Divina questions

[VOLEYMOM]

First cruise on MSC in May, excited to sail on a new cruise line and ship. A couple of questions, do they have formal nights, I know a lot of people don't like dressing up but my husband and I both do, so hoping for the normal 2 formal nights. Also we sail a lot on Princess and always carry on a couple of bottles of wine to enjoy on our balcony. I noticed it says no alcohol allowed so is there any place to preorder wine or can you buy a bottle somewhere to take to your cabin. Has anyone carried on water? I am kind of picky about my water and drink a lot of it. Thanks for the help. I have tried their website and it has been of no help, this forum is the best for getting questions answered!!!

[cruiseguyinorl]

Yes, they do have two formal nights. If you are on a regular seven night sailing, they will be on Sunday and Thursday. As you mentioned though, a wide variety of formal wear. Very few tuxedos...mostly suites for men.

 

They do have some great wine packages you can pre-purchase but I believe they are for consumption in the dining room only. I have seen a few folks carrying bottles but don't know how they got them. And as for water, you already know it's not supposed to happen but yes, numerous people on here have said they managed to get them on. :confused:

 

Hope this helps.

 

Bret

[ashleycrew]

You can easily get wine on at your first port. We actually just put a bottle of rum on a backpack in Jamaica and a bottle of tequila in Mexico and we really were not even planing on drinking in the room but no one said a word.

[cruise pup]

I was sorry I bothered to pack a suit for my cruise. Most of my table wore casual clothes and from what I could see, so were most of the other passengers. This was not a well-heeled crowd by any stretch of the imagination. I'm guessing with the bargain rates you aren't going to see much finery.

Edited April 16, 2014 by cruise pup

[jkgourmet]

I was sorry I bothered to pack a suit for my cruise. Most of my table wore casual clothes and from what I could see, so were most of the other passengers. This was not a well-heeled crowd by any stretch of the imagination. I'm guessing with the bargain rates you aren't going to see much finery.

 

Did that make the experience better or worse?

 

I'm not being facetious. We've sailed in the old days of truly formal HAL and Princess cruises, and worn our jeans and sneakers in the MDR of NCL. We've been the party, party, party people on Carnival.

 

We've enjoyed it all - largely because our expectations were fairly on target when we booked.

 

Hence, my original question. Did that make the experience better or worse?

 

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[cruise pup]

Did that make the experience better or worse?

 

I'm not being facetious. We've sailed in the old days of truly formal HAL and Princess cruises, and worn our jeans and sneakers in the MDR of NCL. We've been the party, party, party people on Carnival.

 

We've enjoyed it all - largely because our expectations were fairly on target when we booked.

 

Hence, my original question. Did that make the experience better or worse?

 

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It's not a matter of the experience for me. It's a matter of going through the trouble and expense of having a suit dry cleaned and packing the extra clothes when it was apparently unnecessary for this cruise.

[jkgourmet]

It's not a matter of the experience for me. It's a matter of going through the trouble and expense of having a suit dry cleaned and packing the extra clothes when it was apparently unnecessary for this cruise.

 

So for a man, a sports jacket, shirt and (maybe) a tie would be adequate?

 

That's what we've found to be true for all of our cruises in the Caribbean in the past few years.

 

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[louwoz]

If you enjoy dressing up, by all means do so! I'm sure you'll feel comfortable.

[jkgourmet]

If you enjoy dressing up, by all means do so! I'm sure you'll feel comfortable.

 

Thanks, but as we only do carry on luggage, less formal is better. I'm just trying to get a handle on how 'less formak' we can go and not be obnoxious about it.

 

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[louwoz]

First cruise on MSC in May, excited to sail on a new cruise line and ship. A couple of questions, do they have formal nights, I know a lot of people don't like dressing up but my husband and I both do, so hoping for the normal 2 formal nights.

 

I was replying to the original post.

[warburg]

We live on Miami Beach and see the Divina often. My husband is curious about the ship so I checked out its reviews. I have never read so many extremely negative reviews. We are currently booked for our fifth cruise on Oceania. We are considering seven days on Divina, for a change, but only if we find that conditions have improved. Have they, or are all those posters wrong? Thanks for the insight.

Mary

[wwwfla]

We live on Miami Beach and see the Divina often. My husband is curious about the ship so I checked out its reviews. I have never read so many extremely negative reviews. We are currently booked for our fifth cruise on Oceania. We are considering seven days on Divina, for a change, but only if we find that conditions have improved. Have they, or are all those posters wrong? Thanks for the insight.

Mary

 

Where are you reading your reviews, the Oceania site? Most every review ive seen on CC has been very positive.

