Donald BucoloHeidi and I have sailed on the world’s largest cruise ships from all the major cruise lines. Now, a new contender is sailing from Miami: MSC World America. We were invited on a three-day preview cruise to experience everything this newest ship in the MSC fleet has to offer. How does this latest megaship stack up to the competition? Well, we are back with our first impressions of MSC World America to help you decide if this ship is right for your next cruise vacation.
First Impressions of MSC World America: Here’s How It Compares to Other Mega-Ships
The Ship Layout
Upon first impression, any frequent cruiser with Royal Caribbean might immediately point out that MSC World America looks very similar to the Oasis Class. However, MSC Cruises has made significant strides to make this new World Class ship their own, ensuring distinction from similarly sized ships from the other major cruise lines.
World Promenade
On Royal Caribbean’s Oasis Class, cruisers will find the aft-located Boardwalk or Surfside neighborhood (Icon Class), an open-air space filled with restaurants, bars, shops, and activities. Similarly, on MSC World America, guests step outside onto the World Promenade. However, while there might be resemblance in design, the feel of these two spaces is very different.
The World Promenade is perhaps our favorite of the 7 districts spread across the 20+ decks of MSC World America. This space, featuring bars, lounges, dining options, and entertainment offerings, is more upscale and elegant.
It is also home to perhaps the best coffee shop at sea, the Coffee Emporium. In addition, the new All-Stars Sports Bar is located here. Boasting several televisions, as well as pub games and entertainment, it certainly parallels the Playmakers Sports Bar and Arcade on Royal Caribbean.
World Galleria
The ship’s World Galleria is a three-story indoor promenade. It is the heart of MSC World America, featuring numerous specialty restaurants, shops, bars, and entertainment spaces. While similar to the Royal Promenade, this area feels more grand given the three levels and the large LED ceiling.
Many of the entertainment venues are located here, including the new Loft comedy club and dueling pianos bar. There’s also the World Theater, home to signature production shows including the new Dirty Dancing in Concert.
Aft on Deck 7 is the Panorama Lounge. Again, borrowing design elements from Royal Caribbean’s Quantum Class, this two-deck space features immersive shows that combine live music, dancing, and aerialists, all enhanced by digital technology. Though, we would say that Two70 on Royal Caribbean is more dynamic.
Exploring the Rest of MSC World America
On the outdoor decks, MSC World America is divided into several distinct districts. The Zen Area is for adults, whereas Family Aventura offers family-friendly attractions; and there’s also the spacious Aqua Deck.
When it comes to the pool deck, MSC World America features one of the largest main pools that we’ve seen on a cruise ship. There’s also the family-friendly Botanic Garden pool with a retractable roof and the 18+ Zen pools. Located aft on Deck 18, this Zen Area is spacious and has not one but two pools. Aside from Carnival’s Serenity adult-only retreat, nothing else comes close. Though, we would give MSC World America the edge for its more desirable location.
Plus, MSC World America boasts the largest MSC Yacht Club in the fleet. This ship-within-a-ship concept features a private restaurant, indoor lounge, sundeck with a pool and whirlpool, and an alfresco grill serving breakfast and lunch.
Navigating the Ship
Navigating MSC World America requires some practice. Like Sun Princess, the largest ship in the Princess Cruises fleet, there are some dead ends on certain outdoor decks. But, after a couple of days onboard, we easily figured out how to get from the Jaw Drop aft on Deck 20 to the Botanic Garden Pool forward on Deck 18 without hitting any roadblocks.
Overall, when it comes to design and layout, MSC World America shines, offering a district concept that delivers dedicated spaces that appeal to various types of cruisers.
Casual Dining on MSC World America
We have not been shy about our less-than-favorable reviews of the casual dining on MSC cruise ships.
The good news is that MSC World America has made significant strides in casual dining, particularly in its grab-and-go options. We dare say it’s better than the quick-service meals you find on any Royal Caribbean or Norwegian Cruise Line ship.
However, it hasn’t yet reached the level found on Carnival’s largest ships, with complimentary venues like Guy’s Burger Joint, Shaq’s Big Chicken, or BlueIguana Cantina. For us, Carnival still offers the best quick service and casual dining of any cruise ship sailing from Florida. This is a big appeal to families who don’t want to deal with 2+ hour nightly main dining room dinners.
New Quick-Service Options
On MSC World America, the casual dining options begin with Luna Pizza & Burger, located on Deck 6 in the World Galleria. We couldn’t help but stop by to grab a slice or two of some of the best pizza at sea during our trip. Along with the namesake menu items, the venue boasts other quick-service fare. During our sailing, the options included crispy chicken tenders and fries, veggie burgers, hot dogs, mac and cheese, and takeaway desserts.
