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October 24, 2019

Until the delivery of the MSC Grandiosa at the end of this year (2019), the 2017-built MSC Meraviglia along with her somewhat younger sister ship MSC Bellissima  is the flagship of the MSC Cruises fleet.

 

→ Msc Meraviglia Review by Kai Ortel

In fact, she is so huge and full of onboard facilities and, like her name suggests, “miracles”, that a mini-cruise like the one I took is not sufficient to see and experience all that this mega cruise ship has to offer. MSC Meraviglia has a capacity for 4,500 passengers at double occupancy and 5,700 at maximum occupancy, sailing with a crew of more than 1,500 people. Her cabins and public spaces spread over 19 decks, with the 100 m interior promenade Galleria Meraviglia and its LED ceiling being the heart of the ship at any time of day.

MSC Cruises itself came into being in 1995 as the successor of Flotta Lauro. In 2003, it embarked on an ambitious newbuilding program which has led the company into the league of the largest international cruise operators, in fact now being the largest privately owned cruise operator in the world. MSC will take delivery of its new flagship, the giant MSC Grandiosa (6,300 passengers) later this year. She will be followed by a sister ship, the MSC Virtuosa, in 2020.

MSC Meraviglia started her career in the Western Mediterranean in 2017 before heading for Northern Europe for the first time in spring 2018, sailing mainly from Hamburg. In autumn 2019, she repositioned to North America for a program of Caribbean cruises out of New York and Miami. She is due to return to Northern Europe in spring 2020.

Onboard, there are 2,244 cabins in 18 different categories, even cabins for singles. The lowest grade ones (standard inside Bella, 16 square metres) are on deck 5, the highest ones (Deluxe suite MSC Yacht Club and Royal suite MSC Yacht Club, 24 – 56 square metres) forward on deck 15, 16 and 18. All standard cabins are equipped with air conditioning, wardrobe, toilet and shower, interactive TV, telephone, WiFi (at a charge), mini bar and safe. The Royal suites in addition come with a balcony that includes a jacuzzi. Drawer space however is somewhat limited in the standard cabins.

Also the variety of restaurants on the MSC Meraviglia is truly miraculous. There are twelve restaurants and 20 bars onboard. Among them are smaller premium outlets like the Butcher’s Cut (American steak house), the Kaito (Japanese Sushi/Teppanyaki) and the Eataly (Italian restaurant), but also three main restaurants – the L’Olive (912 seats), the Panorama (666 seats) and the Waves restaurants (600 seats). The large buffet restaurant Marketplace (1,345 seats) on deck 15 is open an astonishing 20 hours a day.

MSC Meraviglia being a multi-national ship, there are announcements and daily programs available in many different languages. The same goes for the crew whose members originate from several dozen different countries and who speak two, three or even more languages. Her passenger/crew ratio is 2.9 which puts her at the upper end of the mass/mainstream market together with other “high density” ships like the Costa Diadema (2.9) and AidaPrima (3.6). Service is attentive, but on a ship with so many passengers, it’s inevitable that some things take time or that you may be overlooked.

On a ship as large as the MSC Meraviglia, there’s an abundance of sports and wellness facilities as well. The ship even features an indoor sports hall (Sportplex), a 570 square metre gym and no less than three pools (indoor and outdoor, whatever you prefer), not to mention the spectacular open-air Polar Aqua Park with its three waterslides and rope course above it. All wellness facilities on the MSC ships are traditionally centred in the MSC Aurea Spa which includes a beauty centre, hairdresser, sauna, steam bath, solarium, an ice and sole grotto and various forms of massages and therapy. MSC Meraviglia is also a ship for families with all children’s and teens’ facilities now concentrated on one deck – including a Chicco club, a LEGO club, 4 D cinema and virtual games.

If you don’t like the itineraries of the MSC Meraviglia too much, don’t worry. On a ship like this, you don’t need to go ashore anymore, the vessel is a destination in its own right. The world-famous Cirque du Soleil has its own show onboard in the Carousel Lounge, there are daily production shows in the Broadway Theatre (1,000 seats), and there’s a lot of music in the many lounges onboard as well. Plus the usual disco, karaoke, casino, library and whatever else takes place on the Galleria Meraviglia. You won’t get bored on the MSC Meraviglia, that’s for sure.

MSC Cruises also provides you with a “destination guide” upon embarkation, so if you haven’t yet booked an excursion before the cruise, there’s plenty to choose from even on short notice. There are eight categories, and even in a relatively small port like Ajaccio, there were nine different excursions on offer (starting at 36 €) plus an exclusive “private tour” with a local car and guide (580 €).

Beware you may be tempted to book a tour just to get away from the crowds – be it onboard among your 5,000+ fellow passengers or in cities like Barcelona, Marseille or Rome. The MSC Meraviglia really is a floating city, including everything that comes with it – mass processing, a high noise level and an almost Babylonian language mix. You may find new friends among those 5,000+ passengers, but you may just as well never see someone you’ve met again because a ship this size is not only large, but also very anonymous.

Wonder why your MSC cruise has been such a bargain? Because the big cruise operators earn a lot from onboard spending. The MSC Meraviglia is no exception. There’s not only the usual MSC Logo Shop where you can buy ship models and towels with the company logo on it, but a wide array of other shops as well, most of them situated on both sides of the Galleria Meraviglia – a boutique, a watches and jewellery store, fashion jewellery, a “mini mall”, perfumes, cosmetics, a photo shop, an ice cream bar, a chocolateria, watches and sunglasses – really, you can spend the same amount you paid for the cruise again in all these shops. If that’s what you’ve come onboard for.

What you should not expect from the MSC Meraviglia is the “old school” cruise atmosphere. There is no captain’s table anymore, and no cocktail evening either (unless you’re in the MSC Voyagers Club). The good thing is you don’t need to dress up unless you want to. Of course, it’s always nice to look a bit smarter than usual when the evening comes, but apart from that, a ship like the MSC Meraviglia won’t offer you many opportunities to show off your fine wardrobe and jewellery. With more so many people onboard, the captain just doesn’t have the time to acknowledge each single effort.

MSC is advertising the MSC Meraviglia as a “ship for all seasons”, and surely, she doesn’t leave much to be desired. But travelling with 5,000 other passengers is not everyone’s imagination of the perfect holiday. The MSC Meraviglia is amazing and huge and truly miraculous, but unless you go upstairs to the pool, you don’t see the sea anymore, let alone feel that you’re sailing. Today’s cruise clientele will like her, but traditionalists may mourn what has all been lost on a modern cruise ship her giant size.

Read all the Msc Meraviglia Reviews on Cruising Journal, and don’t miss the Photo Gallery and Reportage with informations and cruisers’ opinions.

Kai Ortel

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