Our Disappointing MSC Preziosa Experience

We just returned from a 7-day cruise on the MSC Preziosa out of Venice. The experience was very disappointing and I have posted this review on a couple of other sites but for some reason can't get it posted under member reviews. I am putting it here in case someone researching this boat comes across it.

My wife and I have been on 7 cruises before, all on Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, or Carnival but this was our first MSC cruise. We chose this cruise because it started in Venice and cruised the Eastern Med during early April and that's what we wanted.

Check-in was a torturous 3-hour process of waiting in long lines with nothing provided by MSC to make passengers comfortable (uncomfortable waiting area, limited access to restrooms, no food/water provided, etc.). After check-in, we had to wait in line another hour to "register" our credit card and another hour in line to "confirm" our excursion reservations. All this in spite of having done all of this previously with the MSC Web Check-In two weeks prior. As far as I can tell, the web check-in has no function and the check in process is a nightmare.

At first blush, the ship was very nice having recently been renovated. Most cabins have large balconies and they all appear to have unobstructed views. The rooms were larger and better furnished than any previous cruise that we have had.

There were, however, big problems here too. The bed lacked sheets or a blanket the first night, just a mattress, and we were told that bed linens would be provided. When they had not been by 10 or so PM, I went roaming the halls and stole some from an unattended cart on another deck. There was an "interactive" TV but I never found useful information on it concerning our ports of call, the ship, or excursions. It could not access our account. We sent 4 articles of clothing to be cleaned in the laundry service -- it took a full 3 days for the clothing to be returned. A minor but important point: neither us nor anyone we talked to ever had a little "towel animal" as part of the cabin service -- apparently that's not done on this ship.

There were two places to eat on the boat not counting the pay restaurants (of which there were several). One was the buffet which was always open but only had food a few hours of the day and during those brief times the place was badly overcrowded. No table service and inadequate bussing staff so if you were lucky enough to find a vacant table, odds were that it would still have the plates from the previous set(s) of diners. The buffet itself had a very limited set of choices and the food was not particularly appetizing. No drinks were included with the buffet but you could find tap water in the ice machines. One of the most infuriating aspects of the buffet was how the crew members would come and push their way in front of you to feed themselves.

The other place to eat was in one of the two assigned main dining rooms. We were assigned the L'Arabesque which also had breakfast for the ship. The food here was WAY too salty in a fairly transparent ploy to sell more drinks. No drinks were included with the meal without additional fee -- you even had to pay for water. Americans received coupons for 6 "waters" at check-in so apparently there have been complaints about this in the past.

By the way, the breakfast offered in this restaurant was very nice and fully "cruise ship grade." The food was good, staff attentive, the entire operation run efficiently. *Whoever runs that breakfast ought to be promoted to chief of dining services (and whoever is the current chief should be fired).

I think that we were most put off by the attitude of the crew toward the passengers. You almost never received a smile or hello, they never offered to help, they were often confrontational or even cruel. With the exception of the breakfast staff, our courteous cabin attendant and friendly (but badly overloaded) dinner waiter, every interaction with the crew members was neutral or negative, never positive.

The shows were very lame. Each night was the same stage set, the same performers with essentially the same show: singing, dancing, some acrobatics all to canned music. The only thing that changed from night to night was the songs and the costumes (which were simple and crude). The performers themselves were talented but were really just regular crew members and, during the day, you would see them bussing tables, waitressing in bars, etc. I doubt that MSC spent more than $1,000 in all of the theater shows combined for the entire cruise.

The port calls (Bari, Katokolon, Izmir, Istanbul, Dubrovnik) were very short: 4 - 5 hours typically. In spite of this, it took a full hour to disembark for an excursion and another hour to re-embark the ship. So, if you had an excursion, nearly half of the time in port was spent simply getting off and then back onto the ship. One of the reasons for this is that the ship uses very cheap hand-held scanners (for verifying cruise cards) rather than the much faster autofeeding scanner machines used by the other cruise lines. Because of the lost time, the excursions were all much shorter than advertised, did not go to all of the advertised sites, and were very rushed. Truly, MSC's procedures made each port of call a chore and hardly worth the effort.

