OneParticularHarbour 71

I don’t remember how many outlets there were, but they did have 110.

There was one container of shampoo/body wash in the shower (in Fantastica balcony cabins). No conditioner. I will be bringing my own shampoo and conditioner next time. Also there was no bar soap if you need that for anything. There was liquid soap at the sink.

There was a hairdryer in the cabin.

We had one formal and one semi formal on our 7 night cruise in May.

Yes, saw many women in capris in the dining room (though don’t remember if those were on the formal nights).

Enjoy your cruise!

Here is our experience with MSC relative to food allergies (not life threatening).

When we sailed on Divina, we had our TA note my husband’s gluten allergy on the reservation and I think we also filled out a form online (not entirely sure on that though, I could be remembering incorrectly). I also called my TA a couple of different times to verify it was noted.

We were given a table to ourselves in the dining room (not sure if that was due to the allergy or not) and the head waiter would take my husband’s order and bring his food to him. I believe he said his food was prepared in a separate area from the other food. Our regular waiter would take care of the rest of the table.

They were very good about no cross contamination as my husband did not get sick all week. While his issue is not immediately life threatening, he does get very sick if he gets glutened and he was fine all week.

Someone called him a few days into the cruise to check to see how things were doing relative to his allergy.

At dinner in the specialty restaurant and at breakfast and lunch, we reminded them of the allergy each time but at regular dinners we had the same waitstaff each night so they were aware of it.

We have rebooked on the Seaside, hopefully we do not have any issues.

Do kids ( who are the second not third passenger) in a room also get this credit? Can they be used for non-alcoholic drinks also?

Can’t speak to the other ships, but when we sailed Fantastica on the Divina, our kids each received a non alcoholic booklet (they were booked as 2nd and 3rd passengers).

The alcoholic and non alcoholic vouchers could be used for smoothies, milkshakes, and gelato (in addition to soft drinks, coffees, etc).

I have previously cruised with Princess and Holland America and have a cruise booked with princess for this January but we are thinking of cancelling it and trying MSC. I will be cruising with my 13 year old son, my 20 year old son, my husband and his parents. So I have been trying to figure out the differences with MSC. I am looking at either the Divina or Seaside for sometime this winter. We won't be doing YC as it is sold out on any of our available sailings.I'm most likely going to do a whilpool suite with aurea pkg for me and my husband and either balcony or inside for the others with fantastica. So I was wondering:

1) Does anybody have experience with the the teen program for the 12-14 age range, how was it

We sailed this May when my two youngest were 12 and 15. For the most part it seemed that the 12-14 and 15-17 age groups did the same activities together. My 12 year old went a few times through the week but my 15 went as much as we would let him (this is usually how it goes with them on other cruise lines too).

One thing that was different from other lines is that at the end of the night when the teen club closed, instead of everyone having to leave and the club getting locked up, the counselor would leave at closing time, taking the remote controls and games etc with him but leaving the club open, and the kids could continue to hang out there.

2) Has anybody put 4 people in 1 cabin, how crowded was it

3) When booking fantastica online it shows drink vouchers in the info page but the booking page says mealtime drinks included, is this in addition to the drink vouchers

 

Yes, the vouchers are in addition to the mealtime drink package. We were able to use the vouchers for gelato and milkshakes as well as the usual beverages.

 

4) How is the food and entertainment?

 

We enjoyed the majority of the food. Had lots of late night pizza - it was so good!

We only went to two of the nightly shows - the tribute to Queen and the Michael Jackson show. Both were fun. The late night entertainment up on the pool deck was fun too.

 

5) It looks like the aurea pkg includes a massage, what are the details on this?

6) What are the superfamily rooms like, considering this as an option?

7) How much stuff is an extra charge once onboard? Will most things be included?

We purchased the unlimited package for the F1 simulator, 4D movies, and bowling for 85.00 each cabin (I think). You can also pay as you go.

The vouchers we received could be used for alcoholic drinks, soft drinks, coffees, smoothies, etc. and gelato so we didnt have to pay for those things.

The usual things had an extra charge like the spa, specialty dining, etc.

8) Bella pkg says it included meal drinks in the booking page so what are the other incentives to pay for fantastica?

Each person will also get 12 drink vouchers which can be used throughout the ship at any time of day.

