Cruising with MSC Yacht Club: It's the Little Things
Our week-long cruise in the MSC Yacht Club on the Seascape was absolutely incredible, and much of that is due to what most would consider little things. I've said it before and I'll say it again, the little things make all the difference! In this post I'm going to break down some of the most memorable touches, and as long as I'm sure it will get, I'm barely scratching the surface!
From the moment you arrive at the cruise terminal you will see signs and be greeted by staff from the Yacht Club. They escort you to the front of lines and guide you to a special waiting area where the staff are excited to see you and ready to begin spoiling you! They have a variety of drinks available while you wait from still or sparkling water (both of which are pretty much always available), lemonade, or even champagne or a mimosa! Once they have a group together and a butler to escort you, they walk you all the way onto the ship and up to the Yacht Club Top Sail Lounge. Here we were again offered drinks and snacks, but when we found out our room was ready we were excited to check that out first!
Where to begin! The room was very well laid out and appointed with multiple amenities:
The sizeable bathroom was well stocked with body wash, shampoo, conditioner (which they called hair balm), hand soap, and freshly laundered (and pressed?) towels that were replenished twice daily.
Included with our room were two, plush robes and two sets of slippers.
On the counter we found a nespresso machine, which I only used once since it was so handy to order coffees wherever else I happened to be! There were multiple glass bottles of water, still and sparkling, available at all times. They also provided a few small snacks, in this case mixed nuts and pringles as well as a full bar of Toblerone in the mini fridge. Speaking of the mini fridge...
It was well stocked! On the top shelf you see some fruit smoothies and two different types of iced tea and on the bottom are different sodas and Guinness. No, they don't all come standard with Guinness, but when our butler found out that it was my son's favorite, he made sure it was always on hand. There were also a few bottles of water chilling on the door. Unlike other cruise lines we've sailed on, EVERYTHING in the room was included in the room price. Now, full disclosure, I asked and found out that only the first set of snacks were included and if we ate ones after that there would be an extra charge, but ALL the drinks on the counter and in the mini fridge were completely covered by our Everything's Included Premium beverage package.
Content warning: there's lots of AMAZING food coming up, so I hope you're not too hungry!
Everything we had in the Yacht Club, whether at the pool deck buffet, in the restaurant, or even ordered to our room was exceptional. The omelet above was very probably the best I've ever had in my life. And it was all so easy! I would show up on the pool deck, let the staff know what I'd like to drink and how I wanted my eggs that day (others ordered bread items like pancakes, waffles and french toast to order as well) and then I could peruse the buffet of items that would challenge anyone to not find something they liked. After finding my seat for the morning, Mardi would show up with my coffee and water and Jordan or Marelin would come by with my omelet when it was ready.
One fun thing was that the Captain and a few officers would take a stroll around the pool deck a few times each morning. They would greet the guests and make light conversation. I've never had a more fun, engaging captain on a cruise as I did on this one. He was nicknamed "Captain Buh-Bye" by my fellow cruisers because of the way he would sign off his multiple updates from the bridge (2-3 per day). He would share our position, course, weather and then a few fun things going on around the ship or on shore, but he always ended with, "Nevertheless, Buh-Bye!" 
Blessing, our sommelier from Cape Town, South Africa, always stopped and spent time visiting with us in the mornings. I mean she spent time. It wouldn't be uncommon for us to spend twenty or more minutes talking about life on the ship or back home with her in the morning. I loved that the crew were so willing to share of themselves and engage with us. After learning about us over the first couple of days she let us know that she had a special wine she wanted us to try on the Gala night when they serve lobster. It was not even on the menu and she had brought it up for us from the special cellar. We looked forward to it, and with good reason because when we tried it my son declared it was the best he'd ever had and was his new favorite wine! I guess I've got to plan a trip to New Zealand now to pick him up some more 😂In the Top Sail Lounge, they offered an array of different snacks. Now this was something we had seen in the lounge on NCL, but here it was different. If the Lounge was open, there were snacks out, period. There were no hungry hours! And the snacks themselves had such variety. There were the most adorable glass bubbles that they would fill with treats like marinated mushrooms or tuna stuffed tomatoes. They had a different flavor of potato chips every day from caviar to Iberian ham. And there was always some type of sweet! We would get special snacks brought to our room in the late afternoon on NCL, but most of the time it had gluten in it so I couldn't have them. There was always something I could eat on the snack bar in the Top Sail Lounge. That little thing meant a lot to me!
