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crbonfiber

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    Divina review b2b 9-6-14 from rccl loyalist

    in MSC Cruises

    Posted

    Never sailed on MSC and may consider someday. Do they offer unlimited drink packages? What is the size of the staterooms/suites compared to RC or(and if you have sailed on) Celebrity? What about the price of the actual cruise?

     

    Thanks

     

    They do offer several drink packages. Staterooms are similar in size. Check out MSC's Website they have all the pricing.

    Divina review b2b 9-6-14 from rccl loyalist

    in MSC Cruises

    Posted

    Thanks for the wonderful review! We're sailing her, also our first cruise with MSC, in November. I'm sure I'll think of more to ask...but right now, tell me about water in the MDR. Was it free or did you need to buy bottled water?

     

    Water in MDR is free. They keep refilling as much as you can drink. Have a great time!

    Divina review b2b 9-6-14 from rccl loyalist

    in MSC Cruises

    Posted

    I just returned from B2B east and west Caribbean cruises on MSC Divina. 9-6 thru 9-20. It was fantastic.

     

    A little about myself:

     

    I am an avid cruiser with over 150 sailings all over the world. Most of my trips have been on Royal Caribbean. I am a Pinnacle member in their loyalty program. This would be my first cruise with MSC.

     

    Embarkation: Great, I arrived at the port around 1:30 pm plenty of folks to check you in. The line moved quickly, the staff was very friendly, and I was on board in around 20 minutes.

     

     

    Cabin: I had a very nice balcony cabin on deck 12. The layout was great, beds by the entrance and then a large couch. The bathroom was perfect size with glass shower doors. No nasty curtain to stick to your body. The bed was extremely comfortable and on the firm side.

     

     

    Pools: There are 3 pools on the Divina. They are some of the nicest pools on any ship. The forward pool has a retractable dome for inclement weather. The main pool is open to the air with plenty of loungers available even on sea days. The aft pool is really nice with great ocean views off the stern. These areas, like the entire ship are kept perfectly clean. There is one thing MSC could do here to make the pool experience even better. Make the aft pool adults only, free of charge with a towel station. That would really make things perfect.

     

     

    Service and Crew: On first impression I thought the crew was not very happy or forthcoming with anticipating service needs. But then I realized, the real issue is language. They don’t understand quite a bit, and it makes it hard for them to engage with the passengers. They try very hard and still do a great job. However, this is one area I feel MSC could use some help. If the crew spoke better English it would be a more pleasurable experience for everyone, crew included.

     

     

    Dinning: I thought the food was very good. Not great, but I was not expecting great. It was on par with all the other major cruise lines. Service was excellent and quick. I enjoyed my dinner time.

     

     

    Entertainment: I’m not a big fan of singing and dancing shows. However, on the Divina, they were fantastic and I was thoroughly entertained. Great singers and dancers, amazing acrobats. I would have to say that MSC has the best production shows at sea. Pirates was my favorite show.

     

     

    Ports: I wont get into this as they have all been reviewed to death. However, I would like to say that the private island, Great Strirrup Cay was a very pleasant surprise. They have made several improvements and it really shows. They have some really nice Cabanas for rent and plenty of space on the beach. MSC does a very good job with tendering.

     

    One other note: We did not make it to GSC on my first week due to a low pressure system in the Bahamas. The Captain told us rather than spend a day in the rain we would be going to Grand Turk instead of GSC. I know this took quite a bit of effort on MSC’s part. I have been in this situation many times with RCCL. RCCL, for the majority of the times would have slowed the ship down and spent an extra day at sea. I was really happy with MSC “going the extra nautical mile”. This made the cruise even better for everyone on board. Kudos to MSC for this quick change.

     

     

    Debarkation: Excellent very well done with no announcements. One of the best I have seen. Carried my own bags off at 7:00am. No problems at all. Made my flight from MIA at 9:40 am with plenty of time to spare.

     

     

    Overall Opinion: It was my first time on MSC, but it wont be my last. The Divina is kept so perfectly clean it looks like it just left the shipyard. There was always plenty of staff around to keep me happy. There is no hard sell for booze every 5 minutes by the pools. Food was good and plentiful.

    Casino was great and NON smoking. There are so many lounges with great themes and entertainment. You can always find some action or a quite place to chill. The shows are amazing.

     

    Another thing I really enjoyed was being with passengers from all over the world. It was great to hear their experiences with life. Quite refreshing and eye opening!

     

    Im happy to answer any specific questions anyone may have.

    Changes to RCCL Internet Packages

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Almost more important than price is speed. It can be so slow it's unusable at times, I can only imagine if everyone stays logged in at once on their phones for emails, texts, photos, even video....

     

    Anyone do speed tests? Or can comment having used it a lot in the cruise?

     

    LOL Speed Tests...Now thats a good one!!

    Price Drop - JS Guarantee - 2 rooms -What to do?

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    Booked one room, a Category W, Junior Suite Guarantee for 4 passengers, for an April Western Carib. cruise on Allure. Prices went down $400 today on Junior Suites. Now, I can get two hump, adjoining JS on a preferred deck (deck 8) for ~$550 more than my guarantee.

     

    My questions are:

     

    1. Will my insurance, purchased within the pre-existing condition waiver period on the other booking, transfer to a new booking on the same boat?

     

    2. Is the extra $550 and the loss of a chance at a true suite from the guarantee worth it to stick my teen kids in an adjoining JS and have a room and bathroom for DW and I alone?

     

    3. Am I forgetting anything else that might be messed up (or any advantages/disadvantages) if I try to change the booking?

     

    I have booked a courtesy hold for my preferred cabins, so I have 24 hours to make the change if so decided. My assumption is that I cannot simply call and get the price drop, since a JS category is not the same as the W category. The price drop would be about $240. Anybody have thoughts or try this before?

     

    Same life boat? or Ship?

    Rumors about January C&A changes

    in Royal Caribbean International

    Posted

    +1. Between the cheap alcohol, cheap snacks, and overbearing blowhards bragging about their status, I just don't see the appeal of these lounges.

     

    I was on Oasis recently. I came across one guy in Chops who would not shut up about his status, bragging away and giving all kinds of bad advice to the poor trapped couple next to him. He did the same thing a few nights later in CL and it became a battle of oneupsmanship with some TAs. I had to leave. I just spent my evenings in the VCL, enjoying the music and happy to pay for higher quality cocktails.

     

    LMBO... Glad to see you are still at sea.

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