There are are other incentives regarding the kids club, room service, and location of stateroom but I don't know those specifics.

9) What does the status match program give you?

 

5% off your cruise and other things depending on what level you match to.

We matched to black and got something everyday such as free specialty dining, thermal spa passes, free photo, string backpacks, sparkling wine and chocolate covered strawberries, etc.

 

 

Sorry for all the questions just trying to get a better feel for this cruise line.

Have a great cruise!

Ah didn't realise the f1 simulator is only for adults. Thanks everyone you have saved us money lol! We will probably try the cinema and bowling once or twice. We will just pay as we go x

 

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When we were on the Divina at the end of May this year kids were allowed to use it. My youngest two were 12 and 15 but we saw younger kids using it too - they just needed to be big enough to reach the pedals.

We are a family of 5 and often bring along my oldest's BFF. When they were 18, we did an upsell to a Haven 2 bedroom and a Haven penthouse suite on the Getaway (we had originally booked 2 cabins and were told that we therefore needed to upsell into 2 suites even though the 6 of us could technically all fit into the 2 bedroom). Boy, was I glad we had the extra penthouse for the two girls! Not sure how 6 would have fit into the 2 bedroom - the sofa beds were not quite a full size and would have been too way tight for two people and the 2nd bedroom did not have a pull down either.

Only in the MDR where they do not provide tap-water or coffee at lunch and dinner.

Good to know!

Btw, this might be a bit off topic, but it is about drink packages.. or the absence of it. What can you drink if you dont buy a drink package or vouchers? On RCCL you can always get water ,lemonade or coffee for example. Does the same apply to MSC?

I am not sure what ship you asking about, but when we sailed the Divina out of the US, the free drinks in the buffet included coffee, tea, milk, water, lemonade, and a couple of flavored waters - I remember kiwi strawberry and a mango something for flavors. At breakfast there were also juices available (in the buffet and dining room).

From what I have read here, I understand the European sailings are more restrictive on what is available for free.

It took me a while to figure out the layout of this ship for some reason, lol. There are 4 sets of elevator banks (I guess I am used to only 3 on ships), plus another single elevator forward of the aft elevators.

The aft elevators take you into the back part of the buffet which was nice because the front part of the buffet was always crazy.

At the very aft of the ship there is an open deck area on both the port and starboard side with a staircase that leads up into the very back of the buffet.

There is a drink station in the very aft of the buffet that I didn't realize was there until the last couple of days of the cruise.

We were on the 5/27 sailing and picked them up in the casino.

The drink coupons that come with Fantastica experience can be used throughout the ship. We were able to use them for alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks, including smoothies and milkshakes, and gelato. There were some higher priced alcoholic drinks that were noted on the menus as being excluded from any drink coupons.

Not sure which age group you are looking for, but here are the schedules for the 12-14 group and the 15-17 group. Maybe someone else will come along and post the younger groups' activities...

These are from Divina:

Does national have a free shuttle to and from POM? Tried calling them and no one seems to know

Yes, National, Enterprise and Alamo share a shuttle and Thrifty and Dollar share another shuttle.

Took them both last week.

I would go with whichever you can get a better price with though I will say the National/Enterprise/Alamo shuttle was larger than the Thrifty/Dollar shuttle which made trying to get on it at POM faster. From MIA both shuttles were pretty empty and easy to get right on.

Thrifty/Dollar has a free shuttle to/from MIA/POM as does National/Enterprise/Alamo.

Have your rental paperwork ready as they often check it as you get on the shuttle.

In February 2017 on the Divina, the pass was $60 for everyone in the cabin for unlimited F1, 3D movie and bowling.

 

Without the pass, bowling was $7 per player per string.

I was onboard Divina last week and it has gone up to 85.00 per cabin for the unlimited pass! (Or 8.00 for bowling, for 9.90 simulator, 8.00 for 4d theater) :rolleyes:

From Divina:

I haven't filled out my online comment form yet but I will be sure to mention the extra card issue, hopefully if enough people mention it, they will fix it.

Hope you guys all have wonderful cruises!

The Garden Pool on Divina was listed as adult only in the Daily Planner and was signed that way on the ship. We didn't see any kids back there except for the first time we inadvertantly ended up walking through with our kids on the first day. No one said anything to us but we moved right along when we realized it.

