What I disliked about the MSC Miraviglia...

[seeriteR]

11 hours ago, lcpagejr said:

Just grab a blanket and watch the movie shown up top on the Pool deck. 

No blankets are available on Meraviglia. Only towels. They showed Top Gun Maverick 5 times on our cruise. When they finally changed to Beetlejuice, the LED screen malfunctioned and 20% was a black bar in the middle.

 

I found no free on demand movies. All were $10 each.

 

It is way too easy to be critical of MSC. The ships are beautiful, the dining and cabin staff are excellent but management is unyielding.

 

If cruisers would just let MSC tell you how to enjoy your cruise, everything would be fine! Here's one example:

The MSC way of making a hamburger in the Marketplace is to first, get in line with your plate. When the line has moved sufficiently for you to reach the tongs, pick up a piece of cheese and put it on your plate. Shuffle to the next station and add lettuce and tomato. Next, put a meat patty on your plate or on top of the tomato and move forward where you have to reach way under the glass for a hamburger bun, which is behind the hot dog buns. Then, stand there and reassemble your burger while holding up the line. If you're lucky, no one will cut in front of you because "they only want fries." Add mustard and ketchup and you're done! 

 

It would be so simple to reorder the items - bun, burger, cheese, lettuce - but no, MSC knows best! 

[lcpagejr]

1 hour ago, seeriteR said:

No blankets are available on Meraviglia. Only towels. They showed Top Gun Maverick 5 times on our cruise. When they finally changed to Beetlejuice, the LED screen malfunctioned and 20% was a black bar in the middle.

 

I found no free on demand movies. All were $10 each.

 

It is way too easy to be critical of MSC. The ships are beautiful, the dining and cabin staff are excellent but management is unyielding.

 

If cruisers would just let MSC tell you how to enjoy your cruise, everything would be fine! Here's one example:

The MSC way of making a hamburger in the Marketplace is to first, get in line with your plate. When the line has moved sufficiently for you to reach the tongs, pick up a piece of cheese and put it on your plate. Shuffle to the next station and add lettuce and tomato. Next, put a meat patty on your plate or on top of the tomato and move forward where you have to reach way under the glass for a hamburger bun, which is behind the hot dog buns. Then, stand there and reassemble your burger while holding up the line. If you're lucky, no one will cut in front of you because "they only want fries." Add mustard and ketchup and you're done! 

 

It would be so simple to reorder the items - bun, burger, cheese, lettuce - but no, MSC knows best! 

Thats why i only cruise YC on MSC … its YC or bust! 

[Homosassa]

4 hours ago, seeriteR said:

No blankets are available on Meraviglia. Only towels. They showed Top Gun Maverick 5 times on our cruise. When they finally changed to Beetlejuice, the LED screen malfunctioned and 20% was a black bar in the middle.

 

I found no free on demand movies. All were $10 each.

 

It is way too easy to be critical of MSC. The ships are beautiful, the dining and cabin staff are excellent but management is unyielding.

 

If cruisers would just let MSC tell you how to enjoy your cruise, everything would be fine! Here's one example:

The MSC way of making a hamburger in the Marketplace is to first, get in line with your plate. When the line has moved sufficiently for you to reach the tongs, pick up a piece of cheese and put it on your plate. Shuffle to the next station and add lettuce and tomato. Next, put a meat patty on your plate or on top of the tomato and move forward where you have to reach way under the glass for a hamburger bun, which is behind the hot dog buns. Then, stand there and reassemble your burger while holding up the line. If you're lucky, no one will cut in front of you because "they only want fries." Add mustard and ketchup and you're done! 

 

It would be so simple to reorder the items - bun, burger, cheese, lettuce - but no, MSC knows best! 

Maybe you started at the wrong end of the line....

[FreeCasinoCruiser]

1 hour ago, Homosassa said:

Maybe you started at the wrong end of the line....

This sounds like a reasonable assumption to me....Considering the opposite order makes sense haha

 

Also. I have no issue with someone just getting fries. 

[dexddd]

I didn't spend a ton of time looking at all pay movie options or prices, but there were some for $4.99 a few weeks back on Mera.  I thought that was reasonable but heck, even cheapo NCL gives around 100 ppv movies for free in Haven.

[benjaminnicholas]

21 hours ago, mikefromny said:

 use your phone as a wifi hotspot?

