MSC Comedy of Errors

[BermudaBound2014]

10 hours ago, diesel1973 said:

It boggles my mind why anyone would continue to cruise with a line after so many problems! I did one cruise with MSC and had enough problems on that cruise to deter me from ever dealing with them again. A cruise should be problem free and  relaxing and MSC is far from that!!!

 

The primary reason I would sail MSC again is value. I consider MSC a budget cruise line. Many disagree, but it seems quite obvious from the drink package debacles to the more serious issues described in this thread that, in the very least, MSC is operating on a low budget when it comes to corporate policies. If I vacationed once or twice a year, I would probably opt to pay more for a better experience. But when I want to add a 5th or 6th vacation into my annual travel budget, MSC fits the bill.

 

My advice for those considering MSC is to not expect champaign on a beer budget. MSC is absolutely fine for those who looking to save a buck or two. When I do choose MSC, I do so expecting glitches. 

 

To the OP:  I also believe that the right thing for MSC to do is to offer some type of compensation for their comedy of errors. I've found that good faith gestures correct nearly all misgivings. In the case of cruise lines, there is a lot of available bones to toss. Best to you. 

[diesel1973]

When I booked my cruise I also booked a RCCL cruise following the MSC one. MSC was Fantastica Veranda and RCCL was Oceanview Veranda. Both were very close in price but I received what I was expected to get on RCCL and the food and service was much better than MSC.On MSC all I got were problems,food and service was terrible, and was charged for items I was told was free. So I really don't see any "value" in MSC! If I wanted to spend a week arguing with someone and constantly called a liar I could stay home for free!!!!!! Now that's value.

[BermudaBound2014]

3 minutes ago, diesel1973 said:

When I booked my cruise I also booked a RCCL cruise following the MSC one. MSC was Fantastica Veranda and RCCL was Oceanview Veranda. Both were very close in price but I received what I was expected to get on RCCL and the food and service was much better than MSC.On MSC all I got were problems,food and service was terrible, and was charged for items I was told was free. So I really don't see any "value" in MSC! If I wanted to spend a week arguing with someone and constantly called a liar I could stay home for free!!!!!! Now that's value.

 

Personally, I would never choose MSC unless they were substantially cheaper than the main-stream lines. Example, last June the Equinox was only $175 more pp than Seaview. No brainer, we chose Celebrity. When I have selected MSC I have done so when the pricing is $400-$500 less PP than the next best. For me, MSC only a budget line. 

[Stockjock]

9 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

To the OP:  I also believe that the right thing for MSC to do is to offer some type of compensation for their comedy of errors. I've found that good faith gestures correct nearly all misgivings. In the case of cruise lines, there is a lot of available bones to toss. Best to you. 

Thanks.  I don't believe it's unreasonable to ask for compensation.  I've been offered compensation for far fewer problems without even having to ask on other cruise lines.  

I also doubt there's another major cruise line that would take a 4-night European cruise, turn it into a 20-night cruise out of Brazil, change the sailing date even, and not communicate with their customer about the change in any way.

Edited December 8, 2018 by Stockjock

[chill6x6]

On 12/6/2018 at 9:35 PM, diesel1973 said:

It boggles my mind why anyone would continue to cruise with a line after so many problems! I did one cruise with MSC and had enough problems on that cruise to deter me from ever dealing with them again. A cruise should be problem free and  relaxing and MSC is far from that!!!

^^^^^^^This..

 

I have a cruise booked on MSC for 2020(Yacht Club).....I'm sure thinking about cancelling.  I've cruised Holland America, Celebrity, Carnival, NCL, Royal Caribbean, and Princess.....and really never had ANY of the above issues.  Anyone can give something a try but I sure wouldn't go back for more.  

[DMH15]

6 hours ago, chill6x6 said:

^^^^^^^This..

 

I have a cruise booked on MSC for 2020(Yacht Club).....I'm sure thinking about cancelling.  I've cruised Holland America, Celebrity, Carnival, NCL, Royal Caribbean, and Princess.....and really never had ANY of the above issues.  Anyone can give something a try but I sure wouldn't go back for more.  

You are seriously thinking of cancelling? I have read many many positives from YC pax.   You should try for yourself. 

[Stockjock]

1 hour ago, DMH15 said:

You are seriously thinking of cancelling? I have read many many positives from YC pax.   You should try for yourself. 

I agree with this. While there are legitimate reasons to be concerned, I do think it’s in your interest to give it a try and make your own decisions. Perhaps you will have a better experience. As I mentioned, my initial experience was pretty good but it’s gone downhill since then.

