When we found out MSC Bellissima was being christened in the UK and her maiden voyage was departing from Southampton, we jumped on the opportunity to book. We booked the cheapest cabin possible, which turned out to be around £650 per person, this included flights and transfer but not the additional packages such as the drinks package and the dining package.

We have created a video tour of our room, which you can find below or on our YouTube channel www.youtube.com/holidaysatsea

 

Location:

Our cabin was assigned as 9016, so this was in the forward section of Deck 9. It took a little finding on embarkation day as the cabin is down a little corridor from the lift lobby. We spent ages walking around trying to work out why the cabin didn’t exist – we felt stupid once we found it as it was really easy! Just in case you are not sure where it is, the image below may help.

 

Power:

There is a total of 3 USB ports, 2 European power outlets and 2 American which is great – one of the benefits of newer ships is that they provide lots of power options.
You can also find a hair dryer in the drawer – its hot and powerful unlike some hair dryers we have seen that seem to lack a little oomph!

Storage:

Storage space for clothing was okay for a week or so, but if you were doing 2 weeks on Bellissima you may find space a little short – but worry not as there is space under the bed for your case and anything else you need to store there.

There was a small safe which suited the essentials which on arrival didn’t work as the batteries were dead so we had Guest Services resolve that.  Thought we had to mention as within 10 minutes of ringing guest services a member of staff was at the door to help – thumbs up!

Under the TV there was a very neat leaflet display area where you could place all your daily programs and bits rather than cluttering up the desk.

Each side of the bed had a small bed side storage unit so you could throw bits and pieces in there. We also found the coat hooks behind the door super useful to hang up our coats and hoodies, saving some space in the cupboard.

Comfort:

The room was light and airy, with lots of space. It definitely felt bigger than other inside cabins we have had on other cruise lines. The bed was super comfortable and with 2 different pillows you are guaranteed a good night’s sleep.

Tech and Gizmos:

An Interactive TV is located on the wall and had a good range of films (Free), Satellite TV and MSCforMe which allowed you to access services such as checking you bill, dining info and more. A telephone was located on the wall so you could contact other Guest Services, other rooms or make reservations.

Sitting on the desk, slightly hiding under a shelf was Zoe. Who?… Zoe is your Personal Digital Assistant. Many will think of her as the Alexa or Siri of the cruising world – unfortunately she isn’t quite that advanced yet. She can answer simple questions but would rely on you phrasing them correctly. So, if you asked here ‘What is the time’ she would answer you, but ask her ‘What’s the time’ and she would tell you to ask a crew member.

If you asked her for today’s weather, she would turn the TV on but you would still need to select an account to actually see the weather. That’s if she could turn the TV on – in our cabin she couldn’t.

We understand Zoe is new and could see they were still working on her so hopefully in the future she will improve but at the moment she is of little value – failing to preform even the simplest and most useful thing such as arranging a wake up call / setting an alam.

There is huge potential and this could be something exciting.

Bathroom:

The compact bathroom is really bright and clean and the shower was brilliant -really powerful and hot. Storage wise, you have a shelving unit and also a cupboard under the sink. Not sure what more you want out of a bathroom/shower room!

Oh wait, the adjustable shaving mirror, now that was a nice touch!

 

Cabin Cleanliness:

The cabin was very clean and tidy, but you could see fibres floating in the air which we put down to this being a new ship and this didn’t really bother us too much – but we felt as if the cabin (and corridors) needed a bloody good hoover. Not the normal hoovers they have but a proper one with brushes as the carpet pile was still coming up.

 

So overall, we were very happy with our cabin. We don’t spend too much time in our room’s which is why we always opt for an Inside. We would happily book this cabin again as it suited our needs perfectly.

If you have any questions, then please contact us and we’ll be more than happy to help and if we don’t know we will take a leaf out of Zoe’s book and tell you ‘to ask a crew member’.

 

Further reading:

Want to know more about MSC Bellissima?  Check out these related posts:

MSC Bellissima Maiden Cruise Diary

MSC Bellissima – 6 reasons we can’t wait for our cruise!

MSC Status Match – shift your loyalty!

Meet Zoe, the MSC Digital Assistant