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On ‎3‎/‎19‎/‎2019 at 12:34 PM, Touringmom said:

We booked with MSC for the first time a few days ago. So far, I'm not impressed with them. We never got email confirmations. Had to call twice before they arrived, over a day and a half after booking. Birthdates were wrong for 2 people. When I log in to our booking, I can only see "Enhance your cruise" options to buy add-ons, but not our inofrmation or itinerary etc. Is this normal for MSC?

YES,YES,YES. You best get use to it.

36 minutes ago, thetaro said:

So I made 3 bookings with 10%. I went to the website to do the web check-in to fill in passport information.

 

Bang, all 3 bookings got repriced and the balance due went up with 10% dropped.

 

Dealing with MSC is nothing but frustration. Called the CSR and they said there are hundreds of bookings like this, and they will need to ask the Main Office to reapply the code but it would take some time since my booking is months away.

 

Worst case I would just cancel and rebook again and hope that they don't pull this stunt after final payment.

Worst CS of any Cruise line, They have some great ships, But try booking them.

On ‎11‎/‎23‎/‎2018 at 8:13 PM, Mattnvick said:

Update:

 

After waiting for 15 mins for a supervisor, the agent who he was talking to originally comes back on and says yes actually anyone that booked before August gets the vouchers as at that time they were included. 

 

A bit more training needed for that agent.  She argued for a long time we were not entitled to them and did not want to pass us on to someone higher up. Would love to have been a fly on the call in the call centre........ 

Im afraid we are dealing with MSC, GET EVERY THING IN WRITING. They chop and change every thing, I made a booking on Dec 22  2018, For a cruise in April 2020  It took 9 weeks to confirm it, I had  %10 VOUCHER from an other cruise, They said it had to be sent to Italy to be confirmed ( I think it had to be signed by the Pope). There CS are possibly the worst of any Cruise company.
I don't think they will be any good to you, But I have 20 voucher left over from our last cruise, You are welcome to them.If you want them.
Reg.

1 hour ago, citizenfrank said:

Is this official now?

Thank you 

Enjoy your Cruise.

1 hour ago, legin1 said:

   Just got this through   Good Morning,

 

Following our conversation the other day, I’ve now received an email back from MSC.

 

MSC have now confirmed this rule has now been removed and only for the UK, so the tips are not compulsory.

 

Clients can remove them at the end of the cruise if they are not happy with the service.

 

Hope this helps, please contact customer services if you still need any help on

Hi, I have just had the same info from my TA, It may well be added on board, But can be removed by going to the CS on the first day on board. UK passengers only.

5 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

 

Apologizing without Apologizing. There is a way of apologizing that isn’t an apology at all but is meant to look like an apology and is done out of duty. Generally this happens when people say, “I’m sorry if I hurt you.” The key word in this sentence is “if”. What the person is saying is, “I don’t think I really did anything to hurt you but if you think I hurt you then I will dutifully apologize.”

This kind of apology is, in a sense, the minimum kind of apology one can make. It is an apology, but one that is qualified by the “if.” Hence it is meaningless.

 

Sorry you see it  that way.It was not Meaningless.

1 minute ago, Beamafar said:

That means that you ARE referring to me, but not JUST to me   🙄

I may not have posted it in the best way , But it was not intended as a Personal comment on you. If you feel I did  I Apologise.

2 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

 

Where have I told ANYONE what to do?

4 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

 

Where have I told ANYONE what to do?

You never, I did say Im not just referring to you.

8 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

 

So ... you're implying that the crew are only friendly if you pay them directly?  That's a downright lie.  We have always found the crew to be friendly and helpful without the need for a bribe.  In fact, we've had exceptional service just because we were known.

We have always found the staff friendly no matter where we have sailed, I always take time out to find out where they live and how are there family. But its very hard to have a smile on your face all of the time when you are working 18 hr days, 7 days a week, Some on contracts of 9 months, Thousands of miles away from home.  This is why we prefer to look after the staff we come in contact with, It a personal choice , If you feel happy paying the DSC then that's fine, But please don't tell every one else what to do, And im not just referring  to yourself here, But there is a lot of posts on here which are not very nice.
As some one who has worked on a Cruise liners Terminal for over 5 yrs, I no what the cabin/ Waiter staff would sooner have.
But this is a HOLIDAY SITE, lets be a bit more friendly to each other.

