Pride and Prejudice (An American Review of Magnifica 3/27)

[woodofpine]

Background: This was our 12th cruise - starting 2001, but haven’t cruised since late 2007. I’ve been on Princess, Carnival, HAL, and Celebrity. I’m itinerary driven; believing large lines are more similar than dissimilar. MSC was chosen (over Costa) because these lines operate in the Med late March. We traveled as two families (totaling 10; 4 adults). I’ve lived in Europe so I know the terrain culturally.

 

Summary.

 

Pros: This new ship is very attractive. Large beautiful lounges; nicely appointed cabins with good sized verandas. Everything one expects in a large ship. The crew was polite and friendly – really excellent. Not USA gregarious but attentive and nice. The desk staff was capable of solving problems! (Can’t say that about all lines.) These two core components excelled. Only attended one show, but it was very good and there was a lot of good to very good live music onboard.

 

Cons: Food was hit and miss with too many misses. Not terrible by any shape, but overall inconsistent (especially the buffet) and disappointing, lower sophistication than most competitors’. Big lines strive to distance their food offering from the reality that it is institutionally prepared. Competitors beat MSC in this important category which is a shame since MSC beats most competitors in MDR service. Apologists can try to spin doctor it, but food ‘opinions’ aren’t completely subjective (or we’d not have Michelin Guides and Zagat Surveys). I won’t bore you with details. OK – one; how about smoked salmon at breakfast – or a little breakfast variety of any kind? About half dozen years back, Carnival launched a big initiative to improve its food (and did); MSC needs to do the same. This is the single greatest weakness over which the line has complete control.

 

Merchandising likewise might be called ‘non-aggressive’ but it might be called ‘lame’ too. I’d love for MSC to make more money in their onboard shops and split the windfall on upgrading galley offerings. I regularly buy itinerary specific ‘junk’ (mugs etc.), none offered here. Daughter commented that the ship had little onboard art (true; I’d not noticed). As an aside, Manifica’s pools were nice but they were closed at 7 PM. Other lines have come around to the pax benefit of keeping them open until 10 or 11 PM; MSC should too.

 

I overheard criticism of the children’s program between two nationals speaking English as a common language; comparing it negatively to Club Med organizationally.

 

Americanisms: More smoking than a USA line (but it’s not offensively apparent IMHO). A la carte charges weren’t excessive. Our TA had advanced dinner water vouchers (which helped) and the voucher system for drinks otherwise worked well. The coffee charged for was well worth it in quality and style. Alcoholic drinks were perhaps a bit dollar pricey, but they were in line with prices ashore; wine was a good value.

 

OK – I’ll expose my prejudices here. ‘Romantic lingual’ passengers have crowd manners which can be summed up as… little to none at all. On a ship, this gets annoying. Northern Europeans have learned to roll with this ‘southern’ tendency; Americans haven’t. Let’s not pretend that line cutting etc. is a virtue or cultural contribution; it isn’t. Not only does it affect the experience, but it conditions the crew too (no wonder they’re not gregarious!) Collaterally, MSC designed the buffet restaurant poorly to deal with this disorganized or unruly characteristic of their core demographic. On that note, embarkation was totally insane. But disembark was well done (go figure) at least for us; we needed priority disembark and the staff arranged it easily.

 

Note: MSC’s website of Magnifica shows adjoining veranda cabins as 2 – triples. They’re not. They’re a double and a triple. This caused a problem for us, overcome because a double and single of young boys in our crew wanted to triple up in an available triple anyway, but the line sought to break up our cabins initially. In a crunch, I don’t know how easily a double might be converted to triple, but this will be a potential booking issue until the line corrects its deck plans to the actual furnishing configurations. As said though, the onboard staff did a very good job dealing with this problem (I’d encountered a comparable problem on Celebrity which was terribly mishandled causing great frustration). A few other issues that crept up were kept minor and resolved punctually; the crew couldn’t be faulted IMHO.

