The 10 Things I/We Miss The Most About Cruising.

Dawn and I on the Formal Night on the MSC Splendida

We like to book our cruise experiences about 18 months in advance so we can pick our stateroom and which deck we are on, I know you probably can get a better deal about 10 weeks prior to sailing but there is less choice of location and staterooms, and we have gone on the last minute and even had a guarantee cabin and was very satisfied. 

We have cruised on different companies including MSC, Costa, Royal, Carnival, and NCL and have a booking on Celebrity next year (2021), and on the vast majority of the cruise's, it was the itinerary that made up our minds, with the company and ship a close second. With our last cruise cancelled; a transatlantic crossing via Greenland, Iceland, and Ireland, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, we were left feeling flat and very disappointed, so we were thinking what is it making us miss the cruising experience the most, and this is the 10 reasons we came up with.

In Reverse order;

MSC Magnifica Atrium

10- Ships entertainment- We have seen some great shows such as 'The Million Dollar Quartet' and great comedians/jugglers, but after a few cruises the shows are repeated and you can start to predict the magician and the acrobats do the same turns, we have even watched the Beatles with Scottish accents and a Take That tribute band had the worst Manc accents going. The ships own singers and dancers are normally of  High Quality and work very hard and put on great productions. The Bar and Lounge singers and musicians are also very entertaining and it's strange how you seem to have a favourite such as Siglo on the NCL Bliss ( https://youtu.be/XeyoCso4bvI) and the Guitar Man (Great Neil Diamond singer) on the NCL Jade who moved to the NCL Epic and we sang/screeched into the small hours.

9- Style and Exploring the ship- In all the cruise companies I named at the beginning MSC stand's head and shoulders above the rest from the way the ship looks like to the way the ship is furnished, there is no fake marble or columns, the artwork is genuine and there are even expensive Swaroski crystals in the stairs and on some ships a 4 deck waterfall in the atrium. The main reason I enjoy exploring the ship is that I love taking photos around the ship using long exposure to try and get a great shot of the interior, which can be challenging due to the low lighting and low ceilings. Click on the above Atrium photo to see more of MSC Magnifica images. First off this is not sponsored by MSC in any way but they do have a certain smell, not in a bad way but a welcoming fragrance I can't explain it but as soon as I board the ship and catch the smell I feel like an old friend has just greeted me, I know that sounds weird but it just is.

8- Sunsets and the storms- We live by the seaside and are used to seeing lovely sunsets over the beach and the shoreline, but if you have ever cruised then you know the sunsets at sea with nothing on the horizon are some of the best romantic sights you can enjoy, the colours are so vivid and vibrant and you just have to a portrait taken with it in the background. If you have a balcony cabin or are up on deck keep an eye out on the horizon you might just see the best fireworks at sea put on by Mrs Nature, thunder and lighting are great to watch and from the safety of the ship, the show can be electrifying and really lights up the pitch-black night sky. On clear nights the star gazing is wonderful so pack your binoculars and get looking for ET.

7- Dance/Zumba sessions-