We chose this cruise itinerary and MSC itself for its affordability (not easy using the South African Rand) and itinerary. Ports of call are interesting, although the Santorini and Mykonos stops are far too brief. Mykonos is just a tease, as you are in port for only a matter of hours. We embarked at Venice, which I recommend, as the one-day stop in Venice (if you were to embark elsewhere) simply is not enough to experience Venice as it should be.

The Sinfonia is one of the smallest MSC ships, which to some cruise enthusiasts may be a negative, but for me was a positive, as you feel like you can get to know the ship and some of its crew (as difficult as it is to actually get to know the crew). The trend in cruising seems to be in larger and larger ships, which seems both unsustainable and unappealing to me.

However, in this cruise, the combination of excellent service, reasonable ship size, and interesting itinerary made the experience an enjoyable one. I understand that after the summer season in the Adriatic, the Sinfonia will undergo a re-fit. Read more