***LIVE*** from MSC Divina YC (Yacht Club) - Western Caribbean Miami 7 April to 18 April 2024

[cruisebeachgirl703]

On 4/9/2024 at 6:11 PM, Best Cat Mom said:

Here are some images cropped from the YC cocktail party group pictures in case you want to know who is who.

 

Mehmet, Le Muse maitre' d:

 

Antonio, Le Muse chef:

 

Tiziana, YC Director:

 

Simone, YC Head Concierge:

 

Rudy, YC Head Butler:

 

Cruise Director David:

 

Captain Antonino Sammartano:

 

I used Microsoft Windows Snipping Tool on these cropped images. Sorry that they all are different sizes.

 

More about Day 2 coming next...

that's great. thanks.

[cruisebeachgirl703]

So happy you are posting your week. Enjoying following along very much.

[NYHartChapp]

38 minutes ago, cruisebeachgirl703 said:

So happy you are posting your week. Enjoying following along very much.

Ditto. 

[NYHartChapp]

We’re boarding Divina for the sixth time next week for our first transatlantic crossing.  Can’t wait!

[Best Cat Mom]

12 minutes ago, NYHartChapp said:

We’re boarding Divina for the sixth time next week for our first transatlantic crossing.

We brought Divina back from Europe just 5 months ago for our first transatlantic crossing. We had a great time. As far as I know right now, there are only a few YC staff who won't be on for your cruise -- Hubert in TSL and Susmita, Assistant Server in Le Muse. If I find out about any others, I can let you know. We definitely recommend Glenn and Ryan for your server team in Le Muse. We had them for the crossing and for this cruise and they will take great care of you. Of course, there are many other teams that work just as well. You'll get to know most of the servers since they rotate around for breakfast and lunch.

[DaKahuna]

7 hours ago, Best Cat Mom said:

Then we had 2 rounds of our usual sidecars and old fashioneds and called it a night.

 

 Please tell Hubert that John misses his New Fashioned !  

 

[Cathy in Boston]

@Best Cat Mom First, we just want to say how nice it was to meet you!  In regards to the folks you heard complaining, I’m not really sure what there is to complain about.  We have loved the YC, and we’ve also enjoyed exploring the ship in general.  We’re sold on MSC YC.  Just trying to figure out if we can fit another cruise in our budget!

[NYHartChapp]

16 hours ago, Best Cat Mom said:

We brought Divina back from Europe just 5 months ago for our first transatlantic crossing. We had a great time. As far as I know right now, there are only a few YC staff who won't be on for your cruise -- Hubert in TSL and Susmita, Assistant Server in Le Muse. If I find out about any others, I can let you know. We definitely recommend Glenn and Ryan for your server team in Le Muse. We had them for the crossing and for this cruise and they will take great care of you. Of course, there are many other teams that work just as well. You'll get to know most of the servers since they rotate around for breakfast and lunch.

Thanks.  We were also on back in January.  Ryan took care of us most nights in Le Muse.  Dwi was our butler.  Was sorry to see that Pepe has left, though. 

[Best Cat Mom]

Day 4 -- Sea Day

 

We set the clocks back one hour last night so we lost an hour of sleep. But we soldiered on, and still had the coffee and Baileys delivered at 7:30am. Holidays can be so challenging!

 

When we walked to the aft on deck 15 to Le Muse, we were shocked at how windy it was today. Whitecaps were on the ocean but we'd seen them other days and never had quite this much wind. We did not make it to the restaurant walking outside and had to duck in just after the pool to walk the rest of the way inside.

 

We each had a mimosa and a cappuccino:

 

BCD had eggs benedict with 5 slices of crispy bacon:

 

I had 2 six-minute eggs with grilled ham:

 

We returned to our cabin and it had already been serviced. Richard is a wonderful junior butler. He is so efficient. Our bathroom always smells like it has be thoroughly disinfected.

 

For anyone who is considering our 15022 cabin, one thing to note is that our balcony can only be opened to join with the balcony on our left. To the right is a small passthrough but it does not go all the way to the floor of the balcony.

 

Left side of 15022 balcony:

 

Right side of 15022 balcony:

 

The "cannot open to the right" situation seems to coincide with the emergency door in the corridor to the right just outside of our cabin:

 

This does not matter at all to us, but I'm pointing it out in case someone wants to open that balcony. It is not at all indicated on the floor plan and could be an unwanted surprise:

 

Once we collected my laptop and BCD's car supplies from the cabin, we headed back to TSL for some quiet time.

