Our friends, having sailed 3 times with MSC, recommended MSC as one of the best cruise lines they ever sailed with. After researching several cruise lines for the Christmas holiday, MSC Poesia seemed perfect. This ship was fairly new and the price was right for a balcony cabin. Being Italian American I felt sure to be in a warm and friendly environment.

Having sailed before, we are anticipating the mandatory drill before sailing. For some reason, we found it odd that we were not instructed to go on deck. We were instructed to gather in the casino area. How would this help us in case of an evacuation emergency? We never did find out. We just stood there until they announced it was over. No role call...we could have stayed in our cabin and no one would really know.

Dinner Dining Room experience: 2nd seating - we could not seem to pronounce our waiter's name. Ever. We all gave him a nickname. Name tags were so small, they could not be read either. No service for drinks; No wine steward; pouring our own wine seemed what they expected; bus boy--no name would never respond to our requests for anything...water, butter, sour cream, spoons, splenda, milk, etc. etc. He looked at us and never returned..never spoke ever to us the entire week. The last dinner he never showed up. Tablespoons were the spoons for EVERYTHING...coffee, tea, ice cream, soup, sorbet, jello, etc. Teaspoons were ever available at anytime, anyplace on this ship. Food: was nothing an Italian or an American would desire. The menu was not clear, at all, as to what your meal was going to be. The Italian side of the menu had zucchini and eggplant with everything everyday. The American side of the menu was so unappetizing that you really did not want to choose anything. The steaks were like rubber, baked potatoes were so overcooked they turned color. Shrimp were not available as a cocktail, ever. Christmas dinner was a lobster tail grilled with stuffing. It was vile and had to dig it out yourself with no seafood cutlery. We were not all eating at the same time. Our water never spoke to us, or apologized when he made an error. He asked our adult daughter to fill out a survey on his behalf. Never ever acknowledging any other person. Dessert: Sunday, Monday and Tuesday we never received what we asked for...ever. We asked the waiter what flavors they had and he came back with something different and NEVER thought anything of it. Timing: We seemed to always be the last table served on our side of the dining room, and we actually missed seeing a special show presentation because of it. Never saw the Matre'd or Assistant to complain or ask for help. Read more