MSC Divina 18 Day Live Cruise Blog 11/14-12/2

[phissy]

16 hours ago, styles27 said:

@Motegiwe’re on board as well! May run into you with so few people. They told us 490 passengers. It’s certainly quiet! Bon voyage!

Glad you made it on board…enjoy your cruise.

Ours is also very “empty” feeling.  Nice not to fight for hot tubs 😁

[Motegi]

Day 2 - Trivia!

 

BTW, bring binoculars if you plan to do the visual trivia.  
 

[JAGR]

50 minutes ago, Motegi said:

Day 2 - Trivia!

 

BTW, bring binoculars if you plan to do the visual trivia.  
 

 

Curious where they are doing the trivia.  Seaside used to do it on the Plaza Grande, but that was a bit noisy.  The Seashore equivalent would be Times Square, I assume.

[Motegi]

41 minutes ago, JAGR said:

Curious where they are doing the trivia.  Seaside used to do it on the Plaza Grande, but that was a bit noisy.  The Seashore equivalent would be Times Square, I assume.

On Divina they do it at the Jazz Lounge.  So they use a smallish LCD TV that is mounted on the left side of the stage to show the images.   Most people had to get up and walk to the TV in order to see the photos. 

[Motegi]

MSC Yacht Club bracelets for Ocean Cay access.  Our butler brought them to our cabin. 

 

Apparently these are just silicone bracelets and do not have any of the functionality that they do on the newer ships like Seaside and Meraviglia. 

These bracelets are much more difficult to put on than the ones from the other ships as far as I can remember.  

 

 

[Motegi]

Our cabin, a YC 1 Yacht Club Deluxe Suite on deck 15 on the port side of the ship. 
 

We like the bathroom layout with the tub/shower combo and marble vanity.  
 

The walk-in closet has a good amount of space with a very large safe.  The additional storage in the hallway closet is perfect for grab and go items.  Our over the door shoe organizer fit perfect on the closet door.
 

The walls in the hall outside the bathroom are metal so magnetic hooks work great for our smaller things. 

 

The bed has plenty of space underneath for our empty luggage. 
 

[Motegi]

We have arrived!  Nice to be back at Ocean Cay!  

 

Edited November 15, 2021 by Motegi

[Nunagoras]

Wonderful review, many thanks!...

 

Come the day all that Ocean Cay vegetation grows up and that is becoming to be the best cruise private island on the whole industry!... Simply such an above the premium place to stay!...

 

Have a nice sailing!...

[phissy]

3 hours ago, Motegi said:

We have arrived!  Nice to be back at Ocean Cay!  

 

We saw you guys out at sea while we were pulling out of the dock. Staff onboard were convinced your ship was Seashore. I assured them it was Divina. ( I had inside info…😉) 

[rkacruiser]

6 hours ago, Motegi said:

Day 2 Le Muse

 

Looks to me you found the Ranchero Potatoes.  I did not discover them until Day 6 of my 7 day cruise.  Delicious!

 

Thanks for the photo of the soup containing Octopus.  I would be glad that the Octopi were not whole ones.  Your star rating system is unique!  No one else has done that on CC, I don't think.  A good idea!  

[rkacruiser]

6 hours ago, Motegi said:

Day 2 Le Muse

 

Looks to me you found the Ranchero Potatoes.  I did not discover them until Day 6 of my 7 day cruise.  Delicious!

 

Thanks for the photo of the soup containing Octopus.  I would be glad that the Octopi were not whole ones.  Your star rating system is unique!  No one else has done that on CC, I don't think.  A good idea!  

[Motegi]

51 minutes ago, phissy said:

We saw you guys out at sea while we were pulling out of the dock. Staff onboard were convinced your ship was Seashore. I assured them it was Divina. ( I had inside info…😉) 

We saw you guys leaving!  

[quattrohead]

Good to meet you all yesterday. It is spooky quiet onboard and at the island. 1 to 1 staff/ customer ratio means we are being taken very good care of.

[Motegi]

Was a little cloudy this afternoon which made the air feel quite cool.  But we still went ahead and snorkeled at Lighthouse Bay.   There were lots of small fish and some huge empty conch shells on the seabed.  
 

