MSC Divina Yacht Club 2/11 - 2/22 Live Review

[DaKahuna]

This review will be covering our first ever MSC cruise.  As the title indicates we will be sailing on MSC Divina out of Miami on an 11-day adventure. 

My wife and I are somewhat experienced cruises but have previously only sailed, with the exception of a single Carnival cruise in 2006, on Royal Caribbean and Celebrity.  

 

We have been disappointed by all of the changes and the pricing on Celebrity recently and after reading @generation-x and other reviews of sailing in the YC aboard MSC we decided to give it a try and see if it was more to our liking.  You can see links to reviews of some of our previous cruises in my signature below.

 

We have been to all of the ports that we will be visiting on this cruise at least once and do not have any scheduled shore excursions.  My post will be more about our shipboard experiences than about the various ports and activities.  @JamieLogical is also doing a live review of this cruise and between the two of us and with contributions from our fellow cruisers should give a pretty thorough review of life aboard Divina during our time onboard.  Jamie's review can be found here:

 

 

Thanks for following along. 

 

Edited February 7 by DaKahuna

[RichYak]

33 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

We have been disappointed by all of the changes and the pricing on Celebrity recently and after reading @generation-x and other reviews of sailing in the YC aboard MSC we decided to give it a try and see if it was more to our liking.  You can see links to reviews of some of our previous cruises in my signature below.

FYI, you mentioned the wrong @GenerationX. This is the correct one.

[Best Cat Mom]

Looking forward to reading your thoughts about MSC YC and the Divina. Buon viaggio!

[George C]

Sounds like a great cruise, will be following.

[NYHartChapp]

Looking forward to following.  We were on Divina YC in January and will enjoy reading updates on the crew.  

[Mark_T]

1 hour ago, DaKahuna said:

We have been disappointed by all of the changes and the pricing on Celebrity recently and after reading @GenerationXand other reviews of sailing in the YC aboard MSC we decided to give it a try and see if it was more to our liking

That's exactly how we ended up in YC on Divina last June, and then booked this cruise while we were onboard.

 

First few people we met in the YC were also recent converts from Celebrity, so there is something of a trend there...

 

Been looking forward to this cruise since then, so we'll see you onboard in a few days...

[KittyCruz]

2 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

This review will be covering our first ever MSC cruise.  As the title indicates we will be sailing on MSC Divina out of Miami on an 11-day adventure. 

My wife and I are somewhat experienced cruises but have previously only sailed, with the exception of a single Carnival cruise in 2006, on Royal Caribbean and Celebrity.  

 

We have been disappointed by all of the changes and the pricing on Celebrity recently and after reading @generation-x and other reviews of sailing in the YC aboard MSC we decided to give it a try and see if it was more to our liking.  You can see links to reviews of some of our previous cruises in my signature below.

 

We have been to all of the ports that we will be visiting on this cruise at least once and do not have any scheduled shore excursions.  My post will be more about our shipboard experiences than about the various ports and activities.  @JamieLogical is also doing a live review of this cruise and between the two of us and with contributions from our fellow cruisers should give a pretty thorough review of life aboard Divina during our time onboard.  Jamie's review can be found here:

 

 

Thanks for following along. 

 

Looking forward to following along, we're on the  Divinia in YC about a year out - happy sailings to you

[TrinaLC]

You will love the Divina YC crew!  You will quickly meet “Pepe”, the YC Director who is the most hands on manager ever. Also Mehmet is the Maitre D’, equally wonderful.  Have a great time!

 

[DaKahuna]

Thanks everyone.  We’re really looking forward to this cruise as we have not been at sea since last May.

 

 

[DaKahuna]

5 hours ago, Mark_T said:

 

Been looking forward to this cruise since then, so we'll see you onboard in a few days

 Looking forward to meeting you over an adult beverage or two in the Top Sail Lounge. 
 

[Beamafar]

With The Retreat prices going the way they are, there’s going to be a lot more converts.  Personally I think that the YC, on the whole, is a far superior experience - except for food offerings.  Luminae beats the YC restaurant with its better menus. 

[Mark_T]

4 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

With The Retreat prices going the way they are, there’s going to be a lot more converts.  Personally I think that the YC, on the whole, is a far superior experience - except for food offerings.  Luminae beats the YC restaurant with its better menus. 

It will be interesting to see what difference there are between the European and US versions of the YC menus.

 

In Europe at least, we had food that easily matched if not exceeded Luminae, especially the steak.

 

... but as ever these things can be variable from ship to ship and cruise to cruise...

[Beamafar]

3 minutes ago, Mark_T said:

It will be interesting to see what difference there are between the European and US versions of the YC menus.

 

In Europe at least, we had food that easily matched if not exceeded Luminae, especially the steak.

 

... but as ever these things can be variable from ship to ship and cruise to cruise...

Interesting.  I’ve never rated YC food very highly (and I’ve sailed in YC in several regions).

[Cathy in Boston]

We are also following as we will be in Yacht Club on Divina in April.  We are trying MSC for the same exact reasons.

[mac_tlc]

I'll definitely be following along. MSC YC is on our radar. 

 

We will be on the Celebrity Beyond on 2/19 for an 11 night voyage. So our "LIVE'S" may overlap a few days ..... but I'll keep checking in. 

