LordCapybara

QSINE. it's a James Beard award-winning restaurant, loved it.

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I love Nassau and it puzzles me why so many are so negative about it. Downtown has a fun vibe and the beaches are gorgeous. Despite all the negative on the boards, a lot of ppl must like it because the ships still go there and cruisers seem to really enjoy their time there - so much that there are a lot of pier runners, and ppl who miss their ships.

Can u recommend a good beach? I've been to cable, it was nice, like to try a different tho.

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On Seaside in 2 weeks so are following along. Snowy morning here in Nova Scotia so can't wait to get some warmth! How is deck 19 lounge chair availability and drink service?

March 3rd can't come soon enough, thanks for updates, enjoying reading it so far.

Buffet set up for dinner

 

 

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Thank You for keeping us posted. Please give us more.

 

Have a wonderful cruise.

 

Cheers.

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Did the Easter Cruise this past year in Divina, and the reaction of everyone poolside when the kids came out and did a parade near the end of the cruise was - " Where the Heck did they hide all these kids for the whole week?" I was amazed, I also assumed due to the kids sail free promo, that it would be overrun with kids, not in the slightest !! There are so many areas for kids to hang out that they are barely noticeable, and I had my 15 year old with me, and when she wasn't with us at dinner, I rarely ran across her. Amazing Ship.

I was considering both of them and decided the upgrade to premium was the way to go. It may have been the best decision yet ! Included is not only premium spirits, beer and wine, but ridiculous requests, like doubles, frozen with floaters on top, some of these drinks exceeded 22.50 in cost and they were included, for wine drinkers, like my wife, you could drink any wine on the menu, regardless of cost. The coffee bar selections of premium coffees are also included in premium. Then in addition to all that greatness, add in unlimited use of your mini bar, all the gelato, gelato sundaes, pastries, & poolside nutella crepes one desires, it was a great, great deal... I am not sure how bottled water works in the classic, but in premium we were grabbing largest bottles they had to take on excursions. Just my opinion tho, I am sure you'll enjoy whichever route you choose. !!

enjoy

As soon as you board ask where the Maitre' D is stationed, he will have blue prints of the dining areas and will accommodate your request, I have never had a problem, you may get shifted to/from the villa rossa or black crab... I would assume breakfast and lunch would be tough to pull off...

we boarded the ship at 11:45 am or so, and our cabins were already available to us to drop off luggage and change in.

Why are you ruling out the basic All incl. package? What made the premium your choice? Just trying to get more information.

 

 

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For the extra 10 a day, you get premium beers, wines, liquors. Whatever your mind can create it is included, for me that was Dark and stormy drinks. at 13.25 a piece, they would not have been included in basic, nevermind going with doubles.. Gelato. cant say enough about how good the gelato and gelato sundaes were. Pastries, amazing and unlimited with premium, crepes poolside, large bottled waters to bring on excursions, the unlimited use of in room mini bar. It was an easy decision for me, well worth the 10. In my opinion of course.

for another $20 a day, why not have the premium all inclusive pkg, you can enjoy any wine on the menu not limited to few choices and locations, and times. Included is the gelatos, patesseria sp?, mini bar, bottled waters to go, and any drink your heart desires regardless of cost, anywhere, anytime... I was considering the mealtime package but upgraded and was so so happy we did. Just my 2 cents tho...( not trying to spend your money) :) enjoy your trip !!

There is a difference between the voucher system and the all inclusive package. Vouchers do not need to be purchased by everyone in cabin, group or dining together. If someone in cabin buys a drink with a voucher, it is not charged for, if someone in cabin buys a drink w/o using a voucher they will be charged.... All inclusives need to be purchased by all, for obvious reasons. That being said, I recently had the more for less premium on Divina, and found it to be well worth it. So much so, that in my opinion the only choice is between vouchers or premium (ruling out the basic All_incl), or none at all for the not so inclined to indulge.... hope this helps any questions please ask away !!!

I had premium week of 3/26/16. It includes everything ! On celebrity my premium had cutoff dollar amount, not so here. For example, a double rum dark and stormy is a $18.25 drink, no problem, our friend created a key lime martini, but had doubles, served in a margarita glass, over $20 each, no worries !! The gelato sundaes, pastries, unlimited use of mini bar and snacks, ( choco peanuts, A+) we found it to be a good value, plus never having to say no. I do agree that the drink prices are some of the best I have seen, so for moderate indulgers the cost ala carte is still not too bad. And just found out from cousin that bottle water isn't included in NCL packages, what a joke ! With premium I was getting quart size bottles of evian to take off ship. go for it !

