Just returned from Orchestra 2/7-2/14

After reading all the reviews, I was very worried about this cruise. We have cruised about 20 times, mostly on Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, and once before on MSC Opera. So we are experienced cruisers.

I must tell you that we enjoyed this cruise very much. Right away I also must tell you it is quite different from my other cruises. But different does not mean awful. ON the contrary, it was fantastic. Yes, there were little things. But they were so minor that I can't believe I was on the same ship as the people who wrote those devastating reviews!

Embarkation was simple, we went on board around 11am, had the buffet lunch and were unpacking our luggage at 1pm. The rooms were ready and the luggage arrived. That was wonderful.

The cabin was smaller, and we've had more storage space. However, we had never taken a balcony before and we really enjoyed that. Yes, it was small, but perfectly adequate with 2 chairs and a table.

OUr attendant, Josie, was the best. Every little request was filled immediately. The cabin was kept immaculate, as well as the rest of the ship, sparkly clean.

Our waiter and assistant were fine. They understood us and our food always arrived hot and nice. There were a couple of mixups which were taken care of immediately.

The staff at the accounting desk and the information desk were very polite and accommodating. I think that approaching them with a smile and pleasant questions was the way to get them to help you. I changed the automatic gratuities with no problem, because we like to hand out the tips ourselves.

The food as I said always arrived on time and hot. We enjoyed it very much because we are used to gourmet Italian delicacies, such as the fennel, the eggplant, the canneloni's, the polenta, etc. However, we did notice that people who think of Italian food as simply spaghetti and meatballs were turned off by the unfamiliar selections. This should not be a problem at all, since they always had grilled chicken, broiled salmon, steak, etc available. We also had ice cream every night for dessert, as well as anything else we wanted. You do have topay $2.00 for ice cream during the day. Not such a big deal.

The trip we took before, on the MSC Opera, they made announcements all day long in 5 languages. That was tiresome. Here on the Opera, almost all the announcements were English and French only. Some were still 5 languages. Got used to it right away.

I know this is long, but I was just so amazed after reading all the bad reviews just how good a cruise this was. I think Orchestra personnel must have read all the bad comments and really made some changes.

For example, the glasses were regular size, not tiny. The waiters at the buffet came around with the not coffee cart continuously. The food was very good, and hot (except the pancakes and waffles). There was no omelot station, but there were hot omelots next to the scrambled eggs.

As for the shows, they were absolutely the best of all the shows on all the cruises we ever went on. The audience gave them standing ovations almost every night. Beautiful sets, lighting, costumes. The magician was wonderful, but the operatic show was the best.

I hope that the people who are going on the Orchestra cruise soon will read this, and I hope that I have set aside any concerns. Yes, there were some omissions.....they didn't have a talent show, the bingo was only one card for $10, and they only had it twice the whole cruise, the program was hard to follow because it wasn't in chronological order, and there were no chocolates on the pillow. Now really, is that all so bad? No it wasn't.

I would absolutely go on any other MSC cruise in the future. We loved it.

Signed, Esther & Joe

Thanks for the amazing review. I'm looking forward to our cruise, and believe it will be just as wonderful as yours.

I`m glad you enjoyed your cruise, we are sailing 4/4 and have been rather worried about all the negative feed back.

I have questions about MSC closing your accounts a day early, was this an issue, do they take CR cards on the last day or does it have to be cash?

Did you have to pay for specially ordered pizza? Have they sorted out not charging for room service?

How was the fruit in the Lido?

Thanks in advance,

Ver

Where's the Olive Garden comparison?

Your review is very much appreciated. It seems the Orchestra has come a long way in a few short weeks. Thank you for taking the time to give us your views and opinions. I am looking forward to my cruise more and more with each review that comes in.:)

There was no Olive Garden on the Orchestra.

Everything was authentic Italian, and the pasta was really very good...don't miss the spaghetti Bolognese (sp?) on the alternative menu at dinner...it's great and a whole meal in itself. It is listed under appetizers!

Thanks! for the review. Glad to hear that you had such a wonderful experience on the Orchestra. I love authentic Italian food and I am very much looking forward to the dinner offerings. Just curious....did you take any beverages on board? Were you upgraded to a balcony? Did you eat breakfast in the dining room or at the buffet? Did you partake of Room Service during the week?