 

Should Americans cruise MSC? When asked on the comment card whether I’d recommend MSC, I checked ‘I don’t know’. Honestly, I think most Americans will be happier on large North American oriented lines. As I understand it, many of my MSC ‘cons’ are shared by Costa also… Did I like our cruise? We had fantastic weather with a great itinerary during the ‘off season’; the cruise line was very good in many ways but needs to upgrade - primarily in the galley. Critically speaking, no cruise is perfect. This was a fantastic trip overall.

 

Any questions, I'll try to field them fairly.

[catharina]

Hi woodofpine

 

Fair review. I think you may be right here that many North americans simply will be happier on an american line.

I am just writing a review on Splendida, but I have no other experience. I will have to cruise an american line next year to get some good comparison eh? ;)

 

Greetings from Holland (yes I hated the anti-social behaviour of many of the Italians too)

Cat

[buggins0402]

Nicely written review - thanks for sharing. One question - is the buffet set up for the old style "conga line" or is it "action station"?

 

Also, I'm wondering if MSC should switch head chefs from the Splendida to the Magnifica until the galley staff seems to be firing on all pistons. Splendida reviews regarding food quality generally seem to be pretty positive, but Magnifica's reviews have been pretty dismal.

[woodofpine]

Nicely written review - thanks for sharing. One question - is the buffet set up for the old style "conga line" or is it "action station"?

 

Also, I'm wondering if MSC should switch head chefs from the Splendida to the Magnifica until the galley staff seems to be firing on all pistons. Splendida reviews regarding food quality generally seem to be pretty positive, but Magnifica's reviews have been pretty dismal.

 

Magnifica's buffet was dual duplicated conga lines rather than the crowd disbursing action stations. No food offered was prepared at the buffet - so there wouldn't be much food prep 'action' at an action station. There was an entry island offering cereals at breakfast and deserts at lunch (and tea). Unfortunately, decorative pillars tended to impair movement around this island. My recommendation would be to head to the stern where the second group of conga lines were usually less overrun than the restaurant entry pair.

 

As for galley management, our head server was an experienced MSC vet (eastern European) whom had also been on contract recently with Princess. A family emergency forced him to terminate his Princess contract (for cause) which got him out of sync with Princess' contract cycle. Princess eventually offered him another contract - but just after he'd signed anew with MSC for Magnifica. He was also alternating cruiseline contracts with academic years at a naval transport academy (he was working on becoming a bridge officer). His comments were professionally astute. It was apparent (albeit expressed VERY diplomatically) that he considered Princess' food to be... superior (which was self evident) I can't even quote him - but he was humorously diplomatic concerning cuts of meat etc. He was very supportive of the woman (a family fortune heiress) whom was owner/CEO of MSC; he stated that he felt she was recruiting and supporting strong executive managers. He characterized her as Italian but 'northern' in her professional orientation - being a Swiss resident. He dismissed onboard ship management however as being undermined by Italian family nepotism. He stated that various people had positions they were unqualified for due to being a cousin or in-law of someone else. He conveyed no 'sour grapes' simply professional opinion at the end of our cruise, and it was expressed professionally. These comments might explain some of the sketchy galley performance qualitatively...

[drblue]

Hello Woodofpine,

I am one of those Americans booked on the MSC Magnifica for an Eastern Mediterranean later on the year. I am travelling with my wife and a 3 year-old son. We are really looking forward to it. We have done several cruises before, but it will be our first MSC cruise.

Thank you for posting your review; it was very informative. This is the type of information I need in order to prepare myself for the MSC experience. The more homework we do, the less we might be surprised by MSC. I have a few questions for you:

 

1. Was there a CASUAL alternative or buffet dinner option at night? We are afraid our son will not always make it through a long dinner service in the Main Dining Room.

 

2. Did you take any of the MSC shuttle buses into town at some of your ports? If so, how much did they cost?

 

3. Did MSC provide a shuttle service from Piazzala Roma in Venice to the Port on embarkation/disembarkatioon days?

 

We are hoping that as the crew gets more experience and settles into the rythm of the Magnifica, things will improve in the weaknesses. I will cerainly appreciate your answers.

