First time on MSC, in Yacht Club-Lots of questions

[Southern latitudes]

Hi, I am hoping that you all can answer some questions for me.  I have cruised on Disney, Princess and Royal Caribbean.  I just booked a Mediterranean cruise for January on MSC Grandiosa in a Yacht Club Deluxe suite.  Questions:

1. I understand that tipping is not common in Europe-who is it appropriate to tip?  Butler, cabin steward, waiters, bar tenders?  

2. The web site mentions special excursions for those sailing the Yacht Club-is this true?  How do we access these?

3. Will our butler contact us prior to the cruise?

4. I have seen that the butler will help with the embarkation process-how do we let him/her know that we have arrived?  We are embarking in Barcelona if this makes a difference.

5. Does anyone have other tips to make our trip smooth and enjoyable?  Our 24 year old is on an exchange program in Germany for a year and cannot leave the EU, so this trip is a way for us to visit with him and get a broad taste of several European cities without the stress of finding hotels and places to eat.  

 

Many thanks!!

[Gatordad1967]

1.  They hit you with an automatic gratuity, so you can do nothing or be fine.  Or tip as you feel the urge to.  We tipped additional to anyone that went above and beyond.  You will see everyone does.

2.  Not sure on special excursions, but you should have priority on certain elevators.

3.  No contact before cruise

4.  They will know, as you check in at concierge pretty much first thing on the ship.

5.  Go in with an open mind, and you will have a blast YC is the way to travel.

 

[PRH]

Can’t answer all your questions however:

No, you will not be contacted prior to the cruise.  

 

At embarkation, you will go to the YC embarkation area at the terminal.  They will take your luggage and escort you to the YC check-in area.  After that, a butler will escort you to the ship and to the YC.  This will not be the butler assigned to your cabin.

 

There will be a pillow menu, you can choose from a limited number of newspapers to have a particular one delivered to your cabin door each morning, and the concierge can arrange excursions for you.

 

Have a wonderful cruise!  We embarked at Barcelona and then for another MSC cruise out of another port.

[karmamule]

I hope you have as good a time as we have on past MSC Yacht Club cruises!

 

1. We tipped our butler, room attendant, and some waitstaff in Venchi who got to know us after we formed an addiction to their chocolate martinis! But, as others have said, we tip for 'above and beyond' service.
2. Can't answer this. Regardless of what excursions you're going on, or just going ashore, you can ask your butler to escort you off the ship if you want that extra touch.
3. They did not contact us ahead of time for either of our YC cruises.
4. In Miami and New York there is the signature Yacht Club white tent where you go to drop off your luggage and get on the fast track onto the ship. Head straight to that tent, don't bother with any other lines. They'll have one of the butlers (not always your assigned butler) escort you through shorter YC check-in lines and the YC waiting room w/snacks and drinks before you finally get on the ship.
5. A couple tips:

• If you're unsure about anything, or have an issue, go through your butler and/or the YC concierge, don't go waiting in line at Guest Services in the main area of the ship. Sometimes we found going to the YC concierge desk was easier than tracking down our butler for simpler issues.
• If anyone in your group doesn't like any of the choices on the YC menu at any given meal, do not hesitate to ask for something different. They will do their best to accommodate. (My bf is very 'basic' in his food preferences and found their menu a bit too fancy for his tastes, but there was always something they could make for him instead and he consistently loved the food.)
• Two things to definitely check out outside the YC area: the yummy pizza in the buffet and try out those chocolate martinis at Venchi if that sounds appealing!

[Gatordad1967]

15 minutes ago, karmamule said:

I hope you have as good a time as we have on past MSC Yacht Club cruises!

