Our Poesia Cruise Experience - September 2018

It may take me a few posts to share our experiences onboard Poesia as I'll be using my laptop to post and editing on my phone to include some photos.

This was our first time on Poesia. We'd sailed on Orchestra (x1) and Magnifica (x2) before so were familiar with the layout.

Our itinerary was: Venice-Bari-Katakolon-Mykonos-Piraeus-Sarande-Dubrovnik, with no sea days.

Our cabin was an Aurea balcony #12047.

Embarkation was trouble-free. There was a separate area for Priority guests where we left our luggage and headed straight into the terminal where there was no queue on the Priority line. For the first time ever, I was asked to remove my watch when going through security.

We headed straight to Le Fontane MDR for lunch, then to the cabin, where we picked up our cruisecards. The cabin was in lovely condition. This cabin has one of the large, angled balconies with a deep overhang, so we never had sun the balcony (except for one morning when docked in Piraeus). It was good to sit in the shade some days after sun-bathing on the Top 16 Solarium deck (where it was very hot for most of the cruise). However, it did make for a darker cabin.

Another downside was the noise from above during the day - a lot of banging and sounds of running feet; the games tables were directly above. For these reasons I would never book this cabin again.

The ship itself was in great condition. I actually thought it had been refurbished lately but someone told me that she was due to go into dry dock soon (not sure how true that is). Toward the end of the cruise, our steward came into the cabin and removed a cushion and the 2 arms of the sofa and replaced them later with recovered ones.

Photos of the cabin and balcony (that's Sinfonia in the balcony photo)

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Our steward and MDR waiters were wonderful - we received excellent service. I did wonder if this was because we were Aurea. :confused: We knew one of the bartenders, Abdul, in the Zebra lounge from another ship; he looked after us really well when we hung out at the bar there. The guy in the cigar lounge, Anom, was also wonderful. We also knew one of the head waiters in Le Fontane from before (and before his promotion) and he saw to it that we were looked after each time we went to breakfast and lunch (Il Palladio was our designated MDR for dinner).

The food, overall, was very enjoyable, though not always hot. :( A couple of items we missed from the lunch menus were fishn'chips and cottage pie (though we did miss one lunch in the MDR, so either of them may have been available on that day). There never was rice available in the buffet section, even when curry or sweet&sour was there, so I had to order rice from a waiter and then head to the buffet when it arrived. :rolleyes:

The included wines (on the basic package) have changed - well, certainly on this sailing they had. There was only one La Zolla (Grillo); the other brands were Canti (chardonnay & merlot) and Saint-Louis cabernet sauvignon (which was dire!)

Dining times were later than I've ever seen: Early was 7pm and Late was 9.30pm. Although we had MyChoice, we always went at 7pm (except for one night, which I'll explain later) as it was a perfect time, we felt. We had the same table for the 6 nights we ate there (we went to Kaito Sushi Bar for our last night) so we had the same waiters for the duration.

We tipped the waiters on our last evening with them and explained that we would be eating in the SR the following night. Marco (asst waiter) asked if we could come by the next night and see them as he had something he wanted to give us, so we did:

I thought this was a lovely gesture; we'd never received anything like this before and I know that others on the ship didn't get one from their waiters.

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First I was very excited about the wine change, then not so much anymore after I looked up what "dire" means :D

Anyway, hope there will be more winetalk coming and I also look forward to hear something about Sarande.

First I was very excited about the wine change, then not so much anymore after I looked up what "dire" means :D

 

Anyway, hope there will be more winetalk coming and I also look forward to hear something about Sarande.

There's not much more I can say on the wine front, P - I stuck with either the Grillo or the merlot as they were just about palatable. :rolleyes:

I'll talk a little about Sarande further on. Next up is our Speciality Restaurant experience with photos of the menu (which is going to take a little time as I'll be working on my phone).

