We’re setting sail once again—this time on the brand-new MSC World America. Since Scott was such a fan of this ship (and its itinerary) during his voyage on the inaugural sailing back in April, we thought we’d see how it stacked up against our love of Disney Cruise Line (DCL).
While we’re avid supporters of Disney, we’ve been debating for the past few years whether to try another cruise line to broaden our horizons (and port options). We’ve considered Carnival, Royal Caribbean, MSC, and Celebrity several times. But up until now, no matter what we compared, we always fell back to old faithful and stuck with the Mouse. Finally, we committed to try something new.
When making the decision for this particular booking, a number of factors came into play: ship type/size, itinerary, cruise brand, and lots of research on Facebook groups and blogs. Since World America is a new ship in the “mega ship” category—the direction most major lines are trending—it offered many different experiences compared to what we’re used to with DCL: more water slides, bumper cars, a ropes course, multiple pools, etc.
MSC’s World Class ships are similar in size and amenities to Carnival’s Excel Class and Royal Caribbean’s Icon Class, with a maximum passenger capacity in the 6,000–6,500 range—a significant size increase over Disney’s Wish Class, which caps out around 4,000. We weren’t sure how we’d feel about sailing on a much larger vessel. After Day 1, the jury is still out.
As for the itinerary, we’ll be returning to one of our favorite ports—San Juan, Puerto Rico—along with a port we haven’t visited yet—Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic—and of course, a stop at Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve. Sprinkled in are three sea days to relax on the sun deck, explore the ship, and take part in some of the extracurricular activities it offers.
One last factor that helped (but didn’t make or break the decision) is MSC’s status-matching loyalty program, which allowed us to carry over some of the benefits we’ve earned through our many DCL sailings. Thanks to this program, we were able to parlay our Platinum Castaway Club level into Diamond Status on MSC. Scott posted a great article on this earlier this spring—check it out here.
We booked this cruise in May and originally had a Fantastica-level Deluxe Balcony Stateroom. Since then, we’ve been getting regular emails prompting us to add on drink packages, internet, excursions—and offering the chance to bid on stateroom upgrades.
As more information about the ship became available online, we did some research and decided to throw in a few bids just to see what would happen. The bidding was done through the MSC booking engine, powered by PlusGrade, which uses a slider tool to choose how much you’re willing to pay to upgrade to each available room category. Each one had a preset minimum and maximum bid amount. Based on what we’d read, it seemed like your only real shot was to bid the max—or don’t bother at all.
There’s also a savings perk built into the bidding system: the upgrade cost is based on double occupancy, meaning only the first two passengers get charged. (Translation: the kid was free. Nice.)
We submitted about five bids across various room categories and waited to see what would happen. Since final room assignments aren’t locked in until 48 hours prior to departure, we figured we’d be waiting until the last minute for an answer.
Survey says… “Congratulations! Your offer to upgrade your stateroom on your upcoming cruise has been accepted. Your stateroom has been upgraded to the YACHT CLUB Deluxe Suite.”
No more mixing with the peasants for us.
This bumped us up from Deck 9 midship to Deck 20 forward, and with just over 24 hours before embarkation, we were deep-diving into blogs and vlogs reviewing Yacht Club amenities and what to expect. Having sailed in Concierge-level rooms with Disney before, this should be a great opportunity to compare the top-tier luxury experience between the two cruise lines.
Getting to PortMiami
Every journey has a beginning, and cruising is no different. You’d think it starts when you get onboard the ship, but that would be discrediting the pre-adventure.
The biggest drawback for us on this trip? This particular cruise sails out of PortMiami instead of our preferred Port Canaveral, which adds about three hours of drive time to get to South Florida.
We considered a few options—driving halfway and staying overnight somewhere along the Treasure Coast, or coming all the way down the day before and staying near the terminal. That way, we’d avoid an early start and a long drive on embarkation day. Unfortunately, that day happened to be July 4th. Needless to say, holiday rates and availability weren’t in our favor, so we ultimately chose a sunrise road trip.
