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Msc yacht club or msc explora journeys?

steve thfc

By steve thfc,
in MSC Cruises

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morpheusofthesea "Live from...." Rare

morpheusofthesea

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, Mommapadraig said:

I continued reading and see you also enjoy the Explora

We were also very curious as well. Enjoy immensely the butlers escorting (butting) us to the front of every line outside the Yacht Club. The reserved seating at every show. The separate dedicated restaurant. The special attention one receives at Ocean House. The elevator override key card. The 'feeling' one gets at being the privileged few amongst thousands, separated in a 'gated community'. 

   I didn't think I could 'handle' 14 days being the same as everyone else on board.

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morpheusofthesea "Live from...." Rare

morpheusofthesea

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, Mommapadraig said:

Getting back to the topic

This bears repeating. We found the entertainment in the Journey Lounge to be non-stop (15 minute break between sets) from 8:30pm for 14 days from Christmas to New Years. Best New Years party ever. People here drink but do not get drunk. Booked another on board. Was so afraid with all the negative reports prior to sailing. NONE were found, even got Acqua Panna liter bottles of mineral water in cabin every day. By end of cruise they were offering AP mineral water in the Emporium and Fil Rouge. Did not need a butler like one needs in Yacht Club, but butler intimates that he is a "genie" that can get anything one desires (extra reservations even when booked solid). Highly recommend this cruise line. Prices are comparable, even better than Yacht Club for comparable YC1 vs GT with a 25% discount promotion for sailings in 2025 vs World of America. No self service Emporium, no lines, super fast service. Still saw no one using the hand washing stations entering the Emporium. When seen washing our hands we were told 90% do not. That one time there was a problem and the ship was forced to make guests wash before entering or turned away from entering.

  Now we do not know if we will have a repeat performance of non-stop entertainment. But will report. DW loves Explora and she loves MSC Seaships as well. It is a toss up. I would pick YC if only for the price of a comparable size cabin and the Royal treatment we receive. I just have a fear of becoming jaded watching the same shows every month on MSC Seaships.

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kelleherdl

kelleherdl

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, Mommapadraig said:

Getting back to the topic…we are booked on Explora 11 in January. Our first. We love the MSc yacht club and worry that we will be disappointed. @morpheusofthesea I’m currently reading your December review. I haven’t read the entire review yet but was surprised to read you had booked Explora 1 in December. Ok I continued reading and see you also enjoy the Explora. I was happy to read about the increase in entertainment.

We still sail Yacht Club half the time, mostly for family or group sailings. We are on Explora II now for 23 days. We sail Explora for the newer itineraries. Yes, we cobbled together 3 legs of short cruises for an ‘Extended Journey’, but not a bother at all. We loved the two sailings we did last year on Explora I, again both were newer itineraries for us. We have another one booked on Explora II for her inaugural Caribbean season. 
 

I can say my opinions on Explora is that all the promise of continuing to improve the sailing experience is truly happening. They did the launch of Explora II right. The inaugural crew was half split from Explora I. Our experience so far is very much like our experience on sailing Yacht Club on a new ship. The are so many ‘hosts’ on this sailing who remember us from Explora I last year. 
 

In my opinion the issues from the Explora I inaugural season have definitely been addressed. The entertainment in all venues has been significantly improved. The issues with Helios Pool have been addressed with a major redesign. Most importantly half of the ‘beverage hosts’ from Explora I are on now. 😀

 

Clearly, the overall host training prior to Explora II launch is a major success so far. Even though this is only the second sailing for Explora II it truly feels like a seasoned staff.

 

I have only observed minor maintenance type work around the ship. Explora II sailed finished. 
 

Any specific questions fire away.

 

but after all the lauding on Explora II we return home for a short group cruise in Seashore Yacht Club in November and looking forward to the World America inaugural sailing in April. We also we happily book our event cruises in Grandiosa Yacht Club when she homeports in Port Canaveral next year. So as you can see for us it’s not either/or Yacht Club versus Explora Journeys, but what is our reason for booking. 

