hi there Here’s the cruise schedule for 2026. It’s a great way to get ideas and maybe even meet up with other members. 2 essential rules:

1) never "quote" the calendar when replying—this’ll avoid any confusion 2) follow the format below DD/MM - username / SHIP IN CAPS / number of days / cruise title / departure port DON’T FORGET THE SPACES between the / /

REMINDER Despite my requests, few people follow the requested format. Cruises that stray too far from it won’t be listed anymore—sorry!PLEASE respect the templates! COPY AND PASTE THE FORMAT BELOW AND REPLACE WITH YOUR DETAILS IF YOU’RE STRUGGLING DD/MM - username / SHIP IN CAPS / number of days / cruise title / departure port DON’T FORGET THE SPACES between the / / It takes time to fix mistakes, so THANKS TO EVERYONE for your help!

YOUR TURN 😉

NUMBER OF CRUISES 2026: JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

Hi everyone, Okay, here I go—I haven’t done a cruise review in ages, and even longer since I’ve posted one on this forum. So, this is kinda your fault, Catherine, if I’m getting back into it... I just hope I haven’t lost my touch!

It’s a transatlantic cruise, so there are a lot of sea days. That means this review will mostly focus on the ship, especially the "Haven" section, which doesn’t get much coverage on this forum. There’ll definitely be some comparisons with MSC’s Yacht Club, since they’re direct competitors.

This will be my third cruise with NCL—a company I really love—but my first in The Haven.

My two previous cruises were on smaller ships: the NCL Sun for the Chilean fjords and the NCL Spirit in February 2025 in Asia, departing from Taiwan and arriving in Korea. I *loved* the Spirit.

Alright, let’s get started!

This trip was booked almost last-minute in early October for late November, after I had to cut short my August trip for medical reasons.

At first, when I looked at this cruise, I hadn’t specifically decided to go for The Haven. I wanted a relaxing cruise but still with destinations I hadn’t been to before. I kinda stumbled upon this one, and the itinerary appealed to me. I also found the balcony cabin price pretty good—around 2800 € for a balcony cabin (for two), all-inclusive package included. Not including flights, of course. In the end, we decided to try The Haven (obviously not the same price), but I think we got a great deal for the promised perks.

Itinerary: Departure from Lisbon, arrival in Galveston, Texas. Stops: St. Martin, St. Thomas, La Romana, Cabo Rojo, Falmouth in Jamaica.

Hi there,

We’ve booked the CFC Viking Legends cruise (departing on 03/31/25), and the excursions have just been posted on the CFC website. What a disappointment... Stop in Copenhagen: 2 excursions offered, one of which includes +1.5 hours of walking Stop in Oslo: 2 excursions, one of which is a hike Stop in Sandnes (Stavanger): 2 excursions, one of which is a hike Lysekil (Sweden): 1 excursion, same as in Kristiansand and Zeebrugge.

We hesitated to book without knowing the excursions in advance, but the itinerary interested us. We were expecting more options for excursions... Since the ship leaves the day before from Zeebrugge, let’s hope there’s still space for the excursions. I’ll share our experience after we return from this first CFC discovery. MUM49

hi everyone I’ll go ahead and restart the cruise calendar for 2025 for now. It can give people ideas and might help members meet up!

Two essential rules: don’t “quote” the calendar when replying—this’ll avoid any confusion and if you can, list your cruise in this example format: enter the month first, then date /username / SHIP / number of days / destination / departure port

FEBRUARY

14/02- poupou10 / CELEBRITY INFINITY /11 days / Greece Turkey Cyprus / Piraeus (Athens) AUGUST 01/08- poupou10 / REGAL PRINCESS /13 days / British Isles / Southampton YOUR TURN 😉 NUMBER OF CRUISES 2025: 2 JANUARY FEBRUARY 14/02- poupou10 / CELEBRITY INFINITY /11 days / Greece Turkey Cyprus / Piraeus (Athens) MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST 01/08- poupou10 / REGAL PRINCESS /13 days / British Isles / Southampton SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

Hi there, We’re leaving Las Palmas on 13/01 for a cruise on the MSC Opera with stops in Fuerteventura, Funchal, Tenerife, Lanzarote, and La Palma. Has anyone taken taxis from these places to explore the islands, and how much should we budget to compare with the ship’s excursions? Can you negotiate the fare? Any drivers you’d recommend? Thanks for your tips 👍 and happy New Year 2025 😊😊

Hi everyone,

We were offered a visit to the Renaissance by the new CFC cruise line through Croisiland. After reading all the reviews—some very harsh, others glowing—I wanted to form my own opinion without having to book a full cruise to test it out. This visit to the ship at the port of Le Havre for 49 € per person came at the perfect time, even if I’m a bit put off by having to pay for a ship tour. That’s not how it usually works with other cruise lines, as far as I know.

