MSC Divina Cruise Review for February 18 - 25, 2017

[Match Game 72]

We've cruised many times - primarily with NCL. On our first MSC cruise, we had 2 balcony connecting cabins. Traveling were two 70 year olds, two 45 year olds, and a 10 year old. Let me know if you have specific questions, and I will try to answer them.

 

The embarkation was extremely quick and smooth. We arrived at the port around 12:30 and boarded immediately. We waited until the next day to add a credit card to our account. The process was quick with no line.

 

We tried to eat lunch on the first day at the Sports Bar, but they only had chicken available. Later in the cruise we did eat there, but it was not worth a repeat visit.

 

We ate most breakfasts and lunches at the buffet which was extensive and of good quality. We ate one dinner there, but the choices are very limited compared to lunch. So, we ate in the Black Crab dining room for the remainder of our dinners. The wait staff in the Black Crab was excellent. Our water was kept refilled, suggestions were made when asked and we only had one slow meal all week. Some of the food choices were the best I had ever eaten (eggplant parm, oriental kale soup and felafel, for example).

 

The entertainment was very good. My favorite evening show was Voices on the first night. The evening lounge performers were talented and not too loud.

 

We used drink coupons which were purchased online before the trip. One set of 18 adult coupons and a set of 10 Doremi kids coupons. These were a very good value.

 

The connected balcony could have used better sound proofing, but it was nice to be able to sit together on the balcony with the divider open. The mattress was very comfortable. I never woke with back pain. There is limited storage drawers for 3 people in a balcony cabin. I suggest hanging as much as you can. I also brought a couple of popup boxes for small items like socks.

 

The staff attitude was consistently pleasant and helpful.

 

My 10 year old enjoyed evenings in the kids club. He choose to eat dinner with them most nights. He also liked how they went different places on the ship including a nightclub to dance and to all the shows.

 

We bought a $60 entertainment card for the F1 simulator, bowling and 4D cinema. I felt it was a good value.

 

We used the Aqua Park outdoor pool, the indoor pool and the water slide. The water slide was very fun. It was smooth, and you will not get stuck if you lay down like the staff suggests.

 

The disembarkation was well organized but there were no announcements when to leave. We just left at our assigned time and easily found our luggage.

 

On the whole, we tremendously enjoyed the MSC experience. The Divina was beautiful, clean and fun. This is more of a traditional cruise experience without many of the bells and whistles of other cruise lines. We will cruise MSC again in the future!

[dexddd]

Thanks for the info. We are doing first MSC this summer. What kind of chicken in Sports Bar the first day? That seems really odd - you couldn't order off the menu? The other days, what was wrong with the food there, the menu looks great.

 

As far as the package, that is per room, correct? What and how long were the movies. Seems like a good value. Were there lines for these?

[Match Game 72]

The server in the Sports Bar was very apologetic on the first day. She said that they had to discard most of the food from the previous cruise. We did not stay to try the chicken. On a different day, we got fish and chips (small made with pollack) and a burger. The fried were the best part of the meal. It just wasn't as good as the buffet food. It was not comparable to the O'Sheehan's pubs on NCL.

 

Yes, the $60 entertainment card included the 3 of us in the cabin. It is available at Virtual World where you also sign out board games and sports equipment.

Twice we waited to use the F1 simulator, but often we just walked up. My son played several bowling games without waiting. The cinema never had a line. It was out of order for the last couple of days.

 

Also, I forgot to mention that there was a surprise US inspection while we were on board. The captain announced they scored 98%.

[dexddd]

Thanks for the info.

[Reds4life]

Lanouette, thanks for a great review. I was wondering about the buffet offerings. Was the dinner menu an upgrade from the lunch offerings and just limited on selection? What were the meats on the lunch and dinner? I have read a lot about the pizza and pasta. I'm a meat and potatoes kind of guy for the most part. Just wondering what the typical selections consist of. Thanks in advance!

