Ben & David's worst cruise ever? MSC, of course!

[Stockjock]

Some here, most of whom have been blocked, have accused me and others of "whining".  But when so many experience so many similar problems, is it really whining, or is substantial improvement in order?

P.S. These guys are very good and very funny.  I don't consider them to be "complainers" at all, although they do call things as they see them.

Follow the link for the video:
https://youtu.be/GJgcLgKRfoY

Edited November 28, 2021 by Stockjock

[deliver42]

I watched Ben and David many times, and this was the first negative review I can remember. They were on the Virtuosa this time, after sailing other MSC ships. They said the food wasn't good, they were actually yelled at by crew for video taping, which they do on every cruise with no problem, as do the TA's that go on ships. Unfortunately, with 2 MSC cruises behind us, I have to agree with most of what was said. Their service is awful, the food hit and miss at best, except in specialty restaurants, and in the YC. As long as their prices are low, I will sail with them, but as they get higher I'll stop. Right now they're pushing the limit for me. I have one more booked, on the Seashore, and unless I'm blown away, that will be the final one for me.

[Stockjock]

5 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

I watched Ben and David many times, and this was the first negative review I can remember. They were on the Virtuosa this time, after sailing other MSC ships. They said the food wasn't good, they were actually yelled at by crew for video taping, which they do on every cruise with no problem, as do the TA's that go on ships. Unfortunately, with 2 MSC cruises behind us, I have to agree with most of what was said. Their service is awful, the food hit and miss at best, except in specialty restaurants, and in the YC. As long as their prices are low, I will sail with them, but as they get higher I'll stop. Right now they're pushing the limit for me. I have one more booked, on the Seashore, and unless I'm blown away, that will be the final one for me.

I will periodically sail MSC and have a cabin booked this summer, but starting to vote with my feet and have a couple of cruises booked elsewhere (Celebrity).

MSC isn't all bad.  There are good things about them, but as I've said for years, there are areas where substantial improvement is needed.

When he spoke of the Maitre'D's yelling at him, it made me think of an issue I had.

We typically do late seating for our dining and MSC screwed that up (surprise) and gave us early seating.  As I have mentioned, I am actually afraid to call MSC customer service, as it seems that the reservation gets messed up when I call about simple, unrelated issues.

Got on the ship and very promptly asked the Maitre'D if I could be switched from early dining to late.  He gave me the dirtiest look ever and said, "So, you would like late dining?"  I said that I would.  He said, "Do you know how many passengers I have on this ship?" in a very rude way and proceeded to tell me.  I said something to the effect of, "I'm sure you are very busy, but I had actually requested late dining".  He repeated the number of passengers in a very nasty way.  While he did change our seating request, just the entire attitude was so very rude and unfriendly.

For the record, I had another similar request on Seaside where that Maitre'D was actually very friendly and accommodative.  But yes, there are some snotty employees on MSC and that shouldn't be the case.

[deliver42]

Their training, to say the least, needs improvement. Either that, or they simply don't care.

[Nunagoras]

Well: Can I to give my humble 2 cents, please?

 

Again: MSC is not well prepared to market themselves on the English speaking market. Period. Surprisingly, or perhaps not so much, they fill their ships with several German and other Northern European countries individuals! to say the least because most of those individuals are IMHO even more demanding than their English speaking peers, to let alone the Italians and other southern Mediterranean individuals alike: If MSC was so bad than what some of these "professional" bloggers come here and there stating from time to time, they'd never to be on the 4th place on the whole cruising industry! Or, in other words they wouldn't to be one of the big 4!... When I started my cruising "career" with them back in the mid 2000's, nobody would think them as a reliable competitor on the market!... At that point they'd to be such a new European niche market experiment... Again: They're here to stay, and because of their "mother" shipping company, they are in the best position to become the unique cruise line that will survive the current covidical mess as we know them today!... Surely there are things where they're far better now... Surely they've retained some of the said "amateurism" of the "good ole days"... And there are things on they may to be worse than before... But, generally, they remain not prepared for the English speaking market.

 

TBHH: I continue content enough with their product for the price target, as far as I can continue to snag the right opportunities... But again: Those times of them being the bargain of the market have just passed away, and one would ask himself why... Perhaps the Europeans are content enough!... But the English speaking wants more and wants it done "their way". In my view MSC has vastly improved in the English speaking way... But... They'll remain an Italian company, even though many of their crews have actually worked for the other "big 4" cruise industry groups or for several 4 and 5 star hotel chains!... They'll always retain part of their heritage... They'll always to have a long learning curve... And there will always to be those whom won't accept that...