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Mommapadraig

Mommapadraig

Posted
Posted (edited)
18 minutes ago, kelleherdl said:

We still sail Yacht Club half the time, mostly for family or group sailings. We are on Explora II now for 23 days. We sail Explora for the newer itineraries. Yes, we cobbled together 3 legs of short cruises for an ‘Extended Journey’, but not a bother at all. We loved the two sailings we did last year on Explora I, again both were newer itineraries for us. We have another one booked on Explora II for her inaugural Caribbean season. 
 

I can say my opinions on Explora is that all the promise of continuing to improve the sailing experience is truly happening. They did the launch of Explora II right. The inaugural crew was half split from Explora I. Our experience so far is very much like our experience on sailing Yacht Club on a new ship. The are so many ‘hosts’ on this sailing who remember us from Explora I last year. 
 

In my opinion the issues from the Explora I inaugural season have definitely been addressed. The entertainment in all venues has been significantly improved. The issues with Helios Pool have been addressed with a major redesign. Most importantly half of the ‘beverage hosts’ from Explora I are on now. 😀

 

Clearly, the overall host training prior to Explora II launch is a major success so far. Even though this is only the second sailing for Explora II it truly feels like a seasoned staff.

 

I have only observed minor maintenance type work around the ship. Explora II sailed finished. 
 

Any specific questions fire away.

 

but after all the lauding on Explora II we return home for a short group cruise in Seashore Yacht Club in November and looking forward to the World America inaugural sailing in April. We also we happily book our event cruises in Grandiosa Yacht Club when she homeports in Port Canaveral next year. So as you can see for us it’s not either/or Yacht Club versus Explora Journeys, but what is our reason for booking. 

That is all good news! We chose the cabins without a butler.From all I’ve read I think we’ll be fine. We also found it was a better price for a 10 day cruise on the Explora versus 10 days in the YC.

Edited by Mommapadraig
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morpheusofthesea "Live from...." Rare

morpheusofthesea

Posted
Posted
5 hours ago, Mommapadraig said:

We also found it was a better price for a 10 day cruise on the Explora versus 10 days in the YC

That cannot be beat. If that were the case in our situation it would be Explora too. The food is great on Explora and I thought the pizza was the best on MSC Seaships, but it runs a furlong behind Explora's.

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Mommapadraig

Mommapadraig

Posted
Posted
54 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

That cannot be beat. If that were the case in our situation it would be Explora too. The food is great on Explora and I thought the pizza was the best on MSC Seaships, but it runs a furlong behind Explora's.

Really! We thought the pizza in the YC was excellent.such good news. I forgot…when are you on board again?

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Corriegr "Live from...." Rare

Corriegr

Posted
Posted

Have done 4 YC cruises on Virtuosa and Seascape, and Explora 1 last Nov/Dec. Will be on Explora 2 in late Nov in Caribbean and will be blogging again. 
 

IMHO whilst Explora takes it’s initial inspiration from YC, it is a very different experience, whether because of the size of the ship, the dining experience or the more laid back vibe you don’t get on a bigger ship.

 

In the past I have suggested it’s YC on steroids but I think that’s now doing YC an injustice, as not so sure it’s better for everyone. I think some people will just find maybe too quiet for their tastes, where as others like myself love both concepts.

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kelleherdl

kelleherdl

Posted
Posted

We are on Explora II right now. I must say, compared to our first sailings on Explora I last year, my wife and I found that this year it’s been much easier to strike up conversations and meet folks.  This cruise is heavy North Americans with maybe 30% European (my very questionable estimate). As to solos, on our 12-person excursion to Avignon yesterday, two solo ladies were among us. Don’t take that as a statistical estimate of the number of solos onboard, as it could be due to sampling error.😀

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Mommapadraig

Mommapadraig

Posted
Posted (edited)
58 minutes ago, kelleherdl said:

We are on Explora II right now. I must say, compared to our first sailings on Explora I last year, my wife and I found that this year it’s been much easier to strike up conversations and meet folks.  This cruise is heavy North Americans with maybe 30% European (my very questionable estimate). As to solos, on our 12-person excursion to Avignon yesterday, two solo ladies were among us. Don’t take that as a statistical estimate of the number of solos onboard, as it could be due to sampling error.😀

Please keep posting! We are booked in January in an ocean terrace suite. It’ll be our first Explora trip. We love the YC.

