Looking for an activity-packed resort vacation in the Caribbean that won’t break your budget?
We have a new top pick for you: a cruise on MSC World America.
The massive, Miami-based vessel, which TPG just named the best new cruise ship of the year, is — in our opinion, at least — the new perfect choice for a vacationer looking for a megaresort experience in the Caribbean that is as affordable as it is a blast.
Rising 22 decks high and measuring 216,638 gross tons, MSC World America is a cruise ship built on a scale until now only seen in the Caribbean with Royal Caribbean’s biggest Icon Class and Oasis Class ships. And that means that, like those vessels, it’s loaded with more family-friendly deck-top amusements, restaurants, bars, entertainment venues and cabin types than you could imagine.
Related: The 11 best new cruise ships
But in the “what you get versus what you pay” calculus that is front of mind for so many of our “maximize your travel”-focused readers, MSC World America has a notable edge in our book — not just as compared to other megaships in the Caribbean, but as compared to land-based megaresorts, too.
Here is a closer look at the reasons we just named MSC World America the year’s best new cruise ship.
It’s got the deck-top thrills
Like Royal Caribbean’s biggest ships, MSC World America is loaded with so many deck-top thrills that you’ll never run out of things to do — something I’ve seen for myself during two sailings over the past year.
The hub for the most exciting offerings is The Harbour, a family-friendly outdoor play zone toward the back of the ship that offers fun for cruisers of all ages — even older adults like me. It is, for starters, home to Cliffhanger, the first overwater swing ride at sea. Watching it run from a distance, it doesn’t look all that scary. But as both I and several of my colleagues have experienced firsthand during sailings, it’s a surprising blast that packs an adrenaline punch.
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The Harbour also is home to Adventure Trail — a two-level aerial ropes course strung with all sorts of rope bridges, planks, steps and beams. Suspended like a spider’s web high above the deck, it offers lots of palm-sweating, knee-knocking fun for those who dare to traverse its many features — something that is more challenging than it looks at first. If, like me, you have a little fear of heights, think twice before giving it a try.
Other thrills in this area include the scream-inducing Jaw Drop, an 11-deck-high spiraling dry slide that is one of the longest at sea (I’d tell you what it’s like, if only I had the bravery to try it). Plus, families with smaller kids will find their own scaled-down play areas, including The Light House Playground, which features a climb-through-it replica of the lighthouse at Ocean Cay, MSC Cruises’ private island in the Bahamas.
Rounding out The Harbour is a collection of four massive waterslides known as The Harbour Aquapark. One of them features a 90-degree vertical drop that is sheer terror, while a second one is designed for riding with a virtual reality headset over your eyes — something that makes for oodles of fun.
The Harbour itself is just one element of a bigger, action-packed area called Family Aventura that stretches into the interior areas of two decks. In addition to everything mentioned above, it houses a bumper car pavilion (that also serves as a roller skating rink and basketball court), a Formula One simulator, a Lego playroom, arcade games and a collection of kids clubs for different ages known as Doremiland.
It’s got the inside fun
If you think there’s a lot to keep you busy on the top deck of MSC World America, wait until you head indoors.
At the core of the ship’s interior is a sprawling, three-deck-high central promenade (World Galleria, it’s called) that’s loaded with more restaurants, bars, shops and entertainment than you’ll find at the center of almost any other vessel — all topped with a stunning 300-foot-plus LED sky screen with ever-changing displays.
The area’s dining options, in particular, are a standout feature. They include an extra-charge steakhouse, sushi bar, teppanyaki restaurant and Mexican cantina (Butcher’s Cut Steakhouse, Kaito Sushi, Kaito Teppanyaki and Hola! Tacos & Cantina, to be specific). I’ve tried them all and loved them. For a mass-market ship, they serve up quality cuisine at flat-rate prices ranging from around $25 to $60 per person. But perhaps my favorite eatery in this area is what’s billed as the only Eataly restaurant at sea, serving up high-end Italian cuisine, including pasta made fresh on the ship.
World Galleria also is home to the ship’s nightclub, Luna Park, which gets hopping late at night, and a multipurpose venue called The Loft, which rotates among sometimes hilarious karaoke sessions, lively dueling piano shows and comedy shows. World Galleria also is the gateway to the vessel’s massive World Theatre, where crowd-pleasing shows include “Dirty Dancing: The Celebration,” the acrobatics-infused “Odyssey” and the illusion-focused “Momentous.”
