MSC Divina Thanksgiving Cruise

[message4u]

Off of the MSC Divina today after their 1 week Thanksgiving cruise. Good and not so good, but we had a wonderful time just being away.

 

Arrived at Premier parking garage at 11:30, and they shuttled us to the port. Arrived at the port around 12:15 and soon after that they began the boarding. We were in group 11, so did not get on until about 1:15. They told us cabins would be ready at 1:30, which ours was by the time we got to the cabin...an interior #9207. Dropped off our luggage and went directly to the buffet, which had a great selection of food, that day, and every day after. Had breakfast in the dining room twice, with lunch there once, but otherwise were very happy with the buffet food. Could always find something delicious.

 

We had our luggage by the time we got back to the cabin after walking the ship. Our friends were not so lucky...one bag did not arrive until 11pm, and some people's not till the next day. We overheard another man complaining that his snorkel gear never arrived and on the 3rd day there was an insert in the daily program asking everyone to check their room to see if they had the misplaced snorkel gear. (In 7 languages no less). Don't know how that ended. Also heard on the last to final day there was a man missing, but assume he was found?.

 

We had ordered the beer packages which we thought was a great deal...vouchers for 14 bottled beers total of $54.00. We would get a couple and take to our cabin to keep in the fridge, so I could have my Corona each day. Bar service seemed a little confused and slow at times. And we saw no one walking around taking drink orders on the 15th deck where we hung out.

 

Dinner was under the not so good category. Food was usually acceptable, one strange one was the Thanksgiving turkey dinner...dry, rolled turkey wrapped around a tiny bit of dressing with sweet potato fries. Steak on the Alternative menu was pretty bad for each person who ordered it on different days. Butter could not melt on the cold baked potatoes, soups were hit or miss as to whether they were hot, or even warm. Delicious shrimp cocktails. Delicious chocolate chip cheesecake. Delicious salmon whether it was in the dining room or buffet. Otherwise it was hit or miss. Each couple ordered the same pasta dish one night...one was very good, creamy and studded with bacon, the other very dry with not a hint of bacon.

 

The main problem was our service. Our waiter worked his tail off, but had no assistant helping him (... he was waiting on 20 people), and did EVERYTHING, or at least tried to, himself. We received (really terrible) coffee on only 3 nights...were not offered it any other time. He would hand us the dessert menu with the regular menu and have us order it all at the same time. We asked if we could order it after dinner, and he said it was easier for him this way?!? I received a huge serving spoon each night to eat my desserts (...pie or cake...is that a European thing?). Finally would hold on to my dinner fork just so I would have one. There were four of us at a table jammed against a railing at which 3 would have been marginally comfortable. Sometimes we were really rushed and sometimes service just dragged...totally understandable with his workload. We felt extremely bad for him, so didn't complain...he didn’t have time to hear it anyway. We never saw the maitre'd, ditto with a wine steward, so we started just bringing our own drinks in. We have been on many cruises, and this was the worst dining room service ever.

 

Our friends would try to call our cabin, but could not leave a voice mail message. I called Reception and was told that no one's messages were working. Somehow tho, our friends always got the messages we left. This was a problem when you are traveling with others who are 3 decks above you.

 

The entertainment was where MSC excelled. The shows were wonderful, and entertainment in the lounges was also great. Loved the dueling pianos, and our friends found a singer they loved hidden up in the Garden Bar outside who performed each evening.

 

Casino was fun, and they had quite a few penny slots for those wanting to gamble but not spend a lot. The first time load $10 onto your sail card for the casino, MSC will add an additional $10.00 voucher.

 

Enjoyed the ports of St Maarten and San Juan. Stirrup Cay was canceled due to weather, but I think that was what allowed us to get free gelato that afternoon between 2 and 3. And then there was soft serve by the pool from 2 to 5. I would get some coffee from the buffet and then fill the cup with soft serve...mmm! (probably a big cause of the 8 pounds I gained...)

 

Our cabin steward kept our cabin very clean and nice and once he understood what a washcloth was on day 3, he had 2 for us in the cabin each day. The interior cabin was tiny but, with my over-the-door shoe holder and their storage we seemed to have enough room. The ship was beautiful and kept extremely clean, with workers polishing and touch-up painting throughout the ship.

 

I wanted so much to love this cruiseline and, altho we had a wonderful time just because we were away Cruising, we will probably not go on MSC again. One of our favorite things is the dining room experience, and this one fell flat for us.

Edited December 1, 2013 by message4u

[riclop]

Off of the MSC Divina today after their 1 week Thanksgiving cruise. Good and not so good, but we had a wonderful time just being away.

