Lack luster and disappointing.

MSC Meraviglia Cruise Review to Caribbean - Bahamas

skyyyvictoria

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 2-3 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 25

Overall rating:

2.7 out of 5

Verified Review

3 Night Bahamas (Port Canaveral Roundtrip)

Sail date: March 02, 2023

Ship: MSC Meraviglia

Cabin number: 9113

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 1 year ago

Review summary

We had issues before even boarding the ship! Mixed messages about drinks packages, first I was told we could purchase them at $59/pp/day. Which we were fine with! But when I called back to book it, the representative said that was never an option and 3 night cruise with MSC don’t sell drink packages… BUT THEY INCLUDE UNLIMITED WITH CERTAIN TICKETS… so weird, why not offer people an unlimited drinks package the first day of you offer it to some guests? Either way, past that customer service was depressingly lack luster and the ship was nothing to write home about. If we ever decide to give MSC a second chance, it will be on a newer ship. But for now, this was our first and last MSC cruise…

Embarkation

3 out of 5

Easy to embark. They can’t wait to get your money!

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

2 out of 5

Dirty napkins and forks in the main dining rooms was a huge turn off! On the first night I sat down to a soiled napkin and when I asked for another, the “fresh” napkin was also soiled. Then at dessert the spoon provided to my husband was also dirty with food specs… disgusting. Thank God the buffet served pizza til 1 a.m or I fear I would’ve been starving.

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

This section only gets 3 stars because of the onboard water slides and adventure course (included at no extra cost) and the staff run events (i.e karaoke and trivia). Everything else was a la carte and since we already paid extra for excursions, spending more on shows or experiences didn’t seem worth it.

Entertainment

3 out of 5

The DJs were fun everywhere we went, but why take away from the cruise experience by stopping karaoke sign up for a staff member to close the show??? Put them in the middle or at the beginning to kickstart the karaoke… some people near me tried to sign up to sing and they said the spots were full, so when they saw the staff member do a song they were visibly unhappy…

Children's Programs

No kid’s accompanying us

Service and Staff

3 out of 5

The ship seemed generally understaffed. No eye contact or acknowledgment from the bartenders when people sat for drinks. No organization at various locations where people would just skip or be served before others who had been waiting. Attitude from staff when trying to be acknowledged. Honestly, just poor customer service throughout. The one thing I noticed was room staff always acknowledged us in the hallways and were sooo polite. Other than that… I wouldn’t recommend this cruise based on the customer service alone.

Ship Quality

2 out of 5

You could definitely tell that money was spent on refurbishing large common areas but not rooms or balconies.

Cabin / Stateroom

2 out of 5

The room was sizeable and the bed was comfortable but we received dirty towels on the second day, our shower (handicapped) was flowing water past the grates into our room… we requested assistance and no one ever showed up. Finally we received extra towels to absorb the water and that was it… horrible experience.

Ship tip

Get a refund and book a newer ship or better cruise line.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Port Canaveral, Florida

3 out of 5

Scenic, no excursions.

Thumbs Up 0

Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, Bahamas

4 out of 5

The best customer service was from our lighthouse tour guide, CoCo! She was fun, engaging, and knowledgeable! Our catamaran excursion was cancelled due to wind and there was no one at the floating beach mar rental area when we arrived so that was also a waste.

Thumbs Up 0

Disembarkation

2 out of 5

Line cutting was rampant and no staff addressed people blatantly disrespecting the rules. Honestly was so happy to get off the ship!

Traveler Photos

Dirty towels received after housekeeping…

Dirty towels received after room cleaning.

Our shower kept overflowing into our cabin… this was the MSC solution.

7 Comments

41pearl 1 year ago

I was on the same ship in December. There are free shows. Just some carry a fee. The ship was beautiful and your the 1st person to complain about the condition of the ship!! The private island was absolutely gorgeous and the light show on the beach at night was great! The service was fine. Our only issue was we had a passenger jump overboard,so upon returning to Port Canaveral, everyone had to wait several hours until the sheriff's office had cleared it due to it being a crime scene. Debarking the ship was chaotic but understandable.

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Gwbigdog 1 year ago

Thanks for sharing

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AuntPinkie 1 year ago

Appreciate your detailed feedback. Sorry you were so disappointed.

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Maritza326 1 year ago

I’m not sure I want to go on my cruise now. It’s for my birthday. We have to pay extra for show? What the what?

Thumbs Up 1

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enjoyurdaysmile 1 year ago

You have to pay for shows that doesn't make any sense it's supposed to be part of your cruise.

Thumbs Up 1

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Popdog 1 year ago

Thank you for your review.

Thumbs Up 1

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javawoody 1 year ago

Thanks for the review

Thumbs Up 1

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