1st Time MSC Cruiser on the Seashore - Is YC worth the extra cost on a bid?

[Morgsmom]

Either way you will have an awesome cruise!  It's all how you look at it.  We've done everything from Bella Balcony to Aurea Whirlpool balcony to YC inside to YC balcony - enjoyed all of the cruises.  It really is what you make of it.

[Elkins45]

I wish they would offer a YC tour for the unwashed masses. It’s hard for me to plunk down that kind of money for something unknown.

[luckyinpa]

11 hours ago, Elkins45 said:

I wish they would offer a YC tour for the unwashed masses. It’s hard for me to plunk down that kind of money for something unknown.

 

not a tour...but some factual info from my perspective that YC is the cheapest BEST deal anywhere. and ive spent MUCH more finding out.

 

for the money i spent on the bermuda YC on Mera, i got better service and perks with my tiny deluxe balcony than i have  on

 

1. royal suite on liberty of the seas..best suite on the ship..1600 sq ft and piano!  but NO included drinks, no wifi, no suite restaurant for lunch and dinner, no 'private' suite deck, no butler. you pay for the room , nothing else. oh wait, i got 6 free bottles of water. but the room was the BEST ive been in to date.

 

2, 1 bedroom aqua theater and crown loft suite on oasis:  no included drinks except during X to X hours ( you gotta drink on their schedule), suite deck was wayyyy on the other side of the ship and the bar was almost never open there, no butler. there was a nice suite restaurant and some snacks in the lounge during the day. you could ask for soda and water at any time and lug it back to your fridge in your suite. it DOES help you get your steps in but what a pain.

 

3. haven...been in 2 bedroom, courtyard penthouse and spa suite. you have to show a card everytime you want a drink even IN haven. its because the drink pack isnt truly free. sooo stupid to have to show a card when you pay 2 to 3 times the price as YC.  also the haven pools are a joke and so small. more kiddy wading pools. the menu in the restaurant stays the same....4 nite..100 nite cruise. how boring!  the butlers we have had were all not so friendly and barely made appearances. just the last day to get the tip.  there are no lounge snacks at all. just stuff set out in the restaurant.  after being freed in YC to get any drink anytime and not show a card you dont realize how freeing that is.

 

4. i got a cheap upgrade to a princess full suite a few years ago. but even at that level there was just an initial mini bar free but not any other drinks. there was no suite restaurant, they cram you in the front of the MDR in a special section and call it the suite restaurant i guess. you are so close together and the service wasnt good at all. no free wifi, there was a concierge lounge but nothing but water and juice there and a conciege that was annoyed that i asked him a question. princess has NO free perks with their upper suites that i find of value at all.

 

these are the perks i loved with YC and ive discovered i can even slum it in a balcony there because the perks are so good. i will admit i hate the smaller , very hard to access closet and bathroom. but thats life! 

 

drinks in YC without showing a card

drinks anywhere in the ship free NOT on a schedule

drinks refilled in your fridge every day

close by suite deck

fantastic lunch and bfast poolside buffet and cooked to order food delivered to you

2pm ice cream brought to you on the suite deck

much larger pool than any haven deck ive been on

friendlier butlers who actually share some duties, if one not yours sees you need help. they help you! never in haven

rotating menu in the restaurant.

newspaper (irregular delivery though)

nicely spaced out seating in the restaurant. i HATE butt seats in all the other MDR and most other restaurants. where you shove your butt sideways onto your neighbors table while they eat so you can slide back to the rear seat.

there's a 6 am to 2 am schedule of snacks that are mostly pretty good compared to other lounges which may not be as good nor frequent

 

if you toured YC on youtube it's plain to see it is worth it. also i dont want to assume. but if you never did any suites anywhere. this IS the one to try. i booked a second one in my tiny balcony cabin vs my super large suites im used to on other lines because YC has it ALL at such a cheap price, and yes cabins are important to me, i spent lots of time in them. 

 

i could pay 500PP for the 2 story suite but it is not located in YC proper and i love being on deck 16 next to the lounge for drinks and snacks.  it is literally the cheapest suite (except that royal suite i got was cheaper) ive had in my life but the best perks and overall service anywhere ive been! if you can suffer in an interior, it's really a no brainer to get YC interior vs any other balcony on any other line. so many are much more expensive. and dont include what YC does.

 

i dont know how YC is so cheap compared to other lines that are 2 to 3x more . i dont see that much more value there. ill be trying out an edge villa  on celebrity (4x the YC price) in a few months and will definitely report back that trip vs my YC trips.  it's my retirement cruise so i booked it long ago before i even thought of YC. we will see if i regret it or not. stay tuned

 

 

 

 

 

 

[MonsterJoe]

I would bet that those who were willing to plunk down that money for YC would not take kindly to being gawked at like zoo animals throughout their sailing.

[Mezqal]

don't feed the inmates with banana....🤡

[morpheusofthesea]

3 hours ago, luckyinpa said:

from my perspective that YC is the cheapest BEST deal anywhere. and ive spent MUCH more finding out.

 

Doppelgänger.

[DaKahuna]

15 hours ago, Elkins45 said:

I wish they would offer a YC tour for the unwashed masses. It’s hard for me to plunk down that kind of money for something unknown.

 

There are lots and lots of video's on YouTube that cover almost every aspect of the YC.  
Those and a few reviews by cruisers from other cruise lines, especially Celebrity, that compare and contrast, were what lead us to take the leap and do our first MSC Cruise in the YC.  Once we did, I was hooked. 

