Cruising-Part Three

Cruising-Part Three

Cruising-Part One:  Embarkment can be found HERE
Cruising-Part Two can be found HERE (it covers excursions, payments, rooms, etc.)

There was so much information to share from taking our cruise that I had to break it up.  Here is part three...

Let's get started:  I'll be covering night shows, kids club, and some of our cruise ships facilities.

Night shows:  There was a show every night.  We missed the first 2 shows because we thought the kids wouldn't enjoy it and it was rather late starting.  But, after giving in and realizing (with the help of my husband) that we were on vacation and to throw bedtimes out the window-we went to one of the shows on Wednesday.  It was wonderful and the kids were mesmerized.

Needless to say, we saw every show after that for the rest of the cruise.  The show started at 1930 and they had a second showing at 2115 every night and lasted about 45 minutes or so.

They were all kid friendly.  Basically its like a small Vegas type dance show with some singing here and there.  The shows are entirely FREE and we never had problems finding seats...we traveled with another family and we were a pack of 9 and we STILL found seats easily.

Gym:  There was a spa and a gym that were connected to each other on our cruise ship on the top deck.  I enjoyed a spa treatment, which surprisingly was quite luxurious.  My husband enjoyed the gym early in the mornings before it got crowded.  The treadmills offered an amazing view!

Kids Club:  There is a wonderful kids club on the cruise ship.  It was divided up into 3 parts:  infants, mini club (3-6), junior club (7-11), and teens (12-17).  When we first arrived on the ship, there was a kids table set up where you get an ID bracelet for your child.  This is mandatory for all children and the wrist bands were already made up and ready to be placed on our kids when we got to the table. 

They verified our ID, then found our child's wrist bands and placed them on their arms.  If you have a younger child, the band will go around their ankle so that it's less irritating and the child won't try to rip it off.  This band is for security and tells who each child belongs to and where the family evacuation deck is for them to reach you in case of an emergency.

At the table, they also gave information on the kids club, age groups, and events for kids each day.  It was great! 

I'm SUPER overprotective when it comes to my kiddos.  Admittedly, too overprotective.  (I've worked years in child and adult sexual abuse, and domestic violence and unfortunately have a jaded view when it comes to leaving my kids with anyone other than myself or my husband).  But the couple of hours we put my kids in the kids activities-they really enjoyed.  I found comfort in the fact that my 7 and 9 year old were together for everything and were able to look out for one another and they did things like:  Lego building and cooking pasta from scratch with the ship chef!  It was super cute!

The kids schedule was wonderful to keep handy, because you could chose whatever activity you wanted your kids to do. 

They didn't have to be in kids club all day.  You could chose from a menu of kids activities-a la carte activities if you wanted to.

Dining:  Our cruise ship had 3 different restaurants, including a sushi restaurant, and an all you can eat buffet. 

Because we had kiddos with us, we always chose the buffet because it was HUGE and had a variety of things and even included a kids buffet sections which had kid friendly pasta and nuggets, veggies, etc.  The food was great and was never questionable.  There were things like burgers and fries, pasta, salad, meats and cheese, pasta, fish, roast beef and chicken, pizza, fruit, etc.  There was food available at the buffet ALL day long if your little ones need a snack-the fruit section was great.  During more snacking hours they had cookies and pastries and fruits and yogurts available instead of the FULL buffet. 

Drink Packages:  There are many different types of drink packages.  Review the packages with your travel agent to ensure it's what you want.  We included a drink package because I did not want to have to worry about water and coffee and other drinks adding up fast and have to limit ourselves.  We had booked this vacation 7 months in advance and I really wanted to enjoy ourselves.  We got the all inclusive one.  What I didn't even think about, or realize, is that it included coffee and ice cream!  We definitely indulged in the smoothies, shakes, coffee, and ice cream. 

Pools:  Our MSC Poesia ship had 2 pools and 4 hot tubs, including a baby pool on the top deck.  It was beautiful.  Just remember, the pools are SALT WATER.  Pool towels are provided for you in your room, but if you loose one there is a 20 euro charge.  So, make sure you keep track of those!

Kiddie Pool

I'll be writing about final Disembarkement next week.  Stay tuned!

If you have any questions or would like more information on our cruise experience-feel free to leave a comment!:)