Give MSC Cruises A Try!

MSC Cruise Ships

Currently, MSC Cruises offers sailings from three U.S. ports: Port Canaveral, Miami, and New York.

MSC MERAVIGLIA

(Started sailing in 2017) Repositioned from Port Canaveral to New York in 2023.

The Meraviglia is a beautiful, high-tech ship with an easy to navigate layout. This ship has a 315-foot central promenade that includes restaurants, bars, and multiple shops and boutiques. The ceiling of the promenade is a giant 5,200 sq. ft. LED screen that changes throughout the sailing.

MSC SEASIDE (2017), SEASHORE (2021), and SEASCAPE (2022) are all part seaside class of ships. The Seaside class ships were designed for spending time in the sunshine. These ships offer the highest ratio of outdoor space per passenger of all MSC’s ships. Multiple pools, hot tubs, waterslides, and even zip lining onboard!

MSC WORLD AMERICA

(Will begin sailing in spring 2025 out of Miami)

The second of four planned World-class ships. These ships are being constructed with cutting-edge environmental technology aimed at lowering cruise ship emissions to protect and preserve our oceans. This ship will offer thirteen dining options, over twenty-six hundred cabins, a waterpark, bumper cars, an eleven-story dry slide, and even a roller-skate arena!

MSC Experience Options

Before sailing you have the option to choose between four different cruise packages or experiences.

Bella Experience:

The least number of options and/or benefits so therefore the cheapest price. If you’re looking for a budget friendly, no-fills experience then the Bella experience is the way to go. It’s the “go-with-the-flow, just happy to be sailing” option with main dining, the buffets, theater shows (and other onboard activities/entertainment), gym access, and the kids’ clubs included.

• Comfortable cabin options but may not be located in a highly desirable ship location.

• Dining time is confirmed onboard.

• Room service and the food is an upcharge (including breakfast).

Fantastica Experience:

A little more expensive option than the Bella because it comes with a few more perks.

• You can choose your cabin and its location.

• You can request your preferred dining time.

• Free breakfast delivery to your cabin.

• One free cruise change. (The free cruise change is applicable either on the cruise dates or on the destination. Such changes need to be performed up to 30 calendar days before departure, for a new cruise to sail within 90 calendar days from the original departure).

Aurea Experience:

Allows for the most flexibility. Available for suite bookings.

• Best cabin locations and views.

• Welcome package (Prosecco + chocolate).

• My Choice Dining (show up and be seated at your assigned dining venue).

• 24-hour room service (free delivery).

• Free access to the Top Exclusive Solarium.

• Relaxation amenities in each stateroom (including bathrobe and slippers and pillow menu).

• Priority boarding & luggage drop off.

Yacht Club Experience:

The highest tier experience and therefore the most expensive option. The Yacht Club is MSC’s “ship-within-a-ship” concept. This is an all-inclusive package and then some!

• Dedicated priority check-in and check-out as well as priority departure and return on excursion days.

• 24-hour butler service and dedicated concierge, providing an experience tailored to each individual guest’s needs.

• Unlimited dining and drinks (premium) within the Yacht Club.

• Inclusion of the Browse Internet package with unlimited data for two devices.

• Complimentary access to the Thermal Suite in the MSC Aurea Spa.

• A dedicated area of the ship and Ocean Cay accessible only to MSC Yacht Club guests. And more!

• *The MSC Yacht Club is available on all Fantasia, Meraviglia, and Seaside class ships.*

Private Island Experience

MSC Cruises has a dedicated private island for their cruises, Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve. This beautiful island offers a perfect blend of relaxation and fun. You can rent a jet ski, take a snorkeling tour, or even paddle board in the evening with a special paddle board that is equipped with special LED lights to attract fish.

Looking to relax? The island has seven different beaches to choose from. There are complimentary beach chairs located on the various beaches. You can rent an umbrella or a floating beach mat for a reasonable upcharge. If you are looking for additional comfort and shade, I highly recommend booking a private beach cabana. The cabana can be utilized by up to six people. The cabana rental includes beach towels, bottled water, and two floating beach mats.

Ocean Cay has multiple restaurants, food trucks, and bars located throughout the ninety-five acre island. Complementary island food locations include Seakers Food Court and multiple food trucks. Yacht Club guests can enjoy Ocean House Restaurant. Seafood Shack and The Smiling Fish Ice Cream Parlor also have delicious options to purchase.

Ocean Cay currently has ten different bar locations. The best part? If you purchased a cruise drink package, the drink package is honored on the island.

Most cruises that visit Ocean Cay, dock overnight. You will have the opportunity to spend time on the island at night. Enjoy two lighthouse music and light shows (9pm and 10pm). A fun, unique experience. They also have a DJ that encourages dancing and singing. The lounge chairs remain on the beach for use along with several lit firepits. We had so much fun!

Fun For Kids Too:

• MSC often offers a “Kids Sail Free” deal (age 12 and under).

• MSC Cruises offers five dedicated clubs for ages ranging from 0 to 17 years old included in the cruise fare on all ships:

• Baby Club (0-3 years old): A staffed, dedicated play area with special Chicco furnishings, toys, and games.

• Mini Club (3-6 year olds): Offers age appropriate games, events and activities. MSC partnered with LEGO for more fun!

