Four of us went on a cruise from Venice through the Adriatic and Agean sea's on the Preziosa. After having been on the Armonia previously we thought why not try MSC again. There are good points to mention about this ship such as the cleanliness and the cabins being well presented and clean. The itinerary was also very good and if you wanted there was plenty of time ashore to explore the various areas we visited. However, I have to say that the overall experience did not come up to the expectations we had set ourselves at the outset. The embarkation was a disaster, two and a half hours waiting to register/board the ship was not what we expected and had this been our first experience of this, it would have been our last. The bar staff especially in the garden pool bar and sports bar were so slow it was unreal. 20 minutes regularly waiting for service was not unusual. The free for all at breakfast in the buffet restaurant was something to behold. The food, while good, in La Arabesque, was not varied enough, there was not enough of it and again, waiting was the name of the game. We thought the entertainment was good but to have a "best of" show on the final night was less than imaginative. We know that casinos may be smokey in the USA but little did we know that the casino would be a smoking allowed area on the Preziosa, absolutely the wrong thing to have on a ship. The sports bar where the food is not on the all inclusive package is shocking. Not only is it, in some cases, inedible, but for 4 people to order 4 mains only, and have them delivered separately over a period of 30 minutes was a complete shambles. If I had thought on it on the last morning no service charge would have been paid. Overall, we are disappointed, having been with MSC before. We will explore other companies for the next time.