Comprehensive Reviews Please

[Floridastorm]

My wife and I are a couple of very Senior Citizens and are tempted to try one of the MSC cruises in the Caribbean. However, we have heard all of the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly about MSC. Notice there are 4 ships plying the Caribbean; Divina, Meraviglia, Preziosa, and Seaside. All seem to be about the same size, very large. There are positives that I won't mention as of course they would not be a problem. Some of the negatives I've read about are:

 

* Many kids on board and they sometimes run wild due to differing customs in some countries

* Many people are rude and inconsiderate in accordance with differing customs in some countries

* MSC ship's entertainment pretty well goes 24/7 which can interfere with quiet time.

* Staff can sometimes be indifferent, rude, and slow.

 

I am in no way making any judgements as these are not my opinions but the opinions I have read of passengers that have sailed on MSC ships. I am just relaying what I have read and asking if these opinions are endemic of the cruise line?

 

Thank you, in advance, for any and all information provided. 🛳️

[Nashna]

We are also senior citizens who are sailing on MSC for the first time in January.  I agree that some of the reviews of MSC have been less than positive.  We are still taking a chance on MSC and are attempting to mitigate the reason for the complaints as by taking the following steps.

     1.  We are sailing in the middle of January at a time when children are typically in school.  Two years ago, we had sailed on Celebrity to Bermuda in early August and the children took over the ship as Celebrity doesn't have the facilities to handle that  amount of kids.    Keep in mind the school calendar when you cruise.

    2.  Expect that this experience will be different.  MSC is still adjusting to the USA market and I'm sure they will be tweaking their product to cater to Americans.  If you are taking advantage of some of the amazing pricing being offered, understand that this is because MSC is still adjusting.  If you are paying Target prices don't expect Nordstrom service.  Two years ago, we sailed on Seabourn and were surprised to find the food meh and the service just ok.  Having paid a good deal for this cruise, we were underwhelmed.  That cruise did not match the expectations that we expected from the price.  

     3.  When you read a review, notice what itinerary they are sailing.  The Caribbean experience is going to be totally different than a European sailing.  

    4.  Keep in mind that most people who have an enjoyable cruise, will not post a review, and folks who have a bad experience will surely post their experiences.

   

We have sailed on cruse lines as varied as Carnival to Seabourn.   We have chosen the Yacht Club on MSC because we are fed up with crowds, towel hogs, high cost of suites, and indifferent service on major cruise lines.  I will post my review of the Yacht Club experience after we return.   I'm hoping MSC will meet and beat my expectations. 

[cellfree]

We are also Seniors and living in Florida and are Platinum with Carnival and tried MSC out two years ago when we became aware of it.  Since we have sailed between Carnival and MSC - we have been on the Divina three times, Seaside two times, Armonia once, and are sailing on Meraviglia in two weeks and Grandiosa October 2020.  In reference to your list of the negatives you have read about, from our experience the only thing noticeable may have been rude adults and whether or not that is cultural is up for debate as there are also rude adults on "American" cruise lines.  We have never experienced a plethora of kids and the staff has always been outstanding.  We always enjoy the different aspects that cruising MSC brings to the table.  We have never had any complaints that would be important enough to mention - well other than the small shower that we worked with by not using the shower curtain as it wasn't necessary because we could direct the water to the back wall - ha.  And BTW we have always cruised Interior either Bella or Fantastica.

[dznymom]

I guess I am a senior citizen, although I neither feel nor act like one.  I just did a review of my Seaside cruise this month.  You can get lots of my opinions in there, but this is how I felt about the things you mentioned.

 

There were plenty of kids on board, but I found them to be the same as kids on any cruise, some extremely well behaved and a few knuckleheads. They never interfered with our enjoyment at all.

 

The demographic on the ship was different, which I enjoyed for the most part.  We met lots of fun folks from Europe and other parts of the world.  Wherever you went you could hear many different languages which I thought was pretty cool.  There were some guests with a different sense of personal space and less patience than I would prefer, but it wasn't really a problem.  I did meet some people onboard that felt that a larger than usual number of rude cruisers were onboard.  

 

The staff was wonderful, and seemed much more sincere than many I have dealt with on other cruise lines.  I was very pleased with them.

 

There is plenty of entertainment, but we spent most of our pool time at the South Beach pool which did not have live entertainment most of the time.  The Miami Beach pool area on deck 16 was a different story.  Much too crowded and active for our taste, so we just didn't go there.  We didn't miss it.  There was entertainment in the Atrium most evenings, but this is true of most cruise lines these days.  The shows in the main theater are excellent, but more of a spectacle than most other cruise lines.  