[chill6x6]

18 hours ago, DMH15 said:

You are seriously thinking of cancelling? I have read many many positives from YC pax.   You should try for yourself. 

 

16 hours ago, Stockjock said:

I agree with this. While there are legitimate reasons to be concerned, I do think it’s in your interest to give it a try and make your own decisions. Perhaps you will have a better experience. As I mentioned, my initial experience was pretty good but it’s gone downhill since then.

I may yet but....I get basically two weeks vacation a year...glad to have it!  So I have to fly in to basically anywhere we go, rent a car, etc.  Saying that, I tend to go with a "sure thing" because I want things to go as problem-free as possible.  I'm not SO sure MSC, even in the YC, is a "sure thing."  So far, Celebrity is the closest to a "sure-thing" that I've found even if more expensive. 

[Beamafar]

7 minutes ago, chill6x6 said:

 

I may yet but....I get basically two weeks vacation a year...glad to have it!  So I have to fly in to basically anywhere we go, rent a car, etc.  Saying that, I tend to go with a "sure thing" because I want things to go as problem-free as possible.  I'm not SO sure MSC, even in the YC, is a "sure thing."  So far, Celebrity is the closest to a "sure-thing" that I've found even if more expensive. 

 

You'd be hard-pressed to find many negative reviews of YC - it's mostly glowing reports.

 

We've done 5 YC cruises (with 2 more booked) and 1 Sky Suite on X - it didn't come anywhere near what YC offers and it cost more!

[Stockjock]

Just to follow up, continuing to have issues.  I mentioned that on my Miami cruise, I switched to the new "All In" drink package and they assured me that my cabin would remain the same.  Instead, they moved me from a glass balcony mid-ship non-adjoining cabin to an obstructed steel balcony adjoining cabin at the front of the ship.

So for about 1.5 weeks I've been trying to correct this.  Today, I got a message that they had been able to "correct" the problem and move me back to my original cabin....

Which is the exact same lousy cabin that I've said I didn't want at the front of the ship with the steel balcony.

One thing after another.

[SirWolf]

Everybody is entitled to his own opinion and decision but for me MSC Yacht Club is the most luxurious and enjoyable cruise experience I can afford. We sailed Western Med last September in YC on Seaview and have two future cruises booked in YC (Bellissima Western Med , Bellissima Re-po Genoa to Dubai). Currently looking into cruise in 2020. 

What kind of baffles me... despite negative reviews cabins are going fast, on many sailings certain Experiences are booked up to 14 months in advance.

Just my 2-cents...

[Stockjock]

Just to follow up, none of the issues mentioned nearly 2 months ago have been resolved by MSC.  I've e-mailed Customer Service and they did not reply. 

I work for one of the better-known Wall Street firms.  When my customers have problems, I want to fix them quickly and exceed expectations, if it's possible and reasonable to do so.  Apparently, that's not how MSC operates.

[Arzeena]

On 12/6/2018 at 10:35 PM, diesel1973 said:

It boggles my mind why anyone would continue to cruise with a line after so many problems! I did one cruise with MSC and had enough problems on that cruise to deter me from ever dealing with them again. A cruise should be problem free and  relaxing and MSC is far from that!!!

Why me? 3 reasons only:

1. Price.

2. Beautiful Ships.

3. Change/Variety.

*****the rest is a comic nightmare! LOL!

[Stockjock]

Just wanted to follow-up on this post, as there's been some positive movement.

Mentioned that my calls were not being returned, messages not replied to, etc.  The booking supervisor who was very nice, but later less responsive, moved to a different department.  I think she truly wanted to help, but candidly, the communications could have been better.

She transferred my case to a super nice booking supervisor, who I think was also her friend.  That supervisor returned my call promptly, told me she had a much lighter caseload than the other, and would work to fix problems promptly.

Even though I'm barely a week from final payment, they did move me from that Bellissima inside cabin misidentified as a balcony, to an Aurea experience cabin, which is a very nice upgrade.  I'm not sure if I get the Aurea amenities though (probably not), so if anyone knows, feel free to chime in.

I also mentioned that on a Seaside sailing out of Miami, they moved me from a midship, unobstructed, non-adjoining cabin to an adjoining, obstructed steel balcony cabin at the bow of the ship.  After almost 3 months of book, cancel, rebook, cancel, rebook and so on with no real change, they moved me to a mid-ship, non-adjoining, non-obstructed cabin on the 15th deck.  My only concern is that the pool is above my cabin, where the original cabin was on the 10th deck with cabins above and below.  So I'm kind of feeling like this one is better than the last but not quite as good as the first.  Again, open to your thoughts here as well.