We were on Divina last week and had the same situation in that we had 2 rooms booked for the 5 of us. Our kids are 19, 15, 12 and we were told we needed to book one parent in each room. (We booked my husband, 12, and 15yo in one room and me and 19 yo in the other.) When on the ship, the two oldest were in one room, and our youngest was in with my husband and I.

We went to guest services the first evening to see if we could get an extra room key for each room (so my son and I could each get into the room we are sleeping in). We were told it was not something that they normally can do and he went off to check with his manager. Before he left to check, he told us that they have had issues with the child losing the extra key and charges being made in the card.

When he came back from speaking with his manager, he said he would be able to give us 1 extra key only (and to only one room) and that I needed to write out a statement that I would be responsible for any charges made to that card.

So in the end, my 15 yo gave me his room key so I could get into the room I was sleeping in, and we gave him the extra room key that was printed that had my name on it. (So I then had 2 cards - the one with 15yo's name on it and one with my name on it, and my 15yo had one card with my name on it.)

I needed to give him his card when he needed to get on/off the ship or wanted to make purchases.

Sorry if this is long and confusing - the whole process was very odd. On other cruise lines we have always been able to get extra dummy keys that just open the room. I had read ahead of time that MSC couldn't do it, so I was happy to get that one extra key from them, but it wasn't the most convenient situation.

Thanks so much for sharing those menus. That's exactly what I was looking for ! I truly appreciate your taking time to post .

You're welcome! Hope you have a great cruise!

Just got off Divina yesterday - we picked up our Fantastica vouchers as well as the additional vouchers we had prepurchased in the casino. There was a note in the Daily Planner that they could be picked up in the casino from 11:30am-4:15pm and from 10:00pm to late, or from your dining room from 6:00pm to 10:00pm. That being said, we were able to pick them up in the casino right after the lifeboat drill which was held at 4:30.

We just got off Divina yesterday. In the dining room, they do have a separate kids menu which is split into two parts - for babies 12mos and under, and for over 12 mos. We didn't order anything off of the kid menus so can't comment on the food. When we asked about a kids menu in Eataly Steakhouse, they said they didn't have a kids menu but kids could order off the Eataly pizza menu if they wanted.

In the main dining room, there is a section of the regular menu called "Classic Favorites" which is on the menu every night except for formal and semi formal nights. The Classic Favorites included caesar salad, ziti with marinara sauce, lasagne, rotisserie chicken, salmon, and steak.

Here are pics of of a few of the kid menus (the 12mos. section didn't change, so I am only posting one pic of that section) and the Eataly pizza menu:

We are on this cruise too! Can't wait to get onboard! Our youngest is 12 so maybe he will see your daughter in the club.

Thanks for posting!

"Clumsily"

The daily paper prints a time that restaurants can take bookings during the day, but no one ever was there in person, or answered the number.

 

For the first night at Eataly we just hung around until opening and they were able to accommodate us.

 

We never could speak to anyone at Galaxy, so we just kept trying back different times of day and eventually found a menu near the bar, looked and was not too interested. So we wanted to make our second visit at Eataly again. Same process with no one answering or available.

 

Finally went to GS and they told us to call; explained calling only works if people are there like the sheet says. So GS told us they would make the reservation. Which they did, for the wrong time. When we arrived (at opening) the restaurant would not accommodate us so we re-scheduled for another night. Despite waiting 10 minutes to see if the 6PM reservations arrived only a few tables had anyone and the manager told us it was policy not to fill the restaurant. I guess some tables are just for show, not for go.

 

And they don't know if you have a free black card meal or are trying to pay full price, so keeping these places a secret makes no sense.

 

For the record though, both times the food and service was good. It's a really nice perk because it is quiet and spacious compared to the MDR, and the steaks were great. I had the Porterhouse both times, others in our party had the filet and the whole lobster.

 

A similar meal for two would have cost us near $140 on Royal Caribbean. (Porterhouse and Lobster being upcharges on that line on top of base rate, and the base price of the restaurant is $49 per person). So a great perk at no charge on MSC, and we got to go twice for free. they never presented a bill or anything to sign.

 

They just need to get their act together with promoting and taking reservations for these places.

Thanks for the info - that would make my husband crazy so I will be sure to be to the one trying to get the reservation! At least I can now prepare myself for the aggravation, lol.