Just Back From CENTURY

[Screwbit]

Everyone will, sooner or later, find the cruise line that best fits their comfort level. I am constantly amazed, however, by the number of folks who dismiss certain lines out-of-hand, and pigeon-hole them as being "party ships" or "old folks ships", even though they have never sailed those lines. This industry has evolved so rapidly over the past several years, and continues to do so, it is truly amazing. We are, as you can see, RCCL and Princess devotees. We are doing our upcoming Century sailing because we got a super deal, and are truly looking forward to it. RCCL and Princess have always satisfied most of our needs, and we have become comfortable with them. This isn't to say Celebrity won't do the same. However, I try not to dump on other lines that I haven't sailed upon. HAL probably does not suit our wants at this time, but might in the future. The one that I am always amazed by, however, is the usually open, and sometimes veiled, bashing of Carnival. Have we sailed on them? No, so I can't speak to the style of onboard life. Yes, they have a "reputation" as the party line, and it was probably well-earned years ago. But in speaking with other cruisers who have traveled on Carnival's new ships over the last two years, they sing the praises of Carnival. The average stateroom on Carnival is larger than the industry standard; the entertainment has always had the reputation for being superb (unlike the bland "reputation" of Celebrity); and, apparently, the quality of the food has grown by leaps and bounds,to the point where it is as good as any mass-market line. Our Navigator cruise this past January found the DR food to have declined markedly in quality. In this day, I would find it hard to be really disappointed in any cruise!

 

'til the cruise of the Century

 

Celebrity Horizon '97

RCCL Sovereign '98

Grand Princess '99

RCCL Enchantment '00

Ocean Princess '01

RCCL Radiance '02

Golden Princess 4/5/03

RCCL Navigator 1/10/04

Celebrity Century 9/11/04

Diamond Princess-Alaska 9/05

[teedee]

I totally agree with you Screwbit. Celebrity is my favorite line so I tend to book more with them. But I have had really good experiences with Carnival as well. It depends on who has the best deal in the time frame I am looking to travel. Everything being equal I will always choose Celebrity first, but that doesn't mean I won't go and have a great time on other lines. I also have never had a bad cruise!

 

Terri

 

Skyward - 1989

Carnivale - 1991

Holiday - 1994

Fantasy - 1998

Century - 2002

Century - 2003

Jubilee - 7/04

Century - 9/04

Coral Princess - 3/05

Valor - 10/05

 

Days til Valor Vampires Cruise

[nealberk]

Seriously, I like hearing the bad as well as the good- especially if the person is backing up what they are saying with facts.

 

Nothing is perfect, and if I hear a review that is all glowing comments I usually discount it. On the other hand, if someone comments on how bad something is and gives reasons for thinking that way, then says how good something else is with equally strong points, I am more inclined to consider all of their points.

[Shappy]

Actually I went with my daughter and it was a last-minute trip. I would go on Celebrity again in a heartbeat because they do a wonderful job. I certainly would not complain to fellow ship-mates while on the ship. I would rather have bland entertainment than put up with rowdy drunks on some other lines. Four years ago my whole family of six took a Carnival cruise at a travel agent's urging-actually I was surprised--the food was good, the entertainment was probably one of the best (they had a band that played the Beatles and had a packed lounge and dance floor every night--entertainment that appealed to the masses and was still very FUN) but I would not use them ever again. Why? First because the ship decor was so tacky it was best viewed after dark and after several drinks and two because the fellow passengers were sometimes rude, rowdy and I was afraid to let my then 16 year old daughter wander around the ship after hours without supervision, it certainly didn't feel safe.

I certainly didn't mean to imply that if things were not exactly to my specifications it wouldn't be a great trip. Just being off from work and relaxing with family is enough for me. Certainly Celebrity provides a relaxing environment and caters to a more mature traveler which I personally find probably the most important thing to me. How much food can you eat anyway?

However, the short port times would be a main concern to me if I were booking Celebrity again. I can tell you many, many people I spoke to on the cruise were far more upset than me.

[Darlin']

I agree with Shappy! The port times were way too short! And we arrived late to half of them-- with no excuse or apology. Everyone was sitting on the steps for 30-40 mins waiting for us to dock. However, they did manage to arrive at Ft. Lauderdale on time with no problem. go figure------

 

I loved the omlette and waffles in the morning. My only complaint was that it was closed at 10 a.m. -- too early for me if you're truly on vacation.

 

I did like the sushi bar from 6 to 10 p.m. that was an extra nice touch.

