Boarding Day Problems - MSC Seashore
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- Опубліковано 22 сер 2024
- MSC Cruises has a reputation for problems with its boarding process. Shockingly long lines, slow processing, and not enough staff to help guests. The Seashore seems to not be immune from these problems.
Even though we always set out to have the best time possible on a cruise, there can be a breaking point... 5 hours of lines, delays, and problematic services did it...
We had to step back and access what is going on with MSC and their boarding day experience.
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Hey, I just came back from a week cruise on the MSC Seashore. I was very scared of the embarkation/disembarkation moments due to what I saw in your videos and others’. I was ready for an ordeal and I can tell you that, my embarkation on 9/3 was flawless. From the moment I got off the Uber to the moment I entered the buffet it was 25 minutes. Things have improved a lot. Disembarkation was also a breeze. They have us a zone number and gave us an approximate time and it was even earlier than they said. They called our numbers and we left, picked up our luggage, and that took minutes. I hope this information helps everyone.
That is awesome to hear… we hoped that as construction wrapped up in the terminal, the problems we had would disappear. I hope more people have experiences like you!! Thank you for sharing
The Soviet Union of cruising is probably the most hysterical description of MSC I've ever heard, and quite apt.
Ha! MSC is having a “victory parade” very soon! 🤪😊🤪
So I agree with Retired in Florida that many of the embarkation issues are due too other travelers not being prepared. Also as with many industries right now there are staff shortages. I understand why people get frustrated however when you are looking for faults, then yes you will find them. Not only can you register you card payment online before your cruise.
Absolutely… lots of issues combine to create lines, as you observed… people arriving in waves, short staffed, new construction, etc… all create a log jam at check in.
And we hope to show exactly that… what folks can expect right now when cruising, so that they can prepare.
On MSC, we are unaware of any option to register your onboard credit card before boarding… they say it must be done on the ship… we are not saying that’s bad, but really just want travelers to be aware of that particular situation as it differs from other cruise lines.
Thanks for watching!!!
First time MSC cruiser, but we're a 3 Star Mariner on HAL and a Diamond Crown and Anchor on RCI.
We did our web check in last week, but faced issues with getting our boarding passes. Called our agent, and was told most of the people are having hard time checking in the last few days with a system glitch, and suggested I call MSC.
Our flight is scheduled to land in Paris at 5:10am, and we've pre-booked our train tickets to Le Havre, to arrive at 9:40am. We didn't think it'd be an issue since the ship arrives Paris at 9am.
Then suddenly we got our boarding passes, and we saw our party of 9 (4 adults, 2 senior citizens, 2 toddlers, 1 newborn) were all given 6pm boarding, and the instructions said to not come before 6pm, or we'd be forced to wait. I was shocked, so I called MSC up again, and was told by them that there's nothing they can do to let us board earlier.
Policies are policies, I understand. But I requested that could we drop the luggages off and go do our thing? The lady from MSC said "NO, you can't, and there's absolutely nothing you can do and we won't be responsible for the loss of your luggages." I argued that all our boarding passes come with luggage tags, and we're all Checked In on the systems, but still, they won't budge.
If I knew this would be the case, I wouldn't have booked the early train ticket, but remember, I mentioned we couldn't get the boarding pass due to MSC's website issue with printing our boarding passes? I had to book the train ticket before I got my boarding passes, as I was scared of not being able to get a ticket to Le Havre.
Anyway, my point is, my first time on MSC, and I haven't even boarded the ship yet, and we're already facing with a HUGE PROBLEM. Imagine January 2023, Winter in France, 4 Adults, 2 Senior Citizens, 2 Toddlers (3 yo twins), and 1 baby (1 yo), 17 hours flight, and 3 hours train ... we aren't allowed to get on the ship before 6pm, and won't allow us to even drop the luggages off.
On all our HAL and RCI, we were usually on the ship by 11ish am, or even noon, we'd be at the Lido Deck enjoying our buffet brunch/lunch, we'd be chilling at the hot tub/swimming pools after the meal. We were usually not allowed into our cabin till 1pm-2pm, but at least, we could get on the ship to enjoy the facilities, except for getting into the cabin, as the cabin crews needed time to clean up the cabins.
I'm already having a NO-NO experience before even boarding the ship.
