Its my first time, im nervous!

Hello everyone! I’m new to the forum. Really excited to be part of the community and hopefully contribute here.

To start things of, here are some info. In July, my family and I are going to our very first cruise. We haven’t decided yet which cruise line to book but we have been eyeing MSC or CCL. Our party consists of 2 adults and 2 kids aged 4y/o and 3y/o. When we were first looking for cruises, we wanted to go on the disney cruise. Having been to disney world and disneyland, we always have fun and memorable experiences there. But we think that the disney cruise costs too much compared with other cruise lines. We have been reading forum posts too that says other cruise lines have better kids clubs. Now for destination, we decided the best for us would be the Caribbean area. Although my family travels a lot, we have never been to the Caribbean. We hear that its nice there. With beaches having clear water and excursions that are worth the trip. Now i have some noobie questions that I hope the community can help me with.

1. Which do you guys prefer more, MSC or CCL?

2. I’ve read that gratuities are settled at the end of your trip. How much does it usually costs?

3. Are gratuities the only other fee we have to pay at the end or are there other hidden fees we should be aware of? (Btw we would be getting the all you can drink package for our trip.)

4. As for meals, do you have to reserve a table? Like tell them what time you’ll eat. Or do i just go to the restaurants anytime we get hungry?

5. Do the kids club get crowded? Or we can go there anytime and let our kids play and enjoy themselves?

6. For the pools and even when we get off the ship, is it better to pack our own towels or are there an abundance of towels to use? Can we bring the ship’s towels for when we go to the beach?

7. Do people give cash tips to their waiters or bartenders? Or because of the gratuity charge at the end of the trip, you dont give anything to the employees there?

8. Can you give me some other tips and tricks you can think of for how to maximize our first cruise experience?

Thank you guys for reading my post and hope to have a lot of inputs! :D

P.S. i searched the web and they said this is the best forum for cruises. :champagne-toast:

Hello everyone! I’m new to the forum. Really excited to be part of the community and hopefully contribute here.

 

To start things of, here are some info. In July, my family and I are going to our very first cruise. We haven’t decided yet which cruise line to book but we have been eyeing MSC or CCL. Our party consists of 2 adults and 2 kids aged 4y/o and 3y/o. When we were first looking for cruises, we wanted to go on the disney cruise. Having been to disney world and disneyland, we always have fun and memorable experiences there. But we think that the disney cruise costs too much compared with other cruise lines. We have been reading forum posts too that says other cruise lines have better kids clubs. Now for destination, we decided the best for us would be the Caribbean area. Although my family travels a lot, we have never been to the Caribbean. We hear that its nice there. With beaches having clear water and excursions that are worth the trip. Now i have some noobie questions that I hope the community can help me with.

 

1. Which do you guys prefer more, MSC or CCL?

 

2. I’ve read that gratuities are settled at the end of your trip. How much does it usually costs?

 

3. Are gratuities the only other fee we have to pay at the end or are there other hidden fees we should be aware of? (Btw we would be getting the all you can drink package for our trip.)

 

4. As for meals, do you have to reserve a table? Like tell them what time you’ll eat. Or do i just go to the restaurants anytime we get hungry?

 

5. Do the kids club get crowded? Or we can go there anytime and let our kids play and enjoy themselves?

 

6. For the pools and even when we get off the ship, is it better to pack our own towels or are there an abundance of towels to use? Can we bring the ship’s towels for when we go to the beach?

 

7. Do people give cash tips to their waiters or bartenders? Or because of the gratuity charge at the end of the trip, you dont give anything to the employees there?

 

8. Can you give me some other tips and tricks you can think of for how to maximize our first cruise experience?

 

Thank you guys for reading my post and hope to have a lot of inputs! :D

 

P.S. i searched the web and they said this is the best forum for cruises. :champagne-toast:

2. Typically gratuities (often called Hotel Service charge) are charged to your onboard account daily. Most cruise lines charge around $12-15 per person per night.

3. Alcoholic drinks are extra charge (and have their own auto gratuity). Port excursions cost extra. There may be extra cost dining venues, but the main dining rooms are included in the cruise fare.

4. Not sure how MSC handles it, but Carnival has assigned dining times, as well as anytime dining. If you have "traditional dining" you will have a specific table and time for dinner. If you have "your time dining" you can go to the dining room during specific hours and will be seated. No need to reserve a table. This is for dinner. Breakfast and lunch are on your own at the available venues onboard.

6. Most cruise lines will provide towels for off ship use. There may be a charge to your account, if you don't return it. Be aware they are usually not beach towels (large), but the regular size bath towels.

