Millie updates?

[cdbaum]

Any news on the outcome of the Millenium drydock? She is apparently in Ft. Lauderdale now so the TA pax should be getting back to the world soon.

[larasmom]

mom and dad just came back from their millenium cruise from barcelona to ft lauderdale.

 

they paid extra money for a nicer room with a huge balcony. they said they could not stand out on the balcony because of the stench of sewage. they said the entire hall stunk the whole time as well.

 

they said they had a wonderful time but dad is ready to start dealing with the cruise line to see if they can be compensated some way for the horrific stench they had to deal with and be unable to use their balcony.

 

they said they had rough seas most of the time due to heading toward both hurricanes out at sea.

 

they said the ship was lovely and they truly enjoyed themselves other then the smell.

[rcooper1]

Just came back yesterday on this Millinium to FLL. Have a bad taste for Celebrity now, probably never book again. Senior management better take some time to review what's happening or their reputation will be in the tank. Poor communications, Poor or No organization. Some good food, some marginal. Sewer smell. Clogged toilets. As examples: 1) the transportation from the terminal to the airport was almost a third world experience. No Celebrity personnel available for crowd management, it was everyman for himself, people jumping line, pushing, swamping the drivers. The bus drivers were the only reason anyone made it to the airport. 2) disembarkation instructions not issued until after midnight the night before. people swamped the cfm's (celebrity family members) in the gues relations area trying to find out when tags would be out, since they just wanted to go to bed. Finally at midnight, a general announcement was made that it was okay to go to bed, we'd deal with it in the morning. 10 minutes later, knock knock from the cabin steward, put your bags out now. 3) breakfast pastries, specifically donuts&cinamon rolls were awful. Soups at buffet were flavorless, salad bar was very small. Overall impression to my group was that management is attempting to cut costs and corners. Pity the waitstaff and other on board staff who don't get the support they need from management to do their jobs. The on board staff was mostly great, SR Management needs to be woken up.

[amyr]

That luggage tag ordeal really was a fiasco. After we heard the announcement that it could wait until morning, we went to sleep. At 12:30, the phone woke me out of a deep sleep (hubby didn't hear it) and our cabin attendant said she had left the tags under the door and would I please put the bags out. I asked her if we could wait, and she (sounding to be near tears) said "No, ma'am, please. Please" Of course, since it was our dear Lydia, and I realized that she had been working since 7:00, and would be back working by 7:00, I put on the tags (we had two different colors) and started dragging the bags around.

 

The hall was a long line of women hauling bags out because it seemed that everyone's husband, like mine, rolled over and said screw 'em. Fortunately, DH finally got up, hoisted the bags over the bed, and put them out in the hall in his underpants. Not sure who was treated to that sight:eek:

 

The mess at the curb after disembarkation was also the worst I've ever seen. Part of it (aside from the Celebrity bus mess) was that there was only one small area for cabs, car rental vans, park-n-ride, and people being picked up. A van pulled up, started unloading about 40 small boxes onto a cart, and every other vehicle (hundreds it seemed) had to wait for them to finish before they could pull up. This was also the same small area that the Celebrity buses were trying to back up into so they could pull out. Also, they let people drive their cars in there and wait for passengers. It was only a small one-and-a-half lane drive through to begin with, and it was gridlocked. We did fine, because we just grabbed a cab, but there were a lot of people flailing around in a mess.

 

The crew on board did a fantastic job, as they always do. Our actual cruise experience was great, but this was just an odd sailing from the get-go when the drydock got so messed up. I would have been devestated if it had happened, and I'm grateful to Celebrity for doing everything in their power to prevent it, but that ship should have probably stayed in drydock the full amount of time and sailed back empty.

[cdbaum]

...the ship itself is in what condition? Did they paint, replace carpet, replace furnishings, swap the port and starboard sides, change artwork, install those closed circuit cameras in the staterooms, change the casino to Euros, upgrade internet capabilities, install the ice skating rock wall pool slide?

 

I realize that this is a tough question if you hadn't been on Millenium previously.