 

Arrived at Premier parking garage at 11:30, and they shuttled us to the port. Arrived at the port around 12:15 and soon after that they began the boarding. We were in group 11, so did not get on until about 1:15. They told us cabins would be ready at 1:30, which ours was by the time we got to the cabin...an interior #9207. Dropped off our luggage and went directly to the buffet, which had a great selection of food, that day, and every day after. Had breakfast in the dining room twice, with lunch there once, but otherwise were very happy with the buffet food. Could always find something delicious.

 

We had our luggage by the time we got back to the cabin after walking the ship. Our friends were not so lucky...one bag did not arrive until 11pm, and some people's not till the next day. We overheard another man complaining that his snorkel gear never arrived and on the 3rd day there was an insert in the daily program asking everyone to check their room to see if they had the misplaced snorkel gear. (In 7 languages no less). Don't know how that ended. Also heard on the last to final day there was a man missing, but assume he was found?.

 

We had ordered the beer packages which we thought was a great deal...vouchers for 14 bottled beers total of $54.00. We would get a couple and take to our cabin to keep in the fridge, so I could have my Corona each day. Bar service seemed a little confused and slow at times. And we saw no one walking around taking drink orders on the 15th deck where we hung out.

 

Dinner was under the not so good category. Food was usually acceptable, one strange one was the Thanksgiving turkey dinner...dry, rolled turkey wrapped around a tiny bit of dressing with sweet potato fries. Steak on the Alternative menu was pretty bad for each person who ordered it on different days. Butter could not melt on the cold baked potatoes, soups were hit or miss as to whether they were hot, or even warm. Delicious shrimp cocktails. Delicious chocolate chip cheesecake. Delicious salmon whether it was in the dining room or buffet. Otherwise it was hit or miss. Each couple ordered the same pasta dish one night...one was very good, creamy and studded with bacon, the other very dry with not a hint of bacon.

 

The main problem was our service. Our waiter worked his tail off, but had no assistant helping him (... he was waiting on 20 people), and did EVERYTHING, or at least tried to, himself. We received (really terrible) coffee on only 3 nights...were not offered it any other time. He would hand us the dessert menu with the regular menu and have us order it all at the same time. We asked if we could order it after dinner, and he said it was easier for him this way?!? I received a huge serving spoon each night to eat my desserts (...pie or cake...is that a European thing?). Finally would hold on to my dinner fork just so I would have one. There were four of us at a table jammed against a railing at which 3 would have been marginally comfortable. Sometimes we were really rushed and sometimes service just dragged...totally understandable with his workload. We felt extremely bad for him, so didn't complain...he didn’t have time to hear it anyway. We never saw the maitre'd, ditto with a wine steward, so we started just bringing our own drinks in. We have been on many cruises, and this was the worst dining room service ever.

 

Our friends would try to call our cabin, but could not leave a voice mail message. I called Reception and was told that no one's messages were working. Somehow tho, our friends always got the messages we left. This was a problem when you are traveling with others who are 3 decks above you.

 

The entertainment was where MSC excelled. The shows were wonderful, and entertainment in the lounges was also great. Loved the dueling pianos, and our friends found a singer they loved hidden up in the Garden Bar outside who performed each evening.

 

Casino was fun, and they had quite a few penny slots for those wanting to gamble but not spend a lot. The first time load $10 onto your sail card for the casino, MSC will add an additional $10.00 voucher.

 

Enjoyed the ports of St Maarten and San Juan. Stirrup Cay was canceled due to weather, but I think that was what allowed us to get free gelato that afternoon between 2 and 3. And then there was soft serve by the pool from 2 to 5. I would get some coffee from the buffet and then fill the cup with soft serve...mmm! (probably a big cause of the 8 pounds I gained...)

 

Our cabin steward kept our cabin very clean and nice and once he understood what a washcloth was on day 3, he had 2 for us in the cabin each day. The interior cabin was tiny but, with my over-the-door shoe holder and their storage we seemed to have enough room. The ship was beautiful and kept extremely clean, with workers polishing and touch-up painting throughout the ship.

 

I wanted so much to love this cruiseline and, altho we had a wonderful time just because we were away Cruising, we will probably not go on MSC again. One of our favorite things is the dining room experience, and this one fell flat for us.

Thanks for your honest and well balanced review.

[message4u]

Huz just told me the beer package was only $52.00!

[sthelder]

Probably due to the Thanksgiving crowd, I thought MSC MDR service level is comparable with other mass market lines, and they have some fabulous wine selection and great Baked Alaska and Italian night parades.

[Cruisergal1208]

Off of the MSC Divina today after their 1 week Thanksgiving cruise. Good and not so good, but we had a wonderful time just being away.