Scott has often sung the praises of using Brightline to get to PortMiami, and I did look into that option. But after reviewing the costs and timeframes, I realized it would have cost us almost triple when factoring in parking at the station and the Brightline fare—compared to simply driving and parking onsite (for the wildly overpriced rate of $35 a day, of course). Not to mention, it would’ve added an extra hour or two to the trip once you include transfers and any potential wait times between them.
Luckily, we didn’t hit much traffic on the way down and made the drive in exactly four hours. I’m sure it helped that it was a Saturday morning, and most people were still sleeping off their Independence Day celebrations.
As we pulled up to the terminal, I was quickly reminded why everyone hates this port—confusing signage and no terminal staff stationed to assist.
As we entered the garage, there were signs pointing right for parking and left for luggage drop-off and rideshare. This was the first time we encountered a live person, and she was waving everyone over to the left lane. So, I pulled up curbside and began unloading our luggage for the porter, who promptly informed me that I could drive all the way to the front of the line for Yacht Club luggage drop-off.
So, we reset.
I merged back into the traffic flow to find a parking spot in the garage—only to realize that the ramp I took led straight to an exit and back out onto terminal row. Ugh. I figured, “Okay, there must be a spot to make a U-turn soon.” Nope. It was nearly a mile before there was any opportunity to turn around.
Once we got back and re-entered the garage (round two), I completely ignored the girl with the flag and went right to grab a parking ticket and finally find a spot.
Not the biggest deal in the world, but definitely a frustrating ten-minute detour. We’ll chalk that one up to a lack of familiarity with both the port and the cruise line—and spoiler alert: it won’t be the last time that happens this week.
After that, it was a quick walk into the terminal for passport verification and assembly at the Yacht Club welcome area. Since this terminal is one of the newest in the industry, I had heard how incredible it was. To be honest, we were through it so quickly I barely had a chance to look around. But from what I did see, it was huge, with no shortage of seating if you had to wait to board.
One of the perks of Yacht Club is priority boarding, and by the time we reached the welcome area, we were taken right onboard.
Now here comes the first of what I’m sure will be many comparisons to DCL.
While there was a designated Yacht Club check-in line and meeting area within the terminal, it was merely a front corner of the seating area with a small counter offering a welcome beverage. Not a separate lounge. Not anything remotely unique to the Yacht Club experience. Just a table.
MSC fail #1.
From there, they took us in small groups onto the gangway, which was already lined with other cruisers—who didn’t appear to be boarding yet and were just… standing there. This caused immediate confusion, as we had to keep excusing ourselves past them to stay with the butler escorting us onboard. Naturally, this led to our small group of about five families getting scattered and unable to stick together.
Why they had guests filling the gangway before it was actually cleared to board is beyond me. All it did was create a bottleneck of confused, annoyed passengers.
MSC fail #2.
The not so Grand Entrance
As is fairly standard with cruise lines, the expectation when first boarding is to be welcomed into the Atrium or Grand Concourse—that signature, show-stopping area of the ship. You’re often announced, greeted with fanfare, and swept into the excitement of vacation mode.
MSC World America? Not so much.
We stepped off the gangway into a nondescript hallway, I think on Deck 6? It was completely anticlimactic. On a ship this new and beautiful, how do you not showcase something upon entry? A dramatic staircase? A view of the promenade? Even a chandelier?
MSC fail #3.
The butler guiding us asked where our emergency assembly station was, then quickly turned a corner into an elevator bank and took us to scan our keycards at Zone A. To be honest, I had no idea where we were and wouldn’t have been able to get back there on my own—he never explained what deck we were on or what part of the ship this was. We later figured out it was Deck 7 forward, but that was purely by chance while wandering later in the day.
Once we were checked in at the assembly station, we were brought to the Yacht Club’s Top Sail Lounge to wait for our stateroom to be ready. Since our room was still being made up, we were invited to enjoy lunch while they added the finishing touches.
Before heading to lunch, I completed the required safety video, which covers the emergency evacuation procedures. On the plus side for MSC, there’s no in-person muster drill required—you just watch the video in the app and scan your card at the assigned station. The downside? It feels like lip service safety at best. I literally pressed play, set my phone down, and we chatted and made reservations while it ran. When the video ended, we were signed off.