Even more maddening, at several of the ports of call, all of the ship excursions went to the same "demonstration" which were actually pressure sales jobs. On one excursion we visited a leather company that pressured us to buy overpriced leather jackets and, on another excursion, a carpet-making company that tried to sell us $8,000 rugs. Both of these trips were very disagreeable and, since all excursions went to the very same places, I have to assume they were required parts of the contract with MSC that the independent excursion company had to agree to do. Presumably MSC gets a kick-back from this reprehensible practice.

The ship had far too many passengers for its modest amenities. The "aqua-park" is sized for a ship with half as many passengers; the atrium area sized for a ship a third of this size. As a result, there are long lines for everything, everything is overcrowded. Imagine waiting in line for an hour so that you can get into an 6-foot wide jacuzzi with 8 other people. Sound good?

Check-out was just as nightmarish as check-in -- it took us 4 hours even though we had no questions on our bill. We were to vacate our cabin by 7:30 AM and at 7:15 they started banging on the doors to tell people to get out. At 7:30, they started banging on the doors again threatening to charge additional fees. We were not permitted to actually get off the boat until almost noon. My wife said she felt like she had been in prison.

There are a lot of problems on this boat and we did not meet any fellow passengers who intended on taking another MSC cruise. We did meet a few people who had had MSC cruises before and they all said that they were so disappointed in this one that they might not do another one.

I know that my wife and I won't be on another MSC cruise and, as a result of this one, I will never recommend them to anyone.

We just returned from a 7-day cruise on the MSC Preziosa out of Venice. The experience was very disappointing and I have posted this review on a couple of other sites but for some reason can't get it posted under member reviews. I am putting it here in case someone researching this boat comes across it.

 

My wife and I have been on 7 cruises before, all on Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, or Carnival but this was our first MSC cruise. We chose this cruise because it started in Venice and cruised the Eastern Med during early April and that's what we wanted.

 

Check-in was a torturous 3-hour process of waiting in long lines with nothing provided by MSC to make passengers comfortable (uncomfortable waiting area, limited access to restrooms, no food/water provided, etc.). After check-in, we had to wait in line another hour to "register" our credit card and another hour in line to "confirm" our excursion reservations. All this in spite of having done all of this previously with the MSC Web Check-In two weeks prior. As far as I can tell, the web check-in has no function and the check in process is a nightmare.

 

At first blush, the ship was very nice having recently been renovated. Most cabins have large balconies and they all appear to have unobstructed views. The rooms were larger and better furnished than any previous cruise that we have had.

 

There were, however, big problems here too. The bed lacked sheets or a blanket the first night, just a mattress, and we were told that bed linens would be provided. When they had not been by 10 or so PM, I went roaming the halls and stole some from an unattended cart on another deck. There was an "interactive" TV but I never found useful information on it concerning our ports of call, the ship, or excursions. It could not access our account. We sent 4 articles of clothing to be cleaned in the laundry service -- it took a full 3 days for the clothing to be returned. A minor but important point: neither us nor anyone we talked to ever had a little "towel animal" as part of the cabin service -- apparently that's not done on this ship.

 

There were two places to eat on the boat not counting the pay restaurants (of which there were several). One was the buffet which was always open but only had food a few hours of the day and during those brief times the place was badly overcrowded. No table service and inadequate bussing staff so if you were lucky enough to find a vacant table, odds were that it would still have the plates from the previous set(s) of diners. The buffet itself had a very limited set of choices and the food was not particularly appetizing. No drinks were included with the buffet but you could find tap water in the ice machines. One of the most infuriating aspects of the buffet was how the crew members would come and push their way in front of you to feed themselves.

 

The other place to eat was in one of the two assigned main dining rooms. We were assigned the L'Arabesque which also had breakfast for the ship. The food here was WAY too salty in a fairly transparent ploy to sell more drinks. No drinks were included with the meal without additional fee -- you even had to pay for water. Americans received coupons for 6 "waters" at check-in so apparently there have been complaints about this in the past.

