Our journey was just a mini cruise however and that has left both me and my wife wondering throughout if we would like sailing with the line for a full-length cruise and ultimately would we sail with MSC cruise again?

Now that I have had some time to really think about and get over that regency bias that makes you want to jump on the next ship setting sail after a good trip, I am still not really any closer to answer that question.

So once again, in another cathartic experience, I will take a look at the key aspects of cruising with regards to our thoughts of sailing with MSC for the first time and our thoughts on each of them with regards to cruising with the line in the future and on a full-length itinerary.

Would We Sail With MSC Cruises Again?

We had no major issues in the build up to the cruise we took with the line, and nothing stood out during the months between booking the cruise and boarding the ship as a major issue.

One thing we didn’t like was the lack of pre-bookable aspects of the cruise as we do like to plan ahead.

It was made worse by you having to book into the theatre and restaurants as soon as you board the ship, but that could be easily avoided by allowing people to book in advance via the website or app.

Standing at a desk with a big queue behind you and having to decide on which nights you want to go watch something felt unnecessarily rushed and pressure don a 3-night cruise but for a 14 nighter, it could really put a dampener on things.

Verdict: So, whilst there are some concerns, the pre-cruise experience would not put us off from sailing with them again- we will just need to plan in advance what our nights onboard will likely entail.

The actual on the day check in process is as much down to the cruise port you set sail from as it is the line itself, so we won’t focus on the check-in staff and on the day check-in process for this point.

To be fair to the staff at the port of Southampton, the check-in process was straightforward and super quick, so no issues there.

From the lines point of view, they were just as good to be honest as you could complete much of the process well in advance via the app or website including adding a photo for your onboard ID, completing your passport detail and setting up your onboard account.

Verdict: That is all that you need from a line, so in terms of the check-in process, we would have no issues with sailing with the line again.

The entertainment offered on a cruise ship is a big part of the experience for us and based on our own experience, it is something we do have a concern over.

The fact that onboard the Virtuoso at least, you had to pre-book into the theatre and that both shows on offer were very similar is a concern of ours in terms of cruising for a longer journey.

There was live music in the atrium, but it is such a busy area, it is difficult to simply sit, relax and enjoy it whilst the same can be said for other entertainment spaces onboard the ship we sailed on.

A lot of that in our opinion was down to the lack of seating space on the ship, where if you wanted a seat, you had to head into an entertainment venue or bar, no matter if you were interested in the entertainment on offer or not.

That does seem to be an ongoing issue with the line as does there move to pay extra entertainment with most of the actions and even some stage shows now coming at an extra cost.

Verdict: That would soon add up on a longer trip, so the entertainment is a concern for us going forward despite been of a relatively high standard.

On our journey, the onboard experience was overall a good one, but some concerns were already started to show up.

On our ship, there was hardly anywhere to spend time without needing to spend money in some shape or form and the free activities and entertainment on offers was exhausted over the 3 nights we were onboard.

Despite the mammoth size of the Virtuosa, it did feel more like a small ship sailing where you got into the same routine.

Over a longer journey, we would likely have had to start spending more money to keep us entertained and whilst that is great for the line and fits into their business plan, other lines offer much more.

The busyness of the ship did leave everywhere feeling crowded and that is a big issue with the line as a whole as their space-to-passenger ration is often poor.

Verdict: That would make us think again before sailing with them and would certainly keep us looking at other lines offering a similar itinerary for a similar cost, so on this point, we have to say the onboard experience, whilst good, is something that may stop us cruising with them again.

Before we sailed to them, one of the things we had been warned by people we know who had sailed with them before, and by reviews online, was that the food wasn’t great on MSC cruises.

So before boarding, we had little expectation for the food we would receive but in a perfect example of you really need to try something for yourself rather than going by the views of others, we had no issues at all.

Yes, the food is much more Mediterranean based than US lines, but you are on a Swiss owned, Italian based cruise line, so that is what you would expect.

We love to try different foods on holiday and whilst some of the British and American food on offer had interesting twists on them, the Italian, Spanish and other food from around the world were as good or better than other lines we had sailed with.

Verdict: The freshly baked bread, the mozzarella (which was made onboard), deserts and breakfast Danishes were all excellent, so we have no issues with the line for this category and would look forward to what they could offer on a longer cruise.

MSC do mostly operate in the Mediterranean, both east and west and Northern Europe and have a growing focus on the Caribbean, which are all of course amongst the busiest cruise regions in the world with lots of competition.

In many ways that works against the line for us as there is a big chance that another line with offer a better value cruise, offer a better itinerary or maybe just one of our more preferred lines will offer a similar getaway.

They do have a focus on the Middle East, which is somewhere many other lines overlook, but for us, there is little special about the routes that they offer.

Verdict: For us, and the style of cruises we enjoy, the line has little to grab out attention as a standout over other lines, we for this category, we have to say that their lack of imagination in itineraries does work against them in us booking on MSC again.

There can be denying that one of the things that attracts many, including us, are there low-cost holidays.

It was a great offer for the journey that we took with us that made us take the plunge and try the line despite having mix feeling about them and despite having heard some horror stories.

They do have some great ships and the Virtuosa was one we wanted to try, especially as one of the biggest ships to ever sail out the UK but it was the fact that we got some an incredibly great value offer that made the decision to sail with them.

The value of a holiday isn’t just about the cost of course, but in terms of what you get for the money you spend, we have no issues with MSC.

Verdict: Decent food, professional entertainment, quality cabins, a modern ship and a well organised journey and we can only have a positive thoughts on the lines in terms of value.

So overall, you have to say that we would sail with the line again but with 4 of these categories showing we would be happy to sail again and with 3 showing that we have concerns, it is no surprise that we were unsure before writing this list, as in truth, I still am.

Verdict: Would we sail with MSC again, probably but in truth, they wouldn’t be out first choice.