Anyone tempted to try MSC?

[lilbit]

I've never heard much about this cruise line until recently but there are some great deals for the fall and next spring. Has anyone done any research about it or have gone on the line?

[caviargal]

I've never heard much about this cruise line until recently but there are some great deals for the fall and next spring. Has anyone done any research about it or have gone on the line?

 

I was on Sinfonia in the Med last summer.

 

Beautiful ship, small but well designed cabins (I had a "suite" which was the size of a standard balcony on X), wonderful but very Italian food in the dining room, very nice wine selection, aloof and unhelpful front desk, entertainment which not appeal to me personally, lots of smokers, only a handful of Americans on my sailing (not a problem for me but may make others uncomfortable).

 

Organized embarkation in Genoa, debarking was a free for all.

 

Hundreds of totally out of control kids which the Captain addressed directly the night of his cocktail party by acknowledging the many complaints lodged by passengers and then saying that children are "wonderful" and everyone needed to get over it, basically. Kids were in the bars turning chairs upside down, racing through the dining rooms and generally running amok. It was as bad as spring break on Carnival.

 

I would never go again in the summer months, but would try a Med or Baltic cruise on Opera or Sinfonia in the non-family seasons.

[nevis92]

We sailed aboard the MSC Opera in March of 2005 to the Western Caribbean. Small cabins but very functional. Gorgeous and spotless ship. Very European service which we liked but may not appeal to all. Not all speak English which, again, we liked but may not appeal to all. Half on board were North Americans. Not a lot of kids for a Caribbean itinerary. MSC sells themselves as "Premium".......they are not, but the staff was wonderful, the food,excellent. We would sail with them again.:)

[alohavictoria]

I haven't sailed MSC yet, but have looked at the itineraries for years. They are certainly selling themselves upscale having Sophia Loren as their spokesperson. Their prices have increased accordingly (although I'm assuming that you have found a good deal out there). You do have to select their suite which is the size of a balcony room on X. I haven't been able to find out if there are any amenities when you have a suite on MSC. Although I haven't found the perfect MSC cruise, I wouldn't hesitate to go try them. I have sailed Costa several times and enjoy the international flavor (it's not for everyone).

How bad can it be? Great deal, itailian food and an itineray you like. go for it!:)

[ecslady]

I sailed on one of the older ships MSC Melody to the Southern Caribbean a few years ago. The ship was an older ship, but classic in style. Even though it was a Caribbean cruise, it was very European - all announcements were in 5 languages, lots of Europeans and smokers, excursions in many languages, but very good pasta and Italian food. Very culturally enriching if you like to meet and speak with different people. It was a great deal , a different experience, and had a great time as I always do.

[wiselindag]

Lilbet,

 

I sailed on the MSC Lirica last October in the Mediterranean. If you go to member reviews, you can get the whole story -- it's a long review. Suffice it to say, I liked the Lirica for many reasons, but it's definitely different from Celebrity and frankly not as good in many ways (I have had six Celebrity cruises and thought they were all terrific). What I liked about MSC: the price, the itinerary in the Med, the crew/staff (I had a wonderful cabin attendant named Giri and really good service in the dining room from Salvatore (who was promoted to Supervisor on our last cruise day!) and Suprapta and the large variety of people, most of whom were European. The food was not nearly as good as that on Celebrity ships, but it was filling and often perfectly fine. The beef and desserts, in particular, were well below Celebrity standards. So, it's a mixed bag. The ship is very nice, but not as nice as the C and M class ships. We treated the staff with respect and they responded with great warmth and kindness.

 

MSC is definitely worth checking out, but it's not a deluxe cruise experience. With the right price and the right itinerary, it can be very good, especially if you go into it with realistic expectations. Read the member reviews and you'll get many opinions. Hope this helps!

[lilbit]

Thanks for all of your advise. I think we'll give them a try!

[blueboro]

I have been looking at MSC but the main concern is the number of passengers per GRT. They seem to pack in about 300-500 more people than ships of similar tonnage.

[newmexicoNita]

Yes, I have been considering it for perhap, next year: they do havea some awesome deals. Three things hold me back: 1-as someone said size per passenger: 2-Europian so there may be a lot more smokers (doesn't bother me as much as DH) and have heard it is much like Costa: I did not like Costa. I have cliants cruising MSC in January: I will know better when they get back. NMnita

[Sky Sweet]

I've never heard much about this cruise line until recently but there are some great deals for the fall and next spring. Has anyone done any research about it or have gone on the line?

 

I have read mixed reviews but the small cabins alone would prevent me from booking a cruise on an MSC ship.

[nevis92]

NewMexicoNita,

 

Having sailed both Costa and MSC, I can tell you there are as much similarities as Carnival and Celebrity.

[shipshapegal]

We loved the Lirica but, as mentioned, the suite was the size of a balcony but did have a wonderful walk in closet. We loved the ship, the crew, the internet in our room, the food. It was 11 days and every one of them was wonderful!

[poetic license]

We sailed on OPERA in February 2005. It was spotless, and the staff and crew were very friendly, and couldn't do enough for us. We loved the European feel and touches, and did not mind that English was not the first language. It was lovely, actually. Our suite cabin was comparably sized to Xs regular oceanview cabin; our daughters had their own separate cabin, which I am certain helped everyone's sanity.