 

Thanks

[amyr]

...the ship itself is in what condition? Did they paint, replace carpet, replace furnishings, swap the port and starboard sides, change artwork, install those closed circuit cameras in the staterooms, change the casino to Euros, upgrade internet capabilities, install the ice skating rock wall pool slide?

 

I realize that this is a tough question if you hadn't been on Millenium previously.

 

Thanks

 

If you've been on Millie before, you won't notice anything different. The drydock was mostly mechanical - seaworthy inspection items, etc. They also steam cleaned the carpets - they may have replaced some, I couldn't tell. I didn't notice any worn furnishings, everything looked good.

 

They didn't upgrade the internet, but they loaded in Photoship 3 and a few other software upgrades. The only big thing that I could see happening was the conversion of the two story Notes to whatever they're going to put in there. It was closed off, gutted, and they appeared to be working round the clock. You could see and smell the welding and carpentry work they were doing.

 

I really hope the smell was a temporary post-drydock occurrance. Sewage smells are a fact of life aboard a ship - I've smelled wisps of them on every cruise I've taken. This was entirely different. It was cover-your-nose eye watering in some places. The good news is that I never smelled it in any of the food and beverage areas, only the cabin decks and down on Deck 3 near guest services. Also, the smell wasn't anywhere near our Deck 8 aft cabin, so it didn't really affect my day to day experience. We just stepped quickly through the stinky areas.:D

 

Also, the food was the best I've had on a large cruise ship. All the catering was done in Europe, and the quality was very high. Cruise food will never be what you can get at your favorite fine restaurant back home, but I thought the food was quite good - better than we had on the Infinity in 2003.

[jobinhume]

The shops, particularly the cosmetics and fine jewelry have been remodeled as well.

 

I agree with Amy on the roaming smell. It was all over the cabin decks - rarely the same place twice.

 

Also, one night on my end (forward) someone's toilet leaked into the hallway - I have no idea how this happened - but I came upon the crowd fixing it when I was in the hallway. Anyway, the carpet was wet there for two days which was disgusting.

 

It is a shame the beginning and end were so bumpy, but we had a great time in the middle, and hope I can try it again next year.

[Brucemcdou]

...the ship itself is in what condition? Did they paint, replace carpet, replace furnishings, swap the port and starboard sides, change artwork, install those closed circuit cameras in the staterooms, change the casino to Euros, upgrade internet capabilities, install the ice skating rock wall pool slide?

 

Thanks

 

Hi, CDBaum - Agree with Amy and others, the drydock seems to have been mostly mechanical - those famous pods. On the cosmetic side, no major changes, just touch ups and freshening. it seemed to my partner and I that most of the carpets in public areas were either new or steam-cleaned, and some of the chairs seemed to have been newly re-upholstered (in Cova and the dining room?). Fresh paint in spots, the AquaSpa for sure. As Jobinhume says, some of the shops were remodeled - they seemed a little more spacious and of a lighter wood. Notes is being turned into something else, perhaps the acupuncture area and a computer room? There were signs of work elsewhere, such as in the mens' locker rooms it seemed that the showers and the sauna area had been retiled and the glass and stainless steel parts either replaced or seriously cleaned because they looked like new. We also thought our bedspreads and drapes were new, or else they'd been dry-cleaned.

 

In general, we thought she was in very good shape, and the service was certainly wonderful. You can read of some other concerns on the Rollcall for the cruise.

[Brucemcdou]

Oops - duplicate post.

[hajekfam]

There was still wear and tear on some of the furniture and we noticed some chairs with stains on them. It didn't look like they did much in replacement - it looked to be about two years wear and tear since our 2003 trans. The outside was freshly painted, however our verandah railing must have been shellacked in the rain becasue it was quite rough to the touch and had big blotches.

I had a spa treatment and the sewage smell in the womens dressing room was so bad that I had to get out of there quickly. The women's public bathrooms were so warm that they felt like a sauna.

[LouChamp]

Just off the ship last week she is fine...no smells, no complaints. Go and enjoy