MSC Lirica Review
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We sailed the Southern Caribbean on the Lirica Feb. 11-22, 2007. We flew Midwest Airlines (warm chocolate chip cookies!) to Ft. Lauderdale two days early and were married on the beach there, so this cruise was our honeymoon. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express on 117th Causeway two nights. The location is great, but it seemed overpriced at $259 per night. We are both baby boomers and we've traveled a good deal on our own; we've taken about a dozen previous cruises between us. We chose MSC for the great itinerary and because we were looking for a different experience on a line that neither of us had sailed before. Overall, I cannot recommend this cruise line for Americans.
We embarked with the first group of passengers and it was the easiest process I have ever encountered. We were onboard by 12:30 and escorted to our cabin by a white-gloved steward who carried one of our bags. We were completely unpacked, with everything stowed, by 3:30. What a delight! We were able to eat a relaxed lunch, explore the ship, and become comfortable before we sailed at 7:00. The disappointment was that there was no band playing island music to welcome passengers. One of the best parts of a cruise is that first moment of realization that you're headed for sunny days in the tropics, with a fruity drink in your hand and steel drums in your ears. We missed that.
The ship was sparkling clean all the time and they had liberal opportunities for hand sanitizer use. It was provided when boarding from every port, at the beginning of the buffet lines, and other places. We booked a balcony cabin and it was worth every penny. We spent a lot of time there just watching the ocean and the flying fish or the ports as we came and left. The cabin was unbelievably roomy and even had a walk-in closet. There was more storage than we could use. Bath towels were large and thick, as were hand towels, but face cloths were thin and many seemed stained or discolored. There was a bathtub that was deep and quite narrow. I thought it might work well for soaking, but it was too small. MSC furnished shampoo, body wash, and bubble bath, but no lotion or hair conditioner. Two thick terry bathrobes were provided for us—how nice! One issue was that the beds and pillows were hard as bricks. I was unable to sleep and spent a couple nights on the small sofa before I finally bought a pillow in one of the ports.