msc seaside yacht club dining

The Traveling Steve's

Our traveling adventure blog.

The Steve’s Review of MSC Seaside’s Yacht Club

Steve (DOS) and I sailed MSC’s Seaside cruise ship for the first time this past week; October 15 – 22, 2023 for a 7 night cruise to MSC’s Ocean Cay (MSC’s private island in the Bahamas), Costa Maya, and Cozumel Mexico. As this was a new cruise line for us, I’ll detail my/our experiences here in a bit more detail, similar to what I did when we first sailed Virgin Voyages this past July. Warning: this is a long post with lots of photos! (Sorry in advance for any typos!)?

First some quick ship stats: for the MSC Seaside (per Wikipedia)

• 153,516 Gross Tons
• Length: 1,059 Feet
• Beam: 141 Feet
• Total Cabins: 2,067
• Passenger capacity: Max 4,961
• Entered Service: December 2017
• Cost when built in 2014: €700 million Euros
• Country of Registry: Valletta, Malta
• Current number of cruise ships in MSC fleet: 23

DRIVE TO THE PORT: As we live in the Orlando, FL suburbs, the Port of Cape Canaveral (where the Seaside is currently sailing from) is only an hour drive from our house, which make it super convenient. Not only that, but Cape Canaveral, in my humble opinion is one of the easiest embarkation/debarkation points we have sailed out of. It is not the closest port, however, to the airport as it’s an hour’s drive via car or shuttle bus, unlike Ft. Lauderdale (FLL) which is a short distance from the FLL airport terminal.

ARRIVAL AT PORT CANAVERAL: MSC currently leaves from terminal 10, which is the former Royal Caribbean (RCL) Cruise terminal. We saw RCL’s Wonder of the Seas docked further down the terminal channel, so I guess they needed bigger space for their mega series of ships.

We arrived at Port Canaveral Terminal 10 around 10:45am, and the luggage drop off and parking were a breeze, thanks to the good signage and uniformed port staff providing directions. There was very little car traffic at this hour, and the tour buses coming from the airport had a drop off point just for them, so they weren’t interfering with the flow of traffic. We parked on the ground level of the garage (shaded area), took a photo of where we parked, and walked the short distance to the terminal with our carry-on luggage, taking a selfie along the way of us with the giant ship behind us. One huge thing that at least the Port Canaveral Terminal Garage 10 does, is collect the parking fee upon entry via credit card. This really expedites the traffic flow upon debarkation, something other port garages such as Miami do not do, which caused lengthy exit delays when we sailed out of there in late July on Virgin’s Scarlet Lady. Ideally Miami’s garage should at least have an EPAS exit, as their garages handle multiple cruise lines out of the same garage, with various lengths of cruises, so pre-paying is perhaps not an option there.

Once at the terminal, we quickly found the Yacht Club (YC) tent area where we were verified for YC, and then sent thru a quick security check line. From there we were directed to a dedicated large conference-type room in the terminal, where we would then check-in for our cruise. We had already completed the paperwork and had downloaded the MSC app, but we still printed out our travel documents per MSC’s website guidelines, which makes it easier should the phone need re-charging or an update when you’re trying to check-in. (I’m old fashioned I guess, but I always print my boarding pass for the airport for the same reason; don’t always trust the phone and/or app when I need it most.)

The check-in process was very quick and we were given a glass of champagne as we entered the room. We then received our room card key which indicated YC access. They did not have the blue wrist bands available at check-in, (which will also allow you to open your stateroom door), but we picked up our complimentary bands two days later onboard at the photo gallery. While we waited a few minutes for our boarding to commence, we sipped our glass of pre-boarding champagne together with the other YC guests, and toasted to an awesome cruise ahead!

After a short wait in the pre-boarding area, we were escorted in small groups aboard the ship where we were led directly thru the main lobby atrium. Here we met our personal shipboard Butler Agus, who assisted us from there. Agus helped us with our carry-on luggage and escorted us from deck five thru a few public areas, until we reached the forward elevators which took us to our “ship within a ship”, the Yacht Club section. The Yacht Club occupies the forward third of the 16th, 18th, and 19th decks aboard the Seaside. (There is not a deck 17 on this ship as it is an Italian ship, and 17 (like 13 in the US) is considered an unlucky number.)

Once in the Yacht Club, we had a seat in the Top Sail Lounge, which is the huge main cocktail lounge exclusive to the 200 Yacht Club passengers. We had yet another glass of the complimentary Champagne in the Lounge (actually Prosecco to be technically correct), and met some of our fellow passengers, while we again sipped our Bubbly. (And it’s not even 11:30am yet!). There was a nice assortment of snacks, nuts and pastries as well, but we skipped over those for now as lunch was in the near future for us. In a few minutes, we were gathered with a few other guests for a quick orientation of the Yacht Club’s services, amenities, meal hours etc, which was lead by the lead Concierge staff person, Raj. After the 10 minute or so orientation, we went to our cabin, which was just down the hall, also on deck 16. We knew from the moment we boarded that the Yacht Club was truly special, and this would be an awesome cruise!

STATEROOM : After the orientation in the Top Sail Lounge, DOS and I headed to our stateroom which was just down the hall. Our room was 16014, with 16 being the deck number, and 014 the room number. The room was quite comfortable, and categorized by MSC as a “Superior Yacht Club Suite”. While our room was not what I would consider a full suite, it was a nice sized Jr. Suite in size, similar to those on other cruise lines and quite spacious enough for us. We had a King sized bed, half open-sided wall adjacent to the bedroom, dividing off the living room sofa, a large bathroom (no tub) with decent sized shower and a large single sink vanity. Robes were provided for use onboard, and the large towels and bed linens were of very good quality.

The outlets for electronic devices were a bit lacking as they weren’t located on either side of the bed, but on the long table with pull out drawers. We brought a cruise-allowed power adapter (not a surge protector which are banned on all cruise ships) we bought on Amazon which is cruise-safe, and handled our other devices, such as our iPhones, iPad, Apple Watch and Mac Book. The is also a European power outlet under the TV, as well a couple USB outlets.

FIRST MEAL ABOARD: LUNCH! After briefly settling into our cabin and unpacking our carry-on items, we headed up to Deck 18 (only one level up due the “skipping” of the 17th floor per Italian superstition) to the Yacht Club (YC) Dining Room. I’ll talk at length about the Yacht Club further down in this post, but for now the relaxing lunch with wine made for quite a friendly welcome aboard and literally a taste of what was to come over the next 7 days. We met our waiter and assistant waiters, who would expertly serve us throughout the cruise.

EXPLORING THE SHIP: After lunch in the Yacht Club, it was time to venture out of the YC exclusive area, and explore a bit of the rest of this mammoth ship. I say “a bit” as even by the end of the cruise we felt like we had only seen some of the major ship venues, and never quite learned our way around the ship, even with the lighted ship maps located near the elevators and elsewhere.

The layout in some places could be a bit strange, such as on Deck 16 towards the mid/aft of the ship, where you needed to go down or up a deck to cross all the way to the back of the ship (due to a galley blocking part of the passageway) or the plethora of mirrors aboard in some corridors that had us saying hi to the “other people” coming towards us, only to realize we were saying hi to ourselves! LOL! ?

Part of the fun of going on a new ship, however, is getting lost finding your way around; it really is a beautiful ship with so many sectional venues that it will take some time to explore even the main parts of the ship by day and night.

MAIN LOBBY : At the centerpiece of the ship are the beautiful Swarovski decorated crystal staircases located in the ship’s main atrium. These staircases lead to several levels, and flank either side of the multi-level stage areas that are used for various musicians throughout the day and evening, as well as on the main open air bottom level of the lobby. The backdrop of the atrium is an ever changing myriad of colors and scenes, depending on the occasion.

There is a huge semi-circular bar which is visible from the staircases and overlooks surrounding them, and serves as a focal point entertainment venue for the numerous onboard events and parties. We even saw Elvis, and Michael Jackson one night!

ELEVATORS: The ship has two primary banks of elevators; one towards the forward of the ship; and one a bit past the middle of the ship. The main elevators are “smart” elevators, although I would say the “smart part” needs a bit of tweaking to them. The idea in theory is great, provide more efficient elevator access by matching groups of passengers going to the same floors, although at peak times that doesn’t work the best. Basically by each elevator there is a mini iPad type device where you select your floor, which is also indicated by the deck’s name; i.e, Miami Beach deck.

The elevator then calculates which elevator will be the quickest, and tell you the elevator (via letter and number, i.e. G5) and the approximate wait time. During slow periods, these worked fine, but when several hundred people got out of a show at the same time or returned from a busy port of call, things got a bit more hectic. Ideally each person in their group, say four people, should enter the floor number, not just one person from the group, so the elevator can calculate the capacity as 4 riders instead of 1. Unfortunately this is not obvious, and I don’t recall seeing signage to tell people to do this which at busy times can be quite crowded and confusing with multiple groups of people trying to ride as a single passenger, instead of their actual group size.

Busy periods aside, though, I really love this concept, as busy elevators on these mega ships in general (most other lines included) face the problem of over-crowded elevators, and people riding up to go down, and not getting off at the correct top or bottom floor; instead just getting on to secure their space in the crowded elevators. These “smart” elevators do not have any floor buttons once you are on board so you can’t change your mind or better yet, don’t have kids pushing every floor button of the elevator!

There is also one small bank of two elevators in the aft area of the ship by the aft pool, which are not the “smart elevator” type. There is also an elevator inside the Yacht Club for exclusive use of the YC passengers, but it only operates on the YC floors 16 – 19.

LOUNGES/BARS: According to the MSC website there are some 19 bars and lounges onboard! And, no we didn’t try all of them out on our seven day cruise! While we primarily used the Top Sail Lounge in the Yacht Club, as well as the YC’s pool bar, we did go to several of the other bars and lounges in the main part of the ship as well. We were concerned the main bars/lounges outside the YC would be jam packed all the time, but that really was not the case most of the time. While many were busy, with the exception of the large main atrium bar, and main and aft pool bars, we didn’t have trouble finding seats or barstools at some of the other bars and lounges. We tried the Sports Bar, which had a large selection of drafts (but oddly no IPAs such as Lagunitis here or elsewhere on the ship I could find), the Seaview Lounge, and the Haven Lounge, both of the latter offered live entertainment, as well as the main atrium lounge.

We didn’t try out the Champagne Lounge on the upper level of the main atrium, but walked by it several times as well as the Chocolate Bar; both of which looked nice but not overflowing with crowds.

There is also a small bar (more of a to-go bar) in the buffet area on deck 8 which is open late while the late night buffet is being served until 1am, which is fine for grabbing a brewski or drink to your table while munching on the midnight food and snacks.

GAME ROOM: We didn’t utilize the game room, but did pass thru the Game Room Arcade a few times when walking towards the back of the ship. There was a Formula One Race Car simulator, complete with an actual size car that can be “driven” around the large virtual screen track directly in front of it. It looked pretty realistic, and we watched a man probably in his early 40s having a ball with his racing skills!

There is also a two lane bowling alley in the arcade room, but we never saw anyone bowling, although we weren’t there very much other than just passing thru. I was hoping to video someone bowling as it must be quite tricky on a moving ship; I’m sure there’s lots of curve and gutter balls even from experienced bowlers!

There are also other video games as well, all of which required payment or a game pass of sorts via the ATM like kiosk or pre-pay on the cruise card.

