MSC cancellation fee-Ouch!

[1hotflyer]

Just in case anyone is considering booking an MSC cruise, be aware of something that just happened to me.

 

Before I start I must state that this is not my first cruise rodeo. I have been on Princess (Elite status), Viking (Ocean and River) and BC Ferries.

I recently booked a "long weekend" cruise out of Miami on the MSC Magnifica. I should have checked CC first, but I figured it would still be a fun trip, after all, what can go wrong in four days?

After I booked the cruise, I began checking with my friends here on CC. I should have done that first!  After reading six reviews of the ship and the way the cruise line operates, I figured my investment in my CC membership had paid off.

THANK YOU  FELLOW CCERS!

I called this morning to cancel my cruise (20 hours after booking). MSC was happy to cancel my reservation, however, in accordance with their policy, they still charged me half of the fare..

Ok, I get it, that is policy. It just seemed that if the cancellation occurs within 24 hours it should be a full refund.  I'm not going to make a stink about it with MSC or here. However, until I learn about some changes, I will not deal with MSC or any of their associated cruise lines or partners.

I will leave it to the reader to make up your mind whether or not to follow my example.

 

[Hobby3333]

1 hour ago, 1hotflyer said:

Just in case anyone is considering booking an MSC cruise, be aware of something that just happened to me.

 

Before I start I must state that this is not my first cruise rodeo. I have been on Princess (Elite status), Viking (Ocean and River) and BC Ferries.

I recently booked a "long weekend" cruise out of Miami on the MSC Magnifica. I should have checked CC first, but I figured it would still be a fun trip, after all, what can go wrong in four days?

After I booked the cruise, I began checking with my friends here on CC. I should have done that first!  After reading six reviews of the ship and the way the cruise line operates, I figured my investment in my CC membership had paid off.

THANK YOU  FELLOW CCERS!

I called this morning to cancel my cruise (20 hours after booking). MSC was happy to cancel my reservation, however, in accordance with their policy, they still charged me half of the fare..

Ok, I get it, that is policy. It just seemed that if the cancellation occurs within 24 hours it should be a full refund.  I'm not going to make a stink about it with MSC or here. However, until I learn about some changes, I will not deal with MSC or any of their associated cruise lines or partners.

I will leave it to the reader to make up your mind whether or not to follow my example.

 

Did you ask if you could transfer the deposit to another MSC ship?  I have only sailed MSC 3 times in YC but I haven’t had a single bad experience.   Was the charged 1/2 of your deposit or did you pay in full?   Everyone has their opinion of all cruise lines.   Maybe you should have taken the cruise and then decide for yourself.  

[brucevr6]

@Hobby3333I agree. Attempting to fault the cruise line for        “ assuming “ they should offer a refund if the cruise was canceled within 24 hours is at least poor planning on your part. In my opinion,            “ assuming “ the cruise would be bad because the OP read about reviews from other people shows something as well. Reading “6 reviews “ hardly constitutes a consensus of the thousands of people who have taken that cruise, and certainly wouldn’t prompt me to lose either half of my deposit or half of my cruise fare. I’ve read lots of negative reviews about MSC both before and after I booked my upcoming first on MSC cruise, but I will find out for myself. For the most part, reviews are written by unhappy customers. Look at the hundreds of thousands of customers who sail and don’t write anything…usually because their expectations are met. 

[morpheusofthesea]

3 hours ago, 1hotflyer said:

It just seemed that if the cancellation occurs within 24 hours it should be a full refund.  I'm not going to make a stink about it with MSC or here. However, until I learn about some changes, I will not deal with MSC or any of their associated cruise lines or partners.

Yes. We feel your pain. We cancelled a NCL Joy cruise 99 days prior to sailing and were charged $1800. Asked if we could put it on another NCL cruise....refused. Just called MSC to changed a cruise from Seascape to Seaside (we use a travel agent to do all this), no problem and still accepted the $200 obc booking credit from booking on board the Seascape. We feel the same way about NCL, not wanting to deal with them again.

[NCMtnBoys]

I would have gone and decided for myself whether it was good or bad before losing half of what I paid. There are plenty of bad reviews for every cruise line but I've never let those be the deciding factor in taking a particular cruise. Of the 34 cruises I've taken, four have been on MSC and each of those cruises was as enjoyable as any other that I've taken. We have two more MSC booked as well.

