Fantasia and general MSC Questions

Hi guys,

So I am a seasoned cruiser with Royal Caribbean but have decided to try the competition and have booked on a cruise out of Palma next summer.

Couple of questions

What currency does the Ship use? Euro's or Dollars?

Plugs in the cabins Euro or US or Both

Tips there is no mention in the booking t&c's regarding this

1. Currency onboard will be the Euro.

2. Both.

3. Daily Service Charge (added daily to your onboard account) will be €10 pppd.

Hope this helps. :)

Bytheway ... have you applied for status-match? You'll receive 5% off your booking when you do (plus some other perks, depending on what level you match to).

Hope the OP doesn't mind me jumping on his thread but I have a question as far as the service charge goes.

We'll also be taking our first MSC cruise soon and with all previous cruises we always prepay the tips. On looking at my booking it appears we haven't done this with MSC. I seem to remember reading somewhere that if you prepay they don't cost as much as paying onboard. Did I dream this?

 

Bytheway ... have you applied for status-match? You'll receive 5% off your booking when you do (plus some other perks, depending on what level you match to).

Very Helpful thanks, I couldn't see in any of the T&C's re the TIP's but had assumed there would be some somewhere

What is the status Match?

Very Helpful thanks, I couldn't see in any of the T&C's re the TIP's but had assumed there would be some somewhere

 

What is the status Match?

MSC will match the status level you have with another cruise line's loyalty club to the MSC Voyagers Club (and some hotel chains). Here's a link which gives the chart:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=56584465&postcount=12

There are numerous threads on the subject if you do a search, including the thread that the linked post is from, which you can also click on to bring you to that particular thread; the answers to many of your questions on the subject will be found in them, I'm sure.

Here's a link to the info on the MSC website:

https://www.msccruises.ie/en-ie/MSC-Voyagers-Club/Status-Match.aspx

Hope the OP doesn't mind me jumping on his thread but I have a question as far as the service charge goes.

 

We'll also be taking our first MSC cruise soon and with all previous cruises we always prepay the tips. On looking at my booking it appears we haven't done this with MSC. I seem to remember reading somewhere that if you prepay they don't cost as much as paying onboard. Did I dream this?

Perhaps it may be "cheaper" to prepay by using Sterling, as opposed to waiting 'til onboard, where the currency will be in Euros or US$ and subject to currency exchange rate fluctuations.

Hope the OP doesn't mind me jumping on his thread but I have a question as far as the service charge goes.

 

We'll also be taking our first MSC cruise soon and with all previous cruises we always prepay the tips. On looking at my booking it appears we haven't done this with MSC. I seem to remember reading somewhere that if you prepay they don't cost as much as paying onboard. Did I dream this?

You may have been having a dream about this. I've cruised MSC several times on multiple ships, as well as Disney and RCCL. The standard rate today is $12.50 per day per person whether you pay pre-cruise or at the end of the cruise. Most of the time, I don't pre-pay and just let all the charges on my cruise account be applied on my credit card attached to my booking. But on occasion, I have purchased some OBCs and pre-paid the gratuities so that I don't have a large amount charged to my card. Either way, I haven't seen it make a difference in the amount I was charged for those gratuities. It has been $12.50 per day person either way.

Ok I have applied for Status Matching thanks for that

Hi guys,

So I am a seasoned cruiser with Royal Caribbean but have decided to try the competition and have booked on a cruise out of Palma next summer.

Couple of questions

What currency does the Ship use? Euro's or Dollars?

Plugs in the cabins Euro or US or Both

Tips there is no mention in the booking t&c's regarding this

In the U.S., all MSC vessels list prices in USD, but the charges are processed by their HQ in Italy so I always alert my credit card company of this before I set sail.

There are both euro and US plugs in all the cabins, although they are in short supply. So, if you're sailing with a family of 4 or 5 I'd recommend bringing a USB hub with you so that everyone can charge their devices. Don't bring any surge protectors as those will be confiscated at the port of embarkation and returned to you when you disembark. USB hubs are encouraged.

... I haven't seen it make a difference in the amount I was charged for those gratuities. It has been $12.50 per day person either way.

That's because both your country's currency and that onboard has been the same. It won't be the same for those whose country's currency differs from that onboard, where they would be at the mercy of currency rate fluctuations. For example, if I prepay the gratuities for our Armonia cruise from Miami next January, it's very possible that I will pay less today in Euros than if I wait 'til I receive my credit card bill with the onboard charges being converted from US$ to Euros. Plus there's the extra fees incurred for the transaction.

Also, it's €10 pppd on MSC ships unless they're US based.

Cheers Guys

That's because both your country's currency and that onboard has been the same. It won't be the same for those whose country's currency differs from that onboard, where they would be at the mercy of currency rate fluctuations. For example, if I prepay the gratuities for our Armonia cruise from Miami next January, it's very possible that I will pay less today in Euros than if I wait 'til I receive my credit card bill with the onboard charges being converted from US$ to Euros. Plus there's the extra fees incurred for the transaction.

 

Also, it's €10 pppd on MSC ships unless they're US based.

Point taken. The original question wasn't specifically addressing fluctuations in currency, but you're obviously correct.

I take this time to preface my original response with "Currency fluctuations not withstanding, you may have been dreaming about this . . . "

Point taken. The original question wasn't specifically addressing fluctuations in currency, but you're obviously correct.

I take this time to preface my original response with "Currency fluctuations not withstanding, you may have been dreaming about this . . . "

Hahaha :D thanks for the answers - strange thing to dream about!!

Hahaha :D thanks for the answers - strange thing to dream about!!

;pLOL! Not really. The closer I get to embarkation day, the weirder my dreams get. They all center around missing the ship in various crazy ways.