Anyone else thinking of trading Haven for MSC Yacht club?

[wolft927]

So wife and I who have been cruising in nothing but the Haven for the past few years have just booked our first MSC Yacht club on the Seascape. We love the Haven, but pricing has gotten a little crazy. Looked at both for same time of year and cheapest Haven was over $3k more for 7 day cruise. Now granted we are doing an inside Yacht clube suite for our first go around, but for $3300 to get a "Haven like" experience I am gonna give it a shot. Would love to here feedback on those who have tried the yacht club, and how did it compare. 

[cruiseny4life]

I'm considering it. My husband wants nothing to do with it! It seems to be a fairly similar experience, except that the dress code is a wee bit more elevated (which is why husband says no). I think we'd be alright with the various languages being spoken. After all, we're a diverse family, though my skill set is not in language! Seven semesters of Spanish, a trip to Chile and Peru, and I still can't say more than the basics. 

 

The interior Yacht Club rooms hold no interest to me, so that's where I suppose we differ. I want/need a balcony. There's nothing wrong with an interior room. It's just that my preference is a balcony. I enjoy stepping out at 3 AM for some salty sea air. 

 

I think the biggest factor (beside dress code in the evening) for us is the menu. It seems a bit too adventuresome for our palates. I'll dare myself with food occasionally, but we both prefer the Haven-style dinner menu, despite the fact it doesn't rotate. 

 

I'll be really interested to see what others have to say and do hope you will let us know about your experience. When are you going? 

[DCGuy64]

26 minutes ago, wolft927 said:

So wife and I who have been cruising in nothing but the Haven for the past few years have just booked our first MSC Yacht club on the Seascape. We love the Haven, but pricing has gotten a little crazy. Looked at both for same time of year and cheapest Haven was over $3k more for 7 day cruise. Now granted we are doing an inside Yacht clube suite for our first go around, but for $3300 to get a "Haven like" experience I am gonna give it a shot. Would love to here feedback on those who have tried the yacht club, and how did it compare. 

I can't compare the Yacht Club to the Haven because I haven't been in the Haven. However, my wife and I have been in the Yacht Club twice (and have another YC cabin booked for early 2024) and we LOVE it. The special treatment we receive is excellent. From the moment you arrive at the terminal, you're treated like a VIP. The Topsail lounge is always a nice place to hang out, grab a drink or cup of coffee/tea, and have a snack. The grill outside features various food throughout the day, and the Yacht Club restaurant features lots of delicious food. I personally recommend the fresh pasta of the day, with MSC being an Italian line (side note: I think the company's business HQ is in Switzerland, but MSC's heart is in Italy), you can't go wrong. They will make you pretty much whatever you want, if they have the ingredients, so you don't have to only choose from the printed menu. MSC has surprisingly kept their prices at or near pre-pandemic levels, which makes them an even better deal. And don't forget to use your butler, for he/she will insist on escorting you when you leave the ship for excursions, and take you to the YC-only section of the theater for shows.

[Two Wheels Only]

I sail both and enjoy both. It isn't an "either or" situation. 

 

We travel as 4 so interior is never an option and even if it was, I never sail without a balcony. Never have, never will. 

 

The MSC dress code is more "suggestion" than "law". You will find men wearing shorts for dinner in the Yacht Club restaurant. It's especially more common on Caribbean sailings. However, there have been times when men wearing shorts have been told to leave and come back when wearing long pants. 

 

The Yacht Club menus are shown in pinned threads HERE but they do change slightly from time to time and from ship to ship. 

 

Some things are better with Yacht Club.

Some things are better with Haven. 

Neither is perfect. 

[DCGuy64]

We are booked in an inside cabin in the YC next year, in past years we've had a balcony which is great, but inside cabins are fine for us. Our Oceania cruise in April was in an inside cabin and it was fine, surprisingly spacious for an inside.

[jetact]

Looking at the MSC cruises they seem very reasonable compared to the Haven. That might be our next cruise after Alaska on the Bliss in October. We love all types of food so the food choice look very good and she loves to dress up so thats not an issue as I dont care one way or the other. Glad the OP posted this as we have been looking at the Panama Canal as our next trip, it might need to wait now. 

[Seas2mountains]

We have experienced the YC on Seaside and Divina and have two more MSC YC cruises booked in 2023 and 2024. We love the special treatment from the time you arrive at the white tent outside the port until disembarkation which included waiting comfortably and peacefully in Topsail to be among the last passengers to disembark. 

