Just off Seaside/MSC Not Ready To Compete In North American Market

[JDGGG]

Just off the Seaside's Thanksgiving Sailing. I will provide a brief review but this is more for Q & As about this ship. I've been on two dozen + cruises mainly on Celebrity and Royal Caribbean with some others sprinkled in (Cunard/Princess/Azamara/Seadream etc).

I will judge everything on a 1-5 basis with 5 being the best.

Design and décor of ship-4/Ship itself is beautiful. Main reason it didn't receive a 5 is the layout is a bit choppy and at times can feel crowded (mainly in buffets and elevators). Also, was warm in many places. Wasn't surprised cause I've read this on CC. One question to MSC... Why build a ship for hundreds of millions of $$$s and not air condition the elevators???

Food-2/I am no fancy pants but the food was mediocre at best. Buffet was the same everyday and dining room food was edible, but portions were incredibly small. 

Service-3/Only reason I give it a 3 is because my cabin steward was excellent. Everyone else barely smiled. I can elaborate but I think most people on here understand what I mean. I did not get a "Happy Thanksgiving" from one crew member. This was surprising. Dining room service was choppy and ordering a drink during meal service seemed like an outrageous request. 

Room-3/Normal balcony room. Felt cramped and storage was terrible. We used our couch as a dresser. Once again, why spend millions on a ship and have minimal storage in the staterooms???

Kid Stuff-5/My 4 year old daughter loved the kids program and the outdoor waterpark was top notch for a cruise ship. 

Casino-1/Not cause I lost... I expect to lose on a cruise. The staff was the most unfriendly I have encountered on a cruise ship. 

Bar Service-2/Not blaming the staff but I'll blame MSC. There were huge bars (Sports bar for example) with one or two bartenders???

 

Overall Score-3

 

Please feel free to ask questions. I do not plan on going back on MSC any time soon. I will probably wait a couple of years and possibly try it again if the price is right. 

[CruisingBeans]

So glad to get to ask questions to someone who traveled with a 4 year old. My girls will be 4 1/2 and 7 1/2 and are used to Carnival so this will be a new experience for us as well. 

1. Lifejackets for kids by pool?

2. Was kids menu in MDR satisfactory for your daughter?

3. Did she go on all the water slides or just small one?

4. Did the kids program offer a variety of events or all the same stuff?

Thanks for all the info.

[JDGGG]

20 minutes ago, CruisingBeans said:

So glad to get to ask questions to someone who traveled with a 4 year old. My girls will be 4 1/2 and 7 1/2 and are used to Carnival so this will be a new experience for us as well. 

1. Lifejackets for kids by pool?

2. Was kids menu in MDR satisfactory for your daughter?

3. Did she go on all the water slides or just small one?

4. Did the kids program offer a variety of events or all the same stuff?

Thanks for all the info.

1-Did not see lifejackets for pool. My daughter is a great swimmer so I didn't even think to ask.

2-Kids menu was better than adult menu 🙂 in MDR. They have their own menu with variety. 

3-She was able to go on 2 of 3 slides due to her height. She loved the slides. 

4-Variety of events. Each night had a theme... Pirates night, spooky night etc. 

[asctony]

Your thread subject is very misleading. Sorry to disagree with you that 'MSC is not ready to compete in the Caribbean.' MSC has been in the Caribbean since 2006 that I know of since I cruised on the Lirica  in 2006 in the Caribbean. Based on your review which I thought was good, does not justify your subject title.

I do agree with you on the ship being broken up and hard to get around. Food is poor and needs improvement. However, MSC is doing well in the Caribbean. In fact they are bring out about 9 more ships within the next few years.

 

Bar service was very slow and the times they open are different. On Deck 7 aft by the pool, smoking side, had one bar tender who tried to keep up with the orders.  The area behind the deck 7 aft pool which has an old Chev car, bowling alley and race car were never open when we walked through there on our 7 days.

The bar on Deck 6 above the atrium opened at 4:40pm. Even though people were sitting around before 4:30 they were not open.

I still believe MSC is a good cruise line and will continue to cruise it as they offer a very good value for the money. Happy Cruising!

[JDGGG]

15 hours ago, asctony said:

Your thread subject is very misleading. Sorry to disagree with you that 'MSC is not ready to compete in the Caribbean.' MSC has been in the Caribbean since 2006 that I know of since I cruised on the Lirica  in 2006 in the Caribbean. Based on your review which I thought was good, does not justify your subject title.

