Just off Divina.. I welcome your ?'s

[Caronrick]

Hi everyone,

Just returned from the 7 day eastern voyage of the Divina. It was a trip with my in-laws, wife and 8 y.o. son. While I work on getting my review together, I welcome any questions you might have and will do my best to answer.

Thanks

[parallax]

Did your son participate in the kids club? If yes, how did he like it? Also do you know if they have Coke Zero onboard?

[Caronrick]

Did your son participate in the kids club? If yes, how did he like it? Also do you know if they have Coke Zero onboard?

 

Did not see any Coke Zero. Heard of many bringing their own beverage of choice on board though.

Kids club was by far the best we have experienced to date. He had a great time. They played many games that gave away prises to the kids and they made sure that every kid won.. small lego sets and stuffed ship characters.. They also took the kids to the show every night where they had reserved seating in the front of the theatre.

[parallax]

That is great to hear. My daughter, who is about the same age of your son, is looking forward to the club and it sounds like a winner. She also wants to try the pizza making class. Did you try any of the speciality restaurants or the spa? Just wondering what you impressions were.

[shelling4life]

Cruising out this Saturday., did you enjoy the entertainment, how did you enjoy the food, and the ship, it looks beautiful.

[Caronrick]

That is great to hear. My daughter, who is about the same age of your son, is looking forward to the club and it sounds like a winner. She also wants to try the pizza making class. Did you try any of the speciality restaurants or the spa? Just wondering what you impressions were.

 

By far the best kids club we encountered. He had a great time. Note that on sea days they close from 12:30 to 2:30 but this wasn't an issue for us. Also, we had friends that were able to get a pass for their 8 y.o to go on the slide but we were not able to. They have a staff there that checks with the passenger manifest to verify the age of children.

On the last sea day the kids did the pizza making.. My guy came out covered in flour.. there might have been a little fun flour battle.. but he had a great time with that..

No specialty restaurants.. We found the food pretty good and have never really seen the need to pay for them, but to each their own..

Only walked through the spa.. very beautiful looking.. we never found time to enjoy their services though. I can't offer any opinion to that aspect.

[Caronrick]

Cruising out this Saturday., did you enjoy the entertainment, how did you enjoy the food, and the ship, it looks beautiful.

 

Have a great time! We did!!

The entertainment was by far the best we have had on any cruise. Very well done! MSC was recently awarded by Porthole Magazine the award for best on board shows. The Michael Jackson tribute was amazing but not nearly long enough for us.. All their shows run about 45 minutes. If you have the chance, go to watch the bingo in between shows, if only to be amused by the "Bingo Boys" and the act they put on!

The food was wonderful! I am having withdrawal from the pizza! Loved it! We never struggled to find something to eat. Many people complain that there is too much pasta.. I heard it myself.. I only had pasta 2 times all week and easily found something to eat at every meal, either in the buffet or MDR. IMHO if people are complaining about the food on this ship their standards are way to high or they are too narrow in their food tastes. (Again, only my opinion, other opinions may vary.) The ship prepares over 12,000 meals a day, so some things are not going to be the same as your little corner bistro that only serves a few hundred a day.. Keep that in mind..

The ship is BEAUTIFUL in our opinion. There are some areas showing some wear and tear.. too be expected when the ship has been running non stop since 2012.. but they are always cleaning or touching up things and the ship looks almost brand new for the most part...

[cbscanada]

Thanks for being so helpful! Is there an age restriction for the slide? That is what I gather from you post.

 

Also, what ports did you visit?

 

Parallax - are you going next week? I have a daughter about the same age as well.

[parallax]

We are cruising on April 4 (week of my daughter's spring break) but have fun and please report back. I will have to make sure my daughter wears old clothes to pizza making class.

[lucymay519]

How much do they charge for drinks? We are leaving on the Divina next week. Can't wait:D

[Caronrick]

Thanks for being so helpful! Is there an age restriction for the slide? That is what I gather from you post.

 

Also, what ports did you visit?

 

Parallax - are you going next week? I have a daughter about the same age as well.

 

Yeah. The age limit is 9 and over.

St. Maartin, Puerto Rico and Grand Turk.

[Caronrick]

How much do they charge for drinks? We are leaving on the Divina next week. Can't wait:D

 

Depends on the drink but draft beer was under $6 and the colada type drinks were about $7.50 or so. Pretty reasonable and a pretty good pour. Have a great week.

[Cruise-A-Hoy]

I was also on the cruise, but what happened to the Meet and Greet.

