I was a MSC cheerleader, not after sailing during Easter Week.

[kernie968]

My first MSC cruise was in the Yacht Club. Loved every second.Second cruise was between Thanksgiving and Christmas in a regular inside room. Was not as spectacular as the Yacht Club, but good enough to decide to book a 3 cruise. This is a heads up for anyone who has never booked a cruise when kids are on vacation. If you like your sanity don't book during school breaks! The ship was full with thousands of kids. I booked this cruise so I could take my 15 and 7 year old grandsons on their first cruise. The seven year old asked to go home on day three.

 

On a cruise with few kids the  pools get crowded, but with kids on break they are jammed pack. No way I would ever step into that petri dish. Both grandsons braved the pool the first couple days then decided they couldn't swim so why go in? Tried to drop the youngest off at the kids club, but he didn't want to stand in long lines and I was happy about that.

 

The buffet was a joke. On our last cruise we had no problem getting water and juice. This cruise it was like an Easter egg hunt trying to find one dispenser that had anything in it. A few times it was very hard to find a cleaned off table to sit at. My biggest complaint about the buffet was we went up at 5 o'clock one evening starving to find nothing open, not even the 24 hour pizza. Nothing  would be available until 6, so we went out to the pool small buffet to find a line of at least 50 people and hardly any food out there except a few fries and lettuce and tomatoes. No food from 5 to 6. Come on MSC you can do better.

 

But the main reason not to travel on school break week is germs! Never once did I see any crew telling people they have to wash their hands to enter the buffet. Some of you might be okay with that, but the flu hit hard. First my young grandson, then me, then my son. The group that was started for this sailing started posting immediately after we got off asking how many others were sick with the flu. We had 3 out of 5 sick. One group said 26 out of there group of 30 got the flu. It was alarming how many people posted about the flu. I feel bad for the people getting on after us.

 

Would I sail MSC again? Definitely in the Yacht Club and possible on a week that would have less children. But after coming back from a cruise and then calling in sick for 3 day and struggling to get over the flu made me realize that cruising with thousands of children is not fun. For those of you who were on the same cruise and did not get sick I am so happy for you, but if you are elderly and considering taking your grandchild on a Easter week cruise think again.

 

 

[peder]

What ship and itinerary?

[Essiesmom]

I suspect the. era, as he is from New York.  EM

[ready2cruzagain]

No one could pay me enough to take a cruise during Spring Break. It does not surprise me at all and this is not an MSC thing. 

[Tapi]

I have kids who've been sailing since they were infants (they're now teenagers). I have learned to steer clear of ANY cruise line that caters to families (Royal, Disney, Carnival, MSC, etc) during school breaks. What you describe has been our experience when we've taken any of those lines when schools are out.

 

If sailing during school breaks, we've booked cruises on more adult-oriented lines, like Holland America and Celebrity. We had a great time, and the kids also had a great time. Less kids onboard, and the ones that do come onboard tend to be, in the most part, well traveled and aware of fellow cruisers and expected behavior.

 

Granted, the kids clubs aren't as elaborate, or the number of kid-oriented activities and facilities aren't as extensive, but there's still plenty for kids to do both on the ship and ashore. One of the blessings in disguise about sailing on a ship with less kids is that they end up getting more personal attention at the kids club since they're not as packed. 

Edited April 11 by Tapi

[JT1962]

Never sail on any cruise line during spring break or near a holiday.

[Anastas617]

I booked the week prior (disembarked on Easter) and I know never to do that again!

 

It was a ship full of little Forrest Gumps...if there was somewhere to go they were ruuunnniiinnng. Halls, stairs, buffet; it didn't matter. 😂

[kernie968]

Sorry this was the Meraviglia from 3/31 to 4/7/2024. We had sailed on Royal Thanksgiving week in 2023 and had no problems with kids or food. 

[MsTabbyKats]

I'm on the Meraviglia right now.  The comedian was joking about all the kids on  board last week, and what a zoo it was....1600 under 18!

[George C]

I am sure any rccl cruise would have been the same.

[gizfish]

6 hours ago, kernie968 said:

Sorry this was the Meraviglia from 3/31 to 4/7/2024. We had sailed on Royal Thanksgiving week in 2023 and had no problems with kids or food. 

Spring break is horrible on any cruise line with kids. It doesn't compare to Thanksgiving.  To take a week long cruise around turkey day, the kiddos have to be pulled from school for at least 3 days.  Less parents book at that time.  Also turkey day is more of an extended family eating traditional food type holiday, again meaning less kids than spring break.

[JamieLogical]

7 hours ago, gizfish said:

Spring break is horrible on any cruise line with kids. It doesn't compare to Thanksgiving.  To take a week long cruise around turkey day, the kiddos have to be pulled from school for at least 3 days.  Less parents book at that time.  Also turkey day is more of an extended family eating traditional food type holiday, again meaning less kids than spring break.

 

Exactly. Thanksgiving and Spring Break are apples to oranges.

[Homosassa]

18 hours ago, kernie968 said:

 

 

 

 

. My biggest complaint about the buffet was we went up at 5 o'clock one evening starving to find nothing open, not even the 24 hour pizza. Nothing  would be available until 6, so we went out to the pool small buffet to find a line of at least 50 people and hardly any food out there except a few fries and lettuce and tomatoes. No food from 5 to 6. Come on MSC you can do better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What were the posted dinner hours for the buffet (easily available to find on the app, printed schedule in your cabin, or outside the buffet doors)?