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frank808

frank808

Posted
Posted (edited)
21 hours ago, kelleherdl said:

We still sail Yacht Club half the time, mostly for family or group sailings. We are on Explora II now for 23 days. We sail Explora for the newer itineraries. Yes, we cobbled together 3 legs of short cruises for an ‘Extended Journey’, but not a bother at all. We loved the two sailings we did last year on Explora I, again both were newer itineraries for us. We have another one booked on Explora II for her inaugural Caribbean season. 
 

I can say my opinions on Explora is that all the promise of continuing to improve the sailing experience is truly happening. They did the launch of Explora II right. The inaugural crew was half split from Explora I. Our experience so far is very much like our experience on sailing Yacht Club on a new ship. The are so many ‘hosts’ on this sailing who remember us from Explora I last year. 
 

In my opinion the issues from the Explora I inaugural season have definitely been addressed. The entertainment in all venues has been significantly improved. The issues with Helios Pool have been addressed with a major redesign. Most importantly half of the ‘beverage hosts’ from Explora I are on now. 😀

 

Clearly, the overall host training prior to Explora II launch is a major success so far. Even though this is only the second sailing for Explora II it truly feels like a seasoned staff.

 

I have only observed minor maintenance type work around the ship. Explora II sailed finished. 
 

Any specific questions fire away.

 

but after all the lauding on Explora II we return home for a short group cruise in Seashore Yacht Club in November and looking forward to the World America inaugural sailing in April. We also we happily book our event cruises in Grandiosa Yacht Club when she homeports in Port Canaveral next year. So as you can see for us it’s not either/or Yacht Club versus Explora Journeys, but what is our reason for booking. 

How are you two doing? We will just miss you as we sail America on May 2025. Will be sailing out on Mera from New York in early Jan 2025. Have a few Royal cruises booked for a few different months.

 

If you recommend Explora for just you two, I will have to book a few when we board next week on Virtuosa.  I guess you can book Explora on board MSC ships?

 

Safe sailings for you and your lovely wife.  Looking forward to having some great conversations on MSC or Explora ship. I'll buy the first round 🙂 

Edited by frank808
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kelleherdl

kelleherdl

Posted
Posted
6 hours ago, Mommapadraig said:

Please keep posting! We are booked in January in an ocean terrace suite. It’ll be our first Explora trip. We love the YC.

You will certainly enjoy EJ I'm sure, even in the lowest level suite we book. 😀 Believe what everybody says, Explora Journeys is decidedly different from the Yacht Club experience. If being escorted and things like that on MSC are super important to you, EJ will disappoint. However, you don’t need it on EJ. You are not venturing out into some mass market ship environment. If you enjoy the idea of going out to the variety of restaurants each night, EJ is for you. But if your comfort level leans toward the predictability of YC Restaurant, well there’s that. We happen to love both situations depending on the nature of our vacation. The friendliness and cordiality of the crew is very much the same. I was told that the folks at MSC YC who monitor service quality were very involved in setting service standards for EJ hosts. And I can happily state that even the quality of EJ onboard entertainment has markedly improved from the inaugural sailings.

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kelleherdl

kelleherdl

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Posted

Cocktail and MOTS will get a kick out of this. We knew at least three of the bartenders from Explora I last year. Two of them surprised me last with special treats. I routinely challenge my bartender to prepare me a true Prohibition Era whiskey sour. Those who pull down a Bourbon immediately fail.  The two I’m speaking about knew from social media and word of crew mouth that we were on this sailing. We saw both of them for the first time last night. This is a true story. They had independently concocted unique new recipes for a ‘whiskey sour.’ So if you sail Explora II in the next few months ask Vivek at the Med Yacht bar for a Sour Dennis, or Darryl at the Explora Lounge for a Sour Cherry.  Both were excellent. 

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kelleherdl

kelleherdl

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Posted
On 9/26/2024 at 9:28 AM, frank808 said:

How are you two doing? We will just miss you as we sail America on May 2025. Will be sailing out on Mera from New York in early Jan 2025. Have a few Royal cruises booked for a few different months.

