New Cruiseline for us, needs some tweaking

Item: MSC Meraviglia
Rating: 4.1
Author: DavenBrandyExns

MSC Meraviglia Cruise Review to Caribbean - Bahamas

DavenBrandyExns

Contributor Level: First Mate

47 Days Till Next Cruise

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 20

Helpful Votes: 314

Overall rating:

4.1 out of 5

7 Night Bahamas & Florida (New York Roundtrip)

Sail date: May 28, 2023

Ship: MSC Meraviglia

Cabin number: 14198

Traveled as: Large Group

Reviewed: 9 months ago

Review summary

This was our first non Carnival cruise (we have only sailed Carnival in the past). MSC has the making of being an excellent cruise line, but there are a few things that could be improved on. For example, booking shows, being able to order water to our room (not even an option at the moment), you can't bring outside drinks (sodas, wine, etc like you can with Carnival), booking specialty restaurants (that was a whole other can of worms..). But the service of the staff was excellent and all were professional and willing to help you in any way.

Embarkation

2 out of 5

I will be honest, this was probably the worst wait to get on a ship we have had. It took us almost 2 1/2 hours from arrival to getting on the ship. The ship was delayed getting in from the previous cruise due to weather, but it was unorganized and chaotic.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

The food was a hit and miss with our sailing. Our embarkation day dinner at the Waves restaurant was really good, but the next day my husband steak was so tough, he couldn't cut it. So it was hit and miss this whole trip. The drinks were amazing though..and they do not skimp on the alcohol..

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

The main lido pool on this ship was impressive! It's spacious and has some awesome beds to lay out on by the edge of the pool. The deck parties and themed parties in the Galleria were always hoppin.

Entertainment

4 out of 5

The singers and dancers on this ship were awesome. Some of the concepts and costumes of the shows were, let's just say unique. But the parties (like I mentioned above) were always packed and fun!

Children's Programs

no kids

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

All of the staff on board were super friendly and attentive.

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

The ship is beautiful! Between the sparkly Swarovski crystal steps and the design of the ship..it had that classy feeling to it. And it was always kept clean as well.

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

The cabin was spacious, the only complaint we had was the storage availability.

Ship tip

If you want food from the buffett and want an awesome table, head on to the back of the ship. There are tables by the aft of the ship and it's covered, so it's a nice relaxing way to have a buffett meal.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Brooklyn, New York

3 out of 5

Its Brooklyn...we only were there for the embarkation day.

Thumbs Up 1

Port Canaveral, Florida

4 out of 5

We did not do an excursion this port, but we were able to get an Uber and get to Terminal 3 to watch the Carnival Liberty sail away and then meet up with fellow cruise friends at Fishlips for dinner.

Thumbs Up 0

Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, Bahamas

5 out of 5

This private island is absolutely beautiful!!! There are several beaches to go and hang out and plenty of activities to do on the island. We did a jet ski excursion around the island and also climbed the light house to see the awesome views. The best part of this day was that we were there until 9PM and got to see the lighthouse show (its all LED lights) and they had a beach party before we departed.

Thumbs Up 0

Nassau, Bahamas

5 out of 5

We stayed around the area and went to Margaritaville, rented 2 chairs and had a mini beach day. We also checked out the new Nassau port area (a very nice improvement to the port).

Thumbs Up 1