[thegraminator]

I loved your review . Thanks for your positivity ! A few questions about the kids program if I may . Did the 10 yr old find a language barrier with the staff in the kids area ? And did they do any type of performance with the kids on the big stage near the end of the cruise ? What did this child think of the food choices ?

 

Sorry for all the questions . I just wanted to be certain our grandchildren have a great time !

 

Glad you enjoyed your trip !

[Match Game 72]

Lanouette, thanks for a great review. I was wondering about the buffet offerings. Was the dinner menu an upgrade from the lunch offerings and just limited on selection? What were the meats on the lunch and dinner? I have read a lot about the pizza and pasta. I'm a meat and potatoes kind of guy for the most part. Just wondering what the typical selections consist of. Thanks in advance!

 

 

The lunch items were extensive including a carving station and many hot entrees. I enjoyed the Ethnic Corner which often had Indian curry or Mexican food at lunch time. The dinner we saw had less choice. The pizza was consistently good no matter what time it was. My husband would choose the carved meat like turkey or pork.

 

Once we tried the buffet for dinner, we made sure not to miss our regular dinner seating.

[Match Game 72]

I loved your review . Thanks for your positivity ! A few questions about the kids program if I may . Did the 10 yr old find a language barrier with the staff in the kids area ? And did they do any type of performance with the kids on the big stage near the end of the cruise ? What did this child think of the food choices ?

 

Sorry for all the questions . I just wanted to be certain our grandchildren have a great time !

 

Glad you enjoyed your trip !

 

 

Staff in many areas throughout the ship were multilingual. All we met spoke English even if it was not their first language. He had no problem communicating with kids club staff. On the first morning he was concerned that the kids were younger and may not speak English. However, he went back in the evening and met some kids aged 9 -11. Then he made friends and learned some Norwegian words too. It was a good experience.

 

There was a performance but he did not participate.

 

Kids club has 2 kinds of access. A red wristband means kids need to be signed in and out. A green wristband allows kids to come and go at will. We ended up switching to a green band so he could get burgers and fries at the buffet dinnertime. The kids section of the buffet is small. We still dropped off and picked him up from the activities, but with a green band kids don't need a parent present.

[riclop]

Thanks for the review.

[shukapaw]

Thanks so much for sharing your experiences.

 

Brian

[KiMnEvan]

Thanks for the great review!

[Kattus]

Thanks for your review! Seeing as you're also an NCL regular, you mentioned "regular dinner seating." We're considering the Divina for May or June booking a Fantastica cabin for the option of choosing our dining time/style. Were you given the option of selecting this, or were you automatically assigned dining? DH and I like to dine alone, we're sort of anti-social on cruises lol

 

Thanks in advance!

[Clarea]

Appreciate the feedback.

[Reds4life]

Thanks for your review! Seeing as you're also an NCL regular, you mentioned "regular dinner seating." We're considering the Divina for May or June booking a Fantastica cabin for the option of choosing our dining time/style. Were you given the option of selecting this, or were you automatically assigned dining? DH and I like to dine alone, we're sort of anti-social on cruises lol

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Not to overstep the question for the original poster, but we booked Fantastica for Divina for May 27 and were given the option to choose 6:30 or 8:30 for our dining time. They said it would be the same time each day with the same table and wait staff.

[easyboy]

Thanks for the review.

[Match Game 72]

Thanks for your review! Seeing as you're also an NCL regular, you mentioned "regular dinner seating." We're considering the Divina for May or June booking a Fantastica cabin for the option of choosing our dining time/style. Were you given the option of selecting this, or were you automatically assigned dining? DH and I like to dine alone, we're sort of anti-social on cruises lol

 

Thanks in advance!

 

We had a Fantastica experience. We were able to choose early or late dining. Because we were traveling with family, our reservations were linked together. We were the only 5 at our table. I saw quite a few 2 seat tables.

 

It's my understanding that the Aurea experience allows you to vary your dining time daily.