Persian Gulf Christmas Cruise
Discussion
We don't want to stay at home so are thinking of what to do at Christmas, I've discounted skiing as the chances of good snow seem to get lower every year so we'll leave that until February or March and go somewhere warm.
We have not cruised before but we fancy trying it and so I've been doing some research today, there are plenty of Caribbean cruises but for something different I've found a good deal on an MSC cruise out of Abu Dhabi which my wife and I like the sound of as it has an inclusive drinks package which should make life easier.
Any information on the area and MSC with thoughts or suggestions would be welcome.
We have not cruised before but we fancy trying it and so I've been doing some research today, there are plenty of Caribbean cruises but for something different I've found a good deal on an MSC cruise out of Abu Dhabi which my wife and I like the sound of as it has an inclusive drinks package which should make life easier.
Any information on the area and MSC with thoughts or suggestions would be welcome.
This is what I thought of my last cruise with MSC (review for a cruise forum). Happy to answer any questions you have.
I thought I'd write a review of my recent trip in the hope that its helps those thinking about taking a cruise with MSC or indeed those that have already booked. I will try and do it logically, from start to finish.
Booking
We enquired through several agencies and MSC directly but found that we saved quite a bit using an agency (not sure if I'm allowed to say who I used so I wont). We chose MSC partly through our positive experience on the Preziosa last year and of course their fabulous offer where kids travel free when in a cabin with two adults, they only pay port taxes.
Boarding
We boarded in Barcelona in the early afternoon. It was a fairly easy process, our bags taken at the door and we proceeded in to the departures area to check in. There were only three or four people checking passengers in, much less than when we boarded in Venice the previous year. We waited for just over an hour to check in and make our way on board the ship where we proceeded to our cabin. We weren't in our cabin ten minutes and our bags arrived, great news for our son as he was desperate to get to the pool.
Cabin
We opted for an ocean view cabin as we're still not sure about trusting our young son on a balcony. All ocean view cabins are on deck 5, the same deck as guest services so that's handy. We were in cabin 5013 on the port side of the ship. The cabin was fairly spacious, a double or twin bed depending on what you prefer and two chairs. The pillows were terribly uncomfortable, lumpy and not much in the way of support. We also noticed that the bedding was only changed twice during the 11 nights, even though they showed signs of my wifes make up rubbing. We found this a little disappointing.
The toilet again was spacious and clean, my only gripe being the shower curtain which either clung to your bum when you were wet or let most of the shower water out on the floor. On the Preziosa last year, it was a glass door and it was much better and far nicer looking.
The TV had around 40 channels but only one English speaking, Sky News International. It would have been nice to have maybe BBC or ITV as there seemed to be an entertainment channel in French, Spanish, Italian and even Portuguese.
We had some issues on the last three days of the cruise. Our cabin seemed to be right above where the bags were stored the night before people were disembarking. At around 2 AM there was the sound of constant banging which turned out to be the noise of suitcases being thrown down a set of rollers by the house keeping staff. It was loud enough to wake both me and my wife.
The house keeping staff were okay. He was in the room in the morning and at night and seemed to do his job okay. Aside from the sheets not being changed, on a couple of occasions he left us with just half a toilet roll until his next visit.
Eating
Breakfast was the usual buffet affair. You could have a cooked breakfast, fruit, yogurt, bread and more. Always a good selection and no complaints here.
We ate most nights in the buffet restaurant, the Pago Pago and Bora Bora. I love the freshly made pizzas and there was always a good choice of toppings and a plentiful amount. The rest of the buffet contained the usual chicken, fish, burgers, hot dogs etc but it did seem to get a bit repetitive after a few days. The overall food quality was great though, no complaints here.
We ate twice in the main dining room. We're not ones for getting massively dressed up at night so that's why we tended to stick to the buffet. The food was very nice and a good selection. However, we were really put off at the speed it was served. The waiter was taking away one plate with one hand and replacing it with your next course with the other. I like a short break between courses and this has always been the way in every other restaurant I have eaten in. We were in the first sitting so I understand they need to get prepped for the second but 40 minutes to eat seven courses is way too fast. It really out us off.
