Jump to content

MSC Meraviglia - Just returned from great cruise. Any questions?


cruiserzockel
 Share

Recommended Posts

Returned yesterday after a weeks cruise on MSC Meraviglia, 2 adults and 2 teens. We had two ocean view cabins on deck 8 fantastica experience.

We embarked in Barcelona (had 2 nights there before the cruise) and visited Marseille, Genoa, Rome, Palermo and Palma (rearranged as Malta was cancelled due to bad weather in the med).

We really enjoyed the cruise, the staff were great especially our restaurant waiter and cabin steward, food was very good and plentiful, enjoyed the shows (especially Paz with flamenco dancing, Virtual and Cirque de Soleil).

If anyone has any questions, please ask and I will try and help :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Did the Buffet have any Asian or Indian food? Trying to stay away from too much pasta......which I happen to love.....lol. Was the indoor pool warm enough to swim in? Our kids are bummed that we are cruising the Western Mediterranean the first week in April....and too cold for the awesome water park slides. Did they have the rope bridge open? Do you have to have a certain internet package to access the MSC for me App?

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Can answer some stuff, we´ve been on the Meraviglia six weeks before.

 

Did the Buffet have any Asian or Indian food?

Yes, "Ethnic corner", but I guess real Indians would not call it authentic, same with Chinese.

 

Trying to stay away from too much pasta......which I happen to love.....lol.
Worst idea I ever heard. The pasta on the Meraviglia was best I ever had on a cruise. 8 from 10 pasta dished were just excellent, only their Lasagne still is disappointing and I am not a Gnocchi fan. Really think twice before you skip one pasta dish!

 

Was the indoor pool warm enough to swim in?

Sure.

and too cold for the awesome water park slides.

I don´t think so, the slides were fine End November.

 

Did they have the rope bridge open?

 

 

Yes, I never saw it closed for wind.

 

Let´s see what cruiserzockel says :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi cruiserzockel, could you tell me if they had a White Night or a themed night

 

Thanks!

Hi

 

Yes they had a white night and also a 70s/80s night and a tropical night. Not many seemed to dress up for tropical night but quite a few did for white night and the 70s night

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Glad you enjoyed your cruise. How was the weather temps in the Med at this time of the year?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

hi

 

The temperatures were in the mid teens centigrade mostly although Palma was much warmer (late teens).

There was a bit of rain on the day we were in Rome but only for an hour or so.The night that we were meant to be leaving Rome the wind picked up a lot and the Captain delayed our leaving port for 24 hours because of the sea conditions.

 

Hope this helps please ask if you want more info

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Did the Buffet have any Asian or Indian food? Trying to stay away from too much pasta......which I happen to love.....lol. Was the indoor pool warm enough to swim in? Our kids are bummed that we are cruising the Western Mediterranean the first week in April....and too cold for the awesome water park slides. Did they have the rope bridge open? Do you have to have a certain internet package to access the MSC for me App?

 

 

Hi, yes the buffet did have an ethnic station which changed daily, sometimes thai, sometimes indian or Chinese. As this station was in a corner it did sometimes get quite busy. A tip for the buffet - if it is busy head to the very back of the ship where it is much quieter, there are some tables outside too which were lovely to sit at.

 

The indoor pool was warm enough to swim in, bring flip flops. There were a few brave souls in the outdoor pools too as they are heated. You should be fine in April.

 

The rope bridge was open and was great fun.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Did the Buffet have any Asian or Indian food? Trying to stay away from too much pasta......which I happen to love.....lol. Was the indoor pool warm enough to swim in? Our kids are bummed that we are cruising the Western Mediterranean the first week in April....and too cold for the awesome water park slides. Did they have the rope bridge open? Do you have to have a certain internet package to access the MSC for me App?

 

 

 

You did not need an internet package to access the MSC for me App. It worked really well too

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We are traveling to basically the same ports. Did you do the excursions through the ship or can many of them be done on your own and if so which ones are easiest?

