Yacht Club Changes

[Host Jazzbeau]

4 hours ago, Hlitner said:

I want to revisit the original post (OP) regarding the mini-bar.  We are relative newbies on MSC and only have 21 days cruising in the YC (but far more then 1000 days cruising overall).  Offering a mini-bar with unlimited refills is workable unless it is abused by some folks who might plan on filling a suitcase with the contents day after day.  Or course nobody who cruises on MSC would be that "classless" but nevertheless it can create a dilemma for the cruise line.  They could simply increase the cost of the YC by $100 or more per day (to cover the cost of the few abusers), or they could try to impose some kind of restriction to deal with the few classless souls who would abuse a nice benefit.   And it is amazing how many abuse any benefit.   There are some cruisers (we are told many come from one particular country in Europe) who think that because they have an unlimited beverage package it is fine to get every kind of beer on the ship, take one or two sips from each serving, and leave the rest for rubbish.  Believe it, or not, but this happens.  Some other cruise lines have seen fit to deal with this problem by putting a cap on the maximum beverages per day (usually about 15).  We would like to think that the cruisers on MSC would not dream of being purposely wasteful but we are friendly with a MSC beverage manager who has told us that this has been a recurring problem.  

 

Bottom line is that there is a segment of society that thinks that any privilege/benefit is meant to be abused and it is those folks who ultimately cause everyone else to pay a price be it more money for a benefit or further restrictions on that benefit.

 

Hank 

 

Hank you are exactly right.  But that won't stop the arguing on this thread...

[hamrag]

5 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

 

Hank you are exactly right.  But that won't stop the arguing on this thread...

Thank you for clarifying what many suspect to be the case!

[sidari]

It's coming to something when the host of another board wants to stifle debate on an MSC board by calling it an argument!

[gtaylor]

Just back home following the Divina 21 day crossing.

 

While onboard a friend e-mailed me the scans/photos shown earlier in the thread about the charges.

 

I asked the Yacht Club Director about it and he basically said No Way.

 

Two days later he said he had checked with the Home Office and confirmed that this was, indeed, a new policy that was being rolled out, but had absolutely no information other than it was real.

 

gary

[sidari]

More changes on the way it would seem.

[lcpagejr]

Just off Seaside YC.... No changes other than they charge for zipline and gellato.... But these changes were made a while back 

[sptrout]

21 minutes ago, lcpagejr said:

Just off Seaside YC.... No changes other than they charge for zipline and gellato.... But these changes were made a while back 

 

Last December I was able to get gelato in YC's main dining room for desert even though it was not on the menu. I wonder if that has changed?

[lcpagejr]

4 minutes ago, sptrout said:

 

Last December I was able to get gelato in YC's main dining room for desert even though it was not on the menu. I wonder if that has changed?

I am sure they will provide for you.We often ordered/requested items not on menu during dinner and they were happy to oblige. Staff was wonderful and truly wanted to meet/exceed your needs.... and I noticed all the staff in other areas of ship seemed happy and very outgoing and fun to be around! 

[Shippy]

28 minutes ago, lcpagejr said:

Just off Seaside YC.... No changes other than they charge for zipline and gellato.... But these changes were made a while back 

   We were on the Seaside in October and not only was gelato free at all sites but also the incredible crepes.

[lcpagejr]

1 minute ago, Shippy said:

   We were on the Seaside in October and not only was gelato free at all sites but also the incredible crepes.

Hopefully you are correct for other passengers sailing on her. I did not purchase gellato so I am going on what I  read for the past 6 or so months....I do know they charge for ziplining...although for some reason the did not charge my 10 yr old grandson but told my daughter she would be charged. Thanks for clarifying!

[sptrout]

1 minute ago, lcpagejr said:

I am sure they will provide for you.We often ordered/requested items not on menu during dinner and they were happy to oblige. Staff was wonderful and truly wanted to meet/exceed your needs.... and I noticed all the staff in other areas of ship seemed happy and very outgoing and fun to be around! 

 

1 minute ago, Shippy said:

   We were on the Seaside in October and not only was gelato free at all sites but also the incredible crepes.