7. As noted, onboard beverage purchases have an auto-gratuity. That's usually pooled to be shared by all bartenders and beverage servers. You may tip additionally in cash, IF YOU WISH. Same for the room host, and dining room servers. They are covered by the service charge, but you can tip additionally in cash, IF YOU WISH.

8. Don't forget your passport book. Be sure to purchase travel insurance at the time of booking. Arrange to fly in the day prior to your cruise instead of a oh-geez-its-too-early flight that gets delayed.

MSC is different from the other mainstream cruise lines sailing from the US. You book and 'experience.' The basic is Bella, next is Fantastica. If you book one of these, your only option is traditional assigned dining. Or the buffet. If you go up to the Aurea experience you can have anytime dining.

My experience is that the pool towels provided are beach towel size, except for Princess, which has puny towels, both for pool and cabin. EM

Just to address your one question regarding MSC or CCL, one difference is MSC is an Italian owned cruise line with a predominantly Italian crew, where as CCL is US owned with an international crew. I think the two would vary in style.

In terms of preferences, our experience is with RCI and Celebrity and those would be our first choices, although we may try MSC as they are offering loyalty program status match, so we could enjoy their top tier level perks on board. Given our cruising preferences we have no interest in ever trying CCL so of all other choices they would be the last on our list. I realize this is a biased response but it is my honest opinion.

As to your other questions Shmoo here seems to have covered them well.

Enjoy your cruise - whatever you choose. And don't be nervous - go and have fun! Your first will not likely be your last.

Hello everyone! I’m new to the forum. Really excited to be part of the community and hopefully contribute here.

 

To start things of, here are some info. In July, my family and I are going to our very first cruise. We haven’t decided yet which cruise line to book but we have been eyeing MSC or CCL. Our party consists of 2 adults and 2 kids aged 4y/o and 3y/o. When we were first looking for cruises, we wanted to go on the disney cruise. Having been to disney world and disneyland, we always have fun and memorable experiences there. But we think that the disney cruise costs too much compared with other cruise lines. We have been reading forum posts too that says other cruise lines have better kids clubs. Now for destination, we decided the best for us would be the Caribbean area. Although my family travels a lot, we have never been to the Caribbean. We hear that its nice there. With beaches having clear water and excursions that are worth the trip. Now i have some noobie questions that I hope the community can help me with.

 

1. Which do you guys prefer more, MSC or CCL?

Cannot comment on MSC never sailed. All 12 of our cruises have been on Carnival. You will get a lot of differences of opinion about Carnival. All my answers will be based on Carnival

 

2. I’ve read that gratuities are settled at the end of your trip. How much does it usually costs?

You can prepay, Pay at the concLusion of the cruise, or Put it on a credit card.

 

3. Are gratuities the only other fee we have to pay at the end or are there other hidden fees we should be aware of? (Btw we would be getting the all you can drink package for our trip.) There are no hidden charges. But there are restaurants, a specialty coffee shop, photos that are extra costs.

 

4. As for meals, do you have to reserve a table? Like tell them what time you’ll eat. Or do i just go to the restaurants anytime we get hungr

Breakfast and lunch, you just show up at the Buffett and eat. They have set hours. There's also breakfast on certain days in the dinning room. For dinner you can choose early, late, or anytime dinning.

 

5. Do the kids club get crowded? Or we can go there anytime and let our kids play and enjoy themselves

We have no kids so I cant answer, but Carnival gets high marks for their clubs.

 

6. For the pools and even when we get off the ship, is it better to pack our own towels or are there an abundance of towels to use? Can we bring the ship’s towels for when we go to the beach?

Plenty of towels available for on and off the ship. You can sign for towels by the pool and you will have them in your cabin. Don't loose them you will be charged for them.

 

7. Do people give cash tips to their waiters or bartenders? Or because of the gratuity charge at the end of the trip, you dont give anything to the employees there?

That's your choice, we tip the waiters in the dining room and the cabin staff at the end of the cruise.

 

8. Can you give me some other tips and tricks you can think of for how to maximize our first cruise experience?

The three things I would say is don't be overwhelmed, don't over pack, and pack in a carry on your first days needs. Luggage sometimes arrives late to your cabin.

 

Thank you guys for reading my post and hope to have a lot of inputs!

When you decide where you want to go, read the ports, cruise line, and join the roll call for your sailing. Lots of information. Enjoy the your first cruise.:D

 

P.S. i searched the web and they said this is the best forum for cruises. :champagne-toast:[/quote

If the gratuities are added to your account, that covers your cabin attendant, waiters, ass't waiters and head waiters...you need not tip extra....some do, some don't...depends on your experience! Room service is about the only thing NOT covered by the gratuities...$1-5 is the common tip amount at time of service. Any bar drink will have 18% added to the cost. That's ample, IMO, unless you're ordering something really difficult to make!

