Review "Lirica" Cruise 03/31 to 04/11/2005

[Magwa]

I have sailed on HAL, NCL, and Cunard within the past 2 years

 

..and so have I, N Jewel, QM2, QE2 & Westerdam.. and I have seen them on all those ships; in the in cabin coffee stations, with room service, as well as the relevant 'lido' restaurants and in the main restaurants. MSC is no different in that respect at all, just bowing down to the whims of the US market ex Florida. I will not sail them from there though.... only in Europe. [Just as I would not sail a US vessel in the Med].

[njreo]

..and so have I, N Jewel, QM2, QE2 & Westerdam.. and I have seen them on all those ships; in the in cabin coffee stations, with room service, as well as the relevant 'lido' restaurants and in the main restaurants. MSC is no different in that respect at all, just bowing down to the whims of the US market ex Florida. I will not sail them from there though.... only in Europe. [Just as I would not sail a US vessel in the Med].

 

The only U.S. Flag Cruise Lines are owned by NCL and operate in Hawaii... no fret .. they don't sail in the Med... I believe that only 2 of their ships are U.S. Flag at this point.

[Magwa]

I am well aware of that aspect thank you.. pretty poor show really, just as the vessels of the UK lines are not in the main registered in the UK, but UK based companies run them.. well not P&O Cruises or Cunard as they have been Carnivalised....

[bigmike7]

I was on Feb 4th to 15th - Besides the terrible food, the most tacky thing came when coffee was served. Instead of serving in china, silver, or even metal creamers they used those little packets of imitation 1/2 and 1/2 you get in a diner. When they brought those to the table we all laughed hysterically and thought it was like being at a diner. However there are diners with better food than is served on the Lirica! The wait staff was very nice, but very overworked and could only serve the food that was cooked. After a couple of days I was able to ask the waiter if what I was ordering was returned a lot during the 1st sitting .. if it was, I changed my order. I'm laughing about my experience now .. but it was just awful while it was happening.

 

I hope they read the critiques left by most of the passengers and have made some adjustments. The ship is lovely. Entertainment is good. But they have a long way to go to simple elegance.

 

For me, there are just to many other good lines to consider MSC again.

 

 

Yo-

 

Just got off the 'Lirica' again on March 31, 2006-

 

Those little plastic cups with pull off tops contain real Half and Half - and we have just seen them on HAL in December and on Carnival and NCL on former cruises-

 

Seems to me to be the more prudent and sanitary way of dealing with the Half and Half than in an open container-

 

What I objected to - in the buffet - was the packets of salt and pepper rather than regular shakers as seen on most other cruise lines-

 

btw - the food on the 'Lirica' is still very good - but still prepared in european fashion - which may not appeal to the average American taste-

 

Mike

[PompanoFL2007]

After reading so many complimentary things about MSC and the Lirica I sailed with a bunch of friends in February. It was terrible. The worst food I have ever encountered at sea. The beef couldn't be cut with a knife. Had to send it back. The ship was full. Maybe when they only have 1000 passengers they have the time to do things right or maybe after the reviews they got after my voyage they did something about it. The cruise was cheap, so I guess you get what you pay for. But I'd rather not try this one again. Terrible food, terrible service (they were overworked) and onboard the drinks were terribly expensive.

 

I hope they continue to improve the food and service so that everyone can enjoy their cruise. For some it would be their only vacation in a year and they deserve much better than those aboard the early February sailing I was on. I also like it when there are more dining options, specialty restaurants aboard for a special evening. They should also have a buffet or alternative restaurant available during regular dining hours for those who want a more casual dinner, on occassion. I wondered why they had formal nights on days we were in port and informal on nites at sea. Didn't make much sense to me, but there were many things that were "different" on this ship. Some nicely "different", some not so nice.

 

The ship is very attractive and clean. The cabins are very small and you easily get wrapped up in the shower curtain trying to take a shower. Entertainment was pretty good, but if you are a nonsmoker watch out. They don't enforce the nonsmoking policy and it gets pretty thick with smoke. Hope they don't have any fires like another line did recently.

 

Again, I hope they do improve everything for everyone else, but I think in the future I'll just continue to sail on other lines I've really enjoyed.

[njreo]

After reading so many complimentary things about MSC and the Lirica I sailed with a bunch of friends in February. It was terrible. The worst food I have ever encountered at sea. The beef couldn't be cut with a knife. Had to send it back. The ship was full. Maybe when they only have 1000 passengers they have the time to do things right or maybe after the reviews they got after my voyage they did something about it. The cruise was cheap, so I guess you get what you pay for. But I'd rather not try this one again. Terrible food, terrible service (they were overworked) and onboard the drinks were terribly expensive.

 

I hope they continue to improve the food and service so that everyone can enjoy their cruise. For some it would be their only vacation in a year and they deserve much better than those aboard the early February sailing I was on. I also like it when there are more dining options, specialty restaurants aboard for a special evening. They should also have a buffet or alternative restaurant available during regular dining hours for those who want a more casual dinner, on occassion. I wondered why they had formal nights on days we were in port and informal on nites at sea. Didn't make much sense to me, but there were many things that were "different" on this ship. Some nicely "different", some not so nice.

 

The ship is very attractive and clean. The cabins are very small and you easily get wrapped up in the shower curtain trying to take a shower. Entertainment was pretty good, but if you are a nonsmoker watch out. They don't enforce the nonsmoking policy and it gets pretty thick with smoke. Hope they don't have any fires like another line did recently.

 

Again, I hope they do improve everything for everyone else, but I think in the future I'll just continue to sail on other lines I've really enjoyed.

 

We were probably on the same sailing and I agree completely with your review.