MSC cruise January 2020

MSC cruise January 2020

This was my second MSC cruise and Greg’s first.  I previously sailed on the Armonia to Cuba with a group of ladies.

Our room was Suite 15033 in Yacht Club. 

The Yacht Club was as good as advertised.  Service from room steward, to Butler, to Concierge, to maitre d, and finally our waiter Luis was excellent.  The living room Top Sail was beautiful and snacks and drinks always available.  

Svarovski crystal staircase in the Yacht Club

One Pool deck on 18 was nice, not as windy as I was expecting, food and service at breakfast was very good.  The pool was too small and in the shade otherwise the pool area was very nice. 

Our Butler Marie Pierre

Food in the Yacht Club Restaurant was hit and miss.  

We struggled some nights with what to order.  Had the best lobster at sea and the worst rack of lamb.  Lots of fried and battered meat entrees and hardly anything was grilled.  The wine choices each evening were good, probably slightly better than the included wines on Azamara. The butlers escorting us to our shore excursions without having to meet in the theater was a nice touch. The reception hosted at One Pool was very nice and well attended by the officers who stayed, visited and did not seemed put upon to have to attend.

Our room was nice, the bedding and linens were good quality. The room was on the small size for a suite but larger than most mini suites, with a typical balcony. The manager of the Yacht club informed us the first day that our cabin had wet carpet that was drying but still damp.  We were offered another room in the same category but a bit smaller.  We decided to stay because it wasn’t terribly wet and we liked the location and didn’t really want a smaller room.  Most people when there are problems like this get upgraded.  Not us, we get offered a smaller room!

Outside of Yacht Club

The boat was only half filled and the atrium and bars were very crowded at nights with music blaring so loud that we had no desire to stay.  There was one couple that played songs that we enjoyed and at a reasonable sound level.  Luckily, they played in Top Sail a few nights as well. The shore excursions were a disappointment.  In Guadalupe the beach stop was lame, in St Lucia  the excursion was a tourist trap in the beginning but we did enjoy the last stop.  We enjoyed the Harrison Caves even though it was a repeat and the Caroni Sanctuary in Trinidad was well done and the catamaran in St Vincent was a disappointment but as much from the dominance of a large boisterous Italian family, than the excursion itself, although the lunch provided was pretty weak. If the excursion was not in English, the translation was poor.  Even if the tour guide spoke English, the translation lasted much longer with more information provided.  The first two excursions we were paired with Germans, two with French and one with Italians. 

The theater was the largest and nicest in any ship we have sailed on and the productions were well done.  

However the translation in 5 languages wasn’t listened to by anyone.  At the end of the programs, no one stayed to listen.

Service was good everywhere on the ship and staff seemed happy to be working on MSC.  We had no problem ordering drinks outside of Yacht Club.  Beer choices were very limited until Barbados where they restocked. Greg’s Jameson was available everywhere and they usually poured a double without asking.  However, the rum was not as good a quality.

The ship was beautiful and well maintained.  Two large main pools and another popular aft pool.

 There were lots of bars and lounges with tons of entertainment choices but as said before, it was way too loud.  This was also a complaint that I had on my cruise on Armonia.

Swarovski crystal stairway

Would we travel MSC again?  Probably not.  If we did, only in Yacht Club and only if it left from the states.  We knew the announcements would be in 5 languages but we were not prepared for all the passengers speaking a foreign language.  Supposedly there were 200 Americans on board but we didn’t see them anywhere.  We heard mainly French, German, and Italian. For a week we talked to no one else except the staff.  We are used to visiting with others at the lounges or dinner, on shore excursions or in the theater when we travel on international cruises with people from all over the world.   There was no one to talk to, not even in the elevators.  We just did not enjoy the experience and that is enough to keep us from doing a MSC cruise that  leaves from outside the states.

Friday, Jan 17

Getting up early for a three hour drive to Miami didn’t excite us, so we drive down Friday afternoon.  There is something about Miami and GPS that is cursed for us.  We missed our exit and in the slow crawl of traffic it took us an hour to correct our mistake.  We had reservations at the Hilton Lagoon close to the airport.  The room was very spacious but only had a shower.  For a very large hotel there was only one restaurant with prices that were over the top.  We had an okay meal, followed by drinks in the bar.  We looked at parking options and found a site that offered parking at our hotel.  I checked it out with the Concierge who called the bellboy.  He showed Greg a site to book through and for $5 a day we could leave the car exactly where we had parked it.  What a deal!  However, we waited 40 minutes for the shuttle to pick us up at the end of the cruise and another 30 minutes to pay and checkout.  