 

We caught the MSC shuttle bus from the ship to the centre of Marseille (think it was about 12€ return). It was very convenient and we didn't have a wait at either end. Once in Marseille it was easy to walk around the port area. We caught a local ferry from one side of the port to the other (2€). We also went on the mini train up to Notre Dame where the views were amazing. There were also amazing views of the coastline on the journey. There was a very big queue to board the mini train at the time we went (about midday) but later on there were no queues so I would recommend waiting until the queues go down.

 

In Genoa we caught a taxi into the old port area. We made the mistake of not asking the price first and ended paying double what we paid to return to the ship. So confirm price first. I think it would be possible to walk from the ship to the old port but it looked like you would have to cross some main roads.

Our two teens went to the aquarium and loved it. We wandered around the town and it was great. Very easy to see all the main sights and well worth visiting. Picked up some local pesto from the market too.

 

For Rome we did the MSC Rome on your Own tour which was basically a coach transfer to the city from the port (about 1.5 hours). As it was New Years Day the trains were not very frequent so we felt this was the best and safest option. It worked very well and was hassle free.

We then walked from the Spanish Steps to Trevi fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona and then on to the Coliseum. We caught the metro back to the Spanish Steps from the Coliseum and had lunch near the Spanish Steps. It was all really easy to do and we had a great day.

 

In Palermo it is a short and easy walk from the ship to the town centre. We only pottered around here for a few hours to get a feel for the town. Again it was very easy to wander about on our own but we probably missed a lot of very interesting sights and facts by not going on an organised tour.

 

We stayed in Barcelona for a few days before the cruise and would recommend a visit to the Sagrada familia. It was fantastic. We booked a time slot in advance and did a self guided tour with headphones. It was very enjoyable and informative and one of the highlights of the whole trip.

 

I hope all of this is helpful. If you have any more questions please ask and I will try and help:)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Did you need to book the cirque shows before you boarded? Thanks

 

We were fortunate to have the cirque show included in our cruise price so we had a voucher in our room when we boarded the ship. We had to take the voucher to the theatre and book the day and time we wanted (think we had to do this between 9am and 3pm so did it on the second day and had a choice of day and time slots).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great information, only one point I disagree.

 

In Genoa we caught a taxi into the old port area. We made the mistake of not asking the price first and ended paying double what we paid to return to the ship. So confirm price first. I think it would be possible to walk from the ship to the old port but it looked like you would have to cross some main roads.

 

Only by car you cannot go direct. It is a very short walk, just go down the stairs outside the harbour buildung and walk a few minutes along the seaside.

 

I would say in Genoa, Palermo and Malta you can easily walk to the town center, in Barcelona it is a little bit longer (maybe 20 minutes), in Marseille the ships docks far away from the city and Civitavecchia of cause is not Rome.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We were fortunate to have the cirque show included in our cruise price so we had a voucher in our room when we boarded the ship. We had to take the voucher to the theatre and book the day and time we wanted (think we had to do this between 9am and 3pm so did it on the second day and had a choice of day and time slots).

 

There seem to be 2 Cirque shows - can you advise which one you saw and whether it was very 'loud'. Travelling with elderly mother!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

In Palermo it is a short and easy walk from the ship to the town centre. We only pottered around here for a few hours to get a feel for the town. Again it was very easy to wander about on our own but we probably missed a lot of very interesting sights and facts by not going on an organised tour.

 

 

I hope all of this is helpful. If you have any more questions please ask and I will try and help:)

 

Hi, when you say 'short and easy' can you advise how far it is please? Flat or up any hills? Travellng with elderly mother!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

thanks for all the feedback. Think I am now going to eat Pasta!!!! LOL

Can answer some stuff, we´ve been on the Meraviglia six weeks before.

 

 

Yes, "Ethnic corner", but I guess real Indians would not call it authentic, same with Chinese.

 

Worst idea I ever heard. The pasta on the Meraviglia was best I ever had on a cruise. 8 from 10 pasta dished were just excellent, only their Lasagne still is disappointing and I am not a Gnocchi fan. Really think twice before you skip one pasta dish!

 

 

Sure.

 

I don´t think so, the slides were fine End November.

 

 

 

 

Yes, I never saw it closed for wind.

 

Let´s see what cruiserzockel says :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...