New potential MSC cruiser wants the TRUTH!

[Beamafar]

I am sure you will have good cruise . I would cruise with them again if no other choice . I just don't get what X cruisers is so snobby about ) For example .

We had huge rain storm in one port everyone come back soaking wet ,one lady in elevator making a statement: "they should meet people with umbrellas and walk them down the gates .It's Celebrity it's not Carnival after all"! I had to control myself not to laugh loud . We called X ship- chewing ship . People don't leave it at all. No matter what time you come to buffet it's always full. You now how on any ship 30 min. before departure people lining to get back? Not on X )-by 12 pm everyone is on board. If you check X board 99% of posts is about food :p . Short story- X is good line but not any better then any other mass market line. :rolleyes:

 

Thanks, GB ............ I've been hanging out on the Celebrity forum so am getting quite an idea what to expect :rolleyes:

 

I can just imagine the reaction I'd get if I started a thread like this with a similar title, only: replacing the "MSC" in this one with "Celebrity" :eek:

[tomvet]

I have sailed MSC twice and both cruises were enjoyable despite them rather than because of them!

 

I find their customer service to be unwieldy and exhausting. While staff are pleasant they have no decision making powers at all - down to petty decisions of making a tea spoon available to feed a baby at lunch time - they only have them available at breakfast - so when you ask a waiter for a tea spoon to feed a 9 month old - he first must ask the Maitre D for permission to give it to you!

 

I get the impression that staff 'fear' their superior - this is a deliberate management style used by Costa and MSC. Staff are not given any autonomy!

 

There is a culture of keeping customers in the dark and not giving out any information or when they do it is scant - almost a need to know basis. If there is a problem e.g. delayed embarkation - it is always someone elses fault.

 

In one port (won't mention!) I got chatting to the Harbour Master and the pilot - the pilot needed a valium trying to deal with the Captain and the HM did confirm that they were a difficult organisation to deal with!

 

That said, their ships are fabulous, production shows are great, food is fine - not wonderful!

 

You will enjoy them if you are a 'mainstream' passenger where the rules are 'mainstream' however if you have a nonmainstream need e.g. travelling with young kids etc that requires a special favour, deviation etc - they struggle to deal with situation on their merits often citing if they concede to your favour, they fear being undated with similar requests. The world does not work in this fashion, the request arose because we had young kids and not everyone on the ship has young kids.

[GOLDENBONNY]

I have sailed MSC twice and both cruises were enjoyable despite them rather than because of them!

 

I find their customer service to be unwieldy and exhausting. While staff are pleasant they have no decision making powers at all - down to petty decisions of making a tea spoon available to feed a baby at lunch time - they only have them available at breakfast - so when you ask a waiter for a tea spoon to feed a 9 month old - he first must ask the Maitre D for permission to give it to you!

 

I get the impression that staff 'fear' their superior - this is a deliberate management style used by Costa and MSC. Staff are not given any autonomy!

 

There is a culture of keeping customers in the dark and not giving out any information or when they do it is scant - almost a need to know basis. If there is a problem e.g. delayed embarkation - it is always someone elses fault.

 

In one port (won't mention!) I got chatting to the Harbour Master and the pilot - the pilot needed a valium trying to deal with the Captain and the HM did confirm that they were a difficult organisation to deal with!

 

That said, their ships are fabulous, production shows are great, food is fine - not wonderful!

 

You will enjoy them if you are a 'mainstream' passenger where the rules are 'mainstream' however if you have a nonmainstream need e.g. travelling with young kids etc that requires a special favour, deviation etc - they struggle to deal with situation on their merits often citing if they concede to your favour, they fear being undated with similar requests. The world does not work in this fashion, the request arose because we had young kids and not everyone on the ship has young kids.

 

Wow in what port I can chat with pilot and Harbour Master? Do they just stand there a answering cruisers questions? :cool:

[riclop]

I took X cruise in December 2014 and I wish I would understand what all the fuss about LOL. Did not work for us at all. :rolleyes:

 

WE also went on the Equinox and that was also the last time we will go on X.

[camofwilliamsburg]

We did one X cruise. Never had one good meal and we ate at Muranos once...grit on the scallops, no one cared.

 

As far as the comment that MSC does not do anything that departs from the norm, I hate to differ. Wee have friends who need special diet restrictions and that waiter gave her the menu the night before and made up her order special.

When we ran out of a certain yogurt, the head waiter came over and mixed fruit and some honey in my yogurt. When a friend needed a protein drink that she brought with her, he came over and took over the stirring of the powder into her glass. Then he told her to let them know when she wants it and they will mix it for her. They brought out upgraded oil and balsamic vinegar for my table last time. The head waiter drizzled it on my salad each might. He brought us special cheeses and fruit for the table each night. I think they go out their way to please. When a passenger yells at them, they make believe no English. You get more with honey than vinegar..... So the saying goes!

[tomvet]

Wow in what port I can chat with pilot and Harbour Master? Do they just stand there a answering cruisers questions? :cool:

 

Well actually, they did! We had a great discussion on the particular port being an EU border inspection point for Fishmeal, we knew people in common i.e. my colleagues that work in the local BIPs. Clearly, you don't mix in the right circles! I won't mention the port, however, it was in the British Isles.

Edited August 11, 2015 by tomvet

[GOLDENBONNY]

Well actually, they did! We had a great discussion on the particular port being an EU border inspection point for Fishmeal, we knew people in common i.e. my colleagues that work in the local BIPs. Clearly, you don't mix in the right circles! I won't mention the port, however, it was in the British Isles.

