jules815

17 hours ago, Hlitner said:

DW is a confirmed tea drinker and generally prefers Earl Grey or English Breakfast.  Over the years she has learned (the hard way) to always pack some of her own tea bags.    She thinks that, many times, American tea drinkers are discriminated against in restaurants and bars.  Consider that most places will "refresh" your cup of coffee with new hot coffee.  But tea drinkers are lucky if they get more hot water....but seldom get more tea bags :).  One restaurant we know at home does not even have any tea!

 

Hank

She's absolutely right!  When we go out and I order tea, we always say "I wonder what will go wrong this time?"  It happens so often, kind of a running joke with us.  

If we get a survey from MSC, I think I'll mention it.  And like I said, we still had a great week, but not being able to have a decent cup in the YC restaurant with any meal, especially breakfast, was a bit of a disappointment.

16 hours ago, disneyg1rl said:

 

True story.  We stayed at a Courtyard in Ft. Myers for a few days after our cruise to visit with friends.  First morning my husband went down to get a cup from the Starbucks in the lobby.  Came back with a Tazo made perfectly.  I was in heaven.  Next morning I ran down and they were out of the Tazo and gave me another brand, which was still good.  I wonder if I got their last Tazo bag?!

1 hour ago, hamrag said:

My DW would say, if there was a way to get boiling (not simply 'hot') water and brew her tea immediately....in our out YC....but that is another story!

You can make a pretty decent cup in the buffet on 16.  One of the buffets, I can't remember if it was on 8 or 16, even had a warm milk dispenser.  We like to take a walk around the ship after breakfast and dinner, so that became our routine.  I'd make a cuppa there and grab some bags to take back to the YC with me.  If you forget to pack your own, they're located in a dispenser with little drawers at the coffee stations.  They have ceramic mugs there, too.  

The tea bag situation for just a good cuppa wasn't good the week we sailed.  (1/12)

I thought that maybe in YC when it comes to having a cup of tea, it would be similar to Celebrity.  Wrong.  I don't know if it was our week and maybe they had a shortage of their Twining's English Breakfast, but for a tea drinker, it was pretty dire.  (I don't drink coffee at all.)  They had Twinings, but it was a flavored black tea that couldn't be served with cream.  (The brand was Twinings, but it was different, "360 flavored" or something like that.)  Then one morning one of my servers was all excited to bring me a pot of English Breakfast, but it was decaf!  I never complained, first world problems and all that.  A few times I asked for English Breakfast and they brought me Earl Grey.  I started going for walks thru the buffets on deck 16 and I'd grab a couple of bags from there (they carry the same brand there that RC has, Fields and Select, which isn't a favorite, but it does the job.)  I would ask them to just bring me a tea pot of hot water.  

Anyway, if you enjoy a cuppa, and you're sailing in YC, you might want to bring your own.  And maybe it was just an off week for our cruise, but better to be safe than sorry.

We never did make it to tea time in the YC Lounge because we spent our afternoons up at the pool.  

We still had a great week on Seaside and loved the YC!  And I promise to get back to my review soon.  🙂

On 1/10/2019 at 4:10 PM, Aloha 1 said:

Jules;

Thanks for taking time to do this! Here's a couple things I think a lot of us would like to know about. First, I assume you booked before 11/18 so verify that they are honoring the included gelato, crepes, and chocolate drinks for free at Venchi. Second, verify exactly what you get with the YC drink package and if you can upgrade to the Premium Plus. Finally, FOOD! Please tell us what you think of the YC dining experience. Thanks in advance.

Sorry its taken me so long to log in and reply. We’re having a great time.

I haven’t tried getting crepes, but we’ve had gelato a few times now from the Venchi at the Miami Beach Pool with no problem.  Same goes for coffee drinks in Venchi.  No charge for those, and my husband had a milk shake there this morning as well, and no charge.  They swipe our cards and no signature.  

We haven’t been drinking alcohol outside of the Topsail, it’s such a lovely space, and haven’t been denied anything we ordered.  My husband’s been drinking his Hendrick’s and tonic and there’s been no charge.  In fact, he was served some Premium rum a few nights ago for no charge.  Nobody has asked us about upgrading and we haven’t asked because we seem to be getting whatever we want.  I’m about to head down there in a few minutes and will ask someone.

Food in the YC has been very good.  We had one off night a few nights ago where my husband and I just didn’t care for whatever it was we had.  A beef dish that came with different toppings on the side.  Meat was tough.  Other beef dishes, including the filet, have been good.  My husband had a veal dish last night that he loved.

We haven’t used our Black card dinner yet, and not sure if we’ll get around to it.

Ill update more later tonight.  Let’s just say, it’s very nice.  You won’t be disappointed.

3 minutes ago, Debde said:

Excited for you Jules!! Have a great time.