Of course, you will want to tip the baggage handlers who take your luggage BEFORE you get on the ship $1-2 per bag. Bring any and all valuables in your carry on....never "check" those items!

Towels for pool and beach are on EVERY ship...every cruise line!

Research your ports prior to your trip, so you will know what there is in each place, and have an idea of HOW to do that which interests you! Ships excursions are fool-proof, but most Caribbean things are VERY easy to DIY...saves a bunch of $$!

Hmmmm...I have not cruised MSC nor CCL (but have relatives who have) but we HAVE cruised DCL, as well as Princess, RCCL & Celebrity.

Let me say that DCL had the BEST kids clubs HANDS DOWN (seriously, Disney KNOWS KIDS). And they were the only line that allowed us to leave the kids in the club while we went to port & had much later evening hours than other lines. Our kids were 5, 7 & 10 and they LOVED LOVED LOVED DCL kids clubs. Seriously--they wanted to be there more than with us! (it was not always like that on other lines; now, our children were older on those lines)

Yes, DCL IS a chunk more--also why we have not gone back. And it has been a few years since DCL...but knowing Disney I would be shocked if their kids clubs have declined.

But the reason I am emphasizing this is that DCL is a VERY different experience than the other 2 lines.

My cousins cruised MSC with kids & vowed never to cruise them again. It is VERY European in style; if you have not been to Europe, it is a VERY different experience than other lines.

CCL--not a bad line to start with. But be VERY careful looking at prices & rooms. We were going to book a CCL cruise one year; but when we compared the prices of similar rooms on other lines, they really were NOT much cheaper, if at all.

1. Which do you guys prefer more, MSC or CCL? (see my above post)

2. I’ve read that gratuities are settled at the end of your trip. How much does it usually costs? (about $12/day per person; we have gone to just having them put on our bill; we tip $20 extra to anyone who made our cruise special)

3. Are gratuities the only other fee we have to pay at the end or are there other hidden fees we should be aware of? (Btw we would be getting the all you can drink package for our trip.)( This can vary GREATLY. There are PLENTY of places to spend your $ on the ship. Be sure to plan for family photo (much cheaper than photo shoot at home). And you will need cash at the ports. BTW, if you are getting the drink package, NCL*** & Celebrity currently have deals that include the drink package. Not sure Celebrity would be ideal for a family, but NCL would. You may find that you can get a nicer room plus the drink package for less than you are paying separately.)

4. As for meals, do you have to reserve a table? Like tell them what time you’ll eat. Or do i just go to the restaurants anytime we get hungry? (Depends; some have set times, other you choose between set time or drop in)

5. Do the kids club get crowded? Or we can go there anytime and let our kids play and enjoy themselves? (Varies by line; we never had kids clubs that were too crowded on any line. But hours are not 24/7--hours can vary greatly. RCCL was closed during meals; DCL was open the most hours)

6. For the pools and even when we get off the ship, is it better to pack our own towels or are there an abundance of towels to use? Can we bring the ship’s towels for when we go to the beach? (plenty of towels & yes, they will check out towels to you to take on port)

7. Do people give cash tips to their waiters or bartenders? Or because of the gratuity charge at the end of the trip, you dont give anything to the employees there? (gratuities are included in drink packages)

8. Can you give me some other tips and tricks you can think of for how to maximize our first cruise experience? (relax & enjoy. Bring plenty of sunscreen. Bring basic meds; we paid $15 for a small bottle of liquid tylenol when DD had an ear infection on the ship)

What are your dates? Budget?

What cabin category?

May be able to give you some good advice!

If you are going in July and haven't booked yet, you may end up paying top dollar and not getting the cabins you want.

Roz

Hey everyone! Thanks for replying and looking at my post. They were all very helpful. And i guess we can save on luggage space by not bringing towels. :D So we decided on booking a 4 night Caribbean cruise with CCL. We got a balcony room on the sky deck. When we were searching, there were good deals for the month of September but July is the only time we all have off/vacation from work and school. Again, thanks to the awesome community. And please post first timer tips if you have some more. :)

Hey everyone! Thanks for replying and looking at my post. They were all very helpful. And i guess we can save on luggage space by not bringing towels. :D So we decided on booking a 4 night Caribbean cruise with CCL. We got a balcony room on the sky deck. When we were searching, there were good deals for the month of September but July is the only time we all have off/vacation from work and school. Again, thanks to the awesome community. And please post first timer tips if you have some more. :)

Here are some things we have learned over the years.

