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I tried a ship-within-a-ship cruise experience and it was worth it for the endless perks—here’s why

The MSC Yacht Club affords travelers a totally different cruising experience, but you’ll have to splurge.

I heard tales of luxury from people about the ritzy MSC Yacht Club , the ship-within-a-ship concept where discerning passengers enjoy their own area of the cruise ship that includes a dedicated restaurant, private lounge, separate pool and sundeck as well as private butlers and concierges to take of any whim while cruising. The elevated Yacht Club boasts priority everything while sailing MSC.

I sailed on a four-night cruise on the new MSC Seashore, a glitzy ship with Italian flair intermingled with references to New York City at every turn. Although the ship was well-appointed and had amazing dining, drinking and entertainment venues, and a bountiful Top Sail main buffet, thousands of passengers made the ship feel crowded at times, elevators were slow, and as I strolled through the general pools, they were boisterous and crowded.

RECOMMENDED: 10 things about cruising on an adults-only ship that might surprise you

Switch gears to MSC Seashore’s Yacht Club, passkey-protected for lucky guests, and is a 180 from the ship’s general spaces. Once you scan your handy Yacht Club wrist badge, or your room key, you’re instantly given entrance to a breathtaking retreat of 131 staterooms and suites. All this luxury does come at a price. Cruise fares will vary based on destination, time of year, and cabin category, but generally speaking you can expect to pay double for the Yacht Club. And from my experience, it’s worth it. Read more about why you should splurge.

You’re fast-tracked through everything

The Yacht Club’s exclusivity and impeccable service standard started from the moment I got dropped off at the Port Canaveral cruise terminal. There were hundreds of people waiting to board at 1pm on embarkation day. I saw in the distance a canopy that said MSC Yacht Club. My husband and I wheeled our carry-on luggage to the representative under the canopy. I gave her my name and within two seconds, she gave me a sticker to wear and up we ascended on the escalator to check in. Just five minutes later, I was directed to the dedicated check-in area for Yacht Club guests. To my right, I saw about 1,000 people serpentine through ropes to do general check-in. I felt a sense of relief; who wants to wait in that line? Five minutes later, a butler from the Yacht Club insisted on wheeling my luggage to board the ship and I was in my room in a total on 12 minutes from the time I stepped foot out of the car to my stateroom in the Yacht Club.

Relaxing and streamlined

In addition, Yacht Club guests have the freedom to get off the ship first for excursions. Your butler will happily escort you off the ship with a smile. Guests also can disembark on the last morning first, which is a big convenience. Your butler walks you right to the place you disembark, bypassing crowds and hassles. Port Canaveral is about an hour away from Orlando International Airport, and we took a 10 am flight home. We didn’t have to linger around until the afternoon for our flight home.

Another perk is that there’s a special seating area in the theater for shows. All the shows were excellent during my voyage. All other ship passengers have to make reservations in advance for shows but that’s not the case for the privileged Yacht Club passengers. As long as you arrive about 10 minutes before any show you choose, a crew member from the Club will allow you entry into a special roped-off section. Again, no rushing through dinner—you have the flexibility to plan your evenings your way.

Your Yacht Club package is packed with remarkable value

The price tag may sound daunting, but there’s lots of value there. All Yacht Club cabins and suites include a premium drink package that covers beverages up to $15. You can use this perk both in the Yacht Club and throughout the ship. In addition, your package includes a two-device Wi-Fi package, which worked well during my sailing. Finally, you get access to the thermal spa suite, which is a place to indulge after a day in port or a sea day. Commonly, there’s a taboo regarding mini-bars, but not in the Yacht Club. It’s stocked each day with the beverages you want; just tell your butler and consider it done.

You get perks ashore too

If your sailing includes a call to Ocean Cay, MSC’s private island, Yacht Club guests get an elevated experience there too. Yacht Club guests enjoy a private area, and a dedicated restaurant called the Ocean House. While other ship guests were hosted to a buffet of predictable fare, I enjoyed a lobster roll, and my husband chose carne asada. In my opinion, one thing that could be improved was the tram service to the Yacht Club’s private area. We were told the last tram back was 3:30pm if we didn’t want to trek a 15-minute walk in the heat. Since we were docked in Ocean Cay for the evening and weren’t sailing, I was a bit dismayed by this logistical quirk. I felt like I was keeping an eye on my phone to make sure I didn’t miss the last tram.

You have private areas with curated food and drink and outdoor spaces

Within the Yacht Club complex, there’s the Yacht Club Restaurant, Top Sail Lounge and the One Pool Buffet, which are all exclusive to Yacht Club guests. Obviously, the food and service are steps above other dining venues of the ship, I can vouch for that. Although the food is delicious, if you don’t want to pay extra to dine at the specialty restaurants or fuss in the main buffet, eating three meals a day in the Yacht Club restaurant can get a bit monotonous. The breakfast is the same daily, and lunch and dinner offer a menu with daily specials plus a few standby selections like a hamburger or pasta each day. Although the Yacht Club Restaurant concept is desirable, I would strongly suggest dining in other venues on board, especially for dinner. I thoroughly enjoyed specialty dining in Ocean Cay Restaurant, Butcher’s Cut, and Kaito Teppanyaki. I also want to mention that late afternoon high tea is offered daily at the Yacht Club Restaurant. It was one of the nicest I have experienced at sea.

Also available exclusively to Yacht Club passengers is the Top Sail Lounge, which offers panoramic water views and has chef-curated selections from morning through late night. We enjoyed popping into the lounge at all hours to try finger foods and sweets. The One Pool Buffet offers a more casual option for breakfast and lunch by the pool. The buffet has grilled fish, sandwiches and lots of delicious options if you want to dine outside.

There’s also an exclusive area with a private pool and two whirlpools for Yacht Club guests only. The sun deck loungers are very comfortable and I never had to worry about finding a lounger, there are ample. One issue I had was that there was almost no shade on the sun deck; there were shaded day beds for Royal Suite and Owners Suite guests, but beyond those, I couldn’t find any shade, which was disappointing.

You can justify the price at the end of your cruise

Overall, the best way to explain my enthusiasm for my MSC Yacht Club experience is this: it’s better to book an interior stateroom in the Yacht Club than a luxe cabin outside the Yacht Club. It’s worth the splurge and you return home feeling truly pampered and it’s money well-spent. And I make this prediction: Once you try a ship-within-a-ship concept like the MSC Yacht Club, you won’t want cruise any other way. Bon Voyage!

Erica Lamberg

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Cruise Podcast

The MSC Meraviglia Yacht Club Experience Review

Doug Parker

February 3, 2024

Doug talks with Mark and Rocky of TheCruiseLife this week about their nine-night cruise aboard MSC Meraviglia.

They dive into their bougie MSC Meraviglia Yacht Club experience, from exclusive embarkation to dedicated amenities like a butler, private lounge, dining room, and sun deck. They discuss the superior dining options, including specialty dishes and a unique cheese trolley, and the benefits of their status-matching loyalty program status.

One of MSC Cruises’ larger vessels , Mark and Rocky also touch on the onboard entertainment, the ship’s atmosphere, and ports of call, including a visit to MSC’s private island, Ocean Cay.

Find Rock and Mark’s coverage of MSC Meraviglia :

ThisCruiseLife YouTube channel features their cruises across all lines.
The MSC Meraviglia playlist has several videos from their sailing.
Read the MSC Yacht Club experiences on ThisCruiseLife website .

MSC Meraviglia Review Transcript

Doug (00:01:01) – Mark and Rocky had just returned from a nine-night cruise aboard MSC Maravilla. It was out of New York City, in the Bahamas, Florida area, and staying in the yacht club. They join us on the line right now. Hey, guys, how are you?

Guest (00:01:16) – Good, Doug.

Doug (00:01:17) – I’m excited to talk about this because we haven’t had an MSC Yacht Club experience in a long time. We’ve had the ones that were like three-nighters and were fast, but I’m excited to hear what it’s like spending extended time beyond seven nights in that yacht club. So what we’ll do here before we get started, we’ll get some pre-cruise thoughts. You’re in the Phoenix area. What made you want to take this nine-niner out of New York City.

Guest (00:01:40) – Honestly, it was just the idea of getting to check out a new cruise line. We’ve been looking at MSC for a long time, and the idea that sailing out of New York in the heart of January, when it is very cold outside, uh, the pricing was very lucrative to get ourselves onto that ship, as well as to fly across the country to New York.

Guest (00:02:01) – So all the stars aligned and just made it worthwhile for us.

Doug (00:02:04) – Now, there were some, uh, a little bit of weather going through the country about the time when you all boarded. It might have missed you by a day or two. Did that impact your flights going into Manhattan?

Guest (00:02:14) – It did not impact the flights at all. It did impact sail away a bit. Um, as you can imagine, uh, the storms, uh, it was pretty rocky on the seas. Uh, it was really cool because it was the first time ever.

So we’ve been to Alaska several times, but it was the first time ever we’ve actually seen snow on a cruise ship. And so to see the crew, it was the first time many had seen snow on a cruise ship. And they were out running out, uh, TikTok ING and taking selfies. It was a really special experience, uh, being able to see that snowstorm.

Doug (00:02:48) – That is so cool.

Doug (00:02:49) – So did you any pre cruise time in the city before boarding in Brooklyn?

Guest (00:02:57) – You know, we always suggest that the best way to do it is to fly a day ahead of time. Uh, this time we flew in two days in advance to take some time and explore Brooklyn, because that’s where the cruise terminal is for MSC. And then we also took the subway into Manhattan and just kind of hung around Times Square, went to a couple of bars, a couple of restaurants, and, uh, just kind of got ourselves situated in New York before we set sail. We met up with we met up with one of, uh, the solo’s that I met on board, uh, Norwegian Cruise Line. So I did a Norwegian cruise line earlier in 2023. Uh, we met a bunch of solos in our solo cabins, and we actually met up with them to hang out, and they showed us New York, which was a ton of fun.

Guest (00:03:36) – You see.

Doug (00:03:36) – You never know what connections you’ll make on a ship, right? Right.

Guest (00:03:39) – Exactly.

Doug (00:03:40) – Yeah. It’s it’s so awesome. So you make your way to Brooklyn the following day and you go to embark MSC Maravilla. How was that embarkation process? And, did you get any kind of special treatment embarking since you were in the Yacht Club?

Guest (00:03:54) – Goodness gracious. It was an embark like none that I’ve ever experienced. We’ve all been through embark. We know the lines, we know the queues. We know all of the seating areas. Um, the moment that we got there, immediately there was signage for yacht club. And so the, the, the porter, the luggage porter whisked us over and tagged our bags with yacht club tags and pointed us to his colleague standing at the door with a yacht club sign. They literally escorted us through the terminal to our own dedicated security line for yacht club. Um, they didn’t have a they didn’t have us waiting in the general queue.

Guest (00:04:28) – And so we went through that security queue, uh, very quickly. And another, yet another Yacht Club representative whisked us to our private lounge, where they did one on one check ins with us, um, and then handed us glasses of champagne and canapés and sparkling water. Um, and it was a private area, very quiet, very secluded from the rest of the terminal. And we enjoyed mimosas and, uh, sparkling water, uh, that as we waited to board the ship.

Doug (00:04:57) – How long did it take you from curb to ship, then?

Guest (00:05:00) – It took us about an hour and a half. So unfortunately the the sailing before ours was the New Year’s cruise. And so they had a lot of passengers to disembark from that ship. So they were slightly delayed on clearing the ship down to zero counts for us to start the embark process. So yeah, about an hour and a half from when we arrived. Fortunately, the lounge was great. We had butlers in there waiting on us, so it was a really pleasant experience getting to stand around and wait until the ship was ready.

Guest (00:05:28) – Literally. Butlers, butlers, refilling our champagne glasses, walking around with bottles of champagne, saying, oh, would you like a refill on your champagne? Well, okay. Yes, we would love that.

Doug (00:05:38) – It’s like being stuck in an airport and being able to be in an airline lounge instead of in the regular common area, right? Just kind of, uh. Yeah, yeah, living it up in there. So you make your way on board the ship. You’re mentioning this was your first time on the ship. So what were your first impressions of MSC Meraviglia?

Guest (00:05:54) – So it’s kind of funny you ask that we didn’t actually get to see the whole ship for the first four hours that we were on board when they when the yacht club boards, we get priority boarding service. So they bring us into the main atrium, and that’s about the most of the ship we get to see. From there, we walk down a corridor of rooms to the very forward of the ship, where they have elevators that they can badge in, giving you priority access to the elevator.

Guest (00:06:21) – They loaded us into these elevators and took us up to the 16th deck where the topsail lounges, which is the exclusive lounge space for the top or the yacht club. Uh, and they put us in there with, again, more champagne and more canapés and live music that was being performed for us. So we spent most of the first four hours on board in that topsail lounge. Well, they took us from the Topsail Lounge. Then they opened up the Topsail Restaurant, the exclusive restaurant for yacht clubbers. And so we literally went from canapés and champagne up to the lunch in the Topsail restaurant.

Normally we run around taking pictures and exploring the ship. We literally were just kind of in the lap of luxury those first several hours onboard. Oh, we met our butler as well during that time. And so we didn’t actually leave the yacht club as Rocky mentioned, until about four hours after boarding.

Doug (00:07:12) – So a lot to unpack here. So I want to actually take a step back.

Doug (00:07:15) – And I want to ask, um, we were chatting before we started recording here, and you mentioned you had an upgrade offer. So how much of a premium, um, once you accept that upgrade, is it for the yacht club against just staying in a regular balcony cabin?

Guest (00:07:29) – So that’s exactly what we had booked. We booked a balcony cabin and received an offer to bid on an upgrade. Now, because we had already booked that balcony and paid for a balcony, the upgrade amount was not wildly expensive. I think it was. We we could have started the upgrade process offer at $300 per person. Wow. And Rocky was like, okay, should we just start there? And I was like, how often will we get to stay in the yacht club? We are maxing that bit out. And so I think we each maxed our bid out at about $600. So for another $1,200 or so plus tax and all of that stuff, um, we could move from the balcony we had into.

