The last time I was on an MSC cruise ship, was for a Christmas cruise on the MSC Meraviglia in 2022, when she was sailing out of Port Canaveral, near Orlando. However, MSC Cruises isn’t new to me. In fact, I’ve been cruising with them since the MSC Divina was deployed to PortMiami to be the line’s first ship to sail year round from North America a decade ago. At the time, I was invited onboard by MSC’s PR department to spread the word of this Italian cruise line’s entrance into a market dominated by Carnival and Royal Caribbean.
Over the course of the past ten years, MSC has disrupted cruising in North America and now has ships sailing year round from not only Miami, but Port Canaveral (Orlando), New York City, and soon to Galveston, TX. In addition to providing much needed pressure on Carnival and Royal Caribbean, in 2019 MSC opened their open private island destination in the Bahamas, Ocean Cay Marine Reserve. This island paradise is an exclusive destination to MSC cruisers and features multiple beach, restaurants, bars, watersports activities, and more.
Next year at this time, April 2025, MSC will open their own $350-million terminal at PortMiami which can accommodate two ships at a time and will be the largest terminal at the port. The opening of their terminal will coincide with the launch of their newest ship, MSC World America also set to debut in April 2025 which will be a game changer for sure!
Over the next seven days, I’ll be sailing on the MSC Seascape, a 5,877 passenger Seaside-EVO class ship that launched in November 2022. This billion-dollar cruise ship is the second generation of the Seaside class ships that were first introduced in 2017 and are laid out to connect passengers with the sea as they feature extensive open decks, alfresco dining, multiple pools, waterslides, and plenty of spaces to just lay out and work on that suntan!
In 2018, I sailed on MSC Seaside out of Miami on a 7-day Eastern Caribbean Cruise in the ship’s Yacht Club accommodations. The MSC Yacht Club is an exclusive ship-within-a-ship area on each MSC ship and is the epitomie of luxury at sea. Spacious, well appointed staterooms with upgraded amentities are your home while at sea, and your every need is taken care of by your own personal but who does everything for you from unpacking your luggage to escorting you to the evening show. Yacht Club guests also have their own restaurant, pool, bar, lounge and other amenities.
For this adventure, I’m not staying in the Yacht Club, but will be very jealous of those who are!
The itinerary for this 7-day Eastern Caribbean Cruise finds us calling at Falmouth, Jamaica; George Town, Grand Cayman; Cozumel, Mexico; and Nassau, Bahamas. Now you may be saying, “Scott, you just said all MSC Caribbean cruises stop at their private island of Ocean Cay, why aren’t you?” Well, the island is currently closed for refurbishments until May. What work is being done has been kept under wraps and very little has been shared by MSC. However, many suspect that there are improvements to the existing pier and channel being made. Ocean Cay can be very difficult for ships to enter due to its narrow channel. Far too often, calls to Ocean Cay are cancelled when there is high winds, so we may see changes in this area and some has specualted that there may be a second pier being built so the island can accommodate two ships at a time instead of just one. We’ll just have to wait and see over the next few days what will be revealed once the island reopens to guests.
Before I get into it, this cruise is not part of any casino offer and I have not been provided with free accommodations or discounts beyond what MSC’s loyalty program provides for Diamond members. Traveling as a solo, I paid the single rate which, depending on the cruise, can be as high as 200%. I took advantage of the “Fantastica” package which allowed me to choose my stateroom location and I purchased the Easy Plus beverage package and the Wifi package.
So let’s go!
Embarking MSC Seascape in Miami
Those that follow me know that I’d rather have my toenails ripped out than sail out of PortMiami. The port itself is just not built to handle the number of ships and passengers that pass through it. 20 years ago when ships carried 2,000 passengers each, yes. Today, when ships carry over 6,000 passengers each, the port is simply a mess.
My boarding time was schedule for 12:00pm, so I left my home in Delray Beach, FL at 11:00am and I was shocked, surprised, and dismayed that the traffic on I-95 was nothing like I anticipated it to be. Usually traffic backs up before the exit for PortMiami as two lanes converge to one and you’re dumped into a construction zone. A few weeks ago, we sat in this mess for about 30 minutes, today it was only about 10.
Instead of dropping of my luggage and then finding a parking spot, I decided to go directly to the parking garage at Terminal C. After parking, I dropped the bags off with a porter who, greeted me by saying, “For a tip, I’ll take your bag and make sure it gets to the ship.” Now, I’m not sure if that greeting is due to the number of foreign passengers who don’t know they have to tip porters, or what, but that’s the first time that has ever happened to me. Of course, I always tip the porters $5 per bag.
I then proceeded to the terminal. Going to stop right there for a moment. The terminal currently used by MSC is a generic port-owned terminal. As I mentioned earlier, they will be moving into their own, ultra-modern terminal next year at this time. In the meantime, this particular terminal is reminiscent of some government institution from the early 90s. You enter a very small security area where you show your ID and head through the metal detectors before going into general boarding. There was a bit of a line at security, but absolutely NO organization by port staff. While there were two screening lines, nobody was providing any direction as to where to go. Every now and then one of the x-ray machine operators would yell, “THERE’S TWO LINES PLEASE USE THEM” but there was no signage or people directing you to go.