 

One thing that seems to happen more frequently in YC than we noticed in the Haven is the number of people who are not in the YC who make it into the YC areas like Topsail or One Pool or the restaurant and then get turned away. Some do get away with sneaking in a gate or door that doesn't lock properly but do get chased away eventually by the staff. You will see this often. Look at the current MSC YC live review on the Seascape.

We have not tried a YC interior cabin but are considering this. We found that many people were allowed to go to dinner in shorts, tank tops, and flip flops and were not turned away. We did like the menu choices at both the Haven restaurant and in the YC restaurant.  We do love the pool area of One Pool and the buffet options in that area if we didn't want to go to the YC restaurant. We did not find One Pool to be crowded and there always seemed to be some lounge chairs or tables with chairs available.

The pizza on MSC is Ohhh so good!!!!  You can order it from room service or get a slice from the main buffet. We did not care for the limited entertainment in Top Sail as it was really inconsistent but did like one duo who performed on Seaside. On Divina, a pianist came in occasionally for about 45 minutes. On MSC, if a performer was listed on the daily as performing at a lounge from say 6pm-10pm, you might arrive at 6:30pm to hear the performer mention at 6:40pm that they were taking a "15 minute break" only to not come back until 7:05ish and take 5 minutes to start performing and then the cycle would continue so they really actually performed about 30-35 minutes and found a way to stretch their 15 minute breaks to 20-30 minutes.  We like the consistency of NCL and knowing a performer is scheduled and is there according to the daily schedule and you know exactly when they are on a break except in the District.

 

If you go to the lounges on MSC to hear other entertainers, good luck on getting a drink as it may take awhile from servers who may or may not come to your table and you might need to wait at the bar.

 

The one thing we LOVE about MSC YC is the stop at Ocean Cay. The restaurant there for YC guests is really nice and Ocean Cay being a dock and not requiring tender service is one of our favorite amenities of cruising MSC. 

 

We will continue to book NCL and will upgrade to Haven or Suites occasionally but are also happy in Club Balcony Suites. We also love the YC experience. Neither cruise line is perfect but we like many aspects of each choice.

 

Please do report back on your experience.

[insidecabin]

The YC insides are compact but well designed a bit short on storage for colder cruises.

We are not big on balconies anyway so find them great and everything in YC is so close you don't hang out in the cabin much.

 

One cruise our cabin was so close to the bar it was easier to go to the bar for a coffee than use the pod machine in the cabin.

 

All our Haven are precovid and with groups so that played a part in how we enjoyed Haven.

 

Never felt the need to go dressy in YC but ours have been cold cruises so tend to jeans, I often do shirts evening anyway on a cruise if doing waiter dinner.

 

I do go fully casual in the evening  if I can't be bothered and often when we are planning to hit the buffet  happens less often in YC as the food/service  is good.

If we do early dinner I might dress down after.

 

MSC are very accommodating even in the MDR you can do requests and standing orders off menu and they tend to do them unless really out of the park, YC go a step further.

 

I think both Haven and YC when full depend on people using the rest of the ship as the public spaces are not big enough for everyone at the same time. 

 

Not had problems with drinks around the ship on our Virtuosa cruises.

I tend to do the bars during quiet period early on(day 1 if on early enough) which helps most of the trips we get a regular server that look after us in our most used locations.. 

 

 

I have a regular search for YC cabins ready to bite if there is one cheap enough, check the itinerary and other costs second. 

[MsTabbyKats]

Never been in Haven, but was in an interior Yacht Club.  On the Meraviglia, there was a "dedicated mini elevator" (just did YC floors)...so it took less than a minute from cabin to pool deck.  Absolutely no need for a balcony.

The buffet/grill by the pool for breakfast/lunch was wonderful.  There was freshly grilled seafood! And, customized pizza, delivered at the pool was....what can I say!!!

I am afraid YC spoiled me.  I was thinking of upgrading our Sept Escape/Canada cruise to Haven....but there were too many things that we enjoyed in the YC that wouldn't be available in the Haven.

As to dress code....what dress code!

The price of the YCI was less than a "guarantee balcony" (no perks) on NCL....same week.  MSC to Bahamas vs NCL to Bermuda.  

 

ETA-YC includes drinks and 24/7 wifi.  I don't think those are included in the Haven unless you have "Free at Sea".

Edited June 15, 2023 by MsTabbyKats

[wolft927]

1 minute ago, MsTabbyKats said:

Never been in Haven, but was in an interior Yacht Club.  On the Meraviglia, there was a "dedicated mini elevator" (just did YC floors)...so it took less than a minute from cabin to pool deck.  Absolutely no need for a balcony.

