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Our HONEST MSC Seascape Review – Are the Critics Right About this New Ship?

We have our honest MSC Seascape cruise ship scorecard review following the ship's maiden voyage from Miami, FL to the Eastern Caribbean!

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MSC Cruises just launched another new cruise ship in 2022. This month, the cruise line debuted MSC Seascape, with a naming ceremony in New York City . Following this event, we hopped on the ship for its first 7-night sailing from Miami, FL. We are back and ready to share all the details with you in our exclusive MSC Seascape cruise review.

MSC Seascape Review

MSC Seascape is the fourth ship in the Seaside Class and second in the Seaside-EVO Class. Her sister ships include Seaside (2017), Seaview (2018), and Seashore (2021), with Seashore being the first in the subclass of EVO ships. Yes, we know it is difficult to keep up with all of MSC Cruises classes and sub-classes of ships.

Our Complete MSC Seascape Review Video

MSC Seascape is a 154K gross ton ship featuring about 2270 staterooms and carrying over 5,100 guests at double-occupancy. The ship’s Yacht Club, the ship within a ship concept, is home to 131 suites, as well as several decks of private amenities.

This new cruise ship features many similarities to her predecessors but also a few new attractions not found on any other cruise ship.

Given this was only our second time sailing with MSC Cruises, and our first time on a Seaside Class ship, we were anxious to see how this cruise line stacks up to the competition. What did we think?

In this MSC Seascape review we rate the ship on several categories including dining, entertainment, onboard activities, and more.

A trend in recent mega-ship design is expanded pool offerings spread across multiple decks instead of one central pool area. MSC Seascape is no different as it features several outdoor spaces with pools and whirlpools on various decks. This meant that even on busy sea days, we could find a little space of the ship to call our own.

On the upper decks, there are two distinct pool areas. On deck 18 aft, there is the outdoor Marina Pool, which we would consider the main pool area. Flanked by whirlpools on the starboard and portside, there are plenty of loungers, a bar, and all the typical pool deck vibes. There’s also additional sundeck seating and the Horizon Bar one deck above.

In the center of deck 16, there is the Jungle Pool Lounge. We liked the exotic theming and décor in this family-friendly space. Not to mention, there is a retractable dome, which means it is always a pool day no matter the weather. This setup is much better than the often stuffy solariums you find on other mega-ships.

Above the pool, there are some table games like foosball and ping pong, as well as additional seating. Plus, this pool is located right next to the buffet and a bar. Further, it is one deck below the youth area, making it a great option for families.

At the aft of deck 8, there is the adults-only Infinity Pool. These two pools offer great wake views and even some in-pool loungers. Conveniently located nearby, there is an outdoor bar and gelato shop as well. Not to mention, both the portside and starboard sides of deck 8 midship feature additional outdoor seating and side-facing whirlpools for more fantastic views.

For cruisers staying in the MSC Yacht Club , there is a private sundeck all the way forward on Deck 20. A nearby exclusive pool, bar, loungers, and a starboard side whirlpool are available to Yacht Club guests.

Lastly, midship on deck 19 is the Top 19 Solarium. This adults-only space is open to cruisers who have upgraded to the Aurea experience on MSC Seascape. With whirlpools, a bar, and variety of seating, it is a nice escape from the crowds.

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Sports Deck

There are a variety of ways to stay active on MSC Seascape. These activities include a mix of complimentary and up-charge experiences.

At the center of Deck 18 is the Pirates Cove. This waterpark includes a tube slide, duel racing body slides, and a variety of water features for the little ones. Intertwined above the aquapark is the Adventure Trail. Though, it is a rather small ropes course.

Aft on Deck 20, there is the sports court. With free play basketball and soccer, it is open most of the day for some friendly competition with fellow cruisers.

The Pirates Cove aquapark and sports court on MSC Seascape are free to all guests. Though for this MSC Seascape cruise ship review, we made sure to test out all of the up-charge activities as well. And, you should too!

Behind the sports court is the newest thrill ride at sea, the Robotron . Combining state of the art robotic technology with synchronized music, this ride jolts cruisers up, down, and upside down 173 feet above sea level. This adrenaline-pumping attraction is $11 for an approximately 3 minute ride. There are varying thrill levels for all cruisers to enjoy this attraction.

For more thrills, the Hall of Games offers some virtual excitement. With the MSC Cruises’ signature F1 simulator, an XD Cinema, and several other VR attractions, this is one of the most high-tech arcades at sea.

Prices vary for each attraction at the Hall of Games. Although, Fun Passes can be purchased at discounted rates to provide even greater value. We highly suggest testing out the 360 flight simulator, as well as the motobike.

Additionally, cruisers can stay active at the Fitness center on deck 8. The wide-open gym features a variety of cardio equipment, free weights, and strength machines. Oddly, the ship does not feature an outdoor running track though. Also absent are other popular outdoor amusements on family cruise lines, like mini golf. 

Overall, the 1,600+ crew on MSC Seascape took good care of us during the week.

At times, there were some language barriers when ordering food or drinks. It also seemed that many times the crew were unfamiliar with American preferences. Though, any issues were corrected and improved over the course of the week.

The friendly bartenders and servers in the Loft Café were our go-to team for our coffees. They always had smiles on their faces and knew our daily drink order after a few visits. While espresso is served at all the bars and lounges on the ship, they seemed to be the only ones who could make the wife’s iced nonfat caramel latte.

Similarly, service in the Cocktail Bar was friendly and prompt. The waitstaff were quick to strike up a conversation with guests sipping drinks while waiting for dinner at the nearby specialty restaurants.

Most of the bars had adequate waitstaff, and it felt like the cruise line encouraged guests to order from servers as opposed to the bartenders. For instance, in the buffet, you can’t order from the bar at all. You need to order with a server, who then gives your order to a bartender.

Service and efficiency in the main dining room improved over the course of the week. Our assistant waiter was friendly and very attentive. She was always smiling and made sure to say hi when she saw us. She was also on top of filling our water glasses, delivering bread, and clearing plates. Our waiter on the other hand was much less interactive.

In the specialty restaurants, dinner was better paced and the service was more personalized. Whether we dined with a group or just the two of us, the overall experience felt more polished.

Since we arrived later in the afternoon on embarkation day, we never officially met our stateroom attendant. Honestly, while we saw him in the hallway, he never did take the time to introduce himself or ask if we had any special requests.

Since this was an inaugural cruise, we suspect any of the kinks we encountered will be resolved as the ship continues to sail the U.S. market.

Onboard Activities

Our 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruise on MSC Seascape included four ports of call. During our days at sea, the cruise line offered a variety of daily activities.

There were several sessions of trivia, as well as other group quizzes like Name that Tune, Guess the Price, and the Guinness Book of World Records game show.

On the pool decks, there were organized competitions of foosball, corn hole, and ping pong, along with themed dance classes. Further, scavenger hunts and other family-friendly events were regularly part of the itinerary.

Jose, the cruise activities manager, and the rest of the team were lively and fun while hosting these events.

Not to mention, the Aquapark, Hall of Games, and other public venues were open throughout the day and evening. Of course, there was bingo on sea days, and the casino was open to take your deposits.

In the evenings, there were several sessions of karaoke on the pool deck. Further, live music occurred throughout the ship.

The dueling pianos tickled the ivories on deck 6 in Times Square on MSC Seascape. In the Loft Café, cruisers could sip cocktails alongside jazz music or a solo pianist. The Latin Duo had the crowd dancing at the Uptown Lounge on deck 8. Further, there was always live music in the Atrium.

Deck 7 is home to Le Cabaret Rogue. This large, yet intimate venue is home to a variety show which highlights several unique acts each evening. You never know what you will find when you pop into the venue.

From live singers, to a comedian pianist, to acrobats and a hula-hoop dancer, it is a hodge-podge of entertainment. We wish there was a schedule posted so we knew which entertainers would be performing at what times each night.

At midnight, the Cabaret becomes the dance club. The DJ keeps the music playing into the early morning, like 4 or 5 AM, for the late night party-goers.

Cruisers will also be happy to know that several of the parties they know and love occur on MSC Seascape as well. From the Silent Disco to the White Party and Tropical Party, you can have the time of your life.

Needless to say, there is plenty to do on MSC Seascape at all hours of the day.

