Beautiful Ship, terrible origination, too few crew staff for approx 5000 passengers.

Item: MSC Meraviglia
Rating: 2.9
Author: rfrankland5

MSC Meraviglia Cruise Review to Caribbean - Western

rfrankland5

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 4

Helpful Votes: 127

Overall rating:

2.9 out of 5

Verified Review

7 Night Western Caribbean (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 30, 2022

Ship: MSC Meraviglia

Cabin number: 14139

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

This was a Christmas gift for our daughter and twin 14-year-old granddaughters. Cruise issues started from Embarkation (took 2 hours) to Disembarkation (took 4 Hours). The Buffet set-up was horrible. At times there were no Plates, Silverware or Drink Glasses available. WE were supposed to have Pool Towels in the Room. We went to the Pool and they did not want to give us towels, We told to get them from the Room Stewart. Once we found our Room Stewart; we were told the laundry was not working and get them from the Pool attendant. All activity venues were very crowded and there was a lack to bar servers and bartenders, When we complained we were told by several crew members that there were 5000 people on this ship to try and service. The ships APP was very confusing and did not work much of the time. I had the WIFI package had had to visit their IT people several after waiting in a long line. This is just a snippet of issues we encountered, WILL NOT USE MSC AGAIN.

Embarkation

1 out of 5

2 Hours to board

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

1 out of 5

Main Dining Room nd Specialty Restaurant service was Very Good. Buffet was horrible, at times there were no plates, glasses or silverware available. Everyone forced to use buffet for lunch. One Dining room was open for breakfast from 8-9 AM. Food overall was OK.

Onboard Activities

2 out of 5

Pool area extremely crowed while at Sea. The Tube Slide area was very crowed while at Sea, so we used them while at Port. Pool Towels were sometimes unavailable.

Entertainment

5 out of 5

Best Shows we have attended on any ship.

Service and Staff

2 out of 5

I rated this Poor at best, could have marked as Terrible for Room Steward and other ship crew members. Best service was our waiter in Main Dining Room and Specialty Restaurants

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

No issue with Ship design and overall the ship was clean.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

Cabin was sufficient and kept clean

Ship tip

If you're a US Citizen Use another Cruise Line. Very disorganized and understaffed.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Costa Maya (Mahahual), Mexico

3 out of 5

Belize City, Belize

3 out of 5

Took a city tour. Was very interesting and educational.

Thumbs Up 0

Cozumel, Mexico

3 out of 5

Shopped and retured to ship.

Thumbs Up 0

Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, Bahamas

4 out of 5

Grandkids enjoyed the beach day.

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

1 out of 5

Took four (4) hours to disembark.

7 Comments

Gwbigdog 1 year ago

Thanks for sharing

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SandRMiller 1 year ago

Was it noisy, having your stateroom right under the entrance to The Marketplace Buffet? We prefer Hagia Sophia (Deck 10) for quiet. And then we chose a midship cabin which does not share 1 wall with another cabin, overlapping their balcony, instead. Our preference is to not eat main meals at the buffet because hungry people in the buffet act more like wildlife than fellow travellers. Staying on board for some port days (or all, if that's your preference) is a good tactic - everybody should take some port time in the pools, hot tubs, and specialty restaurants and share the ship. It's also a good opportunity for shipside services discounts. Travelling a high capacity ship is different because if too many people are involved with an activity it's going to be busy crazy - White Night, Galleria celebrations (great feature of Meriviglia), making sure to reserve shows in the Broadway Theater. Use the wall kiosks and remember you have to swipe your cruise card or optional cruise bracelet. When some areas of the ship are busy-busy there is likely to be another place which is not so nuts. There always seems to be alternatives of the moment. Seeking out what you like is part of the charm of cruising - a big ship offer more choices while bring crowded. And big ships will be crowded during school holiday periods - especially with kids free in parents' stateroom. For some people, there is the possibility to not cruise during those times - it's understood half of us can't. My wife and I are not among them, having grown kids. I try to be like water, and go with the flow.

Thumbs Up 1

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Mish2cruise 1 year ago

My sister has done 2 MSC and enjoyed then both. I'm attempting my first MSC in a couple of months. I hope I make out a bit better than your experience. So far, though, I haven't been impressed with their website or phone customer service. Doesn't bode well.

Thumbs Up 0

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Popdog 1 year ago

Thanks for the review.

Thumbs Up 0

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javawoody 1 year ago

Thanks for sharing

Thumbs Up 0

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CruzeFan 1 year ago

People either love or hate MSC. Cruising during a holiday is rarely a good experience. Cruise lines cannot add temporary help for a few weeks like land based companies.

Thumbs Up 0

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RetiredRay 1 year ago

Some had a good experience some did not.

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Other reviews of this sailing

MSC Meraviglia 2022/2023

Fantastic New Year's cruise

MSC Meraviglia, great ship but needs improvement