Stockjock

I feel obligated to inform everyone that, yes, I too have received my 3 points for watching that fascinating webinar last month. Woo hoo.

Exactly. It's easier for me to add to the thread to show a long-term pattern of often "bizarre issues", rather than starting new threads each time. I only add to the thread when I think what has occurred is germane to the conversation. That said, today MSC deleted my web account. As mentioned, for reasons unknown, they combined my first and middle name as one odd first name and had no ability to correct this. This locked me out of my MSC account with error code 502. They've asked me to create a new account in a few days. Hopefully, my sailing history will be added to the new account. It's worth noting that that they requested that I *not* use my middle name, which is a common name. So I think that's worth noting for others, i.e. it's probably best to not use a middle name with MSC. Thank you for reaching out to MSC Cruises. We received your e-mail. We can confirm that your account was reviewed, and the name has been properly updated on your voyagers club account, as well as your booking. Please note, we have deleted your web account. Within the next 24-48 hours you will have the ability to sign up again with the same information provided on your voyagers club account and booking. We kindly ask that you only provide your first and last name (your middle name is not necessary) on your web account. We appreciate your patience and thank you for choosing MSC Cruises!

I've done most of my sailings on either MSC or Celebrity. I've done 2 Aurea suites on MSC (larger and regular size), but nothing above Aqua Class on Celebrity. In my view... Both offer very nice, newer, modern ships and several older ones. Kind of a draw, but Celebrity's ships are smaller and I think that I prefer a ship with around a 2,500 passenger capacity versus 5,500 or even 6,000 capacity. In terms of service, Celebrity was head and shoulders above MSC. But...MSC has been improving, while Celebrity seems to be slightly in decline. I'd give the nod to Celebrity, but the gap is narrower than it was, imo. The same could be said for the food. Celebrity's standard MDR meals are in decline, nearly to the point of being in a freefall. MSC's main dining room meals have pretty much held steady, or maybe slightly improved. So again, nod to Celebrity, but that gap is also closing. Both have nice specialty restaurants, but nod to Celebrity again. That said, MSC's specialty restaurants are generally pretty good and tend to be more affordable. In terms of value, MSC wins almost every time, but every now and then Celebrity surprises me. In terms of the large 1 bedroom suite I got on MSC over NYE, I think a similar cabin would be double or triple what I paid if I had instead booked on Celebrity. Maintenance of the ships and cabins is a draw. MSC called themselves, "Masters of the Sea", and I think this is true, as they are also a huge container shipping operator, so they have a lot of expertise in this area. Customer service is better on Celebrity, especially shoreside customer service. Entertainment is usually much better on Celebrity. Excursions, drink packages, wi-fi and such, MSC typically wins that battle. In the buffet, again the gap is narrowing, but I have to give the win to Celebrity, although MSC makes the best pizza at sea. In terms of the loyalty program, you get more and better perks with Celebrity, but due to MSC's status match, you can achieve top status much, much faster. So I guess I'd go with MSC due to that fact. Celebrity cruises tend to have more of an American vibe, while MSC cruises have an international vibe. We like that international feel, although I get that some do not. What we don't like are continuous announcements in about 6 languages. In terms of receiving a non-paid for upgrade, you have a much, much better chance if you do a Bella booking on MSC and almost zero chance on Celebrity. But of course, upgrades don't always happen, but based on what I've been reading, at least 50% of the time on MSC (again, Bella only.) For the record, I don't typically book Bella. Let us know if you have any other questions.

Are you able to log into your MSC account, or do you get the same error messages that I receive?

That's what I figured, or perhaps only covered by the premium package.

I have a new issue that I think is appropriate to add to this old thread. If you scroll up, you'll see that they had issues with my girlfriend's MSC Voyager's Club account that seemed to be related to the way they listed her maiden name. Ultimately, they deleted her account and after some time, but not without many e-mails and frustration, they restored it. Now, I have the same problem, only I obviously don't have a maiden name and there have been no changes to my name on my MSC account ever. As I mentioned elsewhere, I cannot access my MSC login, as I get an error that reads, "Request failed with status code 502." I called MSC and they said they'd put in a request to try and fix it, but that apparently didn't work. I then sent an e-mail to the Voyager's Club e-mail address. Got a message back that MSC has randomly decided to combine my first and middle name and make that my first name and the only way to fix it is to delete my Voyager's Club account and re-do everything. I called MSC, and the agent spoke with a supervisor. They said there should be a way to separate my middle name and place it where it belongs. So that's where I'm at. Yet another unexpected and random error.