Last up for food, but not least, definitely not least (!), was the pizza. No, it wasn't gluten free. Someone sued MSC after a gluten exposure from pizza so they don't offer gluten free anymore. I'm going to share a little secret with you, every once in a while I cheat 😬. I don't have Celiac Disease, just a gluten intolerance that makes me ultra inflamed and more than a little miserable, but sometimes that's worth it. I'd heard tell of the wonders of MSC pizza and this is what I saved my gluten cheat for on this trip. You could have your butler order it to your room or the pool deck and Google said the weather outside was "90° but it feels like 106°,” so the air conditioned suite it was! Neither of us was up to tackling a whole pizza by themselves so we got a 50/50 split. When I tell you it was worth the cheat, I mean it was so good that it would have been worth the two days of extra, sometimes super extra, pain I would have felt. But, praise God, I had something wonderful happen, I didn't react. I've had this experience periodically in Europe, I think because their wheat is different, and perhaps MSC uses European wheat, or perhaps God just gave me a gift, either way, I'll take it! The little things...
On their private island, Ocean Cay, MSC continued the Yacht Club treatment in a special area. You were escorted from the Top Sail Lounge all the way off the ship and handed into the care of the on shore butlers for the day who helped you onto a dedicated electric shuttle that whisked you away to the back side of the island. Here you found crew members handing out bath sheet sized beach towels, bottled water and ice-cold Corona next to a quiet, almost empty beach. This beach was just for us so there were more than enough loungers and umbrellas to go around. I've been to the public section of Ocean Cay on a previous cruise so I knew what a special thing this was. The water was clear and warm, I wish I could have stayed in an hour longer, but my fair skin was burning to a crisp. I don't think any amount of sunscreen would have prevented that.
When we were done on the beach we headed to the club house for lunch, and what a lunch it was. This isn't the standard buffet fare served on the other side to people waiting in line for 45 minutes or more. No, we were seated right away and given a menu I could have eaten off of for days. That was the hardest thing about our visit to Ocean Cay, having to choose what I would eat. I decided on the Pineapple Club Mahi Mahi (locally sourced) with pineapple relish, spinach, watercress, heirloom tomatoes, pumpkin, and a coconut cilantro dressing. My son had the salad with steak. I could eat this food All. Day. Long. Not kidding. This was amazing. We sat on the beach, watching the beautiful water, with palm trees swaying next to us, oh and a giant iguana meandering by, eating the most delectable food with giant ceiling fans to cool us. 
Every time we returned to the ship, whether on Ocean Cay or in one of the ports, they would have a special Yacht Club pavillion set up. Here there was infused ice water and cool wet towels to cleanse your face while relaxing on padded, comfortable furniture. I didn't think I would take the time to stop at one of these, but when they smiled at me and offered me cucumber water and a cool, moist towel I couldn't turn them down.
The fun didn't stop in the evening hours. In addition to the many, many entertainment options available in the main part of the ship, the Yacht Club has its opportunities too. On a regular evening, you'll find a pianist, a duo, or even a saxophonist playing in the Top Sail Lounge. The pianist, Simone, was so good I could sit and listen to him for hours. If he was playing, I didn't want to go anywhere else in the ship! They also organized special events like the Chocolate pairing on the left and the "White Party" on the right where the whole restaurant staff got involved in the shenanigans.
The Yacht Club wrist bands had a special chip in them so that when you ordered an elevator it would go directly to the floor you requested without stopping! If you've ever spent time on a cruise ship, you know the pain of having the elevator stop on Every. Single. Floor. This was a super awesome perk!
No, the Yacht club isn't perfect, but when they fall short, like when the elevator was down for a bit and I didn't have easy access to the pool buffet, they make up for it in spades. I was surprised and wonderfully blessed by the note I found in our room with a compensatory gift of chocolates (really nice ones!), a shopping tote with the MSC logo, and a personal letter of apology. That's way more than I've gotten from other companies who barely acknowledge accessibility difficulties.
Here's the Thing: You get what you pay for, and you do pay for the little things, but just maybe those little things are worth saving up a little extra for!
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