Mercury Travelogue, March 27 Mexican Riviera

[nu2sea]

You might want to check out how HAL handled the noro outbreak aboard the Amsterdamn at the same time the debacle was occurring on the Mercury. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=328847

 

But then again, it probably isn't what most of you want to hear.

 

I think in this case the term "savvy" cruiser simply denotes one who is knowledgable about how outbreaks should be and usually are handled professionally.

 

Susan

[mctrekkie]

I agree with you, Nu2sea....attacking a poster is easier than accepting that everyone is entitled to their own point of view.

[tangerinebunny]

I am so tired of people being told just to buck up and have a better attitude. Celebrity did not follow its own protocols in treating the initial outbreak. That seems to be a fact that gets ignored by those who choose to blame the passengers. Being told at the pier that you can go home if you choose [and reschedule, not be refunded] is poor PR.

[mctrekkie]

Questions and Answers – Sunday, April 09, 2006

 

 

 

Tuggers: It is apparent that we have very different opinions about this particular cruise. I respect your views and your right to express them. But, I don’t understand why you feel it is necessary to insult me. Perhaps I am misunderstanding your post of today at 8:53 a.m. It would seem that you would not want to be on the same cruise as me because I am one of the “rah rahs” and that I “prefer to live in that head in the sand mode”. Did I incorrectly come to the conclusion that you are insulting me?

 

 

Mercruiser,

 

I read the post referenced above and do not conclude that Tuggers is insulting you. I think her point all along has been that X handled the whole situation quite poorly, and all of you were entitled to better treatment than you recieved. Having read lots of Tugger's postings in the past, I'm certain she was not targeting you personally; that's not her way.

 

The comment about "rah rah's" most likely refers to posters who are inclined to believe that their favorite cruiseline can do no wrong in any way at any time. Every cruise line has some of these cheerleaders; you'll find them on all the boards here.

 

Thanks for your excellent travelogue. Very nicely done!

[edieredmann]

Mercruiser, thanks so much for your informative logs on the cruise! I really enjoyed them, although I do believe that Celebrity dropped the ball on how they handled the situation. I am soooo looking forward to our first cruise on Mercury the 17th, and you have been a wealth of information, and enjoyment. I hope that one day we can meet on a cruise1 Edie.:) :)

[Mercruiser]

Questions and Answers – Monday, April 10, 2006

 

SDCoaster: Wow! You are a great writer. And I see this is your very first post to Cruise Critic. Welcome to this forum. Here is what I really like about your review. It is a well-reasoned, analytical review with a balanced description of both the good and the bad. You have described your own first-hand experiences in exquisite detail in such as way that it paints the whole picture. You might consider submitting your review to the Cruise Critic Member Reviews. I am really glad to hear that you will be on another Celebrity cruise.

Adegner, Sky Suite, vince4, Fblak, stinsowm, rubrrik, mctrekkie, edieredmann: I am glad to hear that you are enjoying the travelogue. Your words of encouragement mean a lot to me.

Nu2sea: This is a very interesting thread about HAL. I have seen some other posts about HAL describing their shipboard announcements during virus outbreaks. It appears they communicate much better with their passengers in these situations. HAL’s at-the-pier cancellation policy offered a refund. Celebrity offered a future cruise credit – they would not give you your money back. In the end, I thought Celebrity’s 25% + 25% deal was fair. But, they need to learn how to handle this better up-front instead of being caught in reactionary, damage-control mode.

[MAN86]

Like the other posters I appreciate your very detailed posts. We are cruising on the 17th and we are also celebrating our 20th wedding anniversary. ;) (April 5 to be exact)

 

We had not thought of dinner on the balcony in Acapulco - but we are now. We are on port side, but not as big a balcony as you had. It is a great idea - so Thanks :D

 

If you have a moment I would like let me pester you a little more. We are not real big drinkers, but do not wish to pay the extraordinary costs of a Celebrity cocktail. We are considering brining our own in our check in luggage. Any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated :confused: Also, how much to they search you when reboarding in each port (should we want to replinsh our stock :o ).

 

Thanks again for all the information - I took many notes!

[Joe Beach]

Hey Man,

In feb I talked to the guy reading the "x-ray" in port, he said they let in beer and wine but NOT hard liquor. But this was that guy that day, it seems like it is more hit or miss, but definitely no hard stuff.

