MSC Seaside, Just got off the boat -Post your Questions -we have the answers!

[blueeyes_two1]

Hi Everyone,

My husband and i just got off the MSC seaside yesterday, Please let us know all your questions -

We stayed in a great Pre- Hotel with a rooftop pool,

and did and Great pre tour of Miami. 

We can also tell you all about our excursions.

  -And we will answer them all the best we can!!  The trip was FANTASTIC! but there are some In's and Outs!!

 

[K and S]

Tell all! 

[tcmagnum]

Curious...

What cabin?  What experience?

Pros?  Cons?

 

 

[Preziosa]

It is not a boat, it is a ship. I have been there......

[blueeyes_two1]

4 hours ago, tcmagnum said:

Curious...

What cabin?  What experience?

Pros?  Cons?

 

 

We were in Suite 10068 - we loved it - -good size - -poor storage and if I could have ripped the doors off the closet I would have :)

and yes its a "Ship" - -not a Boat - -sorry.

 

[Fogfog]

How was the bar service? Knowledgeable?

Did you prefer a certain bar over others?

Edited July 29, 2019 by Fogfog

[Preziosa]

The sportsbar is great and you Can sit outside

[dexddd]

22 minutes ago, Preziosa said:

The sportsbar is great and you Can sit outside

But food is for charge unlike Divinia was out of Miami.

[Carnival Cutie]

Hi! 

I sail in September and have loads of questions. Although I'm sure besides the ones I have you'll get more if you mention what experience you were booked under (Bella, Fantastica, etc.)

Right now I am scheduled for late seating but since I booked under Bella (travel agent didn't offer any other options and I didn't ask since the price was great) I am afraid of being stuck with 9:30 seating. Did you have to change yours and if so was it difficult?

Was the ship difficult to navigate?

I know food is a personal thing but did you like it? Is it better to do the restaurant as opposed to the buffet? Did you do any of the specialty restaurants and if so were they worth the cost?

How was the entertainment? I'm referring to the shows and cruise director. 

When I booked WiFi and Easy Package were included. I plan on bringing my tablet and downloading Netflix prior. Do you know if I will have to upgrade my WiFi in order to watch what I've downloaded?

Do you know anything about the beer they include in the Easy Package? I'm not a drinker so it doesn't matter to me but hubby drinks Budweiser. Is it included or will it cost extra? I do occasionally drink Bacardi and I know that's included.

Are the "chair hoggers" bad or do they enforce it?

The cabin I booked is a balcony. Do you know how large they are?

Sometimes I like to be in my cabin instead of out and about which is why we got the balcony. But sometimes we watch TV. What channels are available?

Did you gamble? If so what was the casino like?

How were the pools?

That's all for now. I'm sure I'll have more when you respond to these.

Thanks in advance!!!

 

 

[reedprincess]

10 hours ago, Carnival Cutie said:

Hi! 

I sail in September and have loads of questions. Although I'm sure besides the ones I have you'll get more if you mention what experience you were booked under (Bella, Fantastica, etc.)

Right now I am scheduled for late seating but since I booked under Bella (travel agent didn't offer any other options and I didn't ask since the price was great) I am afraid of being stuck with 9:30 seating. Did you have to change yours and if so was it difficult?

Was the ship difficult to navigate?

I know food is a personal thing but did you like it? Is it better to do the restaurant as opposed to the buffet? Did you do any of the specialty restaurants and if so were they worth the cost?

How was the entertainment? I'm referring to the shows and cruise director. 

When I booked WiFi and Easy Package were included. I plan on bringing my tablet and downloading Netflix prior. Do you know if I will have to upgrade my WiFi in order to watch what I've downloaded?

Do you know anything about the beer they include in the Easy Package? I'm not a drinker so it doesn't matter to me but hubby drinks Budweiser. Is it included or will it cost extra? I do occasionally drink Bacardi and I know that's included.

Are the "chair hoggers" bad or do they enforce it?

The cabin I booked is a balcony. Do you know how large they are?

Sometimes I like to be in my cabin instead of out and about which is why we got the balcony. But sometimes we watch TV. What channels are available?

Did you gamble? If so what was the casino like?

How were the pools?