La Boca Grill serves French bread-style pizza and takeaway hot dogs, hamburgers, and fries on Deck 18 right next to the Mar Azul pool. We like the convenience of this setup, but it does mean that sometimes the food is not always the freshest. However, it is a nice alternative to trekking through the ship’s buffet in a wet bathing suit.
Our favorite addition to the casual dining lineup is the Harbour Bar and Bites, which offers an eclectic menu of grab-and-go options. The big standouts were the empanadas, which seemed to be a hit with many others we talked to during the sailing. The venue also serves other hot items like corn dogs or lighter fare like a chicken Caesar wrap.
Further, Promenade Bites on Deck 8 boasts complimentary popcorn, cotton candy, and other treats that are often an upcharge on other cruise lines. Honestly, you probably couldn’t make an entire meal out of these selections, but it’s a nice snack if you’re chilling in this district. Of course, there’s also up-charge fare available at the nearby All-Stars Sports Bar, Paxos on the Go window, and Sweet Temptations, so you never really have to leave this area if you don’t want to.
Other Complimentary Dining Options
For additional complimentary dining, MSC World America has two buffets. Both are open for breakfast and lunch, offering pretty standard buffet options. We are not huge fans of buffets, but the food on MSC World America seemed right on par with what you would expect from any contemporary cruise line.
Furthermore, to alleviate some of the pain points associated with megaships, MSC World America has five complimentary main dining rooms. These are staggered around the ship, with the main dining rooms offering a variety of fixed dining times or My Choice Dining options.
Onboard Activities
When sailing on a ship that is over 215K gross tons, you expect plenty to do. Thankfully, MSC World America delivers with family attractions that rival those on comparable ships, many of which are complimentary.
The Harbour
The Harbour Aqua Park is home to three waterslides. These include body racing slides, a tube slide, and a drop slide. The tube slide even offers a virtual reality experience, which puts you in the middle of a video game. It is honestly a lot of fun.
Then, there is the Sky Adventure Trail. This three-story ropes course presents a range of challenges suitable for all skill levels. It features two zip lines, including one that hangs over the ship’s side, and a small plank. It might be my favorite ropes course attraction at sea.
There is also the Jaw Drop, an 11-story dry slide. Yes, it is essentially the Ultimate Abyss on Royal Caribbean’s Oasis Class. But it is a thrilling, free attraction that offers plenty of speed.
For a modest upcharge, guests can swing out over the ship’s edge. The Cliffhanger is the first overwater swing ride at sea. Suspended over 200 feet above sea level, we admired the view of Ocean Cay during the approximately 90-second ride. At $5 per person per ride, one ride is probably enough as it wasn’t nearly as thrilling at the Robotron found on MSC Seascape.
Indoor Amusements
Inside on Deck 20 is the MSC SportPlex. This venue offers open play hours with activities such as basketball, soccer, and roller skating. At select times, bumper cars are available for $7 per person per ride. Don’t let the size of this court fool you. These cars pack a punch and are well worth the upcharge.
Other digital games and interactive attractions are available down a deck at the Hall of Games as well. Along with challenges like air hockey and video games, the venue is home to MSC Cruises’ signature F1 simulators. MSC World America features three simulators, all of which are capable of racing simultaneously. At $12 a ride, these thrilling attractions are worth the cover charge.
While some of these must-try activities on MSC World America do require a fee, guests can reduce these costs by purchasing a FunPass.
Nightlife and Entertainment
MSC Cruises is renowned for its vibrant parties and nightlife, and MSC World America is no exception. With three entertainment venues, signature performances are presented essentially every night.
In the main theater, exclusive shows like Dirty Dancing In Concert or Hall of Fame offer typical cruise revues. While these shows are unique to World America, they still don’t compare to the production quality of Royal Caribbean’s megaships. Honestly, we were expecting more from Dirty Dancing.
In fact, we enjoyed the unique entertainment in the Panorama Lounge more. Home to live theatrical concerts, we rocked out to Queen Symphonic during our cruise. The show was energetic and entertaining, featuring a quartet of singers, a dance troupe, and aerialists.
Additionally, immersive experiences are featured in Luna Park. Though, these parties were not well attended during our MSC World Europa sailing. Miami Nights on this sailing was similarly uneventful.
New to this ship is MSC’s first comedy club, the Loft. Along with comedy sets, the Loft is home to dueling pianos. These performances were standing-room-only on our cruise. We suspect this will be one of the more popular venues on the ship. We also suspect similar crowding issues like Dueling Pianos on Icon of the Seas or Syd Norman’s on NCL ships.
