We are doing our first trip in May on the Virtuosa in Yacht Club. The MSC website states that service charges are included and that it doesn't recommend individual tipping. We have only ever sailed NCL where we prepay gratuities and then give the cabin steward dollars at the start and end. We will also reward individuals at the end of the trip who have been excellent as well as taking the photos of the name badges and sending in positive feedback.
I had possibly the best steward of the ship, he was very thoughtful, I was nervous traveling by myself and just his presence, always asking how I was doing, if everything was ok made me feel safe. My currency is not the dollar (is way under) and I tipped 5 euros for a 6 nights cruise. I thought he deserved so much more but he gave me a smile and seemed happy with it. So, I guess typing is just a symbol (and I said that "This is a symbol of my appreaciation.) Good staff, people with a good heart like him will certainly understand that is not what we think they deserve, they deserve much more but that is just a remembrance that says "You make a difference". It's tipping not pitting.
💯!!! The crew is just priceless! MSC really and truly means it when they say “tipping is not necessary”… they just want folks to forget everything and have the time of their lives! And we’re so glad you have a great way of looking at it!!!!😊
I just found your channel. I LOVE the dialogue! I would definitely buy Chris’s artwork - so beautiful! We haven’t been on MSC Yacht-club. We usually do Celebrity 2x per year.
We're getting excited for the MSC World America too! We embark aboard on June 28, 2025. Can't wait to see your videos from your cruise in April. I hope you guys can get some footage of the Yacht Club. And don't forget to get some footage of the new MSC cruise terminal in Miami. I always prepay my hotel service charge too. Just one less thing to worry about. I always tip the bartender at the Yacht Club pool deck too. The service in the YC is top notch, but an extra $20 to the bartender on embarkation day ensures that whenever I'm walking towards the bar, he'll pour me a double shot of Macallan 18 single malt no matter what he's doing. My wife and I always get a caraffe of American coffee delivered to our YC suite at 6:30 so we can sit out on the deck and watch the sunrise. That coffee is usually delivered by the overnight butler, so we tip that person ($5 a day) for that extra service too. Yes, take a picture of the crew member's name tag so you get the name and their country in the after cruise survey. It is very important for them to get ahead in their chosen profession.
We have plans to get plenty of footage of the new terminal and it might be a video of its own!! So we are not booked in YC for the inaugural BUT we have friends there and they said they would get footage for us 😁😁😁
SO GLAD to hear about your water being back on! We only had water issues for a few days in Maggie Valley - power, cell phones, and internet off is bad enough, but no water is REALLY tough. We really enjoy your videos - Thank you for making them! (we upsold to a yacht club suite on the Seashore next week - Can't wait!)
I only tip extra to those who I felt made my trip a little better. I write a thank you note to those staff members and give a tip the night before we leave. I admit I did tip my butler this last cruise a wee bit less than my last trip because of some very small details that were missing this time. Agree totally with mentioning their names on the survey.
This is exactly what we do with the individual crew members, and we will also snap a photo of their name tag so that we can also make sure to remember their name and how to spell it for the post-cruise review emails.
Perfect! Love it! Although, I bet your friends always find an excuse to leave when you reach the “name tag” section of the slideshow of your vacays! 🤪🥸🤪
One thing I didn’t like on seashore is we never had the same server so we didn’t know who to really tip at the end. We did tip but just left some money on the table. Our server experience was actually better in the aurea restaurant, 5th avenue. We did b2b with yc first then aurea.
So sorry to hear that. I’m not sure if they automatically sit you with the same server. We asked to be sat with ours again and then after that, we were always sat with her. We are experiencing Aurea for the first time in April, so excited!!
So we haven’t experienced Aurea yet. We have heard great things for those who don’t travel YC all the time and some think it is a great balance of some specialized services without the cost of YC. We will be in Aurea on WA in April so will be comparing then 😊
I will be in the Yatch Club for first time on a 7 days sailing in Dec 2024 Caribbean. I believe in tipping my cabin attendant .My mother worked in housekeeping at a resort hotel so I am aware how hard they work and they depend on tips. Is $100 tip fair.for 2 people. I prepaid gratuities.