Saturday Jan 18

Alarm set for 7:00.  After getting ready we checked out and had a 10 minute wait for the shuttle that took us to American terminal.  First thing we saw was a looooong line for security.  We did priority self check-in and was directed to the priority security line.  It was shorter than the first line.  Things were looking up!  Then we were directed to TSA pre check for priority.  Now we are talking, a line with only 4 or 5 people ahead of us.  We had a fairly long walk to Gate 9.  Plane arrived shortly and after a quick turn around, we were boarding.  I would say almost the whole plane is going on the cruise, including one huge family group with some very loud family members.  American has only 1 flight a week to Martinique and it is on the day of the cruise. Sail away is at 11 pm so we have plenty of time, with an on time arrival expected for 3:30 pm.

Flight started with a Bloody Mary and a good lunch (spicy spinach and ricotta ravioli).

We arrived on time and were the 2nd ones through customs.  We have a new country in our passports.  The luggage took forever to come out and my suitcase was the next to last one on the belt.  Not sure why they bother with the priority tags.  The taxi driver that we had prearranged a ride with   was waiting for us with our name on his board.  The ride to the pier took about 15 min and cost 40 euros.  Martinique’s roads were much more modern than other Caribbean islands.  We turned our luggage in and was escorted to the Yacht club entry.  They took our passports and will return them on the last day of the cruise. That’s different. A guy escorted us to the Concierge lounge for Yacht club where they explained how things work.  We then went to our room.  It’s very similar to Azamara’s, maybe slightly smaller with a typical balcony.  

View from our balcony

We went exploring.  The ship is much bigger than the ships we have been sailing on and in really good shape. We found the Yacht Club restaurant and nobody was there.  Since it was 6:30, we went ahead and ate.  Otherwise we would have to wait until after the muster drill which starts at 8:15. Greg had tuna and I had trout and they had a coconut dessert. We finished in time to go to the room and get our life vests and go to our muster station.  When we walked in everyone had their life vests on but no one said to put them on, so we didn’t and we didn’t need to.  Figured they were all rookies! Muster didn’t last long but it was held in 5 languages: English, French, German, Spanish and Italian. After awhile it sounds like blah, blah, blah. Our suitcases had arrived before muster, so we went back to the room and unpacked.  Our butler, Marie Pierre, came by and introduced herself.  After finishing unpacking, we went to the lounge (Top Sail) for a drink.  It was mostly empty.  I looked at the rum offerings and ordered coke and rum, but my first choice was not available.  The first of several times to come. Guessing most people were eating dinner because the room was mostly empty.  We went back to the room to watch sail away.  Barely made it as we left the dock 20 min early.

Sunday Jan 19th Guadalupe

Breakfast in the room is only continental but since we have an 8:15 excursion we chose to do it.  Breakfast arrived at 7:30.  I requested Rice Krispies but they were out so I got corn flakes instead. 

View from the balcony

We met our butler Marie in the lounge and she walked us to the tour bus.  Excursion to the Botanical Garden and a beach stop.  The guide looked local but spoke German and a girl from MSC was translating in English.  I think a lot was lost in translation.  We stopped for a photo op overlooking the ocean 

then went to the Jardin Botanique.  One of the better Caribbean gardens with large and small parrots and macaws. We walked on our own since the guide was speaking German, stopping to buy our magnet.

Who thought I would finally see a wood duck on a Caribbean Island

Our next stop was Fort Royal Resort for an hour on the beach.  Seas were angry today with high surf.  We opted to sit under the trees in adirondack chairs and enjoy our free drinks of coke and coke light!

We returned to the ship round 1:30.

The grill by the pool bar in the Yacht Club was open but it was precooked food and did not look appetizing so we went to the restaurant which was open until 2.  We both ordered hamburgers.  Greg wanted a beer but the waiter said they only had Heineken.  There is a pool bar right outside the restaurant.  He said he would see what else they had and came back with a Beck’s, saying that was the only choice.  After lunch, we perused the menu and they had lots of beers, over 20 listed. 

After returning to the room, I went upstairs to the pool area.  Almost deserted!!  Greg came up to join me and ordered a beer.  Was told that Heineken and Beck were his only choices.  Not good! Since we ate a late lunch we opted for the early show and dinner after the show.  We started with drinks in Top Sail which is still pretty empty.  The bartender was super friendly and was happy to make me a lemon drop.  Said he hardly ever gets a request for lemon drops but he made a good one.  We wondered down to deck 7 and then to the theater in 6. The theater is huge, probably the biggest we have seen on a cruise ship. The show was Jump by the Singer and Dancers and described as rock and pop international.  Again, MSC delivers on entertainment in the theater.  After the show we went to dinner.  Pretty good meal.  We both had lobster bisque and prawn and calamari kabobs.  Greg had escargot and I had a blue cheese soufflé.  Dessert was crepes Suzette for Greg and a sundae for me.  After dinner we checked out some of the entertainment in the bars.  Just as in the Armonia, the music is wayyyyy too loud in the venues.  We did stay for a while in the Safari Lounge to listen to Hot Fingers Band.  We walked around floors 5 and 6 and called it a night.