[Ann Halliday]

Thank you for the indepth review. We are going on our first cruise ever and will be departing from Venice June 26th. I am most concerned with what we should book beforehand. We are wine drinkers; would it be better to get a wine package or buy individual bottles? I understand my husband and I have to both pay for the package and we would then get 2 bottles wine at dinner. Can we bring the extra wine to the shows/back to our cabin? Also, is it better to arrange tours (Istanbul, Ephesus) with MSC beforehand or book private tours? Can we do the drinks package/book tours when we get on the ship? I'd appreciate any information you could give me. Thank you.

[AmoMondo]

Hi Ann

 

Welcome to cc and the world of cruising.

 

If you are buying an unlimited wine/drink package, then both you and your husband have to buy it but that is not trues of the other drink and wine packages. They give you a book of vouchers which you exchange for a drink or bottle. On my first cruise, I and another passenger at my table bought one wine package (& bottles of wine, 7 bottles of water) which we shared.

 

Hope you have a wonderful time on your cruise - but be warned it can be addictive.

[AmoMondo]

OK – I’ll expose my prejudices here. ‘Romantic lingual’ passengers have crowd manners which can be summed up as… little to none at all. On a ship, this gets annoying. Northern Europeans have learned to roll with this ‘southern’ tendency; Americans haven’t. Let’s not pretend that line cutting etc. is a virtue or cultural contribution; it isn’t

 

That is the funniest way I've heard that particular trait described!

 

Glad you had an enjoyable time. i really enjoyed reading your review. Thought it was well written, humorous and well balanced.

[woodofpine]

Hello Woodofpine,

I am one of those Americans booked on the MSC Magnifica for an Eastern Mediterranean later on the year. I am travelling with my wife and a 3 year-old son. We are really looking forward to it. We have done several cruises before, but it will be our first MSC cruise.

Thank you for posting your review; it was very informative. This is the type of information I need in order to prepare myself for the MSC experience. The more homework we do, the less we might be surprised by MSC. I have a few questions for you:

 

1. Was there a CASUAL alternative or buffet dinner option at night? We are afraid our son will not always make it through a long dinner service in the Main Dining Room.

 

2. Did you take any of the MSC shuttle buses into town at some of your ports? If so, how much did they cost?

 

3. Did MSC provide a shuttle service from Piazzala Roma in Venice to the Port on embarkation/disembarkatioon days?

 

We are hoping that as the crew gets more experience and settles into the rythm of the Magnifica, things will improve in the weaknesses. I will cerainly appreciate your answers.

 

 

1. Was there a CASUAL alternative or buffet dinner option at night? We are afraid our son will not always make it through a long dinner service in the Main Dining Room.

 

I'm a bit jet lagged (in from Paris last night) but for the life of me... I don't recollect! We didn't avail ourselves - but - I got the impression there was a dinner buffet. Again, as a big line MSC isn't terribly different than other lines. It has its distinctions though, some of which are amplified by the passenger demographics.

 

2. Did you take any of the MSC shuttle buses into town at some of your ports? If so, how much did they cost?

 

Our itinerary was Venice, Bari, Katakolon, Izmir, Istanbul, Dubronik, Venice. I relish the challenge of doing ports independently. Comments follow: Bari - one is immediately adjacent the old town which contains the main town points of interest within reasonably short walk (Basillica St. Nicholas, Cath. San Sabino, the Fortress). No shuttle needed. Katakolon - we rented cars from an agency immediately at the end of the pier and drove to Olympia. Cheap and easy. Izmir - been to Ephesus so cabbed into Kamiralti Bazaar (walked one way, cabbed 10eu on return; I'd probably cab it r/t in retrospect), others did an MSC Ephesus excursion (guide got so-so review). Izmir is an attractive port on approach, but a large non-descript city otherwise, Kamiralti aside. Ephesus is the main draw. No shuttle needed; you are in the city proper at the port. Istanbul - amazing city. Port is in city proper and city tram is only a block from the port. The tram goes across the Golden Horn (river) into the old city where all the main sites are densely located. On our own, we did the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, then Topkapi, then tramed to the Grand Bazaar, then walked to the Spice Bazaar and trammed back to the port. Retrospectively, hit Topkapi as soon as it opens (it was thronged by the time we arrived around 11 AM). This independent trek would be too much with a small child, so an organized excursion has merit or an independant guide. There a ton of 'must sees' in Istanbul. But... IMHO, if you had to qualitatively confine it. I say, Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque (forget the Grand Bazaar and just hit the Spice Bazaar right on the bridge back to the port). The Spice Bazaar is more atmospheric and authentic than the Grand Bazaar and is managebly small but not too small. It has a little pets section outside to the left with chicks and ducklings (your kid will love it). Suggest DK Eyewitness tour books. Dubrovnik - cabbed in old town where we'd hired an independant guide and 'walked the walls'; again walking the walls would be too much for a three yo (but going up the first part to overlook the fort could be do-able). But Dubrovnik was an unexpected highlight that would be fun to putter about. Go eat seafood at the terrace restaurant by the old harbor. Shuttle - here's a kick, MSC wanted 10eu pp r/t for a shuttle bus (+7.5eu per child) but the cab rates were 10 eu per cab each way...

