I would return to MSC if they had an itinerary/price that I could not find on another line.
I've read reviews that said this line wasn't so good and we did not find that to be true. We did, however, find other lines to be better in quality and selections of food. The Buffet changed very little from day to day and offered mainly the same choices for the 11 days we were there. If you like Pizza, MSC does it best!
Embarkation
4 out of 5
The line was quite long when we arrived but after waiting approx. 10-15 minutes, it started moving. It took about 40 min fromwhen we first got in line until we were onboard.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
This was our 6th cruise but the first time on MSC line. We chose this ship because of the price and the itinerary. The food was average to good but not great. We usually went to the Black Crab for breakfast and Dinner. Lunch was in the Buffet which had many stations. I really enjoyed the fresh salad and fruit and I must say if you are a fan of chilled soups, the chilled soups at the fruit bar were excellent especially the Watermelon/Coconut. However, finding a place to sit on sea days was always a challenge. Meals in the Black Crab were decent but not on par with other ships we've been on. The service was great, the meals were served promptly (never took more than 1 hour from appetizer to desert), and our wait staff Joebert and Robin were always pleasant, efficient, competent. We had the "Drinks on Us" package which was a nice bonus for my Husband who likes scotch and since I don't drink alcohol or soda, I got the Pellegrino. Only charge was the 15% gratuity so that saved us money as well.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
We took some of the dance classes offered by the pool. They were full of energy and fun to learn. This line caters to Europeans as Americans and they gave directions in 5 different languages. By the time we got off the ship, we learned how to count to 8 in all those languages which was kind of cool. We also went to the Black and White lounge several times and that was always nice as well. My major complaint would have to be that it seemed like everyone went out early to get lounge chairs and "save"them for the day. If you went on deck after 9:00 am to find somewhere to sit on a sea day, you were out of luck. I have pictures of a whole deck lined with empty chairs and orange towels tied to them. One day we found 2 chairs at a round table that seats 5. The other 3 chairs had orange towels tied to them but were empty. We sat there for 3 hours and no one ever came to sit there. Around 12:30, the 3 people came from their lounge chairs by the pool over to the table (where they had the seats saved with towels) so they could go to the Buffet and bring their food back to eat at the table! Totally unacceptable IMO.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
I must say, the entertainment most evenings at the Theater were awesome especially the "Tribute to Queen" show. The dancers and acrobats were great as well as the singers. Opera is not our thing so we skipped that night but all the rest were very good even though some numbers were sung in a language we couldn't understand.
Children's Programs
We have no children
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
While some reviews we've read gave this ship a bad rap for service, we did not have this problem. All the service and staff were always pleasant and efficient. The people in the Buffet work very hard but were always polite and accommodating. Our room steward, Robean greeted us on the first day and asked if we had any special requests. He attended to our room twice daily and did a great job.
Ship Quality
4 out of 5
We found this ship to be clean and well-maintained at all times. The layout, however could have been better. Non-smokers had to walk through the smokey Casino to get to the Theater which is a no no for those allergic. The power walking track was very hard to find and not really good for walking. Going outside on deck 7 however, was much better.
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Our cabin was #12253 and was clean, spacious, and had a nice size balcony with 2 chairs. The two beds were not "bridged" well and kept coming apart in the middle even though Rubean did change up the pad for us. We never had this happen on another ship. The bathroom was a bit nicer than other ships with a unique shower design.
Ship tip
You will meet people from all over Europe on this ship. I enjoyed meeting and conversing with others and found this to be a nice experience.
We drove to Miami from PA and booked a "Park N Cruise" at the Hilton by the Airport. The traffic in Miami is bad and we had no desire to explore this area.
Bonaire was awesome. We went with 2 other couples in a Taxi (van) to see the island. The drivers name was Rudy Emerenciana and he was great. He took us the the Washington Park, 1,000 steps, and Rincon. I had done some research and learned about a replica of Lourdes in Rincon and when I told Rudy, He took us there! The one couple wanted to see a wild parrot so Rudy stopped at the home of a local and left us out to see a parrot in their tree. When "Mama" came out of her house, the parrot came running down and hopped onto a stick she held out, and we got some photos. It was a 1/2 day tour and we enjoyed it very much.
Great port with nice shops, bridges, and restaurants. Again, we took a taxi,this time with BenTours and went for 1/2 day to seethe north side of the island. This is a beautiful island that I would return to in the future for a destination.
Aruba is a bit more commercial that the other two islands but still very nice. We took a nice tour with Ernest and Tessa for 3 hours to see the Lighthouse, rock formations, eagle beach, haystack mountain, and a bit of town. It was a very nice local tour for only $20. pp. Would like to see more of Aruba and would return.
Here we signed up for an excursion through MSC. First we went to Puerto Seco beach where we had lunch which was fried chicken and salad. We ere to be back by the bus by 1:00 but two ladies in our group forgot and our guide had to find them. We didn't leave until 1:25 which cut short our time at Knoko Falls plus we missed the city part of the tour.
We chose "express" and this was most confusing. When we went down with our belongings, we had to get intoa line that was not clearly defined. It wound down around the Casine and back up the other side. Nothing was roped off and people were cutting in line up futher.
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