 

By the way, the breakfast offered in this restaurant was very nice and fully "cruise ship grade." The food was good, staff attentive, the entire operation run efficiently. *Whoever runs that breakfast ought to be promoted to chief of dining services (and whoever is the current chief should be fired).

 

I think that we were most put off by the attitude of the crew toward the passengers. You almost never received a smile or hello, they never offered to help, they were often confrontational or even cruel. With the exception of the breakfast staff, our courteous cabin attendant and friendly (but badly overloaded) dinner waiter, every interaction with the crew members was neutral or negative, never positive.

 

The shows were very lame. Each night was the same stage set, the same performers with essentially the same show: singing, dancing, some acrobatics all to canned music. The only thing that changed from night to night was the songs and the costumes (which were simple and crude). The performers themselves were talented but were really just regular crew members and, during the day, you would see them bussing tables, waitressing in bars, etc. I doubt that MSC spent more than $1,000 in all of the theater shows combined for the entire cruise.

 

The port calls (Bari, Katokolon, Izmir, Istanbul, Dubrovnik) were very short: 4 - 5 hours typically. In spite of this, it took a full hour to disembark for an excursion and another hour to re-embark the ship. So, if you had an excursion, nearly half of the time in port was spent simply getting off and then back onto the ship. One of the reasons for this is that the ship uses very cheap hand-held scanners (for verifying cruise cards) rather than the much faster autofeeding scanner machines used by the other cruise lines. Because of the lost time, the excursions were all much shorter than advertised, did not go to all of the advertised sites, and were very rushed. Truly, MSC's procedures made each port of call a chore and hardly worth the effort.

 

Even more maddening, at several of the ports of call, all of the ship excursions went to the same "demonstration" which were actually pressure sales jobs. On one excursion we visited a leather company that pressured us to buy overpriced leather jackets and, on another excursion, a carpet-making company that tried to sell us $8,000 rugs. Both of these trips were very disagreeable and, since all excursions went to the very same places, I have to assume they were required parts of the contract with MSC that the independent excursion company had to agree to do. Presumably MSC gets a kick-back from this reprehensible practice.

 

The ship had far too many passengers for its modest amenities. The "aqua-park" is sized for a ship with half as many passengers; the atrium area sized for a ship a third of this size. As a result, there are long lines for everything, everything is overcrowded. Imagine waiting in line for an hour so that you can get into an 6-foot wide jacuzzi with 8 other people. Sound good?

 

Check-out was just as nightmarish as check-in -- it took us 4 hours even though we had no questions on our bill. We were to vacate our cabin by 7:30 AM and at 7:15 they started banging on the doors to tell people to get out. At 7:30, they started banging on the doors again threatening to charge additional fees. We were not permitted to actually get off the boat until almost noon. My wife said she felt like she had been in prison.

 

There are a lot of problems on this boat and we did not meet any fellow passengers who intended on taking another MSC cruise. We did meet a few people who had had MSC cruises before and they all said that they were so disappointed in this one that they might not do another one.

 

I know that my wife and I won't be on another MSC cruise and, as a result of this one, I will never recommend them to anyone.

7 cruises before and only review for MSC ? :rolleyes:

That's right -- 7 (now 8) cruises and a first review. Never felt the need for a review -- most reviews of cruises are very positive to the point of almost being repetitive. All of our previous cruises were great experiences and I didn't think that the cruise community needed another "me too".

I'm sorry to hear about your poor MSC experience. Unfortunately I do read more reviews like yours instead of positive, at least for the European cruises. I think the North American experience on MSC DIVINA is very different. The hardware is pretty much exactly the same as MSC PREZOISA, but the onboard programming is very different. The competition is too great in the Caribbean market so MSC really had to step it up if they wanted to compete with the likes of Royal Caribbean, NCL, and even Carnival. I think they have. It would be nice if some of the upgrades and enhancements they made to DIVINA spread to the rest of the fleet.

FYI MSC PREZOISA hasn't been refurbished. She is brand new, in fact the newest ship in the MSC fleet.