Guest (00:08:09) – We actually dug and bid for an interior yacht club cabin because we were like, okay, we’re just gonna make sure we get into this thing. Well, they were they must have been sold out because our dreams were answered. We got the upgrade and they put us into a deluxe suite.

Doug (00:08:24) – I love it. Let’s discuss that deluxe suite in the yacht club and give us all the details.

Guest (00:08:30) – As you walk in, the first thing that meets your eye is the size of this cabin. I would say that this cabin is the same depth as your standard balcony cabin that you find on any cruise ship. However, the width is probably equivalent to one and a half to anywhere up to two times the width of a standard balcony cabin. Huge space, um, between the foot of the bed and the credenza and wall units that they had where all of the minibar was located. There was probably a good 4 to 5ft of space between those two areas. Um, inside the bathroom, it was upgraded amenities.

Guest (00:09:05) – You had marble tile throughout, a very large, spacious walk in shower with a rainfall head, uh, or the rain shower head. Um, the balcony was the same width as the room, so it was a pretty sizable balcony. They only put two chairs and one side table out there, but you could have easily had another two. Uh, very large and spacious room.

Doug (00:09:29) – So the question is, how do you use the butler on your cruise? Well.

Guest (00:09:33) – You know, because we often have butlers on our cruises. Uh, I kid, um, it was the first experience. And so literally the butler introduced himself. We were in the room. He he knocked and came in and he said, what questions do you have for me? And we said, well, we don’t even know what questions to ask. And so he’s like, well, let’s start with your pillow selections. Are your pillows up to your liking? And Rocky joked, he’s like, well, we’ll sleep on him tonight and let you know.

Guest (00:09:59) – Um, but but the. Butler took care of our minibar, so he asked us specifically for our preferences in terms of sodas, juices and beers.

He asked for our liquor selection because the yacht club comes with a bottle, comes with bottle service, a single bottle. And so we, uh, we shared our, uh, bottle selection with him, and then he just let us know that he would be the person that would escort us to dinners if we wanted. He would escort us to the theater for shows.

He would arrange our bookings if we wanted to go to any specialty restaurant. And so it was, you know, Rocky and I asked as we were getting ready, we’re like, is this just going to be an upgraded room steward, like a room steward that wears a suit? Um, and no, it was it was significantly more than just a room steward. In fact, we had a junior butler as well and, and a third person who helped service the room.

Guest (00:10:50) – So there were three people servicing the room. But that Butler experience was really unique and new to us. Yes, I love it.

Doug (00:10:58) – So you were on there for nine nights. Was there enough space in your room to put everything?

Guest (00:11:01) – Yeah, there was um, I think one of the challenges that we discovered when we were unpacking our room was the closet space was a little bit smaller than what we’re used to on some of the other balcony rooms that we’ve had in the past. Um, the way it’s set up, you walk in and the, the closet space is your entrance to the bathroom.

And so it’s kind of a strange layout. We discovered that there were some challenges with that. However, there was a three-drawer storage space in the main room area that was part of the main. I don’t know what you call it. Credenza. Yeah. And so that actually made up for some of that lost space. And fortunately, these beds were designed to hold luggage under or suitcases under them.

Guest (00:11:41) – It was easy to unpack our room and get moved in for those nine days. Oh, and don’t forget both of the nightstands next to the bed. So there were additional storage tables next to the bed as well. And so there was plenty of storage. But to Rocky’s point that the closet seemed to be a little bit smaller than than other rooms.

Doug (00:11:59) – ThYacht Club is like Norwegian’s Haven, a ship within a ship concept. So outside of your room, what amenities did you have within your ship?

Guest (00:12:07) – I’m telling you, they design it so you don’t have to leave the yacht club. They tell you when you’re going through the booking process. They say it’s exclusive and it’s private. And that is very true. And so the entrance to the yacht club on each of the floors are glass doors. Truly. They look out into the elevator bank. I think MSC has designed it so that people can see in and you can see out, but you have to badge in and out to get in.

Guest (00:12:33) – And so the spaces are beautiful. They’ve got those crystal staircases. What are those crystals? The Swarovski, Swarovski, uh, staircases, the spiral staircases. So we would leave our room and take the staircase up to the next deck. Uh, the 16th deck, which is where the concierge was at the Topsail lounge. Topsail lounge was windows all at the front of the ship.

The view of of New York, we commented that was probably the best view of New York we’ve ever had in that topsail lounge. Oh yeah, the canopy. Like, there’s just so much to unpack in that, um, the full bar.

And then again, you take up another spiral staircase and you are there at the exclusive restaurant, and then one more spiral staircase up, and you are at deck 19, which is your dedicated, uh, lounging space, pool, and hot tub. There’s a daily buffet that they put up there for, for just yacht club guests, along with a bar.

Doug (00:13:23) – Let’s talk about some of the food on MSC Maravilla.

Doug (00:13:26) – Once you get out of your haven complex and go to the buffet with the common folk, how was the buffet and the food throughout the nine days?

Guest (00:13:34) – So we didn’t discover the buffet area until that first night. It was the second day that we discovered it. Yeah. Uh, now that I think back on the experience, um, we like to refer to those areas as Jen and Pop. And, uh, as we walked in to the buffet, we were we kind of felt like we were in someone else’s place. We didn’t feel like we knew that our way around, because we had spent so much time on the ship before we found the buffet. But once we did find it, I’ll tell you, Doug, we spent a good amount of time there, especially for late-night buffets. Uh, this was the first time that we’d really seen a cruise line dedicate a late-night buffet to its passengers consistently. Every night from midnight until 2 a.m..

Guest (00:14:14) – They served food. And we’re not just talking about just, you know, a quick little grab here and there. They have their pizzas available. They have little small sandwiches that you could grab. They had burgers and hot dogs. They sometimes had nachos. Sometimes, they would do a breakfast with some scrambled eggs and bacon every night. I think I got scrambled eggs and bacon every single night of the cruise.

They had the healthy corner like they had salads. And so it wasn’t even just that fried stuff that you sometimes find on the late night buffet. They had salads in a healthy corner. I mean, it was the largest. So we’ve seen late night buffets right on Carnival. We’ve seen it on, uh, we’ve seen it on the other lines. This was the I mean, it was the size of a regular buffet at from 12 a.m. to 2 a.m.. It brought me back to old days of cruising.

Doug (00:14:57) – Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sounds like it. So for your main. You were mentioning.

Doug (00:15:01) – You had your dining room in the topsail area. So how was the dining in the yacht club, and was there much of a selection like, do they rotate the menus? How does that play out?

Guest (00:15:12) – Very much a dedicated menu for the, uh, those that were in the yacht club. Um, the options that they, they had on the menu, there was some mirroring that happened to the main dining rooms on the ship, but they were elevated to a different level with the offerings and the types of food. Uh, there was a selection of classics that were served every night.

For example, you could get your classic filet mignon, or a salmon would be available. And I think they also had a lobster on that classics menu. On the classics menu, you had lobster and filet mignon. I mean, this is this is next level here. Right. And then uh, for the regular offerings every day they had a rotation of several different items. Usually there was a daily result of that was available.

Guest (00:15:53) – There was also a different daily lamb that was on the menu. Uh, so definitely a higher caliber of food offerings on the menu. And the way that they were prepared and plated were very beautiful. Uh, you had, of course, your main waiter and then you had your, your waiters’ assistants and they would all work in harmony together to deliver your breads, appetizers, entrees, and desserts.

Speaking of desserts, don’t forget that the maitre d would flambé the dessert. So we had cherries jubilee one night where he flambé and served that, um, they, they did the cheese trolley where they would literally, they literally had a cheese trolley where you could choose the cheeses and, and jams and jellies that you wanted as part of your dessert option. It was it was definitely. Where do you find a risotto on a cruise on the difficulty to actually prepare that correctly for the masses. Um, you can’t do that. But you can in a private small restaurant that’s dedicated to a subset of your passengers.

Doug (00:16:53) – And how were the lines up there?

Guest (00:16:57) – We don’t know what you mean by lines.

Doug (00:17:00) – Fair enough.

Guest (00:17:02) – Yeah, because there was such a small capacity within the yacht club itself on the ship. Right. And because you only have those people that have access to it, our dining times for dinner was available from 6 p.m. until 830.

That was when you could get seated, and it was open to your time. Whenever you wanted to go in, you would show up. There was one knife that I can think of, and I believe it was the second gala night. We had to wait maybe three minutes, maybe get seated. Yeah. Um, overall, the amount of seating that they have both in the lounge and the restaurant are ample for the number of people that are in there, and they know that they’re going to turn over tables throughout the evening from guests that are doing early versus later dining.

Doug (00:17:42) – Did you enjoy any specialty dining on board this one?

Guest (00:17:45) – So this sailing specifically, we chose to stick to the yacht club so that we could capture each of the menus and actually record some reviews each dinner. We actually are right now looking at booking, uh, another MSC cruise, we committed to ourselves that we would do a yacht club and we would do non-Yacht Club. And so that is where that’s sailing, where we plan to actually explore some of those additional, um, upstairs upcharge specialty restaurants. But for this sailing we literally stuck to the Yacht Club restaurant. That exclusive restaurant.

Doug (00:18:16) – I meant to ask you, before you sailed, did you do the status match with them?

Guest (00:18:20) – Yeah, both of us actually ended up doing status match. Um, with Mark having diamond status with Carnival and I have platinum status, we were both able to match into their gold status or gold level with the Voyagers club.

Doug (00:18:33) – So you stepped right into gold. So do you know, like what that gets you compared to just being a first-time MSC cruiser?

Guest (00:18:39) – Great question.

Guest (00:18:40) – Because, uh, MSC is not known for their loyalty program having the strongest perks, but what it did get us is it it got us a welcome back reception where they had cocktails, which when you’re in the yacht club, it doesn’t really have a huge impact. Uh, because we had champagne up and up in our private lounge.

We also got a little gift. It was a little backpack or drawstring backpack that we got. There’s also when you’re part of the when you’re part of the loyalty program, you get a discount on sailings with MSC, and on future sailings with MSC. And so I think it’s a 5% discount that you get as, as a member of that level. And so there are some perks.

They don’t actually do priority. Like many lines have priority boarding and don’t do that until you hit their very top level, which is diamond. And that’s the only group with priority boarding and demarcation. So that’s our goal. My goal is to hit Diamond on Carnival and MSC.

Guest (00:19:36) – We’ll see how long it takes.

Doug (00:19:37) – Double diamond. There you go.

Guest (00:19:39) – I like it I like.

Doug (00:19:40) – That. How about around the ship like you mentioned Carnival. So we’ll stick with that. Uh, they have the guys burger joint, which is complimentary dining. Does MSC have anything like that around the ship? Kind of a grab and go type place. Yeah.

Guest (00:19:52) – So, uh, it was kind of surprised. And that was one of the conversations that we had at Post Cruise is the fact that there really aren’t those. Types of grab and go quick serve restaurants on board. You do have the buffet, which is very well divided. They have their ethnic corner and they have their pastas, and they have a pizza spot and some burgers, but it’s really only confined to that area as well as the main dining restaurant restaurants. Aside from that, everything is upcharge. They have a Mexican place that’s an upcharge. They have, uh, I can’t remember all of them. There’s a there’s a couple other ones.

Guest (00:20:27) – One thing that I would call out that was unique, that I’ve never seen before on any of our sailings, is they had a kid’s buffet, a dedicated buffet for the kids so that they didn’t have to be in the main area of the buffet. And then the only other kind of separate areas that they had were out on the lido deck.

They had that kind of they had like side buffets. It was the same buffet food on the inside of the buffet, but it was just right outside on Lido, so you didn’t have to go in. But there was no you know, I think about even Celebrity Apex had the burger and fries station and Carnival and all of their side restaurants that they have that are included. None of that. It is focused on the buffet and their and their main dining room for the included options.

Doug (00:21:10) – Let’s discuss the entertainment on board Maravilla. I know that MSC gave up the Cirque partnership located at the back of the ship. What’s going on back there now?

Guest (00:21:22) – So I will say that we were pleasantly surprised with the show performances that were put on in the main Broadway theater, which is their main theater in the forward of the ship. We actually attended one of the Meet the cast type of, uh, presentations, if you will, and we had a really great interaction with them.

We found out that all of the shows in that forward lounge were designed specifically for that cast and this ship. So in all, we were very impressed and enjoyed all of the shows we saw in that forward lounge. Now, going to your question about Cirque du Soleil partnership, you can see that there still is some residual, um, design with the shows that they have in that back lounge that does still exist, they still do aerial acts, and we very much enjoyed those performances. But one thing to be aware of is MSC still continues to consider that an upcharge and add-on type of experience.

Guest (00:22:20) – So if you buy it on the ship, it’s $18 a person to get into one of those shows. The nice thing is they sweeten the deal because they throw a drink at you that you can enjoy during the show, but it’s definitely a bit different of an experience than what we’ve seen on most of the other cruise lines.

Doug (00:22:37) – Gotcha. And did you guys, uh, like, what kind of show was you mentioned? It was like an acrobatics thing, but it was just an MSC-branded show.

Guest (00:22:47) – Yeah. So they put on a magic show. Houdini is the name of the show. And so there’s a lot of singing, dancing, acrobats flying through the air, and a little juggling and jumping out into the audience. And so definitely had, I would say Cirque vibes, but just not with the branding. But to Rocky’s point, they’re still charging that upcharge for the Cirque like show.

Doug (00:23:10) – Gotcha. Okay. Historically, MSC Cruise Entertainment is more visual and less like comedians because of the international audience. Is it like this on MSC Meraviglia?

Guest (00:23:22) – Actually, no. I feel like there was a lot, a lot of the presentations that we saw were done primarily in English, surprisingly. Okay. Uh, the one thing that caught us off guard was the overhead announcements.

Anytime the captain would make his announcements, it would always be done by the captain. Again in Italian. Uh, during the safety briefings when we were on the embark day, they were doing announcements in both English and Mandarin. For safety reasons, there were so many Mandarin-speaking passengers on board. But overall, most of the shows were done and performed in English leading up to the show’s start.

