Regular readers will know that I have now added a second — non-Disney — cruise to my summer plans. Here are the details of how that happened.
Having committed to the DCL cruise I started avidly watching YouTube videos about cruising — and not just on DCL. Last week I saw one about the new ship MSC Virtuosa. It’s a much bigger ship than the Magic and the video tour of it blew me away. It looked incredibly. And it’s doing UK staycation cruises. Almost immediately I looked into pricing one up.
My initial idea to get on board as soon as possible — they’ve already started their itineraries — didn’t work out as I couldn’t get childcare, so the idea faded. But over the weekend I made the decision to abandon my August WDW trip and a second cruise was back on the agenda. It turned out they had a perfect combination of dates and departure / return port and I booked with very little additional thought or research.
I’ve booked a seven night cruise from Liverpool to Liverpool. But, unlike the DCL cruises, these ones do actually stop at other ports — Glasgow, Belfast and Southampton — where it is possible to take excursions. (That’s technically three different countries, if you’re counting.)
Having decided on the specific cruise, the next decision was cabin type. Easy: balcony. After that you choose the “experience” you want — in order of increasing cost: Bella, Fantastica and Aurea. The level determines a number of features. While each offers balcony cabins, the Aurea balcony cabins are in better locations than the Bella balcony cabins, for example. The Aurea experience allows you to dine whenever you want without booking or selecting an early / late option. And so on. Bella wasn’t available. I chose Aurea because I wanted a midships cabin (seasickness concerns) and the other perks seemed worth the extra cost to me.
You then choose your specific cabin. In my case a choice of one. I guess these things are booking up.
The fare is more all-inclusive than DCL. For a start, it includes gratuities. And it comes with a drinks package. Though there is a premium for being a solo traveller, they don’t charge you double like DCL does. In fact, they have some cabins (albeit inside cabins) that are designed for solo travellers.
Once I paid my deposit I was able to log in to the MSC website (or use the app) and start booking extras — no waiting until I’d paid the full amount (like DCL) and no nonsense with status determining when you can book things.
I have a couple of upcharge decisions to make. The first is whether or not to upgrade to the Premium Plus drinks package. The included package covers drinks up to £10 ($14) each. But the Plus package has no limit and includes champagne and big name brand spirits. The upcharge is £13 ($18) per night if you book it before you board. (It’s slightly higher if you book it onboard.) You don’t need to drink a lot of champagne to make that deal worth it. It also upgrades the room service offering. Unlike DCL (this time DCL wins) room service food is chargeable, but my package gives free room service delivery. The Premium Plus drinks package makes room service food — and the minibar — free.
I’ve decided to make the upgrade. One of the parents of my students — who has just finished his two years of tuition with me — gave me a £200 ($280) gratuity and I promised her I’d spend it on the upgrade and would toast her in champagne.
The second upcharge option is to prebook and prepay for meals in the chargeable restaurants. There are four of these. I don’t get the impression that they’re Palo standard, but they’re better than the standard fare. There’s a steakhouse, a sushi restaurant, Vietnamese/French fusion and some kind of tacos / nachos type experience. Booking all four costs £106 ($150).
There are other choices to make, too.
First, WIFI. The WIFI package is £50 ($70) for the trip. I’m torn on this one. I’m tempted to go cold turkey and disconnect completely for the week. (Well, I’ll be able to use my cell service when we’re in ports to catch up on “important” messages and e-mails.)
Second, excursions. These cost between £50 and £60 ($70 to $85) each. Because of the ship’s COVID protocols, you are only allowed to leave the ship if you are on one of their excursions and you are kept together as a pack during the excursion. I’ve never been to Northern Ireland so I think I’ll definitely sign up for a Belfast excursion. Scotland has some beautiful scenery and there’s a cruise (!) on Loch Lomond which is tempting. There is some benefit to staying onboard during a port day as the ship will be quieter and you have more chance of getting time in one of the five (ahem) pools. And I’d have internet access via my phone. Maybe I could do some online catch-up then.
I leave you with a thought and some photos.
I feel a little guilty about taking two cruises. Not least because it’s stretching my finances a little. But then I figure I was robbed of a proper vacation last summer, so I’m really only reclaiming what is rightfully mine 
Those glass stairs are stuffed with Swarovski crystals.
The ceiling is a giant video screen which runs the full length of the galleria and the image changes regularly.