Casual Eats

For a ship of this size, the casual dining is very limited on MSC Seascape. The only complimentary offering for breakfast, lunch, and dinner besides the main dining room is the ship’s buffet, the Marketplace on Deck 16.

At breakfast, the Marketplace Buffet features your typical offerings. Thankfully, there was a custom egg and omelet station all the way aft in the venue. Additional menu items included options like scrambled eggs, breakfast meats, pancakes and waffles, and breakfast pastries. Cereals, fruit, and other continental items were available in grab and go offerings as well. 

Similarly, lunch featured a number of different stands with various food offerings. These included a pizza station, a pasta station, a salad bar, international hot entrees, meats and cheeses, and hamburgers and hot dogs.

These selections were scattered across two separate dining areas. The midship elevators separate the venue into two restaurants. While there was a lot of overlap between the restaurants, occasionally, you could find items in one section that were not available in the other. This made the venue rather chaotic with cruisers often wandering around the stations. It didn’t help that the signage was extremely small.

The restaurant could certainly benefit from some better organization. Perhaps, it should be set up more like a food hall with themed areas serving a specific type of cuisine.

Overall, we found the food quality for breakfast and lunch in the buffet to be average at best.

While it was often crowded, there was plenty of seating in the Marketplace Buffet. So, we never had issues finding a table somewhere within the venue.

When compared to new cruise ships from competitor cruise lines, we were disappointed that MSC Seascape did not have additional casual dining options. Think the Indulge Food Hall on Norwegian Prima, Guy’s Burgers, Shaq’s Chicken, or BlueIguana Cantina on Carnival Celebration, the Park Cafe and El Loco Fresh on Wonder of the Seas, the International Cafe on Discovery Princess, etc.

By offering sandwiches at a deli or cafe, burgers by the pool, or additional complimentary options around the ship, it would certainly help to disperse crowds.

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Main Dining Room

For our MSC Seascape cruise ship review, we dined at the main dining room four times for dinner. We also tested out the venue one sea day for lunch.

Each morning, the Green Wave main dining room was open for breakfast. The restaurant had a very small menu and was open select hours. On sea days and early departure port days, this main dining room was open for lunch as well. It served pretty standard offerings like a hamburger, Philly cheese steak, or entrée salads. Service was quick during lunchtime, but once again, the food selections were average at best.

For dinner, MSC Seascape has three different dining rooms offering staggered traditional seating times. Given we had the Bella experience, we were assigned an 8:30 PM table in the Aegean Restaurant on deck 7.

However, between the Green Wave, Cala Jondal, and Aegan restaurants, there are a total of seven different seatings between 5:15 PM and 9:30 PM. The Skyline restaurant is exclusive to Aurea experience guests with “My Choice Dining” between 6 and 9:30 PM.

During dinner, our assistant waiter was personable and friendly. She quickly came over to take our drink order and inquire about our day. Though, the same could not be said about our waiter.

Dinner was reasonably paced most nights, taking about 90 minutes.

In terms of the food quality, the offerings were hit or miss. I enjoyed the selections more than Heidi. I liked the prime rib and lamb chop entrees on Day 1 and 6, respectively. Further, the veal osso bucco on Day 7 was on par with specialty restaurants on other ships. The Grandma’s Chocolate cake was also a favorite for dessert.

The rest of the items we sampled were rather basic and either at or below the quality of other cruise lines.

Specialty Dining

While the main dining room was just okay, the specialty restaurants were well worth the up-charge. Most of the restaurants are priced a la carte. However, we had a dining package.

For this MSC Seascape cruise ship scorecard review, we dined at three specialty restaurants. My favorite was Butcher’s Cut. This American style steakhouse ranks at the top of my list among Celebrity Cruises and Princess Cruises for best steakhouse at sea.

My oysters Rockefeller was expertly prepared. Likewise, my 8 oz. filet mignon was cooked medium rare with a sprinkle of salt. This delicate cut melted in my mouth and paired perfectly with the sides, including the mac and cheese. The lava cake was a decadent end to this meal.

Hola Tacos and Cantina offers an a la carte or all you can eat option. This more casual restaurant is a great spot for lunch or dinner. With a variety of small plates, like queso fundido, salsa, tacos, and enchiladas, this venue served up a spicy and delicious meal. Of course, the menu pairs well with some handcrafted margaritas as well.

Lastly, we dined at Kaito Teppanyaki. MSC’s version of this hibachi restaurant did not disappoint. The menu features a pretty standard setup with starters like miso soup and salad and freshly made fried rice.

Unlike other cruise lines though, the Kaito Teppanyaki dinner includes a few pieces of sushi and a grilled starter as well prior to the main course.

With the dining package, you get grilled shrimp and salmon as a starter. Then, you can carve into some grilled steak as the entrée. Of course, they were able to customize Heidi’s dinner so she had a double dose of chicken as her starter and entrée.

This dinner and a show is always an entertaining night out.

MSC Seascape also features two other specialty restaurants. Sushi lovers will want to try Kaito Sushi. The unique conveyor belt setup gives this restaurant an interesting twist. Finally, seafood lovers will want to dine at Ocean Cay. Given Heidi’s picky palette, we skipped both of these specialty restaurants.

Signature Entertainment

The Chora Theater on decks 6 and 7 features signature entertainment each night of the cruise. During our sailing, there were five signature productions and two headliner acts. Of course, we attended every show for this MSC Seascape cruise ship review.

Given the multiple dining times on the ship, there were three showtimes each evening. We tended to watch the 7 PM show before our 8:30 PM dinner.

Each of the production shows featured four singers and a dance troupe. Select shows also included two additional guest vocalists, a strength act, and/or an aerialist.

Given that we have sailed on several brand-new mega ships , we have certain expectations for onboard entertainment, and the MSC Seascape exclusive productions did not live up to these expectations. The production quality did not come close to the shows on newer ships in the Royal Caribbean or Norwegian Cruise Line fleets.

Out of the five production shows, we liked Love Blooms and Premiere the best. Love Blooms was a whimsical tale with a decent mix of music and ornate costumes. Premiere was a nod to classic movies. From James Bond, to the Wizard of Oz, Dirty Dancing, and even Ghostbusters, it was fun, even if it was a bit cheesy.

The other shows included Dreamscape, In Concert, and ImaginOcean. While they were watchable, they were certainly not memorable. We did expect more in terms of choreography and digital imagery on a brand-new mega ship.

The two headliner acts included a comedian and a singer. Nina Skyy showcased her amazing vocals during her Forever Whitney performance, while Matt Bergman put on a mediocre comedy show.

Bars and Lounges

MSC Seascape features 20 bars and lounges. Many of them serve the ship’s standard menu. However, a few do offer signature cocktail menus.

The Cocktail Bar on deck 8 is a cozy spot right next to the specialty restaurants. Here, you can enjoy exclusive drinks like the Rose Lychee Sangria, a spiced Mai tai, or the Indochine martini. This venue is an ideal spot for a pre- or post-dinner drink.

On deck 7, there is the Champagne Bar. This venue offers a distinct menu that focuses on sparkling wine libations, like the Chambord Royale or French Kiss.

Other locales with specialty menus include the Sports Bar on deck 8 with the most extensive list of beers on the ship.

On the pool decks, there are many bars that serve up cruise classics, like a pina colada or the B.B.C. These venues include the Infinity Bar on deck 8, the Marina Pool Bar on deck 18, and the Horizon Bar on deck 19. There’s also the Sky Bar and the Jungle Pool Beach Bar on deck 16.

Indoors, there’s also the centrally-located Seascape Bar and Shine Bar. Not to mention, there’s the Hola Bar serving up margaritas and the Wine Cellar. The Uptown Lounge, Le Cabaret Rouge, and the Casino each have bars as well.

Perhaps the most unique bar on the ship is the Venchi 1878 Chocolate Bar. This venue on deck 6 serves specialty coffee drinks and cocktails alongside gelato and other chocolate treats. Unfortunately though, none of the drinks here are included in the MSC beverage packages.

As far as theming goes, many of the indoor bars have a similar décor with lots of metallic and dark finishes.

One exception is the Sports Bar. This lively venue has several televisions and fun furniture with sports equipment accents and leather booths. Similarly, the Loft Café features oversized chairs and tables, with yellow and wood tones reminiscent of a writer’s room or a quiet hotel lounge.

