MSC Meraviglia Review

Our Experience

Review for the Mediterranean Cruise on MSC Meraviglia
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ramblewood17
6-10 Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Sep 2017

We have cruised many times before, but never on MSC. We thought a new ship with interesting ports of call would be exciting. Well, MSC proved that to be a bad thought.

(Pros) Embarking onto the ship from Barcelona was quite easy and the port is quite nice.The ship is new and quite modern in it's décor and the promenade at the hearth of the ship with it's changing overhead is amazing. Shops are typical as on any other cruise.

(Cons) To start the welcome aboard was non eventful, meaning on our other cruises we were greeted with a glass of champagne and warm welcome aboard. NOT ON MSC. Our state room in which we always get a balcony was a bit smaller then average. Storage was very,very limited. We used our suit cases for auxiliary storage. You did get robs to wear and slippers. The bathroom was very small and wash cloths were not supplied. The bed was comfortable and the room was kept very clean and organized by our room Stewart. If you do not speak a foreign language, the TV is useless. Balcony was a bit smaller then on other cruise lines. Now on with the staff. The staff at times were quite friendly but most staff members looked lethargic. The ratio is approx. 450 passengers to 1 crew member. If you enjoy sitting around the pool when at sea with a nice drink, good luck on that one. Staffing at the pool areas was lacking. Towels are not supplied at the pools. Bar areas were ok if you could find a seat. They use a sort of tablet to take orders which extremely slowed down the service at bar areas. The grill at the main pool was a joke. Burgers were cold, pizza was not good. The buffet was a joke. Pretty much the same crap each day which at times was not hot. Empty trays lingered on the buffet line. Selection of food was poor unless you like pizza, bread and fruit. Lines, rudeness, were standard at the buffet. If you wanted a drink while sitting in the buffet area. Good luck on that one. One other thing you may want to know. There were many, many children on this cruise. They were allowed to run and be in certain areas to early morning hours. In the casino at midnight running around and screaming. NOT VERY RELAXING.. Main dining area was just OK. We had open seating. The food and presentation was marginal. My salmon was way done (BONE DRY) and refills on wine were very slow and one time replaced with the wrong wine. Don't ask for coffee after dinner. They don't serve it. The specialty restaurants that we ate at, "Butchers cut was good and the Kaito Teppanyaki" was wonderful. I could go on and on. Our experience was not good. I read the reviews just like your reading this one and probably thought what you are thinking right now. How could it be that bad? Well take the chance like we did and find out for yourself. Then write your own review which will be similar to mine. I am easy to please, but MSC surely went out of their way on not doing so. NEVER AGAIN ON MSC. GOOD LUCK !!

Cabin Review

Cabin Aurea

Smaller then expected with limited storage. Bathroom very small. Our room Stewart "Jason" was wonderful and kept our room perfect all the time. GOOD MAN!

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