 

Arrived at Premier parking garage at 11:30, and they shuttled us to the port. Arrived at the port around 12:15 and soon after that they began the boarding. We were in group 11, so did not get on until about 1:15. They told us cabins would be ready at 1:30, which ours was by the time we got to the cabin...an interior #9207. Dropped off our luggage and went directly to the buffet, which had a great selection of food, that day, and every day after. Had breakfast in the dining room twice, with lunch there once, but otherwise were very happy with the buffet food. Could always find something delicious.

 

We had our luggage by the time we got back to the cabin after walking the ship. Our friends were not so lucky...one bag did not arrive until 11pm, and some people's not till the next day. We overheard another man complaining that his snorkel gear never arrived and on the 3rd day there was an insert in the daily program asking everyone to check their room to see if they had the misplaced snorkel gear. (In 7 languages no less). Don't know how that ended. Also heard on the last to final day there was a man missing, but assume he was found?.

 

We had ordered the beer packages which we thought was a great deal...vouchers for 14 bottled beers total of $54.00. We would get a couple and take to our cabin to keep in the fridge, so I could have my Corona each day. Bar service seemed a little confused and slow at times. And we saw no one walking around taking drink orders on the 15th deck where we hung out.

 

Dinner was under the not so good category. Food was usually acceptable, one strange one was the Thanksgiving turkey dinner...dry, rolled turkey wrapped around a tiny bit of dressing with sweet potato fries. Steak on the Alternative menu was pretty bad for each person who ordered it on different days. Butter could not melt on the cold baked potatoes, soups were hit or miss as to whether they were hot, or even warm. Delicious shrimp cocktails. Delicious chocolate chip cheesecake. Delicious salmon whether it was in the dining room or buffet. Otherwise it was hit or miss. Each couple ordered the same pasta dish one night...one was very good, creamy and studded with bacon, the other very dry with not a hint of bacon.

 

The main problem was our service. Our waiter worked his tail off, but had no assistant helping him (... he was waiting on 20 people), and did EVERYTHING, or at least tried to, himself. We received (really terrible) coffee on only 3 nights...were not offered it any other time. He would hand us the dessert menu with the regular menu and have us order it all at the same time. We asked if we could order it after dinner, and he said it was easier for him this way?!? I received a huge serving spoon each night to eat my desserts (...pie or cake...is that a European thing?). Finally would hold on to my dinner fork just so I would have one. There were four of us at a table jammed against a railing at which 3 would have been marginally comfortable. Sometimes we were really rushed and sometimes service just dragged...totally understandable with his workload. We felt extremely bad for him, so didn't complain...he didn’t have time to hear it anyway. We never saw the maitre'd, ditto with a wine steward, so we started just bringing our own drinks in. We have been on many cruises, and this was the worst dining room service ever.

 

Our friends would try to call our cabin, but could not leave a voice mail message. I called Reception and was told that no one's messages were working. Somehow tho, our friends always got the messages we left. This was a problem when you are traveling with others who are 3 decks above you.

 

The entertainment was where MSC excelled. The shows were wonderful, and entertainment in the lounges was also great. Loved the dueling pianos, and our friends found a singer they loved hidden up in the Garden Bar outside who performed each evening.

 

Casino was fun, and they had quite a few penny slots for those wanting to gamble but not spend a lot. The first time load $10 onto your sail card for the casino, MSC will add an additional $10.00 voucher.

 

Enjoyed the ports of St Maarten and San Juan. Stirrup Cay was canceled due to weather, but I think that was what allowed us to get free gelato that afternoon between 2 and 3. And then there was soft serve by the pool from 2 to 5. I would get some coffee from the buffet and then fill the cup with soft serve...mmm! (probably a big cause of the 8 pounds I gained...)

 

Our cabin steward kept our cabin very clean and nice and once he understood what a washcloth was on day 3, he had 2 for us in the cabin each day. The interior cabin was tiny but, with my over-the-door shoe holder and their storage we seemed to have enough room. The ship was beautiful and kept extremely clean, with workers polishing and touch-up painting throughout the ship.

 

I wanted so much to love this cruiseline and, altho we had a wonderful time just because we were away Cruising, we will probably not go on MSC again. One of our favorite things is the dining room experience, and this one fell flat for us.

 

On Formal Nights, did you see more suits vs tux? Thinking of bringing just a nice suit for hubby for formal wear. Thanks for your great review.

[message4u]

We had the early seating and saw very few tuxes and few suits or sport coats. Our guys wore sport coats, but no ties.

[Cruisergal1208]

Thanks for your reply.

