Is MSC Seascape really THAT bad?

[ellie1145]

We are due to sail on Seascape on June 15th and the reviews on here are pretty horrendous. 
 

We have sailed on Virtuosa out of Southampton twice and we were agreeably surprised. We’ve just got off Anthem of the Seas Norway cruise and felt the buffet was very poor and Virtuosa buffet was excellent especially the beautiful desserts. 

 

But the reviews make Seascape sound like the ship from hell! 
 

I know more people post about the negatives than the positives but it’s a little worrying.

 

 

 

 

[bucfan2]

1 hour ago, ellie1145 said:

the reviews on here are pretty horrendous. 
 

 

 

 

 

Perhaps search reviews elsewhere?  Or at least search for favorable threads on here.

 

Logic would lead one to believe asking for reviews again when the reviews are already 'pretty horrendous' should yield 'pretty horrendous' reviews.

Edited May 22 by bucfan2

[rikitikitavii]

1 hour ago, ellie1145 said:

We are due to sail on Seascape on June 15th and the reviews on here are pretty horrendous. 
 

We have sailed on Virtuosa out of Southampton twice and we were agreeably surprised. We’ve just got off Anthem of the Seas Norway cruise and felt the buffet was very poor and Virtuosa buffet was excellent especially the beautiful desserts. 

 

But the reviews make Seascape sound like the ship from hell! 
 

I know more people post about the negatives than the positives but it’s a little worrying.

 

 

 

 

We were on Seascape in August, the two main negatives:

The buffet can get crazy busy.

The elevators, which are touch screen operated. Input is needed for each passenger, which most people did not know.

 

[ellie1145]

20 minutes ago, bucfan2 said:

Perhaps search reviews elsewhere?  Or at least search for favorable threads on here.

 

Logic would lead one to believe asking for reviews again when the reviews are already 'pretty horrendous' should yield 'pretty horrendous' reviews.

I did not ask for reviews. I just asked if a ship could possibly be that bad. Hoping that I would get a sensible answer not a reprimand! 
 

I can never understand why people are so aggressive. Maybe it’s the anonymity of being online makes people think they can be as rude as they like. 
 

Bearing in mind that the reviews are actually few in number, and Cruise Critic is likely to have a number of people who have travelled on Seascape who have not written a review, I was just hoping for some recent opinions. 
 

I will now get back in the naughty corner with my hair shirt on 🤣🤣
 

 

Edited May 22 by ellie1145

[ellie1145]

1 minute ago, rikitikitavii said:

We were on Seascape in August, the two main negatives:

The buffet can get crazy busy.

The elevators, which are touch screen operated. Input is needed for each passenger, which most people did not know.

 

Thank you so much for your comments. That is reassuring. 
 

We are used to the elevators as we’ve sailed on Virtuosa so really don’t have a problem with them. Just come off Anthem of the Seas where we would wait ages and elevators would go straight past unoccupied and we’d be hopping about looking out for one to stop. So we actually liked the system on Virtuosa.
 

Buffet was crazy busy on Anthem and very repetitive food of mediocre standard. In fact in 80 cruises the buffets are usually pretty busy! Try Wonder of the Seas! 🤣🤣 No buffet is going to be a serene and peaceful place if you are travelling cattle class!🤣👍

 

We are not sailing in the Yacht Club so will have to expect to fight our way round the buffet! 🤣👍

 

 

[TrinaLC]

53 minutes ago, bucfan2 said:

Perhaps search reviews elsewhere?  Or at least search for favorable threads on here.

 

Logic would lead one to believe asking for reviews again when the reviews are already 'pretty horrendous' should yield 'pretty horrendous' reviews.

Really? 
 

[peder]

No, it's not really that bad. Same way that the NCL Prima and Viva are not that bad (though I do not understand why the Prima/Viva wasted so much space on the race track). The Seaside-class ships are quite different than the typical cruise ship, maximizing outdoor space for warm climates. Most of the complaints are that the ship feels crowded, but I found that there were always plenty of loungers free, even when the ship was sailing full, it was just a matter of moving around to find them.

