My Late MSC Divinia Review

[riclop]

WELL after reading through this post from June 2014... i am very confused:confused:,,

My DH and I are( plus 6 other friends) looking at booking a cruise with MSC in Oct 2015... and really want to have a great experience we have all traveled with Holland America Celebrity and royal Caribbean,, and yes we had small issues with them all but nothing that would ever stop us using them again,,

My problem at the moment is that i cant find many nice reviews on this cruise line,,,:(

 

so if any one can help me i would appreciate this,:)

we are wanting MSC as they are the only ones to go where we all want to visit at the time of year.

there are many positive reviews on the Divina, perhaps you have chosen to read only the bad ones. Perhaps you should ignore ALL the reviews and book your cruise and draw your own conclusions. Thats what we did and have now been on 3 cruises and have 2 more booked. You cant beat the Divina for entertainment,ambiance and $$ spent. Give it a try.

[cruisetrail]

This review is a bit late, a lot of life got in the way post cruise. It won’t be a day by day review with pictures just some information for those thinking about cruising with MSC.

 

I cruised with 2 other friends, that I met on a previous cruises. We are all veteran cruisers, I have cruised with several lines for a total of 35 cruises. We booked this cruise because MSC was running a super sale and the prices were too good to pass up and since it was an unknown line and ship it was a perfect time to try it out. We booked a back to back for the March 15th and March 22nd sailings. However we disembarked on the 22nd and didn’t return for the second half of the trip. These are my opinions and observations only.

 

Pre cruise planning is not MSC’s strong point the website is not very intuitive, but it can be done. Everything you sign up for is charged to your onboard account so nothing is prepaid. Not a deal breaker but I like to get a lot of that out of the way ahead of time so I don’t have a big bill getting off the ship.

 

I will address the things that MSC did well first, as they weren’t many. Their drink packages are a good value. They offer several options, from all inclusive to very tailored, in the form of coupons and on your card. All depending on the package you chose.

 

The cabins were nice nothing exceptional but roomy with plenty of storage. I had a decent size balcony. My couch had a nasty rip in it that never got fixed, though I was told it was going to be fixed. My room attendant was the only stand out on the ship. He was awesome and went way above what was expected on a couple of occasions.

 

The ship itself was well maintained, the staff was constantly cleaning and wiping. Aesthetically the ship was nice, not over the top gorgeous as I was led to believe but nice. The Solstice class ships are nicer in my opinion.

 

There were some hidden jewels…the gelato is delicious and the sports bar had really good fare. It’s worth an afternoon trip. The pizza in the buffet was pretty good, certainly worth a late night trip and the make your own sandwiches (in the buffet) were decent.

 

We did the winemaking class, which was a treat. It’s a outside program, but you do get to mix wine and take the bottle(s) home with your own label.

 

The rest.

 

My first disappointment of the cruise happened only 10 minutes after embarking. We were placed on late dining but had requested early. So when I boarded I went straight to the Maître ‘d to see if we could have it changed. When I got to the front of the line I explained my issue to the Maitre ‘d (who looked totally disinterested) and his first response was “Did you really expect to get your choice in seating when you booked the cruise so late?” I was flabbergasted. Never in all of my cruises had I experienced such rudeness. I am a pretty low maintenance cruiser, I don’t complain unless it’s a severe infraction. So we continued I explained to him that my cruise ticket had early dining on it but my card said late and then I politely asked him if there were any seats left in early for us. Again a rude response, instead of just saying not at the moment, he said “I already explained this to you”, which he hadn’t so at this point I’m losing my patience. He finally puts us on a waiting list. Before I stepped away I asked him about my drink vouchers (because my instructions said to retrieve them from the maitre ‘d). Again rude, he said they would be at our table that evening. It’s early afternoon at this point, so I said I have to pay for any drinks I want until 8:45 tonight even though I purchased a drink package? His response was “What you can’t wait until tonight to drink?” at this point the gentleman sitting next to him piped up and said I will help you with that. He directed me to the casino bar to pick up my vouchers, how simple was that? Nothing was easy on this trip..a lot of misinformation and misdirection. I initially blew this off as the only glitch in the trip. How wrong I was. We did get moved to early seating on the second night of the cruise.

 

Food is always a matter of opinion I have not been on any cruise line where I think the food is exceptional. I have had some really good meals but nothing super special. With that being said the food was on par with most lines, the biggest issue is lack of choices in the MDR. The few pasta dishes I tried were pretty good, but most nights just about everyone at our table ordered from the alternative menu (the steak). The biggest problem we had a dinner was the rude staff (new table-early seating). Our waiter was not personable at all. On the first night he wanted us to order our dessert with dinner, some at the table did some did not. I did not, so when dessert time came around he stuck the menu in my face and said “order something”, I hadn’t even had a chance to look at the menu, since he only brought one menu back to the table other people wanted to look at the menu to change their orders. He informed them that they couldn’t do that. What a joke, he then snatched the menu from them and put it back in my face and said order again…for that very act I took my sweet time and some of the others changed their orders, which in no way made him happy. This happened again on the second night, even after we went to guest relations

 

Entertainment. Everyone raved about the entertainment on the ship. It was a bit disappointing. The first night the show was Alice (in wonderland- of sorts). It was a cirque style show. It was a good show, but every show after was pretty much the same routines with some added stunts here and there just different costumes. If it wasn’t cirque style it was opera. I don’t have a problem with opera or classical music but it gets repetitive and boring. They did a Michael Jackson show which was laughable at best. It was all lip synced and the even the “moonwalking” was faked by a sliding stage. When they actually sung a song it was with an Italian accent. After the main shows there was very little to do on the ship in the evenings. There was a piano bar but it was small and always packed. Not much to do on sea days either.