[Danbee46]

Thanks for your review. I wonder if people who stayed in the Yacht Club had similar experiences in the private dining room and with service. Our YC cruise is scheduled for March, so maybe some of these problems will have been resolved by then.

[travelberlin]

Off of the MSC Divina today after their 1 week Thanksgiving cruise. Good and not so good, but we had a wonderful time just being away.

 

Arrived at Premier parking garage at 11:30, and they shuttled us to the port. Arrived at the port around 12:15 and soon after that they began the boarding. We were in group 11, so did not get on until about 1:15. They told us cabins would be ready at 1:30, which ours was by the time we got to the cabin...an interior #9207. Dropped off our luggage and went directly to the buffet, which had a great selection of food, that day, and every day after. Had breakfast in the dining room twice, with lunch there once, but otherwise were very happy with the buffet food. Could always find something delicious.

 

We had our luggage by the time we got back to the cabin after walking the ship. Our friends were not so lucky...one bag did not arrive until 11pm, and some people's not till the next day. We overheard another man complaining that his snorkel gear never arrived and on the 3rd day there was an insert in the daily program asking everyone to check their room to see if they had the misplaced snorkel gear. (In 7 languages no less). Don't know how that ended. Also heard on the last to final day there was a man missing, but assume he was found?.

 

We had ordered the beer packages which we thought was a great deal...vouchers for 14 bottled beers total of $54.00. We would get a couple and take to our cabin to keep in the fridge, so I could have my Corona each day. Bar service seemed a little confused and slow at times. And we saw no one walking around taking drink orders on the 15th deck where we hung out.

 

Dinner was under the not so good category. Food was usually acceptable, one strange one was the Thanksgiving turkey dinner...dry, rolled turkey wrapped around a tiny bit of dressing with sweet potato fries. Steak on the Alternative menu was pretty bad for each person who ordered it on different days. Butter could not melt on the cold baked potatoes, soups were hit or miss as to whether they were hot, or even warm. Delicious shrimp cocktails. Delicious chocolate chip cheesecake. Delicious salmon whether it was in the dining room or buffet. Otherwise it was hit or miss. Each couple ordered the same pasta dish one night...one was very good, creamy and studded with bacon, the other very dry with not a hint of bacon.

 

The main problem was our service. Our waiter worked his tail off, but had no assistant helping him (... he was waiting on 20 people), and did EVERYTHING, or at least tried to, himself. We received (really terrible) coffee on only 3 nights...were not offered it any other time. He would hand us the dessert menu with the regular menu and have us order it all at the same time. We asked if we could order it after dinner, and he said it was easier for him this way?!? I received a huge serving spoon each night to eat my desserts (...pie or cake...is that a European thing?). Finally would hold on to my dinner fork just so I would have one. There were four of us at a table jammed against a railing at which 3 would have been marginally comfortable. Sometimes we were really rushed and sometimes service just dragged...totally understandable with his workload. We felt extremely bad for him, so didn't complain...he didn’t have time to hear it anyway. We never saw the maitre'd, ditto with a wine steward, so we started just bringing our own drinks in. We have been on many cruises, and this was the worst dining room service ever.

 

Our friends would try to call our cabin, but could not leave a voice mail message. I called Reception and was told that no one's messages were working. Somehow tho, our friends always got the messages we left. This was a problem when you are traveling with others who are 3 decks above you.

 

The entertainment was where MSC excelled. The shows were wonderful, and entertainment in the lounges was also great. Loved the dueling pianos, and our friends found a singer they loved hidden up in the Garden Bar outside who performed each evening.

 

Casino was fun, and they had quite a few penny slots for those wanting to gamble but not spend a lot. The first time load $10 onto your sail card for the casino, MSC will add an additional $10.00 voucher.

 

Enjoyed the ports of St Maarten and San Juan. Stirrup Cay was canceled due to weather, but I think that was what allowed us to get free gelato that afternoon between 2 and 3. And then there was soft serve by the pool from 2 to 5. I would get some coffee from the buffet and then fill the cup with soft serve...mmm! (probably a big cause of the 8 pounds I gained...)

 

Our cabin steward kept our cabin very clean and nice and once he understood what a washcloth was on day 3, he had 2 for us in the cabin each day. The interior cabin was tiny but, with my over-the-door shoe holder and their storage we seemed to have enough room. The ship was beautiful and kept extremely clean, with workers polishing and touch-up painting throughout the ship.

 

I wanted so much to love this cruiseline and, altho we had a wonderful time just because we were away Cruising, we will probably not go on MSC again. One of our favorite things is the dining room experience, and this one fell flat for us.

 

Thanks for your review!