The Renaissance is a former Holland America Line ship, built in 1993 and renovated in 2023. We’re familiar with this style of ship since we took a long cruise in Polynesia in 2014 on one of its sister ships, the MS Statendam. We remember it as a charming small ship with a lovely pool terrace at the very back.

Off we went this morning for a relaxing day on a ship—always a nice change!

The Pont de Normandie is the last elegant structure you see before entering the vast and rather smelly port area of Le Havre.



The area around the port where the Renaissance is docked is total chaos—cars everywhere and only a handful of taxis. We were supposed to have a reserved parking spot in front of the terminal (we’d even given them our car model and license plate), but we were denied entry. There’s no paved public parking, so we left the car on a vacant lot.



CFC was officially acquired by the British cruise line Ambassador Cruise Line in January 2025. Ambassador Cruise Line, launched in 2010, already owns two ships of the same type and age. They wasted no time repainting the funnel in their new colors.



The line of passengers disembarking and waiting for taxis is endless... and taxis are trickling in. Is this the aftermath of yesterday’s strike, or is this the norm in this port? Either way, I feel bad for the poor travelers waiting—it’s going to be a long haul. Many are leaving on foot, dragging their suitcases. Compared to the port of Marseille, this is pretty dismal.



Forty spots were available for this visit organized by Croisiland, but we ran into a good hundred people at the meet-up. A group from the AVF (Accueil des Villes Françaises) of Le Havre will be joining us. Our Croisiland group consists of twelve people, if I counted right.

Security clearance is done alphabetically, and we quickly board the ship. Now we’re getting to the heart of the matter.

To be continued...

Hi there! Here’s a quick review of my cruise on the REGAL PRINCESS. This was my 35th cruise and my second on the REGAL PRINCESS, which I first discovered in 2017 during a Caribbean cruise. A few months ago, we received an email from PRINCESS changing the itinerary—DUBLIN and EDINBURGH were replaced by two Scottish islands. We were a little disappointed, but since we’d never sailed around the UK, we didn’t really know any of the ports anyway. The itinerary was: SOUTHAMPTON AT SEA KIRKWALL INVERGORDON AT SEA STORNOWAY GLASGOW BELFAST AT SEA CORK AT SEA PORTLAND LE HAVRE SOUTHAMPTON

A 13-day/12-night cruise for 1350 € per person in a guaranteed deluxe balcony cabin. PRINCESS assigned us a balcony cabin on deck 8 with a large balcony. We ended up happy with our cabin, even though we’d initially preferred a higher deck. I’ll admit I hesitated to choose this cruise because of the weather—I love sunshine and good weather—but the desire to discover new ports won out, especially with the promise of heading to Corsica afterward to soak up some sun again 😉

On PRINCESS, as Catherine mentioned, there’s no card—everyone has a medallion! I loved this system, which unlocks your cabin door as you approach. It’s really well thought out!

We took the EUROSTAR from Lille to London, then a train from London to Southampton the day before. We stayed in a nice IHG hotel near the port.

EMBARKATION It’s Friday, August 1st. After a good breakfast and a quick check-out, we realize our UBER app isn’t working in England ;(. We have to go back to reception to ask for a taxi because, even though the hotel is close to the port, the ship is still over 2 km away—hardly ideal with luggage! The problem is that many hotel guests also requested taxis... so we wait a good 30 minutes before ours arrives! We get to the REGAL PRINCESS pretty quickly but are shocked to see a huge line outside!!! We hadn’t seen that in over a decade! Not the best start! 🙁



TO BE CONTINUED!

Hello,

As you may have read or heard—or I’m letting you know now—CFC is merging with Ambassador Cruise Line 😉

I’ve sailed with Ambassador twice already, and honestly, this merger makes total sense! Both companies offer the same type of service (with Ambassador’s English touch), and they generally have similar ships and target the same clientele.

To be honest, I think this is great news! I really hope Ambassador’s influence rubs off on CFC, especially in fixing all the issues I’ve had on Renaissance that I’ve never encountered on Ambassador (food quality, service, cabin problems, etc.).