Monday Jan 20. St Lucia

Breakfast in the room wasn’t so great so we tried One Pool.  Bingo!  They had scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, and lots of other choices.  The waitress said they would do omelets also.  It was nice sitting in the top deck.  Fours ships in port today: Royal Caribbean, Wind Star and a R-class Oceania, who was parked next to us.  Made our ship look pretty big in comparison.  Our excursion, St Lucia Rhythms, left at 8:45.  Again, we met in the Concierge Lounge and we were escorted to the bus.  It was a large van, again mostly with German speaking people.  The guide spoke English and translated into German but he talked for 3 to 4 min in German and 30 sec in English.  Our first stop was St Marks Colonial House.  The descendants of the original owners still live in the house on the 2nd floor.  The first floor and porch with fantastic views of the bay are open to the public.  The house had many pieces of furniture and art that the original family bought in their travels, including several pieces from China.  The two rugs from China were in amazing shape.

Views from the front porch

Our next stop was to the Howelton Estate, another Colonial home.  This house was built over 120 years ago and has been turned into a cultural art center featuring artists painting batik fabric, painters, and chocolate makers from the beans.  This stop was disappointing.  I thought we were going to the batik factory.  

View from the house

Last stop was Creole Park where they described island life before modern conveniences.  Our guide here was very informative with a good personality.  They showed how lumber was cut, the plants and trees to feed themselves including the cassava root, nutmeg and cinnamon trees, star fruit as well as bread fruit and a mango tree.  They demonstrated using cassava roots to make bread and then cooking it on an open fire.  Last there was a demonstration of local music and dance.  Not terribly exciting but interesting and we saw parts of St Lucia that we had not seen before.

nutmeg

cinnamon tree

After getting back on the ship, we ate lunch in the buffet.  I went out to the pool area.  There was just a bit of cloud cover and breeze so that it wasn’t too hot.  After a nap, Greg joined me.

There was a duo playing in Top Sail that Greg liked so went to have a drink.  After two songs, they too a break.  Great timing, so we headed to dinner.  Tonight our waiter was Luis, from Cuba.  He was the best so far.  Since it was formal night, there was lobster on the menu and there were big and tender.  A good meal.  We went back to Top Sail and listened to the duo for a few songs before going to the Theater for King Arthur.  It was a variety show featuring the acrobats, jugglers, singers and dancers and they were all very good.  But Celtic music for an English King featuring modern acrobatic performers just didn’t come together well.

Tuesday, Jan 21st. Barbados

Lesson learned today.  Look at your blog before booking an excursion on an island that you have visited before.  We booked Harrison Caves and we went there 3 years ago while sailing on the Eclipse.  Luckily, we liked it the first time and enjoyed it again today!

We started the day upstairs for breakfast.  Basically, the same food except today the bacon was English bacon and they had potatoes.  All good.

We were escorted to our bus and were the first ones on board.  We were with a French group that spoke English and our guide only spoke English so we understood everything that was said today.  Tour was the same except now you get to wear lovely hard hats.  So attractive!

The guide drove us to and from the caves along different paths so we saw lots of Barbados including where the rich and famous live and vacation.  At the port, we stopped for a refreshment at the bar that we have frequented many times.
After returning back to the ship, we ate in the dining room where we both had fish and chips which were excellent, as was the apple pie.  So much for eating light.  We walked back through the port, down to a craft center that the driver pointed out, but most of the stores were empty and the others closed, celebrating the birthday of the first prime minister.  So, we walked back, stopped for a beer and pina colada at Coconuts Bar in front of the port.  I think we have stopped here on almost every cruise to Barbados.

We went back to the room for reading on the balcony and maybe someone taking a nap (not me).  We went to the Top Sail for a drink before dinner and then dinner in the Yacht  Club Restaurant.  Dinner was good but not great. Greg especially enjoyed his wine tonight and my dessert, chocolate soufflé was excellent.  We wandered the entertainment venues and stopped and listened to a few.  The one couple we especially enjoy were in the atrium tonight.  However, when they took a break every other venue was on break.  Makes no sense.  We went back to Top Sail for one more cocktail and to listen to the piano player.

Wednesday, January 22nd. Grenada

View from Balcony

We did not book an excursion.  We were in Granada 10 years ago and thought the beach was beautiful.  Have wanted to return and this is the first cruise that has stopped in Grenada.  After breakfast at Pool One we got off the boat.  There were signs for the water taxi just past the terminal.  $10 per person round trip to Grand Anse beach.  Boat ride is about 15 min.  The beach was just as beautiful but definitely progress has occurred.  More beach chairs lined up, newer restaurants, no beach vendors hawking their goods which was disappointing because I wanted to buy more spice necklaces.  We walked a ways to get past the congestion coming off the water taxi and paid $20 for two loungers and an umbrella.  There were 3 ships in port but it was never packed.

