Could someone explain why MSC roll calls are so inactive?

[ilya12000]

It's the first time in our numerous cruises I see such inactive Roll call forums like MSC roll calls. We have cruise starting on April 26th from Venice and NO ONE answer on roll call to my starting post. Usually we use roll calls very actively and found them very useful - both for sharing information, and for organizing non-ship small tour groups. It is our first time on MSC cruise and I'm just curious why these forums are so inactive. Does anyone has any explanation?

[Host Jazzbeau]

MSC cruises in the Mediterranean generally have each ship doing the same loop all season, and they allow people to board in several ports along the loop [e.g. Barcelona to Barcelona, or overlapping Rome to Rome].  Also, although their ships are very large they have an international clientele.  As a result, there are very few Cruise Critic members who will be on your cruise, and it's actually hard to determine what your Roll Call is because some people may get on in Barcelona, some in Rome, etc.  That's also the reason CC doesn't arrange Meet & Greets on the MSC Med cruises as they do in the Caribbean.

 

Last year I compiled a listing of all the Seaview cruises for 2019, because I was having trouble finding people on my particular cruise.  Despite quite a bit of work on my part, it didn't make my Roll Call thread any more active.

 

Having taken (and loved) the cruise, I can report that MSC's shore excursions are fairly priced and at least as good as those from the other cruise lines we have done.  We were also able to DIY some of the ports.  The one thing we lost was the ability to get a Roll Call group together to hire a private guide – which is often the best way to see the area around a port.  I don't think there's an answer for that with MSC's Mediterranean MO.

[little britain]

Yes there are M&Ms in the Med. 

They just didn’t send us the invitation! 
 

 

However, RC for their brand new ship Seashore... not one person 🤷‍♀️

[mickey89]

.......... because MSC clientele is predominately non-English speaking.

[Markanddonna]

1 hour ago, mickey89 said:

.......... because MSC clientele is predominately non-English speaking.

We found that to be very true in the Med and one third were from China. It was a surprise when we overheard passengers speaking English.

Edited January 4, 2020 by Markanddonna

[Homosassa]

All MSC cruises are marketed around the world.

 

As a result, there will be fewer passengers from North America and almost no Cruise Critic members.

 

There is also the feeling among Cruise Critic members that have shown up in posts that they no longer participate in Roll Calls as many Roll Calls have become oriented toward the posters that are actively recruiting for non ship tours and therefore dominate the thread.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

2 hours ago, Homosassa said:

There is also the feeling among Cruise Critic members that have shown up in posts that they no longer participate in Roll Calls as many Roll Calls have become oriented toward the posters that are actively recruiting for non ship tours and therefore dominate the thread.

 

Well, that's one of the primary purposes of roll calls.  I've met many wonderful people and have experienced excellent excursions participating in roll calls in the past, particularly for cruises in Europe and the Med.  So, too bad people feel that way.  I'm glad I did those cruises when people were still participating.

[dexddd]

Our roll calls haven't been super busy but tons of people managed to show up for the M&G.

[Nashna]

We have 117 signed up for our Meet & Greet on the January 12th, 5-night Divina Caribbean sailing and 39 signed up for the Meet & Greet on the 17th of January 11-night sailing.  I have read on CC that MSC does an amazing M & G.  

[Toofarfromthesea]

On 1/4/2020 at 5:03 AM, Markanddonna said:

We found that to be very true in the Med and one third were from China. It was a surprise when we overheard passengers speaking English.

 

On a 14 day Baltic/Fjords cruise last April/May on Meraviglia, we were the only identifiably American couple in the Yacht Club.  There WAS another American couple - a true Southern Belle, and a charming Iranian-American.  They lived in Iran for 10 years before barely getting out with their kids when the '79 Revolution came. Between themselves they spoke Farsi, so it was hard to make the national identity.  We figured it out when we heard her speaking English to one of the staff.  Lovely couple.

[dexddd]

MSC does an amazing job.

[jkgourmet]

On 1/5/2020 at 9:08 AM, Nashna said:

We have 117 signed up for our Meet & Greet on the January 12th, 5-night Divina Caribbean sailing and 39 signed up for the Meet & Greet on the 17th of January 11-night sailing.  I have read on CC that MSC does an amazing M & G.  

 

What is so "amazing" about their M&G?

 

Also, when do they typically schedule it when sailing in the Caribbean?   One of my pet peeves is having them scheduled during an evening showtime necessitating those with late dining to make a choice.   (I also dislike a 10am M&G because I'm a late sleeper and lazy morning person.  But that's MY personal character flaw.  😊)

[Nashna]

From what I have heard from many posters, MSC goes all out for their CC  Meet & Greets  It is not uncommon for all the major officers to attend, fancy appetizers and drinks are served, a special decorated cake is presented and photos are taken and delivered to your stateroom after the event.   

[ISLANDCRUSO]

27 minutes ago, Nashna said:

From what I have heard from many posters, MSC goes all out for their CC  Meet & Greets  It is not uncommon for all the major officers to attend, fancy appetizers and drinks are served, a special decorated cake is presented and photos are taken and delivered to your stateroom after the event.   

You now have to collect the photos yourself from the photo shop, certainly on Meraviglia.

[toledo_cruiser]

On 1/3/2020 at 9:27 PM, ilya12000 said:

It's the first time in our numerous cruises I see such inactive Roll call forums like MSC roll calls. We have cruise starting on April 26th from Venice and NO ONE answer on roll call to my starting post. Usually we use roll calls very actively and found them very useful - both for sharing information, and for organizing non-ship small tour groups. It is our first time on MSC cruise and I'm just curious why these forums are so inactive. Does anyone has any explanation?