For this cruise, we had the premium extra drink package. Essentially, this entitled us to any beverage $15 or less at any of the bars, lounges, main dining room, and specialty restaurants. Needless to say, we had no issues completing our drink around the ship on MSC Seascape.

For this MSC Seascape cruise ship review, we stayed in cabin 13265. This portside, midship cabin is a deluxe balcony cabin. The cabin is a short walk aft from the midship elevators, making it easy to access the public spaces.

According to the MSC Cruises’ website, this stateroom is 172 square feet with a 54 square foot balcony.

Immediately entering the room, our bathroom was on the left. The bathroom was on par with other cruise lines in terms of size and featured a stand-up shower with a glass door.

Just beyond this area, the closet was to the left and the sofa was to the right, leaving a rather small passage way to get into the main cabin area.

The closet was a good size. One half contained a clothes bar and shoe shelves. The other side had plenty of shelves and drawers for the rest of our clothes. The sofa too was fairly large, almost too big for the cabin.

Across from the sofa was the desk. While there was plenty of counter space, we would have liked more shelves in the cabin.

The king bed was on the forward wall facing aft. On each side of the bed were small night stands. Although, only one side had a USB outlet. There were no power outlets near the bed either.

The only other area with USB and power outlets was the desk. Thus, the wife and I had to share this table as both a work station and a getting ready area.

Our balcony was a standard size with just enough space for two upright chairs and a table.

Overall, this deluxe balcony cabin on MSC Seascape met our needs for this 7-day cruise.

The Verdict: MSC Seascape Review Recap

With a variety of dining and entertainment, plenty of pools and outdoor space, and one-of-a-kind attractions, MSC Seascape offers families and couples alike plenty to do, see, and eat over a 7-night Caribbean itinerary.

We really enjoyed the Hall of Games and the brand new Robotron. These activities, while an up-charge, are among the most thrilling and high-tech at sea.

The nightlife on MSC Cruises was lively as well, with live music, nightly parties, and a dance club open until sunrise.

Right now, MSC Cruises is running some amazing deals on this brand-new mega ship.

If you want to upgrade your experience, you should consider the MSC Yacht Club. This ship within a ship experience includes a premium extra drink package, WiFi, and private onboard amenities.

With a restaurant serving an elevated menu each day of the cruise, there is little reason to leave this area. Unless of course, you want to enjoy all of the other nightlife, entertainment, and onboard activities taking place around the ship.

With MSC Cruises expanding its offerings to the U.S. market, now might just be the perfect time to test out this brand by booking a Caribbean cruise on MSC Seascape.

Have you sailed with MSC Cruises? Do you agree with our MSC Seascape review? Drop us an anchor below with your thoughts on this newest MSC cruise ship!

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Id love to know what version of the MSC Seascape you were on because it certainly wasn’t the same fecking hell hole we were on!!! Unfortunately cheap cruises attract cheap people, loud rude and obnoxious who make 4 trips to the buffet during breakfast and dinner and have no respect for other passengers. There were a few fist fights by the terrible lifts and the pool area because there are simply too many stressed out people EVERYWHERE!!! Bar service is a joke but MSC management doesn’t give an actual fuck ! Never ever again!!!

This ship was clean and well kept, although the service was horrible, from the main dining room to most of the bars. DO NOT book on the 15th floor, the buffet is on the next level and all night long the noise from the chairs being moved to the the dollies they use is unbearable. I booked four rooms and was embarrassed that I excepted these rooms for my group. MSC took my complaint but did nothing to compensate us for the inconvenience. They charged me for items in the Mini bar in the room, I never opened the mini bar but they are standing firm with the charge. We did an excursion on thier private Island call the Ocean Cay Bahama Breeze Escape “cateraman excursion” owned by Neal Watson’s Bimini Scuba Center, DON’T DO IT !!! $94/person and its a joke. The exursion was horrible, the young crew was cordial but played vulgar RAP music once we arrived at the swim area. As an adult I could ignore it but there were little kids on the vessal who didn’t need to be subject to this kind of music. The crew was more focused with partying with some young females at the swim area, and they were not paying attention to the other guest. We were advised that we sould not drink any of the rum punch theat was part of the package until we were done swimming. Well, once my wife and I got back on the boat, the only thing in the ice cooler was water and the cups we were suppose to use were floating around in it. Pathetic !!! Upon departure people were diving off the upper part of the boat in shallow water, very dangerous. The other disturbing thing the crew didn’t do was take a head count upon departure. Totally irresposible. The buffet on the island closes at two and was not very good, they had two vending trucks that they passed out DRY hamburgers and hot dogs for the balance of the day on the island. I dont think I will travell with MSC again, Royal Carribian beats them HANDS DOWN !!!

Is this a genuine review?? If it is then the ship was obviously empty at the time and I would invite this MDC sycophant to read the reviews of people who had the misfortune to book this horror show!!!

We just got off this cluster F cruise today and was by far the worst of any of our 40 plus cruises. There is zero organization on this ship and the food is atrocious. Never again in my life would I sail with MSC. I felt like a hostage at some prison camp for a week and couldn’t wait to get the hell off this ship.

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Welcome Aboard! We are Don and Heidi, the husband and wife travel team behind EatSleepCruise.com. We took our first cruise vacation together 13 years ago and have been hooked ever since. Follow along as we share our travel tips, cruise reviews, information on ports of call, and the latest cruise news to help you plan the ultimate cruise vacation. Are you ready to embark on your journey to “sea the world, one port at a time”?

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-I know this is a NEW ship and they need time to work out the "bugs". That being the case, they should have paid us to help them. No excuse that this a new ship and crew. The crew - mostly dining, entertainment, and general ship management was not ready - in my opinion. The crew was rude to many passengers - not all crew, but many. The crew - especially dining - looked like they did not like their work nor being on the ship.

-Dining - we signed up for the "The Green Wave" dining room. The wait staff was not trained nor did they speak English. I walked out of the dining room the first night because they could not deliver my order correctly - after reviewing it with our waiter 4 times. Throughout the week, they made numerous errors in delivering our meals each night.

-Italian Ship - Italian night dining - could not cook pasta properly. No dressing on salads. Food was not prepared correctly and was obviously made from frozen ingredients (think chicken parmigiana).

-Cabin - ours was 13003 - Grand Suite Aura - our booking said the balcony was 10 square meters - it was less that half that and 60% obstructed. No one ever told us it was obstructed. Our cabin steward was the BEST experience of ALL people on the ship. Very helpful and took care of the cabin properly. He also received our most tips.

-Communications - TERRIBLE - MSC should be an acronym for Misinformed Ship Communications. Navigating the hallways of the ship was a chore - signage is lacking and finding a specific spot is arduous. We had access to the 19th Deck Solarium, but our keycards did not work - for many things. Had to have them replaced several times. The "My MSC" app, the daily schedules in your room, and the TV app never agreed on times or locations for events. Just poor management and quality control.

-Entertainment - sadly, this was a huge disappointment. The "show" in the Chora Theatre were 35 minutes long and had the same (over worked) players each night. The "Dueling Pianos" show in the lobby was either late or non-existent EVERY NIGHT!

-Spending - MSC wants you to spend your money - on everything and all the time. Everything is an up-charge. We had the Basic Drink Package - some bars gave us a can of soda and most said that canned soda was extra.

-ICE CREAM AND COOKIES - served, at no charge, between 4-5PM on some days. Really? You serve dessert before meals? For one hour a day???? NO soft-serve ice cream - we were told by our booking agent it was available in the buffet area. One hour a day for ice cream?? OR you had to pay $6 for one little scope at the specialty areas.

-Final review - we were very hopeful for our first cruise on MSC. There will not be a second. The service, lack of passenger experience, and poor crew training ruined our vacation. The VALUE for this cruise was 0! It is a shame that the crew did not make us feel valued or appreciative - except our cabin steward.

23 replies to this topic

Did your daughter and her family have a good cruise ? Did you enjoy spending time with them? Did you like relaxing on board the ship? Of course, you knew the itinerary before you booked, so if you did not like it, perhaps you should have selected a different cruise .