But perhaps our favorite feature of the World Galleria is its world-class array of bars and lounges, including the craft-cocktail-serving Elixir Mixology Bar (don’t miss the Smokey Bacon Old Fashioned), Fizz Champagne Bar and The Gin Project — the latter serving more than 70 craft gins. There’s also a classic British-style pub, complete with live music nightly.
The bottom line is you can spend many nights carousing around the World Galleria without exhausting all the options. And even if you do hit them all, you’ll still be missing more venues located just beyond the World Galleria at the open-to-the-air World Promenade (home to, among other things, the first Greek restaurant on a mass-market cruise ship and a sprawling sports bar where you can watch the biggest games from back home live).
In all, MSC World America has a whopping 13 restaurants and 20 bars — no shortage for a seven-night trip.
It’s got cabins for every budget
As mentioned above, MSC World America is an appealing choice for travelers on a budget. It offers a lot of relatively small, inexpensive rooms that can cost as little as $600 to book. But those aren’t the only accommodations you’ll find on the ship.
Like many MSC Cruises ships, MSC World America has an impressive range of bigger, pricier rooms, too, including dozens of rooms that are part of a private, keycard-gated “ship-within-a-ship” luxury area called the MSC Yacht Club.
Located at the front of the ship, the MSC Yacht Club on MSC World America is the largest and swankiest of such enclaves across the line’s fleet, featuring a sprawling two-level sundeck with a bar and grill and private cabanas, a private indoor lounge that is stunning in its size, and an exclusive restaurant.
Having stayed in it myself, I can tell you that it really does have the feel of a luxury ship planted on top of a mass-market megaship. If you like to have access to the wider array of entertainment and dining venues that big ships have without giving up the luxury of a higher-end room and private dining and an uncrowded pool area just for you, it’s a great choice.
One of the great things about the MSC Yacht Club on MSC World America is that its suites come in all sizes and types. Some are about 50% bigger than the typical balcony cabin on the ships. Others are truly massive, including an Owner’s Suite that has a separate bedroom and living/dining room, plus an expansive balcony with a private hot tub and outdoor dining table.
You’ll pay more for this — perhaps three or four times as much — but for those with the budget, the MSC Yacht Club experience can be a worthwhile splurge as it also comes with such perks as butler and concierge service.
It’s a great value
Among the newest megaships, MSC World America isn’t alone in offering a wider-than-ever range of deck-top fun, restaurants, bars, entertainment and cabins. But it is unusual in offering such a wide range of choice at the prices it does. And that’s where we think MSC World America really stands out — and why we named it the best new cruise ship of the year.
Fares for week-long sailings on the ship sometimes start as low as $600 to $700 per person, roughly half the starting fares for Royal Caribbean’s newest ship in the Caribbean, Star of the Seas. And that’s no small thing.
As is typical, those fares apply to interior cabins during offseason sailings. But even bigger balcony cabins and suites on sailings during peak periods are priced at what we consider excellent value as compared to similar cabins and suites on other new megaships.
At the time of this guide’s publication, a Jan. 23, 2027, seven-night Eastern Caribbean sailing started at $749 per person for an interior cabin. But upgrading to a cabin with a window only cost $160 more, for a total of $909 per person. Balcony cabins on the same sailing started at $1,049 per person — another $140 more.
Even paying up for a suite on the same sailing wouldn’t set you back an outrageous amount. The least expensive suites for the Jan. 23, 2027, sailing started at $1,849 per person, while suites that were part of the exclusive MSC Yacht Club area started at $3,655 per person.
By comparison, a similar sailing on Star of the Seas started at $1,522 per person for an interior cabin — more than double the cost of MSC World America. Ocean-view and balcony cabins on the Star of the Seas sailing started at $1,681 and $1,845 per person, respectively. Suites started at $2,923.
Don’t get us wrong: We love Star of the Seas and the other big new Royal Caribbean ships. But when comparing value, particularly for budget-conscious travelers, MSC World America has the edge.
Bottom line
The new MSC World America offers a range of amusements, eateries, bars and entertainment that only a handful of other cruise vessels in the Caribbean can match, and for a great price.
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: thepointsguy.com
