3 Day Msc cruises?

[umpisoccer]

We are considering taking a 3 day Msc Magnifica cruise out of Miami in early December 2023.  Do these 3 day cruises seem to be just a wild weekend party cruise?  We are hoping to enjoy a relaxing weekend to the Ocean Cay private island.  Thank you for sharing any experiences you might have had.

[dexddd]

12 minutes ago, umpisoccer said:

We are considering taking a 3 day Msc Magnifica cruise out of Miami in early December 2023.  Do these 3 day cruises seem to be just a wild weekend party cruise?  We are hoping to enjoy a relaxing weekend to the Ocean Cay private island.  Thank you for sharing any experiences you might have had.

Hard to say.  Kids should be in school.  We did a three then four day on Mera in February.  Didn't seem much different than a seven day except with all the days at OC.  Food lines at OC long though.

[Essiesmom]

I just did a 3 day on Seaside and it didn’t seem like a wild weekend cruise.  Ocean Cay will be a nice place to relax, it’s not a water park but lots of beaches.  I didn’t try the food venue.  It will be a nice change from Maine in Dec.  I presume you will not be flying to Miami for just a 3 day cruise…. EM

[1kaper]

I have done a 4 day cruise but not 3 day. My thought is it may depend on where you like to hang out. 

My last 4 day with MSC I travelled with my sister who smoked.  She saw a lot of party behaviour because she often went to the adult only pool to smoke as the smoking area was near there.  I didn't notice much of it at all because we hung out at other pools. 

Same with Ocean Cay.  I didn't notice anything at the beaches and had a fine time but if you hung out at the bar there was one guy who was super trashed and causing scenes.  

[B_A_H]

3 and 4 night weekend cruises are rough on any cruise line.  They are full of locals and, yes, they are party cruises from boarding until disembarkation.  And they always sail 100% full because if they aren't filling the cruise lines offer "local rates."  Because they are cheap, let's just say they attract an eclectic crowd.  Miami's God awful and Orlando's only marginally better for weekend cruises.

 

The 3 and 4 night midweek cruises are less raucous because people have to take off work but are still rougher than a 7 day which costs more and requires even more time away.  As someone said above, choosing dates when families aren't traveling can help.

 

I was on a 4 night Meraviglia that departed Orlando on a Sunday about a year ago. The ship was about 2/3 full.  I saw groups of people drunk off their asses by 10:00AM every day making spectacles of themselves at the pool area.   As a percentage, they were a minority and because the ship wasn't full those folks didn't wreck everyone else's experience.

 

[umpisoccer]

We are flying to Miami from Maine for a long weekend.  Free flight with United airlines and by December we are ready for some sun and a beautiful beach 😀