I, for one, would be a bit reluctant to be on a ship with so MANY other passengers--quite huge. Maybe the crew were overwhelmed. I would have a bit of sympathy for them struggling to learn their job while dealing with large numbers of people for the first time.

Did you want bragging rights for being on this "first" cruise ? I prefer to wait a bit before I jump on anything too new, just so all the kinks get ironed out.

Splurging on a grand suite is a significant investment--I would study the deck plans quite carefully beforehand. Many cruisers post reviews of individual cabins, but for a new ship that information would be missing.

The moral is live and learn. Sometimes being first is a bonus, sometimes it is a bust. Wishing you better cruise experiences in the future!

I too would never book the first cruise on a brand new ship with a brand new crew. Cruise lines are struggling to get crews for their existing ships , so it's no surprise that finding ones, especially who speak adequate English, could be a problem. We cruised in April, August, and November and while all were all very nice cruises , we did notice some of the staff struggling. Four of us ate lunch in the MDR on one ship and while the food came out as ordered, it was delivered to the wrong person and salads arrived at the same time as the entrees. Not a hug deal - we just switched things around - but when you are paying thousands of dollars per person, you expect there not to be these kind of issues. We heard on some ships they were short-handed and people were leaving and new people had to be hired. This was the case with even the ship's trio that was to provide the entertainment on our Great Lakes cruise .

I'm with Mary - you'd never find me on a cruise ship with that many passengers. I don't like more than about 1500, but many like the bigger ships because of the extra amenities they provide. I doubt we would use most of them, so why pay for something you won't use? To each his/her own.

Like with any cruise or tour, things don't always go smoothly and we've had our share of issues, but have learned to go with the flow and enjoy things the best we can. We try not to let the issues spoil our vacation. Hopefully you will have a better experience with other cruises on other cruise lines.

I wouldn't sail MSC unless traveling in Yacht Club class.

Seems a pretty fair review.

But MSC are all mouth and no trousers - I'm not surprised the OP had a terrible experience.

However, the ship was not ready to take on a full load of passengers. And, yes BarbP, the trip did start with repeated poor experiences. I did not walk on the ship with a chip on my shoulder. I have traveled the world for 50 years and expect all journeys to have some issues sooner or later. I do expect the travel partners to be open to passenger inputs to improve the services and experiences.

Their 8 days were outstanding and they enjoyed meeting and talking to other passengers from many countries. Our 11 year old grandson played with other children from several countries and that is a positive experience.

Concierge? That's a Celebrity category. I take you mean Yacht Club? Yes, that is the only way to travel on MSC.

Reading some of the comments from disgruntled cruisers makes me shake my head in bewilderment. Their "complaints" are simply the lack of experience with anything that doesn't fit the norms of their daily lives.

Examples: "The salad was served at the same time as the entree", by which I take it they mean the main course. This is the norm in the USA, but not anywhere else.

"Too much movement so anyone with seasick issues be warned". It's a ship not a hotel on dry land. The captain has no control over how rough the seas are.

"Nothing on the menu I wanted due to some dietary restrictions" The chefs are not mind readers. Asking in advance when you have dietary restrictions might have been helpful.

"No-one ever told us the cabin was obstructed". Really? Did you read the description or check the deck plans?

While not perfect, my wife and I did enjoy the cruise . In fact we had good experience with our first ( Oct. 2021) that we did not hesitate to book this cruise .

I do read a lot of negative press about MSC- on Facebook, here, cruise critic. Heard it on board too. Until one person blurted out - " but NO one complains about the price "- which is probably why quite a few booked it. I do agree with some points of the poster and one point only for post 8- no Kleenex.

BTW, I also never heard of any complaints about the price of the internet. It is half the price of NCL and I had no problems with Whatsapp calling to my daughter despite not taking the higher package that allowed video streaming.

As stated, it is a budget cruise line. I agree on some comments but my experience with the others were just the opposite.

It is a Italian line. Food is Mediterranean based. One night I had Osso Buco. My first time. It was lovely. We also had Surf and Turf- in the main dining room. So it was free. Didn't have this on NCL (Surf and Turf was an extra charge) last May to Bermuda. And you could order as much as you want. I heard that RC and Carnival are now charging for a 3rd and 4th entre in the main dining room.

Now, Ellen, taking an hour to get thru customs, you should forward your complaint to the Federal Government. MSC have nothing to do with customs. Point. Same NCL cruise last May. We were delayed boarding- all because the Coast Guard suddenly decided to do a random inspection. Not NCL's fault.

" Too much movement so any one with seasick issues be warned. " Huh? It's a ship. Travelling on a body that is fluid governed by the whims of Mother Nature. You remind me of an article I read about buying a bicycle. It had 6 pages of Warnings. The one that struck me was the sentence. " Do not ride when its dark. "

Getting covid on a ship- is not cruise line specific. It is a real danger on ANY ship. I kept my mask on in public places while on board while most people had them off.

Would I cruise again with them? Looking at another one already.

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• MSC Cruises

Scared off by bad reviews, MSC Seascape

By Nebr.cruiser , September 21, 2023 in MSC Cruises

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Nebr.cruiser

We've cruised a lot of different lines and really aren't picky--have never had a bad cruise in over 50 sailings, and don't expect luxury or perfection.

  We've been curious about MSC and have read some of the negatives and positives before.  We got almost to the point of booking a 7 night on the Seascape in January, just to try MSC out--until I read the reviews here on these board.  I have never seen so many 1 and 2 star reviews in my life.  I normally take reviews with a grain of salt, but the amount of negativity was astounding.

Things that really gave me pause was slight smoke smell in many areas (my husband is very sensitive to smoke) terrible waits for elevators and poor food and shows.  

I guess there is a reason they are so cheap compared to many other cruise lines?

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The smoke smell is universal, in my experience. You walk by a smoking area and you smell smoke. It's worse on some ships than others due to design (Navigator of the Seas was the worst I've been on), but I've never been on a cruise where there weren't plenty of smoke-smell-free hangouts. We've not been on Seascape (nor any of the Sea ships), but on Meraviglia it was no better or worse than any of the RCI ships we'd been on before and it looks like you don't need to walk through the casino on Seascape so the worst of the smoke should be avoidable. Food is subjective so it's hard to say anything on the topic. We enjoyed our meals on Meraviglia more than some of our RCI cruises and less than others. The pizza was the best we've had at sea and better than some on land, but the toppings can be different so I understand some aren't fans. I think MSC makes some really solid pasta, but again, it's fairly different from what you might get in the U.S. so I get why some Americans in particular aren't big on it. We were happy with our meals and never hungry, but my enjoyment of the food means about as much of those bad reviews when it comes to your own tastes. The shows were a bit weird, but I honestly found that kind of fun. Someone here mentioned a dinosaur costume in a Seascape show and I am genuinely looking forward to seeing that on our cruise next year. I will actually be mad if they ditch it. They're also closer to a variety show (some magic, some acrobatics, some singing/dancing, minimal story) than they are Broadway, but that suits me just fine. I have great adoration for some musicals, but most of them don't end up on cruise ships (Les Mis is a bit of a bummer after all) so I'd just as soon have some talented people sharing their talents with me and take a pass on Grease or Footloose. In short, MSC is different. It's just as hard to be different in cruising as it was in high school so they have a bit of a bad rep. But I rather enjoy the different. I enjoyed my first MSC cruise in 2021 and I expect I'll enjoy my next one in October and our cruise on Seascape next year. I'd say give different a go. I you hate it, at least it's cheap and (probably) includes a drink package.

morpheusofthesea

4 minutes ago, bundtkate said: Someone here mentioned a dinosaur costume in a Seascape show and I am genuinely looking forward to seeing that on our cruise next year. I will actually be mad if they ditch it.

No dinosaur on Seascape. On Seaside, if I recall.

1 minute ago, morpheusofthesea said: On Seaside, if I recall.

Curses, now I'm sad. MSC, if you're reading this, add more dinosaurs. Thank you.

Just now, bundtkate said: Curses, now I'm sad. MSC, if you're reading this, add more dinosaurs. Thank you.

It couldn't hurt the performance if they did.

50 minutes ago, Nebr.cruiser said: I guess there is a reason they are so cheap compared to many other cruise lines?

