Morgsmom

It’s actually super easy to “sneak in” especially when you are invited 😂😂😂😂

On 3/19/2024 at 9:42 AM, alserrod said:

 

 

I guess no problem to seat with you but.... what about leaving them in kids area in MDR?

Any ages too?

there is no kids area in the MDR

12 hours ago, Tissy t said:

I hate yall policies JUST WACK!

??? now that response is "JUST WACK" (sp?) if you ask me 😉

I have often dined solo in Butcher's and since I don't really enjoy desserts, I ask (and get) the tomato soup which is delicious in lieu of that course.  But I often forget to tell them not to bring the FULL sized grilled cheese sandwich that comes with it... WAY too much food 😉 

Port Canaveral - no more YC seating area
 - is this a one off, or are they doing away with the YC pre-boarding area/snacks/drinks? Is this coming for all ports? 

YC Snacks in the room
 - a few posters noted they stopped having these, is that another change? (nuts, pringles, candy bar in fridge)

Reserved Pergola in YC One Pool area
 - MSC Customer Service could not find any listed details on this when asked if this is an option when we booked the RS room. They promised to get back to me on this, and never did. Can a non RS/OS room reserve one, or will that depend on the ship/sailing - YES, should still have reserved Cabana at the pool, but not at Ocean Cay

Dining under the stars
 - Morpheus mentioned this in the YC v RG thread, sounds neat if they do it - never heard of it

Seafood extravaganza
 - Was this really removed due to others sneaking in to YC area? Seems like an excuse - Yes, it's been stopped; yes, there were a lot of interlopers and "guests" who came and flooded the experience

Dining in the room (Dinner served in stateroom / balcony)
 - Is there an for actual sit down served dinner in the stateroom/balcony where they serve it akin to what they do in the dining room - no unless you are in RS

Off menu room service and/or Custom Pizza (like pepperoni and sausage) 
 - Mixed reviews seem to indicate you can't go off menu at all for room service, or sometimes can they don't really do "pepperoni" pizzas, but you can custom create to a certain extent

Off menu items in the dining room or items from the MDR served in YC
 - is this possible, one of the members of my party has a fish/shellfish allergy - with notice; so you can't order from the MDR at the same meal period, but you can ask to see the dinner menu at lunch and "pre" order that way

RS/OS All the Bottles of Spirits in the cabin
 - is this still done, or do you pick from 1 item from the list? 1 item from list

I doubt this next one was ever an option, but ...
Alternate Spirit option in the Cabin - Can you purchase a bottle of a different spirit? 
 - Example, instead of a bottle of cheap scotch, can you pay for a better bottle (like Chivas Royal Salute 21) No, because even if they had your spirit of choice at the duty free shop, they would have to store it for you.  

It's MADDENING, isn't it?  Trying moving your head around and/or getting a different background.  Hubby is bald and he, too, had issues 😉 

52 minutes ago, ocdb8r said:

One of the best suggestions I ever read on this Board was to print a small note with all your preferences before you leave 

That was ME 😉  you're welcome.  (PS, I keep the file ready just in case a YC adventure pops up... lol!!)

Oh fun!  We join the Euribia YC in a few weeks!  Looking forward to hearing more.

On 3/14/2024 at 8:31 AM, JamieLogical said:

 

I am still really surprised to find out they still have a COVID cancelation policy on the books, though it sounds like they are not abiding by it. Every other major cruise line got rid of these policies something like 2 years ago and now leave it for passengers to take up with their insurance, just like any other injury/illness that would prevent sailing.

ME TOO!  This is the part I don't get. I don't know of any cruise line that will let you cancel for Covid with a refund now; that's why they are pushing cruise insurance.

Oh, do please keep us updated! We did not have an issue with unruly children (unlike some other recent cruisers) but rather with noticeable cutbacks and one outright lie from the head Concierge.  We also took issue with the fact that after the show starts in the main theater and the "ropes drop" it's a free for all in YC seating and anyone can come by and push their way in, DRINKS in hand (not allowed) and make us get up 10 times so that they can get seated 10 minutes late.  Maddening.

2 hours ago, cellfree said:

@Morgsmom does each yacht club cabin still choose a bottle of tequila, vodka, etc.? Do you happen to have a wine list, hoping they have stocked up on “good” wine?

Yes on the bottle of liquor. No on a wine list and keep 

in mind that even if a wine is listed, it may be mysteriously “unavailable” 

7 hours ago, awatt said:

@Morgsmom  Am booking a shuttle from MCO to the port and wondering which time to choose. Were no vehicles allowed into the port before 11? Or was it the parking garage? Dont want to sit in traffic in shuttle van if I dont have to.

