A few questions about MSC

[Eric G.]

I haven't cruised on MSC before (last cruise was Princess, and a couple before that were Carnival).

I'm thinking about an upcoming September cruise departing from Cape Canaveral, the 7 night Western Caribbean on the MSC Seashore.

 

I haven't found a better price (in some cases a balcony room is the same price as an interior on other cruise lines.) However, I've seen some reviews that have me concerned.

I'm a foodie, it's part of why I cruise, and I actually like buffets, but it does not sound great from many reviews I've seen. So my first question for those that have done both, is the buffet that much better on Carnival? Or are they pretty similar?

 

I'm keeping costs down as much as possible, so Yacht Club is out for me. I'm not even sure about the drinks/wifi, since I'm not that much of a drinker.

And there's always the option of an interior room for the most savings.

 

If I'm not at a show, I'm a night owl watching movies in my room. I really like a good sized screen across from a couch or bed. In some room photos on various cruise lines, I see a tiny TV up at an awkward angle near the ceiling. That's no good.

 

The MSC island does sound pretty nice though, and the ship itself sounds nice. I guess I'm just trying to figure out if Carnival would be a better bet for food, despite the higher cost. Any thoughts appreciated.

 

Also, I forgot to ask...does the MSC Seashore have a theater that screens movies?

Edited July 12 by Eric G.

[Best Cat Mom]

Keep in mind that MSC is an Italian cruise line, so food may not be what an American expects. You might want to consider this when thinking about their food. We love the Italian aspect of everything on MSC -- food, service, language, etc. -- but the less-than-stellar reviews are sometimes because of a lack of understanding of the differences between Italy and other parts of the world.

[Essiesmom]

If you go to the top of the page you will see See posts about…and next to that Select ship.  Click on Select and you get a dropdown menu.  Choose Seashore.  You will get a page or more of threads about seashore.  Among them, maybe not on the first page, is my Live from on Seashore in June…Below the Salt is me.

  I feel MSC food has improved greatly in ten years…they have caught on to the American desire for salad and salad bars.  The buffet is confusing because many sections are repeated, they all look alike, and you can’t remember which side you are on.  
  I am budget conscious, I don’t book balconies because I just don’t use them.  But I have a strategy for booking.  I require a couch, so on Seashore I booked an OV.  Now, on MSC there are far fewer OV cabins than the other types.  So I book an OV gty, hopefully in Fantastica experience, but the last one I had. O choice but Bella.  However, I did get upgraded free to a balcony.  
 I also sailed Seashore in December in an OV and that review is also in the bowels of this board.  EM

[Eric G.]

4 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

If you go to the top of the page you will see See posts about…and next to that Select ship.  Click on Select and you get a dropdown menu.  Choose Seashore.  You will get a page or more of threads about seashore.  Among them, maybe not on the first page, is my Live from on Seashore in June…Below the Salt is me.

  I feel MSC food has improved greatly in ten years…they have caught on to the American desire for salad and salad bars.  The buffet is confusing because many sections are repeated, they all look alike, and you can’t remember which side you are on.  
  I am budget conscious, I don’t book balconies because I just don’t use them.  But I have a strategy for booking.  I require a couch, so on Seashore I booked an OV.  Now, on MSC there are far fewer OV cabins than the other types.  So I book an OV gty, hopefully in Fantastica experience, but the last one I had. O choice but Bella.  However, I did get upgraded free to a balcony.  
 I also sailed Seashore in December in an OV and that review is also in the bowels of this board.  EM

Thanks, I did see your Live on the Seashore! That was helpful. Still considering if the balcony...the only thing I use my room for is a 5pm nap and watching movies late at night. Don't need a balcony for that.

 

What is an OV?

[Eric G.]

21 minutes ago, Best Cat Mom said:

Keep in mind that MSC is an Italian cruise line, so food may not be what an American expects. You might want to consider this when thinking about their food. We love the Italian aspect of everything on MSC -- food, service, language, etc. -- but the less-than-stellar reviews are sometimes because of a lack of understanding of the differences between Italy and other parts of the world.

Thanks, I'm fine with the international aspect (lived in Germany for a year). The only thing I may not be crazy about is the "slower dining" thing. I am admittedly an Eat and Run kind of person, part of why I like buffets.

 

I am traveling solo and I'm afraid I'd feel trapped at my table with a long dining session.