 

Finally but not the least: To restart an Industry on this post covidical era is not like to plug in a button on a smartphone app. Let us to bear that in mind, not only for MSC.

 

Have a nice day!...

[joeyancho]

I generally agree with the above poster. I just took my first cruise on MSC but my 45th Cruise overall and was very pleased.  Every crew member we encountered went out of their way to make us happy. No one was rude.  We found the food in the main dining room to be very good. The buffet had limited offerings but the food was very good. And their Pizza is the best. We would not hesitate to cruise with them in the future.

[Stockjock]

In my view, the MSC experience is very much hit and miss.  The area that many seem to have a consistent problem with is customer service, or lack thereof.  If I was making the call and worked for MSC, I'd try very hard to improve the customer service experience for my guests.

As to the food, it's more enjoyable than not.  Certainly not the best I've tried, but usually perfectly acceptable, especially given the cruise line's lower price point.

So I thought the guys were a bit harsh with respect to the food and entertainment, which I've found to be acceptable.  The MSC cruises are often an outstanding value, and I think their newer ships are pretty elegant.  But I'd love to see them clean up their customer service, and I don't think it would be a terribly hard thing to fix.

[Will K.]

2 hours ago, Nunagoras said:

 

Finally but not the least: To restart an Industry on this post covidical era is not like to plug in a button on a smartphone app. 

MSC has sailed in the USA for years now they are well aware of the problems they havein the American market,.

 

Also these are the same issues they have had BEFORE COVID.  If anything they had a year and a half to fix customer service problems.

 

I am currently on the Divina and I am handicapped and they could care less

 

 

[jamesboat]

If a staff yelled at me like that I would boycott the company. Curious that the bloggers said they would keep sailing with MSC if the price is right

[karmamule]

We've sailed with MSC twice, both times in the Yacht Club, and had a marvelous time with good food, and friendly staff throughout the ship. It seems almost all issues I've heard about have not involved YC so we've probably been insulated from them. We're booked again on them this January and can't wait for cruise day!

 

Having said that, we watch Ben and David regularly and they almost always stay positive and upbeat, so when they complain this strongly I suspect it's well-deserved. Though we've had a marvelous time, these kinds of complaints are not uncommon and clearly MSC should pay attention and work on a more consistent customer service experience for all their passengers, not just those in the Yacht Club.

[intr3pid]

3 hours ago, Nunagoras said:

Well: Can I to give my humble 2 cents, please?

 

Again: MSC is not well prepared to market themselves on the English speaking market. Period. Surprisingly, or perhaps not so much, they fill their ships with several German and other Northern European countries individuals! to say the least because most of those individuals are IMHO even more demanding than their English speaking peers, to let alone the Italians and other southern Mediterranean individuals alike: If MSC was so bad than what some of these "professional" bloggers come here and there stating from time to time, they'd never to be on the 4th place on the whole cruising industry! Or, in other words they wouldn't to be one of the big 4!... When I started my cruising "career" with them back in the mid 2000's, nobody would think them as a reliable competitor on the market!... At that point they'd to be such a new European niche market experiment... Again: They're here to stay, and because of their "mother" shipping company, they are in the best position to become the unique cruise line that will survive the current covidical mess as we know them today!... Surely there are things where they're far better now... Surely they've retained some of the said "amateurism" of the "good ole days"... And there are things on they may to be worse than before... But, generally, they remain not prepared for the English speaking market.

 

TBHH: I continue content enough with their product for the price target, as far as I can continue to snag the right opportunities... But again: Those times of them being the bargain of the market have just passed away, and one would ask himself why... Perhaps the Europeans are content enough!... But the English speaking wants more and wants it done "their way". In my view MSC has vastly improved in the English speaking way... But... They'll remain an Italian company, even though many of their crews have actually worked for the other "big 4" cruise industry groups or for several 4 and 5 star hotel chains!... They'll always retain part of their heritage... They'll always to have a long learning curve... And there will always to be those whom won't accept that...

 

Finally but not the least: To restart an Industry on this post covidical era is not like to plug in a button on a smartphone app. Let us to bear that in mind, not only for MSC.

 

Have a nice day!...

You are painting all Germans, Italians with one brush.  Germans, for example, cruise at different price points just like Americans do.  MSC will continue to be attractive to some because of its price. 

