Costa v MSC

[lady peacock]

Love Costa cruises and have made so many memories travelling with them, we have had Costa cruise points matched by MSC so are doing a Gulf cruise with MSC, just hope we have made the right decision, can anyone tell me the differences 

between Costa and MSC

 

Edited November 6, 2018 by lady peacock

[TnTom]

I have been on both, and I very much prefer MSC. The ships are nicer and I prefer their food. As many others have said when comparisons were made to other cruise lines, it all boils down to your preferences. I don't think you will be disappointed, though.

 

[Captain-John]

On 11/6/2018 at 9:45 PM, lady peacock said:

Love Costa cruises and have made so many memories travelling with them, we have had Costa cruise points matched by MSC so are doing a Gulf cruise with MSC, just hope we have made the right decision, can anyone tell me the differences 

between Costa and MSC

 

I have also sailed both lines and prefer MSC to Costa. Of course it depends -  if you're coming from a brand new Costa ship to sail on an older MSC ship, your perception might be different.

 

I echo the reasons above:

 

1) Ships to me feel better decorated and the cabins feel higher quality in design and furnishing on MSC

2) There is an improvement in food quality (subjective I know) on MSC

 

But in many ways the lines are similar - both heavily Italian influenced in cuisine and service etc. Similar entertainment (i.e. performances without much speak to cater for the multilingual passengers).

 

I don't think you'll regret giving MSC a try - if you like Costa, it almost stands to reason you will like MSC too. I must admit before I sailed MSC or Costa for the first time I was very nervous given certain reviews and perceptions about these lines. The reality has been, so far, pleasantly different.

 

[sidari]

We have sailed MSC 7 times now and Costa just once on Deliziosa on a Xmas sailing, the ship itself was nice but too many gaudy colours for our liking, Dining room food was good to very good but the buffet was poor and was closed in late afternoon. you would never have known you were on a Xmas cruise apart from the one solitary Xmas tree, we had an Outside cabin on the Port side  which is likely the biggest we have ever been in which plenty of space. 

Going from photos and memory of the actual cruise we prefer MSC.

[camofwilliamsburg]

Costa is owned by CCL and MSC is owned privately by a family! MSC is wonderful and not a budget line which many people think because the pricing is so competitive....no corporation to be beholden to makes a difference. I have not sailed Costa since I love MSC .

[Capricruiser]

We used to cruise both Costa and MSC but for a variety of reasons by 2014 decided that Costa was no longer our cup of tea.  We've now had 20 MSC cruises on our books and loved them all, especially the Yacht Club experience found on the larger ships. 

[Nunagoras]

I have never gone with Costa, though I was on an older Costa ship back in the day for professional reasons in port. As many here say MSC ships are far more beautiful... And I have done 6 cruises with them!... Now Costa was purchased by Carnival lines... Maybe: They have become just such a Carnival Europe?... It's possible. By the way given the promotions, Costa sometimes remains less expensive from where I live than MSC... But things vary largely. I believe both companies to meet more or less same standards right now. Every time I cruised MSC there was a Costa ship following us, so direct competition to say the least!... Have a nice day!... 🙂

[Floridastorm]

On 11/6/2018 at 11:06 PM, TnTom said:

I have been on both, and I very much prefer MSC. The ships are nicer and I prefer their food. As many others have said when comparisons were made to other cruise lines, it all boils down to your preferences. I don't think you will be disappointed, though.

 

Good Morning from Florida

 

I have seen so many bad reviews, for both Costa and MSC, that I am wondering if it is just certain people that complain about everything or is it fair reviewing. I am aware that both of these lines cater to Europeans and especially Italians, so that may be part of the problem for some non Europeans. However, many of the complaints were about things that had nothing to do with the passengers. I like the itinerary's that both of these lines seem to have which is many of the ports that the other lines don't visit. The pricing for both always seems to be very good. I would imagine that when cruising out of Florida ports the Costa and MSC cater mostly to Americans, am I correct in assuming this?  Also, both lines seem to be the majority of sailings for the Baltic and Northern European ports. Assistance is greatly appreciated as I would really like to add both of these lines to my ongoing planning. 🤔

[Wansbrough]

I have seen this question raised many times and I don't think there as a definitive answer. There are so many things to take into consideration and most specifically peoples expectations. We have sailed both lines and in the main, they have all been great, a couple not so great but I'd still rather be on a ship than trudging off to work.