1. Prepay gratuities, if you haven't done so do it now. Also buy cruise insurance.

2. If it is available get the "Faster to the Fun". This will give you the opportunity to get on the ship faster, get your luggage faster.

3. Make sure you print all your cruise documents keep them with you in your carry on luggage plus all passports.

4. Pack things like meds for everything, laundry soap (they have coin laundries on board) sun lotion and clorox wipes.

4. Fly in or drive to your port city the day or two before your cruise.

5. Pay the porters $1. Per bag when you arrive. Make sure you have taped or stapled your cruise luggage tags to all your luggage. You cannot lock your luggage.

6. Make sure you bring a carry on with all your cruise documents, passports, cash, cc,

Swim suits, toiletries, meds, any valueables like cameras, phones, tablets etc...

7. Turn off your phones or place them on airplane mode.

8. Since you have children go straight to children's area and register them. The staff will give you all the information you need.

9. Do not skip the mustar drill. It is law that everyone attend.

10. Once in your cabin, unpack and wipe down everything with Clorox wipes. They clean but why take a chance with the nora-virus. Use the space under your beds to stash your luggage.

11. Go to the Lido deck for lunch relax.

12. Don't buy anything at the spa. They make it look good but it's a 100% mark up.

13. The steakhouse on any of the ships is worth the extra cost.

14. They have just updated the shows and worth to see.

15. Be careful about placing anything on your sign and sail card.

16. If you are going on a week long cruise you will have 2 formal nights. You don't need anything fancy, just Sunday best will do just fine. The other nights are cruise casual, no shorts, cut offs, or swim suits.

17. As for land excursions pick one or two you really want to do as a family. Don't over do it and do something you can't do at home.

18. You can get free Champaign at the art auctions.

19. Book your next cruise while on board.

20. Lastly "Have Fun and Relax"

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So we decided on booking a 4 night Caribbean cruise with CCL.

Not picking and just curious, but what is the actual itinerary you are looking at? I'm not familiar with any cruise line offering 4-night Caribbean cruises as that location is too far away to reach with such a short cruise unless you would be departing out of San Juan, PR . And I'm not aware of any short cruises from there. But certainly not from any US departure port. Are you sure you don't mean the Bahamas ? (Which are definitely not in the Caribbean).

Again, just looking for clarification. But either way, enjoy your cruise.

Not picking and just curious, but what is the actual itinerary you are looking at? I'm not familiar with any cruise line offering 4-night Caribbean cruises as that location is too far away to reach with such a short cruise unless you would be departing out of San Juan, PR . And I'm not aware of any short cruises from there. But certainly not from any US departure port. Are you sure you don't mean the Bahamas ? (Which are definitely not in the Caribbean).

 

Again, just looking for clarification. But either way, enjoy your cruise.

Carnival has several 4 night Western Caribbean cruises from Mobile, Tampa and Miami.

Basically - Cozumel. But a few also go to Key West.

Carnival has several 4 night Western Caribbean cruises from Mobile, Tampa and Miami.

 

Basically - Cozumel. But a few also go to Key West.

OK thanks for that. I was thinking more of the Eastern Caribbean. So basically a single port of call. Which departure ports would also include Key West - that too seems like a stretch for a 4-night?

Things to be aware of:

1. Everything that carries extra costs - alcohol, soda, fancy coffees, smoothies, milkshakes, bottled water, photos, internet, bingo, etc

2. Plan out what you do ahead of time in port. Otherwise you’ll be stuck with overpriced ship excursions or purchasing a tour on the dock

3. Many of the daily activities are just sales pitches - ‘seminars’ at the spa, some of the port ‘lectures’ that tend to just tell you were to shop, art auctions, events in the shops, etc

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Cruise Critic is an excellent resource for sure. There are also TONS of groups on Facebook where you can meet fellow cruisers and ask questions. There are groups for each cruise line, specific ships, and specific sailings, and more! I saw that others have already answered your questions, but I do have some blog posts about cruising and Carnival specifically (haven't been on MSC), that you are welcome to peruse: http://laurenofalltrades.blogspot.com/p/cruise-tips.html

To the OP regarding your #5 question. I'm not sure you meant it to sound like you would be at the kids' club with your kids, but I just thought you should know that adults are not allowed in the kids club unless dropping of or picking up kids. Just FYI. I hope you and your family have a wonderful 1st cruise !!:D

Now that you've decided on CCL, I will chime in and give you some specific answers to your questions.

 

2. I’ve read that gratuities are settled at the end of your trip. How much does it usually costs? Gratuities will be posted to your onboard account, normally on the second day. It is $12.95 per person per day. You can prepay this on the Carnival website, or by calling Carnival, if you want to get it out of the way.