They would do a couple of announcements in Mandarin and Italian and English and German. So they did do several pre-calls for those shows. But overall the actual shows themselves were primarily in English, if there was any speaking at all. Yeah, it turns out it turns out those songs are universal. You know, the journey is universal across all languages.

Doug (00:24:19) – Let’s talk about the sea days. As far as crowds and congestion, I know that you were up there in the yacht club for probably most of it, but as you made your way further south, you mentioned the snow on the sail out, but that it eventually warm up once you got around the Carolinas or Florida.

Guest (00:24:36) – Warmed up is relative. Uh, it was warmer than than the snow, but we there weren’t a lot of folks spending time out on deck or making use of of the water slides. Um, it was still pretty chilly until, honestly, the nicest day we had was in Nassau. And so it took us, uh, five days into the cruise before the weather was, was to a point where you would want to actually be out on deck or layout, you know, you could be out. I mean, we were like, jackets and jeans, uh, throughout the sailing. Uh, but but it wasn’t it didn’t get really warm until we got down into the Bahamas.

Doug (00:25:07) – As far as the crowds and congestion around the ship, was there any of that since everyone was inside?

Guest (00:25:16) – Really? Honestly, the only crowds we experienced were in the Meraviglia Galleria Meraviglia, which is a domed area. If you deck six and deck seven, it’s a two-story area. They’ve got a beautiful dome, similar to the Fremont Experience in Las Vegas, where they’ve got that led that runs almost the entirety of the ship. That’s where they would do many of their dance parties and events, because it was too cold up on deck to do it.

We didn’t feel that space was designed to host those parties. And so it’s a throughput for traffic on the ship. And so you’ve got people trying to make their way throughout the ship and people dancing and singing. And that was really the only time we felt like we were crowded, or that we were kind of annoyed a little bit by the traffic flow of the ship. Otherwise I would I would tell you, we didn’t feel crowds, even the buffet, the buffets, were sometimes a little bit busy, but but not to the point where we’ve seen it wear on other lines.

Guest (00:26:12) – What did you think of that promenade area with the ceiling that lights up?

Guest (00:26:15) – Beautiful. Uh, we were stunned by the design and how gorgeous that space was, and they really maximize the usage of those LED screens throughout the sailing, including on Embark day, when they’re showing you where all of the different muster stations are located. But overall, that space was beautiful.

It was definitely wide enough to walk through it when there wasn’t an event happening, you could easily take yourself up onto the next deck up and look down from the mezzanine and really enjoy the sights and the and sounds and even the smells coming from the chocolate factory. As you were sailing along, so it was very enjoyable.

Speaking of speaking of those multi-use screens, remember, even on the welcome back party, they played the Welcome Back video that that that MSC sizzle reel. They played the video thing. Welcome back. I appreciate your loyalty. They played that up on those screens. And so literally everyone at the Welcome Back party headed to the sky watching them talk about what a great experience MSC is.

Doug (00:27:11) – The casino. How was that as far as the smoking situation in and around it?

Guest (00:27:17) – They had a smoke-free casino. It appears that it was an afterthought based on our conversations with the other passengers on board. The smoke-free casino was nice. However, they didn’t have any gaming tables for the smoke-free gamblers.

Now, the exciting thing was the placement of the Cirque theater. You have to walk through the smoking casino to get to the theater, which was kind of a strange setup, but the way the casino was set up. They put the main bar in the center of it. So you’re not diving into the main casino itself. Overall, the casino seemed like a pretty ample size, comparable to what we’re familiar with on some of Carnival’s Vista ships .

Doug (00:27:59) – Okay. Very cool. So, let’s talk about the ports of call you hit on this nine-night cruise. And what we’ll do here is hit the first one, give us a highlight, then we’ll go to the next one and so on.

Guest (00:28:10) – The first cruise port we visited was the exotic location, Port Canaveral in Florida. We had something else arranged. We have some really good friends that we’ve also met through going on cruises who live in the Orlando area, they ended up picking us up, and we had a fun day at SeaWorld for the day. So, it’s definitely a little bit different. We didn’t book anything through MSC because we’ve been to Port Canaveral before, so we wanted to check it out through the locals.

Doug (00:29:01) – So what was after Port Canaveral?

Guest (00:29:04) – Next was Miami and the day was unexpected. Icon of the Seas was scheduled to arrive in Miami the day before.

However, due to the weather, they kept her out for an extra day. And so we literally got to see icon of the seas sail. And we did a live, uh, we did a YouTube live where we streamed her sailing into Port Miami for the first time. We watched her turn around in the basin, return, and dock at the Royal Caribbean Terminal. There.

We got off the ship, and we hiked our excursion that day. We hiked about a mile up to the Royal Caribbean Terminal, climbed up to the very top of the parking garage, Royal Caribbean parking garage, and we just took pictures and filmed a bunch of stuff up there because it was like such a wow moment for for a couple of cruise nerds.

Doug (00:29:53) – Yeah. No, definitely. So after Nassau, you headed over to the Bahamas. Uh, what was the first Bahamas port?

Guest (00:29:59) – We first stopped at MSC’s Private Island, MSC’s Ocean Cay Marine Reserve. It’s a beautiful private island destination.

You can tell that MSC put a lot of thought and consideration when they were designing this port. It’s huge. It is massive, huge. And it’s nice because the ship can dock directly onto the port there, instead of you having to do a water shuttle taxi service to get in.

It is a very large and sprawling island, with tons of places for people to go out and lounge and layout, grab food, and have a nice relaxing day. Now. Now they don’t have, you know, big water parks and they don’t have hot air balloons that go up in the air like some, you know, private islands do. But but I mean, it had everything that you could want.

Guest (00:30:48) – It had many different beaches. Uh, to Rocky Point food trucks, uh, included food trucks throughout the island, as well as some upcharge food trucks where you could get, you know, seafood, you could get your lobster rolls and some of that fresh seafood.

Doug (00:31:00) – You were in the yacht club, right? So I know they have that yacht club area on the other side of the island, like on the other side from where the ship docks. How was that space, or I guess, did you utilize that space? And would you think of it if you did?

Guest (00:31:12) – Yeah, we actually, uh, as soon as we got off of the ship via escort from our butler. It’s just fun to say that. I’m sorry. Uh, we were escorted over to the yacht club’s meeting point, where they picked us up by golf cart and drove us to that exclusive area. It just made it a little bit easier to get there so we can maximize our time. Uh, the area is referred to as the Ocean House.

And so that’s actually where they serve lunch. And it’s a lovely, large colonial-style building. Uh, the lunch there included amazing bites from a lobster roll to crab ceviche. The ceviche was so good. The beach was delicious. Uh, they also had your standard fare of burgers on the menu, and then a couple of salads and other options.

Overall, it was a great area. As you approached it, there was signage, so you knew it was reserved for the yacht club guests. Uh, there was a private beach. And that’s the one downside that I would say about the exclusive area is the Yacht Club’s Ocean House. The beach is probably the least nice of the beaches that are found on the island.

It’s a little bit rough. Uh, there’s some larger sand bits, if you want to call them that. Uh, so getting in the water makes it a bit tough. And due to the weather that we encountered, we really didn’t even touch the water because we touched the water.

We just didn’t get into the water. It’s it’s rocky, says sand. But I would say sharp rock. So the folks that had been there before had water shoes and were in the water. That was a that’s a great tip. If you’re going to Ocean Cay and in the yacht club, make sure to bring water shoes because. It will make your day better.

Doug: .That’s a good tip. There are a lot of beaches around the island so you get to explore most of them?

We did. We met people on the cruise, as we always do on cruises. And so we went out and we got to explore a little bit with them. In hindsight, I wish we had done the exploration first because it started to pour. Uh, it started to downpour and it was a cold downpour in the Bahamas. And so we we didn’t get to explore as much as we’d like, but we got to see several of the lagoons.

Guest (00:33:15) – We got to see the lighthouse. We got to enjoy one of the food trucks. We did eat at one of the food trucks just so we could say we, you know, ate with our friends. Um, Rocky. Rocky always says we ate with the common people. Um, and so we enjoyed the food on the mainland. And then there’s shops, there’s shops, there’s you can buy ice cream cones and various things on land as well. Before we headed back to the ship. And, and unfortunately, that was the only we were this point spoiled us, Doug. Um, we were looking for our butler escort back onto the ship, but but there was not one on to the ship. And so we had to wait in the rain with the rest of the ship that had all run back to get onto the ship as well.

Doug (00:33:55) – Oh, no. Horrible. Did you get to stay at night to see the lighthouse lit up? Yeah.

Guest (00:34:01) – Back on board wasn’t scheduled until 8:00 that evening. Uh, most of the passengers had embarked on the ship by about 330 or 4 due to the weather, but we stayed docked there, and we were wondering about that lighthouse show because we’d heard about it. And so we went to the concierge, who gave us a great recommendation on where to go to view it, so we could also hear the music playing through the show.

Uh, and so we had the opportunity to watch it and it was impressive. We enjoyed it. And hopefully, we’ll be able to return to Ocean Cay again in the future, where we won’t encounter poor weather. We can be on the beach and see the light show from the ground.

And because of the concierge tip, we know the crew smoking area on MSC Meraviglia. And so it was a great tip and we got to hang out with crew as they watched the light show.

Doug (00:34:54) – He probably know this, but if you’re ever feeling energetic or you want to work out, you can climb that lighthouse. It’s like $15 or 20 maybe, but you got some great views up there and there’s quite a few steps, so, uh, yeah, pack your energy. Yeah.

Guest (00:35:06) – No. And that’s another reason why we want to go back. You know, I don’t think, uh, the weather was really in our favor to be able to do that type of an excursion, but definitely in the books for us to do it again.

Doug (00:35:16) – So your final port of call was Nassau. How was your day there?

Guest (00:35:19) – Nassau was great. Uh, as Mark had mentioned, it was the best weather that we saw on the entire cruise, and we were a little bummed that it was our final port day, but we made the most of it. We were docked in Nassau with four other ships. So a standard busy Nassau day. Uh, nothing unusual there.

Guest (00:35:36) – Uh, we have a tradition whenever we’re in Nassau, where we go visit a rum distillery in a little bit deeper into town. And so we decided to do that at this time. We took the trek and walked around and checked out the updates that they made to the port of Nassau, because that was our first time there since they did all the construction since they finished the construction.

Yeah, we’ve been several times during. Yeah. And then from there we walked up to the distillery and enjoyed a little tasting up there before returning to the port and getting on the ship. It was a pretty quiet day, but we’re looking forward to the opportunity to get to lay out on deck on the cruise ship before sail away took place.

Doug (00:36:12) – Yeah, perfect day for it. So you leave Nassau for a couple of days and you head back to Brooklyn. How were your sea days going up?

Guest (00:36:19) – The weather, I will say, was more cooperative on the way back, but. So it wasn’t as bumpy and rocky, but there were times when you would sleep at night and roll on or you would.

Guest (00:36:31) – You knew you were on a ship. You know, when Rocky and I first boarded, one of the things we commented as we were sitting in, I think it was the topsail restaurant. After spending time in the lounge, we said, we don’t feel like we’re on a cruise ship, but you just felt like you were almost at an all-inclusive resort.

We knew we were on a cruise ship on the sea days out and on the sea days back. The weather was left, the ocean a bit rocky. We had some. You saw some gale-force winds. There were some swells, but they had the magnetic, uh, bags out, the thick bags out in the elevator banks. They had those out for, for all of the passengers. We did talk to several folks who said they might not sail again in January, but but we liked it. But I know the sign us up.

Doug (00:37:18) – So it’s time to get off the ship in Brooklyn.

Doug (00:37:20) – Was the process as smooth and bougie as that embark?

Guest (00:37:25) – I love that you say the bougie because it continued through. Uh, we always go for a very relaxed, dark morning. We try to stay on the ship as long as possible.

We book later flights knowing that there’s always the possibility that a ship could be delayed returning to port. Uh, and fortunately for us, the ship did arrive on time, however. We didn’t end up disembarking from the ship until much later.

We we decided to go down and have breakfast down in the main restaurant, the topsail restaurant, in the yacht club area. And once we were done eating there, we went down to the lounge and enjoyed a quick beverage and a couple of little canapés. You know, just trying to get our last bits in and chatted with the bartenders.

The bartenders were tremendously friendly the entire sailing, and we just hung out with them and enjoyed some coffee and drinks. Yep. And then once we were ready to get off of the ship, we went to the concierge and actually, we ended up seeing our butler at the concierge desk, and he offered to help us get off the ship.

Guest (00:38:26) – And so he took Marc’s two suitcases that he was carrying from his hands and wheeled them to the elevator, took us down to the lower deck, and wheeled us over to where they take you off the ship. Or they scan your card to say you are officially disembarked from the ship. So we continued that experience as long as we could.

And the cool thing about the luggage program, if you decide to put your luggage out the night before the cruise ends, all of the yacht club luggage gets delivered to one specific spot, so you’re not rushing to get off.

You’re not rushing to go find where your luggage was placed. When it’s in that terminal building, it’s very easy to locate and get to pick up your suitcases and you’re on your way. Once again, those yacht club signs. Right this way. Um, a dedicated area, even for your luggage.

Doug (00:39:16) – Awesome. Very cool. Does Brooklyn have facial recognition for the dark?

Guest (00:39:21) – Yes they did. We were very excited when we saw that we’re getting off the ship.

Doug (00:39:25) – Yeah. It sure makes a difference. Looking back here as first-time MSC cruisers and in the yacht Club, do you have any first-time tips to offer anyone sailing MSC or sailing out of Manhattan?

Guest (00:39:39) – Uh, goodness gracious. If you get that upgrade offer and it’s within your means, you bid that upgrade offer up. Suppose you can get into the yacht club from a balcony. That would be my biggest tip because not only does it include all of those amenities that we’ve talked about. They grant you into the premium drinks package as well.

So the premium drinks package on this sailing would have been 790 a person, a person. We paid less for the entire yacht club experience, including those premium drinks. It included Wi-Fi on each of our devices, and it included all of those exclusive amenities that we’ve talked about.

