Live Seascape YC (10/21-10/28): The one where we left the kid at home

[kelly94942]

Hi everyone!  I wanted to introduce myself and share that I’m planning to do a live review of my upcoming cruise on Seascape.

 

A bit about me and my travel companion:

 

I’m Kelly – a 40-something mom from the North Texas area.  That’s Dallas, not Amarillo.  Yes, I know Amarillo is further north!  By day I work in the healthcare industry.  I’ve been on a handful of cruises before, this will be my first on MSC, my first suite, my first cruise with only my husband (that sounds weird), and my first attempt at a live review.

 

Each of my previous cruises has been with my husband AND my parents.  My parents are avid cruisers who cruise about 1/3 of the year and have for each of the past 5 or 6 non-COVID years.  For one cruise, we had my sister along for the ride and on our most recent cruise we had our then-4 year old (she’s 5 now).  For this one, we’re taking our first kid free trip while our daughter is safely at home in kindergarten under the watchful eyes of my sister, parents, and in-laws!

I love Cruise Critic and I’m hopeful that I can be as helpful with this live review as others have been for me in my trip planning.

Currently I have no real allegiance to any cruise line, looking forward to seeing if MSC changes that at all.

 

My husband, @StonePayload (aka Geoff), is a 30-something dad (yes, he’s younger than me) who also works in the healthcare industry.  Coincidentally, he also lives in North Texas.  Ha.  He plans to participate in this live review along with me.  Hopefully the added element of competition will help YOU the follower as we try to out-post each other with helpful content!

 

So far on the pre-cruise checklist we’ve booked all the necessary travel, secured care for the kiddo, and ordered a few new travel goodies.  Turns out, it’s pretty easy to travel kid-free.  I don’t think Geoff’s going to require plane snacks and activities that I need to be well prepared for!  Or will he…..!!

 

We also saw about “Cruising Ducks” on YouTube, so we bought some ducks and tags.  We’re going to try to hide and seek some ducks while aboard as well.  We love Geocaching (although admittedly we haven’t done much since our daughter was born) and this seems somewhat similar.  Beyond that we’re looking forward to eating, drinking, reading, and playing games.

[Dgshooter]

Looking forward to your review. We will be boarding the Seascape the day you get back. Will you be in the YC?

 

 

[kelly94942]

39 minutes ago, Dgshooter said:

Looking forward to your review. We will be boarding the Seascape the day you get back. Will you be in the YC?

 

 

Yes we will!

[Dgshooter]

1 hour ago, kelly94942 said:

Yes we will!

Fantastic! This will be our first YC experience. Been on MSC twice before. Can't wait to hear your commentary on the YC.

[deseylou]

I’m boarding the Seascape on Nov 4.

I also ordered rubber cruise ducks😀

[Stem to Stern]

Hi @kelly94942

Thank you for a great introduction to you and @StonePayload 

I am looking forward to following your dueling posts.

We are trying YC for the first time later this year.

Curious how internet cooperates for you on board.

Or if you need to upgrade to their better plan.

I might try a live thread then also.

 

[kelly94942]

18 hours ago, Stem to Stern said:

Curious how internet cooperates for you on board.

Or if you need to upgrade to their better plan.

 

 

We are also wondering about the internet!  We're going to try what's included with YC and upgrade if needed!  @morpheusofthesea was super helpful and told us it was $140 total (for 4 devices) to upgrade for the week on a recent sailing.  So we'll see what happens and will report back on internet for sure.

[Stem to Stern]

2 hours ago, kelly94942 said:

We are also wondering about the internet!  We're going to try what's included with YC and upgrade if needed!  @morpheusofthesea was super helpful and told us it was $140 total (for 4 devices) to upgrade for the week on a recent sailing.  So, we'll see what happens and will report back on internet for sure.

I forget what I read, but I reckon this internet upgrade can be done right in the Yacht Club at the Concierge Desk?  We do like switching between phone and iPad while on board.  We have on-board-credit to burn that we could use for this if required.  Since we could not apply the OBC on our prebooked online excursion.

[gmbhardy]

Hi Kelly. We will be on the Seascape for a B2B starting Nov.4. Please let me know if you see any men wearing shorts in the YC dining room for dinner. Thanks.

[Keys Kathy]

On 10/20/2023 at 7:19 PM, gmbhardy said:

Hi Kelly. We will be on the Seascape for a B2B starting Nov.4. Please let me know if you see any men wearing shorts in the YC dining room for dinner. Thanks.

You can do that on Virgin Voyages. It was a bit weird seeing hairy legs at dinner. I hope men wear slacks, it is only a couple of hours.

