Lou2204

I take my running kit on every holiday and my husband says it just takes up space in the case as it rarely gets used!! BUT I am determined this time as I pile on weight on a normal holiday so a Cruise will be lethal! ... but we will see ..!

Just seen they do a water bike spin type class that looks interesting

There is also daily yoga at 10 am which I kept missing :D ah, I only now read that you don't like the treadmill. Me neither, usually, but I found it really TOO hot to run outside. Not sure what it will be like in a month, probably better, but August is super hot. We're still in Florida, and the heat is still phenomenal I'm from Holland, so usually enjoying ANY good weather (like you, I suspect :cool:), but we're spending quite some time in the AC.

Hi. I can address some of your questions:

..how is the plug situation do they have UK sockets in the Cabins? if we bring adaptors would they be European or US? and is there plenty of sockets (hair tools/phone chargers etc etc !) There are European and US sockets. Usually 2 of each by the dressing table mirror. Bring a power strip/extension lead but not one with a surge protector built in.

 

When we embark does it take long to get the bags to the room? do people usually pack swimwear in their hand luggage if you get on board early? It can be very quick or a few hours, yes people do pack swimwear in their carry ons.

 

Do they have classes in the Gym? such as Spin/ Kettle bells, YES, some classes in gym, extra charge. can you jog around the ship?? - to burn off all the cocktails ! No, the prom deck does not stretch all around the ship.

from Husband - Any Premiership football in the sports bar I doubt it in the Caribbean.

 

Enjoy, Divina is a lovely ship.

Hi there, there is a jogging trail on the Divina, it's on deck 15, my husband used it. There is also a great gym with good equipment, very busy at times, but we managed to be able to run after a max 10 minutes wait. Better to run inside, as it's very very hot.

Definitely pre- purchase the photo package!! My husband and I went on the Divina last December and had a ton of pictures taken. When we would go to the photo counter each evening to have our pictures from the previous night put in our folder, we would ask how much the pictures were going to cost. We kept being told to wait until the last night and they would give us a good deal on all the pictures taken of us. We thought we were going to get an amazing deal since it was the last night of the cruise and they would probably be wanting to make as many sales as they could. Well, they gave us such a ridiculous price that if I hadn't fallen in love with some of the pictures I would have walked away. I ended up buying (4) 8X10's and (5) 10X14's and a DVD of the ship and I was charged $210!! Right now, the pre- purchase price for the picture package in $98 and includes up to 100 pictures. Well worth it!!!

I agree, we also checked out the photos on board and were shocked at the prices. Also: why is there not a price list that we can quietly look over and decide?? The prepurchase deal sounds like an excellent deal as described above, and I wish I had known about it. In the end, we bought nothing, as I thought $20 for a photo was a ridiculous price. And only discount if you buy 10!

Ah, the food!! This is going to be part positive, part negative. Positive first: the quality of the food in YC is outstanding.

Breakfast: we never had breakfast in Le Muse, only in the lounges. Small selection in the Top Sail lounge, but was enough for me. A little more on deck 18, eggs and sausages etc. bread was good, as was cheese and cold cuts, great yoghurt selection and some fresh fruit. If you're a picky breakfast eater, you may have been better off in Le muse, where I believe there were more options offered.

Lunch we didn't always had on board, buffet on deck 18 was very minimal, kids tried the buffet in the MDR and advised against going there,as it was so busy and crowded. If they managed to get a chair, they simply couldn't reach the food, as there were so many people.

Dinner in Le Muse was great. We loved the staff there, very friendly, steaks were great (we do love steak) and even cooked well, enough variation in the menu, good wines, desserts, all perfect.

What is the negative? The only thing bothering was the lack of dining options. YC is supposed to be my choice dining, as opposed to fixed seating, but on embarkation we were offered two dining times for the entire week: either 6pm or 8pm. Not much choice there... we picked the 8pm slot, but how is his 'my choice'? Maybe we didn't know the tricks. We tried to find out if there were other places we could eat, just for a change, but this was actively discouraged. Tried to get a table in Black Crab or Black and White lounge, only option was the early sitting, which didn't suit us. 7 days straight in Le Muse felt a bit too much for our taste. Would like to know how this is viewed by other more experienced cruisers.

Buffet in the top sail lounge with snacks was great, lots of choice, good quality. Cocktails were great everywhere , as was the quality of the wines. The girls loved the virgin cocktails.

And service in Le Muse was great, lovely waiter named Jose, who took really good care of us. Minibar always full, fresh fruit and chocolates in the cabin, and sometimes macaroons and biscuits.

So apart from the lack of options and flexibility, food and drinks are fabulous.