7 hours ago, citizenfrank said:

Morning

An unspectacular update, but an offering into this sea of confusion, bitterness and passion none the less.

I've just spoken to MSC, initially regarding the Trio dining package that seems to be avoiding me.

However as Michael seemed highly proficient and spoke in a voice similar to a leading Soho hotel concierge, I thought I would enquire if he knew anything about the Devious Service Charge and it's change in policy from 31/03/2019.

 

He sighed like a man tired of being left in the proverbial mess by his employers before advising with great authority that they were told late on Friday to advise passengers that from 31/03/2019 the DSC would be added to all applicable accounts and could not be removed.

I enquired what about bookings made historically and with T&C's outside of any new contracts.

"Sir it applies to all sailings irrespective of booking date"

That cannot be right and is in violation of UK/EU law I suggested.

"That I wouldn't know" was the reply followed by "We have been told that this is the process and any queries regarding the policy should be addressed whilst on board to guest services"

I said this will cause mayhem aboard and his reply was....

"No doubt but this is the advise we are instructed to provide to callers"

My next observation was to suggest that this merely made the contact centres staff lives easier and passes the disruption to the ships with limited resources and thus disruption to other passengers.

"Possibly yes" was the reply.

 

I then likened this to the recent drinks package debacle, where I suggested that an amnesty was created under the values of fair play and  common sense, so would this be the likely outcome....

"I have no idea or opinion above the statement I have been asked to provide" said Michael.

I thanked him for his time, kicked the cat, threw my coffee cup agressively and typed this.

 

We wait for further developments as one

....plus all the haters who will no doubt be standing to attention now and saluting Michael with the buttons on their 'gratuities police' uniforms all gleaming 👮

Hi, I got almost the same reply,

8 hours ago, cruiser man 60 said:

Has anyone had any response from a U.K. Travel agent they booked through to obtain their take on this change without notice?

Hi, I called MSC on Sat to try and find out what was going on. I was told that all passengers from the end of March 2019 would have to pay the Service charge, But when pressed about it, The fact that I had booked my cruise last yr, They then said I could talk to the CS once on board to see what they could do. Once I pointed out that in my case the difference of paying and not paying was a round £600 , And if they think I was going to wait till I was on board to find out, That was never going to happen.
I asked if all the TA had been informed about the change, to which they said yes, I have spoken to my TA to day and they no nothing about it.It just seems to be typical MSC, you never get the same reply twice, The staff don't no whats is going on, I do feel sorry for them at times as they are the one's getting all the flak. The promised to email me to day, Never happened, So 10 mins before closing time I called them again. I was told that the matter had been taken to the highest level due to all the complaints regarding the SC, and they will email me as soon as they find out what is happening. Lets see what happens.  

13 hours ago, Beamafar said:

 

I personally believe that it is as a result of so many removing the charge, Dave.  Otherwise there would be no need to make it mandatory.

 

However, we have no idea how the company distributes this charge and it's dishonest on their part not to include it in the fare upfront.  Too many mega-industries are getting away with evading their responsibilities on tax.

 

I also find it galling to be lectured by some who live in a country where the working poor are issued food stamps to allow the rich get richer on their backs by paying paltry wages - then guilt-tripping the population into paying tips to supplement said paltry wages.

Morning, You are right about the Rich getting richer, None of us on hear would be coincided poor, Or we would not be booking a Cruise costing thousands of £/$. The CEO of MSC is worth over $9 Billion, That's 9,000,000,000. I think that's the  right number of 0. Im sure some of you on hear will be glad to no he's well on his way to his $10 billion. But we are expected to subsidies his work force by giving tipps, What should be happening is every one working for a cruise line should be given a LIVINGWAGE. if this puts the cost of cruising up, Then so be it, If you can afford it that's fine, If not look else where. Im not saying don't give tips to people who you come in to contact with and you feel they have given you a good service, That's a personal thing, But to be told you have no choice. No that's not for me.
Im 72 yrs of age, I don't use the Kids club, I don't use the Gym,The  Spar,The Space invader games,  But I am excepted to tip the staff working there.  PAY  A LIVING WAGE, PROBLEM SOLVED.   

