I recently returned from a 7-night cruise on MSC Seaside, an MSC cruise ship launched in 2018.
As a budget cruiser, I booked an interior cabin for my sailing, and I was curious to see what a stateroom on this relatively new ship would look like.
The total cost of an inside cabin for two adults, including taxes and fees, was $1518, or just $759 per person. I found this to be a fantastic price for a new cruise ship in the peak summer season, but what made it even better was MSC’s drink package and wifi promo.
For just $140 more per person, I was able to add MSC’s Easy Plus drink package and a 2-device internet package to the reservation, bringing the cost of the cabin to $900 per person.
I could not believe the value offered by this deal. A cruise fare, drink package, and wifi package on another cruise line could easily cost double the price of my MSC Seaside sailing.
Needless to say, I couldn’t wait to get onboard and start my cruise vacation.
Let’s take a look inside my small, cheap cabin on my MSC Seaside cruise.
On embarkation day my room was ready at 1:30PM. My cabin, room 10141, was located on deck 10, midship, making getting to and from anywhere else onboard a breeze.
When I entered my cabin for the first time, I was pleased to find it had modern furnishings and design. Although I found the pink color scheme a bit of an odd choice, it was still more modern than many other cruise cabins I’ve experienced in the past.
I wouldn’t say the cabin was spacious by any means, but it still offered enough space to walk around. When booking an inside cabin, I never expect much square footage, so my tiny MSC Seaside cabin was nothing out of the ordinary.
That being said, I was spoiled with my spacious interior cabin on my recent Princess cruise, so going back to a standard sized inside room took some getting used to.
Related: Take a tour of my $1,147 Alaska cruise cabin on the Royal Princess
My cabin had one king bed, and the bed could be turned into two twin beds upon request. I found the bed sufficiently comfortable during my stay, and I never had any issues sleeping at night.
When turning off the lights at night in an interior cabin, your room is pitch black. For me, this always leads to a wonderful night of sleep.
On embarkation day my stateroom attendant placed the ship’s daily program, along with a sheet of helpful tips and two beach towels, on the bed.
All guests must keep two beach towels at all times; if you do not have two towels in your room on disembarkation day, you’ll be charged $20 for each misplaced towel.
On each side of the bed was a nightstand with two shelves along with a nightlight and light switch.
I found it slightly inconvenient that there was only one USB outlet on one side of the bed. This meant only one passenger could charge their phone on the bedside.
However, I found the amount of charging outlets elsewhere in the cabin sufficient, so it was not a huge hassle in the long run.
At the edge of the bed was the cabin’s desk and vanity area. This space was perfect for getting ready before dinner or catching up on emails on my laptop.
I used the desk every day of my cruise, and my only complaint with it was that the desk chair had no back rest. It wasn’t very comfortable to sit at the desk for long periods of time, which made me more likely to do work on the bed or on the other chair in my cabin.
The desk had two North American-style outlets, two European-style outlets, and two USB outlets. As someone who travels with a large amount of electronics, I was happy with the amount of charging space in the cabin.
Old cruise ship cabins often only have one or two charging outlets in the entire room. Whenever I cruise on new ships like MSC Seaside, I am always grateful for the upgraded technology in the cabins.
Above the desk is a television, which could be swiveled around to face the bed, making it easy to watch movies either in bed or from the cabin’s chair.
Below the TV was a shelf, although the shelf was very narrow and not the most useful. I did not store anything there during the cruise. Instead, it was where I kept old daily program sheets and other documents delivered by my stateroom attendant.
Also on the desk was an ice bucket and two cups. While I did not use this service, passengers can have ice delivered directly to the cabin during the sailing.
Under the desk was a mini fridge stocked with drinks and snacks including liquor, beer, orange juice, soda, water, and nuts. Consuming any of these items will incur a charge.
You should ask your stateroom attendant to remove these items if you wish to store other items in your mini fridge, as they take up the majority of the space in the fridge.
The desk is also where the cabin’s telephone was located, and a hairdryer was placed in a drawer under the desk.
Across from the desk was a small chair. Although not the comfiest chair in the world, it worked well as another seating option in addition to the bed and desk chair.
Behind the chair was the cabin’s closet, which had four shelves and three drawers, along with a large space for hanging items.
The cabin’s safe was also located in the closet on one of the shelves. As a light packer, I found storage in the cabin to be adequate, but it lacked in storage options compared to other cruise cabins I’ve stayed in previously.
My only gripe with the closet was that you could not open both sides of the closet doors at one time, so I constantly had to slide the doors in one direction or another to grab items from the closet. I prefer when closet doors open outward so I can see everything in the closet at one time.
The last area of my small interior cabin on MSC Seaside was the bathroom. Like any cruise ship bathroom, you should never expect anything spacious or luxurious, but the bathroom had everything necessary.
In the shower was body wash and shampoo, and the sink had liquid hand soap.
Two shelves were near the sink as well, which were perfect for storing toiletries, makeup, and other bathroom items. I appreciated that there were toothbrush holders in the bathroom, too.
One aspect I enjoyed about my cabin were the buttons which indicated whether or not I wanted my stateroom serviced. If I wanted to sleep in, I could push the Do Not Disturb button near my cabin’s door. By doing so, a light would turn on outside my cabin indicating to my stateroom attendant not to enter.
If I needed my cabin serviced, on the other hand, the Make Up Room button would let my stateroom attendant know to service my cabin as soon as possible.
During my week onboard MSC Seaside, my small interior cabin became like a second home. Although not everything about the cabin was perfect, I enjoyed the modern decor and amenities during my stay, and I wouldn’t hesitate to book an inside room on an MSC ship in the future.
Sure, booking a balcony or suite would be preferred over the cheapest, smallest cabin on the ship, but the value could not be beat. At just $128 per day for my cabin, wifi, and drink package, I was blown away by the quality of the cabin and everything my cruise fare included.
Jenna DeLaurentis
Jenna DeLaurentis enjoys exploring new ports of call around the world on a cruise ship, learning about new cultures, discovering beautiful landscapes, and trying diverse cuisine. She loves to get active while at port, whether cycling through mountains in the Caribbean or scuba diving under the sea.
