Just off Seaside/MSC Not Ready To Compete In North American Market

[Teacher42]

Dear Bea, You certainly are the 'Gem' of the CC boards!

[Beamafar]

Dear Teach ... I shall accept that in the spirit in which it was intended.

[Stealthdog]

Ready or not, we are giving it a try.  Booked a Yacht Club suite on the Meraviglia for an October 2019 Canada cruise.  TA advised against it, but when he saw the price of YC compared to other cruise line suites, he changed his mind.  We have friends on this cruise that are not staying YC, so we'll be able to see the difference with their experience.

[Beamafar]

Meraviglia will only be in the early stages of adjusting to the American market when you cruise, Stealthdog, so it may not be the best time to try out MSC.  Having said that, at least you're in YC, where you won't have to queue up at Guest Services if you have any issues;  there'll be a concierge, a head butler and, possibly, a YC Cruise Director to look after you.

[42go]

On 11/25/2018 at 2:38 PM, mnocket said:

OP's impressions are pretty similar to those of other US cruisers trying MSC for the first time.  From reading reviews of MSC, I've come away with the impression that - if you don't like Carnival, you won't like MSC.  That said, I have read great things about Yacht Club and have decided to see for myself.  I'm booked on Seaside YC next Sept.

We have sailed with MSC numerous times and I would say that it is a step up from Carnival. I find the drunken pool party atmosphere of Carnival a huge turn off. There are many more Europeans on MSC which we find enjoyable. I think people dress up more on MSC which we like but others might not. Shows on MSC are much better. 

[deliver42]

1powerguy, I guess we were on a different Divina, because from Nov. 18 to Nov. 29, we had a great crew, always smiling, and saying hello. No matter if it was from maintenance ot officers, and everyone in between. I only agree with the lack of bartenders, be frustrating at times.

[Host Jazzbeau]

We're thinking of giving Seaview YC a try – I know this class of ship was designed for Americans in the Caribbean, but we'll be sailing in the Mediterranean.  Will be interesting to see if the 'Americanizing' holds.

[Kmkub]

On 11/27/2018 at 2:29 PM, mnocket said:

The following is from a post elsewhere on the MSC forum........

 

Here is something written by another Cruise Critic member some time ago. I would give credit if I knew who it was. Anyway, I think they did a good job of pointing out some differences.

 

I think I've finally figured out how to partially explain some of the MSC difference.

Thank you for posting this, and I'd also like to thank the author.

 

We have been hesitant about MSC, due to the negative comments, but having read this, it may be exactly what we need. Something "not" American. We want to know how others see life. I will likely find the coolness of staff to be refreshing, as I am almost always to the point and not into providing fluffy details that the listener doesn't really care about, and won't remember in 15 minutes.

 

We have been craving the suite life for years, but unable to afford. The suite life is doable on MSC, and my initial research, including this helpful post, tells me it's a serious consideration.

 

[hamrag]

On 12/29/2018 at 1:10 AM, jean87510 said:

.....I do not consider myself nor my husband as unable to adapt to other cultures. Are the "steerage" sections ok to be in? Will it be uncomfortable for an American couple in their 50s who dont really drink, exercise all the time, read, do active excursions, and like healthy food and usually are in bed by 9?  I'm reading all these comments and honestly it sounds like current msc passengers are not too fond of the Americans and perhaps the crew isn't too thrilled either? We already booked but I'm starting to wonder if it's even worth it. Luckily it's a port intensive cruise so we will be pretty busy.

 

You have really answered your own question, as you are taking your preferred lifestyle to the ship....in that scenario, the cruiseline matters little, especially on a port intensive itinerinary.

 

Steerage sections are good, the whole ship (YC apart) is available to you, and healthy food can be found at all meals...you may need to search for it, we are moderately healthy eaters especially breakfast and lunch and always found healthy options.

[Arzeena]

On 12/31/2018 at 5:35 PM, sfaaa said:

One only has to look at MSC cruise prices and you know it is competing aggressively in N American market with some success. The fact that US mainstream cruise lines are now including MSC in their customer surveys can only mean they are seeing MSC as a competitor. To increase market share, MSC just needs to add more non Caribbean ports to its N American itineraries and it's game on. Many of the so called inferior food/services mentioned are of minor nature and can be fixed with more training and customer research. I am a converted MSC believer with two more cruises booked to 2020.

I HAVE to agree with your reasoning!

We have 2 future bookings on MSC....main reason is price point. One just cannot beat their price! For the price NCL and Royal was offering we could have cruised 3 times on MSC for the same itinerary.

The low price comes with its share of MSC faux pas as well, but we will leave that for another discussion.

[Hlitner]

First they brought one ship, and some said, "its not American enough."  And they brought a 2nd ship and a poster said, "Not Ready to Compete."  And next fall they are bringing a 3rd ship and I assume somebody will again question their ability to compete.  Meanwhile, they are building approximately 2 new ships a year (for the next few years) and soon will have 29 cruise ships (more then any other single cruise line).  And some will say, "they cannot compete."  Just saying!

