THE WORST CRUISE I'VE TAKEN and the RESPONSE FROM MSC.

[scorpiony3358]

MSCDIVINA2016

If what one receives for a low price sucks you right it off, spread the word and never go back. Some people like low prices so that they can sail more often. As for me I learned my lesson and will never set foot on an MSC ship again. I currently have 4 cruises on my calendar beginning with a Uniworld river cruise in April. Then in June an NCL in the Med followed by two Regent cruises in August and November. 

While the Seascape was a beautiful ship everything else about it sucked in my opinion. It is a company that is geared towards a customer who doesn't have high expectations. 

[PTC DAWG]

5 minutes ago, scorpiony3358 said:

MSCDIVINA2016

If what one receives for a low price sucks you right it off, spread the word and never go back. Some people like low prices so that they can sail more often. As for me I learned my lesson and will never set foot on an MSC ship again. I currently have 4 cruises on my calendar beginning with a Uniworld river cruise in April. Then in June an NCL in the Med followed by two Regent cruises in August and November. 

While the Seascape was a beautiful ship everything else about it sucked in my opinion. It is a company that is geared towards a customer who doesn't have high expectations. 

Good info.  Thanks for keeping us informed.
 

Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter. 

Edited February 21, 2023 by PTC DAWG

[Georgia_Peaches]

6 minutes ago, scorpiony3358 said:

It is a company that is geared towards a customer who doesn't have high expectations. 

On the contrary.  I went into my first MSC cruise with very high expectations.  We were in the YC and my expectations were exceeded.  I think a better way to phrase it is, one usually gets what one pays for.  It's laughable to me that there are people out there who pay Howard Johnson prices for a 7 night cruise and then expect Ritz Carlton service and experiences in return.

[carlmm]

14 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

On the contrary.  I went into my first MSC cruise with very high expectations.  We were in the YC and my expectations were exceeded.  I think a better way to phrase it is, one usually gets what one pays for.  It's laughable to me that there are people out there who pay Howard Johnson prices for a 7 night cruise and then expect Ritz Carlton service and experiences in return.

I would even say many complaints come from people who go to a 4 star hotel in Europe and expect it to be like a Howard Johnson in the US. Or even go eg. to the Danieli in Venice or the Sacher in Vienna and complain about it not being like the chain hotel they are used to.

Edited February 21, 2023 by carlmm

[mscdivina2016]

2 hours ago, scorpiony3358 said:

MSCDIVINA2016

If what one receives for a low price sucks you right it off, spread the word and never go back. Some people like low prices so that they can sail more often. As for me I learned my lesson and will never set foot on an MSC ship again. I currently have 4 cruises on my calendar beginning with a Uniworld river cruise in April. Then in June an NCL in the Med followed by two Regent cruises in August and November. 

While the Seascape was a beautiful ship everything else about it sucked in my opinion. It is a company that is geared towards a customer who doesn't have high expectations. 

I have 4 left with MSC in the next 3 months all in YC and I am not planning on booking anymore. Going to try Oceania for a 42 night sailing.

[PTC DAWG]

41 minutes ago, mscdivina2016 said:

I have 4 left with MSC in the next 3 months all in YC and I am not planning on booking anymore. Going to try Oceania for a 42 night sailing.

Apples and oranges, IMHO..Sounds fun though. 

[B_A_H]

Using the Divina as an example, it has 69 cabins in YC that hold 138 people double occupancy.  The ship in total has 1,751 cabins for 3,502 passengers double occupancy.  That means 92% of the ship is not YC and what the vast majority of people sailing with MSC are going to experience.  Saying "YC is great" isn't going to help the 92% figure out if MSC is right for them. 

 

More so than any other cruise line, who your fellow passengers are will determine your individual MSC cruise experience and I think their lower entry level prices contribute to that.  Length of cruise, departure port, time of year, and how full the ship is are all going to determine who you'll be sailing with.

 

Using myself as an example.  I normally sail YC but got a good deal on an Aurea balcony on the Meraviglia out of Port Canaveral.  I was on a Sunday-Thursday 4 night this past October and the ship was about 3/4 full.  There was some of the rowdiness you get on all of the shorter cruises but it was a solid experience and everyone that I saw looked like they were happy and enjoying themselves. If it was someone's first time on MSC having sailed with other lines I think they would have come away favorably impressed; especially at the price point.   