It's a tale of two cities. Those that book outside the Yacht Club are the ones in the majority giving the low ratings. You get what you pay for. Now we have been on a couple of MSC Yacht Club sailings and will give  every one  a 5/5 rating. Better than the Coastal Kitchen RCCL, better than The Haven on NCL, better than The Retreat on Celebrity. I have a list of 20 points we love about MSC Yacht Club. But beware, once you cruise YC you will never go back to cruising steerage again.

I wrote this once for advice to a Diamond member wanting to book outside the Yacht Club:

The advantages of Diamond are not that great. We would rather be first timers, silver? in the YC than Diamond outside the YC in any category. However you all may still be too young to be spoiled so early in life. Take it slow and easy. Work your ways up to the best life has to offer. Too much of the best in life at an early age can damage your pysche later on. Do not recommend doing the Yacht Club too early in ones life, especially grandparents bringing their grandchildren. Unless these grandparents set aside a nice inheritance for them.

 So, don't do it ! Ones life will spiral down into a world of hedonism from which there is no return.

36 minutes ago, bundtkate said: The smoke smell is universal, in my experience. You walk by a smoking area and you smell smoke. It's worse on some ships than others due to design (Navigator of the Seas was the worst I've been on), but I've never been on a cruise where there weren't plenty of smoke-smell-free hangouts. We've not been on Seascape (nor any of the Sea ships), but on Meraviglia it was no better or worse than any of the RCI ships we'd been on before and it looks like you don't need to walk through the casino on Seascape so the worst of the smoke should be avoidable. Food is subjective so it's hard to say anything on the topic. We enjoyed our meals on Meraviglia more than some of our RCI cruises and less than others. The pizza was the best we've had at sea and better than some on land, but the toppings can be different so I understand some aren't fans. I think MSC makes some really solid pasta, but again, it's fairly different from what you might get in the U.S. so I get why some Americans in particular aren't big on it. We were happy with our meals and never hungry, but my enjoyment of the food means about as much of those bad reviews when it comes to your own tastes. The shows were a bit weird, but I honestly found that kind of fun. Someone here mentioned a dinosaur costume in a Seascape show and I am genuinely looking forward to seeing that on our cruise next year. I will actually be mad if they ditch it. They're also closer to a variety show (some magic, some acrobatics, some singing/dancing, minimal story) than they are Broadway, but that suits me just fine. I have great adoration for some musicals, but most of them don't end up on cruise ships (Les Mis is a bit of a bummer after all) so I'd just as soon have some talented people sharing their talents with me and take a pass on Grease or Footloose. In short, MSC is different. It's just as hard to be different in cruising as it was in high school so they have a bit of a bad rep. But I rather enjoy the different. I enjoyed my first MSC cruise in 2021 and I expect I'll enjoy my next one in October and our cruise on Seascape next year. I'd say give different a go. I you hate it, at least it's cheap and (probably) includes a drink package.

Thanks.  Hardly ever drink, so drink package unimportant.

23 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said: It's a tale of two cities. Those that book outside the Yacht Club are the ones in the majority giving the low ratings. You get what you pay for. Now we have been on a couple of MSC Yacht Club sailings and will give  every one  a 5/5 rating. Better than the Coastal Kitchen RCCL, better than The Haven on NCL, better than The Retreat on Celebrity. I have a list of 20 points we love about MSC Yacht Club. But beware, once you cruise YC you will never go back to cruising steerage again.

Yes, I've read all about the Yacht Club and it sounds great.  But at least four times as expensive.  We can afford it, but that's not how we choose to spend our money.  We just want a nice experience for a cheap(er) price.  

Reviews are in the eyes of the beholder….

If you ask 3000 people you will get 5000 different opinions. Do not let other people’s’ opinions - positive or negative - influence your decision. 

Go with an open mind, and form your own opinion.

54 minutes ago, Nebr.cruiser said: Yes, I've read all about the Yacht Club and it sounds great.  But at least four times as expensive.  We can afford it, but that's not how we choose to spend our money.  We just want a nice experience for a cheap(er) price. 

FWIW, we've only sailed outside of Yacht Club and while I'm sure it's fantastic and we will be giving it a try (in an inside) on our Seascape sailing, we were perfectly happy in gen pop. I will add a caveat that this was really early in the restart (Sept 2021) so I have some lack of trust even in my own assessment given that experience was undoubtedly atypical, but our October cruise is outside Yacht Club, on an older ship (Splendida), and in the Med. All three of those tend to yield some of the worst reviews so if we enjoy our next cruise, I'll know just where I stand with MSC. Not sure when you were looking to sail, but I'm sure I'll write up a review when we get back if you have interest in another data point to consider.

I have six MSC cruises, all outside YC.  Well, Armonia doesn’t have YC…. I have been perfectly satisfied in Bella and Fantastica.  Since I didn’t use the spa, Aurea was just a more expensive Fantastica but with My Choice dining.  My next cruise is ten days on Seashore in a Fantastica OV.  Received an offer to bid on upgrade but YIN was more than I was willing to pay.  I’ll wait for better offers.   The dinosaur is in Peter Punk on Seaside.  It might be a takeoff on Peter Pan with a lot of other stuff.  Not sure who the main character was supposed to be, maybe the dinosaur.  Lots of background music but no singing.  EM

1 hour ago, Nebr.cruiser said: Thanks.  Hardly ever drink, so drink package unimportant.

Is bottled water complimentary on MSC in steerage without a drink package?

55 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said: Is bottled water complimentary on MSC in steerage without a drink package?

Yes.  On Seaside in Aurea they opened bottles of Acqua Panna and left the bottle on the table.  The one time I was in a different part of the MDR they poured from a pitcher of ice water.  The bottled water was not cold.  EM

perakcruiser

6 hours ago, Nebr.cruiser said: We've cruised a lot of different lines and really aren't picky--have never had a bad cruise in over 50 sailings, and don't expect luxury or perfection.

You will miss something if you not try MSC. And you should never trust a review from a person you don´t know. Not personally, but if you are active on CC and read the MSC forum you will find so much people you can trust. 

I had a quick look through some of the one star reviews here on CC and can without any concerns declare that the writers are complete id***s 😄  

The chance that a MSC cruise will be your first bad cruise is zero. 

11 hours ago, Nebr.cruiser said: Yes, I've read all about the Yacht Club and it sounds great.  But at least four times as expensive.  We can afford it, but that's not how we choose to spend our money.  We just want a nice experience for a cheap(er) price.  

Our upcoming YC sailing is cheaper than our Concierge IV on Beyond this past January.  Sadly, I fear that MSC will end up raising the YC prices with the increased popularity, which they can comfortably do since Haven/Retreat/Star Class have reached a new high for many sailings.

I hear you about where to spend your money.  I would love to try the higher levels on NCL/X/RCL, and can afford to, but I can't justify the prices.

Markanddonna

I've been on seven MSC cruises. It is just a very different cruise line, and the passenger composition very much depends on the embarkation port. We decided not to cruise out of Miami (too many rude, loud, and sometimes violent passengers (fights at the pool- security called-  from central and South America) but found the crowd out of PC were just all quite happy and polite. 

You just can't compare it to a more refined line like Celebrity, for instance. If I am with my family, MSC is fine (but not out of Miami!).  Have traveled in both inside to balcony on MSC. The crew and cabins are just fine, and the ships are lovely. The food is fine but not exceptional unless you go to the steakhouse.

So many people say how different MSC is to the other lines. I have been on over 25 cruises (3 MSC) and have found them to be more similar than different to any of the other lines I have been on. Especially in the Caribbean where you still go to the same crappy islands as everyone else. The only reason we go on a cruise in the winter is for some good weather and to meet other people and relax. When we want a real vacation we take a land trip in May or September to Europe or Hawaii. I can honestly say I have not liked or disliked any cruise more than the next. It is almost like Groundhogs day when we board. Don't be afraid of MSC.

14 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said: It's a tale of two cities. Those that book outside the Yacht Club are the ones in the majority giving the low ratings. You get what you pay for. Now we have been on a couple of MSC Yacht Club sailings and will give  every one  a 5/5 rating. Better than the Coastal Kitchen RCCL, better than The Haven on NCL, better than The Retreat on Celebrity. I have a list of 20 points we love about MSC Yacht Club. But beware, once you cruise YC you will never go back to cruising steerage again.

