MSC Musica Cruise Reviews - Reviews

We would say it in german: 

Einige Kleinigkeiten waren nicht zufriedenstellend:

- der Duschvorhang klemmte

- wir bekamen trotz Nachfrage keine Badetücher für den Pool

Sehr Positiv: Die sehr freundlichen und netten Kellner beim Abendessen!!!!

Just finished a week on board the Musica and had to share that me and my other half had a wonderful time. Our balcony cabin was a good size, and always very clean thanks to house keeping that came in twice a day!! We were worried about the food due to some reviews I'd read (and my fiance liking good fresh food) but was pleasantly surprised the buffet food was good and with such a wide variety and our evening dinner sitting even better. They even sat us on a table with another English couple of a similar age (this must take some planning). The bar staff were also very good and helpful. I have only a couple of negative points being there were only 4 small hot tubs which were always busy and had unsupervised kids in some times and the disembarkment system seemed a little chaotic. overall though an amazing week, thankyou MSC.

Nice ship. Everything is clean. Waiter in Restaurants are very friendly. Food is not perfect, but okay. Many france people there. Cabin was not very clean and under the buffet restaurant very loud.

I wish to say thank you to all the crew of the msc musica they was relay fantastic they made our holiday a dreams comes true  . Every one was take care of us . our daughter was so happy that  every one talk her and play with her even some crew they  run after her to talk her and to play with her . The entertainers are perfect they relay make as lughue . There are MED AMIEM ALAOVI AND ENVER KAYIN THE BEST ENTERTAINMENTS OF A BIG TEAM we are very happy that we meet them . Every think on the msc musica was grt  the food , night shows the crew etc.....

A grand voyage from Dominican Rep. to Venice. Great voyage, Great vessel and crew. During the cruise visits to St. Lucia, Martinique, Barbados and Azoren.

I took this trip with my mother, who is older and my son who is 9.  This was a once in a lifetime trip for my mother.  She really wanted to see Genoa, and Rome (the Vatican in particular). We wanted a more family experience, so I cannot speak on the night life of the ship.  We were more interested in the excursions, and the family activities.  While on the ship, I made occasional notes about our experience. So, here goes:

*Excursions The tour guides are awesome and very informative.  The busses are comfortable.  The excursions are definitely the way to go but a bit overpriced.  example: almost 300 euro (99 a person - children almost as much) to bus us into Rome and explore on your own.  We initially wanted the Vatican excursion, but since the payment is non-refundable we waited till we were on the boat to buy - and they sold out!  They actually sold out of ALL the Rome excursions.  The only reason we were able to get the "on your own" excursion is because while we were talking with the excursion desk, someone came up and cancelled their "on your own" excursion due to illness. Came all this way and didn't get the excursion that we wanted. We weren't told that we needed to book early, or that selling out was possible.   They don't give you info on how to get around on your own - this makes you feel like you need an excursion to actually see stuff.  We really wanted to see the Chateau de If in France, but they never advertised it till the day of - then when I called to ask about purchasing this trip, they cancelled it due to lack of interest (possibly due to no information given out about it?)  Anyway, we ended up getting off the boat and going to see the Chateau on our own.  It was FAR less expensive than the excursion prices. 

You pay for "all day excursions" but you spend about 2-4 hours out and about - the rest of the time your driving to the place.

MAPS. Would be nice to get maps of destinations before you arrive at the destination (I guess you could get them from the excursion desk, but they should give them to you with your daily itenerary.  We felt pretty lost) Just another thing that seems geared toward making you take the expensive excursions.

*You feel like you're being nickel and dimed the whole time Internet prices are WAY overpriced - check it out.  Your head will spin. WiFi should be free.  Just my opinion.

Water and soda are not included in cost of cruise -  Water and coffee are offered in cafeteria only. On top of high priced drinks (2,80 euro for Sprite - 2,60 for water) you also pay service charges.  Doing the math, this costs over $5 for a drink.  A bit steep considering you NEED water, and you end up having to pay for it.

*Food: Not that great. Service was bad. Cafeteria was a nightmare of rude and pushy people.  This was difficult for us, with a child and my older mother.  There were handicapped people on the trip too - I have no idea how they managed. Coming in off late excursion, after missing the dinner - not enough food at cafeteria! Also, NOT ONCE did a server offer to bring us a drink (alcohol or otherwise).  Not. Once.  This cruise seems to cater to people who are drinking = spending a lot of money.

*other things: Ship was full of pushy people.  It felt over crowded and people thought nothing of elbowing right in front of you.  Ridiculous when you are trying to make sure your family stays together so that you can board busses together, eat together in the cafeteria, etc.  I found that my polite ways wore thin by the end, and I just had to be as rude as everyone else to actually not be pushed around.  Not pleasant.

*Steward He was so pleasant.  I really liked him.  I must say though, that like another reviewer I called the front desk to request hangers on day 3 - they never arrived and I think she didn't understand what I wanted.