 

On the third day of the cruise we had made a decision that we couldn’t do another week on this ship. We went to guest relations and cancelled our next voyage. The cruise was cheap enough that we weren’t going to lose much and we’d get our taxes back (which were more than the cost of the cruise). All said my cruise motto has been even the worse cruise is better than being at work, but this one proved to be the exception.

 

Final notes, the ship is difficult to navigate, lots of dead ends and up and downs to move forward. The photo place is right in the middle of the only thoroughfare on the ship that goes from bow to stern without a detour…so it is always congested and hard to move through.

 

The MDR is table on top of table, literally no room to move around. Several times we would have to get out of our seats for waiters to move around the table or for others to get to their tables. I know ships tend to pack them in but I have never seen a dining room as tight as this.

 

I think I have said all I need to say, again these are my observations.

 

Good review.

Most of your observations are spot on.

The only correction I would add to ship facts you listed: Michael Jackson show “moonwalking” wasn't faked by a sliding stage.

I checked it a few times on my HD video and did not see a sliding stage.:)

The stage equipment on the Divina blocks views from the front rows. May be that problem lead to the confusion.

 

We had different experience with the service staff.

Nice people would be the right word.

Maitre Ds were made of granite but that wasn't an issue for us.

Edited June 17, 2014 by cruisetrail

[monn_a]

Hi monn_a,

 

Thanks for taking the time to write and for share your candid comments. At MSC Cruises, we always hope to exceed your expectations and it appears that we did not accomplish that goal. If you'd like to share more feedback about your experience, please feel free to email our Customer Service Department at customer-srvc@msccruisesusa.com with more details.

 

Regards,

Thank you for responding I did contact them directly after the cruise...I never heard anything back. But I'm good. I just wanted to post MY experience.

[monn_a]

I'm not addressing each post individually, but this was my experience. You go and have yours. Thank you to those who understood this. If something in particular was unclear or confusing ask. I will not go anywhere and tolerate the service and attitude we received. I don't expect to be treated like royalty or anything else, but I do expect to be treated with courtesy because that's how I try to treat others. That alone was enough to sour the experience.

 

As for the low maintenance issue I cancelled because I couldn't take another week on the ship...that has nothing to do with my maintenance. Different strokes and all...it wasn't for me and I'm done but for those of you that are happy with MSC help yourselves. I will continue to cruise and I will cruise the lines that I chose.

 

I do agree that if anyone wants to go don't base it on the reviews of others. We went even after reading all the reviews we could because everyone's viewpoint and expectations are different. I can't emphasize enough that these were my experiences.

 

I stand corrected on the moonwalking issue, perhaps my vantage point was not as clear. I still wasn't impressed with the show.

 

Happy Sailing!

 

I would have responded earlier but I didn't get any subscription emails (for some reason) and I just don't visit the site that much anymore.

Edited June 18, 2014 by monn_a

[Linerguy]

I'm not addressing each post individually, but this was my experience. You go and have yours. Thank you to those who understood this. If something in particular was unclear or confusing ask. I will not go anywhere and tolerate the service and attitude we received. I don't expect to be treated like royalty or anything else, but I do expect to be treated with courtesy because that's how I try to treat others. That alone was enough to sour the experience.

 

As for the low maintenance issue I cancelled because I couldn't take another week on the ship...that has nothing to do with my maintenance. Different strokes and all...it wasn't for me and I'm done but for those of you that are happy with MSC help yourselves. I will continue to cruise and I will cruise the lines that I chose.

 

I do agree that if anyone wants to go don't base it on the reviews of others. We went even after reading all the reviews we could because everyone's viewpoint and expectations are different. I can't emphasize enough that these were my experiences.

 

I stand corrected on the moonwalking issue, perhaps my vantage point was not as clear. I still wasn't impressed with the show.

 

Happy Sailing!

 

I would have responded earlier but I didn't get any subscription emails (for some reason) and I just don't visit the site that much anymore.

 

Excellent response.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for the great review.

[Lovetocruiseprincess]

To the OP, thanks for you opinion on this cruise line. We were considering it since their prices are attractive but sometimes even that doesn't mean a bargain to me. To consider not sailing the second voyage tells me something in itself & I'm not sure I really need to know much more. I'm sure there are some people who truly enjoy that line but I don't think we would fit in very well since it's been mostly RCCI, Celebrity & mainly Princess style that we travel on.

[Aza1972]

Give it a go LovetoCruisePrincess or you will never know. Step out of your comfort zone and you may thinking it is sensational.

 

We are risking flying from Syd Australia on to Hong Kong Kong and then New York before heading down to Miami to do the to back Xmas and New Cruise. Nothing to lose and everything to gain

[Lovetocruiseprincess]

Give it a go LovetoCruisePrincess or you will never know. Step out of your comfort zone and you may thinking it is sensational.

 

We are risking flying from Syd Australia on to Hong Kong Kong and then New York before heading down to Miami to do the to back Xmas and New Cruise. Nothing to lose and everything to gain

 

I'm still undecided about this cruise line. :confused: I never usually make a decision based upon 1 good or bad review alone. I'm also waiting till a friend returns in the fall to get her private opinion since she travels on all the other cruise lines as well.

[sparks1093]

OP, thanks for sharing your experience.

[kybluecruiser]

Hi monn_a,

 

Thanks for taking the time to write and for share your candid comments. At MSC Cruises, we always hope to exceed your expectations and it appears that we did not accomplish that goal. If you'd like to share more feedback about your experience, please feel free to email our Customer Service Department at customer-srvc@msccruisesusa.com with more details.

 

Regards,

 

I am a carnival cruiser. I cruise carnival because i like the familiarity and i am the type to stick with what i like. However i have to say kudos to msc customer service for responding here on cc to your customer's concerns!!! I think this is awesome!