We did this cruise via a casino coupon and we upgraded to a Junior suite from an inside room . Mistake but I will talk about this in my cabin review. We were two couples in our early 40's and my single friend in her early 40's. The single friend was a first time cruiser and she loved it! The rest of us have been on 5 or 6 other cruises and thought it was up there in our favorite 2. We didn't go in with huge expectations and maybe that is why we had a blast. Embarkation was a breeze. Because I upgraded to a Suite we had priority boarding which meant a really short line compared to the huge line for everyone else. They will let your non suite friends get in the short line with you. We were there at noon and on the ship by 12:20. We all bought the drink package and thank god! We like to drink and some of them got cut off by midnight because they reached their 15 drink max. But hey, drinks get warm, you set them down, you may not like one, they still count so we were glad we bought it. Lunch on the Lido deck we all chose guys burgers and fries and they were all great. We hung out all day by the pool, in the casino, walking around etc. We missed going under the sky bridge in Tampa as we were in the casino (woopsy) . Anyway this boat rocked alot more than other cruise ships I have been on. Sometimes you noticed it, but I just tried to not look out the windows as we moved and I was generally fine. I am also very sensative to sea sickness and I never heard anyone else complain about it. We met for early 6pm dinner in the main dining room Destiny. We sat the 5 of us and 3 lovely ladies from Virginia. Our two waiters were great and our drinks and apps were on the table in 5 min. All our meals in the main dining room were very good! we did all pay $20 extra one night and got the filet and lobster and it did not disappoint. Day 2- arrive in Key west at noon, I really wished we got here sooner as it is very close to Tampa???? I was confused why the itinerary didnt allow more time at this port. Anyway we had a few cocktails on board and waited for the masses to fight their way off. We walked off at 12:50 ish and no lines. It rained all day in Key West but we did a little bar hopping and had fun anyway. Irish Kevins was for sure our favorite spot with the live singer/comedian guy. Got back on the little trolly thing around 3pm and went back to the ship. I will definately be back in Key West as it wasnt nearly enough time here. Got back went to casino (after we were like 12 miles out of course) and made it to the main dining room again for dinner. I say made it because it was a long day of drinking and some people wanted to nap! Food great again! Day 3- woke up around 8am, some ate breakfast (my husband and I don't really eat breakfast) Waited for most to get off the ship in CUBA, we got off around 11 am with absolutely no one in line. Customs took 30 seconds as did money exchange. Just to give an idea of how much you will need in Cuba, most of us took our $80 US and it was too much (for what we did). First of all DO NOT get suckered into buying an excursion if you want to just walk on your own!!!! Carnival will try and tell you that you have to check off "people to people" and book an excursion. We being in Cuba last year knew to check off "support the cuban people" option and you can totally just walk off. We walked to the main square accross from the ship and you will get a few locals asking if you want to pay $1 each and they will walk you around. We said no, but one guy seemed to never leave so what the heck we let him walk us around. He took us to a local John Lennon bar (dive bar but very cool!!) we all go cubra libras (rum and cokes) and were surprised it was $10 a drink!! We had one, felt very buzzed and moved on to the next stop. We walked through beautiful streets, saw the market, other squares, local people living life. It was great. Ernest Hemingway bar right near the port was our fave as it had live cuban music and here a round of drinks for 5 people was $7.50 US. Or $7.50 CUC. Totally cheap and fun here. We danced and walked around some more. We all tipped our guy $25 US and he was more than happy I am sure. Got back on the boat and only 2 made it to dinner.... Day 4 - Cozumel- We arrived at 12:45pm to port and we chose again to wait an hour before getting off to avoid the crowd. We had booked El Cid's for the twilight day pass as our ship was here 1pm to 9pm. No other day pass resorts were offering this late day pass. It was $65 each I think?? MAKE SURE you bring the printed piece of paper with your reservation or they will make you print it at the hotel. We had drinks, food (good food) towels, pool, snokeling, all included. It was a fun day! The shopping area right a the ship is awesome, I thought it was beautiful clean and lots to do. We were back on the ship around 6 as we are wimps of the sun and apparently cannot drink too much in the sun. Day 5- day at sea, usual activities, silly games by the pool, lots of food.... I dont really know as I was burnt from Mexico and did not hang around outside. We were mostly hanging around the casino area/American bar. Now 3 of us were smokers and even as a smoker I will say that this small one side of the bar and in the casino were always VERY smoky.. The air suckers in this area seemed to not work. This was also the area that they had the trivia games which we LOVED!! So much fun. But dang do something with the smoking vents! CASINO!!!!