We had received 2 vouchers for a meal for 2 as Black Card Voyagers Club members

so we decided to give Kaito a go. We don't eat sushi and I'd checked the menu beforehand to ensure that there was something on it that I could order - there was, so I asked our waiter if we could swap out the items that were on the Voyagers Club menu for others from the main one. He said no, sorry, but that we would get 15% off anything from the main menu (perhaps he said 50% and I misheard?). Anyway, I told h that we have always swapped out items, so he agreed to allow us do so.

Here's photos of both the VC and regular menus

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Great stuff Bea! Keep it coming! Ken

Great stuff Bea! Keep it coming! Ken

I thought I'd better get cracking on it, seeing as you asked me (I hadn't intended to write a report - so this is especially for you :*); I think you'll be off, yourself, soon.

I'm having problems with some of the photos, which are 'sideways' on my phone. I've rotated them in the 'Gallery' but, for some reason, they keep showing sideways when I try to insert them. :rolleyes:

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Unfortunately, a couple of them are blurred (including the Teriyaki, which is what we ordered)

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So ... We both ordered the Yaki Meshi (fried rice), the Teriyaki beef and, for dessert, DH had the ice cream tray and I had the banana tempura ( which was far nicer than the filo-wrapped banana that the Asian restaurants on Magnifica and Orchestra serve).

We enjoyed the meal very much (I was stuffed! The fried rice alone was enough for me - it had lots of small chunks of chicken in it). However, we wouldn't have gone a second time to eat the same meal (We wouldn't have eaten anything else from the menu - fussy eaters [emoji849]) - certainly not on a 7 nighter, anyway.

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Entertainment in the Zebra and Pigalle lounges was very good. The theatre shows were the usual fare, enjoyable enough but a bit repetitive after the first couple of nights. We gave the last 2 nights a miss.

We saw a couple of women order the whiskey-tasting experience in the cigar lounge one night

Here's €36 worth

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There's not much more I can say on the wine front, P - I stuck with either the Grillo or the merlot as they were just about palatable. :rolleyes:

Hmm the Grillo, not my favourite grape, didn´t try too many also as it is only available in Italy (I guess). Would be interested if the Canti Chardonnay is nice, but still if it is, I think I don´t want to drink it every day. So better stick to the classic package when going with the whole family or water only when with wife and daughter as I will not finish 7 bottles on 7 evenings alone. I mean, I could ... ;p

We only went to the Spa once and that was for our included massages. DH had the Bali massage while I opted for the Hot Stones one as it had been recommended to me before. I personally prefer the Bali one.

Unfortunately there was some maintenance work going on in the room next to the one I was in which ruined the whole experience for me (it sounded like a drill constantly going, though it had to have been something else as a drill wouldn't have been in use as constantly as the machine being used was). The noise made it impossible for me to hear the relaxing music being played, nor could I even feel the massage at times, such was the racket. I mentioned it to the Spa receptionist when she asked how the massage was; she apologised and said she would "look into it". That was all I heard on the subject. I thought the least they could have done was offer me a (shorter time) massage as compensation.

The only ports we got off at were Katakolon, Mykonos and Sarande. For the first two, we just wandered about and called into a couple of pharmacies for medications (which are a lot cheaper in Greece than at home!).

For Sarande, we had booked a ship's excursion which comprised of a tour of the city and a visit to the Blue Eye Spring.

There is not much to see or do in the city (others who didn't do a tour couldn't find anything of interest). We were brought to the ruins of a 5th century synagogue, then to a museum, where a mosaic-tiled floor was preserved. We then went for a walk down along to the promenade, which is a very nice area and got to speak with some Albanian people who are really very lovely and friendly.

We then boarded the bus and were brought on some hair-raising roads up into the mountains to visit a fort that looks down on Sarande. It was a very beautiful spot (sorry, I've no photos on my phone so can't post any here) with a restaurant which we would have loved to have had lunch in. We only time for a quick beer then it was down the (really dodgy) roads and on over to another mountainous region (again, nerve-wracking route) to reach the Blue Eye Spring, so named because of its similarity to the shape of an eye with a black 'centre'. Apparently, divers have gone 50 metres and still haven't discovered the source of this spring.