And so that would be my number one tip is if you get that offer to upgrade to the yacht club, really look at what it would cost you to have that experience and just individually and take that for serious take.

Guest (00:40:29) – Be serious about that. And if you can get that upgrade and it’s in your means, do it. Yeah, absolutely. And then I would also say the other thing is that this cruise ship departs out of the Brooklyn terminal.

So instead of paying the 60 plus dollars that it would cost to get an Uber or a lift, you could take the subway, and the train system, all of which will be super easy to get over there. And there’s a water taxi or ferry. Ferry, I guess it is, uh, that takes you from Wall Street.

If you were to go into Manhattan and stay the night out there, you can quickly get onto the ferry from Wall Street over to the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal. Easy. And it’s quite cost-effective.

Doug (00:41:09) – Yeah, that’s one thing I’ve heard over the years is that a lot of people who are doing cruises out of either Brooklyn or Manhattan, they kind of get taken by surprise how much it actually cost to get from the airport to the cruise port.

Doug (00:41:20) – But a little extra research can save you quite a few bucks, and it’s not that bad. I think it’s.

Guest (00:41:25) – Scarier being in New York traffic. Quite honestly. When we the Uber, we took an Uber from the hotel to the cruise terminal. I think that was scarier than the subway was, you know, the night before when we had flown in. And so, yes, I think it’s great.

Doug (00:41:41) – Well, looking back, what was your biggest highlight of this cruise?

Guest (00:41:56) – I would say the biggest highlight was probably being in the yacht club. What a treat it was for us to be able to experience that. Um, it was so exciting walking into the Topsail Lounge in that exclusive yacht Club area, no matter how many times a day we walked in there, we always discovered new canopies that were waiting for us to try.

Guest (00:42:17) – The bartenders and servers in the topsail lounge were all very friendly. They started to get to know us, what drinks we enjoyed the most, and they would start making recommendations based on the spirits we were drinking to make our journey that much more enjoyable. I think for me, um, one of the best bites of food I’ve had on a cruise ship was, uh, in the Eden restaurant onboard Celebrity Apex.

And I would say fast forward. That was a couple of years back now for Thanksgiving. But fast forward to this. To have that daily rotating risotto to me was a surprise and delight that menu in Topsail restaurant. You just don’t see food like that on a cruise ship. And it was fantastic.

And it was included in that experience. It wasn’t we weren’t, you know, dropping 150 for the meal. It was included in that yacht club experience. That, to me was a surprise and delight.

Guest (00:43:10) – I did not expect how good and high-quality that food would be.

Doug (00:43:22) – Well, uh, in closing here, your final thoughts of MSC Maravilla.

Guest (00:43:27) – the MSC Meraviglia is a gorgeous ship. MSC did a great job in designing and developing this class of ship. The size of it was great. We did have a lower capacity on the ship during our sailing, but we still managed to have a great time. We met a lot of great friends.

We found places to call our own that maybe we’re not in the yacht club specifically. Still, we discovered the Sky lounge as a great place to meet people and to be able to enjoy the company of others that were not a part of the yacht club, and really just kind of put ourselves with the rest of the population that was sailing. Very good. The Champagne Bar was another one of my favorites. That the Edge bar.

Guest (00:44:09) – The champagne bar, you know, that looked out over the water as the ship was sailing. That was great. Those champagne cocktails were excellent. And that’s the beauty, right? When you have. We would flash our yacht club bracelets and I will tell you, I joke. I’ve made this joke now lines would disappear and people would just randomly appear.

Servers would appear, you flash that yacht club bracelet and it didn’t matter what bar we were at, if we were at the horizon bar, after the champagne bar, or at the Sky lounge, they just showed up and took such great care of us. You can tell that even the rest of the ship is trained to pay attention to yacht club guests, because it was just such a fantastic experience.

I’m excited to go back on MSC Meraviglia in in the in the standard amenities in the non-yacht club amenities to be able to experience it truly and compare and contrast to be able to talk about what does that value look like and how it feels to sit down in the main dining room each night for dinner versus in your dedicated restaurant? And so I am excited to get back on the ship.

Guest (00:45:10) – We’ve looked we’ve booked on the inaugural on MSC World America, World America. And so it was it was a great experience and great sailing. And so MSC gets a lot of bad rap out there. There’s a lot of negativity about people who love or hate it. And I will tell you from our experience where we’re looking at booking two more already. So it was it was in it was in a really good category for us.

Doug (00:46:34) – Awesome. We’ll link to it also in the show notes at Cruise Radio dot net. Mark Rocky, thank you all so much.

Guest (00:46:40) – Thank you so much, Doug.

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MSC Splendida Review: MSC Yacht Club Experience

We just got back from a seven-day cruise to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Jordan on board the MSC Splendida, and today we will tell you all you need to know about MSC Yacht Club Experience! Is it really worth it? Watch us until the end, and you will find out!

Today we will tell you all about our experience on board the MSC Splendida Yacht Club. But first, if you like travel-related blogs like this one, now is a great time to hit the subscribe button so you will never miss any future blogs.

Let’s begin:

What is the MSC Yacht Club?

The MSC Yacht Club is an exclusive section of some of MSC’s cruise ships that offers passengers a unique, all-inclusive cruising experience. Some people refer to it as a ship within a ship or a luxury cruise to other luxury cruises.

The MSC Yacht Club section is typically located at the top of the ship, and it’s reserved for guests who are looking for a little extra luxury and a private club. It can only be accessed with the cruise card.

When you book a trip with the MSC Yacht Club, you’ll have access to a range of exclusive amenities and services. For example, you’ll have a dedicated concierge who will be available to help you with any requests you might have.

They’ll even walk you to wherever you need to go! You’ll also have access to a private lounge, which serves complimentary drinks and snacks throughout the day.

But that’s just the beginning. The MSC Yacht Club also offers passengers exclusive access to a range of private spaces, including a private pool area, an MSC Yacht Club restaurant, and a bar. This means that you’ll be able to relax and unwind in your own private sanctuary, away from the hustle and bustle of the main ship.

But perhaps the best thing about the MSC Yacht Club is the level of service you’ll receive. The staff in this section of the ship are highly trained and attentive, ensuring that your every need is taken care of. Whether you need help with your luggage, want to book an excursion, or simply need a drink, the staff at the MSC Yacht Club will be on hand to assist you.

Our next topic for the Yacht Club Experience is:

Boarding MSC Yacht

One of the great perks that we noticed right away was priority boarding. In fact, when we arrived at the luxury cruise terminal, a butler was waiting for us and took us straight through immigration, check, and on the ship skipping the extra long line that other passengers had to do. Also, the butler explained to us how to use the dedicated elevator reserved for Yacht Club passengers. With this elevator, activated by our cruise card, we could go right to deck 15 or 16 without stopping on any deck in between.

Once we arrived at the dedicated MSC Yacht Club Lounge on deck 15, we were greeted with a glass of champagne while a very nice concierge lady explained to us all our Yacht Club benefits. We have to admit that the priority boarding process was incredibly smooth and efficient, with a very nice personalized touch.

Let’s move to our next topic of the MSC Yacht Club experience, and we will talk about:

We booked a Yacht Club Deluxe suite on deck 16. The cabin was quite nice, wide, and well laid out. The room had a nice couch and a little desk beside the private balcony.

The bed was very comfortable. We had a very nice walk-in closet with a lot of space for clothes and shoes, which we really liked.

The bathroom was wide and quite nice, with a bathtub. In our opinion, a nice big shower is better than a tub, but we know that a lot of people like to take baths.

The private balcony was nice, not the widest but big enough. We noticed a couple of things that could be improved in the cabin. First, there were no electrical plugs by the bedside tables to charge the phones.

In fact, the only plugs available were by the desk, and there were two European and two American plugs there. Second, the wood paneling in the room made the room feel a little dark. Other than those minor details, we really enjoyed our cabin.

The next topic in our Review of MSC Yacht Club is

The Yacht Club Lounge

On MSC Splendida, the Yacht Club lounge is on deck 15 all the way to the front. The area is really nice and well-designed. There is a concierge desk that takes care of all the yacht club passengers’ needs; more about that later.

Next to the concierge, there is a great big lounge with couches and tables. In the lounge, there are snacks available all the time. In the morning, they serve a light breakfast with cereals, sandwiches, and toast, and jam.

The lounge also has a nice big bar with complimentary drinks. We really enjoyed this area, especially on sea days we used it to work because it was really quiet and comfortable. It was also the best place for a pre-dinner aperitif.

Moving on to our next topic of the MSC Yacht Club experience:

The Yacht Club Pool

The MSC Yacht Club Pool is called “one pool” and is located on deck 18, right above the lounge. It is a very nice space with a pool, two jacuzzis, a lot of sunbeds, a bar, and a small buffet area where they serve food for breakfast, lunch, and afternoon tea. On our cruise, during sea days in the buffet area, the head waiter of the Yacht Club restaurant was cooking fresh pasta and other lunch items in a buffet they set up by the pool.

We really enjoyed this area sunbathing, especially during the sea days. It is never super busy and always has sun beds available for us away from the huge crowds of the main pools on the ship.

The MSC Yacht Club Pool area is also incredibly private. In fact, we asked the concierge if it was possible to invite guests, and the answer was no. The area is for Yacht Club members only.

Next, we will talk about:

The Yacht Club Restaurant

On the MSC Splendida, the Yacht Club’s dedicated restaurant is called Olivo, and it is located on deck 15 all the way aft above the main buffet. We heard that on newer ships the MSC Yacht Club restaurant is located above or below the yacht club lounge, but on this particular ship it was outside the exclusive yacht club area. That’s probably because the MSC Splendida was the first ship to get retrofitted with the yacht club.

MSC Splendida Yacht Club L'Olivo Restaurant

The restaurant is open seating, and Yacht Club passengers can go anytime during opening hours. It serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

The specialty restaurant’s ambiance is excellent, very intimate and wide, with a lot of natural light. The service is absolutely impeccable. Every waiter is perfectly trained, knowledgeable and really friendly.

In this restaurant’s menu, there are always one or two items that are not available on the menu in the main dining room; for example, on the second formal night, they served lobster that was not on the menu in the main dining room.

Moving on to our next topic of the MSC Yacht Club experience, we will talk about:

The Service for MSC Yacht Club Guests

The service at MSC Splendida Yacht Club is impeccable. The MSC Yacht Club perk is that a 24-hour butler service is available, which is really nice.

We did not ask our butler to unpack and pack for us, but that is one of the butler services that they provide. We can totally tell that the butler service takes great pride in providing stunning service and that they genuinely care about their MSC Yacht Club guests.

Our butler Augustine was incredibly friendly and attentive, always available but never intrusive. Very well done!

The concierge desk was there to take care of passengers’ needs. They were there to help with almost every aspect of the MSC cruise, from excursions to billing.

This came particularly helpful the day before arriving at the port of Sokhna when the Egyptian border agent came on board to stamp everyone’s passports. We did not have to go to see the agent, but the concierge took care of this step for us to avoid the long lines.

Also, the future cruise consultant was available at the concierge lounge by appointment for MSC Yacht Club passengers. Really stunning service.

Our next item to review about the MSC Yacht Club review is:

What is Included in MSC Yacht Club?

One of the best benefits of MSC Yacht Club perks, aside from the amazing service, is the fact that it is a truly all-inclusive experience. In fact, when you book a yacht club cabin, you have the Premium Extra Drink Package included. The MSC Yacht Club offers a package that includes drinks up to €13 euros.

Now one thing to consider is that if you order a drink that costs €14, for example, you will be charged the whole amount, not the €1.00 difference as other cruise lines do. It also included is the premium internet package, with unlimited use for two devices per passenger.

Another thing that is included is unlimited access to Thermal Suite in the MSC Aurea Spa, even though on this voyage, people at the spa told us that we had to make a reservation before going. Now we brought this up to the concierge, and they said that it wasn’t true. We did not have to make a reservation.

The MSC Yacht Club offers gratuities and 24-hour room service. Basically, the only items not included were the excursions, spa treatments, onboard shopping, drinks over 13 euros, and the Casino.

Moving on to the next topic of our MSC Yacht Club experience, we will talk about:

Yacht Club passengers have priority access to shore when going on an excursion. Basically, we had to meet our own personal butler at the sail lounge at the time specified on the excursion ticket, and he then took us to the gangway skipping all the lines for security, passport controls, etc.

Same thing on the way back from excursions. A butler was always by the gangway escorting us to the front of the line and back to our lounge. Now, this service is excellent because it allows Yacht Club Passengers to skip all the long lines, but there is a downside.

Since we were always the first passengers on the bus, we then had to wait on the bus for all the other passengers to arrive. Sometimes the wait was up to an hour. Now considering that some excursions on this itinerary required two and half hours bus ride, an extra hour before departure was quite long.

In our opinion, it would be better if MSC reserved the seats on the bus for Yacht Club passengers (they already know who they are) and let them off the ship when the bus was almost ready to go.

MSC Cruises Ships

MSC Cruises is getting bigger and better. There are a lot of special things to discover on each MSC cruise ship when you go sailing with them as a member of the MSC Yacht Club.

Their huge fleets include:

MSC Seashore

MSC Seashore is like her sister ships, MSC Seaside and MSC Seaview. Most of the places people go on the ship are different than before.

MSC Seashore has new places to play, eat and hang out outside. There are also more rooms for people to stay in and more space for everyone.

You can sit back, relax, and enjoy all that MSC Seashore offers. MSC Seashore is the first of two special ships. It has technology that helps it use energy more efficiently.

The MSC Cruise has been fitted with the fleet’s largest and most luxurious MSC Yacht Club, with almost 3,000 sqm of space, including a bigger solarium and a panoramic whirlpool.

MSC Seashore’s 13,000 sqm of outdoor spaces, from pools and lounge areas to Speciality Restaurant seating areas, bring guests closer to the sea than ever before, making them truly.