- Ok we hung out here ALOT!!! Like every day for a long time especially at night. We usually go to Greektown Casino in our hometown near Detroit. We usually hit at greektown pretty much every time we are there so we think it is the loosest best slots in the world lol . This casino was pretty close. It is small but it pays good!!! Every single time you sat down people were hitting like crazy! My husband probably won $1000 a day on slots easily. I couldnt believe it . I loved playing roulette with our group. I won one of the pong games in the casino where they called my name and I had to throw one out of ten ping pong balls into a gift bag with money on it. I won $75 it was fun. Overall the wait staff was fantastic, you always had a drink in your hand, we never waited once at any of the bars nor in the casino. Dinner service was fast, we never waited more than 10 min for dinner. I couldn't believe we were on the same cruise that people were ripping on the slow service and crappy food. We did not think this at all. Look , don't expect Ruth's Chris style meals, expect more like outback or Texas Road House lol. Then you will not be disappointed. This boat is small and therefore you won't get lost and everything is easy to get to. Having said that it is small and can sometimes feel like there is not much to do. There is not much craziness going on near the pool, which I like sometimes. We NEVER had a problem getting a chair, there were never any big drunks partying like it was springbreak. There was no more than 20 kids on the whole ship. It was just a great cool crowd of people. Cabin review is next.... Read Less

Context: this is our 23rd cruise, and we've been on almost all the medium priced carriers. Given that MSC is fairly new to the American market, we were all kind of excited in anticipation of sailing with them. We had read a number of reviews here and were struck with just about everyone exclaiming how much they appreciated the modern look of the ship and how clean and elegant it seemed to be. That turned out to be true. Where we were really disappointed in how they took care of their over 5000 guests on board ,the entertainment, and the food. They clearly didn't have enough elevators, as we were constantly waiting for a car and when one finally arrived, it would rbe completely packed with people. As to the entertainment, it was hard to understand why on Earth they would have all the acts that they did every night, doing the same things. The costuming was wonderful but these acts just made no sense relative to a night's theme: acrobats, strong men, silk twirler, hoop twirlers jugglers. ballroom dancers every night they would be onstage during the same act and we could never figure out why or what they had to do with the theme of the show. The food was a whole different issue. The buffets serve the same food day in and day out and that got very boring. But normally you can go to the diningroom and count on at least something that would be a decent meal. Almost every night the entrees were bland and uninteresting, and had very little taste and were cooked incorrectly, either way overdone or under cooked and always cold. They also would close down the buffets at odd hours in the middle of the day, when you would think would be prime time for people to eat. So we would go to one of the buffets mid afternoon and ffind half of the venue shut down or the entire thing closed. With more than 5000 people on board that was just incredibly annoying. Bottom line: MSE has a lot to learn about servicing the American market and we will never go back and sail with them again. A very disappointing experience. Read Less

