MSC by any standard is a great cruise line. I believe it is going to get even greater. The interior decorations rival the best of the best in the cruise industry, the areas are well aid out and place. Of the 25 plus cruises taken and this being the first MSC cruise, sorry I waited so long. Best perk of this four-day cruise; time spent on MSC's private island, Ocean Cay.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Unlike some other cruise lines, the check in process was old school. No handheld tablets being carried by mobile agents checking in passengers. Instead, a long serpentine lineup moved passengers timely forward to a long counter manned by a lot of agents checking documents and individual identification. Once the check-in was complete the agent walked back to a table where they grabbed the passenger's individual Sea Pass and assigned the individual to an embark group. Then off to the waiting area to await your group being called to embark. Surprisingly effective but like any embark, took awhile to step on board.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Taking into consideration the obvious - supply chains are still recovering, there is a shortage of manpower and stretching the dollar is essential to survive, the standards have droped a bit and expectations fall short from past experiences. Food and beverage quantity, quality and presentation are not what they use to be. And when observing the numbers of crew members on staff in shipboard restaurants and bars, it is obvious that there are fewer in place. Those there are doing more to make up for it. Lines were long and bartenders were not plentiful, many working feverishly to keep up with drink orders. On this packed ship there was little time to engage a bartender in light conversation as we once did. In the main dining room it seemed as though waiter table assignments have increased, and the assistance waiters were supporting multiple waiters. The head waiters jumped in to fill the void. Again, the team effort was impressive but not faultless. The quality of yesteryear's service has taken a hit. As for specialty restaurants, they were well laid out and well staffed. The obvious difference between the atmosphere of the dining room and the specialty restaurants is the fast pace and turnaround time. The main dining room cannot compete with the slow pace and control of a specialty restaurant. The pressure on the waiting staff to get it right is night and day. The main dining room, as with most common areas on the ship, were really noisy, caused by guests trying to out shout the table of group next to them.
Onboard Activities
5 out of 5
Really nice facilities, well maintained, but no thanks to those passengers that like to leave towels on chairs all day to reserve them and those that like to leave dirty plates and glasses wherever they wanted to around the ship. The crew did a great job in cleaning up the messes left behind. The pool deck was nicely laid out and noisy. The solarium was great.
Entertainment
5 out of 5
The ship's troop of dancers and singers is first rate. For the first time ever, I witnessed a standing ovation for this ship's troop three out of three performances. The only shortcoming of the performances was that the sound system was so loud that the mics were over modulating, causing distortion when the singers were hitting those high loud notes. As for the one show with a well-known guest singer, the sound system destroyed her singing.
Children's Programs
5 out of 5
Did not have anything to do with this as no children in my group. But, a walk through the areas set aside for kids showed them to be clean, well maintained and many happy children present.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
A great effort was being put forward by those manning Guest Services. Lines were kept short, and passengers seem to be accommodated. Service and staff were engaged and working hard to make things happen in favor of a wonderful cruise.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Not what I expected, and I mean that in a good way. To me the design, atmosphere and character of the various sections of the ship were a wow factor. Really nicely done. Spaces were well attended to in preservation and cleanliness thanks to the effort of the crew, no thanks to those passengers that left their plates with leftovers and glasses around the decks. Again, the crew was on it ... and they did well.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Perfect by any cruise ship balcony standards. Clean, fresh and maintained. The only shortcoming was there were only a couple of drawers in the closet, several shelves and plenty of handing room. The desk was long and useful for setting things on but no drawers where other ships might have had another three drawers built in. The stowage space was great for a 4-night cruise, not so great for a week or more.
Ship tip
Here's several pieces of advice: (1) Bring ear plugs, lots of noisy common areas. (2) Bring own CPAP ext cord as there is a $30 deposit for one from the ship and they are in short supply. (3) Bring a multi-plug to plug into the one outlet in a cabin if you want to plug more than two things in at one time.
A picture-perfect realistic island paradise with wonderful sandy beaches; not an amusement park. Quiet, ocean breeze, no brightly painted amusements, designed for relaxing.
POOF!!! Quick. Woke up, disembarking commenced, off the ship we went, collected our luggage, walked through customs, went home.nt through customs in no time.
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