Is MSC right for our next cruise?

[CanadaRob]

I can't endorse or agree with the reviews that note the entertainment is a step above other cruise lines. Really subjective and non traditional It is different and really not for us as a couple In our 40s.

Lots of things to like about MSC

If price is really important I would do MSC if I have other cruises under my belt or have other expectations based on previous cruises I would try and pay more with someone else(and have already done so))

Would try MSC again but can't say it's just as good as (insert favourite cruise line here). Carnival, Royal, Princess, NCL

[sfaaa]

Oh gosh, sorry about that. After rereading my post, even I misunderstood :). For giggles, I did do a little bit more digging last night after I posted the screen shot. By changing the departure date and adding in some competition among the big boxes I got down to a rate of $319 pp for 7 days inside on Divina. Almost cheaper than groceries :).

 

 

A month ago, MSC had a Divina balcony zoo rate deal that came with $300 OBC. It was posted for one day only and likely a computer glitch. When I called, the girl on the phone was ready to honor it. It was very tempting but I ended up passing on it since I did the exact same Divina cruise only a few months ago.

[Bra_BE2014]

One of my favorite things was arriving 15 min early to the shows. The entertainment crew would always be there doing pranks, sketches, free hugs etc, that had me rolling with laughter.

 

 

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[CanadaRob]

Actually liked the preshow shenanigans in the theatre too

 

 

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[clamper]

my husband and I want to take a cruise in April. We have not been on a cruise since 2010 and have only previously cruised with carnival. We were tossing around RC, Carnival and Norwegian. I was looking through other cruises and saw MSC Divinia leaving Miami. I read a lot of reviews saying this was not for English speaking passengers. My husband and I only speak English and are Southerners lol. Would we like this cruise? We mainly keep to ourseleves and don't socialize a lot. I'm just curious about this also about entertainment and also if mid 30 year olds would fit?

 

Thanks! 😁

 

Just got of this boat on a back to back cruise loved it :D shows were excellent food was great especially the Eataly restaurants and the pizza bar (pay extra) was fantastic the best pizza ever eaten!

Drinks packages are a must and smokers gather at the garden bar on deck 15 for outdoor smoking and drinking

[deliver42]

We were on the Divina last year and loved it so much that we've booked the Seaside for next year. It had nothing to do with price, but the ship, and the way we were treated on the Divina. As you can see by my signature, I've sailed RCCL, Carnival, and NCL. The MSC ships are cleaner, and at least in the public areas, much more elaborate. We had no problem with food, or language. The only thing I'll miss on the Seaside is the cigar lounge, which I understand will not be on her. It was VERY popular on the Divina, with a great opportunity to meet other passengers.

[aimcat]

I am very torn on this ship, Norweigan Getaway, RC Allure or Harmony. This ship honestly more modern and pretty but I just wonder about it compared to these others for entertainment. Does Divinia have plenty of private spots to get away and lounge? Can shows and restaurants be booked ahead of arrival?

[scareyness]

Do you enjoy dancing, other people doing the cleaning and cooking for you, not having to drive from port to port, or checking into hotels every evening, people watching, exotic foreign ports, new experiences and ideas, gambling, drinking swimming, massages, steam rooms, working out at the gym, and watching sunrises, and sunsets from your own balcony? If no, you will hate this cruise, otherwise, You will love this cruise. Young people like you would fit right in. Don't worry about the language issue, the crew speaks fluent "U.S. dollar". The shows are one notch above other cruise lines sailing the Caribbean, and you can keep to yourself as much or as little as you want. No one will tell you what to do, except during the mandatory emergency drill. Yuk. If there is one thing I learned, and like, about Italy and the Italian people is their philosophy of "live and let live".

 

 

 

So, Ya'll enjoy your cruise.

 

Cheers .

 

What a fabulous post and soooo true! :)

[mjonis]

Go for it. You'll never know until you try. We tried it (after thoroughly researching/reviewing) and thought we had set expectations accordingly. Unfortunately for us, it was the "worst" cruise of the 3 others I've had. Way too many issues and hassles to put up with for a vacation and very disorganized, IMO. We did not do YC (mainly because I couldn't afford a 2.5x price increase to justify it, IMO).

 

But try it. If you have a great time, great! If not, then you know it's not for you, and as long as nobody gets sick or anything, it might be the "worst" cruise, but that doesn't mean it was a "bad" cruise. Bad cruise for me means like hurricanes and horrible weather and you are quarantined in your room because you're sick, etc. Worst cruise just means a comparison. Like my "worst" test score was an 87 (as an example). doesn't mean it was bad, just that I've had better.

 

:)

[aimcat]

Can you tell me what made it the worst for you? We are considering the YC and I do not want to spend that kind of money for a horrible cruise. I just want to make sure I also have my expectations set correctly!

[mjonis]

Can you tell me what made it the worst for you? We are considering the YC and I do not want to spend that kind of money for a horrible cruise. I just want to make sure I also have my expectations set correctly!

 

 

Certainly (again we were *not* in YC, although that may have marginally helped).

 

My review is here:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=557567

 

Ultimately some things are "one offs" (like it's very unusual for the 4+ hour embarkation time, however it seems that you will experience that if the ship had previously come back from Columbia).

 

However, if you read some other reviews you'll see fairly "consistent" complaints usually around MSC's disorganization (nobody knows what's going on), lack of consistency (especially in the MDR or services, etc.) All I know is that I spent a lot of time in lines trying to get things fixed and got nowhere fast and that's not fun (for me) on a "vacation".

 

*IF* I were to sail MSC again I'd only do it if:

a) I could afford YC (although that doesn't necessarily fix the disorganized behavior)

or

b) MSC fixes their disorganization.

 

But some people had a smooth experience (minus embarkation) on that particular sailing and others had an even worse time than we did with pre-orders and things getting screwed up. So just because I had a bad experience doesn't mean you will (nor does the converse hold true). I would definitely set my expectations super low though (apparently mine weren't low enough like expecting to get what I paid for and things).

 

 

That's the main reason I didn't take advantage of the OBC for future cruise. If I'd known that Seaside was going to be "better" I would've done it. Instead, I will wait and see how the Seaside sailings go about 6 months after inaugural voyage to see how things are.