 

I don't believe that MSC had shuttles to Piazalle Roma, but there are cabs available right there at the port. We used Venice Airport Shuttles. It worked well, from the terminal to the airport. In Venice, travel light - take the Alilaguna shuttle from the airport (12 eu pp) or splurge on a watertaxi (100 eu) into the city for a couple nights. I'd highly recommend the Hotel Violino D'Oro in the moderate bracket (get a canal front triple, make some more kids). Its just a few minutes walk from the Piazza San Marco. Drink coffee at the Cafe Florian on the piazza listening to the orchestra while your kid plays with the pidgeons or eats gellato...

 

Hey - going with a 3 yo is gutsy, I admire you! (It's worth it...) Frankly, a USA style line would likely be better suited for you, but really MSC is perfectly acceptable. The one thing you can win with is a 'nice' 'winning' American attitude - friendly, firm, but not pushy... The crew love that! I felt the crew (and the ship) were just fine.

 

Good luck!

[drblue]

Hello Woodofpine,

Thank you for the answers related to the ports of call and your activiteis there. We are planning this trip to include some options and activiteis for our son as well. He has done unexpectingly well in other cruises to the Caribbean, Central America, and South America. I will look into the hotel you mentioned.

Thanks again for a balanced review and providing personal opinions about the Magnifica.

[woodofpine]

Thank you for the indepth review. We are going on our first cruise ever and will be departing from Venice June 26th. I am most concerned with what we should book beforehand. We are wine drinkers; would it be better to get a wine package or buy individual bottles? I understand my husband and I have to both pay for the package and we would then get 2 bottles wine at dinner. Can we bring the extra wine to the shows/back to our cabin? Also, is it better to arrange tours (Istanbul, Ephesus) with MSC beforehand or book private tours? Can we do the drinks package/book tours when we get on the ship? I'd appreciate any information you could give me. Thank you.

 

Sorry, I can't really speak to the wine 'plan' selection issue much. I don't drink anymore(but as a former wine store salesguy, I steer my wife ;-) It depends a lot on your preferences, tolerances, and overall consumption. The general bottled wine lists were reasonably extensive in quality and price and the mark up was typical to cruise lines (fairly modest; say 20-25% over store retail). One 'quirk' was that some selections were available at one venue - but not another. BTW - your server will be willing to save over bottles to the next evening, plus I didn't see very intense enforcement against bringing some abord (especially a couple 'starter' bottles in luggage) if you choose that route then wanted to buy a la carte aboard. House wine was less than 4eu per glass. Wine was the best value of alcoholic bev.

 

On touring Istanbul and Ephesus. The distance of Ephesus from Izmir (60-75 minutes each way) IMO weighs in favor of a line excursion to assure getting back aboard in the event of a transit problem (although getting standed in Izmir would be one of the more interesting and easily do-able reconnects - at Istanbul; it would still be a hassle).