Back from 3/26/16 Divina cruise. Had a great time, pre booked premium package. Best premium package I have had yet, there was no limit to what you could create. Plus unlimited gelato, nutella crepes, pastries from amazing patasserie, where they also had great gelato sundaes (incl.) unlimited use of mini bar, we brought the nut cannisters with us to excursions, made for great snacks...... BEST lobster in MDR I have ever had at sea, not huge nor tiny but waiter just kept bringing them to the table, without being asked. As to the CC hassle of going to a kiosk, MSC implemented this to speed up embarkation, cruisers have until day 5 to hit a kiosk (open 24 hours) to register a card. This alleviates waiting behind someone fumbling for a credit card, deciding which one to use, which one is no good, yadda yadda it definitely helps unless you just hate kiosks maybe? (nitpicking at best imho), To hate this cruise is mind boggling, maybe its not exactly what one was expecting, but to actually hate it is beyond me, but I guess to each his own. As a huge Celebrity fan, I found the Divina to hold her own in many ways and fall short in some, but overall I had great time, great value and the cleanest ship/line I have been on yet.

Thank you for this post! I didn't realize some of these were included (nutella crepes, food in the minibar)! We have already paid for the premium package for our cruise in June.

 

Can you confirm that you can start using it as soon as you board?

I can absolutely confirm you start using as soon as you get onboard. With premium, be sure to go to pastry area on deck 6 and have Gelato sundaes...awesome and patisserie has great offerings too, (unlimited) I'd get some everyday to bring to room for snacks as well, like almond dark chocolate, Sicilian cassata (sp?), French macaroons, you will love it. If you like Dark and Stormy's (black seal rum & ginger beer) they are the drink to make it all feel worthwhile, at 13 or so a pop, 18.25 for a double. But to answer your question, the first thing I did on board was get a drink at pool bar, before going into welcome aboard buffet.

Amazing, why anyone can be so critical to the most beautiful & cleanest ship floating.

Forgot to mention, but couldn't agree more, it is the cleanest ship I have ever sailed. always someone cleaning, something.

The Divina is anything but BAD. The buffet was vast. Piles of Prosciutto and cold cuts way down one end, Mexican taco station everyday, Kids Corner, Pasta station, various styles everyday, omelet station near pool in AM, converted to fresh pasta in afternoon, plenty of curry options throughout week... I am astounded that someone would complain because they have hot dogs and hamburgers, have you forgotten how children eat, plus I have never been on a ship that didn't either serve burgers or have a grill station.... Main Dining was good, best lobster at sea, imho. Tiramisu and other desserts best at sea, service was good, never blinked an eye when multiple orders per course were ordered, just to try.

I thoroughly enjoyed my time on Divina, wouldn't hesitate in the slightest to return

Although it may be a hassle now, why wait until onboard to deal with a hassle....

I ended up calling and then they expedited gold membership to match Celebrity status. One of the perks is priority boarding, it will be too late once your onboard. Another is fresh fruit basket in room on arrival, would probably be a hassle to get later.... on and on, so although it may be a hassle do it now.

PS - although mine didn't go through first time online, it was handled quick and effectively once the phone call was made.

What is the difference between the premium & classic drinks package?

In my opinion the only choice is between the voucher route, (if u don't intend to indulge too much) or the premium. The difference in value for dollar between classic and premium (at least on Divina) was huge. Premium liquor, unlimited Gelato, pastries, use of the mini bar( excellent chocolate covered peanuts in there), the poolside nutella crepes. The most important aspect to me was there was no limit to price of drink you could order. Example - Goslings rum with gosling ginger beer, normally a 13 dollar drink, due to 6.50 upcharge for ginger beer... included, make it a double - 18.25 - included, double martini- made with vanilla vodka, 43 and lime juice - 23.00 included...but not in the classic. As far as kids, at least my kids, got far better value than my wife, unlimited coffee specialties, including Frappaccinos and many other delightful concoctions .... they also had Gelato Sundaes almost everyday, crepes, and virgin cocktails.......

all that being said, I found the prices on the Divina actually quite reasonable for the casual indulger.

our 2 teens, wore shorts and nice shirts on casual nights to MDR, no problem, and they weren't alone. As far as teen activities, they loved pizza making - at Eataly, and T-Shirt making. - They enjoyed the virtual world arcade games, and just met a bunch of like age kids and found their own activities. The sports arena has stadium like seating and I would often find them up there. Movies under the stars with popcorn. They enjoyed the shows in theater as well, especially the Michael Jackson and the Mask.

I have a couple more questions.

 

Is there free ice cream anywhere other than the dining room?

 

Regarding formal nights - I read that people are prohibited from being in any public area after 6 PM in shorts, t-shirts, jeans, etc. Basically that is to keep people dressed up all night and you can only be in the buffet. Hope so because we always stay dressed and hope that is enforced.

 

Thanks!

Not allowed in MDR with shorts, jeans, t-shirts. After dinner change into whatever makes you comfortable, if it does say that it is absolutely not enforced.

