Review of May 15th Transatlantic Cruise

Hello Everyone,

This is a brief review of our cruise from Port Everglades to Genoa. We also stayed over in Milan. Our overall feeling: we got far more than we expected.

We are happy we did the cruise. The ship was beautiful. The crew was 90% attentive and helpful. Our stateroom, 9020, was adequate.We had a queen-size bed and all our luggage fit nicely under the bed. There was just the right amount of storage space with lots of hangers. We took too much. The bathroom was a little tight, but had plenty of storage space. All cabins have both 110 and 220 volt electrical outlets. We had the usual TV and frig with minibar. Lighting in the cabin was good. Fresh fruit was provided, an ice bucket and pitcher were in the cabin, however, one had to ask for water and ice if it was desired. No chocolate mints on the pillow, no problem for me, I don't like chocolate mints. We had an excellent cabin steward, Joshué. After the initial embarkation speech there were no general announcements until time for debarkation. All news, events, etc. was communicated via the daily programs. Whenever there was an activity, i.e., the shows, bingo, trivia, everything was repeated in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish. On this cruise there were 17 Argentineans, 24 Australians, 359 Austrians, 2 Belgians, 30 Canadians, 1 Croatian, 25 Frenchmen, 387 Germans, 1 Hungarian, 22 Italians - not counting crew, 4 Koreans, 3 Mexicans, 5 Netherlanders, 9 New Zealanders, 1 Pilipino, 1 Russian, 1 Slovenian, 1 Spaniard, 32 Swiss, 1 from Trinidad & Tobago, 19 from United Kingdom and 486 from US.

Embarkation was a breeze. The lines are setup by deck number and moved along nicely. We checked out our cabin and then went to meet other members of our "internet group,the Liricans".Our luggage was a little slow to arrive, so we decided to do a little walk about the ship.The departure was held up 2 hours for a group whose plane was late arriving in Fort Lauderdale.

The ship has a very casual ambiance. There are many places to sit, relax, read, have a drink. There is almost always some activity in progress. There were arts and crafts demos, pasta making demos, dancing and Italian language skills classes, opera via video, movies, bingo, trivia, horse racing(no betting), card games, there are 9 bars. Smoking is allowed in the Lord Nelson Pub, The Las Vegas Casino, one side of the Coffee Cup, and both pool bars. The Cruise Director, Francesco, was not only multilingual, but multi-talented. The were several different entertainment venues including a violinist, a pianist and singer, a magician, a very nice dance band, flamenco dancers and the Animation Team. The Animation Team performed in the shows and assisted with all the activities aboard ship. The mini-golf course was nice. The pool assistants were very good at not letting people "reserve" deck chairs. The duty free shops really didn't offer much. I guess the liquor prices were good, as we saw many people buying bottles which they were allowed to take to their cabins.

The Bussola Restaurant, deck 5 and the L'Ippocampo Restaurant, deck 6 had open seating for breakfast and lunch, with slight variations in time. Le Bistrot Cafeteria, deck 11 was also open for breakfast and lunch, but not for the evening meal. La Pergola Open Restaurant(not really a restaurant), deck 11, was open for early bird coffee and late night snack buffet. One could also get eggs to order and omelets at La Pergola. We preferred eating in our assigned restaurant. The breakfast menus were pretty stable, but with a specialty of the day. The breads and pastries were incredible at all meals. There was plenty of fresh fruit, cheeses, yogurt , etc. We had a good waiter, Emilio, who always told us what time the meals would begin as we changed time zones 6 times in 7 days. We did not have any problems with running out of butter, coffee or tea. We did notice though, that they only brought enough hot water for one cup of tea at a time, just had to ask for more. I brought some menus home and will share with you if you would like to see them. We felt the menu choices were good and the food was tasty and presented well. We had late sitting, so by time we were finished it was nearly 22:00. The ice cream was above excellent. I rarely missed a chance to have something from the Ice Cream Bar. Oh, by the way, there are no alternative restaurants.

Even though the atmosphere is very casual aboard ship, there were actually 3 formal nights and another designated as a "gala, not formal" night, whatever that means. We saw a gambit of attire from tuxedo to dress shirt and tux jacket with shorts. Some ladies were dressed to the 9's every night and some never got out of there jeans. All the other nights were casual except one designated as "elegant".

We essentially had very good weather, a few rain shows and occasional winds to 12 - 15 knots, but mostly calm seas. Although our cabin was quite away forward, we hardly felt any movement except when the thrusters were being manipulated.

True to their word, there were no art auctions, no coercion to take photos or buy them. The photographers accepted a no graciously and moved on.

The itinerary was super, the ship was lovely and the service far better than I was expecting. We will cruise on this ship again.

If you have a specific question, please e-mail me.

