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Going to have my TA try to apply this to our Seaside inaugural sailing in December. We got the all inclusive classic as a perk when we booked in Jan 2016. Will report back if it works.

 

 

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Please do keep us updated.... I forgot the we have the inclusive classic included on our Seaside reservation as well.

We sailed Divina in November 2016, and in January 2017. They would NOT upgrade us by calling or after onboard. Perhaps things have changed since then. Good luck, it's a nice ship.

First , thank you for your informative and positive review .

 

Secondly , a few silly questions please .

 

Did you or have you in the past , purchased a photo package ? Any info on this ?

 

Did you eat at the Sports bar ? Any recommendations ?

 

What Fantactica balcony room did you book ? We are in cabins 12228-30-32 ( 3 rooms) and are a bit concerned about being so far aft.

 

Thanks for your willingness to help us future cruisers. We sail July 22, first time with MSC .

Never a silly question!

We did eat in the sports bar. Fish n Chips, and the Mozzarella Sticks were very good. Salads.... terrible. Service was poor at best. This bar too, didn't have diet coke or cherry coke. Interestingly enough, the coffee bar which is right around the corner always did. The server would not go around the corner and get it for us and we got it ourselves. (most staff members would do their best to at least try to get them for us, but not the sports bar.) This was easily the worst service on the ship. Do give it a try though, I'm sure they've moved around staff. Worst case you leave. When we were on in 2016, they had a great staff at that bar.

As for cabins, we've been in 12140, 12220, and 12210. Good thing is that you are near the elevators and stairs. Two decks up and you are directly in the middle of the buffet. It will be really nice to have the partitions on the 3 balconies opened.

Galaxy! Excellent food and service with a great atmosphere! (we tried all of the restaurants.)

Feel free to read my review:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=52984598#post52984598

So.... several MDR questions.....

My experience with specialty restaurants hasn't been worth the extra cost on most cruise lines that I have taken. In fact some have been so bad that they refunded our dining costs. The only stand out would be Blu on Celebrity. With regard to MSC only, 2014 we didn't do any specialty restaurants. 2016 we tried two of them, and 2017 we tried them all. Galaxy was the best in our opinion.

The MDR - In all honesty 2014 was the best overall MDR food. 2016 they revamped the menu just prior to our cruise. It was still good, just not as good as 2014. However, in 2014 it was a longer dining experience and many people complained that it took too long. This year, the food in the MDR is still good, however, it is your typical very large crowded venue. Not to offend anyone.... but... there were several families with young kids that just let them run around in the dining room, including jumping up and down on the furniture. The specialty restaurants are very roomy, small venues, excellent food and service, and not too pricey. Breakfast in the MDR was extremely slow. Up on the pool deck there is usually a made to order Omelette bar, this was very good!

Ordering drinks in the MDR was spotty. Alcoholic drinks / wine was usually quicker than ordering soda. But again, my sister always wanted a diet coke, which was difficult to find. Eventually we'd just stop at a bar before heading to the MDR and carry in our own drinks.

Andre was our Cruise Director.

Hope this answers everyone's questions.

Fantastica - 12210

We also bought the dining package and drink vouchers before the cruise.

This was our third cruise on the MSC Divina. We've sailed on Divina in 2014, 2016 and 2017. We have many cruises to compare it with, as this was our 33rd cruise. Divina is the only ship we've sailed on three times, and would sail on again!

In general, from what I've witnessed or read in other reviews as a difficult situation are the language barriers. Typically we've always cruised on "American" cruise lines, thus English is the primary language. We anticipated in advance of our first Divina cruise to expect Italian as the primary language. It seems that many people expect English as the primary language and can be rather rude and unhappy when it is not. If you go with the mindset that this cruise will be much more diverse than you are used too, you'll have a great time. I will add that over the years Divina has become more "American" and English speaking than it was in 2014. (Take that for what it's worth...)

The ship is beautiful and well cared for. The Swarovski stairs in the atrium are spectacular. The Caffe on 7 is a nice coffee / espresso place with a nice view of the atruim. The public restrooms are all well kept. The Theatre is huge, with a nice view from just about anywhere.

Cabin - Each time we booked a balcony cabin. This cruise we had two balcony cabins next to each other. The divider on the balcony was able to be opened for the entire cruise, and made for a nice family place to hang out and view the ocean.

