Pirate's First MSC Experience! A LIVE Seaside 8/20/23-8/27/23 Review

[JAGR]

4 hours ago, pirate4me2 said:

Pre Cruise Hotel Info:

When I sailed on Mardi Gras last November, DH and I stayed at Home2Suites in Cape Canaveral for the first time. Their address is 9004 Astronaut Blvd in Cape Canaveral.

I think that's a good choice.  All three of the Hilton properties in that complex are very good.  They are all solid 3-Star.

[pirate4me2]

Ugh, I need this vacation to be NOW. Flirt, my dear, sweet redhead horse, decided to kick the farrier today and did some lovely work to him. I’m praying he doesn’t drop us as a client now. I’ll be drinking a few extra drinks this vacation until I hear back from him. 

[mica178]

If you want to reduce how much you pack, you can send off laundry. I bought a laundry package before I sailed for 20 pieces of clothing. I informed my butler of the package, and I was able to split the laundry into two batches. It was very easy, and they did a fine job cleaning. It's not free, obviously, but it's not too expensive, all things considered. My butler alluded to laundry packages after you board, but we had already purchased our package, so I don't know how good of a deal I could have received.

 

Also, you don't have to dress up that much in the YC dining room. Even on gala night, there were men were in polo shirts with khakis and women in the female equivalent (sundresses, nice tops with slacks). I wore flip flops on casual dinner nights (my flip flops do have sparkles on them, but they are hardly fancy), and no one said boo to me. I'd guess that as long as you are clean and polite, they'll let you get away with pretty much anything at YC. 😉 

 

My family managed with the equivalent of a backpack and a rolling carry-on suitcase each. I did have a separate duffle bag for dirty laundry for the way home since we didn't send everything to get cleaned on the ship (and then I forgot about said duffle bag when we were exiting the ship -- oops!) and I didn't want dirty laundry making the clean stuff smelly. 

 

If you are a wine drinker, ask to speak with the sommelier at the YC (Mayur, I believe, is his name). They usually serve wine by the glass, but if you know what you're talking about, the sommelier has YC only bottles that he can bring to tables that are included in the YC cost. Most are superior to the stuff they pour by the glass. 

[pirate4me2]

12 minutes ago, mica178 said:

If you want to reduce how much you pack, you can send off laundry. I bought a laundry package before I sailed for 20 pieces of clothing. I informed my butler of the package, and I was able to split the laundry into two batches. It was very easy, and they did a fine job cleaning. It's not free, obviously, but it's not too expensive, all things considered. My butler alluded to laundry packages after you board, but we had already purchased our package, so I don't know how good of a deal I could have received.

 

Also, you don't have to dress up that much in the YC dining room. Even on gala night, there were men were in polo shirts with khakis and women in the female equivalent (sundresses, nice tops with slacks). I wore flip flops on casual dinner nights (my flip flops do have sparkles on them, but they are hardly fancy), and no one said boo to me. I'd guess that as long as you are clean and polite, they'll let you get away with pretty much anything at YC. 😉 

 

My family managed with the equivalent of a backpack and a rolling carry-on suitcase each. I did have a separate duffle bag for dirty laundry for the way home since we didn't send everything to get cleaned on the ship (and then I forgot about said duffle bag when we were exiting the ship -- oops!) and I didn't want dirty laundry making the clean stuff smelly. 

 

If you are a wine drinker, ask to speak with the sommelier at the YC (Mayur, I believe, is his name). They usually serve wine by the glass, but if you know what you're talking about, the sommelier has YC only bottles that he can bring to tables that are included in the YC cost. Most are superior to the stuff they pour by the glass. 

Thank you for the info! Maybe I will pack my "dressy" flip flops and see what happens. 🙂

[pirate4me2]

Last work day before vacation! I think I can maybe make it until 5:30. Really though my mind is already on island time....

[Essiesmom]

Last chance to go shopping for that last long coverup that can also serve as evening weather.  Many, many worn onboard.  Also, if you plan to attend shows in the theater, I find it quite cold, so bring a shawl type thing.  Nothing in the shops onboard like the $10 fake pashminas…. EM

[pirate4me2]

37 minutes ago, Essiesmom said:

Last chance to go shopping for that last long coverup that can also serve as evening weather.  Many, many worn onboard.  Also, if you plan to attend shows in the theater, I find it quite cold, so bring a shawl type thing.  Nothing in the shops onboard like the $10 fake pashminas…. EM

HAHAHAHAHA oh my.....so funny story, I actually am trying to find my white sheer shawl to put over my spaghetti strap dress for dinnertime. Maybe I should just use my bathing suit coverup? 😂 Just kidding. I did pack, according to your review, a hoodie for at night in case I get cold.

[Essiesmom]

One of those sarong type things that you can wrap around waist or chest will get you anywhere on ship.  Or off.  EM

[pirate4me2]

My coworker just had the guts to tell me I need to quit cruising....um, lady, have you lost your mind? Do you want to see me go coco loco? Better hush up! 

