Let me begin with my cruise experience which is somewhat limited. Prior to sailing on the MSC Divina I have sailed on the Carnival Destiny(now renamed I believe) and the Carnival Inspiration. With that being said my point of reference is Carnival so take that for what its worth.

We booked the Divina for a few reasons. First and foremost we wanted to do a 7 night during the Thanksgiving week and most cruise lines where very expensive for this week. I discovered MSC when I found a very affordable rate and kids sail free(11 and under at time of embarkation). When I found that the MSC option was aboard a relatively new ship(launched in 2012) I became interested. I read many reviews and many were mixed. Considering we were taking my mother-in-law and daughter who either have ever been on a cruise before we figured how bad could it be and this might be a good "first cruise" for them. So we booked.

Having just returned from the Thanksgiving trip things are still fresh in my mind. Here we go.... Read more