If you are thinking of cruising MSC....STOP and reconsider.Better to take a drive!!

[1dwn2togo]

Hello all, new to the board, and wanted to ask a question, but not sure I am in the right place. My husband and I are considering a cruise on the Opera, but have only cruised on Carnival, and RCCL(our favorite so far)so we were wondering what differences we would notice?

[caviargal]

 

Bottom line on the service on that ship, you had to be very proactive to get any, and then be prepared for the attitude.

 

I'm surprised that no one has mentioned how pasta is served. They don't consider it an entree. At the first dinner, I ordered a salad and pasta as my meal. I got my pasta while the rest of the table had their salad, and my salad when their entrees were served. I asked the waiter why my meal wasn't in sync and he said, "That's the Italian way." I happen to be half Italian, spent a lot of time growing up with my 100% Italian grandparents, and that was news to me.

 

However, other waiters served the salad first and the pasta as the entree. Obviously, some waiters knew--and cared--how Americans expect to be served and responded accordingly--and appropriately.

 

.

 

I am also Italian and have been fortunate to spend a good deal of time in Italy. There, pasta is a "primi piatti", or first course, followed by a main course of fish, meat, etc. That's how it has always been at my house as well as any true - not Olive Garden - type of Italian restaurant.

 

Since it is an Italian line, this makes sense to me.

 

Perhaps the other table had their pasta served as a main course because they requested it that way. I often order an appetizer as a main course and then a salad. I ask the server to deliver it just that way. When something is out of the norm, it should be requested specifically, IMHO.

 

I am on my first MSC cruise in 2 weeks and am really anxious to experience this for myself. I have almost always been treated in Italy, perhaps because I make an effort to speak the language, perhaps because I believe that when I am in a foreign country, I defer to their culture and do not try to impose mine.

 

I will post upon my return.

[caviargal]

Hello all, new to the board, and wanted to ask a question, but not sure I am in the right place. My husband and I are considering a cruise on the Opera, but have only cruised on Carnival, and RCCL(our favorite so far)so we were wondering what differences we would notice?

 

I suggest you read the many reviews on this board as well as the general feedback. There is a lot of information already posted.

[scamper]

Scamper,

 

And by the way I'll take a coconut rum and orange juice please! lol

 

Absolutely! It'd be a pleasure.

[giabra]

I don’t agree that cruise lines advertising to Americans should provide an American style product. On the contrary, I believe that a different product offered to Americans is a plus, provided that the difference is clearly advertised.

 

The travellers’ world is divided into two categories, first one being composed by people wanting exactly what they are used to at home, while second category looking for a different experience and open to it, and I believe this second category only really deserves the title of “travellers”.

 

Fortunately not all Americans are looking for a travel experience reflecting exactly their home style life, and the same applies to British, Germans, Italians etc.

 

I personally hate to be bothered by a waiter asking if I wish to have a drink: if I want it I simply call the waiter and ask for it; for this reason I could comment exactly the opposite to what Karen said: Does this mean I’m not an experienced cruiser? I doubt about it.

 

As far as the exact order pasta and salad should be delivered, I must say that in Italy I always had pasta first and salad as side order to the entrees. Should I wish the salad to come first I would make this clear to the waiter the first night and I’m sure that he would remember it for the whole duration of the cruise (I did it and this happened to me).

 

As for the bad attitude of some cruise staff, I believe this is only a matter of luck, as you can find bad behaviour everywhere.

 

What surprises me is the sentence “I realized that American expectations must have set the gold standard I realized that American expectations must have set the gold standard”: this is exactly what I expect from an ugly American, and in my opinion explains why Karen experience was so bad: she simply choose the wrong ship as with this attitude she should remain stuck to American Cruise Lines and nothing else, and I strongly suggest her not to cross the border as she could be really upset by all the different habits she would find outside the US judging them absolutely not to par with the gold standard set up by Americans.

 

Just my opinion

[LuvBNatC]

Giabra, I have traveled in the Caribbean, Mexico, Canada, and a little in Europe. For my Lirica cruise, I took the time to learn some Italian so that I could exchange pleasantries with the crew, and they seemed to appreciate that. I try to learn the basics of the language of any country I visit. I pride myself on being able to get along with people from other cultures and always do my utmost to blend in and appreciate the differences. I do, however, draw the line at yellow vodka martinis.

