We’ve just returned from a cruise that my wife and I will remember—unfortunately, not in a good way. There’s so much to say that I’ll proceed chapter by chapter. Pre-Cruise On January 24th, 2025, I booked through a supposedly attentive cruise agent the repositioning cruise of the CFC Renaissance to the French West Indies, initially departing from Le Havre, then from Dunkirk, on November 1st, 2025. The return flight was included in the price of this trip. From January, right after booking, this adventure got off to a bad start. Used to major cruise lines, I asked my agent to reserve a table for 4 at the "Vatel" restaurant for the second seating, and to link this reservation to the cabin of friends traveling with us. First brush-off: "Ask the maître d’ at the restaurant entrance on the first night."

"To govern is to foresee, and to foresee nothing is to head for disaster," as Émile de Girardin said.

Following this maxim, in February, I started looking for transportation to Le Havre, which was initially the departure port. Then, I asked the travel agent which airport the return flight would land at. I knew flights from Pointe-à-Pitre to Paris served both main Parisian airports. Here, I found myself like a ping-pong ball between the cruise agent and CFC: The cruise agent said, "Ask CFC," and CFC replied, "No, your agent is your intermediary—ask them." It went back and forth like that. Impossible to pre-book the flight that would take us back to our final destination. During the summer, we learned that the departure port was no longer Le Havre but Dunkirk. We canceled our transfers to Le Havre but, of course, lost the cost of the reservations. Meanwhile, we purchased our "Beverage" package—we chose the "Fraîcheur" option, which included all non-alcoholic cocktails, canned sodas, fruit juices, bottled water, and regular coffees. This detail is important for the rest of the story. Every month, I followed up to find out the return airport. Nothing until October 28th (3 days before departure), when CFC finally informed me it was Orly, along with the flight number and time. Of course, on top of booking at full price, I had to arrange my final transfer home. Since I had very little time before the return flight, I had to book an Uber in a rush for the Orly/CDG transfer. Right after, we were told that our first stop in Lisbon—the most anticipated for many cruisers—had been canceled due to a strike at the port of Lisbon and replaced with Vigo, Spain. A completely unremarkable stop—nothing outstanding. As you can see, the prelude was already problematic, yet we’re far from reaching the peak of our disappointments. .......... to be continued soon.

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!

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 there,

I hit my photo limit on the other post, so I’m forced to start a new one to continue this travel journal.

Victoria / Mahé continued:

After Anse Intendance, we head to Police Bay, located at the very southern tip of Mahé. Swimming and snorkeling aren’t ideal there (lots of waves)—just for the view!









On the way back, we stopped to visit some "typical" Seychellois houses, including one of the oldest.







We got back to the port around 6:30 PM, with memories filling our heads.

We were really happy with this day, and our guide/driver was exceptional! We even gave him a nice tip.

Dinner at the restaurant:







To be continued: Day at sea and Nosy Be

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!

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 there, On the MSC Musica, there’s no Yacht Club—do you know if there’s a dedicated Aurea restaurant? Thanks in advance for your reply..

Hi, can you eat in the evening at the Costa Smeralda’s cafeteria, or do you have to dine at the restaurant? Thanks for your reply.

Hi there, I’d like to ask . . . Are all included meals on board the boat when we’ve purchased excursions? With the boat, I mean. Is it ever the case that the included lunch is served en route for the group at a restaurant, or do we always have to return to the boat to eat and then head back out in the afternoon to continue the visits? Thanks in advance!

Hi there, I’m considering a cruise on this ship in the recently introduced Yacht Club category. Have any forum members tried it? What are your thoughts? Positive or negative? Which cabins should we go for—or avoid? We’re already familiar with the Yacht Clubs on the Splendida, Fantasia, Preziosa, and Divina series. We weren’t as keen on the one on the Seashore—we found it too big. Thanks in advance for your feedback! Best, Claudine

Hi everyone, Here’s a little story about what happened to me—I was supposed to go on a cruise on the CELEBRITY INFINITY on February 16th, but nothing went as planned 😕 We left for Athens on February 14th, had a good flight, and stayed at the same hotel as last year, the PHIDIAS PIRAEUS HOTEL, which we really liked. But this year, it was disappointing—no upgrade from BOOKING, so a smaller room and, above all, noisy because of a compressor sound.... Anyway, we arrived in the late afternoon, took a walk, and found a really nice restaurant in the pedestrian streets of Piraeus. The next day, the 15th, we maybe thought about going to the island of Aegina, but we got up a little too late, so we just went for a walk. We came back to the hotel for a break, then got ready for a massage I had booked online. I absentmindedly checked my phone… an email from CELEBRITY announcing the cancellation of the cruise!!! That’s a first for us—we were a little shocked by the news 😕 TO BE CONTINUED....

