Markanddonna

Msc has the industry's worst IT. call Msc and see if the csr can help. Lots have had your problem.

Our steward gave us two boxes of tissues. He must have had a premonition that my dh would have to visit the medical center six times. It started with food poisoning last week with the scallops. It has been a rough cruise. Btw both doctors and the nurses in the medical center have been great. High marks for their care. They were very compassionate and talkative after a few visits.

Yup, lots of tea bags.

No Stevia on Divina and unsweetened ice tea has been absent since day one. Only lemonade and fruit punches.

I also get irritated with the Yacht Club recommendations. It is pretty arrogant and haughty to suggest people pay three times as much for the YC experience. If you can't afford YC, it is best to disregard comments from those traveling in YC. It is like taking advice from those on Seaborne or other exclusive ships when sailing on a mainstream cruise line. There are other cruise lines that provide a nice product. We sailed on NCL and RCL this past year (2022) in a regular balcony and had a wonderful experience. MSC Divina has been such a letdown this current sailing and we have been on her precovid two times with good experiences. Not in 2023.

Is it my job as a passenger to take my time to resolve staffing issues? I listened to one crew member's complaints and can see what he is talking about.

Day number 16 on the Divina. On sea days, the pool areas look like a refugee camp. Too few chairs with people sitting on the deck floor, or any ledge they can find. I have never seen a pool area this full and that is with people actually occupying the seating, not just towels. It has produced a surly group of passengers.

Lots of swimwear in the buffet on the Divina.

I've been on many cruises including eight on MSC. If English speaking, go to Alaska on a cruise line that stops in Glacier Bay. Most of them do, and only two ships are allowed in each day. MSC isn't a good choice for a novice. There have been so many cutbacks. We are on. B2b right now on Msc and doubt we will sail with them again. We can hardly wait to get off tomorrow. NCl and Rcl were great this past year. The crew is wonderful but stretched beyond their abilities. I have witnessed about eight crew incidents that were ugly. Mostly supervisors harassing them. Food is mediocre at best except the specialty restaurants.

I am on the Divina right now and just walked out of the dining room behind a man in shorts and a shirt sleeve shirt. He obviously was served with no problems and this was elegant night! You see tuxes, gowns and shorts in the mdr, even on special nights. Msc would do nothing to offend a passenger.

I'm there right now. Dh is sick so we can't go on tours but there are many vendors at the port with clear signs of the costs.

I only worry about a private excursion when we are very far away from the next port. In Maui, our next port in Fiji was six days away. That would have been been an expensive problem. Otherwise, I strategize: I can take a train or ferry from Naples to the next port. Everything depends...

Ncl gave them in November.

Inserted.

I recall every cruise ship providing these but not MSC even in ports near the equator like Panama, Cartagena, Costa Rica, etc. Is this only an MSC cutback or have others also cutback?

I think most aspects of MSC ships are just fine but the Yacht club is another world and those who stay there should always preface their comments. I have been in YC once but prefer to cruise more frequently and don't want to pay those prices. There are many cutbacks if you are not in the YC. However, the crew and the look of the ship are great. The food outside of YC is really mediocre. I've never eaten so many burgers on a cruise! You won't starve is a good summary. They have also moved away from an Italian flair to more Hispanic.

No hole punches on ncl in November but Msc had prepunched cards available. Maybe ncl will learn there is a safe area on the card.

I'm of Polish descent and make better Italian food than on the Divina. Of course, an Italian taught me...

I saw a crew member at the buffet with two cartons of soy milk. No stevia. I checked this morning at the mdr and buffet. Maybe ask? They tend to give Americans wash cloths . We asked for a box of tissues and a shower cap and got it.

Kosherica does partial charter on two big ships a year in Jan. Cc would delete my post if I commented.

The Italian flare on Msc has disappeared. No more opera, limited Italian food. It caters to the Hispanic groups in the Caribbean and central America.

Depends where you cruise. MSC is sending all it's large ships to the Americas. Smaller ships in Europe. So, that might affect pricing.

That doesn't mean Msc hasn't made cutbacks. We are on a MSC B2B right now. I have never seen such an overworked unhappy crew. I have overheard six crew member/boss interactions thus far. Never saw such unhappiness on a cruise ship before, esp since the crew have been excellent. They don't deserve this.

You are exactly right. You would think it would be easy to get otc meds at ports. Some pharmacies put them under the control of the pharmacist. There were times even the pharmacist didn't know the equivalent. My dh has has a bronchial and ain't infection for the past few days onboard right now. Despite having proper antibiotics and meds he has needed two trips to the medical center. Both doctors were competent and the last gave him a steroid shot and breathing treatment. Lots of bronchitis on the ship. Also, ALL the onboard shops were close on the NCL epic this past November. They were changing vendors. Ships were totally empty for five days and no otc meds were available in the shops. You never know what you will encounter. Life isn't easy in many parts of the world.

This far, we have experienced six cruise lines. Msc is at the bottom. I'm only comparing cruises seven days or more. Anything less than seven will be inferior.