 

This.   100%

[DaKahuna]

21 hours ago, mikefromny said:

It's my understanding that MSC's wifi plan is really per device. If you bring a streaming stick do you et an additional device or use your phone as a wifi hotspot?

 

I bring a travel router with me and connect it to the ship's wifi.  We then connect various devices in our cabin to the travel router.   Works very well while in the cabin. 

 

[seeriteR]

6 hours ago, Homosassa said:

Maybe you started at the wrong end of the line....

Ha ha! Nice thought and easy solution but alas, MSC directs the line by making cheese the first thing you arrive at when entering and pointing you in that direction.

 

Last year, the Cruella movie and about a dozen others were free on Meraviglia. This year, $10. Even documentaries!

 

Enough negativity. We're looking forward to our next cruise on Holland America in February.

[oceans.calling]

5 hours ago, dexddd said:

I didn't spend a ton of time looking at all pay movie options or prices, but there were some for $4.99 a few weeks back on Mera.  I thought that was reasonable but heck, even cheapo NCL gives around 100 ppv movies for free in Haven.

Of course they do because they charge about $22.00 per person per day for their free drink package even in the Haven which on the other hand, MSC truly gives you a free drink package and free internet for 2 devices unlike NCL’s 150 minutes. 😉. We left NCL’s Haven for MSC’s YC and haven’t looked back. JMHO

[insidecabin]

18 hours ago, seeriteR said:

No blankets are available on Meraviglia. Only towels. They showed Top Gun Maverick 5 times on our cruise. When they finally changed to Beetlejuice, the LED screen malfunctioned and 20% was a black bar in the middle.

 

I found no free on demand movies. All were $10 each.

 

It is way too easy to be critical of MSC. The ships are beautiful, the dining and cabin staff are excellent but management is unyielding.

 

If cruisers would just let MSC tell you how to enjoy your cruise, everything would be fine! Here's one example:

The MSC way of making a hamburger in the Marketplace is to first, get in line with your plate. When the line has moved sufficiently for you to reach the tongs, pick up a piece of cheese and put it on your plate. Shuffle to the next station and add lettuce and tomato. Next, put a meat patty on your plate or on top of the tomato and move forward where you have to reach way under the glass for a hamburger bun, which is behind the hot dog buns. Then, stand there and reassemble your burger while holding up the line. If you're lucky, no one will cut in front of you because "they only want fries." Add mustard and ketchup and you're done! 

 

It would be so simple to reorder the items - bun, burger, cheese, lettuce - but no, MSC knows best! 

Virtuosa had made up burgers and hotdogs on the buffet.

 

We found you had to do a full tour to learn where everything is as not all was duplicated, so.e of the better options were only on the station right at the back.

 

 

[DaKahuna]

On 11/9/2023 at 7:18 PM, EllieinNJ said:

The shrimp cocktail did not have the usual horseradish sauce but a sweet pink sauce and was disappointing. 

 

 

On 11/9/2023 at 11:49 PM, Mark_T said:

That would have been a Marie Rose sauce which is a typical way to serve it in Europe.

 

The version including horseradish is only 'usual' in America.

 

 

On 11/10/2023 at 9:35 AM, Homosassa said:

 

Marie Rose sauce is also served on shrimp cocktail on many other cruise lines besides MSC.

 

Should I expect real cocktail sauce or the Marie Rose sauce on MSC Divina out of Miami?  I have yet to find a suitable cocktail sauce on a cruise ship and normally just ask for extra horseradish on the side and add to my taste.  I am a huge fan on shrimp cocktail and if I cannot get a horseradish sauce i would rather know ahead of time so I can avoid ordering it. 

 

 

[Georgia_Peaches]

15 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

bring a travel router with me and connect it to the ship's wifi

Please expand on this. Where do you plug the travel router?  Where does one get a travel router?  This device allows for streaming?

[JamieLogical]

9 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 

 

Should I expect real cocktail sauce or the Marie Rose sauce on MSC Divina out of Miami?  I have yet to find a suitable cocktail sauce on a cruise ship and normally just ask for extra horseradish on the side and add to my taste.  I am a huge fan on shrimp cocktail and if I cannot get a horseradish sauce i would rather know ahead of time so I can avoid ordering it. 

 

 

 

They will have Marie Rose sauce, I am fairly certain. "Cocktail Sauce" is a strictly American concept that MSC has not adopted.

