and my wife started at zero to preserve her match opportunity just in case we needed it in the future. Our recent Caribbean cruise added 4,900 for her taking her to Gold, and 6,800 points for me taking me well past the 10,000 for Diamond. I know that YC helps with the points as did booking the cruise onboard, but I still can't explain the points attributed to 'On-board shopping' for us both... Not a complaint, obviously 🙂

All of those will match to Gold on MSC. Explora has it's own 'Exclusive Welcome Match' program so although they do not directly use the MSC program they do offer incentives based on MSC status, and the other lines you mentioned. Do be aware that MSC only offer the match as a 'one-time' deal, and status only lasts for 3 years if you do not cruise so use it wisely...

No, that will match to Gold. Pinnacle would get you a match to Diamond on MSC

In the spirit of keeping this thread on track, I'd just say that not all the waiting teams were of the same calibre from what we observed and experienced, but our favorites by far were Glenn/Susmita with occasional roving assistance from Ryan, who although not part of our team was always engaging and helpful. The wine list is always available on request, but due to the location of Le Muse, I suspect they do not generally offer it during service as it can take some time to retrieve specific bottles. I always made requests at breakfast which gave them plenty of time.

We had some OBC to burn so we did order a few bottles from the wine list and they did have pretty much everything we ordered, I think that particular bottle was our 2nd choice on that day. The included wines were actually decent as well, only miss was one of the two Pinot Grigio offerings, it was too sweet, I don't recall the name, but the Germain Pinot Grigio was the better choice.

You can go to the YC Concierge once you are onboard and let them know you are interested in an upgrade, but you may find they cannot confirm vacancies until boarding has completed so they can be sure any 'no-shows' really aren't coming. Those who were able to bid for upgrades will have been accommodated by then so unless there were too few bids, it is just the 'no-shows' that may still be open...

Divina does not have a Sommelier in the YC restaurant, but I would suggest you ask to be seated in Glenn's section and he will take good care of you along with his assistant, Susmeta...

That would be the way I'd approach it as well, since you can't blame the staff for everyone arriving too close to the end of service to be accommodated, but they should have redirected to the YC buffet, especially on the first day when many guests might not even know it existed...

It is more that you can't make a reservation than that you don't need one, but especially for lunch the times are a bit limited so with everyone boarding and heading there it is risky to leave it until late. The other option of course is the YC pool buffet rather than the main buffet, and of course Hola! is open for lunch on embarkation day as well.

It would also be good to confirm that the version of the Terms sent at the time the cruise was booked also contain these covid clauses...

With respect you are reading that as 'five days prior to the day of embarkation..' but that is not what it says. 'Within 5 days prior to embarkation' is 5 days before the act of embarkation, not before the embarkation day, so I can't see how that can be a clear statement that the day of embarkation doesn't count...

The booking confirmation email comes with a copy of the terms, so that should be all you need. Similarly if the terms that KimPossible1 received with the booking confirmation for this cruise include the Covid clauses then she should be clear for any further action she decides to take.

If you check the version you would have received when you made the original booking, is the same language in there as well? Curious, as there is nothing similar in the UK terms so wondering if this is a website issue as this sort of language disappeared from most cruise lines some time ago…

Personally I'd start with the credit card route, if that hasn't already hit the time-limit for a claim, as it is likely to be the quickest and easiest path to a refund....