This was a fantastic vacation, but it was a fantastic vacation despite MSC rather than because of them. Everywhere we turned around there were inconveniences - service charges that were incorrect or needed removing, sudden changes to our packages we'd pre-purchased (for instance, being moved from Any Time Dining to a 5PM(!!) dining time), or things just not working the way they were supposed to.
I think the moment MSC lost me was when, due to an unexpected extra day in Costa Maya rather than Ocean Cay, I found I needed more cash than I had planned ahead of time. Upon finding the ship had no ATM's (or rather than they specifically disabled them, as I found out on disembarkation) I had to go to guest services and was told there was a 5% fee for any cash advances. I asked them to waive this and the woman looked at me like I was insane and asked me why on earth they would do that. I did not get the fee waived. It seems bizarre to me to insult a guest who has just spent thousands over a three dollar service charge fee, but that's just the kind of cruise this was - a thousand small inconveniences.
Overall, I do not regret the vacation AT ALL - we had exactly what we wanted to get, a very relaxing week away from home, work, and life. We had some absolutely magical experiences at port, particularly in Jamaica. We wanted to try MSC because we've been slowly trying all the cruise lines, and I'm glad we did, but we will never be cruising MSC again. I suppose you can't try all the cruise lines without having a last place, and now we know. Not a regret, but an interesting retrospect.
Embarkation
3 out of 5
Torn on embarkation rating. We got there at 11am and were on the ship in MINUTES, it was effortless. Why the low rating? We were TOLD to get there at 4:15. This would have caused numerous problems (the least of which being how close it put us to the 5:00 last call), including missing muster, almost missing dinner, etc.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
2 out of 5
The buffets were very good, though the same day-in-day-out. Pastries were excellent, and the pizza was to die for. The speciality dining was drastically more expensive than on other cruise lines, and the quality and portions were much worse. A very notable exception to this was Butcher's Cut, where while the prices were still dreadfully higher than the other cruise lines, the quality and quantity of the food you received actually rose to match the price.
Onboard Activities
2 out of 5
The water slides were fun, and there were ample pools due to dividing them up into multiple areas.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
Cirque du Soliel was spectacular - both shows are DEFINITELY worth seeing. The main theatre entertainment was different every day and every show we saw was also worth seeing. Not a whole lot to do otherwise, but this was enough.
Service and Staff
2 out of 5
Compared to other cruise lines, I felt like I was "in the way" of the staff just wanting to go about their business. None of it really was particularly rude or aggressive, but contrasting to the treatment we've gotten on other cruise lines it just felt like nobody cared, like they were checking boxes on duties rather than serving real people. Note that this DID vary by individual and was not universal, but was steady enough to notice.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
The ship was magnificent. Absolutely gorgeous, and very easy to navigate.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
Cabin number selected is incorrect, but does reflect the cabin layout we used. Cabin was small, but overall well laid out, and constantly kept immaculate by the room stewards. No major complaints or wow factors really, just a solid and fairly standard balcony cabin. Definitely could have used a bigger bathroom, but that's true on any ship.
Ship tip
When dining in the buffet, the open-air section in the absolute back of the boat was almost always available, and offered gorgeous scenic views.
We got an extra unexpected day here in lieu of Ocean Cay due to rough seas. The first day we visited Chachoben Ruins and that was wonderful, if a bit pressed for time. The second day we mostly just explored Mahahual/Port to get off the boat for a bit. Very enjoyable, but probably the least so of the three ports visited.
2LoveBikes storage was a bit cramped in our room too, but part of that was also that we had 3 people in the room's intended room for 2. We made do, and even our fairly large suitcases all fit underneath the bed just fine, which helped
I think Any time dining is only available if you booked an Aurea cabin. If you have booked Bella or fantastica a assigned dining time is normal. But if your not satisfied with the assigned time a change of the time is possible. Just ask Maitre D.
I don’t understand why the fee for getting cash from the front desk should be returned. Any ATM on any ship would charge for the use. Change of itinerary can also happen on any cruise due to weather or whatever reason. It’s stated clearly in the cruise contract. If they can replace the cancelled port by another port instead of an additional seaday it’s definitely a fact I would appreciate.
Thank you for your review. Was your storage space for your clothes adequate?
Having been in an aft balcony on the MSC Seaside I found that I had poor storage in cabinets and hanging space but had a full size couch for only 2 people. I was very disappointed, design over functionality an common sense.
Kimbie - We love trying the specialty dining and it DOES bring some variety, but yeah, it was definitely not worth the added price in this case. Again, very notable exception of Butcher's Cut, though it IS the most expensive so take that with a grain of salt.
The only thing spa-wise we did is my wife and daughter each got a haircut in the salon. The area itself was very clean, the staff was ultra-courteous, and it was a positive experience for them both. For JUST a hair-cut (no styling, drying, etc) it ran $35 apiece USD - "up there" but given typical cruise prices honestly not bad. It did look a bit crowded in the spa area overall, but we didn't do much beyond that.
Thanks for this very detailed review. We set sail in March and will definitely reconsider specialty dining if it isn't worth the exorbitant price. Did you do any spa items? We were considering getting access for the length of the cruise.
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