A Safety & Security Incidence on MSC Seascape

This was not how we expected our first MSC experience to end

MSC has exploded in awareness and popularity over the last couple of years, as their parent company,Mediterranean Shipping Company, a multinational shipping company, has decided to grow their already impressive fleet of Europe-focused cruise ships to encompass the fortunes available in the North America market. But they have also gained a reputation for sub-par performance when it comes to hospitality - complaints about food quality, guest services, activities and show performances.

Still, we decided to book a 7nt cruise on MSC Seascape, with two objectives: 1/ we wanted a cruise with few ports and a lot of sea days - a transatlantic cruise in 2027 is on our wish list; we wanted to see how much we would enjoy having time to just relax aboard without many ports and excurisions, and 2/ experience MSC for ourselves, so that we could report back to our friends and followers. With very well-priced cruises available, having another option in the near-luxury cruise category would be welcome.

While we work on a more complete review of our cruise, we felt it was important to share a very disturbing situation that happened on our last evening, less that 24hrs before arriving back in Miami. It is important to note that we did allow MSC a week to respond, as we were promised they would. With the lack of effort they’ve shown in reaching out to us, we felt compelled to proceed with sharing our story as both informative and a cautionary tale for others consider a cruise on MSC.

Settiing the Scene

On the last evening of our cruise, Stephanie and I were dutifully repacking our luggage in preparation for disembarkation the following day. We were instructed to have our luggage outside our cabin by 10pm and so, as you can imagine, our room was awash with clothes, jewelry, and personal items across the bed, sofa and tables as we worked out the logistics of getting everything back into its place in our luggage. Mid-process, we left our cabin at 7pm for our scheduled dinner at the Green Wave, our assigned Main Dining Room and did so with everything left as-is. While some may question our decision in doing this, do know that there was no reason to anticipate anyone coming into our room at that time of night - with no more ports or sea days, and no turn-down service offered, access to our room was (in our view) not forthcoming.

A Disgusting Surprise

We returned to our room around 8:45pm, and resumed our packing. At some point, I noticed a glass on the vanity table that had some type of molded produce in it. I pointed this out to Stephanie, who had also noticed it and was about to ask me if I knew where it came from. Upon closer inspection, we learned that it was molded chocolate strawberries!

From its position squarely positioned on the vanity, there was no possibility either of us would have missed seeing this at any point throughout the week. And, with our using every conceivable surface, shelf and drawer during our stay, it was not possible that we would have missed it. At this point, we were both concerned with figuring out how this arrived in our room. We looked around to see if there was any other indication of our room being entered by our attendant - any bulletins, replenishing of supplies, etc., but there was none. We also did a cursory inspection of our belongings, and it didn’t appear that anything was disturbed or missing. Still, we were uncomfortable (Stephanie very much) with the thought of our cabin being entered for no legitimate purpose, and this disgusting and potentially harmful (I have asthma and Stephanie was recovered from a recent illness) intrusion being left.

Guest Services is of No Service (First Attempt)

Around 9:45p, we completed our packing, setting our luggage outside our room. Carefully holding the offending glass, we went down to Guest Services to get to the bottom of what happened. While it appears that the majority of the staff can speak and understand English, comprehension can sometimes be a challenging effort. In our case, it took almost 10 minutes to clarify to the Guest Services host we were assigned that 1/ we had had no room service, 2/ this was not something we had brought to our room and forgotten, and 3/ we were very disturbed by the prospect of our room being entered with no purpose.

Once the Guest Services host seemed to understand our situation, they advised us that 1/ they were not in a position to do anything about it, and 2/ the staff that would have those answers were off for the evening, meaning we likely would not have any communication or resolution before tomorrow. When I explained that we were disembarking at 8am, and did not want this to go unresolved, they made a phone call and arranged to have a more senior person come over to speak with us.

Guest Services Lacks Accountability (Second Attempt)

After about 10 minutes, a person by the name of “Gungham”(sp) whose name tag suggested he was an Assistant Hotel Services, arrived to speak with us. We spent another 5 minutes explaining this situation to him, answering similar questions before he seemed to understand what had occurred. For the first time, we had someone who seemed genuinely concerned and mutually disgusted by what he saw. I made it clear what we were asking for:

1/ Confirmation that someone did enter our cabin between 7pm and 8:45pm, which should be reflected in their logs, and who that person was (at least their title/position).

2/ An explanation as to why they entered our cabin, for what purpose. Again - there was no service performed, this being the last evening of the cruise. Stephanie was highly agitated by this.

3/ How it came about that this glass of molded chocolate strawberries arrived in our room and, assuming this was an accident, what process and policy lapsed caused this to happen.

4/ An apology. As a Diamond status cruise guest it is unconscionable that there was not more diligence in assuring we would have a great first experience. But more on that in our deep-dive review.

This person again stated that everyone that could have conceivably been involved was off the clock by now, but that he would at least try to get access to the logs that evening to confirm the room entry. I confided to him that my concern was that they would “slow roll” our legitimate concern until after disembarkation, and then summarily brush us off. He shook my hand, looked me in the eye, and assured me that that would not be the case. He suggested that I come back in a few hours for an update.

Guest Services No Show (Third Attempt)

MSC Seascape affords its guests a multitude of places to both congregate and relax, and so we spent the next couple of hours relaxing while we listened to a band play in front of the Seascape bar. A bit after midnight, we ventured back over to Guest Services, and went through the now-tiring process of asking the Host to read through the notes before asking us all the same questions again. However, instead of an update, we were informed after they apparently made a call to the gentlemen we spoke to earlier, that there was nothing they could tell us at this time, and it was suggested we come back at 7am the next morning!

Guest Services Made Fools Out Of Us (Fourth Attempt)

Rather than enjoying a coffee and breakfast, I was with Guest Services at 6:58am the next morning. Again, I had to recount everything I’ve shared with you to yet another Host, who then spent another 5 minutes reading the notes in the system, going to the back office, and making phone calls. Finally, I was told that a senior person would be coming out to speak with me.

The woman who came out presented herself as a Hospitality Services Mgr., and profusely apologized for what happened. Hand-to-heart, she feigned empathy for our situation and the lateness of the time (our disembarking was scheduled for 8:05a). Shaking my hand, she assured me that all of my questions would be answered, confirming that she had my contact information. Wary of her promise, but with nothing more I could do, I left to meet with Stephanie and head to our staging point in the Loft Cafe for Diamond, Blue Diamond, and Yacht Club guests.

MSC Ghosted Us

At the time of this writing, we have yet to hear anything from MSC. We did receive a survey request, which I used the opportunity to describe this situation in great detail and included our contact information. Still, no response.

I feel badly that this is something we’ve had to write, as the majority of our travel experiences are great. And, our past cruises have been wonderful. To be clear: MSC Seascape is a beautiful ship, and the impression we were left with is that the line staff genuinely loves the ship, each other, and their guests. But there clearly is a lack of accountability at the people management level, and no ability at all at the line staff level to accomplish anything other than their assigned task.

Most disturbing is the fact that no one seemed to take seriously the fact that our room was entered for no apparent reason, and a disgusting and potentially harmful food product was (inadvertently?) left behind. I hazard to guess that, had we found anything amiss, we would have been left with no recourse. And that is why we are raising alarm and awareness that MSC has a serious issue with their ability to provide a safe and secure experience for their guests.

Should we hear anything of substance back from MSC, we will be sure to update our post as well as the content we intend to duplicate across all of our social media channels.