Bodster

You're right, it's Palermo. I keep getting those confused.

 

How was Cagliari and Mallorca in specific? I can't find much about either port.

 

What did you do in Marseille? We disembark but don't leave until the next morning, so are staying at the old waterfront.

 

We have 4 kids split between two cabins. Do you know if they'll be able to share that entertainment pass, or will we need to get one for each cabin?

 

Thanks so much, it's hard to get specifics for the Med cruises.

I would of thought that would be 2 cabin passes but you could share. Especially for bowling. My kids were using there cards to do 4 players for other kids they made friends with. More awkward for 4d cinema and f1 car as its staffed by a crew member. [emoji6]

We just went shopping and went on the ferris wheel in the harbour at Marseille.

Palma was a late stop and been there before. Went to a big shopping centre and took a walk. Left at midnight.

Cagliari was ok. Free shuttle bus to the town. A walk and more shopping.

Hope that helps.

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Thanks for the review. We'll be on the Splendida in July, embarking in Marseille. Did you do the Genoa, Civitivecchia, Taormina, Cagliari, Mallorca, Valencia itinerary?

 

How was the weather? Were the nights cool?

It was those ports but palermo and not taormina. The weather was fantastic all week, hardly saw a cloud. Cooler at night but still nice.

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I thought i would put my review on here as well as the submit it for the reviews section on Cruise Critic.

Hopefully my views will help others.

I have just recently returned from a cruise on board the MSC Splendida. I traveled with my partner and our 2 boys aged 10 and 7.

We did the Mediterranean cruise from Genoa for 7 nights 27th May – 3rd June.

We have cruised with MSC once before, last year on the MSC Preziosa so knew exactly what to expect. The Splendida is practically exactly the same except for some different themed bars etc. The ship looks great, very clean with some lovely areas. We again chose the Aurea experience, we all like the choice of ice creams, drinks (cocktails) and the my choice dining. The included massage is also very welcome, we walked a very long way through the week.

The weather was absolutely fantastic all week. We made use of the main pool area on the top deck and the kids enjoyed the pool and made some friends through the week. They also enjoyed the water slide although on a couple of days it was out of service. We usually had no problems with sun beds. There was often entertainment. A snow\foam party and a dj when leaving Cagliari which we thought was great.

We had a balcony cabin on deck 12 near the front, which was very nice. The sofa always converted to a bed and back again when we were out and kept very clean.The food was also very good in the restaurant with a very good selection. The kids had the choice of the children’s menu or the normal menu or something from both which they often had. We also chose breakfast in bed one morning which was delivered on time and very nice. I did chose cereal for the kids expecting this to come with milk but it didn’t. It seems I should of also ticked the box for milk too, the kids wasn’t happy with me! So it was off to the buffet for 2nd breakfast.

The ports of call were all very nice, on some days there was free port shuttle buses and on others it was close enough to walk or a paid service provided by MSC. These are often expensive, with the 4 of us it’s cheaper to get a taxi, and much easier too. For example the bus to Marseille would have cost the best part of 60 euro for 2 adults and 2 kids but a taxi was 20 each way. Another option is to walk to a bus stop and catch a public bus for a few Euros each.

We never done any of the excursions, we chose to do this all on our own. We had fun exploring. We did do a 3-4 seater 3-wheeler thing tour of Palermo for 35 Euros. This may not be everyone’s cup of tea but was great fun. The driver whizzing through the streets and traffic stopping at all the key points of interest for the chance for a photo or to get out and take a look.

There is plenty of entertainment on the ship; we didn’t do any of the shows this year. We just didn’t find the time. The kids only spent an hour or 2 at kids club; they didn’t really go much on it. I think they preferred to be with us and messing around in the pools and slide and relaxing in the hot tub making friends.

We purchased the cabin entertainment pass for unlimited use of the F1 sim, 4d simulator and the bowling; this had gone up from last year’s 55 on the Preziosa to 80 euro. The kids love the bowling and probably between them had about 70 games through the week and at 6 Euros a player (i think) offers good value. It was also fun for a couple games with a beer, it’s not a full size alley. They also enjoyed the 4d sim and made use of that. The f1 car is also very good but on a couple of days it wasn’t working and on others had no sound.I think I only went on it once were it was working properly which was a shame.The f1 sim on the Preziosa is better in my opinion. We also were able to borrow a football and have a kick about in the sports area.

