Just Returned--MSC Seaside 7/20-23

[PTC DAWG]

Speaking of weed, I was at St Augustine Beach earlier this week, in the evenings the smell of weed was very prevalent on the beach.  I tried to get closer to get a better whiff, no luck… 🙂

[morpheusofthesea]

On 7/24/2023 at 11:21 PM, TravelandLeisure85 said:

Speaking of not being able to have drinks in hand—that reminds me of MSC’s policy of no drinks in the theater. I saw a lot of people unpleasantly surprised when they had to toss their cocktails to attend a show.

That did not happen on the Seascape. Many were able to bring in drinks to the Chora Theatre.

[amygutman]

5 hours ago, Morgsmom said:

No drinks in theater and in pools/hot tubs.  Policy has been in effect for a while now.

Darn it...But smoking weed in public and on the balconies is OK? 

I like to keep zen on a cruise but if I can smell it, I'm inhaling it and so is my kiddo. It's disappointing if security did not address it, but I'm not shy and I certainly will (politely of course). What you do on a private island is between you and the government, but once it enters my space it's definitely MY business. 

Appreciate the heads-up. 

Warmest, Amy

[morpheusofthesea]

On 7/25/2023 at 8:55 AM, TravelandLeisure85 said:

Yeah, I still can’t believe people were openly smoking either. The thing is—it wasn’t just one person; we witnessed several! MSC needs to come up with some way to address this. 

Yes, like they come up with everything else.

[morpheusofthesea]

On 7/25/2023 at 1:32 AM, Two Wheels Only said:

Again, it can be 50/50...or maybe 75/25 as far as enforcement. I've had drinks delivered and I've gotten drinks myself in the theater before a show. I even asked the person working the door if it was ok and he said "Sure, no problem". The next night, I did see the cleaning crew cleaning up a spilled drink so I suspect that from that night forward, drinks were no longer allowed in the theater. 

The problem, like that pictured below, on the Celebrity Beyond. These are the same type that smoke and vape in Le Cabaret Rouge or put their soiled trays outside. or hang their laundry out to dry.

[bundtkate]

OMG, the baby on the balcony rail! Have these people not read about what happened on that RCI ship? Just looking at it makes me twitchy. 😮

[Essiesmom]

34 minutes ago, bundtkate said:

OMG, the baby on the balcony rail! Have these people not read about what happened on that RCI ship? Just looking at it makes me twitchy. 😮

Enlarge and you’ll see it is just a couple of kids with their arms over the railing.  EM

[bundtkate]

7 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

Enlarge and you’ll see it is just a couple of kids with their arms over the railing.

So it is! My bad. On my phone it was just a blurry mess when zoomed in, but on a computer screen it's clearly just quite a few humans on a balcony. Phew!

[shipgeeks]

On 7/24/2023 at 6:41 PM, TravelandLeisure85 said:

 

We had the Fantastica experience, which was why I was surprised when we got ATD. The entire Seashore restaurant was ATD on my sailing, so it seems like they opened it up to more than just Aurea guests.

 

Was there an explanation of why the entire restaurant had ATD?  That would be a major disappointment for us; we book Bella or Fantastica specifically to have traditional dining times and table.

[TravelandLeisure85]

9 minutes ago, shipgeeks said:

Was there an explanation of why the entire restaurant had ATD?  That would be a major disappointment for us; we book Bella or Fantastica specifically to have traditional dining times and table.

No—I never figured out why/how we got ATD with Fantastica. I was happy with the assignment so I just rolled with it. I would be curious to hear from someone else who recently sailed Seaside whether this was the case on their cruise, or if it was just an anomaly on my sailing. My sailing was sold out, but not sure if that had anything to do with it.

[TravelandLeisure85]

16 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

That did not happen on the Seascape. Many were able to bring in drinks to the Chora Theatre.

 Interesting. They were pretty strict on my sailing with the no drinks. From what I’ve read MSC’s reputation is that of being inconsistent, so not really surprising.