The buffet/grill by the pool for breakfast/lunch was wonderful.  There was freshly grilled seafood! And, customized pizza, delivered at the pool was....what can I say!!!

I am afraid YC spoiled me.  I was thinking of upgrading our Sept Escape/Canada cruise to Haven....but there were too many things that we enjoyed in the YC that wouldn't be available in the Haven.

As to dress code....what dress code!

The price of the YCI was less than a "guarantee balcony" (no perks) on NCL....same week.  MSC to Bahamas vs NCL to Bermuda.  

I must admit, the only reason we are trying the YC is Price. We love NCL, Love the Haven, but with Haven prices getting the way they are we are going to give YC a shot and believe we will love it! Like you said, $3300 for YC interior is less then NCL Balcony with the FAS perks. We have a Haven 2 bedroom in January on the Escape and now booked the YC on the seascape for next September. Going to try and see if we can sneak another cruise in between those two. 

[MsTabbyKats]

2 minutes ago, wolft927 said:

I must admit, the only reason we are trying the YC is Price. We love NCL, Love the Haven, but with Haven prices getting the way they are we are going to give YC a shot and believe we will love it! Like you said, $3300 for YC interior is less then NCL Balcony with the FAS perks. We have a Haven 2 bedroom in January on the Escape and now booked the YC on the seascape for next September. Going to try and see if we can sneak another cruise in between those two. 

The size of the cabin itself was decent and the storage was adequate for us, but we travel light.  If you need multiple outfits/matching accessories every day...you may want to cut back.  Again....dress code, what dress code?  Leave the gown and tux at home...

 

For us, it isn't the cost of the cruise, it's the value for our money.  Why pay more when you get (in my opinion more) the same experience for less.  

[deweytrader]

We do both next 5 are with the Yacht Club as Haven has priced us out.  Haven would be at least 2x as much as what we paid for Yacht Club at the time.  However, Yacht Club pricing has also increased dramatically lately, still much more affordable than the Haven.

[dexddd]

The YINS well nice, literally have coffin size showers.  They are a great value though.

[MsTabbyKats]

8 minutes ago, dexddd said:

The YINS well nice, literally have coffin size showers.  They are a great value though.

Actually, I really liked the shower in our cabin.  There was no problem adjusting the temperature of the water, the pressure or the angle.  I don't remember exactly why I liked it...but I remember telling DH that it was "the easiest shower to use" on any of our cruises.

[graphicguy]

Have sailed in both the YC and Haven.  I think pricing is dependent on ship, sailing date and itinerary.  Sometimes Haven is cheaper.  Sometimes YC is cheaper.

 

I wish I could do a YC inside cabin as the prices are attractive.  I can’t (well, I could but have varying degrees of claustrophobia). I can’t do inside anything on any cruise ship.  I have read where the YC insides are fairly claustrophobic, so those are a “no go” for me.  If you can do it, great deal, however.

 

The Haven Concierges seemed to be able to do a lot more than the Concierges in the YC.  For example, there was not a show I couldn’t get into, or a sold out restaurant time they couldn’t get me in to.  YC Concierges were nice, but politely told me they couldn’t help with either situation the times I’ve cruised them.

 

Butlers on MSC were more accommodating than those in the Haven.  I’ve had middling success with my Haven Butlers.  Sometimes they were helpful, sometimes they disappeared for the entire cruise until the last day of the cruise when tips were typically doled out.  YC Butlers actually hauled my luggage to my cabin for me.  Unnecessary, but they did it nonetheless.  No way a Butler in the Haven would do that.

 

Without question, the entertainment on NCL is heads and shoulders better than on MSC.  YC had a pianist in the Top Sail Lounge, but that was more background music.  NCL has great entertainment for everyone in the Observation Lounge (which is open to anyone).

 

Food is subjective, but I enjoyed the Specialty Dinners and Haven restaurant more than the YC restaurant and specialty dining venues.  The down side is the Haven restaurant’s menu is static.  That said, they will bring you anything you want within reason.

 

MSC’s new ships are beautiful.  I haven’t been on the Prima, but have sailed the Breakaway Plus class on NCL.  They are beautiful, too.  I just think MSC’s new ships are more interesting with things like the deck sized curved video panels above.

 

YC Interior cabin trumps Haven price wise. If you can do it, that’s the way to go.  Price being equal in a Balcony and above cabin between Haven and YC. I’d pick Haven.

