MSC Virtuosa – Masterpiece At Sea?
YES! People often ask me which my favourite cruise line is. It is not an easy question to answer because it depends a lot on what you want to achieve from that particular vacation, but for style and elegance MSC wins hands down!
Come to think of it, MSC is my favourite cruise line, and that is for a few reasons.
The ships themselves are simply stunning! Very clean and well maintained and decorated with quiet elegance. One of my “go to” places on a formal evening is one of the sets of Swarovski Crystal staircases where the photographers will spend plenty of time with you making sure you are standing correctly in a flattering position. They will tell you to lift your chin, move your head, look in that direction, laugh etc – it’s a lot of fun. If I am on a solo trip, I will usually buy a photo package which is very good value for money and is a lot cheaper than similar packages on other lines.
Drink & Dining
The drinks package is arguably the best one you will get from any line. Cappuccino included? yes! Water included? Yes! A limit on how many alcoholic drinks you can have in a day? NO! There are different levels of package you can get to suit your needs, mine is usually the most expensive one because I like to enjoy the fanciest and best drinks available!
The main restaurant is open for a relaxing lunch every day. Other lines only do this on sea days.
The MSC Loyalty Scheme
MSC do an amazing loyalty match scheme, if you have a lot of points with another line you will most likely to be matched to Gold. In my opinion, one of the best perks is the priority disembarkation in ports where there is a tender used. This can really help you make the most of your time off the ship. Another benefit I really enjoyed was the free 1 hour access to the Thermal Spa. You may also get a small discount on the cost of your trip if you have booked it early enough. You get invited to a “welcome back” cocktail party, and if it is your birthday while you are sailing you will be presented at dinner with a birthday cake and the waiters will sing HAPPY BIRTHDAY to you! After you have built up enough points you will become a DIAMOND member, which entitles you to priority boarding (where available) on embarkation day, a meal in one of the speciality restaurants my personal favourite being the Butchers Cut, a chocolate gift (small bar of chocolate now, it used to be a ship model), a bottle of sparkling wine, and some sort of a merchandise gift. This could be a bag for shoes, a baseball cap, a pen or pencil – it changes! Oh yes, and a dance lesson. My husband’s favourite perk is the late cabin checkout. Everyone else is out of their room by 8 – you get an extra hour or so to chill on your balcony. You will also be invited to a “Diamond Party”. Waiters will offer you drinks and canapés while you meet and chat to your fellow cruisers. Ships Officers will come and make a speech about what is new and on the horizon for MSC Cruises. Another one of my personal favourites of Diamond status is that you get a bathrobe and slippers! As my favourite thing to do is sit on my balcony and eat my breakfast, this gown comes in very handy!
Entertainment On Virtuosa
The entertainment staff on MSC Virtuosa are just amazing. I have had plenty of positive experiences over the years with this group of hardworking and happy people. I genuinely believe the staff on these ships go above and beyond to make sure you are included in the activities. An example I can offer would be an evening event called “Dancing Shoes”. Now I really enjoy ballroom dancing but because I missed enrolment the Entertainment Lead decided he would offer himself up as my dancing partner – we didn’t win but we had a great time! You will be actively encouraged to join in the games on the pool deck and around the ship, you may find yourself leading a team in a Battle of the Sexes Game, you may even be crowned the winner of the Disco Music quiz (or perhaps you won’t – you probably won’t if I’m there, haha). They really make an effort to get to know you.
Entertainment around the ship is very glamorous. You will hear violins being played in the main atrium, watch opera in the Broadway Theatre, experience ballet and classical music. You may see magician shows, contortionists, Elvis impersonators. There are always lots of parties going on in the main atrium, think 70’s night, school disco, white night – even a silent disco where you dance to your own channel on your headphones. But whatever you see will not be the big productions like CATS, or Hairspray, or Priscilla Queen of the Desert So, if these big shows are important to you, then bear this in mind. I personally always enjoy the MSC shows, regardless of the fact I have seen them several times, and my personal favourite is a show that is called The Big Apple
MSC Virtuosa has a massive main pool! Certainly the biggest I have ever seen. There is also a large indoor pool for when the weather is a bit cooler. There are plenty of hot tubs dotted around the place too, and I certainly never struggled to find somewhere to sit. Even the smallest pool at the back of the ship is a decent size.
Food is of course subjective, and as I am not a foodie in any way it’s not something I feel qualified to speak on. But everyone agrees that MSC pizza is the best you will get at sea. I really liked the buffet and always found plenty of things that I really liked. It is only fair to say that MSC’s reputation for MDR food “was” somewhat less than other lines, but lately it is apparent that other lines have really cheapened out on their MDR offerings – NCL and Royal, I’m looking at you here!
All modern mega ships have a “cram them in” policy, MSC get a bad rap for feeling over crowded but honestly you get the same feeling on Royal, NCL etc…you just pay a lot more for the pleasure!
MSC is definitely the best value for money, with something to suit most people’s pockets and wishes. You can stay in an inside cabin for a cheap little week away, you can splurge on the MSC Yacht Club experience if you want something a lot fancier. Yacht Club is a ship within a ship concept similar to the Haven on NCL, but considerably cheaper.