Once you pass security, it’s on to check in. For Diamond status passengers like myself and Yacht Club folks there are separate lines that offer expedited service. Once in the Diamond line, I was immediately taken to the check in desk, had my photo taken, and was checked in. It’s important to note that during the check-in process pre-cruise, you submit a photo of yourself. This photo is not used at all, as they take another photo upon arrival.
From there, it’s right to the ship!
Once on board, crew members are lined up cheering your arrival as you make your grand entrance into the ships multi-story atrium which is simply stunning!
As soon as you’re on the ship, you proceed to your stateroom to get your room card which is hanging on your door handle. You are also allowed to drop off any hand luggage you brought. However, your room is not ready for you to hang out in until 2pm. This is a much nicer way to do things and one that cruise lines like Carnival don’t do. Allowing people to quickly drop off their bags and head out makes for a much better experience. You don’t have people laying on the ground in elevator lobbies waiting for rooms to be available and you also don’t have people carrying luggage with them all over the ship until the all-clear is given.
MSC Seascape Muster Drill
MSC was one of the first cruise lines to go with electronic muster and have been doing it even before COVID. It has gone through several different versions over the course of time and I feel the process I experienced today is the best yet. Once you have your stateroom key, you watch a short video in your stateroom, dial 881 on your stateroom phone which confirms you watched it, then take your key to your muster station to have to have it scanned.
That’s it!
If you don’t do it, the crew will find a way to track you down… as I saw this morning as I wrote this! A whole group skipped and the found them at the Sky Bar this morning and scheduled a time for them to go and attend a safety briefing.
MSC Seascape Balcony Stateroom 10107
For this cruise, I’m staying in a balcony stateroom 10107 which is located on Deck 10. The room has two twin beds that can be converted to a king, a pull out sofa, fully-stocked mini bar, writing/make-up desk, wardrobe and shelf space for storage, large flat-screen TV, and of course a balcony.
Lights and climate control are controlled by your stateroom key being in the slot next to the door. Now, unlike other cruise ships that use this system,a regular credit card, driver’s license, etc will NOT activate the lights. It has to be your stateroom key as it uses the RFID chip to activate. This system also alerts your stateroom attendant via a small light panel in the hallway whether you’re in your stateroom, whether you have pressed the “Do Not Disturb” button, or have pressed the “Cabin Service” button to request the room to be made up. All these buttons are located just inside the door.
I forgot to turn my DND light off before I went for dinner last night, so lesson learned!
The room itself is laid out very well, with this particular stateroom having the bed near the balcony doors. A very large mirror is opposite the bed so you can watch yourself… well, yeah. The TV is in a very awkward spot making it perfect for watching from the couch, but not the bed.
When it comes to power and USB ports, there is only one USB port by the bed, there are two more located on the desk along with two US and two European power outlets. That’s it. As one of their newest “Smart Ships,” I would have expected some more USB ports. It’s also important to note that these outlets POWER DOWN when you leave your room, as they are also controlled by the key card. So don’t expect devices to charge once you leave your room.
For closet space, there is a large wardrobe and shelves and drawers. For two people this may be adequate, but if you’re trying to use this room for 3 or 4 people, you’re going to find yourself struggling for enough storage space.
Now, onto the bathroom. Holy cow it’s small! Shockingly small. Now you may be thinking, “it’s just a bathroom,” but I’m being honest here when I say the cheapest interior stateroom on one of Carnival’s newest Excel-class ships has a bathroom nearly twice the size as this! The sink area is tiny and offers very little in the way of storage.
When you’re sitting on the toilet, your right knee is literally pressed against the sink cabinet forcing you to sit sideways. If you’re 6-foot or taller, good luck with that! The shower is tiny as well. Larger individuals wil have to get creative in the shower. If I stand up my shoulders are just a few inches away from the walls on each side. Now, I have had SMALLER showers on a few ships, but they were older ones. I wasn’t expecting this shower to be so small on a new ship. Water pressure wasn’t the best, but it did the job.
Now, here’s two things you WON’T find in the bathroom on an MSC cruise ship, the first is tissues. While it’s a minor thing, MSC and some other lines have stopped providing tissues in the bathrooms. In fact, there isn’t even a dispenser for them in this bathroom. Other cruise lines who have done away with tissues, have put a “plug” in where the dispenser was. The biggest thing you won’t find in an MSC bathroom is washcloths. Yes, washclothes. Since this is still an Italian line, catering to Europeans, washloths aren’t used in Italy. However, if you ask… you can get a box of tissues, washcloths and bar soap should you not want to use the liquid soap at the sink or in the shower.
MSC Seascape Stateroom 10107 Full Tour Video
Exploring MSC Seascape
Since I had time to kill before the sail away from Miami, I decided to do some exploring around the ship. It’s hard to put into words just how beautiful this ship is. Stunning polished chrome that shines from the sun that seems to come from everywhere, an amazing multi-store atrium with a large bar at the ground floor, towering video screens, a stage for live entertainment, and beautiful sculptures and artwork are everwhere.
