r/cruisers

Hey all I’m taking my MSF course next weekend and if everything goes to plan will be looking for a cruiser shortly after as my first EVER bike. I’ve looked into Honda rebels already and it seems from other peoples testimonies that bike would be too small. But never the less any good recommendations?? Thank you!

I’m in Texas and it’s hotter than a coal fire this time of year. I like to ride too but even in this heat I wear at least jeans, tshirt, steel toe boots, and helmet.

This year I’ve seen so many people riding in this area in shorts, tennis shoes, and no helmet. Sometimes they’re wearing flip flops/sandals.

All I can say is you better hope extra hard that something doesn’t happen, rocks and other road debris doesn’t get kicked up at you, etc. It will hurt a lot worse than a sunburn.

This is my most recent experience on the MSC Seascape from June 14 - June 21. I may have missed somethings but please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you

Cost

•	Paid around $1,300 for 2 people.  
•	At the time of booking, internet plus drinks was $900 per person, compared to $650 per person without it.  
•	The alcoholic drink package was about $595 for 7 days.  
•	The minors’ drink package was about $154.  
•	Got two ship bracelets for $20.  
•	Charms were $10 for 5 charms.  
•	Added $34 for Butcher’s Steakhouse (lobster and wine).  
•	Added $40 for Teppanyaki (wagyu).  
•	Added $20 for the seafood restaurant (seafood tower).

Boarding

I selected the arrival time of 1:00–1:30 p.m. We got there at 1:00 and were completely finished (standing in line, putting bags on the conveyor belt, and dropping off bags with the concierge) by 1:30. They had a system, and they stuck to it. I will point out that I never had a bad experience with boarding.

Safety Video

You go to your muster station to check in, but you watch the safety video on your own anywhere, as long as you are connected to the ship’s Wi-Fi.

Internet

You do not need to get the internet package. The internet package has two options: 1) social media and web browsing, or 2) full internet access. If you have an iPhone, iMessage works free of charge as long as you are connected to the ship’s Wi-Fi.

Elevators

The elevators were mostly crowded unless it was early in the morning. I was on the 14th floor, so the dining hall was only two flights of stairs away, and we walked it frequently.

One hack we found was going down a floor or two and pressing the same floor, which would sometimes get us a faster elevator. The elevator system tells you how long it will take for your elevator to arrive. Sometimes the timer gets stuck for whatever reason.

I had two instances where I just took the stairs because I didn’t feel like waiting for the elevator. I only waited for the elevator when I was going to grab drinks from the 7th floor. I would walk down but not back up.

Food

Food was 10/10.

Buffet

I tell everyone 9/10 because I gained a lot of weight. I am sensitive to salt, and everything was perfectly seasoned. There was so much variety. I never had a buffet meal where I didn’t eat or finish my food.

They served hamburgers, fries, and pizza from about 10:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m., I believe. MSC is known for its pizza, and that reputation is well deserved.

The buffet does not serve cocktails—only soda, juice, water, wine, and beer.

Specialty Dining

The specialty dining package was $144 per person for three restaurants. I chose the seafood restaurant, the steakhouse, and the hibachi restaurant.

The food was excellent at all three. The portions were huge, and the quality was top-tier.

Main Dining

The food was great. From what we had, it was not a repeat of what was offered at the buffet. However, some menu selections did repeat. They had a section of the menu that remained the same every night while the rest changed based on the nightly theme.

Room Service

You have to pay for everything; nothing is included.

The only time room service is included is based on the experience package you select at booking. I had the Bella Experience, so they chose the room for me, and it was very basic.

I believe the Aurea Experience is the one that includes complimentary room service.

Entertainment

The entertainment was great! There was always something to do every 30 minutes, and most of the time there were multiple activities happening at once.

The only time entertainment slowed down was on port days. There was still entertainment available, but it wasn’t as frequent or as exciting.

They had a themed party every night. There is also a sports pub where you can catch all the games. During my cruise, the FIFA Club World Cup was taking place, and they showed all the matches. They also played movies on the pool deck (Lilo & Stitch, Ninjago, Wicked, etc.).

Ship

The ship was huge it matched Carnival Jubilee. Even during those 7 days, there were areas I never got the chance to explore.

Definitely use the ship map in the app so you know where everything is located. In my opinion, some areas were hidden and easy to miss.

