Live from Euribia 3 November

[RudiRatlos]

14 hours ago, Eglesbrech said:

Large  passenger turnover today as well and most of the children are now gone. The ships feels as if there are fewer people onboard, lots of free tables when we went for a walk in the Gallaria. Perhaps people are just tired after their journeys and having an early night, we will se tomorrow. The YC is certainly quieter tonight.

Scholl holidays (autumn) are now over in all parts of germany.

[RudiRatlos]

5 hours ago, RudiRatlos said:

Scholl holidays (autumn) are now over in all parts of germany.

Maybe I should also go back to school... to improve my spelling...

[ConnieTact]

Thanks for this live report. We are onboard in 25 days, also in YC, so I’m keen to see how things are.

[insidecabin]

On 11/5/2023 at 11:34 PM, Eglesbrech said:

 

The food continues to be very good. Even more Mediterranean than on Virtuosa. The pasta is always excellent.

Euribia did not have a summer UK homeport season maybe the Brit influence on the food was not carried over to the winter cruises using Southampton.

[showingdiva]

2 hours ago, insidecabin said:

Euribia did not have a summer UK homeport season maybe the Brit influence on the food was not carried over to the winter cruises using Southampton.

 

A lot of it was the same as Virtuosa, probably a fleet wide thing.   But I agree that the overall atmosphere on Euribia was different to Virtuosa, and as I mentioned previously, quite possibly shows how much we've Anglicized Virtuosa over the last few years.

[3StepDam44]

Hello Eglesbrech,

 

Just wondered if there are 2 Formal Evenings and when do they occur?

 

Enjoyed reading your posts on here.

 

We have just been upgraded to YC and are very much looking forward to this.

 

Thanks.

 

Enjoy the rest of your Cruise.

 

xx

[Eglesbrech]

day 4 at sea
 

So we had a relaxing day at sea, played a few games, enjoyed some good conversation and had a very pleasant day.

 

At 11am there was a cocktail party for YC guests to meet the Captain and some of the crew. Nice sociable event where we met some charming folks. Canapés and drinks on offer.

They had another made to order pasta in the restaurant at lunch. The smell of garlic was amazing. They seem to do a lot if show cooking on here.

 

Formal night tonight was a real mixed bag re the dress code with everything from chinos and shirts to tux and long dresses. No one minded what anyone else did. You do you and enjoy.

 

I really didn’t like the show tonight, circus but that’s just me as I don’t like magic, clowns etc. others may well enjoy it. Nice mellow music on offer in the YC.

 

I’m working my way through the cocktails, today salted caramel expresso, very nice but 1 will do!

 

Early night as an early trip tomorrow. Went bag t find lovely towel swans and chocolates.

 

The gala dinner was really nice, I can highly recommend the truffle risotto.

Edited November 7, 2023 by Eglesbrech

[Eglesbrech]

26 minutes ago, 3StepDam44 said:

Hello Eglesbrech,

 

Just wondered if there are 2 Formal Evenings and when do they occur?

 

Enjoyed reading your posts on here.

 

We have just been upgraded to YC and are very much looking forward to this.

 

Thanks.

 

Enjoy the rest of your Cruise.

 

xx

We have only had one so far and in was last night, Monday the day after Hamburg. I don’t think there will be another but I post if there is.

[Eglesbrech]

@3StepDam44 here.

[3StepDam44]

Thank you.x

[Eglesbrech]

31 minutes ago, 3StepDam44 said:

Thank you.x

 Checked with the concierge, there is just the one formal night.

[Eglesbrech]

Day 5 Brugge

 

We pre booked a transfer into Brugge via the ship. It was 49 euros reduced down to 34 pp.on our cruise for some reason.

 

Meeting time was 8.45 and back to the ship by 3.15 (meeting time at the coach park in Brugge at 2.30pm sharp. There was a second transfer at 10.45am coming back later but still about 6 hours in total.

 

As we knew we were up early we had pre ordered breakfast to the cabin. Lovely cold cuts, smoked salmon, rolls / brot, fresh juice, pastries etc which were delivered at exactly the time requested by our most efficient butler.

 

We met at the YC top sail 5 minutes before the time and were escorted down to the bus having been given bottles of water for the trip by the ever efficient butler.

 

The transfer was great for us as we know Brugge well (there used to be a direct ferry from Scotland and we spent many weekends there). If however you don’t know the city all you get is a map and some basic instructions so make sure to get back to the coach park in good time.

 

We had a beautiful sunny day to enjoy the many lovely sights and tastes of Brugge. A bit of chocolate here, some chips and mayonaise there and beers at Staffe Hendrix Half Moon brewery before heading to the coach. Great stop for a beer or two and clean toilets.
 

On return to the ship we ordered pizza for delivery to the room in place of lunch. It came in about 20 minutes and was quite delicious, first time we have tried it on MSC. Massive portions and pipping hot. OH recommends  the Calzone and even he couldn’t finish it! Now we both need a rest.

[3StepDam44]

Your Day in Bruges sounds wonderful.  We have always loved it there.

 

The Transfer sounds like a good idea.  It takes the hassle out of walking to the Train Station etc.

 

Enjoy.

 

x

[Stocksy82]

@Eglesbrech thank you for this, we've enjoyed following along and look forward to embarking later this month. Do you have any photos of the daily planner?

[ConnieTact]

14 hours ago, Stocksy82 said:

@Eglesbrech thank you for this, we've enjoyed following along and look forward to embarking later this month. Do you have any photos of the daily planner?

I was wondering the same! I am interested to know what entertainment is around the ship. If there is a Master of the Seas pub and who plays there at the moment. 

