The relative new kid on the block in North America got off to a bit of a rocky start but in light of the recent COVID-19 pandemic, they have proven themselves to be here to stay!
The first ship I sampled was the MSC Seaside (see my review here) and I was a convert from then on.
Have you tried a MSC cruise? What did you like or not like?
For my first cruise, I spent a lot of time focusing on itinerary. After making (and changing) several bookings, I finally settled on MSC’s shiny new MSC Seaside.
I had read a ton of reviews leading up to the cruise and was definitely growing concerned about all the comments regarding poor service and horrible food. As is usually the case, there was really a bunch of fuss about nothing.
Booking Specifics
Cabin: 9245 – Balcony with the Aurea Package
ITINERARY
02/09-Miami, United States (Depart 07:00 PM)
02/10-Day at Sea
02/11-Ocho Rios, Jamaica (09:00 AM – 05:00 PM)
02/12-George Town, Cayman Islands (08:00 AM – 04:00 PM)
02/13-Costa Maya, Mexico (12:00 PM – 06:00 PM)
02/14-Cozumel, Mexico (07:00 AM – 07:00 PM)
02/15-Day at Sea
02/16-Miami, United States (Arrive 07:00 AM)
Boarding was really seamless and well organized. We breezed through and before we knew it we were onboard! Yay!
Likes: Service was so attentive and wonderful. The food was definitely European but I personally loved it. They were not big on salads or salad bars but they made up for it with outstanding pizza. The sit down dining was really well done. After the first day they were sure to have a bottle of Le Marca prosecco table side for me. The stellar item for me the whole cruise was the mushroom ragout. OMG it was brilliant.
Loved the 70s Party as far as themed nights went. The clubs were especially bumping with the vast majority in costume.
Loved the Port Shopping sessions. Dan and Dan did a great job of making them entertaining and ensuring we were first of the ship.
Dislikes: There really were not a lot of activities onboard. Daily trivia was fun and we loved the prizes but other than that there was not a whole lot to do. This is not the cruise line for sexy legs contest. The activities on sea days especially are pretty refined.
Service in the night clubs. Really non-existent. Every drink involved going to the bar as the servers literally did one table at a time and usually the same table over and over.