I'm back from my trip on the MSC Meraviglia (July 30, 2023)

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

I just got back from a week on the MSC Meraviglia, and I’m already looking forward to my next cruise with MSC!  I live in Connecticut, so taking a cruise leaving from New York was too convenient to pass up.  I drove to Ferry Point Park (about a 1.5 hour drive) and then took the NYC Ferry to the cruise terminal (about another 1.5 hours).  The ferry is $4 a person and parking is free.  Not having to sit in traffic at the start of a vacation and doing a float-by of NYC was a great way to set the stage for a relaxing trip.  I arrived to the terminal around 12:45 and despite long lines to get through security, I was on the boat by 1:25. 

 

 

Since it’s easy to think about things I didn’t like, I'll start with a list in no particular order: 

• Hot food is lukewarm, cold food is also lukewarm.
• I can hear everyone stomping around the hallways.  From my balcony (deck 11) it sounds like the furniture on the pool decks is constantly being rearranged (oddly I never noticed this when I was actually on the pool deck). 
• Long wait for drinks; it generally feels like there's not enough staff in the bars and restaurants.
• Food and bar shacks on Ocean Cay close early, just when the sun isn't oppressive.  The same thing happened on the ship, I was kicked out of a lounge chair on the upper deck of the atmosphere pool at 6:00PM because it closes so they can stack them.  
• The smell of sewer gas is everywhere!  In pools, walking through the hallways, in the stairwells.  So...much...sewer...gas!
• Smoke from the casino fills the Carousel Theater.  When I went to the second show I booked, I asked if they could close the doors during the show.  I was told they have to keep them open in case someone shows up late.
• Straws aren't long enough for the tall V glasses that a lot of frozen drinks are served in.
• Soot lands on everything in the Horizon Pool area; don’t wear white!
• No sense of logic to who gets served when, and with long wait times at bars, this led to folks getting really frustrated.  Sometimes I'd walk up to a bar and they would want to take my order when there were already a handful of people there waiting to order.  Other times I'd be passed over after waiting for 10 minutes for someone who just walked up.  It was strange when this happened at dinner too.  Some days I would arrive after the table next to me placed their order and I would get my food first, sometimes it would go the other way.  One day the table next to me finished their entire meal before appetizers arrived at my table, and I was seated before them. 
• I thought the Broadway shows were much better than the Carousel shows (the folks who perform in Broadway are really great).  House of Houdini has a new cast from what I understand, and the night I saw it was their premier.
• Not enough covered areas.  Not many people seemed to want to be in the hot sun.  Every place in the shade is spoken for.  People reserving spaces (to never show up to use them) is also frustrating. 
• The Brass Anchor pub (and apparently every other bar too, but I can't confirm this) ran out of CO2 on the first day, so I couldn’t get a draft beer the entire cruise.  They ran out of two types of white wine as well, but were able to restock on the third day of the cruise in Miami, which was available for dinner the fourth day.  For more than half the cruise I couldn’t get a frozen drink with banana because they ran out, the same with the drinks that had mint. 
• Every so often I’d *see* someone taking drink orders around a pool or in a bar, but I never managed to have them stop by my lounge chair ot table to take my order. 
• The library had two puzzles and three books, I'm not sure that counts as a library!
• Folks smoking on their balconies should be tossed overboard. 

 

Here are a few things that stood out:

• Rooms were very comfortable, A/C worked great, showers were hot with plenty of water. 
• Staff was very friendly.  There were really only two people who were less than friendly.  I got a laugh when on the first day I overheard someone ask where fresh fruit was in the buffet, and the guy said “I’ll show you once, but I won’t show you again.”
• Most meals were great, the lobster tails on the formal night were the best I’ve had at sea. 
• The pizza was amazing, I’m already missing my 4 o’clock slice! 
• Despite the size of the ship, I was amazed at the number of times I had areas to myself.  On more than one day I was the only person in the Brass Anchor Pub.  Most days before dinner there might only be a handful of people in the Sky Lounge. 
• Great passengers too!  Folks talking too loudly (to each other, on video calls), or playing music were the only things that made me want to sit somewhere else.  Ages were all over the place, but it definitely skewed younger than I was expecting. 
• Bimini Beach at Ocean Cay is amazing, I wish we spent an extra day or two there instead of stopping in Miami (I’m guessing to resupply the ship) and Nassau. 
• I'll miss not being able to get a plate of fresh fruit with every meal!  
• The shows were a great way to end each night, lots of energy, great set, and a talented cast and crew.  
•  

 

[FullyBooked]

We're doing a similar itinerary in January. My husband was curious about parking at Ferry Point Park. No issues leaving your car for the week?  I'm more curious about the cruise itself. Are there themed nights like white night or just the formal night? 

[mvh]

Mostly legit review, especially no draft beer. But straws too short? That's just complaining to complain. NCL doesn't even give straws.