But I'm happy to report that I'm finally making some progress, and certainly I'm happy with the new cabin assignment on Bellissima out of Barcelona, despite a lot of prior aggravation.

[diesel1973]

Stockjock, in an earlier post you mentioned about asking for compensation. I had a major problem on the Seaside (a room that smelled like a sewer and making us sick) and after 5=6 trips to GS they finally moved me to another room. After move they gave me a certificate ,without me asking, for a free specialty dinner. I thought this was a nice gesture! NOT Used it next day and found charge for dinner 2 days later. Disputed it at GS with person who actually gave me cert. and she denied giving it to me. Tried to dispute it with CC when home and they said without copy of cert. I had no case. Just a word of warning. Hope you enjoy your cruise.

[edsareg]

On ‎12‎/‎4‎/‎2018 at 10:39 PM, Stockjock said:

My girlfriend and I have cruised on MSC once in late 2016.  We did an 11 night out of Rome on Divina and had a great time.  The ship was beautiful, while the itinerary changed, it was still very good.  Only slight gripe was that the (mostly) Eastern European crew was somewhat unfriendly and seemed like they hated their jobs, their lives and their passengers.  But otherwise, it was a generally positive experience.

On that cruise, we visited Cinque Terre, which I really enjoyed.  So I found a 4 night cruise out of Barcelona that stopped in Cinque Terre and booked that for early 2018.  We figured we'd fly to Barcelona, spend some time there, and then do the short 4-night before returning home.  Only MSC changed it from a 4-night out of Barcelona to a 20-night on a totally different date out of Brazil, which didn't work for us on multiple counts.  Surprisingly and perhaps shockingly, MSC never informed me about the change in any way.  I had to see it for myself while looking at the confirmation prior to final payment.  Just glad I hadn't booked flights yet.  So it had to be cancelled due to MSC's drastic schedule change.

Meanwhile, to replace the cancelled Barcelona cruise, I booked another Barcelona cruise for 2019 on Bellissima.  The cabin I booked, 14172, was listed as an inside but showed to be a balcony (see attached).  Tried to get clarification from MSC, but they had no idea.  Their website's deck plan showed my room to be a balcony, so I booked it, assuming that was the case.  Perhaps it was one of those partially obstructed balconies, who knows?

Next, I did a Voyager's Club status match and was concerned that I'd lose what little status I had.  Normally, you have to cruise MSC within 3 years to maintain points and status, but since they cancelled 2018 Barcelona, that put me beyond 3 years.  Called MSC to discuss the concerns.  The MSC guy said, "Don't worry, they won't cancel your status and points.  There's no way.  I've been here 5 years (or whatever it was) and there's no way they'll do that.  We cancelled your cruise and besides you have new bookings pending, so nothing will get cancelled".

They then cancelled my status and took my points to zero.

I then found out that the cabin on Bellissima shown as a balcony on the deck plan, was actually an inside cabin.  I've tried to get some form of upgrade from MSC, and they said they'll try in "late January", only weeks from final payment is due.  I also asked if they could throw in some OBC for the cancelled cruise and other issues.  They didn't reply.

Booked a subsequent cruise out of Miami in late 2019 under their "Drinks on Us" promotion.  The website showed that my cruise on Seaside was eligible, so I booked it.  However, it came up as "mealtime drinks" only.  Called MSC and asked what the deal was.  They said it was included in the "Drinks on Us" promotion, but they only offered "Mealtime Drinks" on that sailing (Huh?).  They offered to allow me to upgrade to "Drinks on Us" at a cost, so I paid a bit more and upgraded the reservation, although I still didn't understand why I had to do that.

A few days ago, I saw that this cruise was eligible for the new "All In" promotion, so I called MSC and asked if it would make sense to move to that.  The agent said, "Yes I think it would,  You'd get more OBC (I think he said $175), a better Wi-Fi package, a better drink package (Easy vs. Drinks on Us) and you won't have to pay gratuities on every drink.  I asked if I could keep the same mid-ship cabin and he said, "Absolutely".  So I told him to do it, as the cost was quite similar.    Next thing you know, they moved my cabin from mid-ship to the front of the ship, changed from a non-adjoining room to an adjoining room, and changed it from a glass balcony to an obstructed steel balcony.  But the drink package still shows as "Drinks on Us".  So all they've done so far is to drastically downgrade my cabin.  Oh, and supposedly now there's no OBC.

Booked a 2020 cruise out of Paris with them and got an e-mail that I could get discounts on tours and such by booking them now.  Tried to do that, as per the e-mail, but nothing is available yet.  Let's hope that they don't change that one to a 20-night out of Brazil!