4 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

 

I agree ... the response you received in relation to cancelling didn't make sense if the cruise had been next April.  With a thread as active as this, it's easy to miss editing in a post.

 

I wonder if MSC will allow cancellations without forfeiting booking deposits.  🤔

 

 

Don't think so. Its MSC.
Just a quickie, Drinks Vouchers, I have around 20 of them left over from last April, Im not sure, But if any one is sailing before the end of March this yr , You can have them with Pleasure.

4 minutes ago, sidari said:

This was the response on Thursday to my questions about those with bookings already made, having previously asked about the DSC being Mandatory and being told it would begin on March 31st.

 

I am sorry Mr. D unfortunately  we just have the below information so far. If anything else we get to know on the same query we shall email you.

Hi, I think it all depends on who you talk to, You will never get the same reply twice. Like I said its MSC I will wait till Monday and see what they say.

1 minute ago, Beamafar said:

 

Thanks ... but here is what you posted:

 

Hiya , You are right in what you say, I have a cruise booked with them next April, 30 DAYS, It was booked last year,

Yes, That's why I have added to the post, Its a 30 day Cruise In April 2020. , Sorry if I confused any one. This is supposed to be a Holiday forum, But there is a lot of nasty bits flying around.

37 minutes ago, hamrag said:

 

It's not too late to cancel your booking, and for over a year out no flights can be booked as yet!

Hi,, We may well do just that, But having just spoken to MSC customer service in the last 30 mins And by the way they are in full agreement with me,  that the enforced tipping is unfair on people who have existing bookings, They will be Emailing me on Monday to confirm that I do not need to pay the charge. But this is MSC so i will wait and see.
Just to clear some thing up, My cruise in April is in 2020, Not 2019. 

Just now, Beamafar said:

The difficulty is going to be proving what T&Cs were in existence at the time of booking and/or on what date, exactly, was this mandatory policy introduced.  I also wonder if the company is legally required to notify those who've already booked that there is now a compulsory charge onboard.

Hi, Its like I said, Before I ever book a cruise, I always ask Can the SC be cancelled , I was told by the MSC Customer Service people that it would be no problem. We are on a 30 day cruise, that adds around an other £600 to the cruise. Had I been told no you cant stop it then we would not have booked it.

5 minutes ago, citizenfrank said:

Same here Bea.

And they can't ...it's just about dealing with it, collectively or individually, because as with the drinks saga it's wrong.

Hiya , You are right in what you say, I have a cruise booked with them next April, 30 DAYS, It was booked last year,We sailed with them last April , The cruise was so bad they gave us a %10  discount of any future cruise. We cancelled the tips on the last cruise, And I always ask before I ever book ,CAN THE TIPS BE CANCELLED, I was told that there would be no problem just see the CS on board. The Family who own MSC are Billionaires' Let them pay the staff a LIVING WAGE , Then there will be no need for tipping. If by including the cost of the tips in the Advertised Price of the Cruise, Makes it to expensive , There are lots of other Cruise lines out there who will be glad of our money.  

1 hour ago, janny444 said:

Hi....just to let you know that we have taken " the plunge" and booked a cruise with C&M departing Liverpool....just a 3 night taster cruise . I really hope it works for us because it is so much more convenient departing from Liverpool but also some of the itineraries look very interesting

Good for you, Im sure you will have a great few days, Which ship?.

On ‎2‎/‎4‎/‎2019 at 7:12 AM, Scot born said:

I am using the uk site with user name and password 

Hi, They have the worst Webb site of any Cruise comp, It has just taken me from Dec 7  2018 to Yesterday to confirm my booking. Had to make dozens of emails and calls, Some time it makes you feel like just packing up and sail with some one else.
Reg.

13 hours ago, diesel1973 said:

I noticed when you went to GS with a complaint they would listen to you then would go in behind a closed door for a while then come out and give you your decision,be it right or wrong. Were they talking to home office or were they consulting with the "Wizzard"?

