Never cruised..is MSC for Us?

[perakcruiser]

11 hours ago, Gray Lady said:

We just want to avoid the main summer rush. 

That is the most important thing, never go in July or August, late June is already problematic. The cruise lines help you to avoid this by double or triple prices at these times. 

 

For a classic trip in Western Med I would recommend MSC for the real experience, not an American line. 

[Nunagoras]

3 hours ago, Stem to Stern said:

In 2019 we went late-Sept into early Oct.

In 2022 we went during the same timeframe.  
Weather was glorious both times.  
Crisp mornings with high temps in the mid to upper 70s.

There were still crowds, but maybe not quite like summer.

That's exactly the best season to travel Europe in relative peace with late May, early June as a 2nd choice, even though more problematic. No school breaks at late Sep, early Oct. Nice weather with the odd rain from time to time.

 

For the OP: If you want to include Lisbon on that trip, my best bet would be for you to use TAP Portugal and use their stopover program to stay a day early or after in Lisbon to know the city (if needed you can use for internal US flights the ones on United or JetBlue that are in code share with TAP), and then go to Rome where pretty much any other company will offer you a comprehensive 7-10 nights southern med cruise at a relatively affordable way. MSC YC may be a good bet if you want such a premium service here, while not breaking your budget!... X has a few sailings with Lisbon and the upper level ones also, but relatively few to say the least. MSC services Lisbon mostly with secondary EU destinations in mind on older ships and some sailings out of London in Summer.

[Markanddonna]

I've been on many cruises including eight on MSC. If English speaking, go to Alaska on a cruise line that stops in Glacier Bay. Most of them do, and only two ships are allowed in each day. MSC isn't a good choice for a novice. There have been so many cutbacks. We are on. B2b right now on Msc and doubt we will sail with them again. We can hardly wait to get off tomorrow. NCl and Rcl were great this past year. The crew is wonderful but stretched beyond their abilities. I have witnessed about eight crew incidents that were ugly. Mostly supervisors harassing them. Food is mediocre at best except the specialty restaurants. 

[D41]

22 hours ago, Gray Lady said:

I want to thank everybody for their insights. We have decided to not spend our money on a Caribbean cruise at this time. Instead, we will roll it into our dream cruise next year to the Mediterranean. We will use our COVID refund from our non-cruise last year and find a good itinerary on a smaller ship. We can then splurge a bit and get a nice cabin. Fingers crossed that it can all come together. I have never been to Europe, so it will all be an adventure of firsts! Any opinions on a Mediterranean cruise would be much appreciated!

I found a book by Rick Steves on Med. Cruise ports to be invaluable for learning about the areas and choosing what to do.

[styles27]

53 minutes ago, D41 said:

I found a book by Rick Steves on Med. Cruise ports to be invaluable for learning about the areas and choosing what to do.

We love watching his videos as well. The guy is living the life for sure!! 

[twangster]

If you are a foodie you may find the food is mediocre on any mass market cruise line.  It's hard to prepare 4,000 to 6,000 meals three times a day and be gourmet about it.  Food is subjective but keep expectations real for mass market cruising in general.

 

I have cruised a fair bit on many different lines but mostly one US mass market line.  MSC is trying to break into the US market since they have historically had a bigger presence in Europe.  IMO they still have to adapt a few things before they'll be able to become a serious player in the US cruise market.  

 

With that understanding I still book MSC and have more bookings on them right now compared to the other US centric lines where I have done a lot of cruising.  This is primarily because they are less expensive as they try to lure cruisers away from the other US centric lines.  That approach is working with me and I tolerate the differences knowing I'm saving a bunch.  

 

There are things to like and dislike about every cruise line.  On one hand it's great to save money with a bargain fare but when booking or buying the cheapest anything in life you can't use that one experience to judge other options that cost more.  Enjoy a bargain but keep an open mind.  

[emdia43]

@twangster- can you point me in the direction of an MSC cruise review you have done.  Looking at Seascape in Dec for the first time.   Thanks

[PTC DAWG]

On 2/2/2023 at 3:27 PM, styles27 said:

I would rebook that cruise to Alaska on HAL especially since you live on the West Coast. 
 

For your first cruise I honestly wouldn’t suggest a ship as big as Seascape. 5,000 people is overwhelming on any size ship I don’t care how big it is. 
 

Alaska is still our favorite cruise and I love HAL which is who we cruise to Alaska with. 

All good advice ^^^

[twangster]

3 hours ago, emdia43 said:

@twangster- can you point me in the direction of an MSC cruise review you have done.  Looking at Seascape in Dec for the first time.   Thanks

 

My photos are offline while I hunt for a new hosting provider.  

[mscdivina2016]

17 hours ago, emdia43 said:

@twangster- can you point me in the direction of an MSC cruise review you have done.  Looking at Seascape in Dec for the first time.   Thanks

Use a TA!!!!

Book yacht club if you budget it.