 

Istanbul is really quite easily done on one's own, or alternatively there are a wealth of private guides available via online sources - as well as loitering the major sites themselves. The Turkish Ministry of Tourism rigorously regulates guide services and licensing so your reasonably well protected in that way. Caveat: they pay for some of this regulation with very heafty admission fees at Topkapi and Hagia Sophia (20TL per location @ 1.5TL/$1) plus the Harem at Topkapi is an additional 15TL!) The guide we used independantly several years ago suggested against the Harem. Turks are tourist friendly natives and bank ATMs are everywhere. The 'modern tram' (there are several other lines elsewhere) is a singular line that travels the main boulevard a block from the port terminal toward and across the Golden Horn to a stop in front of the Egyptian (Spice) Bazaar, then goes around to a stop at Topkapi, then Sultanahmet square (Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia) then a couple stops a half block fronting the Grand Bazaar - very easy with some advance research. Again, this isn't too hard for the independant minded; however, doing this wasn't my first trip to Istanbul so I was oriented a bit already. As I indicated though, however you do it, hit Topkapi first off - even if it means loitering around the outer courtyards before the opening bell because it quickly gets overrun.

 

Have a great trip.

[Ann Halliday]

The information is much appreciated. I'm really looking forward to the cruise - we chose it because of the destinations. Just one more question; if we do get a wine package can we purchase it on the ship or do we have to book it through our travel agent?

[woodofpine]

The information is much appreciated. I'm really looking forward to the cruise - we chose it because of the destinations. Just one more question; if we do get a wine package can we purchase it on the ship or do we have to book it through our travel agent?

 

I think you'll be more efficient dealing with the line directly via their website on these purchases. A great many packages are available for purchase on board, but I believe a few need to be pre-booked. You'll want to peruse the MSC website which sort of hides much of this under the heading 'Special Services' (or something of that nature). Online there's a lengthy offering of packages detailing the terms and specifics of each and the 'how to's' of purchase.

 

We were very fortunate to have terrific weather throughout the cruise. The ports were great. I'll never forget my 13 yo son waving a Turkish flag from his veranda at the pier in Istanbul which prompted the captain of this large Turkish tug adjacent the ship to do corresponding peruettes with his tug! :D Dubrovnik was delightful and the harbor pretty. The harbor approachs to Izmir were impressive too (and Venice of course also). The cruise around the Pelopennesus and the islands is quite scenic too. I would have enjoyed an extra hour or two in Katakolon or Dubrovnik however; but contrary to line basher claims that short days are due to 'cheapness', in fact this route covers a LOT of territory in a week. I calculated the distance and time between ports and the ship was averaging 20+kts which given the necessity of slow approaches and periodically narrow routes sure beats the wallowing around between ports ships often do in the Caribbean.

 

I was surprised at Katakolon. Its a cute little village. There is a car rental at the pier which is a good way to get to Olympia. They've a website or you can reserve via

diplasd@rentacarkatakolo.gr

 

Hope you have a great trip!

[ikelmay]

thanks for what seems a fair and balanced review. I struggle with the number of reviews that either rave non-stop or are a litany of complaints.

 

Taking your points into account it is easier to judge whether this cruise line would be a suitable fit.

[Lucky2123]

woodofpine, your review and further comments were great and very helpful! I had asked you in another thread for your experiences on the Magnifica and a very nice person directed me here. Thanks! Cheryl

[Shelledpea]

Merchandising likewise might be called ‘non-aggressive’ but it might be called ‘lame’ too. I’d love for MSC to make more money in their onboard shops and split the windfall on upgrading galley offerings. I regularly buy itinerary specific ‘junk’ (mugs etc.), none offered here. Daughter commented that the ship had little onboard art (true; I’d not noticed). As an aside, Manifica’s pools were nice but they were closed at 7 PM. Other lines have come around to the pax benefit of keeping them open until 10 or 11 PM; MSC should too.

 

.

 

We have been onboard Magnifica and in the corner of the Topazio bar there is an MSC Logo shop that was selling everything from Magnets, Wallets & Keyrings to T-shirts, Shorts & Rucksacks with MSC Magnifica detailing. Some of the prices were a little OTT but it was all there.