[gmbhardy]

1 hour ago, Keys Kathy said:

You can do that on Virgin Voyages. It was a bit weird seeing hairy legs at dinner. I hope men wear slacks, it is only a couple of hours.

My question was very specific and directed at the OP. I did not ask for your opinion on what constitutes appropriate attire in the YC dining room.

[kelly94942]

Greetings from the Top Sail lounge!  It’s just before noon in Miami and we’re comfortably boarded with welcome drinks.  Our flight from Dallas to Miami last night was uneventful (the best type of flight!).  We slept well, went to CVS for water for Geoff’s CPAP, and then Ubered over to the cruise terminal.  I’ve read that it can be a little awkward cutting in big lines during embarkation and debarkation, and that was indeed the case.  The 6 of us who embarked together all commented about it, hopefully that can be improved somewhat when the new terminal opens.  Not a big deal at all though.  The other thing that I read is that it tends to run warm on MSC ships because they’re European, and I’ve indeed found that to be the case so far.  We packed handheld fans, but they’re in our checked luggage.  For future cruises I will make sure that’s in my carry on!

[StonePayload]

Hi everybody!  Husband reporting in.  I am going to add a little more detail about activities than Kelly is.

 

First - we flew out of DFW yesterday afternoon/evening.  We got to the airport a little early so that we could have dinner in the Capital One lounge.  We got an amazing miles offer on the card about a year ago, and loved going to the lounge so much that we kept the card.  This time though, I was a little disappointed in the menu options there.  It is still a nice place to wait for a flight though.

 

 

We were fortunate this time, and our flight left from the same terminal as the lounge.  We left the lounge about 10 minutes before boarding, and made our way to the gate.

 

I am a bit of an aviation nerd, and got very lucky with this flight.  We booked it specifically because a 787-800 was scheduled to fly.  This would be my first experience on the 787, and I was very excited.  Then, when checking in I got an offer to upgrade to Business class that I really couldn’t turn down.  So, we were very lucky and got into seats 4D and 4H.  These are a fully lie flat business class seat.  Definitely a great way to travel.

 

The cabin crew was definitely not used to working this type of plane, as they were scrambling trying to figure out what needed to be stowed/secured in the cabin before takeoff.

 

Once airborne, we were served dinner.

 

 

This is a beef short rib with pimento Mac and cheese.  Two different hummuses(is this a word?), and a carrot cake.  I am drinking Ginger Ale.  The short rib was decent.  Tender, and had some good flavor.  I could barely taste the “pimento” of the Mac and cheese.  A dish that relies on the subtlety of cheeses doesn’t seem like a good idea for an airplane. 

 

We arrived at the gate about 9:30, picked up our luggage, and then were in an Uber by about 10pm or so.  

 

We stayed at the JW Marriot on Brickell.  This hotel is in the middle of a much needed renovation.  For a hotel at the top of the Bonvoy line, I was a little disappointed.  Everything just seemed worn down.

 

About 9am the next morning we made our way down for breakfast at the in house restaurant, Isabellas.  Good selection there, and a fresh omelet bar.  Kelly and I can’t resist one of those!

 

 

Once finished, we crossed the street to go to the CVS.  I needed some distilled water for my CPAP, and Kelly needed some last minute hair ties.  After this, we packed up the room and called an Uber to the ship.  From our location, it took about 20 minutes to arrive at the port.  

 

When exiting the Uber, a few of the porters approached us, and looked at our luggage.  One of them shouted “yacht club!” And then they all disappeared.  We spotted the white tent and headed that way.  A few more porters offered to get our bags for us on the way, but as soon as they heard where we were headed, they just pointed at the tent and walked away.  

 

After we arrived at the white tent, check in was an absolute breeze.  We were on board and seated in the Top Sail lounge in about 15 minutes.  We were offered a mimosa, champagne, or fruit punch when we arrived.  Kelly and I found a seat around the side that was in the shade and nice, and about 10 minutes later our room was ready.  We went to check it out, but no luggage yet.  I dropped my backpack, CPAP, and now leaky gallon of water in the room, and headed back to the lounge.  After about 15 minutes there, Kelly decided she was hungry so we headed up to the Grill and Bar to eat at the buffet.  

 

 

That is where we sit now, having just finished our meal, and getting a couple drinks.  I think we might head back inside to hang out a little more.  Hopefully our bags have arrived, and we can get unpacked.  

 

Coming up - room tour pictures!

 

-G

 

 

[bhughey]

Following! Sailing one week from today - long time Celebrity loyalists trying YC for the first time. 