SPA Area: We’re not spa kind of people (i.e. don’t get massages, use the treatment rooms etc) so we can’t speak for the Spa, other than it was quite large, and people we spoke to really enjoyed their massage and even the “mud treatment”. (I’ve always wanted to try that seaweed wrap treatment but DOS says “that’s phooy”, you’ll gain your weight back as soon as you drink water or alcohol! Possibly, but it does sound like fun!)

Any passenger on the ship can book the “The Thermal Suite Pass” (which is complimentary for Yacht Club Members), and provides access to the Thermal Suite area and and spa deck area; a private section of deck 16, just prior to entering the YC section. We did not use the Thermal Suite on this trip as we seemed to be too busy on this cruise (not sure what we were doing other than relaxing, but we seemed busy all the time!) We did walk thru the spa outdoor deck area on our daily walks around the ship for exercise, which is shown in the next couple of photos, which never seemed to be busy, and was a nice wide area of the deck as well.

We did like the cold towels the Spa staff handed to all guests when they came back from port, on the dock area near the entrance to the ship. The white washcloths were chilled (like Celebrity Cruises and Princess does), but also sprayed with an exotic Eucalyptus mixture that smelled divine. Of course they sell the bottled mixture in the Spa if you like it!

POOL FUN : The main (non Yacht Club) portion of the ship has several pools, divided into different sections. There is an adventure pool area that has a kiddie pool and other water activities, while there are 2 racing water slides that go out over the starboard side of the ship, while on the port side there is a similar, but larger twisting water slide that uses a raft to ride the slide down to the bottom. Scrunched in-between, in the center of the Adventure Club area, is another twisting slide that finishes on the bottom deck of the Adventure Club pool area. None of the slides were overly busy and were complimentary, although you had to sign a waiver and get a wrist band prior to riding them. Adults as well as kids seemed to be enjoying themselves! I’m sure in peak summer or holiday periods there would be hundreds more kids using these facilities, though on our mid-October sailing it was not overwhelming.

SAIL-AWAY PARTY: Sure enough, as quiet and empty as the ship was when we first got on and started exploring the ship, it quickly filled up by sail-away time. There was a big sail-away party at the aft pool deck area, but it was a bit too busy to see the entertainment staff, and a bit too noisy for us to enjoy, so we retreated back to the quite calm of The Yacht Club. I told Steve (DOS) at times leaving some of the crowded main areas of the ship was like being in a busy airport terminal, and then suddenly entering the calm of an airline’s international First Class Lounge! Not really an exaggeration either, as a couple of fellow Yacht Club passengers said something similar.

SHOPPING GALLERY : As expected for a ship of this size, there are several shopping areas aboard the ship, ranging from logo items, to duty free liquors and other items, to Swarovski crystals, jewelry, cosmetics, to men’s face creams to make you look ten years younger. Maybe I should have bought two of the face cremes to shave 20 years off my age!?

We’re not big shoppers except for souvenir type items, but we did purchase the ship’s Seascape model (which I try to collect of ships we have taken), which was priced at $56, and was a nice quality metal model on a wood base. I wanted an MSC cap, but oddly enough they were out of them, and I didn’t see any nice logo T-shirts that I cared for, so we settled for just purchasing the ship’s model.

We had the same issue on Virgin Voyages recently where they were out of their logo caps, and like on MSC, this was only on the second night. Don’t know if ships are having supply-chain issues or people are gobbling them up right away (I think the former as you they would want to advertise their product), so if you see something you want in the gift logo shop, I would buy it early on in the cruise.

CASINO: While we’re not gamblers, we did stroll thru the casino after the theater shows let out, as it was a passageway towards the mid to the aft of the ship, and you really couldn’t avoid it. Although MSC allows smoking in the casino, it really was very well filtered, and this comes from someone who is very sensitive to second-hand smoke. There were definitely plenty of slots for every type play you like, as well as many table games as well.

The huge bar served as a functional and aesthetically pleasing circular sports bar as there were TV monitors mounted from the ceiling pointed down to the bar below.

YACHT CLUB EXPERIENCE: Wow oh Wow! What can I say about this? The Yacht Club (YC) is an exclusive area for 200 or fewer passengers, which makes up only 5% of the ship’s capacity, yet offers the best service, food, and amenities aboard. The YC occupies the forward 1/3 of decks 16, 18, and 19, with YC cabins on decks 16 and 18 (there is no deck 17 on these Italian ships due to superstition of the number 17). The YC offers mostly similar “Superior Suite Balcony” cabins, although there are 2 Royal Suites, and a few inside cabins as well, all which receive the same Yacht Club service, although the Royal Suites do get a reserved onboard pool-side cabana and much larger suite. (There are other cabanas in the YC available complimentary to YC passengers, on a first-come basis, and can be reserved onboard.)

Note there are actually several categories of larger suites aboard the Seaside that are not in the Yacht Club area, and these do NOT include the 5 star Yacht Club admittance and perks; they are basically larger cabins located throughout the ship among the masses of other passengers. Even though we’ve had very large suites on other lines, the room on MSC was almost secondary as the service and amenities in the public Yacht Club areas were far superior than being in a large suite in a non-Yacht Club area, although the larger space would be good for families needing extra space. All of the rooms in the Yacht Club are in the same key-only accessible area, and it was like being at a Country Club as it was such a small group of passengers with such a high staff to passenger ratio. It was easy to meet most of the fellow YC passengers over the course of the cruise, and it really was like a family between the staff and passengers by the end of the cruise.

The Yacht Club is entered via a key-carded entry door, where the 24 hour Concierge desk and staff are located, and glad to answer any questions, assist with shore excursions, specialty dining, and any type special request you may have.

The long hallway internal to the YC is mirrored on both sides, a common design theme used throughout the ship; lots of mirrors everywhere! On the starboard side where our cabin was located, there is also another keyed entrance door which bypasses the Concierge, and lead down a couple hallways to our room.

At the end of the hall on deck 16, is the Top Sail Lounge, a large and elegant cocktail lounge exclusive to the YC passengers. It faces the front of the ship and has plenty of seating on chairs, sofas, and at the bar area as well. It is here where (well actually anywhere in the YC) you can truly relax away from the mass market crowds of passengers in the main parts of the ship. No loud music and shouting, although there is a piano player/singer who entertains in the evening and special events such as the Captains cocktail party, High Tea, etc, and one night there was a saxophone player entertaining as well.

During other times of the day and night there is light and soft jazz or supper-club type music piped in thru the speakers, which makes a subtle background effect, without being overwhelming, even in the pool lavatory! There are always plenty of staff serving the YC, and there is never a wait for a drink, be it bottled water or your favorite cocktail, wine, or beer, and all but the most premium wines and liquors are included both here and throughout the ship (with two exceptions, the chocolate bar and the gelato bar in the main areas of the ship.)

Meals Aboard: Unlike the main part of the ship which has 3 seatings in a couple of dining rooms, which require a reservation time, the YC is open seating, and offers 3 waiter-serviced meals a day, in addition to the YC buffet which is available until 7 -10 am for breakfast and normally 12 – 3pm for lunch. We usually ate at the outdoor buffet for breakfast and lunch as the service hours were later and longer than the restaurant, and it was quite an extensive buffet you could enjoy around the pool, or outdoor seating area.

We did have lunch in the Yacht Club Dining Room the first day, and breakfast in the Dining Room on Debarkation Day; both of which were leisurely and wonderful, but we preferred the casual poolside buffet most days for breakfast and lunch. (The YC buffet is not open for dinner, although they have hors d’oeuvres in the Top Sail Lounge for a pre or post dinner snack.)

We always had dinner in the YC Dining room, which was truly a treat! Dinner is served nightly from 6pm to 9pm, and is open seating with no reservation required for whatever time you like to dine between the posted hours. We requested the same section each night so we had the same wait staff, and normally dined around 7:30pm. The menu selections changed each night with the evening’s theming, but they always had a few classics you could order from if nothing was to your liking, which including a Filet Mignon, Salmon, Cesar Salad etc.

Unlike other mainstream US cruise lines, there are 3 courses offered instead of the usual four on RCL, Celebrity, Princess and others. The portion sizes are also a bit small than other lines, but we thought this was actually a positive thing as many times cruise lines oversize their portions, although that too has changed since COVID in serving size portions. MSC offers a choice of several starters, entrees, and desserts (including selections from the cheese cart which I loved.). If you wanted another entree or like Steve (DOS) another or different starter, the wait staff was only too happy to oblige. As drinks were included, we tried several different wines with different food pairings over the week cruise, and one night the sommelier surprised us with a Beaujolais to try with our starter. We never would have guessed what it was (he didn’t tell us initially) as it was quite complex; like a more full-bodied Pinot, than a Beaujolais which is usually a young and more simple wine. Our wine of choice however, was the French Medoc they freely poured, or the Oberon Cabernet Sauvignon.

The food, presentation, and service were truly outstanding in the YC, and the Chef visited us table-side a couple evenings, while the Maitre D’ always stopped by to check on us. Our waiter and assistant waiter were absolutely some of MSC’s best!

Outdoor YC Pool Area/Bar/Buffet: On deck 19 was the YC Sun Deck, pool, and bar/buffet and outdoor seating area and cabanas. This was a large area, although most of the lounge chairs were not shaded unfortunately. As the YC’s sundeck was in the very front of the ship, umbrellas would probably not work due to the wind, although the area was quite protected by full length window panels, which mostly blocked the wind. On the downside, the large window panels created a bit of an obstacle for taking photos, although for sunset photos or in-port photos such as MSC’s private island, we could get good and unobstructed photos from our room’s balcony, as the window panels did not block the view as they did on the sundeck.

The YC saltwater pool was deeper than it looked, at around 5 feet deep, although the sign said 4’8″. The pool was a fun place to socialize and cool off, and we used it most days due to the great weather.

There are also two whirlpools located a bit further forward of the sectionally partitioned YC club, which are on the forward part of the YC sundeck.

Little extras mean a lot: The Yacht Club includes so many little extra touches with attention to detail, which makes it so extra-special. Your choice of daily newspaper: Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, and others, which are condescended versions of the papers, and printed daily on site.

Evening chocolates on the pillow, and some type of surprise treat each evening, such as white chocolates in a plexiglass box, a bottle of Prosecco one evening, a box of 4 sampler chocolates in a gift box the last night, replenishment of your mini-bar beers, water, sodas per your request etc.

Butler Service is included along with your room attendant, and the Butler will escort you anywhere on the ship and even to the exit for port days and debarkation. This was a huge benefit, especially being led to the reserved Yacht Club section for the Theater production shows. The High Tea service was especially nice and classy, and served in the Top Sail Lounge.

Production Shows: There were FIVE Production shows on this 7 night cruise! (Most 7 and even 10 night cruises only have a maximum of three, filled in with other acts on the other nights). Each show was different and some were better than others, but were all energetic with 4 main singers and 9 dancers, with additional specialty-act performers on some of the shows, such as the Peter Punk and Michael Jackson show.

The show theater itself while very large with two aisles and a center section (with stadium type seating allowing for great views), seemed a bit under-sized for a ship this large, sailing with 4,300 passengers on our sailing, so a couple of the most popular shows actually had 3 seatings (7:30, 9:30, and 10:30pm) instead of two most nights, due to the capacity requirements.

Unlike most other cruise lines, the Cruise Director did not make an announcement forbidding photography or even video taping at each show, and it seemed like quite a few people discretely videoed some of the performance number highlights, including myself, which I have included a few short segments below of some of the shows.

