Seasoned Cruisers New to MSC

Hello MSC Cruisers!

Need some honest feedback....great, the good, the bad and the ugly about MSC DIVINA.

Our background....we have just booked a cruise just for my dh and I in April 2017 in an interior room on deck 10 on the Divina. So excited to be without our children!

We have been on the following ships:

Carnival: Ecstacy, Miracle, Glory, Dream, Liberty, Freedom, Breeze (most of the ships more than once)

Royal Caribbean : Explorer, Adventure, Liberty and Freedom (some more than once)

We have done early or Anytime dining...never late dining. Our cabins have been either balconies or interior. We actually prefer interiors because we sleep well and can cruise more often. Usually we cruise with our two kids but not this time.

The reason I chose MSC Divina because I want to try a new cruise line and the ship looks GORGEOUS and of course the price helped. Plus the shows seem to receive rave reviews. We enjoy relaxing, the music and just being on the sea. We have never had a lousy cruise....maybe a few hiccups but nothing to totally ruin our cruise.

We enjoy food but know that it can be difficult to feed thousands of people at a time so we are pretty flexible.

Those of you whom are seasoned RC and Carnival cruisers and have cruised the DIVINA please give me your honest thoughts.... not looking to start a problem but would love honest feedback. Again, the ship looks gorgeous!!!

Thanks,

Nicole

Hello MSC Cruisers!

 

Need some honest feedback....great, the good, the bad and the ugly about MSC DIVINA.

 

Our background....we have just booked a cruise just for my dh and I in April 2017 in an interior room on deck 10 on the Divina. So excited to be without our children!

 

We have been on the following ships:

Carnival: Ecstacy, Miracle, Glory, Dream, Liberty, Freedom, Breeze (most of the ships more than once)

 

Royal Caribbean : Explorer, Adventure, Liberty and Freedom (some more than once)

 

We have done early or Anytime dining...never late dining. Our cabins have been either balconies or interior. We actually prefer interiors because we sleep well and can cruise more often. Usually we cruise with our two kids but not this time.

 

The reason I chose MSC Divina because I want to try a new cruise line and the ship looks GORGEOUS and of course the price helped. Plus the shows seem to receive rave reviews. We enjoy relaxing, the music and just being on the sea. We have never had a lousy cruise....maybe a few hiccups but nothing to totally ruin our cruise.

 

We enjoy food but know that it can be difficult to feed thousands of people at a time so we are pretty flexible.

 

 

Those of you whom are seasoned RC and Carnival cruisers and have cruised the DIVINA please give me your honest thoughts.... not looking to start a problem but would love honest feedback. Again, the ship looks gorgeous!!!

 

Thanks,

Nicole

I would suggest reading Homosassa's thread,,,it will give you a great perspective on some of the things MSC does differently than the mass cruise lines: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2343166

If you enjoy 2 hour dinners, shows and food that fall below that of rccl ncl and ccl.. This is the ship for you. Of course this is all a matter of opinion but I took my first and last msc cruise this month and this is after 26 cruises on other lines. The ship is beautiful. We received the best service from the sports bar and cigar lounge crew.

I would suggest reading Homosassa's thread,,,it will give you a great perspective on some of the things MSC does differently than the mass cruise lines: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2343166

Thanks so much. Just finished reading it and now I know we will enjoy trying this cruise line at least once!!!

If you enjoy 2 hour dinners, shows and food that fall below that of rccl ncl and ccl.. This is the ship for you. Of course this is all a matter of opinion but I took my first and last msc cruise this month and this is after 26 cruises on other lines. The ship is beautiful. We received the best service from the sports bar and cigar lounge crew.

Thanks so much about info concerning the time dinner in the main dining room takes. Now we know what to expect!:)

Thanks so much about info concerning the time dinner in the main dining room takes. Now we know what to expect!:)

Food is very subjective so only you can decide. We find the food on MSC to be better than CCL and NCL. The above person said that the best service he got was in the cigar lounge, that should tell you enough about the poster. Enjoy your cruise.

"2 hour dinners" YES, this is normal in the Mediterranean :)

I recently had a lady say to me "You English, always rush, rush, rush your food! Why don't you take your time to appreciate it? Relax and enjoy the time and talk to your family - it should be a social time not to just bolt and go!"

I guess most Americans are "bolt and go" too? :D

"2 hour dinners" YES, this is normal in the Mediterranean :)

 

I recently had a lady say to me "You English, always rush, rush, rush your food! Why don't you take your time to appreciate it? Relax and enjoy the time and talk to your family - it should be a social time not to just bolt and go!"