That's all for now. I'm sure I'll have more when you respond to these.

Thanks in advance!!!

 

 

You don't need internet access to watch anything you've downloaded from Netflix. That's the point of downloading - to watch off-line.

Beer in Easy Package is Heineken ane Miller Lite. That's it   if hubby wants Bud, hell have to pay for them individually. Or consider upgrading (but you both have to do it) 

Easy has a list of mixed drinks included, plus the specific brands, and virtually all non-alcoholic drinks. No frozen cocktails, mojitos, or anything with tequila (no tequila on Easy)  Workaround is getting a non-alcoholic frozen drink, then a shot of booze on the side, and voila - frozen cocktail.

There's several  English language channels, Space, ESPN Caribbean, a news channel or two and something else, can't remember .  Not a lot, but background noise. That's where whatever you've downloaded comes in handy  

Unless you're in Aurea on deck 9, balconies themselves are decent sized, fully covered, and have two chairs and a Bistro table.

Yes, there's chair hoggers, like any line, no better or worse. We always found chairs, maybe not the most ideal spots, but plenty available all around the ship. There's lots on 8 outside the Sports Bar and spa open to anyone and much quieter 

Casino is small but adequate. No craps.it is smoking in some sections 

"Better" for restaurants or buffet is subjective. We preffered buffet fr breakfast and lunch and MDR for dinner . Others are buffet only  and so on. 

 

Hope that helps!

[Carnival Cutie]

Thanks Reed Princess, you've helped quite a bit!!

[JAGR]

8 hours ago, Carnival Cutie said:

Thanks Reed Princess, you've helped quite a bit!!

To clarify on the casino, smoking is not really in "sections."  The port side of the casino is non-smoking, as is the casino bar in the center.  The port side has all the table games and dealers, as well as limited slots.  The starboard side has slots only and is designated as smoking.  They appear to have good air filters, and you don't really notice smoke unless you go to the starboard side.

[momofdsc]

Hi!  We are sailing the Seaside in September!  7 of us.  Us parents and five 20-somethings!    

Wondering how much "fun package" I should pre-buy as I see you get $180 worth for $100 pre-cruise.  Mainly for bowling & zip line.  Do you know how much bowling costs?  Zip line?

Can you bring on champagne?

Good entertainment?

Thank you.

 

[Beardface]

How robust is the channel selection in the Sports Bar?

 

I have season tickets to the Carolina Hurricanes NHL team and wouldn't mind being able to catch some of the games when we are away, if possible.  But, given they aren't a national draw, the only option would be is if they have the Center Ice package.  Anyone know if they do?

[skiierx131]

I've seen what times the pools open/close from cruise compasses, but what about hot tubs? Is at least 1 always open 24 hours?

[xcell]

Not so much about the ship but did your itinerary include San Juan, and did you port or did the ship skip it because of the protest (are the protest still on??)?

[reedprincess]

3 hours ago, xcell said:

Not so much about the ship but did your itinerary include San Juan, and did you port or did the ship skip it because of the protest (are the protest still on??)?

Seaside skipped San Juan on the July 20-27 sailing, and rearranged St Thomas and St Maarten with longer hours in St Maarten.  It was mentioned in many a post around the various Seaside/MSC forums.

 

Seaside docked safe and sound in San Juan last night (Aug 5) 

 

The protests are long over, the governor, etc resigned last week and things are back to normal for the time being  

[JS99]

Thanks for taking Time to answer everyone’s questions. I was wondering if you have any information on the kids programs? I am considering the seaside and I was hoping there would be enough  activities to keep my grandkids busy. It looks like a beautiful ship. Thanks—

[xcell]

The water park and slides were fun -- I think your grand kids would enjoy.

 

Not sure about the kids club as my kids did not partake but I tend to recall lots of video games on the activity list (as per my kids).

Edited August 7, 2019 by xcell

[Skerns9685]

We sailed on her sister ship the MSC Seaview in June on a Mediterranean itinerary.  Loved the Ship, but was not fond of the food.  I realize it was Mediterranean, but my question, is the food on the Seaside more like Royal Caribbean or Carnival?  

[mfd062450]

Or is it like Princess or Celebrity?  Thanks. 