MSC Cruises Introduces ‘World’s Greatest Bars’ Program April 5, 2024 MSC Cruises is elevating its food and beverage offering with the new “World’s Greatest Bars” program on select ships, according to a press release. This new concept brings some of the most acclaimed bars to MSC Cruises ships, each for six months, to serve up something extra special to guests. The program includes bars Paradiso and Sips from Barcelona, Spain, allowing guests the opportunity to enjoy their popular cocktails onboard. Jacques Van Staden, vice president of food and beverage at MSC Cruises, said: “We’re delighted to bring the ‘World’s Greatest Bars’ concept on board our ships to create world-class and innovative experiences for our guests. The new program brings our food and beverage offering to new heights, providing unforgettable experiences not seen before at sea. We’re thrilled to have on board such exciting bars, SIPS and Paradiso, two bars ranked as some of the best in the world. These two bars are incredibly hard to get into right now, so we’re so excited that our guests can get a taste of the action.” Having started on April 1, the new concept is available for a six-month activation with the Paradiso pop-up onboard the MSC World Europa and Sips onboard the MSC Euribia.

One of my clients (w/a big Wall Street firm) is a retired U.S. Navy Commander, who graduated from the Naval Academy in Annapolis. I posted something about Capt. Kate on social media awhile back. He read up on her and said, "Captain Kate has earned her stripes, She's the real deal. Captain Kate is a rock star."

How about this... "Discover your Celebrity" or "Unleash your Celebrity." It's least as good as, "Nothing comes close", IMO.

I did a Celebrity cruise from L.A. to Cabo to San Diego in the fall of 2023. It was a bit odd, since I live in San Diego, but this was one of those "Amazing Deals" cruises, marked way down, presumably because they didn't have enough passengers. Even though it hasn't been publicly announced, it appears that MSC will begin sailing Bellissima on 7 day cruises, presumably to Mexico, out of Los Angeles next year. So even more competition. I'd love to see more ships sailing out of my hometown of San Diego. We've got Holland America and some Disney, and plenty of capacity, I believe. And SD is a much nicer starting/ending point versus Los Angeles. But obviously, I don't know what the numbers look like. Lots of competition for the same ports, i.e. mostly Cabo, Mazatlán, Puerto Vallarta and sometimes, Ensenada.

Didn't help. I called MSC and they said they put in a ticket to fix it, but after about a week, no improvement. They also asked me to send a message to mscvoyagersClub@msccruisesusa.com and I've done that. It doesn't seem as if Voyager's Club would be the ones to correct a technical issue, but we'll see.

Every time I try to logon to MSC's website, I get a message "request failed with status code 502." My girlfriend's account doesn't do this. I can login using the booking number, but my functionality is limited. Anyone experience this? I've cleared all cookies and cache, but no luck. The error occurs on multiple devices.

This may be the saddest looking dish I've seen offered by MSC, or any other cruise line that I can think of. I was served a trout dish on MSC that looked as if a cat vomited on the plate, but I think this one "beats" that.

I swear, the handcuffs were not mine (ex cop here.) That said, I do still carry them in my car.

Whether is it or isn't their fault isn't necessarily relevant. As I see it, there are two issues. 1. What is the law? 2. Is further goodwill compensation warranted? As I see it, the law *may* require MSC to provide additional compensation. But beyond that, when folks buy tickets to cruise on your ship, possibly take holiday/vacation time off from work, possibly book hotels and flights, you have to realize how much that impacts your customer and, within reason, I think it's reasonable to take care of that customer under the heading of "The Right Thing to Do." But again, *if* the law protects customers under these circumstances, then certainly the impacted passengers should claim their rights under EU laws. Now if you were impacted in such a way, and would voluntarily choose not to exercise your potential rights, and/or request further compensation, then certainly that would be your right.