MSC Fantasia Reviews

Summary:  The employees are overworked, they all seem very tired. The services are overall very good, but they clearly have to hire more resources, everyone was looking exhausted during the entire cruise. The cabins look pretty good, the only thing that I didn't like was the fact the the most of the tv shows were in Italian. The ship is a little crowded. Other ships with the same size have half of th number of passengers. Also, they don't have a lot of shops and most of the prices exceed the ones from the shore, so they're not real duty free. The games that they have for the kids are not free, which was an unpleasant surprise. The food is pretty good. The entertainment needs an upgrade, they don't have a live band so the experience is not complete. The activities that they have during the day aren't very so much fun and there's not many of them. Even though it was a 5 days cruise, I found myself bored during the day because of the lack of entertaning activities. I filled in a form in order to receive the survey from them, it's been 6 days since the disembarkation and didn't get it yet. The organization is terrible, starting with the checkin and disembarkation. We bought a transfer from them and because of the fact that we bought it on board, out names didn't show up on their lists. Due to this, ourselves and the rest of the passengers that were on the same transfer had to wait for them to clear things up. Some of the passangers lost their train because of this. During the discussions that we had we them they were just asking us to wait and explaining that they're very busy. Some of the guys that were coordinationg this were really rude to us. Even though the services were good, I wouldn't recommend anyone to go on a cruise with them, it's just not worth the stress and to be treated like they're doing us a favor for a service that we paid.

Summary:  Room and public areas clean and staff friendly and helpful (mostly). Embarkation was terrible, had no idea what was going on or where we should go. Food was abysmal.

Summary:  Having previously cruised with Royal Caribbean we were somewhat disappointed with this cruise. It was like comparing a 5 star hotel with Butlins. The food in the formal dining room was disappointing though the buffet food was excellent if you were prepared to queue and fight for a table. The outside space was noisy with constant "entertainment" involving shouting through a microphone in 5 different languages. Nowhere, other than one's balcony, to sit quietly with a book. The cabins were good, the bed exceptionally comfortable. The evening shows were good on the whole. Perhaps it is just our preference but we much preferred the more formal atmosphere on Royal Caribbean and enjoyed the outdoor space and activities that they offered. We did have a chance to disembark every day, which was good. We thought that 12.99 euros each for a bus shuttle at Palma, Majorca was extortionate and virtually compulsory if you wished to leave the ship.

Summary:  I returned from Rome after a cruise and stay with MSC Fantasia, the ship is amazing and we didn't manage to see all areas in the wee., I have medical problems I was concerned about long waits to board but I along with my friend who was travelling with me from arriving at the port to boarding was 10mins excellent service from MSC. All the stops we enjoyed and I wouldn't like to chose one over another and the hotel stay in Rome was excellent so well done for arranging an amazing holiday again.

Summary:  On arrival the customer service was excellent but drifted a little from there .we were 2 friends travelling and requested twin beds it took 4 requests to get this changed. Problems with wi fi 2 visits to customer services to sort this eventually charge was taken off our account. Zanzibar restaurant was awful very noisy ,difficult to get a table and tables not being cleared so we used the red velvet which was fantastic. My fried had a fall on a wet area near one of the pools there wasn't a wet area sign showing and we could not praise the medical team more.Departure day well as we couldn't pay our bill the night before we got up early as thinking the queue would be long ,good job we did as only 2 assistants on duty.we were asked to be in one of the lounges at 8am thinking we would be told when we would be asked to leave the ship as our flight wasn't until 7ish. We left the ship at approx 8.30 to go to the airport and on arrival at approximately 10.45 we were not allowed to check in until 16.30 ish . We sat in a cafe area as long as possible and then walked around the airport and found a departures board where earlier flights to Heathrow were shown and luckily enough 2 seats were available so we left at 15.30 ish. It would be helpful to get departure time from the ship when booking so passengers can be aware of what they can do within the time wait

Summary:  The ship was fine. The cabin and Food were excellent. The crew also were excellent. The main problem was the noise. Everywhere you went on board there was loud thumping music. If you tried to lay on the pool deck you had to contend with loud music and crazy Italians screaming into microphones. The only place you could get any Peace was in your cabin. Also everything was extra including water which I thought was a human right. Their sense of organisation was very strange, I think it was the only thing more chaotic than the army. I never want to travel by MSC every again.

Summary:  A good ship but aging. Staff are fantastic especially the wonderful assistant haute D'hotel! Third time on the Fantasia. Would recommend Yacht Club for the best experience. Shows good not as good as in the past. Food needs improving and needs to arrive hot.Top floor cabins are noisy and some have limited views due being set back under the restaurant above. Good itinerary and access to places visited.No extras for travel out of the port. Drinks package is very limited. One choice of beer. Heineken or nothing! Compared to Celebrity very poor. I still like MSC and the Italian influence is one of looking after you. A good cruise line for families and can sail from Southampton. Diffucult to get a table for two so for us it will be Yacht Club from now on as we have retired and are seeking a quiet and more private experience. Very good value for money.

Summary:  Embarking a little disorganised, disembarking very good. Beautiful ship, lovely room although very noisy as balcony as right at the back. A lot of vibration when docking, woke us and the baby up several mornings very early . No free room service despite paper work saying “free room service”. What it really meant was no service charge but you pay for food on a limited menu. Breakfast free but not available till 7.30am. No dinning room lunch time or breakfast. Most of bars don’t open until 7pm making a drink before early dinning difficult. Drinks package good value. Good bar service when bars open. Dinning room good but choice very limited. Ports of call good. Overall will go back to Celebrity for better service and quality.

Summary:  As an experienced cruiser, initially I was quite worried about going on this cruise (we are Silverseas / Seaborne regulars !!), but my daughter wanted a family week with her 2 babies and grandparents in the sun so I reluctantly agreed. I read some ‘tripadvisor’ reports and expected poor food, long queues and rude staff etc BUT I was very surprised and delighted with every aspect of the holiday and I can truly recommend MSC. The cruise was geared to passenger enjoyment with great food, plenty of choice, lots of interesting bars, high quality entertainment, friendly staff and I rarely queued (except for the reception desk which was the only poor service for time waiting on the ship). There are 4,000 passengers so it’s a very busy environment and a bit like Butlins sometimes but you can find quiet places and some peace. We had the ‘aggressimo’ drinks package which I recommend. Most people were very friendly. The cabin was fine, the whole ship was very clean, getting on and off the ship was easy and the bottom line is we would book again. Don’t always believe ‘tripadvisor’ reports.

Summary:  Choice, availability and quality of food is very poor in buffet restaurant . Always luke warm and often undercooked. I'd expect so much much from an Italian kitchen!! Very very disappointed. Drinks are reluctant and in short supply... unless you pay for at uplift. Drinking water and fresh milk ( travelled with a baby) isn't easily available. Even bars that are supposed to be offering these are really reluctant and make it feel like begging! Overall Facilities i.e. Lifts and guest services/ reception wholefully inadequate for the size of the ship and not customer focused. I have cruised with Royal Caribbean, Costa and Thomson all were really enjoyable family experiences. I def would not book again.