 

The low prices, however, do mean they can't invest in IT systems, training, and staff the same way others can.  They also have a major cash flow issue since they started to build too many ships too fast.  The shipping profits can only fund so much.

[8420PR]

17 hours ago, Stockjock said:

P.S. These guys are very good and very funny.  I don't consider them to be "complainers" at all, although they do call things as they see them.

I haven't seen any other videos, but from listening to this one it does sound like they are complainers (not sure if it is just for the views though).

 

Some people cruise for the food, some for the drinks, some for the entertainment, some for the sunshine and some for the complaints.  All are valid reasons to cruise!

 

As I mentioned on the other thread, complaining is a way of connecting to people, ego reinforcement, self validation etc.   On ships we've witnessed people complaining the whole cruise about everything possible, saying MSC was the worst cruise line and then on the last day going to the future cruise desk and booking another one.  On here we see people complaining about horrible customer service experiences, and then booking more cruises.

 

And of course most of the complaints have some hint of truth to them - the announcements are in 5 languages but are not 30 minutes long, there are other people from other countries onboard, the food in the MDR is 'floating food factory' quality and not 'personally cooked for you' restaurant quality, and if you try to film a television show in public places onboard without permission you run the risk of being shouted at.

[Elkins45]

Since cruising has restarted post-covid I’ve been on three cruises: MSC, Princess and Celebrity. In my opinion they were essentially interchangeable experiences. Maybe I would be able to discriminate better between the three if I had complained more?

[Will K.]

14 minutes ago, Elkins45 said:

Since cruising has restarted post-covid I’ve been on three cruises: MSC, Princess and Celebrity. In my opinion they were essentially interchangeable experiences. Maybe I would be able to discriminate better between the three if I had complained more?

Or maybe you can just admit that some people don't have the same experiences I am a handicapped cruiser on the Divina right now.  They don't care.  They make me limp the ships length to get to an excursion meeting point only to limp ail the way back to get off the ship.  The social distancing  is a joke.  And they rarely enforced . WORST CRUISE EVER

 

IF YOU CAN STILL CANCEL AND GET A REFUND PLESE DO

 

MSC HAS A D RATING AT THE BETTER BUSINESS BUERUEA FIR  REASON

 

You have been warned

[Nunagoras]

12 hours ago, intr3pid said:

You are painting all Germans, Italians with one brush.  Germans, for example, cruise at different price points just like Americans do.  MSC will continue to be attractive to some because of its price. 

 

The low prices, however, do mean they can't invest in IT systems, training, and staff the same way others can.  They also have a major cash flow issue since they started to build too many ships too fast.  The shipping profits can only fund so much.

The German market is more complex than one might to think about... Once they don't generally to have paid holidays like on most EU countries, they tend to receive their holiday time as "service" part of their year round contract. This is why most of them will circle themselves to the German specific club holiday initiatives, then this is why you rarely see Germans at the likes of RCI, NCL, etc. So, where are those 80+ million individuals cruising if they so desire? At the likes of AIDA and TUI which are far more than 2 German cruise lines, they are actually more like giant generalist club holidays... AIDA more on the mainstream, TUI more on the premium side. But some of them enjoy the Italian culture, even by accepting some of the little nothings of that "bad costumer service" they might to find here and there. Several "club groups" running on the MSC ships... With their tour leaders dealing on behalf of their cruisers with the MSC "oddities"...

 

Italians are a different vibe... But same consequence. Lots of tour groups with their tour leader dealing with the oddities... The little annoyances are seen as that. Nothing expected to be compensated for that like for the English speaking crowd.

 

Food is bad?... At least on the EU ports food is exactly the same you have on other ships, either way Cunard or MSC!... Ships here can only contract the very same food providers that the same flag ports where all of them dock approve to operate there!... Obviously preparation is different, but generally that doesn't necessarily mean worse... Actually comparing my RCI Oasis cruise with all the MSC ones food was more the same than different. Oasis had the edge on the buffet offerings, but again: Tons of extra space on the Oasis class to impress with the service bonuses!...

 

Yeah, they have a problem with the number of the ships on order... But they'll to deal with that by the day. For now World 1 and 2 are guaranteed... Mera 5 seems to be a downgrade from world 3, and so on. That doesn't seem so dramatic considering the current surge on the cargo transportation prices, if they watch it as an opportunity for investment!... Shipyards may be more than happy to deliver!...

 

Have a nice day!...