Leading Ambassador are real cruise enthusiasts—passionate people with a clear marketing direction and a much more professional way of working with travel agents than CFC.

In short, I think this is fantastic news 🙂

Plus, Renaissance will be in the Caribbean next winter, so I assume European cruises will run on Ambience and Ambition. If English doesn’t scare you (too much), and you like the cozy ship vibe with great value for money, check out Ambassador—they’ve got some amazing itineraries! 😉

If you’d like more info on Ambassador, just ask 😉

What do you all think?

Here are a few photos of Ambience

Hi, I’m going on a solo cruise from Marseille to Hamburg—13 nights, 4 days at sea on the Costa Favalosa. The stops are Genoa, Barcelona, Málaga, Cádiz, Porto, A Coruña, Le Havre, and Hamburg. I’ve booked a Costa excursion for Porto and Hamburg that ends at the airport. I plan to explore the other stops on my own (I’ve already visited Barcelona and Málaga). The stops should be pretty easy to do solo, but I’d love any tips on A Coruña. I’d also like to know if there’s a shuttle to get out of the port in Le Havre or go into the city center. Looking forward to exchanging ideas with others who might be doing this route! Best, Varoise

😉Hi there, A few months ago, CFC put the EN VOGUE experience on sale, departing from Dunkirk. I booked this package to test the boat and onboard services for myself. I’d read a lot of reviews mentioning numerous issues on board, so I wanted to see for myself what it was really like…

Okay, I’ll stop rambling… The package included boarding at 6 PM on Friday, dinner, a show, an overnight stay, and breakfast. We chose an interior cabin for this experience—since the boat wasn’t leaving the dock, we didn’t see the point in paying more… All in all, it cost 130 € per person. My mom joined us; she got the same cabin for 130 € with no single occupancy supplement.

We’d checked in online to board faster. We took the train to DUNKIRK, then a taxi to the shuttle pavilion—7 € for the ride. When we arrived at the pavilion, we were told to wait because there was a connection issue with check-in. Great start… After about ten minutes, we were finally allowed to proceed. At the counter, they said they didn’t have our cabin cards and no record of our check-in… Very odd. With no solution, they put us on the bus and said we’d sort it out at reception. Perfect. We went through security, and they confiscated our water bottles—never seen that before! Then they said my mom had a corkscrew in her bag, so they searched it… but there was no corkscrew. Total amateur hour… They eventually dropped it.

We got on the bus for a ten-minute ride… We boarded the ship with a crew member and headed to reception. Turns out, we weren’t the only ones in this situation. The nightmare began… Only two staff members were handling all the issues, and everything seemed complicated. They told my mom her cabin had been given to someone else 😲. That was the last straw…

It took forever—they had to redo the entire check-in. Finally, they told my mom her cabin was good to go; they’d mixed her up with someone else… After a solid half-hour, we could finally head to our cabin.

I’m determined to test everything: the pool, jacuzzi, show, restaurant, spa, etc… TO BE CONTINUED

Hi everyone,

As promised, here’s my review of the cruise I took from the 5th to the 19th on the MSC Virtuosa.

As you know, I had initially booked a cruise with Mein Schiff departing from Dubai (from Dubai to Cape Town). It was a 22-day cruise. Due to the issues in the Persian Gulf, my cruise was canceled by Mein Schiff.

So, we started looking for a Plan B because we really wanted to go. Especially my wife, who had just had a minor procedure and needed some rest. Since she had already taken time off, she was determined to travel. However, we were looking for an affordable Plan B since we weren’t sure when Mein Schiff or the airline would reimburse us.

While browsing online, I found a 15-day cruise departing from Pointe-à-Pitre (including flights, transfers, the cruise, and drinks) for a price of 1,200 € in a Fantastica balcony cabin. We thought, *Why not?*

I should mention that I’m not usually a big fan of MSC. My last experience with them was post-Covid (I took two cruises, one in 2021 and another in 2022), and it was honestly a disaster. We didn’t want to repeat that, but after talking to Catherine, who told me she was very happy with a short Christmas cruise, we decided to give it a try.

I have to say, I was left speechless. Honestly, the cruise was absolutely perfect. There’s nothing to complain about (or just a few minor details). In terms of service and food, I felt like I was on a premium cruise line. I’d even say MSC has nothing to envy from some of those companies. While premium lines like Holland, Celebrity, and Royal are cutting back on services, I think MSC has made huge improvements. Seriously, I wasn’t expecting this at all. You’ll see what I mean as we chat more.