[Essiesmom]

OV is ocean view cabin.  OV cabins have a couch on Sea…class ships.  I sides do not.  On any MSC ship, do not book a cabin labeled junior.  They will be smaller…. EM

[ebeluga]

20 minutes ago, Best Cat Mom said:

Keep in mind that MSC is an Italian cruise line, so food may not be what an American expects. You might want to consider this when thinking about their food. We love the Italian aspect of everything on MSC -- food, service, language, etc. -- but the less-than-stellar reviews are sometimes because of a lack of understanding of the differences between Italy and other parts of the world.

Would you elaborate the Italian aspect of things? I only make that as an assumption as one of the reasons I booked my first cruise w MSC to go on a TA - to get an Immersion Italian language experience.  Thx!

[Best Cat Mom]

Just now, Eric G. said:

I am admittedly an Eat and Run kind of person, part of why I like buffets.

We like to dine very leisurely, something we learned from our holidays in Europe. I know there are a lot of complaints about how long dinner can take on MSC. We generally spend 2 to 2.5 hours on dinner -- and we don't usually have dessert. You may be right about choosing the buffet for your own dining option.

[Best Cat Mom]

3 minutes ago, ebeluga said:

Would you elaborate the Italian aspect of things?

Most of the crew can speak English and Italian, regardless of their home country. We try to learn a bit of the language of the staff we deal with directly each day, but we will speak Italian as our first "try" with everyone. It's not the same as a land holiday in Italy, but it surely comes close. 🙂

[Two Wheels Only]

1 minute ago, ebeluga said:

Would you elaborate the Italian aspect of things? I only make that as an assumption as one of the reasons I booked my first cruise w MSC to go on a TA - to get an Immersion Italian language experience.  Thx!

 

Don't expect the typical southern fried chicken, mac-n-cheese, comfort food that many American cruisers desire. Even the gelato (less fat) vs. ice cream is something that certain American cruisers struggle with.

[ebeluga]

2 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

 

Don't expect the typical southern fried chicken, mac-n-cheese, comfort food that many American cruisers desire. Even the gelato (less fat) vs. ice cream is something that certain American cruisers struggle with.

It sounds like I would be loving the alternatives!

[morpheusofthesea]

4 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

Don't expect the typical southern fried chicken, mac-n-cheese, comfort food that many American cruisers desire

Don't forget the Kid's Menu has those favorites.

[MonsterJoe]

I think it's important to understand that even "I'm a foodie" is subjective. There are different kinds of foodies.

 

That said...my wife and I are also foodies. We travel for Michelin restaurants...and on those same trips seek out hole in the wall dumplings or pizza or chop cheese.

 

If you're the kind of foodie who just likes to eat and enjoy the pleasure of trying different foods without worrying about paying for it then you will have a great time...that's how we are....so take that for what it's worth.

 

We've got selfies with Eric ripert, and Lidia bastianich, and the og russian gramma who made our borscht in Pennsylvania somewhere

Edited July 12 by MonsterJoe

[ray98]

For us if the price is close we will choose Carnival every time.  For our preferences MSC just cannot compete with Carnival in the food aspect from top to bottom.  MSC has a boring and repetitive buffet, little to no included venues outside of the MDR and buffet, a subpar dining schedule that includes a 9:30pm seating and painfully slow service times of 2+ hours. 

 

Our last cruise on the Seaside we ended up with the late seating and the maître-d was unable to accommodate an earlier time.  We walked out of the dining room around 11:20pm our first evening and that was skipping desert.  That was simply not and option for us the rest of the week and we were stuck with a lackluster buffet for dinner.

Edited July 16 by ray98

[JamieLogical]

6 minutes ago, ray98 said:

For us if the price is close we will choose Carnival every time.  For our preferences MSC just cannot compete with Carnival in the food aspect from top to bottom.  MSC has a boring and repetitive buffet, little to no included venues outside of the MDR and buffet, a subpar dining schedule that includes a 9:30pm seating and painfully slow service times of 2+ hours. 

 

Our last cruise on the Seaside we ended up with the late seating and the maître-d was unable to accommodate an earlier time.  We walked out of the dining room around 11:20pm and that was skipping desert.  That was simply not and option for us the rest of the week and we were stuck with a lackluster buffet for dinner.

 

Curious if price is ever close. I priced out a Carnival sailing the other day and by the time I calculated adding the Cheers package it came out to almost double what I would pay for an MSC sailing. This was for a repositioning cruise, so maybe those are just way pricier?

[Morgsmom]

To note, MSC has some of the WORST tv programming on any cruise line. There are almost no free movies and if they are they are from 30 years ago.  It is also very difficult (in our non technical experience) to hook into the tvs to cast Netflix or something else.  We, too, enjoy snuggling up at night and watching a movie and this is always a challenge with MSC.  Not enough to deter us, but it's frustrating that a ship would want to charge $12+ a movie in 2024. Even back in the days of DVDs I remember "renting" them out for free on cruise ships.