Were you a part of the Irish Group?

I too was on this cruise and was part of the irish group. To all that were not with the Irish I am very sorry for your not being told about us I know in elevators I heard many people ticked off about it. The food was good although in my opinion not enough unless ordered appetizer soup main course and desert personally I ordered 2 main courses and skipped the soups and appetizers as I am a very picky eater. The Buffet was good at breakfast and lunch and Gala night dinner after eating Duck I was still hungry and had pizza. I noticed afew peoples attempt at bring alcohol onboard in carryon and were taken but soda was not as I had 2 sixpacks of soda in my backpack purchased at Keywest and Cozumel and the guy at the Xray machine didn't even blink but my mom with 2 32oz baileys had them taken and not returned until 2am on day of debarkation. She did however have 2 bottles in her regular luggage and they got to the cabin just fine didn't have to use rum runners just the actual bottle. I loved this ship as a first time cruise and will be doing the irish cruise next year on Poesia.

We were part of the Irish Group too and had a blast. Even last year, the other passengers were not happy about our group - I think they were upset that we had private entertainment. Of course, they didn't know we paid extra for that. The pool concerts were a little more crowded than last year, but this is a bigger ship. We're going next year too!!

I too was on this cruise and was part of the irish group. To all that were not with the Irish I am very sorry for your not being told about us I know in elevators I heard many people ticked off about it. The food was good although in my opinion not enough unless ordered appetizer soup main course and desert personally I ordered 2 main courses and skipped the soups and appetizers as I am a very picky eater. The Buffet was good at breakfast and lunch and Gala night dinner after eating Duck I was still hungry and had pizza. I noticed afew peoples attempt at bring alcohol onboard in carryon and were taken but soda was not as I had 2 sixpacks of soda in my backpack purchased at Keywest and Cozumel and the guy at the Xray machine didn't even blink but my mom with 2 32oz baileys had them taken and not returned until 2am on day of debarkation. She did however have 2 bottles in her regular luggage and they got to the cabin just fine didn't have to use rum runners just the actual bottle. I loved this ship as a first time cruise and will be doing the irish cruise next year on Poesia.

 

I have questions about MSC closing your accounts a day early, was this an issue, do they take CR cards on the last day or does it have to be cash?

 

 

Ver

Unless MSC are operating a completely different policy on the Orchestra than their other ships, your account is closed during the evening of the last night. I've used my card up until 2am without any problem. The bill gets delivered to your cabin during the night, so it is really only on the last morning that you can't use it - but that doesn't pose a problem as you don't need to pay for anything at breakfast and none of the shops or bars are open anyway. I once had to pick up a photo on the last morning that I'd ordered and they took cash to pay for it

I do know that there was an extra charge for the Irish entertainment, as the main theatre was occupied by the Irish stars every night. The complaints I heard was that if you wanted to go to an early performance it was not available, just a late show.

Our tablemates were parents of one of the band guys, and we did get a lot of info from them. We enjoyed their company and met Ronan and others that stopped by our table.

(we were not part of the Irish group, but got first seating)

there was always plenty of fruit, this was the only cruise I was ever on where they didn't run out of bananas. There was always fresh fruit every day.

I didn't pay for any specialty pizza because there was always about 6 kinds of pizza at the buffet at lunch, and then in the late afternoon. There was always a "Tea" around 4pm with sandwiches and desserts.

You can use your room card till around midnight of the last night. Your bill comes very early in the morning.

You can leave your carryon luggage in the cabin (just tell the attendant) and go sit around the buffet till they call the color luggage tags you have. It was very orderly and quick, compared to some other cruises I've been on.

We enjoyed being with the Irish group everywhere. You all looked like you were having so much fun. We were with a group of 54 of us from New Jersey.

Any other questions you have, just ask!

Esther

Originally Posted by nomorebocci

 

However, we had never taken a balcony before and we really enjoyed that.

Were you upgraded to a balcony? Did you eat breakfast in the dining room or at the buffet? Did you partake of Room Service during the week?

The Buffet was good at breakfast and lunch and Gala night dinner after eating Duck I was still hungry and had pizza.

Just curious....did you ever eat breakfast or lunch in the dining room. How did the buffet compare, in both selection and quality, to the dining room. Room Service?

