Day 2 at Sea: Exploration! Aqua Park and Main Pool and Bamboo Pool
With the NYC rain long behind us we started our day at the buffet getting some energy to hit the Polar Aqua Park. Two things to note about the kids splash pad area – it’s on deck 19 and not easy to get to and there are NO amenities. There are some loungers spread out on the narrow decking but the Aqua Park takes up most of the aft of deck 19 including the big slides. It is a raised platform, and you cannot see you children from seats, you must go up a staircase and hang out in that area to be able to see your kids. The signs say no lifeguards but there is a “safety patrol” person who is, I guess, keeping an eye on things but they were sort of useless. There was a group a tween boys and girls (guessing ages 12/13-ish) who were commandeering the little kids’ slides and making it tough to for the littles to enjoy it. No one intervened so not sure what their purpose was, but my kiddos were ok. There were others who were getting intimidated by the bigger kids. FYI there is no bar for grown-ups and no access to food of any kind on this deck. The “Polar Bar” is soft drinks only and was never open during the times that I was there with my kids. If you’re parents looking to hang out and chill with a cocktail while your kids splash around the pad, please plan ahead and bring them with you from another deck/bar. I found the location of the Aqua Park to be incredibly odd and not convenient at all. That said my kids loved it. Finding bathrooms is also not easy so you need to plan where the nearest one is. The opposite side of deck 19 is reserved for Yacht Club passengers so know that you cannot use those areas at all.
We also checked out the main pool area after grabbing some lunch in the buffet. More on the food later but we ate A LOT of delicious pizza on this trip. The main pool area is hopping and it was hard to find seats in the shade but we landed 2 loungers sort of near the pool during prime time so we were very happy with that. There is decent entertainment happening on the pool deck and we watched the $5K bingo tournament which seemed like a lot of fun. The ice cream bar is right off the main pool deck and while the lines were typically long during peak sun hours it was so worth it! The soft serve ice cream, chocolate or vanilla, was super creamy and delicious and we had it every single day we were not in port! Girls rave about it to this day.
ME and Charlie chilling in the Bamboo Pool area while Grace lurks in the background LOL. Great table service for drinks as well!
When we’d had enough sun, we ventured into the Bamboo Pool area which quickly became a favorite spot of ours as a family. The pool was less crowded, and my kids really enjoyed the hot tubs. The pool is a “wave pool” and Grace and Charlie loved it (I had to be in it with them as MSC does NOT offer life jackets for littles. They should like NCL does!) The Bamboo Pool area does have a strong chlorine smell, like all indoor pools, but when we got out to sea and the weather was better the MSC staff open the roof and the fresh air abounded! There are no loungers on the pool deck but great tables and large bench areas to park you stuff and chill out. Loungers can be found one deck above. The bar service at the Bamboo Pool was fantastic whether you went to the bar yourself or waited for a server to come around. I just loved this area for a more chill experience vs the very busy (and fun) main pool deck.
