Thinking about switching to msc in europe

[Rjh8842]

Hoping to do a cruise in europe either next year or the year after. I have never been to europe and thought a cruise might be the way to go. I would most likey travel solo in a bella inside. I am mainly looking at a cruise to eat, sleep and transport me. I have cruised with carnival (as a kid), disney, and royal which I understand are pretty different from msc.

I am just starting to research and have some questions.

1) do the ships have a nice quiet place to sit on the deck and watch the ocean?

2) I almost always drink water. Which I know is free for americans. But every once in a while I like a glass of juice. Any free juice on board?

3) my biggest problem cruising is that I am a vegetarian and do not like spicy food. What is the selection like?

4) anything I should know as first timer with msc?

5) i am a little confused by the tier system. Am i missing anything by booking bella?

6) is tipping mandatory or at your discretion?

7) if the price drops can I get an adjustment?

TIA

[strikerSBG]

Hello!

 

We are frequent MSC cruisers - I try to answer your questions:

 

1) This depends on the ship class, the time when you travel and the area where you are going to... During the holidays and especially in the med. sea there are often a lot of kids around. Never the less you can always pay extra to go to the exclusive sundeck (we never used this, as it is for us OK as it is).

 

2) Yes during breakfast, lunch and dinner-times in the buffet restaurant. (We usually buy a all inclusive drink package as it is quite reasonable on MSC cruises compared to other cruise lines)

 

3) We are vegetarians too. There is always something to eat for us. E.g. salads, pasta, pizza, etc.

 

4) Not really - maybe just the fact that they don´t care a lot about the dressing up at formal nights. I don´t know what your expectations are going to be, so it´s quite difficult to answer this question.

 

5) No. Compared to e.g. Fantastica you only won´t have the possibility for roomservice (we never needed this). As long as you do not book Aurea or Yacht Club you won´t feel a real difference to the other options.

 

6) They will ask automatically 10 Euros (in Europe) or $ 12,50 (in US) as tip. But you can call the reception desk and tell them you do not want to pay it (just for no reason). Usually we always give a little tip extra to our waiter or the cabin steward.

 

7) No.

[Essiesmom]

When deciding on a cruise in Europe, pay close attention to the times in port. Many Europeans have been to the ports before, and cruise just to be on the ship. Therefore port times may be shorter than on other lines more familiar to North Americans. There may be fewer excursions offered, especially those in English, and they may get cancelled due to lack of participation. You might have to plan on diy in ports. When searching for a cruise, go to http://www.cruisetimetables.com and choose some ports you would like to include from the Ports of Call list. Or a departure port, if that is important. It will show you who is calling there and their itineraries. If you find several ships going almost the same places, check on the times in port. EM

[strikerSBG]

When deciding on a cruise in Europe, pay close attention to the times in port. Many Europeans have been to the ports before, and cruise just to be on the ship. Therefore port times may be shorter than on other lines more familiar to North Americans. There may be fewer excursions offered, especially those in English, and they may get cancelled due to lack of participation. You might have to plan on diy in ports. When searching for a cruise, go to www.cruisetimetables.com and choose some ports you would like to include from the Ports of Call list. Or a departure port, if that is important. It will show you who is calling there and their itineraries. If you find several ships going almost the same places, check on the times in port. EM

We made now 7 cruises in Europe and I can tell you that this was not the situation on one of these cruises...

[L1211]

I’m interested in this as well and thank you striker for the informed answers! Looking at our first Med cruise and considering MSC. We travel with our young adult girls (21 and 18) - how’s night life? We usually cruise NCL and love Howl at the Moon and late night deck parties. Anything similar to do as a family? Drink packages actually seem expensive. We just paid $48 per person per day on RCI in carribean. And $52 this summer on Carnival. It is $55 per person per day on MSC. Considering two YC rooms but

Wonder if that’s necessary for such port intensive trip. Thoughts anyone?? Many thanks.

 

 

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[strikerSBG]

I can only tell you rarely about the nightlife, as we are travelling since years with our little son. So we usually went to bed at 10 or 11 PM... But I know that there are several deck parties all the time.