 

The Thursday-Sunday sailing after my cruise was 100% full and being a weekend cruise the rowdiness factor was likely 10x what I experienced.  That's why, even in YC, I wouldn't touch a short weekend cruise with a 10 foot pole.  On any cruise line.  

 

But let's be honest.  Some of us here, me included by my Meraviglia example, have taken MSC cruises we wouldn't have normally specifically because of the price. So the same thing that makes MSC such a mixed bag also lures us in to their web. 😉 

 

Moral of the story?  No doubt some people in this thread have had bad experiences with MSC.  Would others of us in their situations probably have reacted to the problems differently or gotten them resolved more effectively?  I'd say likely.  But just like on any forum on CC, there are "good" MSC experiences shared here as well as your "meh" and "NEVER AGAIN!!!" experiences.  It doesn't help that the MSC experience you'll receive is so YMMV based on external factors.  
 

I've said it before.  I'd recommend MSC to some of my friends (with guidance on which sailings to avoid) but definitely not to others.  From a different perspective, I'd recommend Carnival to none of my friends. I don't know if that's an indictment of Carnival or a reflection on who I socialize with. 🙂 

 

 

[mscdivina2016]

31 minutes ago, hamrag said:

 Sounds fab, and I'm sure you will enjoy it.....if not, then it's definitely you and not the cruiseline experiences that are the problem!

 😉

😁

[jkhneuber]

Containers are not complaining.

 

That’s my thought about MSC. I have a special relationship to them because it was my first cruise. Before that, I thought cruises are only for old people, now I’ve booked my 19th and 20th cruise since 2011.

 

One thing I learned already on my first cruise with MSC: it’s useless to complain. Take it or leave it. So I’m still booking cruises with them on a cheap basis (now 7 cruises), but they are not always cheap. But I’ve always a few things in mind:

 

- Food is like a cantina (my companies cantina is better)
- Too much people on the cruise with declining room (especially pool deck of newer ships)
- Officers have there nose in the air. Don’t think you’re the customer
- Nickel and diming especial for shuttle
- Take or leave it. No complaining (it hurts only your nerves)
 

I’ts useless to write comments, no one at MSC is interested. But to be fair, I haven’t been to YC, there are good and hard workers especially the waiters, room service, service, just everyone who is not in higher ranks. The ships are special and beautiful. And its cheap in some occasions.

 

But always have in mind. They earn most of their money with containers, not passengers. And they are not complaining. 

[scorpiony3358]

jkhneuber

Well said. I made the mistake of listening to a new TA because the price was right on a new ship. Usually the customer is treated better, but not with MSC. I should have done my research. We all have ideas of what we expect and based on my experience mine weren't met. Life goes on and I'm looking forward to my upcoming Uniworld river cruise and my Regent cruises I have booked. 

[At Sea At Peace]

3 hours ago, jkhneuber said:

 

 

One thing I learned already on my first cruise with MSC: it’s useless to complain. Take it or leave it. So I’m still booking cruises with them on a cheap basis (now 7 cruises), but they are not always cheap. But I’ve always a few things in mind:

 

- Food is like a cantina (my companies cantina is better)
- Too much people on the cruise with declining room (especially pool deck of newer ships)
- Officers have there nose in the air. Don’t think you’re the customer
- Nickel and diming especial for shuttle
- Take or leave it. No complaining (it hurts only your nerves)
 

 

Another very intriguing MSC post. 

 

The second we've seen in just over a week.  Essentially, 'we dislike the experience so much we've repeated booking 6 times' is a stunning oxymoron in decision structure.  😲

 

3 hours ago, jkhneuber said:

 

It's useless to write comments, no one at MSC is interested.

 

 

Comments?

 

3 hours ago, jkhneuber said:

 

The ships are special and beautiful.

 

 

Yep.

 

3 hours ago, jkhneuber said:

 

But always have in mind. They earn most of their money with containers, not passengers. And they are not complaining. 