Not that I ever pay attention to safety briefings on planes either, but you could definitely argue both sides of how necessary these things are.
Yacht Club Lunch
We had a decent lunch in the Yacht Club dining room. Nothing extravagant, but a solid burger and fries. Angie, my wife, went with the Caesar salad that almost had some chicken in it, while Becca, my daughter, opted for some penne pasta.
With bellies full the time has come to check out our stateroom on deck 20.
Deluxe Yacht Club Balcony Suite 20021 on MSC World America
A pretty straightforward layout, elegant styling, and very clean. Even the carpet pile is surprisingly plush—just another reminder of how new this ship is.
The biggest difference? The bathroom.
I’ve long been a fan of Disney’s split bathroom design, especially for families, but while this setup is a single-space layout, it’s spacious and well thought out. There’s a walk-in shower with a glass wall—no dreaded clinging shower curtains!
Another thoughtful detail: the safe is located in a pullout drawer rather than taking up shelf space in the closet. The mini bar was stocked with a few complimentary soft drinks, teas, and sparkling waters, and it’s restocked daily.
Video Tour of Stateroom 20021 on MSC World America
“Into the unknown”
Look, you’re just not going to get away without Disney references—deal with it.
Navigation on DCL is like walking around our house. We can do it in our sleep. But with a new ship and a new cruise line, this one feels more like walking around a foreign country. Not only is it massive, but we quickly discovered it’s not the easiest ship to navigate.
Still, not to be deterred, we set out to explore.
First impression? It’s a bit of a maze. Some decks allow you to walk stern to bow with ease, while others require zig-zagging through exterior and interior passageways just to get from one end to the other.
From what we’ve figured out so far, all the pool fun, ropes course, kids clubs, etc., are located on Decks 18–21.
Most of the shopping, dining, and entertainment venues are spread between Decks 6–8. I’m sure after a full sea day tomorrow, we’ll have a better sense of the best ways to get around.
One of the great perks of Yacht Club butler service? They’ll escort you anywhere onboard you’d like to go. Yes, really.
Dinner at Eataly on MSC World America
For dinner, we booked Eataly, one of the specialty dining options featuring Italian cuisine. We were a little surprised to see it nearly empty at 6:15, but we’re guessing most guests either filled up at the buffet for lunch or were opting for a later dinner.
The food?
Delicious.
I started with the Il Fritto Alla Mediterranea for my appetizer and followed it up with Le Capesante for my entrée.
The appetizer was a flavorful mix of lightly breaded calamari, shrimp, and sea bass, garnished with crispy fried shavings of carrots and zucchini—a true gastronomical delight.
The entrée of sliced scallops served over stewed tomatoes in a clam shell was the perfect follow-up—elegant, balanced, and full of flavor.
Exploring the “World” After Dinner
Refueled, we decided to explore a bit more and check out the shops now that we were in international waters and they were open for business.
One thing we noticed right away while perusing the shopping district on Decks 6, 7, and 8 was that it felt more like walking through a shopping mall than a cruise ship. Since the entire area is located in the interior of the ship, there’s a definite lack of portholes or windows to the sea. Not necessarily a bad thing—just a very different aura than we’re used to.
We stopped to listen to one of the vocal performances wrapping up their set, then the girls decided it was time to call it a night and head back to the room.
I opted for a bit more exploring and started to get a better feel for the layout and how to find my way around. Unfortunately, I had the sad realization that the Yacht Club Sun Deck closes at 8:30 p.m., and by the time I got there, the loungers were already stacked up for the evening. I took this as a sign that a seat was awaiting me in the casino, so I ventured down to try my luck before turning in.
First Day Impressions of MSC World America
Overall, it was a mixed day of first impressions on MSC World America. Definitely a few disappointing moments, but my goal is to keep an open mind—because there were still plenty of positives too.
Tomorrow is a day at sea, and I’m sure there will be ample time to relax and continue decoding the intricacies of navigating this ship. Will MSC pull off the upside-down pineapple trick and win us over from Disney? Or will this be a one-and-done experience?
Keep checking back over the next few days to find out!