MSC Meraviglia

You can experience the ultimate sea adventure on MSC Meraviglia. This magnificent ship boasts incredible features such as gourmet dining, amazing entertainment options, panoramic areas, an ocean-view lounge, a two-deck “inside promenade” complete with an LED dome, and an amusement area attached to an outdoor water park.

Best of all, MSC Meraviglia features late-night and overnight stays on MSC Cruise’s exclusive private island.

MSC Virtuosa

The name MSC Virtuosa is from the word virtuoso which means someone who is very good at something. MSC Cruises gave it this name to honor the people who designed and built the ship. They are very talented and skilled.

This new cruise ship is one of the biggest in the MSC Cruises fleet. It has lots of special features that work together to give you the best vacation ever! Moreover, it’s the MSC Grandiosa’s sister ship.

Conclusions

In conclusion, the Yacht Club on board MSC is really excellent product. It not only allows passengers to enjoy a ship within a ship but also provides a great service that is much more personalized and attentive than what you’d expect with a standard MSC product.

The MSC Yacht Club allows passengers to avoid long lines for embarkation, excursions, or even restaurants. The downside is the price.

The cruise costs almost twice as much as a regular balcony cabin. Everything is indeed included, but the price difference is quite steep. In fact, when you’re looking at this price point, luxury cruise lines now become comparables.

We really enjoyed our week on board the MSC Splendida Yacht Club and will do it again for sure, maybe next time on a different itinerary.

We hope you enjoyed our blog, and as usual, if you have any questions, please leave a comment below.

In March 2017, Rick and Andrea started Travel Addicts Life as a way to share their travel photos and videos with the world. And boy did it ever grow! Today, we are proud to offer content here on Travel Addicts Life, on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube.

Thanks for reading!

Rick & Andrea

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For the first time, MSC Cruises has based a ship in New York. Given that the vessel, MSC Meraviglia, is the fifth-largest in the line's fleet of two dozen ships in terms of tonnage and the sixth-largest by passenger capacity, the ship's presence in the Big Apple is a big deal. As one colleague astutely pointed out, when it's docked there, it's the largest hotel in the city .

I recently sailed on MSC Meraviglia out of its Red Hook homeport in Brooklyn, and I have mixed feelings. Overall, the ship is lively and aesthetically beautiful. Its specialty restaurants and nightly shows are some of the most consistently superb on any vessel, and it offers one heck of a luxury product in its Yacht Club suite enclave .

However, passenger flow is an issue, with many public spaces so crowded they're uncomfortable, and service is painfully slow in some bars and restaurants. You'll likely end up paying a lot more than you originally planned because some of the most enticing things to do come with added fees. And, as my travel companion so succinctly put it, I've never been told "no" so many times on a cruise.

Here, I'll take you through some of the activities I tried, the places I ate and the experience I had so you can better determine if MSC Meraviglia is right for your next voyage.

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Overview of MSC Meraviglia

MSC Cruises' Meraviglia was the first in the line's Meraviglia Class of ships. When it debuted in 2017, it became the line's largest vessel, with space for up to 5,655 people at capacity (4,475 at double occupancy). It has since been overtaken, in terms of passenger capacity, by subsequent vessels in the Meraviglia Class, as well as those in the World Class.

The ship exudes the same glitz that's typical of other MSC vessels, despite its mass-market appeal and penchant for attracting budget travelers. Lavish artwork, chrome accents and bold jewel tones convey a sense of opulence throughout public spaces, and no ship in the fleet would be complete without an atrium staircase adorned with thousands of Swarovski crystals.

Like MSC's other modern ships, MSC Meraviglia has an extra-fee chocolate shop on board — this one through a partnership with chocolatier and pastry chef Jean-Philippe Maury — where you can purchase chocolate, macarons, candy and specialty coffees.

There's also a sizable water park on the top deck, a shopping mall-style promenade area and several decks of cabins that are part of the line's Yacht Club, which affords passengers exclusive access to a dedicated restaurant, lounge, bar and pool deck just for them, as well as butler service.

What I loved about MSC Meraviglia

Largely, my onboard experience was great. Crew members were friendly, my cabin was comfortable, and the daily activity options were plentiful, varied and fun. At night, most shows fell into the "excellent" category, and the food in every extra-fee restaurant and the Yacht Club was phenomenal.

Specialty dining

MSC's food consistently receives less-than-stellar reviews from passengers, particularly regarding the line's complimentary dining experiences. Much of the main dining room fare is indeed so-so — palatable but largely underseasoned and mass-produced, so that it often looks like it's been sitting under a heat lamp when it reaches you. Food in the buffet is varied and tasty, but it can also become repetitive after a week, and the space is frequently crowded and confusing to navigate.

So why am I including food under the "what I loved" category? I think that MSC's alternative, for-fee restaurants — including the ones on MSC Meraviglia — are some of the best. If you're willing to shell out the money, you can have a fantastic meal on this ship.

Of the ship's specialty restaurants, my favorites are Hola! Tacos & Cantina and Kaito Teppanyaki.

Even though Hola! levies extra charges, passengers have the option of paying a la carte for items individually priced as low as $2.95 or paying $17.99 for unlimited menu items. The salsa and guacamole are wonderful, the tortilla soup always hits the spot for me, and the tacos are small, so you'll be able to try several to find your favorite without feeling overstuffed.

If you know me, you know the fact that I'm recommending Kaito Teppanyaki is shocking. I'm notoriously not a fan of this type of cooking, particularly when it comes with a side of cringeworthy performances by the chefs. However, the food there on MSC Meraviglia was so great that I didn't mind the cook's jokes.

The MSC Yacht Club is a private section on select MSC ships that offers cabins across several categories, including suites. Passengers booked in those cabins have special keycard access to a dedicated guest services and concierge desk; an exclusive pool, sun deck, lounge and bar (with free drinks); and complimentary anytime dining at a special restaurant just for Yacht Club cruisers.

Cabins are outfitted with higher-quality materials and furnishings, and each comes with the services of a butler. Meri was mine, and she was the best. She was able to make dining and spa reservations for me, escort me to priority seating in the theater for nightly shows and have crackers and green apples delivered to my cabin when the second night's rough seas made me feel seasick.

I absolutely loved the special touches MSC provides to Yacht Club passengers, including a special afternoon tea service and a private, intimate final-night performance by Lorraine Crosby — the female vocalist from Meat Loaf's "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" — who sometimes makes guest appearances on board. (She also put on two larger shows for the entire ship earlier in the sailing.) Additionally, I had access to Yacht Club perks at private island Ocean Cay Marine Reserve , including dedicated trams, a shaded waiting area with cold water and access to a private beach and restaurant.

Although the Yacht Club comes at a premium — at the time of publication, rooms on MSC Meraviglia started at $1,199 per person for a Yacht Club inside cabin on a six-night Bermuda sailing — fares include drinks and tips, along with Venchi pillow chocolates, free room service and minibar selections, plus one round of in-cabin snacks and a choice of one bottle of vodka, gin or whiskey delivered to your room. (I normally drink rum, and they were able to substitute it for me, even though it's not one of the spirits normally offered.)

Above all, the most valuable component of the Yacht Club for me on this sailing was the ability to escape the general chaos that is the rest of the ship. Don't get me wrong: I immersed myself in the buzz outside of the Yacht Club as often as possible, but as an introvert who dislikes crowds and noise more and more the older she gets, I found it essential to have a separate area to which I could retreat.

Galleria Meraviglia

One of the most fun and flashy locations on MSC Meraviglia cruises is the Galleria Meraviglia, a central indoor walkway similar to the Royal Promenade on Royal Caribbean ships. It's a long space flanked by bars, restaurants and shops with a feel similar to a shopping mall. However, the highlight for me is the giant LED screen, which runs the length of the space and hosts what the line calls "dome shows."

During these shows, themed scenes — including deck plans for the muster drill, dinosaurs and volcanos during the "Jurassic" dome show and even famous ceilings — appear overhead. They're the metaphorical heartbeat of the ship, and you can't help but stop to watch.

The nearby chocolateria, Jean-Philippe Chocolate & Cafe, is an excellent place to grab a cuppa, and the adjacent Meraviglia Bar & Lounge is home to trivia, live music and more. Mix in a shore excursion desk; shops that sell high-end jewelry and purses; a counter serving for-fee gelato, crepes and smoothies; and Hola! Tacos & Cantina (one of the best Mexican restaurants at sea), and Galleria Meraviglia feels like the place to be.

There's little I enjoy more than a relaxing arcade day , and MSC delivers with its Sportplex gaming complex. It features a small traditional arcade with air hockey, alien shooter games and first-person driving games, as well as prize machines; several immersive virtual-reality pods (most of which were down for maintenance during my sailing); two Formula One racing simulators; a 4D cinema where several players attempt to take out zombies and killer clowns; and a sports court that hosts basketball, pickleball, dodgeball and other activities.

But my ultimate favorite was the bowling alley. My travel companion and I inexplicably wound up in Sportplex after dinner on formal night. We played for half an hour — enough time for two games if it's only two people and you move quickly — and were ultimately joined by the Yacht Club director, Craig (who won easily). It was a ton of fun, but I don't recommend bowling in a ballgown.

The drawback is that, like lots of other cool pastimes on MSC Meraviglia, it all costs extra (except for sports court use). The arcade charges per game with the tap of your keycard. The simulators can be purchased on a per-ride basis, and bowling is charged in chunks of either 30 or 60 minutes.

To save money, passengers can purchase packages where you get a certain dollar amount free. (For example, if you prepurchase $150 worth of gaming credits, your card will be loaded with $220.)

What I didn't love about MSC Meraviglia

As with all things, in travel we take the bad with the good. While most experiences on this sailing fell in the latter category, it wouldn't be a fair review without calling attention to the things that I think the line needs to address.

The departure port

When MSC first announced that MSC Meraviglia would be sailing from New York, the ship's homeport was Manhattan. I groaned when I heard its docking spot had changed to the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal in Brooklyn's Red Hook neighborhood.

Brooklyn's terminal is difficult to reach, particularly if you don't have a car. Anyone venturing to the port from Manhattan will need to take the subway, followed by a ferry — not an easy feat if you're toting luggage. Park-and-ride-style buses also seemed to be an option, according to several passengers on my sailing who arrived from outside of the city. If you're like me and decide to drive to the port, know that parking is at a premium, and fees are steep. (At $45 per night, I paid $360 to park there for eight nights.)

Waits on embarkation day are another concern. When I arrived, lines snaked outside the terminal and down the sidewalk in front of the building. I had multiple passengers throughout my voyage tell me that they waited between two and three hours in line to board the vessel.

It's unclear whether the terminal is ill-equipped to deal with passenger flow for such a large ship or if MSC hasn't quite brought its embarkation processes up to speed, but if you don't have priority boarding privileges, either through a high loyalty status tier or a Yacht Club booking, expect the process to take a while.

On the plus side, you'll have great views of the Statue of Liberty as you sail away, assuming the weather isn't rainy or foggy.

At 19 decks, MSC Meraviglia is huge. On my voyage, the ship was only sailing at about half capacity (about 3,000 passengers out of a possible 5,655, or 53%). However, a perfect storm of events converged to create a situation that was less than pleasant for anyone not booked in a Yacht Club cabin.

A large group booking of about 1,000 people overtook many of the public areas on a daily basis, which drew complaints from cruisers who weren't in the group. For example, trivia was standing-room-only on several days, and the buffet was so continuously crowded that I ate there only twice on the entire voyage.

Additionally, it rained during our first two days on board — embarkation day and the following sea day — meaning that the ship's outdoor spaces weren't utilized. Because everyone was stuck inside, the ship felt even more crowded. (I shudder to imagine what it would have been like if the ship had been sailing completely full.)

Although the weather certainly isn't the cruise line's fault, it seems that the ship should be better equipped to deal with situations where passengers are stuck inside. I also thought that, perhaps, the large group booking was a one-off and that it wouldn't be the norm on other sailings. However, I spoke with one of the officers on board who told me that the cruise line is actively recruiting similar large group bookings.

One of the biggest contributing factors was the ship's layout and flow. Some areas lead to dead ends, while others force you to enter busy areas — like the massive Marketplace Buffet — to find stairs to go up or down a deck. In several bars and lounges in the main atrium, tables and chairs are scattered so close to the main staircase that it's difficult for two-way passenger traffic to move through the space.

The feeling of overcrowding was exacerbated by service inconveniences like long waits for drinks, meals and elevators.

Confusing policies and procedures

Some of the things MSC does truly confuse me, and they began almost immediately after boarding.

When cruises first returned following the 18-month COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, many lines decided to go digital with their muster drills. Passengers watched videos on their mobile apps or on their cabin TVs before reporting, at their leisure (to maintain social distancing), to their muster stations for verification. MSC has chosen to institute a bizarre version where all passengers watch a video and then report to their muster stations at the same time.

If everyone is going to the same place at the same time, why not do the muster drill in person? On the flip side, if you're going to make people watch a video instead of doing a live demonstration, why make everyone go to their stations simultaneously? The process creates a chaotic environment where, in my case, people were required to walk into the theater, do a lap around it (for reasons nobody ever actually explained) and immediately exit again.

Speaking of the theater, no drinks are allowed in there, which is odd, given that all other cruise lines allow passengers to order drinks during shows or at least carry them in with them to enjoy while they watch. We saw several surprised cruisers being told they had to dump their beverages or drink them before they'd be allowed inside.

The drink situation gets worse when you try to order cocktails in the ship's restaurants. When I did so in one of the main dining rooms, I was told that only wine was available. When I visited the alternative eateries, I was told I could only order from what was on the menu, some of which wasn't included with the beverage package. What's the point of selling pricey beverage packages (which can cost more than $70 per person, per day, for the most expensive) if there are so many exclusions?

Specialty coffee from the onboard chocolate shop also isn't included with the packages, nor are coffees on private island Ocean Cay, which leads me to my next head-scratcher. I had the single best coffee drink of my life when we called on Ocean Cay. The Coco-Nilla Latte is espresso, vanilla flavoring and coconut milk, and I loved it so much that I tried to have it replicated on board.

