Best Cat Mom

Our first cruise on MSC was when we "moved" from NCL Haven to MSC YC in Seaside. We had previously cruised on Haven's smaller ships, which do not have a dedicated Haven dinner restaurant. Our experiences in NCL's main dining room led us to book a 3-night package in the MSC specialty restaurants on our first YC cruise. We needn't have. The YC restaurant was much, much better in our opinion -- and we missed some great food there when we were in the specialty restaurants. We could request anything we desired to be served in the YC restaurant, though sometimes a bit of notice is required depending on the exact items. The wines by the glass encompassed a solid line up of all the grape varieties. Even when they did not have some type of grape that we wanted, they would obtain a bottle to pour us by the glass. They should also be able to get whatever bottles of wine you might want, even if not part of their "regular" offerings. We had Butcher's Cut filet and lamb many times (I had lamb 4 times in YC when it was not on their menu and they always told me it came from Butcher's Cut) in YC. They'll prepare it however you'd like. You may even meet the chef if he's not shy about circulating during dinner -- Jeffrey from South Africa was our favorite so far -- and be able to talk with him about the next night's courses. The possibilities are virtually endless in YC. Each cruise for us gets better and better as we realize just how much they love to cater to your wishes! Enjoy!! 🙂

We always have appetizers, salads and entrees -- no desert. Still 3 courses, just 3 different courses. 🙂

Remember that since you're in YC, you can always make special requests for your meals. They will go out of their way to accommodate you, though sometimes they will need more than just a few hours notice. We had lamb five times on our last cruise, even though it was only on the menu once during that time. YC perks are quite nice. 🙂

Keep in mind that the Diamond meal is 3 courses, but does not have to include dessert. We always order appetizers, salads and then entrees/sides, skipping dessert. It's up to you how you choose to use your 3 courses. Enjoy! 🙂

I'm a native NYer, spent my entire school-age life in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn. I'd never pay for NYC parking rates. Much better to use public transportation (fly, train, etc) or Uber if you're local. I would totally avoid having a vehicle near the cruise port unless you're really close by.

Here is a scenario to consider: we booked a similar B2B as a single cruise in Sep 2022. When Hurricane Ian was raging in the Florida area, MSC cancelled the "first" part of the B2B, but not the second. Because we had booked as one entire cruise and not as 2 separate B2Bs, our entire cruise was cancelled, not just the beginning part. Not sure if that matters to you, but wanted to share our experience in case it helps you to decide.

We also moved from the smaller NCL ship's Haven category to MSC YC. One of the biggest surprises for us that we did not see mentioned in the boards was that YC1 cabins (the "regular" YC balcony cabins) had a bed that was really 2 twin beds converted to a single, larger bed. The king-sized beds that we had in the Haven did not exist. (Might be different in a YC Royal Suite or Duplex -- I have no experience in those cabins.) They do tie the beds together at our request but the gap is still there. We always wind up with various body parts "stuck" in the cavity between the two mattresses, and that may be your experience as well, depending on how you use your bed. We always miss our bed at home when extricating ourselves from that crevice. Does it stop us from booking and loving MSC YC? No way! It just gives us one reason to not hate disembarkation day. 🙂

We enjoy new itineraries, but we would not settle for MSC's oldest ships, since they do not have a Yacht Club. As long as there is a YC, we'll sail an interesting itinerary. We don't even mind the ships with the YC restaurant "disconnected" from the rest of the YC area (the Fantasia-class ships).

Remember that you can request anything you desire for your meals in YC -- even something on the regular menu that interests you -- and they will do their best to make it for you. 🙂

Have you sailed the Fantasia-class ships? They have a much larger shaded area around the One Pool Bar and shade over parts of the pool itself as well. We much preferred that to the Seaside, which has no shade as you've mentioned.

I matched to MSC Diamond with my Marriott Titanium status. That match is NOT reflected on the matching chart that I saw published recently.