 

Agreed, lcpagejr, that in the YC I got whatever I wanted within reason (don't misunderstand, my outside the box were very limited). One thing that did make them think was when I asked if they had any non-alcohol wine. It took them a few minutes but they found two bottles somewhere on the ship. 

 

Shippy, I agree with your comments although we never tried the items you mentioned. Too lazy (and stuffed) to go find them. With the rumoured changes, ship-wide items that you mentioned my have disappeared. 

 

Never have figured out why gelato costs more on cruise lines that provide it at all. Other than requiring separate effort, gelato should really cost less to make. Maybe it is just the really good (and maybe more costly) favors that they come up with, or is just another profit maker.

[dexddd]

Zipline has been charge for awhile.  Gelato still free in June and from other report in October.

[Fogfog]

So have just read that the lobster grill/lunch in YC is a thing of the past as well.....per Rattanchair's reporting onboard currently

[rkacruiser]

I wonder if I order Lobster Thermidor in the YC Restaurant that it could be provided.  

[Dr. Cocktail]

6 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

I wonder if I order Lobster Thermidor in the YC Restaurant that it could be provided.  

 

100% for sure.....

 

 

I would wait until you're in a port day otherwise the delivery charges are astronomical!

[Hlitner]

18 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

I wonder if I order Lobster Thermidor in the YC Restaurant that it could be provided.  

Absolutely along with the free Dom Perignon.  :).

 

Hank

[rkacruiser]

57 minutes ago, Dr. Cocktail said:

 

100% for sure.....

 

 

I would wait until you're in a port day otherwise the delivery charges are astronomical!

 

46 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Absolutely along with the free Dom Perignon.  :).

 

Hank

 

I don't understand these posts.  Are you both saying that Lobster Thermidor is a more deluxe entree that the YC Restaurant can provide?  

[JohnJayJotaJames]

Can imagine getting a Lobster is impossible in the YC restaurant nowadays... it was difficult enough getting a slice of pizza!

[Dr. Cocktail]

48 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

 

I don't understand these posts.  Are you both saying that Lobster Thermidor is a more deluxe entree that the YC Restaurant can provide?  

 

Yup....

 

As much as I love the YC product,  you must be realistic - they provide superb value for the price paid but that price doesn't and can't include many "luxury" items.

[Hlitner]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

 

I don't understand these posts.  Are you both saying that Lobster Thermidor is a more deluxe entree that the YC Restaurant can provide?  

Ok, you  are owed an explanation.  I can only comment based on 21 days in the Divina YC about 1 year ago (we will be back next week).  On the Divina the dedicated YC restaurant is called Le Muse.  Le Muse is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner...even when in port.  Breakfast menus are pretty normal with amazing service.  Everything is cooked to order and good.  Lunch is also quite good and even DW loved their burger (she does not normally like a burger).  Dinner was a mixed bag and I did think that the wines were not up to a standard one would expect in the YC.  One night I told our waiter to bring us a decent Cab and he brought some Robert Mondavi Woodbridge.  I was not a happy cruiser and made it clear to our waiter (with whom we had already bonded) that I would not drink that stuff in the MDR much less Le Muse.  It was quickly changed for something slightly better.  

 

But the YC restaurant does have a menu.  Sure, you can ask for some kind of modification but the reality is that you are going to get the products on the menu (although the chef might accommodate a slightly different preparation).  No, you cannot simply say you want Lobster Thermidor.  If they happen to have lobster on the menu then perhaps the chef can make you Thermidor...but I would not hold my breath. Probably the best dinner entrees we saw in Le Muse were the Risottos and I did have an excellent veal entrée.  The food was OK, but nothing great and a little disappointing.  On the other hand, we have cruised on 16 cruise lines and none of them had great food in their MDR.

