A brief Yacht Club review

[HornedFrogCruiser]

We were on the Divina over Christmas. It was our first time on MSC. We're platinum on Princess, and have tended to book full suites the last few cruises. So, this is what I'm comparing it to.

 

Bottom line, we feel that the Yacht Club is an excellent value and we've already booked it for a Thanksgiving cruise next November.

 

What we loved:

 

1. The wonderfully orchestrated check-in process.

 

2. The butlers . . . uniformly kind, gracious, professional, and helpful. Nothing was ever too much to ask. Our room butler, Wayan, was just amazing.

 

3. The stateroom . . . beautiful, with an outstandingly comfortable bed. We were in one of the four square rooms on deck 15 (15029 to be exact).

 

4. The privacy of the YC area . . . just extraordinary. Even though (I think) every YC stateroom was occupied, the Top Sail and One Pool areas were NEVER crowded.

 

5. The staff, and most of the food, in Le Muse was terrific. House wines were almost always of high quality. Luigi, the sommelier, was a treasure, and helped us select a special occasion wine on two nights. At first, I had decided on a Tignanello one evening (one of the more expensive wines on the list), but he encouraged us to try something else . . . which proved to be excellent, and 1/2 the price. I really appreciate this kind of integrity. Giuseppe, the Maitre d', was so very kind to my family, and provided a level of service that was truly notable.

 

6. The pizza!

 

7. The pasta at Eataly (where we dined twice). They prepared one of the great, classic pasta dishes . . . Cacio e Pepe. It was the best I've ever had (even when compared to those times I've had it in Italy).

 

8. The near-all inclusiveness of the YC, and Le Muse.

 

What was pretty darn good:

 

1. The buffet, though we only ate there once. Much nicer than on Princess, imho.

 

2. The shows. Not sensational, but a definite step up from what we've experienced on Princess.

 

What we thought wasn't perfect:

 

1. My wife felt that the fish at Le Muse was frequently over-cooked. She remarked that the MDR seafood on Princess was superior (ouch!). I'm not a fan of cooked seafood, so I have no idea.

 

2. Some of the entertainment staff didn't seem to bring a fun spirit to their jobs. For example, we did trivia once and the host couldn't have seemed less interested. Disappointing. To contrast, we have found the entertainment staff on Princess to be up-beat, with a joyful approach to their work.

 

3. The day in San Juan . . . really sad . . . you can just sense the depth of the economic problems this beautiful island is experiencing. Nassau and St. Thomas were fine, but we've been there so many times that they've lost much of their appeal. I'm glad that our next MSC cruise will feature the western Caribbean.

 

4. The house red wine in the Top Sail just wasn't good at all. Dry as dust, without even a hint of fruit popping through the acidity.

Edited January 1, 2016 by HornedFrogCruiser

[CanadaRob]

Thanks for the recap

 

Go Frogs!

[Crzyfrk62]

I just posted my review along with some pictures... glad you enjoyed the YC - I feel the same way and now that I've done the YC several times and booked for another B2B in 2016 don't know how I would go back to a non YC experience on any other line. For the price it's an amazing experience!

[riclop]

Thanks for your thoughts.

[CanadaRob]

I just posted my review along with some pictures... glad you enjoyed the YC - I feel the same way and now that I've done the YC several times and booked for another B2B in 2016 don't know how I would go back to a non YC experience on any other line. For the price it's an amazing experience!

The price of a fantastica and in some cases the aurea balconies are quite good in comparison to some other lines, the YC in comparison to other JR Suites or GS are not much difference in pricing but the inclusions are significant in comparison and makes MSC a good choice for the experience

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.