[Elkins45]

38 minutes ago, Will K. said:

Or maybe you can just admit that some people don't have the same experiences I am a handicapped cruiser on the Divina right now.  They don't care.  They make me limp the ships length to get to an excursion meeting point only to limp ail the way back to get off the ship.  The social distancing  is a joke.  And they rarely enforced . WORST CRUISE EVER

 

IF YOU CAN STILL CANCEL AND GET A REFUND PLESE DO

 

MSC HAS A D RATING AT THE BETTER BUSINESS BUERUEA FIR  REASON

 

You have been warned

I’m sorry you had a bad experience, but I’ll repeat your point back to you and say that your experience doesn’t reflect mine.  
 

The covid protocols on Divina in September were more stringent than on Grand Princess in October, so if you’re disappointed with MSC in that regard you probably won’t be pleased with the other cruise lines either.

[Will K.]

51 minutes ago, Elkins45 said:

I’m sorry you had a bad experience, but I’ll repeat your point back to you and say that your experience doesn’t reflect mine.  
 

The covid protocols on Divina in September were more stringent than on Grand Princess in October, so if you’re disappointed with MSC in that regard you probably won’t be pleased with the other cruise lines either.

And you make that statement with no knowledge how it may have lapsed in a few months.  You like the line FINE have fun!  ENJOY!  But allow people to post and have their own opinions 

[Fla Mike]

6 minutes ago, Will K. said:

And you make that statement with no knowledge how it may have lapsed in a few months

 

I was on Divina  two weeks ago and as I stated in another post the social distancing and COVID protocols were excellent compared to my Carnival cruise in Sept.

 

1 hour ago, Will K. said:

The social distancing  is a joke.  And they rarely enforced

 

How do you consider daily temperature checks, mask enforcement, and seating distancing in the theater a joke?

[Stockjock]

3 hours ago, 8420PR said:

I haven't seen any other videos, but from listening to this one it does sound like they are complainers (not sure if it is just for the views though).

 

Some people cruise for the food, some for the drinks, some for the entertainment, some for the sunshine and some for the complaints.  All are valid reasons to cruise!

 

As I mentioned on the other thread, complaining is a way of connecting to people, ego reinforcement, self validation etc.   On ships we've witnessed people complaining the whole cruise about everything possible, saying MSC was the worst cruise line and then on the last day going to the future cruise desk and booking another one.  On here we see people complaining about horrible customer service experiences, and then booking more cruises.

 

And of course most of the complaints have some hint of truth to them - the announcements are in 5 languages but are not 30 minutes long, there are other people from other countries onboard, the food in the MDR is 'floating food factory' quality and not 'personally cooked for you' restaurant quality, and if you try to film a television show in public places onboard without permission you run the risk of being shouted at.

I don't find them to be "complainers", but they are not "rah rah cheerleaders" like many of the other bloggers, who get comped/upgraded by the cruise lines and then fawn over them.

Edited November 29, 2021 by Stockjock

[Elkins45]

57 minutes ago, Will K. said:

And you make that statement with no knowledge how it may have lapsed in a few months.  You like the line FINE have fun!  ENJOY!  But allow people to post and have their own opinions 

I’m pretty confident I don’t have the ability to disallow you from posting your opinions.

[zekekelso]

I find their videos very entertaining. But their likes and needs are different than mine.

 

One analogy I like to use with super-frequent cruisers such as them is an ice cream sunday. If you rarely get a sunday, just getting one is great. If you are used to getting a sunday every night, the Sunday itself gets taken for granted and you care more about whether you got a cherry on top. 
 

Five days to my first MSC cruise. Can’t wait to see how awesome (or crappy) they are. 

[BermudaBound2014]

The youtube comments are priceless. If you think this is bad you should have read MSC reviews 10 years ago lol.

 

MSC is a budget line, but it also offers a good value. If you can adjust your expectations to price paid, you are likely to enjoy MSC (as did I), but you don't get champaign on a beer budget.

 

This is the rack rate. You can sail for 7 nights in a balcony cabin  $289 pp with a few phone calls to discount agencies. They simply have to cut corners....

 

 

 

 

Edited November 29, 2021 by BermudaBound2014

[Nunagoras]

32 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

The youtube comments are priceless. If you think this is bad you should have read MSC reviews 10 years ago lol.

 

MSC is a budget line, but it also offers a good value. If you can adjust your expectations to price paid, you are likely to enjoy MSC (as did I), but you don't get champaign on a beer budget.

