We have a short cruise on MSC Seaside from 08/13 - 08/17.
Specialty dining packages are being offered for 4 restaurants (Butchers Cut, Pan Asian, Teppanyaki, Ocean Cay) at ($190?!) per person.
I have a couple of questions about this.
1. Based on my observations searching around on this forum and menu photos from other websites, it seems like $190 per person for the dining experience at those 4 restaurants is the essentially the same price as the menu price for the dining experience (not a la carte) at the restaurants. IE: $39 at Butchers Cut, $60 at Ocean Cay, $47 at Pan Asian, and $44 at Teppanyaki for Samurai). It’s literally $190. I saw others who seemingly were offered way better deals for specialty dining packages in the past. What’s the value proposition of paying $190 for the dining package, or do I misunderstand something? Have the menu prices changed recently so that the $190 is worth it?
2. Is it easy to book these restaurants without a dining package? I saw mixed reviews on this, with some saying they had a hard time finding desirable times at the concierge desk for any of the restaurants. On the other hand, some were saying that the restaurants are basically empty and it’s nothing to just walk up and get a seat.
Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated - my wife is really selective about dining, and has been pushing for the dining package, but I don’t really see the value proposition. We’ve never cruised with MSC, so are a bit in the dark on this one.
Side note: It’s impossible to actually book the dining package on the website. You are forced to pick a reservation time for each restaurant. When trying to pick a time at the first restaurant, it basically says fully booked no matter what time you choose. However, if you call MSC they say that it’s available and you can pay for it now and book your times when you get on the ship.
