I chose this cruise because it was inexpensive, and I had heard MSC was wonderful. I guess you get what you pay for as it was one of the worst cruises I have done in over 20 years of cruising. The ship was beautiful but laid out poorly. The pools were small and therefore terribly crowded. Room was barely ready in time for us to view the mandatory safety video.

The food was practically inedible, not to mention uninteresting. Only about half the staff were friendly and helpful. Many of them simply hadn't been trained well. In the larger bars, it was difficult to get a drink. But I have to say that many of the staff went above and beyond to help. We had a maintenance issue in our cabin, and it was 3 days before it was fixed. The MSC for Me app rarely worked properly and would require restarting your phone several times a day to get it to work at all.

The one bright spot was the entertainment, and this was true in every lounge as well as the main theater. It was absolutely outstanding--some of the best I've seen. I will stick to more upscale cruise lines in the future, even if I have to pay more.