Jump to content

Leonardo Da Vinci: TA crossing


Recommended Posts

A video about a boy being sent to Italy to visit his grand parents in 2 parts in 1967.

 

Ahhh... the good ol' days!

 

Watch the scene where he takes a ride on the pasta machine, and tries out the red wine flow rider! :D

 

Well worth a watch.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I came home from Italy on it in 1961 w/my grandparents. They brought their car. We ran into a storm coming home which slowed us down and docked in NY mid afternoon though we should have docked 1st thing in the AM. Because of that, the tide was "wrong" and we had to wait another 4 hrs to unload the car because the water level was too low. We had to wait until the tide rose. By the time we got our car, we were THE last people to leave the pier!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...
A video about a boy being sent to Italy to visit his grand parents in 2 parts in 1967.

 

Ahhh... the good ol' days!

 

Watch the scene where he takes a ride on the pasta machine, and tries out the red wine flow rider! :D

 

Well worth a watch.

 

 

Young men dressed in ties upon embarkation and during parts of the voyage, rising upon meeting their dining companion in the MDR: not seen recently by me. An excellent "blast from the past" and I thank you for posting these two videos.

 

The Italian Line is one that I regret never having been able to sail. The one opportunity I had to sail on the Leonardo da Vinci was when she was sailing on short cruises from Port Everglades for a consortium of Italian shipping companies, I believe. Then, her itinerary and the quality of my possible cruise experience concerned me. I chose to book HAL's Statendam at that time.

 

Princess Cruises offers a somewhat Italian "flavor" to part of their cruises. But, it is very homoginzed, I think.

 

Does MSC Cruises offer anything like the Italian cruise experience that Home Lines, Sitmar Cruises, or even Italian Line used to do?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi RKA,

 

I don,t think we will ever see anything close to The Italian Line again. I am booked for the MSC Divina in Sept. I will let you know. The Leonardo DaVinci was a one of a kind. We had the good luck to have spent 10 glorious days on her in 1976. She will always be the one ship that we use as our standard to compare all other ships. The Leonardo had a certain cache' and romance that will never be duplicated. She had the best food, service and fairly dripped with that curious blend of exotic and comfort that created the Leonardo DaVinci atmosphere.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi RKA,

 

I don,t think we will ever see anything close to The Italian Line again. I am booked for the MSC Divina in Sept. I will let you know. The Leonardo DaVinci was a one of a kind. We had the good luck to have spent 10 glorious days on her in 1976. She will always be the one ship that we use as our standard to compare all other ships. The Leonardo had a certain cache' and romance that will never be duplicated. She had the best food, service and fairly dripped with that curious blend of exotic and comfort that created the Leonardo DaVinci atmosphere.

 

I'll look forward to your experience on MSC Divina. Please don't forget to report.

 

When visiting ships prior to sailing was possible, I did visit Raffello in New York prior to a Trans-Atlantic. That visit only whetted my desire to sail on an Italian Line vessel.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 9 months later...

Hi RKA,

 

I just found this thread again. Sorry I did not report sooner but better late than never. The MSC Divina Yacht Club experience was right up there with our best cruises ever. The Italian experience was a lot more subtle than the Italian Line but the personal service was definitely some of the best we ever experienced. Our Maitre D’ was Italian and he greatly added to the enjoyment of our dining experience in the private Yacht Club dining room. The YC experience is as close to the old First Class experience that you will find unless you book a Luxury Cruise which is a lot different on many levels...especially price. The YC experience is a bargain. The Italian cuisine was very good in most cases. I am hoping that MSC will continue to improve and perfect their style and promoting their Italian heritage.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Many thanks CGTNORMANDIE for your response! I appreciate it and whets my appetite to try MSC. With the addition of MSC Seaside into the North American market and what I have learned about the learning curve MSC has experienced in meeting that market's expectations encourages me to really believe that MSC wants to develop a North American consumer base. Because of the Company's strong Italian heritage, I am hopeful that just because the ships are being marketed to North Americans, the Italian "flavor" will not be diluted too much. Due to the size of both of the Divina and the Seaside, for me, I think booking Yacht Club would be the better choice.

 

I appreciate learning your insights. Thank you very much!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We were on the "Divina" this past Feb and just booked again for Feb 2019. We liked it a LOT!!!. Beautiful ship, good food, the BEST pizza and pasta dishes, (kitchen seems to be overseen by Italian chefs) the BEST shows on a ship. Social directors are most accommodating and anxious to please. Officers are Italian, but most of staff and crew are not. Not quite as "Italian" as the old Italian line, but not quite as "homogenized" as most other lines. I guess it's the closest we're going to come to "Italian Line" in this day and age. They're anxious to develop a following and they will match the highest repeaters loyalty level you are on any line with there comparable loyalty level and give you the perks that come with that level.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We were on the "Divina" this past Feb and just booked again for Feb 2019. We liked it a LOT!!!. Beautiful ship, good food, the BEST pizza and pasta dishes, (kitchen seems to be overseen by Italian chefs) the BEST shows on a ship. Social directors are most accommodating and anxious to please. Officers are Italian, but most of staff and crew are not. Not quite as "Italian" as the old Italian line, but not quite as "homogenized" as most other lines. I guess it's the closest we're going to come to "Italian Line" in this day and age. They're anxious to develop a following and they will match the highest repeaters loyalty level you are on any line with there comparable loyalty level and give you the perks that come with that level.