I won’t do a full review like I usually do because there weren’t many stops: 1. We boarded in Pointe-à-Pitre 2. We stopped in Saint-Martin 3. Then it was a direct crossing to the Azores...

This cruise was really about relaxing, even if it’s not the kind of trip we usually take.

First off, I’m not a big fan of "flight and cruise" packages. I asked if we could leave two days early, but they said it wasn’t possible. We had to take the flight, then the bus, and board the ship directly.

It’s not really my thing, but given the price we paid and since we really wanted to relax, we thought, *Why not?*

Here’s the itinerary:

Boarding in Pointe-à-Pitre Saint-Martin Five days at sea The Azores Four days at sea Hamburg One day at sea Le Havre



But as I mentioned, it wasn’t about the itinerary. It was really about taking a break and unwinding. Honestly, I came back thrilled.

Departure and boarding details to come

Hi, we're going on a cruise to Norway departing from Dunkirk and sailing up the coast—can you share some ideas on what to visit? Thanks! Gigi

Good evening everyone, since many loyal MSC customers have been asking for it, it seems that the tier system and benefits of the MSC Voyagers Club are undergoing a major reform! Does anyone here have any information? Thanks in advance. Foxpyzy

Over ten years ago, we took a cruise on the Costa ROMANTICA. Since then, we’ve never had the pleasure of finding another company for a cruise in the Indian Ocean with stops in Réunion, Mauritius, the Seychelles, and Madagascar. I recently discovered on this site that the German company AIDA offers the exact same cruise in December! But we don’t speak German and don’t know this company at all. Thanks if you can give us any insights about the ship *Stella* and the quality of their services

Hi, We’re leaving at the end of March for a cruise on the MSC Sinfonia. We’ll be departing from Athens, then Izmir, Istanbul, Corfu, Bari, and back to Athens. Would anyone have any info on the Sinfonia, and especially about the excursions in Corfu and Bari? Can we explore the city on foot, or are there MSC shuttles available?

Thanks for any tips you can share!

Hi everyone, I’m so happy Voyage Forum is back online. This is perfect timing since we’re leaving on November 28th for a cruise departing from Le Havre (Southampton, Zeebrugge, Rotterdam, Hamburg). Could you share some info on the distances from the ports to the city centers, sights to see, etc.? Thanks so much, and see you soon!

Hi Has anyone sailed with the French company CFC? What do you think? Haven’t seen many reviews about this company.

Hello everyone, So happy to be back on this Forum! We’re heading off on another cruise—our 7th—after a 5-year break... We’ll be leaving from Venice on April 26th with stops in Kotor, Mykonos, Santorini, and Ancona. Could you help me plan the stops by sharing tips, tricks, and advice? For those who already know me, you know we prefer not to take the cruise line’s excursions but instead organize everything ourselves. Thanks in advance to everyone, and looking forward to chatting with you all!

I’ve finally gotten around to writing a review of our transatlantic cruise on the Costa Fortuna. We’ve always loved cruises, especially transatlantic ones. In recent years, we were MSC customers (Diamond card). But this year, we decided to return to Costa, though there was one downside: we lost all the points from our old Costa card (I think we were "Gold"). Still, since we’re former customers, the company generously gave us 1 point and the bronze card. It’s better than nothing.

Our departure nearly went wrong. The ship was leaving Marseille on Friday, December 22 at 2:00 PM, and we were told to be at the port by 10:30 AM. This unusual departure time meant we had to travel to Marseille the day before (since we live in the Paris area). So, we booked a flight from Orly to Marseille on the 21st at 5:15 PM. But December 21 was a particularly rough day in France with a big snowstorm. And as everyone knows, planes and trains don’t handle snow very well. At Orly, in the waiting area, everyone was anxious as the minutes ticked by. The departure time kept getting pushed back in 15-minute increments. They eventually let us board the plane with no guarantees. Once inside, the captain announced we were waiting for a takeoff slot. About an hour later, he said the plane needed de-icing and the wait could be long since airport staff were overwhelmed. Miraculously, after what felt like forever, the de-icing truck finally arrived, and we took off—over two hours late. When we landed in Marseille, the terminal was practically empty. Luckily, our hotel wasn’t too far away.

We later found out that passengers who took the train were even less lucky—trains were canceled. Later, at our table, we met a neighbor who had boarded in Malaga by plane because his Paris-Marseille train had turned back. He’d incurred extra costs, lost two days of the cruise, and had quite a bit of stress.