Got their about 10 after 4 and no one their

[slfolson]

Just returned from MSC Divina Eastern Caribbean. The ship is beautiful. Plenty of spots to take great pics. Disappointed in the shows because most of the shows were basically the same act with a change in costumes and songs. They used the same circus-like acrobatic performers who did pretty much the same tricks in each show. Predictable moves. Wish they invested in entertainment like they did the ship. MJ show was great. ENT crew was awesome. They really made the evenings fun in the various lounges. The food in dining room was decent with a nice variety. Buffet food boring not a lot of options. Pizza was good on buffet.. We ate at Eataly steakhouse twice and paid. Very good steaks. Pasta there awesome. Only issue was facing lifeboats at a paid restaurant! Sports bar food decent but paid also. Prices reasonable. Spa was nice. Specials everyday. Drink specials everyday. Drink package $84 for 18. We did excursion with local in St. Maarten $25 to see both sides including stops at Orient Beach and shopping at Market. Area to sign up for local Tours near ship. Grand Turk Margaritaville fun drinks food high. Beach right off dock. Grand Turk exc. easier to do with ship. Ocean view cabins nice and spacious. Window like huge doorwall.. Balcony nice but hard to view while sitting can't see ocean. My 13 yo son had a great time in teen club. Most didn't speak English but they worked it out! Best advice I can give is that this is a cruise with majority Europeans so partying is different. We had 28 different nationalities on ours. They do a great job of accommodating everyone!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[cbscanada]

Thanks for this information. Our youngest is 10 years old so we will be fine.

 

Any thoughts on the ports - I am trying to get a handle on options in San Juan - did you guys do anything?

[lucymay519]

Thanks for all the reviews. I've been reading alot of "not so good" reviews of this ship and service. These reviews have me feeling better.:p:p:p

[Mike 6725]

I am sailing with a group of eight on the April 26th Transatlantic. We would like to be seated together in the dining room.

 

1. Are there tables large enough to seat eight?

2. Which is better, the upper or lower level?

3. Do you know how they assign people to their table?

 

Thanks in advance.

[nimiq]

Hi everyone,

 

Just returned from the 7 day eastern voyage of the Divina. It was a trip with my in-laws, wife and 8 y.o. son. While I work on getting my review together, I welcome any questions you might have and will do my best to answer.

 

Thanks

 

 

Hello,

First thanks for answering everyone questions.

How was the dress code at night ? How was the two formal nights ?

 

Thanks again

 

Sea ya

Eric

[Caronrick]

I am sailing with a group of eight on the April 26th Transatlantic. We would like to be seated together in the dining room.

 

1. Are there tables large enough to seat eight?

2. Which is better, the upper or lower level?

3. Do you know how they assign people to their table?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

1. 8 is possible. We were at a 6-top and right next to us there was a 10-top and I am sure there were a few others that large around the room. My recommendation is to talk to the Maitre D' when you board with a person from each room and he/she can link all the rooms to the same table.

2. Can't answer this. We were seated lower int he Black Crab dining room. Enjoyed it. Never even took a look at the upper level.

3. Not sure. Seemed pretty random to me..

[Caronrick]

Hello,

First thanks for answering everyone questions.

How was the dress code at night ? How was the two formal nights ?

 

Thanks again

 

Sea ya

Eric

 

For most, it was casual pants and collared shirts for the men and casual dress for the ladies. On formal nights there were a few tux's and more formal dresses. I wore suit and tie and was not out of place. I had seen a few guys on casual nights wearing shorts and t-shirt in the dining room and didn't think anything of it, although some people get offended by this.

Hope this answers your questions. Let me know if you have any others.

[Caronrick]

I was also on the cruise, but what happened to the Meet and Greet.

Got their about 10 after 4 and no one their

 

I walked by at close to 4 and there were 2 other people and a staff member. The turn out was a little depressing, but I can only speak for myself. I only had a couple of minutes to take a few pictures then had to go keep an eye on my son while my wife got ready for early seating at dinner.. (yes, she takes THAT long!)

[Caronrick]

Just returned from MSC Divina Eastern Caribbean. The ship is beautiful. Plenty of spots to take great pics. Disappointed in the shows because most of the shows were basically the same act with a change in costumes and songs. They used the same circus-like acrobatic performers who did pretty much the same tricks in each show. Predictable moves. Wish they invested in entertainment like they did the ship. MJ show was great. ENT crew was awesome. They really made the evenings fun in the various lounges. The food in dining room was decent with a nice variety. Buffet food boring not a lot of options. Pizza was good on buffet.. We ate at Eataly steakhouse twice and paid. Very good steaks. Pasta there awesome. Only issue was facing lifeboats at a paid restaurant! Sports bar food decent but paid also. Prices reasonable. Spa was nice. Specials everyday. Drink specials everyday. Drink package $84 for 18. We did excursion with local in St. Maarten $25 to see both sides including stops at Orient Beach and shopping at Market. Area to sign up for local Tours near ship. Grand Turk Margaritaville fun drinks food high. Beach right off dock. Grand Turk exc. easier to do with ship. Ocean view cabins nice and spacious. Window like huge doorwall.. Balcony nice but hard to view while sitting can't see ocean. My 13 yo son had a great time in teen club. Most didn't speak English but they worked it out! Best advice I can give is that this is a cruise with majority Europeans so partying is different. We had 28 different nationalities on ours. They do a great job of accommodating everyone!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Thanks for sharing your perspective and congrats on your first post to Cruise Critic! I agree with many of your observations!