 

Thank you very much for your post! I'm going to have to sail on MSC.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi RKA,

If you do cruise on MSC do try to book the Yacht Club. It is a very unique First Class experience. I do not call it a Luxury experience because Luxury ships are smaller, quieter, more intimate and offer a much lower activity level. The MSC Yacht Club is a real eye opener. You get First Class treatment in an exclusive area of the ship. At the same time the YC is very discrete and private. Most of the other pax are not even aware that it exists. You will receive personal service from the time you arrive at the ship til the time you disembark. The private lounge is big, beautiful and overlooks the bow of the ship...reminiscent of the original Queen Mary. The private YC restaurant will cater to all your desires...just ask. Our Maitre D’ was Italian and would prepare something special every night in the YC DR. Remember you also get the use of the entire ship...great entertainment and a highly charged atmosphere with an international passenger list. All the drinks, coffees, bottled water, snacks, gelati, sweets, etc etc. are included and complimentary...including the refrigerator in your cabin. All the bars onboard the entire ship are also complimentary...just show your cabin card. You also have the run of the ship and your butler will escort you anywhere you care to go. If you need anything at all...simply pick up the phone and call the YC Concierge and Someone will be knocking at your cabin door as soon as you hang up the phone. This is the way it was done in First Class in the great Transatlantic era. BTW...the coffee and pastry was some of the best we ever had. The croissants were as good as those we had on the SS France! If you are looking to rekindle that glorious era of transatlantic ocean travel...the MSC Yacht Club is as close as you will come in this day and age...and at a very reasonable price!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 year later...
On 6/1/2017 at 4:34 AM, CGTNORMANDIE said:

Hi RKA,

 

I don,t think we will ever see anything close to The Italian Line again. I am booked for the MSC Divina in Sept. I will let you know. The Leonardo DaVinci was a one of a kind. We had the good luck to have spent 10 glorious days on her in 1976. She will always be the one ship that we use as our standard to compare all other ships. The Leonardo had a certain cache' and romance that will never be duplicated. She had the best food, service and fairly dripped with that curious blend of exotic and comfort that created the Leonardo DaVinci atmosphere.

Funny!  Just found this thread, and I was also on the Leonardo da Vinci in 1976.  We did a Mediterranean cruise that went from Genoa, and stopped at Gibraltar, Madeira, Casablanca and a few other ports.  Must have been in May or June, as we spent the rest of that season in Palma de Mallorca. Had my first kiss from a young lady from Pennsylvania.  Didn't care for it.  Shaped my life.

 

Andrew

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 7/13/2019 at 12:29 AM, Blazerboy said:

Funny!  Just found this thread, and I was also on the Leonardo da Vinci in 1976.  We did a Mediterranean cruise that went from Genoa, and stopped at Gibraltar, Madeira, Casablanca and a few other ports.  Must have been in May or June, as we spent the rest of that season in Palma de Mallorca. Had my first kiss from a young lady from Pennsylvania.  Didn't care for it.  Shaped my life.

 

Andrew

Great to hear from you Andrew.  You were probably on Leonardo earlier as we picked her up in New York and went to the Caribbean...in late May over Memorial Day.  Those ten days were the best party I ever went to in my entire life!

 

Ross

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

Great to hear from you Andrew.  You were probably on Leonardo earlier as we picked her up in New York and went to the Caribbean...in late May over Memorial Day.  Those ten days were the best party I ever went to in my entire life!

 

Ross

 

It was a wonderful ship- only wish I had more opportunities to sail on her and her Italian Line stablemates...half a dozen times was NOT enough! (How's that for a humble-brag!😉)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 7/15/2019 at 11:05 PM, Blazerboy said:

It was a wonderful ship- only wish I had more opportunities to sail on her and her Italian Line stablemates...half a dozen times was NOT enough! (How's that for a humble-brag!😉)

 

A humble-brag??  Are you kidding???  6 times on the Italian Line is an achievement. My wife and I were only able to go once and we are still talking about it!  The people who are cruising today will never know how great the Italian Line was.  Truly, the Italian Line was the offering of a nation that excelled in art, food and service.  

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, CGTNORMANDIE said:

 

A humble-brag??  Are you kidding???  6 times on the Italian Line is an achievement. My wife and I were only able to go once and we are still talking about it!  The people who are cruising today will never know how great the Italian Line was.  Truly, the Italian Line was the offering of a nation that excelled in art, food and service.  

Well said!

I sailed once each on the Mich, Raff and Leo and those ships remain my favorites after all these years.  Sitmar and Homes Lines were next in line.  Still love cruising... but nothing compares to those!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

I just came across this thread. I sailed with my parents and brother on a 10-day Caribbean cruise on the Leonardo in summer 1974. My parents had a huge cabin on Upper Deck and my brother and I were relegated to an indoor, bunk bed room below the waterline on C Deck at the opposite end of the ship. I remember my mother arguing with the dining room maitre 'd because my parents were assigned a table in the "first class" dining room, and since my brother & I were down in C Deck steerage-class, we were assigned a table in the "lesser cabin class" dining room. All worked out and we were reassigned as a "family traveling together" to the first class dining room with my parents.

 

We were onboard on the way back to NYC when President Nixon resigned from office. The ship was off the Virginia coast and the captain maneuvered the ship closer to land so that a land-based television signal could be picked-up. At least half the ship was crowded around the lone television set in one of the lounges, trying to watch Nixon's resignation speech.

 

We were booked for another Caribbean cruise in summer 1975 on the Raffaello, but unfortunately, Italian Line withdrew both Raffaello and Michelangelo before our sailing date. We subsequently sailed many times with Home Lines and Sitmar, until they, too, ceased to exist. Happy memories!

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...