Divina / Black Card / Drink Vouchers / Interior review

Just off the Divina for the 2nd time in as many years; had a really good time. We had a basic interior room with Bella level (lowest experience level). No drink package, no Wi-Fi. Did prepurchase 18 drink vouchers for $89. Enough free alcohol thrown our way that using up 18 vouchers for two of us was actually tough! Impressed enough to book onboard for Seaside in a Balcony at less than 1/2 price of Harmony of Seas for same week in 2018.

Itinerary was St. Maarten, San Juan, and Nassau.

Some comments are purely a matter of fact, some are opinions and observations, so you may feel differently, but hope they provide a good view of what you may expect or experience. More to come, but if you are easy to please and are not looking for Yacht Club accommodations you should still be happy and impressed.

Note: We are a young family of 3 so couples or empty-nesters, etc., may find a totally different experience.

Glad to hear you enjoyed your cruise. And you're right .............. you don't have to do Yacht Club to have a great experience.

Embarkation was super easy. Two years in a row. We arrived at port around 11:15AM, dropped luggage, parked car, we were through security in under 10 minutes and onboard by 11:50AM. We basically never really stopped moving. With Black Card you skip the queue and there are some dedicated check in desks. They are building a new terminal for Seaside, curious to see if that works better, but no complaints about the current terminal or process. Parking at Port Miami is $20 per night.

I do wish MSC would take a credit card at check in; having to stop at a kiosk onboard to register a credit card is an extra step that seems superfluous; no reason this could not be taken care of when checking in.

Great start to your review . I am anxious to read more . We sail on the Divina in about 2 months and I can not get enough of these reviews . Thanks for sharing !

I do wish MSC would take a credit card at check in; having to stop at a kiosk onboard to register a credit card is an extra step that seems superfluous; no reason this could not be taken care of when checking in.

I almost forgot to register my credit card a couple of times due to this system. However, embarkation times have speeded up since the change in the process.

Walking on to the ship there was a table to register kids of all ages for safety reasons; another 2 minutes here to do a quick form and get a bracelet and off we went.

Honestly did not remember what the procedure was regarding room readiness so we went to the cabin to drop our bag and met our room attendant. He invited us to leave anything we wanted in the room, but he was still finalizing the prep of the room so we left our single roll on and left again.

We had room 9266; this is an interior with accommodation for 4; two bunk beds in the ceiling (flush mounted so they take up no room space when put away). It is the last interior room of the hallway, adjacent to the public aft balconies. We could walk 20 feet and be at the large public balcony landings and staircases. We were also near the aft elevators that would put us at the aft of the buffet, or pop us out by the Garden Bar on 15. Or we could drop down to Deck 7 right at the entrance to the Black and White Lounge. A convenient, and quiet spot for us.

So what is it like to book the cheapest room you can get on the ship? Standard cruise ship interior room; we asked to have the table and chair removed for our childs crib and this was handled right away. The crib did not impede on getting through the room at all. Flat screen TV with interactive menus/check statement/messages. Desk had....you Royal Caribbean fans will be in shock.....a notepad and a pen(!!!) as well as hairdryer, sewing kit, a stocked mini-fridge. There were glasses, a tray, ice bucket, various bottles of water on the desk top. The desk has two drawers. There is also a padded stool that nests under the desk. Standard plug arrangement at the desk, no USB ports built in though.

4 doors for clothing storage - first one had the push button digital safe, and 5 or 6 sliding drawers, next closet had a bunch of shelves. Then two doors for hanging items with plenty of hangers for mine and my wife clothing. No problem storing 4 pieces of luggage and 2 backpacks. Ample for the 3 of us for 1 week.

Nightstands each had two drawers, as well as a lamp on each stand. There are two switches on the headboard to control room lighting (same as the switch by the main door). The master for the lights is controlled by inserting any standard credit card sized plastic card in a slot.