[Keys Kathy]

7 hours ago, gmbhardy said:

My question was very specific and directed at the OP. I did not ask for your opinion on what constitutes appropriate attire in the YC dining room.

My aren't you pleasant! You could have just ignored my comment if it didn't suit you. I guess your family are the ones who feel men shouldn't dress like gentlemen at dinner in a public dining room. My husband is the one wearing slacks to dinner and a tux on Formal night. Yes, the rest of the time he will be in shorts.

[Stem to Stern]

1 hour ago, bhughey said:

Following! Sailing one week from today - long time Celebrity loyalists trying YC for the first time. 

We are right there with you, although not until December.  It looks like these two will be painting a beautiful portrait of what we have to look forward to in YC.  Our week in YC will be immediately followed by 5 nights in The Retreat (just for comparison's sake.)😉

[kelly94942]

Back at the Top Sail lounge for a sail-away cocktail.  A couple of interesting things we learned: 

• The shops (at least the MSC Shop) doesn’t open until 6:30 PM.  We have a coupon we are hoping to use to buy the cruise ship model Geoff gets on each new ship we sail, and it’s only good the first day.  We’ll pop by there after dinner.
• As everyone seems to agree, the muster process on MSC is ridiculous.  Having everyone going up and down the stairs at the same time is hot and crowded.  Thankfully we had our super cool neck fans (lol) that I bought us.  Those did help with the air flow, but the overall process still isn’t great.
• The walls, at least in our suite, aren’t magnetic for the most part.  It’s not a huge issue for us by any means, but I do bring magnetic hooks and clips, so I’m having to work within the limited amounts of magnetic space that exist.

We met our butler, Ram, and he is great!  He asked about how we wanted our minibar stocked and if we want a daily newspaper.  We also told him that we had a reservation for Butcher’s Cut tomorrow night, and he said he would escort us there.  He mentioned the name of the junior butler as well, but I can’t recall it and haven’t yet met him.

 

I snagged the map dress that @GenerationX always wears for a steal on Amazon, and I must say that I’ve had so many comments on it!  People love it.  I got a chuckle when one man said to me “I won’t point out on your dress where I’m from….” 😀

[Essiesmom]

GenX is on Beyond now, doing a Live from, and wore that dress boarding day.  Her husband did not have a matching shirt.  EM

[Stem to Stern]

1 hour ago, kelly94942 said:

We have a coupon we are hoping to use to buy the cruise ship model Geoff gets on each new ship we sail, and it’s only good the first day.

Where did you get the coupon?

[CarolnLarry]

The ship model is really heavy.  I won one in a raffle of everyone who made a purchase in the shop given away on the last day. I had to put it in my carryon luggage. You should have seen the xray people as I went through the check in process for my flight.  They thought it was a bomb in my carryon luggage.  when they saw what it was they also smiled.

[kelly94942]

On 10/20/2023 at 12:00 PM, Stem to Stern said:

I forget what I read, but I reckon this internet upgrade can be done right in the Yacht Club at the Concierge Desk? 

It actually can be done right on your phone in the MSC For Me app.  Of course, they are happy to help you at the concierge desk as well.

[kelly94942]

On 10/20/2023 at 7:19 PM, gmbhardy said:

Please let me know if you see any men wearing shorts in the YC dining room for dinner

Indeed!  About a third of the men on night 1 (casual night) were wearing shorts.  We also asked Ram (our butler) and he said that it’s no problem for men to wear shorts in the YC dining room.  He said the only night it’s not allowed is formal night / gala night / chic night (whatever it’s called on MSC! 😃) and that they will definitely turn you away then.  He said it wouldn’t be his fault if we were turned away that night!  LOL.

[kelly94942]

4 hours ago, Essiesmom said:

GenX is on Beyond now, doing a Live from, and wore that dress boarding day.  Her husband did not have a matching shirt.

I’m following along with her live review!  (She and I are sorority sisters - she’s obviously the far more fun one of the two of us!)

[kelly94942]

3 hours ago, Stem to Stern said:

Where did you get the coupon?

It’s for silver status on MSC - Geoff is Platinum Plus on Bonvoy (Marriott) and did a status match.  That $10 coupon benefit starts at whatever level is below silver on MSC.  The status match was super easy/fast, he had it within a day of requesting it using the online form.

[kelly94942]

3 hours ago, CarolnLarry said:

The ship model is really heavy

The ship model has been acquired, as has a Lego model of the ship (so cool!  Never seen that before) and an MSC “stuffy” (stuffed bear) for our daughter.