First Experience with this Cruiseline

Overall, we had fun on this cruise, but there were some things that if implemented, could have made the cruise even better.  After 5:00 PM, the only soft drinks that were available were water and ice tea!  Prior to that time there were fruit juices, lemonade, and ice tea available.  We ordered room service on the first morning of the cruise and it was never delivered.  Shortly after boarding the ship and arriving in our cabins, we were required to go through the safety drill and instructions regarding how to put on the life jacket and how to proceed in the event that an emergency occurs onboard.  We thought that this was mandatory (as it was on other cruise lines), although no one ever came to our cabin to insure that we were complying.  By the time we left our room, it was over!  This should be better enforced as it is on other cruise lines that I have sailed on, particularly since it involves the safety of all passengers.  The speakers did not work in the rooms and therefore anytime there was an announcement, we couldn't hear it unless we opened our cabin door!  We asked a worker about this and she said that passengers were annoyed with announcements in their rooms!  Would if it were a real emergency announcement?  On other cruise lines, there was the option of either having the speaker in your cabin turned on or off.  You were in control of this.  On MSC, the speakers cannot be controlled by the individual cabin.  The cruise director never announced when different activities were taking place on the ship.  Granted, activities were in the daily newsletter, however, so many things are scheduled that it would have been nice to have an update throughout the day.  Again, this was done on other cruise lines that I have sailed on.  The entertainment was great but not varied.  For example, they could have had comedians, hypnotists, ventriloquists, etc.  The only entertainment was the shows (dancing & singing) and the singers/musicians in the lounges.  More variety would have been nice and added another dimension.  One of the things we liked about the cruise was the ease of exiting the ship at the end of the trip.  We chose the self-assist method and it was very smooth and seamless!  There was also a variety of food and it was very good.  This may sound like a small complaint, but there were no straws at the beverage centers.  They only had those at the bar so you had to go there to get them.  We were taking a handful and leaving them in our bag because it was an inconvenience to have to go to the bar since it was never near a beverage station.  Photography backgrounds and locations could have been better.  Sometimes they were actually in the way of foot traffic because there were no real designated areas for them to be photographing.  With a little bit of 'tweeking' this cruise line would be more improved and I think a good line to explore.