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Hi all, I have a side question please
 

With a Future Cruise Credit, it is likely that my booking will have some money left for Onboard Spend and Onboard Credit is in £GBP.  I would like to find out how would the Onboard Credit be treated.  Am I correct that on the Mediterranean cruise the spending is all in Euros?  If so does the MSC use a reasonable conversion rate so that I’m getting the best out of the Onboard Credit?  If the exchange rate is poor then I might use the FCC differently.  
 

Please could you let me know or point me to the thread if this has already been answered.  Many thanks 

Thanks for all your info and sharing your own experience.  Definitely given me more to consider and research on before deciding. 
 

@Ate, thanks again for the detailed info.  I spoke to my travel agent and he said the Suites in Deck 12 are larger than the Suites on Deck 9, 10 and 13, all have a separate bedroom to the lounge, matching what you said.  This has now given me more confidence to book if I am choosing the Suite with Whirlpool.  
 

@sidari, it does not make sense why the rooms don’t have bigger vanity units when there’s plenty of room.

it is very hard to know what it’s going to be like in Summer 2021, what the new normal and cruising experience will be like.  It’s good that the MSC has the Flexible Cruise Programme so bookings can be amended under the programme’s terms and conditions.

@Tapi, thanks for the advice.  Very sensible approach.  Sounds like I need to find the balance, explore and experience the culture at each port but make sure we enjoy the facilities on the ship as well.  
 

@Até, following what you said, I need to double check with the travel agent.  All info relating to the Suite with Private Whirlpool shows the bedroom and lounge are separate, and the Grand Suite with Whirlpool pool is a bigger cabin on different decks to Suite with WP.  I would be very disappointed if I went for the Suite with WP and turns out it’s not what it’s showing on the website/deck plan.

Is it true that in YC all the drinks in YC restaurant/bars etc are included but once you’re outside of the YC, any drinks and inc cream etc you order would be chargeable?  
 

It’s just that in the UK there are premium drinks packages included with new bookings.  Not entirely sure how things work (again need to check) but if premium drinks are not applicable to YC members and we have have to pay for drinks as soon as we are outside of the YC, then the Aurea Suite would be much more suitable and convenient for us.  We can get drinks and ice cream anywhere for the family rather than having to go back and forth to get drinks.  
 

So much research to do to make sure we are making the right choices to get the best cruising experience.

Yes officially it is called the Suite with Private Whirlpool, a cabin with a lounge, separate bedroom, whirlpool in the balcony.  
 

On the deck plan it looks like the YC Deluxe Cabin is smaller than the Suite with Private Whirlpool.  The Suites have premium drinks package.  
 

Putting the differences between the cabins aside for now, is it worth to pay the extra for YC for a Mediterranean cruise?  Or shall I put the money towards specialty dining, excursions, photo packages etc?  

1 hour ago, Tapi said:

We had a similar dilemma when we sailed MSC Meraviglia in the Mediterranean with our two young children. At the time, we could either get an Aurea Duplex Suite or a smaller Yacht Club Suite for about the same price. 
 

We chose the Aurea suite and it was 100% the right choice for us. It was absolutely fantastic to have extra space to spread out. And we loved having our very own jacuzzi tub. We’d sometimes be in it in the morning as we approached a new port. We’d order breakfast from room service every morning and enjoy it in our large balcony. Sometimes, we’d take a late night dip under the stars after a long day sightseeing. 
 

True, we didn’t have yacht club access, but we still had some perks like priority embarkation, access to the Aurea Spa’s thermal suite areas, as well as access to a private solarium deck. We were in a port intensive itinerary (all port days except for one sea day) so we didn’t use these perks as much as we would’ve liked. Outside of checking its location, we never used the solarium, but we did use the Aurea Spa a few times. 
 

The kids did enjoy going to the kids club, but because of the way activities were scheduled, and with so much to do around the ship, kids were never at the club for more than an hour or two. We’d either go pick them up because there would be a break in activities at the club, or there was something else going on around the ship that we really wanted to attend. 
 

In our case, there was no price difference between a larger Aurea suite or a smaller YC suite, and we still chose the larger Aurea suite. But had we been traveling without the kids, we would’ve gone with the Yacht Club suite since we would have uninterrupted time to truly enjoy it. But for a family cruise, having a larger suite to accommodate the entire family was the better decision. Hope you enjoy the Grandiosa! We truly enjoyed our family cruise in the Med. It was the perfect way to introduce our kids to the Mediterranean. 

 

 

Tapi, thank you so much for taking the time and give me so much helpful info to consider.  Your reasons for choosing the Suite are exactly why I am leaning towards the Suite, as well as it’s much cheaper.  Having a dip in the whirlpool in the morning sounds awesome! 
 

are the excursions in the Mediterranean mainly all-day or they vary?  We do want to explore so and do sightseeing so if they are mainly all-day excursions then we might not be able take advantage of the YC facilities all the time because I think there is only 1 sea day on the itinerary.  

Thank you Tapi and dexddd.  CC is wonderful, information is extensive and great advice from so many members. 
 

1 child is a teenager and 1 is 7.  Are the sofa beds different between Suits and YC Deluxe?

Hi all, I’m fairly new to cruising and would like your opinions on this please.  
 

We are looking to travel with MSC in Europe summer next year on the Grandiosa.  We are a family of 4, hubby and I plus our 2 children.  Our travel agent has given us some quotes: 1 bedroom Aurea Suite with whirlpool bath or add $1300 USD / £1000 GBP for a Yacht Club Deluxe Suite.  
 

I like the Aurea Suite because it has a separate bedroom and a large balcony.   Hubby thinks we should pay extra to stay in YC because of the added benefits.  A lot of the times the children will be at the clubs so he thinks we can enjoy the YC as well as other facilities.  Could you please chime in and share your thoughts and personal experience?  Many thanks