MSC Seaside - Yacht Club Experience - 04/27/19 - Suite 18028

[scottyb523]

We cruised on the MSC Seaside - in the Yacht Club - Suite 18028 on 04-27-19.  Our itinerary was Miami, San Juan, St. Thomas, St. Maarten, and Nassau.  It's hard to relate how awesome this entire experience was.  From the moment we stepped off the shuttle van from the Hotel, to the moment we disembarked at the end of our cruise - the attentiveness and experience of the Yacht Club venue was beyond amazing.

 

• Embarkation:

Look for the white tents outside of Terminal F at the Port of Miami.  The tents are clearly flagged with Yacht Club.  Take your bags to this tent - don't just hand your bags to any entry porter.  The Butler at the Yacht Club tent will personally check your paperwork, tag your bags, and pass them to a specific luggage handler just for Yacht Club luggage.  Once you are checked, the Butler will escort you into the Terminal into a private waiting lounge for Yacht Club guests only.  There you will receive your ID Wristbands, Cruise Card, confirmation of any pre-purchases, and handed a cool refreshing beverage to start your day.  Food goodies are also available during your short wait before being escorted on-board, onto the ship, to the Priority Access elevator, and directly to the Yacht Club - Top Sail lounge.  There you will be served the drink of your choice, and have time to meet the entire staff from the Yacht Club Top Sail lounge and Restaurant to become orientated with them.  Lunch service begins shortly after 11:30 am, and your Suite will be available shortly thereafter.  You will be escorted to your Suite, and meet your personal Butler and Asst. Butler (room steward) and be given a tour of your suite.   

 

• The Suite:

Very comfortable - size - not huge, but plenty big.  Balcony was a bit larger than expected - it's large enough for loungers which I wish they had put out, but instead just 2 chairs and a type of footstool - good enough for chilling with a beverage, cup of coffee in the am, and just spending time soaking up the ocean breezes.   The following is a link to a video of our Suite - 18028 - which I believe was in the perfect location - close to the middle between walking straight down the hall to the Restaurant, or down one flight of stairs (or elevator) and a short walk to the Concierge desk - or opposite direction directly to the Top Sail Lounge    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNK3MYLeZjk

 

• Top Sail Lounge / Yacht Club Restaurant:

Never had a bad meal in the Restaurant - all the food was truly exquisite - don't be afraid to ask for something (i.e. - didn't have a salad choice I liked - so asked for just lettuce, cheese, tomatoes, and Ranch - always provided with a smile).  The staff were great - and I don't believe we ever sat down to a meal - breakfast, lunch, or dinner - that the Yacht Club manager didn't magically appear to see how our stay was going and to check if we needed anything.  Kudos' for the steaks, lamb chops, and lobster dishes !  Top Sail Lounge had live easy going entertainment every evening (singing - piano - guitar - even soft trombone) that was never intrusive - and always nicely entertaining.  You can not sit in the Lounge for more than 30 seconds before someone is attending to you and asking what kind of cocktail you may want - service outstanding beyond explanation.  The Top Sail Lounge was our meeting point with our Butler for any escorts - to/from venues or off the ship - very convenient.

 

• Yacht Club Sundeck and Pool

Really nice area - those that complain about shade - look around - there are LOTS of areas that are shaded - some are not directly at the pool - but if you want to get IN the pool - just walk to it - it's not far.  Amazing bar and wait staff, 2 hot tubs which always seemed to have space for 2 more.  My wife and I booked a 'Cabana' for one of our Sea Days - $99 for sea days, $59 for port days.  Cabana includes constant wait staff attention, morning and evening food goodies (including chips, salsa, sushi, etc.) - or just ask - they will bring it to you whatever it is.  Nice loungers, a cooler with water and drinks of your choice, and a great relaxing view of the Ocean.

