I am a veteran of 25 cruises now and wanted to expand my horizons and explore a different cruise line so, I tried MSC based on photos of the ship. BIG mistake. I should have read the reviews first! Embarkation was a disaster with nobody seeming to know what was going on. This ship appears beautiful however, like the screen actress godmother of the ship, Sophia Loren, she is an aging beauty queen. The ship is not maintained and is showing her age. There are light fixtures in pool area that are held in place with duct tape, the carpets are worn and dirty and many of the finishes show signs of neglect. I chose the Aurea experience in a one bedroom suite. Although the suite was spacious, it was extremely dirty. Upon check in, there was urine on the back of the toilet as well as pubic hair. There were no glasses in the bathroom or the living room. The carpet was dirty as were the wood paneled surfaces (you could clearly see the body oils from previous guests smudged on all of the surfaces). The best part, opened a drawer and found soiled clothing including underwear from the previous occupant. When I spoke with guest services, they sent someone to "deep clean" the room. Not sure what that meant since all they appeared to do was wipe the toilet, remove the clothing left in the drawer, and provide glassware.The staff seemed to care very little about service and was completely rude at times. The PA announcements were frequent and...you had to listen to them in 5 languages. They were even blasted in the "fine dining" specialty restaurants during dinner. So much for ambiance. The entertainment was pathetic. Many of the treadmills and other gym equipment had out of order signs on it. The housekeeping cart was parked outside the door to my suite almost 24/7.

The food was mediocre at best. I found myself eating a lot of pizza which, was about the only thing they were good at. We purchased the premium beverage package which provided many top shelf brands however, when you ordered a drink, it seldom included a garnish. The bartenders seemed not to care at all about what they were serving. The crew is disgruntled and several times, I overheard conversations which included their dislike for their working conditions. I have cruised with every major cruise line and have NEVER had an experience as bad as this. NEVER AGAIN with this poorly managed, non-caring, horrible cruise line. I could go on but, I don't have time to recap the entire experience. Bottom line, spend your hard earned money anywhere but with MSC. I wish I could give zero stars! They should be ashamed!