MSC comments?

Anyone have any comments on MSC? I have the opportunity to take an 11
day Panama cruise for $795 (plus tax & fees) for an oceanview.
--
dillon

If you can't figure out how to unmunge my
address, email me and I'll explain it.

"Dillon Pyron" wrote in message
...
Anyone have any comments on MSC? I have the opportunity to take an 11
day Panama cruise for $795 (plus tax & fees) for an oceanview.
--
dillon

If you can't figure out how to unmunge my
address, email me and I'll explain it.

That's the going price as I am doing that trip in March. The OPERA. I am
also looking for comments.

Take it!

We did the Opera in Jan 06 and loved it. Different ambiance/experience
than an "American Style" cruise but very enjoyable.

Ciao,
AWB


Dillon Pyron wrote:
Anyone have any comments on MSC? I have the opportunity to take an 11
day Panama cruise for $795 (plus tax & fees) for an oceanview.
--
dillon

If you can't figure out how to unmunge my
address, email me and I'll explain it.

"AWB" wrote in message
ups.com...
Take it!

We did the Opera in Jan 06 and loved it. Different ambiance/experience
than an "American Style" cruise but very enjoyable.

Ciao,
AWB

Thanks for the reply. We have done many cruises and are looking forward to
a change. We are comfortable traveling in Europe so this should be a
delight. (March 10-21)

Dillon Pyron wrote:
Anyone have any comments on MSC? I have the opportunity to take an 11
day Panama cruise for $795 (plus tax & fees) for an oceanview.
MSC is a strange bird, but should be a great cruise. they have great
ships and entertainment in lounges, food can be spotty. they made this
big splash in the NA market two years ago but have pared back quite a
bit with only a few months presence and 11 day itineraries.

Rumor was that they would put a ship into New York but that fell through
for whatever reason.

"Dillon Pyron" wrote in message
...
Anyone have any comments on MSC? I have the opportunity to take an 11
day Panama cruise for $795 (plus tax & fees) for an oceanview.
--
dillon

If you can't figure out how to unmunge my
address, email me and I'll explain it.

I for one would like to hear some comments about the cruise line such as
food, entertainment, smoke problems, cabin size, service etc.
Somehow the MCS name reminds me of the Costa line (which I won't do again) &
I've been reluctant to book MCS because of that.

RichC wrote:
"Dillon Pyron" wrote in message
...
Anyone have any comments on MSC? I have the opportunity to take an 11
day Panama cruise for $795 (plus tax & fees) for an oceanview.
--
dillon

If you can't figure out how to unmunge my
address, email me and I'll explain it.

I for one would like to hear some comments about the cruise line such as
food, entertainment, smoke problems, cabin size, service etc.
Somehow the MCS name reminds me of the Costa line (which I won't do again) &
I've been reluctant to book MCS because of that.


There is much about Costa that comes across on MSC especially the food
that is either fantastic or forgetable. You will also get the famous 5
language treatment. We found pretty good smoke control. cabins, inside
are well designed (read tiny) balcony cabins are still small but better.
You will get bigger cabins on Costa's Magnifica class ships which are
after all basically Carnival Spirit class with Italian names for the floors.

It would help to know what you didn't like about Costa (and whether you
sailed Costa in the Med or Carib because there is a huge difference in
the products.)

"Joseph Coulter" wrote in message
news
It would help to know what you didn't like about Costa (and whether you
sailed Costa in the Med or Carib because there is a huge difference in the
products.)

The Costa ship we sailed on was the Riviera in the Med back in 1997. It was
totally set up for the Europeans comfort with unlimited smoking anywhere on
the ship. The shows were lousy (only 1 good one during the 11 days) with
many repeated. The ship was terrible back then & I think it's still sailing
today. It had the 5 language announcements (as should be expected) at least
8 times daily which couldn't be heard in the cabins unless you stood be the
open door for 10 minutes waiting for English. The food was strange to say
the least. Some things were OK- others just passable. The buffet on the
upper level had 1 line of people waiting & cafeteria style setup to eat. It
reminded me of a school lunch room with the long tables.
So many people had problems with their cabins that they wouldn't even talk
to anyone about changing- They gave the people some story that it was
controlled by the main office. I couldn't imagine Costa operating in the
Caribbean in the same manner because they wouldn't last the season before
the word spread.
Saying that, I doubt if MCS is anywhere the same & would still like more
info as their prices seem reasonable but then again, so did Costa & we
wouldn't go back.