[Brighton Line]

MSC reprovisions in Florida on the Caribbean itineraries, Orlando or Miami. I'm wondering what they will do with the Canada cruises.  Bermuda they still go to Flordia on an extended cruise so assume still taking on stores in Florida but for two weeks. 

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

10 hours ago, FullyBooked said:

We're doing a similar itinerary in January. My husband was curious about parking at Ferry Point Park. No issues leaving your car for the week?  I'm more curious about the cruise itself. Are there themed nights like white night or just the formal night? 

My car was still there with the wheels when I got back!  I figured it's a reletively secure place being at the base of the Whitestone bridge.  My real fears were that there would be signs saying "no overnight parking" (there weren't, and when I called I couldn't get a definitive answer), or there wouldn't be open spaces (there were plenty).  

 

There were three themed nights.  The first sea day was the formal night, the second event was the white night (it was cool seeing a sea of white when in the MDR or walking around the ship that evening), and a Hawaiian shirt night (I wasn't preparted for this one).  

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

1 hour ago, mvh said:

Mostly legit review, especially no draft beer. But straws too short? That's just complaining to complain. NCL doesn't even give straws.

I'd be fine without straws (they don't give them on Ocean Cay); I generally asked them not to give me one, but sometimes they didn't hear or put one in out of habit.  To me it's that it shows a lack of planning; that's there's not someone looking at the cruise from the standpoint of guests.  How Hola! can run out of two types of beer, the pool towel exchange booth is constantly out of towels, the pub runs out of CO2, the MDR runs out of Pinot Grigio and Savagnon Blanc, mint and bananas are unavailable for drinks, it's like a supply truck didn't show up, but then I see similar things happened to folks on prior cruses.  Anyway, like I noted in my intro, I loved the cruise, I'm just pointing out the things that stood out that could be improved.  If no one provides feedback, nothing will change.  Granted, it's possible nothing will change if folks do provide feedback!

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

9 minutes ago, Brighton Line said:

MSC reprovisions in Florida on the Caribbean itineraries, Orlando or Miami. I'm wondering what they will do with the Canada cruises.  Bermuda they still go to Flordia on an extended cruise so assume still taking on stores in Florida but for two weeks. 

I didn't do an excursion In Florida, but did enjoy watching them resupply the ship.  It felt like I was watching a documentary with a drink in hand!  It's amazing how many trucks queue up to resupply the ship.  

[JamieLogical]

One time I was on Celebrity cruise that literally had a port stop in Key West, but somehow the whole ship was out of limes for the entire trip. 😋

[NYcruzzer]

2 hours ago, Brighton Line said:

MSC reprovisions in Florida on the Caribbean itineraries, Orlando or Miami. I'm wondering what they will do with the Canada cruises.  Bermuda they still go to Flordia on an extended cruise so assume still taking on stores in Florida but for two weeks. 

Not sure, but you have to figure they will have to provision the Canada cruises out of Brooklyn. Princess and Cunard do that when they sail out of Brooklyn.

[HERKIMER417]

Was on the same ship in May because the price was too good to pass on.

   And encounter lot of the same issues. 

 

 - Smoking was terrible. 

- The waits for a drink was crazy - one problem I noticed is the computer input system.

   Every drink would take 45 seconds to a minute to input - before they made the drink.  And it did appear that the entire bar staff was in training - concentrating and slow. 

 

 -   My biggest disappointment was the musical entertainment in the bars.   Not that they were bad - they never seemed to be playing.  It was very disappointing to me that there was no schedule. 

   As example:

  - The main area was jammed with folks getting photos on formal nite - yet the piano was quiet. 

-  On the way to dinner the bar in the atrium was having a language class.    

  - The piano bar seemed to only have karaoke. 

      I've been on several ships, on other lines,  and never encounter this. 

 

  The crew was great, they were friendly and helpful.

  But lots of other things will have me waiting to use MSC.

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

16 minutes ago, HERKIMER417 said:

Was on the same ship in May because the price was too good to pass on.

   And encounter lot of the same issues. 

 

 - Smoking was terrible. 

- The waits for a drink was crazy - one problem I noticed is the computer input system.

   Every drink would take 45 seconds to a minute to input - before they made the drink.  And it did appear that the entire bar staff was in training - concentrating and slow. 

 

 -   My biggest disappointment was the musical entertainment in the bars.   Not that they were bad - they never seemed to be playing.  It was very disappointing to me that there was no schedule. 

   As example:

  - The main area was jammed with folks getting photos on formal nite - yet the piano was quiet. 

-  On the way to dinner the bar in the atrium was having a language class.    

  - The piano bar seemed to only have karaoke. 

      I've been on several ships, on other lines,  and never encounter this. 

 

  The crew was great, they were friendly and helpful.

  But lots of other things will have me waiting to use MSC.

On more than one occasion everyone working at a bar was either on one of the drink tablets or the register trying to record a drink order.  I often saw bar tenders tapping a button on the bottom right of the screen a few dozen times, presumably trying to get something to load.  I felt bad for them, no one wants to be surrounded by people on every side seeing lines getting longer while being held back by technology or inefficient processes.  