 

No I am not. I simply have no time to on cruise to look for Harbour Masters . :rolleyes:

[ashley@cruisecritic]

Hi all, please don't flame roast me here but I have to ask a serious question.

 

I am looking at MSC cruises out of Florida but I am floored by all the awful reviews. I know everything in cruising is subjective but...

 

In All Honestly, on a scale of 1 to 10 and.... "PLEASE ONLY" from those that have sailed other lines for comparison, how would you rate MSC cruising "OVERALL"

 

1 = oil barge and 10 = Crystal/Silversea

 

Thanks Mark

 

Hi there,

 

The thing to keep in mind is that all cruise lines are different and offer different experiences. (I've done Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian, Holland America, Hurtigruten, Avalon Waterways and MSC.) It's tough to compare them (apples to oranges and all of that). With 1 being an oil barge and 10 being Crystal or Silversea, one isn't a passenger vessel, and the other two are luxury lines (meaning you get more, but you also pay significantly more), so I'm not going to be able to help you rate MSC on that scale.

 

But here's what I'll say about the line: Although the company is trying to woo the North American market (new ship MSC Seaside is specifically being built for North America), it's predominantly European. That means it can be a culture shock for Americans who aren't used to that style of cruising. Dinners are later and move much more slowly. Portion sizes are also smaller. Service is friendly, but it's not the in-your-face type where you'll have someone constantly asking how your day was. Announcements and muster drills are generally done in several languages (which means they take longer). Entertainment is largely nonverbal -- think magicians, acrobats and dancers -- because it has to appeal to various nationalities. The ships, speaking generally, are stunning in terms of aesthetics. Prices are highly affordable, and I think that's what confuses people. They think that because they're paying the same as they'd pay for a Carnival or Royal Caribbean cruise that they're going to get a Carnival or Royal Caribbean experience. When they realize that's not the atmosphere you'll find on MSC, they're disappointed. If you go into an MSC cruise knowing these things and respecting the fact that, as a North American, you're a minority on most of their sailings (meaning things are done the European way), you'll have a much better baseline for evaluating your expectations. Hope this helps!

Edited August 12, 2015 by ashley@cruisecritic

[travelwide]

A shout out "hello" to ALPAL1993 !!! We are also from Davie.

 

We are D+ with RCCL and will be trying our first MSC Divina cruise in June. i wish we could do the Dec. one but have others booked.

 

We are taking advantage of the Match program which will make us Black status. The bene's are not as good as RCCL but not bad either. When the Divina comes back to Miami, I understand it will be americanized with Filipino crew. I understand the U.S. market did not like the attitude of the Italian crew as there were many complaints about dinner service, etc. When in Rome do as the romans do. If you want to woo americans, you need to provide them with what they expect. Sailing MSC in Europe is another story where Americans are in the minority.

 

I think with the aforementioned changes, MSC has a chance of making it in So. Florida. I hope they do. Can't wait to try them. Less $$ for RCCL.

 

Not to mention there are some very, very good prices out there for their winter season in Miami. (inside to balcony upgrades, obc, etc.)

[GOLDENBONNY]

A shout out "hello" to ALPAL1993 !!! We are also from Davie.

 

We are D+ with RCCL and will be trying our first MSC Divina cruise in June. i wish we could do the Dec. one but have others booked.

 

We are taking advantage of the Match program which will make us Black status. The bene's are not as good as RCCL but not bad either. When the Divina comes back to Miami, I understand it will be americanized with Filipino crew. I understand the U.S. market did not like the attitude of the Italian crew as there were many complaints about dinner service, etc. When in Rome do as the romans do. If you want to woo americans, you need to provide them with what they expect. Sailing MSC in Europe is another story where Americans are in the minority.

 

I think with the aforementioned changes, MSC has a chance of making it in So. Florida. I hope they do. Can't wait to try them. Less $$ for RCCL.

 

Not to mention there are some very, very good prices out there for their winter season in Miami. (inside to balcony upgrades, obc, etc.)

 

I never saw any Italian crew on MSC ships before ( I mean in service) .

[Beamafar]

I never saw any Italian crew on MSC ships before ( I mean in service) .

 

We did have a waiter from Italy on one cruise in the MDR and another in YC. They were both fantastic!!! But they are mainly from Indonesia (Bali mostly), Honduras, Ecuador and a few from the Philippines.

[skyking]

To the OP

 

Please see my cruise history, I have a pretty extensive history on a few different lines, the Divina was wonderful and topped as one of our best cruises. The food was wonderful, the shows were the BEST we have seen, even the opera just sucked you in and was amazing. I have moved my review up to the front page, and the Divina gets closer to coming back to Miami I want people to see it. I had someone post here recently that they booked the Divina based on my review, which I thought was great. ENJOY IT!!!!

[Mrs. Squirrel]

Wow in what port I can chat with pilot and Harbour Master? Do they just stand there a answering cruisers questions? :cool:

 

No I am not. I simply have no time to on cruise to look for Harbour Masters . :rolleyes:

 

Why did tomvet's posts bother you so much? You asked, he answered.

[Mrs. Squirrel]

OP, we really liked our cruise on MSC Divina last May of 2014. Would give it a solid 7-8 using your scale. I am taking my son this winter to let him experience this beautiful ship for himself. This time, I have a food allergy (gluten/celiac) to deal with that I wasn't diagnosed with last time, and we'll have the kids' club experience to comment on.

 

Here is a link to my 2014 review:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2039057&highlight=review