MSC Divina Review
I was on the July 7, 2022 three night sailing on the MSC Divina out of Port Canaveral
This was my first MSC cruise. I have been on Celebrity 10+ times, RCL twice and NCL once.
I have always been interested in other cruise lines, but seem to always default to Celebrity. It seems to check the most boxes for me. In my previous trips, we always ended up docked next to an MSC ship so it intrigued me. Fast forward to this week, I had a work conference and was able to squeeze a few days away before and this MSC voyage fit right in. Perfect!
In my research prior to booking, not much was available online about the Divina, so I thought I’d share my experiences.
Covid/Passengers: MSC is mask optional, required vaccinations and pre boarding testing. Didn’t see many masks on board with passengers. Crew was always masked. The boat seemed full, not sure of the total number.
Embarkation: No issues, a bit more crowed and hectic that Celebrity, but went smooth. One odd thing that I noticed that I found quite odd: you do not register your payment method online or at check in. You are expected to find these little ATM like machines around this ship and swipe your sea pass and your credit card. You have 24 hours to do this, if you don’t your sea pass card will be locked and you will not be able to purchase anything, including drinks as part of your drink packages. I encountered several upset guests at bars that were denied their drinks until they saw to their accounts. It seems that this could be automated, or at least made clear to passengers. Also, on that note, you cannot check you balance without going to the reception desk.
Ship overall: The ship is a nice ship, but is certainly tired. It needs some TLC. Nothing major, just lots of lights burnt out, hand rails duct taped, carpets stained, etc.
Room: I was in room 10005, an Aurea class “room” without a balcony but large window. The room was fine. This room is on the front of the ship which can be a long walk from anywhere. Housekeeping staff was very attentive and kind.
Getting around the Ship and Elevators: There are more elevators on this ship than any other ship I’ve been on I think, and I think I waited longer for an elevator on this voyage. At any given time a bank of 4 elevators would only have 1 or 2 operational lifts. Others would be “out of service” or in “priority service” mode. This boat is like a maze, walking around is not very straight forward.
TV/Internet: These both are my sailing specific: A major frustration was the in room/onboard tv satellite system was not working. No outside tv channels. The onboard channels were very glitchy including constant buffering and static that made it unwatchable. The only channel that worked consistently was the looping of the muster drill, which I suppose isn’t a bad thing. When on a cruise, you expect at least some basic channels. Internet was very slow despite paying for the streaming package. It preventing even simple functions like iMessage from working, much less streaming any video.
Pools: Coming from Celebrity and RCCL, I have grown accustomed to the indoor “solarium” pool being an adult only oasis. That is not the case on MSC. The indoor pool is open to all, and was most often filled with children running around. The adult only pool was on the aft of the boat but completely in the sun and extremely hot. The pools all seemed to have extra water features that were not turned on the entire voyage (i.e. fountains, misters etc). The pool areas all seemed very tired and in need of some TLC.
It was very odd that there were no lounge chairs in any shaded area. In the indoor pool area, there were only chairs and tables, no loungers.
Food: I was disappointed by the food. It is clear that MSC is working to recover from COVID. I am sure it has been a challenge getting food and sourcing supplies, as well as help. The food was certainly edible, but was very bland and repetitious. The pizza onboard, as others have noted, was very good - perhaps the best at sea! The main dining room had limited options but your typical cruise fair of French onion soup, Caesar salad, steak etc. The Divina at one time had an Eatly Italian restaurant, and a Mexican cantina, but both of those are closed. The only other speciality restaurant is the Butchers Cut steak house. I was turned away from eating at the Butchers Cut because I was wearing Birkenstocks. The buffet had a nice selection of rather bland food - mainly consisting of a pasta option, veggies, salad, burgers and hot dogs, a carved meat and an international section on this voyage was Indian food. Desserts were the same each day, good but not great.
Entertainment: Onboard the entertainment was nice. Good comedy show one night, the onboard musicians did a nice job.
Ports: Nassau, and Ocean Cay. Nassau is Nassau. Ocean Cay, which is MSC’s private Marine Reserve was fantastic. A beautiful ocean heaven. MSC did a really amazing job at creating this reserve. The crew of Divina did a really nice job of creating a nice experience that day. I am sure that it is very hard work creating that experience for the guests. The food on Ocean Cay was nice.
Overall: A nice quick getaway with a brand I hadn’t sailed with before. The MSC Divina is tired, and the food was bland. I am glad that I had this experience and I am open to other possibilities of sailing with MSC on one of their newer ships in the future. I know that MSC is not Celebrity, but for me, this trip reaffirmed that Celebrity is more my cruise of choice.
tl:dr:
Divina was a nice get away for 3 nights. Boat is tired, and food is bland. Certainly lacks the experience that Celebrity and RCCL provide, but seems to cater to different crowds. Probably good for families with young children, or those looking for a cheap quick getaway. As for me, I will stick with Celebrity.