The next day in Marseille, our boarding went smoothly. We were surprised by the large number of passengers. We later learned that 1,300 people had boarded in Marseille. Since the ship wasn’t full (between 2,300 and 2,500 passengers), the French were in the majority (a rare occurrence). We noticed during the cruise that the French are just as loud as the Italians. The only upside? At least we could understand what was being said.

More to come later.....

Hello everyone,

I’ve wanted to take this Norway cruise for a very long time. The first time I booked it was in July 2020 with Azamara. Unfortunately, it was canceled, as everyone remembers. When I tried to book it again, the prices (already a bit high with Azamara) had simply doubled. So, since then, I’ve been keeping an eye out every year for any opportunities...

The last time we sailed with Princess was eleven years ago, and things didn’t go very well. I came back pretty unhappy with their service and quite disappointed. Despite the $600 they gave me as credit for a future cruise, I’d never set foot on one of their ships again.

But this time, the opportunity arose—a fantastic itinerary with lots of stops, a reasonable price for 16 nights (I’ll share the details in the conclusion), and a ship that’s not too big, so to speak, with only 3,000 passengers. I’m not expecting much from the cruise line this time and am boarding the ship with low expectations beyond the itinerary.

Princess has introduced an app to download before the cruise. It’s essential because online check-in is no longer available, and the agency doesn’t send a travel journal. Everything is done through the app. After completing the check-in on the app, we only know that we’ll need to pick up our key, the Medallion, at embarkation by following the blue line in the terminal and presenting our passport.



Up until our departure, the weather forecast for the coming week in Norway is disastrous—rain, rain, and more rain. It was pretty much the same two years ago before our Iceland cruise, and in the end, the weather turned out fine.

If you’re ready to embark on the Emerald Princess to discover this beautiful cruise and the stunning landscapes of Norway, let’s go!

Southampton - Sea day - Bergen - Olden - Åndalsnes - Sea day - Tromsø - Honningsvåg (North Cape) - Alta - Sea day - Molde - Trondheim - Two sea days - Edinburgh - Sea day - Southampton

Hi everyone,

What a joy to be back here and pick up where we left off after all these months of hiatus.

I hope you’ll enjoy the story of this little trip around the Eastern Mediterranean. This cruise was the perfect way to satisfy our longing to return to Greece and Istanbul. The end of the season, until late November, is the best time to visit the Mediterranean in my opinion—when climate disruptions don’t get in the way.

Departing from Trieste, our stops were Katakolon, Piraeus, Kusadasi, Istanbul, Corfu, and Bari, before returning to Trieste and then Venice, where we planned a very short 24-hour stay.

We left home at 6:15 AM—our first cruise departure since moving to Normandy. What I miss most about living in the Gard is how close we were to Marseille Airport. No more hopping over to Marignane in an hour; now we have to plan for a three-hour trip to CDG, even under the best conditions on an early Sunday morning.

It was impossible to book a hotel night before our flight because, starting in April, the Ibis was priced at 450 € per night, and the Mercure was flirting with 800 €—breakfast not included, of course. 😏

I had a feeling there must’ve been a conference or something going on… Turns out, it was just the auto show. They simply adjusted the room prices to match the cost of the cars. 😛

Our flight took us to Venice, where we caught a FlixBus to Trieste. We arrived at Trieste’s train station in the afternoon and walked to our hotel in the city center.

After treating ourselves to an amazing pizza at a restaurant (Di Napoli Maestri Pizzaioli, Via Armando Diaz 10) for a very reasonable price, we enjoyed the mild evening temperature while exploring the stunning buildings of this charming city by night. These magnificent structures are a testament to the city’s past. Trieste became Austrian in 1382 due to its complicated relationship with Venice, and it wasn’t until 1918, at the end of World War I, that it became Italian again. The city’s lighting beautifully highlights the architecture of the buildings.

The terraces were lively, and the atmosphere was so warm and inviting that we wanted to stay out even longer.



But we’d been up since 4 AM, so we were happy to retreat to the quiet of our hotel, located in the pedestrian center just a few steps from the port (Urban Hotel Design—highly recommended).

More to come soon.