We enjoyed all of the shows, although we did not go to the two comedy shows on the non-production show nights, with the Circus Spectacular and the final night’s Michael Jackson show really extra well-done.

PORTS OF CALL : MSC OCEAN’s CAY was without a doubt our favorite port stop on this cruise. Like other cruise lines, MSC has their own private island in the Bahamas, however on our itinerary we were docked at Ocean Cay overnight, allowing for two full days on their private island, something other cruise lines do not do.

The island is also reachable via a dock area, so there is no need to tender to the port. As our cabin was on the starboard (right) side of the ship, we had an awesome view of the private island, including the landmark lighthouse, which has a light show at night, overlooking the beach party there.

We absolutely loved MSC’s Ocean Cay, and as DOS and I both agreed, it reminded us of Royal Caribbean’s (RCL’s) Coco Cay, before they turned the quiet island into a “theme park” with gigantic waters slips, a hot air balloon, zip lines etc. Not that there’s anything wrong with that if you want a bit of adventure for the whole family, but we much prefer the more pristine and natural look of a tropical island without all the added frills which we could do onboard or at a waterpark back home if we wanted to.

As there is no tendering required, it’s quite easy to debark the ship, and quickly explore the island. Our ship was the only ship in port both days, so it really did feel like a private island without the crowds. As passengers in the Yacht Club, we were escorted down to the exit, and once on land directed to a golf-cart tram, which transported us to the other side of the island, to the exclusive Yacht Club compound on the private beach.

The Yacht Club section includes the only air-conditioned passenger building on the island for the club house bar. There was really no reason to access the bar most of the time though, as the service was exceptional, both on the beach as well as at the adjacent Yacht Club Ocean Restaurant. We did go in there a couple times for a quick bottled water or drink if we were passing by there for a restroom stop or to cool off a bit.

As lunch the first day was from noon to 2pm, (11:30am – 1:30pm on the second day), we were a bit early for lunch, so headed to the gorgeous private beach just steps aways from the restaurant/bar area. The private beach area was huge, and offered plenty of lounge chairs with umbrellas (complimentary). We had read that the beach itself could be a bit rocky, so we brought some waterproof beach shoes which were great for not only the water, but walking on the hot beach.

In addition to the complimentary beach chairs and umbrellas, beachside cabanas could be pre-reserved as well for a fee. As the service was so good to everyone, we really didn’t see a point in getting a cabana, and were quite comfortable with our beach chairs and umbrellas, as servers were constantly coming by on the beach to provide us beverages. The beach chairs were actually closer to the water as well. The Bahamian water was so crystal blue and clear, it invited most passengers in for a refreshing dip.

Snorkeling was not offered at the Yacht Club beach, possibly as there was no protective netting there (more in a moment – yikes! ?), but it was offered at the non-Yacht Club main beach areas for a fee.

We went to lunch around 1pm at the Yacht Club outdoor Ocean House Restaurant, which is covered in most areas, along with ceiling fans to cool off. The food has different menus both days, and unlike a Buffet for the non-Yacht Club areas we passed on the way in, the YC section has full waiter service. It is served by the same wait staff on the ship, so it’s nice they know you, and you know them for the service they provide with a smile.

Steve (DOS) had always wanted a lobster roll (served on the second day on the island) but doesn’t like mayonnaise, so he told that to the waiter, who in turn talked to the chef, and DOS got his lobster roll without mayo and loved it! Later on in the cruise, the chef actually came by our table one evening at dinner and asked him how he liked the lobster roll without mayo! Outstanding service, and passenger memory preferences as well!

After a leisurely lunch, we headed back to the beach to relax for a while and enjoyable the beautiful mid-October day in the Bahamas. We actually got more than we expected, with some “wildlife” viewing, swimming around in the water. Yes, we saw a few sharks really close to the shore! ? These were sand sharks, and I guess when everyone was at lunch and the water was empty of beach goers, they decided to swim close to the shore and feed on the tiny needle or other fish. I could not believe how close the sharks got to the shore; literally in a foot of water! ????

We, along with most our fellow passengers at the beach took photos and video of the sharks swimming around, although I don’t think anyone else got back in the water that afternoon. There is a lifeguard, and he cautioned people about the sharks, but it didn’t take much caution for us to avoid the water after lunch!

The next day, we didn’t see the sharks though, and it seemed safe to go back into the water. I looked up sand sharks when we got back to the ship and Wikipedia had this article on them. They are normally “docile” to humans and are not aggressive unless provoked. They are usually more active at night, so I guess we “got lucky” by seeing them in the afternoon!

In the evening of our first day at MSC’s Ocean Cay, there were two lighthouse shows, and a huge beach party on the sand. We intended to get off the ship and go to the party, but after a big dinner and a few drinks we felt a bit lazy, so watched the show and party from our 16th floor balcony; actually probably the best view from anywhere.

The beach party was adjacent to the lighthouse, and in full view for us as seen from our balcony, looked lively and fun as well. The beach party, and island “curfew” lasted until 11:30pm, at which point everyone rebounded the ship until the next day, while the “island people” who live there freshened up the island overnight.

There were two different light shows; one at 9 and one at 10pm, and in between the shows were rotating light effects; i.e. MSC logo, different color lights etc, and coordinated with music as well.

The second day on Ocean Cay was basically a repeat of the first day, but without any shark sightings.? It was nice to sleep in a bit, have breakfast aboard the ship, and then head back to the Yacht Club Beach Resort; it had a feel of staying at a nice Caribbean land resort. DOS had his lobster roll for lunch, while I had the lunch tournedos of beef, and an ahi tuna salad.

We sailed from Ocean Cay on our second day there, at 5:30pm for our next port, Costa Maya, which we would arrive in two days, after a day at sea on the way there.

COSTA MAYA, MEXICO: This is a newer Mexican port as far as tourism goes, but already it has gotten quite popular, and unfortunately crowded. The day we we docked here, there were a total of 4 mega ships in port, (RCL’s Adventure OTS, Allure OTS, Carnival Pride, and our ship MSC Seaside) and as the ships shared the two long dock areas, it was quite busy just walking down the long perpendicular dock ramps to the Costa Maya cruise entrance.

Once there, it felt perhaps a little less busy than Mardi Gras, with most passengers wandering around aimlessly watching the free show in the town square, going to the many bars there, shopping, some even swimming in the huge pool there, or like us heading down to the “swim with the dolphins” area to have a look.

We skipped on doing Costa Maya’s “Spa Treatment”, which consisted of women (and even some men) soaking their feet in an aquarium filled with tiny fish. Supposedly the fish gently chew on your dead skin, and somehow this “reduces stress” and “makes skin smooth and soft!”. I don’t know, but I got stressed just watching these ladies with their feet getting chewed on by those little fish! To each his own I guess; hey they’re in Mexico enjoying themselves. (At least the lady on the right. The lady on the left kept looking at her watch, like “how much longer do I have to have my feet in this horrible tank!”

We did not do a shore excursion or tour here on our own, as we stopped here last year in March 2022 on a Princess cruise and had gone into town on that trip. While there were mega ships in that day as well, as it was still the trailing part of the COVID pandemic, most of the ships were only sailing half full then, so while the port was busy in places (such as the taxi stand), the port itself was more like a ghost town compared to this trip’s visit to Costa Maya. The one part that was busy then was when we took a taxi into town, and it was a bit of a free-for-all getting a cab. The town itself wasn’t as busy as the hectic cruise port, and offered massages on the beach next to one of the many ocean front beach bars and souvenir shops. The town was worth a look if you hadn’t been, and it had much more of a feel for the “real” Mexico with its rustic sea-side village. You can view our stop in Costa Maya last year on this Princess post if you want to see the village town of Costa Maya.

COZUMEL MEXICO: We’ve been to Cozumel several times over the years, and always enjoy the stop there. While there were three or four ships in port the day we were there, Cozumel has several docks which are spread out by a couple miles, so it’s not nearly as overwhelming with crowds compared to Costa Maya, where the docks are all in the same area. We were docked at the International Cruise Port Terminal, which is the preferred terminal as it’s in town and the port area has some of the fun places to visit; i.e. Margaritaville and Señor Frogs among others. We had no excursions booked here, so basically wondered around the port area and into town for some exercise and bought a souvenir hat, being the big spenders we are!?

I first went to Cozumel in 1987 on my very first cruise, Bahama Star Line’s Veracruz, when Cozumel was not a well known port of call, and the ships that did stop there were much smaller than today’s mega-monsters. That first 5 day cruise on the Veracruz, got me hooked on cruising for life, and I have fond memories of the 3 cruises I took on her the first two years alone, eventually expending my cruise repertoire to now over 75 cruises on various cruise lines with different cruise lengths and regions of the world That tiny ship, the Veracruz was only 10,000 tons or so with perhaps 700 passengers, and there were no balconies, specialty dining, internet (Internet! ??? It wasn’t even invented yet!???), but it brings back great memories to this day, and many former passengers and staff have commented on my Veracruz post from a few years back with their stories down memory lane on her as well.

Anyway, sorry I digress down memory lane. What reminded me of Cozumel and the Veracruz, was the Hotel that you see in port, at the International Terminal where we were docked on the MSC Seaside. That Hotel has been there for years, although has undergone many renovations (even now) due to hurricanes and general upkeep and modernization.

It was formerly called “El Sol”, Spanish for “The Sun”. I never stayed there, or even visited the property, so DOS and I toured the lobby of the hotel and grounds, which although under partial renovation, looked very nice. Even though it was so close and just across the dock area from the cruise ships, it had a secluded feel to it, with a nice pool facing our ship, a nature walk with outdoor spa, whirlpool, bar etc, and was tropically landscaping as well. DOS even went to inquire on room types and rates at the Front Desk before we left, which is now called “El Cid La Ceiba”.

In my younger, “Veracruz” days, (pre-DOS) I would take the old Fiesta party boat as a shore excursion to a private beach, with unlimited rum punch and a piñata party and dancing on the way back to the port.

I’m sure they have something similar to the Fiesta boat now, but we skipped the party scene on this return trip to Cozumel, although did have a look in at Margaritaville and Senior Frogs. I settled for my souvenir cap from Ron Jon’s Surf Shop in Cozumel, and we made our way back to the ship for lunch. It was a beautiful day in Cozumel while we here on the MSC Seaside in mid-October 2023.

MISC/OTHER Onboard Experiences : On MSC Seaside, there were several other optional tours and events, wine tastings, backstage tours, Bingo, Slot Pulls etc you could signup and pay for, although we did not do any of them; not so much out of lack of interest, rather there were so many other activities to do, and hanging out by day at the Yacht Club pool area was one of them! ?

Behind-the-Scenes Tour: I would have loved to have taken MSC’s Behind the Scenes Tour, but it was quite an extensive tour and required lots of walking up stairs and other areas of the ship (per their description) and as I’m still recovering from my heart surgery last year and I didn’t want to over-exert myself, although I’m doing fine walking on level surfaces. The backstage tour includes off-limits areas to guests including the Engine Room, Galley, Bridge, and Backstage of the Main theater among others. The Backstage Theater tour was always my favorite on Celebrity Cruises, and I’m sure this all inclusive Behind-the-Scenes tour would fail to disappoint as well.