[mktmzm]

My brother smuggles his Grey Goose Vodka onboard by pouring it into empty AquaFina bottles. No one ever questions that it isn't water. The bottle is shaped like a water bottle and they don't often open your luggage to inspect it.

 

If they do, Vodka is clear :)

 

Marcy

[MAN86]

My brother smuggles his Grey Goose Vodka onboard by pouring it into empty AquaFina bottles. No one ever questions that it isn't water. The bottle is shaped like a water bottle and they don't often open your luggage to inspect it.

 

If they do, Vodka is clear :)

 

Marcy

 

We had considered putting it in pop bottles - we do drink the hard stuff, vodka for me, spiced rum for him. ;)

[vince4]

We wrap a bottle of Absolute in bubble wrap and put it in between the clothes with the check luggage. We are 5 for 5.

 

I don't know if the Century Class has this, but in the buffet on the Millenium class ships, they have a tropical juice that works very well with Vodka.

 

The plastic bottles also works well for clear liquor.

[FinelyCruising]

You might want to check out how HAL handled the noro outbreak aboard the Amsterdamn at the same time the debacle was occurring on the Mercury. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=328847

 

But then again, it probably isn't what most of you want to hear.

 

I think in this case the term "savvy" cruiser simply denotes one who is knowledgable about how outbreaks should be and usually are handled professionally.

 

Susan

 

Sounds like X did better since they did not change their protocol and there were no new cases, unlike how it was handled on the other ship where people got sick....

 

See what can happen when you stop the sanitization efforts!

[Sky Sweet]

Sounds like X did better since they did not change their protocol and there were no new cases, unlike how it was handled on the other ship where people got sick....

 

See what can happen when you stop the sanitization efforts!

 

I agree. Celebrity was forced to choose between providing the best cruise experience possible or doing everything in its power to minimize the number of people who got ill. I think most people would rather be inconvienced than come down with the Norwalk Virus. Of course, everyone would prefer an ideal world where such a choice wouldn't be necessary, but that wasn't an option on that cruise. A few years ago, I boarded a plane in New York expecting to arrive in Chicago on time. However, due to violent storms in Ohio and Indiana (its normal flight path), our pilot announced shortly after take off that he would by flying over Canada instead which almost doubled the flight time. I don't think one person on that flight complained about not getting the flight they expected because when a person in command has to choose between inconvenience and safety, he really doesn't have much of a choice.

[tangerinebunny]

Sounds like X did better since they did not change their protocol and there were no new cases, unlike how it was handled on the other ship where people got sick....

 

See what can happen when you stop the sanitization efforts!

 

It was X that was cited by the CDC for not following their own protocols and having more than one outbreak. HAL and the other lines involved seem to have handled their situation much more effectively.

[FinelyCruising]

I don't know if that is true....

 

I have not learned that X was cited for anything...I do know that the first cruise the day after boarding people got sick, and I understand throughout that cruise others did as part of a normal pattern.

 

I have been of the understanding that during the second cruise by the next day after boarding people came down with the virus again, but throughout the cruise fewer than the first.

 

By the third cruise, the CDC and the cruiseline determined by their studies, that two cabins were a common demonimator of the start of the passengers who took ill early in each cruise. By the third cruise those cabins were completely sanitized, had bedding and other items removed, rugs sanitized, etc. By the end of the third cruise there had been a few concerns early on, and a few illness, but at the end there had been no new cases in the time it would have required for new cases to appear.

 

From all accounts and my own experience on board, it seems to me like the efforts continued to ramp up more and more each and every cruise to the point where it was just amazing what went on to accomplish what was needed.

[cml3]

Finelycruising,

 

I Haven't Been Keeping Track Of All The Posts--were You On One Of The Recent Sailings?

[FinelyCruising]

Yes. 3/27

[tangerinebunny]

I don't know if that is true....

 

I have not learned that X was cited for anything...I do know that the first cruise the day after boarding people got sick, and I understand throughout that cruise others did as part of a normal pattern.

 

I have been of the understanding that during the second cruise by the next day after boarding people came down with the virus again, but throughout the cruise fewer than the first.

 

By the third cruise, the CDC and the cruiseline determined by their studies, that two cabins were a common demonimator of the start of the passengers who took ill early in each cruise. By the third cruise those cabins were completely sanitized, had bedding and other items removed, rugs sanitized, etc. By the end of the third cruise there had been a few concerns early on, and a few illness, but at the end there had been no new cases in the time it would have required for new cases to appear.