[Mark_T]

2 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

They will have Marie Rose sauce, I am fairly certain. "Cocktail Sauce" is a strictly American concept that MSC has not adopted.

If that proves to be the case, it shouldn't be too hard to get ketchup, horseradish and even Worcestershire sauce in Le Muse, so a little mixing and problem solved.

 

Can also try a chat with the Maître d', probably not the first time it has been requested....

[DaKahuna]

7 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Please expand on this. Where do you plug the travel router?  Where does one get a travel router?  This device allows for streaming?

 

A travel router is a device that has two WiFi radio's. They also have the capability to connect via a wired Ethernet connection but shipboard it's always been WiFi for us.   We use one radio to connect to the ships WiFi the same as you would with your phone, tablet, or laptop.  Then the other radio is set up so that your can connect your devices via WiFi to it.  It shows a single MAC address to the ship masking how many devices are actually connecting behind it.  

 Whether you can stream or not depends on the type of WiFi service you have.  For example if you have the browse package, whether or not you can stream would be whether the browse package allows it.  

 

Mine is similar to this:

 

https://www.amazon.com/GL-iNet-GL-SFT1200-Secure-Travel-Router/dp/B09N72FMH5/ref=sr_1_3

 

[DaKahuna]

4 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

They will have Marie Rose sauce, I am fairly certain. "Cocktail Sauce" is a strictly American concept that MSC has not adopted.

 

2 hours ago, Mark_T said:

If that proves to be the case, it shouldn't be too hard to get ketchup, horseradish and even Worcestershire sauce in Le Muse, so a little mixing and problem solved.

 

Can also try a chat with the Maître d', probably not the first time it has been requested....

 

Thanks guys.  I'll let you know how it works out.   I was thinking more along the lines of shirmp cocktail for an afternoon snack, along with cheese and crackers in our cabin but I guess I have to start somewhere. 

 

 

[Georgia_Peaches]

1 hour ago, DaKahuna said:

 

A travel router is a device that has two WiFi radio's. They also have the capability to connect via a wired Ethernet connection but shipboard it's always been WiFi for us.   We use one radio to connect to the ships WiFi the same as you would with your phone, tablet, or laptop.  Then the other radio is set up so that your can connect your devices via WiFi to it.  It shows a single MAC address to the ship masking how many devices are actually connecting behind it.  

 Whether you can stream or not depends on the type of WiFi service you have.  For example if you have the browse package, whether or not you can stream would be whether the browse package allows it.  

 

Mine is similar to this:

 

https://www.amazon.com/GL-iNet-GL-SFT1200-Secure-Travel-Router/dp/B09N72FMH5/ref=sr_1_3

 

Most helpful!  Thank you!

[dexddd]

On 11/12/2023 at 4:37 PM, oceans.calling said:

Of course they do because they charge about $22.00 per person per day for their free drink package even in the Haven which on the other hand, MSC truly gives you a free drink package and free internet for 2 devices unlike NCL’s 150 minutes. 😉. We left NCL’s Haven for MSC’s YC and haven’t looked back. JMHO

Quiet.  That is why we have no ncl bookings.  And no, the free at sea charges are because fdr implemented them and the free movies were low on upcharge list imo.

Edited November 15, 2023 by dexddd

[darlak8]

On 11/13/2023 at 2:51 PM, DaKahuna said:

 

A travel router is a device that has two WiFi radio's. They also have the capability to connect via a wired Ethernet connection but shipboard it's always been WiFi for us.   We use one radio to connect to the ships WiFi the same as you would with your phone, tablet, or laptop.  Then the other radio is set up so that your can connect your devices via WiFi to it.  It shows a single MAC address to the ship masking how many devices are actually connecting behind it.  

 Whether you can stream or not depends on the type of WiFi service you have.  For example if you have the browse package, whether or not you can stream would be whether the browse package allows it.  

 

Mine is similar to this:

 

https://www.amazon.com/GL-iNet-GL-SFT1200-Secure-Travel-Router/dp/B09N72FMH5/ref=sr_1_3

 

@DaKahuna Very useful post, thank you.  On MSC the first device connected is the one you're stuck with throughout the voyage.  So how do you set up the router as your first device if you don't have a wifi connection to use the app or website?