 

• Specialty Restaurants:

We only visited the Roy Yamaguchi Teppanyaki and Butchers Cut venues - and both were outstanding.  Both (all) the venues have 3 'experiences' you can choose from - 3 varying prices - more you pay - more you get, and ala-carte items can be added to each and every 'experience' if so desired.  My wife and I received our meal at the Butchers Cut au-gratis since we were Black Card Members - so we were able to choose the lower end 'experience' menu for free - and we really didn't need to order any additional items as we were stuffed with what we got.  Teppanyaki was extremely entertaining and the food was excellent (i've never had 'Butterfish' before - but the wife is looking for it in the stores this week already it was so good !)  All the associated items - soup, salad, etc. were as to be expected but wonderful to say the least - wife said the soup was the best she's ever had !.  Butchers Cut had probably the best Filet Mignon i've had in quite some time - yes - it had to be sent back - needed to be cooked just a bit more (came out rare, and I wanted medium) but they butterflied a new steak, cooked it to perfection, and it was awesome (NOTE: it was NOT the same steak cooked more - it was a replacement done right - and done quickly !)  All in all - albeit a bit pricey to enjoy several of the Specialty Restaurants - there are several packages available to book in advance that will save you lots of money if you are wanting to experience more than one venue.

 

• Entertainment:

I would label it Top Notch - I really enjoyed the mixture of Vocality, stage settings, Circ du Soleil style acrobatics done to perfection, and showmanship.  There was some carry-over of acrobatic performances carried from show to show,  and while some may complain a bit about some of the performances being too much like previous - you will only have a problem with it if you go every single night (which we did - and thoroughly enjoyed)  NOTE: the last night show - the Michael Jackson style show was an amazing performance

 

• Butlers / Staff:

How else to put this - other than to state - our Butler actually would get offended if we didn't take advantage of his services of escorting us to dinner or to the shows.  They strive to be accomodating and providing top notch service - no matter what the item.  We chose to tip above the daily service charges that are booked to your account for our Butler and Asst. Butler simply due to the fact that the service received was beyond expectation.  Our trip was made wild beyond our expectations simply due to being spoiled so rotten. (thinking they must be magicians because they were always there when we opened up the cabin door 🙂 For excursions - we were escorted off the ship all the way to the line for our choice, and upon return to the ship - there was always a special 'Yacht Club' tent setup for boarding the ship quickly and efficiently.  One evening - in Puerto Rico - we arrived back to the ship at 11:15 pm (we had a late night dinner at a local authentic venue called Vaca Brava with newly met friends - amazing food - huge portions - GO HUNGRY).  Sail away wasn't until 1:00 am so we were well within return time - but there was Alex - one of the Butlers - patiently waiting on the dock next to the Yacht Club Tent entrance to greet us.  He made the statement we were the last 4 Yacht Club Members to return to the ship. We asked the question - if we had been out still another hour (within allotted time to return to the ship) - would he still have been waiting for us ?  "Of course Mr. WIlliam - it's my job !"  -  Unbelievable and so awesome !

 

• Rest of the ship:

We visited the shops (lot's of pricey items if that's the way you roll - we purchased the obligatory 2 for one MSC hats on sale).  Venchi chocolate bar was amazing - from Chocolate martinis, shakes, chocolate or other flavor gelato's - all were included in our Yacht Club experience - so a nightly visit was called for.  The Centrum was awesome - shiny - sparkly - and impressive (at least to visit).  We walked the 'Bridge Of Sighs' which was a cool thing to do - but we did this on a Sea Day, and the 'Sea of Humanity' we had to pass through (one of the main pool decks) was so crowded that we were so glad to get back to the serenity of the Yacht Club venue.   

 

• Debarkation:

Bags out as normal the night before by 11:30 pm, but woke up bright and early, with enough time for a nice sit-down full service breakfast in the Yacht Club Restaurant.  Once finished - met our butler in the Lounge downstairs, and were escorted down the priority elevator - past all the others waiting for their allotted debarkation time right to the new Facial Recognition Passport Control area.  Once past customs, we walked right to our bags in a special Yacht Club area for luggage, and within 5 minutes we were in a taxi headed to the airport

 

All in all - I can't say enough things about the Yacht Club venue - it was amazing from start to finish.  We loved the attention to detail, to us, and just the entire experience - this is truly the way cruising should be.  Heard through the grapevine that MSC is building a ship that has the entire vessel dedicated to Yacht Club style attention - that should be quite something !

 

 

 

[scottyb523]

If you are a member of any other Cruise Line Loyalty programs - I highly suggest using the MSC Loyalty Status Match option. My wife and I are Diamond Level on Royal Caribbean, and we were matched to 'Black Card' status on MSC - this is their Highest Loyalty Level. It afforded us a few perks such as the famous 'Chocolate Ship' - a free meal in one of the Specialty Restaurants, and status recognition - even though this was our very first MSC Cruise - albeit for sure not to be the last!

[NYHartChapp]

Great review...thanks for posting.   Yes, Alex is a superstar!