Edited January 13 by NCMtnBoys

[JT1962]

1 hour ago, NCMtnBoys said:

I would have gone and decided for myself whether it was good or bad before losing half of what I paid. There are plenty of bad reviews for every cruise line but I've never let those be the deciding factor in taking a particular cruise. Of the 34 cruises I've taken, four have been on MSC and each of those cruises was as enjoyable as any other that I've taken. We have two more MSC booked as well.

I agree. I wouldn’t lose 1/2 my payment because I might be disappointed based on what others wrote. I was hesitant about MSC for my first cruise with them 2 years ago, but it was great and I have been on 6 more cruises with MSC since then and have enjoyed them. 

[xcell]

Was your cruise 2months out?

 

 

I don't think (please correct me if I am wrong), any cruise line has a 24 hour "I made a mistake in booking" policy -- I know airlines do.

 

 

CRUISES 4 NIGHTS AND LESS:
· Cancel 74−51 days prior to departure: Deposit Non−Refundable
· Cancel 50−31 days prior to departure: 50% of the total fare   <--- that was you??
· Cancel 30−16 days prior to departure: 75% of the total fare

 

 

 

As others have said, I would have tested the waters myself and make my own decision 🙂

Edited January 14 by xcell

[richs52]

I'm always amazed by people that don't do their research before booking, and then complain about widely available policies after.   

[1hotflyer]

Rich-yes I am one of them. The situation  is mine. Yes I caused  it. I'm not  whining  or making a stink. If anything I  am alerting my fellow  CCers. 

I only wish I had read the CC reviews first.  I'm not a  cruise newbie. (I was on six cruises last year.)

Perhaps I was frustrated but I do understand the situation was mine and I  am going to accept the consequences.  

 

 

[nferr]

Instead of losing half the fare I would go on the cruise and make my own decision on whether it was good or not. I mean it's a weekend cruise not a 20 day affair.

Edited January 14 by nferr

[Brighton Line]

The US Department of Transportation protects airfare purchases with a regulation that requires airlines must offer either a free 24-hour price hold or free cancellation for 24 hours.

This does not apply to cruise lines. 

[JamieLogical]

I would have gone on the cruise rather than give up half my money. As others have said, there are bad reviews for every line and ship. I am one to do my research before plopping down the cash, but had I spent the money and read some bad reviews after the fact, I still would have gone and judged for myself.

 

I haven't sailed on the Magnifica, so can't comment on that specific ship, but I have been generally pleased with my onboard experiences with MSC. Their shoreside customer service can sometimes leave a lot to be desired (though my recent experiences have shown signs of improvement), but certainly I haven't encountered any problems onboard that were worth giving up half my cash for!

[Babblespeak]

So how is any of this MSC’s fault?

[PTC DAWG]

On 1/13/2024 at 1:10 PM, 1hotflyer said:

Just in case anyone is considering booking an MSC cruise, be aware of something that just happened to me.

 

Before I start I must state that this is not my first cruise rodeo. I have been on Princess (Elite status), Viking (Ocean and River) and BC Ferries.

I recently booked a "long weekend" cruise out of Miami on the MSC Magnifica. I should have checked CC first, but I figured it would still be a fun trip, after all, what can go wrong in four days?

After I booked the cruise, I began checking with my friends here on CC. I should have done that first!  After reading six reviews of the ship and the way the cruise line operates, I figured my investment in my CC membership had paid off.

THANK YOU  FELLOW CCERS!

I called this morning to cancel my cruise (20 hours after booking). MSC was happy to cancel my reservation, however, in accordance with their policy, they still charged me half of the fare..

Ok, I get it, that is policy. It just seemed that if the cancellation occurs within 24 hours it should be a full refund.  I'm not going to make a stink about it with MSC or here. However, until I learn about some changes, I will not deal with MSC or any of their associated cruise lines or partners.

I will leave it to the reader to make up your mind whether or not to follow my example.

 

I would have sailed before giving them half for nothing…I’ve been on 3 MSC cruises, good times on them all..

[1hotflyer]

PTC-

You could be right. Then again, I have read enough of these reviews to trust them a bit.

Everyone makes their own choice. This was mine. I agree,I may be missing out on a wonderful trip. I also might be happy I cancelled . I will never know.