Note: If you do NOT have a plastic card in the slot you can not turn on the main lights or bathroom lights, however by the door is a low wattage "find your way" nightlight that only comes on without a card inserted; presumably for safety reasons. If you want total 100% darkness just insert a card and you can switch all lights off.

Thermostat was simple up/down digital button type.

Bathroom; the doors are clear/solid glass, two piece setup, with clever hinges and magnets set in a way that you push the doors in when not in use so they don't crowd the toilet area. 3 doors beneath sink for additional storage out of site, trash bin out of site, 3 mirrors, 3 shelves for toiletries, pump soap dispenser at sink, body wash and shampoo pump in shower. Shower head was adjustable for height, you could lift out the hose and use by hand. Limiter for shower pressure and temperature; press a button and you can get very hot water and high pressure, no worries.

There were 3 pool towels in the room (exchange on pool deck). 5 fullsize bathtowels. Always a fresh floormat towel, 4 more medium sized towels and 3 hand towels. Two hooks + clothesline in shower. Our room had 5 full size pillows and 2 throw pillows. Enormous mirror in lieu of padded headboard made room feel larger; also full length body mirror in room.

Not sure of exact room size but I'd say in the 140-150 sq foot range.

There was no signs of wear or tear on the room, the bedding, carpets, fixtures, cleanliness, etc. were all first rate and everything worked perfectly. No feeling whatsoever of getting less by spending less; just that spending more would have gotten more floorspace and nice views.

Garfield, the room attendant, did a fine job and greeted us in the hall when he saw us, but was not that fake "sugary" sweet that I find to be offputting on other lines. We didn't realize until late going that we didn't receive robes/slippers like we were supposed to with the Black Card, but we also did not really care either. Plenty of towel animals throughout, ice provided twice daily.

It was exactly the level and type of service they promise in the brochure; seamless and well done.

I almost forgot to register my credit card a couple of times due to this system. However, embarkation times have speeded up since the change in the process.

I didn't end up registering my card until the 3rd or 4th day. :eek:

The buffet was pretty busy when we went, it seemed to stay busy all week. In fact, it generally felt busier than it did on last years cruise.

Top tip: If you like cheese head for the Mediterranean Corner, Starboard Aft, on boarding day. They put out one of the nicest spreads of expensive cheeses you will see, and some of them never get put on the buffet again. You could probably eat back your cruise fare in hard parmesean on day one :') Gorgonzola, Brie, Gouda, Mozzarella balls, and more, made appearances throughout, always a nice selection of cold cuts, and salad bar was ample.

Not only did we see a fair amount of variety during lunches each day, but also noticed sometimes if they ran out of something they had entirely different dishes to replace them. So if you do see something you like don't take for granted it will reappear.

Quality, presentation, of the food remained just as good as the prior year on the ship, but there were some differences I will get to.

Last year at dinner time they kept one entire side of the buffet open and one entire side closed. The kids corner used to be open for dinner, but was not at all during this cruise. Now they seem to keep the forward 1/3 of the buffet open on both sides, and there are kid friendly choices, so maybe it just didn't make sense to keep the kids corner open (it is a very long buffet and kids corner is at the extreme back).

Breakfast the place was always mobbed. A couple of mornings I went before 8AM, and finding a table was easy, but go in there between 8AM-11AM and forget it, jam packed city. They serve breakfast right up until 12PM/NOON!! The way they cut over to the next meal is by breaking down and opening in sections, so the buffet never really closes at all. Lunch runs until 3; then afternoon snack, then a transition right into dinner....and late night snacks go until 2AM. They are constantly baking fresh items and pizza in plain sight, and they also have a fruit and vegetable section on display where you watch that being prepared fresh as well.

There was always a selection of at least 4 different juices from a machine at each meal, hot coffee, various hot teas, hot chocolate, hot and cold milk, real glass coffee mugs. They never stop cleaning, wiping, sweeping, clearing tables, replenishing. If you've been on Carnival...this is the opposite of Carnival.