Hi,  You are right, They put you on hold for 15/20 then come back and tell you what you want to hear then nothing happens, Reg

2 hours ago, thetaro said:

 

I have lots of problems with the website and my booking, but I don't blame customer service. I work in IT, you can't really blame the user when the system is broken.

 

There are so many glitches and bugs in their booking system, customer management system, website and account management. Most of the time, they simply can't do what they want to do to help you. The system simply won't allow it. 

 

They are set up to fail. They need to overhaul the whole backend. Americans are so used to Amazon kind of customer service. Yes, we don't even have patience waiting for Prime 2nd day package, let alone answering my email in 10 days and still don't solve nothing.

 

MSC won't do any good with this kind of customer service in US. 

 

 

Hi, You are prob right, I have a list of 10 different people who I have spoken to over the last 10 weeks, RE my booking,Every one promised it would be sorted out in 24 hrs, As of yet nothing. You are right about the person on the other end of the phone can only work with the tools they are given, But when you are left on hold for 20/25 mins  and you still don't get what you wanted.
I have spoken to so many MSC staff I have now been invited to there Christmas Party. 
I have sent a email to the CEO in ITALY, 3 weeks ago listing all the failings, But as normal still waiting for a reply.
Reg.

2 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

Ahhh...... now that makes perfect sense.

 

I do agree with most on this thread in that MSC customer service has a long way to go. I do think some of this is cultural differences. North Americans tend to operate under the tenets of  'customer is always right'.  As you can see from this thread, MSC mindset more resembles "take it or leave it'. The MSC way or the high-way.  This is perfectly fine if you know going in and understand that if problems arise, MSC may not be as solution orientated as North Americans are accustom to. It's a common theme repeated across many forms of social media and cruise critic reviews. 

 

I

 

 

 

 

 

Hi, There seems to be a Mental blockage  when dealing with with the Customer Service, You make your complaint or what ever it is you are talking to them for, They fully agree with you, They promise you the Earth, Then nothing happens. I made a booking on Dec 7 2018 , After 9 weeks and endless emails and calls , Nothing. I am still waiting for my final price. To day  every one in there C/S/  has promised that I will have all my details by close of play TODAY,  Its now 5pm in the UK  STILL WAITING FOR THE CALL.
I will keep you informed  about my Journey , Wish  me luck.
Reg.

11 hours ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

Kotor absolutely has tides. Not sure if you are saying that MSC tried to tell you Kotor did not have tides?  Or are you stating that MSC did not calculate the tides correctly? We had steep tendering in Kotor also but we transfered on Kotor's tenders. Were you using Kotor or MSC tender vessels?

 

OP: Glad you are getting some level resolution. 

Hi, We never had tenders, We berthed along side the quay  The gang way was so steep it was a danger to any one using it, As a result It took 1.5 hrs of queuing on board the ship before we got to the top of the Gang way . They would not let more than 1/2 people at a time to use it.  What they should have had is a raised platform on the Quay to take some of the incline of the gangway.As some one who has worked on the Cruise Term at Liverpool, Where we have very high tides,Its some thing we had to use from time to time. Depending on the tide. What they did in Kotor would not have been allowed in the UK.
The tides in Kotor are VERY little in difference.To day High tide was 0.29 mt, Low tide0.27 mt, as you can see very little in it, For the Officers on duty not to no that, Ill leave it at that.
Nice talking to you.
Reg.   .

On ‎12‎/‎4‎/‎2018 at 10:39 PM, Stockjock said:

My girlfriend and I have cruised on MSC once in late 2016.  We did an 11 night out of Rome on Divina and had a great time.  The ship was beautiful, while the itinerary changed, it was still very good.  Only slight gripe was that the (mostly) Eastern European crew was somewhat unfriendly and seemed like they hated their jobs, their lives and their passengers.  But otherwise, it was a generally positive experience.