 

I think it really depends on you.  We also cruise on Holland America and Princess, and this was more more lively than either of those.  In my opinion, I would put it in the NCL category, but with a more diverse group of people onboard.  I haven't done Carnival or Royal Caribbean for years, but I imagine they are similar in the activity and crowd level.  The staff on the Seaside was as good or better than any of those.

 

 

[Essiesmom]

I note that when you listed the ships in the Caribbean, you did not mention Armonia.  We have sailed Divina and Seaside, as well as Armonia.  We found Armonia to be much quieter/laid back than the other two, including the decor.  Prices are very good right now because her itineraries were reworked to eliminate Cuba.  My only complaint is the perennial one, of those who linger over coffee in the buffet when others are wandering around looking for a table.  EM

[CGTNORMANDIE]

4 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

My wife and I are a couple of very Senior Citizens and are tempted to try one of the MSC cruises in the Caribbean. However, we have heard all of the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly about MSC. Notice there are 4 ships plying the Caribbean; Divina, Meraviglia, Preziosa, and Seaside. All seem to be about the same size, very large. There are positives that I won't mention as of course they would not be a problem. Some of the negatives I've read about are:

 

* Many kids on board and they sometimes run wild due to differing customs in some countries

* Many people are rude and inconsiderate in accordance with differing customs in some countries

* MSC ship's entertainment pretty well goes 24/7 which can interfere with quiet time.

* Staff can sometimes be indifferent, rude, and slow.

 

I am in no way making any judgements as these are not my opinions but the opinions I have read of passengers that have sailed on MSC ships. I am just relaying what I have read and asking if these opinions are endemic of the cruise line?

 

Thank you, in advance, for any and all information provided. 🛳️

I think most of those complaints stem from school vacation.  Parents just want to dump their kids and head for the pool.  Lots of Europeans sailing with their kids during school vacation.  They tend to be short tempered.  Obvious solution...don’t cruise during school vacations!  BTW...there are plenty of places to go for quiet time and I have never heard of anyone losing sleep except during school vacation.

 

 

 

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

1 hour ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

I think most of those complaints stem from school vacation.  Parents just want to dump their kids and head for the pool.  Lots of Europeans sailing with their kids during school vacation.  They tend to be short tempered.  Obvious solution...don’t cruise during school vacations!  BTW...there are plenty of places to go for quiet time and I have never heard of anyone losing sleep except during school vacation.

 

Good idea.  How do I find out the timing of European school vacations?

[CGTNORMANDIE]

15 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

 

Good idea.  How do I find out the timing of European school vacations?

The European school vacation period pretty much imitates the American schedule.  Our rule of thumb is no cruising from second week in June until mid September.  We also stopped cruising in February and April unless it is 12 days or longer.

[mnocket]

Since you've sailed Celebrity, HAL and Windstar, my guess is that you would enjoy MSC Yacht Club.  Anything other than Yacht Club would likely disappoint. 

[4104ever]

1 hour ago, mnocket said:

Since you've sailed Celebrity, HAL and Windstar, my guess is that you would enjoy MSC Yacht Club.  Anything other than Yacht Club would likely disappoint. 

 

I never understand why some would believe that sailing anything other than yacht club would be disappointing.  I also have sailed Celebrity and HAL and find that MSC is comparable to those lines.  I just completed my sixth MSC cruise yesterday and have always had a wonderful time.  I have never sailed in the Yacht Club and probably never will.  I have sailed the Seaside twice, the Orchestra once, Meraviglia once and Divina twice with another on her Dec 6.  Every cruise will have their positives and negatives such as every day life.  Go and enjoy and don't worry about the small stuff!!

Edited October 20, 2019 by 4104ever

[Floridastorm]

2 hours ago, mnocket said:

Since you've sailed Celebrity, HAL and Windstar, my guess is that you would enjoy MSC Yacht Club.  Anything other than Yacht Club would likely disappoint. 

I really would if I wanted to put out that much money. I am comfortably well off and retired. But, I'm also frugal and book cabins that give us the best value within my budget. Unfortunately Yacht Club cabins are not within my budget. But, thanks for the info.

[Floridastorm]

I did a mock transatlantic booking for an Ocean View Cabin for the Divina. I notice if you pick "Bella" then MSC chooses the cabin. If you pick "Fantastica" then you can choose the cabin at a higher price. Is this pretty standard with the line? Other cruise lines ask you if you want them to choose or do you want to choose yourself. There is no specific category either way.