I do agree with you on the ship being broken up and hard to get around. Food is poor and needs improvement. However, MSC is doing well in the Caribbean. In fact they are bring out about 9 more ships within the next few years.

 

Bar service was very slow and the times they open are different. On Deck 7 aft by the pool, smoking side, had one bar tender who tried to keep up with the orders.  The area behind the deck 7 aft pool which has an old Chev car, bowling alley and race car were never open when we walked through there on our 7 days.

The bar on Deck 6 above the atrium opened at 4:40pm. Even though people were sitting around before 4:30 they were not open.

I still believe MSC is a good cruise line and will continue to cruise it as they offer a very good value for the money. Happy Cruising!

I have no doubt MSC is having success in the Caribbean. What I meant by the title of my thread is that I do not feel that MSC is ready to convert loyal Royal & Celebrity cruisers into MSC customers. Pretty much anyone who I spoke with agrees with me. Hopefully MSC will "tighten things up" in the training department and my opinion might soon change. 

[sidari]

So how come those you speak of are on second and third cruises and more with MSC ?

[Tagsalong]

We did 14 days on Seaside in October and had a wonderful cruise.  The theater shows were better than we have seen on any other cruise.  The food was not as good as Celebrity or Princess (which we are on now) but was enjoyable if you were selective with your entree choices.  My bar tenders (Miramar) were great and there were usually three at a very small but crowded bar, and the bar floor servers were often in the bar making drinks for the tables.

 

We then move on to the Divina for B2B and it was a disaster.  Food very bad and shows mediocre.  Also, not a handicap friendly ship; no access to the front of the theater for those in wheel chairs / scooters / walking difficulties,  Handicap bathroom doors that do not open automatically,  and other passage way doors that have to be pushed or pulled.  We had a 45 minute meeting with the HD about these issues and others (food mostly) but nothing is going to change.  I advise staying away from this ship.

 

We will go back to the Seaside in the future and may try Miraviglia but never the Divina again.

 

Edited November 25, 2018 by Tagsalong

[floridian1]

Thanks for your reviews!

[asctony]

4 hours ago, JDGGG said:

I have no doubt MSC is having success in the Caribbean. What I meant by the title of my thread is that I do not feel that MSC is ready to convert loyal Royal & Celebrity cruisers into MSC customers. Pretty much anyone who I spoke with agrees with me. Hopefully MSC will "tighten things up" in the training department and my opinion might soon change. 

I don't believe MSC is trying to convert loyal Royal or Celebrity cruisers into MSC customers. WE cruise a lot and are Diamond+ on RCI and Elite+ on Celebrity. However, we still cruise Royal, Celebrity, Princess, NCL and MSC. They all have their pluses and minuses. Happy Cruising!!

[JDGGG]

4 minutes ago, asctony said:

I don't believe MSC is trying to convert loyal Royal or Celebrity cruisers into MSC customers. WE cruise a lot and are Diamond+ on RCI and Elite+ on Celebrity. However, we still cruise Royal, Celebrity, Princess, NCL and MSC. They all have their pluses and minuses. Happy Cruising!!

I would have to respectfully disagree with you. Richard Sasso, CEO of MSC was previously the CEO of Celebrity. I'm guessing the big wigs at MSC wanted to instill some of the same culture of Celebrity at MSC.

[canny_cruiser]

23 minutes ago, asctony said:

I don't believe MSC is trying to convert loyal Royal or Celebrity cruisers into MSC customers. 

Sorry, I have to totally disagree with your reply.

 

What else is the loyalty match other than trying to convert pasengers from other lines?j  To my knowledge no other cruise line offers it.

 

I am Black level entirely due to nights spent on MSC. My friend has never spent one single night on MSC but has just attained Black with her RCCL level.

 

Not that MSC Black has any meaningful perks these days. It still sticks in the craw though that others receive it without one night on board.

 

I rest my case, M’Lord!

Edited November 25, 2018 by canny_cruiser

[asctony]

31 minutes ago, JDGGG said:

I would have to respectfully disagree with you. Richard Sasso, CEO of MSC was previously the CEO of Celebrity. I'm guessing the big wigs at MSC wanted to instill some of the same culture of Celebrity at MSC.