On that cruise, we visited Cinque Terre, which I really enjoyed.  So I found a 4 night cruise out of Barcelona that stopped in Cinque Terre and booked that for early 2018.  We figured we'd fly to Barcelona, spend some time there, and then do the short 4-night before returning home.  Only MSC changed it from a 4-night out of Barcelona to a 20-night on a totally different date out of Brazil, which didn't work for us on multiple counts.  Surprisingly and perhaps shockingly, MSC never informed me about the change in any way.  I had to see it for myself while looking at the confirmation prior to final payment.  Just glad I hadn't booked flights yet.  So it had to be cancelled due to MSC's drastic schedule change.

Meanwhile, to replace the cancelled Barcelona cruise, I booked another Barcelona cruise for 2019 on Bellissima.  The cabin I booked, 14172, was listed as an inside but showed to be a balcony (see attached).  Tried to get clarification from MSC, but they had no idea.  Their website's deck plan showed my room to be a balcony, so I booked it, assuming that was the case.  Perhaps it was one of those partially obstructed balconies, who knows?

Next, I did a Voyager's Club status match and was concerned that I'd lose what little status I had.  Normally, you have to cruise MSC within 3 years to maintain points and status, but since they cancelled 2018 Barcelona, that put me beyond 3 years.  Called MSC to discuss the concerns.  The MSC guy said, "Don't worry, they won't cancel your status and points.  There's no way.  I've been here 5 years (or whatever it was) and there's no way they'll do that.  We cancelled your cruise and besides you have new bookings pending, so nothing will get cancelled".

They then cancelled my status and took my points to zero.

I then found out that the cabin on Bellissima shown as a balcony on the deck plan, was actually an inside cabin.  I've tried to get some form of upgrade from MSC, and they said they'll try in "late January", only weeks from final payment is due.  I also asked if they could throw in some OBC for the cancelled cruise and other issues.  They didn't reply.

Booked a subsequent cruise out of Miami in late 2019 under their "Drinks on Us" promotion.  The website showed that my cruise on Seaside was eligible, so I booked it.  However, it came up as "mealtime drinks" only.  Called MSC and asked what the deal was.  They said it was included in the "Drinks on Us" promotion, but they only offered "Mealtime Drinks" on that sailing (Huh?).  They offered to allow me to upgrade to "Drinks on Us" at a cost, so I paid a bit more and upgraded the reservation, although I still didn't understand why I had to do that.

A few days ago, I saw that this cruise was eligible for the new "All In" promotion, so I called MSC and asked if it would make sense to move to that.  The agent said, "Yes I think it would,  You'd get more OBC (I think he said $175), a better Wi-Fi package, a better drink package (Easy vs. Drinks on Us) and you won't have to pay gratuities on every drink.  I asked if I could keep the same mid-ship cabin and he said, "Absolutely".  So I told him to do it, as the cost was quite similar.    Next thing you know, they moved my cabin from mid-ship to the front of the ship, changed from a non-adjoining room to an adjoining room, and changed it from a glass balcony to an obstructed steel balcony.  But the drink package still shows as "Drinks on Us".  So all they've done so far is to drastically downgrade my cabin.  Oh, and supposedly now there's no OBC.

Booked a 2020 cruise out of Paris with them and got an e-mail that I could get discounts on tours and such by booking them now.  Tried to do that, as per the e-mail, but nothing is available yet.  Let's hope that they don't change that one to a 20-night out of Brazil!

I won't even go into all of the many, many errors with the website, with cruises disappearing, reappearing, some bookings shown, no bookings shown, unable to login etc.

I like MSC and I love their beautiful ships, but working with these folks has been a real challenge.  I've been communicating with a very nice booking supervisor who seems to want to help, but so far it's been a comedy of errors.

My GF especially loves MSC.  I get pretty frustrated dealing with one issue after another.  Too bad they can't get their act together, they build such beautiful ships.


 

MSC 14172

Hi, They have the worst Customer Service of any Cruise line. Last year we sailed with then on a 28 night cruise, So many thinks went wrong that they gave us a 10% discount of any Future cruise with them. Just  one example we docked in kotor, The gang way was so steep they would only let one person at a time on it incase they fell, When I asked one of the officers what was the problem with the gang way WE DID NOT NO IT WOULD BE HIGH TIDE WHEN WE DOCKED. kOTOR IS non tidal?
Hopeless.