 

If you recommend Explora for just you two, I will have to book a few when we board next week on Virtuosa.  I guess you can book Explora on board MSC ships?

 

Safe sailings for you and your lovely wife.  Looking forward to having some great conversations on MSC or Explora ship. I'll buy the first round 🙂 

Hi Frank

 

yeah we are doing the inaugural of World America, 7-day Eastern Caribbean out of Miami.

 

our next Explora Journeys ‘Journey’ is Feb 21, a 14-day San Juan to San Juan Caribbean. 
 

The Future Journeys advisors on EJ work for EJ. They book Explora Journeys. While EJ is owned by MSC Holdings, they are a separate company. I suggest you find a TA who does a lot of MSC bookings and are certified by Explora. So MSC Future Cruise Consultants probably know very little about EJ, other than ‘it’s like Yacht Club;’ which it isn’t. 😀

 

thanks for the offer of the first drink.  JW Blue isn’t on the free list so I’ll have one of them. 😀

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morpheusofthesea "Live from...." Rare

morpheusofthesea

Posted
Posted
On 9/26/2024 at 11:31 AM, kelleherdl said:

Two of them surprised me last with special treats

"Making your way in the world today
Takes everything you've got
Taking a break from all your worries
Sure would help a lot
Wouldn't you like to get away?

Sometimes you wanna go
Where everybody knows your name
And they're always glad you came
You wanna be where you can see (ah-ah)
Our troubles are all the same (ah-ah)
You wanna be where everybody knows your name"

Songwriters: Gary Portnoy / Judy Hart

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Essiesmom "Live from...." Rare

Essiesmom

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Posted

I have not sailed either,  nor is it in my budget to do so.  The only thing that attracts me is the restaurant.  But if I had the choice, I would go with EJ, because I am not a person to sit on a lounger or use the pool.  I want to be out and about, checking out all the venues, watching people.  I don’t care about a balcony, but I want a couch in the cabin so I book OV gty and sometimes get upgraded to a balcony.  No YIN for me because no couch.  EM

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frank808

frank808

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, kelleherdl said:

Hi Frank

 

yeah we are doing the inaugural of World America, 7-day Eastern Caribbean out of Miami.

 

our next Explora Journeys ‘Journey’ is Feb 21, a 14-day San Juan to San Juan Caribbean. 
 

The Future Journeys advisors on EJ work for EJ. They book Explora Journeys. While EJ is owned by MSC Holdings, they are a separate company. I suggest you find a TA who does a lot of MSC bookings and are certified by Explora. So MSC Future Cruise Consultants probably know very little about EJ, other than ‘it’s like Yacht Club;’ which it isn’t. 😀

 

thanks for the offer of the first drink.  JW Blue isn’t on the free list so I’ll have one of them. 😀

Wow, I thought JW Blue would be included on Explora ships.

 

Will call my travel agent and see about booking the Feb 21 sailing Explora sailing. We were going on Royal after getting off Meravilia on Feb 9. Will try to move Royal cruise and book this Explora sailing. Traveling wise, I like it as we will already be on the East coast and San Juan is not much further than Ft. Lauderdale. I want to see how different Explora is compared to YC.  I dont know if he is certified by Explora but will ask and see.

 

Happy sailings and will see you onboard Exoplora in Feb if I can get my ducks in a row.

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morpheusofthesea "Live from...." Rare

morpheusofthesea

Posted
Posted
On 9/25/2024 at 9:54 PM, awatt said:

A question for those who have done both.

 

Which would you recommend for a solo cruiser?

 

I have enjoyed YC solo several times. Explora also has appeal.

One might enjoy Explora more as a single when on excursions as Explora sends one host along to ensure a proper tour and someone to talk to ?

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awatt

awatt

Posted
Posted
2 minutes ago, morpheusofthesea said:

One might enjoy Explora more as a single when on excursions as Explora sends one host along to ensure a proper tour and someone to talk to ?

 Thanks for the input, hadn't thought of that!

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