The staff were mostly very friendly and polite, remembering our names. The restaurant Maitre d’ only letting the kids eat if they could tell him the cabin number in Italian. They enjoyed this banter. There was one waitress who remembered us from the Preziosa last year.

We had a great week on the Splendida, fantastic weather and some nice places visited. It was certainly good enough to come back home and book up for August 2018 on the MSC Seafront. We all can’t wait. :D

Thank you for the review and I'm glad you share our thoughts about Preziosa.

 

I loved the Cabin Pass you described and I'm definitely thinking of buying it once onboard next Friday. Can you help me with the conditions of that pass?

 

Thank you.

The cabin pass was relatively simple, it was purchased from the f1 simulator\4d cinema. It allowed everyone staying in the same cabin which in our case was 2 adults and 2 children to have full unlimited access to the f1 sim, 4d cinema, bowling in the sorts bar, table football and table tennis. There may also have been some board games too. As said before the pass was 55 euro.

For the cinema, f1 sim, table tennis and football we just simply showed our card which now had a yellow sticker on it. Occasionally the operator swiped it but not everytime. For the bowling it had to be swiped in the bowling machine giving 1 credit.

Not really sure what else to say, but the kids loved the bowling and the 4d cinema. We certainly had our value for money just for those activities. They were both 2 short for the f1 sim but i made sure i made up for that! :)

The f1 sim and 4d cinema at peak times was extremely busy but in the morning for example it was dead and we were often the only ones there. It was never difficult to get a game of bowling, the kids often shared with other kids and organized it between themselves as there is only 2 lanes.

Im starting to sound like an MSC sales rep now! I hope you enjoy your cruise and cabin pass. :)

The cabin pass was €55 for the whole family, or everyone in the same cabin. This is why I thought it was such good value.

Thanks for your review as we are going on Preziosa in June (our first with MSC) and it's great to read positive reviews. Can't wait now.

We had a great week and I hope you enjoy your week as much as we did.

Thanks for coming back so quick. Did you buy onboard or beforehand.

 

Thanking you in advance

We bought it onboard at the f1 car\4d cinema.

The other half has just informed me the hair straighteners were hers

I knew i should of got her to proof read my review!

Great Review Thanks!!

 

Just 1 quick question. How much was the cabin pass for the week. Its definitely something my kids would love

It was 55 euro.

The bowling was 6 euro per game, the f1 was 8 euro for 3 laps and the 4d cinema was 6 euro each (i think)

it did offer great value, the bowling games are over pretty quickly as its only 5 frames.

My 1st time on an MSC ship and thought i would also leave my review here if anybody wants to comment. I only have Thomson ships and a weekend p&o cruise to compare this ship against. Other users may not agree with all my comments but remember these are my opinions.

I have just returned from an excellent 7 night cruise on the MSC Preziosa.

I travelled with my partner and our 2 boys aged 9 and 6. We flew from Gatwick (more about that later) to Genoa.

Transfer to the ship was no problem and easy as it’s only a short journey. Check in at Genoa to board the ship was very efficient, we had the Aurea experience which helped as we had an express check in (or something similar). There was no hard sell as other reviews have mentioned, there are a lot of sales reps from the ship trying to sell add-ons but maybe they knew the package we had but we were onboard in no time.

Getting to the cabin was easy; we were on deck 12 near the front, lovely cabin with plenty of space for us and the kids. Clean and tidy with everything we needed, shower gel, shampoo, hairdryer, hair strengtheners (for her), 2 shower robes and a 1 size fits all pair of slippers each! Nice tv too which was good to see the position of the ship although English speaking tv channels were limited. This is the 1st cruise were we have had a balcony and we all loved it, I wouldn’t book a cruise now without one. The cabin steward always kept the room immaculate, turned the beds down at night and changed the sofa to a bed for the kids and back again to a sofa in the morning.