We used our card on the last night without a problem.

We ate breakfast at the buffet and also in the dining room. The eggs benedict were yummy! I missed smoked salmon at the breakfast buffet, but it was available in the dining room. We only ate lunch at the buffet since we were either in port or had a show to go to.

Yes - we paid a LOT more than the other guests. I believe it was $400-$500 each. We were a category 9 room and paid $1400 each. I know the identical rooms were selling for a lot less if you weren't with out group. It was definitely worth the extra $$ - this was our 3rd year with the Irish Stars.

Quick question:

Did the movie screen by the pool ever show any movies?

I keep reading that is was only information about the ships.

We never saw anything on the big screen but ship info.

Thanks for your quick response. It's a shame they dont show some type of movie. the last princess ship we went on they had a movie at night and was handing out popcorn and candy. It was very relaxing. I'm hoping they can change that by the time april 11th rolls around.

Thanks for your quick response. It's a shame they dont show some type of movie. the last princess ship we went on they had a movie at night and was handing out popcorn and candy. It was very relaxing. I'm hoping they can change that by the time april 11th rolls around.

I found the big screen last year on Caribbean Princess was very annoying. I would be pleased if MSC just turned off the big screen. I know that many of you would strongly disagree with me but one of the attractions of a cruise for me has been the escape from the every-day. That includes TV/Movies, cell phones, internet, etc.

Again, this is just my opinion, but why would I sit and watch a movie on a ship that I could watch at home? I'd much rather watch the stars on the upper deck, enjoy the sea air while watching the wake, hit the casino and nightclubs.

Can someone let me know if I need to book a shuttle from the port back to the airport through my travel agent or are taxi's readily available at the port?

:cool:

It was great to hear such a positive post. We sail 3/7/09 and were weary about all the negative posts. I have a couple of quick questions. I love my Levi's, when can I (or can't I) wear them? Any comments on excursions? I was thinking about the whale watching. You mentioned your balcony cabin being small, we have a catagory six balcony (the smallest I believe), cabin 9020. Was yours of the same catagory?

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences!

I too just returned from the 2/7 Orchestra sailing and it seems we were on different ships! Our experience matched those of others who have posted negative reviews. Rude staff, we would ask 3 different people a question and get 3 different answers. Food in the dining room took forever to come. One night a friend never got her entree! Often one table would be on their 2nd or 3rd course and we still hadn't received appetizers. One night we ordered champagne and the waiter just put it on our table - didn't open it, no flutes, no ice bucket. The food was edible, but I wouldn't rave about it and I am used to eating many different types of food, not just American cuisine. I could go on and on....

It took them 4 days to fix our safe, we never were given bedspreads (it was originally king and we had the beds split) the first night we were freezing! Used glasses were not taken up from our cabin, we never even met our room steward. Last year I sailed on Costa and if you needed something there was always a steward out in the hallway willing to help.

I know many people on the Irish Stars trip had a much more positive experience. I didn't mind that there was a large group on board but to give everyone else terrible service in order to cater to them is not the way to run a business.

Oh, and we didn't receive our tickets until 2 days before we sailed. So it seems if you take the MSC Orchestra you are taking a gamble....you may get lucky and have competent waiters, room stewards, etc....or you may get stuck with all the incompetent ones who don't understand a word of English.

Good Luck - I won't be taking MSC again - for me it stands for "Most ****ty Cruiseline"

Can someone let me know if I need to book a shuttle from the port back to the airport through my travel agent or are taxi's readily available at the port?

:cool:

Taxis will be lined up and ready to take you away!:D

tc....or you may get stuck with all the incompetent ones who don't understand a word of English.

 

Good Luck - I won't be taking MSC again - for me it stands for "Most ****ty Cruiseline"

Isn't it a shame that the rest of the world ain't as great as NYC?

Midwestgal in NYC: I am confused about your report. If you were on the Feb 7 voyage, you posted a note re the Fortuna on Feb.8. That would have put you on the Orchestra on that day. The post was in reference to the Fortuna sailing on Feb.10 sailing, and you said you were "going to party" with them.

Were you really on the Orchestra or were you going on the Fortuna?

We were also on the Feb.7 voyage on the Orchestra experienced nothing like you said.