Edited October 20, 2019 by Floridastorm

[L2float]

I had to chime in on the feeling that on MSC, YC is the only way to go. At least for us, that's not the case. We have sailed on several lines and twice on MSC. Our first MSC was a Fantastica balcony and we sailed in an Aurea suite last June. We loved both our trips and now have booked 4 more in the next year. Some are YC, some are not. We're hoping YC doesn't spoil us, but we really enjoyed our non YC cruises. I have to say that I did enjoy the food on Celebrity more than any other line, but we were satisfied with the food on other cruises, as well. We've never gone hungry and it's always better than doing the cooking myself! 😁

[glittergal1]

7 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

I did a mock transatlantic booking for an Ocean View Cabin for the Divina. I notice if you pick "Bella" then MSC chooses the cabin. If you pick "Fantastica" then you can choose the cabin at a higher price. Is this pretty standard with the line? Other cruise lines ask you if you want them to choose or do you want to choose yourself. There is no specific category either way.

No its not standard the choosing cabin thing it varies depending on sailing, so far on all our Bella bookings we have also been able to choose our cabin It is however not a guarantee that you will keep this cabin with Bella they may move you. (we have only ever been moved when being given a better cabin in an upgrade)   However with Fantastica you get more benefits than bella hence Fantastica is more expensive.

 

And as for your question RE European school holidays Well Europe is large and different countries have different holiday dates and even within the same countries different areas have different dates We live in the UK so fairly small but even here term dates vary hugely ,  Here in the UK There is always a week in february , normally 2 at Easter (but not always it depends when Easter falls) A week at the End of May/early June  6 weeks in the summer (this varies the most) a week in October and 2 weeks for Christmas . 

MSC is a very  family Friendly Family Orientated cruise line and child places are often free or very cheap. , We cruise Europe with MSC mainly what you would class as the majority of  non school holiday times because it is so much cheaper than during holiday time so costs for a cruise  on certain dates give you a good indicator of whether it is or isnt holiday time (look at dates a few weeks apart to see any differences)  We have yet to cruise where children have been an issue or where ships have been too crowded . I worked with children for 20 years so now I have a low tolerance of children on my holidays  so Im happy with What ive booked with MSC in the past and have 6 more booked for the future

[cruisingnewtoit]

11 hours ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

The European school vacation period pretty much imitates the American schedule.  Our rule of thumb is no cruising from second week in June until mid September.  We also stopped cruising in February and April unless it is 12 days or longer.

Why Feb & April for 12 days or longer cruises? Lol I'm nervous because I'm booked on my 1st MSC cruise on the Merg in Feb leaving out of Miami.

Edited October 20, 2019 by cruisingnewtoit

[Markanddonna]

18 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

 

* Many kids on board and they sometimes run wild due to differing customs in some countries We traveled on the Divina in Feb and the children, mostly preschoolers, were well behaved. Mostly Europeans.

* Many people are rude and inconsiderate in accordance with differing customs in some countries. We had also heard this complaint and found it to be not valid on our sailing.

* MSC ship's entertainment pretty well goes 24/7 which can interfere with quiet time. We retired at midnight and had no problems with noise.

* Staff can sometimes be indifferent, rude, and slow. I found everyone to be very pleasant and efficient. Surprisingly, the Customer Service people were perhaps the most pleasant and responsive of any I have ever encountered in cruising. Our waiter was excellent and hurried our meals at our request so we could make the early show. The Meet and Greet was probably the best I have ever attended on any cruiseline.  These are our experiences and now we have three more MSC cruises booked. 

 

18 hours ago, Floridastorm said:

 

 

 

[Nashna]

1 hour ago, cruisingnewtoit said:

Why Feb & April for 12 days or longer cruises? Lol I'm nervous because I'm booked on my 1st MSC cruise on the Merg in Feb leaving out of Miami.

Presidents Day in the US is February 17 in 2020.  As long as you stay away from this week, you should be fine.

[cruisingnewtoit]

4 minutes ago, Nashna said:

Presidents Day in the US is February 17 in 2020.  As long as you stay away from this week, you should be fine.

😱 Oh no I completely forget about that holiday. Our cruise leaves on the 16th. That's probably why the airfare was high.

 

[daisy-mae]

With respect to children on MSC, we recently completed a Med cruise on the Divina with a large group of high-school aged youth. When I say large, according to the folks at customer service, there were likely about 100 students. About 20 or so kids found it amusing to roam the halls after midnight, chasing one another into the elevators and generally running riot, with nary a chaperone or monitor in sight. There seemed to be no help from security on our first night (after our call to the front desk); after our sleep was interrupted on the second night we spoke directly to customer service and explained that this type of behaviour was not commensurate with a cruise experience.

 

We were among a number of passengers whose complaints were finally acknowledged. MSC did compensate us with some OBC and treats sent to our cabin, and told us that the group was being relocated elsewhwere on the ship.