*Other things that are not the ship's fault but would be nice to be informed beforehand: Being ripped off while traveling in foreign countries. Genoa - once the boat drops you off at port they tell you to take a taxi.  Then the taxi drivers never start the meter and they give you arbitrary prices that are twice as much as they should be (I know this because the first taxi we took from the airport upon arrival did run his meter and we were able to use a credit card.  VERY IMPORTANT - if they say they don't take credit cards, it means they don't intent to use the meter and you will be ripped off royally.  It happened to us twice before I wised up).  The ONLY place we stopped to eat at in Genoa was the PIZZERIA DA PASQUALE.  They charged us 75 Euro (over $100) for 2 personal sized pizzas, 2 sodas, 1 water, and dessert.  When I went to the counter to pay (totaling no more than 40 Euro), I handed the woman my credit card, and she just went ahead and charged 75 Euro to it!  I had no recourse since they made no effort to breach the language barrier.  My Italian is very poor but I was able to get around.  This happened on our first day abroad.  Genoa was such a disappointment.  I guess this is another good reason to stay with an excursion unless you are familiar with the language and customs.

*On the positive:  Malorca- best excursion. When we got back, we had the option to stay in town and get a shuttle (included in package) or come back on bus. Beautiful town - guide was great. Very pleasant.  But it took another passenger asking the guide for us to know that. People in the excursion office never Informed us that we could actually stay in town and shuttle back.   

IN CONCLUSION: I know this review sounds exceedingly negative, but I really wanted to be honest about our experience.  We just expected more, considering my family will never be able to afford to do this again.  My mother spend over $3000 in air fare to get us to the ship (then cost of cruise, and all the little extras you get charged for), and then the main excursion she wanted was sold out.  It was just disappointing for the amount of money this trip costs. 

We sailed MSC musica few years ago. It was a transatlantic from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Kiel in Germany. We chose MSC for the first time on that journey because of that great itinerary. After booking I read plenty of bad news about MSC and I really was afraid what to expect. But I thought: keep expectations low and you won't be disappointed. The cruise turned out to be one of our nicest journey I remember. Our cabin stewardess from Madagascar was absolutely amazing. Did a great job and what a nice person. On the other hand there were unfortunately some very rude guests. Therefore we went to the buffet for all meals which we usually avoid. But on this journey the buffet was not crowded as usual. So this was nice. On the Musica there is a little outside area on the buffet restaurant on the ships aft. It's quite nice to hace breakfast or lunch outside on these tables. But the seats are limited so there is not always the chance to sit outside. Surely there were some areas that need improvement (maybe they did in the meantime?) We had a great time on that cruise and we would cruise again with MSC. On this cruise they did a "Buffet Magnifique" on one of the last nights at midnight. It was really amazing. Did not experienced that on another MSC cruise after that. Maybe they don't do this anymore or only on certain itineraries.

Worst cruising experience I've had in over 25 years...disembarked a day early because we were so disappointed. Customer Service was supposed to contact us and they never did, even after I sent a thorough and detailed letter...I just want other potential cruisers to know what they are getting into before they book a vacation on the Musica. Quite simply, this was the worst cruise the four members of our traveling party have ever experienced. Between us, we've been on at least 40 cruises on several different cruise lines, including Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Princess and even Carnival. MSC failed to live up to our most basic expectations for ship features, accommodations, activities, service and food. From the moment we arrived on board and toured the ship, we realized that many of the features we thought we would be enjoying on this cruise, quite simply, were not available to us. When we booked this cruise, we went to the MSC website, which offers a virtual tour of the \"Musica Class\" from the Musicas overview page that is completely misleading. It shows a sports bar that doesn't exist on the Musica. Same with the \"a la carte\" restaurant (which, on the Musica, is a roped-off section of the buffet - and not an actual restaurant). There is no Magrodome on the ship, either. These are three things that we were looking forward to using and none of them were on this ship. While we are on the subject of misleading features, I'd like to point out that the ships \"solarium\" (Webster's definition: a glass-enclosed porch or room) is an empty outdoor deck above the pool and the \"art gallery\" is simply the name of a hallway that doesn't even contain any pieces of art. And where is that \"zen garden,\" anyway? Throughout the cruise, I saw a video that played continuously on several TV screens on the 5th floor that highlighted all of the Musica's features, including a pizzeria, complete with special menus and dining facilities. THIS PIZZERIA DOES NO

Superbe croisière avec très bel itinéraire. Notre 1ere croisière. Celle qui nous a donné le virus

Horrible. Do not go on this cruise.Trust me. Unless you like crowds, not relaxing because some bratty kid is splashing water in your eyes when you are in the hot tub, fighting for a table at breakfast & lunch, announcements blaring in your ears while you try to sleep, clueless staff (they literally don't know the answer to any questions), and dirty (yes, dirty) rooms, then stay away from MSC!

its all about nice. nice work -------------taylar Cheap Cruise

The ship was lovely and spacious. There were lots of quiet spaces mixed with active and lively areas - a little something for everyone.