 

[luckyinpa]

3 hours ago, MonsterJoe said:

I would bet that those who were willing to plunk down that money for YC would not take kindly to being gawked at like zoo animals throughout their sailing.

 

id be open to being a compensated endorser. pay me X and ill give the tour of YC and even eat a meal with the payor.  since everything but grats are included in YC, id say if they covered my grats thats fair compensation for an hour of my time

 

edit: add to my list above

 

YC charges same grats as non YC. dont think any other ship within a ship has the same grats for the entire ship!

Edited August 8 by luckyinpa

[morpheusofthesea]

3 hours ago, MonsterJoe said:

I would bet that those who were willing to plunk down that money for YC would not take kindly to being gawked at like zoo animals throughout their sailing.

I learned a new wave for just such an occasion.

[chrisgp999]

1 hour ago, luckyinpa said:

 

id be open to being a compensated endorser. pay me X and ill give the tour of YC and even eat a meal with the payor.  since everything but grats are included in YC, id say if they covered my grats thats fair compensation for an hour of my time

 

edit: add to my list above

 

YC charges same grats as non YC. dont think any other ship within a ship has the same grats for the entire ship!

Per latest info on MSC's website, YC daily gratuities/service charges are now $20/pp.  GenPop area remains at $16.  See below.

 

CARIBBEAN, BERMUDA, CANADA & NEW ENGLAND CRUISES

 

Caribbean, Bermuda, Canada & New England		MSC YACHT CLUB Caribbean, Bermuda, Canada & New England
Adults (2 years old and over)	US $ 16 per night	Adults (2 years old and over)	US $ 20 per night
Child (Less than 2 years old)	No Service charge applied	Child (Less than 2 years old)	No Service charge applied

[Two Wheels Only]

2 hours ago, chrisgp999 said:

Per latest info on MSC's website, YC daily gratuities/service charges are now $20/pp.  GenPop area remains at $16.  See below.

 

A lot depends on when the cruise was booked. I have a 2025 cruise but Yacht Club and non-Yacht Club are both $14.50pppd (adult)/ $7.25pppd (2yo-11yo) based on when I booked it in 2023. I've gone through these increases before but was grandfathered in based on what the rate was on the day that I booked, not on the rate at the time of the cruise. 

[LorraineP]

9 hours ago, Two Wheels Only said:

 

A lot depends on when the cruise was booked. I have a 2025 cruise but Yacht Club and non-Yacht Club are both $14.50pppd (adult)/ $7.25pppd (2yo-11yo) based on when I booked it in 2023. I've gone through these increases before but was grandfathered in based on what the rate was on the day that I booked, not on the rate at the time of the cruise. 

When did they increase gratuities? I booked 1/2/24 in YC. 

[Two Wheels Only]

5 hours ago, LorraineP said:

When did they increase gratuities? I booked 1/2/24 in YC. 

 

If I'm reading correctly, yours should be $16/$8 pppd if sailing the Caribbean...

 

Please find below the new Hotel Service Charge rates valid:

 

- From July 2nd, 2024 onwards, for cruises sailing to China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Caribbean and North America and for guests 2 years old and above; guests with existing bookings confirmed before July 2nd, 2024, will not be impacted by this change.
 

- From July 2nd, 2024 onwards, for cruises sailing to South America, South Africa and Grand Voyages ; guests with existing bookings confirmed before July 2nd , 2024, will not be impacted by this change.

 

- From July 2nd, 2024 onwards,  for MSC Yacht Club guests; guests with existing bookings confirmed before July 2nd , 2024, will not be impacted by this change.

[LorraineP]

1 hour ago, Two Wheels Only said:

 

If I'm reading correctly, yours should be $16/$8 pppd if sailing the Caribbean...

 

Please find below the new Hotel Service Charge rates valid:

 

- From July 2nd, 2024 onwards, for cruises sailing to China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Caribbean and North America and for guests 2 years old and above; guests with existing bookings confirmed before July 2nd, 2024, will not be impacted by this change.
 

- From July 2nd, 2024 onwards, for cruises sailing to South America, South Africa and Grand Voyages ; guests with existing bookings confirmed before July 2nd , 2024, will not be impacted by this change.

 

- From July 2nd, 2024 onwards,  for MSC Yacht Club guests; guests with existing bookings confirmed before July 2nd , 2024, will not be impacted by this change.

Thank you. 

[DaKahuna]

On 8/9/2024 at 11:39 AM, Two Wheels Only said:

 

If I'm reading correctly, yours should be $16/$8 pppd if sailing the Caribbean...

 

- From July 2nd, 2024 onwards,  for MSC Yacht Club guests; guests with existing bookings confirmed before July 2nd , 2024, will not be impacted by this change.

 

 I can confirm this.  We booked the YC in June and we pre-paid $16 pppd gratuities for our B2B. 

($224.00 for each of the 7-day voyages).. 

 

[morpheusofthesea]

On 7/23/2024 at 2:49 PM, morpheusofthesea said:

 You all may still be too young to be spoiled so early in life. Take it slow and easy. Work your ways up to the best life has to offer. Too much of the best in life at an early age can damage your psyche later on. Do not recommend doing the Yacht Club too early in one's life.

 So, don't do it ! One's life will spiral down into a world of hedonism from which there is no return.

Same advice I give to grandparents taking grandchildren on a MSC Yacht Club cruise. You will be damaging their psyche. Having a butler butt them to the front of every line will turn them into little elitists (snobs). (Not that that's a bad thing.) But then the answer to this is to leave your grandchildren a nice inheritance to make up for the damage you inflicted. 

Edited August 17 by morpheusofthesea