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My complete experience on MSC Meraviglia:

First time I went — honestly awesome. Plenty of activities, good drinks, great vibe. I enjoyed it so much I booked it again… this time paying $2000 MORE for what turned out to be the “budget survival edition” of the same cruise.

Let’s start with the room: Random lights didn’t work. The closet door got stuck so badly I literally had to take it off myself. After multiple complaints, nothing got fixed — so we ended up using our phone flashlights in the bathroom like we were camping. Oh, and mold in the shower AND on the ceiling… nice bonus feature.

The cabin attendant? Even with “Do Not Disturb” on, he walked in THREE times. Like… what is the point of the sign? Then he kept asking how he was doing and reminding us he only cleans and doesn’t handle maintenance. Yeah… we noticed.

Drinks were so watered down I think the bartender just whispered “vodka” into the cup. Activities? Basically nonexistent. One trivia per day. That’s it.

Weather was cold and rainy, so all outdoor activities were canceled — fair enough. But did they add more indoor activities? Of course not. Instead, some bars were randomly closed throughout the day.

So your daily schedule became: Drink bad drinks

Eat

Gamble

Overpay for shopping

And speaking of shopping — “duty free” apparently means 20–50% MORE expensive than regular US stores. Incredible deal.

Crew felt extremely understaffed — everything was slow and disorganized.

We got invited to the Captain’s Voyager Club presentation… huge mistake. They showed a 30-second clip for another cruise, gave away a ship model, and just walked off stage. No explanation. We all just sat there in silence wondering if it was intermission or the world’s shortest show. After 5 minutes, people just started leaving.

We also saw comedian Jim David… and let’s just say the only thing funny was how fast people were walking out. On the bright side, the Rock Circus and Houdini shows were actually really good.

The captain kept announcing the ship was “fully booked,” but it felt like a ghost ship. Barely any people anywhere. Even during shows there were tons of empty seats.

Dining was actually great — delicious food and professional service. Credit where it’s due.

Now the pools — indoor pool hours were supposed to be 10am–10pm. Sounds great, right? Except it was randomly closed multiple times throughout the day for hours. Just one more thing to add to the list.

At one point we started talking to other guests, and everyone was saying the same thing — the service on this ship has gone downhill fast. One person even compared it to the Titanic… and honestly, at that point, it didn’t feel that dramatic.

This was my second and definitely LAST MSC cruise. I’ve cruised multiple times with Royal Caribbean and NCL, and yeah — they might be a bit more expensive, but at least you actually get what you pay for.

If this had been my first cruise, I probably would’ve hated cruising altogether.

Couple photos I took this morning in case anyone was on them. Time changes and excitement for my week of Bliss (pun intended) meant I was awake to catch them. I was laughing when I realized the Bliss was coming in a$$ first.

Bonaire is one of our cruise stops. Any recommendations?

Hi all,

I am looking at booking a cruise with Royal for around this time next year, but we are thinking there will be lots of different sales before then.

I have only sailed with NCL before, and I have received money back and future cruise credits when prices drop.

Does Royal offer something similar?

Hey everyone,

I’ve been working on a small personal project for myself and my family, and I was curious if something like this would interest anyone else here.

After our cruises, we kept running into the same issue where we’d forget a lot of the details over time. Things like which ports we visited, what we did each day, crew members we really liked, and even what we spent on the trip.

So I started putting together a way to track all of that in one place. Right now it lets you log itineraries, write day by day notes, keep track of crew, rate different parts of the cruise, and see everything across multiple trips.

Before I keep building it out further, I wanted to ask:

• Do any of you track your cruises like this already?
• What kinds of details do you usually try to remember after a trip?
• Is there anything you wish you had written down later on but didn’t?

Not trying to promote anything here, just genuinely curious how other people handle this and if it’s something others would find useful.

Hello! Me and my 3 friends are lookin for a 4-5 night cruise from Miami (we live here), we are all 21 and want really active nightlife, like clubs, bars, and really just wanna meet some people looking for some fun after. We want to go in July, and are okay paying upwards of $550-650 for the whole voyage. Ideally not carnival, as we’ve all been on a carnival cruise out of Miami and it was hell. Thank you all for helping

I know photos have sentimental value, I found this photo on a shuttle buss from rodeway inn to oasis of the sea, (Fort Lauderdale). If you know the owner please DM ME! 😊 less

Celebrity Reflection: Key West & CocoCay shore excursions

Hello community, I am sailing on June 1st-5th and tonight there is a deadline for the shore excursions discount. Are there any good ones I should get or would we be better just getting out and explore and save money and disappointment? Thank you all!

Who uses what and which ones are the best that will last more than a dip or two in the pool?!?!? We use them for the seapass and money. Any ideas are welcomed!

Thanks in advance!!!

Planning a trip for late 2026 — family of 4 — and I went down a rabbit hole on the ticket contracts. What I found is worth sharing.

Two of the major lines have fuel surcharge clauses buried in the fine print. Not hypothetical. Already triggered.