The ship looks amazing and is all very clean and still feels like new. The choice of bars and restaurants are also very good. All the staff I spoke to were very polite, helpful and friendly. Their knowledge of various different languages was also very good. Service is slightly different to other cruises as bar staff has to be called over a lot of the time but this wasn’t a problem. The Aurea package gave us all free drinks and ice cream which we all loved.

We also had use of the solarium and sauna which we unfortunately didn’t use but we did take advantage of a massage which was very welcome after a busy few days of walking. I took my gym gear planning to get on the bikes but I was so busy with other things I never found the time.

We had breakfast in the lobster restaurant on most of the days, this was always good with a good selection and friendly waiters. The choice in the buffet was better, but go at the wrong time and it is unbelievably busy. We also had dinner in the lobster which was always very good. The buffet always had a good selection of food and snacks all day long but very busy at peak times and in my opinion better to be avoided when it’s like this. It was a manic free for all. (pretty much the same as any other ship i have been on)

There is so much to do onboard the ship, especially compared to what I have been on before. The pools were great and the kids loved the kids water park play area, the vertigo slide I also thought was great. We done the cabin pass for the week for unlimited bowling, the 4d cinema and my favourite the F1 Simulator, the f1 sim is brilliant. It can be busy at times but go at the right time and nobody is there, at times myself and another very competitive f1 enthusiast had the place to ourselves. The cabin pass is great value, especially if you have kids or are a big kid like I am! The pass also gives access to table football and table tennis.

We had some lovely weather on the cruise, especially in Sicily and Malta, the pool areas were particularly quieter than I was expecting especially in the mornings, maybe this is because the ship has passengers embarking and disembarking at every port. There were very few towels on sun beds which was a refreshing change from the English ships I have cruised on with the towels on sun beds at 1st light!

We also went to 3 of the shows during the week; I thought 2 of these were excellent with acrobatic dancers and some very clever choreographed performances. We all enjoyed the shows we watched.

The only organized excursion we done was Rome on your own. It was well organized but Rome was extremely busy as it was Easter Monday. On some of the stops particularly at Barcelona and Marseille the ship was quite far from the city centre and shuttle bus was offered from the ship which was expensive, especially as you can walk maybe a few yards from the ship and catch a public bus for a few euros.

Overall the cruise was fantastic and a very positive experience, I will definitely sale with MSC again as it did offer great value for money. As other reviews have mentioned I was apprehensive as there are several negative reviews but I didn’t have any of the problems others have mentioned.

I do have a couple moans which I thought better to go at the end rather than start with a negative. Flying from Gatwick with BA was a complete shambles for some bizarre reason and excuses of new computer systems all the MSC passengers couldn’t be checked in, the flight was delayed for 2 hours! It was pretty much the same on the return flight from Genoa, in the end we all had to be checked in by pen and paper!!! Not MSC’s fault but not a good start or end to the cruise. Especially with 2 bored kids!

My other gripe is the smoking in the casino and some of the bars, I don’t think this is very nice and leaves a nasty smell.

We all had a great week and can’t wait to go back on the Preziosa or another MSC ship. It was a great family holiday.

Maybe you can also park in the disabled space at the airport. But glad stamping you feet got you your upgrade.

I still don't understand the downgrade bit.

Have I understood this correctly?

They want to take away your free upgrade and give you a cabin which you have originally paid for so that a disabled passenger can have some extra space!!

That's disgusting!!

I would feel ashamed that I had sent that email to Thomson never mind posting it on a forum.

I just got back from the Majesty last week too. I preferred the Dream last year to be honest but its all down to personal preference. I didn't like the fact half of deck 10 is for smoking and its too much glass.

Deck 11 where everyone is laid out in the sun felt far to cramped, but there were other places to go and get out the way.

I didn't do any of the shows etc so cant compare with either of them.

I also preferred the food on the dream in the restaurant.

Agree with the comment above about Kallamata. What a dump. We nipped over to Jumbos or whatever it was called looked at all the trains in the park then messed about on the beach with the kids for a little while.

