ConnieTact

I didn’t realise that. It’s been a while since we drove to Southampton as we now prefer the train. That works out very reasonably with a TwoTogether card or other railway discount card.

Thanks so much! It’s always great to get positive feedback! I hope you have a great cruise in June!

If it doesn’t work just give them a call. They are lovely and will tell you the latest code.

Have a safe homeward journey! I hope the strike action doesn’t delay your travels.

That’s my fave pasta dish! I loved it! glad you enjoyed it!

I think ships can get crowded on sea days and if the weather is inclement and guests stay inside. So this would vary depending on how many guests, what time of year and the itinerary. This time, there always seemed to be somewhere to go to even when busy. Our experience in both the YC restaurant and Main dining rooms has been tables that are close together. There has been no difference, This is on the Virtuosa and Grandiosa. Maybe it’s different on other ships? We both came away with coughs, and there was quite a lot of coughing onboard throughout the week. We tested, and continue to test, negative for Covid though.

Looks like you had a fabulous time! We hope to meet you again one day @LiquidWu. You must be arriving in Hamburg soon. Have safe onward travels. Thanks for the great live report.

We did that one on Virtuosa last year- it was really good! I hope you enjoy it!

We didn’t see any of this on this cruise. I know the shorter cruises from UK can attract those type of groups but this time it wasn’t like that in any bay we went too- all very civilised but fun too! I guess it’s the luck of the draw! Thanks for your kind words & for virtually sailing along with me!

I’m sure you’ll love it. I heard of several guests getting free upgrades and we have been fortunate in the past too. Enjoy!

Thanks @kernow for your encouragement. I feel the same- I love virtually travelling along with people too!

Have a fantastic cruise @FamilyCruiserUK Are you going in YC- sorry if you have already told me! I’m still not feeling 100%! Whatever experience- I am sure you’ll enjoy the break. I hope you get to do the port stops you want to as well.

Oh great! We may meet up onboard one day if prices drop again. B2B sounds good. We would probably do a few ports with a few rest days too each week. As you indicated we could get two weeks for the price of one in YC if the deal was right!

No, as it’s not their fault. The French were striking against changes to pensions and was out of the control of MSC. The master made the decision we could do Amsterdam as winds were due to be high and that’s completely his call. What captain says goes. The same on any ship I guess- I know NCL say this too. Although some people were disappointed to miss Honfleur & Paris- we were happy to enjoy another day of rest enjoying relaxing on the ship.

He already committed the crime! He caught and brought in the house a pigeon when we were away! Our cleaner had to deal with the carnage! She’s getting paid extra for that! 😿😅 Naughty Ziggy!

That’s the million dollar question! I will absolutely do the same again in a heartbeat if a similar offer arises. Our next MSC cruise is back on the Virtuosa in October when she repositions. We are booked in YC! Maybe I’ll have to feedback again what I think. For the savings on price, this was an excellent extra break, made all the more exciting to be booked with just a week to go! We are also booked on Europa in January but the next cruise, coming up is on NCL Star in May. Thank you for following along!

Someone is waiting for us at home! Always a great feeling to be reunited with your pets after your travels!

I really did and although the sea was smooth all week, if it wasn’t our midship balcony certainly would have been better than being high up at the front! Another bonus of non YC! I loved our room 12258 as it was right near the main set of lifts aft of the ship.

The highlight of my last nite onboard had to be Dario in Masters of the Sea singing and playing a different Paolo Nutini song! He did it proud and I was thrilled to bits to hear one of my favourite songs and I was left grateful and very, very happy! Better still, as we were one of the last few stragglers left in the pub-when he announced it was the last song- we asked for the aptly named-‘Last Request’ by Paolo. I danced with MrCT and we sang along too. It’s a beautiful song and means a lot to us both. A special moment 🥰 Thank you Dario- you’re a star! See you on the Europa in January next year!

Just pulling into port. Good Morning Fred!

We have been very happy with our cabin steward Kishor. He has been super efficient, never disturbed us but cleaned the room around the times that we were out. He sorted smelly drain/sink - twice! Then, even put a aromatherapy diffuser in the bathroom! I mentioned I found the bed hard and hadn’t slept well and he straight away put an additional mattress topper on for that night and I have slept like a baby ever since! Honestly, due to such great service in our room, I have not missed butler service in YC. The only thing is, I need to remember to get my own bottles of water to take to the room each night. In the YC, I have several large bottles to hand! Maybe we will see Kishor in YC as an assistant butler one day soon? He certainly would be perfectly suitable for that role. While I am in the subject of room cleaning, our other fave company is NCL who have recently stopped a twice a day room service, (unless in top end Haven) to just once a day. I absolutely love that MSC haven’t done this, and even Bella can get the same service as those in YC. Well done MSC!

I like your strategy @insidecabin😀

I have an observation about having men cleaners in the ladies toilets! I’m not sure why there seem to be no women cleaners for this task. I am sure I am not the only one to feel uncomfortable with a man following me into a toilet or to discover one already in there! I wish, at the least, MSC would use a notice to say ‘Male cleaner on duty’ or the like. This would give guests the choice whether to go in or wait. Better still, get more women onboard for the task!

I’m enjoying this!

Back to live reporting- the sun is rising here in England and it is a pleasant ‘welcome home!’ We have been on many cruise to and from this port but never actually watched a sail in before!