LIVE from 9/13 Bellissima and 9/21 Seaview - 7nt Med cruises - Yacht Club

[George C]

9 minutes ago, rattanchair said:

Dear GC,  You probably are already aware of this being the world traveler you are. Just a heads up in case you ever are on a cruise that stops in Monaco. Do not leave your passports in the cabin safe when visiting the famous Monte Carlo casino. You need them to get in. No passport no entrada.. Many  upset passengers on tour refused entrance. For warned is to be forearmed. Do not know if this is true with all the other casinos, not a gambler , but loved to see where James Bond did his gambling.

Didn’t they also have a dress code and fee to get in ?

[WonderMan3]

13 minutes ago, rattanchair said:

Dear GC,  You probably are already aware of this being the world traveler you are. Just a heads up in case you ever are on a cruise that stops in Monaco. Do not leave your passports in the cabin safe when visiting the famous Monte Carlo casino. You need them to get in. No passport no entrada.. Many  upset passengers on tour refused entrance. For warned is to be forearmed. Do not know if this is true with all the other casinos, not a gambler , but loved to see where James Bond did his gambling.

 

Yes. Most casinos here in Europe require that. When we went to the casino in Barcelona the other day they wanted our passports.

[WonderMan3]

4 minutes ago, George C said:

Didn’t they also have a dress code and fee to get in ?

 

For the historic casino there is a dress code (can’t remember if there was a fee). If you just want to go to the adjacent slots parlor there is no dress code and no fee.

[WonderMan3]

Catching up with our Sunday activities...

 

We left the ship around 8:45 in order to meet our guide at 9. We mixed using the butler escorting us off as it seemed pretty straightforward to exit the ship. Of course then we got lost and turned around trying to get to the mid-ship exit. (We have yet to fully explore this ship by day 4). We made it out in time to meet our guide Paola at the terminal. I booked a tour called Flavors of Genoa through a company called Lunaetours which I found doing research online. I wound up using them for both our stops in Genoa in the two cruises and at La Spezia during the next cruise. This tour cost 345 Euro for 3 hours including several food tastings and lunch. We are not foodies but I didn’t have much good buzz on Genoa so I figured adding a food element to the tour could spice it up. 

 

This is proved to be a wonderful tour with a great guide. Paola gave us lots of history about Genoa and the sites we saw along the way as we wound through the historical center of the city. It’s only a few blocks from the cruise terminal to enter into the historical part. We walked past lots of palazzos from rich Italian families of the past now converted to offices, apartments and government buildings and we visited a few churches. The city is a bit worn and dirty in some areas but it has a charm and I’m glad we got to explore it a bit.

 

We made four food stops during the tour. The first was to a coffee shop named Caffe Boasi which was very popular with the locals. Paola had us try some of their freshly made pastries which were fantastic! The owners were so happy we came and liked their products that they insisted I take a photo of them. Definitely stop in here for a quick coffee and pastry. Go for the pastries in the cabinet on the right as those are the freshly made ones. The second food stop was at a local confectionary called Profumo where we got to sample some candies and I made a few purchases. Our third food stop was at a foccacieria to try some of the local focaccia bread with different toppings like Gorgonzola or onion; they were so good! There are lots of them around town and Paola said hey are pretty much all the same. Our fourth and final food stop was at a place called Pestobene which specializes in homemade pesto. We got to try some on focaccia along with some Prosecco. It was literally the best pesto I’ve ever tasted. So much better than the processed stuff I’m used to back in the States. I bought a small bottle to go but Paola warned me that since it is fresh with no preservatives it has to be eaten within a few days. So I’ve already been sampling some back on the ship. After all this food then we were left off at a restaurant near the harbor for our included lunch and parted ways with Paola. Our tour wound up going for 4 hours but she didn’t charge us any extra. The lunch was pretty good. It was three courses including wine, starting with pasta (I had pesto sauce which was not as good as what I had just bought at the store, while Mike had a red sauce as he doesn’t like pesto), followed by a variety of local items like farinata (made from chickpeas) and some flaky things stuffed with cheese. I could barely eat anything by this point though and passed on dessert which was a custardy coffee flavored item that Mike enjoyed. By the end of the meal it was after 2pm. I had plans originally to visit another part of Genoa called Bocadasse, but we were so full and tired (my cold was still lingering) that we decided to walk back to the ship and take a nap for the rest of the afternoon.

[WonderMan3]

We slept for several hours on Sunday afternoon, waking in time for sailaway. I was able to capture some shots of this cool looking lighthouse in Genoa’s harbor which has unfortunately been surrounded by industry. Later, at sea, I got to capture a beautiful sunset from our balcony.