There are several different pools from the Jungle-themed pool and water park for the kids complete with a slide, to an adults-0nly pool, an infinity pool, and more! I haven’t yet found them all, but will continue on with the quest.
When it comes to bars and lounges, there’s more than 20! Including a Venchi chocolate bar that offers up delicious chocolate made right here on the ship along with chocolate themed alcoholic and non-alcoholic chocolates. I partook in a few of them which came with some chocolate samples.
MSC Seascape Sail Away from Miami
There were several ships in port today, along with the MSC Seascape, we were joined by two Carnival, one Celebrity, one Virgin Voyages, and the new behometh from Royal Caribbean – Icon of the Seas.
Carnival Sunrise was the first to leave around 4pm, followed by Celebrity Summit, and then we began our departure about 15 minutes early, at 4:45pm.
MSC Seascape Evening Entertainment
When it comes to entertainment, there’s no shortage of it! Along with live music in the ship’s atrium, many of the lounges also featured music, and the schedule was packed with various forms of entertainment throughout the evening from the production show to a silent disco, to different DJs and more.
Before heading out for dinner, I hit up the production show, IMAGINOCEAN, which was billed as an “ocean-themed production complete with aerial and flying acts, aquatic animal puppetry, vocalists, and dancers outfitted in beautiful couture costumes inspired by the sea.” Presented in the ship’s main theatre, the show lasted for 35 minutes and, like most all cruise ship entertainment these days, was augmented by towering video screens which are used as the background, complimented by canned music, a male and female vocalist, and about a half dozen dancers.
If you’ve ever been to Walt Disney World in Orlando, and saw the Finding Nemo show at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, you’ll quickly start drawing comparisons. Not on production quality, as this wasn’t anything to write home about, but the theming and puppetry. I kept waiting for Nemo to make an appearance.
Overall, it wasn’t a bad show, but shows that MSC is continuing to improve upon its offerings. Going back a decade ago, its shows were very, very Italian and included an opera show and very low budget production shows. It’s nice to see things are improving!
Butcher’s Cut Dinner on MSC Seascape
For dinner, I decided to visit one of the ship’s speciality restaurants, Butcher’s Cut which is their signature steakhouse. Speciality dining on MSC is much different than other lines. You can dine at them and pay ala carte pricing which is in line with what you would pay at a restaurant on land back home. There is no discount and you pay full price. However, if you want to experience Butcher’s Cut, the ship’s seafood restaurant Ocean Cay, the Mexican restaurant Hola, or the teppenyaki and sushi restaurant Kaito, you can buy “Dining Experience” packages where you pay a set price to order from a special dining experience menu.
These can be purchased pre-cruise, or on the ship. There’s no advantage to buying them early as there is no discount, and the crew will be hard-selling these on the first day of the cruise. I opted to purchase the Duo Dining package, for $99, which gave me one dinner at Butcher’s Cut and one dinner at Kaito Teppenyaki. Since I’m not a seafood fan, the other packages that include the Ocean Cay restaurant were not of interest. Also, since the price of Hola!, the Mexican restaurant, is just $17.99 for all-you-can eat, it’s not worth paying for a package including that. I’ll have more on dining packages later during the week!
Butcher’s Cut Dining Experience Menu allowed for me to choose an appetizer, main, side, and dessert from set selections. You can also order additional items are full menu prices, or if you wanted to upgrade your main entree, you can do so at 50% off the menu price. You can also order froom the Dining Experience menu without the package for $59.
I started out with the shrimp cocktail, which consisted of four large shrimp, on ice, served with jalapenos, louie and cocktail sauce.
I also wanted a chopped salad, which I paid $14 extra for and was nothing exciting and frankly overpriced for this kind of salad.
For my main entree, I went with the New York Sirloin, cooked medium rare. The steak was seasoned well, presented with a selection of sauces, and was cooked perfectly. A great choice!
I also went with Brussels Sprouts and paid an additional $4 for a baked potato.
For dessert, one of the most popular items is the Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie which as been on the steakhouse dessert menu ever since I took that first cruise on MSC Divina. The cookie is served warm with a scoop of vanilla gelato on top.
Simply delicious and packed with about 3,500 calories, but who’s counting?
Butcher’s Cut Menu on MSC Seascape
Main Dining Room Menu MSC Seascape Day 1
For those curious as to what was being served in the Main Dining Room, here’s a peek of the Day 1 menu.
Day 1 Wrap Up
After dinner, I wandered around the ship for a while, settling for a cigar on one of the ship’s many expansive open decks. For smokers, there are plenty of spots to light up – another European thing. Unlike Divina, Seascape does not have a cigar lounge… boo!
After enjoying my cigar, I headed back to my stateroom, enjoyed some quiet time on my balcony before heading off to bed.
Tomorrow is a sea day as we head towards our first port-of-call, Falmouth in Jamaica! In anticipation of our arrival, at midnight we are setting the clocks back one hour.
Thanks for following along!