 

What concerns me is the fact that the cruise line would agree to transport such a large school group, likely at a reduced rate,  without any thought to the comfort of the other guests.

 

[Floridastorm]

1 minute ago, daisy-mae said:

With respect to children on MSC, we recently completed a Med cruise on the Divina with a large group of high-school aged youth. When I say large, according to the folks at customer service, there were likely about 100 students. About 20 or so kids found it amusing to roam the halls after midnight, chasing one another into the elevators and generally running riot, with nary a chaperone or monitor in sight. There seemed to be no help from security on our first night (after our call to the front desk); after our sleep was interrupted on the second night we spoke directly to customer service and explained that this type of behaviour was not commensurate with a cruise experience.

 

We were among a number of passengers whose complaints were finally acknowledged. MSC did compensate us with some OBC and treats sent to our cabin, and told us that the group was being relocated elsewhwere on the ship.

 

What concerns me is the fact that the cruise line would agree to transport such a large school group, likely at a reduced rate,  without any thought to the comfort of the other guests.

 

There you go. Differing opinions than some that I have come across. I guess each individual has their own positives and negatives depending upon their preferences. It's good to know that you were satisfied with MSC as I am contemplating doing a transatlantic with them particularly because they have very good ports of call that the other lines don't have. Also their ships are all pretty new and that is a positive with me.

[daisy-mae]

5 minutes ago, Floridastorm said:

There you go. Differing opinions than some that I have come across. I guess each individual has their own positives and negatives depending upon their preferences. It's good to know that you were satisfied with MSC as I am contemplating doing a transatlantic with them particularly because they have very good ports of call that the other lines don't have. Also their ships are all pretty new and that is a positive with me.

 

I did post a review of the trip, without going into the detail mentioned above. On the whole, I think that MSC provides a good product at a reasonable price. The trick is to keep an open mind, and adopt a calm and reasonable approach when dealing with management.

[Floridastorm]

9 minutes ago, daisy-mae said:

With respect to children on MSC, we recently completed a Med cruise on the Divina with a large group of high-school aged youth. When I say large, according to the folks at customer service, there were likely about 100 students. About 20 or so kids found it amusing to roam the halls after midnight, chasing one another into the elevators and generally running riot, with nary a chaperone or monitor in sight. There seemed to be no help from security on our first night (after our call to the front desk); after our sleep was interrupted on the second night we spoke directly to customer service and explained that this type of behaviour was not commensurate with a cruise experience.

 

We were among a number of passengers whose complaints were finally acknowledged. MSC did compensate us with some OBC and treats sent to our cabin, and told us that the group was being relocated elsewhwere on the ship.

 

What concerns me is the fact that the cruise line would agree to transport such a large school group, likely at a reduced rate,  without any thought to the comfort of the other guests.

 

I'm wondering if this might be more prevalent on the European cruises as opposed to MSC's itinerary in the Caribbean or on a transatlantic. I know that Europeans and Asians look at things differently than we in the US do. Europe seems to be a very very liberal continent where children are brought up with less discipline. At least that has been my take over the years.

[Cruising89143]

14 hours ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

I think most of those complaints stem from school vacation.  Parents just want to dump their kids and head for the pool.  Lots of Europeans sailing with their kids during school vacation.  They tend to be short tempered.  Obvious solution...don’t cruise during school vacations!  BTW...there are plenty of places to go for quiet time and I have never heard of anyone losing sleep except during school vacation.

 

 

 

 

I really wish that I knew when school vacation was. We just returned a week ago today from the Norwegian Bliss out of Los Angeles. Far more kids on board than we expected. I really thought that most would be in school this time of year but we found out that some Arizona schools had a holiday. Seems like you could once skip the summer months and major holidays and be safe. Not anymore. Who knew? 🙂🙂

[Floridastorm]

My take is that Celebrity and Holland America, and also some of the luxury lines, have very few kids on board especially younger kids. Their ships have none of the Disney World facilities that the other lines seem to have. Also, I don't believe kids ever cruise free of charge as they sometimes do on the others. I've cruised on both and the average passenger age is somewhere north of 60.

[Cruising89143]

Just now, Floridastorm said:

My take is that Celebrity and Holland America, and also some of the luxury lines, have very few kids on board especially younger kids. Their ships have none of the Disney World facilities that the other lines seem to have. Also, I don't believe kids ever cruise free of charge as they sometimes do on the others. I've cruised on both and the average passenger age is somewhere north of 60.

Actually  Celebrity has “kids cruise for free” programs at times. We have seen very few kids on X but there was a recent thread that stated something about 600 kids on X.