Wine Tasting Events: Another event that sounded promising was one of the wine tastings. We walked by the display table for the wine tasting event that was setup adjacent the Butcher Cut (Specialty steak dining venue), and it looked quite elegant with various size Riedel glassware and fine wines. We’ve done many ship wine tastings on many different ships, and have always enjoyed them, so from the descriptions of the wine tasting it sounded very nice; again it was more of a timing thing for us. We enjoyed one wine tasting event on Celebrity Cruises years ago, that got us hooked on the Riedel glassware and use it to this day (after breaking a few glasses over the years and replenishing them obviously!)? A proper wine tasting with Riedel should include a different type glass for each varietal tasted, noting the differences and shapes in the stemware, paired with the appropriate wine for the glass from which you are sampling.

Caviar Tasting : We did not do this, but met a couple of ladies in the Yacht Club who did, and loved it! I believe the cost was $50 for this tasting, which is held at Butcher’s Cut Steakhouse at various times.

Specialty Dining : There are several Specialty Dining venues on board, including the Butcher’s Cut, an Asian Restaurant, and a Seafood Restaurant. The Butcher’s Cut especially looked wonderful for me Steve (UNO) as I’m a steak and potatoes kind of guy, and the cuts of beef (and wines) are on display adjacent to the Specialty Restaurant’s Lounge and worth at least having a look. /

We actually enjoyed the Yacht Club Restaurant so much we didn’t even make it to one of the Specialty Dining’s Restaurants aboard (although I would have chosen The Butcher’s Cut if we had gone) as we had an included complimentary Specialty Restaurant dinner with my (status match) Diamond status on MSC. Passing up on a complimentary meal at Butcher’s Steakhouse tells you how much we enjoyed The Yacht Club’s restaurant. (Actually though, I was getting a bit Filet Mignon’d out by the fourth day!)?

Optic Eye: This was unique to us, and again we didn’t do this, but it was interesting, at least in concept. According to MSC, “it’s all the rage in Europe”, although we’ve never heard of it there either. Basically they scan your eyes with a device similar to one at an optometrist office, and it creates a colorful artwork design of your eyes, enlarged to make a poster, photo, canvas etc. I don’t know maybe it’s me, but I don’t think I would want my eyes staring at me all the time at home in the living room, but it is a unique conversation piece.?

BINGO! Everyone knows Bingo and if you play it, you know it! Onboard every cruise ship.

Zip Lining! This is one activity I definitely wouldn’t do, but was hoping to watch. They only offer it certain times of day, and unfortunately the last sea day was a bit windy so it was closed. I just wanted to video the brave souls that soared high over mid ship’s top deck toward the aft pool area. The zip line, (after you sign your life away waiver) costs $11 a zip. No thank you from the Steve’s, although it’s probably a blast if you’re an adventurer type.

I’m sure there are many other paid events and experiences aboard, but these caught my “eye” so to speak, out of interest even though we didn’t do them. There were plenty of free activities as well such as trivia, karaoke, dance classes, beach parties, pool parties, sail-away parties, etc, etc, etc. Whatever you do, you won’t be bored or run out of things to do, and you certainly won’t go hungry.

Farewell Day at Sea: The last day of the cruise is traditionally sad for us, as you have to pack up and realize the cruise is ending early the next morning. On this cruise, most likely due to the Yacht Club service, accommodations, easy itinerary and mostly casual clothes, we were really able to relax the last day.

Traditionally the first and last night of a cruise are very casual with the idea being passengers just arrived and/or have not unpacked their luggage, or on the last day have already packed up their luggage for the trip home. On MSC in the YC at least, about 50% of the passengers dressed up in semi-formal attire for the farewell Italian dinner on the last night of the cruise. This was the only night I wore shorts to the dining room as we had already packed and were only traveling an hour home to Orlando the next day. I felt a bit uncomfortable although quite a few other Floridians and others were wearing shorts as well. Some of the passengers also wore shorts to dinner on the port days, but mostly it was dress casual aboard except for the one formal night, which was not the last night of the cruise.

We spent a good part of the day by the pool area, having lunch as usual at the outdoor YC buffet. As a nice afternoon treat, the waiters come by and pass out your choice of ice cream too!

For dinner, it was Italian night, and all of the waiters were dressed in tuxes with the Italian flag colors for the tie and vest. Even the tables had alternating colors of red, white, and green of the Italian flag.

Disembarkation: We had our farewell breakfast in the YC Restaurant at 8am on disembarkation day, as the regular pool-side buffet breakfast was not served on the last morning. Having the full breakfast and not being rushed on Debarkation Day was especially nice vs the normal Continental Breakfast you get on some lines as you’re in a hurry to get off the ship and avoid crowds.

After breakfast, we waited for a bit with the other YC guests in the Top Sail lounge as we waited to be called; rather escorted down to the exit one last time. The “walk off” guests were called first; i.e. those passengers aboard the ship (everyone, not just YC) who were carrying their own luggage off the ship (as opposed to checked luggage), which must have been a few hundred passengers. No rush for us though as we were comfortably seated in the lounge area.

We disembarked around 9:10am, and were escorted all the way to the exit, following a roped off line so the passenger mix wouldn’t get in with our flow of YC traffic. Our luggage was waiting for us in the terminal, and we got a porter to assist us (very smart move!), who wheeled our luggage thru Customs and all the way to our parking spot in the parking garage. We were on our way home by 9:30am, and home by 10:35am; quite an easy disembarkation and trip home. Welcome Home!

Final Thoughts on the MSC Seascape after our first sailing:

• Certain areas of the MSC Seascape (more so than allowed on most other cruise lines) allow smoking. This seemed to be the main pool on the starboard side, but even the YC allowed smoking on the front portion (away from the pool though) starboard side. I don’t recall anyone smoking in the YC area however, so it wasn’t a problem for us, although on the main pool area starboard side there were quite a few smokers. The casino allows smoking but it is really filtered well, so wasn’t terrible just walking thru it, as we don’t gamble.
• YC is truly a class by itself, and is so worth it if you can afford it. Compared to booking a suite on Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, or Princess, it’s quite a bit cheaper as well, and RCL doesn’t include the drink package with all but the very top suites, nor their Beach Club access on their private island (an extra $200 a person for the one day there!)
• The production shows in the theater do not allow you to bring a drink into them. Not a huge deal though as the shows are typically 30 -35 minutes. There were actually 5 production shows on this 7 night cruise, plus two comedy shows. The shows were shorter, except for the Michael Jackson show which lasted about 45 minutes vs 30 minutes for the others.
• YC service includes Butlers who will escort you anywhere on the ship, and for disembarking in port as well as final debarkation. While we normally only used this service for the theater shows and going off the ship, it really does save lots of time, and makes it much easier to attend the shows, as you don’t need a reservation for the reserved YC seating area. Main passenger guests need to make reservations for the shows and queue up, while YC passengers are escorted by a butler 10-15 minutes prior to show time in a dedicated seating area which always had seats for us and others, even on the full shows.
• YC guests do not need a reservation for dinner as it’s open seating in the YC Dining Room. Other guests must make reservations for dinner, and depending on the fare level you paid, you may not be able to pre-reserve your dining preference at one of the three seatings.
• To us it seemed a bit of an oddity, but there are ATM-like credit card verification kiosks several places aboard the ship, where you needed to verify your credit card to enable charging on your account. We just thought it was a given to charge your credit card on file, but I guess some people put down a cash deposit, and need to have a card cover their excess charges on board. We just provided a credit card and “activated” (that’s what MSC calls it) when we boarded, and we were good to go for any incidentals.
• The YC covers all meals, 2 internet devices per person, virtually all alcoholic and other drinks, Butler and Room Attendant services, complimentary room service (you can even order a whole pizza to your room!), dedicated Concierge service, nightly turn down service (with chocolates!), daily choice of newspapers, pillow menu, etc: so worth it all! Best of all are the dedicated spaces for it’s own restaurant, lounge, private pool and sundeck area, and the YC Beach section at Ocean Cay, as well as complimentary access to the Spa Thermal Suite.
• The YC does NOT include daily staff gratuities, shore excursions, spa, or gift shop items.
• MSC will “status match” their frequent quest program to another cruise line or an elite Frequent Flyer or Hotel Program. I got status matched with Hyatt Globalist which gave me Diamond status with MSC. It’s not a huge benefit, but provides a 5% discount, and one specialty dinner aboard. The YC restaurant itself was so good, however, we didn’t even go to one of the specialty dining venues, even though we had a complimentary meal at the speciality restaurant of our choice.
• At least on the Seaside out of Port Canaveral, the shipboard announcements were not as many in quantity as we expected. It’s possible these (except for emergency or Captain’s announcements) were muted in the YC area, but we didn’t hear any more than you would on a Princess or RCL ship. This would be different in Europe I imagine due to the many nationalities boarding there, as well as the different length of cruises, even within the same 7 or 10 day itinerary (people may disembark in one port, vs taking the whole roundtrip cruise like on the Seaside out of Port Canaveral).

Finally, If you’re still here reading this; thanks for sticking around! I’ll finish this lengthy post with the finale the MSC singers and dancers concluded the Michael Jackson show with on the final night of the cruise. This song was a fitting sendoff to everyone, and in effect the ship itself is a bit of the United Nations itself with the multiple nationalities from both crew and passengers, that make up this floating city. The video is taken from the back of the theater, so it’s not the best quality, but it gives a happy and bittersweet moment for the end of show and cruise. Thanks for reading, and God bless the crew members here and worldwide that work so hard for us, and are away from their families for months at a time, so that we may enjoy our cruises. Take care everyone, and safe and happy travels!

• ← Welcome Aboard the MSC Seaside’s Yacht Club!
• Happy Birthday to Steve DOS from DISNEY SPRINGS! →

8 thoughts on “ The Steve’s Review of MSC Seaside’s Yacht Club ”

Steves, thank you so much for taking the time to write this exhaustive description of your experiences. It is chock full of useful information that I will make good use of.

My pleasure! We enjoy sharing our experiences and tips with others. Thanks for your comments!

Hi both We are booked on MSC SEASHORE which I presume is mostly identical in October. Yacht Club….. I can’t wait for this top notch experience. Your review brought it to life especially the private island. Your writeup of the boarding experience was very informative and will mean hopefully we wont wait in the wrong queue with no fizz! Excellent and thanks

Hi Graham, glad you enjoyed my post on the Yacht Club. While we haven’t taken the Seashore, from what I’ve read (as it’s based in North America) it should be a very similar experience. As the Yacht Club is such an intimate and enhanced experience, you’ll meet many of your fellow YC passengers there, and everyone we met said they would only do the YC on MSC again it was so wonderful! Enjoy your trip on the Seashore!

Thank you so much for this really detailed review. We were suggested Yacht Club by our travel agent but we haven’t yet made a final decision based on so many negative reviews of both MSC and the Yacht Club. Your review makes me much more likely to give it a try this coming October!!

You will love the Yacht Club if you do it. Yes, MSC itself has had some negatives; mainly due to the ‘nickel and diming’, required reservations for shows etc in the basic MSC lower, non YC cabins.. The Yacht Club, however is in a totally different league. There are only about 200 passengers in the YC, and it feels like a “country club” setting. You are free to explore the ship ship anywhere, however it feels so special coming back “home” to the YC. I really think you will like it. We’ve sailed many cruises on many lines, and we were quite impressed with the level of service and attention to details. Enjoy!

We have been dedicated Celebrity cruisers for a few years now. One of our sons got employed by MSC last Fall, and we took advantage of a “Family & Friends” program to cruise on MSC SEASHORE in March for four nights. Balcony cabin was nice, ship was beautiful, staff was great, but certainly not Celebrity level.