We ate dinner twice in the buffet; choices and quality excellent, panoramic views all around, and it was way quieter both times than the main dining room.

There are some bottlenecks to the flow through the buffet though; maybe last years cruise simply wasn't as crowded, I did feel it this time, but not last year.

Overall though I rate this buffet an A-. The giant head shaped chocolate chip cookies have been replaced by much smaller ones late at night, but they also do a variety each night.

No one is going to starve on this ship. If you don't like the buffet food, the problem is likely you, because the variety and quality both surpass many other lines.

Princess is still ahead, in my opinion. Then NCL (large ship) and Divina are "close". Been too long since Celebrity cruise, so can't comment. Then Carnival. Then RCI; I consistently ding them on message boards for the stingy hours of operation and quality can be wildly inconsistent on same sailing. So I do think highly of MSC in this area.

Enjoying your review. Your honest assessment of your cruise and comparison with others provide a clear idea on what can be expected.

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Thanks so much for your review. I am booked in an interior on Seaside for next year, also Bella class. I am happy to read your experience, as it seems like it will be relevant to me. I see so many YC reviews and posts, that I was getting a bit fearful that anything less would be somehow inadequate. But I rarely have more than an inside cabin anyway, so I know I will be fine with the room. After 8 cruises on Carnival , I am liking so much about what I read about MSC, like ice bucket in the room among other things. Thanks again for your review.

Thanks for the review Maxwell and totally agree with you about the buffet especially during lunch, we recently went on Carnival and the difference in immense. Your room was169 sq ft.

Thanks for the review Maxwell and totally agree with you about the buffet especially during lunch, we recently went on Carnival and the difference in immense. Your room was169 sq ft.

Amazing the crib was totally unobtrusive in the interior yet was an impassable hazard on NCL Escape in a balcony room.

Funny side note regarding Carnival; how do you know when you meet someone on board (any cruise line) that they are a Carnival cruiser? They'll tell you soft serve ice cream is 24 hours on Carnival :')

Thanks for posting! We are counting the days until we leave for our cruise and appreciate hearing so many details!

Thank you for taking the time to share your experiences.

~Brian

My reviews don't really go in a day by day format; but tend to just hit certain topics. I'll mention something I saw or experienced day one and then just continue on that point how it played out during the cruise.

Muster Drill was pretty typical; on MSC you bring your lifejacket with you and about 78% of people seem incapable of picking the straps up from the ground. Still, the drill was over in about 15 minutes.

Announcements are made in 6 languages. So be prepared when you hear those chimes, because announcements are going to take a while.

After Muster we got ready for dinner. We had early seating in lower level of Black Crab. You are assigned one waiter and then there is a roaming assistant. The waitstaff work at a feverish pace. The tables are very close together.

Like most mainstream cruise line MDR's the whole experience is a bit chaotic.

Food presentation, quality, and taste, to me, was good to very good. We have a small toddler and he is good for 60-75 minutes so we don't push it by ordering dessert. We prefer to walk off dinner a bit and then head to the buffet for dessert later on anyways. We actually were able to get out in time to see the early show (7:15PM) a few times so this worked out great for us with the baby.

We ate in the MDR 3 times, the buffet 2 times, and used our Black Cards to go to Eataly Steakhouse 2 times (each Card holder gets a dinner for 2 in Eataly or Galaxy).

The first night of the cruise there is one show only for both seatings. We skipped this show. Due to delays with an incoming flight we sailed out late. Fine by me! This meant we were able to go to sailaway after dinner, and just as the sun dipped away the speakers started playing Bocelli as the ship moved off; when the music ended the captain hit the horn, everyone cheered, and we sailed off as Miami and South Beach lit up for the night. Quite a sight to see.

Let's talk some Booze topics / Black card perks / happy surprises.