[WonderMan3]

For our Sunday evening activities we decided to switch things up a little and went to the casino before dinner, pushing our dining time to around 8:30. We had booked the Cirque du Soleil show for 10pm, so we figured we’d go from dinner to the show. We figured since dinner only took us an hour at Yacht Club the other night then it should be about the same. Arriving at 8:30 vs. 7:15 though meant that the dining room was much busier. We had to wait about 5 minutes to be seated. It would’ve been longer as they wanted to give us a window seat but since it was after dark with nothing to see outside we just wanted first available. We wound up in the section again of Francesco. While he was very amiable and sociable our first night here he was manic and frenzied tonight. Through some jumbled conversation he said something about his assistant had suddenly left the ship in Genoa that very day and so he was struggling to manage all his tables alone with help from some of the other servers. His stress was coming off of him in waves and made us feel uncomfortable. Food took awhile to get to the table. Our drink order was never even taken until our appetizers had arrived and even then he started to run off before my drink order was taken so Mike had to call him back. We could see another table in his section also getting annoyed. The manager came over to them at one point and brought them some special treats to appease them apparently. The question that crossed our minds was why were the manager or hosts not helping Francesco out? As for the food, we struggled quite a bit with the menu this night. For appetizers Mike had a pasta with tomato sauce off their everyday menu while I asked for a smaller portion of the entree risotto. Both tasted fine. For the entrees we both ordered off the everyday menu; Mike had the chicken and I had the beef filet. Mike liked his chicken but thought it was too thin and had no starch for a side. My beef filet was not good and I didn’t even finish it. For dessert we both opted for the tiramisu which I had the last time and it was still good. Overall a very disappointing meal at Yacht Club and possibly our last. We are considering just eating at specialty restaurants for the rest of this cruise.

[WonderMan3]

After dinner it was 9:45. We had been told by the concierge to go to their desk before the Cirque show and they would escort us. We got to the desk to find people waiting to ask questions so we just went on to the theatre on our own as we had been given our seat assignments. We got there before 10 but doors hadn’t opened yet so we played a little bit in the casino until the line went down. Doors stay open until 10:20 and the show starts around 10:30 so you don’t need to be there right when doors open if you have a reserved seat. They had one of the ship bands doing music until the show started. Our ticket was supposed to

include a cocktail and we saw people with them all around us but no server ever came by to

take our order so we have no idea how that works; maybe you’re supposed to pick it up at the bar on the way in?

 

I was not able to share any photos from the show as they didn’t come out due to the lighting, and video is not allowed. We saw the show Syma on this night which seems to tell the story of a sailor lost at sea who has adventures with some characters underwater and then on an island. The show was a really stripped down Cirque du Soleil show with limited acrobatics. It was enjoyable enough but not as good as I expected. I think I may have enjoyed the shows more on my recent Celebrity Edge cruise and those weren’t even Cirque du Soleil. It was also short, only 35 minutes. It’s only $18pp for the cocktail show so I think it’s probably worth it to check out. After dinner we headed back to the casino. Mike broke even for the night but I had no luck.

[WonderMan3]

Here is Monday’s Daily Planner

[WonderMan3]

On Monday we were in Naples. The ship didn’t arrive until 11am and was to leave by 7:30pm. I felt that wasn’t great timing for touring and we had been to Naples the past two years and have seen all the major sites like Sorrento, Amalfi Coast, Pompeii, Herculaneum and Capri from prior visits, so we chose to stay onboard this day. We got to sleep in for the first time this cruise and it was wonderful (the bed is SO comfortable). We didn’t wind waking up until 9:45. We had massage appointments at the spa at 11 so we decided to skip breakfast as we didn’t have much time and didn’t want a massage on a full stomach.

 

We arrived at the spa about 10 minutes before our appointments. When we arrived there was one man behind the desk on the phone. He would not even look up and acknowledge us. After waiting there a few minutes one of the masseuses (who wound up being my masseuse) saw we weren’t being helped and she came over to check us in. She gave us a short consultation form to fill out and then Mike and I were on our way to our individual

appointments. We opted for the hot stone massage for this visit. The treatment was very formal. My masseuse offered no chit chat, no selling of product (a good thing) but also didn’t even review the consultation form with me. She went right to work and when it was over was ready to shuffle me right out. I had to ask her for some water as I was dehydrated at the end. The only thing she asked was if I wanted to make another appointment, which I declined since we didn’t have time the rest of the cruise. Since we had prepaid for these there was nothing to sign and no request for gratuity which was nice. Both Mike and I thought our massages were fine but definitely not the best we’ve had, although not the worst either, just average.