Their newsletter said there were classes in the fitness center at certain times. We went, along with about 20 others, and were waiting for the class. No one came in to lead it. When asked at the desk (where they could see all of us in the room) they simply said they weren't having classes this week - despite it being in the newsletter and continuing to be in the newsletter daily. And they never even came in to tell us - we had to go out to ask! Very disappointing for Americans not to be able to get coffee and tea with lunch and dinner. ALso to have to buy water for those meals when a pitcher of water should have been available to us - they only had water, coffee and tea at breakfast and afternoon tes on some days. Didn't use lounges or bars except the evening we went ot the "chocolate bar " and ordered . They took our room card and after 10 minutes, when asked where order was they said it was coming. After 20 minutes, when asked again, they decided they didn't have the items! THe maps given out for the ports were such bad copies that you couldn't even read the street names, when they were even on the map and they had no markings as to where we would be docked on the maps to refer to. One time they charged for the map because it was printed on MSC paper. They also charged to shuttle into town and then didn't check for tickets, so those who didn't buy tickets got on without tickets while others paid 8 Euros ($12) for them! Their attention to detail is inconsistent. Some rooms got robes. Others didn't. Some times you got washcloths, other times not. Some rooms had towels rolled intoanimal shapes on turn down, others did not. Shows were all pretty much repetitious with different costumes, although quality of some entertainers was quite good.

We were surprised to learn that coffee was included only at breakfast. We had to pay for water, tea, coffee at other times. I consider this to be a contract violation because policy is not stated in original travel documents. When I called front desk to register my complaint, I was asked if I was an American. I told him that I was, and he replied that was why I expected water to be served. "Americans drink water" . It was laughable. "What do other people drink," I asked. Food was cafeteria level. Staff usually stands around talking to eachother instead of helping or serving guests. We had to constantly request table service because staff is so busy talking to eachother. Extent of constant guest smoking is offensive and unavoidable.

Horrible food, had to pay for everything..water, shuttles into town, shuttles back to the ship, information desk had no information on anything other than the tours that they offered... I could go on and on... but the best advice I could give you is to find another company to go on a cruise with.

American couple living in Italy, but speak very little Italian. We find MCS goes out of the way to make sure all communication is done in several languages. With the exception of the gym and maybe the comment about not great for young sincle set, we can't understand the negative comments posted. Of course it would be great to spend more time in port, but one covers lots of distance in seven days....what does one expect?

If you are a senior citizen or english speaking passenger do not book this cruise line(MSC)!! Food quality and selections were poor. Staff was oblivious to all concerns. Phony charges on the bill causing waste ot time spent in accounting line. Itinenary was jammed with not enough time in ports!!! Other than ship quality this cruise was a waste of time and money!

At some of the ports take the tours. But if you are an European traveler and feel that you can make it on your own with the public transport system then do. In athens take the Public Bus to all the places you want to go and the trains too. The bus cost you .50 euro cents. While in Santorini take a cab to the end of the island to view the town. It cost me 40 Euros for the four of us to ride in the cab. The driver waited for us and took us back to the drop off point for the cruise. Also when you have to use the tenders to get off the ship go down to the door and wait. We had a very high number in Santorini and was waiting and was able to leave the ship as soon as we got down to the tender area. The food service was good and were at times saying we need to stop eating. Buy the pre paid drinks for the ship they are a good value if you drink a lot of bottle water. The price for a coke or the bottle water is the same when you prepay but you get a liter of water and only a can of soda.

Food was dissapointing for an Italian Cruise Line. Maitre D. asked us about our chicken marsala meal and when we told him that there didn't seem to be any marsala in it his excuse was that it was difficult to make marsal for 3,000 people. If true then you shuld call it something else! Food overall was just average.

My 11-year old son and I just returned from our 7-day Musica cruise and we were somewhat horrified. It was my 4th his 3rd and we agree with the other reviews. There is no buffet option for dinner, no water, ice tea or snacks in between meals, breakfast and lunch buffet seemed to be conducted like a shark feeding frenzy with much pushing and shoving and cutting the lines. My son refused to join the kids club due to lack of english speakers. Despite the staff speaking english (I can speak high school Spanish) there were constant misunderstandings and miscommunications when asking for information or help. When asked where drinking cups were the response was "I don't know." When we used coffee cups instead of teeny water glasses to get water staff eyeballs rolled. No water available for drinking in between meals unless you paid for it!! We hoarded water in our own water bottles. I agree about other cruises being much more passenger friendly. My son and I basically hid in our balcony cabin unless we were in port or for meals. I've never experienced anything like this on my other 3 cruises.