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My Conversation with Andre…. Divina Cruise Director

IJustWantToGo36

By IJustWantToGo36,
in MSC Cruises

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IJustWantToGo36

IJustWantToGo36

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Posted

On September 3rd, Divina sailing, Anfre, , the cruise director appeared at the Cruise Critic meet and greet. He invited anyone to come to his office to talk with him for any reason. I took him up on this.

 

I will try to recollect what was said at the Cruise Critic meeting and in my conversation with him later in the cruise. I did not take notes or record conversations, so this is being done from memory after the cruise. There could be errors, so please do not say in the future “Andre said”. He did know that I will be publishing our interaction on CC

 

CC Meet and Greet: held on 1st sea day. Approximate 40 people there

 

Andre said that he holds the meetings every cruise whether or not there is request made. He considers the Cruise Critic audience very important to the messaging and marketing of MSC, especially Divina. He asked that if someone has any kind of problem or issue they seek him out and give the company the opportunity to rectify the situation before posting it on cruise critic.

 

There were 3 questions asked, the first by me.

Q1) How do you feel when you read the harshly negative reviews about Divina?

A1) He stated that he was just talking to the captain about that earlier in the morning. He does not know what cruise these people have been on. He believes that there may be concerted effort by people who do not want MSC to succeed in this market. He believes some of the criticism to be absolutely ridiculous.

 

Q2) Why was BINGO being held outside at the pool when it was so hot out?

A2) He stated that there are many meetings like the Cruise Critic meeting that need to be held on the ship and there is very limited space. Therefore activities like BINGO do get moved around.

 

Q3) Why are there no urinals in the public bathrooms especially since they smell like urine?

A3) He explained that the owner of MSC’s wife chooses at the decor, the rooms, interior design etc. and she feels like urinals are out of place in the type of atmosphere that she is trying to create. He did say that he will talk to housekeeping about making sure the bathrooms stay clean.

 

I’m adding my own personal note here: Andre, appreciate you coming to the meeting and giving us your perspective. However, before you leave with the MIC, may I suggest that you pass the mic around so everyone in the room has the opportunity to meet each other.

 

Once you left the meeting, a number of Cruise Critic members just left the lounge and we did not get a chance to interact

 

My next interaction with Andre took place approximately the 4th night of the cruise. Let me state that I appreciate Andre taking time out of his busy schedule to meet with me. He probably gave me 15 minutes during the busy time between shows.

 

Concern #1- Ballroom (couples) Dancing

A big part of the cruise for me is a dancing opportunities. While there a lot of music venues, there’s very few places for couples dancing/ballroom dancing. Is there any way he can make it available?

 

Response #1) He would like to be able to use the disco, however it is a restaurant from 6 or 7 until 11 PM. He attempted early evening ballroom about 5 PM but was very poorly attended.

 

Concern #2 – MSC Website

I said that Americans have trouble believing that a company can deliver on its promises if their website does not work

 

Response #.2) They are aware of it and corporate is working on it and he has not been given any firm dates when it will be fixed.

 

Concern #3- Salad Bar

I said that I did not have huge expectations for the cruise. If the food was Golden Corral quality or Sizzler I would be happy. I understood the ship’s European, however salad bars and entrée salads are strictly an American concept. So why does the salad bar have a tray of lettuce and equal size tray of onion, cabbage, shredded carrots, and tomato. The variety was far below what any American would expect in the salad bar.

 

Response #3) This is is not his area, however at the end of every cruise he files a guest interaction report and will make sure that my comments are passed to the appropriate department.

 

Concern # 4- Jewish Sabbath service

I told him that I had read a review where Hanukkah candles were used and the traditional wine and challah was not available.

 

Response #4) He stated he was aware of the incident and was very upset. He had to retrain his staff to get it right. He removed the Shabbat service from the schedule for 2 weeks while awaiting the provisioning of the wine to arrive on the ship

 

Concern #5- Divina does not make you feel like a valued customer while on board

I could not elaborate why I felt this way, so I asked some of the people I met on the ship if they felt like a valued customer and the vast majority said “NO”

 

Response #5) He said that he understood and that MSC had a long ways to go. They realized it is not enough to build beautiful ships they have to give a wonderful experience. They also know it is not enough to be as good as the other cruise lines, they have to be better.

 

He stated that he thinks that MSC is today where Princess was 15 years ago and that the new CEO will take the steps necessary so the customers get the experience that they expect.

 

Concern #6- I had been on Epic where the Executive Chef spent a few hours a day smack in the middle of the buffet and the Hotel Dir. spent a few hours a day visible at the reception desk. Things ran very smoothly. In the Divina buffet, it did not look like anyone was in charge.

 

Response #6- He thought it was a good idea to have someone visible and available to customers and will pass it up the chain of command

 

Concern #7- I was amazed at how the whole crew was taught English in one week.

Having read reviews with the biggest complaint was absolutely no one on the ship spoke English the week before our sailing, I asked how he was able to teach 1300 people a foreign language so quickly?