 

MSC really left a bad taste in my mouth by booking me, sending confirmation and then trying to raise the price of my fare.  Had the paperwork to show my booking, my reservation number and the fare.  They didn’t care.  They were bound and determined to raise the price, regardless (it wasn’t insignificant, either).  They really didn’t care that they screwed up no matter how much evidence I gave them showing them their errors.  That was a first for me…and I cruise a lot.  Still smart for that as I had to get AMEX involved to get my refund.  

 

I don’t see the big price deltas between Balcony and above YC vs Haven cabins.  Matter of fact, I’m sailing in OCT in the Mediterranean.   11 day cruise, similar itinerary…YC was nearly 2X for a balcony vs a Spa BAlcony in the Haven (which also included access to the thermal spa).

 

Like anything, shop, check, verify then make a decision. 

 

 

[scooter6139]

Would love to try them, but since don't have any ships on the west coast they are not an option at this time.

[DCGuy64]

1 hour ago, dexddd said:

The YINS well nice, literally have coffin size showers.  They are a great value though.

LOL. That's funny. We (wife and I) are fairly petite, so the showers are OK for us. But if you're taller than 5'5", I agree.

[Two Wheels Only]

28 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

The Haven Concierges seemed to be able to do a lot more than the Concierges in the YC. 

 

Butlers on MSC were more accommodating than those in the Haven.  

 

I agree on both and have expressed the same opinion based on multiple cruises. It's just the way that each line does things. On NCL, the concierge has more power than the concierge on MSC. Butler service is more of a team effort on MSC. If your butler isn't available on MSC, another butler will gladly assist. On NCL, if your butler is nowhere to be found (as reported by many on the forum), no other butler will serve you. 

 

In fairness, I've never had a bad butler on either line and actually have had excellent butlers on both MSC and NCL. 

[wolft927]

So we booked 19019 for September 28th 2024 ( yes a long ways out, good thing we have a Haven booked for January). I see the Yacht club includes a mini bar? Wife and I are mainly beer drinkers so would they stock with say Michelobe Ultra daily? 

 

Excited to try out the yacht club!

[DCGuy64]

3 hours ago, graphicguy said:

MSC really left a bad taste in my mouth by booking me, sending confirmation and then trying to raise the price of my fare.  Had the paperwork to show my booking, my reservation number and the fare.  They didn’t care.  They were bound and determined to raise the price, regardless (it wasn’t insignificant, either).  They really didn’t care that they screwed up no matter how much evidence I gave them showing them their errors.  That was a first for me…and I cruise a lot.  Still smart for that as I had to get AMEX involved to get my refund.  

That is very disappointing, and surprising, too. I don't think we've ever had any issues with billing on MSC. Our TA takes care of everything, though, so maybe that's why. I'm sorry that happened to you.

[graphicguy]

30 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

That is very disappointing, and surprising, too. I don't think we've ever had any issues with billing on MSC. Our TA takes care of everything, though, so maybe that's why. I'm sorry that happened to you.

Yeah...this was done when I found out my former TA quit her agency.  So, I booked it directly with MSC. Had the credit card receipt (AMEX).  Had a print out of my reservation number with booking confirmation.   Had a screen shot of the transaction and the total fare.  Even had a printout of the cabin location and number.

 

They wanted to add $700 to my fare.  Granted, it was a last minute cruise (was supposed to sail last month and I booked it in February).  But, that should not have mattered.  First they said the fare was wrong (wrong how?  They posted it.  They confirmed it).  Then they said the cabin type was wrong.  Again, wrong how?  Had the fare for the exact cabin number printed out with their confirmation.

 

Still salty about it since they would not even acknowledge their mistakes.  Was lucky AMEX got involved and permanently reversed their charges.

 

From what I understand, if you reverse charges on a cruise fare, they will not let you book again.  Never been involved in a situation like this, so I don't know.  I've never tried.  Probably never will, even if they let me.

[RB9643]

 

For us non-Haven, non-YC peons, does MSC still match tier levels with NCL? We'll be Platinum next April, and that would be an incentive for us to give MSC a try.

 

[DCGuy64]

2 minutes ago, RB9643 said:

 

For us non-Haven, non-YC peons, does MSC still match tier levels with NCL? We'll be Platinum next April, and that would be an incentive for us to give MSC a try.

 

Yes, they match status with anyone.

[Two Wheels Only]

2 minutes ago, RB9643 said:

 

For us non-Haven, non-YC peons, does MSC still match tier levels with NCL? We'll be Platinum next April, and that would be an incentive for us to give MSC a try.

 

 

https://www.msccruisesusa.com/manage-booking/msc-voyagers-club/status-match

[RB9643]

 

Thank you. Might just take our first MSC cruise in 2025.