 

The only "miss" was dining, and that's a biggie. The dining rooms are split between two rooms: a more ambient traditional dining room, and a smaller, narrow, cramped dining room with booths one level up. We were seated in the latter area and did everything (including trying "a little grease";)) to be moved to the far nicer traditional dining room, but to no avail. To add insult to injury, the food was very hit and miss. The risotto course every night was wonderful, but the entrees were usually pretty pallid, and the desserts were generally tasteless, except for the cheesecake offerings. How can anyone ruin a salad? They managed. Soups were tasteless. Veggies hit and miss, and too similar to each other from day to day: a lot of zuccinni-based mixed veggie blends. To be fair, breakfast was great: lots of fresh fruit, including a lot of different berries, and many more choices than the standard American breakfast fare.

 

Hope this helps; these were our direct experiences, and others may have had something entirely different.

 

Nicki

[newmexicoNita]

NewMexicoNita,

 

Having sailed both Costa and MSC, I can tell you there are as much similarities as Carnival and Celebrity.

Thanks I needed that and I hope you are saying MSC is better!!!! NMnita

[Cruisechik]

Celebrity is our favorite line and we've sailed almost all of them. Next spring, we are going to try MSC Lirica. We wanted to book Celebrity but were disappointed with the dates/choices. Anyway, MSC Lirica has a great itinerary, a "kids sail free" promotion, and a great deal. I figure why not.

 

I've lived in a couple of European countries and I am not really concerned about the food, except what appears to me to be an excessive inclusion of octopus in MSC's menus....yuk! If I don't care for it, I won't eat it and won't gain any "cruise weight". We lived in Sweden while I was pregnant and I only gained 20 lbs :)

 

I'd say give it a try.

[caviargal]

 

I've lived in a couple of European countries and I am not really concerned about the food, except what appears to me to be an excessive inclusion of octopus in MSC's menus....yuk! If I don't care for it, I won't eat it and won't gain any "cruise weight". We lived in Sweden while I was pregnant and I only gained 20 lbs :)

 

 

They only served octopus once on my MSC cruise, much to my dismay.

 

MSC is the ONLY cruise I have ever gained weight on as I found their cuisine simply wonderful! Rabbit, wild boar, tripe, all of my favorite things were served and I was very pleased with the food in the dining room.

[nevis92]

MNNita,

 

Yes, I felt MSC was a huge step up from Costa. Costa is Carnival with an Italian twist. MSC was Italian with an understated flair. The ship was spotless and the food was excellent. The best pizza I've ever eaten.....no joke......and I've tried it in all the big cities.

[tcocktail]

It is interesting to hear the reviews of MSC. Since Rick Sasso ( Was the President at Celebrity before RCCL) is now over at MSC. I am a bit surprised that the line is not more like Celebrity when they first started. I was on the Summit in March to Hawaii and the food was not up their normal standards. The fish was awful. The lamb was outstanding. The service of course was outstanding.

[donnaw]

Yes, I have been considering it for perhap, next year: they do havea some awesome deals. Three things hold me back: 1-as someone said size per passenger: 2-Europian so there may be a lot more smokers (doesn't bother me as much as DH) and have heard it is much like Costa: I did not like Costa. I have cliants cruising MSC in January: I will know better when they get back. NMnita

 

Nita, I would definitely wait and see what they say. We sailed on the first U.S. Opera cruise after Sasso took over and it reminded me more of Carnival than X but it was very easy to tell that they didn't have the bugs worked out. We found most of the same issues that others have reported but still had a wonderful time because we had a great group of friends with us. Might want to check the last reviews before she sailed back to Europe to see if they have been worked out. I do know that dh will not sail her again with coffee service shutting down at 7:00 PM. He also mentioned them yesterday since he saw the ads where children sail for free.

[tom_uk]

Are you thinking of MSC in Europe, or in N America? There's a bit of a feeling that they run things very differently in europe from in the americas.

 

I cruised on Sinfonia in May 2005 and I loved it (first cruise, though, so had nothing to compare it with). This was a 7 day western med cruise. Not too many children on the ship at that time, and a high proportion of the school-age kids on board were german, not italian, and they were very well behaved. (I heard a rumour that there was a school holiday that week in southern Germany, and you can drive from Munich to Genoa in a long day.)

 

The only drawback for us was that there were very few english-speaking passengers aboard. But it was good, and definitely 'abroad', which was part fo the point of it.

[C 2 C]

I'm willing to give this a shot in Jan or Feb. I just got a quote for an inside 11 day cruise to Panama for $695 + 58.75 taxes on Opera. Things would have to be pretty bad before I'm upset enough to prefer a winter in the midwest... Anyone else out there willing to do some comparison shopping?

[C 2 C]

He also mentioned them yesterday since he saw the ads where children sail for free.

 

I'm looking seriously at some of the Opera "Big Band Cruises" 11 days starting at $750 for an inside Feb 27. I don't think too many kids are going to be on that cruise and I'm ready to try something new. Under $800 for 11 days away from a midwest winter sounds like a great deal to me even if cabins are 30 sq feet smaller. 250 sq ft suites are 3 times as much.... anyone out there ready to plan a sailing?

[C 2 C]

Right now my computer is doing some weird stuff. I think I have posted twice now but my posts do not show up???????

When the server updates this please excuse any double post that might be retrieved from cruising cyberspace..

[C 2 C]

I just found a post including this article for an outside evaluation:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/08/13/TRG1AKDG9H1.DTL

[newmexicoNita]

I'm looking seriously at some of the Opera "Big Band Cruises" 11 days starting at $750 for an inside Feb 27. I don't think too many kids are going to be on that cruise and I'm ready to try something new. Under $800 for 11 days away from a midwest winter sounds like a great deal to me even if cabins are 30 sq feet smaller. 250 sq ft suites are 3 times as much.... anyone out there ready to plan a sailing?

Probably won't do it this time, but who knows. If I can find someone to cruise with me, sure sounds like fun: I am not as much into big band as 50s; still for the right price I would love to give them a try. NMNita