We had Manoosh (sp?) too. We liked him. He was always around, sometimes even helping the room steward vacuuming the hallways. A couple of times I opened the door and we scared each other 'cause he was putting the morning newspaper on the door.:D Our soap and shampoo was replenished, don't know by who, though.

 

I don't recall us asking anything special of him, but if he saw us in the lounge, he'd ask if we wanted a drink. He escorted us off the ship, and in Puerto Rico gave us a little bag with water, rain ponchos and little umbrellas, because he thought it might rain. He said he felt very fortunate because his wife was able to not work and stay home with the children to "keep them on the right track."

We asked Manoj until when he'd be on the ship and he answered January. Must be so difficult to be apart from your family for such a long stretch of time. I don't assume they live on board with him. What a kind gesture to give you umbrellas! That's wonderful.

Hi Lou! Nice to have met you - our family and their friends enjoyed our time together with you.

 

Was your bed two singles pushed together or did you have a real queen? We had two twins pushed together and the first night I ended up in the center crevice. My bed had a slant to it that rolled me into it so from there on out I had to use countermeasures to keep me from ending up in the "ditch".

 

Have a great time the rest of your week.

We had a queen bed, if I remember correctly. Ouch, that sounds uncomfortable, that crevice. :(

Oh, I didnt even think about that, as my husband really doesn't care for steam rooms and spas, but yes indeed, that would not be a good thing if you wanted to do this together :confused:

hi all,

We just disembarked yesterday from our first MSC cruise, Miami western Caribbean, 8 days with the Divina. I will post our review, possibly in parts, as we are still on vacation.

We stayed in YC with our family of 4, in cabin 16006. all in all, it was a great experience and we'd be happy to book again with MSC.

The YC experience was great, what I loved most about it, was the going on and off board with priority. Especially the checking in, skipping the lines with the butler easing us through this crowded hall.... makes you feel like a VIP, which we enjoyed. Also with the port days, getting on and off the ship so quickly, wonderful.

The butler service was great, although I still don't quite understand what his role was. Room service? Whenever we had a real question or issue for him to solve, he would send us to the Concierge, so I'm just not sure what his role was. He was friendly enough! His name was Manoj. But still it didn't feel very butlery to me, but then perhaps my expectations were too high, expecting Downton Abbey type butler antics ;-)))

We are not very experienced cruise people, so we don't have much to compare, our past trip was with AIDA and once with Club Med 2.

We loved our cabin and balcony, there were four of us in one room, so we were happy we had the slightly bigger room for handicapped. Beds were great for us, we discovered a big hole in the sheets the last day , I think that was a one off. The fold out bed for the kids wasn't great. The beds weren't flat, so they kept sliding towards each other. Also the mattresses didn't seem very substantial. Luckily, they are still young and able bodied, so we didn't hear many complaints. ;) Bed was folded in and out (hey! That was probably a butler thing!! Or housekeeping?) every day, this was great, so you'd have a sitting part during the day.

It would have been handy to have more possibilities to hang stuff (hooks etc) but that's all. Wardrobe space was a bit tight for 4 people, we needed every drawer we could find to store our stuff, and we travel quite light.

Bathroom was very spacious, towels of fabulous quality. Soap and shampoo etc wasn't restocked. We did bring our own, but is something I would have expected to happen?

Balcony was huge, even though large part of it cannot be used. We still loved being in the front of the ship. It was also so silent!! Didn't hear a thing, no engine, no noise from anything. What a great experience ending the day looking up at the stars and the storms ... no trouble from the wind in the front because we were behind the glass.

More later!

Hello- First Time on Cruise Critic and First time on MSC. I have been on about 10 cruises with Carnival and Royal

1: Can we take a Playstation or X box and connect it in the room?

2: Do they have self service laundry like carnival does? All I see is pre-paid per piece laundry

3: How is the spa? Is the Thermal Area Cruise Pass worth it? on Carnival it always got so crowded.

 

Thanks in advance,

Wendy

We just returned from Divina, we were in YC so had automatic access to the spa, so whether you should pay extra for it, not sure. I can only tell you of our experience with the spa, and it was fabulous!! Very beautiful appointed, locker rooms large and stylish. I visited the spa twice, first time on first sea day, and I was the only one there! I used the steam room and sauna. Second time I visited with my daughter on second sea day. Again, nobody in the steam room, there were only 2 other ladies in sauna. There are 6 beds there looking out over the water, no problem finding a free one to relax on. What I loved about the spa, is that the steam rooms and saunas were separate for men and women. Not sure if this is standard in the US, it isn't in Europe and was a nice surprise.

All in all, I recommend the spa!

Hi Dexx, so great to see all your pictures, feels like we're on the cruise again! Good to look back on a fantastic week. We are now in Key West, quite a change, great place to be! The girls love the party atmosphere ;-)

And we finally have internet again, so will start posting reviews of our cruise week soon, here on the boards.