You might find a good reception if you were to start a new thread to share this review. What you have done here is, although helpful, hijacking my original thread. I say this with no malice, just as some advice to a (possibly new) member of the community.

[Caronrick]

Thanks for this information. Our youngest is 10 years old so we will be fine.

 

Any thoughts on the ports - I am trying to get a handle on options in San Juan - did you guys do anything?

 

There are many many options for San Juan. Without knowing you and your family I can't offer too much for suggestions. Our day was a bit of a mess. Originally my wife wanted to stay on board, so I planned on just getting off for a couple of hours to walk around old San Juan. Well plans have a great way of changing. Turned out that the CD announced the night before arriving that we were being redirected to dock at the RC docks across the harbor from old San Juan, but that MSC would provide a shuttle across all day at no cost. By the time the morning rolled around, my in-laws decided that they liked my plan and wanted to come along. To spare me a little, my wife tagged along as well and for good measure so did my son. While I was grateful for the shuttle, it was for lack of a better term a disorganized mess. (too much profanity in the term I really want to use.) Too many people felt that they did not need to wait their turn, or that they were more important than all the others already waiting, and cut the line. Both going and returning, though returning was way worse for this. Ultimately walked the city for a little while, stopped for drinks by the other docks, then shuttled back to the boat.

As a after thought to this, we ended up being present on the busiest day in history for San Juan, over 17,000 cruise passengers. I counted our MSC, a Disney, 2 HAL boats, a Carnival, and RCCLs new Quantam was there also. While busy, it never really felt to me like there was an overwhelming amount of people in the city.. maybe many stayed on board or went out to the countryside??

[Cruise-A-Hoy]

Was also on the Divina last week, my 3rd cruise on this ship. Entertainment is excellent rated the best by porthole magazine among others.

 

The quality of food was very good, unlike another unnamed cruise line.

I did find the selection to be limited.

 

I found a few shortfalls. Eggs to order at the breakfast buffet not available. Fried eggs and pre-made omelet's were available but did not fit the bill. Sunnyside up eggs, poached eggs, different kinds of omelets could not be had. Even though they went fast, many times they were not hot by time you got them. Another major complaint by some was no smoked salmon (lox) at buffet. Been on numerous ships and never saw this before

 

We had a little service problem in dining room at breakfast, some did not understand when I ordered Kippers (on menu) other then that service at dinner was excellent

 

We were one of the first to check in at the pier. Then waited almost 3 hours to board. Apparently they had a group on board that were drunk and still slept. After waking them up they still had 3 missing. Immigrations/customs etc would not allow b boarding until found. So here we had hundreds of people milling around the terminal with no idea what was going on. It would have been smart if they announced over the PA system something to calm us.

 

The group was so bad that they broke some chairs in showroom. Crew said they were terrible drunk most of the time and disruptive, Because of delay some cabins were not cleaned on time

[skyking]

Was also on the Divina last week, my 3rd cruise on this ship. Entertainment is excellent rated the best by porthole magazine among others.

 

The quality of food was very good, unlike another unnamed cruise line.

I did find the selection to be limited.

 

I found a few shortfalls. Eggs to order at the breakfast buffet not available. Fried eggs and pre-made omelet's were available but did not fit the bill. Sunnyside up eggs, poached eggs, different kinds of omelets could not be had. Even though they went fast, many times they were not hot by time you got them. Another major complaint by some was no smoked salmon (lox) at buffet. Been on numerous ships and never saw this before

 

We had a little service problem in dining room at breakfast, some did not understand when I ordered Kippers (on menu) other then that service at dinner was excellent

 

We were one of the first to check in at the pier. Then waited almost 3 hours to board. Apparently they had a group on board that were drunk and still slept. After waking them up they still had 3 missing. Immigrations/customs etc would not allow b boarding until found. So here we had hundreds of people milling around the terminal with no idea what was going on. It would have been smart if they announced over the PA system something to calm us.

 

The group was so bad that they broke some chairs in showroom. Crew said they were terrible drunk most of the time and disruptive, Because of delay some cabins were not cleaned on time

 

Interesting about the eggs, I had eggs made to order and omelets made to order every morning. Now they did move the egg station after the first day, but this was back in OCT. Not sure why it would have changed.