We wake up to see heavy fog has settled over Galveston this morning.

We check out of Hampton Inn & Suites at around 9:30 and make the 15-minute drive to the Terminal 16 parking garage. The best way to get to this parking area is to drive down Seawall Blvd. to 14th street, turn left (the only way you can turn), then drive to the end of 14th where you will make a left turn and follow the signs to the parking garage. When we arrived at the parking garage entrance, the security gates opened automatically, so they must have scanned our license plate as we approached. We were told that we needed the QR code from our receipt, but there was nobody there to scan anything. So, hopefully, our car won’t be towed when we return from the cruise!

We paid $239 for covered parking in the garage for the week. We arrived about 9:45am and found a PERFECT parking spot. The parking garage is very new and we ended up very close to the elevators.

We only had to roll our luggage about 100 yards to the MSC Yacht Club baggage drop area where stewards tagged our luggage and directed us to the Yacht Club waiting area. MSC has done a very nice job of streamlining the arrival and embarkation process for Yacht Club guests.

When we arrived at the Yacht Club waiting room only a handful of other guests had already arrived. Check-in was fast and efficient.

We each received a packet with our stateroom key card and an MSC Yacht Club wristband. Butlers are on hand to deliver glasses of Prosecco or Mimosas. The butlers will even assist in placing the wristband on you. There are also bottles of water, soft drinks, and cookies available for guests to enjoy in the waiting lounge.

I would rate the arrival and embarkation experience for MSC Yacht Club guests a 10 out of 10. The entire process is very smooth and efficient.

By 11 am, butlers begin taking groups of guests to the ship. It appeared as though the groups were determined by their muster stations. Each butler escorts a group of about 20 guests to embark the ship.

Once onboard MSC Seascape, the butler escorts us to our muster station where a crew member scans our stateroom key card. There is no muster demonstration here, it is simply to show you where your muster station is. There is a muster safety video that you can view on the MSC for Me app, or the stateroom television.

Next, our butler escorts us to Deck 16 forward to the MSC Yacht Club, which can only be accessed by those with a Yacht Club wristband or key card. This is a true “ship-within-a-ship” design. All Yacht Club staterooms are inside of this “secured” area. There is also a private Top Sail Lounge on Deck 16 and a Yacht Club Restaurant on Deck 18. We learned that there is no Deck 17 as the number 17 is considered unlucky in Italy. We never knew that.

Our butler escorted us into the Top Sail Lounge (16 forward) where we are greeted with a choice of Welcome cocktails. Of course, there is a full bar nearby that will create any cocktail you desire. MSC Yacht Club guests enjoy the Premium Drink Package, so all drinks (up to 15 per day) are included in your cruise fare.

To the right of the bar is an area filled with all sorts of sweet and savory snacks for guests to enjoy.

By 12:30, we were informed that our “suite” was ready. Once again, a butler escorted us to our suite. This was not to be our butler for the cruise, but we were informed that our butler would stop by later to introduce himself. I put the word “suite” in quotes because all staterooms in the Yacht Club are considered suites. But, are they really what we would consider a suite? You will have to wait for our MSC Yacht Club Suite review video where we will answer this question in great detail. If you have not done so already, please subscribe to our YouTube channel so you will be notified of our review videos.

After we take a quick tour of our suite (a Deluxe Balcony Suite), we are both ready for lunch. The Yacht Club Restaurant is literally right down the hallway from our suite. We are seated at a nice table for two next to a window. Even though all of the restaurant tables are not occupied, we found the atmosphere to be rather noisy from adjacent conversations. It could just be the location of the table where we were seated. On our next visit, we will try another location.

The lunch menu offers specials (left side) that change daily and Classic Favorites (right side) that are available every day. Rickee and I both ordered a cheeseburger with fries and onion rings. We skipped the starters and dessert since we have a big dinner planned this evening.

If you follow our blog and YouTube channel, you know that I am a cheeseburger “snob”. Most cruise line burgers leave a lot to be desired. Even the most expensive luxury, 5-star cruise lines struggle to make a simple cheeseburger. I am pleased to report that MSC Yacht Club Restaurant has mastered the art. Both of our cheeseburgers were perfectly cooked Medium (as ordered), slathered in melted cheese and wrapped in a fresh sesame seed bun. I am going to give this cheeseburger a 9 out of 10 and would rank it in the top three burgers at sea.

The onion rings are probably the best I have had on a cruise ship. The French Fries, unfortunately, were served lukewarm. If they had had been hot, they would have been very good. We will give them another shot later in the cruise.

Before dinner this evening, I stopped by the lounge while Rickee finished getting ready. The Top Sail Lounge has a nice atmosphere and is a peaceful place to enjoy a cocktail.

*Evening entertainment in Top Sail Lounge*

When it came time for our 6:45 dinner at Butcher’s Cut restaurant (specialty steakhouse), our butler, Rajesh, insisted that he escort us down to the restaurant.

*Our butler escorts us to Butcher’s Cut for dinner*

We pre-booked dinner at Butcher’s Cut on the day of embarkation because they offer a discount on that day for specialty dining. I think we paid $49 per person instead of the normal $60 fee.

The menu here is quite large, both physically and in choices offered. We were a bit surprised, and disappointed, that the specialty cocktails on the menu were all priced at $18. Our Yacht Club Drink Package only covers up to $16 per drink, so a $2 per drink upcharge would apply.

*Even with the drink package, an upcharge applies to the cocktails at Butcher’s Block*

It’s not like we can’t afford the additional $2, but it is sort of a principle thing with us. So, I ordered a glass of Cab Sav (Robert Mondavi) which was included in our package, and it was very good. Rickee had a virgin Cucumber Mojito which she also enjoyed.

For starters, I tried the crabcake, which was good. I would rate it a 7 out of 10. I have had better. Rickee ordered the wedge salad that she rates an 8 out of 10.

For our main course, Rickee ordered the filet. She emphasized that she wanted the smallest filet they had in the kitchen. Neither of us were very hungry after the great cheeseburger at lunch. They ignored her request and served her a very substantial filet that looked to be 8 to 10 ounces. Her steak was cooked perfectly Medium Rare as ordered. The filet was tender and delicious.

I ordered the 16oz Ribeye, which almost spilled over the plate. My steak was also cooked perfectly Medium as ordered. Both steaks were well seasoned. In fact, some might consider them to be overly seasoned and a little salt-forward. But, we like that. So, don’t salt your steaks here before you taste. The steaks are served with a choice of sauces, but honestly, they did not need any of them. We would rate the steaks a 10 out of 10 and they are some of the best steaks we have had at sea.

I ordered a side of creamed spinach that was also a little over seasoned with salt. In spite of that, it was the best creamed spinach I have had on land or sea. It had a rich cream sauce that may have had some parmesan cheese mixed in and a lot of garlic. It was delicious.

Neither of us could finish our steaks, We were stuffed. So, dessert was out of the question for us. We rarely eat dessert anyway. We are so full, we just want to head back to our suite and sleep off the meal!

Tomorrow is a day at sea aboard MSC Seascape. More MSC Yacht Club content to come.

Embarkation and Day 1 Galveston, TX

Day 2 - Day at Sea

Pre-Cruise Galveston, Texas