 

My experience with the pasta happened precisely because I WAS trying to go with the flow and let the waiter serve us without questions or interruptions. I have never been in the habit of summoning waiters or other crew as if they're personal servants, but always try to graciously accept the service they offer in the normal execution of their duties.

 

As I said in my original post, there were many other instances of service I found disconcerting, but to recount them here would only invite further nastiness. I'm entitled to my opinion, as you are to yours, and I would never dream of suggesting that you confine yourself to a certain part of the world, as you did to me. I'm just thankful the world is a big place so there's little chance I'll ever meet you.

[benjamins]

I have a lot of interest in MSC. I am tired of the American market's push towards bigger ships (no ship built after 2000 from the major mass market lines is under 85,000 tons) and a desire for newer and newer ships ; I want to find a cruise emphasizing more pax involvement than spas, balconies, tons of restaurants, shopping, and I hear MSC ships have more dance floors than U.S. market ships. I think an International ship is a challenge to do well, but I think the diversity of lifestyles would be interesting.

 

The only thing I'm concerned with is the quick expansion and that the new ships on order are based on a Princess design and 90,000 tons.

[giabra]

Giabra, I have traveled in the Caribbean, Mexico, Canada, and a little in Europe. For my Lirica cruise, I took the time to learn some Italian so that I could exchange pleasantries with the crew, and they seemed to appreciate that. I try to learn the basics of the language of any country I visit. I pride myself on being able to get along with people from other cultures and always do my utmost to blend in and appreciate the differences. I do, however, draw the line at yellow vodka martinis.

 

My experience with the pasta happened precisely because I WAS trying to go with the flow and let the waiter serve us without questions or interruptions. I have never been in the habit of summoning waiters or other crew as if they're personal servants, but always try to graciously accept the service they offer in the normal execution of their duties.

 

As I said in my original post, there were many other instances of service I found disconcerting, but to recount them here would only invite further nastiness. I'm entitled to my opinion, as you are to yours, and I would never dream of suggesting that you confine yourself to a certain part of the world, as you did to me. I'm just thankful the world is a big place so there's little chance I'll ever meet you.

Agree 100% with you. However your touchiness to me is a confirmation of what i thought.

[caviargal]

I have a lot of interest in MSC. I am tired of the American market's push towards bigger ships (no ship built after 2000 from the major mass market lines is under 85,000 tons) and a desire for newer and newer ships ; I want to find a cruise emphasizing more pax involvement than spas, balconies, tons of restaurants, shopping, and I hear MSC ships have more dance floors than U.S. market ships. I think an International ship is a challenge to do well, but I think the diversity of lifestyles would be interesting.

 

The only thing I'm concerned with is the quick expansion and that the new ships on order are based on a Princess design and 90,000 tons.

 

I agree, bigger is seldom better in my book. MSC seems like they are offering a more traditional cruise experience and I hope they do not go the way of the other lines.

 

Musica will be their largest and they appear to have another in that class on order. Time will tell.

 

I am really looking forward to Sinfonia in 2 weeks, especially after my Glory cruise, which was totally not my style!

[scamper]

Giabra, I have traveled in the Caribbean, Mexico, Canada, and a little in Europe. For my Lirica cruise, I took the time to learn some Italian so that I could exchange pleasantries with the crew, and they seemed to appreciate that. I try to learn the basics of the language of any country I visit. I pride myself on being able to get along with people from other cultures and always do my utmost to blend in and appreciate the differences. I do, however, draw the line at yellow vodka martinis.

 

My experience with the pasta happened precisely because I WAS trying to go with the flow and let the waiter serve us without questions or interruptions. I have never been in the habit of summoning waiters or other crew as if they're personal servants, but always try to graciously accept the service they offer in the normal execution of their duties.

 

As I said in my original post, there were many other instances of service I found disconcerting, but to recount them here would only invite further nastiness. I'm entitled to my opinion, as you are to yours, and I would never dream of suggesting that you confine yourself to a certain part of the world, as you did to me. I'm just thankful the world is a big place so there's little chance I'll ever meet you.