 

[GOLDENBONNY]

On 1/13/2024 at 1:10 PM, 1hotflyer said:

It just seemed that if the cancellation occurs within 24 hours it should be a full refund. 

where exactly you got this idea from? you may avoid any cruise line in future ,no one will return your money . 

[xcell]

11 minutes ago, GOLDENBONNY said:

where exactly you got this idea from? you may avoid any cruise line in future ,no one will return your money . 

airlines do it...  buyer's remorse...

[deliver42]

You shouldn't always go by critics on CC. More negative posts than positive ones because people love to complain. Been on 3 MSC cruises, and booked on a 4th. Loved them all.

[brucevr6]

I feel sorry for anyone who “ reads enough reviews to trust them “ !! Reviews are a tiny sample of people’s opinions…and mostly of people who have had a bad experience…be it with cruise lines or practically anything else for which reviews are written. Better to live life through your experiences not vicariously through the people who choose to write about theirs !! Just my opinion. 

[Selion]

On 1/17/2024 at 4:43 PM, 1hotflyer said:

I have read enough of these reviews to trust them a bit.

Hmm...  People are different.  Cruises are different, even from the same cruise lines.  I had given 2 5-star reviews and a 2-star review for MSC.  I had also given a 5-star review and a 2-star review for Viking Ocean.

 

Cruises are like a box of chocolates.  You never know what you are gonna get.

[MsTabbyKats]

Since it's on the same subject....To Cancel or Not to Cancel

 

I had a very good offer for CCL Venezia....and booked with a non-refundable deposit.

The initial reviews were awful...and I was going to just cancel before final payment.

Then the reviews got a bit better....so I paid it off.

And then I got a "free cruise" offer from MSC (non YC)....for the same week as my CCL cruise!!!  Since I prefer MSC (even out of YC) I was tempted to just lose all the money on CCL and take the MSC cruise.

Well, I finally decided that maybe I wouldn't be too happy "with the masses" on MSC....so we went on the Carnival cruise.  I had set the bar really low....

 

As it turned out....it was a very good cruise, way above expectations.

 

The point is....don't go by what other people say.  Experience it yourself, and then decide!

[sammee]

I was supposed to sail Venezia for the Thanksgiving cruise. I was undecided, just like you.Than we were minus one car in the house and had to regroup to cover the cost I ended up canceling and moving it to my booked Charleston cruise. I received a free non yc balcony offer. I sail tomorrow. Oughtta be fun, YC definitely spoils you and my free cabin was not eligible to bid on yc upgrade. But it's still a cruise. Maybe next time I'll get a YC.

[MsTabbyKats]

2 hours ago, sammee said:

I was supposed to sail Venezia for the Thanksgiving cruise. I was undecided, just like you.Than we were minus one car in the house and had to regroup to cover the cost I ended up canceling and moving it to my booked Charleston cruise. I received a free non yc balcony offer. I sail tomorrow. Oughtta be fun, YC definitely spoils you and my free cabin was not eligible to bid on yc upgrade. But it's still a cruise. Maybe next time I'll get a YC.

Truthfully, YC in Jan out of NY wouldn't be good.  Our #1 thing is the "breakfast/lunch" by the pool...and it would have been too cold...so even if we could have upgraded our free cruise offer to YC...it wouldn't have worked.  Anyway, when you "try other things", you appreciate YC even more.

[sammee]

17 minutes ago, MsTabbyKats said:

Truthfully, YC in Jan out of NY wouldn't be good.  Our #1 thing is the "breakfast/lunch" by the pool...and it would have been too cold...so even if we could have upgraded our free cruise offer to YC...it wouldn't have worked.  Anyway, when you "try other things", you appreciate YC even more.

That's good thinking. Probably prefer the indoor pool too for the same reasons. My husband is staying home for this one but I'm taking my sister in law. It will be her first time. She's usually on Royal.

[MsTabbyKats]

18 minutes ago, sammee said:

That's good thinking. Probably prefer the indoor pool too for the same reasons. My husband is staying home for this one but I'm taking my sister in law. It will be her first time. She's usually on Royal.

Venizia has a cover on the LIdo pool.  We stayed on board for the "private island day"....had the place to ourselves.  It was beautiful, sunny and warm.  I told DH...this is just like YC....peace and quiet.

Enjoy your trip!