 

Hank

[Tapi]

On 1/10/2019 at 12:33 AM, Kmkub said:

We have been craving the suite life for years, but unable to afford. The suite life is doable on MSC, and my initial research, including this helpful post, tells me it's a serious consideration.

 

Thanks to MSC, we were able to taste “the suite life” and I can tell you that we are now spoiled for life! What an amazing stateroom! And the best part about it is that we paid less than what we paid for a standard balcony stateroom on another cruise line the previous year! For comparison purposes, a suite on Royal Caribbean similar to the one we had on MSC would’ve cost a prohibitive $16K for our family of 4! 

 

Our stateroom was an Aurea suite so we didn’t get to enjoy the YC perks, but the list of perks that it did come with was still generous.

Edited January 25, 2019 by Tapi

[Cruisergal1208]

Which ship and cabin number are these pictures from?  Thanks. 

[Tapi]

21 minutes ago, Cruisergal1208 said:

Which ship and cabin number are these pictures from?  Thanks. 

Meraviglia, Aurea Duplex Suite

[Cruisergal1208]

Nice!

[1powerguy]

16 hours ago, Hlitner said:

First they brought one ship, and some said, "its not American enough."  And they brought a 2nd ship and a poster said, "Not Ready to Compete."  And next fall they are bringing a 3rd ship and I assume somebody will again question their ability to compete.  Meanwhile, they are building approximately 2 new ships a year (for the next few years) and soon will have 29 cruise ships (more then any other single cruise line).  And some will say, "they cannot compete."  Just saying!

 

Hank

Hank, I had little problem with the ship.  My problem was with lack of training of staff and food quality.

[Hlitner]

1 hour ago, 1powerguy said:

Hank, I had little problem with the ship.  My problem was with lack of training of staff and food quality.

We also had issues with the staff, outside the Yacht Club, on the Divina.  I actually talked about it in an earlier post.  There were too many crew members that were on their first contract and seemed to lack any significant training/motivation.  Within the YC, the staff was outstanding.

 

As to food quality, we had nearly all our meals in Le Muse (Yacht Club) where the cuisine varied from good to excellent and the staff was outstanding.  We had a couple of lunches in the Lido Buffet which we thought was typical of most cruise lines.  We also tried both alternative restaurants (on the Divina) and was disappointed in the Eataly.    But overall, we found the food to be better then what we have recently experienced on other popular US lines such as Princess and HAL.  

 

With two new ships a year, we predict that MSC will continue to have staffing problems and be forced to rely on many 1st and 2nd contract folks.  We chatted with quite  a few crew members in and out of the YC and their motivation was like night and day.  The YC folks seemed motivated and happy and talked about future contracts.  But outside the YC at a couple of bars, 1st Contract bar waiters told us they would likely not come back after their contract.   Since we did not have any meals in the MDR we only know what we heard from other cruisers which was it was just OK...but nothing special.

 

Hank

[leos037]

my .2 cents.   I am 40, ex New Yorker and cruise with my wife and  two kids 6 and 8. Cruised RCL, NCL and HAL 12 cruises 5 with kids  We look for the place to relax and for kids to have fun.   Msc provided both

Our first sailing on Seaside was its 4th sailing  (fantastica balcony)  Ship still had  new-ship problems; sewer smell gremlins, customer service issues.   Made the best of it, had  good time  and saw potential 

Cruised this November in SJ3 cabin with hottub and it was great! best cruise out of 12. Loved the spa!  

Booked again for next year.

- Sailed NCL Bliss a month ago - GO carts and Lasertag was nice  but $$$  value was missing.    Booked MSC for march 2020 on Mera   

 

So yes MSC is ready for NA  just some NA is not ready for it  🙂

[SirWolf]

1 hour ago, leos037 said:

So yes MSC is ready for NA  just some NA is not ready for it  🙂

Well said 👍 , agree !

 

[Hobby3333]

Maybe people just don’t get it.  I have cruised over 30 sailings and MSC was my best one to date.  Of course YC makes a difference but my wife and I loved the vibe of the rest of Seaside.   Going again this July and taking the kids and will have two cabins in YC.   If MSC does change then I will go back to the more Americanize lines.  

[CGTNORMANDIE]

When I completed my first cruise with MSC in October 2017 I made the statement that “ MSC is a work in progress”.  We see the title of this thread, “MSC not ready for the American market”, as stated on November 24th., has now been reduced by Seaside’s track record...in just two months.  What a difference two months make.  For those of you who think you can build a dozen giant ships without some growing pains, think again.  What MSC has done in ten years is simply amazing.  It won’t be long before we will be discussing, on this board, how the other lines intend on competing with MSC in the American market.