 

As a result of the response to your comments, above, I recommend letting it drop. It doesn't appear as though you're likely to succeed in making your point understood.

[LuvBNatC]

Scamper, you're absolutely right. I should have taken being told never to leave the U.S. again as a gesture of friendship. Silly me.

 

Benjamins, I would praise Lirica for having many WONDERFUL dance floors and excellent dance music with an international flavor performed by the various musicians and singers in the public rooms. It wasn't what you usually find on mass-market American ships--from a different era when the music had melody. My parents bought several CDs of performances on board.

 

At times the floors really filled up. If you like ballroom, Latin, and swing dancing and you have a partner, this ship would be an excellent choice.

[owl61]

A friend of mine´s son after finishing his training as a chef started a new job as assistant chef on board the MSC Armonia. My friend took a cruise on the ship (her first) to see the environment in which her son was to work.

She thought the food and service were horrible. Her son reported that the kitchen was not sanitary and quit the job after the first cruise he worked.

[goldengirl]

hi

I also wish people would not post such awful reviews. I am about to sail

 

on the Opera and would prefer to read more upbeat posting. I will go

 

with an open mind. These posting make me afraid of what I am getting into.

 

Please post some up lifting comments

[caviargal]

hi

I also wish people would not post such awful reviews. I am about to sail

 

on the Opera and would prefer to read more upbeat posting. I will go

 

with an open mind. These posting make me afraid of what I am getting into.

 

Please post some up lifting comments

 

The only way to form a valid opinion is by trying MSC yourself.

 

As far as "dirty" kitchens, the CDC inspects ships and posts ratings.

 

As far as food quality, IMO the food served in the dining room for B,L,D on MSC was the best of any of my cruises in at least 10 years. I was not thrilled with the buffet but I dislike buffets in general. And room service is just not a biggie with me.

 

Enjoy your cruise and form your own opinions.

[satnightcruiser]

All I will say at this point is that I have been reading this board for weeks, we on on the 2/5/07 cruise. I will venture a guess that over 5000 passengers have been on the ship since then And we get 5 or 6 terrible reviews. Mind you not all bad just the food is the hot topic it seems. It also seems there is a problem with the european and armericans getting along. Fist fights how ridiculous is that. As far as rude I believe most are probably the europeans since you only need to go to a theme park around here to get your fill of them. As for the old Florida seniors being rude, cranky and demanding. So what, is it worth your time to ruin your vacation by being worried about something completely out of your control. If all these reviews are 100% truthful so be it. But I will decide for myself next week and not worry about it now. I,m not going to share the experience with other passengers. We are going to spend time together and I'll be damned if I'll let a rude european or cranky Florida senior spoil that, If there is a problem with staff or crew I will deal with it directly not through the pursers office. There are ways to handle these types of problems without getting radical. Instead of flooding this board with inane comments if everyone would flood MSC headquarters with Emails , calls and letters more can be accomplished.

[bobar]

I can't wait for you 2/5/07 cruisers to get back from your opera cruise and tell us 3/10 sailers what you thought..I can tell you already that anything bad won't sway me as I sailed on them 3 yrs ago in january on the Melody and even though it was a small tired old ship we had an absolute blast.Great diverse passenger base and all had fun,great to interact with other culures..I thought the dinners were fantastic, but i'm italian and not a steak eater.Our service was great and what a pleasure it was to be on a ship wear i wasn't hounded every 4 minutes to buy something.Anyway can't wait..and per this thread which is 2 yrs old and on a different ship the opera has very good cdc scores....:cool:

[daw]

Wow! What an interesting, if heated, thread. It's an excellent reflection of why we so often see reviews with radical differences of opinion sometimes even on the same cruise. It's all about expectations.

 

About 5 years ago I agreed to take a 22 day cruise (MSC back to back 11day E and W Carribean) on the Melody. I say agreed, because it wouldn't have been my choice. But a good friend on a very limited budget who had never traveled wanted to do this. I had cruised many times on most of the main stream lines but I knew, by the price, that this would be a very different experience. And it was. But "different" isn't always "bad"

 

The Melody was an old ship with odd configurations i.e heavy curtains blocking off a walkhrough area while the entertainers were practicing. The lunch buffet was more like an institutional cafeteria and there was no poolside grill. Once I realized this, I simply had lunch in the DR. The DR food was acceptable, sometimes good.

