POESIA Review 03.20.2010 Day 1 WARNING! This is probably going to be really long

[vijoge]

We just returned from a 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruise on the Poesia. There were four of us-myself, my husband, and our two oldest granddaughters, who are 10 and 12. We booked cabin 9221, which is a corner balcony quad cabin on the stern -port side. We asked for, and were assigned, second seating in the dining room. Our scheduled ports of call were San Juan, Sint Maarten, Virgin Gorda, and Nassau.

 

We arrived in Fort Lauderdale on Friday evening after a long day, our 5 PM flight having been delayed by about two hours in Chicago. Taxis were plentiful outside the airport and we chose a van taxi driven by Patrick to take us to the Riverside Hotel, which I had bought on Priceline a couple of months ago at a fair price. The cost for the four of us to go from the airport to the hotel was $25 and took about 15 minutes. Patrick gave us his cell # and said he'd be happy to take us to the port the next day.

 

The lobby was empty when we arrived so check-in was immediate. This hotel is very pretty, staff is friendly enough, and efficient. Our room was in the older (this hotel dates from the 1930's)section on the fifth floor but fine. We received the two double beds as requested. We were all tired so we went to bed almost immediately.

 

We woke up early the next morning and of course the kids were starving! We headed down to the hotel dining room but when we looked at the prices we decided to try elsewhere. Two eggs, any style, were $12. Just the eggs. We wandered out onto Las Olas Blvd and asked a passerby about another option for breakfast and she directed us to the Floridian, a half mile 15 minute walk from our hotel. I guess this place is well known as it was quite busy but service was prompt and the food was good and reasonably priced. We left full and happy.

 

We returned to the about hotel 10:30 , called Patrick for a ride, packed up our stuff, and checked out. Patrick was due to pick us up about 11:00 so we sat outside and watched the yachts on the waterway while we waited. And waited. We called him at noon to ask if he was coming and he said he was stuck in traffic and was on the way. We called back at 12:40 and he didn't answer the phone. Called him again about 10 minutes later and he said he was almost there. He finally arrived about 1 PM and immediately started loading a whole group of waiting people into the van. NOT COOL! My husband politely but firmly informed both Patrick and the people already in the van that we had a prior reservation, had been waiting for two hours and we were going in this taxi now! Fortunately we all fit and Patrick offerred to only charge for three of us to make up for the delay. So the ride to the port was $15 total and took about 15 minutes. I never did see all that horrendous traffic he mentioned. LOL

Patrick unloded our bags, we paid him, and he said to call him after the cruise and he would be happy to take us to the airport.

 

The embarkation line was pretty long as it was now about 1:30 but it moved pretty fast. We would have gotten checked in a lot sooner but the girls had to use the bathroom as soon as we arrived and the bathroom has only one stall for all these women! So David ended up sending a whole lot of pssengers ahead of him while he waited for the girls to catch up. We first had to fill out a health declaration form asking about recent fever, runny nose, or cough. One for each person(bring a pen-a lot of people didn't have one). Then on to the check in line for cruise cards, pictures, etc. This didn't take more than a few minutes. The man checking us in had the girls in stitches the whole time-you could tell he either had children of his own or he really liked kids! Embarkation photos were taken and we stopped to get the wristbands that all passengers 12 and under must wear for identification, as well as smaller life jackets for the girls. We headed off to find our cabin. (I know some people have reported being escorted to their cabin but that was not our experience. Nor did I see anyone else being escorted.) Believe it or not, when we arrived in our cabin our luggage was already in the room. We were expecting the girls would have bunks that pulled down from the wall but instead there was a bed (like a daybed) with a trundle type cot that pulled out from underneath it. The room was a good size, with enough storage for all of our things, but just barely. We double-hung some of the girls dresses due to not having quite enough hangars. Frank, our steward, stopped by to introduce himself. He was very friendly.

 

Up to deck 13 for the buffet lunch! What a madhouse! Only one end (aft) of the buffet was open and the line stretched past the first swimming pool all the way back to the Mojito Bar!!! There was hardly a table in sight, just a sea of hungry passengers! We decided our best option was to leave one person to find table and to send the others for food. I staked out a spot and waited for couple to finish their lunch and immeditely claimed their table. It was in full sun, and hot, so I ordered a Pepsi ($2.20)while I waited. And waited. Changed tables now to one with a little shade. And waited. Changed tables again, to one with full shade. I sunburn easily. David and the girls showed up with lunch. Frankly, I don't remember what we ate but the food was ok. Typical buffet food. . We stayed on pool deck until they announced Muster Drill.

 

We stopped in our cabin on deck 9 to pick up our life jackets and then down the stairs to deck 7 to Muster Station H, which was in the Pigalle Lounge. Crew made sure everyone was wearing their life jackets correctly, gave a short demo on how on they work, and we were done! One thing that I noticed as being different from all our previous cruises was that no one took attendance at the Muster Drill.

 

Time to sail away, which we enjoyed from the comfort of our balcony. We generally try to get a cabin in this location. For anyone interested I mention that the balcony is much smaller than our previous aft blconies on other lines, but there was room for three chairs and small end table. We finished unpacking and bagged up our formal wear and number of other items to send out for pressing. We do this every cruise as I have never been able to pack and not have things be wrinkled when I take them out. The $31 it cost was well worth it.