This cruise was chosen by a neighbor in my community, Sun City Palm Desert California, who organizes group trips. I was fortunate to be invited to join the group, and because I was cruising without my husband (who stayed at home with our dog), I was paired with a roommate who is also a neighbor in our community. There were 34 people in our group. The cruise we were on is the Lower Mississippi departing from Memphis and terminating in New Orleans with stops in Helena, Arkansas; Vicksburg, and Natchez, Mississippi; Baton Rouge, St. Francisville, and Nottoway Plantation, Louisiana. However, because the Mississippi is flooding at this time, our itinerary was altered extensively. There were no complaints about this that I heard, and myself and everyone I talked to enjoyed every day. We spent the first night in Memphis at the Peabody Hotel; this overnight is part of the cruise package. The hotel is old, charming, and delightful especially if you are able to see the ducks paraded through the lobby and into the fountain. They stay all day and then are paraded back to their quarters on the roof of the hotel in the evening. The next morning, we were bused to Graceland for the Elvis Experience. This is an additional “Premium Tour” offered by the American Queen Steamboat Company. I highly recommend doing this tour; it is a must for anyone who ever enjoyed an Elvis song. Due to the flooding, our boat could not dock and depart from Memphis, so we were bused to Greenville, Mississippi, for our departure. This was about a two-hour bus ride. That evening, we boarded our boat, American Duchesse, and enjoyed dinner in the main dining room. The menu there is extensive, dining is leisurely and the food is delicious. Alternatives to the main dining room are a buffet for breakfast and lunch serviced in a bar called the River Club at the rear of the boat, and snacks and beverages available 24/7 in a little room called Perks at the front of the boat. Room service is also offered, but I didn’t have a need for it. The buffet meals in the River Club are outstanding and are perfect when you want a quick meal. Also, you can eat outside on the rear deck if you eat at the River Club. Fruit, soft serve ice cream, popcorn, sandwiches, cookies, pastries and all kinds of beverages are offered in Perks. You literally cannot go hungry on this boat, and the food is wonderful. Actually, we spent two nights in Greenville, then Vicksburg, Mississippi; Vidalia, Baton Rouge, New Roads, Louisiana; and the last day of our cruise was spent cruising the Mississippi between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Buses meet the boat at every stop offering what is called Hop On Hop Off tours of that particular area’s highlights. This service is included in the cost of the cruise. There are Premium Tours offered at every stop that seemed to range between $79-$129. These are exceptional tours and well worth the additional cost. Some are half-day and some are full-day. My roommate and I had a veranda room which I took full advantage of. Nothing beats sitting on the veranda and watching the world go by. There are areas for doing this all over the boat in the front, in the back and on the very top of the boat called the sun roof. Highlights of this cruise for me were the meals, the historian who offered talks everyday about the Mississippi, the Mark Twain impersonator who performed twice, the visit to Graceland, the visit to BB King’s Museum and Bar, many beautiful sights offered by the Hop On Hop Off buses tours, and especially the Premium Tour to Angola Louisiana State Penitentiary. This last item may sound strange, but be assured it is an uplifting and eye-opening experience. Most of all, though, I enjoyed just being on the boat. The cruise staff are friendly, helpful, outgoing and accommodating. That includes the Captain, officers, pursers, performers, tour guides, bus drivers, dining staff and cleaning staff. We all got to be family for the brief week that we were together. You could do this cruise all by yourself and not be alone, or you can have all the privacy you want. The bottom line, I guess, is would I do this or any cruise on the American Queen Steamboat again; you bet I would. Read Less

We went on this cruise with some other couples. We did Faster to the Fun- it was helpful to get right on the ship, but apparently we could have gotten on earlier... Our cabin was ready to go with our room keys and we went to grab some lunch in lido buffet. The way they have the food lines does not make for an easy experience. You have to wait in line cafeteria style instead of having different stations. One morning I just wanted some grits and the line was wrapped around the corner. So, that was a no. Also, they have upstairs seating which is great except you can't get to it because the sweets station is there and they have cake cutters right at the entrance to the stairs which means there are people on both sides trying to get cake and you can't walk by them as there is just not room. Guy's burgers were great- except at peak times they just hand you a cheeseburger- there is no ordering one off the menu. The breakfast burritos were pretty good at the Blue Igauna (i think that was the name). The dining room was hit or miss food wise. My husband ordered off the $20 steakhouse menu the last night- his food came out way later than everyone else's and was super tough. He didn't even eat half of it. Room service was not advertised except for breakfast. There was a hanging menu. We ordered the $3 breakfast biscuit one morning and neither one of us could eat it. The sausage was disgusting. Like spat