 

3. Are gratuities the only other fee we have to pay at the end or are there other hidden fees we should be aware of? (Btw we would be getting the all you can drink package for our trip.) As someone else mentioned, there are no "hidden" fees to be aware of; however, almost everything will carry an additional charge. Just be mindful, if you are signing, you are being charged (with the exception of drinks applied to your drink package).

 

4. As for meals, do you have to reserve a table? Like tell them what time you’ll eat. Or do i just go to the restaurants anytime we get hungry? Carnival has traditional dining at 6:00 and 8:30 (varies by ship), or Your Time Dining. With YTD, you show up when you wish and are seated just like in a land-based restaurant. You must choose one dining time and stick with it. With two little ones, YTD would be my choice.

5. Do the kids club get crowded? Or we can go there anytime and let our kids play and enjoy themselves? I have never had kids in the kids clubs; however, I do know that there is a sign-up/orientation on the first night. Don't miss that.

 

6. For the pools and even when we get off the ship, is it better to pack our own towels or are there an abundance of towels to use? Can we bring the ship’s towels for when we go to the beach? There are nice, thick beach towels. Just be aware that if you don't turn them back in, you will be charged for them, so keep track of them :)

 

7. Do people give cash tips to their waiters or bartenders? Or because of the gratuity charge at the end of the trip, you dont give anything to the employees there? We will normally tip extra to anyone at the end of the cruise who we believe went above-and-beyond for us. Many people will tip bar servers and bartenders as they purchase drinks.

8. Can you give me some other tips and tricks you can think of for how to maximize our first cruise experience? With the ages of your kids, don't miss out on the Dr. Seuss activities!!!

Not picking and just curious, but what is the actual itinerary you are looking at? I'm not familiar with any cruise line offering 4-night Caribbean cruises as that location is too far away to reach with such a short cruise unless you would be departing out of San Juan, PR . And I'm not aware of any short cruises from there. But certainly not from any US departure port. Are you sure you don't mean the Bahamas ? (Which are definitely not in the Caribbean).

 

Again, just looking for clarification. But either way, enjoy your cruise.

It departs in miami, goes to key west and cozumel. We thought it would be perfect for us. Because its our first time, we didnt want too many destinations and dont know how to budget our time. :)

I hope you have a great time! Our daughter was five on her first Carnival Cruise and she snorkeled. She loved it.

I hope you all have a great time!

Everyone can bring a case of water or soda, so if you are driving, do that. The CCL price on having water delivered to your room isn't bad either, and it will be waiting for you when you check in. We were flying so did that. You can also bring one bottle of wine per adult, so two bottles for 4 days for my husband and I was more than enough.

I've heard the kids clubs were great, but my kids and I were just together the whole time. There are pools and stuff all over and it's just super fun exploring every square inch of the ship.

EDIT: Shoot I'm a liar! I forgot the water can't be in bottles. I think it's $4.50 for a case to your room though. If you really want to bring water, I think you can do it in cans.

Starting off with MSC or Carnival is fine for your first cruise. At least for Carnival (not sure about MSC), try and get one of the newer ships. They've improved quite a lot recently. Still, if you happen to have just an ok experience (or even bad), give cruising another shot. I'm not trying to discourage you from those lines as plenty of people have a great time and find them to offer all they need, but they are considered pretty much the lowest level two lines in the industry (out of the mainstream ones). You can really only go up from there.

When the kids get older, I'd definitely recommend giving Disney Cruise Line a try. Go when school is in so the cost is a lot less. My upcoming Norwegian Cruise is costing as much as my last Disney cruise during off season. Disney is just on another level from CCL or MSC. It's like a Disney theme park vs another theme park. Except, it's actually relaxing on DCL (whereas the theme parks can get kind of stressful due to the overcrowding). Crowd control is amazing on DCL vs all the other lines (at the parks, they're good but can only do so much due to the amount of people involved; on the ships, the numbers are really limited so they can easily handle everyone). It's all the little things that add up, which can really help when you're dealing with kids. For example, I'm not sure I'll be able to see both of the main shows on my NCL cruise. And there's only two. That would be unimaginable on DCL as they have plenty of seating in the theater (and have more main shows). Alternatively, kids club staff could pick up my kids when they're done with dinner, and I could enjoy the rest of my meal with my spouse/partner and then take in the show ourselves. Or, if the kids get sleepy around show time, DCL lets you watch the shows on the tv in your room. "Little" things like that.

How about Royal Caribbean? I love the RC ships and they are good for kids also.