MSC Preziosa Apr 16 to 22 comments

I have recently returned from a 6 day sailing on the Preziosa from Marseille to Genoa, Civitavecchia, Palma Majorca and Barcelona. I have cruised approximately 20 times in the past on Celebrity, Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Princess, Norwegian and Paul Gaugain. This was my first Mediterranean cruise (but hopefully not my last!)

I must say I was overall very pleasantly surprised with MSC, and was expecting the worst after reading reviews...My opinion is that overall the mass market lines are more similar than different.

Some pluses:

The ship is aesthetically pleasing, not tacky in the least

The Garden Pool is lovely, and has a true infinity sensation off the aft deck 15. This was a favorite spot for sail away.

The wine list is extensive, and the prices of bottles of wine and individual drinks are well below those of "American" ships. NCL, in particular, is going off the deep end as far as drink prices IMO...I especially enjoyed the small wine tasting with tapas in the pizza/wine bar for 7.99 euro.

The inside cabins are large and well appointed...I was in one of the square insides on deck 11

Some minuses:

Hate the fact that so much of the ship is "off limits" with the yacht club, but hate it on NCL haven as well. There is no way to access the front of the ship and be outdoors.

Generally a lack of outdoor deck space, no promenade deck that circles the entire ship, sometimes you lose that "being on a ship" feeling on Preziosa.

It's a fact that more Europeans smoke, and MSC allows smoking in some of the indoor lounges, not just the casino.

No live music on the pool deck

Everything else: dining room, buffet, service, crew and shows, are on par with the other lines (except, of course, for the PG)

Oh yeah, there's the having to pay for water in the MDR thing, but I figure I saved so much money on the wine I still came out ahead!

As for ports:

In Marseille we stayed at the Sofitel (fantastic rate from Hotwiredotcom) the day prior to the cruise and the day after. Lovely hotel, great views, central location. We walked to the Basilica of Notre Dame prior to boarding the Preziosa on Saturday.

Genoa

Walked off the ship toward the old port and aquarium, to San Lorenzo, down via Garibaldi, funicular to Spianata Castelletto, then back to the ship. Much gelato consumed along the way!

Civitavecchia

Arranged online for a private driver from Limousinecruiseservicedotcom . 300 euro for the day, I purchased skip the line tickets for the Coliseum and the Vatican as well. Best money spent!

Palma

Again DIY port for us: city bus to the beach, then leisurely stroll back to the ship with some shopping, tapas and kava thrown in.

Barcelona

We had pre-purchased online tickets for Sagrada familia, so cab from the pier to the basilica. Then two metro stops to plaza Catalunia (no worse than NYC subway), walk down the Ramblas, tapas, kava, shopping down to the marina. We caught the port bus back to the pier.

FYI, we were two 40- something female cousins together for a "girls trip," and we never felt unsafe or uncomfortable not using MSC excursions, but we were both used to navigating large cities and public transportation.

Bottom line: would not hesitate sailing MSC again, and can't wait to return to Europe!

Would be happy to answer any questions...

Almost forgot:

Marseille

Easy disembarkation (but no option for express/take your own luggage off)

We toured the old port, rode the Ferris wheel and joined a half day Baldol/Cassis wine tour which was prepaid online with Provence Wine Tours. Lovely!

Dinner was bouillabaisse at Chez Michel, an institution apparently but sheesh, 75euro for fish soup!?!

Thanks for the report. Nice to know there's an extensive wine list and the prices are reasonable.

Thanks for the comments.

Glad you enjoyed the cruise.

Thank you for your report.

Keith

Thanks for the review. really looking to boarding her in June!!!

Mairead224, you will have a fantastic time!

hey,

I would like to check at what time the theatre shows on the MSC Preziosa?

thanks alot

Thanks for the comments.

Hi, thank you for your review, it was very useful as we are taking our first MSC cruise on the Preziosa in July. Like you we join/depart the ship in Marseille. Can you please confirm the earliest you can join the ship, our tickets state earlist is 4pm. Is this the case. Also, what is the earliest time you can depart. We are planning on getting a eurostar to london at 3:20 the same day we get off the ship. We are in the yacht club so know we have priority disembarkation. Ticket reflects it get to Marseille at 1pm, no mention if disembarkation times. Thanks in advance for any info you can provide.

We are really looking forward to our trip.

Hi, apologies, I just realised your itinerary is different to ours, so the timings will be different.