[megaelch]

Have there been any cocktail packages or beer buckets on sale during the cruise ? We are sailing on the 24th and still doing the math on the drink packages.  Many greetings Stephan

[Selion]

On 7/31/2019 at 12:41 PM, Carnival Cutie said:

Right now I am scheduled for late seating but since I booked under Bella (travel agent didn't offer any other options and I didn't ask since the price was great) I am afraid of being stuck with 9:30 seating. Did you have to change yours and if so was it difficult?  Can someone take this?  I was in YC.

 

Was the ship difficult to navigate?  Very easy to navigate.  Decks 6, 7, 8 are public areas.  Deck 16 has specialty restaurant in the forward section.  Top decks can be a bit cluttered, but not bad.

 

I know food is a personal thing but did you like it?  We like the food on Seaside.  It's not overly seasoned & sauced.  Some may find them bland.  It was perfect for us.

 

Is it better to do the restaurant as opposed to the buffet?  We didn't try MDR, but the buffet looked very uninspiring.

 

Did you do any of the specialty restaurants and if so were they worth the cost?  We had a complimentary dinner at the specialty seafood restaurant.  Food was good overall, but I would not have paid the $29 or $39 per person for the tasting menu.  You can also order a la carte at specialty restaurants.  BTW, I heard the Asian place has decent sushi.  We didn't try it, but several YouTubers said they are decent.

 

How was the entertainment? I'm referring to the shows and cruise director.   Gene was the cruise director and I think he was still on the ship in May.  He is good at what he does.  Shows were about 45 minutes each, and three times a night.  Think variety shows with dancing, acrobats, and some singing.  Towards the end of the cruise you'll notice the acts starting to repeat...

 

When I booked WiFi and Easy Package were included. I plan on bringing my tablet and downloading Netflix prior. Do you know if I will have to upgrade my WiFi in order to watch what I've downloaded?  Downloaded = saved to your device.  You don't need any connection to watch downloaded contents.

 

Do you know anything about the beer they include in the Easy Package? I'm not a drinker so it doesn't matter to me but hubby drinks Budweiser. Is it included or will it cost extra? I do occasionally drink Bacardi and I know that's included.

Are the "chair hoggers" bad or do they enforce it?  Refer to this PDF:  https://www.msccruisesusa.com/en-us/Assets/MSC-18-353_Drink-Package-Consumer-Flyer.pdf

 

The cabin I booked is a balcony. Do you know how large they are?  Your TA should be able to tell you...  53 to 96 sq. ft.

 

Sometimes I like to be in my cabin instead of out and about which is why we got the balcony. But sometimes we watch TV. What channels are available?  Not that many US channels.  I remember CNN International, ESPN, and maybe one or two of the networks.

 

On 7/31/2019 at 12:41 PM, Carnival Cutie said:

Did you gamble? If so what was the casino like?  Didn't gamble, but had our muster drill in casino.  As with all casinos on ships, it was smoke filled and as non-smokers we avoided going to that area like it was infected with norovirus.  Majority of casino floor space is used for slot machines.

 

How were the pools?  Pools are deep and can be crowded, especially on first sea day.

 

That's all for now. I'm sure I'll have more when you respond to these.

Thanks in advance!!!

 

 

 

Since the OP hasn't came back, I'll try my best recalling my Seaside cruise from November 2018...

[Selion]

19 hours ago, Skerns9685 said:

is the food on the Seaside more like Royal Caribbean or Carnival?  

 

15 hours ago, mfd062450 said:

Or is it like Princess or Celebrity?  Thanks. 

 

Never been on Celebrity nor Carnival.  Seaside's food is unlike Princess and Royal.  I feel Princess & Royal rely too much on sauces for certain dishes.  Seaside used way less seasonings on entrees.  You may find it bland.  We like it though.

[Oxo]

MSC food has been discussed many times. Food is subjective. Our opinion is the MSC food needs much improvement. Yes, cruised on the other cruise lines and MSC does not compare, regardless.

Selection is very limited in buffet and MDR. Been on 8 MSC cruises on 4 different ships in the Med and Caribbean.

However,  we don't cruise for food. We like everything else about MSC.

Edited August 8, 2019 by Oxo