 

If the buffet was not scheduled to be open until 6 PM, then I am confused why one expect it to be open at 5PM?

[deliver42]

Every family oriented cruise line has the same problems when schools are out.

[RichYak]

15 hours ago, kernie968 said:

Sorry this was the Meraviglia from 3/31 to 4/7/2024. We had sailed on Royal Thanksgiving week in 2023 and had no problems with kids or food. 

Before I booked my Meraviglia cruise, I spent upwards of an hour researching the area school calendars. That research led me to book the 3/17/24 sailing. In choosing to sail on Easter Sunday, you never really had a chance.

[wolft927]

We sailed last year on the Norwegian Joy in April during Spring Break with a 16 and 17 year old. I will say, there were a ton of kids but we also expected that. 1st and last cruise we would do again during any school break including summer. Wife and I typically cruise anywhere from September to February when schools are in session. Alot less kids and also prices are cheaper. 

[cellfree]

This year I failed to do my research and booked March 31 on the Seashore out of Port Canaveral, first time in Yacht Club and there were many more kids than i anticipated, and not particularly well behaved either, although I must add I don’t completely blame the kids, parents were pretty oblivious to their kids behavior during dinnertime. However I remain a “cheerleader” for MSC. 

[PACrew]

I cruise spring break a lot because my wife is a teacher. I will say the ship you choose makes the difference. Last year on spring break, we were on Harmony of the Seas and while there were 2k kids on board, you wouldn't know. The ship and pools are so spread out, it wasn't very noticeable at all. The pools were crowded on sea days (but nothing out of the ordinary). The kids club was a zoo but we kept our kids out of it. The buffet was even manageable. I think RCCL  Oasis class ships are great at spreading out people and activities. They also do a great job forcing people to wash their hands before going into the buffet. 

 

We are booked next year on Oasis for the same reason. 

[Selion]

So how is this a MSC problem?  If you don't want kids, cruise on Virgin or Viking.

[Pat]

It seems like it is almost impossible to avoid a "spring break" now.  The states are all doing their breaks at different times.  It used to be okay to sail in March because the Elementary, middle and high schools were on break in February and April and the colleges were on break in April........now it doesn't seem to matter what week I pick in March or April,  some schools are on break.    

[JamieLogical]

13 minutes ago, Pat said:

It seems like it is almost impossible to avoid a "spring break" now.  The states are all doing their breaks at different times.  It used to be okay to sail in March because the Elementary, middle and high schools were on break in February and April and the colleges were on break in April........now it doesn't seem to matter what week I pick in March or April,  some schools are on break.    

 

After the first week in April, it is usually pretty safe. It mostly depends on when Easter is. Last year, Easter was April 9 so many Spring breaks began the week prior and ended with Easter. This year, Easter was March 31, so most spring breaks started with Easter and ended a week later. This is all public grade school Spring Breaks, of course. College Spring Breaks are all over the place and usually happen earlier in March, because most colleges don't get a February break around Presidents' Day.

 

You also have to be careful with Summer break. Here in New York, public school summer break doesn't start until the third week of June. Many schools around the country start their summer breaks with Memorial Day or even sooner.

[kernie968]

7 hours ago, Homosassa said:

What were the posted dinner hours for the buffet (easily available to find on the app, printed schedule in your cabin, or outside the buffet doors)?

 

If the buffet was not scheduled to be open until 6 PM, then I am confused why one expect it to be open at 5PM?

I guess on the ships we have ever sailed the buffet always opened at 5 or 530. Also on all the other ships there was always a food option somewhere in the ship. We always had an early buffet dinner to avoid the crowds. Openings at 6 makes avoiding the crowds even harder.

[JamieLogical]

1 hour ago, kernie968 said:

I guess on the ships we have ever sailed the buffet always opened at 5 or 530. Also on all the other ships there was always a food option somewhere in the ship. We always had an early buffet dinner to avoid the crowds. Openings at 6 makes avoiding the crowds even harder.

 

Looking at the Dailies from my last Meraviglia sailing, it looks like lunch went until 4:00 and dinner starter at 6:00, but grab-and-go items were supposed to be available between 4:00 and 6:00 at the grill and pizza stations.

[peder]

3 hours ago, Pat said:

It seems like it is almost impossible to avoid a "spring break" now.  The states are all doing their breaks at different times.  It used to be okay to sail in March because the Elementary, middle and high schools were on break in February and April and the colleges were on break in April........now it doesn't seem to matter what week I pick in March or April,  some schools are on break.    

 

School districts stagger breaks throughout the entire Jan-Apr period.
 

And also, more and more parents will take their kids out of school without worrying about missed days.

[Homosassa]

1 hour ago, kernie968 said:

I guess on the ships we have ever sailed the buffet always opened at 5 or 530. Also on all the other ships there was always a food option somewhere in the ship. We always had an early buffet dinner to avoid the crowds. Openings at 6 makes avoiding the crowds even harder.

On many of the lines that I cruise on, the buffet opens a half hour after the start of the early fixed seating.