 

Before we knew it, lunchtime was upon us. We walked (inside) back to Le Muse to accept some champagne and do some reading:

 

 

I started with the pea soup:

 

BCD opted for a chicken caesar salad:

 

Then he moved on to a Heineken and a burger with extra onion rings:

 

 

When BCD orders a Heineken, they always request a cruise card to go the Garden Bar to "purchase" it for us. There is no charge, of course, but I guess the bar needs a cruise card to record the cabin number and reduce it from inventory. They usually get more than one at a "just in case." They know my BCD pretty well by now.

 

I chose to have merlot with pork:

 

 

I had not had the pork -- called "pork feather" on the menu, must be one of those weird translations, like when we see "shrimps" on menus in Venice -- previously. It was a really nice Asian glaze that I was pleasantly surprised to be GF. I'm so used to having my preparations with no sauce, no dressing, no pizazz but not this time. 🙂

 

Day 4 conclusion coming next...

 

 

[Best Cat Mom]

Day 4 conclusion...

 

After an enjoyable afternoon in TSL, we returned to the cabin to change for dinner. We've only had one non-casual dress day per MSC since boarding; that was the first Gala night. We still like to change our clothes for dinner and usually dress up, though we do occasionally dress more "business casual" for dinner. We've done that once so far on this cruise, with probably 2 more total for the 11 dinners. We have joked that we would LOVE to know how unsophisticated does our attire have to be for the photographers to leave us alone. Dodging them on deck 7 could be a new Olympic event.

 

We arrived in Le Muse around 8pm. Champagne and menus were forced upon us and we accepted just to be polite.

 

 

For our starters, we both chose one of our favorites -- beef tartare. We dove into them so fast that no pictures were taken, though.

 

For our mains, we both ordered the short ribs. We are not lovers of the pumpkin flavor, so we did not want the risotto. Instead we asked Glenn -- and he said yes! -- if we could have a plate of the truffle mashed potatoes (those scoops are not ice cream).

 

 

We had Oberon cabernet sauvignon to accompany the main course and Ryan graciously left the bottle on our table:

 

We indulged in some of our favorite coconut ice cream with Kahlua for dessert at Ryan's suggestion. (He can be a bad influence -- and we gladly allow it!)

 

After dinner, we enjoyed 2 rounds of Hubert's libations in TSL. When we arrived back in the room, we found some goodies:

 

Day 5 is Aruba...

[Dock B]

@Best Cat Mom loving your review—thank you for taking time to share with all of us.

 

We’ll sail Divina this coming December in YC as our 3rd MSC cruise.

 

Our cabin is 2 doors aft from yours, 15026. Anything we need to know about the location (noise, interlopers…anything positive or not-so-positive). We won’t try to change rooms but if there is something to be aware of, this will give us time to moderate our expectations  if we need to.
 

Regardless of anything, we plan on having a lovely, relaxing time in YC!!

 

I thank you for your insight.

 

PS: got any photos from the auto garage yet?!?

[Best Cat Mom]

Day 5 Daily Programs:

 

 

 

 

 

[Best Cat Mom]

21 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

Please tell Hubert that John misses his New Fashioned !

I showed Hubert your post and he was flattered. 🙂

[Best Cat Mom]

Just now, Dock B said:

Our cabin is 2 doors aft from yours, 15026. Anything we need to know about the location (noise, interlopers…anything positive or not-so-positive).

Here is the plan for deck 15 on Divina:

 

I think your room is in a great location. Your bed and bathroom will be on the left when you enter the cabin, if that matters to you. This is our preferred configuration, though we've had Future Cruise Consultants tell us that most people prefer the bed on the right. The crew accesses the area to maintain the cabins (sheets, towels, etc.) via a door at the area marked in yellow. We've never heard any noise from that doorway, rest assured. The path marked in red will take you from the public elevators (on the left) to the entrance to YC across from cabin 15030 to the entrance to the TSL (all the way to the right). You can also enter TSL via the blue path through the Concierge Area. We like to pass by the concierges and say hi several times a day. If we ever need their assistance, I like that we've established a sorta happy relationship with them in advance.

 

Hope that helps. And enjoy your cruise -- buon viaggio!