 

This is the rack rate. You can sail for 7 nights in a balcony cabin  $289 pp with a few phone calls to discount agencies. They simply have to cut corners....

 

 

 

 

In some ways I need to agree, even though MSC in Europe is not that bargain as it remains being in the US anymore and that turns things more complex for us here at this side of the pound... I'd to say: As far as I can snag the right itinerary at the right price or a group sailing with my "specialty" TA with their usual partnership discounts... I'd to be more than happy to go with them. Otherwise; I'll to shop elsewhere...

 

MSC reviews of 10 years ago?... Oh, my gosh!... 10 years ago MSC had almost 11 ships, the then brand new MSC Fantasia with its then innovative YC, the 4 Musica class vessels, the 4 Lírica class vessels, the now scrapped MSC Melody and an even older, also now scrapped, ship than the Melody I don't remember now the name!... At that time they were such a distinctively Italian line clearly marketed to the Italians!... Italians were more than 70% of the crowd on any given sailing and they only "listened" to that part of the crowd!... Crews were mostly MSC trained individuals from basically Ukraine or any other Eastern European countries out there!... How can one to compare them with the huge giant they're now?...

 

Curiously; and just as a side note: The cruises that I consider my best ever ones, were exactly the ones of that era. Yeah: I felt like such a stranger on those cruises. Fortunately a tour leader was there to deal with the oddities... But the clientele was far more selected than the current base line young families with tons of kids mainstream international one!... Wonderful memories of that time... But again: It wasn't the same business we have now!... IMHO; in some ways, from say 2015 onward MSC has tried to be something for everyone... Sometimes they end up as being nothing for nobody else!...

 

And to permit me such another side note: By 2013 or 2014 can't exactly remember they've launched such a wonderful drinks package of that era named the Allegrissimo package... Even though I'm for health reasons a non drinker... I was able to get my money's worth of only the non alcoholic part of the thing... Including the wonderful Gelato and ice cream shakes they had at the pool deck!... One day after an excursion that ended up very late, if my memory doesn't fail the one in Casablanca my late lunch was just... A huge gelato sundae, perhaps the best one I have ever had... And included in the package!...

 

Yeah!... They have a nice product. Average Weekly Occupancy before the pandemic was there to confirm it, but as you say: Adjust your expectations to the price tag. Or if their price jumps more than their real perceived value, like what has been the case for us especially on the new builds, go away and shop elsewhere!...

 

Have a nice day!...

[Elkins45]

My four night Divina Bahamas cruise in September cost $360 (including $110 taxes and fees) and that’s with WiFi and a drinks package. As long as they didn’t toss me a can of Alpo and a spoon for formal night dinner or run us aground and sink I would have felt like I got my money’s worth. I walked off that ship thinking “what a bargain!” and everyone on my shuttle shared a similar opinion. It would have cost more to stay at a Motel 6 those four nights.

Edited November 29, 2021 by Elkins45

[TnTom]

As a solo traveler, I find that MSC is usually the only cruise line that makes itineraries affordable for me. I have been cruising with them since 2009. I love NCL and Celebrity, but I can seldom afford them. My personal experience has been that MSC's landside operation is terrible, but once I am on a ship, it changes much for the better.

 

I was on the Meraviglia in September, and I had a really good experience with customer service. I was traveling with a friend who was a stroke victim (had speech and mobility issues) and I felt our cabins needed to be in close proximity... preferable next door. My TA wasn't able to accomplish that, but once on the ship (before we even visited our rooms), I went to customer service. The agent I dealt with worked hard to get our rooms together. Of course, the ship was sailing at a vastly reduced capacity and there were tons of empty cabins available, but she didn't have to be so accomodating. She spent about 30 minutes taking care of us. On the other hand, the CSR next to her was condescending and belittling to everyone who approached him. I guess blanket judgements on either side of the spectrum are a little unfair.

 

As for Ben and David... I have read commenters elsewhere complaining that they are always cheerleading and never say anything negative. I was quite taken aback when I saw their video running down MSC. They could have just made their point and moved on, but they droned on and on. It was really weird and out of character for them.

 

I don't get on an MSC ship expecting great food- but food isn't my reason for cruising. There have been some rude staff members along the way, but for the most part I have been treated well and had good service. MSC ships are the most beautiful vessels I have been on, and they still provide economical, very comfortable transportation to the same ports I would pay double or triple or more to get to on other lines.

 

I will be on Divina (for the second time) in February, and I am really looking forward to it.

Edited November 30, 2021 by TnTom