Drinks

The drinks were a 10/10. They had a great selection from the menu, or you could simply ask the bartender to make their version of a drink.

With the premium alcohol package, everything was included, even top-shelf liquor. The only time I paid out of pocket for drinks was at specialty dining restaurants, and that was for wine.

The cocktails averaged around $17-$18 per drink. I am not sure what it would look like for top shelf on the rocks drinks.

Misc.

There are multiple opportunities throughout the cruise to get discounts on specialty dining, excursions, jewelry, and other port purchases—just not on the drink package.

They also give away a lot of free items.

Gratuities are charged upfront as a one-time fee, and ours came to around $120 per person. I heard from others that everyone in the cabin, including children, was charged. I simply went to Guest Services and had the gratuities removed for my little sister.

Get the ship bracelet so you don’t have to carry your cruise card around. You only really need your card on port days.

The drink package price in the app dropped as low as $320 per person, making it about $500 total for my sister and me. Honestly, I would recommend waiting for deals in the app if you don’t want to bundle the drink and wifi package.

The overall vibe was very friendly, and the ship seemed geared toward family and friends’ vacations.

There was a solo travelers’ meetup, but I doubt attendance was very high because I rarely saw anyone by themselves. I was one of the solo wanderers since I spent most of my time exploring every floor of the ship.

You will need a card on file at all times. They have little kiosks for you to set up the card activation or you can simply go to guest services. They do like to do holds of certain amounts on your card. Let’s say you have a balance of $120 on your card and they didn’t charge you yet. They would settle that balance and then take out an additional $100 to cover any expenses you may incur. Since they did this, I got refunded a lot of money and the refund was back like the next day (but that may depend on your bank; I have USAA)

Final Thoughts

From the videos I watched on YouTube, I think a lot of the negativity comes from the departure port rather than the ship itself.

I really had no complaints about sailing out of Galveston. I would definitely recommend MSC Seascape and would absolutely cruise with them again!

I recently booked my fist cruise with Margaritaville Islander. I can't seem to find what time we are scheduled to get to the port to check in and there was no option to select for our dinner reservations.

I normally book with R.C. for a family of 4. Both of these are standard when booking via R.C.​

I have checked all my documents from the Margaritaville Islander email but can't seem to find it. Am I missing something or is this normal with Margaritaville at Sea?

This is my very first cruiser coming from the Sportbike world. Bought it cash, got a good deal out of it and have gotten it 3k under MSRP. Amazing bike, one of HD's most finest engineerings WITHOUT Porsche's helping hand. Definitely an intro bike for my other Sportbike enthusiasts. A Muscle Cruiser and affordable Rocket 3/Diaval and again it fits that category. Man, I'm afraid I'm going to love this bike even more once it has the first oil change and I can wring out the HP.

Now enough glazing, why the dislike/hate towards this bike? I'm genuinely curious because this coulda been and actually is the successor to the VROD.

Cornering is very different on a Yamaha Road Star 1600 compared to a Honda Shadow 750. Every time these floorboards scrape I feel like I'm about to lowside and lose a leg. Help plz 😭

I Recently got my motorcycle license and did the safety course. I have a very limited budget and it leaves me with basically these options(that I like):

Yamaha V star ,

Kawasaki Vulcan 900,

Suzuki C50,

Honda Shadow.

They are all less than 1000cc and from years 2000-2008. They are all priced between $2000-$4000.(CAD). There are some higher cc bikes available as well but I don't want them as a beginner.

I am typically paralyzed in the face of choices and this decision is hitting me the hardest. Part of me thinks that any one of these bikes would be enjoyable as a new rider and I should just get what fits the budget and get out on the road while the other part of me thinks that this process requires a lot more research and careful selection. Please help me decide.

Here are some of my questions-

1. If I plan on doing long rides on the weekends, Perhaps a longer camping trip at some point and occasional commuting, which bike should I get out of this?

2. Most marketplace sellers are willing to accept reasonable offers but I don't know what a reasonable offer for 20-25 yr old machine should be as I have never really bought something that old. Any ideas are helpful

3. I don't understand much about motorcycles but I think a shaft drive is less maintaince. However, not all the bikes I am looking at are Shafts. Some of them are chain and belt as well... Does this whole drive thing even matter to a new rider or am I overthinking it?

4. What matters more, bike being more new(er) or kms being less(er) on the odo?

Thank you so much for reading all this and for your help.

Cheers!