it out gross. The waiters were great. The room steward was super nice. Our particular room was on the 8th floor and was the extended balcony-room 8428. We couldn't use our deck half the time because water pooled around the entrance to the door ( I mean several inches deep). Our steward had to sweep it several times. Stuff would fall down (cigarette butts, hats, random liquids) and kids at the pool deck could look down on us so that was not awesome. On the sea day, we got a note saying they were doing routine work on our balcony. Basically, they hosed it down and it was soaking wet so again, we couldn't use it. So disappointed. The comedians were funny, karaoke was super entertaining, and the shows- well people walked out. I felt bad, but they were not very good. The ship overall was pretty good, the lobby was nice. But, because they galley for the kitchens was located in the middle of decks 3 and 4, you had to go to 5 to get across the ship- which meant walking through the smoky casino (kids, families, everyone). Not my favorite. Our excursions were ok. Key West, we took an uber to the southernmost point and then walked to Hemingway House. Great tour and loved it. Then, headed to Sloppy Joe's for a drink and a small bite to eat. Didn't have enough time - 7 am- 1:30 ( i think). Cozumel excursion was not worth it. We did the downtown shopping and beach break. The tour operators were great - no complaints there. We got on a large and pretty comfy bus to go to downtown Cozumel. On the way, they tell us that everything is shipped in as Cozumel does not produce anything. Then to the shop, which is basically like the dollar store of crappy souvenirs. We were there about 40 minutes in that one store. Nice bathrooms though. Then, we went back on the bus to another shopping area- except it was different crappy souvenirs that you had to haggle the price on. Most people had already bought stuff so we just sat in chairs we could find for another 40 minutes. Waste of time. Then to the beach. We only had like an hour or so to enjoy the water and chairs. It just wasn't enough time to do much. Overall, the trip was fun because of who we were with, but I wasn't pleased with the final experience. Read Less

Cruised with a large group (over 70 people and families) and planned trip for over a year. Between the stateroom, flights, extras and on board upgrades we spent 8,000 on this vacation and felt like we were cattle the entire week. Getting on the boat: was raining in Nola and process was ok. Many people pointing you in what direction to go but otherwise went smoothly. Once on the boat you are kind of clueless as to what to do or where to go. Staterooms not open yet so do you eat? Drink? Explore? None of the crew was especially welcoming. Playing loud party music as we got on does not suppliment for genuinely happy crew members who look forward to taking care of you. While the boat is still in the Mississippi, you have to pay tax on any drinks you order. Ports were terrible. Not enough time to truly enjoy anything and not a lot of culture or excursion options. We went to a resort in Cozumel, kids had fun but the place was run down and the food was absolutely terrible, no taste at all. Belize was nice but wow do they find ways to nickel and dime you at every corner! If you have the premium beverage package be prepared to pay out of pocket all day for your drinks on this private make believe island owned by NCL. When we docked at costa maya, there were two other ships at the port. 12,000+ potential people walking around a small, crowded money trap and only 3-4 hours to do it. Absolute mess. Dining options: Here’s another chance for NCL to Create and illusion for you! Freestyle dining is anything but. They claim to have upgraded restaurants for an additional charge. The problem is, you can’t get in to any of them. You see, you have to make reservations for most of these upgraded dining options and by the first night of the cruise, our party found it very difficult to book a table at any of these places. When we finally got a table at Ocean Blue and wanted to add a few more to our table, we were told the restaurant was booked for the night. Weird considering that only 2 other tables were seated during our 2 hour meal. The real truth is they don’t want you to eat there!!! They want you at the buffet or main dining rooms. It was the best meal we had on the ship. Buffet was repetitive and main dining rooms were only ok. Also are at the sushi place and Shanghai noodle and sheehans. We also ordered room service which they charge an additional $8 to deliver your order which is nearly guaranteed to arrive way later than quoted estimate and cold. Oh and if you want a pop from room service you have to pay extra for an entire can even if you have the premium bev package. Service at the bars was terrible. Long lines and not enough staff and sometimes waiting 30 minutes for a