Around 1 we walked to the closest restaurant which they said was the newest restaurant.  I had tuna ceviche and wings, Greg ordered a steak sandwich.  All was excellent.

We went back to our loungers and then headed back a little before 3.

Ride back on the water taxi

 In the terminal, I found the spice necklaces and made my purchase.  Back on the boat, we cleaned up.  There was a reception for Yacht Club at 5:15 at Pool One.  Quite a few attended with a large turn out of the officers, including the captain who took pictures with each set of guests.  Two or three officers visited with us individually.  Nicely done.  After the reception we headed to dinner.  We have settled in eating at the same table with Luis as our waiter.  We finished in time to make the early show, a Salute to the Oscars.  It was another good production.  After the show we checked with shore excursions about trip to the airport.  The excursion doesn’t leave until 11:30 so no way will it work with our 4:00 flight.  Bummer.

Thursday, Jan 23rd Trinidad

Arrival was at 9 today so when we went to eat at One Pool every table was taken.  We had the brilliant idea to get our food and take it to Top Sail.  We were informed that hot food is not allowed in Top Sail but this once was okay.  You have people standing around waiting and a huge lounge totally empty.  Makes perfect sense to me.  Oh well. 

Our excursion to the Caroni Wetland Sanctuary left at 10. It was a short drive to the boats that took us through the mangroves.  The highlight of the tour is seeing the scarlet ibis which is the national bird of Trinidad and seeing flamingos in the wild.  We saw the scarlet ibises but none really close. The flamingos were much closer.  The boat ride was about an hour and a half.

We came back on different roads and the guide pointed about businesses and told a little bit about Trinidad and Tobago.  I was surprised by the nice roads and large business and hotel buildings.  The allies had a port and air base here in WWII. 

After returning to port we bought our magnet and I bought a necklace.  We opted for the buffet for lunch and Greg was able to order a beer he actually liked.  They really did restock in Barbados.  We were pretty lazy this afternoon.  I read and Greg snoozed.

At dinner, Gazpacho was very, very spicy but had good flavor.  The show was Italian songs so we skipped and went back to Top Sail where the duo was playing that we really enjoyed.

Friday, January 24th Kingstown St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Our catamaran for the day

After breakfast at Pool One we were escorted to our ship excursion to Bequia, their the 2nd largest Island. We went by Catamaran, with photo stop at Moonhole, a community started by Thomas and Gladys Johnston in the 1960’s and was built using stone and shells from the island.  The original buildings closest to the arch had been abandoned due to falling rocks.  It looked very spooky.

We then stopped in the small town of Bequia.  Not sure why, just a couple of souvenir shops.  I think it was so they could pick up lunch.

After 45 min we sailed down a ways to a beach where lunch was served.  Salad with no dressing. Cold Mac and cheese and 1 small chicken leg with rice.  You could have chosen fish instead of chicken.  The chicken was good but not much food.  The beach did have a beautiful view with dark turquoise water.

The excursion was dominated by a large, loud Italian family that was quite obnoxious.  The boat was playing very loud music and some older, larger ladies were dancing or maybe gyrating would be a better word.  Definitely distracted from the trip.

Views while sailing to and from Bequia

We returned around 3, walked through the terminal area where we bought a magnet and Greg drank a new beer, Hairoun, brewed in St Vincent.

After returning to the room, we began the process of packing.  Bags didn’t have to be out until midnight.  After drinks in Top Sail, my last lemon drop, we went to dinner.  Choices were not as good tonight.  We both ordered rack of lamb even though Luis gave us the not a good choice look.  Should have listened.  It was very tough.  Greg sent his back and got swordfish but it wasn’t much better.  After dinner we tried to find a bar with music but again everywhere was so loud so we went back to Top Sail and then to the theater to see “Wonderland”.  It was okay.

Saturday, Jan 25 Martinique

Time to get off boat but MSC is very laid back.  We had to vacate the room at 9:30.  First we went to the restaurant for breakfast and I had Eggs Benedict and Greg ordered an omelette.  We then grabbed our carry on bags and went to Top Sail.  Marie brought us our passports and we will wait here until lunch then she will escort us off at 1:00 to go to the airport for our 4:00 flight. Last lunch in the restaurant was pretty good.  After the bad experience last night with rack of lamb, the chef had cooked it again for us and this time it was much better. Everyone was pleased that we were pleased!  When we finished with lunch we went back to the Concierge Lounge where Marie showed up at 1:00 and escorted us off the ship and hailed a taxi for us. The trip to the airport seemed twice as short but the price was the same (40 euros). We checked in, went through immigration, security, and waited at the gate.  The plane was on time and our flight attendant welcomed us back.