Amy and her family were first-time cruisers and had not been abroad for many years. Keen to be able to see multiple destinations and have time to relax, I felt MSC’s Northern Europe 12-night cruise would tick their boxes. Over to Amy...
We are a family of three and the only times we have previously been abroad were to Disney in Florida and Paris.
Overseas holidays and particularly flying have never really appealed, but after the pandemic, we discussed doing something a little different.
Having heard good things about cruising, we contacted Flis, who found us a brilliant package on the MSC Virtuosa, departing from Southampton in the school summer holidays, which was perfect.
The 12-night cruise visited the ports of Lisbon and Funchal in Portugal and Madeira; Las Palmas, Santa Cruz and Arrecife in the Canary Islands; and Vigo on mainland Spain. We therefore had several days onshore plus time to soak up the atmosphere on board the ship.
As virgin cruisers, we decided to explore the port towns ourselves, as most had buses or tuk-tuks, though next time we will be more adventurous and book excursions.
Funchal was a highlight. It’s incredibly pretty, and we loved taking the red bus up to the monastery overlooking the port.
Las Palmas was another we enjoyed, as the port is a short walk to a beautiful beach and a large shopping complex.
The ship itself was impressive with glass staircases in the Atrium and a large LED screen roof in the Promenade, which constantly showed amazing displays.
As music fans, the music-themed Virtuosa couldn’t have been more suited. The décor was brilliant, and the nightly theatre shows were enjoyable and very professional, ranging from stand-up comedy to West End-style performances.
The onboard evening parties were excellent but as with several of the bars and pool areas, space to relax was at a premium with the ship at full capacity in the school holidays.
There are plenty of kids' activities with clubs, pools and water slides, although Zoe, our 15-year-old daughter, preferred to stay with us.
We dined in the buffet restaurant for breakfast and lunch, which always had a wide range of food. The evening meals in the main dining room were excellent, with several options and an opportunity to enjoy the company of two other families sharing our table.
The staff couldn’t do enough for you - always attentive - and our waiter even entertained us with magic tricks at the end of the meal.
The ship also has some specialist feature restaurants which are an additional charge. We dined in the Butcher's Cut, where the steak was out of this world; and IndoChine, offering modern Vietnamese cuisine with a classic French twist, which although not characteristically our taste, offered the chance to sample some new dishes which was good fun.
Our accommodation, an Ocean view room with a window on deck 5, was comfortable with a super king and a converted sofa bed and although the bathroom was small, it met our needs.
The cabin crew were amazing, keeping rooms spotless, and the air conditioning made it very pleasant to return to after the heat of the day.
Not being drinkers, we had the alcohol-free package and the mocktails were a real treat, as was the Aurea Spa manicure and an hour of pampering.
Given our home is in the west country, cruising from Southampton was a real bonus and convenience.
We parked close to the terminal, queuing for a short time at passport control, and before we knew it, were on the ship with our luggage delivered to our door within a couple of hours.
Throughout the journey, customs at the various ports were well organised and we didn’t even need to take our passports.
At the trip’s conclusion, we decided to self-disembark and we were in the car within an hour of leaving our room. Fabulous.
This was a great re-introduction to overseas travel and we are excited to do it again.
Flis was brilliant from start to finish, taking any stress out of booking, and was always at the end of the phone for queries or assistance. She also helped book the speciality restaurants, and a ticket that included access to the “paid for” shows.
Thank you, Flis, we had a fantastic time.
Amy
