cublet

Hello, Can I ask what was the origin of your OBC and, if you know, the reasoning for its removal? I have a bid outstanding for an upgrade but also have lots of OBC too that originated from 'Cruise with confidence' and converting refund/FCC to OBC. I don't want to pay for an upgrade and lose the OBC. Regards, Cublet

Hello, Once on board, you do not make your booking at the Butcher's Cut but at a counter/station at L' Atelier Bar just outside the entrance to the Indochine Restaurant on deck 6 that is otherwise not identified but deals with all specialty restaurant bookings. Regards, Cublet

Hello, I have not got problem with a dress code but I do with its frequency. In a few minutes I will be off to join QV for four nights to Hamburg and return. Of those four nights two are formal - including the last night when, on other lines, my formal wear will have been packed-away (and maybe even taken away) and I am in smart casual. I will of course respect the first formal night, but doubt the second. Regards, Cublet

Hello, I'm not casting doubt on anything previously written here but would like to know when & where these 'weigh-ins' take place. Despite two MSC departures from Southampton last year, I have no recollection of the check-in process apart from the nasal swab nor the building's architecture - like are there scales similar to an airline check-in counter? Did I leave my luggage at some point outside of the departure entrance as I do with RCI & X? I cannot remember and I hope it's not my age! Is there enough time between luggage deposit and ship's departure for every item to be weighed and yanked-off the conveyor belt if outside the weight parameters? I think this new requirement may have been put in more as a 'marker' or warning and there may not be the ability to enforce it. Yet. Regards, Cublet

Hello, Both 'off topic' and 'off cruise-line' but nevertheless similar and entertaining: Independence is saying 'get off my berth', Eclipse replies with 'in my own time'. It was much louder onboard the Independence too. I felt sorry for any townies trying to get some shut-eye! Regards, Cublet

Hello, The single special supplement 'sale' went from the UK website weeks ago. My April departure (booked with only a 20% supplement) is available in the UK to book now with a full 100% supplement. However it is available on the US website with a 62% single supplement AND kids sail free. Even if the offer was available on all ships and all itineraries it could not be available to all bookings as, in the extreme, the ships could theoretically be (half) 'full' of solo passengers. Regards, Cublet

Hello, At least it was meaningful. My response to a thread title "What would you do?" is quite simple - I move on to read further threads where the titles give me a clue what they are about. Regards, Cublet

Hello, I did a World Wine Tour on Eclipse some years ago. Whoever set it up did not know the difference between the Australian and New Zealand flags. I don't attend these or the wine tasting/pairing sessions as they are usually held in the mornings and that's starting on a slope I don't want to go down. Regards, Cublet

Hello, I'm sure we all know that what 'shoreside' thinks does not always tally with what 'on-board' thinks or does. But the Voyagers Club general T&Cs says "Some benefits are not delivered to 0-17 years guests and are not applicable on 4 days & 3 nights cruise or less". Moreover the long T&Cs says "Complimentary Speciality Restaurant “Tasting Menu” Dinner [Diamond]. Members are entitled to enjoy a tasting menu dinner at a speciality restaurant once during the cruise (beverages excluded). Members may extend their invitation to one occupant of the same cabin only once and only if the cabin mate is not a Diamond card member. Privilege and speciality restaurants may not be available on all ship classes. Members under 18 must be accompanied in order to enjoy the privilege" with no mention of cruise duration. However, there is always a however, reading the detailed list of on-board benefits T&Cs, it appears it's only the Welcome Back Cocktail Party, Complimentary Dancing Class, MSC Voyagers Club Diamond Members party and Sweet Chocolate (Diamond) Gift are not offered on cruises of less than 4 nights. Note we seem to have moved from 4 days on the general T&Cs to 4 nights on the detailed T&Cs - is this sloppiness or intended (my bold)? Regards, Cublet

Hello, I don't think the chilled desserts in the WJ taste bad, it's that they don't taste of anything and are there for appearance only. What I do like are the hot dishes, called 'gunge puddings' from my university halls of residence refectory days, that come with hot sauce that you will probably burn yourself trying to ladle out of the pot. Here appearance counts for nothing and it's all in the eating. Regards, Cublet

Hello, It's too early on a Sunday morning to delve through all my Cunard paperwork to establish all of what they do on singles' pricing, but here are some facts from RCI, X and the real world where I used to be a shipping agent. RCI & X charge a solo passenger one person's Port Fees & Taxes and one persons 'Service Charge'/'Hotel Charge'/'Gratuities' - for the avoidance of doubt, these will be half a couple's. The port authority will charge a shipping company £X pp on a ship's manifest regardless of whether they are in a single/double/treble cabin. So a shipping company charging a solo the couple's price for a cabin is pocketing half the PF&T for itself. Regards, Cublet PS: This is why, if there is any justice, the PF&T for a missed port of call should be refunded as the ship will not be paying them.