And by the way, we're all booked on the MSC Virtuosa on the 12th January 2023 for a 21 Nights Cruise. I've got a feeling we're going to have a very tough time.
Wow I’m so sorry you are having these issues… one thing that came to mind is that MSC matches loyalty with other cruise lines. Did your agent try that? With loyalty you might be able to board earlier. I know MSC runs different in Europe that US so a late boarding time is usual. We are interested in trying the European version of MSC so very interested in knowing how things turn out for you!!
@@Taste-Try-Travel I've just done some reading, and yes, they'd match the boarding. We'll see if they allow us to board earlier in the next few days. Thanks for letting me know. Cheers and Happy New Year.
Wish they would allow you to download the card ahead of time. Had never heard about the free upgrade. Will try that next time! Love the view from the buffet.
We are hearing that you are now able to add a credit card before you board. 🤞
Beth always tries for a free upgrade. Sometimes it works, and sometimes not… MSC didn’t end up giving us an upgrade (it was a very awkward situation after they made it seem like it was no problem🤷♂️)
The view was great, wasn’t it!
Any view when you’re on a cruise is good!😊
@@Taste-Try-Travel you still have to register it on board. They haven’t worked those kinks out yet
@@jessicarubies2256 Thanks for the updates… guess things aren’t running as smooth as they should yet.
You are hilarious!! I will be on the MSC Seashore in 4 days. Thanks for the info. I hope I don’t have to stay so long in line!!
Thank you!
It’ll be so nice when their new Miami terminal is finished… we are sure the lines will be shorter then. Hope you have a wonderful holiday!!! You’ll have to let us know your thoughts o Seashore🙂
Hello and thanks for your stream. Is it possible that the long entry lines are partially the fault of the oncoming passengers as many passengers fail to check-in at their assigned time and just show-up whenever they wish ?
Thank you!
Yes, since they don’t turn anyone away regardless of the time, we would agree with you that people arriving all at once (and the construction of the new port terminal) probably has a ripple effect and backs up the line for most of the day.
I will never never step on a MSC ship again.
As Sly once said… different strokes for different folks…🤪
Me neither 😢, It is HORRIBLE
Just got off the MSC Divina earlier this month out of Miami and loved it. Only had a few issues and have since booked the Seashore for November and the Meraviglia next year. On the Divina if you wanted to check your balance of how much you been spending you had to go to guest service every time or just wait for the surprise bill on the last night. The MSC app doesn't work for the Divina, do you know if you can check spending on the app on the Seashore? I also noticed there was no food available on the Divina after around 12 or 1 am not even pizza and also it seemed like over 60% of the passengers didn't speak any English.
Another thing to note and I think you touched on it a little bit is the price. You're right they do have some room for improvement but at what cost? The solo cruise I took on the Divina for 5 days costed me less than 500 bucks plus gratuities and that was with onboard credit, free drinks and Wifi. If they fix all the problems and make everything perfect I'm afraid the price might go up.
We’ve never been on the Divina, but heard good things from a few people. On Seashore, we could check our balance on the app (although, we always stop by Guest Services to check anyway). Not sure if pizza was available after midnight since we are old and can’t stay up past 8pm 🤪😊🤪.
We absolutely love the international feel on MSC with so many languages spoken! So much fun!
We wouldn’t hesitate to book with MSC again (in fact, our next cruise is on Meraviglia out of NYC)! 🙂
Was on the MSC Seaside a few years ago and the only thing about them that was good was the beauty of their ships. The service and the food were trash. Disney, RC and NCL need lose no sleep.
They do have some areas that need to be improved for sure… we’re not sure they’re fully set up for what American customers expect just yet🙂
However, we really enjoyed the food on the Seashore… maybe different kitchen team had something to do with that.
That was an AMAZING price!!!
What were your ports?
Absolutely amazing… we’d be on an MSC cruise every week if we could always get that price! 🤑
The ports were Taino Bay (Dominican Republic), San Juan, and overnight at their wonderful private island Ocean Cay.
That's amazing! Thanks so much for sharing! This has definitely got me interested in MSC for that price!
I’m sorry y’all had such a frustrating embarkation and initial day. I’m actually doing this cruise next year. Do you think that doing the Yacht Club would help with all the friction on day 1?
Yes. The Yacht Club should be quite a different boarding experience… Yacht Club guests were whisked through with bottles of champagne quenching their thirst😃🤩😃 You guys are gonna love it!