It was a very beautiful spot to visit, with many springs and rivers all about. We were given an hour here. It was almost 4pm at this stage; we hadn't had lunch as we'd docked at 12pm and headed off for our excursion then so we were starving! There was a hotel and restaurant close by so we had a meal comprising of seabass for me (a whole fish including head and tail, beautifully grilled and very tasty) and (2 huge) pork chops for DH served with fries, salad and a basket of bread, washed down with beer (for him) and wine (for me). Cost - €21 ... great value!

I'm afraid I'd demolished most of the fish before remembering to take a photo

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Hmm the Grillo, not my favourite grape, didn´t try too many also as it is only available in Italy (I guess). Would be interested if the Canti Chardonnay is nice, but still if it is, I think I don´t want to drink it every day. So better stick to the classic package when going with the whole family or water only when with wife and daughter as I will not finish 7 bottles on 7 evenings alone. I mean, I could ... ;p

The chardonnay wasn't very nice, P (which is why I stuck with the Grillo). I did make sure to taste what was on offer so I could report back. I didn't, however, try the rosé as I don't normally drink it (though, looking back, perhaps I should have, for 'research' purposes :p)

The first time we didn't have the deluxe package was on Magnifica this time last year. We felt that it's not the value it once was, so, like you, I'm not impressed with the 'house' wines and so we bought the 7 bottle wine package, which I was the only one drinking. It really was too much, so I don't bother anymore. Fortunately, on our next 3 booked cruises, we'll have the deluxe package, so looking forward to a better choice of better wines. :D

Thanks! The Sarande ship's excursion sounds like something I like with driving up and down mountains and enjoying good views and a mysterious spring :)

Wine now I know everything I need to know, as I would only choose the Cabernet and the Chardonney. I fully trust your taste and will not try by myself.

The Black Card event was held at the same time as Early dining - 7pm! :rolleyes: We had been going to dinner at this time each evening so as we could have the same table (which we loved). The MyChoice hostess was always at the MDR entrance at lunchtime, so we were able to let her know that we would be a little late that evening and could she please hold the table for us (which she duly obliged).

There were only a small number of people at the event (apparently only 11 cabins were occupied by Black Card members!) so each table had a crew/staff member to talk to. We had a great conversation with a hostess from Japan. She had been on the crossing on Splendida from Dubai to Yokohama, though we hadn't met her onboard. It gave us something other than Voyagers Club to talk about, though we did outline the issues we have as well - especially regarding the need for a new, higher tier, or even some recognition for those of us with multiples of the minimum number of required points to reach Black. In fairness to her, she took notes on everything we had to say.

The chocolate ships weren't distributed at the event; they were delivered to the cabin later in the cruise, unlike the 'gifts', which we had to go to the Cruise Consultant to pick up. I was pretty miffed about this as it entailed queuing while people discussed their future cruise options with her. In fact, I asked the first person on the queue if they would mind if I went ahead of them as I only wanted one minute to ask her something.

Anyway, it turned out that we had a choice of gift (which probably explains why they weren't delivered to the cabin) - a tote bag or a notebook with cruise and ship images on the cover with a pen containing a ship which moved up and down when moving the pen the same way.

Here's a photo of said notebook and pen

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For disembarkation, we were given a time of 10.45 am to meet in the theatre. We were allowed to stay in the cabin 'til 10.30am; the steward just requested that we allow him to change and make the bed.

We had a transfer to the airport booked through MSC; someone who was on the same flight as us told us that our bus wasn't leaving 'til 4pm (our flight was at 11.20pm) and that there was a facility for leaving our luggage at the terminal at a cost of €5 per item should we want to head off and spend time in Venice. We had not expected this and hadn't been prepared for it. Our plan had been to just get the bus straight to the airport, hang out and enjoy the fine weather there then spend the evening with a book or a movie on the iPad.