 

Response #7)- He stated that he does not understand where these statements come from. Obviously a ship so large some crewmembers will speak English better than other crewmembers. He repeated that he thinks that there is an organized movement to keep MSC from being successful and that he hopes that Cruise Critic members have had good experiences will post them to cataract the negatives.

 

Concern #8- You can’t flush the public toilets manually.

I stated that the toilets are set and you have to be approximately 4 feet away for them to automatically flush which can be quite annoying and there is no way to manually flush them.

 

Response #8)- He joked about it which I will not repeat because it could get him into trouble.

 

Concern #9- I think the standard crew survey does not tell the company what is wrong. I asked why not email a survey that is not multiple-choice, that is essay type responses that someone will actually read to give a clear indication of what the guests really think?

 

Response #9) He stated that Americans use the Internet in the daily life much more than Europeans. That is why services cannot be paid for online as Europeans still print and fax things in while Americans have not had fax machines for over 10 years. He said corporate understands that this will be the future and is making plans to adjust to it

 

Concern #10- Why does Divina not have an official presence on social media?

I suggested that there be an official voice of Divina on Cruise Critic and other social media sites they can get their story out and respond to complaints.

 

Response #10) He stated that he would like to do that and has requested a meeting with the higher-ups who will be aboard in a few weeks to look at social media, questions and answers on the website, blogs etc.

 

I complemented him on his entertainment staff that was excellent and thanked him for his time.

 

End of report:-

To CC Members- please note that I tried my best to give the essentials of the conversation I am not giving an opinion or commentary on his answers

 

. I will post my own review of the cruise in this section in a day or two.

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sidari

sidari

Posted
Posted

Response #9) He stated that Americans use the Internet in the daily life much more than Europeans. That is why services cannot be paid for online as Europeans still print and fax things in while Americans have not had fax machines for over 10 years. He said corporate understands that this will be the future and is making plans to adjust to it

 

 

Andre needs to get to Europe more, he has clearly spent way to much time in the Caribbean! the reasons we cannot pay online for things like Drink packages, Tours and Spa services is because the website is such a shocking mess and they do not want to admit that.

 

Unless MSC organise meetings on all their ships the problems will be forever there, just doing it on Divina will only maybe cure 1/12th of their organisation.

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Mikesa1721

Mikesa1721

Posted
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On September 3rd, Divina sailing, Anfre, , the cruise director appeared at the Cruise Critic meet and greet. He invited anyone to come to his office to talk with him for any reason. I took him up on this.

 

I will try to recollect what was said at the Cruise Critic meeting and in my conversation with him later in the cruise. I did not take notes or record conversations, so this is being done from memory after the cruise. There could be errors, so please do not say in the future “Andre said”. He did know that I will be publishing our interaction on CC

 

CC Meet and Greet: held on 1st sea day. Approximate 40 people there

 

Andre said that he holds the meetings every cruise whether or not there is request made. He considers the Cruise Critic audience very important to the messaging and marketing of MSC, especially Divina. He asked that if someone has any kind of problem or issue they seek him out and give the company the opportunity to rectify the situation before posting it on cruise critic.

 

There were 3 questions asked, the first by me.

Q1) How do you feel when you read the harshly negative reviews about Divina?

A1) He stated that he was just talking to the captain about that earlier in the morning. He does not know what cruise these people have been on. He believes that there may be concerted effort by people who do not want MSC to succeed in this market. He believes some of the criticism to be absolutely ridiculous.

 

Q2) Why was BINGO being held outside at the pool when it was so hot out?

A2) He stated that there are many meetings like the Cruise Critic meeting that need to be held on the ship and there is very limited space. Therefore activities like BINGO do get moved around.

 

Q3) Why are there no urinals in the public bathrooms especially since they smell like urine?

A3) He explained that the owner of MSC’s wife chooses at the decor, the rooms, interior design etc. and she feels like urinals are out of place in the type of atmosphere that she is trying to create. He did say that he will talk to housekeeping about making sure the bathrooms stay clean.

 

I’m adding my own personal note here: Andre, appreciate you coming to the meeting and giving us your perspective. However, before you leave with the MIC, may I suggest that you pass the mic around so everyone in the room has the opportunity to meet each other.

 

Once you left the meeting, a number of Cruise Critic members just left the lounge and we did not get a chance to interact

 

My next interaction with Andre took place approximately the 4th night of the cruise. Let me state that I appreciate Andre taking time out of his busy schedule to meet with me. He probably gave me 15 minutes during the busy time between shows.

 

Concern #1- Ballroom (couples) Dancing

A big part of the cruise for me is a dancing opportunities. While there a lot of music venues, there’s very few places for couples dancing/ballroom dancing. Is there any way he can make it available?

 

Response #1) He would like to be able to use the disco, however it is a restaurant from 6 or 7 until 11 PM. He attempted early evening ballroom about 5 PM but was very poorly attended.