We are going back on SEASHORE in June for ten nights in The Yacht Club, then on Seaside in November out of Miami, and SEASHORE again next April. All Yacht Club, which we can do for the price of a regular balcony on Celebrity.

Really enjoyed this great review, and really looking forward to the MSC Yacht Club.

We have enjoyed the upscale Celebrity experience as well over the years, and are going on the Beyond for the first time in August. We were quite impressed with the service level on MSC’s Yacht Club, and felt it was more personal than many ships we’ve sailed. For the price point you’re absolutely right; the YC is less than a balcony on Celebrity, plus for the Caribbean itineraries at least, many offer an overnight at MSC’s private island which is wonderful! Enjoy your upcoming cruises!

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Msc Seaside: my Yacht Club experience

Msc seaside: 7-day eastern caribbean cruise out of miami. an in-depth travel diary by ernie roller from a yacht club experience. don’t miss many other msc seaside reviews on cruising journal , why msc seaside.

Ever since my first glimpse of the MSC Seaside renderings I knew she was a ship I wanted to sail. Based on the renderings it looked like Fincantieri ’s innovative Project Mille class of ships might finally get built. What makes this design so unique is that it’s not simply a floating box, as is the case with so many new cruise ships today. Instead we have a ship that actually has interesting lines, from the bow all the way back to the stern. In between a condo style superstructure that jets in and out creating a very unique look. Topside a generous amount of deck space, and even more open deck space on the lower decks with a mega-wide promenade deck and even an aft pool fairly close to the waterline.

The internal arrangement also proved interesting, with much smaller and varied venues instead of overly massive ones. Even the show lounge is purposely smaller but with more frequent shows. The main buffet was moved down to the promenade deck, something I’ve only seen on QM2 in a modern ship, but in a unique twist a second buffet was added. All the speciality restaurants are grouped around a central bar area and placed high on the ship. Finally lots of pools to go with all that deck space. A forward pool reserved for the exclusive Yacht Club , and indoor/outdoor large pool with retractable magrodome, a main pool placed slightly aft, and finally a unique pool placed all the way aft and on a lower deck, much closer to the waterline. In addition a large waterpark cleverly concealed and protected within the aft enclosure of the ship’s funnel. The gimmicks are few but some exist. You won’t find bumper cars, rock climbing walls, or a race track; but you will find the two longest zip lines at sea. In addition there are water slides jetting over the side of the ship and some glass walkways providing striking views, but generally the gimmicks are few on Seaside and frankly I appreciate that.

She is a ship for those that appreciate fun in the sun, and her outdoor decks are expansive and varied. I think that is one of her strongest design features. I’ve been enjoying cruises for about 40 years now, and in that time I’ve accumulated about 125 cruises on various ships and lines. I’m not loyal to any one line, and my weakness is new prototype ships. If there is a stunning new design, I’m likely to be booking my next cruise. Seaside certainly fit that bill, and moving forward we have some great new designs to look forward to. Virgin’s new ship and NCL’s new Leonardo Class both look modeled after Seaside and Fincantieri’s Project Mille. I’ll be sailing on both and it will be interesting to compare their adaptations on this unique design. The Virgin version is especially of interest as the first ship will be adult-only. That is very appealing to me. First though is the new Celebrity Edge making her debut later this year, and that is the next prototype ship that is heavy on my radar. She looks incredible and Celebrity rarely disappoints. So with expectations high we booked Msc Seaside and decided on the Yacht Club .

The price was about equal for a standard balcony cabin or a Yacht Club inside cabin. After weighing the pros and cons, the Yacht Club won out. On a 5000+ mega-ship it’s nice to be able to escape to the solitude and spaciousness of a private area. Really more than anything you are paying for space, which is always at a premium on a mega-ship. The Haven on NCL is the closest equivalent to MSC’s Yacht Club , and having already experienced The Haven I was quite familiar with the benefits of a “ship within a ship” concept. Another reason for the Yacht Club appeal is that generally speaking, MSC does not have the best reputation for food and service, and we hoped the Yacht Club would mitigate those concerns.

Having sailed on two previous MSC cruises , we were already familiar with some of MSC ’s shortfalls. Nothing that would prevent me from booking MSC, but something to be aware of none the less. MSC is a European value line making strides to become more prominent in North America. They have greatly altered the North American product compared to their European based ships, but MSC is not Carnival, Princess, Royal Caribbean, etc. and doesn’t pretend to be. Things are done a little differently and the passenger mix is much more international. If you go with the mindset that it will be just like one of those American-centric cruise lines you might be disappointed. Do your homework, read reviews, and discover some of the differences. If they are a deal breaker for you, then stick with what you know. Personally I embrace the differences and perhaps it’s one reason I do enjoy MSC . As I mentioned earlier I’m not loyal to any one cruise line. I love the variety that they all offer, and I’m happy to have MSC as another option right in my back yard.

Embarkation in PortMiami was from MSC ’s newly renovated Terminal F. The Yacht Club has a tent just outside the terminal entrance and that is where you drop off your bags. From there you are escorted through security then upstairs to the private Yacht Club embarkation lounge. Inside there is sparkling wine, juice, and snacks while waiting to be checked in. Once those formalities are complete a butler escorts you onboard and directly up to the Yacht Club for a quick orientation then on to your cabin and an introduction to your personal butler for the week. All in all it would be difficult to top this embarkation experience, especially when you consider how big and how many people this ship carries.

In various ports of call there would often be a Yacht Club representative outside the gangway with a Yacht Club sign. You could go to them and they would expedite you onboard the ship which was a nice touch.

MSC markets our Yacht Club inside cabin as a “suite”, but I already knew this was no suite going in. Basically a slightly longer standard inside cabin with upgraded carpet, bedding, towels, and amenities. Overall I was quite pleased with the cabin (16025) with a couple exceptions. Storage space was minimal. The closet was fine but no other drawers, shelves, or cubby holes. This is a problem shared by every standard cabin on the ship. We literally had to make use of all available space including under the bed. There was only one chair and a nice coffee table although there could have easily been room for two chairs, or a sofa instead of the chairs. Sparkling wine and fresh fruit were waiting. The bathroom was small, again standard size but with an extra rain shower type shower head and a magnifying mirror which are absent from standard bathrooms. In addition we had upgraded soaps and shampoos along with lotion.

Cabin service was excellent and completely unobtrusive. The cabin itself was extremely quiet. We made little use of our butler, but he did bring almost nightly turn down treats along with stocking the refrigerator to our preferences. One nice feature of the Yacht Club that I haven’t seen even on some luxury lines is morning delivery of a newspaper of your choice. The room service menu and breakfast hanging card were ok with their offerings, but certainly nothing special or extravagant. We found it odd that made to order eggs were not part of the room service breakfast menu. An egg sandwich was your only egg option. This is one area where a true luxury line out shadows the Yacht Club. The room service menu would be far more extensive and you could be served course by course should you choose to be. Mind you that would be rather silly in an inside cabin! We basically had to sit on the floor to eat the one time we ordered room service.

Food is a highly subjective topic. Ask 10 people about the same dish and be prepared for 10 different responses. For this reason I won’t spend too much time on it. Overall I found the food on Msc Seaside to be adequate but nothing special. There were some standouts, like steak, pastas, deserts, and bread. I found all those to be fairly exceptional especially the steak we enjoyed in Butcher’s Cut one evening. The variety could sometimes be lacking and other more American-centric lines do offer more nightly choices on the menu. None the less no one will starve and you could always find something that interested you.

Msc Seaside: I liked: Entertainment, design of the ship, Yacht Club experience

Within the Yacht Club , we enjoyed our own restaurant that was open seating and available for breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily. Essentially you dine when you want (within the open hours) and with whom. Funny enough, we ended up dining at the same 2 to 3 tables the entire cruise, always in Arthur’s section who was one of the best and most entertaining waiters in all my years of cruising. Wow did we luck out getting him our first night onboard, although I’m sure the other Yacht Club waiters were exceptional as well. Other options within the Yacht Club were a small buffet adjacent to the Top Sail Lounge bar , and the Grill up on Deck 19 by the pool. I enjoyed the fresh grilled specialities at the Grill, yes even lobster and lamb chops, but oddly enough if I wanted a simple burger I had to dine in the more former indoor restaurant or go to the general buffet for the ship. My cravings for a burger did lure me more than once to the Marketplace Buffet , where I found them pretty good along with excellent fries.

In the main buffet we never had a problem finding a seat and the option to sit outside was welcomed in great weather. Towards the back of the buffet they had dispensers for soda, beer, and wine. All automated. Just wave your card or wrist band over the control panel and it would activate. Because we were in the Yacht Club all our beverages were included, but were they not you would have been charged at that point. One feature MSC has deployed to gain market share in North America is a status match program. Before your cruise just submit your highest status at a cruise line or hotel chain, and MSC will match it.

My Elite status on Princess was matched with Black on MSC , currently their highest level. This entitled us to a complimentary dinner in a speciality restaurant. We chose Butcher’s Cut being steak lovers, and we were not disappointed. It was an excellent dinner beginning to end. Another favorite option sometimes after dinner or even in the afternoon was Venchi the chocolate bar onboard. Many chocolate items (such as the chocolate ships) are made right onboard, and it’s fun to watch them getting made. There is even a wall of chocolate, although it was never working the entire cruise. My favorite was a chocolate/strawberry milkshake made with their excellent gelato. Just decadent especially with the fresh and real whipped cream on top. The best part, it was all included being part of the Yacht Club .

Yacht Club services

Service generally goes hand and hand with any dining experience, so I’ll mention that overall I found the service to be excellent. This was especially true in the Yacht Club where everyone was beyond polite and helpful, and always seemed willing to do whatever it took to make you happy. Around the rest of the ship service was great as well, with a crew that smiled and generally seemed happy to assist you.

Another nice feature of the Yacht Club was our own Concierge Desk . They basically handled any request, so there was never a need to wait in the line at the general Guest Services or Shore Excursion desks. Entertainment onboard was varied and excellent in my opinion. I looked forward to all the production shows and none disappointed. I can say that most others enjoyed the productions as well as every single one received a standing ovation. One evening was a shortened version of Madame Butterfly that I quite enjoyed. Very unusual to find an opera onboard a mass-market cruise ship, but MSC was proud to offer it and with good reason.

Entertainment

In large part what made the shows so successful were the talented performers. Singers that could actually sing and dancers that could truly dance. I found these performers to be more Broadway calibre than typical cruise ship standard. The theater size is smaller but to make up for the smaller venue there are more performances offered, usually three a night at a time that will work for you. Some are repeated later in the cruise. I’ve found the new ships of NCL have gone with the smaller showrooms as well along with more performances. The shows are shorter, only 30-40 minutes which means they can offer more of them. I really enjoyed this format and found them all just long enough. Along with Disney , Royal Caribbean , and certain shows on NCL these ranked as my favorite shows at sea. Reservations are required through the MSC For Me app or interactive screens, and more on that later.

Other entertainment ranged from the nightly violinist and pianist in the Yacht Club Top Sail Lounge to game shows, comedians, theme dance parties, and a nightly disco. Sometimes the disco was inside in the Garage Club, and other times outside at the South Beach pool bar. Keep this in mind if booking one of those aft view balconies. Movies were shown nightly at the large outdoor screen but with virtually no seating they were not well attended. A favorite venue onboard was the Seaside Lounge with the nightly smooth sounds of the Silk Jazz Trio. I really enjoyed their music.

