2022 Cruising and Tuscany – The Cruise bit

[tonymc]

Pre-Trip report
The Pisa Bit

Sunday morning, and an early-ish start as we had to catch the 08:50 train up to Genoa. A two hour journey, with the second half hugging the coastline from Portofino all the way to Genoa, giving some really nice views. Arrival at Piazza Principe station meant only a short 10 minute walk down to the MSC cruise terminal, where having had our documents and Covid Passes checked, we waited for around 45 minutes before boarding.

The first thing that struck us was the length of the ship, MSC Seaview – it was looong! Spectacular entrance into the atrium, and we were invited to have lunch in the buffet. Initially we weren’t too impressed with the food, but we then realised that we had entered at the kids section, and just around the corner were more substantial dishes.

As Jo works for the NHS, we had taken advantage of their discounted cruise offer, and we also had our drinks package upgraded from the basic to premium at no extra cost.
Following a short walk around part of the ship, our cabin was ready at 14:00 – really nice use of space, it didn’t feel cramped at all with a bed and sofa, plus the balcony we had booked. It seemed a shame not to take advantage of the drinks package, so we enjoyed a couple of drinks whilst on a sunbed waiting for our departure at 17:00.

Following the departure, another hour on the balcony, and then preparations for dinner as we had chosen the early option at 19:15. It was noticeable that Seaview had a lot of tables for 2 rather than the large tables for 8 people as on our last MSC cruise on board Magnifica in 2019. We were sat on a table for two, but our dining neighbours were from Swindon, and had also joined at Genoa having flown in from the UK that morning.

The food was excellent, not looking too large a portion, but filling (and there is always the midnight snack option to go for! ), and we enjoyed a couple of glasses of champagne with dinner, which set the trend for each night going forward!

We had also booked the evening show, and in all honesty, on our previous MSC cruise the entertainment had been “quirky” to say the least, so we didn’t have high expectations. This time though, the entertainment was on a another level - definitely West-End standard. Although the shows were only 45 minutes (they did three per night), the cast were extremely versatile, and each night they delivered a fantastic show.

And after the show, what else but enjoy the drinks package – Jo had a plan to try a new different cocktail every night, and my personal goal was to try one of the Italian craft beers they stocked each day……unfortunately we failed, but not through want of trying.

Anyhow, the first night set the tone for all the other nights, so I’ll not bother with this on subsequent days.

Monday saw us at our first port of call at Naples where we chose to stay on board as we had previously stayed in the area, and we also wanted to chill out following our couple of days in Pisa. So nothing for it but to have breakfast delivered to the room on Monday morning, grab a sunbed, and take full advantage of the drinks and waiter service, punctuated by lunch in the restaurant rather than the buffet (on the basis we would over eat in the buffet – a sensible decision! ).

Tuesday we were porting in Sicily, and we had booked MSCs own shore excursion to Mount Etna and Taormina. This morning we enjoyed a substantial breakfast in the restaurant, disembarking around 09:30 for our trip. Around 90 minutes to Etna, with our guide giving lots of information on the island and it’s history. At Etna, we had around an hour with a guided walk around one of the craters, then headed back to Taormina where our guide took us through the town on a guided tour before leaving us for a few hours to do our own thing.

Taormina is absolutely stunning, perched high up and overlooking the Ionian Sea. Plenty of places to explore, and we enjoyed lunch in a local restaurant that again wasn’t too pricey. Our guide had arranged for a short visit to the main church in the town before getting back on the coach. As an aside, one nice thing about cruising is although it does only give you a “snapshot” of the areas/cities you call at, it does give you ideas for future visits, and it looks as if Sicily is now on that list!

An hours drive took us back to the ship just before the scheduled departure time. At dinner, our neighbours had been on the Etna trip, but had been a little disappointed at the time spent there compared to the time travelling, and I think we did get the best with having the full day tour.

Wednesday – it must be Malta. Although it is possible in Malta to visit Valletta by walking, we opted for another excursion that took us to the Blue Grotto caves and Marsaxlokk, and a visit to waterfront area of the old town.

This was only a half day tour, and we were planning on spending some time on our own in Valletta, but with it being yet another hot day, the call of the sunbeds and cold drinks won over, so we were back on board, lunch taken in the buffet, and out onto the sunbeds…..oh the excitement!