RichC wrote:
"Joseph Coulter" wrote in message
news
It would help to know what you didn't like about Costa (and whether you
sailed Costa in the Med or Carib because there is a huge difference in the
products.)

The Costa ship we sailed on was the Riviera in the Med back in 1997. It was
totally set up for the Europeans comfort with unlimited smoking anywhere on
the ship. The shows were lousy (only 1 good one during the 11 days) with
many repeated. The ship was terrible back then & I think it's still sailing
today. It had the 5 language announcements (as should be expected) at least
8 times daily which couldn't be heard in the cabins unless you stood be the
open door for 10 minutes waiting for English. The food was strange to say
the least. Some things were OK- others just passable. The buffet on the
upper level had 1 line of people waiting & cafeteria style setup to eat. It
reminded me of a school lunch room with the long tables.
So many people had problems with their cabins that they wouldn't even talk
to anyone about changing- They gave the people some story that it was
controlled by the main office. I couldn't imagine Costa operating in the
Caribbean in the same manner because they wouldn't last the season before
the word spread.
Saying that, I doubt if MCS is anywhere the same & would still like more
info as their prices seem reasonable but then again, so did Costa & we
wouldn't go back.


The costa of today is a better product than you remember. Though I
recall smoking on my last Costa Cruise it was contained. The ships and
buffets have improved (though I did like the Victoria despite her lack
of balconies).

MSC is better than the Riviera if for no reason because the ships are
much better (that said I think they still sail the Monterrey but not
marketed to Americans IIRC). The jopera and Lirica are to my knowledge
the better ships, Musica though newer has had some spotty reviews
(perhaps a little bigger than the crew can handle passenger wise.

RichC wrote:


The Costa ship we sailed on was the Riviera in the Med back in 1997. It was
totally set up for the Europeans comfort with unlimited smoking anywhere on
the ship. The shows were lousy (only 1 good one during the 11 days) with
many repeated. The ship was terrible back then & I think it's still sailing
today. It had the 5 language announcements (as should be expected) at least
8 times daily which couldn't be heard in the cabins unless you stood be the
open door for 10 minutes waiting for English. The food was strange to say
the least. Some things were OK- others just passable. The buffet on the
upper level had 1 line of people waiting & cafeteria style setup to eat. It
reminded me of a school lunch room with the long tables.
So many people had problems with their cabins that they wouldn't even talk
to anyone about changing- They gave the people some story that it was
controlled by the main office. I couldn't imagine Costa operating in the
Caribbean in the same manner because they wouldn't last the season before
the word spread.
Saying that, I doubt if MCS is anywhere the same & would still like more
info as their prices seem reasonable but then again, so did Costa & we
wouldn't go back.




I have sailed both Costa (the Magica) and MSC (Lirica) in the past year,
both in the Caribbean. I would say smoking was a bit more prevelant on
MSC. Costa, strangely enough, had multiple lounges/etc that were
completely smoke free. I think in the Caribbean market this is now how
they operate. I found my balcony cabin to be quite large (the magica is
basically a Carnival ship clone) and the food was surprisingly quite
good, although the desserts a little weak. I loved the free cappuccino
with the room service breakfast (I would order multiples) and their
pastries were some of the best I've had at sea. I found the food on MSC
to be much more "hit or miss" and sticking with the italian stuff was a
wise idea. They did have the best gelato -- especially the lemon,
melon, and hazelnut. We ordered them every night at dinner! The
alcoholic drinks on MSC were a bit lame/weak. The staff on MSC was
exception, very upbeat and energetic, and somewhat less so on Costa.
Both are "fun ships" where they're trying to show you a good time, and
not "laid back and classy"...or something like that. The shows on both
were ok and of the variety act type with singers, jugglers, various
circus type things, etc. Both designed I would say for an international
audience and not reliant on language (aka, fewer comedians telling
jokes, although comedy type things that are visual)... As something
"different" with a bit of international flavor and less of the bland
sameness that infects the american cruise market I would actually
recommend both if one likes the price, both of which are fairly low
priced from my experience.

Anyhow, my $.02.

Jeff