 

The 7PM show in the Carlo Felice Theater was very good. It started out bit on the slow side, but everyone left pretty impressed. The Poesia has some pretty good gymnasts on their entertainment team. And the theater is beautiful.

 

We had requested a table for four but were seated at a table for 9 with a lovely family from Argentina. Their girls are 16, 14, and 11. Ours are 10 and 12. The kids hit it off really well and by the end of the cruise were referring to each other as sisters. Dad speaks English pretty well, mom not so much, but we really didn't have much trouble communicating. We enjoyed our tablemates a lot. I will talk bout the food later.

 

We went up to the S32 Disco at 9:15 PM for a meeting with Matteo and the kids club staff. This is an area where the Poesia really shines! These people are amazing and have so much energy and patience. I was also happy to finally meet Matteo after having read his posts on this board. He does an outstanding job and my girls loved him.

 

Then it was bedtime and so ended Day 1.

[crazymom107]

I am looking forward to the rest of your review. I am booked on the poesia for this christmas in room 9221. I am very interested in how you found your room and the balconey view. Did you use room service?

Cant wait to read the rest.

[vijoge]

I am booked on the poesia for this christmas in room 9221. I am very interested in how you found your room and the balconey view. Did you use room service?

 

We enjoyed our room. This is our favorite location and we always choose balconies on the stern when they are available. I just like to sit outside and watch the wake, the sunrise, etc.

 

The balcony is smaller than others we have had, but there are three chairs and a small end-type table. The balcony is totally covered and was at least partially shaded most of the day. There were a few hours when it was in full sun, though. The partition between balconies is good and you will have a lot of privacy-you really have to be looking hard to see into the next balcony.

 

If you walk out the door of this cabin and look to your left you will see an exterior door just a few feet away. Go through this door and there is a large deck space with a stairwell. There is tons of room out here and hardly anybody ever uses this space. From here you will have a great view of both the back and side of the ship.

 

We only used room service twice. The first night we ordered brownies for the girls and a fruit plate. The second night we ordered brownies again, but they never came. The room service menu is very limited. We found it better to take food from the buffet back to our room. It's a nice room and if you're lucky enough to have Frank as your room steward you will be quite pleased.

 

Keep in mind when going to most locations on the ship you need to go to the second set of elevators. Use the first set when going to pool deck, though.

[AmoMondo]

I'm looking forward to the next instalment vijoge. I really enjoy your style of writing, it really brings your experience to life for me.

[crazymom107]

Thanks for the info on the room. We have stayed on aft balconies on NCL and we love them. I am concerned about the room service. One of my husbands favorite things is having coffee and breakfast on the balcony.

I cant wait to hear the rest of your review. I keep reading mixed reviews and dont know what to expect. I feel like your review will give me an honest picture.And since I am traveling with my 10 year old daughter and you traveled with your granddaughters it will give me a good picture of what to expect.

[lousk]

i am looking forward to the rest of your review. I am booked on the poesia for this christmas in room 9221. I am very interested in how you found yoif you ur room and the balconey view. Did you use room service?

Cant wait to read the rest.

 

hi crazymom. I started an rc for the xmas cruise on feb 23. If you join in maybe we can draw some interest.

 

Lou

[vijoge]

Coffee on the balcony-no problem. The coffee on the ship is very good. The room service menu only offers a continental breakfast, though. If he wants more than toast or a bagel and such he will need to go to the buffet. From your room this will be very easy-just go to the first elevator and go up to deck 13. The restaurant is right there. Fill your plate, cover it with an empty plate (the plates are more like platters and they hold a lot) and head back down the elevator. Don't forget silverware.

 

If you (or he) is feeling really athletic you can exit to the stairwell directly to the left of your cabin door, walk up 4 flights of stairs and enter the buffet that way. Way too much work for this fat old grandma, but it would work. . .:D

[efan82]

My husband and I were on this same cruise. We are in our 40s. I don't know why MSC has been getting a bad rap on these boards. Our experience was great. The food was great, especially in the dinning room. We went to some great islands. We did not take any excursions through the ship as they just had a limited amount. We found vendors at the piers that worked well for us. We did scuba dive at St. Maarten and had the best experience. That was the highlight of our trip. We highly recommend Scuba Fun. We went to Virgin Gorda also. Our room was great. We were upgraded from category 5 to 10. The room steward always saw that we had ice and fresh towels. Our waiter at dinner was a lot of fun and good with suggestions.

 

The things we didn't like were that the blackjack rules in the casino were European rules, so the dealer doesn't take their second card until everyone else is done hitting. I guess it gives the house a little more of an advantage. Also, I ordered a soda coupon package before leaving. They called me to say the price had gone up and did I still want it. I decided we would use it as we were smuggling Captain Morgan on board. We got on board and found that the soda package was on sale, and even if I got it for full price, it would have been cheaper than what I paid. They could not fix it on board, I would have to wait until the cruise was over and call MSC then. Neither of those things could ruin my fun time. We had plenty of sun and fun.

 

I would cruise again with MSC. We have cruised with Disney, Royal Caribbean, and Carnival. We do like Royal the best. I have promised my husband the one were he doesn't have to get dressed up for dinner next time.:)