Is there a way to purchase a Steampunk Humpty-Dumpty sticker? I didn't see one in the store. I drive for Uber/Lyft at Port Canaveral and I'd like to put one on my car. I drop off about 50 cruisers at the port each week and there are always a lot of MSC questions as the ship is very visible at terminal 10. I've been on about 5 MSC cruises and answer questions the best I can but always refer them to Taste, Try, Travel for all things MSC! As far as tipping, I pay my standard gratuities, and unless I receive exceptional service, then that's it. I will also tip the room steward additional during the holidays. I also tip the porters, shuttle drivers, Uber/Lyft drivers fairly
OMG, you are amazing!! I’m sure you have lots of stories from driving that many people. The only way to get that sticker is to find us onboard but Chris is working on some logo stickers so we will have more options soon. We totally agree with your tipping strategies 😊
What is appropriate tipping for pizza delivery? Or something else delivered to the room? What about Top Sail Lounge? Or poolside buffet? Normally I would tip 20% of the menu price indicated but would you give $2, $4, $5 for a pizza or ice cream delivery to the room or poolside.
So our opinion is that if you are in YC, you don’t need to be tipping each and every time. You will run into the same crew so if tipping is what you want yo do, either give them an envelope at the beginning or end. And 20% does not apply when cruising. Your daily crew appreciation or hotel fee covers that.
We want to do the World America cruise…. I have never been on new ships right after they start service. Would it pay to wait a few months for crew to learn the boat and get the kinks worked out of any?
So there is ups and downs for inaugural cruises. One is you get to be the first to experience it but it can be a down that the kinks aren’t worked out. That’s why we are being smart and doing it twice!!! Inaugural and then again in 6 months for our group cruise
I would NEVER remove the gratuities. The guy in the laundry cleaning your sheets and towels, the gal keeping the tables clean and dishes cleared in the buffet, those cleaning off your dishes and sorting your waste don't deserve to be hurt because a bartender or waiter bruised your feelings. Recognizing them in writing is essential. New contracts and assignments are dependent on what is written, not on the number or amount of tips they received. How many signed up so far?
Okay, I’ll throw in my two cents (that’s funny because it’s about tipping)🤣. We usually book a "gen-pop" balcony cabin and tip as follows: $20 to the baggage porters, $20 to the room steward when they first introduce themselves, $1 per drink, $20 to the headwaiter in the MDR nightly, and $20 to the room steward at the end of the cruise. But since we don't gamble very often, I'm never sure how much to tip the dealers at the tables. What do you think?
Sounds like you have a great plan… unfortunately we don’t gamble either so can’t give advice on that except to say what lines up with what you do for others so maybe $20 if you win a lot 🤷♀️
Meraviglia was my very least favorite of their ships. Beautiful ship, spotless, but the food was poor and service was poor! I'm glad that you love it though!
We loved the promenade inside… since sometimes MSC ships seem disjointed. Because we were in YC, we didn’t eat much outside but sorry to hear you didn’t love it.
I will be in the Yatch Club for first time on a 7 days sailing in Dec 2024 Caribbean. I believe in tipping my cabin attendant .My mother worked in housekeeping at a resort hotel so I am aware how hard they work and they depend on tips. Is $100 tip fair.for 2 people. I prepaid gratuities.
We are doing our first trip in May on the Virtuosa in Yacht Club. The MSC website states that service charges are included and that it doesn't recommend individual tipping. We have only ever sailed NCL where we prepay gratuities and then give the cabin steward dollars at the start and end. We will also reward individuals at the end of the trip who have been excellent as well as taking the photos of the name badges and sending in positive feedback.
