OBSERVATIONS FROM THE POOP DECK SEASCAPE JULY

[DaKahuna]

9 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

DW likes to cover the furniture with blue towels.

 

 My DW always ask for sheets to cover the couches. 

 She also ask for towels to cover any chairs.  We are in lesser suites so have not had loungers to worry about so far. 

 

Edited July 21 by DaKahuna

[chrisgp999]

27 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

I agree with you. Maybe they put it in our RS & OS staterooms to appreciate that our butlers have the discretion to make it complimentary.

NF is also on the complimentary wine list in the YC dining room.  

[morpheusofthesea]

1 minute ago, chrisgp999 said:

NF is also on the complimentary wine list in the YC dining room.  

It is all complimentary by the glass. Just not by the bottle. Butler said that they stopped the miniatures because they knew guests were just packing/stocking them up to take home because there were never any empties in the garbage. Yes they go through the garbage and sort it.

[Best Cat Mom]

1 hour ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Ship cabins, hotel rooms, etc are not that sterile.

 

22 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

My DW always ask for sheets to cover the couches.

I have always covered non-leather surfaces. Being a road warrior before retirement, I had lots of hotel rooms that needed extra towels every single night. 😉

Edited July 21 by Best Cat Mom

[chrisgp999]

14 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

It is all complimentary by the glass. Just not by the bottle. Butler said that they stopped the miniatures because they knew guests were just packing/stocking them up to take home because there were never any empties in the garbage. Yes they go through the garbage and sort it.

A few years ago DW and I were wondering when MSC would wise up and get rid of the miniature bottles. We have a family member who, upon learning of this benefit, would surely bring a spare suitcase or two. 

 

I was never charged for a bottle of NF on our recent Seascape cruise; in our cabin or YC dining room. Funny, the more we drank, the better it tasted. Guess I’m letting my blue-collar childhood come thru.  
 

 

[DaKahuna]

52 minutes ago, Best Cat Mom said:

 

I have always covered non-leather surfaces. Being a road warrior before retirement, I had lots of hotel rooms that needed extra towels every single night. 😉

 

 As an expirement, have you ever turned off the lights and shined a black light in your hotel room or cabin?  I don't recommend it 🙂  Don't ask me how I know. 

 

[Two Wheels Only]

3 hours ago, Moz said:

 I wonder if you realize how the word steerage comes across to the majority who are fortunate just to able to cruise in regular fashion,

 

 

It's usually just a callback to a popular movie. 😉

Edited July 21 by Two Wheels Only

[Best Cat Mom]

Just now, DaKahuna said:

As an expirement, have you ever turned off the lights and shined a black light in your hotel room or cabin?

Definitely not! I do not want to know it. Towels are my friend -- is all I know.

[morpheusofthesea]

This is most interesting thanks to @dazse16.  For sale on Ebay.

MSC Yacht Club Wristbands From MSC Seascape 2024

Opens in a new window or tab

Pre-Owned

$29.99

Buy It Now

Free shipping

Now any steerage passenger can sneak into the Yacht Club.

Edited July 22 by morpheusofthesea

[Mommapadraig]

2 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

This is most interesting thanks to @dazse16.  For sale on Ebay.

MSC Yacht Club Wristbands From MSC Seascape 2024

Opens in a new window or tab

Pre-Owned

$29.99

Buy It Now

Free shipping

Now any steerage passenger can sneak into the Yacht Club.

MSC needs to collect them before we leave.

[Two Wheels Only]

17 minutes ago, Mommapadraig said:

MSC needs to collect them before we leave.

 

Even something as simple as a sticker (different colors and shapes) that is unique to each sailing. Having a wristband with the wrong combination or no sticker at all would make the interlopers easier to spot.

 

The sticker would have to be strong enough to survive a week of swimming, water slides, hot tubs, showers, etc.....not going to happen. 😔

 

How much more would it cost MSC to make wristbands with a variety of colors and shapes on them? 

