Back in 2016 we were very fortunate to be allocated a free cruise on MSC Splendida from www.cruise.co.uk forum which was a 2 night cruise from Hamburg back to Southampton. When a similar opportunity arose for a 2 night inaugural cruise on MSC Grandiosa I once again put my name forward in the hope we could enjoy a similar experience. Due to the fact that this time no flights or transfers were included the demand wasn’t as big so we found ourselves once again lucky enough to have been selected. We have managed to keep our expenses down to a minimum by booking pre-fight accommodation along with flights themselves with Avios points and then pre-cruise accommodation in Hamburg as an IHG reward night. The only outlay being the car park at Southampton Airport and then the train fare from Southampton Parkway to Heathrow T5, (the last two bits are exactly the same as we did in 2016 on Splendida).
MSC Grandiosa is a the latest addition to their fleet and we are really looking forward to comparing the design of the ship with the Seaside class which we enjoyed cruising on last year. Granted we only have 2 nights which basically equates just one full day but we fully intend to make the most of the experience.
We have been allocated cabin 9030 which is not in what we would consider the most ideal location on the ship but being as its only for two nights and it cost nothing we can’t really grumble. As you will see below on the graphic, we are right at the pointy end virtually under the bridge.
Given the short length of the cruise I may not do an instant update on the sea day, the standard Wi-Fi cost being an eye watering £ 32.50 per person for the whole of the two night cruise (with the onboard price being an extra 20% more) and as keen as I am to make a post, I’m not that keen. I’m sure you can wait 24 hours to find out what we did on our sea day…………………………….