…a. I take you to visit the bars, lounges, restaurants, decks, entertainment, facilities and accommodation. I travelled on the ship on a Mediterranean cruise. The ship is in this area in the European summer and moves to South America for the rest of the year. Declaration: I travelled with MSC Cruises UK on a 7-night Mediterranean cruise on the MSC Lirica. For more videos, articles, audio podcasts and articles visit tipsfortravellers.com/msclirica…
…r rapid growth over the last decade especially in the Mediterranean, South America and South Africa, has made them one of the four largest cruise companies. The line was created by the Italian family that runs the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) which is one of the world’s largest sea freighter operators. MSC Cruises is Mediterranean based and promises a “Mediterranean Way of Life” experience. This means they have a strong focus on families,…
…lines move the ships deployed there to areas like the Caribbean and South America. As there is at least seven sea days they have limited appeal. You can get a week cruising either the Mediterranean or Caribbean and an Atlantic crossing at very low fares. Start and end of the season, especially out of school holidays. While you risk having mixed weather the prices for Baltic, Mediterranean, Caribbean and Alaska cruises will be lowest during these…
…ile the safety video was shown in multiple languages, the TV channels were American and British shows and there was not a lot of evidence of catering for non-English speaking guests. Luxury hotel decor My favourite hotel chain is the Four Seasons. I love the way that they manage to create soothing and stylish decor that is rich on detail, plush, comfortable and successfully combines tradition and contemporary elements. If they decided to create a…
…versions of shows created by iLuminate. This was a successful group from “America’s Got Talent” involving dancers dressed in black suits with light effects on them. The dancers do not sing live although the lead singers do. The shows all have very energetic dance routines and so although they wear mikes and appear to be singing, they are miming. I had assumed this as I noticed the quality was consistently flawless, as were the harmonies – and non…
…ommodation, the fares are higher than luxury lines like Cunard and Holland America and so people who travel on Seabourn are more affluent. There was a mixture of professionals, retired and semi-retired corporate leaders and even the occasional society member, such as a lady-in-waiting to the British Royal Family and a leading UK politician, on our cruise. Although families are starting to come on Seabourn, the line does not actively look to attrac…
…shopping or excursion trips. The entertainment and facilities have a North American feel and bias, although the crew and passengers are more diverse than some of the other ultra-luxury lines like Crystal that I have travelled on. Many of the crew are from Eastern Europe, South Africa, United Kingdom and the Philippines. While there is choice on the ships of venues and activities, there is not as packed schedule of on-board events as with mainstrea…
…mer season most lines move the ships to areas like the Caribbean and South America. As there is at least seven sea days they have limited appeal. You can get a week cruising either the Mediterranean or Caribbean and an Atlantic crossing at low fares. Start and end of the season, especially out of school holidays. While you risk having mixed weather, prices will be lowest during these periods. Crossings at start and end of world cruises. These are…
…uests come from all over the world, Asia, New Zealand, South Africa, South America, but our main market is USA and UK since we are an English-speaking ship, meaning that everything on board is in English. The crew do speak several languages, but the language on board and all the information is in English. Therefore the English-speaking markets are those that we as a company at this point in time have as our main focus and the clientele come from….
…st of the major cities in Europe. Much further if you’re coming from North America of course. Many European airlines fly direct to the city. If you can it is worth doing as from Johannesburg it is over a 2 hour flight and internal flights are quite costly. It is not worth driving from Johannesburg as the drive is very long, and not very scenic or interesting. One great way to get to Cape Town, if you are in the Johannesburg/ Pretoria area, and hav…
…lines that have programs to partner up solo travellers. Lines like Holland America and Princess have a matching program where solo travellers can sign up to be partnered up with another guest to share a cabin. Your travel agent or the line can manage this. You do, however, risk sharing with someone who you do not get on with. Sign-up for solo travel site newsletters. There are a number of sites that focus on finding and promoting deals for solo tr…