 

1. We tipped our butler, room attendant, and some waitstaff in Venchi who got to know us after we formed an addiction to their chocolate martinis! But, as others have said, we tip for 'above and beyond' service.
2. Can't answer this. Regardless of what excursions you're going on, or just going ashore, you can ask your butler to escort you off the ship if you want that extra touch.
3. They did not contact us ahead of time for either of our YC cruises.
4. In Miami and New York there is the signature Yacht Club white tent where you go to drop off your luggage and get on the fast track onto the ship. Head straight to that tent, don't bother with any other lines. They'll have one of the butlers (not always your assigned butler) escort you through shorter YC check-in lines and the YC waiting room w/snacks and drinks before you finally get on the ship.
5. A couple tips:

• If you're unsure about anything, or have an issue, go through your butler and/or the YC concierge, don't go waiting in line at Guest Services in the main area of the ship. Sometimes we found going to the YC concierge desk was easier than tracking down our butler for simpler issues.
• If anyone in your group doesn't like any of the choices on the YC menu at any given meal, do not hesitate to ask for something different. They will do their best to accommodate. (My bf is very 'basic' in his food preferences and found their menu a bit too fancy for his tastes, but there was always something they could make for him instead and he consistently loved the food.)
• Two things to definitely check out outside the YC area: the yummy pizza in the buffet and try out those chocolate martinis at Venchi if that sounds appealing!

well put.  Now I want a chocolate martini next month.

 

[Southern latitudes]

Thank you all!  I generally tip for excellent service-just wanted to make sure of the customs.  My son is a picky eater, so I am glad to know that there are less fancy options available.  

[Gatordad1967]

1 minute ago, Southern latitudes said:

Thank you all!  I generally tip for excellent service-just wanted to make sure of the customs.  My son is a picky eater, so I am glad to know that there are less fancy options available.  

just give YC time to get it.  We would tell them at lunch if we wanted anything special at dinner.

 

[Cardex]

3 hours ago, Southern latitudes said:

Hi, I am hoping that you all can answer some questions for me.  I have cruised on Disney, Princess and Royal Caribbean.  I just booked a Mediterranean cruise for January on MSC Grandiosa in a Yacht Club Deluxe suite.  Questions:

1. I understand that tipping is not common in Europe-who is it appropriate to tip?  Butler, cabin steward, waiters, bar tenders?  

2. The web site mentions special excursions for those sailing the Yacht Club-is this true?  How do we access these?

3. Will our butler contact us prior to the cruise?

4. I have seen that the butler will help with the embarkation process-how do we let him/her know that we have arrived?  We are embarking in Barcelona if this makes a difference.

5. Does anyone have other tips to make our trip smooth and enjoyable?  Our 24 year old is on an exchange program in Germany for a year and cannot leave the EU, so this trip is a way for us to visit with him and get a broad taste of several European cities without the stress of finding hotels and places to eat.  

 

Many thanks!!

 

We are also trying MSC and the YC for the first time in January on the Grandiosa. Which sailing are you on? We are sailing Jan 1st. We will also be visiting Germany on this trip. We are flying to Frankfurt and spending a few days there before we fly to Barcelona for the cruise.

[rkacruiser]

6 hours ago, karmamule said:

Sometimes we found going to the YC concierge desk was easier than tracking down our butler for simpler issues.

 

Agree.  The YC Concierge can handle almost any issue that a guest may have.

 

6 hours ago, karmamule said:

things to definitely check out outside the YC area: the yummy pizza in the buffet

 

Agree!  The pizza was delicious

 

I'll add another recommendation:  don't spend all of your time in YC.  Get out and explore the rest of the options that the ship offers.  I found the entertainment offered in Meraviglia's YC's Top Sail Lounge to be much too laid back for a "daily diet" of that.  

[hamrag]

9 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

....I'll add another recommendation:  don't spend all of your time in YC.  Get out and explore the rest of the options that the ship offers.  I found the entertainment offered in Meraviglia's YC's Top Sail Lounge to be much too laid back for a "daily diet" of that.  

 

Our thoughts precisely, but returned to the oasis for our nightcaps....generally around midnight.

[Southern latitudes]

21 hours ago, Cardex said:

 

We are also trying MSC and the YC for the first time in January on the Grandiosa. Which sailing are you on? We are sailing Jan 1st. We will also be visiting Germany on this trip. We are flying to Frankfurt and spending a few days there before we fly to Barcelona for the cruise.

That’s great.   We are also boarding on Jan 1 in Barcelona.    We plan to meet our son there a day or so before that.   He is currently in Munich.  We spent some time there with him when he studied abroad two years ago.  It was March, and we thought it was really cold and it got dark very early.   We were afraid December/January would be worse, so we decided on this option.  At least we won the be wandering around in the old and  dark looking for a place to eat, then our hotel!    

