Explore South African Coastline: Sinfonia Cruise

MSC cruises are very popular among South Africans. Many foreign tourists also join cruises from South Africa to explore the African coast line. These cruises have a very varied itinerary and can last from 3 days to 11 days. I already had the opportunity to experience three cruises along the African coast to the Portuguese and Bazaruto islands. My fourth cruise was 11 days departing from Durban to Pointe des Galets, Reunion and Port Louis, Mauritius. The Sinfonia was quite an experience. Although not as large as many of the other liners in other parts of the world, it is the largest cruise liner in South African waters. It weighs 58 625 tons with a length of 251.25 and a beam of 28.8 m. It has a total of 777 cabins and approximately 700 crew members.

How was life onboard the Sinfonia cruise? One highlight for me was receiving the programme with all the activities and entertainment for the next day. Imagine international and Italian restaurants and bars according to every taste, not to mention a Gelateria bar for ice-cream only, cocktails, daily and evening entertainment for all ages, shops and boutiques. You will never experience a dull moment. The Pasha Club Disco and the San Remo Casino will keep you busy in the evenings while different spa treatments will relax you during the day. The Captain's Dinner and other themed evening entertainment also were highlights.

The outside deck has two swimming pools, two Jacuzzis, a sports centre, jogging track, shuffleboard and mini golf. It was so relaxing to just sunbathe on the deck next to the swimming pool and to look at the blue sea. The entertainment crew always had something entertaining to offer at different times during the day. When I had enough of the sun I could always escape to the library and read in one of the ship's many lounges or just enjoy a drink in a relaxing atmosphere.

If you want to bring your children with you on the cruise, there are more than enough entertainment for them. Children ages four to 12 have a daily schedule of activities which are supervised by competent crew members.

I was very impressed with the evenings' shows. Since there were so many passengers onboard the Sinfonia we had to arrive at the Teatro San Carlo early enough to ensure seats to watch the evening shows. The evening shows were very popular. There are usually two shows in the evening to ensure that passengers could attend after the first and second dinner sessions. Evening entertainment all over the ship lasted until early in the mornings as many passengers made the most of every day.

We experienced several day trips on Reunion and Mauritius and spent New Year's Eve in Mauritius. What a delight. The ship had so much entertainment to offer on the last day of the year. I will also never forget that moment when we departed from Port Louis back to South Africa. This cruise was very special to me since I could also take my four year old son with us. The 11 days were a bit long to be on a cruise with a small child, but we definitely made the most of every day. Will I do it again? Yes, definitely.