I will go over all the good and bad points about the cruise, which I think are important considerations when selecting a cruise.
First order of business, I am not new to cruising. I have been on 9 cruises from 1992 - present. Not only was this my first MSC cruise, it was my first European cruise experience, and it was a little different than a typical Caribbean or Mexico cruise. Also, from what I understand, MSC cruises in the US are different than the ones in Europe, so this review is specific to the Fantasia itinerary starting at Barcelona.
Ship: The MSC Fantasia is stunning. Probably the most beautiful ship I have been on. I found it to be classy and elegant; stylish but not the Vegas style of a Carnival ship. Normally on a cruise I find I am always freezing. On this ship, I found the temp to be a little warm and stuffy, which was kind of a drag when dressed up. Granted it was Sept in the Mediterranean, but usually the air conditioning is pretty cold. I also understand that Europeans are environmentally focused, and noticed that air conditioning was lacking everywhere we went. No biggie.