I don't know if it's just MSC cruises. On my last three cruises, MSC, Norwegian & Carnival, I found the CC roll calls to be slow. Although it was somewhat more active on that mega-forum we're not supposed to mention. We had to encourage those members to also join and post on CC as some didn't know about this forum.  Perhaps some of the potential CC members were siphoned off to competing forums. I really think you need a ram rod to push the conversation along on the CC roll calls. Someone has to keep posting to keep the roll call active. And perhaps the more experienced cruises just lose interest over time and don't participate. I can't comment on the European aspect other than many posters here are from Europe. 

 

I will say my Seaside M&G was one of the best I've attended. There were fewer attendees that I expected from the roll call participation, but the ship response was awesome. Usually we get some minor officers who drew the short straw, but we had a full complement of ship's officers, including the captain. Drinks and food aplenty. 

Jim

[Nashna]

1 minute ago, toledo_cruiser said:

I don't know if it's just MSC cruises. On my last three cruises, MSC, Norwegian & Carnival, I found the CC roll calls to be slow. Although it was somewhat more active on that mega-forum we're not supposed to mention. We had to encourage those members to also join and post on CC as some didn't know about this forum.  Perhaps some of the potential CC members were siphoned off to competing forums. I really think you need a ram rod to push the conversation along on the CC roll calls. Someone has to keep posting to keep the roll call active. And perhaps the more experienced cruises just lose interest over time and don't participate. I can't comment on the European aspect other than many posters here are from Europe. 

 

I will say my Seaside M&G was one of the best I've attended. There were fewer attendees that I expected from the roll call participation, but the ship response was awesome. Usually we get some minor officers who drew the short straw, but we had a full complement of ship's officers, including the captain. Drinks and food aplenty. 

Jim

I agree about interest in the other forums.  I belong to several and they actually provided most of the fresh information about OC in the early days.  Several of those forums discourage rude comments and regularly ban posters who break the curtesy rules.  While I dislike the content of a few of the rude posters on Cruise Critic, I do appreciate all the helpful information that the majority of posters on CC provide. 

[CruisingFox27]

2 hours ago, ISLANDCRUSO said:

You now have to collect the photos yourself from the photo shop, certainly on Meraviglia.

 

Our M&M photo on Meraviglia in Oct was delivered to our cabin.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

4 hours ago, jkgourmet said:

 

What is so "amazing" about their M&G?

 

Also, when do they typically schedule it when sailing in the Caribbean?   One of my pet peeves is having them scheduled during an evening showtime necessitating those with late dining to make a choice.   (I also dislike a 10am M&G because I'm a late sleeper and lazy morning person.  But that's MY personal character flaw.  😊)

 

Then you'll hate MSC's M&G.  Typically 10:00 a.m. the first sea day of the cruise.  I agree, they do an excellent job.  And my group photo was delivered to my stateroom.

[jkgourmet]

1 minute ago, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

 

Then you'll hate MSC's M&G.  Typically 10:00 a.m. the first sea day of the cruise.  I agree, they do an excellent job.  And my group photo was delivered to my stateroom.

 

LOL!  I thought I heard they gave away cocktails during the M&G - at 10am??????  Okay, a bloody mary please.  (oh, wait - that's not on the Easy Program. )  🙂

[Nashna]

48 minutes ago, jkgourmet said:

 

LOL!  I thought I heard they gave away cocktails during the M&G - at 10am??????  Okay, a bloody mary please.  (oh, wait - that's not on the Easy Program. )  🙂

I plan on following the advice I have received here on CC and ordering a Virgin Bloody Mary and a shot of vodka.  You can order two separate drinks at the same time and then mix your own.  Several folks have reported that the bartenders will even mix them for you. 

[jkgourmet]

55 minutes ago, Nashna said:

I plan on following the advice I have received here on CC and ordering a Virgin Bloody Mary and a shot of vodka.  You can order two separate drinks at the same time and then mix your own.  Several folks have reported that the bartenders will even mix them for you. 

 

Except I thought I read that Virgin Bloody Mary's are not included in the Easy Package.  (Maybe tomato juice is, but that's NOT the same.)

 

Edited January 6, 2020 by jkgourmet

[Nashna]

1 minute ago, jkgourmet said:

 

Except I thought I read that Virgin Bloody Mary's are not included in the Easy Package.  (Maybe tomato juice is, but that's NOT the same.)

There was a post on CC that listed that all Virgin drinks were included in the Easy Package as they were all under $6.00.   My husband doesn't drink and he really likes those virgin Bloody Mary's.  I guess we will find out in a few days.

[jkgourmet]

7 minutes ago, Nashna said:

There was a post on CC that listed that all Virgin drinks were included in the Easy Package as they were all under $6.00.   My husband doesn't drink and he really likes those virgin Bloody Mary's.  I guess we will find out in a few days.

 

🙂  Come back and share what you find out, please?  Not just about bloody mary's - but the Easy Package in general.  Like how many red wines do they have to chose from?

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

9 hours ago, jkgourmet said:

 

LOL!  I thought I heard they gave away cocktails during the M&G - at 10am??????  Okay, a bloody mary please.  (oh, wait - that's not on the Easy Program. )  🙂

 

Yes, they have cocktails during the M&G--at 10:00 a.m.  Gasp!  I don't believe there is a charge.  

[CruisingFox27]

The cocktails at the M&M are complimentary, staff walk around with trays of them, probably why they're so popular. 

 

There are 2 red wines in the Easy package @jkgourmet usually a merlot and a cabernet sauvignon.