[oceanbabe]

Hi: Can you tell me whether the Magnifica has American electric outlets? thank ;you, elaine

[summer66]

Yes, Elaine, there were both 220 and 110 outlets.

[woodofpine]

We have been onboard Magnifica and in the corner of the Topazio bar there is an MSC Logo shop that was selling everything from Magnets, Wallets & Keyrings to T-shirts, Shorts & Rucksacks with MSC Magnifica detailing. Some of the prices were a little OTT but it was all there.

 

Obviously, I'm not a cruiseline merchandising guy, but I wasn't impressed with the scope of the merchandise offered. When it comes to cruise line gear, I noted the stuff you mentioned (off in a corner) but what I've personally bought regularly are, for instance, mugs with a map showing the itinerary of the specific cruise and t-shirts of the specific ship showing its specs dimensions, tonnage, speed, etc. T-shirts of the line embossed on graphics of specific ports on the itinerary. This stuff moves and reguires a bit more logistic forethought - but it moves. With most of MSC's ships (Magnifica for instance) following fixed routes for months at a time, this sort of merchandise shows a more sophisticated business/merchandising plan. It wasn't apparent to me.

 

Frankly, this is hardly the most important aspect of a cruise, but to me it sort of demonstrated where MSC was in the business development curve.

[vagabond_b]

Background: This was our 12th cruise - starting 2001, but haven’t cruised since late 2007. I’ve been on Princess, Carnival, HAL, and Celebrity. I’m itinerary driven; believing large lines are more similar than dissimilar. MSC was chosen (over Costa) because these lines operate in the Med late March. We traveled as two families (totaling 10; 4 adults). I’ve lived in Europe so I know the terrain culturally.

 

Summary.

 

Pros: This new ship is very attractive. Large beautiful lounges; nicely appointed cabins with good sized verandas. Everything one expects in a large ship. The crew was polite and friendly – really excellent. Not USA gregarious but attentive and nice. The desk staff was capable of solving problems! (Can’t say that about all lines.) These two core components excelled. Only attended one show, but it was very good and there was a lot of good to very good live music onboard.

 

Cons: Food was hit and miss with too many misses. Not terrible by any shape, but overall inconsistent (especially the buffet) and disappointing, lower sophistication than most competitors’. Big lines strive to distance their food offering from the reality that it is institutionally prepared. Competitors beat MSC in this important category which is a shame since MSC beats most competitors in MDR service. Apologists can try to spin doctor it, but food ‘opinions’ aren’t completely subjective (or we’d not have Michelin Guides and Zagat Surveys). I won’t bore you with details. OK – one; how about smoked salmon at breakfast – or a little breakfast variety of any kind? About half dozen years back, Carnival launched a big initiative to improve its food (and did); MSC needs to do the same. This is the single greatest weakness over which the line has complete control.

 

Merchandising likewise might be called ‘non-aggressive’ but it might be called ‘lame’ too. I’d love for MSC to make more money in their onboard shops and split the windfall on upgrading galley offerings. I regularly buy itinerary specific ‘junk’ (mugs etc.), none offered here. Daughter commented that the ship had little onboard art (true; I’d not noticed). As an aside, Manifica’s pools were nice but they were closed at 7 PM. Other lines have come around to the pax benefit of keeping them open until 10 or 11 PM; MSC should too.

 

I overheard criticism of the children’s program between two nationals speaking English as a common language; comparing it negatively to Club Med organizationally.

 

Americanisms: More smoking than a USA line (but it’s not offensively apparent IMHO). A la carte charges weren’t excessive. Our TA had advanced dinner water vouchers (which helped) and the voucher system for drinks otherwise worked well. The coffee charged for was well worth it in quality and style. Alcoholic drinks were perhaps a bit dollar pricey, but they were in line with prices ashore; wine was a good value.

 

OK – I’ll expose my prejudices here. ‘Romantic lingual’ passengers have crowd manners which can be summed up as… little to none at all. On a ship, this gets annoying. Northern Europeans have learned to roll with this ‘southern’ tendency; Americans haven’t. Let’s not pretend that line cutting etc. is a virtue or cultural contribution; it isn’t. Not only does it affect the experience, but it conditions the crew too (no wonder they’re not gregarious!) Collaterally, MSC designed the buffet restaurant poorly to deal with this disorganized or unruly characteristic of their core demographic. On that note, embarkation was totally insane. But disembark was well done (go figure) at least for us; we needed priority disembark and the staff arranged it easily.

