Need feedback on MSC Lirica

[countrymoon]

Hi all
Have not been on in a while. I need feedback on the MSC Lirica.
Iam going to be cruising on her December 3 - 13, 2008. I have always cruised on Royal Caribbean in the past. There website site is not that good. This cruise is a gift and I know I should be happy that it was given to me. I am just a little leary about MSC, because I have never heard of them. I did see on the website that after 6 pm no jeans, shorts
etc. Is this true? I really don't want to be in formal attire every night. RCCL has always been pretty casual and laid back. Any info from fellow cruisers would be appreciated.

[norahe]

I took an MSC cruise on the Musica in April. I had my 17 y.o. with me and I had him change for dinner. However, I noticed in the dining room that there were many teenagers and others that were in shorts. I usually wore capris to dinner. Most of the older people tended to dress up especially on formal nights. Usually on a 7 day cruise, you have two formal nights. Even on the formal nights, you might see dress pants and a dress shirt with a tie or sometimes a tuxedo.

I think overall you will find that it is a very relaxed cruise.

[countrymoon]

Hello Norahe,
Was beginning to think that I would not get any feedback. Thank You.
I am going with 2 more women, we are going to be in a cabin with a window. What kind of cabin did you have.
We have put ourselves on an upgrade list upon boarding
if they have something available. I have read other posts but I would like to hear from you about the Food,
cabins, casino, entertainment and the ports. What about the crew are they as rude as I read in some of the other posts?
Please get back to me.

[penny3333]

Hi countrymoon, if you'll change your signature to the "bb" code, it will work. I think often people mistake the foreign crews of Costa and MSC for being rude, when they are not. They are use to dealing with an international group and do not cater to passengers like we are used to from our mainstream lines in the states. I have had some of the best crews on board Costa ever. It's just different, not rude. I find a smile and a please goes a long way when most staff are use to being yelled at by passengers. I had one lady on Costa who was almost in tears from the man in front of me visibly sigh in relief when I smiled and said thank you. The servers in the dining room were so much fun on Costa. It will be a different experience, so please don't go comparing it to Royal. If you'll go with an open mind and heart, I think you'll be very pleased. Best wishes and have a fantastic time!

[countrymoon]

Thank you, I will keep that in mind.
I think a lot of negative things have been posted about MSC and it was just getting to me.