[morpheusofthesea]

On 7/18/2024 at 10:09 AM, morpheusofthesea said:

Seascape Yacht Club rated #1 for months amongst entire fleet. Exit popular YC Director and Seascape plummets to #4 in three weeks. Drop is attributed to low grades from unsatisfactory ship excursion/tour experiences with genpop (steerage). Will new YC exclusive tours be well received and even used by YC guests at higher cost ? Will YCers still take the ordinary  tours and excursions and opt to complain and give YC low grades in this category.  Why was the recently departed YC Director able to get high (10 scores) from guests in the shore excursion category  instead of the now reported 3 and 6 ratings ? The answer really skews, alters, biases, misrepresents and  slants this and perhaps many if not all the the ratings.

Rereading my posts. ("Traveling on a cruise ship I always bring my diary. One must always have something sensational to read." Oscar Wilde) I neglected to give the answer to why the Seascape Yacht Club had the highest ratings in the fleet. It was because every YC guest that came back from an excursion mixed in with steerage that had a complaint of any sort and confronted the YC Director Mustafa, he would placate with a bottle of Champagne and a box of Venchi chocolates and an apology letter.  When these guests got home and filled out their emailed survey, instead of 3 or 6, they gave 10 ratings.

[morpheusofthesea]

Why are the surveys so important to staff ? Firstly the Yacht Club staff have very little to do with excursions, yet their performance is tied into the excursions ratings by YC guests. Since YCDirector Mustafa's departure the Seascape has gone from #1 to #4. The entire staff were receiving monetary bonuses for the weeks in which they were rated #1. Today no more bonus.

   Perhaps this will change with the Yacht Club exclusive excursions being offered with no steerage passengers allowed. But what about YC guests that opt for the lower priced steerage excursions ? Will MSC still rate the YC by those or only the new exclusive tours?

Edited July 22 by morpheusofthesea

[mica178]

7 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

This is most interesting thanks to @dazse16.  For sale on Ebay.

MSC Yacht Club Wristbands From MSC Seascape 2024

Opens in a new window or tab

Pre-Owned

$29.99

Buy It Now

Free shipping

Now any steerage passenger can sneak into the Yacht Club.

Please tell me they verify that you are a YC guest before selling the bracelet? I'm assuming they are for sale at all forthose individuals who lose theirs? (Please???!!!)

[Two Wheels Only]

15 minutes ago, mica178 said:

Please tell me they verify that you are a YC guest before selling the bracelet? I'm assuming they are for sale at all forthose individuals who lose theirs? (Please???!!!)

 

On the ship, the concierge can give you a replacement wristband at no charge. The wristbands that are for sale to everyone else are sold elsewhere on the ship...

 

...and do not have the Yacht Club logo on them. The ones being sold on eBay are from former Yacht Club guests who are selling their old wristbands. 

Edited July 22 by Two Wheels Only

[morpheusofthesea]

21 minutes ago, mica178 said:

Please tell me they verify that you are a YC guest before selling the bracelet? I'm assuming they are for sale at all for those individuals who lose theirs? (Please???!!!)

 Verify ? I want to believe in the Tooth Fairy too. The bracelets do not work to open doors or call elevators after the cruise is over. But they do work as a visual to fool staff, bartenders, and other guests that they belong in the YC. One would even be so kind as to hold the door open for a fellow wrist band wearer as well.

Edited July 22 by morpheusofthesea

[Pizaz]

As a person who dresses like a homeless person and only sails YC, usurpers are most easily identifiable because they act odd.  I run by the mantra of "treat people as people and you will generally have a good time".  Staff always get along with me and my DW and go out of their way to assist us because we are just two people enjoying a getaway and don't have any pompous attitude.  An example is day three or so of a cruise and they are walking around just in awe staring around at things.  The most hilarious I've seen is a couple and their child in the YC One Pool Deck using their Orange towels... 😄 

[Bgwest]

3 minutes ago, Pizaz said:

The most hilarious I've seen is a couple and their child in the YC One Pool Deck using their Orange towels... 😄 

Is there more to the “orange towel” saga?