 

If you can afford yacht club it is for sure perfect. But I am not sure if it will be somehow wasted money if you are travelling with teens, who like to make party and besides this you mentioned that you´ll spend most of the time at shore. Next April/March we will have our first YC cruise on Bellissima but our son is much younger (4 years then). So maybe you can save this money (price will be approximately double in YC)...

 

Drink package on MSC is about 26 Euros/person/day. It is called All Inclusive. In my eyes you don´t have to go for the deluxe all inclusive package - the only difference is that you can drink special brands of liquors etc.

[Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin]

Thanks for this post and for the answers! We sail on Bellissima in May---our first time on MSC. We will be in the Yacht Club....looking forward to comparing it to NCL's Haven. I fully expect to have a great time, but I am a believer that YOU make your vacation; anything over and above is just icing on the cake! Time with family is the important thing for me (and the pampering, of course! ;)

[strikerSBG]

Thanks for this post and for the answers! We sail on Bellissima in May---our first time on MSC. We will be in the Yacht Club....looking forward to comparing it to NCL's Haven. I fully expect to have a great time, but I am a believer that YOU make your vacation; anything over and above is just icing on the cake! Time with family is the important thing for me (and the pampering, of course! ;)

When is your sail away? We are in YC on Bellissima next May too...

[Hearthosesteeldrumsplayin]

When is your sail away? We are in YC on Bellissima next May too...

 

We are sailing May 26th out of Genoa. Hope to see you there!

[strikerSBG]

Unfortunately not - we are there in the first week of May...

[Traveler-14344]

Our first cruise was a Western Med with MSC 3 years ago. We had an interior cabin. We realized later we were in Fantasia experience, so didn't really know the difference with Bella. It was a great value with your expectation (which was the same as ours) - eat, sleep, and transportation plus great itinerary. We wanted to go to several European cities and not worry about accommodations, where to eat, and how to get there (although Europe has the best train transportation system).

 

1. We have only cruised with MSC's bigger ships (Divina, Preziosa, and Seaside). Based on these ships, there are many public areas where you can lounge and watch the ocean from a comfortable chair. Quiet? not often but you can easily zone-out the noise.

2. In our previous cruise in Northern Europe, bottled water is free. However, I didn't add it in our shopping cart in our booking, I assumed it is automatically included. So, during our cruise, I requested for the bottled water but was told, I didn't include it in our booking therefore I have to pay for it. We ordered a bottle of wine instead. Make sure you take note of this when booking.

Juice is available during breakfast time. However in our last cruise (in the Caribbean), flavored water (like fruit punch) is available at the buffet restaurant free. But you have to pay for freshly squeezed orange juice.

3. There are a lot of food options for vegans at the buffet and main dining room. I think there's even a vegan/vegetarian food station at the buffet.

4. Some North American (or English speaking) cruisers find it annoying the multiple language announcements (sometimes up to 7 or 8 languages). Most passengers are obviously Europeans and North Americans can experience some culture-shock. Every port is an embarkation/disembarkation port. Muster drill called for new passengers every afternoon (except sea days, of course). When we had our Northern Europe cruise, our passports were collected upon embarkation. This is MSC way of implementing border/customs clearance/security for non-EU ports in our itinerary. Border/Customs agents of those countries were in the ship gangway before we were allowed to get off the ship.

5. We were Fantasia experience in an interior cabin in our first cruise with MSC. We didn't really felt any difference from Bella or Aurea experience except the 'perks' (like massage for Aurea or room service for Fantasia) that are included in the experience (classes). Our succeeding cruises with MSC were Bella but were upgraded to balcony cabins (which was great!). Balcony or Oceanview is nice because of natural light coming in the cabin but if staying in an interior cabin isn't a big deal, MSC's interior cabins are great value (you'll save a lot of money). Service is great.

Based on what I've read in CC, only the Yacht Club experience has a significant difference in the 'tiers'/experiences. If your budget allows you to experience that, go for it.