We heard that there were some large rays in the water on the other side of the bay which we hope to see tomorrow!  Also we are planning to snorkel in the lagoon to see the sea turtle. 
 

[Motegi]

Day 2 Dinner at Le Muse

 

 

Our choices and rating (* to *****):

Vitello Tonnato *****
Maryland Crab Cake ****
Grilled SeaBass *****
Broiled Filet Mignon *****

[Motegi]

Day 2 Ocean Cay Lighthouse show.

 

Almost exactly like our last visit to Ocean Cay in 2019, the Lighthouse show was delayed for 1 hour due to technical issues.  Many of us were already sitting on the beach at 8PM before they announced the delay.  
 

We were thankful for the fire pits they had set up and enjoyed some conversation with fellow cruisers while waiting for the show. 

Much to our surprise even after they got the show started it only lasted 5 minutes.  

 

 

[lienf]

 Very much enjoying your unique blog, particularly your food star rating. We are doing our first MSC cruise next May in the YC on the Seashore, and will follow your 18 days with envy. 

Edited November 16, 2021 by lienf

[Motegi]

Day 3 - Ocean Cay and Flower Glory Party

 

[Motegi]

Day 3 - Breakfast at LeMuse

 

We didn’t realize until now but if there is a particular menu item that you like you can ask for it at any time and they will try their best to get it for you.   
 

Last night Pam fell in love with the Parisian potatoes that were served with her sea bass entree.  She asked the waiter if this was something that could be requested.   He checked with the chef and, sure enough, they brought them to her for breakfast!  

[dexddd]

On 11/15/2021 at 11:30 AM, Motegi said:

MSC Yacht Club bracelets for Ocean Cay access.  Our butler brought them to our cabin. 

 

Apparently these are just silicone bracelets and do not have any of the functionality that they do on the newer ships like Seaside and Meraviglia. 

These bracelets are much more difficult to put on than the ones from the other ships as far as I can remember.  

 

 

Yep, we thought the same thing too, very difficult to put on vs prior trips.

[dexddd]

4 hours ago, Motegi said:

Day 2 Ocean Cay Lighthouse show.

 

Almost exactly like our last visit to Ocean Cay in 2019, the Lighthouse show was delayed for 1 hour due to technical issues.  Many of us were already sitting on the beach at 8PM before they announced the delay.  
 

We were thankful for the fire pits they had set up and enjoyed some conversation with fellow cruisers while waiting for the show. 

Much to our surprise even after they got the show started it only lasted 5 minutes.  

 

 

Not sure if it used to be longer, but on our recent visit the two shows we saw were only 5 minutes also.  Kind of over-hyped.

[quattrohead]

Seemed like a few mins of graphics and then UV meter to the sounds of the music. We watched it from the  "private" stairs running up the back side of ship.

[rkacruiser]

3 hours ago, dexddd said:

Not sure if it used to be longer, but on our recent visit the two shows we saw were only 5 minutes also.  Kind of over-hyped.

 

Not when I saw it in January, 2019.  Don't accurately remember how long the show lasted, but it was much longer than 5 minutes.  After the show was over, the Lighthouse continued to change colors for as long as I dared watch it.  (Needed to get to bed because of early arrival in Miami the next morning.)  

[rkacruiser]

6 hours ago, Motegi said:

Day 3

 

"Discover the Work Behind the Magic" I see is listed on this day's program.  If this is offered again during your 18 days aboard, even though it is an extra cost "excursion" (I imagine), consider booking this.  It was not offered during my Meraviglia cruise (I don't think), but I have done a few of these "behind the scenes" tours on HAL and on Carnival ships.  Worth every penny every time that I have done so.  Each time, I learn more than I knew before about what it takes to produce a good cruise experience for the guest.  

[Motegi]

Day 3 Ocean Cay

 

Took the Yacht Club transportation to the Ocean House.  The pickup area is designated by the white canopies to the right as soon as you get past the gates on the island.  
 

We saw some lemon sharks in the lagoon by the bridge along the way.  North beach was closed to swimming so by the time we walked back to South beach, put on our snorkel gear, and swam out to the bridge the sharks were gone.   The lifeguards then came and directed us away from the channel.  We tried looking for the nurse sharks and sea turtle in the lagoon but the water was too cloudy to see very far.