Thursday was a day at sea in transit to Barcelona, so nothing for it but to order breakfast in the cabin to be enjoyed on the balcony and soak up those rays, punctuated by more drinking an eating – it’s a hard life.

And formal night at dinner.

Friday and Barcelona – we had read that you could get public transport into the city from the port, so this is exactly what we did for eu4.50 each to take us to the bottom of Las Rambla. As we were off fairly early, we had a wander up to the main square, and then needing the “facilities”, we found them in a department store on it’s top floor café, which had spectacular panoramic views of the city – well worth the multiple escalators and the eu 6.60 for two coffees and a plate of Churros (have to keep the strength up! ). We then strolled round to the Cathedral, and had a wander around the Gothic Quarter before visiting the market for a couple of freshly squeezed juices for a couple of euros each (also recommended for lunch as there were many cheap cafes there as well).

And with it being lunchtime (stomach clock yet again highly accurate), we decided to head back to the ship where we just managed to squeeze into the restaurant before it closed. As it appears a large number of passengers were disembarking in Barcelona, the pool area with eerily quiet, the first time we had seen it like this for the trip, so yet more R&R on a sunbed and keeping the liquid levels topped up!

And sunset...

Saturday was calling at Marseille. As neither of us really wanted another day of sightseeing, we opted to stay aboard with breakfast on the balcony, enjoying the view out across the Med.

Another day of sunbeds and refreshments, and again very quiet around the pool. However, at dinner, the ship was definitely a lot busier than the previous days, as it was half-term in France and it appears a large number of families had joined in Marseille. TBH, the ship absorbed the extra passengers well – the main impact being that the show that night was absolutely full, whereas all week it had been around 60% capacity. We enjoyed a few final drinks before finishing our packing in order to leave the cases out for our disembarking in the morning back in Genoa.

And the second Sunday – back in Genoa. We were given a disembarkation time of 09:30, and although we did ask if we could stay on board until around midday, no joy. So a final breakfast in the restaurant and goodbyes to our server and also our cabin steward (who was a star), we had to leave.

Originally, we were travelling back from Milan the following day, so had planned to catch the train to Milan, have a day (afternoon) there, and then a relaxed lunchtime flight back. However, as BA had, about a week before we left cancelled our connecting flight from our Milan-Heathrow-Manchester ticket, we had rebooked our return flight from Genoa to Manchester later on our arrival day on Ryanair for a very reasonable £85 for the two of us including baggage, but this left us with several hours to kill before we needed to be at the airport.

We did find a baggage storage facility at a hotel about 10 minutes form the cruise terminal, so for eu5 for each bag, we deposited them there whilst we had a wander around Genoa and enjoyed a coffee and snack. Although we only left the bags for 3 hours, it was worth it not to be wheeling the cases around town! The location was also a short but steep walk back up to the railway station where we caught a taxi to the airport.

Check-in at Genoa airport was a breeze – it looks as if it only has 20 or so flights a day. Best of all, before check-in, there is an outdoor terrace where you can enjoy a drink and food whilst watching the planes land and take off – not that there was much action!

Having checked in, the rest of the airport was quite basic, and as we are now non-Schengen, we had to pass through passport control to a crowded departure area that had three flights leaving within 30 minutes of each other. Unfortunately, our flight had been delayed due to ATC restrictions, so we departed some 100 minutes late.

And arrival at Manchester was back to the expected chaos – at baggage, people from a flight that had landed two hours previously were still waiting, and they didn’t get their baggage for another hour. We were fortunate in that we “only” waited some 90 minutes for ours, but an extremely frustrating end to what had been a fantastic holiday.

[Loopylooloo]

Great report, loved reading this, especially your stomach clock! 🤣 looks like a great cruise.

[ClaireNJ]

Stunning photos 😊
You both looked FAB on the formal night 🤩
And WOW Primark Barcelona looked posh too 🙊

[tonymc]

Originally Posted by Loopylooloo

Great report, loved reading this, especially your stomach clock! 🤣 looks like a great cruise.

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Much better than any smart phone for time zone changes!

Originally Posted by ClaireNJ

And WOW Primark Barcelona looked posh too 🙊

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Just to make it clear, the cafe with the view was not in Primark! And yes, I did get dragged round