 

[ray98]

2 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Curious if price is ever close. I priced out a Carnival sailing the other day and by the time I calculated adding the Cheers package it came out to almost double what I would pay for an MSC sailing. This was for a repositioning cruise, so maybe those are just way pricier?

I guess it depends on the time.  We went on the Mardi Gras in Jan and it was $350 more including drink packages on both lines.  In May it was no comparison, MSC was $1k cheaper including drinks.  Unfortunately even saving $1k has us wondering if it was 'worth it'.  Some parts of the cruise were great, others were a disaster.

[no1talks]

1 hour ago, Morgsmom said:

"There are almost no free movies and if they are they are from 30 years ago."

 

One of the many ways MSC is keeping their costs down.

 

As long as the ships are full, MSC will continue to trim expenses. The reported closure of the YC dining room for lunch during Ocean Cay stops is another example.

[morpheusofthesea]

1 hour ago, no1talks said:

The reported closure of the YC dining room for lunch during Ocean Cay stops is another example.

The closure of the YC Restaurant has been a standard practice forever. The entire YC kitchen and staff are needed at Ocean House. Our 'beef' is that the policy this week onward is to close every other sit down and be served restaurant on the ship on Ocean Cay Day.

[no1talks]

22 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

The closure of the YC Restaurant has been a standard practice forever. The entire YC kitchen and staff are needed at Ocean House. Our 'beef' is that the policy this week onward is to close every other sit down and be served restaurant on the ship on Ocean Cay Day.

Sometimes one is in haste and cannot double-check a post before the edit clock runs out. Thus is the lot of the not-yet-retired.

 

MSC is all about keeping their costs down and that will mean a gradual decrease in the experience.

 

For some passengers, the decrease will be noticeable, but not a deal-breaker. Others will look elsewhere for the things they miss, even if the price is higher.

Edited July 16 by no1talks

[Eric G.]

Thanks for all the replies. I've gone ahead and booked the Sept. 15 Western Caribbean trip.

I guess this will be the cruise that helps me decide if the savings are worth it! What I've learned from the comments so far along with what I've read is that the Specialty restaurants are a lot better than the main restaurant (so I'll be getting the 3 specialty addon) and to bring my own movies, lol.

I feel like I wanted to try a different cruise line anyway, just to see the differences. I'll report back after the cruise!

[JamieLogical]

16 hours ago, Eric G. said:

Thanks for all the replies. I've gone ahead and booked the Sept. 15 Western Caribbean trip.

I guess this will be the cruise that helps me decide if the savings are worth it! What I've learned from the comments so far along with what I've read is that the Specialty restaurants are a lot better than the main restaurant (so I'll be getting the 3 specialty addon) and to bring my own movies, lol.

I feel like I wanted to try a different cruise line anyway, just to see the differences. I'll report back after the cruise!

 

It's a shame you won't be doing the MDR as much. If you can handle the fixed dining times, the food is very good. But the fixed dining times/shared tables are a real challenge for some, so I get it.

[Eric G.]

2 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

It's a shame you won't be doing the MDR as much. If you can handle the fixed dining times, the food is very good. But the fixed dining times/shared tables are a real challenge for some, so I get it.

Thanks, I'll still be doing the MDR, and it doesn't really bother me about the fixed times. But I wanted to try the specialties too! There are only 3 of them, so all the rest will be MDR and buffet for lunch.

[Illbcruzn4life]

On 7/12/2024 at 6:44 PM, Eric G. said:

Thanks, I'm fine with the international aspect (lived in Germany for a year). The only thing I may not be crazy about is the "slower dining" thing. I am admittedly an Eat and Run kind of person, part of why I like buffets.

 

I am traveling solo and I'm afraid I'd feel trapped at my table with a long dining session.

On Seashore we were in and out in about an hour and 15 minutes. On Meraviglia close to 2 hours every night as our waiter to have to do every aspect of the service except for getting the food.

[abqkjh]

I book MSC more than any other (for the lower costs), but I find their food to be the worst of the lines I have traveled with (inc Carnival). And I have traveled in Europe and was fine with the food I ate on a 3 week land trip in Italy. I find that a lot of their food lacks flavor (eg a chocolate muffin that didn't even taste like a muffin let alone chocolate) and I have had quite a few times when something that was supposed to be hot was barely lukewarm. I particularly dislike their desserts. Thankfully I am not a foodie and that isn't a vital element of a cruise for me. I can always find enough to eat not to be hungry and that is good enough.