We had a tiny inside room with two sets of bunk beds which worked out ok because we used the top bunks for storage. ( Indeed, a shock to the system from my usual balcony cabin) but anything is workable with the right attitude.

And although old and eccentric, the Melody had it's own charm because it was a "real" ship.

 

The entertainment was not on par with the mainstream lines but how could one expect it to be? The best entertainers command the best prices.

But the social director was very active in offering events and good at getting peope involved. And being on board for 22 days gave us an opportunity to know and apreciate some of the crew members who I felt were friendly and helpful.

Bottom line...this was an enjoyable experience. I got to vacation 22 days with a dear friend and visit many interesting places for very little money. How could this be bad? And yet...oh the moaning and groaning from so many American passengers! They paid for peanuts and expected caviar and of course, it's not going to happen. Expectations!

All this said, I do believe that someone has the right to express their opinion about what they percieved as a bad cruise without an attack and trust that the rest of us can filter through it to make our own informed opinions. The ratio of crew to passenger may not be as good as mainstream lines but even on a budget line there is no excuse for a bad attitude. If this were the case as the original poster implied then I can understand his frustration. I've had a day or two of frustration in my own life with less tha stellar service.

 

What is too bad is that this thread somehow deteriorated into American vs European because we are all on this board because we share a major interest....cruising.

But why should Americans expect a European cruise line to cater to their style regardless of where the ship is cruising anymore than Europeans should expect Princess to cater to their style because the ship is sailing in Europe ? Do your homework and make an informed decision. Don't become captivated by the price and then expect it to be something it is not. And for heavens sakes, if you are hung up on english muffins and an American type breakfast then cruise mainstream or go to Dennys.

There is not a single cruise line or ship that will please everyone. I think it is shortsighted to blantantly reccomend or condemn any of them. We can only relate our own experience...for better or worse and let others decide for themselves.

[Mark5047]

anything is workable with the right attitude.

 

How true is that!! My wife and I along with my parents (I am not a kid anymore, but I still like to hang with Mom and Dad!!) are going on Lirica next week and we expect to have a good time. I don't get how people could spend money on something like a cruise and spend so much time looking for all the bad in it. It has to make it a worse trip for you. Typically you find what you are looking for.

Enjoy the cruising! If you tried MSC and it wasn't for you, you are in luck! There are many other cruise lines to choose from.

[joybaby]

well said, there are sooooo many negative people out there, just looking to complain. just work with the public, you will find out fast. we are on the 3/10 opera sailing and will have nothing but a great time.:) :) :)

[pbaglivi]

Sailed on the OPERA over the holidays from Genoa to Fort Lauderdale. The ship is beautiful and the crew were great. As an older Italian American I had a few problems with my fractured Italian but managed to communicate. Fellow passingers were mainly Europeans, ones that I spoke to were interesting. The fact remains that entertainment was almost non existent. The food however was the pits. I have been on eighteen cruises over the last ten years from CRYSTAL on down and this was the worst.

 

I recognize that this is a European cruise line catering to Europeans who are happy with the product. However MSC is building four hugh new ships to enable them to crack the North American market, this they will never do with their currant product. I agree with the posters who predict that they will be out of this market in a few years.

 

I spoke to my TA after the cruise, she is with one of those mega agencies, she told me that they are aware of the problems and therefore do not recomend MSC but only sell it when asked.

 

My suggestion to the posters who claim that they are not onboard for the food or entertainment, they might consider some of those European startup cruise lines with the tiny cabins and you buy your food. You will get that European flavor and save money.

[owl61]

I recently received an involuntary refund of $600 from MSC. My creditcard issuer charged back this amount to MSC because it agreed that MSC and/or the travel agent (Cruise Value Center in NJ) owed us a refund inasmuch as we were assigned a cabin inferior to one that was originally promised. It was a small, but satisfying victory.

 

I had complained to the New Jersey Attny General about the illegal bait and switch advertsing of CVC ( a NJ based operation). They started an investigation and I was told CVC agreed to dease and desist. Apparently, it was just the tip of the iceberg.