 

 

mac_tlc

[DaKahuna]

25 minutes ago, mac_tlc said:

I'll definitely be following along. MSC YC is on our radar. 

 

We will be on the Celebrity Beyond on 2/19 for an 11 night voyage. So our "LIVE'S" may overlap a few days ..... but I'll keep checking in. 

Here’s hoping you have a great cruise. 
 

We’ve only done one E-class cruise, Edge February 2020, so most of my comments and comparisons will be based on our experiences in the Retreat on M & S class ships. 
 

[DaKahuna]

We will be leaving Saturday afternoon on a direct flight from Washington Dulles to Ft. Lauderdale International.  As with our previous cruise out of Miami a few years back it was less expensive to fly to FLL, spend the night in a hotel in FLL, and use Lyft/Uber from FLL to the cruise port in Miami than it was for us to fly to Miami, stay in a hotel over night there, and Lyft/Uber to the ship the next morning.  

 

In FLL normally we stay at the Renaissance on 17th street but we are doing things a little different this time and are staying at the FLL Airport Marriott. It works out to be pretty much the same logistically but saves us a few dollars due to the difference in hotel prices. 

 

My DW says that she needs a new pair of shoes so we will be going shopping for those later this morning.  As well, I need to make a trip to the bank and pick up some small bills to use for tips.  I normally bring a lot of $1.00 and $5.00 bills in case I am unsuccessful in the casino.  

 

Ironing has been done.  A lot of clothing items have been set aside for packing, and this afternoon I will start collection and putting my electronics into my backpack.  I'll provide a short list of those items once I finalize what I will be taking with me. 

 

Really looking forward to getting away from the 40 and 50 degree weather we are having. 

 

[Beamafar]

We’ll stay in Fort Lauderdale before our Seascape cruise (hate Miami!). We’re staying in the Las Olas area.  Never been before so have no idea where it is in relation to anything.  Still, I’ll be interested in reading about your Lyft/Uber arrangement to POM as that’s what we’re hoping to do, too. 

[DaKahuna]

50 minutes ago, Beamafar said:

We’ll stay in Fort Lauderdale before our Seascape cruise (hate Miami!). We’re staying in the Las Olas area.  Never been before so have no idea where it is in relation to anything.  Still, I’ll be interested in reading about your Lyft/Uber arrangement to POM as that’s what we’re hoping to do, too. 

 

 Will update it but it looks to be about $85.00 right now for Lyft XL.   I am torn between scheduling it now and waiting until we are ready to leave Sunday morning to arrange the ride. 

 

[DaKahuna]

Just checked to make sure what terminal we will be using..  In case anyone else is interested, MSC Divina will be using Terminal C. 

 

[Fogfog]

@DaKahuna

welcome to MSC YC! 

 

The YC is a lovely experience. The private pool deck, lounge and dining are a great way to escape from the hustle/bustle and to really relax.

We used to sail X often and decided to try MSC YC in early 2020. Never looked back. The last 6 cruises have all been MSC YC

The ships vary (as you know being experienced in cruising) and are fun to explore.

What makes YC is the staff, crew, privacy and how they work to make your vacation special. 

On OC they will take you over the YCs beach/dining. Your wifi and YC bev package goes with you.

On Embarkation Day-- you will see right away how YC is wonderful

- and the YC off/on at each port is such a nice amenity...

 

Enjoy 

 

[Mark_T]

1 hour ago, DaKahuna said:

Just checked to make sure what terminal we will be using..  In case anyone else is interested, MSC Divina will be using Terminal C

If you want a preview, take look at this video, it shows the whole process of boarding in YC at Terminal C...

 

Don't let anyone take your luggage before you get to the white YC tents as they will get special tags applied there to ensure rapid delivery.

[jcpc]

I'll be interested in your perspective of MSC YC.  I, a former Celebrity loyalist, sailed MSC YC on Meraviglia in September and was blown away......so much so, in fact, that I am again sailing on February 11th on Meraviglia in YC again.  Enjoy your cruise.  I'm sure it will be great.

Edited February 8 by jcpc

[Mark_T]

Packing almost complete, flying Virgin Atlantic to Miami in the morning, looking forward to a change in the weather 🙂

[DaKahuna]

3 hours ago, Mark_T said:

If you want a preview, take look at this video, it shows the whole process of boarding in YC at Terminal C...

 

  Thanks.  I had not seen that one out of the many that I have looked at in preparation.  

 

3 hours ago, Mark_T said:

 

Don't let anyone take your luggage before you get to the white YC tents as they will get special tags applied there to ensure rapid delivery.

 

 We are hoping that our Lyft/uber driver will be able to drop us off at the Yacht Club tent but if not, then we will definitely keep this in mind.  

 

1 hour ago, jcpc said:

I'll be interested in your perspective of MSC YC.  I, a former Celebrity loyalist, sailed MSC YC on Meraviglia in September and was blown away......so much so, in fact, that I am again sailing on February 11th on Meraviglia in YC again.  Enjoy your cruise.  I'm sure it will be great.

 

 Thank you.  We are really looking forward to it.  We still have one Celebrity cruise scheduled, Millennium in May in the Retreat so we'll see what happens after that. 

4 hours ago, Fogfog said:

welcome to MSC YC! 

 

 Thank you very much.