We believe that the new terminal being built will alleviate a lot of the congestion also.
For such a reasonable price you sure had a lot to complain about.
As always, we want folks to know exactly what happens on our adventures. Sometimes things go great… sometimes things go awry. But we want people who may be searching for insight to be able to make informed decisions that can affect their holidays.
MSC is incredibly affordable, as we mentioned in the recap of the day, and would not hesitate to sail with them again.
Thank you so much for the information did they give you an upgraded room
Thank you!!!
They did not give us an upgrade. We went back later because they indicated a cabin upgrade was probable, but when we asked again they acted like that isn’t something they ever do… it was awkward.
Maybe we misunderstood the first time we asked… hard to say… but rather weird. 🤪
But that MSC weirdness is one of the things we love about them!
The ap would help with the lines
I go on this same ship in 3 weeks… This is great information. Did you get the upgrade? I’m concerned about my room… I’m on deck 15 balcony and under the Buffett, so worried about the noise from above and if I need to move or if I can get upgraded.
Thanks for watching!!!
Although they strongly suggested we would get an upgrade, when we went back they acted like an upgrade is not something they would do… it was a very, very weird situation.
As far as under the buffet, the only time we’ve been under a buffet was on Carnival’s Mardi Gras. Never heard anything on that ship… but do not know if it would be different on Seashore.
We would not not suggest waiting on them to upgrade you if you are concerned.
We ended up having a really fun time on Seashore and hope you do too! 🥳
You’ll have to let us know about your experience.
My MSC Seashore cruise will be in September. This will be my 4th cruise with MSC and we absolutely love it. We have stayed on deck 15 with a balcony room and I never heard people walking or furniture being moved around. For this one we are also on deck 15 with the aurea package, we are suppose to have priority boarding, let's see how it goes.
@@lizpr1x Thanks for the info… hope you have an awesome time again… we agree with you… we love MSC too!
And… we’ll have to try priority boarding one of these cruises😁
@@lizpr1x we have the aurea package for our trip too. How did that go for you?
@Nycekka Childs Fantastic!!! We boarded first with Yatch Club passengers. Loved the Aurea dining restaurant because u go when you want between 530 pm -900 pm. Aurea passengers get a private deck area on deck 19 with a bar, loungers, beds, and jacuzzis. In the room we got champagne and chocolates waiting for us, bathrobes and slippers, room service and a pillow menu. We felt like total VIPs. As soon as you board go to the photo booth to get the wristband, they are like $5 but they are more convenient, they also help you set up your wifi too.
Is it obligatery to make activation of your cruise card cause i didn’t understand the purpose
Sorry for the confusion… we had to activate/assign a credit card for our room account. The Seashore has a few kiosks available to do that onboard. Hope that helps to clear it up. 🙂
So which package on MSC Seashire gave a cabin wirh drinks ans gratuities? Sounds good
It was a fantastic promo they offered.
MSC is known for running specials every so often. Always be sure to check their promos to see if something better comes along… even after you book your cruise. You can always change your old booking to reflect the new specials… which is exactly what we did. 🥳
@@Taste-Try-Travel but did the promo have a name like Fantastica or Aurea?
@@kathyhays6891 We were in the Fantastica category, but it was a special they ran for, trying to remember, like around $100 more per person. Great deal!
It is possible to deposit the credit card before boarding the ship in the MSC app
We are not aware of any option for registering a credit card beforehand on MSC. It’s the only cruise line we know of that doesn’t offer that as an option.
Not sure why… if it’s just a tech quirk, or whether it has something to do with differing policies for Europe and the US.
We have received a great suggestion: If there are lines, head to the casino kiosks to register your card… since it is not open in port, not very many people use it on boarding day.
@@Taste-Try-Travel
Maybe there is a difference between europe and america i don't know.
Since I deposited my credit card in the app yesterday and it was also confirmed to me, it is possible!
How was Ocean Cay?
Are you going to upload a Video from Ocean Cay?
@@henkwettmann4304 That’s great info! Thanks!
Ocean Cay was awesome! We love that MSC is so committed to protecting the ocean and all that use it!
We will have at least one video about Ocean Cay and all that MSC has done and continues to do.
Looking forward to see lots of men in speedos 😍😂
Ha! 🩲👀
What was the date of this cruise?
We sailed late May/early June on Seashore.