[ZoeyVictoria]

3 hours ago, TravelandLeisure85 said:

No—I never figured out why/how we got ATD with Fantastica. I was happy with the assignment so I just rolled with it. I would be curious to hear from someone else who recently sailed Seaside whether this was the case on their cruise, or if it was just an anomaly on my sailing. My sailing was sold out, but not sure if that had anything to do with it.

We were also on that cruise, and agree with your opinions. I also was not happy to book Fantastica and be assigned to ATD. I waked all over the ship and asked four different employees for guidance before finally finding the mostly-hidden area to request a change to early dining. I explained what I wanted and gave a reason, and was told, “No problem!  ATD starts at 5:15, just go then”.  I told her I had been on the ship in May and had seen the ATD lines.  She laughed and found a table for us in early dining. 
 

People watching was fantastic from that table. Several very large groups kept us well entertained. The only odd experience we had was at the time cabins became available on embarkation day. Several elevators stopped and doors opened to reveal not an inch of space. Finally one stopped that was only about two-thirds full. My SO stepped into the elevator and was told, “We are full.  You have to get off the elevator.”  That did not happen. 
 

We have sworn off three night cruises a few times, but every once in a while one fits into our schedule so perfectly that we go anyway. We go knowing that it will be a different experience from longer cruises, and with adjusted expectations   This cruise was actually better than expected.
 

My favorite memory of the cruise was early in the morning of the second day at Ocean Cay. I was off the ship within twenty minutes of the gangway opening, and walked to Lighthouse Bay. Very few people were on the beach, with only three of us in the water. I started my day floating in that gorgeous water with the ship on one side and the lighthouse on the other. Beautiful morning. 

[CruisinCrow]

Thank you for posting the menus!  I hope we will have ATD on our cruise.  I think having to pay for Aurea to get flexible dining is one of the drawbacks of MSC.

[UPNYGuy]

On 7/24/2023 at 4:19 PM, TravelandLeisure85 said:

Fellow Passengers:  I would say the majority of the people on this ship were generally well-behaved and respectable, however there were certain groups that left a lot to be desired. It was generally easy to avoid these groups, and we didn't let it interfere with our vacation. Also, we smelled weed in the hallways several times throughout the cruise. I even saw several people openly smoking it when we were on the beach in Ocean Cay. There was literally a guy in the ocean puffing a joint---I thought that was pretty bold. MSC definitely needs to get some drug dogs on board like Carnival is beginning to do.

 

avoid short cruises and you generally avoid undesirable clientele. 

[cbfb]

On 7/29/2023 at 1:55 PM, ZoeyVictoria said:

We were also on that cruise, and agree with your opinions. I also was not happy to book Fantastica and be assigned to ATD. I waked all over the ship and asked four different employees for guidance before finally finding the mostly-hidden area to request a change to early dining. I explained what I wanted and gave a reason, and was told, “No problem!  ATD starts at 5:15, just go then”.  I told her I had been on the ship in May and had seen the ATD lines.  She laughed and found a table for us in early dining. 
 

People watching was fantastic from that table. Several very large groups kept us well entertained. The only odd experience we had was at the time cabins became available on embarkation day. Several elevators stopped and doors opened to reveal not an inch of space. Finally one stopped that was only about two-thirds full. My SO stepped into the elevator and was told, “We are full.  You have to get off the elevator.”  That did not happen. 
 

We have sworn off three night cruises a few times, but every once in a while one fits into our schedule so perfectly that we go anyway. We go knowing that it will be a different experience from longer cruises, and with adjusted expectations   This cruise was actually better than expected.
 

My favorite memory of the cruise was early in the morning of the second day at Ocean Cay. I was off the ship within twenty minutes of the gangway opening, and walked to Lighthouse Bay. Very few people were on the beach, with only three of us in the water. I started my day floating in that gorgeous water with the ship on one side and the lighthouse on the other. Beautiful morning. 

Could you share where this hidden area is to request a dining change? Just in case we need it. 

[ZoeyVictoria]

27 minutes ago, cbfb said:

Could you share where this hidden area is to request a dining change? Just in case we need it. 

