Just finished our week on Seaside Aurea experience. If you are looking for a good perks but still reasonable price than Aurea is a good choice. It gives you the chance to get away from the crowds in a few different ways. We loved the Top 19 area which is just for Aurea guests. Its calm, has a bar and hot tubs, and is a great escape area. Found it to be very relaxing and we spent alot of time in this area. This perk alone was worth alot to me as many areas of the boat are busy. Aurea also gets access to some areas in the spa. I checked them out but didn't end up using them. Preferred top 19.

Another good perk was being able to eat at anytime in the dining room. A 3 year old makes this a great perk.

Now the food is a big problem. My wife is celiac (no gluten) and MSC over sells this point as being very capable. My wife struggled to find options and only real safe area was the dining room. Most of the food staff has no idea what celiac is and its unacceptable. You shouldn't lose weight on a cruise and be very limited to what you can eat. The staff also would get frustrated with my wife because she would ask alot of questions to make sure she didn't get sick. Again she has a health issue and people getting mad at her is not good. I did make MSC aware ahead of time and we found a few staff that were very helpful but most need training and MSC should remove their section about celiac approved until they really have it together in most eating areas. Read more