The second night of the sailing (the first formal night) we decided we wanted to go to the steakhouse; but even calling and going there when the daily says a manager is available for booking was fruitless. At least the steakhouse had a menu on display. Finding one for Galaxy was much harder.

So we went to the wine and pizza bar with a bottle of champagne (each black card member receives a bottle of champagne). We arrived at the bar around 5:15PM (The steakhouse opens at 6PM; our MDR dinner time is also 6PM). We figured we'd sit and have a drink and maybe someone would appear shortly at the restaurant and we could see about reservations.

So we are sitting at a table and the waitress comes around with a tray of both alcohol and non-alcohol drinks. There was champagne, rum punch, vodka martinis, white wine, etc. So she offered us some. No one else was around really, so she came back. Many times. By the 3rd round she asked what drinks we would like. We asked was this a black card thing? No, just that this bar offers free cocktails on the first formal night. Not advertised anywhere. Go to the Wine and Pizza bar on Deck 7 the first formal night and they might give free drinks

We didn't even open the champagne that night.

Besides the two bottles of champagne and surprise free cocktails, we were invited to a meet and mingle (napped through, sorry, might have been some drinks there<?>), there was a black card member party with free drinks and the chocolate ships each person gets, then there was another welcome back party with free drinks, and finally an invitation for a free drink sent to the cabin. I had prepurchased 18 cocktail vouchers for $89, quite a bargain, but with all the free drinks I was having a hard time spending the coupons.

Bar service by the pool was "fair". Lots of bartenders working, but constantly busy like any pool bar. Other bars on the ship had much more prompt service and also gave out trays of snack mix and dishes of chips. The fruity caribbean mixed drinks you could not catch a buzz off 10 of them. No problem ordering straight liquor, wine, beer, etc though. Pretty much every mixed drink is under $8, so could use vouchers no issue. There is super premium liquor and some wines above that. We also used some of the coupons for specialty coffee (not the best value use for the drink tickets, but we aren't huge alcohol drinkers and by day 6 still had 10 vouchers to use, so...) and enjoyed each one.

There was always a drink of the day for 6.95. There was a family day where if an adult bought a drink the kids got free specialty ice cream.

more to come

Just a note about Bella interior cabins. Last year my husband and I booked a Bella interior cabin for two on deck nine, amidships on the starboard side. It was spacious.

This year we booked Bella inside cabin 10193. We have never had such a small cabin in our 40+ years of cruising.We were surprised as the cabin was basically in the same location as last year's cabin (port side and one deck up).

My husband and I spent the week sidling past each other in the very limited open floor area (no room for a table and chair as we had last year). The biggest joke was when we were showed two friends our cabin; the four of us could not stand together in the cabin. Two of us had to be on the bed.

And while we do not spend much time in our cabin, I do have to say the size of this one did have a negative impact on our enjoyment of the cruise.

Just a note about Bella interior cabins. Last year my husband and I booked a Bella interior cabin for two on deck nine, amidships on the starboard side. It was spacious.

 

This year we booked Bella inside cabin 10193. We have never had such a small cabin in our 40+ years of cruising.We were surprised as the cabin was basically in the same location as last year's cabin (port side and one deck up).

 

My husband and I spent the week sidling past each other in the very limited open floor area (no room for a table and chair as we had last year). The biggest joke was when we were showed two friends our cabin; the four of us could not stand together in the cabin. Two of us had to be on the bed.

 

And while we do not spend much time in our cabin, I do have to say the size of this one did have a negative impact on our enjoyment of the cruise.

I have seen some video reviews of a few very small interiors. Perhaps because we are booking with 3, the room must be able to fit 3 or 4 and the bunk bed rooms are not going to have the smaller footprint?

I really loved the proximity to the aft exterior balcony, and that the crib did not impede on a direct path through the room.

I only wish it had had a window, meaning I wish I had paid for an oceanview room. But those are on a lower deck and forward, beneath public areas and no access to those aft exterior balconies and staircases.