Tale of two cities is a perfect way to describe it.   

We’ve been on Seascape for the past 2 weeks. We walk the ship several times each day (Sports Bar still closed this morning btw), and it doesn’t surprise me about the low ratings. Some areas are very crowded, especially the Market Place buffet, which seems like the only breakfast option for non-YC guests. There are long lines for some of the stations and the floors are slippery (from wet bathing suits). That said, the people seem happy and look like they’re having fun. Same with the big main pool deck. We walked thru yesterday afternoon (sea day) and there wasn’t an empty lounger and the pool was full of people. Stressed me out, yet everyone else seemed to be having a good time.   

Got me thinking about when we first started cruising with our kids on RC ships, pre-Coastal Kitchen. Maybe if we were younger (or had never started sailing in suites) we’d be enjoying it too. 🤷‍♀️  

We’ve just finished our morning walk about the ship and are now sitting in Top Sail enjoying a cappuccino. Tale of two cities is right.   

As I was about to hit send, the bartender walked over to our table and asked if I wanted a Bellini, which has been my pre dinner drink. (Morpheus, the guy with glasses who’s there all the time). Service has just been outstanding. 

A Tale of Two Cities.  Yes.  I haven’t sailed in YC yet.  But I have lived in big cities (NYC) and small towns (pop. 250).  I prefer to live somewhere between.  But I have evaluated my priorities in cruising.  First, I want to be ‘on the boat’.  Without my sister, I no longer need a balcony.  Insides are fine, but I like a couch so my next cruise is in an OV.  I hardly drink, so no drinks package or included.  I like to be where the action is, though I seldom participate.  I love to people watch.  I don’t sunbathe.  I don’t need a butler.  Exercise is good for me, I have a walking goal.  I spend little time in my cabin unless sleeping or journaling.  My 📺 usually stays on the bridge cam channel.  I like good food, but am not gourmet.   Being in the gen pop suits me fine.  EM

23 minutes ago, jules815 said: Maybe if we were younger (or had never started sailing in suites) we’d be enjoying it too. 🤷‍♀️

Yes. Yacht Club is "the stuff that dreams are made of."

13 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:  I haven’t sailed in YC yet.

It is 'time' you had. We don't 'need' anything. But now when we cruise we 'want' everything. 

11 hours ago, perakcruiser said: You will miss something if you not try MSC. And you should never trust a review from a person you don´t know. Not personally, but if you are active on CC and read the MSC forum you will find so much people you can trust.    I had a quick look through some of the one star reviews here on CC and can without any concerns declare that the writers are complete id***s 😄     The chance that a MSC cruise will be your first bad cruise is zero. 

I think the two things that made me apprehensive were elevator wait times (my husband finds stairs hard) and smoke smell in many areas--yes, there are areas on all ships that are for smokers, but we've honestly never noticed that smell in other areas.  It doesn't bother me too much--although I've never smoked I grew up with parents who did--but husband is very sensitive to it.

5 hours ago, momofmab said: I fear that MSC will end up raising the YC prices with the increased popularity, which they can comfortably do since Haven/Retreat/Star Class have reached a new high for many sailings.

I was waiting until I was onboard last week to book YC for June 2024. Three weeks ago, the price was $5,300. Last week, it went up to $6,400. I didn't book  😔

We have only sailed Bella, twice on Seaside.  We loved it.  Much bigger ship than we are used to elsewhere, but we didn't find that a negative at all.  The only crowds we experienced were on the stairways heading to dinner each night.  Apart from current reviews of poor behavior and crowding on 3- and 4-night cruises, most of the negative reviews I've read seem to focus on what I consider petty or ill-informed issues: "My husband ordered toast every morning and did not automatically get butter!" (Europeans do not use butter as some Americans do.)  Overall, we really enjoyed the ambience of the many nationalities, compared to the hometown feeling of many of our other cruises, and the little differences due to the European background made it feel like being "away" for a change.

I say go for it!

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• MSC Cruises

MSC and those negative reviews. (Seascape YC)

By jules815 , February 2, 2023 in MSC Cruises

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My husband and I have sailed twice with MSC. 2019 on Seaside in the YC, and Meraviglia in 2021, also in the YC. Loved both of those cruises, loved the YC, yada yada. Two different ship styles, but enjoyed them both very much. I recently booked a week on Seascape for September and then a few days later saw our stateroom (19003) was available for the following week, so we booked a second week turning it into a B2B. 

Part of our evening tv routine lately has been watching cruise vloggers on YouTube. Last night we were so excited to see there was a new one, a tour of Seascape by a cruiser staying in the YC. "That's our ship...and he's in YC! Yay!" Well, as my daughters would say, this guy was "on one." He really didn't like MSC at all. He was touring the ship and complaining about everything. "The ceilings are too low...and I'm not even a tall man." "The food in the buffet is mediocre." "Why are we eating in the buffet when we're spending so much more to stay in the YC?" "The service and food quality in the YC is so bad, we're eating in the dining room and buffet."  Seriously. This guy was walking thru the ship and barely had a nice thing to say about any area at all. He even found fault with the Bridge of Sighs. Wasn't wide enough??  

I've read negative reviews of other ships here as well and still had a great time, but gotta admit, watching this YouTube video has me a wee bit worried. My husband on the other hand says we're going to have a great time, this guy's nuts.

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Markanddonna

I think most aspects of MSC ships are just fine but the Yacht club is another world and those who stay there should always preface their comments. I have been in YC once but prefer to cruise more frequently and don't want to pay those prices.

There are many cutbacks if you are not in the YC. However, the crew and the look of the ship are great. The food outside of YC is really mediocre. I've never eaten so many burgers on a cruise! You won't starve is a good summary.  They have also moved away from an Italian flair to more Hispanic. 

I’m confident that you will have a great time in the YC on the Seascape. I was also worried about the negative reviews posted about MSC and specifically the Seaside and Seascape.  My wife and I just got back from a B2B deluxe balcony on deck 12, fantastica experience.  The only thing I would do different is book 2 separate cruises because I could have upgraded to the Aurea experience for the second week.  The repetitive shows in the theatre weren’t much of a problem for us since it allowed us to check out the shows in La Cabare Rouge and we found these to be better for us.

We found the buffet food comparable to other large ship cruise lines, specifically Royal and Norwegian. We love a good cheese pizza and theirs was really good.  I find that the people that complain the most are not willing to discover the timing of the operations of the ship with the passengers that are onboard that week.  We don’t like packed and lines so we checked the hours of operation for what we wanted and adjusted our schedule accordingly.  We personally loved sleeping in, grabbing a quick lunch, going to the port to shop, come back for early dinner and then go to the shows and be back for late night pizza and tea at 10.

We are early diners and the service at the 5:15 time slot in the MDR was amazing and the food was good. Again comparable to other large cruise lines. The food in the Butchers Cut was very good. When you book B2B you get a 30% off coupon for a la carte dining and I would spring for that definitely. Then go to the dining room in the YC for dessert (but I’m cheap to a fault).

Just off Meraviglia this past Sunday..7 day cruise...Deck 16 in the YC....all I can say is wow.    

I have never had better service.  YC director said we had around 180 out of 230 or so guests.  Butler and Assistant Butler were very helpful.  

Service in the Top Sail lounge was great.  Same in the dining room.  Same on the topmost pool deck.  The breakfast and lunch buffet's there were very nice...

I have sailed MSC once before the shutdown on Seaside, non YC.  This experience was totally different.  

I thought the price was reasonable for the standard YC balcony.  

All in all, Wife and I had a great time. 

Many of the negative reviews I see appear to be from people who are only looking for problems and have a general negative attitude. I have been on 4 MSC cruises in the past year for a total of 33 days (Meraviglia & Divina) and enjoyed them. I was not in YC and thought the food, service and entertainment were equivalent to or better than Carnival and Royal Caribbean. MSC isn’t perfect, but for the price, especially solo, it’s a great value that you can’t get on land or another cruise line.

As far as food complaints, food is obviously subjective and what one person loves, another one hates. Banquet / cafeteria quality is about the best you can expect at the buffets and main dining rooms on most ships now due to the number of passengers. It’s almost impossible to serve 5 Star cuisine at the perfect temperature to 3.000-5,000 people three times a day. I’ve never had what I would consider an inedible meal on any cruise. Everything has not always been perfect, but the “there was nothing to eat” or “everything was horrible” comments are over the top and not true, from my experience.

