Blows me away to read the disparity of opinions on MSC.

[DaKahuna]

13 hours ago, squigglydownunder said:

 

I had many little annoyances from our recent cruise and I think we were very cranky by the end of it. We thought we had read up enough and had our expectations set. But with MSC, the inconsistency meant that things we were "ready for" were actually fine, and other things blind sided us.

 

 Can you share some examples of things that blind sided you? 

 

13 hours ago, squigglydownunder said:

 

After reflecting on them another week, and especially after looking at the cost vs other comparable cruise lines packages or cost of YC going forward, I've really softened my stance.

 

 In what way have you 'softened" you stance toward MSC?   

 

 We knew from our research that the YC was the only way to go on MSC and chose the Divina based on her itinerary for our first cruise.  Now we are going to try a larger ship but are doing a B2B instead of just a 7-day cruise.  I figure if we have to fly to/from the cruise port we might as well stay away long enough to justify the expense. 

 

[Stockjock]

13 hours ago, squigglydownunder said:

 

I had many little annoyances from our recent cruise and I think we were very cranky by the end of it. We thought we had read up enough and had our expectations set. But with MSC, the inconsistency meant that things we were "ready for" were actually fine, and other things blind sided us.

 

After reflecting on them another week, and especially after looking at the cost vs other comparable cruise lines packages or cost of YC going forward, I've really softened my stance.

I recently booked a cruise for 2025.  For roughly $160 USD per person per day, I get an Aurea balcony stateroom, unlimited drinks (Easy Plus), Wi-Fi, and $250 OBC, as well as, obviously, transportation between several countries, and plenty of food.  In my view, that's a great value and I can overlook some annoyances at that price.

Edited Tuesday at 05:06 PM by Stockjock

[squigglydownunder]

2 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 Can you share some examples of things that blind sided you? 

 

I'm not sure any single event rises to "blind sided" but it was more the accumulation of little annoyances that we were surprised. We were ready for one or two, but...

 

Prior to the cruise...

• It was annoying that we had the drink package and wifi and it stated that on our cruise details but under "purchased" it showed nothing and tried to get us to buy both again.
• More than once I was kicked out of the website because it thought I was in a different country. It tried to get me to use the UK or the Italian site.
• They double charged us for our excursion and it took about 60 days for them to refund our card
• Leading up to the cruise, I used my account to log into the website and the app. The morning of the cruise, I was logged out of the app and when I logged back in, it said I didn't have a cruise associated with my account. I had to switch to logging in with my booking number on the app.

 

On the cruise...

• Our friends who were in the room next to us had issues with their credit card. He had paid for the cruise and was going to put all charges on his card that he already had associated a card ahead of time during the 30 day check in, but once on board on the app, they made her the controlling account so they wiped out his billing information. Guest Services said that since she checked in first online for the 24 hour check in, it all reverted to her. They had to take his card and then assign his card to her account. And then when we got to Ocean Cay, they realized it had been removed again when they went to buy something on the island and they were told there was no card on file, so they had to go back aboard and reassign his card again at a kiosk.
• We had adjoining balconies with our friends that were open between us a total of 6 hours for the 3 night cruise. We were told they couldn't be open during embarkation or days at sea, and they just never opened while we were at Ocean Cay with no explanation given.
• The app doesn't refresh times. We wanted to stop by the MSC store before going ashore at Ocean Cay to see if they had shorts. The app said it was open but when we went there it was closed. Going back to the app, it said it was open until you actually clicked off of the list and into the store details, then it said it was closed.
• Elevators were always full. Confusion as to whether you are supposed to request for each passenger or not. We'd seen a video stating to do that but there were no documentation about it on the boat and Guest Services said that they weren't doing that anymore.
• None of the "pagers" on the tables in the marketplace seemed to work, and the employees seemed annoyed when you went up to the beverage station yourself to order drinks.
• General communication issues in the MDR. We got wrong drinks a couple of times at dinner or a drink order was forgotten or they'd bring a can of soda but no glass. They would always fix the order but it always took time.
• They dropped off the tags for us to fill out for our bags for disembarkation but without instructions and there was no pen in the room. I had to borrow a pen from a housekeeper and had to find the instructions, deadline, group locations info on the app.
• On other cruises I've gone on, there were always designators in some way to identify forward and aft/port and starboard. Whether it's patters on the carpet, arrows on the wall, or other stuff like that. We never found anything like that on the Seashore. And it got really confusing in places like the Marketplace where they have duplicate setups and flipped configuration and we found ourselves going the wrong way.
• We were never able to get our beach towels replaced by our steward or housekeeping. At one point, we even called and they said they would replace them. After 2.5 hours, we had to leave for our excursion and just were going to take damp towels when another passenger told us we could swap them out at the pool on 18. I have no idea if there was any other way to do it. All our program said was to ask our steward our housekeeper.
• The daily program itself is difficult to read because it's still made to be printed at 8.5x11, even though they force you to view it on your smartphone.
• If bar menus are in the app, I never saw them. We had to go to each location and scan the QR code to see what they offered.
• The showers are tiny. It was fine for us but we are considering going on a cruise with my older parents next year and that will be a non starter. We'll have to look at Yacht Club I guess we take MSC. I don't recall even interior showers being so small on our previous cruises on other lines.
• Once we were off the boat at the end of our cruise, we lost access to the app, which means we did not have our final bill. I called and after going through the phone tree, it told me that I had to email a special address that it read off rather quickly (mycruiseinvoice@msccruisesusa.com) to get my invoice. I had to call back again and work my way through the phone tree to get the entire address. They were pretty prompt in responding, but I was surprised that they don't send you an invoice automatically. 

