Rick sasso

[luv2travel2006]

What l want to say is ... is it Rick Sasso's fault or MSC bosses, may-be they are not listening to him, may-be they won't give him the freedom to make changes, or is it the actual hotel managers on the ship, do they need to understand the american way of cruising? Italians can be stubborn, and remember these guys aren't trained like other cruise companys train their hotel managers...let me know what you all think

[seagulls]

I am just off the Opera having cruised on the first Caribbean cruise of the season. I could go on and on about the things I didn't like. It would seem that the line has deteriorated tremendously within a year's time. I booked hoping for an Italian experience and instead got inferior service from people who didn't know what they were doing. I think the fault is that the line is trying to Americanize and that is its downfall. It cannot compete againstCelebrity, HAL or RCCL unless it goes back to its unique Italian flavor.

[donnaw]

luv2travel,

 

He is definitely making changes! I was on the cruise with Jean and she has hit it. The impression that I got is that Sasso has Americanized the profit making portion (drinks competitive to X and double last year on the same ship, art auctions, gold by the inch) but the type of service and amenities do not support it at this time. Prices were there, but amenities were not there such as free use of pool towels (had to sign out and will be charged if not returned), robes ready in the cabin, larger cabins, 24 hour coffee and tea, etc. For those of us who cruise regularly, MSC (based on last year's reviews) was a low cost way to enjoy something different and get in a bit extra cruise time. The cruise we took last week had a higher per diem than our last Celebrity cruise and was definitely not up to the quality let alone the perks we get as Captain's Club members.

 

Speculation only, Sasso is running a totally separate operation and it stands or falls on it's own. He needs to make it profitable fast to get continued commitment out of corporate for his future plans in the U.S. market. Drink prices increased with the first U.S. cruise along with the start of art auctions and other profit making measures. In his favor, Brits who were still on from the transatlantic said food service and quality also improved with the first Caribbean Cruise. This is similar in some respects with what Princess and P & O do with moving ships between lines. I am sure that he has plans to train the staff to support his objectives but that takes time.

 

Unfortunately, after the fiasco and lack of customer service at the end of our cruise (Jean's cell phone saved us $100s with the airline after MSC personnel told us to use the public phone in the terminal that we couldn't get to), I will only read if it was successful on this board since we will be back to X and Princess. I would love to see it for myself but just don't have enough time and money to book something questionable. It will be up to someone else to write an outstanding review and I really hope is is sooner rather than later.

[cmjaffe]

I'll add my 2 cents too, after experiencing Lirica's Holiday sailing.

I think that part of their problem is rapid expansion on the US base, mainly in personel. In general I've noticed (across the board) that staffing has changed drastically over the years with the increase in # of ships... there's just so many "qualified" help around.... and in the past they had to progress through the ranks before getting the "plum" assignments (mainly through hard work and evaluations). On our Lirica cruise there seemed to be an enourmous # of waiters on board who were fairly new to being full time waiters on cruise ships and totally new to US market. There was a take it or leave it attitude in some areas and rigidity... though I must say that on certain areas they did change after the 3rd day (mainly food availabilty during "off" hours when the ship was in port for day... after lunch buffet closed there was pizza available (though long lines and salami pizza -- or whatever kind the cook chose to prepare --- didn't like to take requests -- even if there were the ingredients available) and then the grille would open right afterwards... first 2 days there was about a 1hr gap from when the pizza "ran out" (or was scheduled to close) to 5PM (on the button) when the grille was scheduled.. they were preparing the hot trays prior and refused to start serving (though there was plenty ready to take fully cooked) prior to the clock striking exactly 5PM).

Also, from what I gather, the highering takes place in an Indoneasian employment agency (I can just imagine what fees they may ask from the applicants) and it's not the "personal referral" that used to be used on X.

As most kept repeating to themselves... you get what you paid for... would I go again... probably not.. but then again we've had somewhat mediocre experiences on RCCL lately that I'm not sure what our travel options will be.

Carolyn

[donnaw]

I'll add my 2 cents too, after experiencing Lirica's Holiday sailing.

I think that part of their problem is rapid expansion on the US base, mainly in personel. In general I've noticed (across the board) that staffing has changed drastically over the years with the increase in # of ships... there's just so many "qualified" help around.... and in the past they had to progress through the ranks before getting the "plum" assignments (mainly through hard work and evaluations). On our Lirica cruise there seemed to be an enourmous # of waiters on board who were fairly new to being full time waiters on cruise ships and totally new to US market. There was a take it or leave it attitude in some areas and rigidity... though I must say that on certain areas they did change after the 3rd day (mainly food availabilty during "off" hours when the ship was in port for day... after lunch buffet closed there was pizza available (though long lines and salami pizza -- or whatever kind the cook chose to prepare --- didn't like to take requests -- even if there were the ingredients available) and then the grille would open right afterwards... first 2 days there was about a 1hr gap from when the pizza "ran out" (or was scheduled to close) to 5PM (on the button) when the grille was scheduled.. they were preparing the hot trays prior and refused to start serving (though there was plenty ready to take fully cooked) prior to the clock striking exactly 5PM).

Also, from what I gather, the highering takes place in an Indoneasian employment agency (I can just imagine what fees they may ask from the applicants) and it's not the "personal referral" that used to be used on X.

As most kept repeating to themselves... you get what you paid for... would I go again... probably not.. but then again we've had somewhat mediocre experiences on RCCL lately that I'm not sure what our travel options will be.

Carolyn

 

Carolyn, Grille and pizza opened at noon on Opera and ran until 6:00 PM. At least 3 types of pizza including plain cheese at all times. Grille had burgers, hot dogs and other choices. Definitely sounds like a work in progress as they attempt to find the right mix for the market. We were told that the pizza and grille were only open until 2:30 on the crossing and changed as soon as we boarded the ship.

[Oxo]

On the Lirica, 01/06 the La Pergola Grill on Deck 11 was only open from 12 -2:30pm then from 4:30 - 7:30. They started heating up the grill at 4 and put hamburgers on the grill. When the hamburgers were done they put them in a tray and let them sit until 4:30. French fries were not put on until 4:20. Why was the Grill closed from 2:30 - 4:30? They also had veggie burgers, but they only made them if you asked and many people never knew they had veggie burgers. The veggies burgers were very good and freshly grilled. Many people returned from tours, etc. and would have liked to eat other than Pizza from 2:30 - 4:30. So, why close the grill. Only 2 guys worked the grill.