It was great to meet you and your family onboard!!

AH, burgers and pizza options sound like sound alternatives, should they want a change from Le Muse. It all sounds lovely, so I'm sure we won't be disappointed! Can't wait!!

Thanks again, warm regards,

Marlou

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I'm not sure if you can go to the MDR, you can certainly opt to book the specialty restaurants or go to the buffet. Room service will deliver pizza from Eaterly to your cabin, which is included.

What is the MDR? Main Dining Room?

Great review, thanks! This is only our second cruise, and booked on the YC, so it looks like I'll be spoiled early on in my "career"

Thanks very much for that interesting review. So I'm wondering, if you're not happy with Le Muse, is it ok to change to another restaurant for one evening? I'm sailing on the YC with two teenagers. They may like to opt for pizza one night or something. Is that included? Thanks again, glad to hear the second week was so much better!!

Good choice Lou2204, we just did our 3 trip with Chip and again it did not disappoint. Stingray City was crowded our day (we were only a boat of 11) so we did the snorkel, starfish and then the stingrays. He makes sure you get the best experience on your trip!

Thanks Whoop98, that's good to hear! I did think they would be flexible and respectful of the animals.

Captain Marvin's does tours to the captive dolphin place therefore I personally would never use them. (vote with my wallet)

 

Just making you aware in case that is a factor for you.

Thanks for sharing that, Carl. A very good point and I wasn't aware. We visited dolphins once in Bali, and decided there and then with the family we'd never do it again. I booked with Stingray Sailing in the end, especially because they were recommended for their respect for the animals.

Thanks!

Enjoy. I am sure you will have a great time regardless who's boat you get out on. A day in Grand Cayman will always be better than a day at work! :D

Haha, that is very true indeed;)

Thanks for your insights!! In the meantime we have decided to go with Stingray Sailing, so none of the above ;-)

Warm regards,

Lou

I'm checking out excursions in Cayman Island and see two companies mentioned, Captain Marvin and Native Ways. Not sure which one to choose, they seem very similar...?

Anybody here that has maybe tried both of them? and / or has a preference..?

Many thanks in advance

Lou

Hi Marlou,

 

 

 

Sorry, but I'm not sure about the cabin size. Maybe someone has been in one of the forward facing cabins. I have heard that the balcony can be tough to use when moving as the wind is strong...

 

 

 

The drinks are included ship wide.There were some drinks that weren't available at every bar, like my Sauterne. But they had other nice offerings.

Wonderful to hear, thanks for your response! We're quite inexperienced cruisers and we were really delighted that we managed to snap up a forward looking cabin. Never thought about the head winds!! Good to be forewarned, we'll see what it will be like. It just feels so exciting to be looking ahead when the ship sails!! [emoji5]

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Wonderful stories and reviews, thanks all for sharing! We are sailing first time with MSC in August, and booked YC.

I just received my papers for checking in, and have a few questions, maybe one of you knows..?

- Our cabin is 16006 - we thought from looking on the deck plans, this was the biggest (there is 4 of us...). But on the papers it says 29 square meters, which seems to be the smallest size of the cabins ... are the cabins on the side of the ship bigger?

- The drinks .. inclusive on the whole ship or not? It says on the papers: " All-inclusive, lunch and dinner in YC restaurant " . Somebody here (cannot find the thread) said that drinks were also inclusive on other parts of the ship when you have YC, but is this true?

Many thanks for your answers,

Warm regards Marlou

I'm sailing on the same cruise in August, and now you all have me

Intrigued: what is the Megastore and why

Would it be worth a visit?

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Hi Karen, thanks for your reply! I agree that if you feel,at ease somewhere it is not necessary to book an excursion. We cruised once before in Europe, and we just made our own plans. Not sure I feel so sure in Jamaica and Mexico.

Thanks for,your tip to search on ports , hadn't thought of that! I'm still quite new on this forum.

OMG that story of Puerto Vallarta, what a nightmare!!! That really would freak me out, and I have heard once that ships do indeed sail if you are late getting back.

Thanks again for your answer, regards

Lou

Hello fellow cruisers,

We're sailing for the first time with the MSC Divina in August to the Eastern Caribbean (12 August, 8 days) and are wondering whether it makes sense to pre-book excursions?

First off, I am wondering is it worthwhile at all to book excursions, or is it smarter to just make your own plans and bookings? Would you save money on organizing your own activities, or is it smarter to just go with the ship's excursions (image you miss the boat!! :eek:)

Then, is it smart to start booking them before you sail? There are 3 women in my party, so there may be some last minute changes of heart ;) . Are some of them very quickly booked up?

Would love to hear your experiences !!

Warm regards,

Lou