First Time Cruisers on MSC Preziosa

A big hello to everyone here on the Cruise Critic forums! Thank you for providing the insight you do to first time cruisers like myself.

My family and I are embarking on our first ever cruise on the MSC Preziosa on the 6th of November departing from Rome and visiting Italy, Malta, Spain and France. I have taken the time to read the differing reviews, some from veterans of American cruise lines and others who are more diverse in their choice of lines. Needless to say the negative reviews have impacted the way I am viewing the holiday. So I was hoping all you good folks might be able to put my mind at ease.

1) We are booked into cabins 9128 and 9126 Balcony Fantastica rooms. Does any one have any idea if these are good cabins and how large they are?

2) I know with Fantastica we get room service breakfast for free. What does this consist of?

3) Speaking of food. Is anyone familiar with how well MSC handles allergy concerns? My husband is a strict coeliac and I want to make sure that he will be accomodated before we depart.

4) What are the main differences between the two all inclusive drinks packages? Is the by the glass wine list extensive and worth the investment?

5) We are staying overnight the day before embarking at Rome. Can we head to the docks and drop our cases off and go back to Rome? Or would you recommend we visit the city and head down to the dock later in the day? And what is the latest you would recommend heading to the ship?

6) How busy is the ship likely to be in November? I understand the weather will be less than ideal.

Those are all of the questions I can think of at present. Thank you so much for all of your help in advance!

Only a couple of comments here...Your cabins are the standard balcony cabins, with good views. Only caveat is that 9126 has an interior connecting door to 9124, which could present noise issues. I would try to either try to move from that cabin to 9130, or move from 9128 to 9124 so that the connecting cabins contain only your family.

As far as luggage is concerned, you do realize that the ship sails from Civitavecchia, not Rome? And that CV is more than an hour from Rome? They probably would not be accepting luggage before 9:30am, if that early, and you would not be able to check in that early...so you would not be back in Rome before 11:30am. The ship sails at 1700, you would have to be back onboard before 1500, giving you time to check in...and leaving 1.5 hours travel back to CV...You might have two hours to see Rome...You are better off getting in another day early if you want to explore Rome, or board the ship in Genoa on 5 Nov. and have a full day to see Rome at the first port. Just my opinion, I am sure others will be along to give you a more precise time frame. You might also visit the Ports of Call board here for Italy. EM

A big hello to everyone here on the Cruise Critic forums! Thank you for providing the insight you do to first time cruisers like myself.

 

My family and I are embarking on our first ever cruise on the MSC Preziosa on the 6th of November departing from Rome and visiting Italy, Malta, Spain and France. I have taken the time to read the differing reviews, some from veterans of American cruise lines and others who are more diverse in their choice of lines. Needless to say the negative reviews have impacted the way I am viewing the holiday. So I was hoping all you good folks might be able to put my mind at ease.

 

1) We are booked into cabins 9128 and 9126 Balcony Fantastica rooms. Does any one have any idea if these are good cabins and how large they are?

 

We are boarding on Sunday and our friends have connecting cabins 9141-9139, so I will let you know soon.

 

2) I know with Fantastica we get room service breakfast for free. What does this consist of?

 

Cereals, pastries, fruit, juices, coffee etc.

 

3) Speaking of food. Is anyone familiar with how well MSC handles allergy concerns? My husband is a strict coeliac and I want to make sure that he will be accomodated before we depart.

 

they will be able to meet your husbands needs. We were trying my daughter out on a CF/GF diet the last time we were on MSC and we had no issues at all.

 

4) What are the main differences between the two all inclusive drinks packages? Is the by the glass wine list extensive and worth the investment?

 

Main difference is a much better choice of wine, top shelf alcohol and also a minibar in your room. In addition you can also use it for coffees and pastries.

5) We are staying overnight the day before embarking at Rome. Can we head to the docks and drop our cases off and go back to Rome? Or would you recommend we visit the city and head down to the dock later in the day? And what is the latest you would recommend heading to the ship?

 

As prev poster said you are in Civitecchia which is an hour by car to Rome.

 

6) How busy is the ship likely to be in November? I understand the weather will be less than ideal.

 

Sorry cant help there.

 

Those are all of the questions I can think of at present. Thank you so much for all of your help in advance!

Hope this helps. let me know if you have any further queries.

Well, first of all, I think you can have a great time if you go in with realistic expectations. The cabins are small, the ship can be crowded, and the food might not be fine dining.

I was on the Preziosa 18 months ago out of Venice with my (then) 17-year-old daughter, who has celiac disease. (We spell it differently in Canada.)

I can't answer questions 1 & 2.

There is a menu for Celiacs in the main dining rooms. Of course, some of the main courses are GF anyway. There is always GF pasta and GF bread. I would note that once at lunch my daughter's spaghetti bolognese was piping hot in some places and freezing cold in others --- a pretty sure sign that it was microwaved from frozen. Sorry to tell you that but it's the truth.

The buffet did not offer GF choices, other than those that were GF anyway.

We had the Allegrissimo drink package and I recommend it. (I don't know anything about the wine package.) We paid a little less than adult couples because my daughter's was still at a child rate. I'm not sure that we saved a lot but it was nice to have unlimited drinks, including bottled water, and gelato. We were in the Adriatic in August so the heat was intense.

The red wine offered the first night was not to my taste, so I asked for a different selection the next night. It was much better, and from then on a bottle of that vintage was at my table setting every night.

I strongly suggest not leaving Rome early, going to the port, then returning to Rome, and returning later. The port is a long way from Rome, and plenty can go wrong to and from. Please don't do it. You would see a lot more of the train than the city.

I have no idea about who cruises in November. It will depend on school vacation schedules. I think the weather might still be mild and ideal for touring, but perhaps less so for sunbathing.

The Preziosa is a beautiful ship. The public areas are attractive and the cabins are well laid out. The food wasn't fantastic but it was perfectly fine. Celiacs are accommodated. The shows were not my style, but lots of people love them --- and that's not condescension on my part, just different preferences.

Have a great trip.

I can help with the winter/weather question, having been on the Splendida and Preziosa in Winter within the Med.

The ship will still be as busy. For sure, it is a different experience to summer. That's not necessarily a negative however. I generally found the outer decks busy during sailaway. The pool bar was still open, with people choosing to sit and have a drink outside.

I'd say it's a little more relaxing in winter as it's a slightly slower pace. However, the interior of the ship is very lively and enjoyable.

I also found nighttime to be a little more lively/later, perhaps as people arn't so desperate to get up early to sit in the sun.