HAL vs MSC

[jazzsea]

I am seriously thinking of moving my large dixieland jazz group from Holland America (Volendam) to MSC (Lirica). Has anyone experienced both ships and, if so, could you share your thoughts?

 

Thanks,

[michmike]

jazzsea - we were on Zaandam with one of your groups in January and while they were by and large, nice people.. the fact is that they took over the ship.. and if one was not a fan of dixieland there was virtually no way to escape it short of hiding out in your cabin.. they were playing in the lido at breakfast.. poolside at lunch.. they took over one of the lounges where trivia was scheduled, forcing that program to relocate

 

while i am a jazz fan, I like a variety of formats.. and while the dixieland was fun the first part of the week.. by the end of the week I could happily go a year without hearing it again.

 

I think HAL has an obligation when booking a large group like yours, to alert other passengers to that fact, so that they can make an informed decision as to whether they want to be on that cruise.

 

That having been said, thank god you weren't a bunch of rappers.

 

So - given the choice of finding your group on my next trip unawares.. or having you folks on MSC.. my vote is obvious.. nothing personal.. would feel the same way about a group of life insurance sales folks

[sail7seas]

Do I ever understand exactly what you are saying, Michmike.

 

 

We had the most unfortunate bad luck to be on Ryndam a few years ago where there was a very large group of Irish Music Lovers. They, too, took over the entire ship and could not possibly have been more rude, inconsiderate and unfriendly. It seemed there was a reward for the person in their group who could treat the other 20% of us on the ship more poorly.

 

If HAL plans to charter a ship, Fine!!! But it is Not Fine when they in effect charter 80% of the ship and leave those pax who were not informed about the huge group when they made their booking perfectly miserable. We since have a NEW TA as I believe our old should have known and told us. We now always inquire when booking and IF LIED to, that is a whole different situation.

 

As to Jazzsea's question.......you gave no reasons why you think one would be preferable to the other. Hard to know what you are seeking from MSC that Volendam cannot offer.

[marco]

While we have been on both lines, we have not sailed either ship you mentioned, as far as the vessels themselves, although both somewhat different, both very, very nice. But as far as the line itself, HAL is a bit more upscale in all respects. Service, a bit more polished, dining, a bit more elegant and broader selections, Entertainment, more "verbal" venues on HAL as 99% of the passengers use English as thier primary language, and mabye 75% on MSC. While both will offer a somewhat different cruise experince, if wouldn't hesitate to do either. I think price/itinerary/availabliltiy/timing would be deciding factors.

[anngie]

Jazzsea, I have sailed on both lines and there is really no comparison in the two even the clientele. People think of HAL as having older passengers but MSC's are even older. I am not sure how the Dixieland Jazz would go over on the Italian line.

The food is good on MSC but not as elegant as HAL's. The service is good too but there is a real language difference. Sometimes it is impossible to communicate with your steward. MSC has a lot of Europeans onboard. All announcements are made in 5 languages.

We found the waiters do speak very good English.

[grandma bev]

Carol, we are "jazzers" who look for the swing music at festivals, rather than trad. Many in your group are our friends who have a wonderful time together.

 

I completely agree with Michmike. Here's a suggestion: why not consider chartering an entire ship for your group? I'll bet you could sell out just like the St. Louis group does each year with their Nov. jazz cruises. We LOVE those cruises - nobody there but us jazzers and musicians. Everyone is happy and nobody is offended.

Bev