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Just scored an upgrade to Yacht Club on the Meraviglia - any tips on taking full advantage?

douglanglois

By douglanglois,
in MSC Cruises

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brandy3415

brandy3415

Posted
Posted (edited)
21 hours ago, Lookn4Sun said:

I'll suggest a few small things:

  • If you know what you think you'll want in your mini-fridge, ask for it when you meet him/her. That way when you come back in the evening it'll be all ready for you from then on.
  • Go to afternoon tea in topsail lounge
  • Ask for a cheese plate to be made up and delivered to your room. 
  • Ask for coffee/tea to be delivered each morning.
  • Specifically on the Meraviglia, ask for a curry --- you have to ask the day before - the chef is from India and makes excellent curry, but needs to plan it so it doesn't negatively impact the ability to make/serve the rest of the planned meals. 
  • If you find something you really like one day, and nothing on the menu the next day appeals to you, see if they can make the meal you really liked. For example, if you like cheese risotto, and but they have a risotto that doesn't appeal to you, you can ask if they can make the cheese risotto.
  • If you have already booked the Cirque shows, tell the concierge ASAP and you'll be switched to the YC seating area.

Personally, my butler was only so-so, so don't go in expecting super service.  I would have complained, but I heard that any complaints mean automatic firing, and while it wasn't top notch service, it wasn't worth having the person fired for.

 

BTW - the reason your ticket says Bella is because outside of YC, you only get the level of experience you paid for originally. You will NOT get drinks, etc. at outside bars unless you paid for a drink package. You will get access to the thermal spa, and access to the special seating areas for the theater and Cirque - and the topsail lounge and restaurant you can eat and drink at - you just can't get a drink outside the YC without paying for it.

That is fine with us.  We are not drinkers of anything but wine. But I looked at the page of docs that states all the YC amenities and it says that it includes all bars .  So we shall see. 

Edited by brandy3415
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Lookn4Sun

Lookn4Sun

Posted
Posted
On 1/16/2020 at 12:04 PM, brandy3415 said:

She did give me an email address to share with CC members--turnaround is generally 2 days.  Perhaps it is on this board somewhere but I have not found it.

 

msccruisesexistingreservations@msccruisesusa.com

This does not seem to be a legitimate address.

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brandy3415

brandy3415

Posted
Posted
On 1/16/2020 at 1:04 PM, brandy3415 said:

I am going to answer my own question, and hopefully it helps someone else.  I called the second customer support number, which they asked me not to post because it is for travel agents (I am NOT a TA!)   I think they gave me the number to get me off the phone.

 

Here is the answer--they cannot remove the "experience " of the original reservation.  However, at embarkation the agent will have  "hidden" notes on the reservation that show the YC upgrade and amenities thereof.    Whew!

 

She did give me an email address to share with CC members--turnaround is generally 2 days.  Perhaps it is on this board somewhere but I have not found it.

 

msccruisesexistingreservations@msccruisesusa.com

Try mscexistingreservations@msccruisesusa.com

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George C

George C

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Posted

We normally cruise in suites in celebrity and rccl and was impressed with YC on seaside two months ago . Service was totally great in lounge , restaurants were very good also but prefer celebrity restaurant. We like high end drinks and upgraded the really nice premium drink package which is free and includes drinks up to 12 dollars at any bar on the ship , with premium plus which has no limit , drank lots of French champagne and Johnny Walker blue. Cost of upgrading was about 17 a day per person. We liked this so much booked same cruise for later this year. 

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Fighterone

Fighterone

Posted
Posted (edited)

Chiming in a bit late and haven't read all the recommendations so this may have been posted.

When you arrive at the port, you should go directly to the white MSC Yacht Club tent. If you are not dropped of close to the tent, inevitably, a porter will try to take your luggage and stack it with the non YC luggage and you will not get the priority check tags from the YC tent.

You can either take the luggage to the YC tent yourself or have the porter take it there with you. In any case, your bags should be re-tagged at the YC tent so you have priority delivery.

 

If you are not familiar with the YC priority elevators, do ask the butler who will first escort you to your stateroom to explain this exclusive YC perk to you.

 

Enjoy the wonderful service and great crew! 