 

From all accounts and my own experience on board, it seems to me like the efforts continued to ramp up more and more each and every cruise to the point where it was just amazing what went on to accomplish what was needed.

 

CDC offers ideas, including disclosure

 

By Cheryl Clark

UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

 

March 29, 2006

Federal officials have asked the Celebrity Cruises ship Mercury to follow its own rules in hope of quelling a viral outbreak that has sickened hundreds on two recent voyages from San Diego to Mexico. “It's very rare that we would see an outbreak on consecutive cruises,” said David Forney, chief of the Vessel Sanitation Program for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. “The company has an excellent protocol for dealing with outbreaks like this, (but the Mercury staff) were not real successful in implementing some of their own protocols.”

[cinderellen]

Mercruiser,

Thanks for taking the time to write these wonderful posts. My husband and I are booked for the 2/09/07 Mercury Mexican Riv. We are excited about returning to Celebrity again. I especially loved your comment about having a burger by the pool instead of dinner at the Manhattan. That's the beauty of a cruise. Live each moment as you choose!

[nu2sea]

I don't know if that is true....

 

I have not learned that X was cited for anything...I do know that the first cruise the day after boarding people got sick, and I understand throughout that cruise others did as part of a normal pattern.

 

I have been of the understanding that during the second cruise by the next day after boarding people came down with the virus again, but throughout the cruise fewer than the first.

 

By the third cruise, the CDC and the cruiseline determined by their studies, that two cabins were a common demonimator of the start of the passengers who took ill early in each cruise. By the third cruise those cabins were completely sanitized, had bedding and other items removed, rugs sanitized, etc. By the end of the third cruise there had been a few concerns early on, and a few illness, but at the end there had been no new cases in the time it would have required for new cases to appear.

 

From all accounts and my own experience on board, it seems to me like the efforts continued to ramp up more and more each and every cruise to the point where it was just amazing what went on to accomplish what was needed.

 

I don't know where you are getting your information, but it is not coming from the CDC website where they report such information: http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/vsp/surv/GIlist.htm

 

If you have other sources for CDC information, you really should post them.

 

Susan

[rubrrick]

Mercruiser,

Thanks for taking the time to write these wonderful posts. My husband and I are booked for the 2/09/07 Mercury Mexican Riv. We are excited about returning to Celebrity again. I especially loved your comment about having a burger by the pool instead of dinner at the Manhattan. That's the beauty of a cruise. Live each moment as you choose!

 

Glad to see that you are on the same cruise with us. This will be our third Mexican Riviera on the Mercury. We have never experienced Noro or Nano or any other virus on the Mercury.

 

I highly recommend that we start a new thread about our forthcoming cruise, or better yet, join us at the Celebrity Connections cruises, Mercruy 2/09/07.

 

Rick

[Mercruiser]

I took a day off yesterday from adding to this travelogue. Thanks for your patience.

I have posted my photos, with captions, for March 28, "At Sea"; and March 29, Cabo San Lucas. I have also included the embarkation letter and the Celebrity Daily's for March 27 - March 29.

I am organizing and captioning my photos one cruise-day at a time. I took over 600 photos on this trip. In case you haven't noticed by now, I have somewhat of a "Anything worth doing, is worth overdoing" personality. :rolleyes:

For best viewing of these photos, I recommend changing the "style:" option once you bring up the web page. The "style" option is located near the upper right corner of the web page. Click on the drop-down menu next to "style:" and select "journal" from the list of choices.

 

Here is the link to Mexican Riviera Cruise, March 27, 2006 galleries

 

I will be adding photos for the other ports and cruise days over the course of the next week or so. I will post an update as new sections are added.

 

kkruzcrazy: I have included some "Celebrity Daily"s from the first three days. Hopefully, they will have restored all of the activities (midnight buffets, etc.) by the time you go on your May 26 Alaska cruise. It will be interesting to see if the hand-washing precaution notices become a permanent part of the Celebrity Daily.

[stinsowm]

Mercruiser,

 

Enjoying your photos. Especially helpful is the daileys and the menu. : )

 

Do you remember what time the cruise critic party was the first day at sea? Was it at 10? I am definitely wanting to try the margarita tasting at 11. Cabo San Lucas looks beautiful.

