Wow! Do MSC ever pick up the phone?!

[Teampayne2]

The next available agent will be with me shortly apparently, for the last hour and a half! I'm fairly certain we will have been cancelled, I've missed the final payment date due partly to my own negligence but also due to not getting any form of email requesting final payment or a reminder, never being able to get through on the phone and my account only showing additional experiences to be booked and no option to pay final payment.

we'll definitely stick with Carnival in future, our first MSC experience and also the last.

[crazyank]

Wow! Do MSC ever pick up the phone?!

 

the answer is pretty much NO!

 

Edited June 5, 2021 by crazyank

[Teampayne2]

Just now, crazyank said:

Wow! Do MSC ever pick up the phone?!

 

the answer is pretty much NO!

 

It's crazy! how are you expected to pay?!

[ziggyuk]

That's strange, I have never had any trouble getting through on the phone in the UK.

We suddenly realised we had not paid while on a canal holiday last month and did it online in the middle of nowhere, one day late I think.

 

They don't remind you to pay, that's your responsibility, we almost came a cropper, I normally put it in my Outlook diary but forgot this time.

 

Have you checked online? If it's still showing you should be able to pay and all will be fine.

[CaroleC]

I normally expect to be on hold at least an hour whenever I ring them 😬

[MotownVoice]

53 minutes ago, Teampayne2 said:

It's crazy! how are you expected to pay?!

 

I’ve made all my payments, including final payment and executed cancellations (or at least initiated cancellations to avoid losing my deposit) on every website for every cruise line of every cruise I’ve ever taken.

 

Complain await hold wait times, sure.

 

But let’s don’t pretend a telephone was the only tool the OP had to avoid losing everything.

[sverigecruiser]

8 hours ago, crazyank said:

Do MSC ever pick up the phone?!

 

 

When I call they always pick up!

[DCGuy64]

I’ve never had a problem with them picking up the phone, every time I’ve called I’ve gotten through within 1 to 2 minutes. But I call only rarely, we have a travel agent who is a personal friend and he does most of the liaising with MSC. 

[hamrag]

Never had a problem contacting MSC in the UK....very responsive, and clear.

[cdubmom]

I was shocked to hear that they are closed on Saturdays and Sundays for MSC Canada & USA! 

[Stockjock]

I've had plenty of criticisms with MSC customer service, but they almost always do seem to answer the phone in a timely manner.  Of course, they often don't know much about what's going on, but that's not usually their fault.

I have noticed lately though that they seem to sometimes be closed when their hours of operation show that they should be open.

[Viccarol]

First time we went with them I booked online and upgraded my drinks package over the phone the next day - took approx 10 minutes (2019). Trying to book this year on the phone took 2 and a half hours 😱 my phone battery went on the first call then eventually got through the day after - I would have booked online but they insist on you calling to get the NHS discount - however email seems to work ok and you can pay your balance online 🤷‍♀️

[Hlitner]

There is a reason why I have always used some good high volume cruise agencies/agents when booking any cruise (including MSC).  Not only do I save money, but when I have an issue it takes me a few seconds to send an e-mail to my agent or I can call her (or their customer service desk) and not be on hold.  Then it is their problem how to get a human at MSC (which my own cruise agent has admitted can involve some waiting time).

 

By the way, last night about 11:30 EDT I wanted to talk to Delta Airlines Customer Service.  The phone message was "the time on hold is less then 2 hours."  I hung up.

 

Hank

[sfaaa]

1 hour ago, cdubmom said:

I was shocked to hear that they are closed on Saturdays and Sundays for MSC Canada & USA! 

COVID hours. Cost money to man the switchboard.

[deliver42]

I called Carnival today. Was told the wait would be 15 minutes, which turned out to be 55 minutes, with some stupid recording telling joes during the wait time. Nobody is answering anymore.

[Cruising89143]

The only time that I had long wait times with MSC here in the U.S was at the beginning of the pandemic last year. Since then no issues. Also, most cruise lines do not send out final payment reminders. This is not unique to MSC. Never received them from RCI or Celebrity either. 

[sverigecruiser]

11 hours ago, cdubmom said:

I was shocked to hear that they are closed on Saturdays and Sundays for MSC Canada & USA! 

 

For me it's absolutely acceptable that they close for the weekend. They shall have some kind of emergency number where they can be reached during the weekend but I don't know if they have that.

[deliver42]

If you look  at my signature, you'll see all different cruise lines, and I never got an e-mail telling me final payment is coming due.

[shipgeeks]

5 minutes ago, deliver42 said:

If you look  at my signature, you'll see all different cruise lines, and I never got an e-mail telling me final payment is coming due.

Same here.  Our TA always takes care of final payment, and I trust him implicitly.  He has a system.  A few days before the date, he emails me to confirm; I say ok, he does it.

[Teampayne2]

Thank you for all your replies, I finally managed to get an answer after over 2hrs of waiting, luckily we were  still able to pay the balance so haven't lost our cruise.

[drsel]

On 6/5/2021 at 5:24 PM, Teampayne2 said:

It's crazy! how are you expected to pay?!

If you book using a US discount Cruise agency  they give you 8% discount on the basic fare as well as automatically pay your final payment on the due date with your credit card on file.

Payments are always made directly to the cruise line, and the agency never keeps any of your money.

They get paid 10 to 16 % commission on the basic fare only after your Cruise is over.

 

The agencies also have a system generated email which informs you of the final payment coming up.

So you have the option of stopping the final payment or allowing it to go ahead

[drsel]

On 6/7/2021 at 2:08 PM, Teampayne2 said:

Thank you for all your replies, I finally managed to get an answer after over 2hrs of waiting, luckily we were  still able to pay the balance so haven't lost our cruise.

You are among the 1% elite in the world who can afford to Cruise and your time is precious.

you don't need to waste your valuable time waiting on the phone.

that's the job of the high volume US agency

Edited June 20, 2021 by drsel

[dd likes to cruise]

I called this morning from USA, Picked up in less than 2 minutes.  Agent was able to easily book our cruise for us.  The website had been rejecting my husbands Voyager #. 

[Stockjock]

I called this morning and had the same experience, they did answer quickly.

 

Also I wanted to offer a little tip. When you call into the main number, you will be subject to an extremely long message about MSC’s new safety protocols. Pressing zero will allow you to skip that. However, if you call the FCC desk, you also have to listen to the same long message and unfortunately you cannot skip that one.

[kilkoyne]

I called the passport agency the other day....recording said it would be close to a 2 hour wait.