MSC Poesia Sea Day: Dirty Dancing & White Night

Day 6 of our 7-night Alaska cruise on the MSC Poesia was a full sea day, giving us a chance to slow down a little while still enjoying plenty of activities, food, and entertainment around the ship. From a fascinating whale presentation and lunch at Le Fontaine to two completely different Dirty Dancing experiences and White Night, there was a lot happening onboard.

📽️ Watch our full Day 6 vlog here:
https://youtu.be/eQ4_n8VvQeM

A Relaxing Morning at Sea

After several busy port days, we took advantage of the sea day and slept in a little before grabbing some coffee and heading to Teatro Carlo Felice. The morning included the Whales Alive naturalist presentation, which covered whale behavior, feeding, habitat, and some of the individual whales commonly seen around Alaska.

It was especially interesting hearing about whales we had actually encountered on previous Alaska trips. The presentation was a great addition to the itinerary and a nice way to learn more about the wildlife we had been seeing throughout the cruise.

Lunch at Le Fontaine Restaurant

Instead of heading to the buffet, we decided to have lunch at Le Fontaine Restaurant on Deck 5.

We started with a shared selection of meats, cheeses, vegetables, and focaccia, followed by fried seafood with calamari, shrimp, and white fish. For our main courses, we tried a calzone filled with spicy salami and mozzarella and a pan-fried sea bass with lemon caper butter.

Dessert included pistachio tiramisu and a rich chocolate cake with ice cream.

The food was very good, although lunch took quite a while. We were there for around an hour and a half, so this is definitely a better option when you have time to sit back and enjoy a slower meal.

Exploring MSC Poesia During the Afternoon

The afternoon gave us some time to wander around the MSC Poesia and enjoy the ship.

We checked out several of the onboard shops, including MSC merchandise, Alaska souvenirs, duty-free items, clothing, fragrances, toiletries, and travel essentials. There was actually quite a bit more shopping onboard than we initially expected.

We also headed outside after hearing announcements about whales being spotted from the ship. The forward decks provided some fantastic views, although it was extremely windy and we just missed one of the whale sightings.

Dirty Dancing in Concert

One of the most unusual entertainment options of the day was Dirty Dancing in Concert.

This wasn’t a traditional production show. The full Dirty Dancing movie played on the large screen in Teatro Carlo Felice while a live band performed the music and singers and dancers joined in during key moments.

The combination of the movie, live musicians, and performers made it feel completely different from anything else we had seen during the cruise. The performance runs for roughly the length of the movie, so it is a longer show, but you could easily come and go if you didn’t want to stay for the entire performance.

Dirty Dancing in Concert aboard MSC Poesia with the movie playing behind the live performers — Dirty Dancing in Concert combined the movie with live musicians and performers in Teatro Carlo Felice.

Italian Night and White Night

That evening was both Italian Night and White Night aboard the MSC Poesia.

The dining room was decorated for Italian Night, and the crew wore red, white, and green accents. We enjoyed another dinner at Il Palladio Restaurant with dishes including grilled Alaskan salmon, chicken parmesan, calamari, salads, and several desserts.

One of the fun parts of the evening was seeing how many passengers participated in White Night. A large portion of the ship seemed to be dressed in white, making it a great evening for photos.

We even managed to be first in line for a group selfie with several of the MSC Poesia officers and crew in the atrium.

White Night aboard MSC Poesia with cruise ship officers in the atrium — White Night aboard MSC Poesia included a group photo with several of the ship’s officers.

Dirty Dancing: The Celebration

After dinner, we returned to Teatro Carlo Felice for the second Dirty Dancing experience of the day, Dirty Dancing: The Celebration.

This show was completely different from the afternoon performance. Instead of watching the movie, this was a fast-paced live production featuring singers, dancers, a live band, colorful lighting, and music from Dirty Dancing.

The live musicians added a lot to the performance, especially the saxophone, and we thought the dancing was some of the strongest we had seen during the cruise.

Dirty Dancing The Celebration live show aboard MSC Poesia with saxophone player and performers — Dirty Dancing: The Celebration featured live music, singing and energetic dancing aboard MSC Poesia.

The evening continued with the White Party in the Zebra Bar, where passengers could keep the celebration going later into the night.

Our Thoughts on Sea Day Aboard MSC Poesia

Day 6 ended up being a great example of what a sea day can look like aboard the MSC Poesia.

There was enough happening around the ship to stay busy, but we could still slow down, enjoy a long lunch, explore the shops, watch for whales, take in the entertainment, and enjoy White Night.

The two Dirty Dancing experiences were particularly interesting because they were completely different from one another. Dirty Dancing in Concert combined the movie with live music and performers, while Dirty Dancing: The Celebration felt much more like a traditional cruise ship production show.

If you’re planning an MSC Poesia Alaska cruise, White Night and the onboard entertainment are definitely worth keeping an eye out for in the daily schedule.

📽️ Watch our full Day 6 MSC Poesia vlog here:
https://youtu.be/eQ4_n8VvQeM

MSC Poesia Alaska Cruise Day 6: Sea Day, Dirty Dancing & White Night