[Best Cat Mom]

Just now, Dock B said:

PS: got any photos from the auto garage yet?!?

I was perplexed by the PS. Then BCD kinda nudged me and reminded me of the cars he's been building. How could I forget? Mi dispiace!!

 

He's made 4 so far and given away 3 of them. Now he is working a Gen 3 design with a bigger body. I will post an image when he deems his design ready for the public. 😉

 

Meanwhile, here are the cars BCD completed after we returned home with the remaining supplies from our transatlantic:

[CRUISINGADDICT]

On 4/8/2024 at 4:23 PM, Best Cat Mom said:

Day 1

 

We awoke as the sun was beginning to rise. Our room did not face east but my senses still perceived the lightening of the sky, likely because of my enthusiasm for what today would bring.

 

We had the free breakfast and ate just enough to get us to our first lunch at Le Muse, talking about how much better breakfast would be on board.

 

At 10:20am, we checked out of Hyatt Place and ordered our Uber to the port. It arrived promptly at 10:25am -- a great advantage of having a hotel near the airport. There was no traffic so we arrived at the port, checked our luggage at the YC tent and were escorted to the security area by 10:50am. Thirty minutes from hotel check out to ship security? I'll take it!

 

Five minutes later the ship had apparently been cleared and the YC guests were allowed to pass through security before the other guests who were lined up near us. There were about 20 or so guests in the YC pre-security seating area and maybe 200-250 other guests lined up separate from us.

 

Divina embarkation for this cruise was at Terminal C. We've never boarded at C before, though we did disembark at this terminal after our last cruise. BCD remembered the area because it's where he had to go to retrieve his confiscated Leatherman multi-tool at the end of our transatlantic crossing in December.

 

After security, we entered a YC guest area to provide credentials and receive cruise cards, taking pictures if needed. BCD had added his picture when he did his online check in and they did not take a new picture of him. I had used his picture (!) for my check in so they took a new picture of me. We were told to have a seat to wait for a butler escort. There were no refreshments and only about 16 seats. There was a line of us 20 at first, but guests coming after the first 15 minutes or so were checked in as soon as they were brought to the area.

 

At 11:07am, the group of us were taken upstairs by Head Butler Rudy. We did need to show our boarding pass again before going up the escalator. We were led to a seating area with refreshments:

 

There was prosecco (not semi-sweet but dry, similar to champagne), water (still and gas), fruit juice, mixed nuts and -- good news for those of you who covet them -- chocolate covered peanuts. We opted for some prosecco:

 

The entire group of us were escorted onto the ship at 11:35am and were firmly ensconsed in the Top Sail Lounge (TSL) by 11:42am. Another group of about 10 guests joined us in TSL just ten minutes later.

 

The head concierge Simone was circulating in TSL, welcoming people on board and answering questions. Another crew member was available to help with connecting to the internet. And one TSL butler was letting people know when their cabin was available. We were told that the buffet on the One Pool Deck was serving lunch beginning at noon and Le Muse would begin seating at 12:30pm today. Our cabin was available just before noon. We dropped off our 2 carry on bags, freshened up and headed to Le Muse to arrive just after 12:30pm.

 

Lunch details in next post…

 

[CRUISINGADDICT]

Just noticed that you are in cabin 15022. We have booked the same cabin for the January 17 to 27, 2025. We loved the Divina YC our first time around just before the pandemic. It’s my favorite from among the other YCs we sailed. Enjoy!!!

[Best Cat Mom]

On 4/11/2024 at 8:16 PM, Cathy in Boston said:

how nice it was to meet you!

It was great to meet the two of you as well. I'm so glad you're enjoying YC as much as we are. It's nice to know that we're not exaggerating how good this cruise has been. Sometimes I worry that we overlook all the "misses" that others wind up pointing out. I've never thought that we're easy to please, but reading some reviews makes me wonder if maybe we are.

[TrinaLC]

How is the YC Director compared to the wonderful Pepe? We are so sorry he won’t be on the TA. When we sailed earlier this year he had every plan to be on the TA (while Mehmet was up on the air on his return plans). 

Edited April 13 by TrinaLC

[Best Cat Mom]

Day 5 - Aruba

 

When we read that Le Muse closed a half hour earlier today, at 8:30am, we figured that was because were arriving early to Aruba at 7am.