 

 

MSC cruise line is, in fact, a subsidiary of the parent company that is the shipping company.  The executive management, administrators, departments and individual ship staff and crew are under the auspices of the MSC cruise line corporate Board of Directors.

 

It's nice to have a 'sugar daddy' parent company.  MSC doesn't have the exponential debt that RCL, NCLH and CCL have incurred without such.

 

So, consider a change to cruise those lines if one wants to pay the extra cost that that have to charge to cover their massive increased interest costs; a passenger doesn't get 'anything extra' on the cruise for interest expense.  😉

 

 

[GOLDENBONNY]

On 2/9/2023 at 10:46 PM, nednrom said:

If you're given on board credit, you cannot spend it before getting onboard

funny how person with 30 cruises before does not know that 

[jkhneuber]

18 hours ago, GOLDENBONNY said:

funny how person with 30 cruises before does not know that 

Not on all cruiselines. At Azamara I booked cruise tours with OBC before bording

[GPPhilly]

On 2/21/2023 at 6:06 PM, mscdivina2016 said:

I have 4 left with MSC in the next 3 months all in YC and I am not planning on booking anymore. Going to try Oceania for a 42 night sailing.

 

If I remember correctly back when you had a ton of issues, you said I have one whole family cruise booked and then no more MSC.  Yet, now it looks like you have 3 more booked.  If MSC is so bad why continue to book.  I really am curious.  

[scorpiony3358]

Spurschick, 

Glad to read you're going to be on a Regent cruise. You can be in a YC cabin and have the special restaurant, but be real MSC doesn't compare to Regent. 

I took the cruise for the 18 days at a great price. BUT all my complaints were justified. My post would have never been posted if MSC had responded like a company that values it's customers. 

The TA was new and my not doing my homework was my fault, but again when one reads the posts MSC is after a different customer therefore I've moved on. 

[scorpiony3358]

jkhneuber 

I've used OBC before and thought nothing of using it prior to my cruise as I purchased the drink and speciality restaurant deals. 

[jkhneuber]

19 minutes ago, scorpiony3358 said:

I've used OBC before and thought nothing of using it prior to my cruise as I purchased the drink and speciality restaurant deals. 

I never had OBC with MSC so I don't know it there but I do not know why you shouldn't buy onboard drinks with onboard credit. But everything is possible with msc

[Spurschick]

8 hours ago, scorpiony3358 said:

Spurschick, 

Glad to read you're going to be on a Regent cruise. You can be in a YC cabin and have the special restaurant, but be real MSC doesn't compare to Regent. 

I took the cruise for the 18 days at a great price. BUT all my complaints were justified. My post would have never been posted if MSC had responded like a company that values it's customers. 

The TA was new and my not doing my homework was my fault, but again when one reads the posts MSC is after a different customer therefore I've moved on. 

Exactly they don’t compare. Yet I do compare my cruises and experiences on an unbiased basis. And MSC YC beat our star class on Royal (at a fraction of the cost) by a hands down mile. 
 

yes you didn’t like standard MSC and neither would we which is why we don’t book it, not even suites outside YC. What you are missing is YC is far superior to the experience elsewhere on the ship and YC even beats some of its more mainstream competitors when it comes to sailing in suite class cabins. In fact multiple people we spoke to in YC the other week all said that it was even better than Haven on NCL.

[mscdivina2016]

6 hours ago, Spurschick said:

Exactly they don’t compare. Yet I do compare my cruises and experiences on an unbiased basis. And MSC YC beat our star class on Royal (at a fraction of the cost) by a hands down mile. 
 

yes you didn’t like standard MSC and neither would we which is why we don’t book it, not even suites outside YC. What you are missing is YC is far superior to the experience elsewhere on the ship and YC even beats some of its more mainstream competitors when it comes to sailing in suite class cabins. In fact multiple people we spoke to in YC the other week all said that it was even better than Haven on NCL.

We think it's better than Haven as well.  It's such a good product but the other BS and lack of customer service is what tarnishes it.

[scamper]

On 2/9/2023 at 8:07 PM, JT1962 said:

Inaugural sailings rarely goes smoothly. Hopefully being a seasoned traveler, you had a good travel insurance policy that will reimburse you for some of the issues.

 

And just to point out how true this can be, Google "Titanic." 😁