Follow the stars....

lashby@tampabay.rr.com

Hi,

We just got back from a 22 day Transatlantic & Med. Cruise on the MSC Lirica.

What a beautiful ship, the large cabins were wonderful, we had more drawers then we could fill up & we loved our balcony. We were also in the internet group called the Liricans & we agree with our good friend redqueen about everything she said about the cruise. So we will tell you about the next 5 day cruise to Venice. Redqueen I wish you & your father could have seen the 5 day 3 ring circus it was as good as your chicken in Funchal & the taxi cab driver in Barcelona. What a wild 5 days, it was fun & we are glad we stayed on until Venice.

The first 15 days was the best cruise vacation we have ever been on. Then the 16th day arrived & things started to go wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They closed the bank the 16th day of the 17 day cruise, that was the day most passengers needed to tip the staff & a lot of the passengers could not tip, because they could not get change or cash travelers checks or get cash on their ATM cards. We planned ahead so we were able to tip our cabin stewards & waiters. The 17th day when all the Americans got off MSC then embarked 1,500 Austrians. They smoke everywhere & never let you get off the elevators before they get on. If you don't go fast enough they will push & cut in line in front of you. They talk through the shows & stand in the middle of the passage ways drinking & smoking so you can not get through the public areas. We even saw a bar waitress get knocked down trying to get through a crowd to deliver drinks. Also every elevator has in front an ashtray, so you have about 10 to 20 Austrians standing around smoking & blocking the entrance. If you do not smoke you almost choke to death waiting for the elevators. They also tried to save deck chairs by going out at 7 AM & placing towels on the chairs before they went to breakfast. When we went out about 8:30 AM there were no chairs. The pool staff explained that they could not save deck chairs, so then they would leave one family member to guard the chairs while the rest of the family went to breakfast. The wait staff in the dining rooms & lounges would wait on us & almost ignored the Austrians. We asked them why the change in attitude from the first 17 days & they said the Austrians do not tip & that they are very rude. We also found out that the bar waiters in the lounges & dining rooms that were scheduled to leave on the 17th day were told they had to stay for another 5 days because the Austrians drink a lot & they needed the extra bar waiters to handle the volume. If the bar waiters did not stay the extra 5 days & got off the ship they had to pay for their own transportation back home.

We thought that it could not get any worse, boy were we wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The 18th day we embarked 400 Italians which included 200 screaming kids. The Italians would let their kids run wild, we saw waiters trying get around kids that were in the areas that were for the wait staff only. They ignored the dining times & when they were told there was no place to seat them because they were 1 to 2 hours late they would scream & fling their arms & hands all around until they were seated. This all went on while the other passengers were trying to dine & enjoy their meals. Then there was breakfast & lunch which was even more of a problem because it was open seating & they could not understand why certain areas were closed, so they would start screaming again. We went on shore excursions which included some Italians & they would change buses in the middle of the tour because they found friends on another bus. We would then sit & wait for them to return to the bus, because they never bothered to tell the guide or bus driver they were going on another bus. Our waiter informed us that he does not work July & Aug. because of his fellow Italians. He says they will have between 1,800 to 2,200 per cruise, mostly Italian passengers with up to 800 kids during those months. He said that children under 12 cruise for free. I know on our cruise there were 5 or 6 people in some staterooms.

I will cruise on MSC again, but never in the Med. We were very happy the first 17 days but the last 5 days was a circus. Over all we enjoyed the entire 22 day cruise & we loved all the ports of calls, the entertainment, & the food. This still was our best cruise to date!!!!! We could not ask for a better waiter, asst. waiter, & cruise director, they were the best we ever had on all our cruises.

If you go in July or Aug. just try to enjoy the 3 ring circus & the wonderful shows, the food & the ports of call.

Dennis

[This message was edited by thatarcher on 06-09-04 at 08:36 AM.]

[This message was edited by thatarcher on 06-09-04 at 08:38 AM.]

Great reviews. Glad to see you had a good time. We had heard about some of the problems with kids from the staff. Wow.

Happy Cruising, Buil, http://cruiseclues.com

Sitmar, RCCL, Costa, HAL, Princess, Royal Cruise Line, Celebrity, Renaissance, Disney, MSC Lirica

"We cannot change the direction of the wind... but we can adjust our sails"

Thank you for 2 great reviews Italians do get excited, seems as if they are screaming to us, but that's just their way and language emphasis. Children under 2 cruise free. Under 12s as a 3rd or 4th cabin occupant only get a small discount, the same as if a 3/4th adult.[unless of course the waiter was just referring that particular cruise where there may have been a special on].

Pam

Pam,

We have many Italian friends & I know the differance between when they get excited & when they are yelling & screaming. It was the women that were doing the yelling & screaming even their husbands would stand about 6 meters away & watch so not to get in the way. We checked with a travel agent in Venice, Italy about some tours around Italy & we also asked about under 12 children cruising for free in July & Aug. on MSC. The agent told us that it was an offer that groups in Italy can receive & that MSC sells out their cruises in the MED. for July & Aug. because of this offer.