[squigglydownunder]

3 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 In what way have you 'softened" you stance toward MSC?   

 

Now that we're a few weeks away and less cranky, we will adjust our expectations if we take MSC again. Some of the issues were amplified because we hadn't taken a cruise in awhile. We did enjoy ourselves.

 

Yacht Club sounds great. We just have to decide if we want to spend 2-3x what we paid in order to get those benefits.

Edited Tuesday at 07:52 PM by squigglydownunder

[Stockjock]

27 minutes ago, squigglydownunder said:

 

I'm not sure any single event rises to "blind sided" but it was more the accumulation of little annoyances that we were surprised. We were ready for one or two, but...

 

Prior to the cruise...

• It was annoying that we had the drink package and wifi and it stated that on our cruise details but under "purchased" it showed nothing and tried to get us to buy both again.
•  

I could be mistaken, but I believe that when you book drinks and Wi-Fi via a promotional package, it may not show those as "purchased", since they were not bought on a standalone basis, but rather, included in your rate and not booked separately.  What it may show under drinks is an offer to upgrade to premium, or similar, as you already have the package that was included in your promotion.

As long as your booking confirm shows the drink package you are good to go.

Edited Tuesday at 08:05 PM by Stockjock

[JamieLogical]

42 minutes ago, squigglydownunder said:

• The showers are tiny. It was fine for us but we are considering going on a cruise with my older parents next year and that will be a non starter. We'll have to look at Yacht Club I guess we take MSC. I don't recall even interior showers being so small on our previous cruises on other lines.

 

Oh man, if you think those showers are tiny, never go on a Princess cruise!!!

[Stockjock]

2 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Oh man, if you think those showers are tiny, never go on a Princess cruise!!!

I'm doing one of the older Oceania ships later this year, and I hear that their showers are ridiculously small.

[squigglydownunder]

19 minutes ago, Stockjock said:

22 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Oh man, if you think those showers are tiny, never go on a Princess cruise!!!

I'm doing one of the older Oceania ships later this year, and I hear that their showers are ridiculously small.

Really? Smaller than this?

[JamieLogical]

1 hour ago, squigglydownunder said:

Really? Smaller than this?

 

With a shower curtain that sticks to every inch of you!

[Yorkvillain]

We’re almost at the end of Day 3 on the Meraviglia on our first MSC sailing - I was expecting long lines at the terminal in Brooklyn, a long wait to make my specialty dining reservations and subpar food compared to other lines. So far, I have not experienced any of that. 

[lahlah57]

On 6/24/2024 at 3:30 PM, luckyinpa said:

all my cruises except 2 (balcony on NCL and mini suite on princess) are in suites across all lines. OP doesnt say if they are suite or not suite seekers.

 

But the service of YC was superior to my Royal suite on liberty of the seas, my 1BR aqua on oasis of the seas as well as the crown lofts. my butler for my 2 BR haven suite was pretty much non existent. the balcony on the 2BR haven suite was the same size as my balcony YC suite on the Mera. amazing.

 

for the price the balcony cabin in YC is where im pretty happy now. booked the 2nd YC balcony for september. 2600 for a week in bermuda is cheaper than even my first crown loft in 2021. But you get free drinks, refilled fridge to your liking, free wifi, butler, suite deck pool, fantastic pool deck buffet, and attentiveness i never have gotten before (well for my royal suite on liberty they did literally walk me on the ship and to my cabin before everyone else). oh and they give you a bottle of booze in YC as well.

 

im sure someone else has done a breakdown but no one can beat this value. if you want a fancy cabin, as i normally have in the past you may not find it in YC (i never was in the 2 story suite or royal suite in YC to judge).  but if you want better service at a cheaper price with more perks you really need to at least try YC.

 

also every other part of the ship i did visit and enjoy, i saw nothing wrong with it. i never did go to the buffet so maybe thats the issue people hate.