Spa and technology onboard

During the day I made good use of the spa daily, and found the thermal suite area one of the best of any ship I’ve sailed. Visually pleasing, there are two types of saunas, two types of steam rooms, a snow room, salt room, heated loungers, outdoor private deck with hot tubs, a thalassotherapy pool, and the Geyser Kneipp , an interesting water experience I’ve never seen before. Access to the Spa’s thermal suite was included as part of our Yacht Club amenities, and a simple swipe of my key card or wrist band granted me access.

As a bit of a techie, I need to make mention of the technology onboard. I was impressed. I found Msc Seaside probably the most technologically advanced ship I have ever sailed, and this includes the newest and largest Royal Caribbean ship the Harmony of the Seas which I would say comes in a close second. I pre-purchased a very reasonable Internet package called the Surfer Package (one of three available). Priced at $44.90 for the entire cruise, it offered a total of 800MB on two devices with access to everything but audio & video streaming. In reality I had 2500MB at my disposal and I’m not sure why I was given the higher amount? At the end of the cruise I didn’t use even half the allotted amount, and this with uploading lots of pictures and using the internet multiple times a day. Initial setup was extremely simple and the MSC system recognized I had already pre-purchased a package.

After the initial log-on it remembered my device and I never had to log-on again, just push the “start” and “stop” buttons on the app to begin or end my external internet sessions. Keep in mind that an internet package is not required to access the general onboard services of the MSC For Me app , that is completely free. Speed was excellent (about as fast as Voom on Royal Caribbean) and I had no interruptions or dead zones, which has been common on other ships. Some little things, like waving your cruise card or wrist band instead of swiping them are nice touch. Some things I’ve never seen before on any ship, such as the camera phone in my cabin where I could FaceTime with fellow passengers. With Blue Tooth enabled on your smart phone, your exact location on the ship was always known. This will come in handy when eventually you will be able to order drinks from your phone (using the MSC For Me app ) and have them delivered directly to you.

Princess is already experimenting with this with their Ocean Medallion program which so far has had its share of teething pains and has been scaled back. Another first was the card slot in the cabin to activate electricity. The trick of using any frequent shopper card in the slot no longer works on Seaside. It now requires an RFID card such as the MSC cruise card to activate the electricity in the cabin. The frustrating thing about this is that you could not charge your electronic devices unless you were in the cabin. Still a great way to conserve electricity and fuel. Ground zero for all the onboard technology is the MSC For Me app . Easy to use and well laid out, you can do everything from booking shows and speciality restaurants, to looking at your shipboard account or even finding your current exact location onboard. You could also peruse the Daily Planner of activities or look at the dinner menu for that evening. Hand in hand with the app are the various interactive information screens around the ship, and the TV in your cabin. They essentially worked the same way, providing another option for those that don’t use smart phones or prefer not to carry one around.

Msc Seaside: I didn’t like: Food, some aspects of the service, and poor storage in the cabins. The ship could feel crowded at times.

For those in the Yacht Club , you also receive a wrist band which serves the same purpose as the cabin key card, with the exception of getting on and off the ship. I used the wrist band quite often as it was convenient not to have to carry anything in my pockets. For those in the Yacht Club , the two forward elevators (one in each bank port and starboard) have priority control using your cruise card or wrist band. There were two problems with this. One is that you are never given a tutorial of how it actually works or even that it exists, and second is the way that it’s programmed. Basically when you waved your card or wrist band over the reader just below the call button it would grant priority access to the elevator, wiping out all floor selections of those already in the elevator and bringing it directly to your floor. Now if you stepped on without again waving your card over the reader inside the elevator, nothing would happen and it would appear the elevator had shut down.

Everyone would get off and wait for another elevator, understandably frustrated. Eventually it would reset in a couple minutes. In fact you had to wave your card again inside the elevator and make a floor selection. Needless to say I used this feature rather sparingly as you might often be met with an elevator full of confused and pissed off people wondering why their floor was missed. Priority lift access aside, I would say the technology onboard worked quite flawlessly and effortlessly. I swiped my card all over the ship but was never wrongfully charged as the system knew everything was included in my Yacht Club package.

Interiors and design

If there is one word to sum up the decor on Msc Seaside , it would be “Glitzy”. This is a flashy, modern, high tech floating resort with lots of mirrors, chrome, glass, dramatic lighting and unique furnishings. The furnishings were so unique in fact that I created a special photo album just to showcase them. Overall I loved the design and decor of the ship, but if you’re a traditionalist that prefers more understated decor this is not the ship for you. Thankfully I enjoy both and I’m equally comfortable on a ship such as Msc Seaside as I am on Cunard. Personally I found the ship easy to get around but I had been studying the deck plan for months prior. Even so some of the flashy decor can be a little confusing when learning your way around, but fairly quickly I felt right at home.

One great thing about the design is the amount of glass and views to the ocean. Msc Seaside is definitely a ship that is open to the sea, and you can see the ocean from just about everywhere. Even the atrium has windows to the ocean on both sides, on every deck with lots of seating areas. It makes for a very impressive vantage point inside and out. Overall the general arrangement of lounges, bars, and restaurants is fairly straight forward with one exception. Up on Deck 16 the forward section is dedicated to the cluster of speciality restaurants situated around a central bar. It works very well and is accessed by the forward elevator banks.

The more aft section of Deck 16 is the Miami Beach Pool and just forward the Biscayne Bay Buffet . This is accessed by the aft or more midships set of elevators. You can’t walk between the two sections, so essentially Deck 16 is cut off into two sections. Technically there are doors port and starboard that connect the Biscayne Bar Buffet to the speciality restaurants forward, and I used them, but they are for crew only. So generally it means going up or down a deck, then forward or back, then back up or down to access the area of Deck 16 you wish to reach. Having already studied the deck plan in advance I was prepared for this so not a big deal.

Another great advantage of the Yacht Club was the beautiful forward facing, two level Top Sail Lounge and restaurant. The lounge and bar were on the first level, along with an outdoor deck overlooking the bow. The upper level was the restaurant connected to the lounge with a beautiful Swarovski crystal staircase. A massive two-level glass forward facing wall provided the exceptional views. Unfortunately for those not in the Yacht Club , there is no forward facing view that is accessible on the ship, unless you have a forward facing view cabin.

This was an Eastern Caribbean cruise departing Miami on January 20, 2018 to St Thomas, Antigua, and Nassau. When we initially booked the ports were a little different, but with a couple hurricanes some itinerary adjustments were necessary. One port that would have really interested me is Ocean Cay, the private island that MSC Cruises is developing in the Bahamas. This port was initially on our itinerary when we first booked, but it became obvious fairly quickly it would never be ready in time.

The development timetable has been adjusted a few times now, and I’m not actually sure when this new private island experience will be completed. I’m not even sure MSC is. We docked at each port and tenders were never required. As this cruise was all about the ship for me and I’ve been to these ports countless times, I really didn’t do much off the ship. Basically wondered around in each port but that was it. My priority was time spent on the ship, and I also love the atmosphere on the ship when the vast majority of passengers are ashore. It takes on a entirely different feel.

Disembarking

Back in Miami our disembarkation was as effortless as embarkation, maybe even more so. Perhaps one of the best disembarkation experiences of any ship I’ve sailed. We were requested to vacate our cabins by 8am which we did. After a leisurely breakfast in the Yacht Club restaurant and enjoying the company of Arthur one last time, we were escorted down to the gangway by one of the Yacht Club butlers. There was no line at all to get off the ship. We quickly retrieved our bags in the Yacht Club section of the terminal (closest to the exit) and proceeded through CBP, which again had no line. With no forms required, we simply presented our passports and were waved though. Next thing you know we were in the car and driving home. Effortless and efficient.

Conclusions

As with any cruise, MSC Seaside was not perfect. Cuisine could be upgraded and storage in the cabins could be better, but overall I would rate it a fantastic experience especially for what we paid. The Yacht Club inside cabins are a fantastic value, taking advantage of being pretty much all-inclusive while also receiving the special treatment and upgraded service & amenities. All this without breaking the bank. I’m certainly pleased with our decision, and I hope to someday return to Seaside, perhaps in a regular balcony cabin to compare how the experience differs. I think either way I would enjoy this special ship filled with energy and visual delight!

For those that haven’t viewed the photos, here are the three links: Over 600 ship pics!

Msc Seaside 01/20/2018: 7-day Eastern Caribbean cruise out of Miami

Daily programs and menus

The unique seating styles of MSC Seaside

Don’t miss other Reviews about Msc Seaside on Cruising Journal and make your own Reviews!

Ernie Roller

Msc Seaside

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MSC Seaside | Dining & Restaurants

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Book MSC Seaside Cruise

Explore MSC Seaside Dining & Restaurant Options

MSC Seaside offers spectacular views of the ocean while you dine. And with eight delicious restaurants, including five sophisticated specialty restaurants, dining at MSC Seaside is as diverse as it is delicious. Services for families are also available. For the perfect aperitif, late-night drink, or mid-day snack, choose from 18 elegant bars and lounges, each with its own atmosphere.

Restaurants on MSC Seaside

• Asian Market Kitchen by Roy Yamaguchi - Asian*
• Aurea Bar - Suite Guests
• Biscayne Bay Buffet & Pizzeria - Casual
• Bistro - La Bohéme - French*
• Butcher's Cut - Steakhouse*
• Champagne Bar - Champagne*
• Ipanema Restaurant - International
• Jungle Bar - Pool Bar*
• Jungle Pool Lounge - Pool Bar*
• MSC Yacht Club Grill - Suite Guests
• MSC Yacht Club Restaurant - Suite Guests
• MSC Yacht Club Sundeck & Bar - Suite Guests
• Marketplace Buffet - Casual
• Miami Beach Bar - Pool Bar
• Miramar Bar - Pool Bar*
• Ocean Cay Restaurant - Seafood*
• Seashore Restaurant - International
• Seaside Bar - Atrium Bar*
• Shine Bar - Atrium Bar*
• South Beach Bar - Pool Bar*
• Sports Bar - Sports Bar*
• Top Sail Lounge - Suite Guests
• Venchi Cioccogelateria & Coffee Bar - Coffee & Pastries*
• Venchi Gelateria & Creperie - Sweets*
• Wine & Cocktails - Clubby Bar*

MSC Seaside Free Dining Overview

The main dining room experience aboard MSC Seaside is consistent across Seashore and Ipanema restaurants, sharing identical dining menus encompassing appetizers, main courses, and desserts. Diverse culinary choices, from antipasti and fish to salads, pasta, chicken, beef, and seasonal soups, cater to varied preferences. The menu also features Chef's selections and a "Classic Favorites" section for those seeking familiar options. Notably, extra-fee items are available, each complemented by a complimentary side.

Seashore Restaurant (Deck 5)

Seashore Restaurant (deck 5) invites guests for breakfast daily, lunch exclusively on sea days, and dinner every evening, with three scheduled seatings. However, those opting for MSC's flexible My Choice dining can enjoy dinner at Seashore at their convenience during regular opening hours.

• Seating Times: For Breakfast and Lunch, check onboard for hours of operation; Dinner: Early: 5:30 PM; Late: 7:30 PM and 9:30 PM - dining times may vary.
• Costs: Food included in the cost of your cruise; specialty drinks, alcoholic beverages, bottled water, wine, beer, and soft drinks are available at current menu pricing

Ipanema (Deck 6)

Ipanema (deck 6), providing stunning sea views through expansive windows, exclusively serves dinner with three designated seatings. Tables at both restaurants accommodate parties ranging from two to 10 individuals. While the main dining room service is generally efficient, it leans towards functionality rather than excessive engagement.