Dennis

[This message was edited by thatarcher on 06-12-04 at 07:38 AM.]

Thanks for that Dennis. I will have to dig out an Italian Agent and see what they can offer, as there is not much of a discount for under 12s from the UK, the same as a 3rd adult occupant.

Pam

Hey Pam, this might be informative for you, if you already saw this please forgive me for trying to teach granny to suck eggs.

http://www.msccruises.com/information.asp?faq=faq2children

Statendam

QE2 (x2)

Regal Princess

Golden Princess

Royal Princess

Big Red Boat

Thanks. We sailed twice on MSC in the Med last year, but never managed anything free for the 8yr old. I think the 'often', 'most' & then 'restrictions apply' & 'may therefore qualify' perhaps cancels out many

But, good news, a new press release today:- "Children under the age of 14 sharing a stateroom with two adults sail

free on almost all of the itineraries offered on the line's six

vessels...."

I will endeavor to find out if I can get something this time.

Pam

How interesting that you should mention the Austrians and there smoking . On our Royal Olympic Cruise in 2/03 we had a contingent of Austrians on our Amazon Cruise and found the smoking habits to be gross. We will be on the Westerdam in Europe in November and I do not plan to put up with smoking in inappropriate places by anyone, European or not. ( before I get flames, I am European by birth, but Canadian by choice)

Hello Everyone, This is a brief review of our cruise from Port Everglades to Genoa. We also stayed over in Milan. Our overall feeling: we got far more than we expected."

 

Got a few question for you...and posted here so all could benefit.

 

1. Do you agree or has things changed? This TIPPING is from a Apr 2003 review of Lirica.

 

"Bar service was again, very spotty. Our wine stewardess in the dining room was exceptional, but in some of the bars they were inattentive. At one of the pool side bar-b-ques, the server was downright rude, while the guy that made the omelets at the outside breakfast station was downright superb and could have easily worked for the luxury lines. I suspect that this will change dramatically in the near future.

 

HINT: Gratuities are a major issue on this ship. They are not added to your shipboard account at the end of the cruise, but handled in the traditional way of presenting gratuities at the end of the cruise. We collected full gratuities from our group and presented them to the Maitre d’ on the second evening for our tables, letting him know that the waiters could expect more at the end of the cruise for exceptional service.

 

I would highly suggest tipping at the beginning of the cruise on this ship. I also gave the wine stewardess a $20 "down payment" on her exceptional service and was spoiled to death from that point forward. Where just about every other cruise line automatically adds 15% to every cocktail and bottle of wine that is ordered, MSC Lirica does not. There is a service charge of about 5% that is added and I suspect this is why service levels vary so much. I would strongly suggest picking you servers and tipping them generously and early on this cruise in order to get the kind of service that will make you happy."

 

2. "Embarkation was a breeze. The lines are setup by deck number and moved along nicely."

The Opera departs at 7 pm for Genoa what is the earliest that you could of boarded.

 

3. What time was fire drill suppose to be?

 

4. " Smoking is allowed in the Lord Nelson Pub"

Are there many areas where there is a NO Smoke policy?

 

5. "The pool assistants were very good at not letting people "reserve" deck chairs."

Glad to hear this.

 

6. "I guess the liquor prices were good, as we saw many people buying bottles which they were allowed to take to their cabins."

That's good news regarding the liquor policy.

 

7. " I brought some menus home and will share with you if you would like to see them."

Would you share but only the items that can't be found on the usual cruises lines?

 

8. How long before you could debark?

 

Thanks for all your help and for the review.

Hello,

Please forgive the delay in replying, I had not checked my e-mail for a few days. I will try to answere your questions.

1.Yes, things had changed on our cruise. We we pleased with the bar service. The servers were available but not annoying. We did the traditional last night tipping and we know that our waiter and cabin steward were pleased. We received good service and rewarded it accordingly. I don't believe it would have been different if we had tipped earlier. I will say that I did hear some of the wait staff talking about how they had been "stiffed" by some of the quests. It seems that english is a problem for some of the wait staff. I would say that most of them really try to do their best for you.

2. I am not exactly sure of just how early you can board ship, we were arrived at the port later than we had expected. I think that for a 5pm departure you may be able to board as early as 1pm.

3. Fire drill has to be done within 24 hours of boarding, ours was on first day after boarding.

4. Smoking was permitted in all areas of the casino, all bars had some smoking areas, except the Lord Nelson which had a large smoking area, some of the lounges and the theatre were of course non-smoking. The pool areas had designated smoking areas. The Restaurants were non-smoking.

