Enjoyed the cruise. I would book MSC again and their prices were ridiculously low. $49/night for a veranda before taxes. I have also been on the MSC Seaside.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Plenty of food with very little variety over the course of the 11 days. In general, food was very average. All meat was cooked well done. Even after asking for rare they could only do medium. Dining room service and staff was great! Evening dining room menu did have themes and there were enough options to make every meal interesting. The buffet got boring after 11 days of the same items day after day.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Entertainment
5 out of 5
This ship is loaded with talent! The three tenors and two sopranos are overall the best, not one weakness. Dancers are professionals and there are good cirque style acts. The auditorium is large and seats are easy to find.
Children's Programs
3 out of 5
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
We like to have a table for two alone. It took a couple nights, but they quickly accommodated and were prepared for us each night. In fact, we had the late seating that starts at 8:30pm, they told us to show up at 8:45pm after the doors close and they had a table ready every night. I think this was the best service of any ship for quickly dealing with special requests.
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
This ship is super clean, sparkles and shines. There are plenty of areas to lay out in the sun. However, this is not a great ship if you want to find areas to sit without looking through one or two tiers of tinted windows. There are zero chairs on outside decks other than in the smoking area in the back on deck 15. This ship is all loungers with no way to see the ocean unobstructed by tinted glass. MSC caters to their Voyager Club elites and to those who pay for suites. The entire front of their ships are off limits to others and the very top center deck is roped off for Aurea experience cruisers. SMOKING WARNING - MSC is a European company, people smoke pretty much anywhere they want and there are lots of them. This is a great ship if you smoke. Go to deck 15 aft and you'll be in smoking mecca with a private bar.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Normal veranda cabin. Sofa was dirty. We covered it in beach towels. The cabin has sliding patio doors making it easy to open with an unobstructed view. We only had 3 television channels during the entire cruise. CNN, ESPN, ESPN Caribbean.
Ship tip
Keep an open mind! There are more than the usual amount of cultural diversity. All announcements are in five languages.
Love this island! I can't wait to see how it develops over the next few years. So much space for everyone to find something they like. Safe! Food trucks scattered around at the beaches were great and quick!
Chaos for self assist early people. Really, really bad. They were not ready for the large number of people and the staff in charge were not natural leaders. It was a free for all and resulted in yelling, cussing.....
Glad you enjoyed it. Many give terrible reviews of MSC, but don’t seem to understand the differences in the various levels of service on the ships vs what they may be used to on Carnival, NCL or Royal Caribbean. Most who complain seem to book the cheapest option, but seem to expect the top level experience. It seems those that understand what they are getting have a good time and get a great value on a cruise.
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