Hi,

Is it possible to get promotions on the MSC Yacht Club section? What strategy should I adopt to get the best prices: book in advance or at the last minute? Is it better to book directly with MSC or through a third-party provider to get the best value for money? Thanks

hi, I’m going on a cruise on the Costa TOSCANA in October, and I’ll be celebrating my birthday there. I wanted to make it special and try ARCHIPELAGO for the first time. And also go back to Teppanyaki (I really like their menu and the atmosphere). I see there’s a package for 3 culinary experiences at 88 €. According to the description, you can go to the specialty restaurants 3 times. That price seems really low to me, since Archipelago alone costs around 55 €... and with this package, you could go 3 times? Plus, there’s another package next to it: 1 Archipelago and 1 Teppanyaki (without specifying the menu) for 80 €. Has anyone already tried the 3-experience package? What did you think? Thanks for your feedback

‌ Hi there, Here’s a little review of our cruise on the Renaissance from October 18 to 29, 2025 (11 nights). It was our first experience with CFC. Some other forum members were on board too, so we can probably compare notes and correct me if I’m wrong!

The stops were as follows: 10/18 departure from Marseille 10/19 at sea 10/20 Cartagena 10/21 Almería 10/22 Gibraltar 10/23 Cádiz 10/24 at sea 10/25 Leixões (Porto) 10/26 Vigo 10/27 at sea 10/28 at sea 10/29 Dunkirk

First, a quick intro. We’re a family of four with two kids, ages 8 and 11. We booked this cruise in January 2025, right when it went on sale. At the time, it was priced at 763 € per adult (+ 99 € in tips) and 114.45 € per child (under 12, no tips to pay) for an ocean-view cabin (all ocean-view categories were the same price). Since there was also a single-parent offer (meaning one paying adult in the cabin was enough to get the child rate for the accompanying kid), I asked if we could take advantage of this offer to get two double cabins at the same price as one quadruple cabin (to have more space), and yes, it was possible. So we booked two premium ocean-view double cabins side by side. It was the same price as a quadruple. We booked directly through CFC because my husband had a promotional code from his works council. In total, for the four of us, we paid 1830 €, tips included. It’s true we booked early, but the rate was good, and we had the constraint of traveling as a family of four, so cabin choices were more limited. It’s also worth noting that the single-parent offer is limited.

Now, about embarkation: 10/18 Marseille Coming from the north, we took the direct TGV that morning at 7:22 AM, scheduled to arrive in Marseille at 12:24 PM. The trip went smoothly, great weather, and we arrived just one minute late. I had planned to get to the port using the free 35T shuttle from Joliette. To get to the bus stop, there were two options: the metro or walking. Since the weather was beautiful and the kids needed to stretch their legs, we opted for the second option. The route is all downhill, so it was pretty easy even with the suitcases. But I wouldn’t do it the other way around! We arrived at Joliette around 12:50 PM, just in time for the 1:00 PM shuttle, which arrived a few minutes late. Other cruisers got on board too. That day, there were two Costa ships and one MSC ship at the port as well. Traffic was heavy, and the shuttle arrived at the port entrance at 1:30 PM. We were scheduled for 2:30 PM. We were lucky to be at the closest embarkation terminal. So we were among those who had the least walking to do. We dropped off our suitcases and headed to the check-in counter. There were plenty of desks and almost no passengers. So we quickly completed the embarkation formalities—in just a few minutes—and when we boarded, it wasn’t even 2:00 PM yet. We headed to the buffet, where there weren’t many people. As we finished lunch, it was around 3:00 PM when they announced the cabins were ready. We went down to drop off our luggage in the cabins and then went up to the top deck to take some photos. The ship’s daily program said the safety drill would be at 4:00 PM. So we went to deck 6 at the scheduled time. But later, they announced it would actually be at 4:30 PM! In short, we waited 30 minutes for nothing because of a difference between the scheduled and actual time! The drill itself was long. Gathering everyone took about 20 minutes, I think. Just as we finished, they announced the departure, originally scheduled for 5:00 PM, was delayed until 9:00 PM due to latecomers. We went to check out the library, which had tons of board games and books—more than we’d ever seen. What stood out on this first day was that, for the first time, we had a French-speaking embarkation, announcements only in French (except for the safety drill), French-speaking servers, a paper daily program in French, books in French (which we’d never find on another ship), and menus in French. To wrap up the day, we had dinner at Vatel. I had requested the first seating (6:30 PM) and a table for four, and we got it. We were seated upstairs near the window—a very pleasant table that we’d occupy every evening. What was a little surprising, but we got used to it, was that you had to order everything you wanted at once. The portions weren’t big, but you could choose what you wanted. The cheese was French and excellent.