Hi, I have a quick question I’d love to know if anyone in this group has sailed with NCL in The Haven? And if so, can you compare it to YC, or is it different—better or not as good? 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, we’re taking this cruise from September 27 to October 4, 2025.

Could you share your experience on board—cabin, meals, etc.?

Are there any other members on this cruise between September 7 and October 4, 2025?

See you soon, Alexandre

Hello,

We (a family of two adults and two kids) are going on our first cruise this August on the Costa Esmeralda. To make sure everything goes smoothly, I booked a suite. I have a few questions to prepare well and I’m definitely open to any tips.

I read that a restaurant is reserved, specifically the Bellavista. What confused me a bit is that I saw others mention the Panama. I’m pretty sure it’s the Bellavista, especially after checking the ship’s layout.

About this restaurant: - Is it accessible on embarkation day, say around 1:30 PM? - Same question for when we return from excursions around 1:30 PM

I’ve done my research otherwise, but I’m still open to any advice.

Thanks in advance to all cruisers who take the time to reply.

Hi there, Here’s a little recap of my cruise on the CELEBRITY INFINITY from February 14th to 23rd. Itinerary: Athens / Thessaloniki / Thessaloniki / Kusadasi / AT SEA / Cyprus / AT SEA / Rhodes / Heraklion / Athens / Athens Since the cruise ended on Monday, we had to leave the ship on Sunday to go back to work on Monday 😕 Bring on retirement! This was our 34th cruise, and the price was around 1,300 € per person for AQUACLASS. Just to remind you, AQUACLASS includes spa access, a cabin with a hydro-massage shower, and a dedicated restaurant. For once, I have to say we didn’t get a good deal—prices dropped two months before departure, and we could’ve had AQUACLASS in a guaranteed cabin for 1,000 € per person. So, I think for January/February cruises, it’s better to book last-minute. We arrived in Piraeus on the 12th in the evening. The hotel was great—"Phidias Piraeus Hotel"—close to the center, with a spacious room (upgraded by Booking to a junior suite). The breakfast was decent, and the price was 125 € for two nights, all included. The cherry on top? The hotel offers free shuttles to the cruise ship on departure day—really awesome! We’d never visited Piraeus before, and it was a lovely surprise. Not only was the weather gorgeous, but the walk was really pleasant—the port, the beach, the little streets. It was way nicer than I’d imagined! TO BE CONTINUED: BOARDING 😉

Hi, I'm looking into a cruise for May 2026. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the MSC Preziosa ship. Thanks, Diane

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

HELLO, here’s a little review of my cruise on the CELEBRITY EQUINOX 9-night / 10-day cruise CONCIERGE CLASS BALCONY CABIN at 1170 € per person EMBARKATION We arrived around 11:30 AM and were taken care of right away. Priority boarding is now only for suites, but it’s not really necessary since everyone boards quickly. In less than 15 minutes, we were on board. The best part? We could head straight to our muster station for the lifeboat drill—done in no time! AZAMARA, if you’re listening : ) Disembarkations at ports were also very smooth, with a little stand offering wet towels and refreshing drinks. THE CABIN CONCIERGE BALCONY 2108 Perfectly located, with a huge balcony, on the same deck as the pools, just below the buffet, and close to the elevators that took us straight to the restaurant or reception. Concierge class doesn’t come with many perks—we only went to the concierge desk once. We got a small plate of canapés in the cabin every day and access to a few invitations we declined, lol. What really stood out was the location and the large balcony. DINING The buffet is always great, with tons of choices—the best buffet of any cruise line, in my opinion, even if PRINCESS isn’t bad either. It was sometimes crowded, but the island layout meant we never had to queue, except for the last two days when we couldn’t serve ourselves due to a GASTRO outbreak... The only downside was the desserts, which weren’t as good as before. Is it the chef? Or a budget cut? The last day’s FAREWELL BUFFET was amazing. At the restaurant, we noticed a drop in quality, especially with the starters—mostly veggies or soup, basically cheap stuff :( . Though the escargots were still available and just as good. Also, we often got the pager because no tables were free, and service was sometimes really slow. We went to the specialty restaurant « LE MURANO » for around $50 per person. The menu is always the same, but it’s still delicious, with attentive service and the chef flambéing the lobster right in front of you. We loved it! THE PORTS OF CALL BARCELONA / AT SEA / LISBON (2 DAYS) / PORTO / AT SEA / TANGIER / CADIZ / AT SEA A great itinerary with 3 sea days in total. We had mostly great weather, even really nice weather during the 3 sea days. It was less sunny and warm in PORTO and CADIZ. We did everything on our own, except for the first day in Lisbon, where we took a guided TUK TUK tour with Filipe—it was AMAZING! He was really interesting, and we learned so many fun facts. Loved it! In PORTO, everything costs money, which was a bit disappointing. The churches and cathedrals are expensive :( TANGIER was a great discovery. Too bad no mosques are open to visitors, but it’s still a pleasant stop. We’d already visited CADIZ and love this city.