That's right -- 7 (now 8) cruises and a first review. Never felt the need for a review -- most reviews of cruises are very positive to the point of almost being repetitive. All of our previous cruises were great experiences and I didn't think that the cruise community needed another "me too".

And you never asked or answered any questions ....:rolleyes:

Sorry MSC may be not the best but this... no one will belive.

"There were, however, big problems here too. The bed lacked sheets or a blanket the first night, just a mattress, and we were told that bed linens would be provided." sure :rolleyes:

"The performers themselves were talented but were really just regular crew members and, during the day, you would see them bussing tables, waitressing in bars, etc. I doubt that MSC spent more than $1,000 in all of the theater shows combined for the entire cruise." :rolleyes: Must be one heck of crew members ....:rolleyes:

I'm sorry to hear about your poor MSC experience. Unfortunately I do read more reviews like yours instead of positive, at least for the European cruises. I think the North American experience on MSC DIVINA is very different. The hardware is pretty much exactly the same as MSC PREZOISA, but the onboard programming is very different. The competition is too great in the Caribbean market so MSC really had to step it up if they wanted to compete with the likes of Royal Caribbean, NCL, and even Carnival. I think they have. It would be nice if some of the upgrades and enhancements they made to DIVINA spread to the rest of the fleet.

 

FYI MSC PREZOISA hasn't been refurbished. She is brand new, in fact the newest ship in the MSC fleet.

LOL I loved this comment to about refutbishing :D

Thanks for posting this review. I've also seen some negative feedback on TripAdvisor and have been re-thinking my reservation. My husband and I are currently booked on this exact same itinerary in October - but in one of the large YC cabins so we won't feel so crowded or rushed (and be able to enjoy freestyle dining). The main reason we're reconsidering is due to the short duration of the port calls. After all that's the main reason we're going (not to hang out on a crowded ship). We may be better off picking a couple of the destinations we want to see the most and just doing a land trip.

Globe-Trekker -- You might also look into some of the ferries in the area. There are several that operate between Croatia, Greece, and Italy. The next time we travel in this area, that's what we'll do.

eroller -- You are probably correct about MSC having to step it up in the Caribbean to compete with other lines and that may help explain our experience. This trip was so early in the season that there just weren't many choices and MSC had the market nearly to itself then. BTW, most of the other passengers we met were European and most had the same complaints that I related and felt that the trip was, at best, "just OK." So it wasn't just a North American reaction -- people from many European countries complained too.

Napito - we must have been on the same cruise. With the exception of the bed sheet thing I can concur 100% with your comments.

Embarkation/disembarkation was a disorganised shambles - and we had a wheelchair user in our party too who was even more badly treated. The crew were sullen and grumpy, the food was always very salty, the shows were naff. The supposedly 20h/24 buffet was exactly as you describe as were the excursions. MSC ? - never again.

Napito - we must have been on the same cruise. With the exception of the bed sheet thing I can concur 100% with your comments.

Embarkation/disembarkation was a disorganised shambles - and we had a wheelchair user in our party too who was even more badly treated. The crew were sullen and grumpy, the food was always very salty, the shows were naff. The supposedly 20h/24 buffet was exactly as you describe as were the excursions. MSC ? - never again.

;) I will report your post so they can check IP adress;)

We did exactly the same itinerary in Yacht Club back in 2012 on the sistership MSC Divina and had a wonderful cruise. MSC Preziosa is her newer sistership. But totally agree about the short port calls. Especially Istanbul and Dubrovnik is far to short. With a ship this size and so many passengers the port calls must be longer, it takes a lot of time to just get off and on the ship. They should cut Katakolon or Izmir on this itinerary. Second, the terminal facilities in Venice is not constructed for such a big ship like the MSC Preziosa. The terminal and it's facilities is simply far to small for a 4000 + passenger ship. And on top of it comes the the italian way of organization things and stuff....next summer season MSC will downgrade the shipsize on this itinerary to the smaller MSC Magnifica. That means at least 1000 passengers less.

GoldenBonny - Are you trying to imply we are the same person or something ? If you are then excuse me if I don't appreciate the joke.