• Seating Times: For Breakfast and Lunch, check onboard for hours of operation, Dinner: Early: 5:15 PM; Late: 7:15 PM and 9:15 PM - dining times may vary.
• Costs: Food included in the cost of your cruise; specialty drinks, alcoholic beverages, bottled water, beer, wine and soft drinks are available at current menu pricing.

MSC Seaside Buffet Restaurants

MSC Seaside boasts two onboard buffets: Marketplace Buffet on Deck 8, positioned near the outdoor promenade, and Biscayne Bay Buffet on Deck 16, a family-friendly option close to the ship's main pool area. Both buffets provide indoor and outdoor seating, offering virtually identical breakfast and lunch options daily. However, Marketplace exclusively serves dinner each night and features select hours for pizza, grill items, and afternoon and midnight snacks like sandwiches and cookies.

The MSC Seaside buffet pizza is a culinary highlight, crafted fresh throughout the day. It's worth noting that access to Biscayne Bay Buffet from the forward end of Deck 16 is unavailable; passengers must utilize the aft elevator bank and stairs.

For a more exclusive dining experience, the MSC Yacht Club Restaurant on Deck 18 caters to passengers booked in the MSC Yacht Club. Positioned on a balcony overlooking the private Top Sail Lounge on Deck 16, the restaurant accommodates tables for two to ten guests. With a daily varying menu distinguishing it from the main dining rooms, the MSC Yacht Club Restaurant often features premium cuts of meat, offering a distinctive culinary experience.

MSC Seaside Specialty Restaurants and Other Fee Dining Options

MSC Seaside elevates dining experiences with an array of specialty restaurants and for-fee options that cater to diverse tastes.

Asian Market Kitchen by (Deck 16)

This culinary haven, under the guidance of renowned chef Roy Yamaguchi, boasts a trio of Asian delights—Kaito Teppanyaki, a sushi bar, and Hawaiian-influenced pan-Asian cuisine. The shared menu offers flexibility with a la carte options and a prix fixe dining package for Pan-Asian choices, allowing patrons to savor three dishes from a curated selection.

• Seating Times: Hours of operation can be Check onboard.
• Costs: All items at current menu pricing; specialty drinks, alcoholic beverages, bottled water, beer, wine and soft drinks are at current menu pricing

Ocean Cay (Deck 16)

A pleasant surprise awaits at this nautically themed eatery, offering both prix fixe and a la carte options. The prix fixe dinner allows diners to indulge in a multi-course menu, choosing one dish from each section. The vibrant ambiance and sea views during lunch enhance the dining experience.

• Costs: All items at current menu pricing; specialty drinks, alcoholic beverages, bottled water, beer, wine and soft drinks are at current menu pricing.

Butcher’s Cut (Deck 16)

For an extensive menu of fine dining steakhouse delights, Butcher’s Cut delivers. The prix fixe option enables patrons to savor up to three dishes, ensuring a satisfying culinary journey. Sea days offer the additional treat of an a la carte brunch, providing a diverse menu to appease every palate.

Venchi 1878 Chocolate Bar (Deck 6) and Venchi 1878 Gelato & Creperie (Deck 7)

Indulge your sweet tooth at these Venchi-inspired outposts. Deck 6 features a chocolate bar offering gelato, specialty coffee drinks, milkshakes, and more. Meanwhile, the outdoor Gelato & Creperie on Deck 7 serves up delectable crepes, milkshakes, waffles, and ice cream.

MSC Seaside’s specialty dining options blend diverse cuisines, ensuring a delightful culinary journey for passengers seeking elevated gastronomic experiences.

You May Also Like Other MSC Cruise's Ship Dining Options

• MSC World Europa: Dining
• MSC Virtuosa: Dining
• MSC Splendida: Dining

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MSC Seaside Menus – Download

Looking for MSC Seaside Menus? We’ve got ’em!

Here is a quick and easy download of all the menus we could get on the MSC Seaside.  These were collected during our 7 night Caribbean cruise aboard the MSC Seaside .  We’ve collected menus from the Yacht Club, the Main Dining Room, and Ocean Cay. Click the menu thumbnail to the right to open or download all menus or use the following link to download all menus in a zip file: MSC Seaside Menus

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All about msc yacht club restaurant.

The MSC Yacht Club has an exclusive specialty restaurant, an exclusive area on board MSC cruises, designed to provide an experience of luxury and privacy to the most demanding passengers who have a stateroom with Yacht Club privileges.

This restaurant is included in the price (free) of the aforementioned guests with access to breakfast, lunch and dinner during each day of their stay. 

This exclusive restaurant focuses on serving high quality dishes , prepared by expert chefs and presented in an exceptional manner. The menu is very varied, including options for all tastes, from Italian to international dishes.

In addition, it offers table service with personalized attention, which means that the staff is dedicated exclusively to attending to the needs of the restaurant's guests. It also features an exclusive selection of wines and beverages to complement the dining experience.

The ambiance of the MSC Yacht Club Restaurant is elegant and sophisticated , with refined décor and exceptional service. This restaurant is the perfect place to enjoy a romantic dinner or a business lunch in a private and exclusive atmosphere.

Cruises with MSC Yacht Club Restaurant

MSC World Europa

MSC Seashore

MSC Bellissima

MSC Virtuosa

MSC Euribia

MSC Seascape

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MSC Seaside cabins and suites

Msc seaside staterooms review, floor plans, photos.

MSC Seaside cabins and suites review at CruiseMapper provides detailed information on cruise accommodations , including floor plans, photos, room types and categories, cabin sizes, furniture details and included by MSC Cruises en-suite amenities and services.

The MSC Seaside cruise ship cabins page is conveniently interlinked with its deck plans showing deck layouts combined with a legend and review of all onboard venues.

MSC Yacht Club Royal Suite with Balcony Jacuzzi

Layout (floor plan), msc yacht club deluxe suite, msc yacht club interior suite.

All passengers booked in MSC Yacht Club Interior Suites receive the following perks (bonus amenities and services):

• interactive large LCD TV, phone, electronic safe (in the closet), Nespresso coffee machine
• Myform Memory mattresses
• Dorelan pillows menu
• Egyptian cotton bathrobes, slippers
• luxury bedding (by Mascioni)
• 1 queen bed (or 2 single beds/ upon request)
• private bathroom with shower
• fully stocked mini-bar
• goodnight gourmet chocolates (by Venchi)
• Nintendo Wii gaming console
• Priority services (check-in / check-out, embarkation / disembarkation, tendering)
• 24-hour personal concierge, butler service, room service (free delivery)
• Unlimited drinks in all MSC Yacht Club venues (including the cabin's mini-bar drinks)
• All-inclusive (complimentary) free-time dining (lunches and dinners) in the exclusive MSC Yacht Club restaurant
• Unlimited drinks in all onboard bars and restaurants
• Free Thermal Suite access
• Direct access (via private elevator) to MSC Aurea Spa
• Exclusive access to "The One Sun Deck" and "Top Sail Lounge"

2-Bedroom Grand Suite Aurea

(balcony whirlpool) seaside suite, balcony suite, superfamily plus balcony cabin, superfamily balcony cabin, balcony cabin, oceanview cabin, interior cabin, handicap|wheelchair-accessible cabins.

For MSC cruise passengers with disabilities, the Seaside ship has a total of 54 accessible cabins (38x Inside, 9x Outside, 1x Balcony, 3x Yacht Club Inside Suites, 2x Deluxe Suites).

Follows the complete list of MSC Seaside cabins for disabled passengers. They are listed as type and categories, with cabin numbers in brackets:

• I1-Bella Inside rooms: 5020, 5048, 5051, 5150, 9075, 9093, 9126, 9161, 9197, 10096, 10132, 10160
• I2-Fantastica Inside rooms: 10079, 10213, 11079, 11097, 11128, 11171, 11204, 11211, 12071, 12086, 12089, 12122, 12163, 12203, 13066, 13073, 13086, 13122, 13167, 13198, 14087, 14120, 14163, 15063, 15100, 15139
• O2-Fantastica Oceanview rooms: 5150, 5160, 5162, 5164, 5166, 5167, 5169, 5171, 5173
• B2-Fantastica Balcony room: 10224
• YC1-Yacht Club Suites: 18024, 18029
• YIN-Interior Yacht Club Suites: 16039, 18026, 18033

Each of the handicapped staterooms features: larger size (compared to the non-accessible counterpart), wider doors (width 35 inches / 0,9 m, sitting-level keycard slot), wider turning spaces (5 ft / 1,5 m), ramped thresholds, beds with open bed frames, lowered vanity in the sitting area, amplified phones, captioned TVs, wider bathrooms (door width 35 inches / 0,9 m, roll-in shower, fold-down shower bench, grab rails, lower sinks and closet rods, raised toilets, hand-held shower head, seat height from the floor 0,4 m).

All ADA cabins also feature a convenient location near the elevators.

The ship’s gangways are all wide enough for most types of wheelchairs and disability scooters.

All decks provide elevator access.

All passenger lifts have visual, audio and Braille deck indicators.

During an emergency, dedicated crew personnel helps all disabled guests (also those with reduced mobility) to board the ship's lifeboats.

MSC Seaside cabins review

Of all MSC Seaside cabins (2066 total), 1610 are Outside and 454 Inside. All passenger accommodations have a double bed (convertible to 2 single beds). For accommodating more guests (up to max cabin capacity), 3rd and 4th additional beds are available in all cabin categories. The number of all cabin categories is 25, including the Wellness (Spa) grades SEW-Grand Suite, BW-Balcony, OW-Oceanview, and IW-Inside.

Follows the review of MSC Seaside staterooms as amenities, furniture and included (complimentary) services:

All passenger cabins as amenities offer twin beds (singles convertible to king, or double upon request), leather headboard, bedside tables and wall lamps, pillow menu, smart HDTV (infotainment system allowing Internet, bookings from the cabin, also itinerary/ports of call and tours/excursions information, movies on demand, live webcam views), direct-dial phone (onboard connections only), electronic safe box and lifejackets (in the closet), hairdryer, mini-bar/fridge, closet/wardrobe, sitting/lounge area (mirrored vanity table, chairs), en-suite bathroom (WC, sink, shower), individual air-conditioning (thermostat controlled), Wi-Fi Internet access.

All MSC YACHT CLUB cabins additionally have Nespresso machines. All Suite categories feature larger bathrooms with bathtubs.

Interconnecting “cluster cabins” are specifically designed for large families and family group travel. This new concept allows up to 3 cruise staterooms to be linked together and opened up. Seaside ship’s family cabins are in 3 main categories – FAMILY (max occupancy 6 passengers, 2 connecting rooms, 2 baths, 1 balcony), SUPER FAMILY (max occupancy 6 passengers, 2 connecting rooms, 2 baths /1 with bathtub, 2 balconies) and SUPER FAMILY PLUS (max occupancy 10 passengers, 3 connecting rooms, 3 baths, 2 balconies).

The new SJ3 category “Seaside Suite” cabins feature an in-hull veranda with a whirlpool bath. Category GS “Grand Suite” cabins are all forward-facing. Each of them features a large walk-in closet, 2 separate bedrooms, 2 bathrooms (1 with bathtub, 1 with shower), separate lounge room (wet bar, 4-seat dining table), spacious veranda. Both the Master Bedroom and the Lounge Room have individual access to the balcony via floor-ceiling sliding doors.