ENTERTAINMENT DURING THE DAY It’s always quiet during the day. You can play mini-golf or pétanque on the grass, and we didn’t hesitate to do laps around the deck. Of course, we also enjoyed the fantastic adults-only pool in the solarium, though sometimes we went to the outdoor pools too. This adults-only pool is still incredible—big and heated, except for 2 days when I complained because the water was suddenly cold. I don’t know why! Of course, some parents try to bring their kids in at the start of the cruise, but not on my watch, lol. After 2 or 3 days, they give up—the outdoor pools were well-heated anyway, so there was no reason to. Apparently, some people didn’t know CELEBRITY—they must’ve realized it’s not a cruise line for kids, pff. IN THE EVENING Apart from the comedian, we saw all the shows. Some were really beautiful, others just okay, but overall, it was a success. The dance nights, though, were pretty average, except for the ABBA night, which always delivers.

CONCLUSION CELEBRITY is still a pleasant cruise line, even if the quality has dropped a little. We still love that fabulous heated adults-only pool, the calm atmosphere on board, the few kids, no Italians, and the zen vibe. The ship is showing its age a bit, but nothing major. We had a great cruise with good value for money. Can’t wait for the next one on the CELEBRITY INFINITY in February! Thanks for reading 😉 PS: Some photos to come

Hi there, We took this cruise the week before you did. There were two couples in our group, and three out of four of us got sick. This cruise went really badly, even though we always travel with MSC. There was trash in the elevators and hallways. We’re used to eating at the second seating, so we’d go down at 6:30 PM for drinks before the show, which starts at 7:30 PM. It was impossible to get served—only 3 times in 11 days!! At the restaurant, our friend was served the appetizer with the main course, and my partner had already finished dessert when they brought out a *new* main course for him... Never again on this ship. We shared our feedback with CUSTOMER, and their response? A 50 € credit to spend on our next cruise. LOL, they can keep it.

Hello everyone, I’m so happy to be back on Voyage Forum Cruises. I’ve missed this forum for planning my cruises over the past few years. Even though we came back very sick with Covid (diagnosed on disembarkation day) and at first we didn’t want to go on another cruise, the call is too strong, and we’re thinking of going again at the end of the year… 😎 After a big disappointment with COSTA (we were on the DIANANT) that couldn’t be resolved, we switched to MSC in Yacht Club and recently with our kids and grandkids in an Auréa Balcony cabin. But I have to admit, MSC’s dining options don’t suit me as well as COSTA’s. For the end of the year, I’m torn between Costa Toscana and CFC. Could someone give me info on the latter when traveling in a suite? Apart from the cabin size, no details are provided (dedicated restaurant, for example?). See you soon on the forum.

MSC Orchestra cruise from October 11 to 22. 8 travelers, 7 got sick with 2 bedridden for 2 days, no port stops, no restaurants, and a medical center that told us our COVID and flu tests were negative—but in hindsight, without showing us the results. When we got back, we all went to see a French doctor (plus 100 € for the onboard consultation and medication costs), and we’re still sick more than a week later. I’d like to share my experience with other cruisers to see if they’ve been ill too, because I doubt the legitimacy and honesty of MSC’s staff. This was our 5th MSC cruise, and we were disappointed by the drop in restaurant quality and the same old entertainment—same groups at the same bars. I think this’ll be our last MSC cruise, and I’m looking forward to hearing about other companies’ experiences.

