MSC Line questions

[KarimaJ]

Hi all, hoping a few questions can be answered quickly. We are thinking of booking a 4 day cruise on Meraviglia in March for my daughters spring break. We usually cruise NCL and Celebrity. We love the happy staff and service on these lines.  I hear service is not as good or friendly on MSC, is this true? Also how does the food compare? We can always find something we like and are not foodies. But we hated the buffet on carnival. Is there any Indian food on the MSC buffet?

Do you think this will be a crazy spring break party ship with people puking, etc..?

is the wifi that come with Fantastica package for every person in the cabin or do we have to share? 
thank you!

[Match Game 72]

We like the service. It's reserved. You will need to ask for something rather than have it offered for examp!e.

 

We also like the food. It's less salty than typical American fare. We are not foodies either. Prior to MSC, we sailed Carnival, NCL and Royal. The food is a similar quality to NCL.

 

I have not seen Indian food at the buffet.

 

The shorter the cruise, the more likely people will party. So a four day is better than a 3 day. And a seven day is even better. That being said we cruised four days on Merovingian during Covid. It was a normal amount of drinking, imho.

 

Our WiFi packages have been only two users per cabin. When our son cruised with us, we had to decide who would not get wifi. Of course, we could have purchased it but did not.

[Seadweller001]

On the embarkation there is Indian Food in the buffet Ethnic Section.  Each day they have a different type of food in this section.

 

The service is good and the crew are mostly friendly.  Best bang for the buck.

[KarimaJ]

This is all very helpful thank you. We don’t mind reserved crew, will just be a little different then what we are used to. How is the ocean cay private island?

[Match Game 72]

5 minutes ago, KarimaJ said:

This is all very helpful thank you. We don’t mind reserved crew, will just be a little different then what we are used to. How is the ocean cay private island?

Ocean Day is a wonderful laid back island. It's a real beach day. They have some excursions like jet skis but no water park. It's pretty and not overly developed.

[wallyj]

3 hours ago, KarimaJ said:

Hi all, hoping a few questions can be answered quickly. 
 

is the wifi that come with Fantastica package for every person in the cabin or do we have to share? 
thank you!

MSC WiFi is usually only 2 devices per cabin, it should state how many devices in your confirmation. Once you assign a device to a WiFi package, you can not switch devices like you can on Royal and Princess where you can log off one device and then log in on another for the same 1 device plan, like switching between a phone and a tablet.

[Mrdell]

I really don’t think you should have an issue with the food… while I would not say that it is exceptional, we never had a problem finding something that we enjoyed.

[Joken35]

I really  loved  the food on our first Divina cruise. Great cheese offerings  such as mozzarella in water. The past few on the Seaside  and seashore seem to be more Americanized. But still very good.

 

[perakcruiser]

10 hours ago, KarimaJ said:

Is there any Indian food on the MSC buffet?

Depends on the number of UK pax. If the ship stops Southampton then Indian food options are available daily😄

[CruiseIreland]

We found Indian food options in the buffet, towards the back corner, on every MSC cruise we've done(8). 

 

Service is usually friendly unless the staff are run off their feet, which can happen. 

[Nunagoras]

13 hours ago, KarimaJ said:

Hi all, hoping a few questions can be answered quickly. - Surely! Be welcome and ask away! We are thinking of booking a 4 day cruise on Meraviglia in March for my daughters spring break. We usually cruise NCL and Celebrity. We love the happy staff and service on these lines.  I hear service is not as good or friendly on MSC, is this true? - Like on any other European venue, service will be more reserved. You'll need to ask for something rather than being offered. To each their own: For me it's better. Also how does the food compare? - If you have ever done an RCI cruise, quality like food will be pretty much similar. Variety and availability like the MSC's MDR will be slightly better than RCI and the RCI's buffet somewhat better than MSC, but they're pretty much comparable. We can always find something we like and are not foodies. But we hated the buffet on carnival. Is there any Indian food on the MSC buffet? - They have such an etnic section on their buffets. Some days Indian, some days from elsewhere in the world.

Do you think this will be a crazy spring break party ship with people puking, etc..? - Lots of kids... Usually MSC attracts a better audience than Carnival, but only on your embarkation day the crowd will reveal what they are!... Have a nice sailing!...

is the wifi that come with Fantastica package for every person in the cabin or do we have to share? - It's a one device per cabin as far as I understand.
thank you! - You're welcome! Have a nice day!...

 

[KarimaJ]

1 hour ago, Nunagoras said:

 

Great thanks! This would be a 4 day bahamas cruise to get us away from the cold during my daughters spring break. I would rather a bunch of kids vs college kids puking and being crazy 😜 I think we will go ahead and book!

[Homosassa]

15 hours ago, KarimaJ said:

 

 I hear service is not as good or friendly on MSC, is this true? Also how does the food compare? We can always find something we like and are not foodies. But we hated the buffet on carnival. Is there any Indian food on the MSC buffet?

Do you think this will be a crazy spring break party ship with people puking, etc..?

is the wifi that come with Fantastica package for every person in the cabin or do we have to share? 
thank you!

Service on MSC is professional and courteous.  What throws some people is that they are use to cruise lines where the crew is obsequious and beg for a high rating. 

 

Food is not the sugary, salty, fried goop so dear to some. Some are surprised that an Italian cruise line doesn't have garlic bread, meatballs served with overcooked noodles drowned in a sugar based tomato sauce, or pizza with BBQ sauce, pineapple and ham.  

 

As far as your cruise bein a spring break party cruise with overserved guest, MSC has recently changed their offerings of alcoholic drink packages to  discourage passengers who are mistaking MSC for another cruise line known for booze cruises and misbehaving guests.

 

Drink packages are not available on three night sailing from the US.  