That's a great outcome. 🙂

I believe that the 4 Fantasia-class ships have the YC restaurant -- Le Muse -- near the adult pool aft. I have experienced it on Divina and Fantasia. According to Wikipedia, Spendida and Preziosa have similar designs. I'm not certain if other ships also have YC split in this way.

Wow, just wow. If that had been a first cruise in YC for some passengers, I could see how it might also be their last. 😞 How long was the cruise?

The Fantasia-class ships have an adults only pool aft called the Garden Pool. The bar in that area is called the Garden Bar and is also adults only.

We've rarely seen anyone in YC "over-served." I believe that YC guests, while they may always have a drink in hand, are a more refined (not sure if that is the correct word to reflect my feelings, but I'm using it!) crowd and more to our liking. We initially tried MSC YC because we were not pleased with NCL's Haven. Due to Haven having the same restaurant menu every day and no Haven dinner in the smaller ships, we had always eaten in the specialty restaurants. We tired of seeing flip flops and cargo shorts at dinner in those specialty restaurants, especially the nights when we were in suits and dresses. YC gives us the atmosphere that we prefer.

We were just on Divina in Oct 2022 and Jan/Feb 2023 and the YC library is intact. It is behind the concierge desk, across from the booth seating. We sailed Fantasia pre-Covid but the library was in the same location back then.

I know from our own cruises that Fantasia and Divina both have libraries in the Yacht Club.

This has been our experience as well. Butcher's Cut entrees in the YC restaurant with "special" bottles of wine hand-selected by the maitre d'/sommelier, all adult beverages regardless of price in the Top Sail lounge, unlimited mini-bar replenishment, etc. -- basically anything you ask for that will make your holiday all the more enjoyable -- are all quite available in YC with no additional charges. The service and extras are definitely still there but are usually not obvious to anyone except the recipients. We have no issues with YC or their European-style of impeccable (and nearly invisible) service. 🙂

Thanks @morpheusofthesea for the clarification. Since MSC YC does not keep track of how many non-Venchi beverages are consumed before sail away, I consider that one more advantage over NCL Haven. 🙂

So why no charges for alcohol before initial departure? Someone must be covering -- or is the situation somehow different and no taxes are due on those drinks? (Not trying to be difficult, just truly curious.) Please let us know if you discover an answer, @morpheusofthesea

Interesting that you brought this up. I recall this being true for our NCL Haven cruises. I had expected it then, from knowing that was the usual practice. It is similar to why on some international flights departing US airports the PDB (pre-departure beverage) can be a bit restricted. We have never experienced the added tax in our MSC YC cruises though and did not even consider why until you just mentioned it. I wouldn't mind knowing if MSC is (maybe) covering this for us.

We prefer YC to Haven for a variety of reasons, one of the biggest ones being that the YC lunch and dinner menu change each day. You can also ask for made to order items whenever you wish. (You may get your requests the same day or a subsequent day, depending on the complexity of the dish and availability of ingredients.) If you want Butcher's Cut meats instead of going to the BC venue, you can likely have them cooked in YC instead of that day's menu items -- or even in addition to the menu items. We especially liked this when we wanted to pair an item with the YC's daily risotto offering. Also, YC tends to have less children than we experienced in the Haven. This may not matter to some, but for us it was a big benefit.

Hi phissy -- We were on that Divina cruise with you. We never noticed the set up in the Lounge; must have been because we sat on the other side. I'm surprised that the future cruise consultant did not address it. I recall that particular TA boasting about how they'd wind up tipping ~$1K overall on the 13-day cruise. I recall it because at the time my husband and I said to each other, "Well, so will we. So what? No need to advertise it." LOL We did not see the waving of money either. Was that at the One Pool? How absurd!

Where did this list originate? My Marriott Titanium Elite/Lifetime matched to Diamond in ~2018 (not Silver, which is listed in the table). I do believe that match results were higher years ago than they are now.