 

After the massages we were hungry. I suggested we stop into the main buffet to check it out as I had not seen it before. On Celebrity we enjoy eating at the Oceanview Cafe. We walked around this buffet though and nothing looked appealing to us so we left and went up to the Yacht Club Grill. It was a little after 12 so they weren’t open yet. We decided to head back to the cabin then and put on our swimsuits to go the pool after lunch. 

 

We went back up to the grill at 12:30 once they opened and we each made our own salad. After eating those we went back up to get something hot. Mike ordered a hot dog. It came out to him on a plate with no bun which was odd. When he went back to the cook he said they had no buns.   He had to make his own bun with some bread. PMike checked if they had buns for hamburgers knowing I would want one and he said he could get one if we wanted. Do Europeans normally eat hamburgers and hot dogs without buns? So I ordered my burger and asked for a bun with it. When it was brought out by Francesco (our waiter from the dining room) there was no bun. I asked him about the bun but he was clueless. The cook caught our eyes and motioned to Francesco. He went over and they talked and then Francesco came back with two pieces of French bread. I told him that would not work for a hamburger and went up myself to the bread area and grabbed a crusty roll which I cut in half. It was all very annoying. Even more so when the cook came back out and had a hamburger roll with him. I’m not sure what happened in the conversation between him and Francesco but the server clearly misunderstood.  The salad was good but the burger was average. I also used this time to try a bit of the pesto I bought in Genoa on Sunday. It is so, so good!

Edited September 17, 2019 by WonderMan3

[rattanchair]

Spectacular Review !

[merdon]

Loving your review and amazing pictures. Since ours will be our first European cruise, just a quick question from a novice: do you bring your passports along with your cruise card when visiting each port or will a driver's license and cruise card suffice?

[WonderMan3]

Continuing with Monday afternoon...

 

After lunch at the grill, since we had our swimsuits on, I thought it would be a good idea to try out the water slides onboard especially since the ship had just docked at 11 and most people had gone ashore. We weren’t sure how to get to the slide area so we went to the concierge desk to ask. It wasn’t Raj at the desk but rather a younger timid looking man. When we asked how to get to the slides he said to cross the pool deck, go through the buffet and then go up to the slides from there. We did as he directed but when we got the end of the buffet it was the back of the ship. A staff member pointed us to a stairway that was hidden off to the side. This took us up to a pool area at the back of the ship that we didn’t even know existed. We had to still go up and around a few more stairways until we finally found the slides. Of course when we get there we find that...they’re closed! We saw a staff member nearby and asked why they were closed. He said they are normally open on port days but that particular day they were closed. Not sure why but that was annoying. What was most frustrating is that the concierge didn’t warn us that the slides were closed before we walked all the way over. So we walked all the way back, this time finding a different route via an inner stairway through some kids’ areas. 

 

We went back to the Yacht Club pool area and hung out there for awhile. The pool itself was larger than I expected but it was also colder than I expected; it did not feel heated. But it was refreshing as it was quite warm out. The lounge chairs are very comfortable and there are plenty of them; anytime we’ve gone up there during this cruise there has always been ample seating. There aren’t a lot of areas where there is full shade but the glass panels that are over the whole deck do a pretty good job at filtering some of the sun. There were only three cabanas on the deck and two of them appeared to be reserved for the Royal Suites. But even they get sun at different points. We met possibly the friendliest staff member so far out on the pool deck; a lovely young woman from Kenya named Josephine who took care of our frozen cocktail needs. I have to say that the frozen drinks that we have had on the ship so far have been mediocre. After spending some time at the pool we went back to the room and napped for a couple hours.

[silkismom]

Off hand, I'm guessing we will stay with Celebrity and not bother trying the Yacht club.

[WonderMan3]

26 minutes ago, merdon said:

Loving your review and amazing pictures. Since ours will be our first European cruise, just a quick question from a novice: do you bring your passports along with your cruise card when visiting each port or will a driver's license and cruise card suffice?

 

There should be very few reasons to have to take a passport with you ashore. I know there are exceptions like casinos (Monte Carlo for example) where they require passports. None of the European ports I have visited needed you to have a passport to tour around. I’m not sure if places like Russia where visas come into play require you to have your passport on you. A driver’s license or national ID should be fine. They haven’t even been checking those at any of the ports on this cruise. They only ask for your cruise key card.

