MSC SEASIDE March 10-17 2018 Short Review

Just got back from MSC Seaside, thought I'd post a short review, and people can ask questions if they'd like.

Party of 11, 3 balcony rooms, with Fantasia package. Booked with the Canadian special, so we got $50 OBC, free drinks(including alcohol) during meal time, and 12 coupons per person to use at bars.

The embarkation and disembarkation was smooth, didn't take long at all. Ship is still new, the ceilings are lower than compared to other ships I've been on. Elevators are HOT, no AC inside it. I feel the ship is divided up into front section and aft section, and if you are not part of the Yacht Club, you are basically only using the aft section of the ship. Had dinner at the MDR every night, food was decent here, not the best I've had bet I'd say it's a little better in flavor when compared to RCL and Norwegian MDR that I have been on the last few cruises. The buffet however didn't have as much variety as the other cruise companies, but their pasta and pizza is always good, and also the rotisserie chicken.

I very much enjoyed the show, however my wife thought otherwise. I liked it that there is a show every single night, and it's not a long show each night, and it's not like none stop singing, lots of variety every night, and definitely don't miss TIMELESS! It's the best Michael Jackson impersonation I've seen. Make sure you download MSC for Me APP before you get on the ship, and once you get on, you can book all the shows. We had dinner at 6, finishes by 7:45, and head right over to the theater since people start to arrive, and the show starts at 8:15.

Big negative about this whole trip is line up. Not sure what the problem is, but MSC is very bad when it comes to getting on and off the ship at port of call. We had to line up for 40 minutes just to get back on to the tender at Grand Cayman, then when the tender got next to the ship, we had to wait another 15 minutes before we start to get off the tender, so the whole process took 75 minutes just to get back.

The highlight of the trip definitely would be the surprise with the package we got. We were surprised to learn that you get to chose wine, beer, soft drinks, bottled water all included during meal time, that's breakfast, lunch and dinner, in either buffet area or in the MDR. And the 12 coupons we got each person, we were able to use it at the bar for cocktail, and also at the Vinci Café for gelato or milkshake!

Shopping onboard was poor, not much to buy, long lineups for front desk all the time. That's pretty much it. Overall, I was expecting a bad experience from reading other reviews, but it was a good cruise all things considered. It's my first MSC cruise, and I will definitely come back, but probably not on the SEASIDE class ships, since I enjoy bigger ships with more things to do. So maybe I'll wait till 2022 for the WORLDCLASS!

Ask any questions and I will try and answer them.

Thanks for sharing your review...sounds like you had a good cruise!

Welcome home and thank you for taking the time to write this review.

Keith

Thank you for the review. How did your mealtime drink package includes breakfast ? In my understanding the mealtime drinkpackage was only valid during lunch and dinner time.

Thank you for the review. How did your mealtime drink package includes breakfast ? In my understanding the mealtime drinkpackage was only valid during lunch and dinner time.

on the MSC for Me app, it shows what's included in your cruise. And you are correct in assuming that it's only available for lunch and dinner. But my mom has taught me that you don't know if you don't ask, so I did, and it was included! This works for both the Market place buffet on deck 8 and also the buffet on deck 16 as well. AND it even applies on the last day breakfast, where I got a bottle of mineral water and a coke so I can take with me to the casino and wait for my disembarkation.

Coming back from Cayman was a PIA. The Mealtime drink packaged is not supposed to include breakfast drinks (I found this out toward the end of the cruise) but I was served bottled water all week for free for some reason. I found the drink package was treated a bit inconsistently and sometimes I needed a voucher and sometimes I didn't. I ordered old fashioned's in the MDR but had to use a voucher, however at the bars I had to pay. I'm assuming they just let me stack the drink package with a voucher in the MDR whereas at the bar it was outside mealtime hours hence why I had to pay. The Old Fashioned's at the MDR were awesome... but not quite the same when I ordered from the bars. Also, I thought I read that at supper you could get bottled beer but they would only give me house wine or Heineken... Either way it was pretty good value and the mealtime drinks along with the vouchers was a great combination.

Thanks for taking the time to do a review.

How does the mealtime package work in the buffet for soda? Is there a self serve station like for the beer/wine? If you order from the bar or MDR, do they give you a can or a glass of fountain soda?

Thanks for taking the time to do a review.

 

How does the mealtime package work in the buffet for soda? Is there a self serve station like for the beer/wine? If you order from the bar or MDR, do they give you a can or a glass of fountain soda?

We have the Meal time drink package as well coming up, My vwife likes Pinot Grigio I know she probably can't get this at the buffet but will she able to get it at dinner in the MDR?

We have the Meal time drink package as well coming up, My vwife likes Pinot Grigio I know she probably can't get this at the buffet but will she able to get it at dinner in the MDR?

The wines which are included in the packages are usually available in both the buffet and MDR. Whether Pinot Grigio is one of them, is another thing. If it's available in the MDR then it should be available in the buffet.

Thanks for the review.

We have the Meal time drink package as well coming up, My vwife likes Pinot Grigio I know she probably can't get this at the buffet but will she able to get it at dinner in the MDR?

I can help with this. In the dining room they offered Chardonnay for white, which I don't like at all. :')I pointed out that the package inclusion said choice of 2 white, 2 red and a rose. I tried the rose but I found it very sweet. Donna the assistant waiter asked me which wine I preferred and she said she would see what she could do. She came back a little while later with a wine menu and we settled on Sauvignon Blanc, my fav. The Marketplace only has Chardonnay in the self serve dispensers for white. There are servers walking around ready to take your drink order, and there is a call button at every table. First time I ever saw that. I never had wine there so I am not sure if they would accomodate a request. Biscayne buffet does not have a self serve. There is a bar service station. If you would like canned soda you can get it from the beverage table service waiter (Marketplace) or bar (Biscayne) there is also the soda self serve fountain in buffet. It is nice to get the can if you want to take it with you, more portable to carry outside or to your cabin.

We were on the same sailing. Good summary. Goes to show how same cruise can have different experiences. We had awful disembark and not too bad in Grand Cayman. I guess it depends in what time you hit the line.