This is very disappointing to hear!

Can you tell me, he hour waiting to disembark....was that just for the passengers who were on a ship run excursion? Were those doing their own thing able to get off in a more timely manner since they weren't waiting as part of an excursion group?

We did exactly the same itinerary in Yacht Club back in 2012 on the sistership MSC Divina and had a wonderful cruise. MSC Preziosa is her newer sistership. But totally agree about the short port calls. Especially Istanbul and Dubrovnik is far to short. With a ship this size and so many passengers the port calls must be longer, it takes a lot of time to just get off and on the ship. They should cut Katakolon or Izmir on this itinerary. Second, the terminal facilities in Venice is not constructed for such a big ship like the MSC Preziosa. The terminal and it's facilities is simply far to small for a 4000 + passenger ship. And on top of it comes the the italian way of organization things and stuff....next summer season MSC will downgrade the shipsize on this itinerary to the smaller MSC Magnifica. That means at least 1000 passengers less.

About the Venice embarkation / disembarkation, does it really take 3 to 4 hours? I find it very hard to believe. Specially the disembarkation ??? Why should you wait, can't you just leave? I don't get it, if they have your credit card information :confused::confused::confused:

CarshaltonDon -- Our cruise was April 5 - 12. It was the first cruise for the boat since repositioning from Brazil so, if you were on during those dates, then it was the same cruise. Small world!

Katgoesonholiday -- The disembarkation times at ports-of-call being 1-hr waits WERE for those on excursions. For those not on excursion, it was more like 10 - 15 minutes to go through the line. For re-embarkation, it was the same for everyone who tried to return to the ship at the suggested time. Of course, if you came back to the ship early or very late, then there was less of a wait. It seemed that as the cruise went on, the re-embarkation process improved somewhat.

Elmartallama -- Yes, it really did take 3 hours to go through the initial check-in. For check-out disembarkation, they would only allow a couple of dozen people at a time leave the ship claiming that the terminal was too full.

After hours of this, passengers began protesting and finally just surged and overwhelmed the MSC people blocking our path from the ship to the terminal and pushed on by them. There was danger of trampling there but as far as I know everyone got through OK.

I think that Norweigan Cruiser's point about the Venice terminal facilities being too limited for this size ship is probably correct. We met one couple who began/ended their trip at Bari, Italy (the first stop) instead of Venice and had no problem. Because of the whole-day stop at Venice for disembarkation of old passengers and embarkation of new ones, this made Venice the longest stop for them. They avoided the check-in/check-out trouble doing it this way.

CD -- Like me, you're new here so we have to learn who is worthwhile and who is not. The "Ignore List" is in the USER CP section under settings and options. Mine has one name on it.

Very sirry to hear this.

We are doing this cruise on May 31st and hope things improve... After all this was their first time this year.

At least our port calls won't be made witg MSC excursions.

Sorry to hear you didn't enjoy your cruise. Do you have a suggestion on what time to arrive to the pier in Venice to avoid some of the congestion? What did you do in Bari? Did you take a ship excursion there?

luv2vacation -- We arrived at 11:30 AM for check-in and there was already a long line. I suspect that had we arrived earlier we would just have had a longer wait. I don't know if arriving later would have helped or not.

For the sake of future passengers like yourself, I hope that MSC figures out a better system and develops a more acceptable process.

We took the City Tour and it was just OK. We only drove past the Norman Castle and did not go in -- didn't have time. If I were to do this over, I would not take any excursion. The castle is plainly visible from the ship and about a 15 minute walk. If you do that, be sure to cross the street after leaving the castle and journey down the little alleyways there; It will be Sunday which is a traditional family dinner day and you'll see lots of ladies making pasta. They seem to be a very friendly and likable people and don't seem to mind having their picture taken. Well worth the extra 5 - 10 minutes.

If you want to go to Alberobello to see the trulli (odd dome-shaped houses), I suggest that you use an off-ship excursion. One of our dining partners used the ship excursion and just didn't have time to get out there and back -- said it wasn't worth the trip. An off-ship excursion would get there faster without the ship wait. I also heard that the ship excursion had left some folks behind but don't know that for a fact.