6. Service Charge (per person) is added to your cabin bill everyday. I've read you can talk to Guest Services to remove that charge. And you can certainly tip your bartender, MDR waiter, and cabin steward as you please. In our experience, our travel agent (as a freebie) paid the service charge of our 1st MSC cruise. Succeeding cruises, we paid our service charge and still tipped our waiter and cabin steward. However, take note that you pay service charge (different from daily cabin service charge) for drink orders at the bar. But if you think you get a good service from your bartender or waiter, a crisp Washington will give them a big smile and remember you throughout your cruise (and even in succeeding cruises, if you happen to come across them again).

7. In our experience, no. Not sure if this is true if you booked through a travel agent. After our 1st cruise, we have booked our succeeding cruises through their website. When MSC offered Free Drink-on-us package after we have booked our cruise, the cost for us to add that 'free' package was more expensive because we have to cancel our booking and rebook it. By that time, the cost of our cabin was about $200 more per person than our original booking.

 

Based on your expectation, you will find MSC's European cruises a great value plus great itinerary. There are some ports where doing a DIY excursion is a challenge (example: Zeebrugges or La Spezia). For the most ports, you can easily explore the city (like Barcelona, Naples, Civitavecchia/Rome, La Havre, etc.). If planned right, the Northern Europe itinerary (Hamburg, La Havre, Southampton, Zeebrugges, Amsterdam) is a great itinerary because you can potentially visit Berlin, London, and Paris (and of course, Amsterdam) during your cruise.

Edited July 31, 2018 by Traveler-14344
typo

[strikerSBG]

There are some ports where doing a DIY excursion is a challenge (example: Zeebrugges or La Spezia)

La Spezia is quite easy - just walk to the trainstation and buy a ticket to Cinque Terre. You can ride the train all the day and explore all 5 towns of Cinque Terre. That was one of the nicest places I’ve ever been!

[Beamafar]

Drink packages actually seem expensive. We just paid $48 per person per day on RCI in carribean. And $52 this summer on Carnival. It is $55 per person per day on MSC.

 

Not for a cruise in Europe ... it's only $29 pppd for the Restaurant & Bar drink package (which is the Classic package) or €26 pppd plus 15% if booked onboard. This is the package that's included in an Aurea booking. The $55 is for the Deluxe (premium) package, which is included in a YC booking.

 

https://www.msccruisesusa.com/en-us/Manage-Your-Booking/All-Inclusive-Packages.aspx

[DipBrat]

Not for a cruise in Europe ... it's only $29 pppd for the Restaurant & Bar drink package (which is the Classic package) or €26 pppd plus 15% if booked onboard. This is the package that's included in an Aurea booking. The $55 is for the Deluxe (premium) package, which is included in a YC booking.

 

https://www.msccruisesusa.com/en-us/Manage-Your-Booking/All-Inclusive-Packages.aspx

 

So in Europe YC includes the deluxe premium. Other threads have said this includes one asterix and no asterix drinks and gelato. Bottles of Champagne have only one asterix. Are they included? There were also mixed messages on crepes and gelato bars from Venchi. Is there a definitive list somewhere?

[Beamafar]

So in Europe YC includes the deluxe premium. Other threads have said this includes one asterix and no asterix drinks and gelato. Bottles of Champagne have only one asterix. Are they included? /quote]

 

ALL YC bookings include the deluxe (premium) package which covers everything on the bar menus except items with 2 asterisks and bottles of wine/champagne.

[hamrag]

So in Europe YC includes the deluxe premium. Other threads have said this includes one asterix and no asterix drinks and gelato. Bottles of Champagne have only one asterix. Are they included? There were also mixed messages on crepes and gelato bars from Venchi. Is there a definitive list somewhere?

 

We haven't yet been YC, soon for us hopefully! However, I have read that in the Champagne Bar there is one, and only one, champagne offered by the glass with 1 asterisk. It is called Nicola or Nicholas something. Some have reported that the YC will obtain and open a bottle, and pour it by the glass if you request this.