I went to three of the ship's regular bars, each of which is equipped to make espresso that's included in the line's beverage packages, as well as the specialty coffee bar at the for-fee chocolate shop. At each location, I was given some sort of excuse:

"We don't have vanilla syrup at this bar."

"We don't have coconut milk here."

"Oh, those are only made at Ocean Cay."

It's likely if this happened on a ship in any other fleet, the response would have been, "We don't have the ingredients, but let me see if we can find them."

The crew culture on MSC Meraviglia seems to be one that either doesn't encourage them or doesn't allow them to go the extra mile. My request wasn't a lavish one; vanilla syrup and coconut milk are standard accouterments at most cafes on land. The ship has a passenger-to-crew ratio of 3:1, which is better than that of other cruise lines with fares at a similar price point, so I don't feel like I'm asking too much from an affordable cruise line.

I must also mention some weird food-related practices I saw on board. Both times I ate at the Marketplace Buffet, I witnessed crew members stopping adults from taking food from a particular section of kid-friendly foods. "No, those are for children only," a crew member behind the counter told a parent who was trying to grab dessert for his son, who was outside by the pool.

"You mean I can't take this out to my kid?" the guy asked in shock. The crew member told him he would have to go to the pool, get his son, bring him inside and have him pick out the dessert, which he grudgingly did. But talk about a disruptive experience.

On the other occasion, I saw a couple of adults eyeing the chicken nuggets that were on offer. They were forbidden by a crew member from taking any. I have never seen something so absurd on a sailing in my life. Children aren't the only ones who enjoy chicken nuggets, nor are they the ones who pay the cruise fares. Adults, whether they have kids on board or not, should be allowed to eat whatever they wish from the buffet that they paid for — even if it comes from the children's menu.

Another head-scratcher is you might still have to pay a supplement to eat in certain restaurants, even if you booked a dining package that includes a set number of specialty restaurants for a set fee. It depends on what you order.

For example, I had a dining package, but when I dined at Kaito Teppanyaki, the waiter informed me that there would be an extra $10 surcharge to order the Geisha and Samurai options and a $30 upcharge for the Emperor option. Again, what's the point of selling dining packages if they don't cover what they're supposed to?

Additionally, on a ship of 3,000 people, MSC Meraviglia had only one of four main dining rooms open for lunch on a rainy sea day when everyone was stuck inside. It was open for one measly hour, from noon to 1 p.m. I saw the hours posted as I was passing by the line that was quickly forming, so I decided to eat there to evaluate the situation. Spoiler alert: It wasn't great.

Finally, MSC Meraviglia's sports equipment is kept under actual lock and key. You have to sign out everything from pickleball paddles to basketballs for use on the indoor sports court and volleyballs for the pits on Ocean Cay. However, when I tried to sign out a basketball during posted rental hours, the person working told me no and offered no explanation. When I checked with guest services, they told me that shouldn't have happened. But it did. Twice.

On a separate occasion, when my travel companion and I showed up for scheduled volleyball time, the attendant cut the game off at 45 minutes because he said he had to leave. When we asked if we could keep the ball to continue playing, he refused. There seems to be no flexibility, and staff members are not empowered to deviate from protocol on the fly, even when it makes sense.

Most cruise lines' ships have unmonitored equipment available for passengers to use when the courts are open. It's often stored in unlocked chests that passengers can access at any time. Sign-out, which seems like an unnecessary step, is not required with most other cruise lines, which brings me to this: To quote one of my TPG colleagues when she referenced an MSC sailing on a different ship, "I have never said, 'No other cruise line does it like this,' as much as I did on [my cruise]. And it wasn't a good thing."

MSC Meraviglia cabins and suites

MSC bookings can be confusing for first-timers because, in addition to selecting a cabin type (inside, outside, balcony or suite), passengers must also choose from one of three experience packages. Dubbed Bella, Fantastica and Aurea, they all come with different perks and inclusions, as noted below.

Bella: This is the most basic, bare-bones package. It includes accommodations, free meals in the main dining rooms and buffet, and free daily activities and nightly entertainment. Passengers with this package will be assigned to set-seating dining times after they board. They also will be charged for any room service orders, as well as changes to their cruise booking reservations.

Fantastica: This package includes everything listed under the Bella package, plus the ability to change sailing date reservations one time for free, complimentary delivery of room service breakfast and the ability to choose a preferred set-seating dining time for dinner prior to embarkation.

Aurea: Aurea comes with everything in the Bella and Fantastica packages, as well as free access to the ship's top-deck Solarium area, a welcome package that includes prosecco and chocolates, anytime dining (go whenever you want with no set seating time), a 10% discount on spa treatments, priority boarding and free 24-hour room service (not just at breakfast).

MSC Meraviglia houses 2,244 rooms in various types with several configurations, some of which sleep more than two passengers. Of those staterooms, 55 are accessible for cruisers with mobility issues. In those cabins, passengers will find additional space for maneuvering things like wheelchairs and scooters, as well as zero-entry door thresholds and shower grab bars. (Theaters and most public areas are also accessible, but unfortunately, I didn't see a single lift at any of the ship's four pools.)

Cabin types are the standard ones found on just about all cruise ships: inside or interior (no windows or balcony), outside or ocean-view (a window or porthole that doesn't open), balcony or verandah (a sliding glass door that opens onto a small balcony, usually with chairs and a small table) and suite (cabins with balconies and more square footage and/or special perks like those afforded in the Yacht Club).

On my Meraviglia sailing, I was booked in an MSC Yacht Club Deluxe Suite — a balcony cabin in the Yacht Club suite area — on Deck 18. At about 280 square feet, plus an additional 54 square feet of balcony space, the room felt generously sized for two people. (Note: Yacht Club has all types of cabins, from insides all the way up through massive Royal Suites and two-deck duplexes.)

The room was furnished with a king-size bed that converts into two twins on request, a couch and a desk/vanity area. It featured a closet and cabinet space for storage and an en suite bathroom.

Standard amenities included a hair dryer and a TV (with a random smattering of TV channels, for-fee movies and ship-created programs like jewelry and port seminars and navigational information). My cabin had several electrical outlets, including three 110-volt North American outlets, three 220-volt European outlets and one USB port at the desk/vanity area. One USB port is not enough, and there were no outlets near the bed, which was frustrating.

Special for Yacht Club guests, the suite was equipped with a Nespresso machine, free minibar drinks restocked daily (including bottled water, San Pellegrino, juices, flavored iced teas, soda and beer), one complimentary round of snacks (Toblerone chocolate, Pringles and mixed nuts) and a choice of one complimentary bottle of spirits (whiskey, gin or vodka).

My cabin came with a pillow menu, which I only discovered after two nights of neck pain, thanks to mismatched pillows. The bed was topped with a memory foam mattress, which was like sleeping on a cloud.

Closets in my cabin were just the right size for two people. There were two, one with a bar to hang clothes and another with cubbies for shoes, intimates and the cabin safe. I did find the closets' location in a small enclave that led to the bathroom a bit awkward.

Underbed storage was perfect for hiding empty suitcases. Bathrobes and slippers were provided, and I made good use of both when I went for a massage at the spa.

Cabin bathrooms in the Yacht Club are stocked with MSC's own brand of toiletries, including shampoo, conditioner, body wash, lotion, bar soap, a shower cap and sewing kit. Fluffy white towels and elevated fixtures like marble countertops and floors and showers with both standard and rainfall showerheads add to the air of elegance.

However, some of that was offset by the fact that the shower in my bathroom had no lip, so water leaked all over the first time I used it. Each time after, I put towels outside the door to sop up the mess. The toilet also often smelled like sewage, even when not in use.

The storage space for toiletries could also have been more generous. There were only two small metal shelves, which weren't enough for two people's things. The rest had to be stored inside cabinets where the garbage can was located.

Gratuities, room service and premium alcohol and Wi-Fi packages are included in all Yacht Club fares. You do not need to purchase add-ons or pay added fees like you would in cabins outside the Yacht Club.

A Yacht Club booking also entitles you to priority embarkation, disembarkation and tender access; 24-hour butler and concierge services; complimentary spa thermal suite access; luggage unpacking and repacking services; daily newspaper delivery and one free pre-cruise booking change.

I made good use of the free Wi-Fi inclusion (for two devices per person). The free room service was handy when I just had to order late-night pizza. Plus, the priority boarding perk meant we went from shore to ship in less than 10 minutes while other passengers waited two to three hours in rainy conditions to embark.

My butler, Meri, went above and beyond to help me make spa and specialty restaurant reservations, and she met us each evening to escort us to dinner and to the theater, where reserved Yacht Club seating was waiting. She did her job superbly, but I generally like to do things for myself. Having someone else handling the minutia felt frivolous and unnecessary; it took a few days for me to acclimate.

Concierge service was generally good. However, on the first day, when I had questions about dining, the person who assisted me waived me off in the face of a long line at the desk and told me to ask my butler. My interactions there improved markedly after the stress of the first day calmed down, and all of my subsequent questions were answered promptly and cheerfully.

The exclusive Top Sail Lounge was a great place to relax with a drink and view, read or get some work done. The Yacht Club sun deck was a lovely space, but it was often too hot for me, so I didn't spend much time up there. The area was home to a pool, a hot tub, tons of seating, solarium access and a daily outdoor buffet at the Yacht Club Grill. Although the food looked tasty, it was, unfortunately, often surrounded by flies.

The indoor Yacht Club Restaurant, however, was a dream. Everything I ordered was fantastic — flavorful, well prepared and cooked to order instead of looking like it had been sitting out for a while. I particularly enjoyed the breakfasts there and highly suggest the omelets and pancakes.

Overall, I found my Yacht Club experience to be a great way to escape when other areas of the ship felt overwhelming, which they often did.

MSC Meraviglia restaurants and bars

Included in the price of each sailing is free dining at the massive Marketplace Buffet, in one of four main dining rooms or in the Yacht Club Restaurant (depending on your booking). The four main dining rooms often felt crowded, and service was inconsistent. The buffet was even worse.

The quality of the complimentary food was unremarkable — not great but not terrible, either. Waiters in the dining rooms often seemed rushed and unwilling to fill drink orders. (I found out later it's because the galleys don't have bars, so waiters have to run all over the ship to fill drink orders, which often take an inordinate amount of time to arrive.)

Due to its size, MSC Meraviglia can offer lots of different cuisines. While the Marketplace Buffet has an "ethnic" section typically serving Asian and Indian fare, the largest variety and the highest quality come from the specialty restaurants. They include seafood, steak, Mexican, sushi and teppanyaki, and all cost extra.

MSC offers dining packages, which allow passengers to pre-purchase a set number of meals in alternative restaurants. When those meals are cashed in, cruisers can choose from a preselected list of menu items designated for package holders. Generally, if you're planning to eat at more than two or three specialty restaurants, booking a package will save you money.

There's at least one bar in every public space, so you won't have to go far to whet your whistle.

Restaurants

Free restaurants

Waves, Panorama, L'Olive Dorée and L'Olivo D'Oro are MSC Meraviglia's four main dining rooms, where passengers can eat dinner for free. (Specific restaurants will also be open on certain days for breakfast and lunch, depending on the day's schedule.) Menus, which change daily, are the same across all four.

Waves, on Deck 5, is the smallest. The largest — L'Olive Dorée and L'Olivo D'Oro, which are mirrors of one another — are found on Deck 6, across from one another and flanking the hallway that eventually leads to Panorama. All four dining rooms offer set seating, except Panorama, which also accommodates passengers with Aurea bookings who have anytime dining.

As mentioned above, I was booked in the Yacht Club and dined in either the Yacht Club Restaurant or one of the specialty restaurants for dinner each night.

However, I did try lunch in Waves twice, as it was the only main dining room open to the ship's 3,000 passengers for lunch. The first time, we were seated at a table for two that might as well have been a table for six; it was so close to the tables for two on either side of it that there were only about 2 or 3 inches separating them.

After we sat, it took 15 minutes for someone to bring us water. We never received bread. It was another 10 minutes until our waiter took our food order, and not once did anyone ask us if we'd like something other than water to drink. When my travel companion finally requested a beer, the waiter's response was, "Be patient, sir." My jaw dropped.

The pacing between courses was silly. Our appetizers arrived shortly after we ordered, which was great, but mine — spinach and artichoke dip — arrived looking dried out and crusty with five broken chips on the side. (The waiter obliged when I requested a few more.) After the starters were cleared, it was another 10 minutes until our mains were delivered. I thoroughly enjoyed my cobb salad, but my beef burrito was build-your-own style, and it was largely flavorless.

My companion never did see the beer he ordered. Eventually, we gave up and left, as did the man at the table next to us, who said he had been waiting half an hour for a dessert that didn't materialize.

The second experience was significantly better, with our waiter seating us at a table for two near a window and asking if we wanted drinks (which arrived quickly). The food was still just OK, and both experiences were crowded and exceptionally loud.

MSC Meraviglia's buffet, Marketplace, spans the entire aft of Deck 15. It has a decent variety of stations, but the food is often the same from day to day. The layout is confusing to navigate, too, with lots of nooks and crannies that can make it difficult to find what you're looking for. It was crowded beyond reason during mealtimes, so I avoided it whenever possible, only eating there twice during the voyage for research purposes.

Stations include bread; salad; soup and pasta; a rotisserie section with a carving station and sides like mashed potatoes, rice and baked beans; cold cuts and cheeses; an "ethnic" counter, which tended to serve Asian and Indian cuisine; and outposts for desserts and both hot and cold drinks.

The pizza was both a highlight and a pleasant surprise. It comes out hot and fresh, and it's available by the slice in several types from two separate counters in the buffet.

There are some other small complimentary food locations throughout the ship, too, including a poolside grill with burgers, fries and hot dogs and an ice cream counter with free soft-serve in cones or cups and optional toppings.

Restaurants that cost extra

Hola! Tacos & Cantina is the Mexican restaurant on MSC's newest vessels. It offers tapas-style small plates; I highly encourage you to order a few, as there's a lot on the menu that's delicious. My favorites are the guacamole, tortilla soup and cheese quesadillas. For tacos, I highly recommend the Chipotle Carnitas (pulled pork with chipotle, black bean salsa and cilantro), Barbacoa (ancho-chili beef, chipotle and red cabbage) and Ancho Tingo (shredded chicken, poblano peppers and pico de gallo).