drink order. Pool deck was crowded and pools were overcrowded. Made room to room calls and was charged $5 for each call. Tried to download the on board app but never successfully got it to work which made communication with our children difficult when they wanted to be up at the sports court or running around with their friends. They also don’t tell you the app costs $10 to download so we were billed $40 for something that never worked the entire trip. Arcade was small and another way for you to spend more money on board. The extra game shows (deal or no deal for example) were fun but again, $25 card to play and you’d think everyone might win a little something but only about 10 people won a chance to win something on the days we attended. The friendliest staff we encountered were in the duty free shopping area. Getting off the boat they herded us through the casino area which smelled terribly of stale smoke, not ideal for children or families. Overall totally unimpressed with the cruise ship, staff, and all aspects of this trip. Read Less

Boarding was very good, the ship is old and my upgrade to a basic suite was good, but the bathroom needed a complete refurbishment. There were drain smells emanating from the plug hole. Breakfast and lunch were mediocre, but the evening meal was good. The shore trips were very expensive, wi fi had to be paid for and the photographers were over the top. You had to fill in little forms for more water which hung from the existing water bottles. It does strike you that they are trying to make money from the most basic item. Staff were lovely. Captain we did not see at the introduction nights. They did push the boat out on Captain's night, Celebration nights with lots of snacks and free wine. The entertainment was enjoyable. There is a lot of competition for cruising and basically they need to upgrade to be more competitive and review their pricing policy. Read Less

Group outing my first time on a cruise and it was the worst experience. They bust u across the head with the prices for everything. Cabin was clean they didn't have enough towels no rags no toilet paper lil channels on tv, TV very small in cabin. Bad odor in hallways. Food was horrible that came with the purchase of the cruise. Not enough activities very quiet and laid bt nt enough partying. Not much for kids to do in game room which I had to pay for as well. Teen club had to pay for. I paid more money on the ship then the whole cruise. Pretty much had to pay for everything you wanted to do outside of your cabin. Employees were not friendly nor attractive with the guest nor informative. They wanted you to pay for wifi which sucked. Came with a big group and getting off the ship to go to the beach was horrible they wanted to charge us 7 dollars to the beach and 7 dollars beach to the ship each person. So never really experienced the Bahamas what a waste of money. I will never get back on this cruise line nor recommend anyone else to get on this cruise and waste their money. My first cruise and I hated it. Read Less

My friend was turning 50 so we got together for the cruise. The embarkation and disembarkation were the worst part of the trip. It took a long time and I felt sorry for older people and those with small children waiting so long in line. The entertainment was very good. We saw Priscilla, Burn the Floor and the comedians three times. I found the air conditioning very cold and as I spent a lot of time indoors I did not feel as if I was down south at all. The only outdoor space is really deck 15 and up with the pools. The loungers were all taken most of the time so we didn't stay there. It would be nice if there was an outdoor public quiet area just to sit and read and have a drink. We would go to a bar to get drinks and then go back to our room and balcony. The complimentary dining was very good mostly. We enjoyed Taste for breakfast as opposed to the buffet. The staff were all very amiable. Our stateroom housekeeper was very pleasant and happy to help with requests and questions. Our excursion in Tortola was informative and fun. The hour at the beach was great. Wish we could have stayed longer. We had an excursion booked for Great Stirrup Cay but it was cancelled because of weather conditions. Overall it was a good first time cruise experience. If we went again I would book restaurants in advance and maybe another excursion. For sure I would book a room with a balcony. I thought I might feel seasick but I didn't. I did feel the motion of the ship but it was gentle. Read Less