To be continued...

Hi everyone, I’m starting to look into small solo cruises, for now in November. It’s my first cruise, so I’m a bit nervous. Anyone potentially interested in 7 days in Italy, Tunisia, and Spain? If you’ve got any tips, I’d love to hear them. Looking forward to reading your replies

Hi everyone,

It was totally by chance that I found this cruise while chatting with Alfred in November 2024. It wasn’t planned, but the price was attractive—one of those "great deals" from Ponant that I love and that don’t exist anymore. Since everyone’s wondering, here’s the answer without waiting for the end of the story: after my various loyalty discounts, I paid **3,250 € per person** for 8 nights/9 days on the expedition cruise *The Essentials of the Seychelles*.

Expedition cruises are by far our favorites. The outings are done by Zodiac with the ship’s naturalist guides, everything’s included, and there’s no need to add any excursions or prepare anything.

We’re liking long flights less and less, so to break up the trip, we decided to stop over in Doha for four days on the way there and one day on the way back.

I’m happy to share the good and not-so-good moments, the great surprises, and the disappointments of this trip with you.

hi, we’re going on a cruise with MSC Virtuosa in the Caribbean. Has anyone done this cruise before and could give us some tips for excursions on the different islands? Thanks for your help

Hi there, I’m going on a cruise in March, sailing the Mediterranean on the Tosca Toscana. I’d love to hear your great tips for life on board and for the different stops: Barcelona, Rome, Palermo, and Civitavecchia. Thanks in advance!