[merdon]

4 minutes ago, WonderMan3 said:

 

There should be very few reasons to have to take a passport with you ashore. I know there are exceptions like casinos (Monte Carlo for example) where they require passports. None of the European ports I have visited needed you to have a passport to tour around. I’m not sure if places like Russia where visas come into play require you to have your passport on you. A driver’s license or national ID should be fine. They haven’t even been checking those at any of the ports on this cruise. They only ask for your cruise key card.

Great!. Thanks for the info. Our itinerary is the same as the sailing you are presently on. 😊

[bigblue1952]

I love your review.  We are sailing from Barcelona in the Yacht Club in  April on the Seaview.  We are looking forward to your Seaview review.  Your pictures are wonderful.  Thanks.

[WonderMan3]

Finishing off Monday...

 

We woke in time to watch sailaway from Naples from our cabin and then had to get ready for dinner at 8pm. We had made reservations at L’Atelier Bistrot. This proved to be our most enjoyable dining experience this cruise. We had a very friendly and enthusiastic server named Alam. I was even able to finally find chambord on this ship! So I requested to the bartender Putu to make us French Martinis. I had to break down the ingredients for him and there was a little language difficulty but he was able to put it together. First round he brought them out on the rocks. Mike asked him on the second round to shake the ingredients and pour into a martini glass. Second and third rounds were exactly on point and he was happy to have learned something new. He said we should name the drink something special since the restaurant already had a drink called “The French”. We told him we might be back for a second visit during the cruise so he could get another shot at making the drink. As for the food, we started with me having the French Onion Soup, which was very good, and Mike having the Vichyssoise, which he thought was okay; he struggled a bit with appetizer choices though as he is not big on French food. For the entree we had the Chateaubriand for two which was excellent. The mashed potato and French fry sides were also great. We closed out the meal with Mike having some sorbet and me having the Tarte Tatin, both of which were fine but nothing special. Overall though this was the most consistent meal of the cruise and we saw other entrees on the menu that we could try on a second visit.

 

After dinner we made our nightly visit to the casino. But this was only a brief visit for about 45 minutes. We were both ready to leave after Mike made a few hundred euros on a lucky machine and I hit a jackpot for over 1500 Euro. This helped me recover any losses for the trip and put me up for the first time. A great way to end a relaxing day.

[WonderMan3]

Here is today’s Daily Planner including a flyer they left for booking a future cruise on their new ship.

 

 

[pirate4me2]

I am really enjoying your review, thank you for taking the time to do it. We will sail MSC for the first time next year and I am soaking up all the info I can get! 

[Host Jazzbeau]

2 hours ago, WonderMan3 said:

For the entree we had the Chateaubriand for two which was excellent. The mashed potato and French fry sides were also great.

 

How did you order the Chateaubriand?  I would call that 'medium.'  [It looks terrific, although we would prefer it a little more rare.]

[George C]

What drinks are included when drinking outside of YC? Thanks , any discount on wine by the bottle.

[hcat]

18 hours ago, WonderMan3 said:

We slept for several hours on Sunday afternoon, waking in time for sailaway. I was able to capture some shots of this cool looking lighthouse in Genoa’s harbor which has unfortunately been surrounded by industry. Later, at sea, I got to capture a beautiful sunset from our balcony.

 

 

All great photos and enjoying the  travelogue so far.  This sunset is my favorite!

 

The on board breakfasts look and sound fairly pathetic..maybe you should try the Pool One that was suggested.

 

Hope you are feeling better.. Try Saline spray...all natural and works wonders!

[WonderMan3]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

 

How did you order the Chateaubriand?  I would call that 'medium.'  [It looks terrific, although we would prefer it a little more rare.]

 

Yes, it’s medium.

[WonderMan3]

33 minutes ago, George C said:

What drinks are included when drinking outside of YC? Thanks , any discount on wine by the bottle.

 

We were told by the YC manager on the first day that all drinks outside of Yacht Club are included up to 10 Euro in price. When drinking in YC every drink is included except for some champagnes and a few specialty liquors which are all highlighted in the drink menu. When we have been dining in the specialty restaurants the servers have pointed out when drinks we might be interested in are outside of the package. Not sure about the wine.

[WonderMan3]

31 minutes ago, hcat said:

All great photos and enjoying the  travelogue so far.  This sunset is my favorite!

 

The on board breakfasts look and sound fairly pathetic..maybe you should try the Pool One that was suggested.

 

Hope you are feeling better.. Try Saline spray...all natural and works wonders!

 

Yes, feeling much better today thanks. Our daily napping helped speed things along quickly. I was already improving yesterday. Basically just dealing with the leftover gunk from the cold today.

 

Yeah, the breakfasts have not been anything to rave about. I’m hoping maybe things will be better next week on Seaview.