Sounds like you have a great plan! Positive feedback is so important to them 😊
I had possibly the best steward of the ship, he was very thoughtful, I was nervous traveling by myself and just his presence, always asking how I was doing, if everything was ok made me feel safe. My currency is not the dollar (is way under) and I tipped 5 euros for a 6 nights cruise. I thought he deserved so much more but he gave me a smile and seemed happy with it. So, I guess typing is just a symbol (and I said that "This is a symbol of my appreaciation.) Good staff, people with a good heart like him will certainly understand that is not what we think they deserve, they deserve much more but that is just a remembrance that says "You make a difference". It's tipping not pitting.
💯!!! The crew is just priceless!
MSC really and truly means it when they say “tipping is not necessary”… they just want folks to forget everything and have the time of their lives! And we’re so glad you have a great way of looking at it!!!!😊
I just found your channel. I LOVE the dialogue! I would definitely buy Chris’s artwork - so beautiful! We haven’t been on MSC Yacht-club. We usually do Celebrity 2x per year.
We're getting excited for the MSC World America too! We embark aboard on June 28, 2025. Can't wait to see your videos from your cruise in April. I hope you guys can get some footage of the Yacht Club. And don't forget to get some footage of the new MSC cruise terminal in Miami.
I always prepay my hotel service charge too. Just one less thing to worry about.
I always tip the bartender at the Yacht Club pool deck too. The service in the YC is top notch, but an extra $20 to the bartender on embarkation day ensures that whenever I'm walking towards the bar, he'll pour me a double shot of Macallan 18 single malt no matter what he's doing.
My wife and I always get a caraffe of American coffee delivered to our YC suite at 6:30 so we can sit out on the deck and watch the sunrise. That coffee is usually delivered by the overnight butler, so we tip that person ($5 a day) for that extra service too.
Yes, take a picture of the crew member's name tag so you get the name and their country in the after cruise survey. It is very important for them to get ahead in their chosen profession.
We have plans to get plenty of footage of the new terminal and it might be a video of its own!!
So we are not booked in YC for the inaugural BUT we have friends there and they said they would get footage for us 😁😁😁
SO GLAD to hear about your water being back on! We only had water issues for a few days in Maggie Valley - power, cell phones, and internet off is bad enough, but no water is REALLY tough. We really enjoy your videos - Thank you for making them! (we upsold to a yacht club suite on the Seashore next week - Can't wait!)
Hey Jerry! So happy to hear, we hope you have the BEST time ever!!!
And yes, so thankful to have all utilities back 😊
So glad to hear about your water coming back on! MSC world America sounds so exciting! Great new tipping guide!
Running water is a beautiful thing 😂😂😂
I only tip extra to those who I felt made my trip a little better. I write a thank you note to those staff members and give a tip the night before we leave. I admit I did tip my butler this last cruise a wee bit less than my last trip because of some very small details that were missing this time. Agree totally with mentioning their names on the survey.
Sounds like a great plan!!
This is exactly what we do with the individual crew members, and we will also snap a photo of their name tag so that we can also make sure to remember their name and how to spell it for the post-cruise review emails.
Perfect! Love it!
Although, I bet your friends always find an excuse to leave when you reach the “name tag” section of the slideshow of your vacays!
🤪🥸🤪
One thing I didn’t like on seashore is we never had the same server so we didn’t know who to really tip at the end. We did tip but just left some money on the table. Our server experience was actually better in the aurea restaurant, 5th avenue. We did b2b with yc first then aurea.
So sorry to hear that. I’m not sure if they automatically sit you with the same server. We asked to be sat with ours again and then after that, we were always sat with her.
We are experiencing Aurea for the first time in April, so excited!!
Can you compare the pros and cons of Aurea cabins vs Yacht Club cabins ( other than the price)? Thanks for all your information!!
So we haven’t experienced Aurea yet. We have heard great things for those who don’t travel YC all the time and some think it is a great balance of some specialized services without the cost of YC. We will be in Aurea on WA in April so will be comparing then 😊
I will be in the Yatch Club for first time on a 7 days sailing in Dec 2024 Caribbean. I believe in tipping my cabin attendant .My mother worked in housekeeping at a resort hotel so I am aware how hard they work and they depend on tips. Is $100 tip fair.for 2 people. I prepaid gratuities.