Edited by Fighterone
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goldrusher

goldrusher

Posted
Posted
On 1/15/2020 at 8:56 AM, lifeasme123 said:

We are traveling with another couple, but they have not received the upgrade email (yet).  They have a guaranteed cabin and has not been assigned a cabin yet for our April cruise.  When do you assign the cabin?

 

We are debating on whether to upgrade because our friends will not be in the YC.

Don't feel bad, I am 5 days from cruising the Seaside with a guaranteed balcony and  i cant print my  ticket or luggage tags  as the room has not been assigned,I called yesterday.  The rep did not know, He  texted his agent and they said to just   keep checking. I do see that  you can only print them up to 48 hours before the cruise. Getting a little concerned.

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hamrag

hamrag

Posted
Posted
On 2/2/2020 at 3:49 PM, goldrusher said:

Don't feel bad, I am 5 days from cruising the Seaside with a guaranteed balcony and  i cant print my  ticket or luggage tags  as the room has not been assigned,I called yesterday.  The rep did not know, He  texted his agent and they said to just   keep checking. I do see that  you can only print them up to 48 hours before the cruise. Getting a little concerned.

You do know that you'll get on the ship without either of those....if it comes to that? 😉

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Nashna

Nashna

Posted
Posted

On the Divina, we ordered hamburgers and fries at the One Pool bar that were not on the menu.  Several folks also ordered apps from the Le Muse lunch menu and wings from the Sports Bar and had them delivered to their deck chairs. 

 

We also enjoyed attending the shows and arriving just prior to the start as we could sit in the special YC section.

 

You will have an opportunity to meet the Captain and officers at a special YC cocktail party held on a sea day.   

 

Be prepared to be pampered.  Just beware!  The Yacht Club is addictive.  After sailing in YC, you won't want to go back to the "lower decks". 

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Kmkub Great Review Rare

Kmkub

Posted
Posted
On 1/19/2020 at 8:31 PM, Lookn4Sun said:

 was only so-so, so don't go in expecting super service.  I would have complained, but I heard that any complaints mean automatic firing, and while it wasn't top notch service, it wasn't worth having the person fired for.

 

 

I wish I had known a lot of this before we cruised in January. Our butler only informed us about the room service menu and that it was available 24/7. Had we known we could order from other venues, we would have taken advantage of that several times.

 

Our butler was also only so-so. We only saw him for moments at a time, and not everyday. I'm glad we didn't complain, because I don't want people fired for just being okay at their jobs. Our reason for not complaining was more related to having to deal with negative drama. It just wasn't worth it.

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Nashna

Nashna

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Posted (edited)
1 hour ago, Kmkub said:

I wish I had known a lot of this before we cruised in January. Our butler only informed us about the room service menu and that it was available 24/7. Had we known we could order from other venues, we would have taken advantage of that several times.

 

Our butler was also only so-so. We only saw him for moments at a time, and not everyday. I'm glad we didn't complain, because I don't want people fired for just being okay at their jobs. Our reason for not complaining was more related to having to deal with negative drama. It just wasn't worth it.

We quickly realized that when we called room service, the YC Concierge answered the phone.  We were not dealing with regular room service.   At first, my husband didn't want to call for a pot of coffee and juice as soon as we awoke. I called the first few days and then he realized that this was a delightful perk and we ended up calling every morning but the last.  By day four,  the concierge would say, "Good Morning, do you wish to have the usual juice and coffee?" The last day is a hugely busy day for the butlers, so we just went to Le Muse.  We also ordered wine on several afternoons with cheese and crackers as we were enjoying reading on the balcony.  Another perk that was not mentioned, but really helped was taking an MSC Shore Excursion in Panama.  Our butler took us directly to the tour outside on the dock.  We did not need to wait in the lounge with the rest of the tour.  There were two buses and our butler introduced us to the tour director who assure our butler that he would take good care of the six YC passengers.  When the buses arrived, we were the first passengers to board.  

Edited by Nashna
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George C

George C

Posted
Posted
On 1/25/2020 at 10:40 PM, Jimbo said:

On a Canada/ New England cruise would the the YC really be worth it?  or should we just go for the next level down?