 

i will criticize the butler for not consistently delivering snacks (though since i never asked for any can it really be a criticism?)  and it did take 2 days to get the newspaper i requested. so i guess there are my complaints 🙂

Do they give you a regular size bottle of booze!? Anything you want? My husband is a Gray Goose or XO bourbon guy. Is that possible? Being on YC pays for itself for the experience alone!😁

Edited Wednesday at 01:08 PM by lahlah57
Added

[lahlah57]

14 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

With a shower curtain that sticks to every inch of you!

I just HATE that onboard Princess even though we are loyalty!

Being in YC is worth it for no plastic curtains!!! 👌 

[lahlah57]

16 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Oh man, if you think those showers are tiny, never go on a Princess cruise!!!

AMEN!!!

[luckyinpa]

16 minutes ago, lahlah57 said:

Do they give you a regular size bottle of booze!? Anything you want? My husband is a Gray Goose or XO bourbon guy. Is that possible? Being on YC pays for itself for the experience alone!😁

in May i got full size JD

Edited Wednesday at 01:23 PM by luckyinpa

[lahlah57]

4 hours ago, luckyinpa said:

in May i got full size JD

Bombay will suit him too!

Looks like I will have to pack a few cans of peanuts as well! 🫤

[MonsterJoe]

49 minutes ago, lahlah57 said:

Bombay will suit him too!

Looks like I will have to pack a few cans of peanuts as well! 🫤

There are snacks in the cupboard.  If not - just bring some back from the buffet. 🙂 Their Charcuterie selection is pretty decent - including nuts.

[luckyinpa]

2 hours ago, lahlah57 said:

Bombay will suit him too!

Looks like I will have to pack a few cans of peanuts as well! 🫤

 

when i arrived in the NY terminal it was already boarding. but i noticed TONS of cans of chips in the lounge at the port. i wish i grabbed 100 of them on the way to the ship. probably were other goodies there i didnt see because i wanted to embark

[flsun]

Jumping in to say we were ‘loyal to Royal’ for a decade, moved to Celebrity for 10+ years, then cruised MSC starting in 2018, all through Covid, and never left.  We’re 15 cruises in with MSC and have another in Dec 2024.  By far, they have the best crew of any line, and we’ve sailed both Yacht Club and balconies with them.  We love all the dining options. If you’re sailing the Caribbean, Ocean Cay is the best private island out there.  Also, check out the MSC Foundation; they’re doing things no other cruise company is.

[DaKahuna]

On 7/2/2024 at 3:37 PM, squigglydownunder said:

I'm not sure any single event rises to "blind sided" but it was more the accumulation of little annoyances that we were surprised. We were ready for one or two, but...

 

 Thank you for that list. It i, as you said, a lot of small things.   Kind of like the 'death by 1000 cuts" 

 

 

[MonsterJoe]

I want to know what yall do to sail 15 times a year.

 

I'm approaching 50 and once per year is causing me agita.

 

What do I need to do to get to 15?

[JamieLogical]

8 hours ago, MonsterJoe said:

I want to know what yall do to sail 15 times a year.

 

I'm approaching 50 and once per year is causing me agita.

 

What do I need to do to get to 15?

 

My goal in life is to retire at 55 and cruise 2-3 weeks out of every month for the rest of my life (which might not be that long with the way I eat and drink on cruises!).

[luckyinpa]

8 hours ago, MonsterJoe said:

I want to know what yall do to sail 15 times a year.

 

I'm approaching 50 and once per year is causing me agita.

 

What do I need to do to get to 15?

id say dont work and live next to a cruise port. i can see how someone in FL can do 50 cruises a year easily.  last minute fares on short cruises probably 500 a pop or less. oh and also no pets. i cannot imagine cruising a lot since i have cats.  just wouldnt work out.

[TheSoccerCoach]

20 minutes ago, luckyinpa said:

id say dont work and live next to a cruise port. i can see how someone in FL can do 50 cruises a year easily.  last minute fares on short cruises probably 500 a pop or less. oh and also no pets. i cannot imagine cruising a lot since i have cats.  just wouldnt work out.

We live in Florida near Port Canav and our cruises are limited by our vacation days from our work. But, I think we did four on MSC last year and we have three more booked upcoming. But, our nest is empty. We are both 53. No pets. Live close to ports. Cruise as much as we can. But, my dear wife made me book us 10 days in St Thomas in September or that would have been an MSC Cruise too. The struggle is real. 

[ready2cruzagain]

15 hours ago, MonsterJoe said:

I want to know what yall do to sail 15 times a year.

 

I'm approaching 50 and once per year is causing me agita.

 

What do I need to do to get to 15?

 

We don't do 15 cruises a year but we do at least 21 days or more a year. This year we are doing a total of 43 days. We are retired, no pets. We don't live in FL, actually live in PA. Cruising is what we like to do.