7 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said:         Just off Meraviglia this past Sunday..7 day cruise...Deck 16 in the YC....all I can say is wow.       I have never had better service.  YC director said we had around 180 out of 230 or so guests.  Butler and Assistant Butler were very helpful.     Service in the Top Sail lounge was great.  Same in the dining room.  Same on the topmost pool deck.  The breakfast and lunch buffet's there were very nice...   I have sailed MSC once before the shutdown on Seaside, non YC.  This experience was totally different.     I thought the price was reasonable for the standard YC balcony.     All in all, Wife and I had a great time. 

Love hearing this!!  Thank you for sharing!  Would love to hear about your favorite - experience, food, entertainment, etc!!  

I’m with the OP, watch a lot of YouTube cruise videos and the Mera seems to be particularly highlighted in a negative way-  slow embarkation, being out of what you need when you need it (cups, plates, ice, silverware, tea, juice in buffet, drink mix or specific alcohol in bars), long lines in bars and buffet, rude guests and staff - it goes on and on… I have not, however, seen a bad YC review!  Hopeful…

1 hour ago, jules815 said: My husband and I have sailed twice with MSC. 2019 on Seaside in the YC, and Meraviglia in 2021, also in the YC. Loved both of those cruises, loved the YC, yada yada. Two different ship styles, but enjoyed them both very much. I recently booked a week on Seascape for September and then a few days later saw our stateroom (19003) was available for the following week, so we booked a second week turning it into a B2B.    Part of our evening tv routine lately has been watching cruise vloggers on YouTube. Last night we were so excited to see there was a new one, a tour of Seascape by a cruiser staying in the YC. "That's our ship...and he's in YC! Yay!" Well, as my daughters would say, this guy was "on one." He really didn't like MSC at all. He was touring the ship and complaining about everything. "The ceilings are too low...and I'm not even a tall man." "The food in the buffet is mediocre." "Why are we eating in the buffet when we're spending so much more to stay in the YC?" "The service and food quality in the YC is so bad, we're eating in the dining room and buffet."  Seriously. This guy was walking thru the ship and barely had a nice thing to say about any area at all. He even found fault with the Bridge of Sighs. Wasn't wide enough??     I've read negative reviews of other ships here as well and still had a great time, but gotta admit, watching this YouTube video has me a wee bit worried. My husband on the other hand says we're going to have a great time, this guy's nuts.                

I will make sure to come back from our cruise on 3/26 will a glowing review of 19003 for you. 🙂   We cruised on Divina in 2018 in YC and loved it.  Everything is subjective, but if someone thinks buffet/MDR food is better than YC food, then there is probably something wrong with their taste buds.  Personally, any food that I don't have to cook is good food 😄

45 minutes ago, L1211 said: Love hearing this!!  Thank you for sharing!  Would love to hear about your favorite - experience, food, entertainment, etc!!   I’m with the OP, watch a lot of YouTube cruise videos and the Mera seems to be particularly highlighted in a negative way-  slow embarkation, being out of what you need when you need it (cups, plates, ice, silverware, tea, juice in buffet, drink mix or specific alcohol in bars), long lines in bars and buffet, rude guests and staff - it goes on and on… I have not, however, seen a bad YC review!  Hopeful…

The Wife and I especially liked the breakfast/lunch on the uppermost pool deck.  It was basically made to order....always a different main meat every day they were carving....lots of side dishes for lunch.  

Nice entertainment in the Lounge in the evening.  Our room may have been 15 steps to the bar...good and bad 🙂   We ventured out in the evenings to see what was going on. Don't forget to ask the Concierge for late night pizza if you want it, they will bring it right to your room.  We asked for and received a bottle of Belvedere Vodka in our room, with any mixers we wanted..

A Butler escorted groups of about 6 to two different shows in the Carousel, not sure if the Seaside Class has that venue.  The main theater had a separate entrance and seating area for YC guests...we went there twice...

The YC card carries some cache at bars around the ship for sure.

Oh yeah, don't for get to visit the spa...some cool things in there..and hot too.  Don't forget the slides.  

Embarkation and Disembarkation were a breeze.  Went to the white YC tent outside the terminal..escorted to YC check in area...goodies waiting there.  Then escorted to the lounge prior to rooms being ready..then the fun started.

Butler walked us off the ship to the front of the line for disembarkation...did I feel bad. No.  

IF someone can't enjoy this treatment and service, they are in need of therapy.  

As a total aside note, my Wife and I are regular cruisers on Celebrity.  I really only missed the Sunset/Martini Bar atmosphere. Never in a suite on Celebrity....only Aqua.  IF we were not in YC, I would prefer Celebrity...we are 59 and 57 if that helps.  

I honestly do not understand the negative reviews of MSC.  We did a short 3-night cruise on Divina over Labor Day weekend last year.  It was a last minute booking and they were the only line available out of our home port of Port Canaveral.  After reading such horrible reviews, we went into the cruise saying, "it's for 3 nights, how bad can it be?"  Well, we loved the cruise, loved the staff, and loved the food.  We were not in the YC, but in a Fantastica balcony.  We loved it so much that we booked a longer 10-day cruise for this coming Sept. while on board.  The private island, Ocean Cay, is really beautiful.  YC has it's own area on the island, but we were fine with "the masses".  We upgraded our drinks package and I enjoyed Nicolas Feuillatte champagne throughout the cruise.  The drinks package even works on the private island.  

We also just took our first Celebrity cruise in December.  Loved Celebrity too, but I think the entertainment on MSC was a bit better.  

1 hour ago, PTC DAWG said:         Just off Meraviglia this past Sunday..7 day cruise...Deck 16 in the YC....all I can say is wow.       I have never had better service.  YC director said we had around 180 out of 230 or so guests.  Butler and Assistant Butler were very helpful.     Service in the Top Sail lounge was great.  Same in the dining room.  Same on the topmost pool deck.  The breakfast and lunch buffet's there were very nice...   I have sailed MSC once before the shutdown on Seaside, non YC.  This experience was totally different.     I thought the price was reasonable for the standard YC balcony.     All in all, Wife and I had a great time. 

LOVED Meraviglia too! We had actually booked another cruise on Seaside, then covid happened and that cruise got canceled and rebooked a couple of times. Then they changed ships on us and I was worried I wouldn't like Mera as much as Seaside, but we absolutely loved it. We were also on deck 16, 16001, all the way at the front next to the lounge. 

1 hour ago, sabres431 said: I will make sure to come back from our cruise on 3/26 will a glowing review of 19003 for you. 🙂   We cruised on Divina in 2018 in YC and loved it.  Everything is subjective, but if someone thinks buffet/MDR food is better than YC food, then there is probably something wrong with their taste buds.  Personally, any food that I don't have to cook is good food 😄

Thank you! I look forward to your review!

Just remembered another thing he said about YC which was not ever our experience on Seaside or Meraviglia. He was walking around the pool deck and pointed out the buffet. He said something like "they offer breakfast and lunch at the poolside buffet, but they choose not to eat there because they don't offer very much." That wasn't our experience on either ship we've sailed on. We had breakfast out there several mornings and I know I'm not imagining the made to order omelets we had, or all the other food on the buffet. We had lunch poolside on Mira and Seaside almost every day and there was so much food to choose from, including really good burgers with grilled onions. (My husband and I would split a burger every day in addition to all the other food. I know, bad, but we're on vacation.)

31 minutes ago, pcrum said: I honestly do not understand the negative reviews of MSC.  We did a short 3-night cruise on Divina over Labor Day weekend last year.  It was a last minute booking and they were the only line available out of our home port of Port Canaveral.  After reading such horrible reviews, we went into the cruise saying, "it's for 3 nights, how bad can it be?"  Well, we loved the cruise, loved the staff, and loved the food.  We were not in the YC, but in a Fantastica balcony.  We loved it so much that we booked a longer 10-day cruise for this coming Sept. while on board.  The private island, Ocean Cay, is really beautiful.  YC has it's own area on the island, but we were fine with "the masses".  We upgraded our drinks package and I enjoyed Nicolas Feuillatte champagne throughout the cruise.  The drinks package even works on the private island.     We also just took our first Celebrity cruise in December.  Loved Celebrity too, but I think the entertainment on MSC was a bit better.  