Hello, None of my current bookings have any OBC so I have 'no skin in the game'. But all my bookings with RCI have had double OBC as a singleton until I reached a 'break-point' where I paid only a 50% single supplement whereupon my OBC was 75% of a couple's. Regards, Cublet

Hello, Not mentioned thus far is pricing for singletons. With inclusive pricing, solos, paying a 100% single supplement, were paying for two drinks packages and resented the fact. I think X needs to take a long hard look at pricing as it seems to have been more reactive than strategic. Regards, Cublet

Hello, Sorry I was not clear. We can make any number of changes of ship or date (or both). We can only make one change to the current booking to achieve a lower price. Regards, Cublet

Hello, Once, and only once, on Indy I was asked whether I wanted to book under US or UK T&Cs. Regards, Cublet

Hello, UK payment terms are 70 days prior to sailing. I don't understand comment about deposit - it's usually £150 pp with no reduction for booking on board or £99 'special'. Not sure about cancellation fees but if booked on board UK pax can make unlimited changes FOC until final payment date. Regards, Cublet

Hello, What is more I think Brilliance was then owned directly by RCCL UK. It would be nice to have two ships again offering different itineraries. I was counting-out my collection of FX in prep for my April Cunard & MSC and have tons of Icelandic that I need to use-up before any of it ceases to be legal tender (as happened with some of my Norwegian Kroner last year). Regards, Cublet

Hello, On Vitruosa in the summer the upper limit is £14 (fourteen pounds). The PE package cannot be used in 'signature venues'. Regards, Cublet

Hello, That is what I got out of it. I can only presume that someone booked using a place of residency that was not really theirs and then something arose and a claim for benefits was made that were not available in the place used for booking but was available in the true place of residency. RCI are saying "you can't have it both ways". That's fair enough but RCI needs to train its muppets that different areas have different benefits/rights in term of booking T&Cs and US rules are not universal as they are the only ones the agents seem to know. I took photographs of the slides of a NextCruise presentation that saved friends £300 for booking changes that the US/Guatemala agents insisted were due, but not according to the NextCruise presentation for UK pax. Regards, Cublet

Hello, Once upon a time, Brilliance was 'run' out of the UK. Regards, Cublet

Hello, My TA has sent me this (along with another 35 pages!): Regards, Cublet

Hello, I fear I may have rejoiced too soon. From the 'home' page, if I go down from 'On Board' > 'Dining and Drinks' > 'Drink Packages' then the PE package does say it can be used in specialty restaurants. However if I go to my booking then go to add a PE package as if I did not already have one, then that page says it may NOT be used in specialty restaurants. I think it's sloppy to say the least that there are two versions of the same page live at the same time. I have sent this to MSC but don't expect a direct response. Regards, Cublet

Hello, Whether it was my email to MSC or my TA but this morning the wording on the PE package now says: "*The Premium Extra Package can be enjoyed in our bars, buffet, main restaurant and specialty restaurants as well as on private islands, but does not cover our signature venues." Now only the Easy, Alcohol Free and Minors' packages that may not be used in specialty restaurants. Yippee! Regards, Cublet

Hello, This reminds of the joke I heard many times in OZ when I first moved there: How do you know that a plane load of Poms has landed at the airport? Because the whining goes on after the engines have stopped. Regards, Cublet

Hello, I think MSC are taking lessons on inept/contradictory web design/content from RCI. I have my original booking confirmation details AND boarding confirmation details both saying my PE drinks package can be used in specialty restaurants, but not signature ones (sailing later this month). However the webpages 'Packages > Drinks > PE' says it cannot be used in a specialty restaurant. This used to be the case for the lesser packages so, being charitable, someone just cut and pasted the T&Cs across all the packages - maybe? What I also have, back in the days of the €13 limit on PE drinks, is a bullet point that says: ENTIRE SELECTION [my emphasis] of wines and champagne by the glass. I'm a bit miffed that I have been sent an upgrade email for the first of my B2B but not the second. Regards, Cublet