I just looked at the deck plans to refresh my memory. It was really confusing because of the different decks I searched and the convoluted route I was directed to.  I am positive that it was on Deck 6, close to the Venchi chocolate bar.  Not directly visible from there, but around a corner or in a cubbyhole.  Looking at the deck plan, it is possible that it was in the Business Center. Two men were set up at tables with computers, and two female greeters prescreened guests. Some guests accepted what they were told and left, others were told to sit down while she took her notes to the men at the computers and they worked together to make changes. Then I was given a form that had my newly assigned table handwritten on it because my card was not changed. I had to show the form to the hostess at the dining room to be escorted to the table. The area was not marked or labeled in any way. I am assuming that it is designed to assist guests who were specifically sent there and prevent other guests from casually stopping there on impulse. 

[cbfb]

2 minutes ago, ZoeyVictoria said:

I just looked at the deck plans to refresh my memory. It was really confusing because of the different decks I searched and the convoluted route I was directed to.  I am positive that it was on Deck 6, close to the Venchi chocolate bar.  Not directly visible from there, but around a corner or in a cubbyhole.  Looking at the deck plan, it is possible that it was in the Business Center. Two men were set up at tables with computers, and two female greeters prescreened guests. Some guests accepted what they were told and left, others were told to sit down while she took her notes to the men at the computers and they worked together to make changes. Then I was given a form that had my newly assigned table handwritten on it because my card was not changed. I had to show the form to the hostess at the dining room to be escorted to the table. The area was not marked or labeled in any way. I am assuming that it is designed to assist guests who were specifically sent there and prevent other guests from casually stopping there on impulse. 

Thanks so much. Good to know if a discussion with the maitre d doesn’t work!!! 

[ZoeyVictoria]

57 minutes ago, cbfb said:

Thanks so much. Good to know if a discussion with the maitre d doesn’t work!!! 

I started out at the dining room, but there is no one there to assist during the first afternoon, unlike other cruise lines. The hidden spot was the only choice. 

[Mojobaby7]

Travelandleisure85,

Thanks so much for the great and very thorough review, had some great info. I was curious about some of the features on the ship such as the bowling and Formula One simulator and interactive theater, but didn’t see a way to purchase a fun pass? Did you purchase it through the website or by calling?  So if you buy a $80 fun pass and get $140 worth of use, how much are each of the things or do you know? Say for example if you want to bowl game is it $20 a game or $10?

Also where do you have to go to book a bowling lane in advance on the ship? Thanks in advance for any info.

I just posted a request for info on the fun pass in the main MSC forum, was surprised to see when I searched nothing came up, so I found the review very helpful.

Edited September 12, 2023 by Mojobaby7

[tcruisin77]

We pre-purchased a Fun Pass on the app and made our bowling reservation through the YC concierge. You could also go to the desk across from the bowling lanes on deck 7 to make reservations, but I would go early on in your cruise to have more options. 1 hour was $50. There are no bowling shoes and few bowling balls to pick from, but we enjoyed the experience. The same desk on deck 7 is where you will purchase 4D and F1 as well. 

[Envelope21]

Thanks for the review. We are in Seaside right now. My only comment would be the Peter Punk show seemed more like a kids show and it was like watching an entire season of America’s Got Talent. 😀

[TravelandLeisure85]

On 9/12/2023 at 1:49 PM, Mojobaby7 said:

Travelandleisure85,

Thanks so much for the great and very thorough review, had some great info. I was curious about some of the features on the ship such as the bowling and Formula One simulator and interactive theater, but didn’t see a way to purchase a fun pass? Did you purchase it through the website or by calling?  So if you buy a $80 fun pass and get $140 worth of use, how much are each of the things or do you know? Say for example if you want to bowl game is it $20 a game or $10?

Also where do you have to go to book a bowling lane in advance on the ship? Thanks in advance for any info.

I just posted a request for info on the fun pass in the main MSC forum, was surprised to see when I searched nothing came up, so I found the review very helpful.

We purchased the fun pass online before the cruise. I don’t remember the exact amounts of each activity, but I believe the simulator and 4d theatre were around $11 per person. 
 

For bowling you purchase by the game—I think you can choose between 30 minutes or an hour. 30 minutes was something like $30 maybe. To book a time you just go to the desk in the arcade on Deck 7.