[Captain-John]

Excellent review - thank you. Glad you had such a great time ! 🙂

[dolphin1313]

Thanks for posting your excellent review!

[mafig]

Glad you enjoyed it!

Now, don't post this anywhere else.  Let the Yacht Club be our secret.  Shhhhh!

[Formula280SS]

1 hour ago, mafig said:

Glad you enjoyed it!

Now, don't post this anywhere else.  Let the Yacht Club be our secret.  Shhhhh!

 

Agreed.  🤐

 

Sooooooooo glad we booked two B2B in YC on Meraviglia before the prices started to go up (for Seaside YC, which we've done two B2B's, really up for some dates; we booked long time ago).

 

We are lucky to be able to cruise quite a bit over the past 3-4 years.  We totally look forward to our MSC YC cruises; it's "for us."

 

 

[rojoand8]

Thank you for the video of your cabin. We’ll be in that cabin on the July 20th sailing. It was nice to see that there’s quite a bit of storage and the bathroom is so nice. Thank you again. 

[JAGR]

16 hours ago, scottyb523 said:

Teppanyaki was extremely entertaining and the food was excellent (i've never had 'Butterfish' before - but the wife is looking for it in the stores this week already it was so good !) 

Great and accurate  review, and glad you had a good time.  We've been on her twice, and have two weeks coming up in February.  Just a word of caution on the "butterfish."  It goes by a number of names, but is most correctly called escolar (a type of snake mackerel).  Escolar cannot metabolize the wax esters naturally found in its diet, and these esters are very similar to castor or mineral oil, and when full portions of escolar are consumed, they can cause gastrointestinal symptoms.  This explains why escolar is also called the “olestra fish” and the “ex-lax fish.”  You won't get more than the recommended 6-ounce limit typically in a sushi bar, but it is a risk if you only get the escolar and are hungry.

 

In other words, enjoy the "super white tuna," but perhaps in moderation!  It never affected me, but it has been know to have a nasty impact on people who over-indulge!

Edited May 8, 2019 by JAGR

[bobndee]

We're booked into the same cabin on the Seaside next year for our first MSC and Yacht Club experience.  I noticed on the deck plans that the Aurea Bar appears to be above cabin 18028.  Did you notice any noises from above in cabin 18028?

[scottyb523]

We're booked into the same cabin on the Seaside next year for our first MSC and Yacht Club experience.  I noticed on the deck plans that the Aurea Bar appears to be above cabin 18028.  Did you notice any noises from above in cabin 18028?

 

Not anything that I remember specifically - but I really never paid much attention - always take a small travel fan with us for air movement and 'white noise' to help with sleep - that last night before departure was SO QUIET  🙂

Edited May 8, 2019 by scottyb523

[scottyb523]

The Swarovski Crystal Staircase in the Yacht Club - MSC Seaside

[bobndee]

16 hours ago, scottyb523 said:

We're booked into the same cabin on the Seaside next year for our first MSC and Yacht Club experience.  I noticed on the deck plans that the Aurea Bar appears to be above cabin 18028.  Did you notice any noises from above in cabin 18028?

 

Not anything that I remember specifically - but I really never paid much attention - always take a small travel fan with us for air movement and 'white noise' to help with sleep - that last night before departure was SO QUIET  🙂

 

Thanks!

[CUontheC]

Thank you for the fabulous review!  We are going in 2020 and our in the YC as well.  Also, I was looking up the restaurant Vaca Brava that you spoke of.  Did you take a taxi to get there?  

[ptuder]

Thanks for the review. We are going in 2 weeks!  We will also try Butchers Cut for our black card meal. We were matched to black from NCL platinum. 

[scottyb523]

On 5/10/2019 at 9:14 PM, CUontheC said:

Thank you for the fabulous review!  We are going in 2020 and our in the YC as well.  Also, I was looking up the restaurant Vaca Brava that you spoke of.  Did you take a taxi to get there?  

 

No need for a taxi - it's literally a 5 minute walk from the cruise port - just google it ! Be sure and get a reservation though - OpenTable worked great for me !

[CUontheC]

On 5/13/2019 at 7:36 AM, scottyb523 said:

 

No need for a taxi - it's literally a 5 minute walk from the cruise port - just google it ! Be sure and get a reservation though - OpenTable worked great for me !

Thank you so much...I do use open table too.  Will make sure we get a reservation.