 

Also note that many Americans' first experience with MSC was with the Seascape. Many of the reviews of the Seascape are very Amero-centric and expect MSC to be exactly like Carnival/Royal/etc.

[bucfan2]

55 minutes ago, TrinaLC said:

Really? 
 

Ya...I realize it sounds obvious, but yes, really.  Certainly didn't mean to offend anyone...regardless what is said, somebody is offended in today's world.

Edited May 22 by bucfan2

[wolft927]

So we are sailing MSC for first time in September. I will say, we have cruised all the major lines and as far as the buffet goes they are all crazy lol. Ships are going to be crowded especially in peek season which is why we tend to sail off season from September to say around February. 

 

Finding a lounge chair can be difficult especially if you are one to sleep in and not make it to the sundeck till 11 or 12. Wife and I are typically out around 9am so always get pretty good spots. 

 

The crowds are part of cruising and we just go with the flow. 

[mcoler181]

3 hours ago, ellie1145 said:

We are due to sail on Seascape on June 15th and the reviews on here are pretty horrendous. 
 

We have sailed on Virtuosa out of Southampton twice and we were agreeably surprised. We’ve just got off Anthem of the Seas Norway cruise and felt the buffet was very poor and Virtuosa buffet was excellent especially the beautiful desserts. 

 

But the reviews make Seascape sound like the ship from hell! 
 

I know more people post about the negatives than the positives but it’s a little worrying.

 

 

 

 

We spent two weeks on Seascape in February, had an amazing time. Buffet could get really busy at peak times, after a few days we just avoided the peak times, admittedly that wont work for everyone.

Pool deck on seadays again got really busy but we managed with it. 

We found the main dining room food very good, one or two dishes in the whole two weeks were maybe average but certainly not bad. Portions weren't huge but again never left hungry.

I saw reviews about miserable staff, never encountered any, odd time a barman could be a little abrupt but they were generally rushed off their feet so this is understandable. 

Ship itself is stunning inside and out, personally if you enjoyed Virtuosa I cant see you not liking Seascape, incidentally we are on Virtuosa out of Southampton end of June, our first time on her.

[mcoler181]

41 minutes ago, peder said:

 

 

Also note that many Americans' first experience with MSC was with the Seascape. Many of the reviews of the Seascape are very Amero-centric and expect MSC to be exactly like Carnival/Royal/etc.

Totally agree with that comment, we had only sailed Royal prior to Sescape and was amazed by the amount of nationality's on Seascape. 

[morpheusofthesea]

4 hours ago, ellie1145 said:

But the reviews make Seascape sound like the ship from hell! 

I read your post earlier this morning and immediately went to CruiseCritic Reviews of the Seascape and found the most recent reviews were all from Nov/Dec 2022 when the ship just came out. So I took the time to write my review that I had in April 2024 on the Seascape. Most everyone here already knows from reading my posts that this last cruise in April was perhaps the best cruise we have ever taken. Perhaps not the most exotic, but from a purely luxury type cruise it was much better than our March 2024 Regent Seven Seas cruise in a Grand Suite for $30,000.

   Every cruise guru will advise never take a cruise on a new ship for at least several months.  One of our veteran butlers told us it took them 3 months to become a "working crew". Will be on your cruise in June. Stop by and say hello. We will be hiding out again in the YC.

[morpheusofthesea]

3 hours ago, rikitikitavii said:

The buffet can get crazy busy.

Just in case some of you missed my 5 minute 360 degree walk through of the Market Place Buffet at a typical 7 am morning. It starts getting crazy after 7:30 am.  Also MPB is really quite nice noon times when it is in port and still open.