My parents done the similar cruise last year and stopped at Katakolon which looked lovely. Could of even visited Olympia. I would have much preferred this stop.

If its of any help we were on the Dream last year in 5136 (outside plus cabin)which was almost right in the middle.

Never heard any noise or vibration. It was a fantastic cabin for 2 adults and 2 young kids.

Bodster - a fellow Majesty Cruiser on Friday 15th May. This will be my husband and I's 2nd cruise on the Majesty. 3rd Thomson Cruise for me having been on the Celebration back in 2009.

Only 4 days to go!!

Thanks for the review speedy. A good honest review and a very good read. We are away on the Majesty next Friday. :)

Like you we had our first cruise last year on the Dream and that had us hooked. We have another cruise with p&o in August and already looking at next year!

I was on the Dream towards the end of may, it was my 1st time on a cruise. Myself and my family loved the holiday, the ship and staff were great. We would go again tomorrow. :) You could be picky and go around and point out a bit of rust here or there and yeah the window frames were a bit tarnished in places but it didnt stop us having an amazing holiday. Its certainly no rust bucket.

The food and the service in the MDR was also fantastic which was were we ate the majority of the time.

As for the plus cabins, we were also advised similar about not pre booking a cabin number. We had an outside+ cabin, 5136 and thought it was perfect, clean spacious and perfect for our week.

I can see even less of a reason to book early now, thanks for the replies, we have been looking at a few dates for next summer but will wait, or at least keep or eye on the prices.

What an interesting read this read has been regarding the prices and the best time to book. We have been looking at booking on the Majesty for next year but thought the prices were a little high and there didnt seem to be an incentive to book so early.

We only booked about 6 weeks before going on the Dream recently so no real experience regarding the best times to book.

After reading through this i will wait.

Are there any times of the year when there are offers on or is it just a case of keeping an eye on the prices?

Also regarding the free all inclusive, i get the impression that this will get removed and i assume the price will drop?

We had an outside plus cabin with a bath and 2 shower heads. The top shower head was fixed but i am pretty sure the lower one was removable.

The only reason i could see the point of this was possibly for the kids to use the lower shower head, the wheel in the middle controlled which one the water came out, but i agree with posts above it wasnt completely obvious at 1st and was interesting with them both going!!

Have they got any new sunbeds on deck 9 yet? Last year's brown ones were falling apart. They had seen better days when they took the ship over in 2010.

There is a post on this forum i saw a few weeks ago saying the dream had 450 new sunbeds, while i admit to not sitting in all the sunbeds on the ship the ones i saw and used were all fine and i did see alot that looked brand new.

I cant be of any more help than that, sorry.

Hi, thanks for the comments. I did submit the exact same review to cruise critic on Tuesday but its not appeared on the site. It did say it may take a few days. Not sure why its not there yet, but would be disappointed if it didn't get published.

Sorry, maybe i wasnt quite clear, for the captains night i wore a suite with a blue tie and at other times in the Orion it was trousers with a collared shirt.

After just coming back from a week on the Dream i also thought the same regarding inaccuracies when reading that review which is why i have posted my review to the reviews section (its not up yet) and also posted on the forums to give people a chance to respond or even to ask any questions.

We were lucky enough to get on the bridge tour and i thought the captain was great he was happy to sign the kids autograph books as part of the kids club game and for pictures with the kids, i did take my suit but had a blue tie! No problem for me. We ate in the Orion almost all the time and i did wear shirts or polo shirts but a tie was not a requirement.

I also didnt see any of the captains little rules he likes to enforce!

Some of the entertainment wasnt my thing but its a big enough ship to find something else to do, i certainly could not give it a poor review because its not my thing!!

Reviews are only opinions but it is frustrating that its not possible to reply. When we were looking at which cruise to do for our first it was reviews like that which made me question myself if i was doing the correct thing and i was fortunate enough look through them and to also look on the forums, i am glad i did as i had an amazing week. :)

Great review, the Majesty is one we are looking at for next year. I liked your comparisons to the Dream.