 

I guess most Americans are "bolt and go" too? :D

Probably more than not are bolt and go, as you say, but it does vary. We actually had a rule during holidays that you could only sit at the "grown up" table if you would stick around at least 15(?) minutes for conversation after you finish eating.

If you enjoy 2 hour dinners, shows and food that fall below that of rccl ncl and ccl.. This is the ship for you. Of course this is all a matter of opinion but I took my first and last msc cruise this month and this is after 26 cruises on other lines. The ship is beautiful. We received the best service from the sports bar and cigar lounge crew.

This is funny, the shows on MSC are the best we have seen and will not make you fall asleep or walk out like other cruise lines, and the food was also top notch, but as you stated it's all a matter of opinion.

I loved the two hour dinners in the dining room. It is definitely a throwback to the time when cruises were a relaxing experience and dinner was expected to be a social time to relax and enjoy the company of one's dinner companions.

When my daughter was young, we always sat down to dinner as a family no matter what the hectic schedule was for the day. I planned menus and cooked food on the weekends so that we could have good food for dinner during the week.

It is so sad that on many mass market American cruise lines, the family dinner time has deteriorated to feed the kids fast so we can dump them in the children's program (or let the children's program feed them) or give the kids video games and movies to entertain them at the table.

I love the fact that on MSC I saw families with the children dressed according to the dress code and the children were an integral part of the dining experience without the use of electronic equipment.

This is the way it was for the daughter when she cruised with us as a child (started at 18 months) and she always loved dressing in a pretty dress and going to dinner in the dining room (and don't try to give her the crappy kid's menu; she wanted the good food from the adult menu).

And while food is subjective, I found food on NCL and Carnival to be poor at the best times; actually inedible at other times. MSC food was superior in every way and as a American who was bought up eating a wide range of different foods, found nothing different or strange in any of the offerings.

I agree that MSC is not for everyone; especially those who follow the Four Gs (grease, gravy, grits, glucose) of certain regional cooking areas in the USA. Carnival, NCL, and to some extent, RCCL, will better suit their limited culinary experience.

Divina is absolutely gorgeous. We had wonderful food. They have a pizza maker from Naples onboard. You pay extra for that made to order pizza, but it is really authentic and great! The shows are some of the best I've ever seen at sea. Every night is a completely different show. There are 4 main singers who are fantastic - really Broadway caliber performers with wonderful stage presence and charisma and the dancers who are so professional and well synchronized - I've never seen anything as well done as this on any other ship and I've been on all the lines. Also, there is a great opera show on the last sea day during the afternoon - don't miss it - the opera singer is AMAZING! Even if you think you don't like opera, you will be wowed by her skill! Another great thing about this ship - the casino is non-smoking!

The only negative thing I noticed about the cruise was the crazy disorganized safety drill where you have to bring your lifejacket which is a pain. Still, it was over very quickly. So, no big deal.

Unfortunately, the afternoon opera performance only seems to be on cruises longer then seven nights.

I was looking forward to seeing it as I had heard about it from friends who had taken a ten day cruise. The afternoon opera was not performed on our seven night Divina cruise.

Unfortunately, the afternoon opera performance only seems to be on cruises longer then seven nights.

 

I was looking forward to seeing it as I had heard about it from friends who had taken a ten day cruise. The afternoon opera was not performed on our seven night Divina cruise.

We saw it on our 7 day sailing. "Love Me" from La Traviata is performed on the second sea day,,,this is from the Dailies from Mikesteg sailing earlier this month:

I was on on your cruise Homosassa and I saw the Opera, sorry you missed it, it was great.

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As a long time RCI, NCL, CCL cruiser I went on Divina this past month and had a great time. Thought the food was great. Ship is beautiful. Would go again. I know that's not much of a review, but I did a fairly extensive review on the MSC forum with photos of menus and some entertainment schedule, etc. If it is not on the first page try page 2 or 3 or click my name and look for "posts started by".

Not only was it a great cruise it was less than half the price of a comparable RCI cruise. In fact, on the RCI forum I said if you miss how RCI USED to be, MSC might be a great fit. Service was very good to great everywhere onboard. I have to wonder about these reviews that kvetch about the service and food; I think some are just so stuck on HAL/Celebrity/Princess/RCI ways that ANY change at all sends them for a loop. If you are looking for a slightly different experience than you are used to at a great price, I say you can't go wrong.

I was on on your cruise Homosassa and I saw the Opera, sorry you missed it, it was great.