 

I would not be surprised if drink packages are also not available on a four night US cruise during spring break.

[deliver42]

Forget what you hear about on board service. They are very good, and for the most part, friendly. They have gone from a mostly European crew to a mostly Asian crew, at least in the U.S., and the service improved dramatically. This is comparing 2019 with 2022.

[Two Wheels Only]

3 hours ago, Homosassa said:

Food is not the sugary, salty, fried goop so dear to some.

 

That is so true. The "comfort" food that many are used to is not what MSC does. Too many people are accustomed to the processed stuff that passes for food that they have no idea of how bad their normal diet actually is. 

[KarimaJ]

32 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

 

That is so true. The "comfort" food that many are used to is not what MSC does. Too many people are accustomed to the processed stuff that passes for food that they have no idea of how bad their normal diet actually is. 

I am happy to hear this about the food. I find it all too salty. You can alway add it but can’t take it away. I think that will be a plus for us.  Thanks!

[Nunagoras]

4 hours ago, Homosassa said:

Service on MSC is professional and courteous.  What throws some people is that they are use to cruise lines where the crew is obsequious and beg for a high rating. - This exactly!... 🙂

 

Food is not the sugary, salty, fried goop so dear to some. Some are surprised that an Italian cruise line doesn't have garlic bread, meatballs served with overcooked noodles drowned in a sugar based tomato sauce, or pizza with BBQ sauce, pineapple and ham.  - Yeah, to an extent... I understand their need to be more international these days; I believe there will be something for everyone in a right way! Not top notch Michelin starred food, but you don't pay for that either; just a nice food to go on the day with a nice conversation... Fond memories on me of those back in the day days when, for example, their Italian night was an authentic Italian meal!... These days they're very international with an Italian touch...

 

As far as your cruise bein a spring break party cruise with overserved guest, MSC has recently changed their offerings of alcoholic drink packages to  discourage passengers who are mistaking MSC for another cruise line known for booze cruises and misbehaving guests. - True! And I hope they stay as they're going with it right now forever!...

 

Drink packages are not available on three night sailing from the US.  

 

I would not be surprised if drink packages are also not available on a four night US cruise during spring break. - Pro tip: No matter the duration of your cruise; as per my experience; they've NEVER sold drinks packages during public holiday weeks, marked as "extra" season, at least here in Europe.

 

Edited December 27, 2022 by Nunagoras

[Homosassa]

On 12/27/2022 at 2:04 PM, Nunagoras said:

 

Pro tip: No matter the duration of your cruise; as per my experience; they've NEVER sold drinks packages during public holiday weeks, marked as "extra" season, at least here in Europe.

 

 

Thank you for this explanation.

 

I saw a MSC statement (somewhere) when the three day short cruise drink package was deleted that decisions on alcoholic drink packages would be decided on a basis of itinerary, expected passenger demographics or date of embarkation.

 

Now I know what they mean and can only hope that this extends to the US cruise ports of embarkation.

 

(Sorry, for the bold print. Had trouble citing Nunagoras' statement and the bold has carried over).

 

 

 

[Mutumbojimbo]

Maybe I'm going right before Spring break, but I have a drink package on a 4-day sailing on the Meraviglia at the end of February. I got the Easy Plus package and wi-fi when I booked, the wi-fi plan is shown as "2 devices". 

[mawvkysc]

1 hour ago, Mutumbojimbo said:

Maybe I'm going right before Spring break, but I have a drink package on a 4-day sailing on the Meraviglia at the end of February. I got the Easy Plus package and wi-fi when I booked, the wi-fi plan is shown as "2 devices". 

I was able to get the package on a three day by booking the free drinks and Wi-Fi promo. If I had tried to buy it separately I would not have been able to buy it. 
 

I found  Indian food on the buffet most days. It was good but RC Indian food was better. 
 

The pizza is very good 

[Nunagoras]

22 minutes ago, mawvkysc said:

I was able to get the package on a three day by booking the free drinks and Wi-Fi promo. If I had tried to buy it separately I would not have been able to buy it. 
 

I found  Indian food on the buffet most days. It was good but RC Indian food was better. 
 

The pizza is very good 

As far as I understand they stopped to sell drinks packages on less than 5 nights globally by mid December. The ones purchased online or as part of special promotions before that date, or as part of partner TA's blocks offerings still ongoing will be honored.

[Homosassa]

3 hours ago, Nunagoras said:

As far as I understand they stopped to sell drinks packages on less than 5 nights globally by mid December. The ones purchased online or as part of special promotions before that date, or as part of partner TA's blocks offerings still ongoing will be honored.

This is what I saw somewhere about the drink packages with that added statement about the decision based on dates, passenger demographics, and embarkation ports.

[mawvkysc]

I just did a dummy booking on MSC’s USA website for a 3 day. I was able to book the free drinks and wifi promo. 

[Nunagoras]

1 hour ago, Homosassa said:

This is what I saw somewhere about the drink packages with that added statement about the decision based on dates, passenger demographics, and embarkation ports.

Sure! I believe they're doing what they can so that they don't become a second Carnival, but sadly, for the sins of a few, all of us will to pay, one or the other way! The ongoing Casino programs change seems to follow same trend. Again: For the sins of a few, all of us will to pay, one or the other way...

[Nunagoras]

4 minutes ago, mawvkysc said:

I just did a dummy booking on MSC’s USA website for a 3 day. I was able to book the free drinks and wifi promo. 

As with anything MSC related: Their departments rarely have their act together. As far as I'm sort of an MSC cheerleader of sorts, I must admit their website is ugly. I also believe someone booking those today will be denied those drinks packages and refunded for that part if needed. Curiously the Portuguese website seems to have been updated very recently and reflects those new policies where applicable.