Wow… have the BEST time ever!!! That sounds like a great tip. We hope you both love it and make sure you fill up on the pizza!!!!
Is there a way to purchase a Steampunk Humpty-Dumpty sticker? I didn't see one in the store. I drive for Uber/Lyft at Port Canaveral and I'd like to put one on my car. I drop off about 50 cruisers at the port each week and there are always a lot of MSC questions as the ship is very visible at terminal 10. I've been on about 5 MSC cruises and answer questions the best I can but always refer them to Taste, Try, Travel for all things MSC!
As far as tipping, I pay my standard gratuities, and unless I receive exceptional service, then that's it. I will also tip the room steward additional during the holidays. I also tip the porters, shuttle drivers, Uber/Lyft drivers fairly
OMG, you are amazing!! I’m sure you have lots of stories from driving that many people.
The only way to get that sticker is to find us onboard but Chris is working on some logo stickers so we will have more options soon.
We totally agree with your tipping strategies 😊
What is appropriate tipping for pizza delivery? Or something else delivered to the room? What about Top Sail Lounge? Or poolside buffet? Normally I would tip 20% of the menu price indicated but would you give $2, $4, $5 for a pizza or ice cream delivery to the room or poolside.
So our opinion is that if you are in YC, you don’t need to be tipping each and every time. You will run into the same crew so if tipping is what you want yo do, either give them an envelope at the beginning or end. And 20% does not apply when cruising. Your daily crew appreciation or hotel fee covers that.
We want to do the World America cruise…. I have never been on new ships right after they start service. Would it pay to wait a few months for crew to learn the boat and get the kinks worked out of any?
The group cruise is in October which is 6 months after the inaugural cruise.
So there is ups and downs for inaugural cruises. One is you get to be the first to experience it but it can be a down that the kinks aren’t worked out. That’s why we are being smart and doing it twice!!! Inaugural and then again in 6 months for our group cruise
Meraviglia - Italian-Noun
[ feminine ] /mera'viʎa/
astonishment , surprise
Google translate says wonder / wonderful. I guess that’s close enough :p
Perfect thank you!!
I would NEVER remove the gratuities. The guy in the laundry cleaning your sheets and towels, the gal keeping the tables clean and dishes cleared in the buffet, those cleaning off your dishes and sorting your waste don't deserve to be hurt because a bartender or waiter bruised your feelings.
Recognizing them in writing is essential. New contracts and assignments are dependent on what is written, not on the number or amount of tips they received.
How many signed up so far?
You are absolutely right!!! You don’t know how negatively it effects crew when you do that
Okay, I’ll throw in my two cents (that’s funny because it’s about tipping)🤣. We usually book a "gen-pop" balcony cabin and tip as follows: $20 to the baggage porters, $20 to the room steward when they first introduce themselves, $1 per drink, $20 to the headwaiter in the MDR nightly, and $20 to the room steward at the end of the cruise. But since we don't gamble very often, I'm never sure how much to tip the dealers at the tables. What do you think?
Sounds like you have a great plan… unfortunately we don’t gamble either so can’t give advice on that except to say what lines up with what you do for others so maybe $20 if you win a lot 🤷♀️
Yes, winning would be nice, but usually it's just a donation. 🫤
@@TimothyMichaelPatrickOSullivan 😂😂😂 yes so I should say that’s why we don’t donate anymore 😂😂
Meraviglia was my very least favorite of their ships. Beautiful ship, spotless, but the food was poor and service was poor! I'm glad that you love it though!
We loved the promenade inside… since sometimes MSC ships seem disjointed. Because we were in YC, we didn’t eat much outside but sorry to hear you didn’t love it.
I will be in the Yatch Club for first time on a 7 days sailing in Dec 2024 Caribbean. I believe in tipping my cabin attendant .My mother worked in housekeeping at a resort hotel so I am aware how hard they work and they depend on tips. Is $100 tip fair.for 2 people. I prepaid gratuities.
❤️❤️