We ate in the Tex Mex restaurant which was very nice. I had a massive steak and the wife had tacos. The restaurant was fairly quiet and the meal cost around €17 for us both, great value and a nice change. We also ate in the Sports Bar and both had burgers. My wife had to send hers back as the burger was very cold, it was brought out about two minutes later and it was clear the solution had been to microwave it as her salad was now also hot. The burgers seemed to be the same as those in the buffet as were the fries so your really only paying to eat the same food in different surroundings. Nice surroundings though and great if your into sport and sports memorabilia.
Pools
There are three pools on the ship. One at the rear, and two in the middle (one inside with a retractable roof). The pools were always nice and clean, as were the multitude of hot tubs. We found it very difficult to get a sunbed, even if you were up before 10 AM although the ship did seem very busy. The indoor pool very rarely had the roof open, even in glorious weather.
What the ship could be doing with is a dedicated kids area, like the water park on the Preziosa. There were far too many people moaning about the kids jumping in the pool and telling them to be quiet. I'm sorry but if you don't want splashed, don't pick a bed a metre from the pool? My little lad is six and I like to think he's well behave and very polite, so its not as if he was running riot and neither were the other kids.
There was also a water slide which my little lad loved but seemed to open just whenever they wanted too and not the published hours in the daily programme .
The Rest of the Ship
The interior is simply stunning. Crystal stairs, a stunning lobby over three of four decks and lots of nice bars. It always appeared to be clean and there was always someone cleaning, no matter the time of day. The ship flows well and it very rarely seems congested, apart from the pool deck as mentioned before. It has a great range of shops, from toy shops to fine jewellery.
Staff
They varied greatly from part of the ship to the other. Bar staff seemed to vary the most, some were really pleasant and always smiling and others looked like they didn't want to be there. As always there were one or two who were really nice and went the extra mile. One even brought us our normal round before we had asked for it most nights in the Splendida Bar.
Entertainment
On the whole was very good. The evening shows consisted of the usual singing, acrobats, dancing etc which we expected with it being a multi national cruise. It did seem t get a bit repetitive though, with the same acts being used but with a different theme or storyline. We didn't go for the last couple of nights.
The entertainment team were very good, as we experienced the previous year on the Preziosa. They worked tirelessly to ensure that there was always something on, morning, noon and night. Its the first time I have experienced a foam party at sea and one of the best things I have seen. People of all ages, from toddlers to old people up dancing and having fun.
The cruise director seemed non-existent however. Apart from 10 minutes at the start of each evening show, I didn't see him for the rest of the cruise?
Ports of Call
We stopped at Casablanca, Tenerife, Funchal, Rome, Genoa and back to Barcelona. Sadly we spent 14 hours stopped in Casablanca, a city which has absolutely nothing to offer. We got off and walked in to town and walked back after about an hour. There were several tours of offer to Rabat and Marrakech which I'm sure is the reason why they stop, but they were very expensive and involved a 6 hour round trip on a coach.
The other stops were very enjoyable. We felt it was a shame that we only got a couple of hours in Malaga, a beautiful place. I would have much preferred to miss out Casablanca and maybe have an overnight in the port of Malaga.
One last thing to note was the price of tours. They seemed very expensive and in fact we done our own tour to Loro Parque and saved around €25 per person by arranging our own taxi compared to the ship prices. The bus into town provided by the cruise line in Malaga was also quite expensive, €7 per person for a five minute bus ride.
Disembarking
We were due to dock at 1 PM and had to be out our room by 9 AM. We were out at around 9:30 AM and no one mentioned anything. Our bags were on the carousel before we were off the ship and the entire process took no more than 10 minutes. We then made our way to the airport via a pre-booked transfer.
Pro's
Free child places
Excellent ship with great facilities
Cons
Cabin location and noise
Housekeeping in the cabin
Overall we had a great time. It wasn't as good as last year on the Preziosa, but that's a much newer ship with better facilities. We love sailing with MSC and we're already looking at booking one from Dubai or Turkey next year as we're moving to Cyprus to live.