While everyone gathered in the theatre to be escorted off, DH and I went off for coffee (him) and hot chocolate (with Baileys :hearteyes: for me :p) ... so we were (almost) last to leave the ship. When we arrived into the terminal it was empty so we headed for the exit doors, as we'd seen luggage placed outside when were leaving the ship. The warning sign stating that once we left this area we couldn't come back gave me pause, so I asked someone where our bags were (as this was the customs clearance area). Apparently, they were at the opposite end of the terminal (we hadn't seen them as there were so few cases left :rolleyes:). As we headed back down the hall to retrieve them, we met a porter with cases stacked on a trolley heading our way; he had the last of the 'left' luggage, including our bags! We gratefully took them from him and proceeded to exit without incident.

We passed a couple and their friend on the way out who were being detained by a customs official due to them having over and above the allowed duty-free quota. (We met up with them later in the airport. They had been held for 3 hours, having been brought to a different area of the port by mini-bus and had to walk back to the terminal after they were released. They weren't even offered the opportunity to pay the duty - the excess was confiscated! It ruined their day as none of them had been to Venice before and had planned to leave their cases, go off and explore, and return later for the 4pm transfer bus).

In the meantime, we left the terminal and headed off to look for a taxi. When an MSC rep came towards us we asked her if she knew where the rank was. She asked if we were going to the airport and directed us to a bus which was leaving then - so that saved us the taxi fare! :D

This cruise was one of the best and most enjoyable we've had and it has restored my confidence in MSC, which was very badly damaged after our Christmas 2017 Orchestra cruise when I felt I never wanted to sail MSC again!

Happy to hear that you had a enjoyable time on the good, old Poesia. Because of the route it is quite possible that we go with her also next year. If MSC not changes the ships for this route.

Entertainment in the Zebra and Pigalle lounges was very good. The theatre shows were the usual fare, enjoyable enough but a bit repetitive after the first couple of nights. We gave the last 2 nights a miss.

 

 

 

We saw a couple of women order the whiskey-tasting experience in the cigar lounge one night

 

 

Here's €36 worth

 

 

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wow wonderful :hearteyes:

Our steward and MDR waiters were wonderful - we received excellent service. I did wonder if this was because we were Aurea. :confused: We knew one of the bartenders, Abdul, in the Zebra lounge from another ship; he looked after us really well when we hung out at the bar there. The guy in the cigar lounge, Anom, was also wonderful. We also knew one of the head waiters in Le Fontane from before (and before his promotion) and he saw to it that we were looked after each time we went to breakfast and lunch (Il Palladio was our designated MDR for dinner).

 

The food, overall, was very enjoyable, though not always hot. :( A couple of items we missed from the lunch menus were fishn'chips and cottage pie (though we did miss one lunch in the MDR, so either of them may have been available on that day). There never was rice available in the buffet section, even when curry or sweet&sour was there, so I had to order rice from a waiter and then head to the buffet when it arrived. :rolleyes:

 

The included wines (on the basic package) have changed - well, certainly on this sailing they had. There was only one La Zolla (Grillo); the other brands were Canti (chardonnay & merlot) and Saint-Louis cabernet sauvignon (which was dire!)

 

Dining times were later than I've ever seen: Early was 7pm and Late was 9.30pm. Although we had MyChoice, we always went at 7pm (except for one night, which I'll explain later) as it was a perfect time, we felt. We had the same table for the 6 nights we ate there (we went to Kaito Sushi Bar for our last night) so we had the same waiters for the duration.

I don't think good waiter has something to do with Aurea. We had some wonderful ones on MSC in balcony cabin .

I love Poesia, probably my favorite ship ever.

I don't think good waiter has something to do with Aurea. We had some wonderful ones on MSC in balcony cabin .

I love Poesia, probably my favorite ship ever.

Sorry, GB ... what I meant was the level of service we received. I think the waiters don't have as many tables in the MyChoice area and had more time to give us the attention we received. I agree that there are some wonderful waiters to be had in the rest of the MDR. We had some terrific waiters for breakfast and lunch, too.