Lirica Caribbean cruise review Dec. 2008

My family and I returned yesterday from a 7 day Caribbean cruise on the MSC Lirica. I have mixed feelings about our trip:

Ship: This was our first cruise on MSC and we were apprehensive about the "small" size of the ship. However, we enjoyed the ship itself very much. The ship was kept very clean, and even at 2am, it was not unusual to see personnel polishing the brass handrails. Cleanliness is important to us and we were pleased. The one thing in this regard that was sometimes an issue was a lingering odor of smoke in many of the lounges and our cabin. The ship has only recently eliminated smoking in all but one lounge (Lord Nelson Pub) and the casino, therefore many areas of the ship still had an odor. The ship was VERY sparsely decorated for Christmas and the choice of decor was simple and often childish- inflatable Christmas trees and Mickey Mouse Santas. The overall decor is simple and there are mirrors EVERYWHERE. The ship handled the choppy seas very well.

Food: The food looked beautiful, but was mediocre at best. Dinner consisted of at least five courses including a pasta course. The buffets offered in the casual dining room were also bland. If fine dining is important to your experience, you will be disappointed. The "midnight" buffet was absolutely beautiful & extravagant- the best we've seen yet.

Personnel: This was the worse aspect of our vacation. Very few of the personnel had English as their first language which was sometimes frustrating. However, we were prepared for this, but we were not prepared for the air of general disdain & lack of knowledge about the ship, ports of call, and general procedures. We made a joke of it early on- joking about whose turn it was to ask a question at Reception, Accounting, or the Excursion desk. Bar service in the lounges and casino was very good. Our waiter was good, but the assistant waiter was not good- and unlike our other cruise experiences, we were never introduced to the head waiter and we still do not agree on his identity. Although our cabin steward never introduced herself and did not know who we were- she did a very good job. She even folded my daughter's dirty clothes which had been left in a heap on the bathroom floor.

Entertainment: We enjoyed the shows and cabarets very much. Many of the shows had a Cirque du Soleil vibe which we enjoyed. Bingo & trivia were a challenge due to the language barrier.

Overall: We are not sure if we'd repeat as MSC passengers. We were late getting in to every port and "scheduled" activities were almost always 15-20 minutes late getting started. However, we enjoyed ourselves anyway- probably because we went in with lower expectations based on reviews that we read before the trip.

great review thank you. Did your daughter go to the kids club? Not sure of her age but curious! Were there any bands playing poolside in the evening? Thanks again!

Thanks for sharing your thoughts & experiences.

thanks for the review. a few questions.

what time were you able to board?

when was the muster drill?

what kind of cabin were you in and what amenities were offered in the cabin?

thanks!

I'm interested in trivia. How did they do it in multiple languages?

We are booked on the Poesie next January.

My wife and I were on Lirica during the same week. This was our 2nd trip on Lirica and will be our last. We were left with the impression that it was really inconvient for this Italian line to be bothered with Americans. If that is in fact their feeling they should keep the ship in Europe.

I'm interested in trivia. How did they do it in multiple languages?

 

We are booked on the Poesie next January.

When I was on Lirica in Caribbean last winter all the players were English-speaking. If there were other languages the moderator would simply handle it. The staff handle an impressive number of languages.

At the trivia games I attended the questions were read in all 5 languages. It went quickly and we enjoyed hearing the translations.