debafog

Thank you for posting. We have inside YC on Seaside and I was curious about the size. Truly wish the cabin had a little more room but we got YC for less than an Aurea balcony so ........... I think it will be worth it for the YC experience. We have family booked in the same type as well. Not sure how happy they are going to be!

Thank you all for the information. I am Black status and currently booked in a Bella balcony. I would love to be upgraded to get all of the perks of one of the other experiences. The cabin we have is perfect right now unless they upgrad to YC and give all the perks!

Has anyone ever gotten upgraded on the MSC Divina or any other MSC cruise. We usually sail NCL and receive upgrade offers to different level cabin categories.

Thank you so much for all of this information and the dailies!

I don't post much but I do benefit greatly from the wealth of information available here. So, I want to do my part in providing a quick review as well as a PDF of the Freestyle Daily's from last week's Escape cruise to the Eastern Caribbean (Jan 7, 2017).

 

This cruise was a "bonus vacation" - idea originated and booked within 24 hours about a month before we left. A friend and I decided to celebrate our 50th birthday's (a little late) with a friends only cruise - leaving the kids behind. I do all the cooking and cleaning for my three kids and I, so I greatly appreciate the effort put forth by the crew to make my week free of those things (and laundry too!). With that said, I had a fabulous week! The weather wasn't the greatest, but I left behind a foot of snow and frigid temperatures...so you won't hear me complain. :)

 

Before I left, I spent a good deal of time researching the ship and itinerary reading reviews and this board...including a great deal of negativity about the ship. I'm here to attempt to reassure those who might be skeptical of their decision to vacation on the Escape. I went in with an open mind grateful for the opportunity to spend a week in a beautiful setting.

 

We arrived at the terminal at 9:30am and were let through security around 10am. Our boarding number was 3 and we headed straight to Headliners to acquire a Vibe pass. We were number 42-43 and they were handing out 61 passes that day...just for reference. Be prepared to wait in line as only one person is handling the payment and it took about 45 minutes to finish the process. (Vibe was a wonderful experience. The staff there are so friendly and fun!)

 

Overall, I thought the food was very good. (Probably the best among my 13 cruises.) There were a very few individual items at the buffet that I didn't care for, or was over/under cooked, but that was in the minority. We dined at Cagney's, LeBistro, LaCucina (which was very delicious despite the very negative reviews I've read), Teppanyaki, Supper Club and MDR. We received competent to exceptional service at each restaurant. Our meals were served at the correct temperature and properly seasoned! I especially recommend the Supper Club for the Oh What a Night show. The food was really quite good (especially considering that they were serving so many people very quickly - less than 45 minutes from appetizer to dessert) and the entertainment was fun!

 

Entertainment not to be missed: Howl at the Moon (go early in the week so you can go back if you like it!) and the comedy shows in Headliners. I didn't care all that much for the two major production shows, but that's just my opinion. Many people loved them. I will say that there were many empty seats at the "sold out" show, so I would suggest utilizing the Stand By line if you don't get reservations. The major "game shows" in the Atrium are fun too. The Marriage Show, Battle of the Sexes, etc. are fun, if not a little crowded. Sitting up on the rail on deck 7 in O'Sheehans offers a great view if you can snag one of those seats...you can also order food/drinks while you're sitting there. By the way, I thought the wings were yummy and the blue cheese dip delicious...even though there's not much blue cheese. Tyler, the cruise director, has a crazy amount of energy and he's very talented too. He played the drums during a quick set at Howl at the Moon. His saying "Can I hear you say YA" got a little old...but he was very visible and his staff was personable and very talented.

 

Just a couple words about the ship. We had an after family balcony on deck 9. After being on the ship, I would select a forward cabin on deck 11, 12 or 13. Seems a little more central to the activities I was interested in...especially since VIBE is forward. Our beds were near the balcony and I think that is a great set up. The smoke from the casino does indeed drift...but I never found it overpowering...just annoying. I thought the smoking area near the bar on deck 17 was worse and that was outside. The rope course was super fun! And the slides too! Initially I thought the gym was a little small for the size of the ship, but it was not busy on the two sea day mornings I was there. The weights area is cramped though. The area felt like an afterthought.

 

The weather cleared for St Thomas and we had a lovely day at the Sapphire Beach. Only a couple vendors and access to very good food. In fact, the MahiMahi sandwich was exceptional, IMO. We ended up touring Tortola with a very friendly, and knowledgeable taxi driver because all the major beaches had red flags/no swimming due to high surf. We were blessed with a couple rainbows too! We went on a Segway tour on Nassau which was super fun! I highly recommend this tour (http://www.segwaynassau.com/). We were welcomed back to the ship with nicely scented cold towels and water/juice as well as fun music. The crew joined the welcome back party in Nassau...I'm pretty sure the Carnival passengers were a little jealous! :)

 

Overall a fun trip and I can't wait to return with my kids. They will love the Escape!

 

I would be happy to answer any questions!

 

 

Here's a PDF document of the Freestyle Dailys for this cruise:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/7yqon0rjjs7n7uy/FreestyleDaily_Escape_Jan72017.pdf?dl=0