 

I am so looking forward to the 28th.

 

Walter

[Mercruiser]

Mercruiser,

 

Enjoying your photos. Especially helpful is the daileys and the menu. : )

 

Do you remember what time the cruise critic party was the first day at sea? Was it at 10? I am definitely wanting to try the margarita tasting at 11. Cabo San Lucas looks beautiful.

 

I am so looking forward to the 28th.

 

Walter

 

Our Cruise Critic Party was the first day at sea, at 10:00 a.m. Our invitation was delivered rather late the night before. And, some of the people did not get their invitations delivered until the next day when it was too late. So you might want to let your Roll Call thread know to inquire at the Guest Relations desk if they don't get their invitations the first night.

[Mercruiser]

Friday, April 7, 2006 – San Diego Disembarkation

 

From yesterday (Thursday, April 6)

“The disembarkation would be accelerated with the first disembarkations starting at 7:00 a.m. Breakfast would be available in both the Palm Springs Café and the Manhattan Restaurant. Our disembarkation time was scheduled for 8:00 a.m.”

We woke up in San Diego at 6:00 a.m. The San Diego city lights were readily visible in the darkness. The sound of jet planes taking off from the nearby airport was a reminder that our vacation was coming to an end.

We finished packing our carryon and were out of our cabin by 7:00 a.m. We went down to the Manhattan Restaurant for our last Eggs Benedict. As I sat facing the aft window, I could see the Dawn Princess entering San Diego harbor for her port call. Dawn Princess was on day 9 of an 11-night Mexican Riviera cruise out of San Francisco.

Our assigned waiting area for the disembarkation was the Celebrity Theater at 8:00 a.m. with Gray 4 luggage tags. We arrived there just before 8:00 a.m. We waited for about 40 minutes while other colors and tag numbers were called. Finally, another family with Gray 4 tags tracked down the bingo guy (Quiton?) who was announcing which groups should precede to the gangway. He replied that all the gray tags had been called a long time ago! Oh well. The Celebrity Theater chairs were a lot more comfortable that what would await us at the San Diego airport.

As we walked down the gangway, I noticed a forklift loading about 10 carpet rolls onto the ship. Mercury has very unique carpet patterns that would have to be specially ordered in advance. I would have to assume that this was just part of normal maintenance unrelated to the bleaching. Actually, the carpeting in the public areas of the ship appeared to be in good shape. I never noticed any bleach stains on the carpets. But then, I didn’t walk around the ship staring at the floor.

When we arrived at the Alaska Airlines check-in counter, there were lots of other Mercury passengers. Some of the people were trying to check in for a 1:40 p.m. flight to Portland. Unfortunately, Alaska Air would not check in passengers more than 4 hours ahead of their flight time. These Portland passengers were stuck with their luggage, waiting in a very crowded check-in area until it was 9:40 a.m.

Our 3-hour wait at the airport involved the usual airport stuff - nothing really worth mentioning. Our flight for Seattle left about 10 minutes late. As we taxied out to the runway, I had a clear view of Mercury docked about a mile away. Despite the challenges and controversies of the “Bleach Cruise”, the sight of Mercury in the distance invoked simultaneous sad and happy feelings. The sadness was like that feeling you have returning from a faraway visit with a dear friend, knowing you will not see them again for years. The happiness came from recalling the good times we had enjoyed over the last eleven days.

EPILOGUE

 

Writing this travelogue has been an enjoyable experience for me. I decided to do this before the trip started. I was partially inspired by Chesterh’s Galaxy Story. His most excellent writings allowed me to vicariously enjoy his trip. I am not nearly as good or ambitious of a writer as Chesterh. But, I wanted to thank Chesterh for his inspiration.

What I did not plan on was finding myself embroiled in the “Bleach Cruise” controversy. The most awkward, and even disappointing part of writing this travelogue was feeling that I had to apologize for not having a sufficiently bad time.

I am reminded of the bumper sticker often seen on old pickup trucks, “The worst day fishing is better than the best day at work!” Perhaps if I had an old truck, my bumper sticker would read, “The worst day cruising is better than the best day on land!” Anyone who can go on even one cruise in their lifetime is a wealthy person by world income standards. I consider myself especially blessed to have been able to go on two cruises thus far. If the March 27, Mercury cruise was the “cruise from hell” then it is a hell that I would gladly endure on a regular basis.

THE END