I would still want YC , lounge and dinning room is great also butler , we also really enjoyed entertainment in lounge and that we could still listen to the music while in dinning room , could access hot tubs .

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Kmkub Great Review Rare

Kmkub

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1 hour ago, Nashna said:

   Another perk that was not mentioned, but really helped was taking an MSC Shore Excursion in Panama.  Our butler took us directly to the tour outside on the dock.  We did not need to wait in the lounge with the rest of the tour.  There were two buses and our butler introduced us to the tour director who assure our butler that he would take good care of the six YC passengers.  When the buses arrived, we were the first passengers to board.  

This was a perk we weren't expecting to get any value from, but we actually liked this one. I think, just generically speaking, it wasn't a shining moment for our particular experience. If I didn't read these boards and someone asked my opinion, I would say that YC is not worth the money. I realize our experience was just an anomaly.

 

Even at OC, we were escorted to the YC tram waiting area, but eventually just gave up and walked. (Several of us did this.) On our walk to the YC area, two regular trams passed us by, but still no YC tram. We had to walk back to the ship, too. One tram came, dropped people off and left without taking on any new passengers. The line was so long we just walked. Two regular trams passed us along the way. We reached the pier, turned around, and saw the YC tram finally arrive with a full load.

 

 

 

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rkacruiser

rkacruiser

Posted
Posted

MSC Meraviglia:  Some of my YC observations/experiences--

 

My luggage (4:00 P. M.)  had not been delivered when Jean Mark, my Butler, introduced himself.  When I told him this, he went to Deck 4, where the luggage arrives on the ship and delivered it to my suite.

 

YC Restaurant:  probably the best service from all staff that I have ever experienced.  Both of the two Maitre d's were ACTIVE in the service of all meals.  A hostess handled the seating duties and most of the Stewards were very efficient and attentive.  Menu choices were always good and most of the preparations were delicious.  The breads were excellent.  An oddity, not on the menu for breakfast:  I ordered a half grapefruit.  None was available.  If you like Baked Apples for breakfast, they offer Stewed Apples and they were delicious, but the serving size was huge.  

 

The reaction of Bartenders outside of the YC Lounge when they saw my Black Diamond level cruise card was noticeably positive.  When they also saw that I was a YC guest, most of the bartenders were significantly more positive in their service (and drink pours).

 

The  escort to the seating area for the shows is OK if one such wants to do this.  The seating area at the top of the Theater is clearly marked for YC guests with a Butler at it entrance to keep non-YC guests from taking seats.  Never made any seat reservations for any of the shows and see no reason for doing so.. There were always seats available in that area.

 

Room Service for Breakfast as a solo  cruiser was a bit odd when I ordered before retiring for the day.  Ordering one coffee was delivered with exactly one "cup" of coffee.  No pot for an additional pours.

 

Like fresh fruit?  Your suite's fruit bowl will be replenished several times during your cruise.  You will be greeted in your suite with such a bowl and a chilled bottle of a good Prosecco.  

 

Beware of keeping the bathroom door open if one is taken a very hot prolonged shower.  The smoke detector was just outside of my bathroom door and the steam from my shower was enough to set off the smoke detector which prompted a quick member of the crew visit.  ''

 

A visit to Ocean Cay and to its Ocean House for lunch is worth the effort.  When fully developed, Ocean Cay is going to seriously rival the private islands of the other cruise lines sailing out of Florida ports.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Nashna

Nashna

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They do not have wine in the mini fridge.  This was not a problem for us as we just called our butler when we wanted wine.  One evening, the bartender in Top Sail, gave us the whole bottle to take to our room.  You can substitute canned sodas.  Our fridge had regular coke and they exchanged it for diet.  Our butler told us that they have no control over the mini fridge as it is a separate department.   The peanuts are fantastic...especially the chocolate covered ones.  Ours were replaced daily.   The room service menu is the same one for the entire ship. If you want something like cheese and crackers delivered to your room, you just call room service.  We eventually found out that when we called room service, we actually were calling the YC concierge.  YC guests can order items not listed on the regular room service menu....just ask.  We loved having coffee and juice delivered each morning.  Since most deliveries were handled by our butler or his assistant, we just tipped them at the end of our voyage.  

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