Thankfully we are not planning on using any of the ship excursions so hopefully will be able to get off faster. I'm really sorry you had such a disappointing experience and I appreciate you stating it so that those of us sailing later in the year can adjust our expectations accordingly. Hopefully though, they will have sorted some of these issues out by then.

luv2vacation -- We arrived at 11:30 AM for check-in and there was already a long line. I suspect that had we arrived earlier we would just have had a longer wait. I don't know if arriving later would have helped or not.

 

For the sake of future passengers like yourself, I hope that MSC figures out a better system and develops a more acceptable process.

 

We took the City Tour and it was just OK. We only drove past the Norman Castle and did not go in -- didn't have time. If I were to do this over, I would not take any excursion. The castle is plainly visible from the ship and about a 15 minute walk. If you do that, be sure to cross the street after leaving the castle and journey down the little alleyways there; It will be Sunday which is a traditional family dinner day and you'll see lots of ladies making pasta. They seem to be a very friendly and likable people and don't seem to mind having their picture taken. Well worth the extra 5 - 10 minutes.

 

If you want to go to Alberobello to see the trulli (odd dome-shaped houses), I suggest that you use an off-ship excursion. One of our dining partners used the ship excursion and just didn't have time to get out there and back -- said it wasn't worth the trip. An off-ship excursion would get there faster without the ship wait. I also heard that the ship excursion had left some folks behind but don't know that for a fact.

Thank you so much! I am on the Fantasia in May but will be leaving from Venice so I expect embarkation may be similar to what you experienced.

I am glad you mentioned the tour to Alberobello as I was considering the ship tour there due to the short time in port. It appeared to be the safest/cheapest way to go. Now I am not so sure. I may just hang around Bari and explore on our own.

It's amazing how many negative MSC reviews are by new cruise critic members who have "cruised several times"

It's amazing how many negative MSC reviews are by new cruise critic members who have "cruised several times"

I know, seems to be a trend on this board.

I have a few questions for the OP. What did you mean by the crew members being "cruel"? And did you reprt this behavior? Also, did you really wait an hour to get into a hot tub?

It's amazing how many negative MSC reviews are by new cruise critic members who have "cruised several times"

Here's how it worked for us:

1. Started with Caribbean cruises. Read lots of rah-rah reviews. Picked some cruises. Had a great time on each cruise.

2. Tried an MSC cruise. Was disappointed. Realized the need for frank reviews even if they might be off-putting to that lines' cheer leaders on boards like this. Joined anyway and posted the review. Thus the criticism occurs when a member of this site is new.

3. People who write negative reviews of a line like MSC don't go back to that line. Thus, they stop reading the MSC part of this board because it is no longer relevant and they don't contribute as an older member. I know that I won't be coming back here as I am not interested in any future MSC cruises. Just finishing out this thread.

Not that complicated really.

I know, seems to be a trend on this board.

 

I have a few questions for the OP. What did you mean by the crew members being "cruel"? And did you reprt this behavior? Also, did you really wait an hour to get into a hot tub?

I'll give you one example of the cruel behavior that I witnessed in the buffet: An older lady with a walker was struggling to get to her table while carrying her full plate. Two bussers stood within 5 feet of her, watching and conversing in Portuguese (which I also speak). They were guessing at what point she would lose her plate and talking loud enough so that I could hear them plainly while standing a few feet away. My wife jumped up and helped the woman to her seat. I asked these clowns if they knew how bad was their behavior. They glared at me and, for a moment I thought one might hit me but they stomped off.

Each night at dinner, we would all share our experiences of the day. These invariably included griping about the cruise. Consequently I heard other stories of similarly outrageous behavior but this would be hearsay so I won't pass these stories on.

As far as standing for an hour in line for the jacuzzi -- I did not do that; just not worth it to me. I did see other people waiting that long though. This was, however, weather dependent; when the weather was cold and rainy then the jacuzzis (especially the outdoor ones) were pretty open but when when the weather was warm and sunny well then, yeah, a long (hour or so) wait.