Vehorn

Just got off an 18-day cruise on Crown Princess and there no wine packages available.

Do not miss an opportunity to sail on Calabaza. Great experience and wonderful hosts. My favorite of all excursions.

Just returned from 10-day cruse to the Caribbean on the Equinox and the only criticism I have is with the wine selection. It was the worst we have ever had on a cruise ship. It took seven days before we finally got a decent white wine. there is no wine list for the dining room, so it is hit or miss. strangely there were some good wines in a couple of the lounges but they were not available in the dining room. Go figure. Have another Equinox cruise coming up in Oct and hope for improvement.

We went to a beach-front restaurant where the wife and I had drinks. There was a good menu but we were headed back to the ship so did not order food. Jorge would take you to wherever you wanted, and could recommend other restaurants. Visiting the beach was a nice experience.

I would like to thank those on this board who were kind enough to recommend a tour by Jorge Ramirez Morales during our cruise stop in Limon, Costa Rica. Jorge immediately answered my questions when I e-mailed him and provided details of his tours. He met my wife and I just outside of the pier and took us to all the sites we wanted to see on our half-day tour ($55 pp). We visited a banana plantation and took the canal tour, on which he accompanied us and gave insight to local vegetation and animals. He also stopped along the way to point out monkeys and sloths, and to buy us a very enjoyable iced coconut. At our request, he took us to his local supermarket and recommended coffees, spices, and sauces, which were much more inexpensive than at souvenir stands. Jorge was very personable and professional and his tour was the highlight of our entire cruise. jorgel.cr@hotmail.com.

Thanks to all who suggested him to us.

We used safe-cruise and was partially pleased. The car was in a secure area, although many homeless people live near by, and it was good rate. But had to wait for an hour to be picked up post cruise. Still saved $70 over pier parking and the car was safe.

Thanks for some positive feedback. We leave Saturday on the Divina and are keeping an open mind after all the negativity. I've been on many cruise lines and had to experience MSC first hand. Did you find it exceptionally crowded....we're hoping since this is after spring break it might not be so full. Thanks again.

The ship was near capacity, but I did not notice any over-crowdinesss. Like other ships, you have to get up early to get a pool chair, but others are always available. The theater fills up about 10 minutes before show time. The tenders on Cayman moved very quickly, but there was a big delay on the tenders to the private island. Get there early. I thought the embarkation and disembarkation both were very good. I think you are going to have a great time.

I sure dont understand the mixed reviews then .. I guess I will wait till September and find out for myself

Maybe the service in the Yacht Club quarters is not up to those expectations for some, but the service we received was very satisfactory.

Thanks for the review. We're booked for Aug with our two teenage girls. We were wondering if your grandsons used the teen club and what they thought of it.

Thanks.

They did and enjoyed using it to meet others their ages.

I'm curious about the Native Ways tour you took. You state that lunch was included at Rum Point but their site doesn't mention lunch being included. How did it work? Were you give a voucher or a set menu or could you have anything on the main menu??

On Native Ways website, they list different tours. The one to Stingray City, snorkel, and Rum Point includes lunch. It is $62.50. They took our orders while onboard so lunch would be ready when we got there. I think it included the full lunch menu. I had the jerk chicken wrap. My son had Cuban sandwich, and there also was a Mahi wrap, along with other selections.

I found the service to be the same as other ships - MAYBE a bit more professional, but certainly friendly and courteous. I had no complaints about the service. Our main waiter in the dining room Ahmud, was most efficient and never lost his smile and was right-on with his recommendations when asked. Divina never asked that we consider tipping the wait staff or cabin attendant more than the gratuity fee already collected, but we did because the service was so good.

Just back from the Western Caribbean cruise on the Divina and my family, which included a 3-year-old grand-daughter and two teenage grandsons, had a wonderful time. Here are a few post-cruise thoughts:

We parked at Safe-Cruise and everything was fine until time to pick us up. It took over an hour to be delivered back to our car. Still saved $70 over parking at the terminal lot.

The ship is absolutely beautiful and was very clean. No sticky railing or elevators, and did not leave the ship with the flu.

The entertainment was the best I've ever experienced on a cruise ship. The shows are comparable to New York and Vegas. Live entertainment in the lounges were all outstanding. The entertainment would make the whole cruise worthwhile.

No problem with dress in the dining rooms. You see everything. I usually wore long pants and collared shirt, adding a sports coat on formal nights. I did see men in shorts, one in a baseball hat, and several in jeans. No problems, and no one turned away.

The food was good, but not exceptional. There was good variety and one of my sons, who had given up meat for lent, had no problem finding outstanding fish dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Entrees included lamb, duck (too dry), lobster, tenderloin, veal, and fowl. No complaints here. The only disappointment, and it was probably personal taste, was the soups. I expected better.

The drinks are very good and you should buy the vouchers in advance. But make sure you get written confirmation. We did have a problem with that.

The ports are all good. The kids went to the near-by beach All in Time (or something like that) in Falmouth while we took a ship excursion for $23 to Montego Bay and Rosehall shopping village. Took the Native Ways boat to swim with the stingrays in Cayman. A great choice as the boat does not carry over 25 people and includes a great lunch at Rum Point. Great bargain, there. Some went surfing in Cozumel while the rest shopped. The private island was fun, too.

The cabin (10105) was fine, but smaller than what I was used to having on other cruise ships. Balcony also a little smaller. Disappointed there was no network TV or Fox news. Had to put up with only CNN and ESPN Caribbean. Lot of soccer.

Disembarkation was fine, but an hour late because of stormy weather on arrival. No problem for kids who had a noonish flight out of Ft. Lauderdale.

Overall, it might have been the best cruise we've had. The prices were/are outstanding, the ship is beautiful, the service was wonderful, and the food and drinks outstanding and, of course, the fabulous entertainment. I met lot of cruisers from other ships who asked a lot of questions about the Divina and had considered it but "just wasn't sure" what to expect. Well, you can expect the best and you won't be disappointed. Hopefully, MSC will add a southern Caribbean cruise soon to Barbados, St. Lucia, and St. Kitts.

Our itinerary says we get into Cozumel at 10 a.m. Is that local time or ship time --- or is there a difference? Thanks.

The Divina may be an awesome ship and the prices are fantastic, but this cruise line is a bitch to work with. First, it was almost impossible to book directly through the line because of a malfunctioning website. Had to go through a travel agent. Now we are a week away from sailing and we can't buy drink vouchers, which we want to do before we board. Called the cruise line, they said to call the travel agent. called the travel agent, she said she had NEVER booked drink vouchers before. And there is no one available at MCS to help out. So what do you do? Has anyone purchased drink vouchers before boarding? How did you do it? I wish this cruise line luck in trying to establish a market in the Caribbean but if it can not communicate with its customers it is not going to make it.

I went on Calabaza last month and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Our party of 6 was the only ones on the boat. The food and drinks were wonderful, as was the crew. It was like going out with a few friends, and enjoying a home-cooked lunch. We stopped to swim with the turtles and stopped again at a beach, where we could swim, visit the beach, or snorkel. You will love it.