 

One of the bartenders at the Atmosphere North bar was a rock star.  I saw him walking somewhere on the last night and I said "hey, it's my favorite bartender" and he came over and asked me to fill out the survey.  I got the impression that things won't improve if folks don't speak up.  

 

It was nice that they'll give two drinks per cruise card.  The terms say one per card, but I never saw it enforced, and it likely kept the lines shorter than the otherwise would have been.  

[Illbcruzn4life]

On 8/7/2023 at 9:36 AM, CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise said:

I'd be fine without straws (they don't give them on Ocean Cay); I generally asked them not to give me one, but sometimes they didn't hear or put one in out of habit.  To me it's that it shows a lack of planning; that's there's not someone looking at the cruise from the standpoint of guests.  How Hola! can run out of two types of beer, the pool towel exchange booth is constantly out of towels, the pub runs out of CO2, the MDR runs out of Pinot Grigio and Savagnon Blanc, mint and bananas are unavailable for drinks, it's like a supply truck didn't show up, but then I see similar things happened to folks on prior cruses.  Anyway, like I noted in my intro, I loved the cruise, I'm just pointing out the things that stood out that could be improved.  If no one provides feedback, nothing will change.  Granted, it's possible nothing will change if folks do provide feedback!

Which 2 beers would that be? When we were on in June it was Modelo and Dos Equis.

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

9 minutes ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

Which 2 beers would that be? When we were on in June it was Modelo and Dos Equis.

Modelo and Pacífico Clara.

[Illbcruzn4life]

23 minutes ago, CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise said:

Modelo and Pacífico Clara.

Afaik Holas was the only place on the ship that had Modelo on the menu. They should take it off the menu if they don’t ever have it.

[rikitikitavii]

7 hours ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

Which 2 beers would that be? When we were on in June it was Modelo and Dos Equis.

Hopefully these are growing pains from the NYC start up. We sail October 4th to New England and Canada, maybe they will have local provisions by then!

[ajoneen]

Thanks for the honest review! I hope most of the growing pains are over when I sail in Nov. 

[RICHARD@SEA]

OP - 

 

Can you expand your explanation for using the ferry to get to Red Hook / Pier in Brooklyn. please.

 

when i look on the map there is no direct ferry to the pier - did you change ferrys or have routes changed???

 

Thank you.

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

You're correct, there's no direct ferry.  I took the Soundview Route (purple line) from Throgs Neck (Ferry Point Park) to Wall Street (Pier 11).  From there it's a transfer (walk off the ferry and get in line for the other ferry) to the South Brooklyn Route (yellow line) from Wall Street (Pier 11) to Red Hook (Atlantic Basin).  The transfer is free.  The trip to Pier 11 takes ~56 minutes, the layover can be 10 to 20 minutes, and the trip from Pier 11 takes around 17 minutes.  

 

You can see the Meraviglia from Pier 11.

 

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

And here's where the Red Hook ferry stop is in relation to the terminal (I took this picture on the ship the morning we returned).  

 

[franncos]

Is it true MSC charged for some of the shows? And how was the internet?

[CruiseCruiseAndMoreCruise]

1 hour ago, franncos said:

Is it true MSC charged for some of the shows? And how was the internet?

Shows in Broadway are free (you can reserve a spot; I heard the magic show was full, but I had Rock Circus booked that night so it didn't impact me).  It's the Carousel Lounge shows that have a charge (Rock Circus and House of Houdini).  The Internet speeds were fine for me (I just used it to log in to do some work, unfortunately I can't completely unplug on a trip).  I had the basic package and was it was fine for Internet in the middle of the ocean!  

[JamieLogical]

3 hours ago, franncos said:

Is it true MSC charged for some of the shows? And how was the internet?

 

The two shows in the Carousel Lounge are charges. They are $18 if booked onboard, $12 if booked in advance online, or $5 if booked onboard and you have a Specialty Dining package.

 

The browse internet was the best "included" internet I have ever had on a cruise. It was even better than the upgraded internet I had on the Celebrity Summit. Of course, in severe weather, the Internet can go out if the satellite can't get a signal.

[Illbcruzn4life]

15 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

The two shows in the Carousel Lounge are charges. They are $18 if booked onboard, $12 if booked in advance online, or $5 if booked onboard and you have a Specialty Dining package.

 

The browse internet was the best "included" internet I have ever had on a cruise. It was even better than the upgraded internet I had on the Celebrity Summit. Of course, in severe weather, the Internet can go out if the satellite can't get a signal.

wow when we were on in June the internet was slow .less then 3 mbps.

[JamieLogical]

29 minutes ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

wow when we were on in June the internet was slow .less then 3 mbps.

 

Really? That's disappointing. We were on in April.

[Illbcruzn4life]

1 minute ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Really? That's disappointing. We were on in April.

yep but we survived . nice ship