Go to the Seabourn(sp) site and read what they say about Oceania.

[warburg]

Maybe I wasn't clear. We read the negative reviews of the Divina on Member Reviews. We have no qualms about O's Riviera. We are sailing in November on her, It is MCS Divina I question. We were looking Yacht Club, and one review said that its restaurant was closed because complaints about other venues forced a staff change. Not good because one pays extra for YC features. The quality of the food and service was questioned, in general. The Divina is described as beautiful, even in the most negative reviews. We live fifteen minutes from Dodge Island, and like to sail from Miami. We see our condo as we sail out. Pretty cute. The Divina looked like a nice change of pace. Is it or is it not? What say you.

[wwwfla]

I am first time Divina/MSC cruiser but have read mostly plus reviews on Divina in the member reviews and am looking forward to it. I've not read the specifics you mentioned, but then since I'm not sailing YC I may have overlooked those reviews/comments. Then again, some of the features of YC had me go back and check availability and pricing for my cruise. Alas, it was much more expensive, IMO, than the benefit offered compared to the extraordinary value I already had booked.

Hope you have a chance to cruise on your neighbor, Divina, and make your personal comparison.

[Thyme60]

Hello Voleymom

We had our first cruise on this ship b2b feb/march this year (4 formals). We enjoyed dressing up on the formal nights, all the men on our table wore Tuxedos and there were quite a few other tables dressed up the same. There were some ladies wearing long cocktail dresses, some tables the men wore smart suits/jacket and tie. We were on the last sitting. I don't know if time of year you go or time you dine has any influence. If you like to dress up its a beautiful ship and you won't feel out of place doing so.

We took drinks back to our cabin no one said anything, but we did take our glasses back to a bar the next morning. I too am fussy with water and i drink a lot of it, i found the bottle in cabin was ok for me.

have a brilliant time

[American Bear]

Maybe I wasn't clear. We read the negative reviews of the Divina on Member Reviews. We have no qualms about O's Riviera. We are sailing in November on her, It is MCS Divina I question. We were looking Yacht Club, and one review said that its restaurant was closed because complaints about other venues forced a staff change. Not good because one pays extra for YC features. The quality of the food and service was questioned, in general. The Divina is described as beautiful, even in the most negative reviews. We live fifteen minutes from Dodge Island, and like to sail from Miami. We see our condo as we sail out. Pretty cute. The Divina looked like a nice change of pace. Is it or is it not? What say you.

 

Overall the reviews on the Yacht Club have been very good!

I've seen statements that the service exceeds a suite on the Oasis/Allure!

The entire area of the Yacht Club approx 68 cabins has its own bar, its own restaurant, its own pool, and outer deck area! There are butlers assigned to cabins to cater to your needs such as escorting you to a ship store to assist you, the butlers meet you when you first come to the ship and escort you on, that sounds like very good service to me!:D

[Bosjoe]

Maybe I wasn't clear. We read the negative reviews of the Divina on Member Reviews. We have no qualms about O's Riviera. We are sailing in November on her, It is MCS Divina I question. We were looking Yacht Club, and one review said that its restaurant was closed because complaints about other venues forced a staff change. Not good because one pays extra for YC features. The quality of the food and service was questioned, in general. The Divina is described as beautiful, even in the most negative reviews. We live fifteen minutes from Dodge Island, and like to sail from Miami. We see our condo as we sail out. Pretty cute. The Divina looked like a nice change of pace. Is it or is it not? What say you.

 

There has been exceptional reviews on the yacht club in this forum. The review you read about it closing seems to be from a charter cruise. The extreme reviews you can not go by, they are from people you can't please IMHO. There could be a chair out of place and they will complain. Look at a balance of the reviews and you will see it is a great choice.

[warburg]

Thanks for the information. We are familiar with the chronic complainers, and appreciate your balanced evaluations. We are considering Divina.

Mary

[IowaChuck]

I have been on the Divina Yacht Club twice since the ship came to US. The first time was Thanksgiving in November. Then I came back again in March. Both times the service was excellent. From the butler to the dining room, the people went out of their way to make me feel comfortable. In fact, when I came back in March I was surprised how many people remembered me from before. They remembered me by name, not just my face. I was astonished. Of course, both times I was the only male traveling in the Yacht Club alone.

 

But in any case, the service is fantastic. The passengers in the Yacht Club are for the most part friendly. The food was great, the drinks always to my liking, and the entertainment delightful. I had the same butler both times (Bruce). He must be the best butler on the entire ship!

 

For anyone fortunate enough to be in the Yacht Club, you will have a great time. You have absolutely nothing to be concerned about ahead of time.