Weather was perfect. The absolute definition of smooth sailing. Staff was pleasant, helpful, and gracious. I’m very impressed with my first experience on an MSC boat. Boarding was very slow. All else was far superior to any Carnival I’ve taken.
Embarkation
2 out of 5
Extremely long lines. Our embarkation time was 1:30 pm. It took over 2 hours to get on board.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
MDR service in the Black Crab was impeccable. All staff incredibly gracious. Food was standard cruise fare. Mostly good but the service makes it better. Menu selections are a bit limited. One thing I thought was odd…in the mdr, no salt, pepper, etc on tables and no ice. Americans are used to these. Perhaps they could accommodate. We could ask for them, though. Also, bar service in the mdr was slow.
Buffet was great! NO lines, plenty of clean seating, efficient, good quality and service. With a ship this large, 2 buffets would be better but understandable because I think they may still be understaffed? The pizza is fantastic in the buffet.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Pools weren’t crowded and they’re absolutely beautiful and elegant. I wish I could attach photos but I can’t get it to work. There’s only one slide and it looked fun but we didn’t try it. Strange, considering my son loves them. But where the bottom of the slide is, there’s nowhere to sit and keep an eye on him. So sliding is unsupervised. Thought that was odd. Guess it was an afterthought. One of the arcades was fun and the pricing is reasonable. The F1 racer and 4D theater was pricey so we didn’t try. Perhaps on a longer cruise we will get him the fun pass. With no sea days, it’s not worth it. A game of air hockey is $2.50. Much better than $4 on Carnival. There’s another smaller arcade near the casino. The mini bowling alley was fun. It’s in the sports bar. There are 2 lanes. $8 for 5 frames. One lane was out of order. The outdoor sports area is really nice. A little soccer field with nets and arena seating.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Didn’t go to the shows in the Pantheon. But all of the entertainment around the ship was really nice. Pianists, saxophone, singers, etc. Everywhere. Karaoke at the movie screen was super fun.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
All of the waitstaff, food staff, stewards were great. Future cruise desk staff was inattentive. Stood there for a while waiting to book another cruise and wasn’t even acknowledged. Guest services line was never long. Gift shops were well staffed.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
The only problem is that the maps aren’t clear. And there’s no app to use. MSC For Me isn’t on this ship. Old school papers were left in the room daily by stewards. Everything clean, relatively easy to navigate. Would be much better with an app. Design is stunning. Just plain knockout beautiful!
Cabin / Stateroom
4 out of 5
Roomy cabin with nice balcony. 9th floor is just 2 decks above life boats but if you like orange, you’re good. Still nice views. Bathroom was always clean and stocked with towels. Plenty of shelving. Not enough outlets in cabin. 2 at the vanity and 1 in the bathroom. No USB ports. 3 closets and plenty of drawers. 9103 is very convenient to 2 sets of elevators. Never heard our neighbors at all. If you want to be on the Ocean Cay side, book an even number. We didn’t. Steward came twice every day to clean and do turn-down service at night. Towel animals on 2 nights.
Disembarkation
5 out of 5
Extremely fast and efficient. The Canaveral port staff was great at getting you to your bags and out quickly. We were on a shuttle within just a few minutes. Not far to walk plus plenty of porters.
Embarkation seems to be a problem in most ports, whatever the cruise line sets you up with is not enforced by the port. Glad the rest of the trip was good.
*Cruiseline.com is not a booking agent or travel agency,
and does not charge any service fees to users of our site. Our partners
(travel agencies and cruise lines) provide prices, which we list for our
users' convenience. Cruiseline.com does not guarantee any specific rates or
prices. While prices are updated daily, please check with the booking site
for the exact amount. Cruiseline.com is not responsible for content on
external web sites.
Contact us
Submitting...
Need help from a personal vacation planner?
Loading...
Find the perfect cruise with weekly tips and cruise deals for as little as $30/night!
Sign up for weekly cruise deals
Join other subscribers and get the best
cruise deals of the week in your inbox every Thursday.
9 Comments
Gwbigdog 1 year ago
AuntPinkie 1 year ago
byhisgrace 1 year ago
Gwbigdog 1 year ago
WhippetMum 1 year ago
GabeNSteph 1 year ago
CruzeFan 1 year ago
javawoody 1 year ago
RetiredRay 1 year ago