My first-time cruise ship experience

Discovering the Persian Gulf from a cruise was quite an experience. I spent one week on the sea, cruising on MSC Fantasia. Every day we stopped at different places. Cruising is a unique way of getting to know the world. MSC Fantasia, the ship was like a floating hotel to me, glamorous design, elegant rooms, many restaurants, spas, tennis court, everything you could wish for. I love the most about it, that as soon as you wake up in the morning, you find yourself in a different city or country, and you have one day to explore the place. In the evening you are welcomed by the comfort of the ship and your own cabin again. Come with me and have a look at this gorgeous cruise ship inside!

The ship and its services

MSC Fantasia was launched in 2008, as you enter the ship, you will experience luxury and glamour everywhere. Just have a look at the Atrium lobby below, quite impressive.

The Mediterranean Shipping Company's business is in the Mediterranean region. It also has ships seasonally in northern Europe, the Caribbean, Canada/New England, South America, and Africa. The atmosphere is truly Italian.

My cabin

I chose cabin with balcony, trust me, a little balcony is priceless. The size of the cabin was enough, a double-bed, sofa, little cupboard, coffee table, en-suite bathroom, that's all what you need.

Pools

Up on Deck 15, the main pool area is located. In case the weather gets colder or it starts raining, they are able to cover the inside part. You will find here everything from pools to jacuzzi and spa services.

Dining options

Fantasia has two main restaurants: the two-level Red Velvet, which serves Italian cuisine. It's a seated dining option. Black tie is required, more on Cruise dress codes here:

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For an everyday basis, I rather preferred the buffet called Zanzibar, it's open for all three meals, that emphasize mainly Italian/Mediterranean cuisine, with a different Italian regional specialty available at dinner. Well, if you stay hungry here, that's your fault!

There is range of alternative restaurants: Chinese, Tex-Mex, sushi, etc. For that you should pay extra.

The most beautiful place was Piazza San Giorgio, it's like an Italian square with shops and Cafe – on a cruise ship...It was one of my favorite places.

There are several drink packages, you can read the list on the MSC official homepage.

Theater

In the bow on Deck 6 you will find the 1,600-seat Teatro L’Avanguardia, which looks like a normal, elegant theater, only it's inside a ship.

Activities

Karaoke sessions, dance lessons, cooking demos, multi-lingual bingo, language lessons, wine tastings, arts and crafts, gambling in the casino and dancing in the disco - you can get busy every evening if you want. The Monte Carlo Casino is stunning.

Let's not forget to mention the bars and the yummy cocktails!

Extra trips

The excursion trips were expensive. You can choose not to go or you can organize your trip and decide on what you want to visit in the city. I arranged my private tour in the desert e.g. at a really reasonable price. If you are not an organizing type, you can just pay for it and everything can be arranged right at the Reception of the ship.

Hope you enjoyed virtual cruising with me! Here are some last photos of mine! If you are curious about the dress code, go to

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