[peder]

Good point on the timing of the reviews. MSC went full capacity on their ships along with dropping vaccine requirements / COVID testing pretty quickly, so that meant (1) they probably attracted cruisers from other lines that were maybe never MSC's target customer, and (2) they might not have been completely staffed up yet, or at least much of their staff was new to MSC or even new to cruising entirely. Just not a good idea to rely on ~2022 reviews.

[maclover]

4 hours ago, ellie1145 said:

We are due to sail on Seascape on June 15th and the reviews on here are pretty horrendous. 
 

But the reviews make Seascape sound like the ship from hell! 

I always wondered what’s the point to look for reviews after booking

 

Unless you’re willing to forfeit your money and cancel, what choice do you have other than starting the cruise with a negative impression fueled by second hands reviewers?

[ellie1145]

3 hours ago, bucfan2 said:

Ya...I realize it sounds obvious, but yes, really.  Certainly didn't mean to offend anyone...regardless what is said, somebody is offended in today's world.

I’m certainly not offended. It’s par for the course. I merely think that sometimes the written word can seem quite brutal.

 

As my dear mother used to say ‘if you can’t say anything nice don’t say anything at all.’ 
 

It was a genuine question and I’m most grateful to those who have responded with such great information. 

[ellie1145]

3 hours ago, wolft927 said:

So we are sailing MSC for first time in September. I will say, we have cruised all the major lines and as far as the buffet goes they are all crazy lol. Ships are going to be crowded especially in peek season which is why we tend to sail off season from September to say around February. 

 

Finding a lounge chair can be difficult especially if you are one to sleep in and not make it to the sundeck till 11 or 12. Wife and I are typically out around 9am so always get pretty good spots. 

 

The crowds are part of cruising and we just go with the flow. 

So true! Luckily we are not great sunbathers. Only need a lounger if I’m going swimming to put towel and clothes on, but release it as soon as I’ve finished. 
 

I certainly agree crowds are part and parcel of cruising on any ship. It doesn’t really bother us. 
 

many thanks! 

[Beamafar]

Currently on Seascape.  Last week it was a zoo - very crowded around the atrium areas and very loud.  There is a different demographic onboard this week (less Americans and almost 1000 Brazilians, who like to party).  Terrific atmosphere and easier to navigate the ship - especially in the evenings.  Had we not stayed on for a second week I would have said never again.

 

For us, the food is cheap and poor quality.  We found the buffet options extremely limited.  However, the sea day brunch is not to be missed.  Mr B has the huavos rancheros every time.  I opted for steak and eggs a couple of times, but tried the  chicken and rice dish a couple of days ago and it was really good.  (There is a thread on here about the brunch, with the menu available in the OP).  We usually go around 12pm when it’s not so busy. 

 

The crew have been amazing and we’ve received exceptional service from them.  We hang out at the bar in Cabaret Rouge and have great craic with the lads. 
 

@morpheusofthesea Thanks so much for tip about Indian butter chicken being listed in the healthy options section of the menu - I discovered that it’s on tonight. 
 

 

Edited May 22 by Beamafar

[mcoler181]

18 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

Currently on Seascape.  Last week it was a zoo - very crowded around the atrium areas and very loud.  There is a different demographic onboard this week (less Americans and almost 1000 Brazilians, who like to party).  Terrific atmosphere and easier to navigate the ship - especially in the evenings.  Had we not stayed on for a second week I would have said never again.

 

For us, the food is cheap and poor quality.  We found the buffet options extremely limited.  However, the sea day brunch is not to be missed.  Mr B has the huavos rancheros every time.  I opted for steak and eggs a couple of times, but tried the  chicken and rice dish a couple of days ago and it was really good.  (There is a thread on here about the brunch, with the menu available in the OP).  We usually go around 12pm when it’s not so busy. 

 

The crew have been amazing and we’ve received exceptional service from them.  We hang out at the bar in Cabaret Rouge and have great craic with the lads. 
 

@morpheusofthesea Thanks so much for tip about Indian butter chicken being listed in the healthy options section of the menu - I discovered that it’s on tonight. 
 