 

Hank

[tnt10]

2 hours ago, Hlitner said:

Ok, you  are owed an explanation.  I can only comment based on 21 days in the Divina YC about 1 year ago (we will be back next week).  On the Divina the dedicated YC restaurant is called Le Muse.  Le Muse is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner...even when in port.  Breakfast menus are pretty normal with amazing service.  Everything is cooked to order and good.  Lunch is also quite good and even DW loved their burger (she does not normally like a burger).  Dinner was a mixed bag and I did think that the wines were not up to a standard one would expect in the YC.  One night I told our waiter to bring us a decent Cab and he brought some Robert Mondavi Woodbridge.  I was not a happy cruiser and made it clear to our waiter (with whom we had already bonded) that I would not drink that stuff in the MDR much less Le Muse.  It was quickly changed for something slightly better.  

 

But the YC restaurant does have a menu.  Sure, you can ask for some kind of modification but the reality is that you are going to get the products on the menu (although the chef might accommodate a slightly different preparation).  No, you cannot simply say you want Lobster Thermidor.  If they happen to have lobster on the menu then perhaps the chef can make you Thermidor...but I would not hold my breath. Probably the best dinner entrees we saw in Le Muse were the Risottos and I did have an excellent veal entrée.  The food was OK, but nothing great and a little disappointing.  On the other hand, we have cruised on 16 cruise lines and none of them had great food in their MDR.

 

Hank

So I'm a little confused:  Are you saying the YC restaurant food is comparable to the MDR on the other (16) cruise lines you have been on?  I would expect the presentation AND the food to be of at least a higher caliber considering the higher price point in the YC.

[Hlitner]

7 hours ago, tnt10 said:

So I'm a little confused:  Are you saying the YC restaurant food is comparable to the MDR on the other (16) cruise lines you have been on?  I would expect the presentation AND the food to be of at least a higher caliber considering the higher price point in the YC.

We all know that the food issue is subjective.  Also understand that the price point of the YC is actually not that high when compared to many other lines,,,,especially the so-called Luxury Lines (i.e. Silverseas, Seabourn, Crystal, Regent, etc).  The food/service were certainly at a somewhat higher caliber then lines like RCI, NCL and Carnival.  Otherwise, there are some items that were excellent (such as the risottos) but things like Prime Rib and Steak were not as good as we have experienced on lines like HAL and Celebrity.   The veal I had in Le Muse was pretty decent and some of the seafood was pretty good.   But I will post a "shocker."  After more then forty years of extensive cruising (on over 75 different ships) there has been no ship that had the quality of cuisine I would expect in a decent land-based restaurant.  In fact, the restaurant quality items we have had in over 1000 cruise nights would likely be less than 10.  

 

So, if you are booking the YC expecting the highest quality gourmet cuisine you will likely be disappointed.  In fact some of the items served in Le Muse were awful.....especially the asparagus which accompanied many dishes.  And the gravy (I will not call it sauce) that they slop on many dishes (such as Prime Rib) were about the same quality as I could get out of a can.  When we returned from the Divina last year and a friend ask for a capsule description of the food I responded, "hit and miss."

 

Hank

[emmas gran]

Totally agree with the previous post. We have done 3 YC cruises this year on 3 different ships , the food has improved since January BUT there is still a lot of room for improvement . Hoping the guy from Celebrity will eventually get it sorted, maybe by our next cruise in February .

[EMc&DrS]

Just off Meraviglia yesterday. Our butler, Pravin, was fantastic.  Before we set sail he came in and asked us if we liked the contents of our mini-bar.  He then switched out the beers to match what we prefer, and when he didn't have Jack Daniels in the mini bottles, he provided us with a small pitcher of Jack that he replenished every time I used the smallest amount.  With that said, we did take our Pringles and nuts on our first excursion and they were never replaced.

[mafig]

2 hours ago, Hlitner said:

 

 

  And the gravy (I will not call it sauce) that they slop on many dishes (such as Prime Rib) were about the same quality as I could get out of a can.  When we returned from the Divina last year and a friend ask for a capsule description of the food I responded, "hit and miss."

 

Hank

 

I forgot about the Prime Rib.☹️  The gravy was horrible, but what was underneath was just as bad.  Our waiter (Seaside) told us it was cooked before and then brought to the desired degree of wellness.  

 

I still love the YC though.