I won't even go into all of the many, many errors with the website, with cruises disappearing, reappearing, some bookings shown, no bookings shown, unable to login etc.

I like MSC and I love their beautiful ships, but working with these folks has been a real challenge.  I've been communicating with a very nice booking supervisor who seems to want to help, but so far it's been a comedy of errors.

My GF especially loves MSC.  I get pretty frustrated dealing with one issue after another.  Too bad they can't get their act together, they build such beautiful ships.


 

MSC 14172

Hi, They have the worst Customer Service of any Cruise line. Last year we sailed with then on a 28 night cruise, So many thinks went wrong that they gave us a 10% discount of any Future cruise with them. Just  one example we docked in kotor, The gang way was so steep they would only let one person at a time on it incase they fell, When I asked one of the officers what was the problem with the gang way WE DID NOT NO IT WOULD BE HIGH TIDE WHEN WE DOCKED. kOTOR IS non tidal?
Hopeless.  

[BermudaBound2014]

8 minutes ago, edsareg said:

Hi, They have the worst Customer Service of any Cruise line. Last year we sailed with then on a 28 night cruise, So many thinks went wrong that they gave us a 10% discount of any Future cruise with them. Just  one example we docked in kotor, The gang way was so steep they would only let one person at a time on it incase they fell, When I asked one of the officers what was the problem with the gang way WE DID NOT NO IT WOULD BE HIGH TIDE WHEN WE DOCKED. kOTOR IS non tidal?
Hopeless.  

 

Kotor absolutely has tides. Not sure if you are saying that MSC tried to tell you Kotor did not have tides?  Or are you stating that MSC did not calculate the tides correctly? We had steep tendering in Kotor also but we transfered on Kotor's tenders. Were you using Kotor or MSC tender vessels?

 

OP: Glad you are getting some level resolution. 

[Stockjock]

1 hour ago, edsareg said:

Hi, They have the worst Customer Service of any Cruise line. Last year we sailed with then on a 28 night cruise, So many thinks went wrong that they gave us a 10% discount of any Future cruise with them. Just  one example we docked in kotor, The gang way was so steep they would only let one person at a time on it incase they fell, When I asked one of the officers what was the problem with the gang way WE DID NOT NO IT WOULD BE HIGH TIDE WHEN WE DOCKED. kOTOR IS non tidal?
Hopeless.  

Regretfully, I have to agree that, in general, customer service is pretty poor.  

I also mentioned originally that I booked a 2018 cruise out of Barcelona that was changed to a far different cruise leaving from Brazil on a totally different date.  There was no apology, no e-mail, no letter, no phone call, no compensation, no nothing. 

Just to compare and contrast, I booked a cruise a couple of years back on Celebrity.  They had to cancel my cruise, as it was chartered.  They called me, they sent me a letter and they e-mailed me.  They apologized.  They booked me a great cabin on a different sailing without my asking and said that if that was not convenient, contact them and they'd make it right.  

They also said they'd refund my airfare if I had booked it (I hadn't).  I found a different cruise that worked for us.  They upgraded the cabin, gave me a few hundred OBC and provided some free specialty dining visits, which were wonderful.

Totally different way of doing things.  MSC has beautiful ships, but in terms of their customer service, they really need to improve a lot.

 

Edited February 14, 2019 by Stockjock

[asctony]

Can't see my complete booking on MSC site. Can't link my booking to my Black Card Number. The complete booking was available last month, not this month. I know it is there and valid because when I sign in, I get the option to purchase beverage/excursions/etc. I have complete on line check-in. Regardless of how I sign in by booking or member, I cannot see complete booking. Been trying for over a week now.

Tried to call, on hold. Gave up. This is the US site and I have tried 3 different browsers.

Tried to send request for help via their Internet site. Still waiting over 30 hours.

Trying to book a cruise with them for 2020. I can't do it on line and TA can't do it.

MSC is totally lacking in Customer Support.

 

For those of you who have had other experiences with CS, I am glad for you. Just consider yourself lucky. Please don't try to tell me how great their service was. I do not care, as it does not resolve my problem.

 

HAPPY CRUISING!!

[Stockjock]

1 hour ago, asctony said:

Can't see my complete booking on MSC site. Can't link my booking to my Black Card Number. The complete booking was available last month, not this month. I know it is there and valid because when I sign in, I get the option to purchase beverage/excursions/etc. I have complete on line check-in. Regardless of how I sign in by booking or member, I cannot see complete booking. Been trying for over a week now.

Tried to call, on hold. Gave up. This is the US site and I have tried 3 different browsers.

