PHOTOGRAPHS COURTESY OF MEDITERRANEAN SHIPPING COMPANY AND GERRY BARKER
The first thing to know once up in the Yacht Club—which occupies floors 14 through 19 at the bow of the ship—is that every suite has its own butler, available around the clock. Typically, the idea of your own butler takes some adjustment, especially for Americans who are used to doing everything for themselves. But it didn’t take long to appreciate having Mark, our senior butler, and Kelly, his assistant, taking care of our needs and doing so without being in the least intrusive. After extolling the features of our deluxe balcony suite, Mark wrote out a list of the shows and specialty restaurants we had reserved, explaining he would lead us personally to any and all that piqued our interest. He made sure our minibar was stocked with our favorite beverages, and every
afternoon delivered sweet and savory canapes. Once settled in, we set out to explore the rest of the Yacht Club. We share the eighteenth deck with the Yacht Club Restaurant, elegantly appointed and serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. One deck below, deck 16, is the Top Sail Lounge, open daily until 1:00 a.m. and boasting a full bar, live music nightly and light bites throughout day. (Wait…shouldn’t that be deck 17, you ask? Well, no: it happens that 17 is considered an unlucky number in Italy, so there is no deck 17 on any MSC vessel.) Both the lounge and the restaurant are fronted by a panoramic wall of glass, affording magnificent views and spectacular sunsets at sea. Deck 19 is where you’ll find the Sun Deck, with its own pool and hot tub, plus the Yacht
Club Bar and Grill, serving buffet breakfast and lunch daily. Grab a towel and a lounger and enjoy the ocean breezes far from the madding crowd. The Yacht Club also has its own Concierge desk, manned 24/7, ready to assist on everything from show and restaurant reservations to taking care of any issue with your bill. We also made good use of the complimentary 24/7 room service. During the week, we looked forward to attending shows in the ship’s main theater, including the popular “Starwalker,” featuring a Michael Jackson impersonator, and ABBA, both of which fill up quickly. Another Yacht Club perk: Our butler escorted us, using a special card that provided a nonstop ride in the elevator. Once at the theater, there’s a
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