Other live music is also available at many of the bars and lounges. With pub-style guitar music in Masters of the Sea and a variety of musical acts at Dolce Vita Bar, MSC World America offers something for everyone.
Not to mention, the ship is home to many other well-themed bars with signature cocktail menus. Some of our favorites include the Elixir Mixology Bar, Fizz Champagne Bar, and the Gin Project.
In fact, the most challenging aspect was trying to fit everything in during our short time onboard MSC World America.
Specialty Restaurants
We are big fans of the specialty dining on MSC Cruises. MSC World America offers several of the line’s signature dining experiences. While we didn’t get to dine at many of them on this sailing, our previous experiences have been fantastic.
So, we have no doubt that steak lovers will find the Butcher’s Cut among one of the best steakhouses at sea. The newly updated pricing ensures guests can get an appetizer, entrée, two sides, and a dessert for only $55 a person, with surf and turf included.
At $24.99, the all-you-can-eat Mexican fare at Hola Tacos! will surely be a crowd pleaser.
Kaito Teppanyaki is also one of the best values at sea. This Japanese-style hibachi offers a six-course menu featuring sushi and other elevated items at a lower cost than similar restaurants on Royal Caribbean or Norwegian Cruise Line.
Additionally, MSC World America features two new specialty restaurants. Paxos is a Greek restaurant offering Mediterranean-style fare on the World Promenade. We tested a few small dishes during a sampling, and we were not overly impressed.
In the Terraces district on MSC World America, guests will find the first Eataly at sea. This upscale Italian restaurant offers a four-course dining experience, which includes a starter, a pasta dish, an entrée, and a dessert.
We were treated to a prix-fixe lunch at this venue. Sadly, the selections on the set menu were nothing we would have normally ordered nor nothing to write home about. To give the venue a fair assessment, we would need a second visit to sample the full menu and see how it truly stacks up to our favorite Italian restaurant at sea, Onda by Scarpetta, on Norwegian Cruise Line ships.
Staterooms
We stayed in a Deluxe Balcony Cabin, stateroom 9222. Located on Deck 9 starboard, this stateroom is aft of the midship elevators. At 183 sqft., the room is comparable to competitor balcony staterooms.
The color palette is rather subdued, with light wood and lots of brown. The only real color is provided by the artwork. The decor and furnishings in this cabin are rather basic and bland too.
Entering our stateroom, the bathroom was on the right. Following the bathroom, the closet was tucked around the corner near the sitting area. The desk was across from the couch, and the bed was closer to the balcony.
The bathroom was a standard size with a typical layout. There is adequate counter space, and the glass-doored shower made the bathroom feel more modern.
The closet was a tad on the small side, with a combo of shelves and drawers and a clothes bar with hangers. We do think it would be difficult to stow away a week’s-worth of clothing for the two of us in this setup.
The sofa is certainly large enough for two adults to sit comfortably, and it served as my workstation for the trip. The desk is adequately sized too with shelves for storage, the mini-fridge, and several outlets.
The comfortable king bed was on the aft wall, facing midship. There’s also a USB outlet on each side of the bed for charging devices at night, which is always appreciated.
At approximately 32 square feet, the balcony did feel a bit cramped. There was just enough room for the two chairs and a small table.
Still, when compared to accommodations on Royal Caribbean or Carnival, this room was on par in terms of size and functionality. We just wish it had a bit more character.
The Final Verdict on MSC World America
Departing from the largest cruise terminal in the world, MSC World America offers megaship enthusiasts another excellent option for cruising the Eastern and Western Caribbean. With a variety of dining options, well-themed bars and lounges with signature cocktail menus, and a plethora of onboard activities and entertainment, this ship rivals anything sailing out of Miami.
The World Promenade offers fantastic wake views and a variety of daytime and nighttime activities. The World Galleria is a massive indoor promenade with plenty of shops, bars, and restaurants to satisfy all types of travelers. Not to mention, there’s spaces just for adults, programs exclusively for kids and teens, and tons of family-friendly amenities.
Though, perhaps the best part of sailing on MSC World America is the price point. With competitive pricing, 7-night cruises can be up to half the cost of the competition.
Reviewing cruise fares for sailings 4-6 months out, cruisers can get an ocean view balcony, a drink package, and WiFi and still save over $500 compared to Royal Caribbean ships like Icon of the Seas or Wonder of the Seas (with no add-ons). Guests booking MSC World America can save over $1,000 on a comparable package offered on Norwegian Cruise Line’s newest ship, Norwegian Aqua.
So, if you’re a megaship fan, there is virtually no reason why you shouldn’t try MSC World America. Who knows, you might find your favorite new cruise ship or cruise line.
Comments
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