[DaKahuna]

1 minute ago, darlak8 said:

@DaKahuna Very useful post, thank you.  On MSC the first device connected is the one you're stuck with throughout the voyage.  So how do you set up the router as your first device if you don't have a wifi connection to use the app or website?

 

I have not sailed on MSC yet. Our first cruise is scheduled for February but the process should be the same as any other place that uses a captive portal. 

 

I power up my travel router and then using my iPad or laptop I connect to the travel routers Wifi and log in with my credentials.  For example, I use the SSID  Forbidden for my Travel Router and a password of my choosing. 

 

I then use the feature of the travel router to scan for Wireless access points and choose the ship's WiFi and connect to it using the procedures the ship provides for connecting any device.  This results in a popup window on my iPad or laptop just as if I was connecting to the ships WiFi with one of those devices.  Once logged into the ship's WiFi, any device I want to connect to the Internet, I connect to my Forbidden SSID and the travel router bridges this connection to the ship's Wifi and my device now has internet access.  The ship's WiFi sees all traffic as coming form the MAC address of the travel router no matter which or how many devices I have connected to the travel router. 

 

If I remember, I'll do a tutorial, with screenshots, when we sail in February. 

 

[MsTabbyKats]

Back to the theatre issue:

I'm just a natural klutz (and I have neurology tests to prove this) but DH is not as coordianated as he used to be.

What we do (even on Mera, when in YC...because DH likes to sit in the front row) is go over to the side of the theatre and use the wall to balance.  Works great.......

[Av8tor]

8 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

I have not sailed on MSC yet. Our first cruise is scheduled for February but the process should be the same as any other place that uses a captive portal. 

 

I power up my travel router and then using my iPad or laptop I connect to the travel routers Wifi and log in with my credentials.  For example, I use the SSID  Forbidden for my Travel Router and a password of my choosing. 

 

I then use the feature of the travel router to scan for Wireless access points and choose the ship's WiFi and connect to it using the procedures the ship provides for connecting any device.  This results in a popup window on my iPad or laptop just as if I was connecting to the ships WiFi with one of those devices.  Once logged into the ship's WiFi, any device I want to connect to the Internet, I connect to my Forbidden SSID and the travel router bridges this connection to the ship's Wifi and my device now has internet access.  The ship's WiFi sees all traffic as coming form the MAC address of the travel router no matter which or how many devices I have connected to the travel router. 

 

If I remember, I'll do a tutorial, with screenshots, when we sail in February. 

 

That's a neat hack!  How big is the travel router since I assume you'd need to carry it with you along your phone/laptop/ipad to use them outside of your cabin?

[darlak8]

@DaKahuna  Thanks for such a thorough explanation, I appreciate your time doing so.  Enjoy your first MSC!  I'm on Mera in 4 days.  We've only been on Seaside class, looking forward to trying something a little bit different.

[DaKahuna]

17 hours ago, Av8tor said:

That's a neat hack!  How big is the travel router since I assume you'd need to carry it with you along your phone/laptop/ipad to use them outside of your cabin?

 

The router is 4-inches wide, 3-inches deep, and 1-inch high.  It, togetheer with the AC adapter fits neatly into a 8x5x2 travel case that also holds a multiple output (AC and USB) plug and a few cables. 

The travel router never leaves the cabin.  I only use it with devices inside the cabin.  I connect my iPhone directly to the ship's WiFi and use a separate Wifi account for the travel router. 

 

17 hours ago, darlak8 said:

@DaKahuna  Thanks for such a thorough explanation, I appreciate your time doing so.  Enjoy your first MSC!  I'm on Mera in 4 days.  We've only been on Seaside class, looking forward to trying something a little bit different.

 

 Have fun on your voyage.  I wish ours was sailing sooner but between just returning from 8-days on Waikiki, Thanksgiving and Christmas Holidays, we're sure we'll be ready to travel again in February. 

 

Enjoy your Mera cruise.  I have been reading good things about her. 

 

[DCGuy64]

Our cruise on the Meraviglia was in the Yacht Club (first time in YC, too), and was unforgettable. I'm a big fan of traditional cocktail sauce with shrimp, but Marie Rose isn't a deal breaker for me. I *am* surprised about there being only one news channel, though. That seems odd for MSC. Based on my memory, I would have thought they'd have had BBC, Deutsche Welle, RAI, and, or RTVE.