Bonjour, Nous voila de retour de cette croisière. Embarquement à Dunkerque: les portes ouvraient à 12h environ, étant un peu en avance, je suis allée demander pour que mon mari PMR attende à l'intérieur plutôt que s/ son déambulateur dehors. Je l'ai donc laissé avec les 2 valises et nos 2 sacs à dos dans le petit hall pendant que j'allais garer le véhicule s/ le parking réservé avec CFC au tarif de 10 euros/ jour. La navette qui devait reconduire les gens du parking au pavillon des maquettes devait arriver dans 5 minutes et au bout de 15 minutes toujours rien. Après 15 min d'attente j'ai vu un Mr qui partait à pieds et je lui ai demandé de l'accompagner. En 15 minutes nous étions arrivés et toujours pas vu de navette car elle nous aurait dépassé.Arrivée au pavillon des maquettes . Mon mari avait déjà enregistré les valises avec l'aide d'1 personne de CFC.Restaient les formalités à remplir ce qui fut fait rapidement.Nous étions à bord à 12h15. Direction le buffet au pont 11 et attente de pouvoir accéder à la cabine dans 1 salon. A 14h , découverte de la cabine balcon au pont 9 à l'arrière: spacieuse avec un grand balcon comparé à MSC/COSTA. Etant à l'arrière, cabine 9202 , toujours un problème d'ascenseur le numéro 4: " car préference". L'ascenseur numéro 2 s'arrête au pont 10...et l'ascenseur numéro 3 souvent en panne, il ne reste que le numéro 1 pour les PMR pour accéder au buffet pour les personnes ayant également du mal à monter les escaliers.A noter 1 seule enfant à bord et beaucoup de "cheveux gris". JOUR 2: en mer. Beaucoup d'activités de proposées. Jour 3: GOTEBORG ( Suède).soleil 19 degrés à 11h Excursion prise avec CFC: Goteborg et Haga pour tous. Visite interessante avec une guide TB. Le quartier HAGA à notre avis plein de pavés et rien de spécial et pas adapté aux personnes se déplaçant avec une canne ou fauteuil.Ascenseur numéro 3 en panne.. Jour 4: Copenhague15 degrés le matin, averses ap-midi. Pas pris d'excursion ayant déjà fait escale avec CFC en 2025 et s/ les conseils des personnes de ce forum, nous avions pris le bus op-on/op-off face au bateau. Je suis allée quand même revoir la petite sirène . Plus de TV, ascenseur réparé. JOUR 5 : en mer , tj pas de TV JOUR 6 : GDANSK ( Pologne).15 degrés pluie toute la journée. Il y a 1 navette pour aller dans le C Ville. Nous avons pris l'excursion:Panorama de Gdansk. Le guide nous a laissé dans l'entrée du C Ville pour 45 minutes en nous donnant ce qu'il y avait à visiter.RV pour la suite des visites à 15h. Le bus est parti à 15h15 pour faire 10 km pour aller voir la Cathédrale d'Olivia .Nous y sommes arrivés à 16h16....le guide nous a dit que dans ce sens il y avait souvent des bouchons..Nous avons eu 10 min s/ place pour aller ensuite voir le phare et le monument de Westerplatte où là aussi nous avons eu 10 minutes s/ place. Nous étions bcp à nous interroger pourquoi nous n'avions pas fait le circuit dans l'autre sens puisqu'il s'avait qu'il y aurait des bouchons... Je suis allée à la réception me plaindre de cette organisation .La personne m'a lu le programme: nous devions commencer par le phare puis aller à la Cathédrale et y rester 30 min pour rejoindre le centre de Gdansk pour 1 courte promenade guidée avec un peu de temps libre pour acheter des souvenirs etc.. Le guide a fait tout le contraire de ce qui était prévu et pas de visite guidée puisqu'il nous a lâché dans la ville.... JOUR 7 : Ile de Bornholm (Danemark) 14 degrés quelques rayons de soleil Nous avions vu dans les excursions qu'il y avait découverte de RONNE à pieds. Donc comme beaucoup nous avons visité par nous-mêmes. Il y avait 1 petit orchestre pour nous accueillir s/ le port et 2 personnes avec des plans de la ville. Nous avons pris la navette pour sortir du port, navette toutes les 15 min.Office du tourisme à côté du "shuttel bus". Visite agréable à notre rythme. JOUR 8: KIEL ( Allemagne) 18-23 degrés, beau temps Nous avons pris l'excursion KIEL pour tous. Guide TB et visites interessantes. Le port est en ville et en 10 minutes nous sommes dans le CVille en suivant un trait bleu au sol depuis le port jusqu'au centre.Ascenseur 3 de nouveau bloqué...de nouveau la TV. JOUR 9 : en mer; l'ascenseur 3 fonctionne JOUR 10: en mer ; l'ascenseur 3 de nous veau en panne... JOUR 11: débarquement à Dunkerque. Les cabines doivent être libérées à 7h30.Buffet ouvert jusqu'à 9h. Ascenseur numéro 1 "réquisitionné" , reste le 2 qui ne va pas jusqu'au 11... problème pour les PMR qui doivent traverser tout le pont 11 et essayer d'avoir un des 4 ascenseurs en fonction à l'avant avec bcp de monde à les utiliser. Mon avis; escales interessantes. Personnels à bord toujours aussi accueillants , souriants et parlant français pour la plupart. Spectacles le soir de meilleure qualité qu'en Mars/Avril 2025 tant chanteurs-danseurs-animateurs et des costumes mieux.. Moins bien aimé ceux du "magicien". Il y a eu 3 conférences à bord par une personne très cultivée mais qui débordait du sujet et trop historique à mon goût.Je n'ai pas assisté aux 2 autres, mon mari a suivi la 2ème mais pas la 3ème.. Pour cette croisière il y avait le thème du Bridge mais nous ne sommes pas joueurs ni intéressés. Nous n'avions pas pris de forfait boissons à bord , il y a l'eau à disposition, café, thé, tisanes.

Nous avons eu un problème d'infiltration d'eau dans la cabine la veille du débarquement.Nous l'avons signalé et une fois le personnel technique passé ( avec traducteur ne parlant pas anglais), on nous a demandé de laisser la cabine pendant quelque temps pour la réparation.Nous sommes allés dans un salon et au bout d'1h30 je suis allée aux nouvelle à la réception. Réparation + longue que prévue...il fallait changer de cabine.....pas évident la veille du débarquement. Plus de cabine balcon disponible, nous avons eu 1 vue mer la 6075 avec baignoire ( impossible de l'utiliser pour nous deux). Nous avons donc fait nos valises , pris 1 douche dans notre cabine et nous sommes descendus dans la nouvelle.Bruits de chaises jusqu'à 0h30 car cabine sous un salon et un bruit continuel de ventilation dans le couloir.....le sommeil a été difficile à trouver. Débarquement: bien organisé. Nous avons été aidés pour le transport des 2 valises + sacs dans la salle d'attente le temps que je prenne la navette pour aller récupérer le véhicule. Guylène

Hello everyone,

If you'd like, I invite you to join me for a week-long cruise to northern Greece, visiting ports that are often less crowded with cruise ships.

Itinerary: Athens, Skiathos, Volos, Thessaloniki, Kavala, Limnos, Hydra, Athens