msc cruise review sw page 2

75December 14, 2014

Tel: +353 (0)66 719 9100 | Email: reservations@felspointhotel.com

www.felspointhotel.comreservations@felspointhotel.com

Subject to availability. Excludes bank holidays and special events

2 Nights DBBfrom €99 pps

2 Nights Bed & Breakfast,2 Evening Meals at MorelsRestaurant (4 course meal

each night), plus discounts tolocal visitor attractions!

Free Car Parking & Wifi Access

3 Nights DBBfrom €139 pps

Enjoy 3 Nights OvernightAccommodation in one of oursuperior rooms and 3 Evening

Meals with complimentary tea /coffee and scones on arrival

Quote SUNDAY WORLD to avail of offer

For all the latest movienews and reviews, checkout facebook.com/sundayworld1

twitter.com/Escape

ROYAL COUNTY DOWN DATESernireland.com/irish-open-2015 orcheck out irishopen.ie

IF YOU’RE still frozen after Christmasyou can get some winter warmth onthe cheap. Lowcostholidays.ie have afew week-long breaks like Malta onJanuary 31, staying at the four-starSolana Hotel, from €165 pp includingflights. You’re guaranteed the heat inthe Canaries and on the 21st there’sTenerife and the 3* Hotel DC XibanaPark from €245, Fuerteventura’s Pue-rto Caleta Apartments from €249 onthe 30th or Gran Canaria’s 3* TisalayaPark Apartments for €275 on the 13th.

December 14, 2014December 14, 2014AN IDEAL honey-moon should include the

exotic and luxurious. Gohop.ie hasa two-centre break with nine nights in

the Shandrani Resort in Mauritius, allinclusive, followed by five nights half-board in

Dubai at the Sofitel on The Palm for some topshopping with all the wedding cash. The price of€2,525 pp includes all flights, transfers, etc.

For all the latest movieFor all the latest movienews and reviews, checknews and reviews, checkout facebook.com/out facebook.com/sundayworldsundayworld

twitter.com/twitter.com/EscapeEscape

TEE: View fromthird hole at the

Down golf course

MEDCRAIC

(which left from Salerno) and anisland tour of Ibiza.

Wanting to sample as manysights as possible, we flew intoGenoa, home to 631,000 people,the day before our cruise. We tooka 40-minute tour of the city on thePippo tourist train, which stoppedat the house where the legendaryChristopher Columbus was born.

We also visited Acquario diGenova, the second-largestaquarium in Europe. Dolphinsaside, we were suitably impressedby the seafaring facility and its 500marine species.

We set sail from Genoa the nextday. We were blown away by justhow big, white and shiny our vesselwas. The 824-foot MSC Sinfoniaconsists of 783 cabins, threerestaurants, eight bars, a nightclub,a theatre and a casino (and believeit or not that’s actually consideredquite small in comparison to therest of the fleet).

Wanting the best of both worlds,we opted for an ocean view cabinwhich, while more basic than a suitebut fancier than a standard room,provided us with bunk beds, adressing table, television, bathroomand window. Indeed our comfy seabunker was just like a floating hotelroom with us waking up somewheredifferent each day.

One of the nicest yet naughtiestaspects of our cruise and indeedany liner we found has to be thefood. All kinds of everything wereavailable at the buffet onboardfrom curries to pasta to burgersto salad so if, like me, you fanciedbeing healthy one minute and boldthe next it wasn’t a problem.

We were also assigned to one ofthe ships two main restaurants onboard named Il Covo. There, thehappy attitudes of the staff whocelebrated Italia with some finenapkin swinging on two nights(yes I’m not sure why but we werewaving napkins around over ourheads!), music and flowing wineensured we polished off numerouscourses.

It would also be a crime not tomention the pizzas on board.Let’s just say they were tastefullycheesy, plentiful and that the ship’smaster of pizza ensured we didn’tgo hungry!

As fairly health conscious peoplerecently turned pizza addicts, Ruthand I were delighted to see the ship

offered a fully decked out gym inwhich we could work up a sweatafter a morning of exploring. It alsofeatured a spa called the Aurea,which meant we could pamperourselves with hair and beautytreatments ahead of the ships manytheme nights, two of which weregala evenings and had a formaldress code (which we felt was areally nice touch.)

In addition to this, the ship had aTurkish bath, camomile suite andluxurious heated ceramic chairswhich allowed us to kick back, relaxand gaze out into the ocean.

One of the funny things about ourcruise had to be the fact that therewere so many facilities and so muchentertainment onboard that we

actually found it difficult to leave!But our seven days on board stillsaw us embark on excursions tothe stunning spots listed on ouritinerary each morning.

After a few hours sightseeingwe would then retire to the shipfor a spot of lunch, head to a poolparty (they resembled raves thatone might experience in Ibiza!)go wining and dining and finishour day off in the ship’s nightclubPasha, which was absolutelythriving with people of all ages allnight every night.

Although our ship didn’t haveas many restaurants or facilitiesas bigger liners we found it to beperfectly adequate and immenselyenjoyable for what it cost.

The little frills approach toour ship meant it was clean, theservice was top notch, the food wasfabulous and the party atmospherewas unreal.

We thoroughly enjoyed our madweek in the Med (which was prettymuch guaranteed considering theovernight stay in Ibiza was partof our intinerary!). It was alsofantastic to experience people of all

We were also assigned to one ofWe were also assigned to one of offered a fully decked out gym inoffered a fully decked out gym in

H THE 12-ship MSC fleet sails yearround across the Mediterraneanand the Caribbean. They also haveitineraries in South America, Dubaiand Southern Africa.

Around 1.7 million people areexpected to travel on board the MSCliners next year.H The fleet consist of three differentclasses the Fantasia class (which isthe highest) the Musica class and theLirica class

Each ship has different character-istics. The MSC Sinfonia was basedaround musical legends while theMSC Divina was inspired by superstarSofia Loren. The MSC Magnifica hasits 16 decks named after some of themost famous Italian cities.H All four of MSC’s Lirica class shipsare undergoing a makeover before2015, with sections of nearly 24metres being built into the middle ofthe vessels, meaning more facilitiesand higher capacities.H For more information see www.msccruises.ie or visit your localtravel agent.

actually found it difficult to leave!actually found it difficult to leave!

VIEWS: Overlookingthe Med and, right,with the captain of

MSC Sinfonia

TRAVELFACTS

generations and nationalitieson board, which resulted in themaking of many friendships andmemories.

Would I cruise again? Certainly!Would I change anything? I wouldprobably try and stay on boardlonger if I could (we had plans tohide in the ships lower deck whichunfortunately went to pot!) Would Ihave any advice for those interestedin sailing the ocean seas? Bringyour finest clothes, prepare tomingle and get ready to wave allyour worries away.

Rebecca Lee