Shuttles are completely allowed. People were dropped off as early as 9 but the terminal didn’t open until 10:35

On 2/29/2024 at 12:43 AM, wgeddings said:

 Also I usually request and receive a fan on other lines so anyone know about fans on MSC?

 

NO fans available.

Yes, if you prearrange for it with YC concierge

Yes.

15 hours ago, psmarkle said:

The Seashore is my favorite MSC ship so far! And the YC experience is amazing.

One drawback, at the One Pool, if you want shade, you have to move chairs by the "funnel" I guess you'd call it. It's a big a/c air intake, so that also makes for a nice breeze to keep you from getting too hot.

Funny the Seashore is my LEAST favorite MSC YC.  To each his own!

3 hours ago, debenson0723 said:

I am new to MSC and was looking for cruises last night.  I found one I liked but the booking automatically defaults to 2. When I changed the passengers to one, it came back that the cruise was sold out. I had heard this was happening but found it hard to believe. I guess MSC does not want solo cruisers so I will look elsewhere. 

MSC really doesn't want solos recently.  It's sad, but a money grab.

The food in Europe, we found, to be one million, billion percent BETTER due to the fact that was (by definition) locally sourced in the EU.  The produce was better, the cheeses better. Heck, everything was better.

Yes, you can do it onboard.  It'll be the difference between the two packages PLUS gratuity.  (If you book beforehand you avoid the grat part).  But if you have a lot of OBC to use up that might be the way to go.

21 hours ago, brucevr6 said:

@RC DancersIf that’s truly what MSC is doing “ adjusting the experience level to reflect what people paid “, it’s surely a poor business model and I would doubt that the company would do that. Cut backs for overall cost cutting maybe. One reason for allowing upgrades is to give people a taste of the heightened experience hoping to attract a new customer to that experience. If they don’t see a big difference in the level of service or the environment in general, they probably won’t consider booking YC for future cruises. To assume that most people who upgrade are “ cheaping out “ rather than just testing the waters is a bad assumption, imho. 

I say with a wee bit of jest : "have you even followed the MSC business model?"  That's exactly what they are doing.  

So, let's imagine at YC at 70% capacity with every cabin paying $5k.  

Or 100% capacity but 30% of the cabins are at $2.5K ($1500 base fare + $1000 upgrade). 

Cruise lines (and Hotels) look at average revenue per cabin.  In the latter case the average guest is contributing far less so, in their mind, are entitled to less overall services.  Despite the fact that overall revenue is higher, the average is lower.

They can also use the large percentage of upgraders to test the waters on REMOVING services these guests never knew existed - the pringles/ seafood buffet/etc.  AND STILL get the data to see if they've done just enough to get them to book again in YC.  

At this point and two equally disappointing YC experiences in a row we are discussing cancelling an upcoming Euribia trip.  Not in the mood for more cutbacks. 🤷‍♀️

1 hour ago, JAGR said:

With Onil as my butler and Arthur in the YC dining room, I am trusting that I will not have a bad time. Thanks for your candid observation!

Now that’s amazing!  Fantastic team in the Mera right now. 

1 hour ago, MsTabbyKats said:

It's also half the price!

Exactly!  👍🏼 

57 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Rather have the Voyager discount than a candy bar.

Or the Voyager OBC that used to come with every booking 😜

1 hour ago, Cruzan Sparky said:

My wife and I were in the yacht club in December when you were there.  We commented to each other about the similarities in our experiences.

 

Very disappointed to see that things have not become better.  Is the same Yacht Club Director there?

 

Still grocery store wine! Yikes.  You think being in yacht club you could get a wine that retails for about $20 a bottle.  

 

Hopefully your butler was better this time.  We did not see ours until the night of Day 2.

New Director - her name is Melinda, she's from Italy and was very engaged with the crew & guests.

Yes, on the grocery store wine 😲- even when we called for a specific name we saw them pour something different.  It was delivered as "here is your red wine" and precious husband would ask if it was what we ordered... Nope.  There's no need for this in YC, in my opinion.

Our butler team (butler & asst) was quite lovely.  They did nothing EXTRAORDINARY, but they performed their duties very well and unobtrusively which was good enough!  

54 minutes ago, Av8tor said:

Not sure if you can do that directly. However, you can add that OBC to a casino machine and then close it out to get cold, hard cash to use for tips or just fatten your wallet!

Just did that yesterday.  Easy Peasy.

18 minutes ago, GPPhilly said:

I wonder if these cut backs are for the shorter sailings or for all.  

As far as the "parties" I was told it was due to it being a 4 night sailing, though we had BOTH Diamond and YC "meet the captain and butler team" on the same 4 nighter on the same Seashore 9 weeks ago.