 

The entertainment was really disappointing. One of the things I always enjoy are the comedy shows on other cruiselines. There was only ONE night of comedy -- which was mild and bland..... It seemed like all the entertainment was geared toward the older folks. (Expect jokes about menopause) Everything was over by 11 p.m. and then there wasn't much to do...(However, the piano bar is great) Even the pool and spa were closed early...I am in my early 20s and didn't see hardly anyone who was born in the same generation as me.

Also we had late seating because we wanted time to relax a little before dinner and after visiting ports. However the entertainment shows for late seating passengers was at 7 pm! I guess they expected us all to be in bed by 10 pm or something!

[fishmom]

I too just returned from the E. Carib on Century. This being my first cruise, I had nothing to compare it to, other than the expectations from friends and from reading the posts here.

I heard many people complain about getting sea-sick during the crossing from FLL to San Juan. We were on deck 10, mid-ship, so really weren't bothered by it. The extreme windiness did make it very difficult to walk around deck-side. But since we had a verandah, I wasn't inconvenienced as much as others. While there were ppv movies, there was also a channel which each day was continuously showing a 'just-released-to-video' type movie. Saw Matchstick Men, Open Range, Freaky Friday, among others. The only problem was that you didn't know exact show times, so would tune in and see a half hour or hour at a time. Big Deal. I was sitting on my verandah, rather than watching TV.

The short stays in San Juan and Nassau was frustrating. In Nassau you could choose to go to the beach on Paradise Island or visit the Straw Market. But not both. In St. Thomas we were forced to dock at a different port than Havensight. It was ugly and gave us a bad first impression. Our stateroom attendant said Century never docked there, but had to because Voyager of the Seas had took our spot. But we enjoyed the day because we had time to go to Megan's Beach in the morning, via taxi, then do the BOB excursion in the afternoon. We liked St. Martin's best because we rented a jeep and drove the perimeter of the island, visiting Marigot, Orient Beach, and Phillipsburg. Granted some were quick, 1 hour stops, but it was enough for me.

Now I am already saying 'On my next cruise...', and thinking I might like to try one of the mega-ships, like RCL or Princess. But since it took 25 years of marriage to get to my first, who knows.

I would sail Century again, but I think the location and class of our stateroom made the difference.

[cfk2439]

Well, I've really been bitten by the Celebrity/Century bug. I just returned from my first cruise on Saturday and this evening I made a reservation for the Western Caribbean cruise next April. At least I've got something to look forward to for the next 11 months.!!

 

Carol

[Karen Lynn]

I agree with Shappy I am afraid.We had a great time and we too were 2 Mum's and 2 daughters aged 20...but we made our own fun.Pretty much had to!

 

The last night everyone was 'gone' to bed I presume by 11:30.No last minute kicking up of the heels.DJ Bruno was awful...we went one night and the music was all Latin.Great for the 6 Latin ladies up dancing I suppose.We all enjoy different things..I am trying Princess next just to see what they are like...I really wanted to like Celebrity more too.

 

Celebrity has such a good reputation I think many of us were very letdown.

 

Nobody should take it personally...it is just our viewpoint.

 

Brilliance Of The Seas ~ 03/7-17/03

 

Mariner of the Seas ~ 12/21-28/03

 

Celebrity~Century ~ 04/30-05/08/04

 

[cruise_girl_too]

It seems that with so many guests having seasickness it would be my assumption that the seas were pretty rough making for late arrivals in port....just my opinion...it's sort of like being in traffic...sometimes there are things that make us late getting to our destination...

Happy sailing on future cruises!

 

Check out my webshots

http://community.webshots.com/user/rfera43

[Karen Lynn]

I had rougher seas at Christmas time and got into port on time every time. I am not sure what the reason was because we were never informed we would be late!

 

I called and mentioned the first time that the line up to disemabark was a mile long and perhaps if we were to arrive late as land was nowhere in sight...they should consider making an announcement.Finally they did but it was already 30 mins after the scheduled arrival time.

 

Comminication was not this crews strong point!

 

Brilliance Of The Seas ~ 03/7-17/03

 

Mariner of the Seas ~ 12/21-28/03

 

Celebrity~Century ~ 04/30-05/08/04

 

[polodad]

We were on the Century for the E. Carib sailing 4/17. Yes, the ride was rough. Yes, the weather was not the best. Yes, the itinerary could be a LOT better (too short port times). However, all of the food & particularly the desserts were outstanding. The service was wonderful and the ship is beautiful. Did we have a great time on our 1st Celebrity cruise? Just booked 9 days on the Celebrity Mercury for Vancouver-Alaska-SF. We're hooked. The Renaissance our precruise hotel was a reasonable value for the $75 Priceline fee. Not great, but okay. Really recommend the Bimini Boatyard restaurant next door.