I thought I'd write a review of my recent trip in the hope that its helps those thinking about taking a cruise with MSC or indeed those that have already booked. I will try and do it logically, from start to finish.
Booking
We enquired through several agencies and MSC directly but found that we saved quite a bit using an agency (not sure if I'm allowed to say who I used so I wont). We chose MSC partly through our positive experience on the Preziosa last year and of course their fabulous offer where kids travel free when in a cabin with two adults, they only pay port taxes.
Boarding
We boarded in Barcelona in the early afternoon. It was a fairly easy process, our bags taken at the door and we proceeded in to the departures area to check in. There were only three or four people checking passengers in, much less than when we boarded in Venice the previous year. We waited for just over an hour to check in and make our way on board the ship where we proceeded to our cabin. We weren't in our cabin ten minutes and our bags arrived, great news for our son as he was desperate to get to the pool.
Cabin
We opted for an ocean view cabin as we're still not sure about trusting our young son on a balcony. All ocean view cabins are on deck 5, the same deck as guest services so that's handy. We were in cabin 5013 on the port side of the ship. The cabin was fairly spacious, a double or twin bed depending on what you prefer and two chairs. The pillows were terribly uncomfortable, lumpy and not much in the way of support. We also noticed that the bedding was only changed twice during the 11 nights, even though they showed signs of my wifes make up rubbing. We found this a little disappointing.
The toilet again was spacious and clean, my only gripe being the shower curtain which either clung to your bum when you were wet or let most of the shower water out on the floor. On the Preziosa last year, it was a glass door and it was much better and far nicer looking.
The TV had around 40 channels but only one English speaking, Sky News International. It would have been nice to have maybe BBC or ITV as there seemed to be an entertainment channel in French, Spanish, Italian and even Portuguese.
We had some issues on the last three days of the cruise. Our cabin seemed to be right above where the bags were stored the night before people were disembarking. At around 2 AM there was the sound of constant banging which turned out to be the noise of suitcases being thrown down a set of rollers by the house keeping staff. It was loud enough to wake both me and my wife.
The house keeping staff were okay. He was in the room in the morning and at night and seemed to do his job okay. Aside from the sheets not being changed, on a couple of occasions he left us with just half a toilet roll until his next visit.
Eating
Breakfast was the usual buffet affair. You could have a cooked breakfast, fruit, yogurt, bread and more. Always a good selection and no complaints here.
We ate most nights in the buffet restaurant, the Pago Pago and Bora Bora. I love the freshly made pizzas and there was always a good choice of toppings and a plentiful amount. The rest of the buffet contained the usual chicken, fish, burgers, hot dogs etc but it did seem to get a bit repetitive after a few days. The overall food quality was great though, no complaints here.
We ate twice in the main dining room. We're not ones for getting massively dressed up at night so that's why we tended to stick to the buffet. The food was very nice and a good selection. However, we were really put off at the speed it was served. The waiter was taking away one plate with one hand and replacing it with your next course with the other. I like a short break between courses and this has always been the way in every other restaurant I have eaten in. We were in the first sitting so I understand they need to get prepped for the second but 40 minutes to eat seven courses is way too fast. It really out us off.
We ate in the Tex Mex restaurant which was very nice. I had a massive steak and the wife had tacos. The restaurant was fairly quiet and the meal cost around €17 for us both, great value and a nice change. We also ate in the Sports Bar and both had burgers. My wife had to send hers back as the burger was very cold, it was brought out about two minutes later and it was clear the solution had been to microwave it as her salad was now also hot. The burgers seemed to be the same as those in the buffet as were the fries so your really only paying to eat the same food in different surroundings. Nice surroundings though and great if your into sport and sports memorabilia.
Pools
There are three pools on the ship. One at the rear, and two in the middle (one inside with a retractable roof). The pools were always nice and clean, as were the multitude of hot tubs. We found it very difficult to get a sunbed, even if you were up before 10 AM although the ship did seem very busy. The indoor pool very rarely had the roof open, even in glorious weather.