 

 

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I still have all my Daily Planners as I have been using them to write my review. There is no listing for any music from "La Travaiata" or any other opera appearing in the planner for our cruise.

I asked an Entertainment s Staff member if opera was going to be performed during the cruise; he told me no.

I see a listing (and attended) the soprano and tenor doing classical pieces in the atrium one evening.

So, please, when was segments of any opera performed? Are you thinking of the "Voices" show?

How is the buffet food on MSC? I'm not a picky eater (well I don't like green peppers, onions, celery, lima beans, cilantro). haha

I actually liked the food on carnival and RCI. However, I think RCI had the worst dessert section in the buffet of the 2 cruise lines I've been on. Like 3-4 selections of diabetic things (sorry I'm not diabetic and don't care for the aftertaste of artificial sweeteners) and 2 types of cookies and 1-2 types of cake (could never really find chocolate stuff). Granted, I did not starve, but I really like Carnival's dessert selection much better. Sometimes I just want to eat some appetizers and desserts.

:)

I am very much looking forward to our 10-night Exotic Cruise in Dec. out of Miami.

I still have all my Daily Planners as I have been using them to write my review. There is no listing for any music from "La Travaiata" or any other opera appearing in the planner for our cruise.

 

I asked an Entertainment s Staff member if opera was going to be performed during the cruise; he told me no.

 

I see a listing (and attended) the soprano and tenor doing classical pieces in the atrium one evening.

 

So, please, when was segments of any opera performed? Are you thinking of the "Voices" show?

I was on the April 9 cruise and La Traviata was one show only on the last sea day afternoon. It was in the planner.

They could switch things up week to week.

I loved the two hour dinners in the dining room. It is definitely a throwback to the time when cruises were a relaxing experience and dinner was expected to be a social time to relax and enjoy the company of one's dinner companions.

 

When my daughter was young, we always sat down to dinner as a family no matter what the hectic schedule was for the day. I planned menus and cooked food on the weekends so that we could have good food for dinner during the week.

 

It is so sad that on many mass market American cruise lines, the family dinner time has deteriorated to feed the kids fast so we can dump them in the children's program (or let the children's program feed them) or give the kids video games and movies to entertain them at the table.

 

I love the fact that on MSC I saw families with the children dressed according to the dress code and the children were an integral part of the dining experience without the use of electronic equipment.

 

This is the way it was for the daughter when she cruised with us as a child (started at 18 months) and she always loved dressing in a pretty dress and going to dinner in the dining room (and don't try to give her the crappy kid's menu; she wanted the good food from the adult menu).

 

And while food is subjective, I found food on NCL and Carnival to be poor at the best times; actually inedible at other times. MSC food was superior in every way and as a American who was bought up eating a wide range of different foods, found nothing different or strange in any of the offerings.

 

I agree that MSC is not for everyone; especially those who follow the Four Gs (grease, gravy, grits, glucose) of certain regional cooking areas in the USA. Carnival, NCL, and to some extent, RCCL, will better suit their limited culinary experience.

I usually like your posts but that last paragraph was really wrong and uncalled for.

How is the buffet food on MSC? I'm not a picky eater (well I don't like green peppers, onions, celery, lima beans, cilantro). haha

 

I actually liked the food on carnival and RCI. However, I think RCI had the worst dessert section in the buffet of the 2 cruise lines I've been on. Like 3-4 selections of diabetic things (sorry I'm not diabetic and don't care for the aftertaste of artificial sweeteners) and 2 types of cookies and 1-2 types of cake (could never really find chocolate stuff). Granted, I did not starve, but I really like Carnival's dessert selection much better. Sometimes I just want to eat some appetizers and desserts.

 

:)

 

I am very much looking forward to our 10-night Exotic Cruise in Dec. out of Miami.

I thought all the food was fantastic, even the buffet was great. ENJOY!!!

I still have all my Daily Planners as I have been using them to write my review. There is no listing for any music from "La Travaiata" or any other opera appearing in the planner for our cruise.

 

 

 

I asked an Entertainment s Staff member if opera was going to be performed during the cruise; he told me no.

 

 

 

I see a listing (and attended) the soprano and tenor doing classical pieces in the atrium one evening.

 

 

 

So, please, when was segments of any opera performed? Are you thinking of the "Voices" show?

sorry I am late to respond,

the name of the show was "love me"

it was just an afternoon show so it is found under the main event.

you can see it in the dailies posted by another member on day 7. april 2016.

this is from the german dailies from march 31.

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That explains why I didn't see the opera - I was on the March 19 sailing. ;)