5. If people left belongings on the deck chairs for extended periods, the items were taken to the front desk. Towels for deck use are in your cabin for your use and will be changed by your room cabin as you need.

6. Liquor bought on and off the ship was permitted in cabins. We did not purchase any liquor but I believe they had fair prices.

7. I brought a menu from a "gala" aka formal night and one from another night, I will not post them here, but if someone really wants to see them, just e-mail me.

8. We debarked by colors. Colors were assigned according to if you needed to make flight connections, had a tour or other arrangements. Passports were held until morning of debarkation. One person per cabin could pick them up, this went fairly quick. Debarkation was scheduled to begin at 8:30 AM, we were continuing on a land and stay trip, so we were off the ship by 10:00. We were out of the cabin by 08:00 as requested.

I hope this helpful for you.

Hi,

 

We just got back from a 22 day Transatlantic & Med. Cruise on the MSC Lirica.

 

What a beautiful ship, the large cabins were wonderful, we had more drawers then we could fill up & we loved our balcony. We were also in the internet group called the Liricans & we agree with our good friend redqueen about everything she said about the cruise. So we will tell you about the next 5 day cruise to Venice. Redqueen I wish you & your father could have seen the 5 day 3 ring circus it was as good as your chicken in Funchal & the taxi cab driver in Barcelona. What a wild 5 days, it was fun & we are glad we stayed on until Venice.

 

The first 15 days was the best cruise vacation we have ever been on. Then the 16th day arrived & things started to go wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They closed the bank the 16th day of the 17 day cruise, that was the day most passengers needed to tip the staff & a lot of the passengers could not tip, because they could not get change or cash travelers checks or get cash on their ATM cards. We planned ahead so we were able to tip our cabin stewards & waiters. The 17th day when all the Americans got off MSC then embarked 1,500 Austrians. They smoke everywhere & never let you get off the elevators before they get on. If you don't go fast enough they will push & cut in line in front of you. They talk through the shows & stand in the middle of the passage ways drinking & smoking so you can not get through the public areas. We even saw a bar waitress get knocked down trying to get through a crowd to deliver drinks. Also every elevator has in front an ashtray, so you have about 10 to 20 Austrians standing around smoking & blocking the entrance. If you do not smoke you almost choke to death waiting for the elevators. They also tried to save deck chairs by going out at 7 AM & placing towels on the chairs before they went to breakfast. When we went out about 8:30 AM there were no chairs. The pool staff explained that they could not save deck chairs, so then they would leave one family member to guard the chairs while the rest of the family went to breakfast. The wait staff in the dining rooms & lounges would wait on us & almost ignored the Austrians. We asked them why the change in attitude from the first 17 days & they said the Austrians do not tip & that they are very rude. We also found out that the bar waiters in the lounges & dining rooms that were scheduled to leave on the 17th day were told they had to stay for another 5 days because the Austrians drink a lot & they needed the extra bar waiters to handle the volume. If the bar waiters did not stay the extra 5 days & got off the ship they had to pay for their own transportation back home.

 

We thought that it could not get any worse, boy were we wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The 18th day we embarked 400 Italians which included 200 screaming kids. The Italians would let their kids run wild, we saw waiters trying get around kids that were in the areas that were for the wait staff only. They ignored the dining times & when they were told there was no place to seat them because they were 1 to 2 hours late they would scream & fling their arms & hands all around until they were seated. This all went on while the other passengers were trying to dine & enjoy their meals. Then there was breakfast & lunch which was even more of a problem because it was open seating & they could not understand why certain areas were closed, so they would start screaming again. We went on shore excursions which included some Italians & they would change buses in the middle of the tour because they found friends on another bus. We would then sit & wait for them to return to the bus, because they never bothered to tell the guide or bus driver they were going on another bus. Our waiter informed us that he does not work July & Aug. because of his fellow Italians. He says they will have between 1,800 to 2,200 per cruise, mostly Italian passengers with up to 800 kids during those months. He said that children under 12 cruise for free. I know on our cruise there were 5 or 6 people in some staterooms.

 

I will cruise on MSC again, but never in the Med. We were very happy the first 17 days but the last 5 days was a circus. Over all we enjoyed the entire 22 day cruise & we loved all the ports of calls, the entertainment, & the food. This still was our best cruise to date!!!!! We could not ask for a better waiter, asst. waiter, & cruise director, they were the best we ever had on all our cruises.

 

If you go in July or Aug. just try to enjoy the 3 ring circus & the wonderful shows, the food & the ports of call.

 

Dennis

 

[This message was edited by thatarcher on 06-09-04 at 08:36 AM.]

 

[This message was edited by thatarcher on 06-09-04 at 08:38 AM.]

Thank you for providing some very helpful information. We're considering a cruise on this line but a bit nervous since we've only sailed on Princess and HAL before. How would you compare MSC with Princess?