 

Is the brunch a new thing? If not we missed that in February. 

 

 

[ellie1145]

2 hours ago, maclover said:

I always wondered what’s the point to look for reviews after booking

 

Unless you’re willing to forfeit your money and cancel, what choice do you have other than starting the cruise with a negative impression fueled by second hands reviewers?

Stupid isn’t it? I guess I just couldn’t resist seeing what people thought of this ship 

 

Thankfully it hasn’t put me off! 

[rxlowry]

I had a great time Easter week and did blog about it (gowithlisablog) and did a live one here.  I was in Yacht Club but I thought the buffet was great and had lots of fun

[ellie1145]

8 hours ago, peder said:

No, it's not really that bad. Same way that the NCL Prima and Viva are not that bad (though I do not understand why the Prima/Viva wasted so much space on the race track). The Seaside-class ships are quite different than the typical cruise ship, maximizing outdoor space for warm climates. Most of the complaints are that the ship feels crowded, but I found that there were always plenty of loungers free, even when the ship was sailing full, it was just a matter of moving around to find them.

 

Also note that many Americans' first experience with MSC was with the Seascape. Many of the reviews of the Seascape are very Amero-centric and expect MSC to be exactly like Carnival/Royal/etc.

Thank you for your input. I think it will have helped having been on Virtuosa, which is a different kettle of fish to the more American ships. There is certainly a big difference in the European style of cruising and some people might have found the constant announcements in several different languages a bit of a pain. But it’s not a deal breaker for us. 
 

 

[ellie1145]

6 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

I read your post earlier this morning and immediately went to CruiseCritic Reviews of the Seascape and found the most recent reviews were all from Nov/Dec 2022 when the ship just came out. So I took the time to write my review that I had in April 2024 on the Seascape. Most everyone here already knows from reading my posts that this last cruise in April was perhaps the best cruise we have ever taken. Perhaps not the most exotic, but from a purely luxury type cruise it was much better than our March 2024 Regent Seven Seas cruise in a Grand Suite for $30,000.

   Every cruise guru will advise never take a cruise on a new ship for at least several months.  One of our veteran butlers told us it took them 3 months to become a "working crew". Will be on your cruise in June. Stop by and say hello. We will be hiding out again in the YC.

Thank you for that interesting post. So pleased you had a wonderful time. 
 

We would love to say ‘hello’ but I’m afraid we won’t be in the YC so you would need to find us in steerage 🤣🤣 But we’d love to see you, but not sure how we’d do that. The YC sounds fabulous. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

[ellie1145]

41 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

Currently on Seascape.  Last week it was a zoo - very crowded around the atrium areas and very loud.  There is a different demographic onboard this week (less Americans and almost 1000 Brazilians, who like to party).  Terrific atmosphere and easier to navigate the ship - especially in the evenings.  Had we not stayed on for a second week I would have said never again.

 

For us, the food is cheap and poor quality.  We found the buffet options extremely limited.  However, the sea day brunch is not to be missed.  Mr B has the huavos rancheros every time.  I opted for steak and eggs a couple of times, but tried the  chicken and rice dish a couple of days ago and it was really good.  (There is a thread on here about the brunch, with the menu available in the OP).  We usually go around 12pm when it’s not so busy. 

 

The crew have been amazing and we’ve received exceptional service from them.  We hang out at the bar in Cabaret Rouge and have great craic with the lads. 
 

@morpheusofthesea Thanks so much for tip about Indian butter chicken being listed in the healthy options section of the menu - I discovered that it’s on tonight. 
 

 

Thank you for your response to my initial question. So glad you’ve had a great experience following your first week. Hope you enjoy the rest of your cruise. 🛳️

[ellie1145]

7 hours ago, mcoler181 said:

Totally agree with that comment, we had only sailed Royal prior to Sescape and was amazed by the amount of nationality's on Seascape. 

We’ve just returned from a Norway cruise on Anthem and there were over 40 nationalities amongst passengers! Quite a record I think.