 

When we arrived the porter took us to the tent so my husband tipped him. They take care of the bags but the butler only escorted us and the team at the YC tent said follow him. We were so excited that's all I remember about the bags!!

Thank you!  That’s exactly what we needed to know. We’re so excited. Beautiful day here. Just took this pic from our room. 

Our stay at the JW Marriott Marquis has been very good, as always. We just finished breakfast, and plan to leave the hotel around 10:30.  

Question.  When we get to the YC tent, are there porters taking bags or butlers?  If they’re butlers, would this be a time to tip?  We always tip the porters. Would this be a time to tip the butler?  Thanks. 

Hi everyone, leaving this here for now.  We'll be getting picked up any minute.  I hope to add to it during our trip.  

I thought I'd try to start a live review for our Seaside cruise.  We're sailing 1/12 - 1/19, in the Yacht Club.  (Sorry, yet another YC review.)

Some background.  We're from the Chicago suburbs, 57 and 61.  We both still work full time, and our nest has been empty since 2012.  Our vacations are no longer during peak times, and they've gradually gotten longer.  We love B2B's and we've done one transatlantic crossing when they brought Harmony to the US in 2016.  We've sailed mostly with RC, (they're our favorite line when cruising with family),  a few with Carnival, and most recently with Celebrity, which is our new favorite.  All of our cruises since 2014 have been in suites.  Was looking at trying Haven, but during my research I read a review of YC, and here we are.

We're doing a Western Caribbean itinerary, Ocho Rios, Grand Cayman, Costa Maya, Nassau, and have 2 sea days.  We've been to all of these ports before and don't have any excursions booked.  The ship is our destination for this trip, but we usually walk around the port for a little while after breakfast and we're always back on board before lunch.  Love the nearly empty ship.

We'll be in 18009, which is regular Deluxe Suite.   We've pre-purchased the 4-device Premium Internet Package and the Back Home Clean 20 Laundry Package. 

We're flying down the day before we sail and staying at our favorite pre-cruise hotel in Miami, the JW Marriott Marquis.  The night before our flight we're staying at a hotel near O'Hare.  We live about an hour away from the airport.  January in Chicago, even a little snow can really screw with rush hour, don't need that stress.  Edit:  No snow, but we're staying near the airport anyway.  🙂

Do they give you any type of beach bag for taking up to the pool?  I know towels are provided up at the pool deck, but our last couple of cruises with Celebrity, there were beach bags.  I even have quite a few from RC as well.  I'm not sure if we got them for being in a suite, or if it was a loyalty gift.  Anyway, they're nice for throwing sunscreen, kindles, etc.  

Packing now.  Should I throw one from my cruise collection in my suite case, or not?  Thanks.

On 1/2/2019 at 11:36 AM, gotta cruise again said:

We were in YC 12/15-22 and did get free gelato & drinks at Venchi. BUT...there is a new thread by LisaLisa who was in YC starting 12/22 and her most recent post said they paid for gelato & drinks at Venchi.

 

As Lisa noted, and we concur: martini #2 at Venchi is worth the price!!

I believe she updated her review, and they weren't charged for the gelato at Venchi.  

1 hour ago, LisaLisa87 said:

MYSTERY SOLVED! I called MSC again at lunch time. This time I was transferred right to customer service, and the woman who answered asked a few questions and then sent the bill right over. At first I was confused because there were 4 line items for Venchi, in pairs. I finally figured out that the first pair of charges was for the individually wrapped chocolates I bought for DD's stocking and 15% gratuity. Or maybe tax? The bill doesn't specify. The other pair was for some chocolates I bought from the case on our last night and 15% gratuity/tax. So we were NOT charged for gelato or martinis. Now I'm kicking myself for not going more often!! 😜

 

 

 

 

 

Good to hear!  Do you recall if Venchi is open on port days?  They have gelato at the Miami Beach pool as well.  Would it be included at all venues?  

I'm Diamond with RC and status matched to Black at MSC.  We did this after we booked our first cruise with them (we sail on Seaside 1/12), and when I called about a booking question, they adjusted our fare with the 5% discount, which was a nice surprise.  I've read over on the MSC board that recently people are only being given Gold status with D or D+ status with RC, but then others have reported they received Black, so who knows?  I do know that we're demoted if we don't continue to sail with them.  🙂  We'll be in the Yacht Club, and a lot of those perks are the same as Black card perks, with maybe some extras.  Between the 2, we're all "perked up."  Looking forward to this trip.  I'm sick of the cold weather. 🙂

12 hours ago, Scot born said:

Loving your experience. On the topic of being charged did DH sign a receipt anytime the card was handed over? If so then he would have been given a copy meaning a charge to your account, if not then there would have been no charge, reason for this is so you can check with your final bill with your receipt and not overcharged for anything, hope this helps. 