 

Note: MSC’s website of Magnifica shows adjoining veranda cabins as 2 – triples. They’re not. They’re a double and a triple. This caused a problem for us, overcome because a double and single of young boys in our crew wanted to triple up in an available triple anyway, but the line sought to break up our cabins initially. In a crunch, I don’t know how easily a double might be converted to triple, but this will be a potential booking issue until the line corrects its deck plans to the actual furnishing configurations. As said though, the onboard staff did a very good job dealing with this problem (I’d encountered a comparable problem on Celebrity which was terribly mishandled causing great frustration). A few other issues that crept up were kept minor and resolved punctually; the crew couldn’t be faulted IMHO.

 

Should Americans cruise MSC? When asked on the comment card whether I’d recommend MSC, I checked ‘I don’t know’. Honestly, I think most Americans will be happier on large North American oriented lines. As I understand it, many of my MSC ‘cons’ are shared by Costa also… Did I like our cruise? We had fantastic weather with a great itinerary during the ‘off season’; the cruise line was very good in many ways but needs to upgrade - primarily in the galley. Critically speaking, no cruise is perfect. This was a fantastic trip overall.

 

Any questions, I'll try to field them fairly.

 

This was probably the best review I have seen for MSC. Fair but very truthful about the perceived shortcomings when it comes to American cruisers. I'm booked on MSC now because of the itinerary but if you are an American cruiser who chooses a cruise based on the environment on the ship, it sounds best to stay away... particularly if you don't have experience with Italian cruisers.

[tim716]

I'd like add some thoughts on the topic mentioned in the many reviews about buffets on MSC and buffet line cutting.

I'm Russian myself and based on what I read here I easily could have been one of those "European line-cutters". I, BTW, haven't sailed with MSC yet (only with RCI) - booked on Poesia so collecting the info now.

Point #1

Spoiled by RCI, when reading the reviews on MSC I just couldn't understand - what the f.... lines are they speaking about? How in the world there could be a line in a cruise ship's buffet?

I understood the difference much later. RCI like any normal cruise line uses an "island" (scattered) buffet system with many small food stations scattered around the room. I thought this was the only possible way to go for a cruise ship. I couldn't imagine there could exist a cruise line which uses a "linear" system with all the food along one single line (like in a Russian factory canteen). The effectiveness of such a system is close to zero and it's obviously a nightmare for everybody if people just line up in one single line. That certainly a big cruise company's flaw.

Point #2

I've been in the US many times so I know both American and European ways. We have a joke: "Three Russians is a drinking party, three Americans is a line". That is, Americans usually just line up not thinking how reasonable it is. That, though, turns out reasonable in the US in 99% cases, because there is a great tradition in the USA: CROWD MANAGAMENT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PARTY THAT PROVIDES THE SERVICE. In the US the lines are always organised by those who do the service and you don't have to think about this, just follow the directions.

Unfortunately, this is not a tradition in Europe. Sometimes they do it too, but usually the counter is the border between "you" and "them", and the way the people get to that counter is entirely the people's problem. That doesnt mean that Europeans are "rude" and "mean", they are just used to thinking how to self-organise the most effective way in every single case, avoiding "fullish" and "unreasonable" delays. Probably that's why the European cruise company didn't think much about the buffet organisation - the companies are just not used to think about such things as their responsibility.

Point #3

Let's return to our buffet. We go there and see the loooooong food counter. Americans just line up and patiently wait for all before them to go along the counter and collect all they want. Europeans look at this and think "Is this a parade? I want just coffee and muffins, the guy before me wants just fruits, another guy wants a sausage - why should we all march along all the counter paying the debt of honor to jogurts and omelettes, let's just come up to the needed spot and quicky take what we want - we're not delaying anybody!" They're just "instinctively" trying to organise the most effective "scattered" system, and Americans see it as cutting their single line.