 

Instead of getting up at our usual time for breakfast, we decided to sleep in. We changed our Baileys and coffee to be delivered an hour later at 8:30am and planned to eat up on the One Pool deck, which is open until 10am.

 

At 8:42am, they called Mike Echo over the public address system (PA). Most of you probably know that Mike Echo is ship code for Medical Emergency. I said to BCD that at least we were in port and that could be a good thing for whoever was in cabin 9012 this morning.

 

We arrived at the One Pool deck at 9:45am and ordered 2 coconut rums with orange juice. No mimosas you say? Well, it was very windy and we were concerned about tall glasses so...

 

BCD helped himself to the buffet:

 

I ordered an egg white omelet with bacon and cheese and grabbed some bacon from the buffet:

 

I think that they must expect more Americans at the pool buffet since the omelets there are more "American style" than in Le Muse. Le Muse seems to be European style, which is fine too. The styles are different and we like them both.

 

We walked back to the room and BCD used the Pano (panoramic) setting on this iPhone to take this image of the port:

 

By around 11am, we were back in TSL enjoying an espresso martini and a Woodford Reserve. We chatted with crew and they commented that they enjoy the sailings in North America the most because the passengers tend to be more friendly and talkative. They said that in Europe the guests treated crew more like servants. We were a bit disheartened to hear that perspective.

 

There have been lots of crew drills this morning. Over the PA we've heard about fires on board, orders to abandon ship and other various disasters -- all just drills thankfully. They do announce that these are drills but if you've missed the beginning of the announcement, it might not be obvious at first.

 

I asked about the ME this morning, hoping that it was part of the drill as well. Unfortunately, we found out that it was a true ME.

 

We also found out that Rudy expects to be off Divina in June. He's not certain where he'll be when he returns in ~September but he does believe he'll be in the Caribbean.

 

Day 5 lunch coming next...

[cruisebeachgirl703]

Keep the review and pics coming! Loving it.

[morpheusofthesea]

Having sailed on a couple of MSC Yacht Club cruises, we have found that many of our past favorite staff are gone or rotated to other MSC vessels. BUT NEVER FEAR ! It only means ones sphere of favorites is about to expand. Bring a note book. Have discovered that even the waiters with black ties are just as good as those with the coveted gold ties. Here is another random comparison of staff and crew that just came to my mind which we just experienced while on board Regent Seven Seas Grandeur. A lady waiting with us to exit the Grandeur ask a passing staff member what was the hold up getting off to catch a flight. His answer "It's not my department" and continued on his way. On MSC I stopped and asked a crew member painting the railings in overhauls where was something, he stopped, put down his paint brush and escorted me all the way to where I wanted to be.

[Cruzinforpeace***]

51 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Having sailed on a couple of MSC Yacht Club cruises, we have found that many of our past favorite staff are gone or rotated to other MSC vessels. BUT NEVER FEAR ! It only means ones sphere of favorites is about to expand. Bring a note book. Have discovered that even the waiters with black ties are just as good as those with the coveted gold ties. Here is another random comparison of staff and crew that just came to my mind which we just experienced while on board Regent Seven Seas Grandeur. A lady waiting with us to exit the Grandeur ask a passing staff member what was the hold up getting off to catch a flight. His answer "It's not my department" and continued on his way. On MSC I stopped and asked a crew member painting the railings in overhauls where was something, he stopped, put down his paint brush and escorted me all the way to where I wanted to be.

We also experienced very helpful crew from many different levels.  I’ve never seen so many smiling cleaning staff on a ship before.  They seemed genuinely happy to be there.

[Best Cat Mom]

Day 5 continues...

 

We headed to Le Muse for lunch. Just before closing at 1:30pm -- also all aboard time -- YC guests started arriving, as they were returning from excursions.

 

We chose to drink champagne throughout our lunch.

 

Menu:

 

 

We both chose the chef's salad to start, BCD's with dressing and mine without (to keep it GF):

 

 

Then we both chose the sole for our mains, with mine altered to be GF:

 

 

 

We stopped at the casino on the way back to our cabin.

 

A little about the casino to follow...

 

[no1talks]

14 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

"On MSC I stopped and asked a crew member painting the railings in overhauls where was something, he stopped, put down his paint brush and escorted me all the way to where I wanted to be."

 

His name must not be Tom.

 

Otherwise, he would have talked you into painting the railings for him.