Hi everyone, I’m leaving in 10 days on the Costa Fortuna, and for the first time I’ll be staying in a suite. I’d love to hear your feedback if you’ve recently traveled in a suite on the Fortuna. Thanks in advance!

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

Hello, We’ll be sailing on the Renaissance with CFC to southern Norway from July 4 to 11, 2026, departing from Dunkirk (the cruise was booked through "Planète Croisière"). When entering some personal details or pre-selecting options on the CFC website, I’m wondering about the "optional" categories for drinks and WiFi. I’m actually a bit surprised by these extra charges, as we weren’t used to them on other cruises (Australis in Patagonia; Hurtigruten’s Coastal Express in Norway and Alaska; Rivages du Monde in the Arctic or on the Douro River; a Nile river cruise in Egypt), where we sometimes had access to basic drinks at meals and free WiFi when near land. Anyway, for those who’ve already taken a CFC cruise on the Renaissance, could you share some advice? Specifically about the most basic drink package, called "Fraîcheur" (238 € for two), which doesn’t seem to be described anywhere. The "Premium" package seems excessive (490 € for two for the week) for light drinkers. As for WiFi, it’s 10 € per day per person. While I find that price acceptable for parking our car in Dunkirk, it feels overpriced here (especially since it was free on the Nordlys "Coastal Express" just 3 or 4 years ago). So, I’d love to hear from experienced cruisers who’ve been on this ship! Looking forward to seeing the excursion prices, which should be available soon! 😐

Thanks in advance!

😉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 there, So, I booked this cruise... I know CFC gets a lot of criticism— - And that it’s not really like the ships I usually take. But the destination really interested me... So, I’m giving it a try... I’m going in with an open mind, thinking I got a good deal, so I’m not expecting the same experience as when I travel with Yacht Club or The Haven. We’ll see... soon!

Hello, We’re sailing on the Norwegian Viva from Lisbon to Galveston. From what I’ve read on the NCL site, there’s no formal night; is that correct? If so, that’ll lighten the suitcase! 😊 The ship stops in Cabo Rojo in the Dominican Republic, and I haven’t found much info on this stop—it seems to be recent. I’m thinking of just heading to the seaside near the ship, but if you’ve got another **bon plan**, I’m all ears. Same for La Romana: last time we went to Bayahibe Beach, so if you’ve got another idea... Thanks in advance!

A scam from A to Z.

A scam from A to Z.

I just got off a 15-day cruise around Japan on the Norwegian Spirit. Never again!

Drink prices are exorbitant ($12 before tax for a beer, a 500ml bottle of water for $6.50 before tax!!!)

That’s $13 per liter of water before tax!!!!!

No entertainment at all.

Shows were really mediocre.

No dedicated space for kids.

Food was repetitive, way too salty, and just not good.

Port stops were too short, and some days at sea were way too long!

Time to disembark: over an hour, like in Korea (Icheon). On a 5-hour stop, that’s wasted time!!

Excursion prices ranged from $199 to $350 per person (for less than 6 hours on land!!!)

And to top it all off: after a case of food poisoning on board and a visit to the ship’s doctor (in the middle of the night due to feeling unwell and vomiting), we were charged $4,800 for medical exams!!

Yes, you read that right: $4,800!!!!!!

Just to clarify, the person was in consultation for about 2.5 hours... These fees were directly charged to our account since they force you to register a credit card at the start of the cruise!!

On top of that: service charges on board: $20 per person per day! That’s $1,680 before tax, of course!! We contested them, but they were still charged!!

Other unknown fees charged by mistake!! I had to open a dispute with my bank.

So go with MSC or Costa instead...

but avoid Norwegian—an unscrupulous company that takes advantage of vulnerable people.

Date of experience: August 10, 2025

Hi there,

To celebrate an anniversary, we’re dreaming of a truly amazing luxury cruise where we’d be pampered.

We’ve already traveled in the Yacht Club on MSC. It was fantastic, especially since it was in the fjords.

But do you have any other cruise lines to recommend?