 

Norway 11/85

SS Independence 7/91

Star Princess 10/02

Century 4/04

9/3 Celebrity MERCURY

[cfk2439]

I totally agree, Polodad. We got back on Saturday and, last night, we made our reservation for Western Caribbean in April, 2005. The food and service was superb - can't wait to get back to those desserts!

 

Carol

[Karen Lynn]

I have no complaints about the ship...a little tired...but that was allright. The desserts also were good...except the Creme Brulee which was too runny, yech...but to me..it is a compilation of the whole experience.

 

That is a lot of money to pay for good food!Century fell short mostly with it's crew for me.

 

Brilliance Of The Seas ~ 03/7-17/03

 

Mariner of the Seas ~ 12/21-28/03

 

Celebrity~Century ~ 04/30-05/08/04

 

[gardencat]

Thanks to everyone for their opinions. Obviously each person has different likes and priorities. I don't generally listen to the same music as my 17 year old son but that doesn't necessairily mean his taste is bad just different than mine ( very very different in many cases).

Shappy, I appreciate you posting your opinion. I too will be sorry to have to pay for my after dinner espresso. I loved that it was included on Norwegian Dawn, not a biggie still nice to be aware of the difference.

Everyone likes different things. At least Shappy tried Celebrity now, I guess, he knows it is not his favorite and may not go again but at least he gave it a try and enjoyed what he could of the cruise, then he shared his opinion and what, to him, were the weak points.

I don't understand why some people seem to feel the need to try to make someone else feel bad because they didn't like something. Bitburg's, " I'm glad you weren't on my cruise. You get out of it what you put into it." seemed like a pretty silly remark to me. I have had some good waiters on cruises and some bad waiters. Are you saying that I only got the bad waiters because I had a bad attitude but I must have had a good attitude the times I got a good waiter?

Bad service and bad food do occur sometimes on cruises. To suggest that any such experiences must be the fault of the person cruising is just silly.

cfk2439's comments make much more sense to me. 'We like sweet desserts and enjoyed those on Celebrity sorry you didn't' is much more polite to the original poster and much more useful to others, in my opinion. than saying ' You must have disliked the desserts cause you have a bad attitude.'

I am happy to hear peoples' opinions of the negatives and positives of their cruises then I can say "that isn't a biggie for me" or "oh, oh that is really important to me maybe I'd better reconsider here." If all I want are positive opinions I can get those from the cruise line ads I wouldn't need these boards.

[teedee]

Gardencat - You have the right attitude about this, these boards are full of wonderful information, but I think sometimes those of us who love Celebrity do tend to get a little defensive about them. I am certainly one of the Century lovers, it's by far my favorite ship, but I do try to respect other peoples opinions. However in a way when someone says something bad about her it's like somebody is calling my baby ugly!

 

Terri

 

Skyward - 1989

Carnivale - 1991

Holiday - 1994

Fantasy - 1998

Century - 2002

Century - 2003

Jubilee - 7/04

Century - 9/04

Coral Princess - 3/05

Valor - 10/05

 

Days til Valor Vampires Cruise

[chefjacque2]

We are leaving early tomorrow and will sail on Saturday... We are well prepared for the rough waters thanks to everyone on this board... I keep thinking that maybe the wind will calm down and it will be better then the last few cruises... I know we will love the ship, and we are really looking forward to some of the ports, even if the stops are not as long as we would like... heck that just means we will have to do it again next year.

 

I will be sure to let you know what our opinion was of the Century, and I feel for sure, we will enjoy our cruise no matter what..

 

Bob and Jacque

[janineo]

Well even though I wished for warmer jacuzzzis, longer port times and some other minor irritaions to be different, I really wish I was back on board!..My tan is starting to fade, got my pics back and remembered picking the starfish from the sand at meagan's bay, swimming with ton's of fish in the bahamas and wondering about all the people we came to know so well for our week...I miss the sea and sun!!!Janine

 

Century 5/1/04 DESTINY 4/03

[teedee]

Bob & Jacque - Hope you have a wonderful time on your cruise! We'll be waiting to hear from you when you get back!

 

Terri

 

Skyward - 1989

Carnivale - 1991

Holiday - 1994

Fantasy - 1998

Century - 2002

Century - 2003

Jubilee - 7/04

Century - 9/04

Coral Princess - 3/05

Valor - 10/05

 

Days til Valor Vampires Cruise