• Junior Club (7-11 year olds): Offers a wide variety of activities for this age group including Masterchef at Sea Juniors, Dorebro Sport competitions, and Fire & Ice live video game.

• Young Club (12-14 year olds): Young cruisers can make friends while enjoying sports tournaments, hi-tech games and lots of other fun activities.

• Teen Club (15-17 year olds): Teens can enjoy activities ranging from sports competitions, dance contests, social network games to Wii, Xbox and PS4 tournaments. There is also Teen disco, Karaoke, Flash mobs, and other themed events.

• Kids and teens can enjoy the pools and aqua park with waterslides. There is also an arcade room and the option to try VR and XD simulators.

Destinations and Excursions:

MSC Cruises sails to a variety of beautiful destinations. The sailings leaving from Florida or New York mostly stop at ports located in the Caribbean the Bahamas.

• Ocean Cay of course: Book a sunset champaign cruise, rent a kayak, or go snorkeling and observe some of the amazing sea life.

• Nassau, Bahamas: Go sailing, visit Blue Lagoon, or take a city tour. My husband and I enjoy shopping on Bay Steet (check out the Straw Market!). Also, highly recommend a tucked away on the main street Irish Pub, Shenanigans! Great atmosphere with second- floor balcony seating. Extremely inviting staff and amazing food and drinks. Order the conch fritters, you’re welcome 😉

• Ocho Rios, Jamacia: Recommended excursions are Green Grotto caves, Blue Hole Falls River tubing, and Bamboo Beach Break.

• Isla de Roatán, Honduras: Known for its barrier reef, this port offers amazing snorkeling, diving, and fishing opportunities.

• George Town, Cayman Island: Enjoy Seven Mile beach, Stingray City (feed and interact safely with stingrays), or enjoy great shopping and rum cake tasting. Yum!

• San Juan, Puerto Rico: San Juan offers multiple local, cultural experiences. You can enjoy a historic city tour while enjoying freshly brewed Puerto Rican café con leche. If the city sights are not for you, head out to see the rain forest.

• Cozumel, Mexico: Visit Tulum and learn more about it’s fascinating history along with spectacular views of the Caribbean Sea. For the thrill seekers, I highly recommend the Terrain Xrails or ATV Adventure to Jade Cavern.

Please let me know if you want to know more about these and other MSC cruise destinations along with activities and tours to book.

MSC Voyagers Club

MSC is unique in the fact that they offer a one-time status match program. This program allows you to transfer “points” from another cruise line or hotel chain to your Voyager Club Status. This transfer can be applied for online. Once approved, you’ll immediately qualify for a 5% discount on any future MSC Cruises sailing and you’ll receive onboard discounts for photos, Wi-Fi, spa services, and other valuable savings.

Ask me about the different Voyager Club tiers and their amazing benefits!

Food & Drinks

While my husband and I were researching MSC reviews, we noticed a pattern of unfavorable food comments. After sailing, we could not comprehend these negative food reviews. MSC has delicious food served in the main dining rooms. Italian food dishes are a must! The portion sizes may be smaller than other cruise lines, but you can add an additional main course plate for a $5 charge.

• Don’t want to spend the upcharge, head to the buffet and eat as much as you’d like. MSC’s pizza is by far the best cruise pizza we’ve ever had. My husband enjoyed it so much, he had a pie delivered to the room. SO good!

• Formal Night is known as White Night! Cruisers dress in all white and there is a party on the pool deck in the evening if you want to attend.

• MSC also has specialty dining options: The restaurants vary based on what ship you’re sailing. You can typically purchase a specialty dining package prior to sailing at a highly discounted price.

VENCHI GELATI offers authentic Italian gelato for $5. Venchi Gelati is offered on the Seaside ship.

MSC offer five different drink packages to choose from:

• Easy Package- $57 per person, per day (There is a separate section on the bar menus for guests with this package.)

• Easy Plus Package- $72 per person, per day (This package covers all drinks up to $10).

• Premium Extra Package- $100 per person, per day (This package covers all drinks up to $16).

• Alcohol Free Package- $33 per person, per day

• Minors Package- $25 per person, per day

If you book your drink package ahead of time, you can save at least 15% compared to the onboard package prices. Also the 18% drink gratuities are already included. If a drink is “above” your drink package you can choose to order the drink you want and be charged the difference. For example, if you have the Easy Plus Package and you want a drink that has a $14 dollar menu price, you can still order the drink and pay the $4 difference.

Pro Tips

The line and or wait for a drink can be long in some of the more popular spots. As we walked around touring the ship, we noticed that bars on the high decks or closer to the back appeared to have shorter wait times. We also observed that if you find a table and/chairs servers will come around to take your drink order. The lines seemed to shorten as the cruise went on.

Signs, announcements, and muster information are often available in multiple languages. Most of the staff were also multi or bilingual. English, Italian, German, French, Spanish, and Brazilian Portuguese are most common.

Cabins have American and European style outlets. We purchased outlet converter plugs prior to sailing for additional American outlets in our cabin.

Overall, we had an amazing experience and as I previously stated we have booked and sailed with MSC Cruises multiple times now. Most recently cursing with with a group of eight people (four separate cabins) and we all enjoyed a fun, memorable time together!

Thinking about booking? Have additional questions or concerns? Please message me and I will assist you with all things MSC Cruises!