On our last cruise we were docked overnight at Ocean Cay. The first day we did the beach and the private YC restaurant, which was very nice. The second day we skipped the beach part and took the YC shuttle to their restaurant for lunch, then walked all around Ocean Cay, stopping for a few drinks at the Lighthouse Bar, which we really liked a lot. In fact, we thought that bar was nicer than anything RC has at either of their private islands, although in fairness, we haven't been to CoCo Cay since the refurb. 

morpheusofthesea

2 hours ago, jules815 said:   Part of our evening tv routine lately has been watching cruise vloggers on YouTube

That is part of our evening routine as well. We supplement our information gatherings of FB and CC by subscribing to video bloggers on Youtube to get 'the skinny' (The meaning of THE SKINNY is the true information about someone or something that is not known by most people). And when we hear anything reported contrary to our own experiences we UNsubscribe to that vlogger. Noting that anything they reported or will report is to us, in particular, misleading and of no value.

19 minutes ago, pcrum said: I honestly do not understand the negative reviews of MSC.  We did a short 3-night cruise on Divina over Labor Day weekend last year.  It was a last minute booking and they were the only line available out of our home port of Port Canaveral.  After reading such horrible reviews, we went into the cruise saying, "it's for 3 nights, how bad can it be?"  Well, we loved the cruise, loved the staff, and loved the food.  We were not in the YC, but in a Fantastica balcony.  We loved it so much that we booked a longer 10-day cruise for this coming Sept. while on board.  The private island, Ocean Cay, is really beautiful.  YC has it's own area on the island, but we were fine with "the masses".  We upgraded our drinks package and I enjoyed Nicolas Feuillatte champagne throughout the cruise.  The drinks package even works on the private island.     We also just took our first Celebrity cruise in December.  Loved Celebrity too, but I think the entertainment on MSC was a bit better.  

I appreciate you saying what you just did because it speaks to something else I was mulling over - a 3/4 night cruise in January 

On the one hand 3-nights seem so abbreviated, but on the other it seems like you guys really enjoyed it. Options are Divina or Magica, Nassau and Ocean Cay or Key West and Ocean Cay. Unless I'm missing something I strongly prefer Key West to Nassau, but that locks me into 3-day. It's also Magica vs Divina and I'm not sure what the opinions are around here on some of those older ships (though they're not even that old by industry standards)

3 minutes ago, Avatar345 said:   I appreciate you saying what you just did because it speaks to something else I was mulling over - a 3/4 night cruise in January    On the one hand 3-nights seem so abbreviated, but on the other it seems like you guys really enjoyed it. Options are Divina or Magica, Nassau and Ocean Cay or Key West and Ocean Cay. Unless I'm missing something I strongly prefer Key West to Nassau, but that locks me into 3-day. It's also Magica vs Divina and I'm not sure what the opinions are around here on some of those older ships (though they're not even that old by industry standards)

Is it MSC Magnifica you are wondering about?  I do not see a MSC ship named Magica.  Our MSC 3-night cruise went to Nassau and Ocean Cay.  We always stay on the ship for any cruise that stops at Nassau.  It's nice to enjoy an emptier ship.  I would definitely sail on Divina again; we loved that ship!

We also love Key West.  Our last cruise was on Celebrity Summit and our ports were Key West and Nassau.  I have not read a lot about the Magnifca, but our one MSC experience on the Divina was very good.  So much so that we booked a 10-night cruise on Seaside for this September.

2 minutes ago, pcrum said: Is it MSC Magnifica you are wondering about?  I do not see a MSC ship named Magica.  Our MSC 3-night cruise went to Nassau and Ocean Cay.  We always stay on the ship for any cruise that stops at Nassau.  It's nice to enjoy an emptier ship.  I would definitely sail on Divina again; we loved that ship!   We also love Key West.  Our last cruise was on Celebrity Summit and our ports were Key West and Nassau.  I have not read a lot about the Magnifca, but our one MSC experience on the Divina was very good.  So much so that we booked a 10-night cruise on Seaside for this September.    

Magnifica, right yes - 

So it's Magnifica-4 night Nassau and Ocean Cay

Magnifica 3-night Key West and Ocean Cay

Or Divina 3-night Nassau and Ocean Cay

...all for roughly the same (low) price. Difficult decision!

Just now, Avatar345 said:   Magnifica, right yes -    So it's Magnifica-4 night Nassau and Ocean Cay Magnifica 3-night Key West and Ocean Cay Or Divina 3-night Nassau and Ocean Cay   ...all for roughly the same (low) price. Difficult decision!

Having never been on the Magnifica, it's hard to say.  I will say that 4 nights is always better than 3 (especially at the same price!), but Nassau is really a throwaway port.  I really wish that cruise lines would stop going there.  But, it is always nice to enjoy an emptier ship!!  

I would not hesitate to recommend Divina.  I have read so many positive reviews of Divina on that other site (book of faces).  

1 hour ago, jules815 said:   LOVED Meraviglia too! We had actually booked another cruise on Seaside, then covid happened and that cruise got canceled and rebooked a couple of times. Then they changed ships on us and I was worried I wouldn't like Mera as much as Seaside, but we absolutely loved it. We were also on deck 16, 16001, all the way at the front next to the lounge. 

16005 here..great location no doubt.

MsTabbyKats

50 minutes ago, PTC DAWG said: 16005 here..great location no doubt.

We're gonna be in 16010 (inside) in April.  Only booked YC because "DH WAS having mobility issues".  He's up and running now (ok...he's 88 so not running that fast) but after telling him all the great things that are included, he's really looking forward to it.

Keep the good reviews coming......

If anyone has a link to "the complainer" on youtube, please share.

"If you don't have anything nice to say, come sit next to me." Alice Roosevelt Longworth

5 hours ago, jules815 said: My husband and I have sailed twice with MSC. 2019 on Seaside in the YC, and Meraviglia in 2021, also in the YC. Loved both of those cruises, loved the YC, yada yada. Two different ship styles, but enjoyed them both very much. I recently booked a week on Seascape for September and then a few days later saw our stateroom (19003) was available for the following week, so we booked a second week turning it into a B2B.    Part of our evening tv routine lately has been watching cruise vloggers on YouTube. Last night we were so excited to see there was a new one, a tour of Seascape by a cruiser staying in the YC. "That's our ship...and he's in YC! Yay!" Well, as my daughters would say, this guy was "on one." He really didn't like MSC at all. He was touring the ship and complaining about everything. "The ceilings are too low...and I'm not even a tall man." "The food in the buffet is mediocre." "Why are we eating in the buffet when we're spending so much more to stay in the YC?" "The service and food quality in the YC is so bad, we're eating in the dining room and buffet."  Seriously. This guy was walking thru the ship and barely had a nice thing to say about any area at all. He even found fault with the Bridge of Sighs. Wasn't wide enough??     I've read negative reviews of other ships here as well and still had a great time, but gotta admit, watching this YouTube video has me a wee bit worried. My husband on the other hand says we're going to have a great time, this guy's nuts.     Now you know what us folks who do not sail in the YC feel like.  This is the first time I have seen a bad review for the YC, but see plenty of bad reviews for all everything else but YC.   I have to assume this guy likes nothing about cruising          

58 minutes ago, MsTabbyKats said: We're gonna be in 16010 (inside) in April.  Only booked YC because "DH WAS having mobility issues".  He's up and running now (ok...he's 88 so not running that fast) but after telling him all the great things that are included, he's really looking forward to it. Keep the good reviews coming......   If anyone has a link to "the complainer" on youtube, please share.

Here's the first. There are a couple more that were done by the same person that I haven't had a chance to watch yet. If this isn't allowed can a mod delete? He's not a travel agent.

40 minutes ago, doones2 said:  

I just started watching their other video and he's speaking very favorably of the non-YC dining room. Complaining about the breakfast offerings in the main buffet though. 

3 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said: " 'If you don't have anything nice to say, come sit next to me.' Alice Roosevelt Longworth"

9 hours ago, no1talks said: Morph, if we ever know ahead of time that we are to be on the same cruise, me must exchange gifts. I have already selected yours.  😄

"Its not the thought that counts"

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