[Capricruiser]

The OP wrote her review about the Splendida, one of MSC's newest ships. The Splendida's buffet area has the "island" system Tim716 mentions. As I recall there's an island for salads, one for deserts, one for beverages, and many serving areas for the main items. The "lines" she mentioned I found to be eight-ten persons ahead of me for the longer, and one or two in the short. If one serving area has a line of slow-moving octogernarians, just move on to another area. The buffet area on the Splendida is huge, but on the older ships you may find just two main lines that will cause a bit of delay. If the little old lady ahead of you can't make up her mind as to what type of yogurt she wants, just move around her. She'll probably write a CC complaint when she gets home.

[woodofpine]

I'd like add some thoughts on the topic mentioned in the many reviews about buffets on MSC and buffet line cutting.

I'm Russian myself and based on what I read here I easily could have been one of those "European line-cutters". I, BTW, haven't sailed with MSC yet (only with RCI) - booked on Poesia so collecting the info now.

Point #1

Spoiled by RCI, when reading the reviews on MSC I just couldn't understand - what the f.... lines are they speaking about? How in the world there could be a line in a cruise ship's buffet?

I understood the difference much later. RCI like any normal cruise line uses an "island" (scattered) buffet system with many small food stations scattered around the room. I thought this was the only possible way to go for a cruise ship. I couldn't imagine there could exist a cruise line which uses a "linear" system with all the food along one single line (like in a Russian factory canteen). The effectiveness of such a system is close to zero and it's obviously a nightmare for everybody if people just line up in one single line. That certainly a big cruise company's flaw.

Point #2

I've been in the US many times so I know both American and European ways. We have a joke: "Three Russians is a drinking party, three Americans is a line". That is, Americans usually just line up not thinking how reasonable it is. That, though, turns out reasonable in the US in 99% cases, because there is a great tradition in the USA: CROWD MANAGAMENT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PARTY THAT PROVIDES THE SERVICE. In the US the lines are always organised by those who do the service and you don't have to think about this, just follow the directions.

Unfortunately, this is not a tradition in Europe. Sometimes they do it too, but usually the counter is the border between "you" and "them", and the way the people get to that counter is entirely the people's problem. That doesnt mean that Europeans are "rude" and "mean", they are just used to thinking how to self-organise the most effective way in every single case, avoiding "fullish" and "unreasonable" delays. Probably that's why the European cruise company didn't think much about the buffet organisation - the companies are just not used to think about such things as their responsibility.

Point #3

Let's return to our buffet. We go there and see the loooooong food counter. Americans just line up and patiently wait for all before them to go along the counter and collect all they want. Europeans look at this and think "Is this a parade? I want just coffee and muffins, the guy before me wants just fruits, another guy wants a sausage - why should we all march along all the counter paying the debt of honor to jogurts and omelettes, let's just come up to the needed spot and quicky take what we want - we're not delaying anybody!" They're just "instinctively" trying to organise the most effective "scattered" system, and Americans see it as cutting their single line.

 

Hey Ivan... You're observation is 'spot on' when it comes to the food buffet! The tendency of any group to view 'our way' as the 'right way' (vs. wrong way) is common - and commonly American. "Paying the debt of honor to jogurts" LOL! By the end of the cruise, my flexible nature allowed for my 'Europeanization' too...;)

 

But, the common sense your comments express dissolves when applied to 'single objective' lines, such as queing up or not for a particular photographer. The Rugby scrum may be entertaining on the playing field but something (important) is lost when its applied to single purpose like say... life boats.:eek:

 

On Magnifica, there is an area at the buffet dining entry used for cereals and whatnot at breakfast. It's also 'littered' with decorative columns that impede transit and traffic flow. Beautiful form, terrible function. To Siberia with the designer! :D My suggestion: There are two sets of buffet lines together with an island at the stern. The world's Rugby players are certain the ball has been dropped at the first set. Typically, the second set to the stern with the island there were empty or near empty by comparison. And, don't abuse your prayer mat at the jogurt and omelettes!:D