[jimbri]

Have a great time!

 

[Georgia_Peaches]

Looking forward to following along!  I just love mother/daughter cruises!  Enjoy. 

[pirate4me2]

10 hours ago, jimbri said:

Have a great time!

 

Thank you!

10 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Looking forward to following along!  I just love mother/daughter cruises!  Enjoy. 

Thank you!

[pirate4me2]

Travel day done!

 

To appease Mom, I crawled out of bed at 3:15, even though my KatieKat tried to tell me not to. She tried all the tricks: lying on my belly purring, refusing to move, giving me the sweetest head butts and meows, then tried rolling around looking cute and meowing when all else failed. When she realized she got an early breakfast thought she abandoned her mission to lure me back to bed. 

After tearful goodbyes to the cat and dog, and a lecture to the husband to keep them alive, I hit the road to mom’s at 4, and we were loaded and headed southbound at 4:30. We made good time until about 6:15, when a crash near Pomaria, SC shut down the interstate and we had to do a little detour. It wasn’t bad though, and the detour took us by a Chick fil A. I could totally taste a spicy chicken biscuit with pickles, so we pulled in. That biscuit hit the spot and was fresh and PERFECT!

 

We trucked on to Jacksonville, FL for our next stop at a tack store I discovered years ago, and reached it at 11:02. Mom and I wasted a good 45 minutes here and left with a back seat full of goodies (not really, just cheap pitchforks) and then grabbed a Blizzard from Dairy Queen for “lunch.” We didn’t want anything heavy, and the FL heat was hitting us good, so ice cream sounded like a great plan. 
 

The rest of the drive was uneventful until about 25 minutes away from the hotel, when we narrowly avoided an incident that could have been bad. We were barreling along at a good clip when a tractor trailer ahead blew a tire, and thank goodness we were in the far left lane. A huge chunk of tire landed in the middle lane, and another car hit it and pieces flew all over, and a bunch of it was stuck under his car. I felt so bad for him, and was so greatful that A) we were not in that lane and that B) none of the debris hit us! I hope that other car was not damaged too badly. 
 

We got the our hotel, Home2Suites, at 2:30. I had done contactless check in on the app so we just went up to our room and chucked our junk in there, then headed down to the lobby. We stopped at reception to pick up our shuttle pass for tomorrow morning (shuttles run at 10:45 and 11:15) and the parking pass for the car. I then called for an Uber to whisk us away to Fishlips for dinner. We walked in at 3:34, and ahhhh…I immediately felt like I was finally on vacation! 
 

We opted to sit upstairs on the deck under an umbrella, and I ordered a drink (Tropical Heat Wave I think the name was?) that had habanero bitters in it…oh my gosh y’all, it was awesome!! Sweet and spicy, and the perfect start to vaca! I sipped it as we watched Ol’ Stumpy (oh sorry, Carnival Freedom) sail out. Mom shook her head at poor Freedom and said WHY has that poor whale tail not been fixed yet…it’s a shame to Carnival, and looks awful up close. To me she looks like the forgotten stepchild of the fleet. But anyway…I know she gets fixed in a few months. 
 

Our food arrived, and dinner was a great success. Mom got the seafood roll with a salad, and the innerds of the roll were DELISH! I got blackened Mahi tacos with fries, and they were as delicious as always. We chowed down and watched the birds and port traffic, and talked to a few locals. It was nice. 
 

We Ubered back to the hotel at 4:45, and wandered the property for a few. We dangled our legs in the pool, and then walked to the “pond” out back. We got excited when we thought we saw an alligator in the water…then realized it was just a turtle. Darn it. Mom so wanted to see a gator in person. Maybe I’ll take her mini golfing where they have them sometime. 😂

 

We finally decided at 7 that we were done for the day. We are feeling like 2 old ladies with our early morning wake up, so we came back to the room to shower and collapse. We discovered that although the room is clean, they forgot to refill the shower gel and shampoo, but whatevs…I brought my own, I’ll be ok. 
 

Tomorrow…CRUISE DAY!!!

[jules815]

Following along. 

 

Seaside in the YC was our first cruise with MSC back in January 2019. We immediately booked again for Seashore in 2020, but we all know what happened then. We kept our booking and our Seashore cruise for October 2021 turned into a cruise on Meraviglia instead. It all worked out though! We loved Meraviglia and it happened to be one of those low passenger count cruises...it was crazy! 

We have another cruise coming up next month on Seascape and we're really starting to get excited now. I can't wait to hear what you think about the YC. 

I hope you and your mom have a great cruise! Cheers!

[pirate4me2]

11 minutes ago, jules815 said:

Following along. 

 

Seaside in the YC was our first cruise with MSC back in January 2019. We immediately booked again for Seashore in 2020, but we all know what happened then. We kept our booking and our Seashore cruise for October 2021 turned into a cruise on Meraviglia instead. It all worked out though! We loved Meraviglia and it happened to be one of those low passenger count cruises...it was crazy! 