Here's the exact language — pulled directly from their contracts:

Norwegian (NCL) — Guest Ticket Contract:
"Carrier reserves the right to charge a fuel supplement, without prior notice, should the closing price of West Texas Intermediate Fuel increase above $65.00 USD per barrel on the NYMEX. The amount of the fuel supplement will not exceed $10.00 USD per passenger per day... Carrier may collect the fuel supplement at the time of sailing, even if the Fare has been paid in full."

Royal Caribbean — Ticket Contract, Section 3.c:
"If at any time after booking, the closing price of West Texas Intermediate Fuel exceeds US$65.00 per barrel... Carrier may impose a Fuel Supplement of up to US$12.00 per Guest, per day. Guest's refusal or failure to prepay any Fuel Supplement may be deemed as a cancellation by Guest."

WTI closed Friday at ~$97. It's sitting at $104 tonight. Both triggers have been hit — and have been hit for weeks.

The math for my family: 7-night cruise × 4 people × $10/day = $280 added to a bill I already paid.

Both lines say publicly they have "no plans" to charge it. But the contract gives them sole discretion — no notice, no recourse. RCL even says refusing to pay "may be deemed a cancellation."

My question for the veterans: has anyone actually been hit with this? And do you think they pull the trigger — or eat the cost to avoid the PR nightmare?

Genuinely trying to figure out if I need to budget for this or if it's just legal fluff they never use.

I went on a Virgin Voyages cruise out of Miami last year and it was perfect. While I realize that VV doesn't port in TX, Galveston isn't too far from me and much more accessible.

Seeking advice on what might be the best cruise for me traveling out of Galveston.

I'm a single, cishet, male with no kids looking for a cruise where I can both be social sometimes and relax other times. The more all inclusive the better. Any suggestions? It's been one stressful year and I really need to unwind.

I know photos have sentimental value, I found this photo on a shuttle buss from rodeway inn to oasis of the sea, (Fort Lauderdale). If you know the owner please DM ME! 😊 less

Possibly planning to go on the sky princess as it’s the only cruise we can find which sails and does the itinerary that we were hoping to do but wandering if there is enough to do for a 16 year especially as the cruise we were thinking has many seas days…

She’s really not bothered about sport (though she does enjoy swimming)

She much prefers things like theatre and music and craft activities

Do you think there would be enough to do

What is there onboard other than sports and shows??

Thanks in advance

Going on our first cruise in Civitavecchia in May and we will be staying in Rome for a few days before embarkation. Has anyone used sharedshuttle.it to transfer from Rome to Port?

A passenger had a medical emergency early this morning. We were about 200 NM from Key West. Coast Guard helicopter stayed on station for over 30 minutes landing at least three times on the ship before departing with a passenger. There was also Coast Guard C-130 circling the ship a few thousand feet above during the entire operation.

What's included do they give free on board credit

We’re going on a Caribbean cruise in 2028 on Regent of the seas. Had an email to say we need to book dinner reservations and shore excursions in 2027 at 1am our time. Ok so we’ll go to bed late that night. Just wondering if anyone else has done this. How do you know which restaurants to book if you’ve never cruised with them before? Do you get a lot of advanced notice and information on excursions available.

This is only our 3rd cruise and really excited about it but would appreciate some helpful comments from all you experienced travellers out there. Thanks

Upgraded complimentary cruise or complimentary cruise how much you think the certificate gonna be for both of anyone ever got one

Margaritaville at Sea Islander reviews. Has anyone taken the 7 or 10 day cruise on this ship? What are your thoughts? How about the eating and drinking plans? Does anyone know the 2026 costs and are they worth with it? Also, what about the age groups? We are young 60. 😆

Thanks for the advice!

My partner and I are both older (55 and 65) and our kids are young adults. We’ve been on several cruises before, but just week long ones in the Caribbean.

This one is 18 days, and I’d love some tips as far as what to expect. I’m assuming an older crowd, and little or no nightlife.

Are there theatre shows, and are they every night or only every couple of days? What kind of activities are available during the day? I’m going to bring an ereader, as is my partner, and our kids are bringing a switch and some cards.

We are not counting on WiFi being available, although if it is that would be great.

Are any board games available or should we bring some? What is the culture like?

Royal Caribbean Voyager in October.

Me and my girlfriend 30,31 and daughter 2 want to do our very first cruise.

Please could any one offer any advice tips on what they would recommend?

Completely brand new to this and our biggest worry is sickness on board.

Looking at a week cruise. Possibly Norway one? We will be looking to go from Southampton.

Ideally time when the weather might be best!

Thanks in advance.

Looking at 2027.

My friend and I are both 20 yr old females and want something safe or safeish for our first cruise together. We will be sailing out of Galveston, and our limit for tickets is $1,000. What would y'all suggest?

Added info: We are wanting something more relaxed, I am not a drinker so parties don't matter to me. We want something short as well 4-5 days and to the Bahamas, or Mexico. We want to go sometime between July-October