I get what you are saying though. On NCL Escape the balcony room is so poorly laid out that the very same exact standard pack and play portable crib was wedged between the desk and built in sofa. We had to climb the sofa to get to the bathroom, and I really disliked that it was wedged against solid objects; I stuffed towels in so our baby would not hit his head. Going to the bathroom in middle of night was like an obstacle course. So yes, I totally understand when a funky layout can make a cabin a detractor.

The only thing I wish our cabin had was USB ports by the night stands.

Captains Corner and "Free" Ships Tour:

While I think of it, the Captains Corners are always something I like to try to visit on a cruise. The typical setup I've encountered on other lines is the Captain and cruise director, maybe an engineer as well, will take a stage in an atrium or lounge and field questions for 30-60 minutes.

MSC did it differently and a way that I found I liked a lot. They hosted the Captains Corner in the La Luna Bar and set up 8 different tables; one would have photos of the ship in drydock, one had compass, sextant, some other navigational tools, another table had charts of our voyage, one was a log book station, one was a weather station with photos, etc. There were 6-8 officers plus the Captain just mingling around and you could just converse freely with any given officer near any table. They did hand out maps and spec sheets of the ship. No Cruise Director in site. Perfect then. Really enjoyable and I think people got to see more and get more out of these conversations than just a Q&A session.

There was also a "Free"** ship tour.

** - I missed the English session.

One day the Captain hosted in the main theater a slide show photo session of a behind the scenes ship tours. I have done walking tours behind the scenes of ships in the past, having lucked out and been invited to some gratis, but I'm not willing to pay $75-$150 per person for this. So the idea of a free show in the theater with the captain was appealing.

I did go to the Italian session, which was well attended, and just from the photos and being able to read most of the names of equipment I at least knew what I was seeing. And, hey, the cost of $0 was right as well. So while not as exciting as the walking tours, it is free, it doesn't take many hours, and if you have any mobility issues you can still attend.

Both events were nicely done and if you enjoy learning about the maritime and hotel functions of a cruise ship they are certainly worth your time. They were both held sea days and in the dailies, so just look out for them if that is your thing.

Thanks for this review as I am sailing on Divina 5/27 and found it very interesting.

May I ask how you ended up booking the specialty restaurants?

LMaxwell, thanks again for this informative review. Thanks for the info on the 18 drink package, and also the above info on the ship tour. I have never been able to this one on Carnival due to a mobility problem, so I am going to look forward to this on MSC, and so much more.

May I ask how you ended up booking the specialty restaurants?

"Clumsily"

The daily paper prints a time that restaurants can take bookings during the day, but no one ever was there in person, or answered the number.

For the first night at Eataly we just hung around until opening and they were able to accommodate us.

We never could speak to anyone at Galaxy, so we just kept trying back different times of day and eventually found a menu near the bar, looked and was not too interested. So we wanted to make our second visit at Eataly again. Same process with no one answering or available.

Finally went to GS and they told us to call; explained calling only works if people are there like the sheet says. So GS told us they would make the reservation. Which they did, for the wrong time. When we arrived (at opening) the restaurant would not accommodate us so we re-scheduled for another night. Despite waiting 10 minutes to see if the 6PM reservations arrived only a few tables had anyone and the manager told us it was policy not to fill the restaurant. I guess some tables are just for show, not for go.

And they don't know if you have a free black card meal or are trying to pay full price, so keeping these places a secret makes no sense.

For the record though, both times the food and service was good. It's a really nice perk because it is quiet and spacious compared to the MDR, and the steaks were great. I had the Porterhouse both times, others in our party had the filet and the whole lobster.

A similar meal for two would have cost us near $140 on Royal Caribbean. (Porterhouse and Lobster being upcharges on that line on top of base rate, and the base price of the restaurant is $49 per person). So a great perk at no charge on MSC, and we got to go twice for free. they never presented a bill or anything to sign.

They just need to get their act together with promoting and taking reservations for these places.