Balcony Suites category S2 (decks 9 through 15) are with larger verandas. Category S3-Suites (a total of 14 accommodations) are all located aft and feature large-sized balconies (furnished with 1 table and 2 chairs). These aft-corner suites (on decks 9 through 15) are designed as beach condos.

YACHT CLUB Royal Suites feature a separate bedroom (with bathroom and balcony access), large walk-in closet, separate lounge room (with wet bar and balcony access), spacious veranda (33 m2) with a 6-seat dining table and sun deck with loungers and a whirlpool bath.

MSC “BELLA" cabins” are in categories I1-Inside, O1-Oceanview, and B1-Balcony. Booking Bella-class staterooms additionally offer as extra perks: 20-hour gourmet buffet, organized daily scheduled activities, access to a dedicated swimming pool, modern gym, open-air sports facilities, plus earning MSC Club points for more perks on the next cruise.

MSC “FANTASTICA cabins” are in categories I2-Inside, O2-Oceanview, B2-Balcony, and all SuperFamily rooms. Booking Fantastica-class staterooms additionally offer as extra perks: 24-hour room service, 50% discount on fitness classes, specially dedicated to kids activities, free in-room dining (breakfast), free delivery, priority dinner sitting, cooking sessions with the ship’s Master Chef. These higher-grade cabins are with upper deck location and offer easy access to elevators and popular lounges.

MSC “AUREA cabins” are in category B3-Balcony. Booking Aurea-class staterooms additionally offers: a complimentary Aurea Spa package, Thermal Area unlimited access, 60-min massage PP (max 2 per cabin), 20-min Solarium usage, welcome cocktail party, plus priority services (check-in, embarkation, tendering), bathrobes, slippers, luxury spa products, 24-hour unlimited drinks (specialty coffee, wine and beer, cocktails, soft beverages, gelato ice cream).

MSC YACHT CLUB passengers enjoy an exclusive butler service (available 24-hours), dedicated concierge service (24-hour Concierge Reception), all-inclusive dining (a la carte menu, your-time dining in an exclusive gourmet restaurant, unlimited drinks (from cabin’s mini-bar and in all Yacht Club complex areas), exclusive “The One Sun Deck” (suites-only sundeck area) access, exclusive Top Sail Lounge access. The YACHT CLUB’s exclusive lounge areas are “Top Sail Lounge” (with its own restaurant) and “The One Pool Deck” (swimming pool, whirlpools, sundeck served by its own bar).

MSC’s “Super Family Plus” cabins are category B1-Balcony staterooms (location on decks 9, 10, 11). Facing forward, they interconnect with an interior room and another B1-Balcony (forward location too) making a “Super Family Plus”. Some of the aft-location B2-Balcony staterooms (location – decks 9 through 14) have an extra single bed and can be connected to make a “Super Family Plus”. When a balcony room is combined with an adjoining interior cabin it becomes a “Superfamily”. This type of cabins are modularly connected and also feature connecting verandas.

Passengers booked in MSC Wellness cabins (IW-Inside, OW-Oceanview, and BW-Balcony) receive access to dedicated sports facilities, training equipment, and amenities, along with the personal trainer, personalized fitness program, exclusive fitness-themed excursions, healthy food/drinks, charge-free laundry service (gym wear only).

MSC Seaside cabin and suite plans are property of MSC Cruises . All floor plans are for informational purposes only and CruiseMapper is not responsible for their accuracy.

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• Restaurant-Club AERODROM

Restaurant-Club AERODROM - CLOSED

Ratings and reviews, location and contact, restaurant-club aerodrom, elektrostal - restaurant reviews & phone number - tripadvisor.

Mon - Fri 8:00am - 7:00pm Sat 9:00am - 1:00pm (AES/DT) Closed on Public Holidays.

MSC SEASIDE

" The ship is fabulous, stylish and clean. Very nice places to sit down, stunning atrium and Venchi Chocolate Bar was our favourite. "

" Very satisfied with the cleanliness of the entire ship along with cabin services. Most staff was very helpful. "

" The Yacht Club experience can not get any better than it was this cruise. We attribute our entire great experience to your staff. "

ITINERARIES

MAIN FEATURES 

Waterfront boardwalk.

Miami Beach Pool

South Beach Pool

Four decks atrium

MSC Yacht Club

MSC Aurea Spa

State-of-the-art gym

Cabins & Suites

• Surface approx.  14-28 sqm, deck 5-15
• Interactive TV, telephone, wifi connection available (for a fee), safe and minibar
• Bathroom with shower, vanity area with hairdryer
• Comfortable double or single beds (on request)*
• Can accomodate up to 5 people

Choose the cabin type that best suits you:

• Premium Interior (surface approx.  28 sqm, deck 10 )
• Deluxe Interior (surface approx.  14-17 sqm, deck 5-15 )

*Some cabins for guests with disabilities or reduced mobility have twin beds that can’t be converted into double beds. The image is representative only

Size, layout and furniture may vary (within the same cabin category)

• Surface approx 17 sqm, deck 5
• Window with sea view
• Relaxing armchair
• Comfortable double or single beds (on request)
• Interactive TV, telephone, Wifi connection available (for a fee), safe and minibar

The image is representative only

• Surface approx. 16-17 sqm, balcony approx. 5-9 sqm*
• Sitting area with sofa
• Bathroom with shower or bathtub , vanity area with hairdryer
• Balcony Aurea (best ship position, surface approx. 17 sqm, deck 9 )
• Deluxe Balcony (surface approx. 16-17 sqm, deck 9-15 )

Entertainment

Restaurants & Buffet

Ocean cay restaurant.

Butcher's Cut

Seashore Restaurant

Ipanema Restaurant

Marketplace buffet restaurant

Biscayne buffet restaurant

Bars & Lounges

Venchi 1878 Chocolate Bar and Venchi 1878 Gelato & Crêperie

Seaview Lounge

Bistrot La Bohème

Champagne Bar

Garage Club

Haven Lounge

Miami Beach Bar

Miami Casino

Seaside Bar

South Beach Bar

Top Sail Lounge

Wine & Cocktails

• 5. Cape Cod
• 6. Copacabana
• 7. South Beach
• 8. Ocean Cay
• 10. Maspalomas
• 11. Flamenco Beach
• 12. Las Salinas
• 13. Pink Sands
• 14. Mondello
• 15. Venice Beach
• 16. Miami Beach
• 18. Playa Paraiso
• 19. Biarritz
• 20. Sun Deck
• Deluxe Interior
• Premium Interior
• Deluxe Ocean View
• Deluxe Balcony
• Deluxe Balcony Aurea
• Junior Suite Aurea
• Deluxe Suite Aurea
• Premium Suite Aurea
• Grand Suite Aurea
• Two-Bedroom Grand Suite Aurea
• MSC Yacht Club Interior Suite
• MSC Yacht Club Deluxe Suite
• MSC Yacht Club Royal Suite

B:  Cabin with bathtub |  BS:  Cabin with bathtub and shower |  T:  Terrace |  W:  Balcony with whirlpool bath

• 3rd and 4th beds available in all categories except for MSC Yacht Club Interior Suite • 5th bed available in Premium Interior, Premium Suite Aurea with whirlpool, Two-Bedroom Grand Suite Aurea (cabins 11001, 12001 and 14001 have two double beds and one pullman bed) and MSC Yacht Club Deluxe Suite. • Our ships offer the possibility of combining 2 or 3 connecting cabins based on the ship class. Call our Contact Center to choose the best accommodation for you.

Ship configuration, data and descriptions may be subject to change depending on the season and on the destination and must be verified at the time of booking. 

• Gross tonnage: 153,516
• Number of passengers: 5084
• Crew members: 1513
• Number of cabins: 2026
• Length / Beam / Height: 323 m / 41 m / 74.8 m
• Maximum speed: 22.95 knots

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Restaurant-Club AERODROM - CLOSED

Ratings and reviews, location and contact, restaurant-club aerodrom, elektrostal - restaurant reviews & phone number - tripadvisor.

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THE 10 BEST Restaurants Near Beer Club Tolsty Medved

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Out of the Centre

Savvino-storozhevsky monastery and museum.

Zvenigorod's most famous sight is the Savvino-Storozhevsky Monastery, which was founded in 1398 by the monk Savva from the Troitse-Sergieva Lavra, at the invitation and with the support of Prince Yury Dmitrievich of Zvenigorod. Savva was later canonised as St Sabbas (Savva) of Storozhev. The monastery late flourished under the reign of Tsar Alexis, who chose the monastery as his family church and often went on pilgrimage there and made lots of donations to it. Most of the monastery’s buildings date from this time. The monastery is heavily fortified with thick walls and six towers, the most impressive of which is the Krasny Tower which also serves as the eastern entrance. The monastery was closed in 1918 and only reopened in 1995. In 1998 Patriarch Alexius II took part in a service to return the relics of St Sabbas to the monastery. Today the monastery has the status of a stauropegic monastery, which is second in status to a lavra. In addition to being a working monastery, it also holds the Zvenigorod Historical, Architectural and Art Museum.

Belfry and Neighbouring Churches

Located near the main entrance is the monastery's belfry which is perhaps the calling card of the monastery due to its uniqueness. It was built in the 1650s and the St Sergius of Radonezh’s Church was opened on the middle tier in the mid-17th century, although it was originally dedicated to the Trinity. The belfry's 35-tonne Great Bladgovestny Bell fell in 1941 and was only restored and returned in 2003. Attached to the belfry is a large refectory and the Transfiguration Church, both of which were built on the orders of Tsar Alexis in the 1650s.  

To the left of the belfry is another, smaller, refectory which is attached to the Trinity Gate-Church, which was also constructed in the 1650s on the orders of Tsar Alexis who made it his own family church. The church is elaborately decorated with colourful trims and underneath the archway is a beautiful 19th century fresco.

Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral

The Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral is the oldest building in the monastery and among the oldest buildings in the Moscow Region. It was built between 1404 and 1405 during the lifetime of St Sabbas and using the funds of Prince Yury of Zvenigorod. The white-stone cathedral is a standard four-pillar design with a single golden dome. After the death of St Sabbas he was interred in the cathedral and a new altar dedicated to him was added.

Under the reign of Tsar Alexis the cathedral was decorated with frescoes by Stepan Ryazanets, some of which remain today. Tsar Alexis also presented the cathedral with a five-tier iconostasis, the top row of icons have been preserved.

Tsaritsa's Chambers

The Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral is located between the Tsaritsa's Chambers of the left and the Palace of Tsar Alexis on the right. The Tsaritsa's Chambers were built in the mid-17th century for the wife of Tsar Alexey - Tsaritsa Maria Ilinichna Miloskavskaya. The design of the building is influenced by the ancient Russian architectural style. Is prettier than the Tsar's chambers opposite, being red in colour with elaborately decorated window frames and entrance.

At present the Tsaritsa's Chambers houses the Zvenigorod Historical, Architectural and Art Museum. Among its displays is an accurate recreation of the interior of a noble lady's chambers including furniture, decorations and a decorated tiled oven, and an exhibition on the history of Zvenigorod and the monastery.

Palace of Tsar Alexis

The Palace of Tsar Alexis was built in the 1650s and is now one of the best surviving examples of non-religious architecture of that era. It was built especially for Tsar Alexis who often visited the monastery on religious pilgrimages. Its most striking feature is its pretty row of nine chimney spouts which resemble towers.

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