You can pay a la carte if you're in the mood for something light or go with the all-you-can-eat option if you've worked up a serious appetite.

Margaritas are also a must if you're craving an adult beverage. Basic margs are included in the line's alcohol packages, but specialty ones — featuring frozen flavors like mango and strawberry and on-the-rocks selections with smoky salt or sweet berry sugar rims — cost extra, ranging from $11.99 for a single drink to $30 for a 1-liter pitcher. There's also a selection of Spanish beer, fresh fruit juices, spiked milkshakes and other fun concoctions. The service was so great there that I returned on a different night just to order drinks.

If you've done one teppanyaki restaurant, you've done them all. Or at least that's what I thought when I grudgingly made a reservation at Kaito Teppanyaki, another of MSC's extra-charge dining choices.

Yes, the cheesy jokes, singalongs, "catch this food in your mouth when I throw it" challenges and other performative cooking are standard, but the actual dishes are so much tastier than any of a similar variety I've had on land. Top-notch quality and expert seasoning make the dishes stand out. (For context, I usually skip meat when I order teppanyaki, but the sirloin steak looked so good that I ordered it. I'm glad I did.)

Every person who orders receives miso soup and a small salad as starters, along with sushi and sashimi with tempura vegetables. Then they choose from one of several prix fixe menu options: Geisha (sea bass fillet and chicken breast), Samurai (Scottish salmon, tiger prawns and sirloin), Emperor (yellowfin tuna tataki, scallops and half of a Maine lobster), vegetarian (egg wash roll and sesame tofu steak) and a kids menu (spring chicken teriyaki with vegetables).

I ordered the Samurai, and the salmon and sirloin were absolutely delicious. All options include egg fried rice and a dessert of caramelized pineapple, ginger ice cream and mint. The latter was underwhelming. Drinks are limited to what's on the Kaito-specific menu (Japanese beer, whisky and sake, plus a small selection of wine by the glass and Champagne by the bottle).

Kaito also has a separate sushi bar with an a la carte selection of sushi, sashimi, nigiri, tataki, yakitori and other items, including combo platters and desserts.

Butcher's Cut, MSC Meraviglia's a la carte steakhouse, is heaven for meat lovers, but vegetarians beware: As expected, there's not a lot on the menu for you to eat, with the exception of some of the starters.

When you arrive, your waiter will bring a breadbasket for the table. Ours included baguettes, raisin walnut bread and bacon cheese rolls, but what stood out to me were the smoked maple and paprika butters served alongside them. They were so good.

Appetizers include burrata and beet salad, Caesar and house salads, hearts of palm, a goat cheese tart, shrimp, crabcakes and oysters Rockefeller. Or, if you're feeling extra-spendy, try one of the featured starters, such as caviar, a shellfish platter, bone marrow, Kobe sliders and foie deviled eggs. For soups, choose between smoked tomato and lobster chowder.

Non-steak mains consist of roasted chicken, scallops Benedict, halibut and sockeye salmon. However, if steak is what you're after, you can choose from a 36-ounce dry-aged tomahawk for two, 24-ounce dry-aged T-bone, 12-ounce flat iron, 8-ounce filet mignon, 20-ounce rib-eye, 14-ounce New York sirloin, 16-ounce American bison and 13-ounce double lamb chops.

I ate there on one night of my sailing and decided to go big by adding jumbo lump crab to my filet mignon. However, I misread the menu and didn't realize it was actually jumbo lump crab Oscar, which meant it arrived mixed with hollandaise sauce. It looked like scrambled eggs, and I'm not a hollandaise fan, so I didn't eat it.

The steak, however, was phenomenal, particularly with the accompanying sauces (mushroom, peppercorn, chimichurri and bearnaise). Each steak comes with one side; additional sides cost extra. Choose from Brussels sprouts, mashed potatoes, French fries, asparagus, onion rings, macaroni and cheese, and more.

Among the dessert options, the best are the chocolate lava cake, the New York cheesecake and the peanut butter and milk chocolate cookie.

I'm not a huge seafood fan, so I avoided Ocean Cay, but I heard rave reviews from other passengers. This intimate restaurant, found on Seaside-class ships and MSC Meraviglia, offers a menu of fresh fish and seafood dishes, as well as a selection of wines for appropriate pairing.

For a between-meal treat or a caffeinated pick-me-up, snacks and coffee tied to chocolatier and pastry chef Jean-Philippe Maury are solid options. The cookies-and-cream gelato at the Jean-Philippe Crepes & Ice Cream counter is to die for, as is the Green Goddess smoothie, made with coconut juice, spinach, fresh mint, banana, passion fruit and lemon sorbet. They didn't have the lemon sorbet when I ordered, but I asked to substitute mango instead. It was exceptionally good.

At the cafe just across the way, you can buy chocolate replicas of the ship, chocolate bars with fun toppings like nuts and berries, macarons and candy by the pound, as well as gift boxes of sweets. It also sells coffee drinks that include espresso, cappuccino, Americano, lattes and spiked coffees.

If you're a coffee lover who's heading ashore at MSC's private island, Ocean Cay Marine Reserve , you won't want to miss the extra-fee Coco-Nilla Latte, found at The Smiling Fish. A combination of espresso, vanilla syrup and coconut milk, either hot or iced, it's far and away my favorite coffee drink anywhere, ever.

A more affordable option than most alternative restaurants is room service. My pick is the pizza, which will be delivered to your room hot and fresh, with a variety of options available, including Margherita, vegetable, pepperoni, four cheese, marinara, MSC style (tomato sauce, ham, arugula, mozzarella, Grana Padano cheese and olive oil) and supreme. It's free if you're staying in the Yacht Club. A la carte pricing and delivery fees will apply to other cabin types, depending on the experience package you book.

As with most cruise ships, you don't have to go far to find a stiff drink on MSC Meraviglia.

My go-to was the Brass Anchor Pub, reminiscent of an English local where you can snag a bottle or a pint and some extra-fee pub grub. TVs throughout the space broadcast a variety of sporting events (subject to satellite availability), and trivia and live music take place there throughout the sailing.

I also spent some time at the Casino Imperiale bar, which was open on my sailing longer than any of the other onboard watering holes. It serves a selection of beer and cocktails.

The centrally located Meraviglia Bar & Lounge, found along Galleria Meraviglia (the ship's promenade) next to Jean-Philippe Chocolate & Cafe, is also home to trivia competitions, live music and dancing throughout the day. It's the bar often frequented by passengers before and after shows in the nearby Broadway Theatre.

Sky Lounge is the place to be for sweeping views through floor-to-ceiling windows. It provides a comfy and often quiet space to read, work or gather with friends.

If you're seeking the oft-missed cigar lounge, look for the entrance on the starboard (right, when facing forward) side of the Sky Lounge entrance, or enter the lounge and follow it around to the starboard side.

Edge Cocktail Bar is another centrally located place to grab beer, wine and specialty cocktails — including the delicious Purple Rain, a combo of vodka, white rum, blue curacao, gin, peach schnapps, sweet and sour, and grenadine that turns a shade of purple when you mix it. One deck above it is the Champagne Bar, which sometimes also serves seafood. One deck below is the Infinity Bar, so named because it's found at the base of the Infinity Atrium.

The ship's TV Studio & Bar is where you can find the cruise director filming the ship's daily morning show the night before. It's also the site of trivia competitions, several of which were standing-room-only.

There's a Sports Bar in the ship's Sportplex, but I never saw it open, even when the area was crowded. Three bars (Atmosphere Bar North, Atmosphere Bar South and Bamboo Bar) by the main Atmosphere Pool serve up classic umbrella drinks, as well as beer and other libations. You'll also find bars in the Marketplace Buffet, on the Yacht Club sun deck and in the Yacht Club Top Sail Lounge.

MSC Meraviglia activities

MSC Meraviglia hosts a variety of activities to keep you busy when you're not ashore. You might start your day with a free guided morning stretch or aerobics, or pop into the gym for a self-led session or a for-fee class like yoga or spin.

The daytime schedule features plenty of options for those with a competitive spirit. They range from golf putting, foosball, Ping-Pong soccer and pickleball tournaments to giant darts and trivia (visual trivia like airline logos and "name that place," as well as "name that tune" and general knowledge trivia).

If you'd rather get your groove on, keep an eye out for dance lessons and themed parties hosted by the entertainment team. My favorite was the Snow Party, when the crew blasted fake snow (which appeared to be suds of some sort) as we danced on the blazing hot pool deck.

Napkin folding, bingo, movie screenings, arts and crafts, and passenger talent shows (yes, you have to audition) round out the list of pastimes.

As you pass back and forth between events, don't miss the regularly scheduled dome shows along the Galleria Meraviglia promenade. You'll see the LED projections on the ceiling, covering topics like famous ceilings, dinosaurs, space and the changing of the seasons.

Beware of seminars on jewelry, health and wellness, and other topics that are thinly veiled sales pitches.

Feeling like a day of swimming or sunbathing? Pull up a lounge chair by the main Atmosphere Pool. If you're looking for a more sauna-like experience, head to the Solarium's covered Bamboo Pool; check out the aft Horizon Pool for better views and more peace and quiet. There's also a small pool on the private Yacht Club sun deck.

Looking to relax in a hot tub instead? You can find two of them one deck up from the Atmosphere Pool, as well as two at the Bamboo Pool and one on Deck 18's aft sun deck (behind Sportplex). There's also one at the Yacht Club Pool.

The Polar Aquapark on Deck 19 aft offers plenty of wet fun for kids and adults. Attractions include three slides — a bowl slide, where riders awkwardly end in the bowl and then exit via a flight of steps, and two twisty slides that require rafts — and a splash area with sprayers and dump buckets. There's no fee to use the space, but you'll need to sign a waiver and obtain a wristband before riding the waterslides.

Speaking of children, the ship has a dedicated kids club, called Doremiland (named after the cruise line's mascot, Doremi, as in the first three notes of a musical scale). The club is divided into Baby Club (infants and toddlers up to 3 years), Mini Club (ages 3 to 6 years), Junior Club (7 to 11 years), Young Club (12 to 14 years) and Teen Club (15 to 17 years).

Each group has age-appropriate activities scheduled, and all — except the tweens and teens, who can come and go as they please — are heavily supervised by qualified staff. Sample activities might include storytime, arts and crafts, and Lego playtime for younger children, while tweens and teens enjoy less structured pastimes like video games and dance parties.

MSC Meraviglia shows

As with most MSC ships, MSC Meraviglia's entertainment is stellar. From free live music, theater shows and promenade dance parties to extra-fee Cirque du Soleil-style performances, the options are varied and feature talented singers, dancers, magicians, acrobats and more.

Each production show is offered once per sailing, at 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. in the Broadway Theatre. Some are staples, while others rotate.

"Born to Rock," "One Day More," "Cool" and "Journey" are the ship's recurring shows, which each appear once per weeklong cruise. They focus on popular songs in the rock 'n' roll and pop genres, Broadway hits, music from the '70s and '80s, and cultural favorites from Spain, Italy, France and more.

As part of a rotating selection of limited-time performers, English duo The Conjurors performed two shows during my sailing, featuring numbers games, mindreading and pre-show predictions that impressively came true by the end. The duo is scheduled for more than a dozen sailings. Other limited-engagement performers include comedians and pianists.

Speaking of limited-time performances, on the second-to-last night of the voyage, I sat in the theater unsure of what to expect from the headliner, Lorraine Crosby. "You might be thinking, 'She sounds like the lady who sings that Meat Loaf song.' Well, that's because I am the lady who sings that Meat Loaf song," Crosby joked. Her biggest claim to fame is that she rocked the female vocals in Meat Loaf's "I'd Do Anything for Love, But I Won't Do That."

What followed was a vocal performance that gave me chills. Crosby's range and ability to adapt to different genres are astounding. She belted out favorites by Queen, Tina Turner and Celine Dion and arguably did a better job of it than they did.

On the final night on board, she held an intimate performance for Yacht Club passengers in the suite area's private lounge. Again, I shivered as she took on the likes of Adele, AC/DC and others.

Another free entertainment option worth mentioning is daytime street theater that includes contortionists, roving musicians, magic workshops and flash mob-style performances by the onboard singers and dancers. If you happen to be passing through the promenade area when a flash mob happens, you're likely to see a punk rock-themed song-and-dance routine or, perhaps, one where the cast is dressed up like flowers, insects and birds.

Shows for a fee

Carousel Productions, MSC's own brand of Cirque du Soleil-style shows, are offered six days a week on MSC Meraviglia, with each of two shows — "House of Houdini" and "Rock Circus" — running three nights, on alternating days, with two performances each night (8 p.m. and 10 p.m.). Originally designed to house dinner theater, the Carousel Lounge is set up as a theater in the round and no longer serves food. (That ended when the cruise line shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the line has no current plans to bring it back.)

The for-fee performances levy a nominal charge for attendance and include a welcome drink for each showgoer.

"Rock Circus" is a mix of acrobatics, aerial performances, and song and dance to some of rock's greatest hits, including songs by Guns N' Roses and AC/DC.

"House of Houdini," which follows a clearer storyline than "Rock Circus," loosely tells the tale of Houdini's great underwater escape from a straitjacket and chains. A group of singers, dancers, acrobats and aerialists dressed as circus performers show Houdini the ropes as he prepares for his greatest feat.

MSC Meraviglia itineraries and pricing

Through at least September 2024, MSC Meraviglia is sailing seven- and eight-night voyages to Nassau and Ocean Cay Marine Reserve in the Bahamas from Brooklyn.

It also features six-night Bermuda cruises that spend three days docked at King's Wharf, as well as 10- and 11-night Canada and New England sailings that feature calls on Boston; Portland, Maine; Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island; Halifax and Sydney, Nova Scotia; and Saint John, New Brunswick. The 11-night itinerary also visits Newport, Rhode Island.