[lostinespace]

Is there a white night, or have I bought all these white clothes for nothing 🙂 

We are onboard on the 24th November, feeling a bit nervous about it we have the spa booked and no YC for us it was £850 per person to upgrade. We paid £1300 for both of us inside cabin and premium drinks. We have booked a Brugge bus from just outside the port gates for eu29 return. 

 

I have just checked and I can upgrade to YC suite for £870 for both of us, any comments if this is worth it over the inside cabin we have booked?

 

Thanks for the posts!

Edited November 9, 2023 by lostinespace
Added information

[insidecabin]

1 hour ago, lostinespace said:

Is there a white night, or have I bought all these white clothes for nothing 🙂 

We are onboard on the 24th November, feeling a bit nervous about it we have the spa booked and no YC for us it was £850 per person to upgrade. We paid £1300 for both of us inside cabin and premium drinks. We have booked a Brugge bus from just outside the port gates for eu29 return. 

 

I have just checked and I can upgrade to YC suite for £870 for both of us, any comments if this is worth it over the inside cabin we have booked?

 

Thanks for the posts!

Anyone thinking about these 7n from the UK and is flexible on dates it has got as low as £320 Bella inside, drinks are holding at £190-£210 extra.

 

YC insides have been around £1300pp but difficult to get.

 

£870 for YC suite is a reasonable/good/ bargain(£155pppd) upgrade cost on top of £1,300.

 

 

Even better if you can cancel the spa pass you won't need.

 

its a good chunk of another cruise but YC at decent rates have got hard.

 

we do both YC to get the comfor/luxury/sanctuary  and  regular inside to max out ship/busy/crazy/port times.

 

 

White  night clothing if I don't get messy I wear them again anyway.

[lostinespace]

Thanks for the reply, we booked through ***** and the spa cost me £164 have emailed to see if they will refund....

[Eglesbrech]

20 hours ago, Stocksy82 said:

@Eglesbrech thank you for this, we've enjoyed following along and look forward to embarking later this month. Do you have any photos of the daily planner?

 

[Eglesbrech]

[Eglesbrech]

4 hours ago, lostinespace said:

Is there a white night, or have I bought all these white clothes for nothing 🙂 

We are onboard on the 24th November, feeling a bit nervous about it we have the spa booked and no YC for us it was £850 per person to upgrade. We paid £1300 for both of us inside cabin and premium drinks. We have booked a Brugge bus from just outside the port gates for eu29 return. 

 

I have just checked and I can upgrade to YC suite for £870 for both of us, any comments if this is worth it over the inside cabin we have booked?

 

Thanks for the posts!

Yes there was a white night.

 

Yes re the YC. We always book it as we love having the big ship amenities with a quiet space to go back to. The food is also excellent.

[Eglesbrech]

Well all in all we have had a lovely break so a quick summation to keep me out of the way while OH packs as he is infinitely better at it than I (a lack of skill I have cultivated).

 

Cabin - lovely, has everything you need for a great holiday. More wardrobe space that other ships but a little less drawer space. The toiletries are in big bottles on the wall and include shampoo, body wash and balm, soap etc. there is a vanity kit and shower cap. There is no bath which again is unusual for a suite but a nice walk in shower.

 

Suites on MSC (or at least the balcony one we are in are in) are not as large or plush as on other ships but the other YC areas more than make up for this.

 

Service - excellent from being escorted onboard through dining, drinks service etc. . We didn’t venture downstairs other than for entertainment. While there is a YC seating area some of the guests simply ignored this and barged in anyway, sometimes half way through the show. This issue has been raised by several guests onboard at the moment. As one YC guest pointed out you couldn’t just sit in a business class seat on a plane so why think you can on a cruise.

 

Entertainment - For me the theatre entertainment was a very mixed bag with some I enjoyed at other bits not so much but that’s down to personal taste. The big band in the aft lounge is apparently very good but you have to get there early to get a seat (walking through the smelly casino or circumventing by going outside). The musicians in the YC area were good imo.

 

Food - we always found something to enjoy. I frequently asked for a small portion of the excellent pasta and risotto dishes as a replacement starter. I would mention that Euribea is very European and so mains don’t tend to come with much by way of carbs so if you want potatoes or chips etc just ask.  Be guided by the menu as you get exactly what is says so if it doesn’t mention anything on the side it is not there, never a problem to ask for something more.

 

The selection of included wine is fine and if you ask they also have some other alternatives if there is nothing to your taste but the choice is perfectly sufficient for most folks.

 

We ordered room service breakfast once and pizza. Both were very good.

 

Excursions - The trips and shuttles are overpriced imo but that’s seems to be the case on most lines. Rotterdam (shuttle 13 euro pp) and Le Harve (shuttle 12 euro) are an easy walk if you are fairly fit. Blankenburg and Hamburg probably requires a shuttle as it’s quite a distance away.

 

To those joining the ship shortly, bon voyage and have a lovely cruise.

[pirate4me2]

On 11/3/2023 at 2:08 PM, Eglesbrech said:

For those in YC there is no self service snack area in the top sail lounge. The cold area on Virtuosa with the nice little snacks of aranchini, olives etc has been replaced by a wine fridge! I have to say I don’t like this change at all as we often had a snack rather than a breakfast or lunch.

 

I will miss this if it goes fleet wide. I liked to take a look at what was offered and choose my own snacks, as opposed to having a variety delivered and some of them that are not my taste wasted. 

[Eglesbrech]

1 minute ago, pirate4me2 said:

I will miss this if it goes fleet wide. I liked to take a look at what was offered and choose my own snacks, as opposed to having a variety delivered and some of them that are not my taste wasted. 

I would agree. We much preferred selecting just a couple of things. Being given the plateful is just a waste as half gets left behind.

[showingdiva]

Delighted to hear you enjoyed Euibia.

 

Safe journey back to Scotland.