MSC Divina 12/2-12/9

We were on Divina 12/2-12/9. Here is our experience. I am too long winded for the review section. :') Feel free to ask about anything and I will do my best to reply ASAP. :D

This was the FIRST CRUISE EVER for my significant other and myself. I researched and read all of the reviews on here and in various MSC groups on Facebook. I was anxious because of a few of them but took the advice of our TA and decided to make my own conclusions based on our trip and no one else’s. (yn)

We carpooled down to the port with another family. About a 4 hour drive one way for us. Parking was a little confusing since we never saw a sign or markings on any parking garage for Terminal F. After circling around, we parked in the garage for G. The person driving dropped us and all of our luggage off at the first floor of the garage before proceeding to park. The other family with us were staying in the Yacht Club so we separated at this point. We crossed the street and gave our luggage to a MSC porter with no issue. He then showed us which direction to go to get into the correct terminal. We were greeted by very friendly staff members. Check-in was smooth and fast. I had all of our travel documents organized and ready. The only issue (not a big deal at all) we experienced was that we did not have assigned dining. From parking garage to actually entering the ship took 20 minutes. Faster than I had expected. We were onboard by 11:30am. Our embarkation was great! (y)

We immediately made our way to Guest Services to get funds set up on our cruise card and to check on the dining. We were told that we needed to visit the Maître D between 130pm-330pm to fix the dining issue (Black Crab). Guest Services was very helpful. Cabins of course were not ready so we found a seat at the bottom of the amazing staircases, snapped a few photos and enjoyed a cocktail. Once the family we were traveling with met up with us, we made our way to the buffet. It was not too busy and we had no issues finding something to eat. After lunch, we walked around exploring the different areas of the ship.

At about 1pm, we made our way to our deck (13) to see if our cabin was ready. It was! Luggage did not arrive until around 6pm. We were VERY pleased with the size of our cabin (interior). Double bed, 2 nightstands, chair and small table. Built in desk with stool, 4 closet doors on the wall (2 LARGE areas to hang clothes – 12 hangers provided by MSC, 1 area with shelves to put folded items and 1 area with the cabin safe and 6 pull out drawers). There was plenty of storage space for our items. I even brought a pop up laundry hamper and it fit perfectly in the closet. We could have stored our luggage in there as well, but we slid them under the bed. There was also a shelf on top of all of the closet areas for storage. We placed our shoes up there. Life vests are stored up there as well. There was a large mirror over the desk area with a separate light. Perfect for putting on make-up or doing hair. Plus a full size (full body) mirror on the wall opposite to the desk mirror. 4 electrical sockets were at the desk area (2 European and 2 standard), perfect for charging our cell phones. A hair dryer is in one of the 2 large desk drawers. The mini bar is located under the desk. Our cabin steward, Dino, kept it fully stocked for us the entire cruise. By the 2nd day, he knew which items we drank and which we didn’t. He replaced the items we didn’t drink with extras of what we preferred. Our ice bucket stayed full the entire cruise as well. Our bed had 4 pillows plus 2 throw pillows. I had seen complaints on different forums about the pillows and mattresses. Ours were great! No issues at all. Our bathroom was spacious too! I like that they had liquid hand soap at the sink area. Body wash and shampoo were always full in the shower. We brought our own from home though, as well as a full size bar of soap. I liked that the shower had a clothes line to dry swim wear and anything that we needed to hand wash. Wash clothes (2), hand towels (2), and bath towels (2) were replenished every day. Sometimes more than once a day. Tissues and toilet paper were always replenished as well, plus there were extras under the sink area. Storage under the sink was nice too! My favorite thing in regards to the bathroom was the hot water. It was HOT and I loved it! No waiting for it to hear up either. It heated up fast and the temp never changed while using it. Super hot water in the bathrooms in public areas as well.

We mostly ate in the buffet or from room service. We had fixed our assigned dining issue but we just felt eating at the buffet suited us more. We would have to make reservations each night for dining and we were squeezed into the Black Crab on night 1. I have a shellfish allergy so it made me nervous to eat there so we just opted to eat at the buffet as much as possible. There were plenty of choices for us both there and we were never hungry. On the second Gala Night we ate in Le Muse with our friends that were staying in the Yacht Club (there is a charge for this). This was after their amazing vow renewal ceremony. We both had the Caesar salad (I had chicken and he had shrimp) for starters. I had the beef tenderloin and my significant other ordered surf & turf (beef tenderloin & lobster tail) for our entrees. We did not have dessert from the menu because we are the vow renewal cake and they added a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream to the side. The staff sang "Happy Anniversary" to our friends. The food was excellent. We were able to request our favorite drinks from the Garden Bar and our favorite server, Rey, was able to bring them to us in the restaurant. The wait staff was very friendly in Le Muse.

Besides the amazing shows (Star Walker was our fave) and theme nights (we really enjoyed the White Party and ABBA tribute), our favorite hang-out spot was the Garden Bar (Deck 15). My significant other is a smoker so this was an ideal spot for us since half of the area is designated for smoking. Plenty of lounge chairs and tables to sit at. We never had an issue finding a table, even during peak hours. We were able to take some amazing photos from this location as well (ports, sunrise/sunset). The bartenders and wait staff at the Garden Bar went above and beyond to make our experience great! They all do a great job but Raj and Rey were our favorites!!! They asked our names on the first night and remembered them the entire cruise. Yes, I know “it’s part of the job” but they made us feel special by calling us by name and remembering our favorite drinks, etc.

Shows: Shows were: The Voices, The Mask, Italian Classics, Witches of Paris, Treasure Island, Star Walker (Michael Jackson) & The Show Must Go On

Theme Nights: Italian Night, White Party & Flower Glory (70s)

We read the Daily Planner daily so we were well prepared for the day/evening! So much to do! Its a great resource! You will know the times of events and restaurant/bar opening and closing times as well!

Getting on and off at each port was smooth. Even getting on and off the tender. I was super anxious about that! The MSC staff made it very relaxing for this first timer. (Ports: Ochos Rios, Cayman Islands, Cozumel & Nassau)

We decided to do the express disembarkation and just walk off with our luggage. We met up with the family we traveled with in the morning around 630am. We hung out with them in the Yacht Club lounge until it was time to disembark. We were escorted off by their butler. From the time we stepped off the boat and got through customs, took maybe 20 minutes at the most. Super fast! Super easy!

Would we cruise with MSC again? DEFINITELY! No complaints in regards to the cruise line or its’ staff at all!!

Glad to hear you had a good time and thanks for your review! :)

Nice to know you both enjoyed your first cruise! Thanks for sharing your experience.

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Glad to hear you enjioyed the cruise, thanks for the report!

Glad you had such a good experience with your first cruise! Thank you for posting all that detail. It was a good read. :)

Thanks for the review.

Nice review! You mentioned the minibar being stocked-- what kind of items are normally stocked in there? Does it include snacks too or just beverages? I take it you had the premium beverage package and that was all included?

I enjoyed your report.

Keith