 

Concern #2 – MSC Website

I said that Americans have trouble believing that a company can deliver on its promises if their website does not work

 

Response #.2) They are aware of it and corporate is working on it and he has not been given any firm dates when it will be fixed.

 

Concern #3- Salad Bar

I said that I did not have huge expectations for the cruise. If the food was Golden Corral quality or Sizzler I would be happy. I understood the ship’s European, however salad bars and entrée salads are strictly an American concept. So why does the salad bar have a tray of lettuce and equal size tray of onion, cabbage, shredded carrots, and tomato. The variety was far below what any American would expect in the salad bar.

 

Response #3) This is is not his area, however at the end of every cruise he files a guest interaction report and will make sure that my comments are passed to the appropriate department.

 

Concern # 4- Jewish Sabbath service

I told him that I had read a review where Hanukkah candles were used and the traditional wine and challah was not available.

 

Response #4) He stated he was aware of the incident and was very upset. He had to retrain his staff to get it right. He removed the Shabbat service from the schedule for 2 weeks while awaiting the provisioning of the wine to arrive on the ship

 

Concern #5- Divina does not make you feel like a valued customer while on board

I could not elaborate why I felt this way, so I asked some of the people I met on the ship if they felt like a valued customer and the vast majority said “NO”

 

Response #5) He said that he understood and that MSC had a long ways to go. They realized it is not enough to build beautiful ships they have to give a wonderful experience. They also know it is not enough to be as good as the other cruise lines, they have to be better.

 

He stated that he thinks that MSC is today where Princess was 15 years ago and that the new CEO will take the steps necessary so the customers get the experience that they expect.

 

Concern #6- I had been on Epic where the Executive Chef spent a few hours a day smack in the middle of the buffet and the Hotel Dir. spent a few hours a day visible at the reception desk. Things ran very smoothly. In the Divina buffet, it did not look like anyone was in charge.

 

Response #6- He thought it was a good idea to have someone visible and available to customers and will pass it up the chain of command

 

Concern #7- I was amazed at how the whole crew was taught English in one week.

Having read reviews with the biggest complaint was absolutely no one on the ship spoke English the week before our sailing, I asked how he was able to teach 1300 people a foreign language so quickly?

 

Response #7)- He stated that he does not understand where these statements come from. Obviously a ship so large some crewmembers will speak English better than other crewmembers. He repeated that he thinks that there is an organized movement to keep MSC from being successful and that he hopes that Cruise Critic members have had good experiences will post them to cataract the negatives.

 

Concern #8- You can’t flush the public toilets manually.

I stated that the toilets are set and you have to be approximately 4 feet away for them to automatically flush which can be quite annoying and there is no way to manually flush them.

 

Response #8)- He joked about it which I will not repeat because it could get him into trouble.

 

Concern #9- I think the standard crew survey does not tell the company what is wrong. I asked why not email a survey that is not multiple-choice, that is essay type responses that someone will actually read to give a clear indication of what the guests really think?

 

Response #9) He stated that Americans use the Internet in the daily life much more than Europeans. That is why services cannot be paid for online as Europeans still print and fax things in while Americans have not had fax machines for over 10 years. He said corporate understands that this will be the future and is making plans to adjust to it

 

Concern #10- Why does Divina not have an official presence on social media?

I suggested that there be an official voice of Divina on Cruise Critic and other social media sites they can get their story out and respond to complaints.

 

Response #10) He stated that he would like to do that and has requested a meeting with the higher-ups who will be aboard in a few weeks to look at social media, questions and answers on the website, blogs etc.

 

I complemented him on his entertainment staff that was excellent and thanked him for his time.

 

End of report:-

To CC Members- please note that I tried my best to give the essentials of the conversation I am not giving an opinion or commentary on his answers

 

. I will post my own review of the cruise in this section in a day or two.

 

 

https://www.facebook.com/MSC.Cruises.USA

 

https://twitter.com/msccruisesusa

 

http://www.pinterest.com/msccruisesusa/

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/msccruisesusa

 

https://www.youtube.com/MSCCruises

 

https://plus.google.com/+msccruisesusa/posts

 

http://instagram.com/msccruisesofficial

 

There is a representative from MSC who does reply on CC every now and then. I do feel they should be a bit more active when there are questions regarding certain things onboard Divina:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/member.php?u=738265

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logan25

logan25

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Posted

Quite an interesting read.

 

I agree about the multiple choice surveys not being very useful to management. I took the time to write in comments on my cards. Don't be afraid to think outside the box. Doesn't mean they get read, but at least MSC has been given the opportunity of insight.

 

If MSC wants input from CC passengers, one useful avenue could be a follow-up meeting during a sailing (such as your private conversation with the cruise director.) For the first time ever, I was fortunate enough to attend such a meeting while on the NCL Pearl two weeks ago. Perhaps a dozen CC passengers met with the Hotel Director, Cruise Director, head of housekeeping and such near the end of our sailing. We voiced compliments, concerns and suggestions. I, for one, felt the staff was genuine and receptive. It was by no means a bashing session, but an opportunity to be heard.

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