A couple of 11-night Western Caribbean voyages visit Port Canaveral (the port for Orlando) and Miami in Florida, Cozumel and Costa Maya in Mexico and Ocean Cay.

MSC Meraviglia offers some of the lowest prices in the industry. At the time of publication, inside cabin prices were starting from $299 per person ($43 per person per night) for a seven-night Bahamas cruise, $379 per person ($63 per person per night) for a six-night Bermuda sailing, $449 per person ($41 per person per night) for an 11-night Western Caribbean voyage and $619 per person ($56 per person per night) for an 11-night trip to Canada and New England.

What to know before you go

Required documents.

As with a sailing on any ship, there's certain paperwork you'll need to cruise on MSC Meraviglia. If you're a U.S. citizen sailing from and returning to a U.S. port, you can sail with either an official copy of your birth certificate and a driver's license (both are required) or a passport. I recommend the latter, and it must be valid for at least six months.

MSC Cruises adds an automatic service charge of $14.50 per person, per day, to final bills on all sailings. For children 2 and older, the daily charge is half, or $7.25.

Also, a 15% gratuity is added to bills at bars for cruisers who do not have a drinks package. If you have a drinks package, you'll pay a 15% service charge when you purchase the package, but not on individual drinks. A 15% service charge is also added to items in minibars, salons and spas.

MSC Cruises' Wi-Fi, available through the MSC for Me app, is fast enough to be competitive with all of the other major cruise lines. But pricing varies, based on the number of devices you use and whether you're OK with simply browsing the web and checking e-mail or would prefer to use Netflix or other streaming services.

Expect to pay about $72 for one device with unlimited data on a basic package. A two-device plan for the same runs about $109. There's also a four-device plan for about $223. If streaming video is what you're hoping to do, you'll need one of the more expensive plans, which range from about $100 to more than $300.

Be warned that plans are tied to specific devices, and you cannot switch between them. For example, if you buy a one-device package, you cannot use it for your cellphone, log out and then log back in with your tablet. In that case, you would need to purchase a two-device package.

MSC's MSC for Me app allows passengers on the same ship to chat with one another for free without purchasing a Wi-Fi package. The app also lets you make dining reservations, check the daily schedule and view your onboard bill.

Carry-on drinks policy

MSC does not allow passengers to bring any of their own alcohol on board.

Smoking policy

Smoking (including e-cigarettes) is permitted in a few designated areas, including the port side of the main pool deck. It's also allowed on one side of the casino. Nonsmokers, beware: The separate sides do nothing to keep the smell from wafting. It was enough to keep me away from the area for the duration of my sailing. Smoking isn't allowed in cabins or on cabin balconies; violators will receive a $250 fine.

MSC Cruises does not offer self-service laundry facilities on any of its ships. However, passengers can send their clothing out to be washed, folded, pressed or dry-cleaned for a fee.

Electrical outlets

MSC Meraviglia's cabins all have a mix of 110-volt North American outlets, 220-volt European outlets and USB ports. In my Yacht Club balcony stateroom, I had three North American outlets, three European outlets and one USB port, all at the desk/vanity area — none near the bed.

The onboard currency for MSC Meraviglia when it sails from New York is the U.S. dollar.

Drinking age

You must be 21 to consume alcohol on MSC Meraviglia's sailings from the U.S.

Passengers on MSC Meraviglia's warm-weather itineraries from Brooklyn can be found in T-shirts, shorts, bathing suits and cover-ups during the day, when there's no set dress code.

The line's American clientele tends to dress more casually at night, as well, but the line suggests "smart casual" attire for dinner. That might include khakis with button-down or polo-style collared shirts for men and sundresses or nice pants with a flowy top for women. Dark, unripped jeans are also acceptable for both men and women.

On "gala" evenings (usually one per weeklong sailing), the dress code is more refined. Passengers might choose to wear tuxedos, suits, khakis with button-downs and blazers, cocktail dresses or sparkly ball gowns.

On my sailing, the ship also had "tropical" and "white" listed on the daily schedule as suggested attire. Pack accordingly.

Bottom line

MSC Meraviglia is a beautiful ship with great food, shows and public spaces, but it has a few pain points.

In addition to feeling crowded, the vessel charges extra for many things that will make your overall cruise better. If you're on a strict budget, either resign yourself to doing only the free activities and eating in the main dining room and buffet, or plan to sail with a different cruise line.

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Seascape - 10 Sep 2023 - First Time MSC - Yacht Club Review

By Hutcha , September 16, 2023 in MSC Cruises

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57 minutes ago, Hutcha said: "He had a friend coming along, but they couldn't make it, so they were a no show."

Was there any adjustment to the fare, since your son was then a single in a double-occupancy cabin?

7 minutes ago, no1talks said: Was there any adjustment to the fare, since your son was then a single in a double-occupancy cabin?

No, I was nervous about that, but they just deleted the extra. I still need to check on the service charge.

Thank you.

3 hours ago, Hutcha said: "Non YC guests were seated right across from us, and it was a little uncomfortable as they stared at us while we were being served."

Please don't feel uncomfortable.

MSC doesn't check the U.S. Social Register or Burke's Peerage before they will sell Yacht Club accommodation to someone.

Anyone who has the money can be in YC, even if they are of generally modest means and save for it over time.

First impressions....

This is the week after Labor Day, so school is back in session. All of the rooms are booked on the ship, and there are 4800 passengers on board. There may be a few hundred kids on board. Most are under six. In YC, I see maybe 5 or 6 families with minors in the YC.

If I had to guess, I'd say that 50% of the passengers are from international destinations (mostly Europe), 30% are US, and 15% are Canadian.

The ship is beautiful, but the layout is difficult to navigate. Lots of dead ends, where you'd think traffic would normally flow. Weird flows, like walking from the main atrium, on 5 where guest reception is, through the photo area, only to come to an area where you are forced to take the stairs up to 6. If you want to stay on 5, you have go from reception down a long hallway of cabins, to make it to the front. I'd hate to have one of those cabins.

There are a lot of pools, and even more hot tubs. The bad part is that they all close down by 10 or 11 at night. They really need to leave some hot tubs open for the late night crowd.

The main buffet. The crowds are real. Not only do you need to wait for a table, at peak times, you then have to wait in line at the different stations. It gets very congested. The selection of food is probably the best that I've seen. Lots of choices, and definitely geared towards an international crowd.

There is no need to leave YC. I could spend the entire week in the enclave, and be happy.

21 minutes ago, Hutcha said: The main buffet. The crowds are real. Not only do you need to wait for a table, at peak times, you then have to wait in line at the different stations.

For every post reporting a sea of humanity at an MSC buffet, there seems to be a post reporting a crowded front buffet AND a very underutilized back buffet.

I wonder how often the crowds are self-inflicted.

We watched the sail away from the infinity pools, at the back of the ship. They were not too crowded. I think most were probably at the marina pool for the sail away party.

After taking a break in our room, we got ready for dinner at the YC. The YC seems smaller than I had imagined from the pictures and video. The lounge was never crowded, but the restaurant was usually pretty full and noisy.

Normally not a tomato soup fan. Followed the previous reviews, and it was a 5/5

These were just ok. A little dry. 3/5

Risotto with clams. Too fishy for us. One bite and done. 2/5

Veal chop 5/5

Coconut pasticcio dacquoise 5/5. Carrot cake consistency.

45 minutes ago, no1talks said: For every post reporting a sea of humanity at an MSC buffet, there seems to be a post reporting a crowded front buffet AND a very underutilized back buffet. I wonder how often the crowds are self-inflicted.

You are correct. If you go to the back, it is not as crowded. It is still the worst that I have seen. For us, it's normal to have to seek out a table, however that's just the beginning. If one holds a table, while the other grabs their plate, by the time the second is back with their food, the first is finished.

At dinner, we mentioned to the maître d, Arthur, that we had not yet seen our butler. He said he would call him right away. Still didn't see him so we stopped at the concierge after dinner to ask. They called and told us to have a seat. After a few minutes, he showed up. We went to our room with him to ask about a couple of things. Pillows, our bottle of alcohol, and the mini fridge. We tipped him $50 right there, hopping to set the expectation that good service for the week would be rewarded. This was my first time tipping someone ahead of time. Excluding running into him randomly in the topsail lounge or up at the pool, we saw him 2 other times during the week. Once when he dropped our laundry off, and another when he was looking for us, because he thought we left our excursion tickets in the room. We're not high maintenance, but we did expect him to at least make his services known to us. What he could do, how to reach him, and so on. Once, in the topsail, we were looking to be escorted to the tender. They asked who our butler was, and then called him. We left after about 10 mins and made it on our own. My wife is convinced that he still does not know that she is in one of his rooms. He'll look at her and smile, but never engages when they pass each other.

morpheusofthesea

2 hours ago, Hutcha said: We left after about 10 mins and made it on our own. My wife is convinced that he still does not know that she is in one of his rooms. He'll look at her and smile, but never engages when they pass each other.

Not a good butler. Can you tell us all his/her name, so when any of us board we can avoid getting him/her in the future?

CarolnLarry

Yeah I want to know his name also as I will ask for another butler if I ever have him on my next cruise 2 Dec What deck are ou on?

Thanks for the review! We'll be sailing on her the end of next month. Love planning my meals ahead of time.

Enjoying.... We are on Seascape in YC Thanksgiving week....your level of detail is perfect! Thx

18 hours ago, Hutcha said: At dinner, we mentioned to the maître d, Arthur, that we had not yet seen our butler. He said he would call him right away. Still didn't see him so we stopped at the concierge after dinner to ask. They called and told us to have a seat. After a few minutes, he showed up. We went to our room with him to ask about a couple of things. Pillows, our bottle of alcohol, and the mini fridge. We tipped him $50 right there, hopping to set the expectation that good service for the week would be rewarded. This was my first time tipping someone ahead of time. Excluding running into him randomly in the topsail lounge or up at the pool, we saw him 2 other times during the week. Once when he dropped our laundry off, and another when he was looking for us, because he thought we left our excursion tickets in the room. We're not high maintenance, but we did expect him to at least make his services known to us. What he could do, how to reach him, and so on. Once, in the topsail, we were looking to be escorted to the tender. They asked who our butler was, and then called him. We left after about 10 mins and made it on our own. My wife is convinced that he still does not know that she is in one of his rooms. He'll look at her and smile, but never engages when they pass each other.

This is most depressing and not the type of service we would expect. Was he new? Would love to know what suites he works. Looking forward to seeing Arthur. He is fabulous, isn't he?

16 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said: Not a good butler. Can you tell us all his/her name, so when any of us board we can avoid getting him/her in the future?

Agree and yes, I'd love to know what suites he was working.

Enjoying and following along we are sailing yc late November

On 9/16/2023 at 3:00 PM, no1talks said: Please don't feel uncomfortable. MSC doesn't check the U.S. Social Register or Burke's Peerage before they will sell Yacht Club accommodation to someone. Anyone who has the money can be in YC, even if they are of generally modest means and save for it over time.

Lol-- wait till you have to walk by them at disembarkation --although, you will never see them again, so big whoop. Actually, the only other time is during ports, when the butler brings you through the crowd, stops the line, etc... I just tell my kids not to look anyone in the eye... Enjoy the YC!

1 hour ago, xcell said: not to look anyone in the eye...

No touch, no talk, no eye contact!

On 9/16/2023 at 9:04 PM, morpheusofthesea said: Not a good butler. Can you tell us all his/her name, so when any of us board we can avoid getting him/her in the future?

I'd rather not out him totally here. He was pretty young, so he probably is on the newer side. If I didn't have my expectations set high, from so many great reviews like yours, I probably would have been content. We did hear one family, in the hallway, telling him how wonderful he was. I also could have pulled him aside, on day 2 or 3, and told him he wasn't meeting my expectations. I will say that I was on 16, port side.

It's been a long travel day. I'll try to knock out some more tomorrow.

6 hours ago, Hutcha said: I also could have pulled him aside, on day 2 or 3, and told him he wasn't meeting my expectations.

My DW leaves notes, actually a list of 2-3 items each day in the cabin before we leave in the morning. Found this helps.

The daily from the first day

Daily 0910.pdf

Pics from the embarkation lunch buffet.

After dinner we went to the show in the main theater. Tonight was Imagine Ocean. It was both our favorite and least favorite of the cruise. In other words, it was the only production show we saw. I knew what to expect going into this cruise. Singing and dancing, with an implied story line. This isn't our cup of tea, but we gave it a try. The male lead was a great singer. The female lead was good. The acrobats were entertaining. The cast members running through the audience, dress in unitards and carrying fish puppets, was a bit over the top.

The show was fine, it just didn't inspire us to make sure we made a different show later in the week. I'm not sure where the Yacht Club seating was. Would have been nice to have someone to point that out to us.

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I tried a ship-within-a-ship cruise experience and it was worth it for the endless perks—here’s why

You’re fast-tracked through everything

Relaxing and streamlined

Your Yacht Club package is packed with remarkable value

You get perks ashore too

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You can justify the price at the end of your cruise

The MSC Meraviglia Yacht Club Experience Review

Doug Parker

MSC Meraviglia Review Transcript

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MSC Splendida Review: MSC Yacht Club Experience

What is the MSC Yacht Club?

Boarding MSC Yacht

The Yacht Club Lounge

The Yacht Club Pool

The Yacht Club Restaurant

The Service for MSC Yacht Club Guests

What is Included in MSC Yacht Club?

MSC Cruises Ships

MSC Seashore

MSC Meraviglia

MSC Virtuosa

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MSC Meraviglia review: What it's like to cruise on MSC's 1st New York-based ship

Overview of MSC Meraviglia

What I loved about MSC Meraviglia

Specialty dining

Galleria Meraviglia

What I didn't love about MSC Meraviglia

The departure port

Confusing policies and procedures

MSC Meraviglia cabins and suites

MSC Meraviglia restaurants and bars

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MSC Meraviglia shows

Shows for a fee

MSC Meraviglia itineraries and pricing

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Carry-on drinks policy

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MSC Virtuosa Deck Plans & Reviews

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Seascape - 10 Sep 2023 - First Time MSC - Yacht Club Review

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