[eastoftheboston]

23 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

I came from fifty years of being in “steerage “. Tired of loud music coming from my neighbors cabin all hours of the day and night. Tired of having drinks poured on my head from above while sitting on my veranda. Tired of my neighbors smoking on their balcony while I’m trying to enjoy the ocean air. Tired of having to walk the hallways avoiding soiled dishes placed outside their cabins instead of calling room service to remove them. Tired of waiting in lines with inconsiderate strangers coughing and sneezing without covering. And most importantly I am not running for public office to worry about a majority vote.

P.S. Is steerage worse on US sailings? See posting below it is in 6 languages.

 

I use the term "The Great Unwashed" LOL

I think I heard it once in an airport lounge referring to people who had to wait at the gate, and it's been living rent free in my head ever since.

(I also freely use the term on myself when I don't have lounge access. I've only ever sailed YC while on MSC, but I've definitely lived it up among The Great Unwashed on some other cruise lines!)

[morpheusofthesea]

1 hour ago, eastoftheboston said:

I use the term "The Great Unwashed"

We all have are own little terms of endearment for ourselves and others.

[ChanelChanel35]

Random Question @morpheusofthesea (looking forward to our first MSC YC cruise next year). Does the YC Drink Package cover all cocktails consumed outside of YC as well? Or do you have to pay the difference if you order a drink over a set limit?

[morpheusofthesea]

12 minutes ago, ChanelChanel35 said:

Random Question @morpheusofthesea (looking forward to our first MSC YC cruise next year). Does the YC Drink Package cover all cocktails consumed outside of YC as well? Or do you have to pay the difference if you order a drink over a set limit?

From my understanding the complimentary Premium Drink package works all over the ship. The only problem one might experience outside the YC is service. One might have to wave some bills around to get service outside the YC.

Edited July 22 by morpheusofthesea

[Mommapadraig]

3 hours ago, mica178 said:

Please tell me they verify that you are a YC guest before selling the bracelet? I'm assuming they are for sale at all forthose individuals who lose theirs? (Please???!!!)

I’m sure they don’t. You can buy anything on ebay

[Two Wheels Only]

1 hour ago, ChanelChanel35 said:

Random Question @morpheusofthesea (looking forward to our first MSC YC cruise next year). Does the YC Drink Package cover all cocktails consumed outside of YC as well? Or do you have to pay the difference if you order a drink over a set limit?

 

Yacht Club gets the Premium Extra Package (higher limit than Easy Plus Package) that can be used at bars outside of the Yacht Club. Certain places like Venchi 1878 Chocolate Bar and Jean-Philippe Chocolat & Café aren't included in the package. If you go over the limit, you pay the difference. 

[DaKahuna]

9 hours ago, Mommapadraig said:

MSC needs to collect them before we leave.

 

 I agree with you but I think there are too many people that want to collect them as souveniers.  MSC collecting them at the end of a cruise might cause and uproar.  

 

4 hours ago, Two Wheels Only said:

The ones being sold on eBay are from former Yacht Club guests who are selling their old wristbands. 

 

 It is  unfortunate that there is no way to prevent this from happening.  

 

 I am tempted to buy one, bring my NFC hardware and software with me on the cruise and see if I can clone a new ones information onto an old band and make i work. 

 

 The good news is, the ones on eBay will not open doors.  The bad news is, as @morpheusofthesea said,that YC passengers cannot tell if it is a valid wrist band or not and will allow interlopers to tailgate and once you are inside the boundary, no one really checks to see if you are valid if you are wearing your wrist band. 

 

1 hour ago, morpheusofthesea said:

One might have to wave some bills around to get service outside the YC.

 

 I did not find that to be the case when I had drinks with non-YC people I met through Cruise critic.  It was just a matter of going to the bar, waiting my turn or flagging down a server and asking for a drink.  Of course I tipped when served and had no problems getting a second drink after that. 

 

1 hour ago, ChanelChanel35 said:

Or do you have to pay the difference if you order a drink over a set limit?

 

 If your purchase a drink that is prive3d above the package limit, then you pay the difference plus the 20% gratuity.