He is on a CBXY fellowship this time, and cannot leave the EU.  The only time he knows he will have free time is December 24-January 8.   We were limited but are looking forward to a new experience.    We’ve sailed Disney, Princess and RC.   RC is clear favorite.  Excited to see how yacht club compares to sky class.  
 

Do you know what the testing protocol is for our sailing?   Also, do you know if we can leave the ship on our own or are we required to do an excursion?   I haven’t been able to find the answers to theses questions.  
 

Hope to meet you on board.   

[Cardex]

22 hours ago, Southern latitudes said:

That’s great.   We are also boarding on Jan 1 in Barcelona.    We plan to meet our son there a day or so before that.   He is currently in Munich.  We spent some time there with him when he studied abroad two years ago.  It was March, and we thought it was really cold and it got dark very early.   We were afraid December/January would be worse, so we decided on this option.  At least we won the be wandering around in the old and  dark looking for a place to eat, then our hotel!    

He is on a CBXY fellowship this time, and cannot leave the EU.  The only time he knows he will have free time is December 24-January 8.   We were limited but are looking forward to a new experience.    We’ve sailed Disney, Princess and RC.   RC is clear favorite.  Excited to see how yacht club compares to sky class.  
 

Do you know what the testing protocol is for our sailing?   Also, do you know if we can leave the ship on our own or are we required to do an excursion?   I haven’t been able to find the answers to theses questions.  
 

Hope to meet you on board.   

 

The fellowship sounds like a wonderful opportunity for your son!

 

I agree about the cold weather in Germany. We knew we wanted warmer weather but wanted to see Frankfurt so we are only spending 2 days there. Then 5 days in Barcelona pre cruise and 1 day post cruise. Then we are going to London for 3 days.

 

We have sailed the Haven on NCL and I think the YC will be similar. We loved the Haven and hope to love the YC.

 

The only testing protocol I know right now is you must have a PCR or antigen test taken no more than 3 days before boarding. The info is confusing since in one place on their website it says just PCR and another area is says either PCR or antigen. 

Tours right now must be with MSC. Hope this changes.

 

I see you just signed up on the roll call. I will do the same and we can chat there.

 

 

 

[LeCommandant]

Because I spent all my life in Europe, I am not so used to give tips. Sometimes, I feel a bit "bad" when people give tips to the crew they have encountered, without considering that 90% of the service is provided in "backstages" by crew that will never receive any tip (e.g., laundry, public areas cleaning, cookers, painters, etc.). Because of that, I only tip in the rare cases when I see a service that really goes beyond all expectations (which is rare). It is my personal opinion, but feel free to do as you feel it 😉

[morpheusofthesea]

Perhaps this is helpful since the service providers on ships are generally not from Europe. "Recently I saw a Tik Tok by Captain Kate. She was giving out envelopes to her staff that a passenger asked her to do for them. One staff member opened the envelope to find $5. He went crazy with joy, you would have thought it was a $100. She received so many comments on why the young man was overly excited and happy for such a small amount. A few days later she did another Tik Tok with him asking him why his reaction was so grand. He said that he would have reacted the same way if it was only $1 dollar. He said with those $5 dollars he can buy rice, bread and a lot more stuff for his family back home. That video opened my eyes on tipping anyone who serves me and our family. Please tip extra by cash. The included tips are the bare minimum that are divided between many."

 

[rkacruiser]

1 hour ago, morpheusofthesea said:

Perhaps this is helpful since the service providers on ships are generally not from Europe. "Recently I saw a Tik Tok by Captain Kate. She was giving out envelopes to her staff that a passenger asked her to do for them. One staff member opened the envelope to find $5. He went crazy with joy, you would have thought it was a $100. She received so many comments on why the young man was overly excited and happy for such a small amount. A few days later she did another Tik Tok with him asking him why his reaction was so grand. He said that he would have reacted the same way if it was only $1 dollar. He said with those $5 dollars he can buy rice, bread and a lot more stuff for his family back home. That video opened my eyes on tipping anyone who serves me and our family. Please tip extra by cash. The included tips are the bare minimum that are divided between many."

 

 

Thank you so very much for posting this.  Some of us in the First World really don't appreciate what a few of our dollars may do for those who live elsewhere on our Planet.