Are you able to check your folio on the tv in your stateroom?

12 minutes ago, ashank1m said:

Even if the booking shows "Drinks on Us" YC passengers will  get a Deluxe (Premium).  Not sure if they are going to honor based on the booking time.  Per some post, they are and some are getting what they booked with, not the latest changed Drink chart.  So,  Print this sheet and hope they will honor their commitment in getting you the Deluxe package that allows all the listed drinks and items.

Printing and will bring along.  Thank you.

3 hours ago, ashank1m said:

For drinks, check out my post above.  All drinks prior to the change should be this, 2018 Drink Package Comparison Guise with DRINKS ON US.  So, print this out and take it with you.

Can someone explain this to me like I'm a 5 year old, because I am STILL so confused, especially now after seeing your chart with a "Drinks on Us" column.  We board Seaside YC on 1/12.  (It's getting so close!  )

My booking confirmation says, Price Description:  Drinks on Us

Now that I see a Drinks on Us package, explain to me how that ISN'T the package we're going to get?  

(I thought we were going to be getting Deluxe - we booked 6/11/18)

Thanks in advance, and Happy New Year everyone!

Is it true the YC insides don’t have a love seat?  

Just now, andymattmom said:

Two people 

That's a very good price.  I've never sailed in an interior, but will be looking to possibly book one for a 2020 trip with my daughter.  

The nice thing about the YC is it looks like there are lots of nice outdoor spaces, as well as the nice views from the lounge.  

33 minutes ago, mafig said:

Took us a long time to reach Elite and Diamond because we kept trying different cruise lines.  Always thought we were missing something.

If we stayed with the same line, we'd probably have stopped cruising entirely due to boredom.  Same ships, same food, same entertainment....Shake it up a little.  You can always come back.

 

100% agree!  

Very excited to sail with MSC.  Looking forward to a completely different experience.  

No doubt we'll sail again with RC and Celebrity, but it's fun to mix it up a bit.

22 hours ago, Quinlan00 said:

Actually it doesn’t from what I’ve experienced.  I’m straight Diamond and matched to Gold, and I’m hearing MSC only matches Pinnacle to Black now.

Have they changed this recently?  We're also straight Diamond with RC, and we status matched to Black, but this was back in June just after we booked for our upcoming trip.  

Thank you for your review.

Glad to hear you had a nice time in the YC.  We're sailing Seaside YC in about 3 weeks, and couldn't be more excited!

1 hour ago, LakeWobegon said:

I haven't been able to read through all of this but looking forward to first MSC cruise and YC experience regardless on Seaside in a few months. I would hope that gelato, crepes and Venchi bar is included since we booked in February of this year but if not, oh well. It's still a great value if all lives up to expectation. And really, as my wife says, I don't think you can go on a BAD cruise.

Exactly!!  

We're sailing in about 3 weeks, and I can't wait.  It's my light at the end of the tunnel with all the holiday craziness I'm dealing with right now, in addition to being slammed with work.  I'm ready now!  🙂

Glad to hear you had a great cruise.  We're on Seaside in YC 1/12, and can't wait!  

Look forward to reading your review.  🙂

1 hour ago, CoffeeGoddess said:

 

If I had been traveling alone I probably would  have spent more time in the Champagne Bar and up at Wine and Cocktails (Welcome Bar).  Those were the two places with the types of friendly, bantering bartenders I was used to.  

Sorry to hear you've got the travel crud.  That's the worst, and has happened to me on more than one occasion.  Hope you feel better soon.

Is the Welcome Bar the one that had the crafty cocktails (with smoke)?  

2 hours ago, Hlitner said:

I guess it depends on your point of view.  We are currently finishing up our 21 days in the YC on the Divina.  I am now sitting in the huge (and gorgeous) Top Sail lounge enjoying breakfast with about 20 others in a rom that can easily seat 200.  There are. 5 staff taking care of every need, it is quiet, and life is good.  Our cabin is about 10 feet down the corridor and our Butler cannot do enough to enhance our experience.  Yesterday, while in port, DW and I enjoyed a perfect lunch in La Muse where a staff of 6 waited on 3 passengers.   Our food was cooked to order and was near perfection.  This morning perhaps I will ask for  Mimosa that would be made with Mumm Cordon Rouge  and freshly squeezgeD OJ.  Later we will sun on our exclusive sun deck where staff will quickly bring any drink and even prepare fresh pasta (at lunch time) made to order.

 

Silly prices?  Certainly not in the way you might think.   It is more like a Tale of two ships.  In the YC and out.  We enjoy both. But after 18 days in the YC we could not book another YC cruise fast enough.  And yes, the Future Cruise folks came to the YC to handle those details.

 

 

Hank

 

 

  The description of your YC experience has me even more excited for our upcoming cruise.  We sail 1/12 on Seaside.