What the ship could be doing with is a dedicated kids area, like the water park on the Preziosa. There were far too many people moaning about the kids jumping in the pool and telling them to be quiet. I'm sorry but if you don't want splashed, don't pick a bed a metre from the pool? My little lad is six and I like to think he's well behave and very polite, so its not as if he was running riot and neither were the other kids.
There was also a water slide which my little lad loved but seemed to open just whenever they wanted too and not the published hours in the daily programme .
The Rest of the Ship
The interior is simply stunning. Crystal stairs, a stunning lobby over three of four decks and lots of nice bars. It always appeared to be clean and there was always someone cleaning, no matter the time of day. The ship flows well and it very rarely seems congested, apart from the pool deck as mentioned before. It has a great range of shops, from toy shops to fine jewellery.
Staff
They varied greatly from part of the ship to the other. Bar staff seemed to vary the most, some were really pleasant and always smiling and others looked like they didn't want to be there. As always there were one or two who were really nice and went the extra mile. One even brought us our normal round before we had asked for it most nights in the Splendida Bar.
Entertainment
On the whole was very good. The evening shows consisted of the usual singing, acrobats, dancing etc which we expected with it being a multi national cruise. It did seem t get a bit repetitive though, with the same acts being used but with a different theme or storyline. We didn't go for the last couple of nights.
The entertainment team were very good, as we experienced the previous year on the Preziosa. They worked tirelessly to ensure that there was always something on, morning, noon and night. Its the first time I have experienced a foam party at sea and one of the best things I have seen. People of all ages, from toddlers to old people up dancing and having fun.
The cruise director seemed non-existent however. Apart from 10 minutes at the start of each evening show, I didn't see him for the rest of the cruise?
Ports of Call
We stopped at Casablanca, Tenerife, Funchal, Rome, Genoa and back to Barcelona. Sadly we spent 14 hours stopped in Casablanca, a city which has absolutely nothing to offer. We got off and walked in to town and walked back after about an hour. There were several tours of offer to Rabat and Marrakech which I'm sure is the reason why they stop, but they were very expensive and involved a 6 hour round trip on a coach.
The other stops were very enjoyable. We felt it was a shame that we only got a couple of hours in Malaga, a beautiful place. I would have much preferred to miss out Casablanca and maybe have an overnight in the port of Malaga.
One last thing to note was the price of tours. They seemed very expensive and in fact we done our own tour to Loro Parque and saved around €25 per person by arranging our own taxi compared to the ship prices. The bus into town provided by the cruise line in Malaga was also quite expensive, €7 per person for a five minute bus ride.
Disembarking
We were due to dock at 1 PM and had to be out our room by 9 AM. We were out at around 9:30 AM and no one mentioned anything. Our bags were on the carousel before we were off the ship and the entire process took no more than 10 minutes. We then made our way to the airport via a pre-booked transfer.
Pro's
Free child places
Excellent ship with great facilities
Cons
Cabin location and noise
Housekeeping in the cabin
Overall we had a great time. It wasn't as good as last year on the Preziosa, but that's a much newer ship with better facilities. We love sailing with MSC and we're already looking at booking one from Dubai or Turkey next year as we're moving to Cyprus to live.
Martin4356111 said:
What MSC ship is it on?
I'm a regular cruiser with them, at least once a year with another two booked for next year.
Happy to answer any questions.
The ship is the MSC Fantasia, the trip we are looking at starts on the 22nd Dec with flights from London then two nights in a hotel in Abu Dhabi then eight nights sailing around the Arabian Gulf. I'm a regular cruiser with them, at least once a year with another two booked for next year.
Happy to answer any questions.
The Divina was the lead vessel in the Fantasia class and one of the largest at around 140,000 GT.
Our last two cruises have been on the Splendida and the Preziosa, both in the same class. We prefer larger resort style ships and there is plenty to do on-board. Only thing is if they are full, finding a sun lounger in a decent spot can be hard unless your up fairly early.
Hopefully my last post will answer some of your questions.
Our last two cruises have been on the Splendida and the Preziosa, both in the same class. We prefer larger resort style ships and there is plenty to do on-board. Only thing is if they are full, finding a sun lounger in a decent spot can be hard unless your up fairly early.
Hopefully my last post will answer some of your questions.
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