The Shows - Some of the best ever. And the pre-show entertainment is always fun to watch. Especially Mr. Limoncello! With the diversity of nationalities and languages on board, you won't have any comedians, guest entertainers, etc. However, you will have a variety of different shows. Many of the songs, even if not performed in english, and well known.

Restaurants - The specialty restaurants are a must try. The Galaxy is well worth the price. The food and view are the best on the ship! Eataly Steakhouse, surf and turf was so good, we went back another night and had it again! Eataly Pizza, Rosario the pizza guy, is from Naples, he makes the best Pizza I've ever had. His pizza is so much different than the pizza from up on deck 14. Although even the pizza on deck 14 is the best pizza of any cruise line we've been on, and we ate them nearly every night around midnite (and sometimes at lunch too!). What really made the specialty restaurants special... the Head Waiter,Gianmarco. He covers all of the specialty restaurants and goes out of his way to make sure that you enjoy every bite of your meals. One night, as a joke, my only complaint to him was there were seeds in my lemon... he went and got another lemon, de-seeded it,and freshly squeezed it himself on my lobster! We also tried Restaurant Italia. Also, delicious, the antipasti plate and the steak sauces are excellent.

Bar Service - Different from your standard "American" run cruise line. They aren't constantly after you to buy another drink, and if you need a drink in the show, get it beforehand as there isn't a bar in the theatre. My only complaint.... rarely could you find a diet coke. Lots of coke zero, but very few diet coke, and my sister is a diet coke addict. Also, many bartenders didn't seem to know that Ginger beer is non-alcohol. And, like diet coke, not available in all the bars. (I'm the ginger beer addict...) Oh, and cherry coke was also hard to find. I think I had a tantrum at one time for the cherry coke.... they didn't have it...two cans were delivered to my cabin later that day....

The Gym - I know... who cares when you're on vacation. Me! I'm kind of a gym rat and I used the gym every day. It's large, clean, very nice, a good variety of equipment, even a free weight dumbbell section. It's also in a great area with full windows on three sides so there is always an ocean view!

Staff - Many of the staff members had remembered us from previous sailings. This made our cruise extra special. Many crew members and officers had welcomed us back with a hug or a handshake. One, Austin - Buffet Supervisor, welcomed us back with a handshake and our favorite pepperoni pizza! Many, many crew members went far above and beyond in making us feel like they really enjoyed having us back on board. The level of service we had received was far above any level of service from any other cruise line.

Overall, that's my quick review. Feel free to ask if you have any questions.

This is how it is listed on the website Q&A:

For how long are points valid? Points earned at the end of a cruise have a validity date of 36 months from the date of disembarkation. You will need to complete at least one cruise in 36 months since your last disembarkation date to extend your membership for another 36 months from your last disembarkation date.

WWWFLA - It was a special they were running when we booked the cruise, they had an "all-inclusive" deal where you booked the cruise and they included the Classic all you can drink, $40 room credit, and an Internet package. They are saying the bonuses were free, however, I know my cruise fare was much higher than if I'd just bought the cruise alone. Now I wanted to upgrade to the Premium package, but they tell me I'd need to pay for the entire package ($500+) rather than the upgrade cost ($140).

Other cruise lines, such as NCL for instance, only charged us to the upgrade cost.

Wolfgang - I booked directly with MSC. Perhaps I'll try again when on board (Nov. 5), you would think they'd rather have $140/pp, rather than nothing.

We just tried calling MSC. They told us "No" the classic package was considered free (promotion) and we'd have to pay full price for the Premium package.

Has anyone been able to upgrade the Classic drink package that was included as part of a promotion, to the Premium package?

Thanks!

Anyone out there going on this cruise??

Here's 1 gym pics for you. We just got off Divina yesterday. I was in the gym everyday.

All my pics are too large to load so I had to resize it just to add this one. We usually went to the gym around 2ish in the afternoon.

So.... I have an upcoming cruise on MSC Divina in August. When online today to check on this specialty dining package.... Can't find it. Perhaps the special is no longer available.

We sailed on Century a few years ago... It's nice. Probably the last time we'll sail on her, looks like the Century will be transferred out of Celebrity.

We'll arrive at LAX Thursday afternoon, and have the day to play and stay on the Queen Mary. Looks like about 7 or 8 miles to the Century Pier. Looks like we'll need to make ground transportation arrangements from LAX to QM, then QM to Century.

Anyone else out there going with us???

We'll also be staying on the Queen Mary the night prior.