We have another cruise coming up next month on Seascape and we're really starting to get excited now. I can't wait to hear what you think about the YC. 

I hope you and your mom have a great cruise! Cheers!

Thank you, I’m excited to see what adventures and experiences the next week holds for us! 

[laudergayle]

Oh my gosh…today has finally arrived.  Can’t wait to read all about your adventures.  We board in 7 days…although not in YC.  Bon Voyage.

[jules815]

Happy Boarding Day!!!  I bet you're both really excited now.  😃

 

 

[pirate4me2]

1 hour ago, laudergayle said:

Oh my gosh…today has finally arrived.  Can’t wait to read all about your adventures.  We board in 7 days…although not in YC.  Bon Voyage.

It’s finally here! I’m anxiously counting down until our hotel shuttle to the port. 55 minutes!!  
We will take good care of Seaside for you until you board. 🙂 

 

1 hour ago, jules815 said:

Happy Boarding Day!!!  I bet you're both really excited now.  😃

 

 

We are!! I can’t wait!! 

[SenatorsFan]

Have a wonderful cruise! 🚢🥂

[psmarkle]

Hurry up and post about today LOL!!!!!  I'm sitting here dreaming about the YC and all that you are about to enjoy. Of course, I'm also trying to avoid thinking about work tomorrow, so this is my escape mechanism...keep telling myself, just 2 more years. Then DW and I can cruise whatever time of year we want! 😛 So excited for you and your Mom.

[pirate4me2]

2 hours ago, SenatorsFan said:

Have a wonderful cruise! 🚢🥂

Thank you!

 

1 hour ago, psmarkle said:

Hurry up and post about today LOL!!!!!  I'm sitting here dreaming about the YC and all that you are about to enjoy. Of course, I'm also trying to avoid thinking about work tomorrow, so this is my escape mechanism...keep telling myself, just 2 more years. Then DW and I can cruise whatever time of year we want! 😛 So excited for you and your Mom.

😂 going to try and work on a quick post now!

[pirate4me2]

I woke up at 6:53 this morning and went to put in my contacts…only to discover KatieKat left me a message about how angry she is I left her behind. I stuck my contact in, and owww! A dang piece of her long fluff had apparently fallen into my contact case and gotten stuck on my contact. #lifewithpets 

 

After cussing and wondering why the heck I’m such a softie and have to have pets, I got myself together. Mom and I decided to go get breakfast at Grill’s at 8, and we split the Krabby Frank’s Benedict’s and a seafood omlet. The Benedict’s won! 

Our shuttle to the port was at 10:45, and we had the shuttle all to ourselves. It seemed like everyone else we spoke to was going on RCL’s Wonder of the Seas.

 

The driver dropped us off right at the blue Yacht Club Tent, and I swear, from the time we dropped our luggage to the time we sat in the Top Sail Lounge we never quit moving! I barely had time to drink a glass of champagne at check in! It was awesome. We were sipping mimosas and nibbling snacks in Top Sail by 11.

 

Our cabin was ready at 11:58, so we went to check it out and dump our carry ons, then went for lunch at 12:30. Mom and I both got the Cobb salad, which was a huge portion and so fresh and delicious. I got the Pakora entree, which was a vegetarian option…it was like fried vegetable fritters. They were slightly spicy and yummy. Moms vegetarian pasta though…oh my gosh, that was the winner!! The filling was flavorful and pasta so fresh! I got the cheesecake for dessert, which was good, and mom got the trio sampler, which was the winner. The tiramisu on that…just heaven!!!

 

We went back to the room at 1:30 to freshen up, and our luggage had arrived

so we unpacked. Here I noticed one comparison to Carnival…there are not as many shelves by the cabin mirror to store lady things. Mom and I usually each take a side for our makeup, hairbrush, etc. On here I just threw it on the desk like area. I miss my shelves. However, I love all the closet space, they seem to have more of that than Carnival. And the bathroom! I love it, it’s not cramped, and I love there is no shower curtain. The balcony is a great size, I foresee some major reading happening out there. 
 

We met our butler, Arnold, who is a sweetie. He explained things to us and is arranging to have the bed separated…mom refuses to snuggle me, she says I bite and kick. 

 

We decided to walk a few “gen-pop” areas after unpacking, and so far I like the ship a lot! There is an aqua-adventure park with water slides for the kids that looks like a lot of fun, and the Jungle Pool area was shady and cool looking. The Aurea sun deck and bar has a lot of shade and wasn’t busy at all. 
 

We meandered back to “our” area and got our first beverages of the cruise…iced coffee for mom, a frozen chocolate thing for me. That drink was dangerous. 
 

That’s all for now. Time to watch safety video. More later! 

[pirate4me2]

[pirate4me2]

[ileys]

Really enjoying the review so far - thanks for bringing us along with you!