Firstly this was our first cruise so we have nothing to completely judge against, however the things I will talk about was our experience. On arrival onto the ship we we’re badgered by staff wanting us to sign up to a drinks package which we had already sorted pre arrival. This also didn’t stop for a couple of days. ( by all means assist customers but make staff be seen but have customers approach staff ) We also were constantly bugged by the staff photographers constantly asking if we wanted our picture taken and even after a polite no they then pleaded ‘it will only take a few minutes ‘ whilst following us. My polite no’s were beginning to wear very thin towards the end. To add insult to injury the one time we gave in, we were then automatically charged £34.99 to our card before even seeing them. From the reception they told me it was down to me to say I didn’t want them to have the charge removed. So I was glad to keep an eye on my account on my tv in my cabin. Otherwise it would have been a shock on leaving. ( may be better for customers to say yes before charging). Each place we docked at we were badgered if we wanted taxi or sight seeing bus. All were stupid prices and you can do so much better sourcing your own public transport at great prices.... it got tiresome as they wouldn’t take no as an answer. I feel msc security/ dock security should monitor this and actively reduce this annoyance. Now the ship is an absolute beautiful design. Really took our breath away. The mid ship sky screen shows and displays were very good. The shows onboard were very very good and thoughly entertaining. And at 30 mins I feel it was too short but understand with time restrictions for the program it has to be that way. I had no issues with my premium drinks package and recommend this is purchased. The staff were all very friendly and pleasant and had no bad experiences in the dining room with food or waiting staff. The cabin ( we had a balcony) was a nice size and I would say it was a slightly smaller than the average Travelodge room but pretty much the same layout. Tv channels were slightly limited ( but who comes on holiday to watch tv ). The safe is quite tiny and we couldn’t put our iPads in it. But it was simple to use. The Bed was very comfortable with two pillows. Balcony size ok. Mini bar idea not so good. .... it is not covered on the drinks package. I think to enjoy the balcony it would be good to use from mini bar to save having to go to the bar for purchasing drinks to carry back. Most drinks in there can be from the bar anyway. ( just saves borrowing and restocking ourselves the next day early). The spa is amazing and well worth the visit. Spent most days in there for a couple of hours recovering from our days walking. However on the sea day it got very busy. Maybe it would be good if msc only allowed the package deal only people to access on sea days and offer no day pass. ( could earn more money for them and balance the numbers out for spa visitors). With the numerous relaxation areas jacuzzis and steam/ sauna rooms and ice room. Not forgetting the emotional showers there are plenty of places to relax and rest. Never gambled before and the casino was an awesome experience. Staff very friendly and when it was quiet we asked how to use tables and all was explained very well. There are serious gamblers there, and people like us who had fun with between 10-30 Euros per visit. We actually visited most nights and actually walked away with more Euro’s than we started with. The water slides were fun to use, and the pools were relaxing. And the external hot tubs on the deck were very nice also. Anyone in two minds about first time cruising, I think the ship will give you the experience that will help decide if it’s for you. And as for us......... we will stick with msc and look out for more locations this ship will visit and try out the other ships in the fleet. We have been converted to a life of cruising for sure. Read Less

My first time on this ship and with this cruise line, we picked this because of its itinerary and its smaller size. It didn't start off smoothly but the cruise line fixed the problem and everyone was compensated very well. We did explore the embarkation port which was Singapore stayed 5 days and loved it a most beautiful city with so much history. The Quest ship is still being updated, there was some construction going on during the voyage, not too intrusive. I was in a suite club continental, everything was new and updated huge bathroom, king bed, new carpets, large balcony and many more perks that come with the suite cabin. There are unlimited dining options in the specialty restaurants all included and wonderful we ate in both Aqualina and Prime C excellent service! Also, all international buffets were outstanding. Entertainment was fantastic loved all of the local shows, Ports and excursions were good the only thing, I found it very hard to understand and hear the local guides speak, especially when in a group of 25 or more, they should provide headsets on all the tours. Overall we did enjoy this trip and all the beautiful ports, service by the cruise is outstanding and they really go out of their way to make you feel at home. I would consider another cruise in the future for sure! Read Less