MSC Cruises review: Excursion overcharge

Dear MSC Sinfonia Guest Relations Team,

I am writing to formally raise a concern regarding a missed shore excursion (JTR01) scheduled for April 13, 2026, in Santorini, for which we were denied reimbursement despite circumstances clearly stemming from miscommunication on board.

After booking the excursion and receiving our official excursion tickets, we were subsequently issued “priority tender” tickets. These priority tender tickets explicitly directed us to report to a different gathering location than what was indicated for the excursion. Based on this information, we reasonably followed the instructions provided on the priority tender tickets.

Importantly, as disabled passengers, we interpreted the priority tender tickets—which indicated a later reporting time—as an accommodation that would allow us to meet at a different time and then join or catch up with the excursion group, which was scheduled to meet approximately 45 minutes earlier. At no point were we informed—either verbally or in writing—that the priority tender tickets were intended solely for self-guided passengers and not for those with pre-booked excursions. There was no clarification that excursion participants were required to report to a separate meeting point regardless of holding priority tender tickets.

As a direct result of this conflicting and unclear guidance, we went to the wrong location at the later indicated time and missed our scheduled excursion. This was not due to negligence on our part, but rather a failure in communication and coordination by the cruise staff, compounded by the lack of clear accessibility guidance.

We brought this issue to the attention of onboard staff; however, our request for reimbursement for the unused excursion tickets was denied. We find this outcome disappointing and inconsistent with the level of service expected, particularly given the circumstances.

Given the above, we respectfully request a full refund for the missed excursion (JTR01). We believe this is a fair and reasonable resolution, as the situation arose from misleading and incomplete instructions provided by MSC personnel, with additional impact due to accessibility considerations.

We would appreciate your prompt review of this matter and look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Lin Zhang and Hong Luo
Classic - 8205635 / Cabin #1024
telephone: [protected]
Email: [protected]@health.ucdavis.edu

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