Richard Sasso has been CEO with MSC since at least 2006. He has been trying for over 12 years. I would say that he has succeeded considering MSC has more new build than another cruise line. He still needs to improve on the FOOD!!!!!

 

 

[blordos]

I was on the Seaside in September and there was airconditioning in the elevators. There was one elevator without AC and it was hot inside. I could be broken that day but normally all elevators has working airconditioning.

Edited November 25, 2018 by blordos

[JDGGG]

Couple of more things... I am also Black Card due to my status with Royal and Celebrity. The perks were nice (free dining at a specialty restaurant/thermal suite usage etc.)

 

Disembarkation was a nightmare. The "express walkoff" was anything but. The line wrapped around the entire 6th deck with no supervision by the staff. Come on MSC don't you want to leave a good last impression???

[mnocket]

OP's impressions are pretty similar to those of other US cruisers trying MSC for the first time.  From reading reviews of MSC, I've come away with the impression that - if you don't like Carnival, you won't like MSC.  That said, I have read great things about Yacht Club and have decided to see for myself.  I'm booked on Seaside YC next Sept.

[canny_cruiser]

4 minutes ago, mnocket said:

OP's impressions are pretty similar to those of other US cruisers trying MSC for the first time.  From reading reviews of MSC, I've come away with the impression that - if you don't like Carnival, you won't like MSC.  That said, I have read great things about Yacht Club and have decided to see for myself.  I'm booked on Seaside YC next Sept.

Oh, dearmie me, I hope you like YC. 

 

I’ve spent 11cruises on MSC. The only disappointing one was in YC.

Edited November 25, 2018 by canny_cruiser

[asctony]

10 minutes ago, canny_cruiser said:

Oh, dearmie me, I hope you like YC. 

 

I’ve spent 11cruises on MSC. The only disappointing one was in YC.

Totally shocked that you did not like YC. Why? 

[JDGGG]

14 minutes ago, mnocket said:

OP's impressions are pretty similar to those of other US cruisers trying MSC for the first time.  From reading reviews of MSC, I've come away with the impression that - if you don't like Carnival, you won't like MSC.  That said, I have read great things about Yacht Club and have decided to see for myself.  I'm booked on Seaside YC next Sept.

Great point Canny. I have never tried Carnival fearing I would dislike it. I was under the impression that MSC was a notch above Carnival in terms of service, food etc...

[mnocket]

9 minutes ago, canny_cruiser said:

Oh, dearmie me, I hope you like YC. 

 

I’ve spent 11cruises on MSC. The only disappointing one was in YC.

Oh my, I hope this was a one off.  I figured that YC offered a space away from the crowds when that was what you wanted, yet still let you enjoy the whole ship when you wanted to.   What was so bad about your YC experience that made the cruise a disappointment?   I mean, since you seem to enjoy the non-YC experience wasn't that still available to you?

[canny_cruiser]

7 minutes ago, mnocket said:

Oh my, I hope this was a one off.  I figured that YC offered a space away from the crowds when that was what you wanted, yet still let you enjoy the whole ship when you wanted to.   What was so bad about your YC experience that made the cruise a disappointment?   I mean, since you seem to enjoy the non-YC experience wasn't that still available to you?

Yes, in my experience you will have losts of space for you up in the Top Sail lounge and in the YC area.

 

 

[hamrag]

35 minutes ago, SirWolf said:

Not on MSC Seaside, Seaview, Meraviglia & Bellissima(under construction). My YC experience in September on Seaview was great with excellent butler service and YC restaurant with fine dining quality food and presentation. I have two YC sailings already booked in 2019 and looking at another one in 2020. MSC YC is really the way to go if you want “affordable” luxury at sea.

That was my experience too, on Meraviglia and, as you say, 'affordable' luxury....not perfect in every regard, but a def 9 out of 10 .

[canny_cruiser]

1 hour ago, SirWolf said:

Not on MSC Seaside, Seaview, Meraviglia & Bellissima(under construction).

Well, try the Fantasia.  You’ll get plenty of exercise tramping from Top Sail lounge to the dedicated to the dedicated  restauran at the other end of the ship!

 

 

Edited November 25, 2018 by canny_cruiser

[Buddy769]

Quick question! Did MSC give anyone grief for packing power strip or multi- outlet extension cord?

[sidari]

No reason why they would unless it is a surge protected one.

[BellaWave]

Buddy769, I just got off Seaside.  They confiscated my NON-surge protected power strip (it was returned before we got off)