Free Ice cream is available everyday, poolside near entrance to buffet if that makes sense, but yes it is. self serve the times I was there, but gelato is also available for a real nominal fee.

The pastries are very affordable, as a matter of fact I do not think you could buy them for anywhere near those prices, and they are real good.

Also the drinks were the cheapest I have seen in a long time, sort of had me concerned that I wouldn't outspend my premium package.

HaHa.. I actually didn't eat to much during the day, although I did have a few of the Patesseria delights.... We indulged ourselves in the premium more for less pkg, so all those as well as the incredible gelato and nutella crepes were included.... I am happy to announce that I went on the cruise at 185 and came home 189, I was amazed only 4 lbs...lol. If anyone is going on the Eastern Caribbean, google - old san juan 'LIMBERS' I found it on a self walking tour guide, and for .75 you get an amazing local ice treat...one of the highlights of the walking tour (ughh more food).

We have been able to do so. You are going to be full by the time you eat all those small plates, so I'd recommend you order an extra to split unless you are very hungry. I'm bad so by day 2 of the cruise, I don't experience hunger until I return home.:o

LOL, just back, I ordered 2 apps, salad, soups and always 2 entrees every night, no problem, DW and I would usually share an excellent pasta...on nights when kids weren't there, waiter would laugh and bring plates to there seats for us to share as well. Lobster night, 4 adults, everyone ate 2.. If you don't care for a dish, just ask for a new one, no problems, I have been on other lines where they frown on multiple entrees, definitely not MSC !!

1- For those who have gnomon MSC more than once what are the main reasons why you keep going back? Value, cleanliness and nice staff.

2- Can you compare Royal Caribbean to MSC, what are the likes, dislikes, differences, anything better about MSC? Royal has better kid programs, msc has more language friendly shows, acrobats, cirque-ish, as compared to rccl - comedians, plays..

3- Same with Carnival can you compare to MSC - no comparison, would take msc everytime, even if MSC was more money.

4- Tell me about the food, dining, options/choices, do they have an open dinner seating time where we can go anytime we like under certain hours of course? They have limited number of flexible time, or std 6 or 8:30 times.

5- What is there to eat past midnight besides room service? buffet till after 1, latest I went last week. unsure of closing

6- What are the cabins like, pros/cons? I have only stayed in very affordable balconies, excellent storage, but u can look that up online very easily.

7- Do they have a drink/alcohol drink package what is the cost and what does it include?

yes, premium was 60 a day, but included everything, unlimited gelato, from 2 gelato shops, pastries from amazing pastasserie, unlimited use of in room mini bar, I was drinkiong double dark and stormy's - 18.25 each, included..water bottles to, just found out not included in NCL pkg.

8- Are there more europeans or Americans on these ships, as passengers? 60/40 usa

9- How is the crew and staff ? nice, not in your face, every 2 seconds, but never had a problem getting poolside drink, MDR waiter amazing.

10- How is the service overall? Good, cabin steward did his job, that's about it. Casino is good, I played few nights until 2:30 or so....no craps, but did have hold'em table and tournaments.

11- How is the casino, do they stay open to the wee hours of the night such as till 3am?

Here are my questions about the Divina..Do they serve lobster in the main dining room at no charge and if so what day.

 

Just Back ! Divina 3/26 - Easter Cruise, Eastern.

 

Lobster was next to last night, so Thursday Night on Eastern Carib, could vary but it is second formal night. Same night as Baked Alaska. Without a doubt, the best lobster I have ever had at sea.(16 cruises) I ate multiple. On Italian night, for us wed., They ask you to wear Red, White or Green, and they had Tribute to Tiramisu, which was excellent.

 

As far as specialty restaurants, I would recommend first night. I find first night in MDR chaotic, as no one knows where they are seated...plus I found the first nights dinner in MDR okay at best, and the next 6 nights were much better.

 

Fire away with questions, please.

The frustrating thing about all the MSC ships is that every person who defends the cruiseline blames the negative reviews on consumers who "expected an American experience", or who "didn't want to have a European experience".

 

I disagree that service is inferior. They may not come and ask you constantly if everything is OK, or if you need another drink, but on my 2 Poesia cruises, (the only 2 MSC I've taken) my busboy always kept water filled, bar waiter always stopped by as we sat, and was never out of eyesight too long, a simple gesture or asking waiter to send him/her over.

 

Pool area always spotless, cannot go more that a few minutes without spotting someone cleaning anywhere on ship, all part of service IMHO. Room was always immaculate, and anyone you asked a question to would go out of their way to help.

 

I believe since MSC is relatively unknown/new the prices remain great. Look at Disney, most popular travel company in world, enables them to charge 250% more than Celebrity/RCCL, yes its a great product, but supply and demand factor into the price.

Also just My opinion.

did they take US dollars? Euros or Both ?