Tried to send request for help via their Internet site. Still waiting over 30 hours.

Trying to book a cruise with them for 2020. I can't do it on line and TA can't do it.

MSC is totally lacking in Customer Support.

 

For those of you who have had other experiences with CS, I am glad for you. Just consider yourself lucky. Please don't try to tell me how great their service was. I do not care, as it does not resolve my problem.

 

HAPPY CRUISING!!

Try this.  Login to MSC's website.  From the menu on the left, click on "Link Booking".  Then enter your booking number and it should show up with your other booking(s).

[asctony]

52 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

Try this.  Login to MSC's website.  From the menu on the left, click on "Link Booking".  Then enter your booking number and it should show up with your other booking(s).

Can't see my complete booking on MSC site. Can't link my booking to my Black Card Number.

Yes, I try that everyday and still no luck. Like I said, I log in via User ID and Booking number. Both ways show different things as I tried to explain before. It is beyond help. LOL

[MarkusToe]

all this hustle come in because of this changing, rebooking, canceling issue you do in the US

 

Over here you book what you want, at the cost you like to spend, if you want the change, cancel, you loose you deposit (20%), end of game......

[edsareg]

11 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

Kotor absolutely has tides. Not sure if you are saying that MSC tried to tell you Kotor did not have tides?  Or are you stating that MSC did not calculate the tides correctly? We had steep tendering in Kotor also but we transfered on Kotor's tenders. Were you using Kotor or MSC tender vessels?

 

OP: Glad you are getting some level resolution. 

Hi, We never had tenders, We berthed along side the quay  The gang way was so steep it was a danger to any one using it, As a result It took 1.5 hrs of queuing on board the ship before we got to the top of the Gang way . They would not let more than 1/2 people at a time to use it.  What they should have had is a raised platform on the Quay to take some of the incline of the gangway.As some one who has worked on the Cruise Term at Liverpool, Where we have very high tides,Its some thing we had to use from time to time. Depending on the tide. What they did in Kotor would not have been allowed in the UK.
The tides in Kotor are VERY little in difference.To day High tide was 0.29 mt, Low tide0.27 mt, as you can see very little in it, For the Officers on duty not to no that, Ill leave it at that.
Nice talking to you.
Reg.   .

[BermudaBound2014]

3 hours ago, edsareg said:

Hi, We never had tenders, We berthed along side the quay  The gang way was so steep it was a danger to any one using it, As a result It took 1.5 hrs of queuing on board the ship before we got to the top of the Gang way . They would not let more than 1/2 people at a time to use it.  What they should have had is a raised platform on the Quay to take some of the incline of the gangway.As some one who has worked on the Cruise Term at Liverpool, Where we have very high tides,Its some thing we had to use from time to time. Depending on the tide. What they did in Kotor would not have been allowed in the UK.
The tides in Kotor are VERY little in difference.To day High tide was 0.29 mt, Low tide0.27 mt, as you can see very little in it, For the Officers on duty not to no that, Ill leave it at that.
Nice talking to you.
Reg.   .

Ahhh...... now that makes perfect sense.

 

I do agree with most on this thread in that MSC customer service has a long way to go. I do think some of this is cultural differences. North Americans tend to operate under the tenets of  'customer is always right'.  As you can see from this thread, MSC mindset more resembles "take it or leave it'. The MSC way or the high-way.  This is perfectly fine if you know going in and understand that if problems arise, MSC may not be as solution orientated as North Americans are accustom to. It's a common theme repeated across many forms of social media and cruise critic reviews. 

 

I

 

 

 

 

 

[edsareg]

2 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

Ahhh...... now that makes perfect sense.

 

I do agree with most on this thread in that MSC customer service has a long way to go. I do think some of this is cultural differences. North Americans tend to operate under the tenets of  'customer is always right'.  As you can see from this thread, MSC mindset more resembles "take it or leave it'. The MSC way or the high-way.  This is perfectly fine if you know going in and understand that if problems arise, MSC may not be as solution orientated as North Americans are accustom to. It's a common theme repeated across many forms of social media and cruise critic reviews. 

 

I

 

 

 

 

 

Hi, There seems to be a Mental blockage  when dealing with with the Customer Service, You make your complaint or what ever it is you are talking to them for, They fully agree with you, They promise you the Earth, Then nothing happens. I made a booking on Dec 7 2018 , After 9 weeks and endless emails and calls , Nothing. I am still waiting for my final price. To day  every one in there C/S/  has promised that I will have all my details by close of play TODAY,  Its now 5pm in the UK  STILL WAITING FOR THE CALL.
I will keep you informed  about my Journey , Wish  me luck.
Reg.