Advice on msc opera cruise

[LOLAUST]

HI - I HAVE JUST BEEN OFFERED A FABULOUS DEAL TO CRUISE THE BLACK SEA VISITING PORTS OF ITALY, MONTENEGRO, GREECE, UKRAINE, TURKEY AND CROATIA IN EARLY SEPTEMBER 2009. I HAVE MADE A PRELIMINARY BOOKING FOR A BALCONY CABIN. HOWEVER, HAVING READ SOME OF THE REVIEWS I AM A BIT WORRIED ABOUT TRAVELLING WITH THIS CRUISE LINE AS IT APPEARS THAT MANY PASSENGERS HAVE SAID THAT THERE ARE ISSUES WITH CHOICE OF FOOD, CREW BEING RUDE, SMOKING IN AREAS NOT ALLOWED AND OVER-PRICING!

 

I REALLY WOULD APPRECIATE IT IF SOMEONE WHO HAS BEEN ON A SIMILAR CRUISE ON THIS SHIP CAN GIVE ME SOME ADVICE ASAP AS I NEED TO CONFIRM MY BOOKING IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS.

 

THANKS

LOLAUST:confused:

[AmoMondo]

Whilst I've not done that exact itinerary on the Opera, I have done similar ones (excluding Ukraine).

The positives - the Opera is a beautiful ship that is well maintained and always spotlessly clean. They usually have great Ports of call on theei itineraries.

 

the bad - the admin of MSC is always a bit chaotic (although sometimes its ok). This either drives people nuts and they complain about it endlessly or others find it amusing.

 

Depending on your point of view could be bad or good - there are many nationalities onboard. English will be one of the 5 or 6 official languages but in Europe, expect English speakers to be in the minority. You may have less choice of shore excursions if there are not enough passengers booked on them. personally, I really enjoy all the different languages being spoken around me as it makes me feel more like I'm overseas. I never do shore excursions now as I much prefer to wander off the ship when I want to and do my own thing. However, for people who prefer all passengers or most to be English speaking and all the entertainment to be geared to only English speaking, then this is obviously a negative for them.

 

Food- The only problems that I've necountered are with the beef, which can be tough. However on my last cruise on the Lirica it had dramatically improved. the pizza, ice cream and pasta are very good. I don't understand the comment about lack of choice - maybe that comes from people who expect to see the same dishes as they would at home. At lunch and dinner there are always 6 courses to choose from - appetizer, soup, salad, pasta/rice. main and dessert. There are usually 3 or 4 alternatives for each course. At dinner the food is all italian (perhaps that is what they mean by lack of choice?) but at lunch there are more iternational dishes.

 

As for the overcharging - I don't understand that one either. I've cruised 8 times with them and never been overcharged for anything. They unlike many cruiselines don't add gratuities to bar bills. The main bone of contention is on European cruises, they dont serve tap water at meals but bottles of water that you have to pay for. Also room service is not free in Europe and neither are the steam room and sauna. However when you compare their prices to say RCCI or some of the others, paying an extra 30 euros over the space of a week for water is no big deal.

[LOLAUST]

Thank you for your quick response and advice AmoMondo - its a bit more reassuring to hear your views! Will see what else turns up from other people in the next day or so before I finally decide! Happy New Year!

[scruffts2007]

I went on the msc musica to s america, perhaps as you live in australia you may understand the aussie saying there "you can always tell when a load of poms have arrived at sydney airport..the plane is still whining even after the engines have stopped"

 

I am afraid I had to hear three weeks of endless whining from the uk passengers on board...I really dont know what they had to complain about

 

It seems to me that the cruise industry seems to attract a load of people who complain mostly about the food, you know "the lobster on the titanic was much better than this" and everything and anything else (my review is dated 2nd dec)

 

yes I am sure that msc could do thing differently, but they are an italian line so do things their way, not american or german or british

 

you will have to buy water for your table and coffees etc after breakfast until afternoon tea..accept this and your trip will be more pleasant and avoid arriving the terminal when everyone else does

 

I liked msc and would certainly go with them again

[scruffts2007]

just a mention about the water, I bought two books of tickets for 50cl bottles, the cost was 44 us dollars...which was enough for 2 of us for three weeks at the dinner table

 

as the other person mentions there is no auto tip put on bar bills, or sales pitches...methinks although you get "free" water etc on other lines you end up paying more in the end

 

also I found the drinks less pricey than say ncl ...their cocktails were 8 dollars plus 15 percent auto tip...msc cocktail of the day was 5.50 dollars and no auto tip

[LOLAUST]

Thanks Scruffts2007. You and AmoMondo have certainly put things in perspective for me and I am feeling much more comfortable about booking now. I agree with both of you - if you don't want to experience something different then why leave home! We tend to look on each of our trips as an adventure - sometimes they turn out good and sometimes not - that goes with the territory of travelling.

 

Have a great 2009 and thanks again.